“You can wear that. Just be aware, you look so damn fantastic, I can’t be held responsible for acting like a caveman every time some fucker looks at you.” In shock, he looks at me with wide eyes. “Did I just say that out loud?” I nod slowly at him as red creeps up my face.
“I’m sorry. Now we know why I’m not really a trial lawyer anymore I guess. Can I try again?” I nod up at him again.
“You look absolutely beautiful tonight. It’ll be my honor to take you to dinner.” His beautiful smile lights up his face as I snort a quick laugh. “But since I’ve already put it out there, the caveman thing goes too.”
“I-I like the caveman thing,” I stutter out in a whisper. The smile slowly disappears off his face as his eyes turn smoky. When his gaze drops to my mouth, I feel a small gasp escape me. No, this is Colin, playboy extraordinaire. I can’t give in or he’ll be gone too soon. Shaking my head, I cross into the kitchen.
“Would you like a drink or anything? When do you want to leave for dinner?” I ask. I see a look of frustration cross Colin’s face before he schools his features back to his usual good-natured smile.
“We have a reservation at seven. I guess we’d better leave if we want to get there on time.” He pulls his coat back on before heading to get mine off the couch. After locking up we brave the cold wind to get to his car.
We pass the time to the restaurant in relative silence, just commenting occasionally on some landmark we pass. I’m not too proud to admit I like showing up in Colin’s BMW to the valet stand. We are quickly shown to our table. The restaurant is full of Friday night guests creating a comfortable hum of noise.
“I’ve always wanted to come here,” I tell Colin as we sit down. “Maybe I am underdressed.” Looking at me, he shakes his head.
“You always look perfect, Maggie. I had to glare at half a dozen men ogling your ass on the way to the table.” The red doesn’t even bother to creep this time, it basically just slams onto my face. Colin smiles wickedly at me, “I don’t know why that shocks you. I’m not the only one with a deep appreciation of beauty.” If he’s saying this just to get into my pants later, he might have actually succeeded.
“So what are your plans for the weekend?” I need to direct the conversation back to less intense topics.
“Okay, changing the subject. I need to spend the morning at the shelter again talking to a couple of the clients from Thanksgiving. One of the lawyers I have handling a case is having a hard time finding the homeless young mother. I called Mr. Jackson last week. He is supposed to find her so we can talk to her tomorrow. What?” Colin asked, noticing me grinning at him.
“I love how your eyes light up when you start talking about the people at the shelter. It makes me wish I could jump in with you to fight for justice. I could be Electra to your Daredevil. Except for being blind, I think you’re more of a Matt Murdock than you think. It’s exciting!”
“How do you know aboutDaredevil? Do you watch it on Netflix?”
“I do, but I’ve read comic books and graphic novels since I was a kid. My dad had a stash of them Mom kept after he died. I discovered them when I was pretty small. I’ve been hooked ever since. I readRedbefore the movies came out,Daredevil,Batman,X-men. When I told you I was watchingLuciferit’s because I have already read both theSandmanandLuciferseries. There’s not a genre of literature I won’t read.” He is looking at me with shock. “Okay, now it’s my turn to ask what.”
“I think I need to propose. How did my sister ever become friends with someone as cool as you?” I snort out a laugh. “I’ve never had a conversation with a woman about my love of comic books. I’m not exactly the epitome of a Comic-Con nerd.”
“I’ve been to the Dallas Comic-Con. I didn’t dress up, but it was fun. We should go next time. You can go as Matt Murdock as long as you wear those suspenders again.”
“So now I’m thinking we need lots of super smart, nerd babies. So you like the suspenders, do you? Duly noted, I’ll pick up more when I get back to Kansas City.” Do I like his suspenders?! I’d roll my eyes but that would look odd. They caress his pecs I would like my hands rubbing all over. I imagine I will spend all night dreaming about slowly pushing them off his broad shoulders before pulling his shirt off. “Did you just growl at me?” He is looking at me with narrowed eyes.
“It’s the wine. It’s really good you know. And this steak. Wow!” I look down, trying to focus on cutting another small bite. When I chance a look up at him, he is still studying me with a smirk on his face. I’m rather enjoying the flirting this time, just hearing him talking about babies has made me wet enough to float a ship.
“Maggie? Is that you?” My heart starts to ram in my chest when I recognize the voice talking to me. It’s Professor Marx, Brett as I knew him. The man I had an affair with in college. Looking up, I see he is with a young, pretty blonde.
“Wow, you look amazing. How have you been?” I glance at Colin who has a growing look of concern on his face. I can’t decide if I’m going to be sick or burst into tears. I can feel that the blood has left my face as I try to steady myself.
“Colin Rhett. How do you know Maggie?” I can hear Colin introduce himself pulling Brett’s attention away from me. They’re speaking to each other but I can't hear them over the roaring in my ears. All of the horror of the day his wife caught me in the middle of campus comes flooding back. How could I have not known he was married?
“Well, it was amazing to see you again. You should stop by sometime so we can catch up.” I manage to nod when he heads to his table. Colin watches as he walks away before turning to me with concern.
“Who was that?” he asks, sliding his hand over to take mine where it has a death grip on my fork. Gently, he pries the utensil out of my hand before lacing his fingers through mine. “Maggie? That wasn’t just some old professor of yours was it?”
Colin was still in law school halfway across the country when I decided to make my descent into stupidity. He had never asked me anything about what happened and Lily assured me she never told him much about it.
“I’d like to go home, please,” I whisper at Colin. I can’t even look at him for fear of the tears I’m barely holding back letting go. He motions for the waiter to bring the check before standing.
Leading me through the restaurant he makes up a story about why we need to leave so abruptly. By the time Colin has me wrapped in my coat, the car is waiting out front. He stays silent on the ride back to the house, but I can feel him watching me closely.
“I’m going to make some coffee,” Colin says when we get to my house. He has insisted on coming in. He helps me slide off my coat, worry lacing across his face. When the coffee is ready, he brings me a mug with cream added just the way I like it. “Will you tell me what that was about?” he asks as he tucks me under a blanket on the couch.
I can’t hold back the tears any longer. It makes me so mad that I thought I was over him, but apparently not. I have the best thing I’ve ever had fussing over me, but all I can do is freak out over that ass. Colin shouldn’t have to deal with this.
“Can you please just go?” I see him physically flinch. “It’s just crap I need to deal with. I’m sorry I ruined tonight.”
“It obviously wasn’t just crap.” he growls. “I can’t fix this if you don’t tell me what it is. You didn’t ruin anything. You’re upset, I need to do something about it.”
