Page 60 of Catfish

I can’t help it. “Dexter?”

Dexter the hot bookworm smiles. “Yeah.” He extends his hand to me. “Nice to meet you.” I take his hand, his long fingers brushing gently over the top of my hand before he lets go.

“Our table is ready,” Billy imparts, gesturing to follow the short waitress waiting patiently for us.

We snuggle up in a dark corner booth, a live band playing some love ballad while Sadie looks like she’s about to die next to me. I squeeze her forearm as Dexter slides in next to me, keeping a respectful distance.

Great, so the only two considerate guys hit on us.

“What can I get you all to drink?” the waitress asks us. I order martinis for Sadie and me, letting her attempt to gain her composure.

She’s not going to get it.

"So, are you going to tell us your names?” Billy jeers, once they are done naming off their drinks. “You guys have a Betty and Veronica thing going on.”

I snort, and Sadie chuckles softly.

“I’m Reagan, this is my cousin, Sadie.”

Billy grins, extending his arm above the headrest of the booth over my cousin’s head. “Ladies out celebrating?”

I smirk.

Yep. Just freed myself from another worthless man in my life.

“Something like that.”

Billy pushes his cheek out with his tongue, allowing his ogling to continue. I don’t know if this normally works for him—I hope not—but he’s not bashful about letting me know he’s interested.

“What do you do?”

Geezus Christ.

“Office work.” He nods, already out of steam with what else to say. “And you?”

“Dexter and I work at Biolist Labs.”

I turn my attention to Dexter, who's already looking at me. "Interesting. So you're like Dexter from the cartoon."

He holds his glass of dark liquor to his lips. “I wouldn’t say that exactly.”

“Looking for something more exciting, Dex?” Under the dark lighting that we’re in, I can see his eyes glaze over in intrigue.

“Might be.”

I suddenly feel Sadie shaking next to me. She wants to go, but she'd never say anything about it.

Sadie is almost as bad as I am with cloaking the real me. A one-night stand might be on her bucket list of shit to do, but it's not in her DNA, not who she was raised to be.

She was the sweet girl who’d make you cookies and bring you soup when you’re sick. The perfect girl for a man who just wants one woman for the rest of his life. She’s kind and giving, any man would be lucky to have her.

Our drinks arrive a few minutes later as Billy rattles off more questions about what our hobbies are and what we like to do. Sadie doesn’t answer one while I prattle off the conversation to keep them here.

Where I want them.

"Sadie Matthews," coos a high-pitched squeal. "Is that you?" I follow the voice to a dainty little brunette with manicured nails and a dress that she wears like a second skin.

"Berkley?" Sadie leans over me to get a better look. The corner of this bar is dark as fuck, but I can see her just fine.

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