Chapter Four
P IPER
I unwrapped my turkey sandwich and glanced over to where Maude sat with her husband. The truth was, I used to think it was cute how Cornelius came to have lunch with her every day, but more and more lately, it seemed like they were rubbing their perfect relationship in our faces.
My gaze flitted to Wooyoung, who sat down with them, which was a new development. He normally ate with a couple of guys from the art department. Maybe Maude planned on adopting him or something.
“So, what are you going to do about Minho? You can’t exactly avoid your apartment forever,” Kerrie said, taking a bite of salad.
“Are you sure? Because I could totally just spend the night in my office.”
“And roast your ta-tas off? You know Mr. Dancy doesn’t believe in air conditioning. One night in here, and you’ll die of heat stroke.”
“Good point. Damn. Why did my ex have to move in next door? Is there nothing sacred in this world any longer?”
“Nope. Love is a joke. A myth. It’s not real.” Kerrie waved a stick of celery around like a wand. “There are no Prince Charmings in the world.”
“You two shouldn’t be so cynical. You’re far too young for that,” Maude said from the table beside ours. “So, quit your whining and get back on the horse. There are plenty of MEN out there to date.”
My face flushed. Oh God, she’d actually believed the thing in the bathroom with Kerrie happened.
“Well, not all of us have had the luxury of being married since the flood,” I snapped.
Her husband chuckled. “Ignore my wife. She likes to stick her nose in where it doesn’t belong. There’s nothing wrong with being single.”
“Is that so?” Maude glowered at him. “Perhaps I should show you how great single life is, you traitor. You should side with your wife.” She turned to stare at Wooyoung.
Wooyoung held his hands up. “I’m Switzerland. I’m staying out of this.”
“You can’t always avoid conflict,” I said. “You should choose a side.”
He rubbed the back of his neck, his gaze softening. “I think, in a way, Maude is right. Why waste time dwelling on jerks? There are so many other things you could be doing.”
My fingers gripped my fork tighter. “Like?”
“I...um.”
Maude nudged his shoulder. What was she even doing?
“Like grabbing a bite to eat with me after work? Then you won’t have to go home right away.” He glanced down at the table, then to Maude, and back to me again.
Whoa. I hadn’t expected that. Had Maude put him up to it? Maybe she felt sorry for me and decided to play matchmaker. However, if it meant not going home right away, I was in.
“Sure,” I agreed.
“Great, I’ll meet you in front of the building after work.” He hopped up, not even finishing his food, and hurried out of the cafeteria.
Kerrie’s eyes widened as she stared at me. “So, that was unexpected. Did you know he had a thing for you?”
“I didn’t. Although, do you think Maude put him up to it? Maybe she just wanted to test us to see if we were really lesbians. What if he doesn’t show?”
“Now you’re being paranoid.” Kerrie swigged her diet cola.
“Am I?”
Mr. Dancy came tromping through. “You ladies need to turn your office lights off when you’re not in them. Do you know how much electricity costs in this building? Money doesn’t grow on trees.”
He walked past us toward the cafeteria line. I watched as he pulled packets of salt and pepper from his pockets to add to the contents set out in baskets on the counter. Packets he’d most certainly swiped from restaurants, I was sure. The man was like Scrooge to the nth power. It was hard to believe he owned his own business.
Shaking my head, I turned back to Kerrie. “So, you think me going on a date with Wooyoung is a good idea?”
“Yes. The man is hot. I mean, have you ever seen the muscle definition when he takes his suit jacket off? Half of the people in the building are in love with him. But he’s oblivious. Kind of like someone else I know.” She smiled, nudging me with her elbow.
“Who?”
“You. That man has been bringing you coffee every day. He’s also the one who anonymously leaves you candy on your desk. It’s seriously adorable.”
“No. He does that for everyone.”
“Actually, he doesn’t. You’re the only one. I promise.”
“Oh.” My teeth grazed my bottom lip. How did I not see that? My pulse quickened. Maybe that’s what the barista meant earlier.
“Yeah, oh .” She laughed, peering at her watch. “Crap, we should probably get back to work. Don’t need boss man firing us.”
“Well, in case I don’t talk to you before I leave, wish me luck tonight.”
“Everything will be fine. Don’t worry.”
I sighed. “I hope so. I mean, I’m not exactly experienced on the guy front. Minho and I were together from Junior high until last year.”
“All the more reason to go with Wooyoung. Enjoy yourself. You deserve this.”
Of course, Kerrie was right. It’d be good for me to move on. But dating a coworker could turn out to be problematic. What if things went to hell? Or I totally botched our date? I’d have to see him every day. At least with Minho, I could semi avoid him.
“Quit psyching yourself out,” Kerrie said, following me from the cafeteria.
“What? I didn’t even say anything.”
She laughed again. “You didn’t have to. One look at your face, and I can see the wheels turning.”
I rolled my eyes, tucking my lunch box under my arm. “Maybe we really should date. You can read me better than anyone else.”
Kerrie raised an eyebrow. “Don’t say that too loud or Maude might jump to more conclusions.”
Back in my office, I sat in front of my computer. Had I really agreed to dinner with Wooyoung? My hand rested against my chest, the thudding of my heart making my fingers jump. Giving my head a shake, I focused on the screen.
My cards weren’t going to write themselves. Let’s see...
Your love is like a sunrise, always rising above the sea,
Your love is like a beacon, always here to guide me...
Holy crap. The words were flowing. They were back. Wait, was this because of Wooyoung? But as I sat trying to finish it, my thoughts stumbled.
Whyyyy.
“Come on, girl, you can do this. What comes next?”
Broken hearts. Loss. Alone. Cheating ass fiancés.
For a few hours, I sat there, trying to bring back whatever spark of inspiration I’d had. However, I realized those fleeting thoughts were long gone. After putting my flash-drive in, I hit Save. At least I had a start to something. More than I’d been able to come up with in a while.
After shutting everything down, I packed my bag and headed out of my office. There, standing in the lobby, was Wooyoung. His broad shoulders nearly blocked out the light of the window, his dark hair a little more unruly than it had been this morning. He took his glasses off and rubbed his eyes. As if sensing my ogling, he glanced at me. A smile lit his face, nearly igniting me.
Geez. How had I not realized how hot he was before?
“Hey.” He waved.
“Hey.” A blush crept up the back of my neck like a spider on the prowl.
“So, when I asked you to dinner tonight, I forgot, I brought my bike to work.” Wooyoung shrugged.
I laughed. “Well, as you know, I don’t mind hitching a ride on it.”
“True. If you want, we can take it back to my apartment and I can trade it out for my car. Or we can ride over to the pub from here for burgers. I mean, if you eat meat.”
“There are very few foods I don’t like.” I patted my belly. “And I’m fine taking your bike over. It’s kind of fun.”
He chuckled. “Maybe I should invest in a tandem bike.”
“But then that would mean I’d have to exercise.”
“What happened to the high-heeled track star from this morning?” He quirked an eyebrow at me.
I followed him out the door to the bicycle rack where he had his bike locked up. “She’s still trying to find her lungs, which I’m pretty sure are outside my apartment building in a pile of ash. Not to mention, I think I might have a blister.”
“I’ll have to get you some good tennis shoes.” He grinned, hopping onto his bike. Once he was settled, I climbed on behind him.
My arms laced around his mid-section. For a second, I attempted to keep some space between us, but I quickly learned there was no way to ride a bike together without physically pressing close. Breast to back, my head to his shoulder. My breathing hitched, but as I inhaled deeply, I was rewarded with the scent of his cologne. He turned slightly, his cheek brushing against mine. My breath caught in my throat at feeling the slight start of stubble.
“You ready?” His voice came out hoarse.
“I—yeah.”
He eased us into the bike lane and peddled hard. I loved feeling the way his muscles contracted against me. I closed my eyes and clung tighter. The breeze tugged at my hair while the scents of the city wafted around us. Food. Vehicles. The lake. A giant mixing pot of our city’s fragrances.
Soon, we pulled up to O’Vandy’s Pub. Wooyoung put his feet down to steady the bike while I hopped off. He then secured it to a nearby pole with a padlock. We both carried our work bags inside with us.
The moment we walked in, the smell of burgers and beer made my mouth water. I didn’t drink, except for the rare occasion, but I couldn’t resist a good slab of beef. It’d been a while since I’d been here.
A waitress came over. “Welcome to O’Vandy’s, where the grill is always sizzling and the brew is always cold. How many in your party tonight?” The girl peered between us, giving her dark hair a toss over her shoulder.
“Two,” Wooyoung said.
“Right this way.”
She led us through a crowd of people standing and sitting near the big screen watching the baseball game. She sat us toward the back, next to a giant map of Ireland. Dim stained-glass lights hung over the booth, the dark red leather seats cold against my legs.
Once we slid in, she handed us both a menu. “I’ll give you a few minutes to look these over and come back to get your order. Do you want me to start you with drinks?”
“I’ll have a water with lemon,” I said.
“I’ll have the same.” Wooyoung set his bag beside him, picking up his menu to browse through it.
“Okay. I’ll be right back with that.”
“Aren’t you going to check out the menu?” Wooyoung asked.
I laughed. “I’m a creature of habit. I love their barbeque bacon burger. I get it every time I come here.”
“What? You never try anything new? Ah, we must fix that,” he said. “You should order one small thing you’ve never tried before to go with your burger.”
“I like to stick with what’s safe,” I teased. “You see, I already know I like this burger. So, if I order something else, and end up hating it, then I’ll still be hungry.”
“How about an appetizer? Let’s be adventurous.” He reached over and pointed to something on my menu. “Let’s try this.”
“Calamari? Isn’t that squid?” My nose wrinkled.
“Yes, but it’s deep fried, and see, they make it look like onion rings.”
I chewed my bottom lip. “Dang, I can’t believe I’m going to let you talk me into this. Fine. I’ll try one. But just for the sake of being adventurous. Hopefully, this date doesn’t end in a bucket of vomit.”
He threw his head back, laughing. “It won’t, I promise.”
After we ordered, Wooyoung took a sip of his water and stared at me. “So, tell me about your ex?”
My eyes widened. “Wait, what?”
His fingers toyed with the wrapper from his straw. “I figure we can get all the awkward ex talk out of the way now on our first date. That way, every other date we can be focused on us and having fun.”
My lips twitched. “You know, normal people don’t suggest stuff like that.”
“Well, I dare say neither of us is exactly normal...”
“Hey.” I tossed my napkin at him. “I’m normal.”
“Says the girl who was sprinting in heels this morning and jumped on the back of my bike like you were being chased by the mob.”
“Good point. Okay, fine. I just don’t want to ruin this.”
He reached across the table and took my hand. His skin was warm and soft. “It won’t. I’ve waited a long time to ask you out, and I don’t want there to be any barriers in getting to know you better.”
“Well, here goes then. Minho and I met in elementary school after his family moved to the U.S. from South Korea. We became fast friends. Basically, I was one of the only ones who didn’t pick on him about his English skills,” I said. “We started dating in junior high and all through college. Then, our junior year at Roosevelt University, he proposed to me. We decided to wait to set the date until we both got good jobs and were settled in.”
“So, he’s pretty much been your only boyfriend?” Wooyoung asked, seemingly surprised.
“Yeah. Pathetic, right?”
His thumb brushed against my palm, sending tiny shots of heat through my entire body. But I pulled my hand back, resting it in my lap.
“No. It shows how much you cherish a relationship.”
“But it didn’t last,” I argued. “Last year, I caught him cheating on me. Like, legit caught him. He was in our car, parked in an alley, screwing some florist.”
“A florist?”
“Yep. Which is why I kind of have a hate relationship with Valentine’s Day now.” I moved my cup out of the way as the waitress brought our plates and set them in front of us. “So yeah, those are the gory details of my doomed engagement. How about you.”
“Sadly, I’ve only had two girlfriends. One in high school, who broke up with me when we left for college, and one girlfriend in college, who turned out to be way more into partying than I was. Needless to say, we cut ties after about five months, and me having to bail her out of jail. At that point, I decided I needed to focus on school instead.”
“Here’s to shitty past relationships,” I said, raising my glass.
He clinked his cup against mine. “I’ll drink to that. But so you know, going forward, it’s not going to be like that.”
“Oh?”
“No more bad dates.”
“So, you’re saying you want to hang out with me again?” I picked up a piece of Calamari, eyeing it. Damn, this thing better not suction to my throat and choke me or something. All I pictured were tentacles trying to kill me like the things you see in sci-fi alien movies.
“Yes. I mean, only if you want to.”
I nodded. “I’d like that.”
“Are you going to eat that or stare at it?”
“Ah, I don’t know. Okay, on the count of three.” I closed my eyes. “One. Two. Three.” I took a bite of the breaded sea creature. And surprisingly, I didn’t die.
“What do you think?”
“Not bad. I was picturing something a lot more deadly.” My lids opened to find him watching me with his mocha-colored eyes.
“See, trying new things isn’t always bad.”
Somehow, I got the feeling he wasn’t talking just about the food. Maybe he was right.
When we finished eating, Wooyoung led me back to his bike. After we were both secured in place, he peddled us to my building.
“Did you want to come up for a second? If nothing else, I’ve got a great view of Lake Michigan,” I offered.
“Sure. I have to figure out what to do with my bike, though.”
“Oh, no worries. Bring it into the lobby. I’ll see if Felix can keep an eye on it for a minute,” I said.
“Felix?”
“Our doorman. He’s super nice.”
The older man met us at the door, decked out in his black suit and matching hat, his gray hair sticking out. “Good evening, Piper.”
“Hi. Could my friend Wooyoung leave his bike here for a few?”
“Sure. Just lean it against the wall,” he said.
“Thanks, we won’t be long.”
I led Wooyoung to the elevator, then pushed the button for my floor. The car jerked slightly, then began its short ascent. A few seconds later, we climbed out and headed down the hall. My apartment was near the end, so I only had a neighbor on one side, coincidentally, my ex. Nervousness washed over me as I unlocked my door and brought him inside. I’d never had a guy in here before. Today was definitely full of firsts.
“Here we are,” I said.
“Wow, look at that view.” Wooyoung made his way across the hardwood floors to peer out my French doors.
“I know. It’s the main reason I got this place. I love listening to the waves at night once the traffic has slowed down. And the sunsets are beautiful. Even the storms are gorgeous when the water sorta crashes and gets all frothy.”
“Can we go onto the deck?” he asked.
“Of course.” I flushed, remembering my morning army crawl drill. I swung the door open, stepping outside. Already the wind licked at my skin, sending goosebumps over it.
“I could sit here for hours.” He tipped his head back, staring at the lake.
Wooyoung and I leaned against the railing. Eyes closed, I enjoyed the familiar sounds around me, happy he could cherish a quiet moment with me.
Then came the most unpleasant noise in the world—the door from the deck next to mine opening.
“Piper,” Minho called.
Damn it. Didn’t he catch the hint I was avoiding him and didn’t want to talk?
Without thinking, I reached over, grabbed hold of Wooyoung, and pulled him close to me, crushing my lips against his.
He seemed startled at first, but then his arms circled my waist, tugging me against his firm chest. His lips tasted of the after-dinner mint from the pub. They were soft and warm.
My pulse thundered in my ears as my mouth opened slightly, his tongue darting in, deepening the kiss. Everything inside me felt ablaze. As if, at any moment, I’d explode like a bomb on a battlefield.
My fingers tangled in his hair until a soft moan escaped my lips. Breathless, we pulled apart.
“I...”
“Shh, you don’t have to say anything.” His thumb grazed my bottom lip. This time, he leaned in, brushing his mouth against mine. “I’ll see myself out. If you want, I can pick you up for work tomorrow. This time in my car.”
“Okay.”
He eased away, moving toward the door. “See you in the morning, Piper.”
“Bye. And thank you.”
“For what?” His eyes twinkled. “The kiss or dinner?”
“Both.” My face burned.
He chuckled, then headed out.
“Did you have to do that right in front of me?” Minho said from the other deck.
I snorted, almost forgetting he’d been there. “Why should you care? Besides, I got to witness you fornicating with Hani in our car. So, I don’t think we’re quite even, do you? And if you really don’t want to see what goes on over here, put up a wall or partition. Or better yet, move.”
With that, I rushed inside, and fell backward onto the couch.
Holy crap. Wooyoung about incinerated me with that kiss.
I reached for my laptop bag and tugged out my computer. For the first time in a long time, I felt like writing.