I grab my phone to call Dayton, but 1:45 blinks back at me from the bright screen. Huh. Maybe calling her at almost two a.m. isn’t a smart idea.
I blow out a long breath and glance at Angus curled on the sofa. I turn the key in the lock and head for my room, intent on calling my best friend in the morning.
“I don’t have long.” Dayton slides into the seat opposite me. “Tyler will kick my ass if I’m late for the shoot this afternoon.”
The noise of the lunchtime rush in the coffee shop means that her voice is louder than normal, and I switch seats so I’m next to her instead of in front.
“So, this is kind of random,” I start, “but how do you think Aaron would feel about getting a new best man?”
Dayton snorts into her coffee. “Oh god,” she replies, her eyes wide and her hand covering her mouth. “What did he do this time? What did you do? Fuck, I don’t even know who I’m supposed to blame. You’re both so bad.”
“Well, thanks.” Nothing like the support of your best friend. “Nothing. Well, I did nothing. He turned up at work last night.” I explain the evening and what he said to me.
She mulls it over for a moment, sipping her coffee. “Have you considered that maybe he really does want to talk? Mouth talk.”
“Have you ever known him to talk to a woman? Especially after he’s slept with her.”
“Well, no. Of course, his sister’s bridesmaid was an exception, but that’s because Tessa would have hung his balls out to dry if he was a dick to her.”
“Right. So why do you think he’d want to talk to me?”
“I’m thinking on that.” She sips her coffee again. “Maybe he wants to take you on a date.”
“Hell to the no.” Panic jolts through my body. “I’m not going on a date with him. Ever. Dates are stringy.”
Day rolls her eyes. “And so is some cheese, and there’s nothing wrong with that.”
“Tyler is not string cheese.” And the oddest sentence award goes to that one.
“No, he’s just the cheese.”
“I’m not following.”
Where did the cheese come from again?
“Not all cheese is good cheese. String cheese is good cheese. Maybe Tyler is string cheese before it turns into string cheese.”
I blink at her. She’s lost me. Totally. “Um, sure. But he’s not my string cheese. I don’t even like string cheese.”
“Of course you don’t. You don’t appreciate good cheese.”
“Can we stop saying cheese now?” I raise my eyebrows, and we both laugh. “I don’t know why I called you. This conversation has gotten me nowhere,” I sigh.
Dayton chews on her bottom lip. “Well, our conversations rarely go anywhere that makes sense. But to answer your original question—I assume it wasn’t rhetorical—no, I don’t think Aaron would be happy to choose a new best man.” She smiles.
I sigh. “I was afraid you’d say that.”
“And no, I’m not getting a new maid of honor. You two will just have to find some way to work together fully clothed.” She stands and grabs her purse. “By the way, have you planned the bridal shower and bachelorette party yet?”
Fucking bridal shower and bachelorette party.
“Almost,” I fib. “But you know I’m not telling you anything about them.”
“That’s what you say when you don’t know yourself.” She shoots me a triumphant smirk. “And don’t forget. You promised me I could take some pictures of you for my school stuff this weekend.”
Fuck.
“I didn’t forget,” I lie again.
Day merely smiles before stepping onto the sidewalk.
Right. That shoot I promised her. Surely that’s not this weekend? I mean, I wouldn’t have organized it for a weekend. Weekend is work, drink, and sex time. Not necessarily in that order.
I grab my cell and, after flipping straight to the calendar, see that she’s right. Saturday, two o’clock, Dayton’s photo thing. Dayton’s photo thing? Get a load of my technical lingo. Sigh. I suppose there’s no backing out of this, despite the fact I’ll be working until three a.m. Saturday night.
Someone coughs in front of me and I look up. My mouth goes dry. “What the hell are you doing here?”
Tyler smirks, leaning back in his chair. “I’ve never left a beautiful woman sitting alone in a coffee shop.”
“Oh, I believe you.” I drop my phone into my purse. “Luckily for me, I was just leaving.”
“Sit down, Olivia.”
My eyes immediately narrow at the use of my full name. Only my mother uses my full name. “Call me by my proper name and I’ll consider it.”