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Though delayed a little, Lala still insisted on heading back to her place that night. I longed for her every second she was gone, still feeling like crap that Piper (Petra?) had stopped by. Although Lala had handled it like a champ, I was certain it reminded her of all the reasons she should be wary of me. She’d likely conclude that this whole thing was a bad idea once the sex fog wore off. Who knew when that would happen? Sure, she’d broken off her engagement with Warren, but the whole thing just seemed too good to be true. I got the feeling her ex-fiancé wasn’t going to go without a fight, either.
The thought of him coming back to knock some sense into her haunted me.
***
The next morning, Owen stopped by on his way to work.
“How’s the sex-club search?” I asked as I poured some coffee.
“We still haven’t found him the right place.”
“I think you need to ask your client for a reduced membership fee, once it’s all set.”
“I won’t be joining.”
“Come on! It would be good for your sorry ass. When was the last time you had any action?”
“Why do I feel like you’re asking me that to avoid having to talk about what you’ve been getting into lately? You’ve gone quiet, so I know that spells trouble.”
As much as I didn’t want to admit anything to Owen, I was glad he’d stopped by, because I needed his advice.
Maybe he could read my face because he immediately asked, “What have you done, Holden?”
I arched a brow. “Sure you want to know?”
He narrowed his eyes. “You had sex with Lala, didn’t you?”
“Before you get on my ass, she broke off her engagement.”
His jaw dropped. “Really?”
“Yep.”
“That’s one powerful dick you have, Catalano.” He chuckled.
“Just to clarify, she broke off her engagement before we had sex.”
“Okay…” He shook his head. “I don’t need to know the details—please spare me—but why do you look so damn down? Isn’t this what you wanted?”
“Let me ask you something,” I said. “And be honest with me.”
“Okay.” He pulled out a chair, took a seat, and crossed his arms.
“Do you think maybe she’s just using me for sex and doesn’t even realize it?”
He scratched his chin for a moment. “That’s an impossible question to answer. But there’s no doubt that whatever you’re giving her is unlike anything she’s had before. I’m sure the newness and excitement of it is part of the intrigue for her. And I can’t guarantee that’s not going to wear off. Honestly, Holden, I think what happens after, though, is going to depend on you, not her.”
“What do you mean?”
“We know by now what Lala is looking for. She wants an exciting sex life. She also wants a trustworthy man she can depend on. She basically wants it all, and who can blame her? But is a stable life something you’re going to be able to give her? I mean, surely the excitement is going to wear off for you, too, at some point.”
I hoped to God it never did and couldn’t imagine that.
“What happens then, Holden? I think that’s the biggest question. She’s probably only going to walk away if you’re not worth sticking around for.”
I sighed. “Yeah…”
“Can you be the type of man Lala needs for the long term? That’s still the lingering question here.” He sighed. “And if the answer is yes, you have a lot of work to do to prove it. I don’t think anyone would put their money on you being a reliable life partner. Your track record is the pits. But I hope you’ll prove us wrong.”
CHAPTER 19
Lala
The smile fell from my face as I read the name flashing on my cell phone.
Warren.
I’d assumed it would be Holden, since we’d been dirty texting back and forth all morning. I debated not answering, but I had so much guilt after breaking things off a week and a half ago and then running straight to another man’s bed. It felt like the very least I could do was act like an adult and communicate.
So I swiped. “Hey, Warren.”
“Hi, Laney.” He was quiet for a few seconds. “Is this okay? I mean, am I allowed to call?”
My heart squeezed. “Of course. Why wouldn’t it be?”
He sighed. “I don’t know. This is new territory for me, and I’m not sure what to do.”
“Well, I’m sorry if I made you feel like it wasn’t okay to call. How are you?”
He went silent again. “Maybe we can talk about work or something. I don’t want to start out on a negative note.”
“Of course. Yeah, sure. How are things at work?”
“Pretty good. I’ve been working a lot, keeping myself busy, and this week I’ve made some solid progress on the immune cells I’ve been engineering, the ones from healthy donors that I’m using to target the blood-cancer cells in stage-two and -three patients.”
