“Surprised you know that since every time I ask her about her fiancé, she says you’re out of town,” Gavin replied. “You travel a lot.”
My eyes widened at the snap in his tone, but being his charming self, he relaxed himself on my desk again and smirked at Tyler’s tightened face.
“I have my hands in many ventures around the world,” Tyler said.
“Yeah? What kind? Anything I might like to invest in?” Gavin asked.
Smug bastard.
I was annoyed that his arrogance and challenge had my thighs tightening. That stupid smirk. I needed to break this apart before they started comparing dicks.
“Ah, well, I can send over some proposals if you like,” Tyler said. “I know a few startups that could use the extra cash if you have any lying around.”
“I mean, I’m not sure how much you call extra. I have a few duffle bags packed just in case a friend gets kidnapped, maybe a million beneath the mattress in the guest room. I might have some coffee cans buried in the park, too. How much do they need?”
I snorted, and Tyler just stared at Gavin. “You’re fucking with me, aren’t you?” Tyler asked.
Gavin’s cocky smile broadened. “Not completely,” he said. “I do actually have some buried in the park for a rainy day.”
A quiet laugh left me, and I pulled away from Tyler to walk back to my desk. “He’s completely fucking with you now,” I said, shaking my head at Gavin. “Ass,” I said to him once I’d sat back down.
“Do you two know each other from something else?” Tyler asked, and I realized I hadn’t been guarding the look on my face.
Gavin and I exchanged a glance. “We met at a singles party a few years ago,” I admitted, turning my focus on Tyler. “You remember that Valentine’s that Lana and I talk about? The one I kept the candy hearts from?”
“Oh, that one.” Tyler stuffed his hands in his pockets, hesitation written in his wary gaze. “And you two…”
“No,” I said, my nervous laughter echoing. I looked at Gavin and gave him a look that read ‘help.’
He sighed, but played along. “It wasn’t for lack of trying,” he said. “I think we mostly talked marketing at the bar that night.”
“Did you know this was her company when you hired it?” Tyler asked.
“No,” Gavin answered. “No, I truly couldn’t place her the other night at the social. It wasn’t until that Monday that I realized who she was.”
I was so grateful for him playing along that I wanted to pull him into the coat closet and kiss him.
“And how did you two meet?” Gavin asked, leaning back and staring between us.
“Ah…” Tyler looked at me, apparently expecting me to tell the story in full detail, but I sat back in my seat and pointed a hand toward him.
“All yours,” I said.
Tyler smiled nervously, hands on his hips. “She nearly ran me over,” he replied.
Gavin’s brows shot up, and he looked back at me. “What?”
I sighed, deciding to let Tyler off the hook with this one. “I was late for a meeting downtown,” I continued. “Distracted on my phone. I barely stopped at a stop sign, and he stepped out onto the road as I turned.” I held up my hands and then clapped them together. “Nearly killed him—“
“I told her she could take me out to dinner to make up for it,” Tyler said. “She had too much wine. I bought dessert.” Tyler’s smile lit up to his eyes. “After blowing it with the kiss that night, I thought she’d never want to see me again, but we ran into each other a week later. The rest is history.”
I avoided Gavin’s gaze, my jaw tightening together. It was a clumsy story. At the time, he’d been the first guy in months to try and flirt with me. I’d been so desperate to feel something that I thought maybe that was it.
I missed how much fun it was in the beginning.
Maybe that was with every relationship, but I thought there would still be some lingering excitement. The occasional heart jump, warm fuzzy feelings with a kiss, truly smiling at him… It had only been three years, after all.
Yet, here we were.
