“Excellent. I plan to hold you to it.”
“I’ll text you the details once I have them.”
“Fine. Now move aside so I can leave.”
Once I was out the door, I strode to my vehicle feeling grouchy and irritable. Why did everyone always think love was the answer? Maybe it worked out that way for some, but the divorce rate in the U.S. said differently. One day Charlotte would understand but until then…at least she’d leave me alone after this.
It wasn’t until I was driving away from the curb that I realized I hadn’t even seen a picture of this so-called blind date. I pictured one of Charlotte’s society friends and winced. Whatever. It didn’t matter who it was or what she looked like because nothing would come out of it as far as I was concerned. I was sick and tired of trying to pretend I had it in me to go the distance. What a waste of my time.
Chapter 2
Maya
9 years ago, high school
Charlotte twirled on her toes like a music box ballerina in front of the door leading to the cafeteria. “Guess who just got asked to the prom?”
Students hurried by to get lunch before the bell rang, and a few cast curious glances our way. Even though her parents were filthy rich and mine were middle class, we’d been best friends since kindergarten. We both attended King’s Prep School, a private Christian school noted for its high scores and reputation for preparing students for Ivy League universities. I had a partial scholarship, and my mom paid for the rest from money her parents left her before they passed away. Charlotte’s parents could have sent her to a more prestigious school, but they felt that King’s Prep School had a solid Biblical foundation. They chose a school that was important to them rather than one that was considered better in the world’s eyes.
“You got asked,” I said with a smile. “Does this mean we’ll be a foursome?”
“Yes! You and Liam can share a Limo with Declan and me, and if Sophia gets a date, we can make it six.”
“I can’t wait.”
Our friend, Sophia, jabbed me in the ribs with her elbow, her long red hair swinging over one shoulder. “Too bad you already said yes to Liam. Easton can’t seem to keep his eyes off you.” She giggled and tipped her head toward the outdoor tables, and both Charlotte and I turned to look.
Easton stood there, dirty blond hair falling over his forehead, blue eyes piercing and almost predatory as he stared at me unapologetically, though it wasn’t the stare of a guy who was interested. It was quite the opposite. Easton hated me. Couldn’t stand me. I never really understood why, but maybe it was because I was his sister’s friend, and I wasn’t rich. Perhaps he thought I wasn’t good enough to be in her circle.
My brows lowered, and I tore my gaze away from him, a sick feeling tumbling in my stomach. Whenever he was around, he drew me in as much as he repelled me, and that unnerved me a great deal. He was a bully, a player, and a conceited jerk, just to name a few of his wonderful qualities. He was self-serving in every way. Absolutely nothing like Charlotte.
But even so, I was extremely attracted to him against my will, and that made me madder than a cat thrown into a pool of ice-cold water.
“Not sure why you had to bring him into the conversation,” I said, staring at my fingernails. “Didn’t you get the memo, Sophia? He doesn’t like me. Never has.”
“He doesn’t have a good handle on his feelings,” Charlotte said. She tapped her chin with her forefinger and glanced at Easton and then back at me. “I don’t think he hates you.”
“Can we change the subject, please?” Talking about Easton made me uncomfortable, and even more than that, it brought discontentment into my life and made me long for something I didn’t have. Something I shouldn’t desire. He was bad news, and that was putting it lightly. I didn’t want to be with him, and yet, a part of me did. I had so much inner conflict when it came to him.
“Fine with me,” Charlotte said. “Let’s get out of here.” She stuck her tongue out at him, and I tried not to smirk at how juvenile she appeared. While we would all agree it wasn’t the mature thing to do by anyone’s standard, the look on his face was hilarious. He jerked back in surprise as if he’d been caught with his hand in the cookie jar, and I did my best not to laugh.
We walked away after that, and I forced myself not to glance at him over my shoulder. I turned my thoughts to Liam, and my shoulders instantly relaxed as the brown-haired boy with hazel eyes came to mind. He was a good guy. Kind. Funny. Sweet. And he’d asked me to the prom. I was a sophomore, and he was a junior in high school. We’d have a great time together.
Later that afternoon, I walked out of my English class and was about to head towards the front of the school to catch the bus when Liam weaved in and out of a group of students and jogged up to me. He stood with his hands at his waist, taking deep breaths as he bent forward ever so slightly. There was a fresh bruise around his right eye that looked bad.
“Maya, we need to talk.” His chest heaved up and down, and he had a crazed look about him as if something horrible had just happened.
“Did you just get in a fight?” I touched his arm, concerned.
“Sure, if that’s what you want to call it.” He blew out a breath and scowled. “Look, I can’t take you to the prom anymore. I’m sorry.” His expression was hard and unbending, not at all like the Liam I was used to seeing.
I frowned and stepped back, a sinking feeling in my stomach. “Who did that to you?”
He bit down on his bottom lip, anger seeping out of him. “Easton. He told me to drop you. Said I had to, or he’d…”
“He’s the one who gave you that bruise?”
“Yeah. It was a warning. He promised that he and his friends would jump me after school if I didn’t break off our date.” He scowled and wouldn’t make eye contact.
My mouth dropped open. “Why would he do that?” My voice sounded like a screeching vehicle right before it crashed into a fallen tree. “Tell me what happened.”
“I can’t.” He shook his head, clearly frustrated. “I just…I can’t go with you.” He refused to look at me, and I sensed he was pulling away emotionally.
Hurt washed through me, and I fought back angry tears. “Don’t let him intimidate you. We’ll go to the principal. We can figure this out.”
He stared at the ground, his jaw tightening. “Drop it, Maya. Everyone sides with Easton.” He lifted his eyes and gave me a pitying glance. “Whatever you did to him, he really hates you.”
I bit down on my bottom lip, rage building at the outer edges of my consciousness, threatening to burst into flames and explode.
How dare he. How dare Easton threaten my date and tell him to drop me. I wanted to scream. To punch something.
“He won’t get away with this,” I said, huffing.
“He already has.”
He left, and I couldn’t figure out if I was angry or disappointed. I’d thought Liam was better than that, but I also understood where he was coming from. As far as Easton, I had to nix whatever attraction I felt towards that guy because from here on out, I wanted nothing to do with him.
Maya, current day
I glanced at the article Charlotte sent me and grimaced. Knowing Charlotte, she’d meant it in the kindest way possible, but I wasn’t particularly excited about reading a story about a woman’s journey through cancer. Like I really wanted to dwell on pain and suffering, especially when dying an early death was one of my fears. My aunt and grandmother had both died of breast cancer and reading the article brought up old memories.
I ate organic foods as much as possible, exercised, and tried to live a healthy life overall, but I couldn’t get rid of the nagging fear in the back of my mind that I was next. It didn’t help that I had other medical issues to add to the problem. When I was sixteen, I found out I had a problem with my kidneys and would most likely need a transplant one day.
“Okay, enough of that,” I said out loud, though no one was around to hear me say it. I shook my head to clear
it and finished getting ready for my date.
I’d chatted a few times with this guy named Greg through an online dating app, which was crazy considering I didn’t have much faith in relationships at this point. Not that I’d been burned or anything. I just couldn’t picture a future with a man who fit my criteria and was willing to put up with my medical baggage. I’d joined an online dating community mostly because I was bored and wanted to see how it worked. And yes, a part of me did hope to find someone even though I didn’t believe it would come to pass. We were meeting for dinner in ten minutes, and I was already running late.
I picked up my purse and keys and headed out to my car. When I arrived at the restaurant, I walked through the door and happened to glance at a tall, skinny guy with auburn hair lingering near the entrance.
He stepped forward and held out his hand. “Hey, Maya. Nice to meet you.” He had a pleasing smile and actually looked like his picture, which was nice.
“I’m glad we’re doing this,” I said.
“Me too.”
The restaurant hostess led us to our table, and as we followed behind, Greg pulled one of those rolling cases people used for their laptop. Strange.
“What’s that for?” I asked.
“Oh, you’ll see. Let’s get settled first and then I’ll explain.”
I nodded warily, wondering what that was about. “All right.”
Once at the table, our hostess gave us menus and we took a few moments to decide what we wanted. I ordered a chicken salad, and Greg decided to go for it by ordering an expensive steak with a baked potato. It was one of the more expensive things on the menu, but maybe he was trying to impress me somehow?
He folded his hands and gave me an eager smile. “Now that we’ve finally met, I’d like to show you something.”
I leaned forward, not able to contain my curiosity any longer. “What’s this about?”
“Patience is a virtue.” He pulled out a tiny laptop and set it up on the table as if it were the most natural thing to do on a first date. “I thought this would be a great way for you to get to know me.”
“Okay…” I sat up straighter, ready to discover what he wanted to share…from a computer.
“I don’t normally go over this stuff with people, but I felt comfortable with you right off the bat. When you mentioned in our chat session that you were hoping to find a job with better medical benefits, I knew I could help.”
“You know of a job opening?”
He grinned. “I do.”
I smiled and waited for him to elaborate, but he just shrugged as if waiting for a pat on the back. “Well, that’s great.” My smile slipped a little as we stared at each other awkwardly.
He let out a breath and continued. “I recently started this side business selling online products and thought I’d show you what it entails.”
My eyes widened. “Right now?”
He nodded, and for the next fifteen minutes, he proceeded to talk about his online business. I listened as attentively as I could, but it was weird.
“Has it been lucrative at all?” I asked.
“Not yet, but it will be as soon as I’m able to recruit others to join under me.”
The waitress brought our food to the table, and he quickly put his laptop away to make room. I figured we’d move on to other subjects, but I was wrong.
“You would be a great candidate for an opportunity like this,” he said. “What do you say, Maya? Are you in?”
I chewed a piece of chicken and studied him for a moment. “You mean…do I want to join your business?”
He nodded eagerly. “Yes, that’s what I’m asking. I’ll get a percentage of whatever you make if you sign up under me.”
“Oh…” The reason for our date was starting to sink in. He wasn’t actually interested in me. He wanted me to work under him. What a fool I’d been. “To be honest, I’m not looking for a side business right now. I just need a job that has better benefits.”
His smile slipped, and he glanced at his food like I was testing his patience. “That’s too bad.”
“This isn’t a date, is it?”
He blushed and shifted in his seat uncomfortably. “Not really.”
“Yeah, didn’t think so.” I stood and put money on the table to pay for my salad. “Next time be upfront about what you want. A dating app isn’t the place to recruit for your business.”
Twenty minutes later, I was at Charlotte’s house, discussing my disastrous date with Greg. “Thank goodness the Lord gave me a sense of humor.”
“Yeah, good thing.” She laughed and plopped down on the couch next to me, and she had this look in her eye like she wanted to tell me something but was biding her time. “That’s crazy. I still can’t believe he tried to recruit you for his business.” She leaned forward and paused for just a second. “Listen, at least you’re finally putting yourself out there. I hope you didn’t take it personally.”
“Of course not. I’ve already forgotten about him.”
“Good.” She folded her hands in her lap and waited for my full attention.
I laughed, knowing she was about to propose some outlandish plan. “You want to give me advice. I can see it in your eyes.”
“You’re right.” She had a huge smile on her face, and I got the feeling she’d been thinking about this for some time. “I know the perfect guy to set you up with.”
I considered her proposition for all of two seconds and then shook my head. “No, thank you. I’m done with dating for now.”
“You can’t give up just because you had one bad date. If you fall off the bike, you have to get back on or you’ll always be scared to try again.”
I cocked an eyebrow. “Who is the guy?”
“I’m not sharing details because I want you to go without expectations.”
“You can’t even show me a picture?”
“No. Like I said…no expectations. But don’t worry, he’s good-looking.” She smirked as if she knew something I didn’t. “At least, most women think so.”
“But you don’t?”
“It’s not about me. It’s about you, and I think you and this guy would be great together.”
That didn’t sound promising. Charlotte and I had often found the same men attractive, so if she didn’t think this guy was for her… I sat up straighter. “What’s wrong with him? Why aren’t you interested?”
She winced and glanced away. “He has a heart of gold, but you have to get through his rough exterior to see it.”
“You’d better not be setting me up with your brother.” I laughed, knowing she would never do that to me. Over the years, I’d seen Easton at Charlotte’s birthday parties, but we’d always managed to steer clear of each other. He was a jerk back in high school and based on what I’d observed, he hadn’t changed much. Charlotte had never tried to get us to talk to each other, so I wasn’t too worried on that account.
There was silence for a long moment and then she took a breath. “If I did something like that, I’d be in the doghouse. Besides, Easton just got out of a difficult break-up.”
“Oh, really?” I picked a piece of lint off my blouse. “It didn’t work out with the blonde? What was her name?”
“Lila.” She shook her head. “No, it didn’t work out between them.”
“That’s too bad.”
Truth be told, I didn’t dwell on Easton’s love life when I could barely manage my own. I’d met Lila in passing at a get-together Charlotte had at her house, and she’d hardly acknowledged me, not that it had bothered me too much. I didn’t care who Easton spent his time with as long as it wasn’t me.
He’d always gone out with high maintenance women, so it was no surprise it didn’t work out, but then again, his personality was probably the bigger problem. I shook my head to clear it. Charlotte would never set me up with her brother. She just wouldn’t do that to me. Whoever this guy was, she must think highly of him since she’d never tried to arrange a date for me in all the years we’d kn
own each other.
“Aren’t you going to tell me more about this guy?”
“Nope. I want you to go into it blind. No expectations. Nothing to color your opinion. Just give him a chance.”
I shrugged. “Fine. I’ll go on your blind date. He can’t be as bad as Greg.”
She clapped her hands together with glee. “That’s wonderful. I thought it would take more to convince you, but I’m so glad you’re open to new experiences.”
“You’ve never tried to set me up before, so I figured this guy must be special, whoever he is. No worries. I’ll go without expectations.”
“Thank you. You won’t regret this. I’ll give you the details once I have them.”
Her dog, Scarlet, jumped up on the couch and sat in my lap. I ran my hand through her soft hair and felt immediately comforted. A dog like this would do a world of good in my life. Having a pet would ground me and help me not to focus on my fears so much.
She was a miniature toy poodle with a teddy bear cut, and the first time I’d seen her I’d thought she was so stinking cute. One day I’d get a dog just like her, and Charlotte and I would arrange play dates for our little doggies. The only obstacle was the money since I was currently funneling everything I had towards paying off student loans. That was another reason I had to get a better job. I needed a higher salary to make ends meet.
“Are you sure you don’t want me to buy you a toy poodle?” Charlotte asked, glancing between me and Scarlett. Her dog had cost fifteen hundred dollars, which was a drop in the bucket for her, but I just couldn’t afford it right now.
“You know how I feel about that.” Charlotte came from a wealthy family, but I never wanted to take advantage of that or make her feel like we were only friends because of what she could provide financially. I made it my rule not to accept expensive gifts from her and to always pay my fair share. She was the type who would give you the shirt off her back, so it was frustrating for her, but she understood where I was coming from.
She shrugged. “Just thought I’d give it a try.”
Blind Date with my Billionaire Boss (Blind Date Disasters Book 5) Page 2