Cat had taken off her jacket, and he lost track of his thoughts for a moment. She wore a cropped sweater in dark blue that skimmed over her breasts like a lover before ending abruptly right above her navel.
“The redhead, right?”
He dragged his attention back to Courtney and nodded. “Yeah.”
“This is the woman who doesn’t want to be with you?” she asked, her tone incredulous.
“That’s what she tells me.”
“Well, her coming here dressed like that when you’re here with me tells me something different. Either she’s in serious denial about her feelings for you, or you have a crazy woman on your hands and might want to consider carrying a weapon.”
Shane laughed and felt the heat of Cat’s stare drilling into him. “We’ve known each other for years, and I’m fairly confident it’s not the latter.”
Courtney’s hazel eyes searched his face. “And you’re really hoping it’s the former.”
He nodded. “She’s special.”
“I wondered why you said in your message that you were just looking to make new friends. At first I thought it was a line. Guy code for, ‘Not looking for love, just looking to get laid.’” She laughed and it was pleasant, but nothing like Cat’s full-belly laugh, which he hadn’t heard enough of lately.
“So why did you want to come out with me then?” It was the logical question, although he was only half-listening to the answer as he tried not to watch Cat trying not to watch him.
She shrugged. “You had a nice face, and I figured if I sensed a player vibe I could always have one drink and leave. Once I got here, I realized you were sincere. I’ve lived here for almost two years, but was with someone that whole time, and he wasn’t big on socializing.” Her tone was light, but she’d begun to fidget with the rim of her wineglass, and it was obvious they were treading on uncomfortable territory. “I thought it was time to settle in, make friends, create roots. I’d never been able to do that before when I was with my ex.”
She trailed off, and he wondered if he should ask about her why that was. Luckily, their waitress came over and asked if they were ready to order their meals, breaking the tension. When she walked away, his cell phone buzzed. He tugged it from his jacket pocket and read the message.
Don’t worry, stud. I only came to see what ur wearing n make sure ur not boring her to death. Just pretend I’m not here.
Right. Like that was going to happen. But he found a smile tugging at his lips because, for whatever reason, she was here and she was obviously jealous and trying to play it off like she wasn’t.
I think we’re in the clear. Mostly talking turtles, which, incidentally, we both find fascinating.
“Sorry about that,” he said to Courtney as he slipped the phone back into his pocket. “Did you want to play darts while we wait for our food?”
Cat’s uninhibited laugh sounded from the bar, and he couldn’t hold back the grin. She must have liked his turtle joke.
“I take it that was your girl texting,” Courtney asked, nothing but genuine curiosity on her face.
He gave her a sheepish smile. “It was, sorry about that. Didn’t mean to be rude, but I don’t think it will happen again.”
“Unless, of course, we make it happen again…” She waggled an eyebrow suggestively, the move so at odds with her round, angelic face that he laughed.
“I know the look of a woman with a plan. I’m just not smart enough to figure out what that plan is.”
Her smile was pure evil. “You want to know how to get a woman to admit she has feelings for you? Get a different woman to admit she does first.” She pushed back her chair and tossed her napkin onto the table.
Chapter Nine
Did her laugh have to be so fucking musical? Cat whirled her shot glass in a circle, watching the liquid form an amber cyclone. When it slowed its rotation, she shot the contents back in one swallow.
“They seem to be having a good time,” Lacey said, spearing a cherry tomato with her fork.
“Yeah. Great for him.”
Lacey leaned forward to take the empty glass from Cat’s unresisting fingers. “If you really feel that way, then why are you drinking like it’s your job?”
“I’m not. I always drink like this on a”—she peered down at her watch through bleary eyes—“Thursday evening.”
“Sure you do.”
“I guess I just can’t figure why, with at least two dozen perfectly good empty chairs in the place, she needs to share his.” Stupid Courtney’s stupid laugh rang through the stupid room again, and Cat wanted to stab something. “Or what is so-o-o fuckin-n-n-g funny.”
The pair had been laughing it up for the past hour, and Cat couldn’t wait for Lacey to finish her damned salad so she could get out of there. The sight of Courtney forking a bite of pie into Shane’s mouth had almost sent her over the edge. Not to mention the woman was wearing the exact Michael Kors blouse she’d been eyeing at Barneys the week before but hadn’t been able to afford. It was like salt in an already excessively salty wound.
“Oop, you got your wish,” Lacey mumbled around a mouthful of lettuce and cheese. “She’s off his lap now. They’re getting up.”
The small acoustic band that had been playing folk music in the corner had just switched it up to something slow and jazzy and from her peripheral, Cat could see several couples make their way to the small, makeshift dance floor.
“Are they going to dance?” she whispered urgently, keeping her eyes locked on the bowl of honey-roasted peanuts in front of her.
Lacey opened her mouth to answer but Cat turned and smashed her hand over Lacey’s lips before she could. “Wait. Don’t tell me. Just wink.”
Lacey pulled away from her grasp and rolled her eyes. “Can’t I nod or shake my head instead? You know I’m not a good winker.”
“I don’t care what you do. Just don’t say it out loud. I don’t want to hear it.”
She knew it was silly, and totally irrational, but that had been par for the course from the second she’d gotten into his bed. She was losing her mind. If this was what opening herself up to a person and letting them in felt like, she’d been right to avoid it. So far, it sucked.
“Well, I’m not sure what to do in this situation,” Lacey murmured. “They’re not dancing but…”
“But what? Are they leaving? Are they holding hands? Does he have his arm arou—”
“Hey, Shane!” Lacey said, louder than necessary. She slid off the barstool to stand with Shane and his date, who, Cat realized as she spun her chair around, were directly behind them. “And you must be Courtney. So nice to meet you. I hope we didn’t make things awkward for you guys.” Lacey’s smile was so sweet it could have charmed the pants off Willy Wonka.
Courtney smiled back, her perfect white teeth gleaming like freshwater pearls under the fluorescent pendant lights. “Not at all. It’s good to see that he has friends who care about him so much that they want to check out his dates. Only a good man would inspire such loyalty.”
So not vapid. In fact, her hazel eyes sparkled with intelligence. It figured.
Cat remembered her manners and held out a hand. “Cat, nice to meet you.”
“You, too,” Courtney said, taking the proffered hand and shaking it lightly before releasing it.
“Where’s Galen tonight?” Shane asked, seemingly unconcerned when Courtney slung a casual arm around his trim waist.
“He’s out with Rafe. They worked all day installing a new hot tub at his place, so Rafe took him out to eat. They’ll probably end up here eventually.”
“We’re actually on our way out,” Courtney said. “Going to hit a friend’s art showing at the gallery on Ninth and then…” She shrugged a bare shoulder.
And then? What the hell was that supposed to mean? She could feel the fake smile frozen on her face, which was good, because she was a hairbreadth from a snarl. She picked up her beer and took a long swallow.
You wanted this. This is all on you, she reminded herself.
“Yeah, well, you two have fun,” she said, and resolutely turned her attention back to the peanuts.
“You guys, too. See you Monday for game night?”
Cat felt the heat of his gaze, but still didn’t look up.
“If not sooner,” Lacey said and stood to hug Shane. “Drive safe.”
A minute later, they were gone, and Cat broke eye contact with the nuts. Oddly, even they seemed to be judging her from their lofty little bowl. “Well, that was fun,” she muttered under her breath.
“Was it? Because it didn’t look fun from where I was sitting,” Lacey said with a grim twist of her lips. “I don’t understand you, Cat. You guys are obviously crazy about each other. Would it be so bad to admit that and give it a try?”
Cat shook her head and slumped forward to rest her chin in her hands. “I don’t even know anymore. I feel like I can’t win. I’m miserable now, but I’d be even more miserable if I did give in. There’s no halfway with a guy like Shane.”
“Some guys are worth the whole shebang, Cat.”
She leveled her friend with a sharp stare. “Are they? I’m not sure I agree.”
“Well, I’ll tell you one thing.” Lacey balled up her napkin and tossed it on the bar. “If that’s the quality of women they’re managing to pull over at MeetMyMate.com, you’d better figure it out before it’s too late.”
…
An hour later, she was at her workstation, Seinfeld on the TV for background noise, Lacey’s words still ringing in her ears. For the first time since she bought it four years before, her tiny house felt too big. Too quiet.
Too lonely.
She opened her eyes and peered down at her cell phone again, finger paused over the call button. He was on a date. And in spite of all Cat’s jealousy-fueled sniping about her, Courtney was probably a nice person. Nicer than her, at least. She should leave them alone and let them enjoy their night together.
Night together. Overnight together? Breakfast together?
“Argh!” Cat jabbed a pin into the apricot linen dress she’d been working on. Lucky it was on a mannequin and not a model because she was pretty sure she’d have broken skin.
Maybe it doesn’t have to be like this, she reminded herself for the hundredth time. If she was just willing to take a chance…
She rolled her chair back and then held the cell phone up to press call. When it rang, she bent forward until her nose almost touched her thighs hoping to quell the sudden nausea. Three rings, then four.
He wasn’t going to answer.
“Hello.”
Her pulse careered out of control until she realized it was only his voice mail.
“This is Shane. Leave a message, and I’ll call you back.”
Her stomach bottomed out and she pressed the end button, flopping backward with a groan. She’d blown it. He was still out with Courtney, and who knew, they could be exchanging bodily fluids already, and she couldn’t even be mad. She’d encouraged this mess. She deserved whatever misery it caused her. Her cell vibrated in her hand, and she looked down at the screen through tear-filled eyes.
I saw you called. Something up?
Her fingers trembled over the letters, and she had to retype it twice.
Yeah. Me. Can’t sleep.
His response seemed to take forever, and she wondered where he was and what he was doing.
Sorry to hear it.
She read the abrupt response and pinched her eyes closed. What else was there to say in a text message? She’d hoped to talk to him on the phone. To explain how she was feeling, but if he couldn’t take her call—