The Rules of Dating(22)

He let out a long breath. “It’s not that I thought you had a thing for Holden. It just irked me that he got to spend time with you when I didn’t. And he’s a good-looking motherfucker, so I suppose you touching him down there made me a bit uneasy.” He shrugged. “What can I say? I’m a jealous bastard and am apparently terrible at hiding it.”

For the third time today, I let my inner thoughts slip with Colby. “I actually think you’re hotter.”

His eyes lifted to meet mine. “Well, that’s interesting information.”

“Yes.”

Holden’s type used to be more my speed—until Colby. Who would’ve thought I’d choose the straightlaced suit? Now, all I seemed to want to do was pull on this dude’s tie and bring him to my mouth.

“So what do we do about this?” he asked. “Your attraction to me.”

I swallowed. “Nothing. We do nothing. You know you’re an attractive man. That’s not news. It doesn’t change the fact that I’m not interested in starting anything right now.”

He nodded slowly. “I think I have a solution for that, actually.”

“What solution?”

“Hear me out.” He moved in closer. “We don’t have to date, Billie. We can…undate.”

“Undate? What exactly is that?” I asked, all too aware of his proximity—just a few inches from me now.

“It’s more of what we did the other night, when we went to see the bridge. It wasn’t a date, right? It was like just the opposite. An undate. So that’s what I propose we do.”

I crossed my arms. “What would this entail?”

“We’d spend time together, but only under the most unromantic and mundane of circumstances.” He scratched his chin. “I’ll give you an example. Say I’m working on something around the apartment and realize I need to run to Home Depot. There’s nothing remotely sexy or suggestive about that. Boom. You’ll be the first person I think of. I’ll call and ask if you want to tag along, if you’re available. No pressure. No temptation. Undate.”

“What’s the point of that?” I chuckled.

“The point is, we can be friends and hang out without any of the other pressures. The point is, I’ll still get to see you, which makes me happy.”

Our eyes locked, and I wondered how obvious it was: that just being around him made me happy, too. “I guess this sounds harmless enough,” I conceded. I was sure those would be famous last words, though. Because as harmless as he made this undate thing sound, I could hear virtual alarm bells going off.

“Yeah?” He beamed.

“If this is what you really want, I can play along.”

An intensity filled his eyes. “What I really want?” He shook his head slowly and laughed. “This is not what I really want.”

A chill ran down my spine. “Tell me what you really want, then.” I was a glutton for punishment, apparently.

“I don’t think you want to know,” he said.

“I do, actually. It’s like morbid curiosity.”

After a long pause he said, “Okay then. What I really want to do is untie that fucking corset one lace at a time and bury my face in your beautiful tits while you straddle me on that chair over there. Right now. So maybe phrase your questions more carefully. Because the truthful answer to what I want is never gonna be PG or gentlemanlike when it comes to you.” He smiled and turned toward the door. “I’ll call you soon,” he said before disappearing.

Dazed and horny, I stood staring out the window for an indeterminate amount of time. I then locked the door to the shop and retreated to the bathroom where I promptly leaned against the door, pulled my panties down, and replayed his words while massaging my clit.





CHAPTER 7


Colby



Now for the moment of truth. With Saylor occupied for a rare Saturday, I picked up my phone and tapped out a text to Billie.

Colby: Up for our first undate today?

She texted back almost immediately.

Billie: What did you have in mind?

I chuckled as I responded.

Colby: I thought we established the other day that it was dangerous to ask what’s on my mind… But if you’re referring to my plans, I’m heading to IKEA and wanted to know if you’d like to join. We have an empty apartment we just renovated, and we’re experimenting with leasing it furnished as an Airbnb. I’m in charge of getting it ready. So I need to pick up a bunch of housewares, stuff like glasses and utensils.

Billie: Mmm…I do love the Swedish meatballs from IKEA. When are you going? I made plans to take a kickboxing class at one o’clock. A friend of mine is holding a free trial group lesson to drum up some new clients.

I’d taken boxing classes growing up and was pretty good at it. I thought there might be an opportunity to show off a little, so I extended an invitation to myself.

Colby: Mind if I join you? I’ve been looking for a fun way to get some exercise. Running and lifting weights is pretty boring. Maybe we could do a double undate and hit IKEA after?

Billie: Sure. Taylor would love that. The more the merrier. Can you meet me at the gym? I have some errands to run beforehand. I can send you a link to the address.

Colby: Sounds good. Looking forward to it.