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Seeing my ex’s friend though opened my eyes to how hurtful it’ll be if I sleep with Whitney. She’s much younger than me. Certainly not an abnormality in the rich Dallas scene. But her being my best friend’s daughter? I pop my knuckles and nod to something Charles says that I’m clearly not paying attention to.
“So, yes, tomorrow night,” Charles says. “Right?”
I shake my head, willing away these transgressive thoughts that can ruin a decades long friendship. “What? Sorry, I zoned out.”
“Tomorrow night is my birthday dinner at my favorite steakhouse. I reserved a private room there, remember? You said you’d come.”
“Sure.” I can’t say no. Most likely Whitney will be there, but I don’t want to ask. The question doesn’t pertain to work, and I have to keep it professional.
“Good. You know, I’m a bit nervous… I’m bringing my girlfriend Harper to tomorrow, and Whitney hasn’t met her yet.”
Harper. He mentioned her name a few times in the past, but right now I’m having a hard time fumbling through the fog in my brain to make sense of anything. Charles has always been a man who enjoyed a good company and a good cigar, but I can’t remember when he last introduced a steady girlfriend to anyone. “I’m sure it’ll be fine,” I say.
“I hope so. You know, she’s only a few years older than Whitney.”
“Oh.” I didn’t remember that detail. An acidy sensation spills into my stomach, and I’m not sure if this news makes me feel more at ease for lusting over his daughter, or even more guilty.
“Yes, remember we met in a pottery class? My doctor told me to have more hobbies. Anyway she’s a lot of fun and we clicked.”
“How old is she?”
“Twenty-eight.”
Guilt crosses my chest. The age difference between him and this woman is still smaller than me and his daughter. I clear my throat.If there was anything between Whitney and I… there isn’t so no problem there.Attraction alone can’t land a person in trouble.
“I don’t want to be the cliché older guy who’s dating a gold digger. I never dated anyone so young before. We click though.”
“Don’t worry about it. If you’re into her and she makes you happy, Whitney will see that and understand,” I say, and a cynical part of me wonders if that’s true. I’ve heard about cases of children not wanting their parents date much younger partners and worry about their parents getting taken advantage of, or even the kind of inheritance they’d get if the parents had kids with the new partners.
“I hope so. Everyone deserves a second chance. How about you, have you been seeing anyone?”
I clear my throat, and look away. “No one.”
He drums his fingers on the desk, clicking his tongue. “You work too much, Maddox. You have to live a little.”
How can I tell him if I lived a little that’d lead to his imminent heart attack? “I know… just haven’t met anyone interesting lately,” I lie.
“I hope that will change.”
I touch my tie. It would be nice having a steady girlfriend, which hasn’t happened in years. I was broken after my divorce, and dated a bunch, but without having the right mindset. My divorce, even though it was my idea, made me disappointed in myself. How to move on after a relationship of seven years just slowly dies in front of you? We loved each other, and were so perfect for each other on paper. But in the end, there was always something missing. Something that not even my pragmatism could overcome. A spark. A special spark I never knew I needed until I realized I didn’t have it.
Besides, I wasn’t ready to dive into another relationship, then got too used to being on my own. Then a part of me settled, and I sent those dreams—of being with someone, of creating a family, to the back burner.
How much longer will they be ignored though?
Do I really want to spend all my life on my own?
“Maddox, you have a meeting in five minutes,” my assistant reminds me via intercom.
“I’ll let you go,” Charles says, standing.
“Talk to you soon,” I say, and tell myself to focus on the day ahead—which includes a video session with her assistant, and probably her.
6
Whitney
“Are we ready?”my assistant Astrid asks.
