“Thank you.” No matter how shitty the weekend was, it gave me the distance and strength to stand up for myself and get rid of Randy once and for all.
I turn my attention to Bridgette. “If you need to talk, I’m here for you.”
“Thank you.” She smiles weakly and heads to the stairs. Before she makes it up the first step, she turns and gives Randy one last glance. He’s too wrapped up in himself to notice.
“Let’s go.” Dalilah grabs my hand and detours us to the elevator. “We’ll take the elevator to get to your floor.”
“Sounds good.” I needed the stairs after all the food I ate the last several days, but I’m done being around these two. I can get my steps later.
As the door slides shut, I lean against the wall. “I think she really likes him.”
“She’s an idiot if she does.” Dalilah waves her hands in the air as she talks. “At least you were young and stupid when you started dating him.”
“Thank you.” I punch her in the upper arm. “You’re a real peach.”
“You love me.”
“You’re right about that.” I nod as we reach the fifth floor, and the doors slide open. Randy lives on the first floor, and Bridgette’s apartment is on the third floor. With any luck, I can avoid them as much as possible.
As we walk to my apartment, Dalilah sighs. “The sad thing is you’re out of the picture, so he will heat things up with Bridgette. I wish she’d see how conniving he is.”
I dig in my purse for my keys. “What makes you think that?”
“You and Bridgette are related. Her father has connections in the financial sector. Of course, he’s going to latch on to her as his next source of money.”
“I never gave him money.” I twist the lock open and push the door inward.
“We’ve got to hope she doesn’t either. I’m sure, at one point, he asked you to invest.”
Crap. She’s got me there. “Yeah, at the beginning.” I bite my bottom lip. God, I’m such an idiot.
“Since you never invested, he’s probably been using you and your father as a name drop.”
“That pisses me off, but I bet you’re right.” I shake my head, drop my purse and bag on the counter between my living room and the kitchen, and walk to the refrigerator. “You want something to drink?”
“Of course.” She marches over to the bar, pulls out a stool, and plops her ass down. “Tell me about this hunky scumbag you hooked up with.”
My hand is clasped on the handle of the refrigerator when her words take all the air out of the room. I knew she’d want all the details, but I don’t want to share them. If I do, they will make him real.
After three days, I’ve almost convinced myself he was a fantasy.
Damon
I flip on a sports station and zone out. My new sofa is softer than the one back in Kansas City, so I lean into the cushions and prop my feet up on the coffee table. It has been the longest week of my life.
A week ago, I was curled up next to a beautiful woman, and this morning, I woke with a raging erection and zero prospects for resolving the issue. Jerking off in the shower held no appeal.
Instead, I’d headed to the condo’s fitness center on the bottom floor of the building and spent the day working out. I ran until I couldn’t breathe and then lifted until my arms and legs were Jell-O. I haven’t expended that much energy since high school.
I scoot farther down into the cushions and lay my head on the leather backing. Every muscle in my body wants to kick my ass.
My phone rings, dragging my head out of the clouds and back to reality. I lean up and groan as my muscles stretch. Good God, I’m not as young as I used to be.
Snatching my cellphone, I glance at the screen. Karissa. I’m conflicted about taking the call. I want to hear her voice, but I’m not ready for the twenty questions that are going to spill from her lips.
“Hello, Karissa.”
“Hey, Dad.” The smile in her voice is good to hear.
Warmth settles over me. As a parent, my children’s happiness is more important than my own. Which is convenient, since I’m miserable. “How was the honeymoon?”
“Fantastic. It was warm and beautiful. The beach was perfect. Except for the damn sand.”
I chuckle. She’s my daughter. “Yeah?”
“Yep. And, the resort. It was phenomenal. We didn’t have to worry about anything. Decker got the all-inclusive package, so whatever we wanted to eat, drink, or do, we did.”
“I’m impressed you made it out of the room.” I pick up the remote and flip through the channels. I’m not interested in preseason baseball.
“Dad.” I can see her eyes rolling over my comment. “Deck and I have been together for a while now. We can come up for air every now and then. Unlike you and Dalilah.”
Hearing Dalilah’s name is like an ice pick being shoved through my ear and into my brain. “How were the flights?” I’m hoping she’s too excited about her trip to notice my deflection from my and Dalilah’s imaginary relationship.
My eyes steal to the business card I picked up the day before. Lexington Private Investigators. Shit. Don’t be stupid. She doesn’t want to see you.
“They were fine. No delays.”
“Lucky you. My flight from Tahoe was over an hour delayed.”
“That bites.” I can hear her opening a cabinet and then shutting it. “How was the first week at work?”
“It was good. Graham made me feel right at home. We’ve spent hours going over new projects and brainstorming.” I settle on a home remodeling channel. It’s a closet obsession of mine. Not even my kids know I binge-watch episodes.
“What’s that noise in the background?”
“Nothing.” Shit. I hit the volume down button and watch as the bar goes down to three. Almost busted.
“Is Dalilah with you?”
Fuck. Rip it off like a Band-aid. “Dalilah and I aren’t seeing each other anymore.”
“What?”
I close my eyes and inhale. This is harder than I expected. Case in point for why I never dated when my kids were little. It shouldn’t be so hard now that they’re adults, but it isn’t any easier. “We broke up.”
“What did you do?”
I pull the phone away from my ear. “Listen. I don’t need your shit.”
“Well, that’s too bad. Dalilah is great. She’s sweet, nice, and funny. And she adored you. How did you manage to screw that up?”
“I didn’t do anything?”
“Then, what did she do?”
“It’s not a big deal.” She lied to me about who she was. Damn it. I should have thought this through a little farther. I didn’t expect Karissa to care whether Dalilah and I were together or not.
“Bullshit. Dalilah is the first woman you’ve brought around family – ever. I don’t even remember you and Mom together, so this is the only person I’ve seen you with. You were perfect together.”
“How were we perfect together?”
“You seemed to get each other. I can’t explain it. It’s something I feel. Like with Decker and me. I knew he was ‘The One.’”