“What?” she asked, almost afraid to hear the answer.
“Longest fucking hours of my life,” he said, shaking his head, and instantly, Emi felt the anxiety begin to drain from every tensed muscle in her body.
“Really?” she asked, a bit skeptical but could already feel the ends of her mouth curving upward. “I got the impression you had fun with her. You certainly spent enough time with her today.”
“That’s because she wouldn’t let me leave.” He put the car in gear and began to pull out. “From the very beginning, she was all about ‘I could hardly believe it when Valerie told me I’d be spending the whole day with you.’” His attempt to imitate Lucy’s annoying voice made Emi smirk even as she watched his brow go higher and get stiffer with every word he said. “And do you know in the middle of it all she pulls her phone out and tells me to check my phone. I do and a text comes in with a picture of three of her cats. Valerie didn’t give her my number, I didn’t give her my number, she never even asked for it, but she already had it. Said with all her tech knowledge and friends, she had her ways. Who does that? She pretty much admitted she stalked the shit out of me this week so she’d have plenty to talk about, and fuck if she didn’t talk nonstop.”
Emi laughed now, covering her mouth and offering a forced sympathetic look when he turned and glared at her. In all the time she’d known him, she’d never seen him so annoyed. He went on a little more about all the times he’d begun to excuse himself or come up with a way to get away from her and she’d ask something complicated he couldn’t just give a quick answer to. Something she’d likely rehearsed.
“Her ex-husband left her for another woman,” Sydney continued as if that was a given. “He left her for his older boss. A woman almost fifteen years his senior with four kids and a ton of other baggage was more appealing to him than Lucy was and can you blame him? Did you hear her laugh? Merciful God in heaven, I was getting ready to poke my own eardrums out with my fork.”
That was it. Emi burst into laughter. She’d heard Sydney cuss before, but seeing him like this was hilarious. Sydney finally gave way to a smirk.
“That’s so mean,” she said then added, “but I won’t be a hypocrite. I cringed each time I heard the laugh all the way back to the car. I can’t imagine having sat there for hours listening to it.”
He continued telling her more about the rest of the conversation he’d had to endure. He did admit there were parts that weren’t too bad. Emi had been right about Valerie giving them a tour of the place. It was why all three of them had gotten up and were gone for a while.
Sydney had finally gotten past talking about the most exasperating hours he’d spent in years when his phone rang, and up on his dash the name Lucy popped up.
“No way,” he said, staring down at his dash. “Are you kidding me?”
“Answer it,” Emi said, giggling.
“Hell no!” His brows arched even further. “I’m telling you the girl doesn’t shut up.”
Before he could protest further, Emi hit the answer button on the dash and covered her mouth so Lucy wouldn’t hear her laugh. If looks could kill, Sydney’s glare would’ve had her shriveled up like a swatted fly in the passenger seat, which only made her want to laugh more. She slapped both hands over her mouth as Sydney’s brow arched high, though she could see the corner of his lip twitch.
“Hey, Lucy,” he said, shaking his head at Emi.
“Hey, it’s been too long,” she said then laughed, and Emi felt her brows pinch tight as she struggled to hold in the laughter.
Funny how less than a half hour ago that same laugh made the hair on the back of her neck stand. Now she was in danger of laughing out loud because of it.
“What’s going on?” Sydney asked then glanced at Emi as they came to a stop, and his expression softened at the sight of her continued struggle not to laugh.
“I was just driving home and remembered I got a voucher for two nights in Vegas at the Bellagio Hotel. I thought maybe you’d want to go.”
The sight of Sydney’s reaction to that, a mixture of horror and dismay, made Emi laugh.
Sydney turned to Emi, his revolted expression once again softening, but he shook his head adamantly, one finger over his puckered lips. For just a second, Emi lost her train of thought at the sight of his puckered lips. Then Lucy asked who was laughing.
“That’s Emi,” he said with a smirk as her eyes widened. “You’re on speaker, but she’s on her phone too.”
“Oh” was her only response. Then out of nowhere that laugh came again, and Emi pressed her palm against her lips, squeezing her eyes shut. “So, what do you say? We get a choice of shows too: Jersey Boys, something called Le Reve The Dream . . . ooh, Chippendales!”
The laugh was even more obnoxious this time, and Emi hit the end button then fell back in her seat and just let it out.
“I’m sorry,” she said in between laughs as she caught her breath. “I’m sorry. Just say you got cut off or something. I couldn’t take it anymore.”
“Do you see what I’m talking about here?” he said, pointing at the dash. “We’ve met once. I was honest about seeing Cheryl too. I had to be. No way did I want her to get the impression that I was free, ready, and willing for anything. So she invited me on a weekend getaway not an hour after our first introduction? Who the hell does that?”
His phone rang again, Lucy’s name popping on the dash, and he sent it to voicemail. Emi actually felt bad for Lucy now. If she hadn’t hit answer in the first place, the girl wouldn’t be thinking that Sydney hung up on her now in the middle of her trying to sell the weekend getaway with her. Now he was sending her call to voicemail to boot. If that wasn’t a big hairy hint, Emi didn’t know what was.
To her surprise, his phone rang several more times. He sent it to voicemail each time. His expression had begun to harden until the third call back where he finally had to laugh.
“Un-fucking-believable,” he muttered, shaking his head, but thankfully laughed as he sent it to voicemail again.
There was another beep several minutes later, indicating he had a voicemail, which could only mean one thing. Whatever she’d left for him to listen to was that long. It was tempting to tell him to play it, but Emi already felt mean.
The last thing he said about Lucy was that he’d have to call Lynni when he got home and hope she’d agree to break it gently to Lucy that he wasn’t interested. Maybe she’d just stop calling him and he’d be done with this as painlessly as possible.
Chapter Nine
Sydney
Whatever Sydney thought he’d picked on from Emi or might’ve changed between them during their trip to La Jolla was gone almost as soon as they got home. In fact, on the drive home, things felt back to the way they’d always been. He had to agree that their being this close would raise eyebrows. Emi was who he spoke to and saw more than anybody else he knew now. Even his buddies at work, whom he had a few beers with and played a few rounds of golf with a few times a month, didn’t see him as often as Emi did.
It was just their norm now like family members or even if he had a close male friend who lived in the same building. But the one thing he knew wouldn’t be gone so easily was something he hadn’t stopped thinking about since it happened: the vision of a near-naked Emi. Her curves were as mouth-watering as he’d imagined they’d be. His spinning around when he finally snapped out of it that night hadn’t just been for the sake of giving her privacy. He’d panicked when he felt how fast his dick had hardened. He could only pray now she’d been too stunned to notice. Her coming into his room afterward to let him off the hook had been beyond relieving. At first, he thought he’d imagined it, but now he secretly hoped that, based on Emi’s reaction to seeing him shirtless, she was having visuals too.
The Monday after they’d gotten back from their trip, Emi had come over to tell him about her first day at her internship. She’d been excited and just wanted to share. She also let him in on something else.
“I brok
e things off with Darren—for good this time.”
Sydney glanced up at her from where he was sitting on his front room sofa. She was just coming back from the kitchen where she’d served herself a second helping of the turkey meatloaf sandwiches she’d made tonight.
“Why for good this time?”
She plopped down on the sofa chair across from him and took a bite of her sandwich, making Sydney wait until she was done chewing, swallowed, and took a swig of her soda.
“It was beginning to feel wrong,” she admitted, though that wasn’t what she’d said this weekend, but he dared not go there again. “I know I only dated other guys when we were on a break, but I’d also been sensing something else from him lately. He wants more. I’m just not ready for more, and while he claims he’s willing to give me my space, I know if he knew about me seeing other guys he’d be hurt. I’m not looking to hurt anyone. I just need to get my shit together first. I’m all over the place, so I thought it’d be better if I made a clean break.”
“How’d he take it?” Sydney asked.
“As good as always. I tried to make it clear that this was for good, but I get the feeling he might be thinking this is just like all the other times and we’ll eventually end up back together. Only I have no intention of doing that this time.”
~~~
That was a month ago. Since then, it seemed she’d made the right call at the right time. Her summer school courses and her internship had taken up so much of her time even Sydney had begun to miss her. If she still had Darren in her life, he would’ve seen even less of her.
Luckily, work kept him busy as well. The company was launching a few long-awaited software updates and making some major changes. Talk of the company being acquired by another much more public company was still being rumored, though Sydney knew it could take months if not years to happen. Still, it made for a lot of added executive and nervous shareholder meetings to attend. Long days turned into evenings, getting him home later more often.
Lucy was still calling. He’d already told Lynn he was not interested. Ironically, she, too, thought the whole invitation to a Vegas getaway after meeting him once was pretty funny. Sydney had tried to sound appalled but failed to pull it off once she started laughing.
She’d already assured him she passed the word on to Valerie. Yet Lucy was still calling. He knew it was rude as shit to just completely ignore her, but this wasn’t the first time he met someone like her. This was the only way to handle women like Lucy. He did not want to encourage her. Showing even a little kindness or civility was enough when it came to women like her, so he steered clear of answering any of her calls.
It was another late evening for him. Emi had texted him earlier to tell him to text her when he got home—no matter how late. It was just after eight, and after getting his regular greeting from Homer at the door, Sydney put his stuff down, undid his tie and cufflinks, and texted Emi. He left the front door unlocked when she texted back immediately saying she was on her way up to his place. He’d barely had enough time to put his things down in his bedroom when he heard her enter his front room.
“I’ll be right out,” he called out after hanging his shirt and slacks and changing into a pair of basketball shorts.
As soon as he walked out into his front room, he saw her giddy expression. “Guess who I met today?”
She’d been meeting a few different celebrities down at the Staples Center and even another in the building recently. He took a moment to think about it. Who would she be this excited about? Basketball summer league was well underway, so he took a stab at it.
“One of the Clippers or Lakers?” he asked.
“No, but he is a big league player,” she said, bringing her hands to her mouth.
Sydney thought about it for a second and then was inundated with a strange annoyance. Trying not to show it, he swallowed hard, walking over to his refrigerator. He didn’t want to be facing her when he said it.
“That Sabian guy?”
“Yes!” she said a bit too squealy even for her. “Can you believe it? I had lunch with him!”
Sydney turned back to her, surprised. He’d imagined maybe her brother had just introduced her. “Lunch?”
Emi pointed at the Tupperware bowl on the counter. “I made enough blue cheese pasta and chicken to share,” she said. “I thought you’d be home earlier.” Then she proceeded to tell him more about her lunch with Sabian. “It wasn’t just him and me. A.J. was there too,” she explained, taking a seat at the kitchen counter.
Sydney poured a glass of wine to go with his pasta. He offered her some, but she passed, saying she’d had way too many calories today already but continued excitedly about her lunch.
“My brother had told me about this terrific place he ate at in West Hollywood. I told him to let me know next time he went, so he calls me and asks if I’m free for lunch. It was my pajama day, but when he mentioned the restaurant he was going to, I said okay. Thank God he happened to mention he’d have a friend with him or I might’ve gone even bummier than I did, but I at least straightened my hair a little and wore some makeup.”
There was no hiding the excitement, and Sydney smiled with her as she continued telling him about how surprised she’d been to be picked up in a Maserati—Sly Sabian’s Maserati—only to get in the car and realize who was driving. “I think I blushed a hundred times. I’m sure his first impression of me was of a complete blithering ass.”
Sydney knew a worse way she could have made a first impression, yet he’d still thought her adorable, but wouldn’t bring that up in the middle of her highly animated account of the lunch she’d had with the guy.
“Surprisingly, he’s way more down-to-earth than you would expect someone so famous to be.”
“I don’t know about that. Your brother’s right up there with him, and he’s one of the most laid-back guys I’ve ever met.”
“I know, but I guess because I know my brother I expect him to be that way with me and any of his friends. I just . . .” She inhaled wistfully. “At first, it was weird sitting at the restaurant with him. People kept staring at us, which isn’t a first for me. It’s happened plenty of times when I’ve been out and about with A.J. But it was even worse today. Then, suddenly, I was so lost in conversation with him I sort of blocked out all the gawkers.”
She explained that, as usual, a few people were brave enough to hit A.J. and Sabian up for their autographs and even a photo. “I can’t even imagine being that famous. I’d hate having to always be on and look decent. As it is, I felt completely underdressed and like I should’ve done more with my hair.”
Sydney glanced at her hair. He’d been around her enough to know that, if she had straightened her hair as she said, the curls had made their way back now. He preferred curls over the straight hair look on her, though either way she was adorable. It was almost annoying. They weren’t even tight spirals or anything just soft curls that bounced off her shoulders and back. He wondered but wouldn’t ask what she’d worn. If it was the jeans, tank, and slip-on wedge sandals she wore now, he was sure Sabian had embraced her curves, the same way Sydney couldn’t help doing himself now as his eyes roamed her body freely since she’d stopped her excited storytelling to check her phone. Her jeans more than amplified what he now knew for a fact were crotch-tightening curves.
“And get this,” she said. Sydney glanced up to catch the breathtaking smile and the twinkle in her eyes. “He hinted about maybe hitting me up next time he was in town.”
Sydney moved his neck around, trying to rid the kink he was suddenly feeling, and glanced down at his food, unwilling to continue peering into those overly excited eyes.
“Eek!”
Sydney had never seen or heard her do that. It was one of the few times he’d seen her show her age. Though, in her defense, he’d heard Sarah and even his own mother have similar reactions when excited, most notably when he’d told them both about his leaving his previous company for the bigger opportunity. Still, Emi
was doing this over some guy?
Sydney glanced up again, forcing a smirk as he rolled his eyes in a playful teasing way to mask the slight irritation it made him feel. But he supposed it was a common fan girl reaction. She had told him many times about what huge sports fans her entire family had always been.
~~~
Two things happened in the following weeks. Neither had anything directly to do with the other, but somehow they felt connected. First, Emi had come over just days after her lunch with Sabian to squeal about him hitting her up on her social media. He’d seen something she’d posted on one of A.J.’s pages. He hadn’t recognized her pseudonym but did recognize the profile picture. Next thing he knew they’d exchanged texts and were even talking on the phone. Soon after that she was obsessing about what she’d wear to go with him to some charity softball event he was attending at Dodger Stadium. Curiously, A.J. wouldn’t be there. He had other obligations that day. So while Emi wasn’t referring to it as a date, Sydney was.
The guy could’ve taken anyone. Why would he invite Emi if he weren’t interested? Sabian had been the one who sought her out, not the other way around. Anyone who reaches that kind of celebrity status in life with access to and the interest of just about any girl in the world doesn’t seek out any one in particular, unless he’s interested, especially for a public event with paparazzi speculating about his and his mystery-girl’s relationship.
Then a couple weeks later Sydney received a curious text from someone he hadn’t heard from in a while. He was still pondering it when a soft knock sounded at his front door. It surprised him. For months now whenever Emi texted to say she was on her way up, he’d just unlock his door and she usually walked in. He almost yelled for her to come on in then thought better of it, remembering Lucy’s stalker tendencies. Even in a building with this high security, he wouldn’t put it past her to somehow figure out how to get in.