Beauty and the Billionaire

“Guys like me, huh?” I ask. “What are guys like me like?”

“I have no idea,” she says, “but I know you’re dumb enough to put yourself in that ring to get punched in the face, so I just figured it’d be good to cover my bases.”

“Ooh, you are spicy,” I tell her. “I like that.”

“And we’re done here,” Jana says, walking toward the other side of the room and into another one.

“She’s not getting a gun, is she?” I ask.

“I guess we’re about to find out,” Ash says, pulling the gloves off of her hands.

Ash gets up and walks to yet another room, and I think it’s time for me to go.

“Here,” Jana says, coming out of the other room with clothes in her hand, dragging on the floor behind her. “I don’t want my neighbors to see you running around half-naked.” She tosses the clothes at me.

“Hey, thanks,” I tell her. “I really wasn’t looking forward to going back out there in the cold without anything on.”

“They’re yours, anyway,” she says. “I found ‘em when I was moving and didn’t really care enough to get them back to you.”

“Oh stop,” I tease. “If you don’t stop it with t

he sugary words, I’m going to need a toothbrush.”

“I don’t even know what that’s supposed to mean,” she says.

I just shrug. It made more sense before I said it, sure, but I’d say I’m still doing all right given the situation.

“You’re still here,” Ash says, coming out of what I’m assuming is her room.

“Yeah,” I tell her, “I’m just getting ready to take off, though. Thanks for patching me up like that. It was a little weird and pretty uncomfortable, but you did me a huge favor and I appreciate it.”

“Oh, will you just go?” Jana asks.

“It was nice to meet you,” Ash says. “Try not to get hit in the face so much. You keep doing that too much, and eventually it’s going to spoil your beauty.”

Is she flirting with me?

I can’t imagine that she would be. As much as guys like me try to tell ourselves that women love a man who’s bruised and bloody, the truth of the matter—in my experience at least—is that most women just look at you, make a disgusted face, and try to get the hell out of there as quickly as possible.

“Such as it is,” she adds after the long interval.

“Yeah,” I say, “well. I appreciate it. Are you sure I can’t pay you for your time?”

“Unless you’re hiding it somewhere I’d rather not think about, you don’t have a wallet,” she says.

“Fair point,” I tell her. “Well,” I stick my hand out to shake hers, “thanks again.”

She looks down at my hand and shakes her head.

“Nice to meet you, Mason,” she says.

“Okay, can we go now?” Jana asks, and I’m starting to think that I’ve outworn my welcome. “Get your clothes on and get out of our way.”

“You know, I remember you being nicer,” I tell her.

“That was when I liked you,” she says.

I quickly slip on the white t-shirt and sweats I apparently left at Jana’s old place and turn to the door, opening it.