Read Online Dating the Guy Next Door by Amanda Ashby - Free Book Online Page B

wasn’t as romantic as he thought, but for whatever reason Emma seemed perfectly satisfied with his answer.
    â€œWell, let me tell you something. I’m your sister and I love you, but Kate only met you yesterday so she has no idea how amazing and wonderful you are. And trust me, if you go with your list of crazy questions and your desire to be a father within a set time limit, she’ll run a mile. So, if you want my advice, throw out the list and just get to know each other. Test the waters, have some fun and then if you think that the relationship has legs you can sit down and have the conversation with her, without terrifying the pants off her.”
    For a moment Matt was silent as he considered the possibility before finally nodding his head. “Okay. Since your advice can’t be worse than Keith’s, I’ll give it a go.”
    â€œThank you,” his sister said before sighing. “I can hear crying, which means my five minutes is up.”
    â€œOkay. Take care and tell the twins there’s a trip to the movies when they’re disease free, and I’ll call you tomorrow.”
    â€œWill do,” Emma said before finishing the call. Matt then tried to turn his attention back to the report but instead found himself writing a list of possible ways to ask Kate out on a date. At the back of his mind he could hear Emma trying to tell him that romance wasn’t like that. That it was messy and spontaneous, but Matt ignored it. He didn’t care what his sister thought because he knew that the best way to get what he wanted was to plan it, and right now he wanted to get to know Kate more than he’d wanted anything in a long, long time.
    ***
    â€œHow much?” Kate held the cell phone away from her ear as if hoping that it would somehow change the price that Bernie had quoted her. Unsurprisingly, it didn’t.
    â€œLike I explained, that’s how much it costs to get it removed,” Bernie said in a dour voice. “Oh, and you’ll need to move out for at least two days.”
    Of course she would. Kate sat down in the old chair in the corner of her studio. It had been left behind by the previous owner and she normally used it when she wanted to sketch, but it turned out that it was also useful for apocalyptic events such as mind-blowing expenses.
    â€œSo, when you can do it?” She used her spare arm to grip the side of the chair as she sucked in a lungful of calming air.
    â€œOn the twenty-eighth, which is in about three weeks. So, do you want to go ahead with it?”
    â€œI do,” she said before she could change her mind. Once the call was finished she jumped to her feet and tried to shake off the nerves that were now racing up and down her arms. She’d just hired a builder to come and do work that she couldn’t afford to pay for.
    Unless she got the commission, she reminded herself as she walked back to her workbench. She’d been up since four to try and get everything finished in time, but by her calculations she still needed at least another ten days. Which was a pity since her meeting was in twenty-four hours. It wasn’t good math.
    She rubbed her tired eyes and realized there was only one way she was going to get through the day. With lots of coffee. Unfortunately, her coffee maker had gone the way of her dishwasher, so the only way she would be getting caffeine was at the diner down the road.
    Kate gulped. Leaving her gallery meant that she might run the risk of running into Matt, which would definitely be a problem. Especially considering her reaction on Monday evening. What had she been thinking? But of course she knew the answer to that one. She hadn’t been thinking at all. She’d been acting on impulse, just the way she’d done with Harry, and look how that had turned out. She’d ended up alone and heartbroken.
    Even worse. She was the one who didn’t want a relationship. The one who didn’t want