Into The Fire - E. L. Todd Page 0,80
Plus, he was really cute. Now that I’d spoken to him, I felt more comfortable meeting him. He was charming so our interaction probably wouldn’t be awkward. I was worried about meeting a complete stranger. At least with Brad, we had a mutual acquaintance.
I guess I’d just have to see where it went. This whole thing was unlike me, but if I didn’t push myself, I’d sit in the same place forever. If I didn’t try to find other connections, how would I stop thinking about Ash? If Ash didn’t want to be with me, that was fine.
But I wasn’t going to stick around and wait for him.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Ash
I entered Sawyer’s apartment without knocking. “Yo. You need to check out my new shop.” He wasn’t in the living room so I headed to the kitchen and pulled out a beer. His keys and wallet were on the counter so I knew he was home. Plus, the door was unlocked.
“Hold on a second,” he called from the hallway.
“I’ll drink your beer while I wait.” I plopped down on the couch and took a long drink. I’d been so focused on my shop that I hadn’t thought about anything else. It was a nice distraction from the woman always dancing around in my mind.
Sawyer came down the hallway wearing a collared shirt. He buttoned up the front. “What’s up?”
I eyed his nice clothes. He normally wore jeans and a t-shirt just like me. “Going somewhere?”
“I have a date tonight.”
“Score,” I said.
“Yep. And she’s so damn hot. Like, a ten. No, an eleven.”
I held up my beer. “Congratulations.”
“So, the shop?”
“Yeah, it’s looking really good. I redid the floors and painted the walls. Now I have a few portraits around. It looks pretty cool. And I’m getting a state-of-the-art sound system.”
“I’m sure it’ll be sick,” he said. “You’ll meet a lot of babes there.”
“I meet a lot of babes anyway.”
He grabbed his keys and wallet. “Hate to be a bummer but I need to go. I’m meeting Alessandra in, like, twenty minutes.”
I was just about to take a drink when I froze. “What the fuck did you say?”
He stilled like he was terrified. “I have that date in twenty minutes…?”
“What’s her name?” I stood up and set my beer down. New York City was a big place but Alessandra was a rare name. What are the odds of that?
“Alessandra. What’s the big deal?”
“How did you meet her?”
“Tinder,” he answered. “She’s really cool too.”
Could it be my Alessandra? She was dating the lame lawyer. Would she go out with someone else? Would she really resort to Tinder? “What does she look like?”
He shrugged. “Brunette…green eyes.”
“Give me your phone.”
“Why?”
“Just do it,” I snapped.
He fished it out of his pocket and handed it to me.
I opened the app then scrolled through his contacts. When I found her name, I opened her profile where her picture was located.
Holy shit, it was her.
What the fuck?
How did this happen?
“You okay, man?” Sawyer asked.
A million thoughts ran through my mind at once. Did it not work out with Brad? If it didn’t, why didn’t she call me again? How long ago did this happen? Had she been on other dates? I wasn’t good enough for her but Tinder was? “Fuck.”
Sawyer stared at me. “What’s going on?”
I was sick of this. I was tired of being depressed without her. I had no idea what the hell I wanted or what I could offer her but this had gone on long enough. My nights were lonely and my days were desolate. She came to my dreams but since they were painful, they were nightmares. “You aren’t seeing her.”
“Excuse me?”
I looked through the messages to see what restaurant they were meeting at. Then I tossed the phone back at him. “You aren’t seeing her. I am.”
“What?” he snapped. “You can’t just take my date.”
“She’s my date,” I snapped.
“What the hell is wrong with you?”
“Alessandra is mine. You’ll find someone else.”
“I don’t think so. I found her fair and square.”
I grabbed him by the throat then gripped him. “She’s. Mine.” I pushed him back. “She’s my escort. She’s the girl I’ve been seeing. She’s off limits.”
“What?” He choked for a second. “That’s her?”
“Yes.”
“Well, you said she didn’t mean anything to you so—”
“Yes, she does.” I walked out. “She always has.”
***
I arrived at the restaurant then searched the tables. It was a nice French place on the Upper East Side and I wasn’t dressed for the occasion. The host immediately looked at me with disapproval when