Fuck.
13
Leo
“Leo,”she says with wide eyes. “What are you doing here?”
“I know the owner and stopped in for a quick meeting,” I lie because I don’t want her to know I tracked her down.
I do actually know the owner, but my visit to the club has nothing to do with business and everything to do with Daphne.
I took a big risk. I went to Hook & Hustle, hoping no one would recognize me, and paid a waitress a hundred bucks to tell me where Daphne was. I went there with every intention of talking to her, but when I found out she took the night off, I knew this was my chance.
“Oh. Well.” She glances down at her feet. “I don’t want to keep you.”
“How have you been?” I ask, trying to find a way to keep the conversation going and feeling her out.
“Really well.” She gives me a fake smile. “And you?”
“Good.” There’s an awkward pause as we stare at each other.
She’s so beautiful. The month apart was harder than I expected. I sent flowers every few days, making sure she didn’t forget about me and always knew I was thinking about her. “Can I buy you a drink?”
Daphne glances over her shoulder, and my eyes follow hers to Michelle. “It’s probably best if you don’t.”
I reach over and brush her hair off her shoulder, touching her skin with the backs of my fingers. Daphne doesn’t pull away, and I know she’s struggling as much as I am. “Just one,” I beg.
Daphne turns again, looking toward her friend. “Michelle doesn’t like you much.”
“Well then, it’s a good thing I’m not interested in Michelle. Please sit,” I tell her, pulling out a chair at the table next to us. “I’ll be right back.”
“Don’t be too long,” she says as she sits down and relaxes back into the chair.
As soon as I order our drinks, Michelle walks over, tapping her fingernail against her glass. “I don’t like you,” she tells me, reinforcing what Daphne has already told me.
“I know.”
“You’re dangerous.”
“I’m not.” I keep my cool, knowing if I don’t win over the best friend, there’s no hope of ever getting Daphne. “My father may be—just like Daphne’s—but I am not dangerous.”
Michelle eyes me. “What are your intentions toward my best friend?” She raises an eyebrow and cocks her head.
“Intentions?”
She nods. “Are you just playing with her heart, or are you more into the whole mindfuck thing?”
“Neither.” I turn toward Michelle and rest my elbow on the bar. “Have you ever met someone and wanted them so badly you can’t even explain it?”
“Well, maybe,” she says and fidgets with the drink in her hand as she glances down at the floor.
The only thing I can do is lay all my cards on the table. “Listen, I know there’re a million reasons why we shouldn’t be together, but none of them matters because of how I feel about her.”
Michelle drops her chin and peers up at me. “And that would be?”
I’ve never been one to talk openly about my feelings, especially with a stranger. But I know Michelle’s the key to my ever having a chance with Daphne, and that means I have to be open and honest.
“I love her.” The words slide off my tongue with ease. Maybe because I’m not saying them to Daphne’s face, but professing them to her best friend. “I know it’s crazy. We barely know each other, but…”
