Chapter 7
Dax
“So, then I said ‘neither of you has to leave, ladies. I can handle both of you at the same time.’ And I tell you what, brother, the way those girls looked at–hey. Dax. What planet are you on?”
Kai snaps his fingers in front of my face, and I blink.
“Sorry,” I say. “I was just thinking about work.”
“Of course you were,” he says, shaking his head.
Somehow, despite being exhausted and having a million things on my plate, both at home and at work, I let Kai convince me to go out tonight. We are at a sports brewery downtown, a place we used to come all the time when we first started working together.
Things were different then.
I was a full-blown bachelor and living the life too.
I was making loads of money (though not as much as I am now) because as it turns out, the world wanted more big box bookstores.
Easy enough. I wasn’t a big reader (unless it was business related and even then I was more of an audio and podcast kind of guy) but that wasn’t the point.
Turns out, in the business world, you don’t need to care about what you’re selling. You just need to know how to sell it. And between you and me– and Kai– I am very good at selling things. Unless it’s a lie. To Kai’s face. In that department, I am still lacking.
“I think you’ve got something else on your mind,” he says, diving into his burger the moment the waitress sets it down.
I wait until she’s situated things, thank her, and then take a bite of my BLT.
“Like what?” I ask. “You know my life. What the hell else do I have time or space for?”
“Getting laid,” he says, taking a swig of his beer while winking at a girl as she passes us.
I’m not going to lie. Kai is a good-looking dude.
He’s in his mid thirties but could easily pass as 29.
He’s got dark brown, spiked hair, the perfect five-o’clock shadow and a fuckboy grin. Oh, and not a gray hair in sight.
He’s a dick.
But he’s my best friend. For reasons I can’t quite defend, the man has been with me through thick and thin.
“Not interested,” I say, taking a sip of my own beer to wash the sandwich down.
“When’s the last time you got off?” he presses. “And not using your own hand?”
I shoot him a look to kill as a couple more girls pass our table, giggling at his words.
“Recently,” I answer, hoping that if I give him what he wants, he’ll shut the fuck up.
“How recently is recently?”
“Within the last week or so,” I answer.
“You don’t remember the day?”
“Of course I do. I’m just not telling you.”
Kai shakes his head. “Must not have been that memorable.”
“The sex was good!” I bark out, getting the attention of pretty much everyone in the northern hemisphere of the bar we are sitting at.
Kai grins and for the second time in two days, I want to punch his teeth out of his face.
“Well, I’m happy for you. But I feel like for a man who just got his rocks off, you are very tense.”
“Your sister hates me,” I state, taking another bite of my sandwich and chewing angrily.
“Who, Libby? She hates most men.”
“So, she doesn’t date,” I state though it’s sort of a question.
Why I want to know, I can’t say. But I’d be lying if I said I haven’t been thinking about her.
Not just the way she makes me fume at the shop but the other Libby.
The one who thought I was Jax. The one who looked so disappointed when she believed she was stood up on her date.
A date that she didn’t even want to be on, yet dressed the part.
She didn’t see the look in that jerk off's eyes when he bailed. And I’m glad for it.
“Rarely. Not since her divorce anyways.”
My ears perk at that, and I shove more food in my face to hide my interested expression. “Divorce? She’s kind of young for a divorce isn’t she?”
“He was a twat. And I say that as a guy who doesn’t necessarily always get along with her.
I don’t know. It’s one thing for me to have a hard time with her.
It’s another for some douchebag with a bad haircut and a holier than thou attitude to make her feel like shit.
I was relieved when it crashed. And it did crash. ”
“Let me guess, he took everything,” I say, unable to hide my disgust.
“Yep. But she didn’t really care. Libby is…resourceful.”
Clearly.
The word almost makes me feel bad. It’s obvious she’s had to fight for things for a long time. But it also doesn’t change things.
“She’s nuts if she thinks holding onto our parents' precious dream of a family bookstore in the middle of Boston is going to keep her afloat though. We’re doing my sister a favor, you and me. And someday, she’ll thank us.”
I don’t know about that.
Libby is stubborn as fuck. It’s half my intrigue and half my irritation. But she’s not the only one with a complicated past. Or demons. And it doesn’t change the end goal. I know better than to let a little sentiment get in the way of what needs to be done. And Libby is going to have to learn too.
“So, who was the girl anyways?” Kai asks, his eyes flickering to the table across from us.
“What girl?” I ask.
“The girl you railed the other night. Jesus fucking Christ, Dax. We really need to get you help.”
“She was…someone online.”
“Someone online,” he repeats my words robotically. “Everyone is online. How did you meet?”
“Through the fucking app.” It’s a lie. But to keep my story straight with everyone involved, I am going to make sure all the details match up on both ends.
“Fair enough. You think you’ll see her again?”
See her again. I almost laugh at that. “It wasn’t implied, no.”
“So, the sex was bad.”
I grit my teeth. “The sex was good. Great actually.”
“Fantastic. Proud of you. So why aren’t you going to see her again?
If the girl was okay with a one and done, she’s obviously not looking for anything serious either.
It’s not out of the ordinary in today’s day and age to have fuck buddies.
Someone you see once in a while, buy her dinner or drinks, fuck and call it a night.
Women are evolving in that department and I gotta be honest, I don’t hate it. ”
“It was a onetime thing,” I state, and Kai studies me. I stare back and he finally drops it.
Then he yanks the conversational wheel hard to the left. “Good. Because I’ve clocked two birds across the way who haven’t stopped staring at us. I even sent them a couple drinks when you were in la-la land. And from the way the one on the left is licking her lips, I’m thinking it’s go-time.”
“I’m not interested.”
“So, which one do you want? I am partial to the redhead myself. She looks like she’d be more fun.
The one with the dark hair and the RBF seems like she’d be into some kinky ass shit in the bedroom, which could also be fun depending on your mood and your tolerance for masochism. Which one sounds better to you?”
“Neither.”
“You know, now that I say that, a little whips and chains could be a good time. But I’m going to need another drink. You’re cool with that right?”
I don’t even say anything. I stand up, wipe my mouth with the napkin, toss it on my empty plate, and down the last third of my beer.
“Where are you going?” he asks as if he is deaf.
“Home.”
“But what about the redhead?”
I glance over at the girls then back at my friend. “You said it yourself, buddy. You can handle two at the same time.”
With that, I turn and walk out.
I love my friend. I do. Under all that idiocy is a smart businessman and a half decent guy. But the night air is so inviting that I simply stop and revel in it for a moment, taking back my sanity and clearing my brain. That is, until something catches my attention across the street.
“What on earth…?”