“I don’t think I’ve heard this song in five years,” a voice at my shoulder said, and I turned to see who’d spoken. He was about my height, with short, curling hair. Dark-rimmed glasses framed an earnest yet nervous face.
“I’ll see that five and raise you at least eight,” I responded with a smile.
He tipped his glass of clear liquid with a floating wedge of lime. “Nathan.”
“Fallon. Nice to meet you.”
A twitch of his lips. “I guess my next line should be, ‘Come here often?’ But for some reason, you don’t look the type.”
Amused, I turned my back to the dance floor to face him. “No? What type do I look like?”
He took my answer to heart, serious brown eyes meeting mine. “A guy who’s been hurt. Someone who doesn’t really want to be here.” His gaze skittered away from mine for a second. “Like me.”
“So why are you, then?”
He tipped his head toward the dance floor. “My friends told me the best way to get past a breakup is to surround yourself with people. They’ve been together since college, though, so I’m not sure why they’re the dating-advice experts.”
In the crush of bodies, I spotted two men dancing together while not very subtly checking us out, and I smiled to myself. That would be Dev and Brody for sure if the three of us ever went out together. They’d be pushing me to talk to someone.
“I have friends like that, too. Because they’re a couple, they want everyone around them to be as well.”
“Yeah. I’ve tried the apps, but nothing’s clicked. So I decided what the hell. It’s Friday night in the city. Might as well be here rather than sitting at home, you know?”
Boy, did I ever relate. “I guess so because here I am.” My beer finished, I raised the empty glass. “Want to come get another drink?”
He ducked his head. “Sure.” We made it to the bar and found a space to lean against it. Talking to someone as nice as Nathan was far more interesting than getting sweaty on a dance floor.
“So what happened with your ex?” I was curious.
His mouth drooped. “He cheated. But I should’ve known. Bryant was super successful, gorgeous…you know how it goes. We worked together on a case—he’s an entertainment lawyer, and I’m a forensic accountant. He was charming and funny, and I fell for him head over heels. Stupid, right?” He huffed out a fake laugh, and my heart squeezed at his pain.
“No, I don’t think it’s stupid. At all. Sometimes someone comes into your life and turns it upside down, and there’s nothing you can do about it.”
“Is that what happened to you?” Nathan asked.
About to deny it, the words died on my lips. “Yeah.” I took a long drink before continuing. “I—it was my first time, and we were together only six months, but I’ve never been able to recreate how he made me feel. It’s been about ten years.” Now that I’d said it, I couldn’t stop the words flowing. “And the craziest thing is, he’s come back into my life, and he has no idea who I am.”
“Oh, wow,” Nathan breathed, his own story of woe forgotten for the moment. “Are you gonna say something to him?”
No way I’d reveal the details of how Patrick and I had met, but speaking about it with a total stranger made me curious as towhat they’d think. “I’m not sure. I want to because it doesn’t feel right that I remember and he doesn’t. I, uh, look a lot different now than I did when we were together.” I wasn’t about to reveal that I belonged to a sex club. Nathan seemed like the kind of guy who might not understand.
“Yeah, why not? I mean, maybe the two of you can get together after all these years.” A dreamy smile lifted his lips. “My friends call me a hopeless romantic, but I don’t mind. What’s wrong with that?”
“Nothing. It’s just…we can’t be together.” I gnawed on my lip. “He’s not out, and I am.”
“Maybe he’ll be more willing now. You might not think so, but the world is more accepting.”
“In some ways.” Nathan was truly the eternal optimist. “Not in his profession. I really can’t say any more. But why do you think you should’ve known your ex would cheat? Because he’s good-looking and successful? ’Cause the guy I’m looking at meets those criteria as well.”
Even in the dim light, I could see Nathan’s cheeks turn scarlet. But I wasn’t lying. Nathan had a fit, trim body, an adorable face, plus the whole clean-cut image, complete with glasses, was hot. Not my type because I obviously fell hard for a bad boy with a big ego and a dick to match. Nathan needed to find someone who’d appreciate him.
“Come on. You’re saying that to be nice. I’m just an average guy.”
Someone had fucked with this man’s self-esteem. I knew all about that—the subtle putdowns and any accomplishment brushed off as nothing special or worthy of praise. Being tossed out and forced to grow up at eighteen had given me an inner strength I hadn’t known I possessed.
“Fuck whoever told you that. Youarespecial. Everyone is. Sometimes we learn that the hard way. Your ex sounds like a tool. You’re better off without him.”
Still unconvinced, Nathan shrugged a shoulder and had another sip of his drink. “Maybe.”
