The Client(12)

“Like teaching?”

“Teaching,” he agreed. “And a family. Wife. Kids.”

I arched an eyebrow. “Asking a bit much for a first date, don't you think?”

He grinned that wide, easy smile of his, the one that I knew melted the hearts of women everywhere. “Just laying my cards on the table.”

There'd been a spark between us from the moment we met, and I was definitely attracted to him. I also wasn't entirely opposed to the idea of settling down, of marriage and a family. Having lost mine so young, I liked the idea of having a family of my own.

Hearing Tyrell say it like that didn't give me goosebumps, didn't make me want those things, but it didn't make me want to run away either. In fact, I didn't feel much of anything one way or the other. No jealousy at the thought of another woman having a family with Tyrell. No desire to have one myself.

I wasn't ready. No matter how much I liked Tyrell, no matter how attracted I was to him, I wasn't ready for a relationship.

He leaned forward and put his hand on mine. “Are you okay?”

I nodded, my smile feeling tight on my face. “I'm okay.”

“But...?” He removed his hand and gave me a searching look. “Something changed, and I don't know what I did.”

“You didn't do anything,” I said, shaking my head. “I really like being here with you. You're a great guy.”

“I'm hearing a 'but' in there somewhere.”

Deep breath in. “Two weeks ago, I was engaged.”

Tyrell's eyes darted toward my left hand, then back up to my face.

“Through a set of bizarre circumstances, I ended up getting home early and finding my fiancé involved in a threesome with a pair of swingers.” There, I’d damned said it.

“Shit,” he breathed, his eyes wide.

“Yeah, that was pretty much my reaction,” I said dryly. “I knew things hadn't been going well lately, but I'd thought we'd just hit a rough patch.” I stabbed an ice cube with my straw.

“I'm sorry,” Tyrell said.

“I'm not.” I lifted a shoulder and stabbed at the ice cube again. “I'm just glad I found out now instead of after I married the bastard.” I looked up. “I'm not still in love with Gordon, but I don't think I'm ready for anything even close to serious.”

“I understand,” he said, his tone sincere.

I nodded, feeling more relief than anything else. I liked Tyrell. Liked flirting with him, talking to him. Hell, I even thought I might like sleeping with him. But I didn't want anything more than that. Not now, anyway.



* * *



I couldn't help but feel guilty as I opened my front door. Tyrell had been so sweet and understanding. He'd accepted what I said, then continued on with our meal. We'd kept talking and joking, sharing stories about our past, our families. A part of me almost wished I was ready to date again. I had a feeling that a relationship with Tyrell would be easy, simple.

Completely unlike what I was feeling now.

All night, I’d been telling myself that the only reason I felt mild attraction toward Tyrell was because I wasn't ready to date so soon after my break up with Gordon. Except a part of me knew that wasn't entirely the case.

There was someone I was really attracted to, a man whose touch made my skin hum. Someone who I had a hard time not staring at whenever he was around. The man who'd been starring in my dreams almost every night.

If he asked me out, I wasn't sure I would give the same excuse to him that I had to Tyrell. In fact, I was almost certain that I'd have been looking forward to a second date – or maybe morning-after breakfast.

Just the thought of waking up next to him was enough to give me butterflies in my stomach, confirming my suspicions. I hadn't wanted to admit it, but while I'd enjoyed flirting with Tyrell, I hadn't gotten any of that same gut-clenching desire. Now that I thought about it, it'd been a while since I'd had that feeling at all. I could barely remember that fluttery feeling with Gordon. And I didn't even know if that was my imagination rather than memory.

I sighed and headed for the bathroom, shedding my clothes on the way. The food and company had been excellent. I just wished there could've been more. Tyrell was a great guy, and he deserved someone great too.

My thoughts didn't let up as I showered, or even after I climbed in bed. I attempted to read for a bit, but soon gave it up when I couldn't seem to make it past the same paragraph. I turned off the light and tried to sleep, but it was hours before I finally managed it.

My phone woke me up sometime before noon, but I just stared at it until it went to voicemail, watching Dorian’s number fade to black. I didn't feel like talking to him on my day off, especially not after the thoughts I'd had last night. Just thinking about his voice made my entire body flush. I didn't know him very well, but I knew enough to know he wasn't the sort of man I wanted to get involved with, no matter how strong the attraction. Casual sex had never been my thing, and from what I'd heard around the gym, that was all Dorian did.