Inseparable

“The asshole? Is that what you call him?”

“I’ve always called him that,” she said, shaking her head. “I just think it’s now safe to call him that around you instead of in conversation when you aren’t listening.”

“Just don’t tell your sister,” I said.

“Of course not,” Lindsey replied. “I don’t really even talk to her. She thought it was a betrayal when I took your side during the whole drama. I don’t know why she would think I would stand by her after she slept with your boyfriend. Blood may be thicker than water, but I consider you my sister, too. She doesn’t need to know about anything going on in your life.”

It was crazy to me that Nathan owned the company that Lindsey’s fiancé worked for. All the past drama aside, I was really excited to get to know him better. Not only did he know Jordan, but he was taking me to the place where they got engaged. I was starting to think that fate was reaching down and playing a hand in all of these things. I pushed that thought down, though, remembering how dangerous it could be to think of relationships like they were designed. You tended to lose track of reality and that was when you missed the things that could be huge red flags. I had done that once in my life, and once was enough.

“I just want you to be careful,” she said, smiling at the waiter as he took her plate. “I’ve heard that Nathan is a bit of playboy.”

“I think I am finally in a place where I can handle myself,” I said. “Though I do love you and thank you for being such a great friend.”

“Always,” she said. “So, are we done with all the wedding talk?”

“I think so,” I said, scanning my notes.

“Good, let’s figure out what you are going to wear tomorrow night,” Lindsey said.

Chapter 4

Nathan

When I was done with work for the day, I grabbed my suit jacket and raced out of the office. I had to get ready for my date with Amanda, and I didn’t want to be late picking her up. This was going to be our very first real date, and I wanted to impress her in every way. When I got home, I jumped in the shower and picked out a nice suit to wear to dinner. I smoothed my hair back and made sure that every thread was in the right place. I had to admit, I looked pretty good in a five-thousand-dollar suit, even though I hated paying that much for it. I might be a billionaire, but I was picky about what I spent money on.

As I stood in front of the mirror picking lint off the bottom of my suit jacket, I noticed my stomach churning. I looked up at myself and took a deep breath, realizing that I was a lot more nervous than I thought I would be. This girl had kind of turned my world upside down, and only in the blink of an eye. She was beautiful, smart, ambitious, and sexy in a way that made me hot just by the touch of her hand. Usually, I would wait a week before calling a girl, but with Amanda, I had to see her again right away. I was nervous that she would be put off by my forwardness, but on the phone, she sounded just as excited to see me as I was to see her. Taking her to Iliad’s was a big deal to me because I never took dates there, not that I had very many dates anyway.

I shook the nerves off and finished getting ready, seeing that I was cutting it close on time. I headed outside to the street where the limo for the evening was waiting. The driver opened the door for me and smiled as I climbed inside. I thought it would be a nice touch to pick her up in a fancy limo instead of just a town car. When I got to her place, she came to the door, stunning me in a little black dress that sat off her shoulders. It was tight and hugged all of her curves, sitting right below the knee. She was wearing six-inch heels, and her hair cascaded over her shoulders. She was beautiful.

“You look amazing,” I said, leading her outside to the limo.

“Thank you,” she said, her eyes wide at the car parked outside.

“I thought it would be nice to ride in style,” I said, helping her inside.

“Did you know that my best friend’s fiancé works for you?” she asked. “His name is Jordan.”

“Jordan,” I said, laughing. “It’s a really small world.”

“That is what I said when I found out,” she replied. “Lindsey told me what he did but never the company he worked for, so it didn’t click until I mentioned it at lunch yesterday. I couldn’t help but think how strange it was that we were connected in that way.”

“I am pretty sure Jordan asked Lindsey to marry him at the restaurant we are going to tonight,” I said, thinking about it.

“He did,” she said excitedly. “I mean, I wasn’t there, but when I told Lindsey where we were going, she freaked out. She loves the place.”

“I don’t think I have ever met Lindsey,” I said. “I’ve heard all about her, though. Jordan is head over heels in love, and we all knew she was it when he first started talking about her. She is a model, right?”

“Yeah, she landed her first gig when she was like sixteen and has been doing it ever since,” she explained. “It’s funny to think of her that way, for me at least. I’ve known her my whole life.”

“I’m sure she is an amazing woman,” I said. “Jordan is a hell of a guy.”

“He is, and they are perfect or each other,” she said dreamily.

“I am actually going to their wedding,” I said, laughing. “I hope you didn’t talk them into paisley.”

She laughed. “No, I did not fulfill your request on the paisley,” she said. “There is enough craziness going on with everything.”

“You are doing a lot of the planning with her?”