Page 32 of Candy Hearts
“When you set me up with Dray, dear friend, you forgot to mention that they’re still in love with their ex. We got drunk and went bowling. It was fun. We’ll do it again soon.Not as a datebecause they’rein love with their ex.”
That had been William’s most successful date since he’d started this whole relationship search, which was telling. William chanced a glance at Benji. He was watching the exchange avidly.
“Oh, shoot,” Wren said. “I was worried about that. Well, there are plenty of fish and all that. Did you at least make a list of—”
“I don’t want to talk about my love life,” William said, cutting her off before she could mention his list. God, he hadn’t thought about his list of criteria since Benji had barreled in.
Robin ran her fingers through Wren’s hair. “Give it a rest, babe. No one enjoys being put on the spot about being single on Valentine’s Day.”
Wren slumped. “Fine.”
Now that William was interested in dating again, Wren had taken it as her God-given duty to find him someone. He secretly thought she might carry guilt around that they hadn’t been able to make their relationship work all those years ago. Sometimes, he felt a bit of guilt about it too.
He watched Wren eat her brownie and sip from her can of Bud Light. No matter how much money she made, no matter how many successful lines of lingerie she created, she would always carry a piece of that girl from the trailer park with her. Seeing her with a can of cheap beer and black jeans and a distressed T-shirt—strategically shredded to show off very exceptional lace underneath—brought him right back to being teenagers with her and sitting on a lawn chair outside her house.
He knew she’d always have that trailer park inside her because he’d always have it inside of him too.
“If you won’t regale us with dating horror stories, the least you can do is entertain us with work stories,” Wren said. “I’ve already made Robin tell me her funny work stories. They got a shipment of new butt plugs today. The plugs have emojis on the base. She gave me a heart-eyes one.”
“They’re in beta test,” Robin said. “I’m not sure we’ll follow through with this idea.”
“Can you beat butt plugs, William?” Benji asked, a teasing lilt to his voice.
“Doubt it.” William thought for a few seconds. His job seemed glamorous—owning nightclubs—but mostly, he was a numbers guy. His business partner, Tina, handled more of the day-to-day management stuff. “I’m responsible for finding five bachelorians for our Bach Auction at Mount next weekend. We had several drop out this week. They evidently found love right before Valentine’s Day. If you are aware of any single people who’d be willing to donate some kind of good or service, let me know.”
“What’s a bachelorian? Sounds like something out ofStar Trek,” Benji said.
“That’s why I like it.” William smiled at him. “It’s the word the manager of Mount came up with to replace bachelor or bachelorette.”
“How do you plan to find five bachelorians on short notice?” Robin asked.
“We have a handful of late applications I can dig through, but Tina told me to hit up friends too. So, Wren? Want to be in the Bach Auction? The proceeds go to SAFE Asylum.”
Robin glanced slyly at Wren. “Aren’t you dating that bartender?”
William sat up abruptly. “You’re dating someone?” Normally, Wren kept him in the loop on that stuff.
Wren shrugged. “I’m not dating Marina. I’ve had a few trysts with Marina and her wife, Leslie.”
Trysts. That was an interesting word. Was that what he and Benji were doing? Having a tryst?
A Valentine’s Day tryst.
Do not look at Benji. Do not gaze longingly at Benji.
“I’d be happy to be one of your bachelorians. Do I have to actually go on a date?” Wren asked in a way that indicated “a date” was the worst thing in the entire world.
“Of course not. You’ll get a drink token to spend on your highest bidder, but other than that, all you’ll need to do is arrange to deliver whatever good or service you’re providing.”
“Could I offer like a customized lingerie consultation and product creation?”
The actual value of that from Wren would be quite high. He’d owe her big time.
“If you’re offering that, I’ll be there with bells on and a full fucking wallet,” Benji said. “Shit. I shouldn’t have bought that Valentine’s Day candy. Oh well. I’ll redo my budget.” He said the last part as if he were talking only to himself.
A surprised silence followed Benji’s words. Benji’s cheeks darkened, and he laughed self-consciously. A weird combination of heat and tenderness flared through William.
“Aren’t you a wonder,” Wren said softly. William could tell that Wren was taking Benji’s measure, thinking up designs in her head.
