The Rules of Dating(7)

“I didn’t take it that way. I mean, you are my landlord, so…” She sighed. “Anyway, I’m the one who should be apologizing for refusing to accommodate a paying customer who’d waited patiently, landlord or not. What you experienced last night is not a normal reflection of how I do business.”

I nodded. “Don’t worry about it. You had every right to be pissed.” I paused. “If you don’t mind me asking, how the hell does something like that happen?”

“You mean besides the fact that he’s a prick?” She immediately covered her mouth and looked over at Saylor, who was oblivious. “Sorry. I wasn’t thinking.”

“No worries. She’s too into her snack and your book.”

She shook her head. “I didn’t see last night coming. The only consolation is that I’d only invested a few months in the relationship, which I consider a godsend.”

I nodded. “I’m glad to hear that, but what I really mean is how the heck did you orchestrate that?”

“He left his phone out, and I saw a Tinder notification pop up. That wasn’t supposed to be happening, so I had to investigate. I knew his access code, and once I realized what he was up to, I decided to set up dates with all of the women he’d been chatting with—at the same time. And you know the rest.”

“That was freaking epic.”

“Thanks.” She smiled proudly. “I thought so, too.”

“It takes a lot of strength to execute something like that when you’re hurting.”

“I think the hurt is what gave me the strength, oddly.”

I nodded. “I get that.”

Billie impressed me. Not only was she extremely talented, she was tough—with a hint of crazy. I became more curious about her by the second. I looked into her eyes for a moment, but that was cut short when she got up to fetch a napkin for Saylor.

She then returned to her spot next to me. “Do you live in the building, or are you just the new owner?”

“I live upstairs, too, yeah.”

“And you’re the only owner, or…”

“No.” I shook my head. “You know Holden, right?”

“The musician-slash-handyman? Yeah. He’s cool.”

“Yup. He’s part owner, too. Along with two of our other friends.”

Her eyes widened. “Wow. So the four of you own the building together?”

“Yeah. Well, the company we formed together owns the building. One of the guys, Owen, works in commercial real estate and brokered the deal. And then there’s Brayden.”

“You guys must really trust each other to go in together like that.”

“We do. They’re the only three people I can say that about.”

“So you must have gone upstairs last night and told your wife all about the nutty tattoo shop owner, huh?”

Oh. Everyone assumes I’m married because of Saylor. “There is no wife.”

“Oh.” Billie’s lips parted. “Divorced?”

“No. Saylor’s mother was never in the picture.” My voice dwindled to barely a whisper. “She didn’t want to be.”

The color drained from her face. “I see.”

I stood and motioned for her to walk to the other side of the room with me, away from Saylor.

“The pregnancy was a…surprise to say the least,” I murmured, looking out the window. “The last thing I ever expected. The woman and I didn’t exactly know each other. But Saylor’s the best thing that ever happened to me.”

Billie looked over at my daughter. “She’s beautiful.”

So are you, I wanted to say. She really was, uniquely beautiful. Though she wore heavy makeup, I somehow knew she’d be even more beautiful without it.

“But it must be challenging raising her on your own,” she said.

“Thank you. And yes, I hadn’t ever held a baby before my own.”

“That’s wild.” Billie looked at me like she expected me to elaborate. But this wasn’t the time. I didn’t want Saylor to overhear.

I got lost in Billie’s eyes for a few moments. They were a deep brown, like the color of coffee beans. Then Saylor slurped on the last of her apple juice and broke me out of my trance.

“Did you choose a design?” Billie asked as we walked back over to her.

“This one!” She pointed to the most ostentatious rainbow unicorn.

Billie cracked up. “Well, I’m happy to ink that on him, if your dad’s okay with it.”

“I might have to think on that one. I always say there’s nothing I wouldn’t do for my daughter.” I waggled my pink fingernails. “But that crazy-looking unicorn might be the first exception.”

“Well, if you reconsider, just say the word. Or if you want anything else, I’ll do that, too.” She winked. “Unless it’s a rose.”

I nodded. “I think I need a bit more time. If last night taught me anything, it’s not to rush into such an important decision.”

“I definitely agree.” She smiled.

There wasn’t much reason for us to stay, and I didn’t want Billie to have to kick us out, so I turned and patted Saylor on the back. “Say thank you, Saylor. We have to go upstairs.”