“You already have met him,” I shove up from the couch, clearing the table since we are obviously going out now.
“I want to meet your boss, not the guy you fucked in Vegas. You know, since you’ve been hiding him from me.”
“He’ll never go for that,” I shake my head and my phone buzzes on the couch again.
We both dive for it but luckily I get ahold of it before my backstabbing sister can.
Callum-Dinner for four at Tony’s Cantina. Done.
What. The. Fuck.
Chapter 22
Amanda
“Sorry I’m late,” Paul walks into Tony’s and pulls out a chair next to Kate, giving her a brisk kiss as he takes a seat. “I was in a meeting when Kate reminded me we had dinner plans. And I couldn’t for the life of me remember but I suppose that’s what the ladies are for, isn’t it? Keeping our asses in line.”
He laughs, a Paul laugh. It’s staged and practiced, and he uses it everywhere from dinners to meetings to the golf course. I wonder if he laughs differently when he is alone with Kate. I wonder if they have anything in common at all when she is girls’ night Kate.
I wonder if she even can be girls’ night Kate with anyone but me.
“They really are our saving grace,” Callum offers a smile as well but while his is more reserved (Callum isn’t the walk around with a goofy grin type of guy), his feels more genuine. Like he has a hundred other places he could be and yet, he’s here.
The guys extend hands and give each other a firm shake followed by short intros.
“Callum.”
“Paul.”
“Good to finally meet you,” Callum says. “I hear a lot about Amanda’s soon to be wed sister and have been curious about the man on the other end.”
“Good things, I hope,” Paul laughs that laugh again and my eyes browse the drink menu.
“Wine for the table, yes?” Kate asks in my direction. Fuck it. I was going for a G&T, but wine works too. Anything to make this feel less awkward. Considering I still can’t figure out why Callum asked me to dinner on my day off in the first place, only for it to end up being a double date with my sister and her schtick of a fiancé, and now the men are partaking in rudimentary small talk I’m kind of starting to wish I had stayed home. Or scheduled a root canal. You know, something less painful.
“Wine sounds great.”
Kate orders some while the guys continue to talk.
“I’ve heard positive things about you as well,” Paul says, and we all look up. His smile falters slightly. “Alright so that’s obviously not true. Kate has told me nothing about you.”
Everyone looks wildly uncomfortable, and I shift in my chair, finally crossing my legs to force myself to hold still. What I really want to do is crawl under the table. Suddenly, I feel Callum’s hand on my leg. My eyes slide over to him, but he stares forward, the same smile from before on his face.
He is engaging my sister and her fiancé. He is present and professional and more than that? He’s comfortable. Unphased.
“How did you two meet?” Paul asks.
“That’s a story for the books,” Kate winks at me with her signature nose crinkle. I want to shoot her a glare. Maybe even a middle finger. But I don’t. I’m too busy trying to come up with a story on the fly. Luckily, I don’t have to.
“We met in Las Vegas,” Callum offers casually as the chips, salsa, and a round of tequila shots is set on the table by our waitress.
“Vegas?” Paul asks, reaching for a chip. “On the Bachelorette trip?”
“That would be the one,” Kate shimmies her shoulders.
“Are you sure these shots are for the right table?” I ask the waitress? “I don’t think we ordered–”
“I did,” Kate cuts me off. “Figured it would be a fun way to start a night. Tequila always leads to fun.”
