Bait for a Gentleman novel Chapter 46

"Oof—" He grabbed his chest, stumbled back a step, and looked up.

Willow had also stumbled back a half-step, a glass of orange juice in her hand.

She glared at him. "Do you not watch where you're going?"

"You popped out of nowhere." Carter adjusted his collar, looking up. "Hey, aren't you the one from last night—"

Willow raised an eyebrow. "Is your memory really that bad, Mr. Garrison? We drank together until the middle of the night, and you didn't even remember my name?"

"Just messing with you, Ms. Sinclair." Carter leaned against the railing, his eyes doing a slow sweep over her face. "You definitely made an impression. After all..."

He paused. "Not many women can go shot for shot with me for hours before passing out."

Last night, the two of them had a massive drinking contest at the bar. Willow had quietly matched him round for round, and right before she finally collapsed on the table, she had slurred out, "Another one."

Then she passed out, flipping him the bird on her way down.

In the end, Carter had been cursed at and was still forced to carry her back.

Willow shot back, "Stop barking. Are you man enough to go another round tonight?"

"We can talk about tonight later. Since you're here, let's clear up last night first." Carter leaned in closer, determined to settle the score. "Who was it that said, 'Whoever passes out first is a dog'? Do you remember?"

Willow's expression didn't change. "So what?"

"Nothing much." Carter smiled, his eyes curving in amusement. "So, who's the dog? Let's hear you bark."

Willow stared at him for a second, and then—

"Woof."

Carter froze.

"There. Woofed." Willow took a sip of her orange juice. "Satisfied, Mr. Garrison?"

The sea breeze blew past, teasing a few loose strands of hair against her cheek.

Carter opened his mouth, entirely unsure of what to say for once in his life.

He had run in elite circles his entire life. What kind of woman hadn't he seen? The overly affectionate ones, the whiny ones, the ones playing hard to get—he knew every trick in the book. But this one...

She actually barked?

"No..." He recovered after a couple of seconds, chuckling. "I was just joking with you."

Willow stopped midway through her eye-roll, completely thrown by his demand. "...Are you insane?"

"Too scared?"

Willow looked up at him.

He looked handsome enough, but the way he talked was so incredibly obnoxious, he practically begged to be punched.

"Fine," she nodded. "And what if you lose?"

Carter looked entirely too confident. "I won't."

"But what if?"

"If..." Carter pondered for a second. "If I lose, I'll be your dog for a whole month."

Willow narrowed her eyes. "Deal."

She turned to leave, taking two steps before glancing back. "Eight o'clock tonight, at the bar. Don't be late."

"Don't worry, only a coward shows up late."