A Mess of a Man (Cruel & Beautiful #2)(20)

A brunette, a blonde, and a ginger saunter in like the beginning of a bad joke. They are more Jeff’s speed than mine. But what do I care? * is * and I want to bury myself in one and forget the honey-haired beauty.

“Hey,” the blonde waves.

I don’t waste time. “Ben,” I say, introducing myself.

Her breasts look perfect, which is a bonus. The way she smirks when I meet her eyes and the way she curls her finger at me say she’s down for anything.

The absinthe I had must have been more potent than I thought, because I keep seeing Samantha’s face overlaying the blonde’s as I move closer. When she shifts her hand to the front of my pants, my dick isn’t confused and won’t play nice as much as I want it to. I don’t even have to say no for her to realize it isn’t happening tonight.

Mark’s passed out and Jeff has disappeared. The two remaining girls end up leaving shortly after. And who the f*ck knew I could turn down two girls? Something is seriously wrong with me. After I make sure Mark is on his side on the couch, I head out. Only, I’m not ready to go home and face all the shit in my head. So as I walk down the street, I pull out my phone prepared to see if Jenna or Cate are home. When I glance up, Samantha stands fifty feet in front of me … without the *.





The shower screams my name after the golf tournament and I can’t get there quick enough. By the time I finish, Lauren is waiting for me.

“Can I grab you a beer?”

“Ahh, that sounds perfect. I’m wiped.”

“Berkeley said it was awesome and that you killed it.”

Tipping the beer bottle back, I let its icy contents cool my parched throat. “I hope so. I couldn’t have done it without their help. They were awesome. But that’s another reason I wanted to get involved with the fundraiser. Well, helping them raise money, but also getting The Right Affairs’ name out there.”

“Looks like it was a win-win for you.” Lauren picks up her beer and we clank bottles. “Here’s to more success for you, roomie.”

“I’ll drink to that any day.”

After she swallows, she says, “You do realize you’ll have to hire someone again.”

“Yeah. I think I’m going to contact the college and see if I could hire a couple of paid interns. That would help a lot of people out. The students, the college, and me.”

“You know, that’s a great idea.”

“That’s on my checklist for tomorrow.”

“Along with your hot date with Trevor, huh?” Lauren’s eyebrows waggle.

“Oh, crap. I’d almost forgotten.” My head starts to throb a little. After Monday night, Trevor is the last thing on my mind.

“I don’t understand you. The guy looks like Chris Hemsworth and you want to blow him off,” Lauren huffs.

“I don’t want to blow him off.” I know I don’t sound very convincing. It’s as though I’m trying to convince myself.

“What’s the deal here, Sam?”

“You know the deal.”

“No, I don’t. A week ago, you were willing to give it a go with him. Now you’re as cold as a washed up fish on the beach.”

I fall back on the couch. “I don’t knowwww! I thought I wanted to try. But then when I saw him Saturday and he stealth-kissed me, there really wasn’t anything there. Nothing. Nada. And I mean not even the teeniest of tingles. And I used to think he was Steamy Dreamy Trevor.”

She leans over me and grabs a wad of my T-shirt. “You swear to me this has nothing to do with your Produce God?”

“Ugh. I don’t know.” I groan, loud and not so proud.

Her fist eases up on my shirt. “Okay, why don’t you look at it this way? You have no commitment to Trevor. Go out and have fun. Even if it goes nowhere, at least you got a free dinner and were seen out and about. If and when you see Produce God again, you can decide if he was worth the wait. Then you have your answer. But in the mean time, don’t burn your bridges with Trevor. At least if Produce God doesn’t work out, you won’t be left high and dry.”

“Damn, you’re a schemer.”

“Not really. I just like to leave all my options open.”

I tap my finger against my cheek. “You know what you have that I don’t?” That question gets a deep chuckle out of her. For that, I clobber her with a pillow. “Stop being so dirty-minded.”

“Well, what can I say?”

“No. You think of the dating scene like a business deal.”

I can see her tongue poking the inside of her cheek. “Yeah, I can see why you’d say that and you’re right. I do sort of treat it that way. Negotiations and all that.”

“Maybe that’s what I need to start doing. And maybe I need to leave my feelings out of it, too.”

Lauren’s arm waves around. “Here’s my advice for what it’s worth. Don’t let your feelings get involved until you know where he stands. Then you’re much less likely to get hurt.”

“Ah, that’s how you keep the upper hand, isn’t it?”

Scrunchy-faced Lauren gets into my space. “Jesus on a picnic. How the hell is it that you’re just now figuring this out about me?”

I ball my hands up and rub my burning eyes. Damn, I am tired. “I don’t know. You know what a slow learner I am in the dating arena.”