I was torn on what to wear for my date tonight. I wanted to look nice, but not nice enough to where Gage would get the wrong idea. So I settled for something in-between. I picked something understated that didn’t call too much attention to my body. I picked a sleek, black, sleeveless dress with a small slit up the front.

My hair was set in a side ponytail with soft ringlets cascading over my shoulder. Considering my face had a slight tan from Cape May, I decided to keep my make-up to a minimum. I stared at my reflection in the mirror and sighed. The events of this past weekend really did a number on me. I tried my best to hide the dark circles under my eyes but eventually gave up. There wasn’t a concealer made that could cover up misery.

The chime of the doorbell interrupted my thoughts. I took a deep breath, ran my hands down the length of my dress, and swung the door open.

Gage was standing there in a pair of grey dress slacks with a black button down. He flashed me a mischievous grin that screamed, ‘I like to have fun’.

“Well, don’t you look all kinds of hot?” The sexy smirk he sent my way was tempting, but it didn’t strike anything inside me or set my world on fire. But that didn’t matter; he was handsome and was happy to see me. So, score a point for Gage.

“Well, thank you. You don’t look so bad yourself.” I said, taking in his handsome appearance. He really was easy on the eyes, almost too easy to the point that there was nothing special about his looks. Just another pretty face. He didn’t have a playful smile or a genuine grin that made my body flush with warmth. He didn’t have dark brown hair that matched his eyes so perfectly they made me feel like a one-woman man prize. His dark black hair was slicked back and his silver-grey eyes looked like they didn’t take shit from anyone. I really needed to stop comparing every little feature to Brad’s.

His smirk blew into a full-blown grin when he caught me checking him out. “Ready?” I asked, with a polite smile, eager to get on with this date before I changed my mind.

“I’ve been ready since you said yes,” he replied, reaching for my hand. I glanced down at him with hesitation. This was a date, so this was perfectly normal, right? I slipped my hand inside his and it felt odd. Not anything like when Brad held my hand. Gage’s hand felt uncomfortable and unfamiliar. I silently reminded myself as we walked out of my apartment to push whatever thoughts I had of Brad out of my head, and concentrate on having a good time.

When we arrived at the restaurant, I was caught off guard by how nice it was inside. Sparks was a well-known steakhouse on the lower East Side that had a reputation for being expensive. Gage had gone all out. It also had the less desirable reputation as the place where mob boss Paul Castellano was whacked on their front sidewalk. A little fact I learned as Gage flirted with the hostess while we waited for our table.

A maître’d in a black tux greeted us and showed us to our table. Gage walked around and pulled my chair out for to me to sit. He was really making an effort.

He slid his large frame into the seat across from me and smiled. “I hope you like steak?”

Arching an eyebrow, I glanced around the room noticing the tastefully decorated walls that were lined with expensive paintings and famous patrons. “In case you didn’t know, I’m from the south. It’s pretty much in my DNA.”

The truth was it wasn’t the food that caused me to pause. It was the restaurant. It reminded me of the girl I used to be. The one who always had to worry about which fork to use with the salad and which one to use with the entrée. The one who had to place her napkin in her lap just right, sit straight with her shoulders back and smile, even if she didn’t feel like it. Because that’s what was expected of her.

The waiter approached, disrupting my unpleasant trip down memory lane. He unfolded a big leather binder, which included the wine list and set it down in front of us to look over. “Good evening, my name is Jason, I will be your server this evening. Can I start you both off with something to drink?”

“I’ll have a Hendricks with lime and a splash of tonic.” Gage replied, without even looking at the wine list.

“And you, Ma’am?” The waiter glanced at me.

“I’ll have a chardonnay, please.”

“Would you like to look at the wine we serve by the glass?” The waiter asked.

“No, the house is fine.”

“Very well.” He said, retrieving the wine list and walking away.

“So,” Gage said, resting his hands on the table. “How am I doing so far? Does this meet your approval?”

I wanted to tell him that it was a little over the top but instead I told him. “It’s lovely, thank you.”

“I aim to please.” He said, with a glint in his eye. It was clear that Gage expected his woman to be impressed with his looks and charm. And judging by his outward confidence, it had never failed him.

“I’m pretty easy to please, so you should be good.” I said, with a smile, trying to keep the conversation light.

Gage’s lips pulled up into a grin. “I’m not sure about that, the easy part I mean. I have a feeling you’re going to make me work for every minute I spend with you. But just for the record, I do like my women easy.”

The guy sounded like a total douchebag, but I’m sure he didn’t think so. I ignored his comment and looked over my menu to avoid eye contact with him. The waiter came back with our drinks and took our order.

Gage took a sip from his glass as he looked me over like he was taking stock of a prize heifer at the County Fair. “So, tell me what you like to do for fun?”

I thought that over for a beat. I didn’t consider myself a fun person with an endless list of hobbies. I mean, I liked to cook, and I enjoyed outdoor activities, but those weren’t necessarily hobbies. “I guess if you call traveling and listening to country music fun, then that’s me.”

“Does that mean you like to dance, too? Because there is nothing hotter than an attractive girl in a tight pair of daisy dukes.”

“Are you always this smooth? Ready with a line?” I asked, which only caused him to laugh.

“That depends,” his eyes zeroed in on my cleavage, “Do you always look this good? Because if you do…” His head lifted to mine. “I can be as smooth as a baby’s bottom.” He winked and then took another pull of his drink.

During the time that I prayed for our meals to arrive I noticed that Gage’s favorite topic of conversation was Gage. Over the next 30 minutes I learned about how beautiful he was as a baby, how academically gifted he was as a student, what an incredible athlete he was in college and how worshipped he was by the entire female population. Even when I did manage to squeeze in a question, he seemed to have an answer for everything and quickly turned the topic back to him. It felt like I was dining with Gaston from Beauty and the Beast.

It made me more determined to see if Brad could have been wrong about him because this was almost sad. Was there really more to Gage Garrison, or was it what you see is what you get? The inquisitive part of my brain couldn’t help but wonder what made these two such enemies.

So, I cut into my steak and went for it. “I’ve been meaning to ask you… what’s the deal between you and Brad. Is there a reason why you guys don’t get along?”

Gage’s eyes narrowed while running his thumb along his bottom lip, thinking it over. “Morgan and I have always seemed to find ourselves at odds with one another. We’ve never really gotten along. And lately, it seems like we have our eyes set on the same thing.”

Was he talking about me? His prized calf on the other side of the table? I sure hoped not. Even though I’d agreed to this date, this night wouldn’t go any further than this restaurant. In fact, I’m not sure we would even make it to dessert. I would not be used as a pawn in some childish game. He needed to understand that his efforts tonight were pointless.

“You know that Brad and I are friends, right?”

Gage rested his elbows on the table and leaned in. “Friends, huh?” He smirked, blinking with feigned innocence. “Sure didn’t look that way to me last Friday night.” He replied without missing a beat.

I reached for my water, trying to hide how uncomfortable and angry this conversation was making me. “How it looked seems kind of irrelevant, considering that’s all we are.”

He knitted his brow and leaned back in his chair. “You know that he’s still hung up on his ex, right?”

Like I needed a reminder. “Yes. I’m aware.”

“Good. Then just so we’re clear, I don’t want to be your friend.”

“No?” I asked, “then what do you want from me?”

A cocky smile stretched across his entire face. “I want you to come home with me tonight.”

The only thing bigger than the balls on this guy was his ego. I coughed, spluttering part of my drink out. Picking up the napkin I wiped my chin. “Wow, you don’t beat around the bush at all, do you?”

“I know what I want and when I want something, I don’t play games going after it.”

“You seem pretty sure of yourself.”

“We’re both attracted to each other. That much is obvious or you never would have come out tonight. Why waste any more time? Especially when I know how good we could be together.”

“You mean in bed?” I clarified.

“A bed is a good place to start, yes! Or even the back seat of a car, the kitchen counter. I’m sure we would be good anywhere you could think of.” These were words from a man who was not used to being told no by a woman. Well, there was a first time for everything.

I pushed my plate away, suddenly losing my appetite. I leaned back in my chair and stared at him. “I’m not the girl for you.” I told him honestly.

He tilted his head. “No?” he asked, like he didn’t believe me.

Shaking my head, I replied. “Not if you were the last man on earth, and all the batteries were dead.”

He threw his head back in laughter. He obviously wasn’t taking me seriously. “Oh, beautiful, I love a challenge. You just made me want you even more.”

He could pursue me all he wanted, but this date was over before it even started. He just confirmed that I was nothing but a hill for him to conquer. My conversation with Brad yesterday started running through my head. It was taking every ounce of strength I had to not think about him. It had been less than twenty-four hours since I last saw him. I missed him, terribly.

The rest of our dinner conversation went by without any more mention of Brad, but that didn’t mean he still wasn’t stuck in my head. I passed on dessert and coffee and offered to take a cab back to my apartment. Gage insisted on seeing me home even though I made it clear that he wasn’t welcome inside.

“You smell so good,” he said when I tried to give him a friendly hug goodbye.

The entire trip back to my apartment consisted of me removing his hand whenever he would try to slide it around my shoulders and me pulling away when he would try to whisper a joke in my ear. His weak attempts to change my mind about sleeping with him were an epic fail. He was a determined son of a bitch, I would give him that.

“Gage, it doesn’t matter how good you think I smell, I’m not sleeping with you tonight. Or ever!”

He paused for a moment, then rested his hands on my shoulders. His thumb intentionally grazed the exposed skin from my shoulder blade to my neck. “I was just being honest about what I wanted. I wasn’t trying to offend you.”

I tilted my head to the side and took a moment to study him. I suppose if I was willing to look long and hard enough I might have found some redeeming qualities in him, but I honestly didn’t have the desire to even try. I forced a smile. “Thank you for dinner. It was a nice restaurant.”

He gazed down at me. “I know I came on a little strong tonight, but I hope you’ll give me another chance. We could be really good together.”

I backed away from him just as he was about to kiss me. “I’ll see you around, Gage.”

As soon as the door to my apartment slammed shut, I leaned my body against the back and sighed. How the hell did I think going on a date with him would be a good idea? I pulled off my heels and rubbed the arch of my foot. I walked into my bedroom trying not to let the disappointment of my failed date get the best of me. It wasn’t that Gage was horrible person. He just wasn’t for me. There were a few times where he was actually funny and charming, but they weren’t all that frequent. I slid the silver bangles off my wrist and pulled my earrings out of my ears. I was startled by the loud knock on my apartment door.

I turned, thinking to myself that this guy was thicker than a bowl of oatmeal. Forget what I said earlier because he just switched from entertaining to exhausting. He clearly didn’t know how to take a hint. I reluctantly made my way over to the door and swung it open.

My heart skittered back to life at the sight of Brad standing in my doorway.