Page 59 of Deceit

“Hey!”

“Is for horses.”

I roll my eyes. “C’mon,” I yell-whisper. Thankfully, there aren’t many patrons around us for me to bother and disturb.

“Take it back.”

“You’re gonna bully your date?”

“You’re gonna try to play the victim?”

“You’re a child.”

“And you’re beautiful.”

“And you need to brush up on your flirting. When you’re an adult, you don’t pick on your dates.”

“My negotiation skills are better.” He wiggles my yellow popcorn tub in the air. “Hold my hand during the rest of this horrible movie, and you get it back.”

My brows knit. “That restricts me to only eat with one hand.”

Alexander shrugs. “You need more? You should’ve taken it because now my deal has changed.”

“That quickly?” He bobs his head. “Now what?”

“A kiss. Call it childish, but I’ve already been dubbed the trust fund kid and a bully, so I’m on a roll tonight, apparently.”

I frown, not because kissing him isn’t an attractive thought, but I don’t think I’m ready.

I’m thirty-four years old.

I should be fine.

It’s just a kiss.

It’s innocent, and I’m not signing a contract to sign any part of me away.

Actually, I kinda did.

The moment I committed myself to Bishop, my heart sewed itself to it. It doesn’t want to be free, but it’s tired of not being acknowledged. It’s been about three years, and nothing has really changed besides the ugly truth that he wants shit to do with me.

Alexander leans in, and my body tenses on autopilot. He deserves someone better than me, and I don’t even know him.

“I’m kinda married,” I mutter between us, feeling embarrassed and overwhelmed all of a sudden.

I fully expect Alexander to pull back and ask me to repeat myself. That I didn’t just waste his time by taking me out.

But, again, that box I spoke about earlier that I put him in has holes.

“Are you kinda happy?” he hedges, keeping his gaze locked on me.

I shake my head without thinking. “No.”

“Then I’m kinda okay with it as long as he’s not going to show up out of nowhere and beat my ass.”

“We’re separated.” My heart cramps inside my ribcage with saying it out loud.

I hate it more than anything.

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