“Apparently for you as well.” The slight anger in his tone has my back straightening.
Rina cringes but doesn’t say anything.
“Well, I was just running to the bathroom,” he mocks. “Before going back to my date.”
I have never wanted to punch a condescending asshole as much as I do right now. I think this is the guy Rina was on a date with that I interrupted. I’m especially not sorry now that I know he’s a total dickhead.
Rina throws a little salute as I watch him walk to the back of the restaurant. So much for a nice, easy date.
Chapter 31
Rina
Of fucking course, we run into Tyler here. The second I realized it was him, I was hoping he would just do a little wave and then move on, but nope. I’m now in the middle of a dick measuring contest. I can see Arlo about to lose his shit, but luckily, Tyler walks away before things get out of hand.
“Was that the prick you tried to make me jealous with?” Arlo asks quietly, contentious of Tyler’s date still behind us.
“Jesus. First, it was weeks ago; second, it was never really going to go anywhere, and you know that, so chill out.” This is turning out to be a great date.
“He sure didn’t sound like he felt it was going nowhere.”
“Well, I can’t speak for him. For me, it was going nowhere as evidence of where I ended up that night,” I calmly counter.
Arlo’s head tips back as he takes a deep breath. This is not how I saw tonight going, especially after the verbal foreplay we’ve been doing all day. Is this some kind of sign that we’re trying too hard at something that was never meant to be? I know that’s bullshit, but damn, every time we start to really make progress together, something pops up and pushes us ten steps back.
“I’m sorry,” he says as he refocuses on me. “There was no reason to react to any of that when he’s basically inconsequential. I was just jealous … again.”
His honesty and quick assessment of the situation makes it clear as day how much work he’s really put in. Although, I’ll say his jealousy is kind of hot.
“It’s okay. He was super aggressive for no real reason. I mean, we went on half of a date if you can even call it that.” I roll my eyes as I laugh, hoping to brush the whole situation to the side. I also peek over Arlo’s shoulder to see what his new date looks like and maybe to throw her a quick warning, but footsteps sound next to me, signaling either our waiter or Tyler. Looking up, I see it’s the latter, and he has a sneer on his face fully directed at me.
Geez, what did I ever see in that asshole? People flake on dates all the time. It’s not like we were set to get married and live all our days together. This feels extreme for the situation, and it’s making me feel super uneasy.
Arlo’s eyes follow him as he passes and then sits down with his date. Poor woman has no idea what she’s getting into with that one. Or maybe she does and she into the whole asshole thing, who knows.
“Okay, back to our date,” I say as I pick up my drink and take a healthy sip, hoping the liquor somehow saves how awkward everything has turned, thanks to Tyler.
“Good plan.”
We stare at each other silently as we try to think about what to talk about.
“So, I think I’m finally caught up with orders again. Everyone was super understanding when I had to adjust delivery dates and such, butyou, cleaning everything up and restocking everything I could ever need, really helped.”
“Good. I’m glad I could help get you back on track.” His tone is almost clinical and I snap, wanting to break the tension so badly.
“For fuck’s sake,” I mutter. “I’m dating you. I want to be with you. Fuck everything else, okay?”
“God, I love this feisty side of you. It’s so fucking sexy,” he whispers. And just like that, the awkwardness breaks.
“It’s a damn good thing you like it because it’s seventy percent of my personality.” I take another sip of my drink.
Waiters come with our food, placing our plates in front of us before disappearing without a word. This is one of the fancy bistros where they don’t ask a lot of questions but still somehow have impeccable service. I wasn’t lying when I said I felt out of place earlier. This isn’t my usual style, but I love that he’s putting in the extra effort for me. For us.
We both dig in, moaning at how delicious the steaks we both got are, and before I know it, we’re both finishing our meals without having said much of anything to each other.
“Damn, that was phenomenal. Sorry, I lost track of all thoughts outside of how good the steak was,” Arlo says, putting his napkin down on the table.
“Don’t be sorry. We might have to come here once a month to get our fix.”
