He was focused on his date once again, not paying attention to me at all like before. Yet he hadn’t been surprised to run into me out in the hallway. It was as if he’d been waiting for me.
Taking a page out of the ass’ playbook, I focused back on my date, praying that I wouldn’t ruin the rest of the night.
I tried for light conversation, and I failed. The poor guy kept repeating his questions to me because I couldn’t focus on him. My attention kept diverting to Kalen and his unwavering gaze on the woman with him. Why was that a turn-on?
My date was about to give me a taste of his chocolate cake with pears and cranberry sorbet when a clatter had everyone looking around. One of the servers dropped some silverware while clearing a nearby table.
As I looked up, I caught Kalen’s humorous gaze. That’s when I noticed the stockbroker’s hand covering mine.
Unable to stop myself, I pulled my hand free and pushed my hair back in order to temper my date’s confused expression.
Why was I letting that man get to me? I placed my hands in my lap and smiled at the guy across the table from me.
Soon after dessert was gone and the bill paid, we stood to leave. My stockbroker helped me out of my chair. Since Kalen was still seated, there was no way around passing by him. I felt my date’s hand touch my lower back in a gentlemanly way to guide me out of the room. Kalen stood just as we neared, wedging himself between us.
“Sorry,” he said. His accent was utterly sexy and totally unremorseful. I turned back in time for Kalen to bend down quickly and whisper to me, “Sweet dreams.”
Open-mouthed, I watched my one-night stand not miss a beat to help his date out of her chair. I quickly turned away and moved at a respectable pace just out of reach.
Damn him.
Six
Lizzy lounged on her chair as I entered the apartment.
“How’d it go?” she asked with a smirk on her face.
I dropped to the couch and sighed.
“It was going well until Kalen.”
“Kalen?” she asked.
“He’s the guy—”
“The guy,” she said with wide eyes. “From last night?”
I nodded and told her the story.
“No way,” she said, exaggeratedly dragging out the two words.
“Yes. I can hardly believe it myself. Out of all the places for me to see him again. He cornered me out in the hall and expects me to go out with him tomorrow night.”
She sat up straight in her chair. “It’s fate. New York is huge. For you to see him again and so soon. It’s meant to be. You so have to do it.”
My immediate response was to shake my head no.
“Come on, Bails. Don’t tell me you’re into the cute, dimpled Wilshire of the Park Avenue Wilshires? He was cute, but far too sweet.”
I doubted with how things had gone that the guy would ever want to see me again. He hadn’t even tried to kiss me goodnight or even suggest he’d call, which I’d been grateful for.
“Besides, Kalen’s perfect. With the luck you’re having, you’ll run into that turd Scott and he’ll see you with someone way hotter than he is.”
The thought almost made me smile, but insecurities that ran too deep made me hesitate.
“Scott wouldn’t care. He blames me for his cheating.”
Outrage filled Lizzy’s expression, but I cut her off before she could rant on my behalf. I decided to tell her a truth I’d kept to myself since the breakup.
“He said I was boring.”
As my heart thudded in my chest at the embarrassing admission, she sat there open-mouthed.
“Boring how?” she asked.
I closed my eyes and found the ground, unable to look her in the eye when I said it.
“In bed.”
I finally stopped picking at my nails and met her gaze.
“Okay, spill. What did he want you to do? A little bondage, maybe a spanking…”
I shook my head. Needing to free myself from what I’d been holding inside, I admitted, “He liked me to dress up in a short plaid skirt, a button-down shirt tied at the waist, and pigtails.”
She chittered. “Really. I can totally see him asking for that. The guy was probably rejected by the head cheerleader in high school.” She laughed at her joke. “But that’s not all bad, if you’re into that kind of thing.”
I shrugged. “That wasn’t a big deal. I was okay with that. It’s when he asked me to call him Daddy that I drew the line.”
My skin crawled at the thought. Saying that word made me think of my father and ewww, I just couldn’t.
“Gross,” she said. “I mean, to each his own. But just because you don’t have daddy issues doesn’t make you boring.”
I nodded, though I didn’t wholeheartedly believe it.
“Bails,” she said, drawing my attention. “Scott and his tiny dick can’t possibly compare to the hotter than fuck Kalen wanting to see you again.”