11. Going Steady

eleven

I’m in!

I texted Abel in response to his suggestion to meet at the park for ice cream the next day. I must have had a stupid grin on my face because Alex batted his lashes as soon as I looked up. “Another date with Adonis?”

“No?” I jeered before eating a forkful of my fruit salad.

“Then why so giddy?”

Slowly blinking, I realized that I didn’t know what to call our little weekday strolls. I finally shrugged, “We go for ice cream, that’s all.”

“No wonder,” his sassy eyebrow lift made me self-conscious.

“Don’t you dare!”

“You said he liked to swim. Why don’t you guys do that, instead?”

“How do you expect me to fit that into my lunch hour? It’s a whole production.”

“Why can’t you land a millionaire for a change?” he chortled. “At least he’d fly you out in jets and—”

“And what? I won’t need to work anymore?” I raised a brow at him in return.

“Isn’t that the dream?”

“Sometimes it is.” My eyes looked away pensively. “Other times, I wonder what I’d do with my time if it weren’t for my job.”

“You’d go shopping… buy a little beach hut and spend all summer there… invite me over…”

We both giggled. “Of course. But then I’ll get bored.”

“Then you can volunteer like all rich women do.”

“Believe me, none of the women I saw at Lucid looked like they volunteered anywhere.”

“As personal shoppers, maybe?”

Laughing again, I felt a hint of guilt. Perhaps we were judging wealthy women a tad too harshly. After all, many of them could have worked their asses off for their money.

Monday rolled around, and I kept spotting Abel in every corner of my mind. Whatever I was doing, there he was, lurking in the background. Looking at the budget sheet, I wondered how he planned his finances. Analyzing the performance of our various divisions, I tried to guess the hidden tasks a waiter was expected to perform. We had spent the past week meeting every day at the park, but he never actually talked about his job.

When the alarm on my phone went off, announcing the time for my lunch break, I picked up my purse and rushed out of the office, looking forward to the little time we were going to spend together.

There he was, standing by the ice cream vendor with a smile on his face. “Hello. You’re so dressed up today!”

I caught the vendor’s grin as he saw me and nodded as I approached before quickly kissing Abel on the lips. “I have a big meeting at four.”

“Oh, interesting.” He proceeded to pay for the ice cream the man had prepared for us. I let him.

“All the VPs will be there,” I explained as I accepted the cold treat from him.

“Wow, that’s big, huh?”

“Yeah. I’m rarely invited to those.”

We began to slowly walk side by side. “Does this mean that the Powers that Be are happy with you again?”

I sighed, taking a bite. “I guess.”

“You’re working really hard; I don’t see why not.”

“I am, aren’t I?”

“These people aren’t stupid. They recognize your potential, and I’m sure that when the time comes for a promotion, your name will pop up.”

Chuckling, I turned to examine his face. “For someone who isn’t in corporate, you seem to have a lot of faith in them.”

“I know more than you think.”

“Yeah?”

A cyclist passed us by, and I noticed that he was wearing a suit and a helmet. I wondered if he belonged to my world or Abel’s.

“Pretty much everyone I know is in corporate, one way or another.” Abel shrugged before taking a big lick of his cone.

“And yet, you’re not interested.”

He slowly exhaled as if something was weighing down on him. “Do you think there’s more to these people than money?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean… my father always said, ‘Don’t only work for the financial reward. Find something greater, and that’s how you’ll really excel.’ Do you think he was right?”

“Definitely. I just wish I could say I’m applying that to my life.”

“You’re not?”

“Don’t get me wrong. I understand the importance of my job. I just…” slowly shaking my head, I felt lost for words.

“What’s the first thing you’d do if you got that promotion?” he surprised me with the question.

My lips parted, and I hesitated.

He lightly chortled, “Believe me, nothing you say will shock me.”

We were approaching a vacant bench, so I hastened my steps, sitting down. He settled next to me, and I shifted closer, letting our shoulders touch. “Maybe I’ll get you something nice.”

Grinning, he turned to me. “Like what?”

“I don’t know,” I shrugged. “What’s an item you think is overpriced but have always wanted?”

“I can’t tell you.”

“Why not?”

“Letting you pay for dinner was one thing… letting you buy me stuff—”

“Are you serious? C’mon—”

“It’d be a little weird, don’t you think?”

“I really don’t. Why is it acceptable for men to buy women all sorts of things?”

“Because…” his mouth remained open. “Um—”

“Exactly.”

Shifting to face me, he took a big bite and stared at my face as he savored it. He then narrowed his eyes. “What if your place is larger than his?”

“Who is he?”

“I don’t know,” he shrugged. “Your future husband?”

The fact that he was talking to me about that woke up all the butterflies in my stomach, letting them flutter inside of me. My smile grew a little wider. “Then he’ll move in with me.”

“What if he doesn’t have a car?”

“We’ll share mine.”

“Gifts on Valentine’s Day?”

“We’ll set a budget limit.”

“Vacations?”

“If I can afford them, why not?”

“And what does he bring to the table?”

“You’ve got to be kidding me.”

“Then, by all means, kill the joke.”

Staring into his beautiful eyes, I prayed that he wasn’t serious. It was difficult to imagine that a man like him didn’t know how much he had to offer. He was agonizingly handsome, strong, intelligent, and a great conversationalist. I also had the feeling that he was talented in more ways than he was willing to admit. It was one thing being humble, but he bordered on self-deprecation, and I didn’t like that color on him.

“Did your mother marry your father for money?” I finally asked.

“No,” he quickly shook his head. “They were in love.”

“Did she ever tell you what drew her to him?”

“The usual things. He was handsome. She enjoyed talking to him—”

“Did he make her feel safe?”

His eyes narrowed as they pierced through mine. “She didn’t put it that way,” he said slowly. “But I’m sure he did.”

“Why?” I challenged him with a smile.

“If I were to guess? It’s his Greek blood.”

“What?” I chuckled, “No way! Your dad has Greek origins?”

Nodding, he scratched the back of his head. “He’s… he grew up in Athens, actually. He moved here for college.”

“That explains it!” I continued to grin, letting my eyes scandalously scan him as if stripping off his clothes.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You.” I pointed with my hand. “Look at you!”

He laughed, looking away. I thought I had caught a glimpse of shyness, but I knew I was wrong. The stunning waiter must have been used to the unabashed flirtations of drunk socialites everywhere that what I said should count for nothing.

“I’m serious,” I insisted, and he turned back to face me. “And if you wanna know…” I lowered my voice, allowing it to reflect the seriousness of my confession, “I feel really safe with you. I can’t remember the last time that happened.”

His fingers—ever so gently—landed on my cheek, brushing away my hair and tucking it behind my ear. “Dammit, Ella,” he whispered before inching closer, kissing me softly.

Once again, the flood of feelings that overtook me every time I was in his arms came in a flash.

His hands were behind my back, pressing me closer as the world grew warmer. With my eyes closed, I tasted his cherry lips that complimented my vanilla ones ever so nicely. Together, we were lost in a medley of sensations that kept reminding me… nothing could hurt me in his embrace.

Damned was the melting ice cream. Damned were the prying eyes under the scorching sun. Damned was everything, as long as he was kissing me.

When we eventually let the distance between us grow once again, I inhaled as deliberately and unhurriedly as I possibly could. His finger wiped my lower lip, and he chortled with a low voice. “I hope you have that lipstick on you.”

I tittered, licking my lips, suddenly aware of my surroundings. “I do.”

“Or better yet,” he whispered, his eyes filled with desire. “Play hooky. Spend the rest of the day with me.”

“I can’t. The meeting?”

Sharply exhaling, he slowly shook his head. “You never answered me, you know.”

“About what?”

“If you think there’s more to these people than money.”

Raising my eyebrows, I slowly nodded. “Of course there is. There’s more to everyone than whatever we get to see. At the wedding, I heard that Mr. Engelbert was a great father. And my boss? I could tell by the way his wife looked at him when he wasn’t looking that he was the best husband she could ever wish for…”

“And what do you wish for?” His surprises never seemed to run out.

I had no answer. Genuinely and sadly, I didn’t know. It had been years since I thought that the love I had craved could be real. A love that conquered everything that stood in its way. The kind of love we saw in the movies. And now—after reality hit, time after time—all I wished for was someone who wouldn’t treat me the way Jude had.

“You really gotta stop making Jude your bar.”Alex’s words came back, raging against all of my thoughts.

“I have to go.” Suddenly feeling nervous, I leaped up, tossing the rest of my ruined cone in the garbage can.

“I’m sorry.” He stood up, squeezing his eyes shut.

“What for?”

“My question clearly bothered you.”

“It’s not that.” I lifted a hand. “I just—I need to learn not to let thoughts of my ex ruin the moment.”

“Your ex?” his eyebrows wrinkled.

Tittering, I looked away. “He really played a number on me.”

“You’re not over him.”

“No!” I quickly gestured with both hands in the air. “I’m so over him. It’s insane. I’m actually just… scared.”

“Of me?”

Biting my lower lip, I wanted to be honest with him. He deserved nothing less. “Of feeling this safe with you only to discover that I’m delusional.”

I saw his shoulders drop an inch and instantly regretted my candor. He then lifted up a hand, rubbing his temple as he pensively looked away. “You know what? I never meant for this conversation to do this to you. Let’s flip it. I have a fun idea. Wanna meet my friends?”

“Your friends?”

“Yeah. My buddy Chadwick is having a party at his place tomorrow night. I don’t have a date.” He shrugged cutely. “Wanna come with?”

Contemplating for a moment, I twisted my lips to the side. “And where does this Chadwick live?”

“Central Park West.”

Widening my eyes, I thought he was joking. He quickly chuckled, waving it off as if it were nothing. “Listen. All my friends are rich. That shouldn’t be a problem, right? I mean, who cares, right?”

Apprehensively, I stared at him and slowly nodded. “Right.”

“So?” he grinned as we began to walk back toward the gates. “Will you come?”

“Let me think about it, okay?”

Later that night, I texted Abel my acceptance. My mind, however, was buzzing with questions about his peculiar relationships with such wealthy acquaintances.

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