Page 22 of Just Another Meet Cute
At least that was the plan.
Glancing at Ian on my left and Ryan on my right, I struggled to stifle a heavy sigh. Why did these things always happen to me?
The previews had already started when we came in, so the entire theater was pitch-black. It took my eyes a minute or two to adjust as I blindly followed Ryan up the stairs. It wasn’t until he moved aside to let me into the aisle first that I saw Ian sitting right there with Linh on his other side.
Judging by the surprised look on his face, Ian wasn’t expecting to sit with me either.
I took a step back and stumbled into Ryan. Holding the popcorn bucket to his chest, his other hand landed on my waist to steady me. “Are you okay?” he asked in a low voice.
“Yeah, it’s just …” My voice trailed off as someone in the row above us grumbled about not being able to see.
Ian glanced at the empty seat beside him before looking back up. Raising an eyebrow, his lips curled up into a tiny half smile, then whispered, “Something wrong?”
With that unspoken challenge, I lifted my chin. “Nope, everything’s perfect.” As I sat, I made sure to kick his leg, giving him my own half smile when he grunted in pain. Resting my elbow on the armrest between us, I leaned over. “Is there something wrong with you?”
He clenched his chin. “I’m perfect, too. Want some popcorn?”
I had already started reaching toward his bucket when Ryan spoke up. “It’s okay. She can share with me.”
My hand snapped back like a rubber band.
Damn. That’s the second time that Ryan caught me being overly friendly with his brother.
If you could call that being friendly. But still, he thought we met just last week.
He didn’t know that we had been texting and seeing each other nearly every day.
And that I’ve seen Ian more than Ryan himself these days.
It didn’t help that Linh chose that exact moment to peer around Ian to smirk at me. She also mouthed something that looked like, Stop flirting , but maybe that was just my imagination. Or my guilt.
My face flushed. Thank God for the dark theater.
I wouldn’t be surprised if she orchestrated the whole seating arrangement for her own amusement. Especially because she pursed her lips and fully faced us instead of the screen, like we were more interesting. And that’s saying a lot, considering her love for Tom Holland.
Definitely suspicious.
Luckily, Ryan didn’t seem to notice anything was wrong as he handed me the popcorn. I grabbed a handful and popped a couple of pieces into my mouth. “Yum, perfectly buttered,” I murmured.
“Kathy showed us the hack to spread the butter with the straw a few months ago. Works every time,” Ryan said with a wink. “Having a sister can be useful sometimes.”
Ian coughed on my other side. “Just don’t ever admit it to her.”
The tension and awkwardness melted away for the moment.
Glancing back and forth at them grinning their adorable smiles at me, I couldn’t help smiling back.
It was impossible not to. Especially when Ian and Ryan were both sitting there looking all handsome, like they were in an Abercrombie ad or stars of some K-drama.
Being between them was pretty much like I was in some kind of delicious cute-boy sandwich. Mayo on the side.
Ryan dug something out of his pocket. “Here. For your popcorn.”
It was a bag of peanut butter M&M’s.
My mind flashed back to our second date at the movies. The concession stand only had regular M&M’s, and I had told Ryan how my grandma loved eating peanut butter M&M’s with her popcorn. Since we were at the same theater, I didn’t check for them this time. “Where did you get this?”
“I picked it up before we got here.” With a shrug, he shyly scratched the back of his head. “I remembered how sad you were last time when they didn’t have them.”
Ian snapped his fingers. “Is that why you made us stop at Walgreens on the way?”
“I can’t let Nina be disappointed on two movie dates in a row.” Ryan held out his hand, palm side up.
Touched that he remembered something so small, I reached out to take his hand. My fingers curled around his in a tight grasp, and he gave me a bright smile that probably could have melted the M&M’s on its own.
Suddenly feeling tingles on the back of my neck that had nothing to do with Ryan’s warm hand in mine, I glanced over at Ian.
Something flickered across his face for a split second, and he pulled back. His lips twitched into a mocking smile. “I guess I’ll stop butting in on your date. Pretend I’m not even here.”
My face flushed for a moment. I had forgotten that this was a date. And I should not have been grinning at my date’s brother or feeling disappointed that he moved away. Or noticing how the brief flashes of light bouncing off the giant screen only highlighted how handsome he was.
Look away, Nina, look away.
Ryan laughed and reached over to give Ian a fist bump. “Thanks, bro.” He tugged me a little closer to him. Even though the armrest was digging into my side, I leaned my head against his firm shoulder and tried to relax.
The theater was dark, but I could feel rather than see Ian’s eyes on me again. Not a constant stare. Just a few almost-burning glances here and there that I refused to return, no matter how tempting it was.