This will be our fourth.
We didn’t meet through the Going in Blind app. After my date with JP, I didn’t want to take any chances on whom they’d match me with. But instead, we were both at a coffeehouse, working. He spilled his coffee and I helped him clean it up. We started chatting, and well . . . that’s that. Some of the greatest love affairs start because of spilled coffee, and this very well might be one of them.
And the best thing about Edwin is that he’s not JP. He’s nothing like JP. He’s quieter, reserved, with thick-rimmed glasses and a mess of curly, blond hair. He told me he can’t grow a beard, so he doesn’t even try. And he’s slimmer, whereas JP obviously puts time in at the gym. Oh . . . and not even one tattoo.
Everything I need in life. Why on earth am I even comparing him to JP? JP is a work colleague and nothing more. He’s irrelevant.
“I’m a bit nervous. I like this guy. We’ve only been out three times, and sometimes when he talks about birds, it can get slightly boring, but he’s so kind and he doesn’t try to poke my buttons.”
“The antithesis of JP.”
“Exactly,” I say while exhaling. “Not that JP and I were ever an item, but after the night we don’t talk about . . . which, you didn’t tell Huxley, did you?”
“No.”
“And you’re not mad that I’m making you keep it a secret? It was your fault I told you since you kept pestering me.”
“I know.” Lottie turns toward me, clutch in hand now. “And I like having a secret from Huxley. Makes me feel naughty. And if he ever finds out . . . ooh, I can’t wait for the punishment.”
I roll my eyes and, standing from the bed, straighten out my dress, shimmying the fabric down my legs. Lottie looks at me and smirks. “What?” I ask.
“Not only are you going to make Edwin fall to the floor, but JP is going to be all over you.”
“No, he’s not. He has barely even looked at me during the last three weeks.”
“Doesn’t mean he doesn’t think about you.”
“Will you stop it with that? He never even liked me . . . ever.”
“That’s not what I heard. When he first met you, you were all he could talk about. But you were the one who put up the wall.”
“Because I work for him.”
Lottie gives me a look. “And I worked for Huxley.”
“Yeah, well . . . you apparently have no morals, but I do.”
She chuckles just as there’s a knock at the door. “Come in,” Lottie calls out.
The door pops open and Huxley steps in. He’s wearing a black, three-piece velvet suit with a black tie, his hair is slicked properly to the side, and his beard is trimmed just enough to not be messy, but still thick enough to make a mark. He exudes confidence as he approaches Lottie, his eyes locked on her and only her as he adjusts the expensive watch on his wrist.
Without saying anything, he closes the space between them, wraps his arm around her waist, and brings her up against his chest. I watch as he grips her chin with his forefinger and thumb, forcing her mouth toward his, and she gives in willingly. Quietly, just above a whisper, he says, “You. Are. Exquisite. I’m going to peel that dress off you tonight, spread your legs, and make you come on my tongue.”
I softly clear my throat, attempting to clue him in that I’m standing right next to my sister.
He doesn’t apologize. He simply presses his lips to Lottie’s and moves his hand down to her ass and grips it tightly. “Fuck, babe, you look so good.”
“Well, what a lovely night for a gala, don’t you think?” I say, standing there awkwardly.
“Mmm, I could easily stay home and sit on your face, if you want,” Lottie says.
And that’s my cue to leave.
“I’m just going to . . . uh . . . yeah, I’m going to meet you guys downstairs.”
I scoot past them and their wandering hands, hoping they realize they’re my ride to the event and that we need to leave in five minutes.
As I make my way down the stairs to the entryway, I can’t help but feel a bout of jealousy. Lottie is so in love, more in love than I’ve ever seen her. She’s not only infatuated with Huxley, but he’s infatuated with her. Possessive of her. Worships her. And, yes, I’m all about independence and women running the world, but there’s something to be said about breaking the glass ceiling during the day and coming home to a man who’ll do everything in his power to remind you exactly who you belong to.