Alex finished up the last of the samples for Ella. She was thrilled with the way they turned out and, as much as she wanted to show Cade, she wouldn’t. She did snap a picture and send it to Ella as a teaser though and offered to show her in person this week, if Ella had time. But she did slip a sample in her purse to bring home and admire later.
When she was done with the text, she looked at the message from Keith. He’d sent her two more today and she ignored them too. She couldn’t imagine what he could possibly want from her, but she knew if she didn’t call him soon, he wouldn’t leave her alone. He was like a Chihuahua trying to get a damn bone from a T-Rex.
She took a deep breath and called him. He answered on the first ring. “What took you so long to call me back?”
“Excuse me?” she said, her hackles rising. He was the only one who had the ability to do that to her now.
When she realized what he was really looking for in a mate, or out of a relationship, she told him she wanted no part of it. It wasn’t what she looked for in the future and she’d never be happy. It wasn’t the life she saw herself living and never had been. He didn’t even try to talk to her about it. Didn’t try to compromise at all.
No. He told her it was important to him to maintain a healthy relationship in the public eye and if she wasn’t willing to be part of that, then she wasn’t for him. Pretty much end of story. Three years of losing her heart to him were out the window and it was time to move on.
“I’ve sent you several messages. It’s Saturday. What could you possibly be doing on a Saturday? I even tried to respect the fact that you want to work and gave you the benefit of the doubt you might be busy this morning but it’s taken you all day to return my call.”
“What I do with my time is no business of yours,” she said. “What is so important that you’ve had to send me multiple messages in one day when I haven’t talked to you in almost two years?”
“I’m running for Senate.”
“And?” she asked. It wasn’t news to her. She knew it was what he wanted all along. Or what he told her two years ago when she was trying to figure the reason he had to go out all the time and wanted her all dressed up and working less. Keith was young. He came from money and he was hoping to reach the middle class with his money by having a mate from that class. “I’m not a part of your life anymore.”
“No, you aren’t. I’m engaged and Angie is exactly what I need for my significant other.”
His condescending tone wasn’t lost on her. “So why did you need to call me if you’ve got exactly what you need now?”
“Because there will be people looking into my past. My relationships. If you’re contacted by anyone, your answer is to be ‘no comment.’ There is no reason to acknowledge or deny anything. No comment is all you will say.”
She thought that was odd. A statement like that would just cause more curiosity than anything. “Fine by me,” she said.
“You’ll let me know if anyone contacts you and their name.” He didn’t ask, he demanded. She’d never seen this side of him until things started to go sour.
“No. I won’t.” She wasn’t going to be directed on what she could and couldn’t do when she had no tie to him any longer. Even if she were in a relationship with him, she wasn’t one to be pushed or controlled.
“Alexandra,” he said, drawing her name out. He was the only one that called her by that name. That should have been her first clue he wasn’t for her way back in the day.
“What?” she snapped, knowing it would set him off. No reason two of them couldn’t be frustrated right now. She wished she hadn’t called him back.
“I’m asking you to respond that way and let me know. It would be in your best interest to follow my lead on this.”
“No. It’s in your best interest, not mine. What you do in Texas is of no concern to me. I doubt anyone will even find out about me. I sure the hell won’t be shouting off the rooftops that we had a relationship.”
She could picture him right now grinding his teeth. He was probably narrowing his eyes at the same time, but he knew if he wanted her to do what he asked, snapping at her wouldn’t get him anything.
“I treated you well and you know that. We just wanted different things.”
He was trying to put some hurt in his voice, but she knew he was just playing the politician card, telling her what he thought would help to get his way. If she was in front of him with a baby in her arms, he’d be trying to kiss a chubby cheek all the while silently praying it didn’t toss its cookies on his crisp white shirt and red tie.
“I didn’t say one way or the other. I just said there is no reason for me to go shouting about our relationship. If I wanted the lifestyle you were offering me and things didn’t work out, maybe I’d be mad. But I didn’t. Things happen for a reason and this was one of them. I wish you well. If someone contacts me, I’ll tell them what you said.”
“And you’ll let me know?” he asked, pushing some more, though his tone softened a touch. It had to be killing him to do that and she fought back the giggle.
“If I think about it. Now have a good day. I’m busy.” She disconnected the call. She wouldn’t feel guilty about it either.
He was never fully honest with her until years into their relationship, once she moved to Texas to be with him. It was her fault thinking there was something there when there wasn’t. She wouldn’t blame him, even if she wanted to.
He was a political science major and then got his MBA on top of it. She’d thought he wanted to go into the family business eventually. She thought wrong.
He was out of her life and she was happy about it.
She’d much rather spend her time trying to figure out what was up Cade’s sleeve right now. Someone that hadn’t lied to her once and was trying to have more communication with her.
Maybe Keith’s message was a wake-up call for her to look at Cade and be more up front.
***
Cade showed up at Alex’s house at five on the dot. Being early would give the wrong impression. Being late might just set her off. The last thing he wanted to do was set her off.
“Wow, you’re on time,” she said, opening the door wide, her smile telling him she might be softening toward him some more.
“I told you I’m on time when it counts.”
She laughed. “Come on in. Do you like Italian?”
“Is the Colosseum in Rome?” he asked, tugging on her hair.
“I’ll take that as a yes. I’m not nearly as good of a cook as Aiden.”
“Very few are. I grew up with my mother’s cooking, so trust me when I say most are better than hers. Though you better never tell her I said that.” His mother would skin him alive, even if everyone busted on her about how often she burned things.
“Have a seat. I’d offer you some wine, but I forgot to pick some up. I do have some beer in here somewhere. I’m sticking with ice tea after last night.”
“I thought last night was pretty memorable.”
“Oh, it was. I’d rather not have to worry about it being clouded by alcohol again.”
That sounded promising for the night ahead. “Do you not remember last night?”
“I remember everything. I was just...what is it you said? Oh yes, loose last night. And you made me feel limber. Then this morning I was all knotted up though.”
He grinned at her wink. “I can massage it and make it all better for you.”
“You could. Or you could tell me what was on your mind this morning.”
He didn’t think she’d bring it up and was pretty excited that she did. He liked that she wasn’t really avoiding it like he thought, making him think he might have been wrong about her. In a good way too.
“I’m curious about this thing we’ve got going.”
“What about it?” she asked, opening the oven. Looked and smelled like baked ziti to him.
“Where do you see it going?”
“I thought we had discussed this already. We’re more than friends with benefits.”
That damn hurt he’d been trying to hide was still there and making a nasty appearance even though she was acknowledging it was more. It just wasn’t enough and he was trying not to be greedy, but like his siblings had told him his whole life, he was a greedy son of a bitch.
“Definitely more than that. I guess the question is, are you going to avoid me again for two weeks until I can twist your arm to go out with me? Or am I only good when you’ve got an itch that needs scratching?”
She flushed—good. She knew he meant business now. “I was busy with work.”
“Are you trying to convince me or yourself?”
She turned and pulled the makings for a salad out of her fridge. “Both,” she said quickly. “And I’m sorry. It was wrong of me to do what I did. I’m not used to this. To the rules. To any rules.”
“There aren’t rules. Can’t you just admit we’ve got some type of a relationship that is more than friends that have sex?”
He was holding his breath now and wondering if his damn mouth was going to make matters worse. If he shouldn’t just suck it up and enjoy it while he could. Most guys would be thrilled with this arrangement.
Hell, years ago he’d have been thrilled with it. But he wasn’t that person anymore.
The problem was, he was way more invested than her in his mind and he wanted to know if there was even a chance she’d be able to catch up.
“We’ve got more. Are you happy now?” she asked, grinning at him, a look in her eye that said it was hard for her to admit that but she was willing to let him know. She was trying, he could see. The question was, why was it so hard for her?
“For the moment.” He’d pushed enough...for now.