"Satan's Errand Boy," he corrects. "You don't know me well enough to shorten my name. Too intimate."
"I will soon, apparently." I stab the papers lying on the table between Klein and Dom. In all-caps bold font it saysAll About Me. Below that is a list to be filled in, starting withName. "Did you two rob a kindergarten class?"
Dom and Klein slide over, making space for Paisley and me to sit. I would complain about being forced to sit next to Dom, but what's the point when living a shared life for three weeks looms on the horizon?
Dom sits back against the wall at the far end of the booth, putting as much space as possible between us. "Robbing a kindergarten class was one of my tasks for the day, directly below throwing nails in the street to cause chaos for unsuspecting drivers."
"Hard day's work," I murmur, picking up the laminated menu.
"The Prince of Darkness never rests."
A pink-painted fingernail appears at the top of my menu, tapping to get my attention. Paisley's eyes glow with mirth.
"What?" Her delight makes me suspicious.
"I cannot tell if you two want to rip each other's throats out, or rip each other's clothes off."
Dom and I turn sharply to each other, gazes colliding. I grimace, and his face, well it's hard to say what it's doing. Aside from looking stupidly handsome, which he can't help. It's not as if he chose that face. That hair. Those shoulders.
"The former," Dom confirms, at the same time I say, "The latter."
His eyes widen, and I realize my mistake. "I mean, the former. Obviously." Heat flushes on the back of my neck. I spent a nanosecond thinking about Dom's good looks and got tripped up. That's all.
"Freudian slip," Klein proclaims, smacking his menu on the table.
"It was not," I argue.
"It was not," Dom repeats, providing backup in my assertion that I am against getting him naked. How gallant of him.
"Cecily loathes me," he reminds Klein.
Hmm, ok. Pretty sure he's teasing me, but I'll go with it. "Yep," I say with finality.
For the record, neither of the beautiful people sitting across the booth from me show any signs of believing us. Doubt rides in the lifted corners of Klein's half-smile, and dubiousness sits squarely in Paisley's eyes.
"Moving on," I say, like it's a command.
The server shows up, takes our food and drink order, and hightails it away. Maybe she spotted the childish printouts on the table and took them for the harbinger of absurdity that they are.
Klein and Paisley turn to each other. She leans her head against the back of the upholstered booth, and he lays his hand on her thigh. They spend a few moments exchanging detailsabout their day. She smiles softly while he speaks. He asks her questions about our lunch meeting with a new account.
Maybe it's the intimacy of their moment, or the glimpse into their private little world, but there's a pinch in my chest. Longing, I think. What would it be like to have a person my heart and soul settles into?
"I'm happy for them," Dom says in a low voice.
"They're annoying," I respond, lowering my voice to match his.Annoyingly amazing.
"Without question," he agrees. His forearms balance on the edge of the table, fingers intertwined.
We aren't looking at each other, but our chins tip toward the shared space between us. Questions burn in my mind, and I choose the one most pertinent to our current situation.
"Why are you making me stay married to you until the road trip is over?"
"Two reasons," he says, accepting the soda water the server slides in front of him. I've ordered the same, our fingers brushing as we reach for a lime wedge from the ramekin placed on the table.
The incidental touch shouldn't mean anything, but it does. Brief but warm, and I know,I just know, Dom let his hand linger an extra second. Almost certainly to aggravate me.
"What are those two reasons?" I finish squeezing the lime in my drink and bring the glass to my mouth. I'm not thirsty, but I need something to do. He's sitting too close for us to talk face to face.
