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“Good. I don’t want you to lead him on, and I need our team to keep working well together.” She nods, and I smile at her.
“I’d never do that, and I’ll let him down easy.” I assure her as we head back to the office. “I am too new to cause any damage here.” Kyle is nodding as he talks to someone outside of his office. I look for a moment and feel Marcie’s eyes on me as we head toward the door.
After work, I freshen up quickly in my car before following directions to the bistro. Eli is a handsome guy with warm brown eyes and cropped dark hair and a friendly personality. I could do a lot worse, but I am not interested in him like that.
I walk through the glass doors, taking in the modern decor as I look for my colleague. Eli is leaning against the wall and waves me over. Smiling, I greet him, and he tells the hostess his name and we find our seats at the window overlooking the bustling city.
“Is this similar to Boston?” Eli asks once we’ve ordered drinks, looking at me with a crooked smile.
“In a way. The city thing is the same, but they each have their own vibe.” I reply after a moment of thought. “Have you lived here long?”
“Born and raised. I love this city.” We don’t have a lot of time to get to know each other well at work and this is nice, though a little unnerving. “Getting the job at C&K was the icing on the cake. I hear that you are friends with Kyle Owens?”
“We grew up together, but it’s been a long time.” I brush that under the rug so it’s not a subject to gossip about. “I haven’t seen a lot of him with his schedule.”
“No doubt. His dad was tough to work for and always strived for perfection. Kyle seems a bit more relaxed, but those have to be big shoes to fill, especially at his age.” Eli shakes his head with a relieved expression, and I know I need to tell him what this was versus what it wasn’t.
“I’m sure they are. I am still reeling from it being my second week here.” He nodded with a sympathetic smile as I laughed. “Regarding that, I don’t want you to think this is a date, Eli. You’re so supportive at work and in another situation, maybe this could go somewhere. I’m still adjusting to living here and the job, and it’s a lot. I hope that’s okay with you.” I smile to assure him I don’t mean to hurt him, but this is best.
“I guessed as much. I won’t lie. I’d like the situation to be different, but I also know we work in a high stress office, and it might be best to keep it as friends.” He smiles and shrugs, and I nod in agreement.
We order our entrees, and he tells me a little more about Seattle from a resident’s point of view. There is more to do than even I knew to do and when he offers to take me around, I accept. Kyle can’t be my only friend here, and now that we’ve cleared things up, I think this could be a good thing with Eli.
Eli asks me about this weekend, and I remember Kyle’s invitation. Even though I don’t know if he still plans on it, I tell Eli next weekend might be better. Using the excuse that I need to tie up some loose ends at the apartment, I fake feeling irritated with the boxes still in my living room.
The apartment isn’t completely ready for company, but it won’t be for as long as I’m making it sound. I just need a buffer in case Kyle has some free time over the weekend because I miss his company.
I stress I don’t have friends and when I end up making one; I run from it. What’s wrong with me?
It has nothing to do with Kyle.
We eat our meals and split dessert since I can never turn down chocolate lava cake. Overall, it was a good night and I hope to have a friendship in the future with Eli. Maybe going to drinks and dinner with others at the office would end up making me more friends, and I could settle in this city.
When we’re wrapping up the night, I see Kyle across the restaurant with a stunning blonde woman. They’re at a small table and she’s leaning forward with a seductive smile on her face and a low-cut scarlet dress that showcases her large breasts that are clearly fake. She’s facing me, so I assume Kyle hasn’t seen me, and I have no plans to change that.
He’s dressed in the blue suit I saw earlier, but I can’t see his face. Based on her expression, she’s having the best time of her life, but that’s not what I see when I look at his face after mentioning these dates.
“Laina?” I blink and look at Eli as my cheeks flush pink. “Ready to go?”
“Sure.” We each pay for our own meals and split the dessert and walk to the front as I look back at Kyle and his date one more time. He really should give me his number to get out of these things like my friends have done for me in the past, but we’re not there yet.
“There are a lot of pictures of him with different women. Kyle doesn’t seem like the player type, but the media plays him up that way.” Eli notes as we walk down the street. “I suppose with his life, women must throw themselves at him.”
I want to scream that he’s not like that. His mom is forcing him into these dates and the press is terrible for photographing people living their lives and adding their commentary to make the story juicier.
I shrug. “I suppose he could be that way, but he wasn’t like that when we were younger. I don’t know him well anymore.” That’s true. Kyle could be a man whore and making the best of his situation with these women.
“I don’t get that. I’d rather find someone good for me and just settle in. It hasn’t happened long-term yet, but I have hope.” Eli says beside me as I glance at him, wondering if tonight was supposed to end that way. He smiles as he looks at me before pausing on the sidewalk. “Are you in the parking lot?”
We say our goodbyes and I drive home, picking the night apart. Was I kind enough when I let Eli down? He’s a good guy, but I don’t like him that way. I think it was a fun night, even if it wasn’t a date.
I wonder more how Kyle’s night went as I walk into my apartment.
6
New Agenda
Kyle
