27. Mila
Mila
I walked down the street with a smile on my face.
I wasn’t sure why I was so happy. Maybe it was something about the day.
The sky was a deep azure blue, with nary a cloud to be seen; the sun was out and shining warmly; the trees were tall and proud, and the fall colors of the leaves were beautiful: warm reds, deep browns, dancing yellows, and secretive greens beckoned to me.
Two birds were flying from one tree to another, seeming to take the same path down the street as I was. My heart felt full, and I was happy.
I knew that most of my happiness stemmed from being on my way to meet Ryker for dinner.
It was scary how excited and happy he made me.
And I didn’t even have to be with him. Just the knowledge that I’d see him soon was enough for me.
I just liked being around him. That was all I needed to feel warm and content.
I didn’t even have to talk to him or touch him.
Just knowing that he was there was enough for me.
He filled my heart and spirit in a way that I didn’t understand.
It scared me, in a way, knowing how much power he had over me. I didn’t want to think about what would happen when I no longer got to spend so much time with him. I didn’t want to think about not being with him.
Even though our relationship—well, engagement—was fake, it didn’t matter to me.
It didn’t matter because I was still getting to know him better.
I was still getting to see parts of him I’d never seen before.
His vulnerabilities, the things that made him hurt, pause, think.
There was a side to Ryker that I’d never known existed.
I’d always thought he was this tough, handsome guy.
Full of life and vitality. A guy who took everything in stride.
Nothing ever got him down. That’s what I used to think.
I knew that his dad wasn’t the most paternalistic figure in his life.
I knew that had to have affected him in some way.
And the fact that his mother had died when he was so young.
I’d thought about it but had never really placed any real emotion or depth into those thoughts.
Now, I wondered just how much his childhood had affected him.
Who was Ryker Walker behind the facade? I was still trying to figure that out.
He was darker inside than I’d thought. There was a barrier there, some layer of hurt, some deep emotion hidden inside him. And it fascinated me. I wanted to know his full story. And I wanted to fix him. I wanted my love to fix him.
I shook my head at myself as I continued walking, nearing the restaurant.
I knew I was living in the clouds. Life wasn’t like the movies.
I wasn’t going to be able to fix him and make him fall in love with me.
Stuff like that just didn’t happen. Least of all to people like me.
But that didn’t stop me from hoping. That didn’t stop me from wishing that I could somehow figure out what made him tick and, in doing so, make him fall head over heels in love with me.
That would be amazing. Not realistic, but definitely amazing.
I walked into the restaurant, feeling light-hearted and giddy. I was about to see Ryker, and that always made me feel awesome. I used to live for seeing him every few months; now I got to see him every day.
The host greeted me with a big smile. “Good evening, ma’am. Do you have a reservation?”
“Yes—well, not me.” I laughed. “I’m meeting someone here. I think he has the reservation.”
“What’s his name?” He smiled at me warmly. “Let’s see if he’s here yet.”
“Ryker Walker,” I said, grinning.
“I see his reservation, but he hasn’t checked in as yet. We can definitely seat you while you wait, though. Would you like that, madam?”
“Mila.” I smiled at him sweetly. “And yes, please, that would be amazing. Thank you.”
“You’re very welcome.” He nodded and looked back down at his podium. “One moment, please.”
“Oh, of course.” I smoothed down my skirt and pulled out my lipstick so that I could reapply it.
I wasn’t sure why I was so nervous, but I wanted to look pretty for Ryker.
Like, really pretty. I wanted him to walk in, look at me, and think to himself, Wow, Mila is just gorgeous.
How did I get so lucky to be having dinner with her?
It was a pipedream—he’d never really given me a look like that before—but that didn’t stop me from hoping.
“This way, ma’am,” the host said when he returned. “Just follow me.”
“Sure.” I smiled and followed behind him. We approached a table, and as the ma?tre d’ was about to pull my chair out, a handsome man jumped up from the table next to mine and pulled it out for me.
“Good evening.” He gave me a wide smile and a wink as he stood behind me.
“Evening.” I smiled at him, feeling a bit shy as he pushed my chair in. “You didn’t have to do that.”
“I see a beautiful woman, and I can’t stop myself,” he said. “I’m Will, by the way.”
“Mila.” I held my hand out to him.
“A beautiful name for a beautiful girl.”
“Oh.” I blushed, not knowing what to say.
“I’ll just leave the wine menu with you,” the ma?tre d’ said and beamed at us both as he backed away.
“Dining alone?” Will asked me hopefully, his eyes a piercing blue in his handsome face.
I shook my head. “No, I’m waiting on someone.”
“Would you like company while you wait?” he asked, showing his perfect white teeth.
His dark, golden hair was cut perfectly and shone on top of his head as he waited for my answer.
I blushed again, still not knowing what to say.
I was taken aback that this gorgeous man asked to sit with me and was flirting with me.
“Oh, you don’t have to do that.” I shook my head again and stared at his perfect navy pinstriped suit, still in shock that he was talking to me. I wasn’t used to men just coming up to me; especially not distinguished, handsome men like him.
“It would be my pleasure.” He took a seat next to me. “I’m dining alone, so I’d be happy to keep you company until your girlfriend gets here.”
“Oh, it’s a male friend.” I blushed, wondering why I hadn’t said fiancé, maybe because it felt like too much of a lie.
“I guess that was pretty obvious that I was fishing, huh?” He laughed.
“Fishing?” I asked dumbly, not sure what he was saying.
“For information. You know, to see if you’re single.” He leaned forward and adjusted his tie. “Though that would’ve been too much to ask. Have a beautiful single woman fall into my lap.”
“Oh, ha ha.” I laughed uncomfortably. I’d never had a guy come on to me so strongly before.
“So, not single?” he asked more directly, his eyes light as he chuckled.
“Um, yes, no—kinda.” I laughed at the confusion on his face. “It’s kinda complicated.”
“I can work with complicated.” He winked and then leaned back. “And in case you were wondering, I’m single.” He grinned. “Would you like a glass of wine?”
“Oh. I shouldn’t.” I shook my head, feeling dazed and confused, and a little proud of myself. I had to be looking pretty good if this handsome man was spending so much time flirting with me and offering to buy me a glass of wine.
“Don’t you drink?” he asked curiously.
“Oh, I do, but as I said, I’m waiting on someone.”
“He’s not a very good someone, though, is he?” Will looked at me and frowned. “He’s got you sitting here waiting on him.”
“I’m sure he just got caught up at work,” I said with a smile. “He’s a busy guy.”
“I’m a very busy guy, but look where I am right now,” he said seriously, and I started to feel my heart sinking a little.
What was he trying to say? That Ryker didn’t respect me or my time?
He was only five minutes late. But then, as I thought about it, I wondered if he was late on real dates.
I bet he was early for women he wanted to go out with.
Women he really liked. I was just his fake fiancée, the girl he was fucking.
He didn’t really care about me. I wondered how he treated the women he really cared for.
I could feel my stomach churning as my thoughts immediately turned negative.
“Hey, you okay, Mila?” Will leaned forward. “I didn’t mean to hit a nerve.”
“Sorry, what?” I asked him, blinking, trying to get rid of the heavy feeling that had hit me.
“Maybe work was just really busy,” he said. “Or . . . if he has you waiting around a lot, maybe he doesn’t care as much as you hope. A woman like you deserves a man who’s going to put her above everything else.”
“Thank you,” I said with a small smile, looking at my watch and realizing that Ryker was actually fifteen minutes late instead of five minutes late.
“I know you don’t know me,” Will said as he pulled his wallet out of his pocket.
“But if it doesn’t work out with this guy, or you want to talk to me or let me take you out for a drink, give me a call at this number.
” He pulled a card out and handed it to me.
“I’d love to show you how a gentleman treats his lady. I, for one, wouldn’t have you waiting.”
“Oh, wow, thanks.” I held his card in my hand and looked down at it awkwardly. How did one respond to that? And where was Ryker?
“Mila.” Ryker’s voice was loud behind me, and it made me jump.
“Ryker?” I said, looking at him with narrowed eyes and a red face, like I’d been caught red-handed with my hand in the cookie jar.
“What’s going on?” He frowned, looked at the card in my hand, and then at Will.
“I was just keeping Mila company.” Will stood up, nodded at Ryker, and then looked back down at me. “It was a pleasure making your acquaintance tonight, Mila. Please call me if I can ever take you out for a drink.”
“Thank you,” I squeaked out under Ryker’s venomous eyes on me. I looked up at him and gave him a quick smile, but he frowned at me, his eyes narrowed as he watched Will go back to his seat.
“Making new friends already?” he said as he sat down. “Looking for someone new?”
“Ryker, we were just talking.” I rolled my eyes at him. “Don’t be stupid.”