Chapter Chapter Ten #2
He nodded. “I agree. I was suspicious when I saw the names but figured the organizers knew what they were doing. Clearly not.”
I slurped the last sip of my margarita, then said, “If you’ll excuse me, I’ll be right back.”
I wanted to refresh a bit, and he obviously wanted to talk shop with Cynthia, so I went straight to the ladies’ room and took stock of my appearance.
My lipstick was worth its weight in gold because it looked as if I’d freshly applied it.
It was the kind that was difficult to remove, but that was a trade-off that didn’t bother me.
After washing my hands, I returned to where I’d left Cynthia and Knox. I was just about to announce my presence when I heard her ask, “So, is Amy your date?”
“No,” Knox said with a laugh.
I winced. From the tone of his voice, it sounded like he thought it was the most ridiculous idea.
“She’s a very good friend, and I figured she’d enjoy tonight,” he continued.
“Right. It seemed a bit strange to me, you bringing someone to an event like this. So, does that mean you’re free? We can meet up as usual after and have a little fun.”
My stomach bottomed out. Why was I eavesdropping on their conversation? Clearly, this was a booty call.
I backtracked quickly, hoping they hadn’t noticed me, and went straight to the bar. I took a deep breath, exhaling slowly.
Why did I have this pit in my stomach? I hated it. Knox was a free agent. He could pick up as many women as he wanted.
“There you are,” I heard him say.
I winced and then turned around, plastering a smile on my face. “Hey.”
“I didn’t see you pass by Cynthia and me.”
“You two were talking”—I swallowed hard—“so I decided to wait here.”
“What can I get you to drink?”
I wanted to know how their conversation went. Did they agree to meet later? Was he leaving here with her? But I couldn’t ask him that without admitting that I’d eavesdropped.
“What do you want to drink?” he asked me again.
I yawned. “Um...”
I looked at the menu printed on the bar counter. It was pretty sparse.
“I’ll have an apple juice,” I told the bartender.
“Coming right up,” he said. “And you?”
“Same,” Knox replied.
How could I find out about his plans with Cynthia without being obvious?
“Cynthia seems nice. How do you know her?” I asked him in what I hoped was an easygoing tone.
“She works for one of our subcontractors. She’s very smart, and she’s spearheaded many projects with my managers.”
“So, you see her regularly?”
Why is my voice so high-pitched?
“Now and again,” Knox replied, looking at me almost quizzically.
Was he being evasive on purpose? I instinctively knew he wasn’t going to give me more information. Knox never spoke about the women he hung out with.
“Two apple juices for you,” the bartender said, putting them in front of us.
I took huge gulps, feeling the need to hydrate after my salty margarita.
“Are we listening to another speech?” I asked.
“Nah. I know a bust when I see one, and tonight is just a waste of time. If you want, we can go.”
I took another sip.
“I can just Uber home,” I offered.
Knox frowned. “I picked you up, and I’m dropping you off at home.”
So he was meeting Cynthia later. That would explain why he was in a hurry to leave. I wondered if she was still here.
“Nothing keeping me here,” I told him.
“Want to grab some more food before we go?” he asked.
“No, I’m good.”
In all honesty, I was still a little hungry, but I didn’t want to make him late for his sex date. I would just eat at home.
“Amy, are you okay? You seem a bit off.”
“It was a long day, that’s all,” I said, plastering on a huge smile.
I hoped he couldn’t tell it was fake. Why is this bothering me so much?
I went through the motions as we first headed to the coat check so I could pick up my jacket. After I got it, we walked outside, and Knox once again put his arm around my shoulders. Was this a just-friends gesture? Of course it was. I didn’t know what I was thinking earlier.
Ugh. I really wanted to know if he planned to see Cynthia tonight, and I shouldn’t.
The valet brought our car around quicker than I thought possible. I needed to make small talk, or Knox’d be able to tell something was off.
“I take it that these types of events are usually better,” I said once we were in the car.
“Yes. I should have gone with my gut. As Cynthia put it, they scraped the bottom of the barrel when they chose speakers.”
There she was again—Cynthia.
“She seemed to be looking for you.”
Why was I skirting around the subject? What did I want to hear him say? That he was dropping me off and meeting with her so they could have wild sex? Though I wasn’t sure how I’d react if he did say that.
“We see each other often at these types of events. She always comes instead of the CEO. I think one day she might make a good CEO.”
I felt an irrational rush of jealousy. Enough with Cynthia. I needed to talk about something—anything—else.
I looked out the window, closing my eyes briefly. Come on, Amy. Think of something else to say.
“Oh, Mom says hi.” I turned to look at him.
He smiled. “Your mom remembers me?”
“Of course. I mention you to her now and again. And she still hopes that one of these days you’ll get me in trouble.”
My mom always loved Knox. She always said I was too much of a good girl, and that maybe Knox would get me to live a little.
He laughed and wiggled his eyebrows. “Who knows, Amy. Maybe I will.”
“Nah, you missed your chance in college.”
“I think there’s still time.”
I racked my brain for another subject. “Are you hanging out with Jeremy again tomorrow? You were out with him last Friday, right?”
“We don’t have a standing date, so to speak. Whenever I have free time, I ask Duncan if I can take Jeremy out, and we go from there.”
“And that works for Duncan? He seems to be very exact and would have to plan everything.”
He chuckled. “He’s learned to go with the flow. We only have to coordinate for weekend trips or something.”
“You do weekend trips with Jeremy?”
“Finn and I sometimes take him out camping. We even took him to Disney once.” He groaned. “Never again.”
“Why not? I’ve never been to Disney.”
Knox turned to me. “Listen to me. You have not missed out on fucking anything, okay? If anyone ever tries to talk you into going, just stand your ground and say no.”
“Oh come on, it can’t be that bad.”
“It’s loud, and there are random characters walking around in costumes. Adults, you know? It’s fucking ridiculous.”
“I didn’t know you were such a grinch.”
“I’m not. It’s just that everything there is extremely fake. But Jeremy enjoyed it. He loved it, in fact.” He paused as if he was remembering something, then said, “Honestly, Amy, you wouldn’t believe it.”
“Of course I would. It’s for kids, not for adults.”
He shrugged. “Well, the magic was lost on me.”
“Oh, you can always find magic in things. Whenever I read to the elementary class I’m substituting for, I do feel gripped by the stories, ridiculous and unbelievable as they are.”
By the time we arrived at my house, I’d completely forgotten about Cynthia. But her name was front and center in my mind again as Knox walked me to my door.
“By the way,” he said as I opened the door, “do you have a pitch sheet you send to potential speakers for the kids?”
“Yes! How did you know?”
“You always like to be prepared. Want me to look over it? Since I’ve done it and am a pro now.”
There he is, the full-of-himself Knox I know.
We both stepped inside the house, and I frowned. “Actually, that would be great. But that might make you late for meeting Cynthia.”
Knox raised his eyebrows. “What are you talking about?”
Shit, shit, shit. Think fast, Amy.
“I overheard you mention something about catching up later tonight.” My voice was strange. I cleared my throat and immediately turned away from Knox, pretending I was busy hanging up my jacket and taking off my shoes. I did it very slowly in order to compose myself.
“Amy,” he said playfully, and I straightened up.
“Hmm?” I still didn’t turn around. It was ridiculous, but I couldn’t face him.
“Were you eavesdropping?”
My shoulders dropped, and I sighed.
“I didn’t mean to. I was just heading toward you when I realized you two were talking. So I went to the bar instead.”
“But not before eavesdropping.”
“I only listened a bit,” I admitted sheepishly.
“Which part?”
I finally turned toward him. I was surprised at how intense his gaze was.
“Does it matter?”
“Yeah, it does. Because apparently, you missed the part where I told her I’m not going to meet her tonight at all.”
I swallowed hard. “And why is that? It seemed like a regular thing between you two.”
He stepped closer. I sucked in a deep breath.
“Because I want to spend this evening with you.”
He was looking at my lips. My heart was beating faster.
“It bothers you,” he stated.
“What?” I was genuinely confused.
“The thought of me and Cynthia.”
I closed my eyes. There was no point in denying it. “Yes.” I opened them again. “I know it shouldn’t, and it’s stupid.”
“It’s not stupid.”
“Just the thought of you with her, anyone...”
“I understand.”
I blinked. “You do?”
“Yeah. It’s the fucking same for me.” His voice was different, lower, almost feral.
“Knox,” I whispered.
“I told myself that it was smarter if we didn’t see each other for a while. I was determined to go through with it. But I couldn’t. When I came to the school today, all I could think about was that I want to spend more time with you, not less.”
He was so close now that I could feel his breath on me, not just hear it. It was labored. His nostrils were flaring on every exhale. His eyes were dark and so sinfully sexy.
“I can’t stay away from you. And I don’t want to.”