He kept the same bored look on his face. “You don’t know what you’re talking about, Slate. I’ve been with this woman for the last five years. I think I know her better than you do.”
“Maybe,” I said, losing interest in this ridiculous argument. “But this is what I know for sure. Once a cheater, always a cheater. She stabbed me in the back—with my own brother. Imagine what else she’s capable of.”
My brother was silenced by that last statement. He stared at me with the same derision in his eyes, but he didn’t try to defend her actions.
I rose from the chair, knowing this was futile. I did my best to steer him in the right direction, to tell him how manipulative Simone really was, but he refused to believe me. If he wanted to live in ignorance, then I couldn’t fix that. “I really hope you see the light, Coen. For your own sake.”
I stepped out of the shower after my workout and quickly fixed my hair with my towel around my waist. It’d been five days since I’d spoken to Monroe, and I’d been too irritated to reach out to her. My week had been too shitty for company.
I turned on the music in my sound system while I shaved, and that was when my phone started to ring.
It was Monroe.
I quickly finished the last area on my face, turned off the music, and then put her on speakerphone. “Hey.”
“Hey.” Her feminine voice echoed off the walls of my bathroom, her trepidation audible in her tone. “How are you?”
I rinsed my face then patted it dry with a towel. “I just got back from the gym and took a shower.”
“Ooh…does that mean you’re naked right now?” she asked, flirtatious.
I saw my smile in the reflection. “I’ve got a towel around my waist.”
“Ooh…sexy.”
I chuckled before I patted the aftershave on my cheeks.
“But I asked how you are. Not what you’re doing.”
I ran my fingers through my hair as I adjusted it then pulled the towel off my hips. “It’s been a shitty week. I’ll leave it at that.”
“Would a blow job help?” she asked, a smile in her voice.
“It wouldn’t hurt.” But a good fuck would be better.
“Well, can I take you to dinner?” she asked. “Then maybe we can head to your place for dessert?”
I was still pissed about the conversation I’d had with my brother, so my mood was sour like an old lemon. I wanted to stay in my cave and drink until I went to sleep, but she managed to wear me down with her pretty voice and playful banter. “I’ll make a compromise with you.”
“Just dessert?” she teased.
“How about I take you to dinner instead?”
“I can afford it, Slate. Well…now I can.”
“That’s not why.” I didn’t ever want her to pay for anything. A woman like her shouldn’t pick up the tab. She deserved to be pampered, to be taken care of. Just because I paid her student loans didn’t mean she owed me anything. Well…except her virginity. “I want to take care of you.”
“You know, for being an asshole…you can be pretty sweet.”
“I’m only sweet to you. Trust me on that.”
My driver picked her up and drove us to the restaurant where we would be dining. She wore a red dress that had a strap over one shoulder and a deep cut up her thigh. It was a perfect color for her skin tone. With that deep brown hair, she looked stunning.
My bad mood disappeared the second I looked at her.
She leaned toward me over the middle seat and greeted me with a kiss. “Hey. You’re more handsome than I remember.”
I stared into her eyes as I kissed her, my hand tightening around her wrist. “I was just thinking the same thing.”
“That you think you’re handsome?” she teased as she rubbed her nose against mine. “I have to agree.”
She made me melt even more, made the ice around my heart turn to water. Those innocent eyes and that soft smile made me forget all the bullshit in my life. It was easy to get lost in her, to pretend everything was alright. “Good answer.”
We arrived at the Italian restaurant, and I was given a prime seat near the window in the corner. We approached the table, and I pulled out the chair for her before I sat across from her. I knew what kind of wine she liked, so I ordered a bottle for the table.
She picked up her menu and held herself perfectly straight. Her eyes scanned across the options, her lips pursed tight together like she couldn’t decide what she wanted. “Everything looks so good…”
“Not as good as you.” I would get the same thing I always did, something low in carbs and low in fat. It would be impossible to keep this trim figure if I ate the way she did. I wasn’t sure how she kept her figure when she inhaled her food every time we were together.