“Nope,” I lied.
He pulled up in front of Lacey’s and Jude’s loft where I was still staying and said, “Well, if that’s the case, why won’t you go out with me?”
“I am out with you.”
“You know what I mean. Let me take you to dinner.”
I shook my head. “I think we should keep our relationship strictly professional.”
“Professional?”
“Yeah. You know... none of this.” I gestured in between us.
He looked at me with amusement. “What exactly is this?”
“It’s a date like situation.”
“This is your idea of date?”
“No, I’m just saying that it is sort of like a date and that’s what I’m trying to avoid. And I think you did this on purpose. You orchestrated a non-date date.” I knew I sounded ridiculous, but I had to set some boundaries or I would probably find myself in a very compromising position with Magnus Deacon on top or bottom. Oh wow, my mind was in the gutter.
“Trust me, Lesli. If I wanted to take you out on a date, I would. And you wouldn’t have any trouble figuring out if it were a date or not.”
For some reason, I didn’t like the promise his tone held. I was suddenly curious about what a date with Magnus would entail. But I couldn’t date him. I didn’t belong in his world and something told me that the type of date he would take me on would make me feel out of place and awkward. And as of today, I was done feeling that way. Maybe meeting Magnus was the catalyst I needed to get on track to finding myself, but I didn’t know anything about his lifestyle. So far, all our encounters had been on neutral territory. I couldn’t promise that I would feel the same self-assuredness I felt now if we were in his territory.
I ignored the subject at hand and gestured for him to open the door for me. He did silently with a touch of a button and stepped out to help me out of the car.
He was studying me. To avoid his searching eyes, I looked back at his perfectly white, leather seats and saw grime plastered across where my butt had been only seconds ago. Talk about embarrassing. “Sorry for dirtying your car... and umm, thank you for saving me from the ducks.”
“It was all my pleasure.”
From the way he looked at me, I could assume it was a lot more than his pleasure. Instantly, I felt shy. I mumbled a quick goodbye and walked away from the DeLorean, avoiding taking the hand he held out to assist me.
“Thanks. I guess we’ll catch up soon.” I avoided his eyes yet again and reached into my bag for keys to the loft. I found them and awkwardly stood there, not knowing what to say.
He politely said, “Have a good rest of your day. I hope to see you sooner rather than later.”
“Yeah... we’ll see each other soon.”
He gave me another sexy little smile that made my heart skip a beat and my skin flush. Dang, just his smile was arousing.
I didn’t watch him walk away. Instead, I inserted the key into the door and disappeared behind it as he pulled off. I closed my eyes and sighed. Magnus was smart, funny, sexy, and way out of my league. And the worst part? He was clearly very much into me. What in the world had I gotten myself into?
Chapter Six
The next day I walked into the office and Maya gave me a mournful look.
“What’s wrong?” I immediately asked.
“Everything.”
“Come on, Maya. Things can’t be that bad.”
She sighed and pushed away from her computer, “I just have the worst luck with men. I really do.
“What makes you say that?”
“So, this really sexy tattoo artist offered to decorate my cast for me. And I said to myself, ‘This guy must be really into me.’ I mean why else would he offer to decorate my cast?”
“Right,” I said, unsure where this was going. “So what happened?”
“So I show up at his studio, which also happens to be his apartment, and I’m all excited... I ring the bell and you know who answers?”
“Who?”
“Some chick wearing nothing but a smile and a man’s t-shirt. And trust me, I’m sure there was nothing under her t-shirt.”
“Oh...”
“Yeah,” she continued. “So I’m like, I’m here to see Jaden. And she’s like, Jaden who?”
“So she’s at his house wearing nothing and doesn’t even know his name?”
Maya nodded her head emphatically. “That’s exactly what I was thinking. But wait! It gets better.”
I leaned forward hoping to hear something really juicy and I was not disappointed. “And then this other guy pops up next to her and he’s wearing nothing but a towel.”
“Oh my.”
She smiled. “He was so hot. I mean so hot. So I was busy eyeing him when Jaden pops up in between almost naked girl and almost naked guy, tosses an arm around each of their shoulders and smiles at me and says, ‘Hey, Maya... what took you so long? Want to have some fun?’”
I couldn’t imagine being in such a situation, but I wanted to sound worldly and so I said, “Was that the first time someone invited you to a threesome?”
“This is Florida, not L.A.”
I nodded my head as if I knew what I was talking about... but I had no clue. “So what’d you do?”
“I walked in, dropped my undies and told them ‘Let’s get it on, baby!’”
My eyes must have widened to comical proportions because Maya started laughing really, really hard. “You should see your face. I mean, you don’t seriously think I would do that, right?”
I laughed good-naturedly and said, “No, of course not. I was just playing along...”
“You are so gullible. I love it.”
She turned back around to her desk, suddenly in a better mood and began to get back to work.
“Was all that just made up?” I said after a long moment.
She turned around and frowned. “He did invite me in, but we just sat around talking about The Walking Dead and eating old Halloween candy like a group of losers while he decorated my cast with some markers designed for kids. Apparently, my sex appeal is dampened by this cast. I haven’t gotten any action in weeks.”
“Oh.”
“I know. It’s terrible. I might as well be a nun.”
She sounded so sad I almost felt bad for her. Almost. Then I remembered that she got more action in a month than I’d had in years of grad school. But of course, there was no dampening Maya’s spirits. She quickly forgot she was feeling bad because her eyes sparkled, and her voice dropped low as she whispered, “Are you into threesomes or something? You seemed to really be disappointed at the end of my story.”
“What! Me? No. Definitely no.” I couldn’t stop shaking my head.
She looked like she didn’t believe me. “Come on, you can tell me. I can keep a secret.”
“It’s not a secret.”
“Ohhhh,” she looked impressed. “So other people know that you’re into threesomes?”
“What? I didn’t say that—”
“Hi, ladies, I hate to interrupt a very interesting conversation, but I was wondering if I could speak to Lesli for a second.”
It was Jude and I just wanted to hide my head in my shirt. I wondered how long he had been standing there and how much he’d heard.
“What’s up?” I asked, bounding up from my chair wanting to be anywhere but near Maya where I was sure she would just be even more trouble.
“Phone for you. It’s Magnus.”
“Oh,” I said, surprised. What did he want?
To my surprise, he extended his cell phone to me and said, “Here. Go ahead and talk.”
I took the phone and looked back at Maya, who seemed to be listening intently. I needed to get out of earshot. She was clearly planning to eavesdrop.
“Hi,” I said shyly.
“Hey, do you have any plans for tonight?”
I smiled a little to myself. He was smitten. That’s the only reason why he would continue asking me out even though I’d said no
.
“I already told you—I’m not going on a date with you.”
“I’m not asking you on a date. I just thought we could meet up at my office and watch some Brain Pain episodes to know what to expect.”
“Can’t we watch them from the comfort of our own homes?”
“Great idea. I’ll send a car for you this evening.”
“No! I meant—”
He sighed heavily. “You’re great at saying no, but how about a yes every now and then? I promise that this is not a date and I also promise to be on my best behavior.”
“I don’t know... I don’t think it’s a good idea...”
“Why not? Are you afraid of being alone with me? Afraid that you won’t be able to control yourself?”
“Stop flattering yourself.”
“I don’t need to, you do a great job for me.”
“Oh really?”
“Yes, really.”
And now we were officially flirting.
“I’ll meet you at Lacey and Jude’s house tonight. How’s that?”
“Sounds... fun.” I could hear the sarcasm dripping from his tone. I bit back a smile.
“Hey, you wanted to meet up and it’s not going to be a date, right? So what’s wrong with Jude and Lacey’s loft?” I was baiting him and he knew it.
“You win... I’ll meet you there at six. See you soon, Lesli.”
And with that, he hung up.
“Hey, Jude,” I said wandering into his office where he was frowning over a pile of spreadsheets, “Mind if I hang out with Magnus at your loft tonight?” I handed his phone back to him and he stuck it in his pocket.
He didn’t even look up as he answered me. He seemed to be completely engrossed in whatever numbers he was looking at. “My house is your house. Not a problem. I’ll call Lacey to tell her. She’s sleeping in today. All day it seems,” he mumbled to himself as he glanced at the clock and then back down at the spreadsheets.
“Thanks a million.”
“No problem, kid.”
I turned around and ran smack into Maya. “Did I just hear you correctly? You had the opportunity to spend the evening alone with a billionaire and you arrange to meet him at your cousin’s house? Tell me it ain’t so, Lesli. You’re breaking my poor single heart.”
“Single? You have like ten boyfriends,” Jude interjected, finally looking up.
“Thanks for your input, Jude.”
I could tell from her face that she meant the opposite. Jude flashed a smile and gestured for us to get out. I complied but Maya glowered at him before leaving with a huff.
“You have ten boyfriends?”
“I haven’t had multiple boyfriends since last year. I’ve lost my touch,” she said with a pout. “But that’s beside the point.” Suddenly, she got this dreamy look in her eye. “If a billionaire wanted to take me out and dazzle me, I would jump at the chance.”
I didn’t have a rebuttal and so I just let her continue talking.
“You need to stop overanalyzing everything, Lesli. Have some fun. Isn’t that why you moved here? To have an adventure... To do something you’ve never done before.”
“This job and living in Florida was my idea of an adventure, not hanging out with a billionaire.”
“And why not?”
“Well, because... It’s just not.”
“Take a chance. You never know, you might relax and actually find yourself having fun.” She mockingly gave me a surprised look. “Imagine that!”
“Ok, ok... I get it. Well, if he asks again, maybe I’ll say yes.”
“Oh, he’ll ask again. That’s a guarantee. Men love the chase.”
And with that, she limped back to her desk and sat down. I stared at her back for a second deep in thought and then sat down at my desk. I had no plans to take Magnus up on his offer, but I was intrigued by the possibility.
When five o’clock rolled around, I quickly found Jude and pulled him away from his desk. “I have to meet Magnus at six. Come on, come on.”
“Ok, ok, just one more sec—”
“Jude,” I whined.
“Fine. I’m coming.” He shut off his computer and reached for his wallet and keys. “Someone’s suddenly enthusiastic about this partnership.”
“What? I’ve always been enthusiastic.”
He had the grace not to call me out on my fib.
“Ok,” I said as I climbed into his sports car. “You’re right. But Magnus isn’t half bad, so it hasn’t been too terrible working with him.”
“I’m glad things are working out,” Jude said, clearly distracted. A text popped up on his phone and when we stopped at a red light, he looked at it and laughed.
“What?” I asked, curious.
“Nothing. Just laughing at my wife. Check out this picture.”
He handed me the phone and I immediately started laughing. It was a candid shot of Lacey sitting on the couch with Sebastian in her lap. Sebastian was covered in baby food and so was Lacey. The look on her face said, “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
“He’s fond of carrots and he likes to share them. Don’t worry, we’ll clean up the couch before Magnus comes over.” He turned to me and smiled. “I lied. We’ll do our best to clean the couch before Magnus comes over, but it might not happen if Sebastian is up to his usual antics.”
By usual antics, I’m sure he meant when Sebastian ran around the house screaming at the top of his lungs with empty water jugs in his hand, waving them frantically at anyone he encountered. He had a habit of grabbing them out of the recycling bin the moment someone tossed one in. Jude liked to joke that Sebastian had aspirations to become a maintenance man. I thought it was simply adorable.
We arrived home about ten minutes before Magnus was meant to be there. I jumped out the car as fast I could, unlocked the door, and dashed inside. I barricaded myself in the bathroom like a teenager nervous for her first date. I kept changing my hair and finally just brushed it and left it hanging around my shoulders. I then sniffed at my underarms and groaned. I definitely needed more deodorant. I cursed South Florida for making me sweaty and then decided to just screw it all and jumped into the shower for a quick five-minute scrub down. It wasn’t a date, but there was no reason I couldn’t look at least halfway decent.
I tossed on a pretty nondescript shirt and jean shorts and pulled my wet hair back into a ponytail. I was annoyed with myself for wasting time brushing it earlier.
I sat down on the couch and waited for Magnus. I tried to pretend I wasn’t nervous, but I kept looking at my phone and when six o’clock rolled around, I couldn’t help but look toward the door. Lacey and Jude were both in the kitchen with Sebastian. They had been strangely kind of secretive, making phone calls and looking “busy.”
I didn’t know what was up, but I watched them furtively watching me.
“Ok, ok,” I said once Lacey again disappeared to take a call. “What’s going on?”
“Nothing... nothing’s going on. What makes you think anything is going wrong?”
“Because you keep walking around looking very secretive.”
“You’re imagining things. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go to the bathroom.”
She then disappeared into the bathroom and came out a second later. “By the way, tell me you aren’t planning on wearing that when Magnus arrives.”
I looked down at my clothes. I was wearing faded jean shorts and a flannel shirt. Yes, my hair was wet and pulled back into a messy ponytail, but I thought I looked perfectly fine for a night in.
“I’m staying in. There’s no reason to go out of my way to look nice.”
“True. But could you at least look a little bit more put together.”
I rolled my eyes. “For the last time, I’m not interested in Magnus.”
“Ok, I won’t mention him again,” she said, giving up quicker than I expected. Yeah, something was definitely up.
Suddenly there was a knock on the door. She got a big smile on her face and rac
ed over.
“Hey, I thought you had to go to the bathroom.”
“Not anymore.”
I noticed she didn’t even look out the peephole as she opened the door.
“Magnus, come in.”
Magnus smiled politely at her and said, “Sorry to commandeer your TV. I told Lesli we could meet at my office but, for some reason, she was against the idea.”
Lacey smiled at him. “Oh, it’s no problem. Come in. Come in.” Suddenly, she was the perfect little host. I narrowed my eyes trying to figure out what was going on.
She led Magnus over to me. He looked great as always. I just wanted to curl up in his lap and let him hold me. For that very reason, I was happy others would be around. I didn’t trust myself alone with him.
And as if on cue, Lacey said, “Well, I’ll leave you two alone. I have a baby to attend to.” She disappeared, and Magnus came over and stood looking down at me.
“Soooo... how’s your day going?”
“Good.”
He was too busy looking at me to reply for a long minute. I shifted uncomfortably.
“Sorry. You’re distracting in shorts.”
I looked down at my legs. They didn’t look all that remarkable to me.
“Well, as long as you keep your hands to yourself, we’ll be fine.”
“I promise to be a complete gentleman. If you want me to be.”
With that, he walked away from me and settled down on the couch nearest the TV. He picked up the remote like he owned the place, tossed his arms over the back of the couch and gave me a sexy come-hither look.
I suppressed a giggle, ignored him and stayed seated on the futon across from the couch that doubled as my bed.
“Hey, you can come sit next to me. I promise I don’t smell or have rabies.”
“Are you sure?” I teased.
“Come on, you know you want to.”
I shook my head. “I’ll stay here. Thanks.”
He sighed and lowered his arms when suddenly a loud knock sounded at the door. Jude rushed to get it, greeting Magnus in passing. A cacophony of voices could be heard from the door as Jude opened it. I immediately recognized them all, excluding the little ones. It was Misha and her husband, Erik, and their two children, a girl and a boy, ages four and nine respectively.
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