“I’ll be ready and waiting. Don’t stand me up.”
He grinned. “I wouldn’t even think about it.”
I hopped out of the car, went directly to my own rental car, and set off in search of the perfect dress. I hated that I didn’t have my expansive selection of dresses from my closet. I reassured myself a new dress was appropriate for the occasion. It was a new start to our relationship. Yes, I was totally getting ahead of myself, but I felt like we had turned a corner.
He was accepting me into his life and I was not going to forget what he said yesterday. He’d introduced me as his girlfriend. I was holding on to that with a white-knuckled grip. I was going to be his girlfriend. At least until he decided otherwise. I knew it was likely said as a defensive mechanism and he probably didn’t actually mean it, but a girl could dream.
I would show him what it would be like to be my boyfriend. The moment I thought it, the familiar panic welled up inside me. Commitment was a big C word. I didn’t like to use it. I was the one who said we needed to remain friends and here I was, trying to be his girlfriend.
I needed my head examined. Later. For tonight, I wanted to experience what it would be like to be his. I decided to think of it as a trial run. If it worked, great. If it didn’t, we could still be friends with an occasional side of sex hopefully.
Chapter 51
Xander
I was probably fucking myself over with this, but I was going to do it anyway. I couldn’t resist her.
I thought I was over it. I’d ended things with her, but damn, the woman was stubborn. She didn’t take no for an answer, and quite honestly, I was glad she didn’t.
The rest of my life was imploding. I wanted to hold on to her for just a little longer. I knew it would never work long term, but having her near right then felt good.
I didn’t want to admit I needed her. Technically, I didn’t need her in the sense I wouldn’t survive without her, but if she was here and offering her company, why not take it? It would ease my misery for a bit. I didn’t have to commit to anything. We were having fun. We were friends. Casual friends. Nothing more.
Then why did I introduce her as my girlfriend?
That was a problem to be handled another day. I stepped off the elevator and walked down the quiet hall of her hotel until I came to her room door. I knocked, and when she opened the door, I felt my breath whoosh from my lungs.
“Holy shit,” I said, barely managing to get the words out.
She looked down at herself and then me. “I’m not sure if that’s a good or bad statement.”
“It’s a very good statement. Holy shit.”
She smiled. “You said that already.”
I couldn’t believe my eyes. I knew she was beautiful. I knew her body was rockin’ but seeing all her curves hugged and plumped in the red dress that was tight in all the right places was an assault on my senses in the best way possible. It was very Jessica Rabbit. All I could think about was stripping the dress from her body.
“You are hot. Gorgeous. I feel privileged to be the man taking you to dinner.”
Her pretty smile created a stirring in my gut. If I stepped inside the room, we were going to miss dinner. I’d promised her dinner and I was going to damn well make sure she got to eat. All bets were off after dinner.
“Thank you,” she answered with a little extra pink in her cheeks.
“Are you ready?”
“I am.”
She grabbed her purse and we headed out. There were few fine dining choices to choose from, but I found one. I put my hand on the small of her back and gently guided her through the restaurant. I realized my chest was puffed out with pride.
Why not? I was with the most beautiful woman in the room. Hell, the state.
We sat down and ordered a glass of wine to go with our appetizer of stuffed mushrooms. “I know I asked you yesterday, but how did you find me?”
“I’m almost afraid to tell you.”
“Why?”
Her eyes flashed with mischief. “Because there could have been a crime committed. I would hate to incriminate the other parties involved.”
I was intrigued. “Now you have to tell me.”
She looked guilty. “I asked my dad for some help.”
“How would your dad know where I was?”
She bit her lower lip, her pretty little nose wrinkling. “Your school files.”
I raised both brows. “What?”
“I was desperate. I didn’t want to spend days calling every hotel in the city.”
“Your dad broke into my school file?”
“Not exactly.”
I could tell by her reaction there was more to the story. “Evie, what did you do?”
“My dad offered to do it, but when I realized just what I was proposing, I made him give me his password. Then I made him go get coffee while I did the deed.”
I couldn’t stop smiling. “You broke the law?”
“I did.”
“To find me?”
“Yes.”
“I’m not sure what to say,” I said.
“I didn’t mean to invade your privacy and I swear my dad had nothing to do with it. It was all me. I forced him into it. I bullied him and guilted him into giving me what I wanted. I swear I didn’t look at anything except for your emergency contact.”
“I don’t think my father’s Oregon address was listed on there.”
She sighed, slowly shaking her head. “It wasn’t. I did a little more digging and then more, and eventually, I found the obituary for Kade.”
“I think you missed your true calling. How did you know I was here though?”
She groaned and finished her glass of wine. “I’m going to need another one of these before I can get into that story.”
“I’m dying to hear it.”
“It may or may not involve more felonies,” she muttered.
I laughed, shaking my head. I waved the waiter over and ordered her a fresh drink, along with the special for the night. “All right, you have been given a fresh glass of liquid courage. I’m waiting to hear the story.”
She blew out a breath before sucking in another one. “I went to the presentation at your office on Monday.”
“I know you didn’t find me there.”
“No, I didn’t. When you didn’t show, I went to your house.”
I tilted my head to the side. “And you discovered I wasn’t there? It seems like an overreaction to enact your super-sleuth skills.”
“Oh my god, I cannot believe you are going to make me tell you the whole sordid tale.”
“I don’t think going by my house is all that sordid.”
She picked up her glass and took a long drink before putting it down. “I broke into your house.”
“Doubtful,” I said nonchalantly.
She shook her head. “No, I really did. I went up the beach stairs.”
“The doors were locked.”
Her perfect teeth nibbled on her bottom lip once again. “But your window wasn’t.”
“What window?”
“Kitchen.”
“You went in my kitchen window?” I asked a little too loudly.