Page 47 of The Bluffing Game

His lips twitch as he stares at me. “Missed me, have you?”

“No, not at all. I barely even realized that you hadn’t shown up. Only today did someone mention your name. And I was like, Oh, shoot. Yeah, I haven’t seen Dalton in a long time. I hadn’t even noticed before.”

“I see. Well, that’s good then.”

“Yeah, it’s been great.”

“You’re enjoying working here?”

“I’m really liking it. Gracie makes amazing food, and all the guests love it. Lucia’s place is amazing, and life couldn’t be better.”

“So glad to hear that,” he says. His eyes gaze at me before he heads back into the restaurant and toward the kitchen.

I want to groan out loud. That was the most awkward conversation I’d had in a long time, and I feel like a fool. I’m about to go into the restroom and scream into my hands when Izzy saunters through the door, her blond ponytail swinging back and forth.

“Hey, there’s Sage.” She grins, runs over, and gives me a quick hug. “I’m so excited we’re all working tonight.”

“Me too. Haven’t seen you since last night.”

“I know. I had to leave early this morning because Colton wanted to get breakfast and …”

“So, you’re still seeing him?”

“We’re really going to try and make this work. He says he realizes that I don’t want him seeing anyone else, that he’s really going to figure out how to make this work for both of us,” she says, her voice cracking. “I promised myself I wasn’t going to cry today, thinking about this. I don’t know what to do. I don’t think he broke it off with anyone. I think he might continue to sleep with other women because I’m not giving him any. And he says, if I truly want him to be monogamous with me, then …” Her voice cracks again.

I rub her shoulder. “Oh, Izzy, you deserve much better than him.”

“But maybe he has changed. Maybe he’s realized that he’s going to lose me and he’s going to stop. He’s going to call it off. It’s not his fault that I agreed to be in an open relationship.”

“But you didn’t agree.”

“I know. I’m just so confused now.”

“And even if you did agree, you removed that agreement. So, you either break up with him or he stops. There are no ifs, ands, or buts, are there?”

“I know. I just … ugh, I hate this. Why are men like this?”

“I wish I knew, but at least we can all discuss the dating app today and go through our profiles, and all go find new men.”

“That will be fun.” She grins. “If I can just meet another man, then maybe I won’t even care about him.”

“I hope that you do.”

“I’m just going to hang up my stuff,” she says. “You got the front for a little bit?”

“I got it.” I smile.

I head over to the bar, where Lucia is cleaning the bottles.

“Hey. She hasn’t dumped Colton yet,” I say to her.

“I cannot stand that man. Honestly, as much as I hate to say it, I think we’re going to have to have an intervention or something,” she says, “because he sucks.”

“Oh, he more than sucks, and I’ve never even met him in person.”

“Trust me, Sage, if you met this man, you would understand just how bad he is. He’s the worst.”

“I don’t even understand why Izzy puts up with him.”