Page 20 of Wild Card

This was the part I wanted to forget, because the reporter in me was disappointed in myself. How could I fuck up so horribly? He’d already assumed I was Taylor; the correct answer was supposed to be ‘white Beemer,’ but no. I’d messed up, because for two seconds there I had wanted the gorgeous man devouring me to wantme, not her.

“I slipped” was all I admitted before fixing my coffee with more creamer. Creamer made everything better.

Juan just smiled at me with his straight white teeth and shook his head.

“Maybe he’s stalking Taylor, but hasn’t gotten a picture of her yet…but that’s a weird thing not to get first, ya know? Like, you should stalk someone based off their looks, then get into the other freaky stuff—what if they’re butt ugly? What a waste.” Juan licked the cherry filling off his fingers while shaking his head back and forth, like Elias not doing his research was a total disappointment to him.

“I don’t know…the entire card situation was weird to begin with. None of the girls knew who would be meeting them in the room. It’s entirely possible that the guys didn’t either, at least not beyond name.” I shrugged, still itching to investigate.

“I agree that Taylor probably shouldn’t know about it, but do you think she’s in trouble, or in any danger?” My best friend’s voice softened with concern.

“I didn’t get the dangerous vibe from this guy…more like he was planning on something and I had ruined whatever the plan was, but not in a ‘kidnap you and bury your body way’…more like a ‘I wanted to surprise you with a new car’ kind of way.”

“Well, just be careful—both of you.” He pointed his finger while grabbing his cell phone. “If you guys need a temporary roommate, you know I’m down.” He leaned in for a peck on the cheek. Right as he pulled away, he smiled and said, “As long as it comes with the chance to share a room.” He headed for the front door with a quick, flirty wink.

I followed him, crossing my arms and feeling like I was wading through sludge. Damn high heels had killed my feet.

“Wait—you didn’t mention why you were here so early.” I held the door after he’d opened it.

He shrugged his shoulders, a bright smile meeting me as I waited for him to explain, but he didn’t. He just watched me, then when he was about to leave, he asked, “If this guy hadn’t stopped, if he hadn’t been a complete dick and ruined it…do you think you would have wanted to see him again?”

The question caught me off guard, mostly because I hadn’t considered the what-ifs. They were always too painful to take into consideration. Ever since Taylor had entered my life, I stopped thinking about ‘what if.’

“I don’t know…” I shrugged.

Juan’s brown eyes narrowed on me with a seriousness I hadn’t seen from him in a long time.

“Let’s just say he did it, all right. The next day he took you to breakfast and called to set up another date. Would you go?”

“I don’t know…I guess, I mean yeah. If he didn’t want Taylor and had actually gone through with it, then yeah, I’d let him call me. I’d want to date him.” It was as honest of an assessment as I was willing to give. Sure, if I met the right guy then I’d want to date him. I was a senior in college, and I wouldn’t mind meeting Mr. Right. I had no issue with settling down as long as I could still pursue writing.

Juan stared at me a beat longer then let out a sigh. “I just want you to be happy. You don’t see yourself the way we do…the way most guys do. You think they only want Tay, but it’s because you intimidate them.”

I let out a sound similar to one a baby elephant would make.

“You do—you’re gorgeous, brilliant, have the entire world at your feet. When you look at people, it’s like you know their innermost secrets, and you aren’t sure if you’ll expose them or not. You may have been awkward in your body at one time, but I can assure you”—he lowered his eyes, taking in my stature entirely—“that isn’t the case anymore. Someone is going to come along and be the one to make you finally believe it. Just make sure you remember you’re worth it. No one is doing you any favors, baby girl. You’re the prize…the pot the players ask favors to win.”

My eyes began to water as I processed his words. They were an ointment to some jagged scars I had on my self-confidence…especially after the night before.

“I love you.” I walked into his arms, feeling his wrap around me in a tight hug.

“I love you too. Not enough to ever go, you know…loweron you, but I love you like my little sister.” He kissed the top of my head before pushing me away, and I laughed, swiping at my face. “I’ll see you.” He winked and walked out the front door.

I locked the door behind him and walked back to the living room, thinking over what I needed to do in order to get ready and get out of the house. Heading back toward my room, I found my phone and texted Taylor to make sure she was okay.

Me: You at the estate, recovering?

I didn’t like to call it ‘Dad’s’ or her ‘mom’s’; either one was associating familiarity in a way I wasn’t ready for. A few seconds went by before I saw the little dots bounce around on the screen.

Taylor: Yeah, I needed some of Bev’s chicken noodle soup, but I’m feeling better…thinking of going to get my nails done with Mom.

I watched the screen to see if she’d extend an invitation, but I already knew she wouldn’t. She never did. It wasn’t that they hadn’t in the past; it was just that I always turned them down. I didn’t feel comfortable around Jackie because she always compared me to Taylor, as if she was threatened by my mere existence. So, if I was vulnerable, showing my ugly nails at a salon, she’d find a way to bring up my diet and talk about something Taylor was doing differently to make her nails look so much better. Taylor always chided her mother for doing it, but after a few outings, it got old.

I looked down at my nails, just thinking how laughable it all was. I was a daddy’s girl through and through, but not in the spoiled princess way. No, I had been helping my father work on cars back before he’d made his millions. My mother had died when I was ten, so he was left doing my hair and picking my clothes, telling me it was normal for girls to wear t-shirts and jean shorts to the swimming pool even when all the other girls my age had on colorful, frilly swimming gear.

He was harsh but fair, loving but distant…until he met Jackie.

By then his wealth was plastered across our local news channel and magazines. He and I both knew Jackie and her single mom routine were just a ploy for money and comfort, but my dad wasn’t hard on the eyes. I was fairly sure Jackie had shown up for the bank account, but she had stayed because she fell in love with him.

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