Page 22 of Brat Baby
“Is your friend joining you for dinner?”
I force myself to look up at her, even though tears burn the back of my throat and my heart feels like a fragile piece of glass shattering. “I…uh…”
How did Darcy not turn up? My Angel. The man who stared into my soul and understood everything. I thought, for sure, he would be the one to come to me. To not leave me completely alone. Even just to tell me this isn’t going to happen. That I should go home.
Obviously, my emotions are written all over my face—something that irritates the fuck out of me—because her expression softens. “I can give you a few more minutes?”
What the fuck good will that do? I have no idea what to fucking order. He isn’t going to magically appear and help me make my choices. None of them give me the sense that they are the kind of men who would turn up late to anything, let alone leave someone wondering where the hell they are.
No, this was deliberate. He kept the reservation but chose not to show up.
Why? Why would he do that? To humiliate me? Well, fuck that.
Swallowing, I straighten my spine. “No, that’s okay. I’m just going to go. Thank you.”
I start to rise and gather my things when she places a hand on my shoulder and presses me back into my seat. I look up at her, one eyebrow raised. She is staring back with a smirk on her lips.
“The booking was made online.” When all I do is blink at her, she continues. “There is a credit card attached to the table reservation. Are you sure I can’t bring youanything?” She stresses the last word.
I frown at her, scanning her face, before what she is implying dawns on me. “Actually, you know what? I’ve never had Thai food. Is there some way that I could sample some dishes? Charge it to the card attached to the reservation?”
Her smirk turns into a grin. “Yes, definitely. I think a banquet for one would work perfectly here. It’s a lot of food and will take about an hour and a half to serve you everything—ten courses in total. Anything you love, we can pack up for you and you can take home. How does that sound?”
My cheeks ache with the size of my smile. “Fucking perfect.”
Chapter 12
Darcy
It is an odd feeling to have both pride and heartbreak colliding in your system at the same time.
For almost two hours, from the vantage point of the driver’s seat of my car, parked down the block from Thai Orchid, I’ve been watching the front door, waiting for Emmy to reappear.
I’m fucking dying on the inside. It’s been a solid fight to keep my ass in the vehicle. I just want to go to her, explain what’s happening, but we all agreed. No contact until we speak to Thayne. Protecting her heart is the most important thing to me right now. And as much as I know she’s hurting right now, the pain she would feel after getting her hopes up, only to be told no in a few weeks’ time? No. I can’t do that to her.
And then there is the professional element to consider. I might not give two shits about my job with NU, but I do care about my students and about Derek’s and Hudson’s careers.
Fucking Xavier. I can’t believe he did this. But at the same time… I’m not surprised. Asshole is selfish to the bone. If he wants Emmy, there is absolutely nothing that will stop him, bar her telling him to leave. Even then, I’m certain he would meld into the shadows and have her from afar, like some sort of creepy Romeo and Juliet shit.
This is not how tonight was supposed to go. We were supposed to sit opposite each other, hold hands on top of the table, and tell each other little things about ourselves. It was supposed to be a first date, the beginning of the next six months—hopefully more—together.
She was so fucking nervous when she got out of her cab, wringing her hands and standing perfectly still as she watched the people sitting on the patio.
I’m fairly certain she considered turning around and going home.
But my girl, my perfect princess, handled herself just like she had all weekend. Squaring her shoulders, she walked straight up to the concierge and waited to be seated like the little queen I know she is.
How must she have felt, sitting there, alone, waiting for me to show up. How long did it take to dawn on her that I wasn’tshowing up? Did she suspect from the beginning, or was she blindsided?
Fuck. I grip my shirt over my heart at the thought of her all alone, with a packed restaurant around her, waiting. The humiliation at having been stood up on our first date must have eroded the snarky self-confidence she lets out to play every now and then.
How has she been sitting in there for two hours, alone? Did she slip out and I didn’t notice? What if she—
My phone lights up in the cradle on my dash.
Thai Orchid
Thank you for dining with Thai Orchid. Your receipt is…
