Free Darwin's Natural Selection by Katie Allen

scornful noise. “How in the world is that a bad thing?”
    “Well…” Tom hesitated, chewing the inside of his bottom lip, but he knew he couldn’t get away with not telling Anne now. She was locked on and would get it out of him one way or another. “He’s a ten, right?”
    She groaned. “Not your stupid hotness scale again.”
    He ignored that, talking over her second annoyed groan. “I’m a six—and a six with issues. Why did Darwin, in his beautiful ten-ness, even ask me out?”
    “Please,” Anne scoffed. “You are so not a six.”
    “I’m a five ?” That hurt.
    “Of course not!” She gave a huff of exasperated laughter. “You’re an eight on a bad day and a nine-and-a-half when you smile. What are you talking about with this six shit? Now the issues part… I won’t argue with that.”
    He couldn’t hold back a pleased grin, despite her comment about his issues. “I have to subtract a couple points off your estimates though, with you being my sister and all.”
    “Actually,” she corrected, “you should add a couple points instead. Since I’m your sister, I see and tell you about all your flaws.”
    Tom laughed. “That’s true.”
    “Of course it is,” she teased. “I’ve always been smarter than you.”
    He snorted.
    “Got to go—my two o’clock appointment just knocked. Call him.” On that bossy note, she ended the call.
    Buoyed by his raised hotness score—even if the judge was his sister—Tom called Darwin’s number. He was all ready with his “hello,” determined to not go dumbass mute this time, when Darwin answered.
    “’Bout time,” he growled.
    Tom blinked. “Uh…what?”
    “You were supposed to call me yesterday .” It sounded as if there was a trace of humor lacing Darwin’s words but Tom was still thrown off his game.
    “But…” he stammered. “I…uh, I was waiting…” Tom couldn’t figure out a way to finish that sentence without sounding like the most high-maintenance princess who’d ever lived, so he just let the words end. To his relief, the man laughed.
    “I was under strict instructions not to call,” Darwin said. “Figured you’d gotten what you wanted out of me and then tossed your cell into a fish tank somewhere, so I’d never hear from you again.”
    “Why would I throw my phone in a fish tank?” Tom asked, bewildered. “I like my phone.”
    “So I couldn’t call you,” Darwin explained, as if it was the most logical thing in the world. “Well, I could call you but only the fish would answer.”
    Although he was still bemused, Tom played along. “And they’d tell you that I wasn’t there and to take a hint and quit calling.”
    Heaving a deep sigh, Darwin said, “It’s a hard thing to hear from a fish.”
    Tom laughed. “You’re nuts.”
    At the other man’s noncommittal sound, Tom could imagine Darwin’s shrug, the rise and fall of his meaty shoulders. He squirmed in his chair at the thought of Darwin’s ripped body. Tom shook his head with a silent sigh. He was pretty far gone when the thought of a shrug made him horny.
    “Go out with me again.”
    Tom blinked. That was direct. “Why do you even want to go out with me again after what happened Saturday night?”
    Darwin was quiet for a few moments. “I liked what happened on Saturday night,” he finally said, a thread of hurt woven through his words.
    “Oh! I’m not talking about that part of Saturday night,” he hurried to say, flushing with heat. “I just meant the other part, when I, well, kind of freaked out on you. Earlier than that part—the good part, I mean.” He rolled his eyes. Tom didn’t know why he was even bothering to talk when his words weren’t making any sense.
    Despite his lack of coherency, he couldn’t seem to stop talking, however. “The later part—the one you’re talking about—that was great. Better than great. I mean, I haven’t come like that since…” He trailed off because he couldn’t remember the last time he’d