Page 132 of Ripped & Shipped
“Old friend?” Duke asks once we’re seated.
“She’d like to be. I ate here pretty regularly over the past few years.”
“Wait! Is this where you filmed your social media debut?” Duke asks.
“The night I walked in and Ella Mae had been stood up? Yeah. That was here. Right over at that table.”
“The restaurant that changed your life. Iconic.”
“I guess so,” I say.
We’re not here to eat, but of course, when the waitress comes by, Duke orders food. Aiden and I just order sodas.
“What?” Duke asks. “I’m hungry. That juice box didn’t really do it for me.”
I shake my head.
Then I see him—Raymond—ImSOBeefy. He walks in and looks around the room, obviously searching for Ella Mae. Aiden sees Raymond right after I do. He nudges Duke, and Duke looks up. Duke tips his chin at me and lifts his brows to let me know he’s aware Raymond’s here.
We’re actually doing this thing.
I stand up, like we planned, and walk toward Raymond.
When I’m only a few feet away from him, I address him.
“Raymond?”
“Uh, yeah?”
Good. He’s caught off guard. And he’s a little confused as to why I’d know his name.
“You’re here to meet Ella Mae?”
“How do you know that?”
“Because I’m her boyfriend.”
I cross my arms across my chest and stand with my feet a little wider than usual.
“Oh, uh … well, she agreed to meet me here. She wanted to come here. I’m here because she wants to meet with me.”
“Actually, I’m here because shedidn’twant to be here. Do you understand what I’m telling you? I’m here instead of her.”
Raymond screws up his face.
“Hey,” he says. “I know you. You’re that guy in her posts.”
“Yeah. That’s me. Like I said, I’m her boyfriend.”
He looks me over, maybe trying to decide whether we’re evenly matched.
I tip my head toward Aiden and Duke. “You see those two guys?” They wave in unison from our table. “They’re here with me. They’re friends of Ella Mae’s. She doesn’t want you bothering her anymore. As a matter of fact, she wants you to stop following her on Instagram.”
He doesn’t miss a beat. “That can’t be true. She’d block me if she didn’t want me. She keeps me on her account. She must want me there.”
“Raymond, I’m going to spell it out for you. Ella Mae is in love with me. I’m in love with her. She and I are together. She’s not interested in anyone but me.”
“Are you sure?”
