“She’s having coffee, Mason,” Vinny assures me. “I don’t think It’s necessary to?—”
Charlie sits forward, cutting Vinny off as I stand. “Think before you do anything stupid, Lowell.”
“Vinny, is Nina safe with Joey?” I ask, not looking at him, already knowing the answer.
“Sat in a public café, yes, I would have intervened if she wasn’t.”
“And if she leaves with him?” I shoot back.
“She’s smarter than you think Mason, give the girl some credit,” Vinny says.
Nina is smart. That isn’t my worry. My concern lies withhim. “No. Let’s go.” I leave my friends in the office, not willing to risk it and not giving a shit what anybody thinks.
Nina
My feet drag as I make my way to The Elm, annoyed that I agreed to meet Joey in the first place. I plan to have a coffee and then get out of there. Fast. I need to set him straight and tell him I’m not interested. He can’t think he has a chance, making advances on nights out and sending me flowers.
I call Lucy before I turn the corner to the café.
“Hey, babe, you on lunch?” Lucy’s infectious voice chimes down the line, instantly making me smile.
“Hey! Ugh, yes. I’m about to meet Joey at The Elm,” I groan.
“What? Why?” She tuts into the phone. “You don’t owe him anything, Nina.”
“I felt bad, and I haven’t ever set him straight. I need to put a stop to it for his own benefit. The poor bloke had his nose broken!”
She huffs, relenting. “Fair enough, but men need to learn not to presume that because we are nice to them, we want to sleep with them. You haven’t led him on here. Not once.”
“I agree.” I start to laugh as I think of Mason and how I’ve not been nice to him, yet he still pursues me.
“What’s funny?” she asks.
“I have so much to tell you girls! Can we go out tonight?”
“Yes! Where?” she says excitedly. “I will ring Megs now!”
“Hold on, that’s not why I rang!” I rush out.
“I know, you want me to call in twenty with a broken arm or something. I got you, girl!”
I laugh at the fool. “Only if I text you! I will call after. Love you, Luce.” I hang up.
Joey is already seated when I enter the café, and I make my way over to him.
He stands to kiss my cheek. “Nina! You made it.”
“Of course, how are you?”
“I’m okay.” His eyes drop to his watch, then flick back to my face.
“Good, sorry. I had a class,” I explain.
I’ve only ever seen Joey at the gym in passing once, and then in the darkness of clubs when I’ve seen him on nights out, so I quickly do a scan of him from head to toe, trying to get a feel for his mood.
His hair is neatly cut on the sides but longer on top, the inky strands falling in front of deep green eyes until he pushes it back and off his face. I can see he still has some light, purple bruising under each eye but otherwise seems to have recovered. His body is lean, I wouldn’t say he works out, but he naturally has definition in all the right places. If he didn’t try so hard, I probably would have gone on a date with him by now.
“Sit down,” he tells me. “I’ll get our drinks. What do you fancy?”
