Page 28 of Only Fate

These two are toxic together.

“How about this?” I say. “We’ll do a home walk-through and take pictures to prove it’s suitable for the children.”

A phone rings, and Rhett slides his hand into his pocket to dig it out.

“I have to take this.” He narrows his eyes at Brielle while walking toward the door. “We’ll be in touch.”

“Fucking asshole,” Brielle snarls as Rhett disappears from the room before slipping her gaze to Adrian. “Where’s the restroom?”

“Out the door, to your right,” Adrian replies with a hint of a smile.

I stand at the same time she does, and Brielle nearly trips on her black heels as she dashes out of the room.

“Your client might be more immature than you,” I tell Adrian while shoving papers inside my folder before pressing it against my chest. “Ava gave me youremail address.”

He smirks, rising from his chair and moving around thetable. “I’ve been wondering why I haven’t received an email. I waited all night in the diner for you. So long that Margo felt so bad for me that she dropped off a free slice of cinnamon apple pie at my table.”

“I didn’tforgetabout it because I never agreed to go,” I say, a sudden chill sweeping up my body. “Thank you for the food, though. If you’d given me a real email address, I’d have emailed you my thank-you last night.”

He stands in front of me, cutting off my path to leave the room. “It’s a shame.”

I tighten my hold on the folder. “What is?”

“That your”—he pauses to lower his head so it’s level with mine—“hot datedidn’t feed you.”

Hot date?

Oh, I’m going to kill Ava.

She should’ve at least given me a heads-up about her lie.

My mouth falls open, and for a moment, I’m lost for words.

I clear my throat when they come to me. “He did feed me, but we weresoooexhausted by the end of the night that we needed another meal. He told me to thank you for the carrot cake. It’s his favorite.”

“Ah, and what’s this guy’s name?” he asks in amusement.

“You don’t need to know that. The last thing I need is you stalking him like you are me.”

He chuckles, not at all offended. “Stalking? No. This is calledwinning your girl back.”

“That’s what all stalkers say.”

“Did you read the rest of the paper?”

“Yep, and none of the inside jokes made sense. You must’ve been thinking about the wrong girl.”

“How did you know they were inside jokes, then?”

Dammit.

He strokes my cheek. I know I should pull away, but I can’t.

“Which inside joke was your favorite?”

I narrow my eyes at him.

“You know what I listened to on my drive here?”

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