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All eyes turned to Dylan in anticipation, but the only ones he connected with were Serena’s. For a moment, all those walls she’d recently erected between them were down, giving him a glimpse of the woman who’d once desired him and made him feel whole and complete when he was with her. Until she glanced away, reminding him that he’d royally fucked up the best part of his life.
Trying to ignore the searing pain in his chest, he glanced at the emcee and stated the correct answer to the question. “Neutrons are particles with no charge.”
“‘No charge’ is accurate, which makes your team tonight’s winners!”
Eric laughed while most of the players cheered and clapped. “I’ll be damned, we won.”
Dylan shot him a mocking look. “Just for the record, you didn’t win jack.”
“Okay, that’s a fair point,” Eric conceded, and slapped Dylan on the back. “The least I can do is buy you a drink to commemorate the occasion.”
They headed over to the bar, but Dylan also watched Serena and her date, who weren’t sticking around for the celebratory festivities and were getting ready to leave for the evening. As Eric pushed a shot of high-end tequila in front of him, Dylan came to a bitter realization.
He might have won the trivia bragging rights for a month, but Grant was going home with the girl, and Dylan wished it was him instead.
9
Dylan stared at his computer screen, unable to believe that after weeks of frustration, troubleshooting, and setbacks on the code for the Boyfriend Experience app, it was finally working without any issues. All system files and links checked out, and now it was just a matter of getting the app beta tested before releasing it to the public.
He sat back in his office chair and grinned to himself. “Holy shit, I finally figured it out,” he said, both exhilarated and relieved that the codes and interface were free of bugs and glitches and the app was working smoothly and as it should.
“Figured out what, boss?” Owen, the marketing manager at Stone Media, asked as he walked into Dylan’s office.
“The issue on the Boyfriend Experience app that’s been making me crazy the past few weeks,” Dylan said, crossing his hands behind his head as he leaned back farther in his leather chair. “The problem has been identified and fixed, and the app itself is ready to rock and roll.”
“Oh, cool.” All business, Owen’s tone lacked the level of enthusiasm Dylan was hoping for as he set a few sheets of paper on Dylan’s desk. “Here’s the printout of the specs you wanted for the initial framework and design for the Sapphire Casino and Hotel prototype app. I just wanted to make sure you had everything to review before I left for the evening.”
“Yeah, thanks. I appreciate it.” Dylan glanced over the computer-generated wireframe diagram, then looked at Owen again. “We’ll go over all this in tomorrow morning’s staff meeting. Also, let’s talk about getting the beta testing rolling on the Boyfriend Experience app and set up a firm launch date.”
“Will do.” Owen headed out of his office with a wave. “I’ll see you in the morning, boss.”
Alone again, and with no one around to share in Dylan’s initial excitement over the Boyfriend Experience app, his own enthusiasm waned and he couldn’t help but feel a sense of gnawing emptiness inside. It wasn’t difficult to pinpoint why he felt that way, considering it had all started when Serena stopped being his go-to person for just about everything. The separation was her doing, not his, but it had happened nonetheless, and not having his best friend around anymore royally sucked.
Normally, she’d be the first person he’d call to tell about the app, especially considering the two of them had created the concept together one night when she’d ended up on his doorstep after one of her dates from hell. At first, the suggestion had been nothing more than a joke, but by the end of that night and after a carton of Ben & Jerry’s, it had become a fully formed idea they both knew would appeal to women who wanted or needed a temporary date or boyfriend for personal or business reasons.
So, really, while Serena had been the inspiration behind the app’s purpose, it had been both of their brainchild, and up until Vegas, he’d shared the entire step-by-step process with her. The fact that he couldn’t do that now was, well, depressing as hell.
Then again, why couldn’t he tell her, he wondered as he drummed his fingers on the surface of his desk, an idea forming in his mind. She might not pick up his phone calls, but if he just showed up at her door on a Wednesday evening, would she really shut it in his face or turn him away? Probably not. He’d given her time and space, and goddamnit, he wanted his best friend back.
Decision made, he shut down his computer, locked up the office, and drove to Serena’s apartment complex. As he pulled into one of the nearby guest parking spots, he caught Grant leaving her place, and Dylan turned off his engine so he could cloak himself in the darkness until Coffee Bean Guy was gone.
After stepping onto her small front porch, Grant turned back to Serena and went in for a kiss. She didn’t refuse him, and Dylan felt his stomach muscles cramp in pure jealousy. He could still remember what those plush lips felt like beneath his, how sweet she tasted, and the soft, arousing noises she made as he’d deepened the kiss and she melted against him. And now, it was pure fucking torture to watch another man take those liberties when there wasn’t a damn thing Dylan could do about it.
He wasn’t there to cause trouble with Coffee Bean Guy, but he’d be lying if he said he didn’t want Serena for himself. He did. So badly, he ached with a searing need that was difficult to ignore. But tonight was about reestablishing their friendship, and not staking a claim, and he exhaled a deep breath and kept reminding himself of that fact.
As soon as Grant drove out of the complex, Dylan made his way up to Serena’s door and knocked. It opened a few seconds later.
“Hey, did you forget something . . .” Her words trailed off and the lighthearted smile on Serena’s face turned into a frown. “Oh. I was expecting Grant.”
He pushed his hands into the front pockets of his jeans and gave her one of those dimpled grins that usually softened her right up. “Well, you would have known it was me if you’d looked through the peephole,” he joked.
She wasn’t amused. She crossed her arms over her chest, and he recognized it for the emotionally defensive, protective gesture it was. “What do you want, Dylan?” she asked, her voice almost sounding vulnerable. As if she was fighting her feelings for him, trying to hold back, and it gave him a sliver of hope. “I have papers to grade tonight.”
Ouch. That hurt. She could spend time with Grant with those papers waiting to be graded, but now Dylan was the equivalent of chopped liver? Yeah, that definitely stung.
“Can I come in?” he asked.
Her eyes swam with the hurt he’d inflicted on her over a month ago, even though he’d apologized for what had happened that night in Vegas, for letting his own desire for her shatter the control he’d spent his adult years keeping in check around her. But Jesus, the want and need were still there simmering beneath the surface, possibly even stronger than before. And he had no clue what to do with all the weird feelings swirling inside him.
