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“What? No!” she denied even as her heart-rate sped up and nervousness shot through her. Had she called him that?
He confirmed, “You just called me honey.”
“No, I didn’t.” Somehow, she managed not to sound panicked as she added, “You must’ve imagined it.”
His gaze was locked on her. “No, I didn’t.”
She wanted to deny it again but her throat closed up because she didn’t know if she’d messed up. ‘Honey’ was an endearment used between committed couples. Friends-with-benefits weren’t supposed to use it on each other. Obviously, she’d crossed a line by using it.
Was Barry going to end their situationship because of her unintentional slip-up?
Her heart lurched in terror. It wasn’t over, right?
Barry’s expression was unreadable as he asked, “So, we’re doing pet-names now?”
More anxiety swept through her, and again she didn’t answer.
His lips curled in a crooked smile. “Do I have to call you honey too, or can I come up with my own pet-name?”
That smile sent immediate relief through her. He wasn’t furious. He wasn’t ending things.
She found her voice and wit. “No, I don’t trust you with a pet-name. You’ll probably come up with something weird.”
“Weird like what?” He put his arm around her waist as he teased, “Peanut butter buns? Queen of my bedroom? Slayer of my dick?”
“Good Lord, no! Those are awful!” She gave him a horrified look and tried to swat his arm away from her waist. “Don’t even think of attaching any of them to me.”
“I can be more creative if you like.” His eyes danced with amusement. “What about sugar lips? That one’s fun and accurate.”
“Only if you want to end up on Fatal Attraction,” she threatened.
“You don’t like it? Fine. I have some more.” Grinning, he brought her even closer to the side of his body. “How do you feel about Lady Sex-a-lot?”
Despite herself, she burst into laughter. “Absolutely not.”
“Well, I have to call you something.”
“Xo. Let’s go with Xo.” Half laughing, she pleaded, “I like Xo. I really, really like Xo. Call me Xo.”
“Naw! Too mainstream.” Barry shook his head. “Since I’m now honey, I reserve the right to choose a new name for you. Hmm. What do you think about…”
He kept throwing ridiculous pet-name after ridiculous pet-name at her while she begged him to stop in between laughs. By the time they got to their table, her stomach was aching from all the laughter. She smiled at him affectionately. She loved a man who could make her laugh.
Unfortunately, that smile didn’t last for long.
Just after they’d ordered their food and started on their wine, Misty, Barry’s clingy colleague, showed up. They didn’t even have an opportunity to hide because it felt like she’d just appeared from thin air.
“Oh my God!” The petite, Asian woman exclaimed as she stopped beside Barry’s chair. “What a surprise! What are you doing here?”
This restaurant was small, not very popular, and tucked away in a hidden corner of the city. No one they knew was supposed to be even within smelling distance of this place. The chance of one of their workmates, especially one who was in the same team as Barry, showing up on the same night as them was supposed to be zero to nil.
Yet here Misty was.
Both Xolani and Barry were like deer caught in the headlights. They were too shocked to respond to Misty’s greeting.
Misty put a hand on Barry’s shoulder and squeezed. “Are you guys here to eat?”
If Xolani had her wits about her, she would’ve sarcastically asked what else they could be doing in a restaurant. But she was too stunned by the woman’s presence and preoccupied by the hand the woman had on Barry’s shoulder.
