Read Online Love Love by Beth Michele - Free Book Online Page B

up residence in my throat.
“When…would you like to? See me that is?”
    His eyes never leave my lips. “I’d
like to…see you on Friday. How about dinner?”
    “ Sure. We can do dinner.”
Then, maybe we can do something else.
    I turn to leave. Places to go,
messages to answer.
    “ So, do you have time to
grab a coffee before you go back to your office? Perhaps at that
shop you frequent?”
    Now? How the hell does he know I
frequent there? Has he been stalking me? “How do you know I
frequent there?”
    “ I don’t know, I just
assumed.” Yeah, well don’t.
    During our walk to the coffee shop,
Dane tells me about his job as an associate creative director at an
advertising agency. “It’s a fascinating job, really. I love the
creative freedom it gives me, and the ability to develop a design
based on an overall marketing strategy is really
exciting.”
    “ It does sound
interesting.” Creative minds need creative jobs. That’s the one
thing my mom used to say that made any sense to me.
    Dane’s job sounds sexy and seems to
fit his persona perfectly. He’d actually have a lot to talk about
with Fran. I’m trying to figure out how old he is. From what he’s
told me, coupled with his confident swagger, I’m thinking he has to
be about six years older than me, so maybe around thirty-one.
Perhaps I can learn something from him. The thought makes my
insides churn.
    He puts his hand at the small of my
back and ushers me into The Brew House. I flinch, but don’t think
he notices. His touch does strange things to me. I feel needy and
achy in all the right places, and I like it. Brad sees me and I’m
on the receiving end of that killer smile. Wow.
    “ Hi, Gabby.”
    “ Hey, Brad. Brad, this is
Dane. Dane, this is my friend, Brad.”
    Brad looks Dane over, eyeing his
expensive suit and manicured nails. “What’s up?”
    “ Pleasure to meet you,
Brad.”
    I order drinks for both Dane and
myself. Standing there, playing with the fabric of my blouse, I
watch Brad make our lattes and notice a tattoo peeking out from his
short-sleeved shirt, surrounding his bicep. I squint to make out
what it is, but we’re too far away. I grab our drinks and make our
way over to a corner table.
    Dane speaks first. “So, you like this
place, huh?”
    “ Well, obviously so if I
‘frequent it.’”
    A smile plays on his lips.
“Touché.”
    “ Actually, I like the cozy
atmosphere, and after going to Starbucks for such a long time, it’s
a welcome change.”
    “ So, how long have you
lived in New York City?”
    “ Three years now.” There’s
no way I’m telling him about all of my baggage. “Don’t get me
wrong, I loved California, but there’s something about New York
that excites me.”
    Dane’s eyes twinkle. “I would say
there’s a lot about New York that excites me.”
    Okay, he’s seriously flirting with me.
I turn my head to hide my face because it’s turning three different
shades of red right now. When I do, I happen to catch a glimpse of
Brad staring at me from behind the cappuccino maker. For some
reason, it makes me a bit uncomfortable and I start nervously
twirling the ends of my hair.
    We sit and chat for another few
minutes. Dane tells me about his rather large family. “I have three
brothers and two sisters, all located in different parts of the
country. We’re all spread out, including my parents, which is hard
sometimes.”
    As Dane is talking, I'm swinging my
leg under the table, my stiletto heel bouncing wildly. Suddenly, it
flies off my foot and across the tile floor of the coffee shop. How
Dane doesn’t notice the flying shoe is beyond me, but when I look
up, someone else certainly has. Brad has an enormous grin plastered
on his face, and I have a mask of red stuck to mine. I look back
down quickly and continue talking with Dane. How the hell am I
supposed to get my shoe back?
    Shoe loss notwithstanding, I act like
I’m completely involved in this conversation. I don’t miss a