Chapter 19
CHAPTER 19
Brody
I’m heading to dinner when I see her through the window and freeze. Rainey is standing alone at a pub table, sipping on a glass of wine. She’s usually dressed in casual clothes or scrubs but not tonight. She’s always beautiful, but right now, she’s fucking magnificent . Her red hair is curled over her shoulders. She’s wearing a dark-colored dress that accentuates her curves perfectly and a pair of stilettos that are making me imagine all sorts of dirty things. I swallow hard as her tongue peeks out, licking leftover wine from her pouty lips. Her eyes widen when she spots me through the glass—probably because I look like a major creeper right now—so I step inside the swanky bar and make my way over to her table.
Unabashedly, my eyes run the length of her petite body. “Fancy meeting you here, princess.”
“What do you want, Brody?” she snaps.
I flinch, taken aback by the hostility in her tone. As often as we bicker, it’s always in good fun. She’s never used that tone with me before.
“What’s wrong?” I ask, genuinely concerned.
She takes a long gulp, emptying every last drop in her glass. “I’ve been stood up.”
I frown. “I’m not following.”
She sighs. “I was supposed to meet Adam here for pre-dinner drinks. As soon as I ordered a Merlot, he called to say he wasn’t going to make it. He wasn’t even on-call tonight, but he went into work anyway to catch up on some stuff. Apparently, that was more important than seeing me, even though we haven’t seen each other outside of the hospital in a week.”
What an ass.
I gently tug on her elbow. “Come to dinner with me.”
“What?”
I grab the folder off the edge of the table and set a few bills inside to cover the tab. “My sister is a chef at the little Italian place a few blocks away. I eat there at least once a week—I was just on my way. You need to eat, and I’d love it if you came with me.”
Nope, I didn’t miss the double entendre there, but I’m quite fond of my nuts, so I’m choosing not to point it out.
She grabs a small purse off the table. “Brody, I appreciate the offer, but I’m not in the best mood, in case you haven’t noticed. I wouldn’t be very good company.”
“Honey, you’re always good company,” I say with a wink.
Rainey rolls her eyes. “Fine. But only because I love Italian, and I’m fucking starving.”
I smile in victory. I don’t care why she’s coming with me—the fact I get to spend time alone with this woman is good enough for me. The awesome food is just a bonus. I lead her in the right direction and make my best effort to brighten her mood.
“Have you ever been to Pistorio’s?”
“No, but I’ve heard really great things about it.”
“You’re in for a treat, then. Charlee’s Italian Sausage Penne is almost better than sex.”
“Wow, that must be some really impressive sausage.”
“I’ll show you a really impressive sausage.” I waggle my eyebrows.
Okay, so my inner thirteen-year-old couldn’t resist that one.
Rainey laughs. “I walked right into that, didn’t I?”
I bump her shoulder with a smile. “Perfect setup.”
I hold the door open when we reach our destination. “Ladies first.”
I place my hand on her lower back and guide her to the hostess station. I do a little victory dance in my head when she doesn’t remove it.
Maddie, the hostess, smiles when she sees me. “Hey, Brody. Table for two tonight, huh? That’s new.”
“Well, this lovely lady has never eaten here before, and I couldn’t possibly let her go another day without experiencing the finest Italian in the state.” Out of the corner of my eye, I see Rainey smirking.
“Head on back,” Maddie says. “Charlotte held your regular table for you. I’ll have one of the guys bring over some vino and another place setting in just a few.”
I grab a menu from behind the stand and begin leading Rainey through the restaurant. Pistorio’s is small—only twenty tables or so—and they’re always packed, so Charlee holds one for me whenever I tell her to expect me. It’s right next to the kitchen, which is normally the least desired location in the joint, but I prefer it because it’s easier for my big sis to pop her head out and talk to me.
“So, they just let you make yourself at home here, huh?”
“They do,” I reply. “Charlotte is an extension of the Pistorio family, therefore, I’m awarded that honor through her. I hope the owner, Mama P, is here tonight. You’d love her.”
“Charlotte’s your sister, I presume. Younger or older?”
“Charlee’s only three years older, although she’d like to tell you there’s a much wider gap if you’re measuring by maturity.”
Rainey chuckles. “I think I’m going to like your sister.”
“I think you w?—”
I lose my train of thought when I see a familiar face sitting at a romantic table for two. Someone who shouldn’t be here according to the woman on my left. Someone who’s clearly on a date.
Fuck.
“Um, Rainey…”
A crease forms between her eyebrows. “What’s wrong?”
I don’t even have to answer because half a second later, she follows my gaze. A loud gasp leaves her lips as she takes in the scene. Dr. Douchebag, Rainey’s fiancé , is sitting across from a much younger, surgically enhanced blonde, gazing lovingly into her eyes as he places a kiss on her knuckles.
“Adam?!” Rainey manages to choke out.
Adam looks away from his date at the sound of her voice and visibly tenses when he sees Rainey. My fists clench when obvious guilt mixed with an oh fuck flashes across his face.
“R-Rainey,” he stutters, dropping the woman’s hand like a hot coal. “What are you doing here? ”
“ What am I doing here ?” she shrieks. “What are you doing here? I thought you were working.”
Adam blanches. “Uh…no. I’m not.”
The blonde speaks up. “Honey, are you going to introduce me?”
“ Honey ?” Rainey repeats. “Adam, what’s going on?”
I gently tug on her arm. “Rainey, maybe you two should take this outside?”
“Excuse me, what is going on here?” The blonde stands, revealing an obvious baby bump. My hand is still on Rainey’s forearm, so I can feel the tension in her body ramping up even more when she notices it. “Would you care to tell me why you’re interrupting my anniversary dinner with my husband?”
Now Rainey’s speechless as she homes in on the woman’s pregnant belly. Tears gather in her eyes, triggering every instinct in my body to want to shield her from this somehow.
“Husband?” Rainey chokes out, in barely more than a whisper.
The blonde glares. “Yes, my husband .”
Dr. Dickhead finally joins the conversation. He stands up and gently pulls on the woman’s arm. “Norah, sit down. Rainey and I know each other from the hospital.”
“The hospital,” Rainey scoffs, as she wipes away tears. “I can’t…I can’t deal with this right now.”
Rainey quickly spins around, practically knocking me over as she runs for the exit.
“Rainey, wait—” Adam calls.
Rainey is almost out the door, so I need to hurry, but not before giving this douche a piece of my mind.
“You never fucking deserved her.”
The guy actually has the nerve to give me a condescending smirk. I don’t even consider my actions before my fist cocks back and slams directly into his face. His wife screams, and the entire restaurant is now buzzing with the scene we’ve caused.
Adam goes down, with his hand over his bloody face. “You broke my nose, you asshole!”
Charlee pops her head out to see what the commotion is about. I don’t have time to explain, so I give her an apologetic nod before running after Rainey.