Free Kate Sherwood - Dark Horse 2.4 - The Filly by Kate Sherwood Page B

forgive him. At least the kid's got enough sense to know that he doesn't deserve to be anywhere near Tat. But she's going to start dating someday, and it's not like anybody else is going to be better than Brian, so Dan kicks himself into gear. "You look beautiful, Tat." That gets him a smile, at least, and then she looks over at Evan, who has refocused his attention on Brian.
"You're going to be driving with my sister in the car, Brian." Evan's

The Filly | Kate Sherwood
    voice is deep and strong. "That means that you go below the speed limit, you check, double-check, and triple-check for every possible problem, you keep your eyes on the road and your hands on the wheel. " Brian nods emphatically at each new requirement. "And you don't touch a drop of alcohol, don't even be in the next room as someone who's smoking up…."
    Brian's eyes widen. "No, I would never!"
Evan seems satisfied, and turns to look at his sister. "You do look beautiful, Brat." He smiles at her. "Dance is over at eleven, right? So you'll be home by quarter past?" Tat looks at Brian, and they both nod in unison. Evan frowns a little, and looks over at Jeff, then Dan. "Careful driving, no drinking, curfew… what am I forgetting?”
"You've got your phone?" Jeff asks Tat, and she holds up her little purse in confirmation.
"And you're just going to the dance, nowhere before or after, so if someone was to, say, drop by the school, they'd find you in the gym at all times?"
"Evan, don't you dare… " Tat sounds mortified, but also fierce. Her expression softens as she turns her head. "Dan, please don't let him… " She takes a step forwards as if in supplication. "It's me and Brian, Dan… "
Dan isn't sure why this is his role, but he nods. "And you're both smart and trustworthy. Right, Evan?" He waits for Evan's nod, which he finally gets, before turning back to Tat. "Robyn and Chris are going out, but she said she'd keep her phone on and pick up if you called, so if you need girl-talk, you can call her, okay?" Tat nods, and Dan shifts his attention to Brian. "And you've got my number, so if anything goes weird, if it's something you don't want to call your parents about, call me. It doesn't have to be a big deal, just… anything. Seriously." He feels like a bit of a hypocrite, setting himself up as the voice of wisdom for teenage dating, but at least he's got lots of ideas of what not to do.
Jeff steps into the room now, taking his turn to question Brian. "You've got a full tank of gas? And the car's in good repair?" "Uh… like, half a tank… at least. And, yeah, it's my mom's car, it's

The Filly | Kate Sherwood
only two years old, and she's totally uptight about it…." Brian's hands twitch down again, grabbing hold of the seams of his pants.
    Jeff nods sagely. "And the back-up plan? In case the car breaks down?"
Brian seems a little lost. "Uh… we're just going into town, so… I guess I'd just pull over and call somebody." He frowns. "I'd probably call my mom for that, 'cause it's her car. But then maybe I'd call here, too, just to keep you in the loop?"
Jeff seems to like that, and he lets Evan take over. "What if there's a problem at the dance? Somebody tries to start a fight, or does something that might be dangerous?"
Brian frowns a little. "Well, there's chaperones at the dance… and, you know, it's a public school, but it's not like it's rough or anything… there's not really going to be anyone dangerous there." The kid pulls himself back. "But, uh, if something did happen, I'd just get the chaperones, make sure Tat's okay… "
"Or I could make sure that Brian 's okay," Tat contributes. "Come on, guys, it's not like I'm helpless… "
"No?" Dan asks. "Okay, smarty-pants, answer me this… what are you gonna do if the dance is attacked by dinosaurs? Huh? Got a plan for that, Missy-Miss? T-Rexes in the parking lot, Velociraptors in the halls… what're you gonna do then?"
Tat grins, and shifts her eyes towards Brian. "Can you believe that he never