The Doctor Who Has No Chance (Soulless 11)

“Oh, really?” she asked in surprise. “Why?”

Zach was a good guy and we had a great time together, so I didn’t want to talk shit about him.

“Ooh…I know why.” She ripped the crust off her pizza and ate it separately from the rest.

“You do?” I asked blankly.

“Yeah.” She nodded to the other side of the penthouse. “Dex, right?”

“Um, no.”

Now she truly looked shocked. “Really? Then why?”

“We just…I don’t know…didn’t really click. He talks about work all the time.”

“Don’t we all?” she asked with a chuckle.

“But all he talks about is how much money he makes. That’s all he cares about. He told me bought out this other company, and I asked what was so important about that company, if they had products he was passionate about, and he said it wasn’t about that—just the money. Literally, money is everything to him. If he’s not making more of it, he’s wasting his time.”

“So, it is because of Dex.”

“What? No, I didn’t mention Dex at all.”

“But Dex is the exact opposite of that. He’d be making a lot more money if he weren’t volunteering so much of his time, but that’s not important to him. His work is more important than the fattest check in the world. So yeah, I think it is because of Dex.”

Dex watched the game on the TV while we continued to talk at the dining table, switching back and forth between wine and beer like we didn’t give a damn.

Daisy ran her fingers through her long hair continuously, like she couldn’t sit still, too anxious. “My girlfriends are taking me out tonight. I’m gonna find a fine piece of man and take him home.”

Dex kept his eyes on the TV. “Do you think there’s an invisible wall separating us?”

Daisy flipped him the bird without looking at him. “I want to say I hate his guts, but I don’t. He was a bad-boy cliché from the beginning, and I stupidly thought I would be the one to change him. Lesson learned.”

“So, you kinda pressured him into this?”

“No, actually. I assumed we would never be serious, so I would just go about my life, date other guys, normal stuff, and he didn’t like that. He was actually the one telling me he wanted to be exclusive.”

“Okay…maybe you should hate him.”

She chuckled. “I look back on it now and realize he probably wanted monogamy but nothing serious. He wanted me all to himself for as long as he could have me, but he never wanted to go further than that. I told him we could either be casual or the real deal. No in-between. He couldn’t keep me off the market just to be selfish. So, that was how we decided to take a step forward. But when push actually came to shove, he showed his true colors.” She drank the last of her wine then licked her lips. “I fell in love with him like an idiot. Won’t make that mistake again.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Men suck. Duly noted.” She grabbed the plates and empty wineglasses and carried them to the sink. “I should get ready because I’ve got to manhunting. It was nice having you guys drop by.”

We’d been there for a couple hours, and time just flew by. I felt like I was in a place where I belonged, with people who made me feel at home. “Glad we could eat some pizza together.” I cleaned up my mess, and when I came back into the dining room, I saw Daisy walk up to her brother and whisper something quickly before she walked away.

Dex’s eyes froze for one moment, responding to whatever she’d said. Then he looked at me.

She told him.

I didn’t expect her to keep it a secret, but I didn’t expect her to run to Dex and tell him as soon as possible.

Dex quickly looked away, trying to act like nothing happened at all.

We said our goodbyes and then left her penthouse and headed to the street. We spent the walk in silence, like Dex didn’t know what to say without bringing up what he’d just heard, and I didn’t say anything because I didn’t want to talk about it.

He lived closer to his sister and my apartment was a little out of the way, but he didn’t stop at his building and continued to walk.

“You don’t need to walk me home, Dex. It’s fine.” The only reason he’d picked me up was because I didn’t know exactly where Daisy lived. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Thanks for coming along. I know my sister really likes you.” He stood with his arms by his sides, looking at me with that absorbent dark stare, emitting a subtle intensity he seemed unable to control.

“I really like her too. Mason is an idiot, and I’m sure he’ll regret what he did.”

“If he doesn’t, I’ll personally make him regret it.” He turned away and walked to his building.