“Then we’re definitely hitting up this place I saw yesterday. They make all their drinks with their own rye whiskey. Maybe we can get a pitcher of mint juleps and then go buy hats,” he mused.

Maggie laughed.

“I do think you should sleep with Sy,” he said, picking up his iced tea.

“Why?”

“First of all, it would be a waste not to. He’s great. He’s smart. He works hard. He looks like he stepped off the September page in a calendar of hot guys with rescue dogs. He’s nice to his crew. He’s not intimidated by your success.”

“Maybe that’s because he didn’t know what YouTube was before I asked him if he’d be comfortable being on it.”

Dean sighed in appreciation. “The whole anti–social media thing is kinda hot all by itself. Like he’s too busy whitewater rafting and smelling roses to worry about a bunch of strangers online.”

“A bunch of strangers online are why we’re in business,” she pointed out.

“Then there’s the whole chemistry thing,” he continued, ignoring her. “These smoldering looks of ‘I wanna rip your face off’ that pass between you guys. And the way he watches you when you’re not looking. It’s like you’re a pretty iced cupcake, and he’s a hungry, horny lion ready for his next meal.”

She snorted. “That’s the most disturbing metaphor you’ve ever come up with.”

“Admit it,” he said, poking her with his elbow. “He’s your cupcake, too. Who doesn’t want a guy who’s easygoing and relaxed on the outside and then BAM!”

Maggie jumped when he slammed his hand on the coffee table.

“I’m here to take care of you, woman, whether you want me to or not,” he said in a deep baritone.

“I don’t want to be taken care of! I don’t like how he thinks he can handle me,” she admitted to her salad.

“Magpie, you need someone who can handle you. We all need someone who can handle us. The problem isn’t the handling; it’s when it’s not for your own good.”

“That doesn’t sound accurate. Shouldn’t we all be able to handle ourselves?”

“What fun is handling ourselves? It’s more fun to handle and be handled.”

She wrinkled her nose. “Now you’re just being gross.”

“Sex is a natural, healthy part of life. Some would argue it’s the best part of life. Of course, ‘some’ wouldn’t be you, since you’re too chicken to jump the hot guy.”

“He wants me to apologize for something that wasn’t wrong,” she complained.

“What did you do?”

“He thinks I should have called the cops and him or you when Cody and his friends showed up and tried to get in the house.”

Dean was suspiciously quiet.