"I don't. I want to be upstairs with Audrey."
"Even after she let you down?"
"She didn't let me down. You did," she tells me as she storms into her room.
So much for a night of fun. I thought I'd be having a fun dinner with my daughter and hot sex with Audrey. Instead, I have a pissed off daughter and my hand for company later. I couldn't let it go, though. I couldn't pretend that it was okay for Audrey to put herself before my kid. That will never be okay.
Audrey
I should've told him. I know I should've told him. He was so angry, and it just didn't feel right, but I should've done it anyway. He deserves to know. Then again, if I'd told him while he was berating me, he might have thought I was doing it as a way to keep him. Which is something I would never do.
How would he know that? The reality of this whole situation is that we've spent maybe 40 hours together. Probably not even that. I have residual feelings from high school, and he keeps saying he does, too, but are they really real? How can they be when we haven't even had one conversation about our lives as far as what we want, and where we want to be? Nuclear grade sex can only get us so far.
My phone rings, stopping my pity party. "Hey, Jimmy," I say, smiling when I think of my friend.
"Hey, Aud. Listen, I ended up on a last minute trip to Vegas, and I was hoping we could do some more catching up tonight."
"That would be great. I need a little cheering up, actually."
"Let me guess, Blake isn't all his movies crack him up to be."
"Something like that. Where do you want to meet?"
"I'm at the SLS, and I heard they have a great Mediterranean restaurant here if that works for you."
"Sure. I love Cleo. Give me about an hour and I'll see you there. If you have any trouble getting a table, just tell them you're meeting someone from Corrigan & Co. and they'll seat you."
"You really are big time now."
"Says the guy running the billion-dollar tech business."
"Touché. See you soon."
"Bye."
I jump in the shower, and then throw on an off the shoulder white lace dress. I didn't want to be too dressy, but I've already been called a slob once tonight, and I needed a little bit of a confidence boost. I get that boost when the valet guy trips over his own feet as I get out of the car. I also feel the eyes following me as I make my way to the restaurant.
"Wow. I still can't believe I actually got to eat lunch with you every day in high school. Can I tell everyone in the restaurant that? They probably think this is a blind date."
"Shut up. I'm still the same person I've always been. I just know how to do my hair and put on make-up now," I tell him as I lean over and kiss his cheek.
"Did you ever think we'd be here, at these places in our lives?"
"I always knew you'd be where you are, heading up some big tech company. Me? I honestly thought I'd be practically living in a lab, and spending my nights eating frozen meals while watching The Discovery Channel."
"And instead you're hanging out with a movie star, or you were. What's going on there?"
The waiter takes our order, giving me a few minutes to collect my thoughts. I don't know Jimmy as well as I used to, but he was one of my best friends. It would be nice to have a new take on things, so I go for it. Or at least as much of it as I can tell. "We got together at the reunion , and then his daughter let it be known that she hoped her parents would get back together. I told him he had to try."
"I saw the pics of him and Misha and wondered what the hell he was thinking."
"Yeah, it didn't work out. We were just getting back together when we had a fight earlier. Or rather, he yelled at me, and then I walked him out."
"What was he yelling at you about?"
That is definitely something I can't share. "I don't want to rehash it. Let's talk about you? Are you seeing anyone?"
"Yeah," he says with a smile.
"Spill."
"She's great, but um, she's also my boss."
"You're dating the owner of your company? Wow."
"Why is that so surprising? Reina Corrigan married up."
"Don't ever let Matt hear you say that. He'd tear you to pieces."
"I didn't mean it as an insult."
"Well, it came out as one."
"I just meant that she married her boss, and you work for her. So, me dating my boss shouldn't be such a shock."
"I just wasn't expecting it. If you're happy, I'm happy."
"I am. I never thought I'd find someone who gets me like she does."
"Is it weird taking orders from her at work?"
"Weird? No. Challenging? Sometimes. Right now she has me working on a project that I'm not completely behind, but I'd do anything for her, so I'll do it."
"Don't compromise yourself, Jimmy. If she really cares, she wouldn't ask you to," I tell him, reaching out to place my hand over his.
"I'm overreacting as usual. It's not that big of a deal."
We spend the next hour talking about college, and how we ended up where we are. I give him my cover story about being hired by Jane Corrigan because of my Communications background. The real story about Maggie Griffin hearing about my work in the Chemistry labs at school are not for the public-or even long-lost friends. Once I start to yawn, he walks me out to my car and hugs me goodbye.
I'm walking through the lobby in my building when Blake gets off the elevator. "Hot date?"
"Not that it's any of your business, but I was having dinner with Jimmy. He's in town for business."
"How was his bed?"
"Are you drunk?"
"No."
"Then you need to stop talking. Because if you were drunk, I'd excuse the nonsense that's coming out of your mouth. Sober, I'll knock you out."
"Oh, now you want to fight?"
"Goodnight, Blake."
I walk past him onto the elevator and lean my head against the wall as it ascends to my floor. One night. One fucking night with him. One night of fucking. And now I'm tied to him forever. FML, indeed.
Chapter 16
Blake
"I need to call your tutors to tell them to come here instead."
"I guess."
"You guess? I thought you wanted to be tutored."
"I do. I had a plan and now I can't do it."
"A plan for tutoring?" she nods. "What was your plan?"
"I was going to use a room off the cafeteria at Corrigan & Co."
"That's an option?"
"It was. Matt said I could help clean up the cafeteria as payment. I was going to ask you last night, but you were acting like an asshole."
"Excuse me?"
"You were. Audrey didn't do anything wrong."
"We'll have to agree to disagree on her behavior."
"And yours too, right?"
"No. I'll agree that I was being an asshole. She may not have done her job as well as I'd have liked her to, but I shouldn't have attacked her."
"You should apologize. Beg her if you have to. Audrey should be here with us. Or we should be in her apartment with her."
"You let me worry about Audrey. What can we do about Matt?"
"I don't know. I really wanted to be there, and it's super secure."
I pull out my phone, and text Audrey, asking her to come down to see us if she hasn't left yet. She responds almost immediately, saying she'll be here in a few minutes. I thank her, and put my phone back in my pocket. "Audrey's on her way. We'll see what she has to say."
"Thanks."
The knock at the door comes a minute later, and Jeanne opens it, hugging Audrey tight when she sees her. I'm glad for the moment I have to catch my breath as I drink her in. She has on a strapless jumpsuit that starts out light blue on top and transitions all the way to black when it gets to the bottom. I can't see her heels under the wide legs of her pants, but I know she has some on since she's significantly taller than Jeanne, and they're usually a little closer in height. Her hair is mostly up, but there are loose pieces framing her face, and falling to rest on her tits. I resist the urge to fall to my knees, and decide I should speak.
"Thanks for coming, Audrey."
"Of course. What do you need?"
You. I need you. I know I have a long way to go in terms of groveling before that will happen, so I stick to what I need for Jeanne. "Jeanne said she had an agreement with Matt Corrigan to use space at the building for tutoring."
"Yes. We were going to talk to you about it last night."
"And then I fucked everything up."
"You used me as your verbal punching bag, yes. What about the room?"
"She'd still like to use it."
"Okay. I think Ellie and Aiden are still here. I'll call them, and ask them to take her in to the office with them. They'll keep her safe."
"I know you'd keep her safe. I knew that yesterday, but I was freaking out … and you were there."