Chapter 44
Chapter Forty-Four
Audrey
My head was pounding but I couldn’t find it within myself to be anywhere near upset. The night before was something out of a dream and even though I wasn’t overly happy with the interruption from the Cristof brothers, I hoped the videos lived forever. Between the grannies and the stage and well…. Maybe Alexei, it was a night to remember. I could suffer through a hangover, no problem.
“Were you even listening to me?” Carina said around a mouthful of homemade bagel. Homemade delicious bagels. Georgie was a Godsend.
“No,” I said as I blew at the steam on the top of my coffee mug.
“Ugh,” Her head fell back and she looked at the ceiling. “I was saying Grandmother and Nana want to throw me a lingerie shower.” She grimaced. I grinned.
“And?”
“And do you think we should let them?”
I cackled. “We?” I shook my head still laughing. “You.”
She threw a piece of her bagel at me and it bounced across the counter. I picked it up and shoved it into my mouth savoring it. I would marry Georgie if I didn’t like dick as much as I did. “Is it a good idea?”
“Is it a bad idea?” I raised my brows at her suggestively. “I think its’ a fun idea.”
“I think it could be disastrous.”
“Speaking of disastrous, where are they staying?” I pinched off another piece of my bagel and chewed it thoughtfully.
Carina deadpanned. “They each have their own flat in the city.”
I couldn’t stop laughing then. “Seriously?”
Her lips flattened. “Seriously.”
“I don’t know if I love or hate them.”
“The feeling is mutual.”
“Did Ace know?”
She rolled her eyes. “Yes. But apparently they told him they were selling the flats or that they couldn’t stay there for some reason as a test to see how I would react to one of them staying here and pushing boundaries.”
I ate more of my bagel and took a sip of my coffee. Would I ever get over not living like this every day? No, I wouldn’t. “Did you pass?”
Carina crossed her arms on the counter and laid her forehead on top of them. “I don’t even know, but maybe, considering that they want to do all of these things with us… I did.”
“Did you talk to Emeline about it?”
She shook her head. “Why on earth would I do that?”
I shrugged. “She might have some good insight?”
“Ugh.”
“Ace?”
“He thinks it’ll be hilarious.”
“Maybe we could all just go out for drinks again?” I suggested.
She lifted her head and gave me a look. “Ace will not let that happen again in case his grandmothers try to get me on stage next.”
“Eh, the grannies are harmless.”
“The grannies?” She shrieked. “You can’t nickname them! They aren’t harmless! They’ll kill you just like their husbands.”
I took another sip out of my coffee. “I think they like me.”
“Until they don’t.”
Unfortunately, Carina said no to the lingerie shower but Ace approved us to go out to dinner with the grannies as long as we didn’t do anything crazy. The grannies traveled the world most of the year and didn’t stop for much, but now they had two young women they wanted to influence and I wasn’t so sure about it. I couldn’t exactly say no either, but I was totally down for some fun. I needed it.
Every day I went to Central Park and had lunch. Sometimes I brought a book, sometimes I watched the wackos. Each day I met Tululah. We talked about books or food or life. She asked me about what my life in Florida was like and I asked her how the heck she grew up in NYC. She was living my dream.
Today was a little different though. Alexei somehow sniffed out my spot. He didn’t seem like the type to casually walk-through the park so I knew he was following me.
“Have you read this one?” Lu dug a worn paperback out of her shoulder bag. I shook my head, trying to focus on anything but the broody man lurking nearby. “You can borrow it! It’s one of my favorites.” She stopped and looked at something over my shoulder before her cheeks turned rosy. “Is he your boyfriend?” I looked over my shoulder and waved my hand dismissively. “No, he just won’t leave me alone”
Her eyebrows shot up on her forehead. “I’d be begging him to stalk me.”
I grimaced. “It’s complicated.”
“He looks kind of dangerous.” She giggled and I felt something coil tight and ugly in my stomach.
It wasn’t jealousy. No. No. No. No. Definitely not jealousy.
“Maybe you should read some of the books I recommend to you,” Lu droned on about dark romance and how much she loved a bad boy, and all the while, I sat there with my back ram-rod straight and I tried my best to keep it off of my face. “Also,” She stopped and tilted her head. “Maybe he’s interested in me? He keeps looking at me.”
My throat closed tight. I had absolutely no attachment to the male behind me. At least that was what I was telling myself.
“Are you okay?” Lu asked and broke me out of my existential crisis.
I nodded my head, probably a bit too much based on the look Lu shot me. “Are you sure? Your face is all red. Oh my gosh,” She held her hands up to her own face. “You aren’t having an allergic reaction to the pizza we got today, are you?”
Oh, phew. All she thought was that I was sick, not that I was freaking out over the man that just would not vacate the space in my head. “No, I think I’m just having a hard time adjusting to everything. I still don’t have a job and I don’t know, it’s been a lot.”
She nodded like she understood completely even though she’d lived here her entire life and finding a job came easy to her when she was ready. Both of her parents were in the publishing industry. “You should come out with us this weekend. Take your mind off of things. It might help!”
“Who’s us?”
I really hoped Alexei was keeping his distance, I couldn’t afford for him to find out about anything else I wanted to do.
“A few people from the office, we are going out to a new club and maybe it’ll help you make more friends and feel more connected to the city.”
I agreed even though I was nervous to continue to meet new people. Meeting new people back at home was nothing like this big city.
With Alexei on my heels, I headed back to Ace’s home. My phone rang and I was quick to answer it. My mom’s face filled the screen. “How are you settling in?”
“I’m settling, I guess.”
“Been on any dates?” She waggled her eyebrows at me and I rolled my eyes.
“No, and I don’t think I need to.” I already knew what she was going to say before she said it.
“Audrey, you’re in a big beautiful city full of beautiful people. Get out. Stop trying to attach yourself to Carina 24/7. Find a job.”
I groaned. “I’ve applied to a few places.” It wasn’t a complete lie. I just had no idea what I wanted to do with myself after the wedding. I really wanted to get into publishing but I had zero experience and I doubted anyone would hire me off of the bat. “I’m not stuck to Carina’s side either. I go to lunch, I explore the city, and I made a new friend.”
My mom beamed. “I’m so happy to hear that. Your dad is trying to make a new casserole in the BBQ pit, I better go help him.” Her face got serious just as I was approaching Ace’s building. “Please, go on a date. See what’s out there.”
That night, I downloaded my first dating app and then tucked my phone under my pillow as soon as I was finished setting up my account. Then I replayed all of the events from the day. Even though Alexei stalked me through the park and back to Ace’s, he hadn’t said a single thing to me. I didn’t know if it was a relief or completely concerning. Either way, I decided as I was downloading the app that I wouldn’t let him continue to infiltrate my brain. If I was going to date, I needed to get him out of my head. My phone pinged and I slowly, very carefully, slid my phone out from under my pillow.
Three new matches. I slammed the phone face down on the bed. Three? No.
I uncovered my phone and took a peek. There they were, all smiling in their profile pictures. Two of them looked fake but the last caught my eye. In his picture, he was sitting in a restaurant holding a glass of wine. His light brown hair was long around his face but curled up the closer it got to his collar. His brown eyes seemed kind and his smile was beautiful. A dimple in each cheek.
I could do this. Okay.
I opened the message from the sophisticated wine drinker.
Tav Daniels. His name was even hot.
Tav Daniels.
“Hi, I don’t usually do this, but would you wanna get a drink sometime?”
Don’t seem too eager.
I’d love to get to know you first. What’s your favorite food?
I wanted to ask him about wine as it seemed he liked it based on his profile picture, but I knew absolutely nothing about wine and didn’t want to appear as a loser so quickly.
My phone pinged. Unmatched.
Oh.
I stared down at my phone in disbelief and then slid it back under my pillow. This was going to be a lot harder than I thought.