Nick sighed. He thought he should tell her the truth, but he knew it wasn’t the time. She would not believe that he liked her and wanted to be with her. She would feel that he was trying insult her intelligence. She needed to know that he didn’t have a low opinion of her, and he was not a woman hater. Nick decided to give her a partial truth.
“I felt left out.” She was looking at him now and he pressed on before he lost his nerve. “I don’t fit in well with the other VPs. Everyone I encounter seems to know and like you. We just met yesterday. My first apology didn’t seem to be going well; then, my dad showed up. You two seemed genuinely happy to see each other, and none of that was directed towards me. From either one of you. It had nothing to do with your race or gender.”
Nick’s cellphone starting ringing through his vehicle’s Bluetooth. It surprised them both, but Nick was so caught off guard that he dropped his phone between his seat and door when he tried to answer it. Shit. He didn’t want Kalilah to hear his call, but he could not let it go to voicemail. Since Dex’s schedule was so complex, this was the only time he could talk to him. Reluctantly, he hit answer on the steering wheel.
“Hey Dex, I am…”
Dex cut him off before he could give him any warning that the conversation wasn’t private.
“Hey big bro. It’s time for the daily status report. Are you still a virgin?”
Nick was perfectly happy with dying right at the moment. If he wasn’t for his concern for Kalilah’s safety, he would have opened his door and rolled into traffic. If Dex lived in the state, he would drop Kalilah off at work and drive to wherever Dex was just to choke him. Kalilah shifted in her seat and looked out the window. Nick was pretty sure his face was scarlet red.
Before he could diffuse the situation. His dear sister chimed in. “Dex! Don’t be so brash. You ask him that every day. I’m sure if he’d lost it sometime between now and yesterday, he would have at least texted you.”
Nick tried again. “Guys, it’s not…”
Dex interrupted again. “Nick, this isn’t healthy for Little Nick. He’s gonna pack his shit and leave. Little man hasn’t seen any action, and he’s about to be thirty! What about your stalker? What happened with that? Was it a woman? If so, jump on that pronto buddy.”
April 8, 2016 at 6:58 AM, Dex Sinclair signed his death warrant. Nick was gripping the steering wheel so tightly; his knuckles were white. The only solace at that moment was that they were turning into the Sinclair Enterprise complex.
This time, Kalilah was the one that spoke. “One, I’m not a stalker. Two, you can’t make plans for my body. Nick, just drop me off here in the front. You guys can finish in private.” Nick pulled in front of the building, and she quickly gathered her bags and got out.
“Kalilah…” She held up a hand.
“Thanks for ride, Nick.”
She closed the door and hurried into the building. Nick was saddened by the hasty retreat, he thought he might never get to speak to her again. His sadness was momentarily replaced with a mixture of fury and extreme embarrassment.
“Nick?” DD tested the silence. Nick’s blood boiled.
“DEX! WHAT THE FUCK…”
Kalilah didn’t stop speed walking until she made it to her office. She closed the door and leaned against it for a moment.
“A virgin?” she whispered into the darkness.
Kalilah was no therapist, but that explained a lot. His extreme lashing out was because the guy was wound entirely too tight. And of course, he would be overly protective of his own virtue. No one wanted to lose it to a gold-digger.
She felt a bevy of different emotions. His being a virgin made her more intrigued, but the way she found out made her feel sorry for him. There was nothing wrong with being a virgin but being outed by your sibling in the middle of an argument with a co-worker had to be ranked extremely high on the awkward scale.
Kalilah was also baffled that she could be so drawn to a man that probably didn’t know what to do with a woman. She was hyper aware of him from the moment she climbed in his SUV. He smelled so good and his hair was more controlled because it was still slightly damp from his shower. He still hadn’t shaved and his glasses were in their usual place.
She liked him just like that, but his potential was amazing. She knew that he would clean up nicely to be panty dropping gorgeous like his dad if he wanted to. She’d kept her arms folded to keep from touching him. His vehicle was far more organized than she expected.
Nick was full of surprises. She was angry with him that morning, but the longer she was in close proximity to him the less angry she became. His ability to remember her favorite bakery from their encounter yesterday was impressive. His feeling left out squeezed at her heart, but they still had to finish their conversation whether he liked it or not.
Kalilah sat at her desk and ate her breakfast while she prepared for the morning meeting. She decided she would give him the weekend to recover from his embarrassment, and she would be taking a trip to the first floor if she didn’t hear from him Monday.
Nick didn’t realize he knew so many insults until Dex received every single one he had while DD just giggled in the background. Nick originally had no intention of seeing Kalilah for a long time, but he couldn’t help but wonder if the universe was trying to punish him for something. She forgot her cellphone. He thought about leaving it with her assistant or giving it to his dad, but he decided to be a man and deliver it himself. If anything, he would get a read on her mood.
After a tentative knock, he heard her grant access. He pushed open the door. Her back was to him and she was grabbing documents from her personal printer. He prayed that she wouldn’t look at him with pity or disgust. Instead, she seemed surprised that he was there.
“You forgot your cellphone.” He lifted his hand and placed it on her desk.
“Oh right! Thank you.” She sat down and started typing on her computer. “I have a meeting in five minutes.”
“Will you need me to take you home?” he asked even though he knew the answer.