Free Just Fooling Around: Darcy's Dark Day/Reg's Rescue\Cam's Catastrophe/Devon's Dilemma by Julie Kenner, Kathleen O'Reilly Page B

framed.
    She’d told Bella the truth about it, though. A fact that she was now regretting.
    Evan, she realized, hadn’t said another word. He was looking at her with an odd expression. Like sadness. Or resignation.
    “It is him,” Bella pressed. “Isn’t it?”
    Darcy ignored Bella, opening her mouth instead to ask Evan if he was okay.
    He got the words out before her, though. “Yes,” he said to Bella. “That’s me in the picture.”
    “Well, color my world,” Bella said, laughing. She turned from him to Darcy. “So much for that curse, huh? You’re just oozing with good luck.”
    Darcy bit the inside of her cheek and forced herself not to look at Evan.
    “Although, maybe not so lucky after all,” Bella added.
    “What?” Darcy asked, alarm bells ringing. “What do you mean?”
    “The tickets,” Bella said. “For the show. For tonight.” She licked her lips and took a step backward, as if she was preparing to slam the door against the threat of an onslaught. “I know how much we spent and how much you wanted to go, but Darcy, I can’t find them anywhere.”

4
    “H E’S GORGEOUS ,” B ELLA said, holding a tissue over her face.
    “I can’t believe you lost the tickets!” Darcy was on her hands and knees, searching under Bella’s bed.
    “Will you forget it? I’ve done that.” Bella blew her nose hard and flopped on the bed. “Come on. Take pity on a dying woman. Tell me what’s going on.”
    Darcy scowled. “Nothing’s going on. Except that I kissed him. And he kissed me back.” She made a face.
    “And—”
    “And it was amazing.”
    Bella’s brows lifted. “Either I’m sicker than I thought, or I’ve forgotten what the after-effects of an amazing kiss look like. Because honey, I’m not seeing the excitement.”
    “He blew me off,” Darcy said, her throat thick. She closed her eyes, willing herself not to cry.
    “Oh, sweetie. That’s horrible. After all this time, and when your dream finally comes true—”
    “Please. Don’t rub it in.”
    “Did he say why?”
    “That’s the really horrible part. He said it was because of Cam.”
    “Cam?”
    “Because he’s my brother’s best friend.”
    “That’s it?” Bella asked.
    Darcy shrugged. “That’s what he said.”
    Bella hugged a pillow to her chest, her expression thoughtful.
    “Do you believe him? Or do you think that was just an excuse because he doesn’t feel the same way you do?”
    Her wounded pride made her want to say yes. But the memory of that kiss made her speak honestly. “No,” she said. “I think he wants me, too. I can’t believe he’s stepping back because of my big brother—it’s not like we’re in junior high any more. But what the hell am I supposed to do?”
    “Force the issue,” Bella said, her grin wicked.
    “What? Say I don’t believe him about Cam?”
    “You could,” Bella said. “Or you could just play on the fact that he’s a man. Push until he falls, and make sure there’s a mattress when he hits the ground.”
     
    “I’ M SORRY ABOUT YOUR PLAY ,” Evan said as they maneuvered down the stairs. Darcy and Bella had spent a good half-hour tearing the apartment apart with no luck. “We could call around—maybe we could find a few seats for tonight.”
    She looked at him, her smile so sweet that he wanted to pull her close and hold her. “It’s okay. The show’s completely sold out. Besides,” she added with a smile, “now I’ve got you for the whole evening.” She took a step closer to him, making the air sizzle and his self-control falter. “Maybe you could buy me a drink later?”
    “Be happy to,” he said. “What do you want to donow? Shopping? That was your original plan, right?” He wasn’t thrilled with the idea of traipsing through Bloomingdales, but if that’s what she wanted, he’d survive.
    She tilted her head to the side, her finger pressed to her lower lip as she looked him up and down, her scan slow and deliberate. And although it was probably