Page 13 of Flirting with Trouble

“I’m not drunk.”

“Okay. Then a guy caught your fancy? Good for you. Did you enjoy it?”

“Yes. It was fun and exciting, and…different. But then I was lying there in his arms and…” Tears well in my eyes.

“He wasn’t Harvey,” he says empathetically.

“Exactly. I feel so guilty.” The driver pulls over in front of my building. “Hold on a sec. I have to get out of the car.”

I thank the driver, and Ivan, the silver-haired doorman who has worked in my building for at least the ten years I’ve lived there, opens the car door for me. “Good evening, Ms. Braden,” he says as I step out.

“Hi, Ivan. Thank you.” I’m not ready to go upstairs and face the luxury apartment where Harvey and I lived, so I head down the sidewalk to finish my call in private. “Sorry, Seth.” I pick up where we left off, speaking quietly. “Not only did I jump into bed with the first man who offered, I did it with Wells Silver.” I whisper his name, as if that somehow makes it better. “I don’t know what I was thinking. He’s not much older than Noah.” Our youngest brother is barely thirty.

“At thirty-seven, I guess that makes you a cougar,” he says with amusement.

“Seth! That’s not helpful.”

“Sorry,” he says. “But I’d like to point out that we both know Wells is not the first man to offer.”

“I’m in turmoil, and that’s what you focus on?” I pace the sidewalk.

“No. I just want to be clear that you’ve had plenty of offers over the years from some very prominent men, and you turned them all down. I’m not saying that has to mean anything, but it might.”

And there it is, his brilliant analytical side, which I admire when it’s convenient and find annoying when it’s not. This is the latter. “It doesn’t, so let’s move on.”

“Okay. I spent some time with Wells at the wedding. He’s a good guy.”

“Seriously? He’s a total player, and he dated Leni, which makes me a horrible friend. I broke the girl code. Everyone knows you don’t sleep with your friend’s ex.”

“Leni is marrying an A-list actor this summer. I highly doubt she gives a shit who Wells sleeps with, but—”

“Maybe calling you was a mistake. You are not helping.”

“And you are not letting me finish my sentences.” He pauses, and I know he’s making a point, so I bite my tongue. “I think it’s great that you finally cut loose and had a good time. You’ve lived your life in a box for five years.”

“I have not.” I definitely have, but I don’t like the way he makes it sound wrong. I like my alone time, but if I don’t keep myself busy and distracted, my thoughts return to the awful night Harvey died.

“No? You go to the gym, then you go to work, and then you either order dinner to take home or you eat out, and you never go home before seven o’clock. Except on Friday nights, when you go to your and Harvey’s favorite restaurant, where you’ve had a standing reservation for five years.”

“I like the tavern.” It’s the truth, and it’s the least I can do for the man I love.

“Nobody likes a restaurant enough to go every week for years on end by themselves. I get it. Especially after what happened the night Harvey died.”

“Don’t,” I warn. Seth is the only one who knows the truth about that night, and I can’t go there right now.

“I’m not. I’m just saying that I get it, but you are living in a box, sis. I know it’s not easy to move on, but I have to ask, if Leni weren’t in the picture, would you be interested in Wells?”

“God no,” I snap, but I don’t know if that’s the guilt talking or the truth, and I don’t have the bandwidth to think about it.

“Why? Did he suck in bed?”

“No, he was amazing, but he’s not my type.”

“Because you prefer guys who suck in bed?” he teases.

“What is wrong with you? Are you drunk?” I laugh, but my humor doesn’t last. “Do I have to spell it out for you? In addition to everything I’ve already said, Wells and I are completely different people in very different places in our lives. He has no real life experience. He grew up with a silver spoon in his mouth on an island as big as my fist. I doubt he’s ever dealt with a hardship of any kind.” I stop pacing and huff out a breath. “Why am I even explaining this? We had a one-night stand. That’s all it was to both of us, and I’m not interested in more.”

“Good, because I don’t think he’s right for you. But if it was just a fling, then why did you call me? What’s the issue?”