God, he was so damn bossy. Exactly the kind of guy I typically avoided because it drove me bonkers. I hated it when the men I dated told me to do things rather than asked. It was just plain rude! “I’ll think about it,” I hedged.
Then he said something I never thought he would say. “Please.” The word was soft and I wouldn’t have heard it if my apartment hadn’t been completely quiet.
I hesitated. If his withdrawal hurt after a single date, how would I feel if he did it again? Or broke up with me when he got tired of my personality?
“Chelsea?” he asked.
“I’m thinking,” I replied, my voice just as soft as his. Then I took a risk. One that felt huge. “You disappearing on me…it didn’t feel good. I need to know that I can trust you not to do it again because if I pursue this with you, my emotionswillbe involved. If we’re dating, exclusively, not hearing from you for a week would not only hurt me, it would piss me off. And considering how much I know about you and your businesses, that could be a bad thing.”
Landen chuckled but the laugh faded quickly. “It won’t happen again.”
It sounded like a promise.
“All right. I’ll give you another chance. But you’re on probation. If you fuck up like this again, there won’t be another. I also reserve the right to give you shit about this in the future.”
He laughed and it finally sounded sincere. “I wouldn’t expect anything less.”
“Now, tell me exactly what happened that kept you from contacting me for ten days.”
I heard his heavy sigh through the phone. “Let’s just say there’s an FBI agent combing through the financial records of my company right now.”
I sipped my third glass of wine. “You had to get the Feds involved?” That was bad. Very bad.
“Yeah. I think I managed two or three hours of sleep a night while I was there. It was a shitty situation. For a few days I thought I might be brought up on charges as the owner of the company.”
“They were going to arrest you?” I asked. My heart was racing and I gulped back more wine. Shit, I probably wouldn’t have called me either. That sounded terrifying.
“For the first few days, I thought they were. They certainly acted as though they intended to arrest me. Then, as we combed through the financials, they realized that someone else was taking out the money. But I shouldn’t say more since the investigation is still ongoing.”
Great, I was dying of curiosity and now he had to zip his lips. That figured. Also, the wine was going straight to my head.
“Okay, killjoy, I understand, even if I think it’s cruel for you to refuse to tell me.”
He chuckled. “Killjoy? You were enjoying my tale of potential jail time?”
“Maybe just a little,” I retorted, which made him laugh louder. Then I swayed. Damn, I needed to lie down. “Well, I just chugged three glasses of wine, so I’m feeling kinda sleepy and relaxed. And if you got in at three this morning, you’re probably tired too.”
“I am, but I need to know something before we hang up.”
“Fire away,” I said, pouring one more glass of wine, which emptied the bottle completely. Not because I was still drowning my sorrows but because wine should never go to waste, no matter how cheap it was.
“Are you busy tomorrow?”
“Nope,” I answered immediately.
“Then I’ll pick you up at eleven. Dress for a picnic and maybe a hike.”
“A hike?”
I could hear the smile in his voice when he replied, “Well, maybe not a hike, but definitely wear comfortable shoes and clothes.”
“Roger that,” I retorted.
“I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Good night, Landen,” I said.
“Sweet dreams, Chelsea.”
My eyes drifted closed at the sound of his voice. It was deep, resonating in my ear in a way that made me shiver. I lowered the phone from my ear and disconnected the call.
The depression that had been riding me earlier lifted a bit, but worry still niggled at the back of my mind. I wasn’t brilliant like Landen, nor was I as successful. He was the kind of man who spent a week cleaning up a mess at one of his companies that was worth millions of dollars. Just one.
The only messes I cleaned up were disordered files and cluttered schedules. I wasn’t sure I would be able to keep up with him but I had to try. He was the first man in a long while that gave me butterflies and seemed to enjoy my smart mouth.
It had been a long time since I took a chance on a relationship. I was due.
