Kissed Blind (Hot Pursuit #2)(77)

We took a break from the conversation to devour the dip, both of us taking breaths only when absolutely necessary. He scraped the spoon along the side of the bowl and gathered up the rest of the dip. He put it on a chip and handed it to me.

“You’re giving me the last bite?”

“You’re too skinny anyway.” He grinned.

No sooner had we polished off our appetizer did my soup arrive. I ate half and gave the rest to Vance; my eyes had been bigger than my stomach. I wasn’t going to be able to eat my greasy burger if I ate anymore. It earned its reputation. Wolfgang Puck would have begged for the recipe.

I felt more at ease, like a great light had been shined on the mysterious aspects of Vance. It struck me as odd that in all the years we’d known each other neither of us had had the guts to bring up what we’d discussed. The evening had shaped up better than I’d expected.

Vance pushed the empty bowl to the side of the table when he finished. He crossed his hands in front of him. “You still haven’t explained why you were so mad at me though.”

I curled my lips inward and glanced down. “Didn’t I?”

“No. Telling you I remembered what happened wasn’t enough of a reason. There’s more.”

A busser came by and took the dirty bowl, and our waiter followed behind with our meals. I stared down at the pile of steak fries and the shiny brioche bun. “Cici,” I muttered.

“What about her? I know she’s not at the top of your list of great people, which is completely unjustified by the way. If you took two seconds to get to know her you’d see she’s nice and has a good heart.”

Those points were debatable. I didn’t trust her as far as I could throw her, but that was a conversation for another day. I gathered my courage to look him in the eye. “It’s just that we were having this conversation and I thought… I thought it was leading somewhere, and then Cici pulled up to the curb and you practically threw me in my car.”

He tossed his head back and laughed. “Wow.”

“Wow?” I leaned in with huge eyes. “’Wow’ is all you can say?”

“Let me get this straight. You thought we were having this great, profound conversation, someone else came along, someone I happen to like, and you’re angry because you got pushed aside?”

“Yes. It hurt my feelings.”

“You do see you’re angry at me for doing something you’ve done to me countless times over the years.”

I shrank back. “No, I haven’t! Not like that I didn’t.”

“Take a closer look at yourself. It’s exactly what you did.”

“Well so what? You did it to me to get even with me or something?”

“Am I twelve? No. I’d been expecting Cici and you were getting ready to leave.”

“I was getting ready to leave, but there was more to that situation, a whole hell of a lot more, and you know it.” I scooted my chair back. “Forget this. I lost my appetite. Enjoy your dinner and let me know what I owe you for the bill.”

“Di!”

I walked away and wasn’t tempted to look back. I held my middle finger up in the air and entered the hotel. My hands shook as I punched the button in the elevator. The nerve of him. I didn’t believe what he’d said for one second. I’d bet the twenty thousand dollars in my bank account that he’d done it on purpose. I leaned back against the wall and stared at the numbers as I ascended, my anger rising steadily with each floor passed.

I hated him. I hated Vance DeLuca more in that moment than in any other in my entire life. I dug my room key from my bag and slid it in and out of the slot three times before it was accepted. Finally the light blinked green and I went in. The spring-loaded hinge prevented me from slamming the door like I’d wanted. I kicked off my flip flops, and they bounced off the wall as I walked into my room. I tossed my bag down on a small coffee table, and the contents spilled out, scattering all over the carpet.

“Perfect. Absolutely perfect,” I muttered.

I knelt down and gathered up my things, but my fumbling fingers made it too hard to get it back in the bag. I settled for getting it up off the floor and on the table. As I stood, I clenched my fists. I wanted to punch something. Hard. Then someone pounded on my door, which could have only been one person. I stomped down the hallway and thrust my door open. Vance pushed his way past me.

“Hey!” I rushed up on his heels. “I didn’t tell you to come in. Get out.”

He stopped mid-stride and faced me. “You don’t get to flip me off.”

I held up my middle finger in his face. “Op! Look at that?” I looked at my hand like I was staring at the jewel of the Nile. “Looks like I can. Get out.”

He grabbed my hand and held it at my hip, backing me up against the wall. “No, you don’t.” He got in my face, and I smelled the sweet yeast of beer on his breath. “We were having a conversation and boy, I sure am sorry the truth hurt you so much.”

Inches separated our faces, but I leaned in closer. “That’s bullshit. You pushed me in the car to teach me a lesson. Like some petty little boy. Don’t blame me for you not having the balls to ask me out years ago. You missed your chance, and when I started dating Gabe, it pissed you off.”

“So what if it did?”