RexShit.I take a step forward.A friend of hers places a hand on her back, rubs up and down. Leans over and speaks into her ear. Another woman scoots closer, resting a hand on her arm and another reaches across the table, doing the same. Her friends are comforting her, offering her support for whatever is going on in her life to make her break down in tears in a public place.What am I doing? I don't know her. Yet I want to go console her. Cheer her up. Figure out what's making her sad and fix it.She's here at The Flying Goat, with what looks like a group of friends out for drinks which means it's supposed to be a happy time for her. So, what is happening that's causing her to stand here and cry? Better question is, why do I care so much? It's not that I lack compassion, but typically if I see someone upset, but they clearly have a support system surrounding them, I wouldn't think of it again.But this beautifully broken girl, I can't tear my eyes away from her. I sti
Chloe"I've had a really shitty day." That's putting it mildly."Yeah? Want to talk about it?""Why am I in here? Was I bothering the other guests? I'm sorry if I was, I really didn't mean to.""You weren't bothering anyone," he says, leaning a smidge closer."Then why?""I can't tell you that."I scrunch my eyebrows together and rub my bottom lip with the tip of my finger. His eyes follow the movement and I drop my hand."Why not?""Because I don't know," he admits. "I just know that I saw you out there crying and couldn't just stand there.""I'm sorry.""Don't," he snaps. He shakes his head and softens his tone when he continues. "Don't apologize for allowing yourself to feel the effects of whatever is going on in your life. If you need to cry, let it out.""Okay?" The entire conversation is confusing me and I don't know what I'm supposed to say to him. "If I wasn't making a scene, then why did you haul me back here? Am I in trouble for something? I paid fo
ChloeI can tell he's waiting for my response. Which any other time would make me want to mess with him a little bit. But right now, the thought of even pretending to still like this guy turns my stomach. So, I don't let Rex wait for my response longer than the few seconds it takes me to gag and burst out laughing. "Want him? Screw that! No. Noooo. No." I shudder in disgust. "Blech. I was the one who broke up with him and we weren't that serious to begin with. It was a Tinder swipe that never should have happened and we were only together for a little over a month.""Good. He doesn't sound worth it.""He wasn't. I think the only I absolutely shouldn't have slept with him, either. Nasty fucker." Rex chuckles at my grumbling and I point at him. "What is it with guys? Why? WHY? WHY? WHY are you this way?"He raises his hands in the air and scowls. "Hey now, don't lump me in with men like that."I narrow my eyes on him but don't respond. He could be married with 2.5 kids at ho
Chloe"You taking back your offer of dessert? That's not a nice thing to do to a woman who's had such bad day, you know."Gone is the half smile, replaced with a full one. And damn if it isn't sexy."Now what kind of man would I be if I took away dessert? I'll meet you there, sound good?"I nod once, still unsure what I'm planning to tell my overbearing friends. Okay, so overbearing isn't really the right word since they're just friends. My people who care about me.I feel his eyes on me as I leave the office and I can't help the goofy smile spread across my face by the time I've reached the table where my friends are sitting."Sorry, ladies, I've gotta go see about a guy."They all groan but Ari's the one who speaks up. "You've gotta be shitting me right now. You just gave us a line from Good Will Hunting!""And?""And the cheesy one, too! Besides, Chloe! What the hell?"I shrug. "He invited you guys."Choruses of "Ewww!" and "What a perv!" are shouted as they
RexWhat the fuck am I doing? Seriously, what the fuck am I doing? I'm having dessert with a beautiful woman who has had a super shitty day, that's what I'm doing. That's all I'm doing.Maybe if I keep telling myself that, I'll actually believe it.Because I already know that I'm lying to myself.It's not as if I never have more than only sex with women. It's just rare. Dinner usually leads to expectations of more, and I don't do more.I wouldn't be surprised if Chloe stood me up. Especially after she goes to her friends and tells them where she's going. And if she does show up, the chances of her being alone are pretty slim.That thought leads to me wondering why I care so much and really want her showing up alone.I'm already seated at a table, the late hour of the evening allows for a quieter restaurant, even for a Saturday night. My server refills my water and gives me a sympathetic look. No doubt she thinks I'm getting stood up given the fact that I've been here f
Rex"No, you terd." She throws a brownie at me and I catch it and pop it into my mouth."Hey, you were the one who said full service."Another sparkle of happiness pops through the dark. Her face tips down, a long lock of deep red hair falls over her shoulder, which starts to shake before she's laughing so hard a snort slips out. Her head jerks up, eyes wide when she stares at me, hopeful I didn't hear it. Of course I did, though, because I'm paying attention to everything she does."So no happy ending, then. I got it." I don't mention the snort but it's out there and I won't be able to not tease her about it at some point in the future."Well, it's not as if we send our clients out unhappy, though. It's just not that kind of happy ending.""Bummer.""Oh, you frequent those?""If you were my masseuse? Hell yeah, I would. In fact, I'd probably be your most loyal customer."Those deep, dark eyes roll and she takes another bite of The Cookie. I'm glad she's not a woma
Chloe"I'm so full," I groan, taking another bite.He laughs as I slide the fork out of my mouth and swallow down the creamy cheesecake. I'll have to run three extra miles tomorrow from eating all of this. Well, that is, if I was a runner. Instead I'll do some squats or something. Rex probably runs. Or goes to the gym. Or flips those heavy tires and does rock climbing and pull ups in his sleep. Very little of his body is showing but it's not hard to miss that he's in good shape. His forearms alone are what orgasms are made of.And I really, really want to see what his tattoos are like that are hidden beneath his shirt sleeves."You still haven't told me much about your salon.""I figured you'd lost interest once you learned it wasn't one of those appointment with a happy ending places.""Well, obviously, that would have made it much more interesting but I still want to know more about your boring salon."I smile and fiddle with my fork before laying my napkin on my
ChloeHe laughs, head thrown back. Strong neck, too, I can't help but notice. It's thick and wide with muscles at the base that lead into broad shoulders. Holy shit he's good looking. I don't think I've been in the presence of a man like him before and it makes me all kind of wiggly feeling inside. I don't know what to do with myself.When I got to Balance, I had to sit in my rental car for about fifteen minutes before I came inside. I know this isn't a date but Rex is so far out of my league, it doesn't even feel like I have the right to be sitting at the same table, much less eating with him.It wasn't lost on me that the hostess looked disappointed when I was led to his table. The entire staff was probably hoping he'd been stood up and they could help lick his wounds."I figured you'd call me out on it. I can't help it. I'm a nerd at heart. Love computers. Video games. Technology fascinates me, how it's always advancing. Every day I can learn something new, so I never get