“You’re a bad influence,” I teased.
“That’s the rumor. Go to sleep, angel. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”
I grinned, loving whenever he called me the nickname he and Grant had coined for me.
“And hey,” he said right before I said good-bye and hung up. “Anything from Derek lately? You haven’t said.”
I thanked my lucky stars that Ryan asked this on the phone and not in person. He had an innate sense of when I wasn’t being completely honest, and he would have called me on this the second the next words left my mouth.
“Nope. It’s been quiet.”
“He can’t have just disappeared, right?”
“Probably not.” I swallowed, my mouth dry from the lie.
Ryan cleared his throat. “You’d tell me, right? If he was bothering you, you’d tell me?”
“Of course I’d tell you. If there was anything to tell,” I said, trying to sound convincing.
“All right. I’ll see you tomorrow night for dinner. Can I bring anything?”
“Nope. Just you.”
“Just me, it is. Sleep well, angel.” And before I said another word, he ended the call.
I hated lying to Ryan, but I didn’t want him worrying about my ex-boyfriend, the same way I didn’t want my parents to worry. I couldn’t stand the idea of being the cause of so much stress, and until there was actually something to be worried about, I planned to keep everything to myself.
The other night when I got off work, Derek was waiting by my car in the parking garage. Before I got close enough to ask him what he was doing there, he walked off, giving me the evil eye. Just as he reached the ramp, he stopped and turned in my direction to point a finger at me.
“What do you want, Derek?” I’d shouted at him. My voice echoed off the concrete walls, repeating his name back at me.
He broke out into an evil laugh before walking down the ramp and disappearing from sight.
I had no idea what it all meant, but I refused to be intimidated by him. He wanted me to know that he knew where I worked, but I wasn’t surprised by that. He’d found out who Ryan was and where he worked, so of course he could find out where I worked as well.
Part of me wondered if he’d always known. Maybe he’d been keeping tabs on me the whole time.
First Date
Ryan
My phone pinged with a text.
Sofia: Thank you for the flowers. You didn’t have to, but they’re gorgeous.
A picture message arrived right after the text. A giant bouquet of roses filled my screen, stark-white flowers overflowing a white vase, not a bit of color showing, not even the green stems.
I stared at the messages from Sofia for a solid five minutes before I even thought about responding.
Glancing over at the two dozen pink roses I’d bought earlier at the farmers’ market, flowers I planned to take to her house tonight, I was more than a little confused. She had clearly gotten flowers at work. But if I hadn’t sent them, who did, and why did she think they were from me?
Ryan: I’d send you flowers every week for a year, but I’d never send you anything so devoid of color when all you do is add so much of it to my life. Basically, angel, I didn’t send those. So, who’s the secret admirer?
His name flashed in my mind the second I pressed Send on my response. Derek. It had to be. Unless there was some other guy trying to court my girl, but it seemed unlikely. Not that Sofia wasn’t worthy of all the admiration in the world, but I’d spent the past few nights with her on the phone for hours on end, and there were no other men in her life.
Trust me, I’d asked.
Sofia: You didn’t???