I quickly take another bite of my arancini so I have something to do with my hands.
Kieran seems completely unfazed. His earlier iciness has given way to a relaxed demeanor, and he continues to fire questions at me long after our main courses are placed in front of us.
He quizzes me about college, about my childhood, and everything in between, nodding as he listens intently to each of my answers.
I should hate being the center of his attention, but I don’t. The way he’s focused on me makes me feel like I’m the only person in the room. I’ve never felt like that with someone before, and I can’t deny that it feels nice.
But, of course, his good mood doesn’t last because he’s Kieran Sullivan.
Once our dessert plates have been cleared away and the check is paid, I gingerly get to my feet. I’ve had the best part of a bottle of wine to myself, and the six-inch heels Lucy decided would be a good idea could turn out to be a lethal combination and not in the way I originally planned.
I’m about to reach for Kieran’s arm, thinking that we would walk out together like a couple, but no.
He storms ahead without a second thought, leaving me to struggle to keep up with him, considering how tight my dress is and how high my shoes are.
When I manage to catch up to him, I find he’s back to not being able to look at me. The hard set of his jaw tells me that the switch has flicked back, and the Kieran I was starting to enjoy being around is gone.
The two of us stand in silence as we wait for the valet to bring the car around.
The temperature has dropped now that it’s nearly eleven o’clock at night, and I shiver, wrapping my arms around my middle as my thin dress fails to keep me warm.
I wait for Kieran to offer me his jacket, but it never comes because he’s back to being his usual asshole self.
By the time I’m sliding into the passenger seat of his car, I’m silently fuming.
I stare out the window as he pulls away from the curb, my fists clenched in my lap as I try to think of what went wrong.
I thought we were starting to enjoy ourselves, but then the moment dinner was over, Kieran’s personality switched faster than Dr. Jekyll when he turned into Mr. Hyde.
Was the whole charming act at dinner just that, an act? Did I say something wrong? Or am I just so repulsive to be around that Kieran can’t even bear to pretend to be into me for the entire evening?
If we can’t handle one dinner, how the hell are we going to survive a marriage?
I try to replay the conversations we shared in my head, trying to pinpoint whether I said something that could explain Kieran’s sudden change in personality, but I come up short.
I could just flat out ask him, but I also don’t want to give him the satisfaction of knowing how much he’s gotten under my skin. So, we settle back into silence for the rest of the car ride home.
When we pull into his private parking garage and he kills the engine, I waste no time climbing out of the car and slamming the door shut harder than is necessary, but I want to make a point.
“You don’t have to slam the door like you’re trying to wake the dead.”
“Oh, I’m sorry, am I beingtoo loudfor your brooding silence?” I make a beeline for the elevator, hoping to take it up to the penthouse alone. But Kieran quickens his stride until he catches up to me.
Once again, a tense silence settles over us as we ride up to the top floor of the building.
I’m beyond furious and also humiliated. I spent hours getting ready for this evening in the hopes of showing Kieran that I’m invested in trying to make this relationship work because even though our marriage will be fake, that doesn’t mean that we couldn’t maybe try to be friends.
But I was stupid to think Kieran Sullivan was capable of such a thing as friendship.
As the doors slide open, my frustration finally bubbles over. “You know, I thought for a second that tonight might not be a total disaster.”
“Yeah? Well, you thought wrong.” He steps off the elevator without so much as a backwards glance.
That’s it.
I kick off my shoes, sending them in opposite directions, before stalking after him.
“You’re such anasshole, Kieran Sullivan.”
