“Got caught up in New York traffic. There was a small accident a few blocks away—a guy rammed into a cab. Please forgive me,” Wes Doyle said as he rounded the table. “Good evening everyone.”
Rose and I had to pull away from each other to start another round of handshaking, and as soon as the introductions were done, everyone finally settled down.
The waiter showed up again, and the next few minutes passed with everyone ordering their drinks.
“No menu?” Rose asked discreetly when everyone was distracted.
“This restaurant is known for the prix fixe menus. The chef changes it every few nights. He is supposed to be very good. It’s seafood night, I believe.”
She nodded and pulled away from me. Before I could catch her attention and ask what was wrong this time, the first course arrived: seared scallops with an almond vinaigrette served on a half shell.
Because Wes Doyle was someone who would be considered a big fish, everyone around the table started with their promises and assurances that he’d be on the list of people who were number one priority to the firm, but I was occupied with something else. I was watching Rose’s movements as she placed her napkin in her lap and stared at the scallops on her plate. Taking up her knife and fork, she cautiously cut a small piece and slowly brought it up to her lips. Oddly fascinated, I watched her chew it longer than was necessary and then force herself to swallow it down. Softly coughing, she reached for her glass and took a sip of water. For anyone looking at her, she’d look elegant as she enjoyed her dinner, but to me, she looked like she was being forced to eat garbage.
“Jack?” George called, and I had to shift my attention as they all stared at me—everyone except Rose. “Don’t you want to add something?”
It took me a second to shift gears. “I think Wes knows my opinions on this subject.” I glanced at Wes and he gave me a small nod. He had built an incredibly successful tech company from nothing in the last few years and had recently decided to change his law firm when his previous lawyers lost him a case that was being splashed all over the media and tarnishing his company’s reputation. It should’ve been an easy win, but they had made massive mistakes along the way, mistakes I had pointed out to him. “I can assure you, just as I did yesterday, if you decide to go with any other firm, you’ll be making a big mistake. I think after what happened with the last one, you’re done taking chances with the company you worked so hard to get to where it is today.”
I’d explained everything I would do for Wes and his company when he had dropped into my office the day before. He had taken his time to ask every little question he had, and I had answered every one of them with full honesty. If he decided to go with us, he knew what he’d be getting from me. I didn’t find it necessary to add anything else—he’d either make the right decision or he wouldn’t. He had all the facts, and the rest of it was up to him.
Everyone at the table focused on me, though my wife still didn’t. She stopped with the fork halfway to her lips for just a second, a slight hesitation, then resumed eating.
Samantha cleared her throat. “I think what Jack is trying to—”
Wes cut her off with a wave. “Oh, no. You don’t have to cover for him, Samantha. I like that he doesn’t hold back his thoughts. I need that honesty. And yes, we talked more about this yesterday in his office, and he is right. I can’t afford to make bad decisions about the people who are supposed to protect me and what I’ve built all on my own.”
Fred joined in and they kept the pointless discussion going. If I wasn’t mistaken, Wes had already come to a decision, but it seemed he wanted to hear more assurances. However pointless it was, I understood his reservations. Everyone loved getting pampered, and he was someone who seemed to enjoy being the focus of attention.
I took a few bites of my dinner and discreetly kept watching Rose even though I knew what a bad idea that was considering our situation. This was a work dinner, not the time to ogle my fake wife as if she was the most interesting thing in the world. But the more I couldn’t take my eyes off of her, the more I realized that she was doing her best to act like I wasn’t sitting right next to her. Then her quietness started to get to me as well. By helping her at the coffee shop I’d realized how much she loved to talk. About anything and everything. As much as she gave it her best shot she hadn’t quite managed to pull me into her conversations, not yet. The more she failed the harder she tried, as much as I admired her for it, I hadn’t lost my damn mind that much.
I didn’t want to get used to her. Didn’t want to get close. Not anymore than I already was. That was not the plan. Not at all.
When I couldn’t keep quiet anymore, I stopped thinking and placed my hand on her leg, my thumb and first finger making contact with her bare skin. She jumped in her seat, her knee bumping the underside of the table, rattling the dishes. I forced myself to relax and tried to keep still. After apologizing to everyone profusely, she put down her knife and fork and finally looked back at me with murder in her eyes. If she’d had any idea how much I enjoyed her reactions, she would have acted differently just to annoy me. I was sure of it. I leaned toward her, and our shoulders and forearms lined up on the table as she met me in the middle.
“What are you doing?” she whispered harshly.
“Why are you avoiding me? What’s wrong?” I asked, pulling my hand away.
She pulled back a little, but we were still huddled together as we looked into each other’s eyes as if in a challenge. Her brows drew together before she whispered back, “What are you talking about? How can I be avoiding you when I’m sitting right next to you? What’s wrong with you?”
She straightened up, took another small bite from her plate, and started the slow chewing process again. I leaned closer and my lips got dangerously close to her neck, so much so that I got more intimate with her smell. A fresh flowery scent mixed with a fruit, maybe citrus. “I…” It took me a moment to remember what I was going to say and I faltered. “Just relax a little. Don’t you like your appetizer?”
I pulled back, and this time she leaned toward me.
“I’m not a big fan of seafood. Is it too obvious?”
After a quick glance at everyone else around the table to make sure we didn’t have their attention, I turned my body completely toward Rose and put my arm around her chair again. My chest rubbed against her shoulder. I thought she would flinch or even pull away, but this time she stayed put. We were supposed to be newlyweds. As much as I was trying my best to stay away from her when it was just the two of us, while around other people, I knew we needed to act more intimate if we wanted to seem believable as a couple. “Yes, Rose. The whole menu is seafood—why didn’t you say something?”
“It’s a prix fixe menu—I didn’t think we could change anything.”
“Doesn’t mean you have to eat something you don’t like.” Still keeping my arm on her chair, I looked around the restaurant. “Stop forcing yourself to eat.” Not finding who I was looking for, I drew back from Rose, even managing to push my chair back a bit before she put her palm on my thigh. I paused and we both looked down to her hand on my slacks with surprise. She immediately pulled it back. That was a good decision. That was a really good decision.