Kate is being ridiculous. Lex doesn't want me. On good days, he ignores me, and on bad days, I annoy him with my antics, like earlier this afternoon. Nothing sexual about that.
"I honestly don't know where you get those crazy ideas from."
"Well, I got it from when I watched him devour you with his eyes all afternoon," she retorts, her tone confident.
"You misinterpreted."
"I did not. The man wants you, Deedee."
"Will you stop already? He's so out of my league, we might as well be on different planets."
That's when I recall the nude he received on our first encounter. Maybe it's a girlfriend, a fiancée, a wife... The answer doesn't matter. He has a woman in his life and I'm not a home breaker.
"And he already has someone," I add, hoping it'll make her drop it.
"Oh?"
"Yeah, I told you about the nude, remember?"
"Oh, you sweet child of summer. This doesn't mean there's someone serious in his life."
"It still might, so shut up." I argue. I'm trying my best to remain calm and unaffected, but her words are wrenching my guts. It isn't so much the fact that Lex might want me, but rather how far from the truth she is.
She grabs me firmly and forces me to face her. "Andy, look me in the eye and tell me this. How did you know you could ask for a quarter-million and get away with it?"
The answer would only reinforce her ludicrous ideas, so I say nothing. I avert my eyes to look at the wall with a frown.
"I know you. I know you won't accept what I'm saying until his tongue is shoved down your throat. And even then, you might argue he slipped," she says as she releases me, visibly annoyed.
"I'm not that dense."
"Okay. Mind putting my theory to the test, then?" I squint my eyes at her, trying to guess where she's going with this. Not waiting for my answer, she fishes out the black dress and hands it to me. "You put this on, and then you pay attention to the way he stares at you."
"I won't."
"Why? Are you scared I'm right?"
"It isn't appropriate."
"Oh, come on! Celebrities on red carpets wear so much worse than this," she argues, rolling her eyes.
Kate and I have a sisterly relationship. We love each other but always have that rivalry, that desire to push the other to her limits. I look at the dress like it's poisonous. It isn't vulgar, since it shows no cleavage and isn't too short. It's just the back that's exposed, but that's nothing inappropriate.
I don't want to prove her right. But maybe a teeny-tiny part of me likes the idea that there might be some truth to Kate's words. But if I wear that dress, even Kevin will look at me weirdly.
Still, I'm considering it, and Kate sees it. With a victorious smile, she pushes me to the door. "Go shower," she orders me. Clearly, she's determined to win this one, so I clench my teeth and obey.
⸻
The restaurant is part of a fancy hotel, and it is then that I regret not following Kate's instructions regarding my shoes. I'm not used to wearing heels, so I dismissed the ones she took out in favor of ballet flats. Now, I feel like a misplaced child.
Nevertheless, I find my way to the dining room. It's magnificent, with high ceilings, cream-colored walls, several massive crystal chandeliers... The designer furniture looks high end, and the whole place feels very European--not that I've ever been there. People are dressed either smart or formal, and I feel like I stain the elegant ambiance.
Trying to ignore the intense beating of my heart, I walk up to the maître d'. "Good evening, Miss. How may I help you?"
"I don't know if my party has arrived yet. The reservation should be under...Give me a second, I just have to make sure," I excuse myself, stepping slightly to the side. Did Kevin tell me which name they used in the text he sent?
"I'm here for the Langley reservation," says a low, familiar voice next to me. My heart skips a beat, and the tiny hairs on my neck rise. Slowly, I look up to face the owner of the voice.
Alexander is looking at the maître d' with his eternally stern expression. The petrol blue suit hugs him to perfection. His shirt is a lighter shade of blue, and the first three buttons are undone. He's a magnificent sight.
I'm not ready when he looks down at me, and he isn't either. Slight shock twists his features. I look nothing like I normally do, thanks to Tammy's expert hands at makeup, and Kate's styling of my outfit. Even my hair's different, held up by a bunch of pins in a purposefully messy way.
I tense under his stare as he rapidly analyzes me. My discomfort is hard to ignore as I wait, looking at his face with scrutinizing eyes, waiting to see his reaction. There, he's seeing me in my dress, and I'm ready to prove my point. There's no way he ever eye-fucks me, as Kate so crudely put it.
His gaze lingers on my silhouette for a moment, appraising me, and then his eyes meet mine. Unlike what my best friend predicted, Lex isn't horny for me, but a somber expression shadows his face instead. His square jaw is clenched and his eyes are two slits under his frowning eyebrows. Ha! In your face, Kate! Lex isn't eating me up.
If the man isn't bewitched, I, however, am anything but unaffected. My nipples are getting hard under the thin fabric of my dress, and I hope he won't notice my body's absurd reaction to him.
"Sir?" asks the maître d' before Lex can look down at my embarrassing state. "As I was saying, your party is already seated. If you will come with me."
Lex allows me to follow first, and I can feel his stare the whole way to our table, my skin tingling. My entire back is exposed to him, and I scold myself for bending to Kate's will. This was a bad idea.
Kevin is indeed already here, with a woman next to him. She's striking, with long and wavy chestnut hair, light green eyes, and a heart-shaped face. Her dress and style are in perfect accordance with the fanciness of the place. Kevin stands to greet us as we arrive, and as she rises from her chair with difficulty, I see she's heavily pregnant.
"Andrea, this is my wife, Michelle," Kevin introduces. I did not see that coming, despite the gold band on his ring finger that I only notice now.
Once the introductions are over with, the maître d' pulls out a chair for me and pushes it back as I sit down. Before he can leave, Kev asks for a bottle of champagne for the table. "To celebrate," he tells me with a wink.
It's funny how you add one person to the mix, and what's supposed to be a business thing turns into something else. With Lex and I seated next to each other, facing a married couple, I can't help but feel like this has double date vibes. One more reason to blame Kate for not coming.
"Isn't it nice we were able to do this?" Kevin said with genuineness, opening the wine options. Lex and I nod, our eyes skimming through the beverages.
My menu doesn't have any prices on it, and I discreetly peer at Lex's to see if his booklet does . "So, Andrea, I heard you cost my husband and his partner a lot of money today," Michelle says with a smile, interrupting my sneaky enterprise at once.
"Uh, I guess I did."
"She was unyielding. Never had such a hard bargain before," Kevin notes.
"Oh, so she has quite the trifecta. Brain, personality, and lovely physique."
I quite like this wife of his. "Yeah, I'm not so sure about having all that."
"Oh, but you should be. Isn't she lovely, Lex?" she then asks, with feigned innocence.
Alexander gives her a dark glare over his menu and returns his attention to it. "She is."
I know I can't take his agreement seriously, because he was coerced into saying that. He can hardly say I'm not without passing for an ass. Still, a warm feeling spreads through me. Those stupid hormones are at it again.
As dinner unfolds, I can't help but think that it's weird, but also not. The food's amazing, and so are the wine and the champagne. When I see Lex's order, I regret my choice for the main course a little--a French dish called Blanquette. He has three perfectly glazed lamb ribs, served with a side of sauteed vegetables and a mushroom sauce that smells divine. Still, everything is incredibly flavorful.
Michelle is great at including me in the conversation, making this evening a little smoother than it would have been without her. At some point, she explains she's a therapist, and I suspect that's why she's so helpful that way.
"So, when you're not creating groundbreaking apps, what do you do in your free time?" she asks.
I swallow my mouthful of dessert before taking a sip of wine to help it pass. "It depends. I have many interests, like movies and TV shows. Before moving here, I used to teach programming at an online school. I've been thinking about doing it again, so there's that. I'm also learning Korean. Or trying to learn would be more accurate."
"Why Korean?" Kevin wonders.
"I always loved their culture and intend to go there at some point. Also, I may, or may not, have gone through a K-pop phase during my teenage years," I admit. Michelle and Kevin tease me about it, so I add, "My tastes have changed since. You should make fun of Alexander, not me."
The latter turns to me with a broody expression, apparently not too happy to be thrown under the bus like this. I should feel bad about it, but I consumed too much wine to care.
"Why is that?" Michelle asks with a frown.
"I had a glimpse at his musical tastes, and it was...very out of character."
"And how did you get the chance to experience that?" This time it's Kevin.
"He drove me home one evening," I answer, struggling to sound nonchalant. We did nothing wrong, but it can be poorly interpreted.
Kevin's eyes are inquisitive when they meet his friend's. "You drove Andy home, Lex?"
"There was a bus strike. It was the evening she showed me her application. I kept her for much too long, so it was the least I could do," Lex explains, not shying away from his friend's gaze. Michelle then distracts me with a question about my teaching experience, and dinner is back on track.
As a last treat, they bring us a trolley of liqueurs. I pick one that's made from hazelnut. When the bill arrives, Kevin refuses to let me pay for myself. "Kelex's treat, don't worry about it."
I don't insist, especially not when he pulls out a credit card that's black. The champagne, the wine, the liqueur... It all becomes too much when I stand, making the room spin around me.
Lex is quick enough to help me regain my footing, one hand grabbing my arm, the other quickly reaching for my back. The touch of his warm palm directly on my bare skin sends a series of shivers through my body. With clenched teeth, I try to suppress the conflicting feelings already flooding me.
"Are you alright?" he worriedly asks. My nod makes him release my arm, but to my great distress, his other hand remains on my back.
I internally scold myself for getting this tipsy as we exit the restaurant, hating to pass for an irresponsible idiot. Stress has the tendency to make me drink, and because a waiter constantly refilled my glass, I don't even know how many I had. The fresh air feels amazing on my flushed face when we walk out into the street. Lex's hand finally leaves my back, and I'm almost sure he left a second-degree burn there.
"How did you come here?" Lex asks, authoritatively.
"I drove."
"You can't drive now." I don't argue, because he's right.
"Where do you live?" Kevin questions as he reaches us, his arm wrapped around his wife's shoulders as they walk.
"Fairmount Park," Lex answers before I can.
"Oh, we can drop you off then."
"I'll take care of her," Lex insists.
His friend frowns. "But you--"
"Honey," Michelle interrupts, elbowing him slightly, "let him. I want to go home. I'm tired, and these shoes are killing me."
Kevin stares at her for an instant, and something clicks in his brain. "Right, of course. Well, Andy, it was a pleasure getting better acquainted with you. I hope our work together will last for many, many years," he says, shaking my hand, then Lex's. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to put my balloon of a wife to bed."
Michelle gives him a warning scowl. "I told you not to call me that in front of people." With a laugh, he turns around, maneuvering his spouse with him, and they walk off to their car.
The sound of Lex's Mercedes when he unlocks it pulls my attention away from the retreating couple. "Wait," I tell him. "What about my car?" I point at my rusty pile of peeling red paint, right under a flickering street lamp. He raises a judging eyebrow upon seeing it.
"You'll come back tomorrow to get it," he argues, opening the door for me.
"I have a busy weekend," I insist, remembering Kate is here. "I don't know when I'll be able to get it back."
His jaw clenches with irritation. "Give me your keys."
I obey and watch with puzzlement as he heads back to the hotel's entryway. There, he talks to a valet for a moment, gives the stranger my keys, and hands him a couple of bills he takes out of his wallet.
"What was that about?" I ask when he returns.
"He'll bring your car back to your place when his shift is over."
"What about the keys?"
"In your mailbox."
"What if he steals my car?"
"Have you seen the state of it, Andrea? It's not worth losing a job over. Hell, it's barely worth the two hundred dollars I gave him. Now, get in."
I say nothing as I enter his car, pouting instead. Distractedly, I watch as he programs his GPS, and my mind is so foggy that I barely notice my name in there. He saved my address from last time. This knowledge disturbs me as I sit there, wondering why he would even bother doing that.
When he smoothly drives out of his parking spot, I question if an Uber wouldn't have been a better idea. There's no way to know how drunk-me will handle a ride home with Lex.
Especially since sober-me can hardly handle it without jumping him.