“Oh, Matthew, you’re so bad at reading body language. Logan and me? Friends is all it will ever be. He’s a good egg and all, but eggs can sometimes turn rotten, you know what I mean?”
I cock my head and stifle a laugh. “So, you’re not into him?”
She bursts out laughing and shakes her head adamantly. “Oh, God, no. He’s selfish, cocky, and arrogant. Sure, he’s got a soft side, but the guy’s a complete fucking douche canoe. I could never go out with him. He’d drive me to commit homicidal, bat shit, balls to the wall, psychotic murder. We’re talking Hannibal-type shit here, Matt. The guy would make me crazy. A couple of hours with him, and I already feel manic.”
“Wow! That good, huh?” I ask, and she nods. I am a little confused because it really seemed like they were getting along so well. Maybe she’s right? Maybe I do read body language all wrong. “But you were laughing all night?”
“More like laughingat himthanwith him. Sure, he was laughing, too, but he knew we were only heading down a friend path. Once we figured that out, we relaxed and had a fun night.”
“So, both our nights were a bust then?”
“Yep, and I didn’t even get any freaking dessert,” she says.
I raise my brow and glance back at the restaurant, remembering the waiter’s words before I left. A thought springs to mind, and I say it before having time to rethink. “I didn’t have dessert with Jaci either. Wanna go back and have dessert together, so the night’s not a total bust?”
Alex smiles so brightly it makes my stomach flip. She nods, and I turn, walking with Alex and our security detail back inside the restaurant. As we head into the beautifully made-up room, I wonder what Alex is thinking.Is she thinking about Logan? Or is he not even entering her mind at all at this point?
Uncertain where to sit, I guide Alex back to her original table. She slips into her seat, and I settle into Logan’s chair just asthe waiter reappears, his face brightening when he spots us. “Dessert menu? Coffee?” he offers with an eager smile.
“Both, please,” Alex replies, and he walks off to his podium to grab the menus.
“You gonna talk to Logan again?” I ask as the waiter places the menus in front of us.
“I’ll probably keep in contact, but it will be a friends-only thing. Nothing romantic. I’ll probably go to him to get a tattoo, though. He’s really talented in that department. But enough about me. Tonight was about you. She leaned in and kissed you, I saw it. To be honest, when that happened, I was like, well, Matt doesn’t need me to be here anymore. I can leave him to be with Jaci on his own, and he can enjoy his night without worrying about me.”
“And you thinkIread body language all wrong?” I let out a bemused laugh. “No, she was kissing me because I was telling her it wasn’t going to work, but I’d give her concert tickets if she wanted to come.”
She explodes, laughing, and then quickly covers her mouth. “No way! You were holding hands and everything.”
I scoff. “So were you and douche canoe.”
“Yeah, only because he told me his brother died.”
I shrug. “We were holding hands ’cause we were, in a way, breaking up. Not that we were together, but you know what I mean,” I defend.
“Wow! We totally misread each other’s dates, didn’t we?” She giggles, glancing at me with those big doe eyes that seem to draw me in. Her lashes curl delicately, framed by dark eyeliner that accentuates their depth. The chandelier’s soft light reflects in the whites of her eyes, making them glisten, and it strikes me how something as simple as her gaze can be so breathtaking. As I sit here, captivated by the sparkle and intensity in her eyes, a shiverruns down my spine. I draw in a deep breath, trying to steady myself.
“Are we ready to order dessert?” the waiter asks from beside me. I hadn’t even realized he was here until he spoke, breaking me from staring at Alex. She quickly averts her eyes from mine, and the connection is lost as we both look down at the menu.
I’m not sure what that was.
It was weird.
Clearly, I’ve had too much champagne.
“I need chocolate… lots of chocolate,” Alex says, making me and the waiter chuckle.
“Well, I recommend the chocolate surprise, but it’s big enough for two.”
“I am a garbage guts and could probably eat the whole thing, but what d’ya say, Matty Moo? Wanna share some sort of chocolatey surprise?”
Chuckling, I nod and close my menu. “Sure, sounds great. And an Americano, no sugar.”
“God, your coffee order is so lame, I’ll have a hot white mocha, three sugars and extra foam, please,” Alex orders, and I chuckle at how even her coffee is chaos incarnate, then hand the waiter my menu before he walks away.
“So, disaster dates are done and dusted. Dessert on the way. Tonight’s looking up for the internet dating losers,” Alex says, and I let out a chuckle.
“Nice alliterations there, Alex.”
