Page 28 of One Wild Ride

ELEVEN

Aria

“I wish Iwas going to London on Sunday,” I said just before I took a bite of my sausage.

Morgana wasn’t kidding when she said Chuck’s Sausage Shack had the best sausages in Chicago. I laughed when she mentioned going there for her lunch break with me and Tiffany, but I admitted I was wrong. How I admitted it was through moans of satisfaction that had several people in the place turning to gaze at our table.

“You’re not. Evaleen and I are so you can suck on that,” Morgana said with a smirk while pointing to my sausage.

“Don’t rub the fact you get to jet off to London for your job in my face, Morgana. That’s rude.” I glanced over at Tiffany for backup but she was too engrossed in her sausage to care about us anymore.

“No, I’m not. Seriously, suck on it. It brings out the juices,” Morgana said just before she brought the sausage to her lips and sucked on the tip.

Most of the people in the restaurant turned to stare at us.

“Why isn’t Evaleen joining us for lunch?” Tiffany asked as she put her food back on her plate. A smile of satisfaction spread across her lips.

“She has a meeting with Edgar, the head of IT at Mimir. They are in the process of trying to hire someone in his department,” Morgana said.

“We should have a SWIM Meet before you leave. How about tomorrow night? A special Saturday night SWIM Meet,” I suggested.

My eyes roamed the restaurant. I kept expecting to find someone, but I didn’t know who. Ever since meeting Alex all those weeks ago, I haven’t felt comfortable in my own skin.

I was frustrated and knew what I needed. Reaching up to my neck absently, I realized my good luck charm necklace wasn’t there. I never understood how often I fidgeted with the necklace until it was gone. I haven’t seen it in weeks and wondered if it fell off in a certain art collector’s bedroom.

“I can’t. I’m having dinner with my parents Saturday night,” Morgana said.

“I’ll go. David is much stronger since he’s been home from the hospital, and he’s making tremendous progress. I can ask Henrik to hang out with him. David will love that,” Tiffany said.

I smiled at Tiffany’s happiness. She has worked so hard for that boy and he’s worked harder to walk than all of us combined. But, as happy as I was that Tiffany would be coming out tomorrow, I wanted a wing-woman. Someone who would help me find a guy to ease this frustration.

“I’ll call Evaleen later, see if she might be interested.”

I don’t know how much better Evaleen would be than Tiffany. Whereas Tiffany would probably okay any guy that showed me attention, as she has been out of the dating world far too long, Evaleen would also scare off all who showed interest.

That’s why Morgana was perfect. I had known her since we were roommates in college. She had the ability to relax a guy into showing his true colors. Even the guys who had mastered the game would let down their guard around her.

“Can you at least bring home some pictures of the guys in London? I need to live vicariously through you for a while, Morgana,” I said as I reached over to pat her hand.

“I don’t know if I will be having any bangers and mash in London.” Morgana gave an exaggerated wink before continuing, “I have a coffee date on Sunday before my trip. If everything goes as I think it will with my date, it will be all business across the pond next week.”

“Can you take pictures of your date then? Preferably naked,” I said and then bit into my pickle.

“What about Alex? You told me you were working hard to . . . how did you put it? ‘Climb that mountain so you could reach his peak,’” Tiffany said before tossing a potato chip into her mouth.

“What? Aria, you are working for a man’s affection?” Morgana’s asked.

“No. Maybe. It doesn’t matter, anyway. He thinks I’m trash. I know he’s attracted to me but I’m just the hired help,” I said before I rolled my eyes.

Morgana’s mouth dropped open as she stared at me.

“What?” I said.

“You said once that if you ever have to try to get a man to sleep with you that he wasn’t worth the effort and your vagina must have fallen out, so I should get you to a hospital right away.”

Tiffany snorted and blushed.

“Maybe that’s the problem. Alex’s sex superpowers are tingling, letting him know that my lady parts have withered away.”

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