Complications(8)

“I just like watching you blush. So you can count on me doing anything and everything in my power to make you,” he purred, which, predictably, opened the floodgates to another full-body flush. Jesus, this man will be the death of me. Surely it was unhealthy to blush this much within the span of a few hours. She took another sip of her wine, watching as Alex mirrored her actions. He smiled and then said, “I’m the Director of Sales for a tech company in the city.”

Which directly translated to…I’m loaded. It sobered her even more. Olivia felt sudden dismay and she looked down at her lap to conceal the emotion from him. It wasn’t enough that he was the most handsome man she’d ever seen, but now they weren’t even on the same income level. What did he even see in her? She owned a small cupcake shop, for goodness sake! She did well for herself, enough to employ three people and a weekend manager part-time, but she was nowhere near his level.

She cleared her throat since it suddenly felt tight. “Ah, the puzzle pieces are finally coming together.”

“What do you mean?” he asked curiously, his gaze intent on her.

She shrugged her shoulders. “You strike me as the type of man who doesn’t take no for an answer. I’d assume that’s a pretty important personality trait to have in sales.” She swallowed and smiled tightly, “Besides, I’m sitting here right now, aren’t I? And you said you knew I would be.” Out of the corner of her eye, she caught the stares of a group of women. They were sitting at a booth along the back wall and even through the dim lighting she could see the stares they were giving Alex. But a few were looking at her. One woman, who looked beautiful in her tight black dress, whispered to her friend, who then turned to look at their table. They both laughed. Suddenly feeling very tired, she returned her attention to the man in front of her. “What am I doing here, Alex?”

“Are you upset?” he asked, his jaw tightening. His dark eyes drew her in and she felt the rest of the restaurant melting away.

“No, I just—” she took a deep breath. “We just seem so different, you and I. I’m just trying to understand why you asked me here tonight.”

“I asked you out because after I saw you last week, I couldn’t stop thinking about you,” he said it so matter-of-factly that she almost believed him.

“But why?”

“Why not? You’re a beautiful woman who I’m very attracted to. Do I need another reason?” His brow was furrowed and his hand was clenched on the table but his voice remained calm.

His admission shocked her and she blurted out, “I just thought that women like that—” she gestured over to the group of women from earlier—”would be more what someone like you went after.”

Alex glanced over in the direction of her gestured and she saw his face immediately darken. He whipped his head back to her, “Someone like me? Jesus, Olivia, we’re not a different species.” He took a breath, looking away for a brief second before returning his full attention on her. “Look, I’ll be honest. I’ve dated women like them. Lots of women. But most of them were cold. And you’re not a cold woman, Olivia, because you don’t wear a mask. I can tell what you’re thinking because I can read it as plain as day on your face. I knew from the moment I saw you that you were attracted to me, but you didn’t play games with me and act all coy. You tried to hide it and that intrigued the hell out of me. I wanted more. That’s why I kept thinking about you.”

Olivia felt a rush of air blow from her mouth as she dropped her face into her hands. It was completely frightening how accurately he pegged her. And he knew next to nothing about her.

She heard Alex shift and she looked up from her hands. His elbows were placed on the table and he was leaning towards her. “What’s this really about?” he asked. The genuine concern she heard in his voice made her throat tighten. Great, she thought bitterly. I freak out on him and then I’m going to cry for the grand finale.



“I’m sorry, Alex,” she mumbled miserably through her hands. She lifted them away from her face. “This is just me and my old problems. You don’t deserve any of this.” Olivia shook her head, incredibly embarrassed and shamed by her accusations and judgments. “I don’t have my head on straight yet from my break-up. I think that this might have been a mistake.” She felt miserable as she toyed with the linen napkin in her lap, wondering if she should leave.

“Are you going to tell me what happened between you two?” he asked, his attention still fully focused on her. It was unnerving how he could make her feel as though they were the only two people in the whole restaurant.