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My immediate impulse was to remind Amber what it was like to be withme. To take her home, rip her blouse off, hike up the skirt, andtake herthe way I desperately wanted. To hear her screams of intense pleasure echoing off the walls of my condo.
But I was in a sullen mood now, so I pulled up the Uber app on my phone and tapped at the screen. “Just called you a ride home, Amber. The driver is one minute away.”
“Oh.” She blinked in surprise. “I could have called my own.”
“This was a business dinner,” I replied smoothly. “I’ll expense the transportation costs.”
I saw the disappointment on her face. It made me second guess my plan, but then the car pulled up, Amber got in, and it drove away.
“My ride’s still three minutes away,” I said to Jude.
He nodded. “Today went extremely well.”
“Yeah.”
He frowned at me behind his glasses. “You do not think so?”
“Idothink so.”
“Then why,” Jude asked, “are you acting like we just lost something?”
I stared off in the direction that Amber’s ride had gone, carrying her south to her house in San Mateo. I was annoyed, and not just about Furio putting the moves on her. I was still sour that Melinda knew about my relationship with Amber. Up until now, I had been enjoying the thing that she and I had. It was hot, and casual, and wonderfullyuncomplicated.
Signing a disclosure at work took away some of that playfulness. And I wasn’t sure how I felt about that.
It wasn’t Amber’s fault, probably. If she claimed Melinda had figured it out on her own, then I believed her. But I didn’t like situations that I had no control over, so I was lashing out at Amber. Finding someone else to blame for it.
I shook my head at Jude and said, “I guess it feels weird selling forty-five percent of our company to an outside investor. Like cutting up my birthday cake and giving a bunch of it away.”
“Birthday cakes aresupposedto be given away,” Jude said with a small smile. “It would be a very unfortunate birthday if you didn’t have anyone to share it with.”
“You know what I mean,” I said.
Jude shrugged. “I suppose so. But I am quite happy with everything. As far as investors go, we could not have asked for someone better than Furio. Especially if he was sincere about purchasing that Italian crypto company.”
“For sure,” I said, but my heart wasn’t in it.
I poured myself a nightcap when I got home. I opened Hulu on my television and played one of my shows, but I wasn’t really watching. I stared at the colors of the screen and thought about the woman who I hadn’t brought home tonight. Tux curled up in my lap and rubbed his head against me, begging for attention. Idly, I scratched him behind the ear with a finger.
When the nightcap was nearly gone, I pulled out my phone and sent Amber a text message. It was the first time I had texted her outside of the company chat.
Owen: What are you up to?
Amber: New phone, who dis?
Owen: The man who is the reason you have a new phone.
Amber: Reminding me that you bricked my phone? That’s got to be the worst pick-up line I’ve ever heard.
Owen: Not trying to pick you up. Just asking what you’re up to.
Amber: So you quickly put me in an Uber and sent me home like you were trying to get rid of me, and NOW you want to know what I’m up to?
Owen: The night was over. And the way our Italian friend was looking at you, I was afraid he would invite you back to his hotel. I saved you the trouble of having to say no.
Amber: You called the Uber after Furio had left.
I winced at my mistake. She was right.
