“I do.But I’m subtle about it, and she’s agreed to the dynamic.Above all, I don’t go around telling her what she can and cannot do.”
“What would you do if Cassie told you she was so focused on a problem while in public that she didn’t pay attention?”I challenged.
“One, Cassie and I have been together longer than, what, a week?And two, that’s not what Emma said,” Marcus retorted.
I kept my attention on Marcus as the other guys all sat back in their chairs.“She seems to think just because she hasn’t been harmed, it won’t happen.She said as much.My sister calls it optimism bias.When you and Miles made the argument that it could happen, Emma countered with, ‘…but it’s never happened.And I’m careful’.Great.She’s careful, but wishful thinking doesn’t eliminate or mitigate the danger.Hell, that pink haze, pie in the sky shit has gotten people killed.”These guys were driving me nuts.
“She’s an adult, Asher.You have to trust her.”
Trust her?I was very aware I had trust issues, thanks to an ex-wife who cheated on me.That was before I came to work at Fantasies, Inc., but the wound was still there.“I do trust her to do her job.”
“There it is,” Lucas commented.
“What?”How many times had I asked that today?What was I missing?
“Trust her to know what’s best for her,” Lucas said.“She’s managed to live her entire life without you telling her what she can and can’t do.How do you think she’s made it this far?You’ve known her all of a whole week, and you’re already trying to clip her wings.”
Was I?I sat back in my chair and contemplated their words as my mind replayed last night.I caught Emma’s muttered quip as she was leaving.She’d called me a Neanderthal, and after my friends’ succinct analysis, she wasn’t wrong.“Aww, fuck.”
Dean raised a hand and pointed skyward.“And the lightbulb comes on,” he said, laughter in his voice.
Every head/desk gif I’d viewed in the past flashed across my memory.How could I be so stupid?I’d called her out in public, in front of Marcus, Cassie, and Miles, who were damn near strangers to her.Hell,Iwas damn near a stranger.I was lucky she didn’t quit on the spot or as Marcus had remarked, kicked me in the nuts.If it had been anatomically possible, I would’ve kicked my own ass.I was better than this; I knew I was.
Emma had gotten under my skin like no one else, not even my ex.And Marcus was right: I had royally screwed up.Now, I had to figure out how to fix this.
“What do I do?”
At least my friends could help me get out of this mess.I hoped.
I looked around the table.One chin propped on a hand.One shaking head.Another shaking head.One skeptical, even to the cocked eyebrow.
Marcus leaned forward, lifted his beer, took a sip, and pointed the bottle in my direction.“I’d start with an apology,” he offered.
Miles lifted his chin from his raised hand.“Then explain you were only thinking about her safety and protection,” he added.
From Lucas, the first of the shaking head twins.“Also, let her know you believe she can take care of herself in any situation.You were only concerned because you know how stupid men can be,” he said with a grin.“Definitely mention how stupid men are.She’ll agree with that.”
“Case in point: How you acted on Friday,” Josh, the second of the shaking head twins, commented, his grin as wide as Lucas’s.
“I gotta second the suggestion about mentioning how stupid men are.That move has saved many a man’s life.”Dean lifted his bottle of beer, reached across the table and clinked my bottle in a toast, then raised the bottle again with a knowing wink.
I nodded, processing their advice.I was going to fix this with Emma, even if it meant going down on my knees.Of course, I’d do that in private.No sense in letting the guys rib me more than they were already doing.
I’d make this up to Emma, because I did believe she was a capable woman.And if I had any chance with her romantically, I needed to fix this.
If she’d let me.
Chapter Ten
Emma
I pulled into the parking lot of Jay’s Bar & Grill the next day.I was surprised when Cassie called me and asked me to meet her.I’d made quite the scene last night.I liked Cassie, and I didn’t have very many girlfriends.It would be nice to make one.
When I walked inside, I noticed all the wood and brick.The place had a nice cozy feel to it.Different than the pub we were at last night.
“Over here, Emma.”
I turned and saw Cassie waving at me.I walked over to the table and sat down.“Hi, Cassie, thanks for calling me.”
