Page 127 of Tobias

I purse my lips, crossing my arms over my chest and looking out toward the dining room. I can’t even look at him. And here I was, missing him.

“Good evening, gentlemen. Can I get you started with some drinks?” the pretty waitress asks.

“Give me a glass of your most expensive liquor,” I say, turning my gaze back on Theo’s. If he’s going to play dirty, I can do the same thing.

“Whiskey, please,” Theo says with a polite smile.

“We have Macallan, sir,” she says, darting her eyes to me. “It’s also the most expensive…”

“He’ll have that,” I say before Theo can get an answer in.

When she leaves, I pin him with a glare, waiting for an explanation. He doesn’t say anything, and this reminds me all too much of our first date. How fitting that it’ll be the first and the last, because I am going to screen every date Ihave moving forward so this can never happen to me again. Why did he think this would be a good idea? To completely blindside me?

“Six weeks with no communication, and you decide to get me on a date by lying? You better start talking because I am not staying here a minute over the allotted one-eighty.” I glance at my phone. “You’re already down nine.”

“Tobias,” he begins, bright green eyes holding mine. “I miss you.”

I huff out a laugh. “Congratulations. Oh, hey. Does Marianne know you’re here? Actually, don’t answer that. I’m sure you won’t be truthful anyway.”

He flinches away. “I deserve that,” he says softly. “But for the record, she knows I’m here.”

“Lovely, but threesomes aren’t my thing.”

He sighs. “You’re angry—”

“That doesn’t even touch what I’m feeling right now.”

“I hurt you, and I don’t deserve your forgiveness.”

“Goddamn right you don’t.”

“But I won’t stop trying to earn it. I don’t care how long it takes.”

“It’s going to be a lot more than three hours and fifteen hundred bucks, I’ll tell you that much.”

“I understand,” he says.

The fact he isn’t arguing with me is making me angry. Why won’t he argue with me? Why won’t he fight? I’m being unreasonable. Why doesn’t he see that? I keep my gaze on himwhile he stares at the table. I hate how good he looks. Hate that I made myself look this good for him when he doesn’t deserve it.

We don’t say another word until the waitress brings our drinks.

“Are you ready to order?” she asks cheerily.

“We need a few moments, please,” Theo says.

“I’ll be back shortly.”

She leaves, heading to another table. I reach for my drink and take a mouthful. The quicker I can drink this, the quicker I can get another.

“Hope you came prepared to pay an astronomical bill,” I comment.

“I’ll manage,” he says with a sigh.

But the way he says it is off. Something about his tone isn’t right.

“What’s wrong, Theo? Is your fiancée spending all your money already?”

He chews on the inside of his cheek as he watches me, and everything on his face tells me I’m very wrong. A pang of guilt hits me in the chest, but I refuse to back down. I won’t give him kindness when all he gave me are lies. No matter how much it hurts to be mean to him, I won't stop. I won't be nice to him.

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