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The waitress refilled my glass and Isipped more of the red liquid. It made me feel brave. Too brave, in retrospect. “Ido, but what’sthe use? They date me, then they dump me.”
His head reared back, genuinely surprised.
“Men have serious issues with me working. At least that’swhat the ones who were gracious enough to tell me why they were leaving said to my face.” The wine lowered the barricades that kept the grudges at bay, as well as my common sense. Iwanted to take it back as soon as Isaid it.
Fortunately, it flew right over Zach. “If it’sany consolation, Ihaven’thad much luck with women either.”
“It doesn’tconsole me in any way to hear your girlfriends left you.” Isighed. “Like Isaid, you’re agreat guy.”
“Thanks. Imisspoke though.” He scratched the back of his head. “They don’tleave me; it’sthe other way around.”
Holding on to astraight face while being humiliated was hard.
“For the same reasons that yours never work out.”
Real hard.
“No one liked the long hours, the meetings, emails, endless phone calls.” He slouched back in his chair.
“Ithought you said you were the one leaving?”
“Curious, huh?” His lips quirked to the side. “They liked me, for some reason, and tried to talk me into changing. Iwouldn’t, especially since Ihad set these boundaries early on, for these reasons. Icouldn’tstand the arguments either, so it always ended the same, with me having to break up with them.”
“You? Change?” Ilaugh-snorted.
He sipped from his beer. “Takes one to know one.”
“Yes, it does,” Isaid boldly, not feeling an ounce of shame for sticking to my decision. “That’swhy I’mdone with relationships for the foreseeable future.”
“What do you mean done?” His clever eyes examined me with curiosity.
“Done.” Ieyed my wine, thinking it would be best to put it aside if Iwanted my change of subject to sound nonchalant and not end up with me slurring the words. “Anyway, how’swork? Land any big clients recently?”
“Work’sfine, nothing interesting.” He dragged his chair and sat close to me, his stark blue gaze probing me, looking for something. “Not as interesting as you are. Iwant to make you an offer.”
Too little, too late, buddy,my mind thought, while my lady parts perked up and listened.
“What if there was aman who liked you just the way you are.” The perpetual smile he had disappeared, his expression turning somber. “Who would never, not once, give you shit about your work hours, and would fuck you senseless when it suited the both of you?”
“Are you offering what Ithink you’re offering?” Iraised an eyebrow, my voice stern. Idemanded aclear answer since honestly, with what had happened three years ago, this man had given me big trust issues. Trusting myself most of all, since I’dread him wrong so epically.
Zach brought his chair even closer, so I’dhear him when he said, “Exactly that. You’re hot, I’mhot, we’re both adults…”
“You’re anoldadult.” Ismirked, not missing achance to take ajab at him.
He slipped out his tongue to lick his bottom lip, the sexual nature of it wiping out my smirk. “I’mthirty-six, not ninety-six, so rest assured everything down there works just fine.” He tilted his head. “Look, Laura, Imeant what Isaid. We’re at apoint in our lives when we’re somewhat stuck in the relationship department, but that doesn’tmean we can’thave fun together. So, yes, what I’mtalking about is being friends with benefits, to be your boy toy within abooty call’sdistance.”
His smoldering stare pinned me in place. He didn’tlay ahand on me, yet Ifelt the electricity pouring off of him and enveloping me, sending sparks from my head down to my toes. His words made sense, and Iwas actually considering what he suggested we do.
It wasn’tlike he’doffered me adate, to which Iwould’ve refused on the spot. Fool me once and all that jazz. This wasn’tadate, and Iwas kind of stuck, not just in the relationship department, in the hookups as well. The last one that occurred months ago disgusted me and was the final straw.
All things considered then, fucking ahot, funny, and overall kind Zach didn’tsound like the worst idea.
“Okay, but this stays between us. You can never tell anyone, much less Thomas,” Iharsh-whispered, assuring he took me seriously.
“Iwouldn’thave it otherwise.” Only when the consent left my lips did he place his hand on my knee, rubbing small circles on it. Iclenched my teeth to quiet down agasp. “Can we have code names then?”
“We can.” Ishook my head. Even his nonsense had asexy edge to it when he said it like that. “What do you want to be called?”
