Flirting with Forever: A Hot Romantic Comedy(83)

“Let’s dance.” I was grateful the music masked the edge of panic in my voice as I grabbed Everly’s hand. “Who wants to dance with me?”

Leaving our empty drinks at the small table, we made our way to the dance floor. Good music, great friends, a light buzz from the martini. Exactly what I needed.

Except it wasn’t.

Dancing with my friends was fun, especially the way they laughed and smiled. But none of it replaced the ache in my chest.

“Hey.” A guy in a black button-down and fitted black slacks sidled up next to me and put a hand on my elbow. “Wanna dance?”

He had blue eyes and a peach fuzz attempt at a beard. His clothes looked expensive but they didn’t hide the fact that he was probably ten years younger than me—at the very least.

Oh my god.

I looked around. Was there anyone else in here over the age of thirty? Or were we the only ones?

“No thanks,” I said, trying to keep my voice even. “Girls’ night and none of us are single.”

“Damn.” Shaking his head, he removed his hand from my elbow. “Let me know if you change your mind.”

At least he hadn’t ma’amed me?

Everly checked to make sure I was okay. I assured her I was. The song changed again and Sophie gestured toward our table. I checked my phone and tried not to be disappointed that Dex hadn’t replied.

But I was. I really, really was.

Hazel met my eyes and raised her voice above the music. “Time to go home?”

Everly slipped her arm around my waist. “You need the ice cream now, don’t you?”

With tears misting in my eyes, I nodded. “I’m sorry. We got all dressed up and we’ve hardly danced at all.”

Sophie put her arm around me on the other side. “It’s okay.”

“We don’t mind,” Hazel said.

“Whatever you need,” Everly said. “We’ve got you.”

“Then let’s go. I don’t want to be here. I want to wallow.”

We hugged again, holding each other for a moment in our sacred circle of trust. And I knew, no matter what happened between me and Dex, I’d always have my best friends.

And that meant a lot.





35





DEX





My head throbbed with a headache that nothing over the counter would touch. I’d spent the night in my mom’s guest room, tossing and turning instead of sleeping—and regretting my decision to stay there and not go home. But if I’d gone home, she would have been right next door. I needed some space to cool down and get my head together.

Had it helped? Not really.

Riley knew something was going on, although I’d told her there was a plumbing issue at home which was why we were staying the night at my parents’. I didn’t think she believed me. She’d given me a look when I’d dropped her off at school this morning that said she was concerned. Or maybe suspicious.

I didn’t know what to tell her.

I’d hoped getting lost in work would help, and to an extent, it had. I had a client come in for more work on his half-sleeve, and while I’d been tattooing, my headache—and the reasons for it—had receded to the back of my mind. But as soon as I’d finished, it had all come back with a vengeance.

My phone was still off. I knew I had messages from Nora but I hadn’t replied. What was I supposed to say? What did you do when you realized the woman you were dating wasn’t who you thought she was?

She’d called it the single dad article. Yeah, it had been about single dads all right. A handbook for taking advantage of them. It read like something Aimee Bachman, the neighborhood horny divorced mom, would have written, not Nora.

But maybe I’d been kidding myself about her. Seeing what I wanted to see. Because if that article was the real Nora, I hadn’t known her at all.

“Hey, Dex,” Kari said, poking her head in the back office. “There’s a phone call for you. It’s Riley’s school.”

“Sorry, my phone is off.” I wondered if she wasn’t feeling well. She’d seemed fine this morning. Hadn’t she? To be fair, I’d been pretty distracted. I picked up the phone. “This is Dex St. James.”

“Hi, Mr. St. James, I’m calling about your daughter, Riley.”

“Is she okay?”

“Well, there was an incident in one of her classes. She started an altercation with another student. We have her in the principal’s office and we need you to come in as soon as possible.”

“An altercation? What does that mean? Is she hurt?”

“There were no injuries to either student.”

I opened my mouth to ask what the hell she was talking about but decided to just get my ass down there and talk to them in person. “I’m on my way.”

“Thank you. You can come straight to the office when you arrive.”

“Will do.”

Fuck.

“Kari, I have kid issues,” I called up to the front. “I have to go.”

“No problem, boss. I’ll take care of it.”

I grabbed my keys and left.

The sky was heavy with gray clouds threatening rain. After pulling out of the parking lot, I turned on my phone. It dinged with several messages. For a second, I thought about calling Nora. Which made no sense. Whatever was going on, it wasn’t Nora’s problem.