Page 70 of Courting Clemson

I smiled genuinely that time. “You have, but thank you. This dress is the most beautiful thing I’ve ever worn. You’re spoiling me.”

“It looks exquisite on you. And I’ve told you before, it makes me happy to give you things. Let’s say our goodbyes—to the table, at least—and leave. I’ve had enough of this guy hard-selling me all night.”

He was referring to Luke, and I winced. I didn’t think he came on too strong, but I guess there was a fine line between being confident in what you had to offer and pushing too hard.

Luckily, Luke wasn’t at the table when we picked up our belongings and left the venue. I planned on reaching out to him later to explain what was going on. I wasn’t sure he’d give me the opportunity, but I’d try.

Brian never took me to his place before, and I was a little nervous entering his home. He had a beautiful place on the cliffs in La Jolla. The west-facing side of the home was made mostly of windows, and I could see the Pacific Ocean crashing angrily on the rocks along the shore. Gone were the warm, glorious days of summer, and it looked like a storm might be rolling ashore.

“This is amazing. This view could capture my attention all day,” I said, staring out the tall windows.

“This home took a lot of work when I first bought it, but I love it now. I can’t imagine living anywhere else.” He handed me a heavy glass with about an inch and a half of brown liquor.

It smelled strong but tasted much better than I expected.

“Come sit with me and tell me what’s been bothering you all night,” Brian said while getting comfortable on the sofa. He had removed his tuxedo jacket and tie and carefully rolled the sleeves of his white shirt up to expose his forearms.

I sat beside him on the sofa and kicked off my heels. I sighed immediately when my toes could stretch out rather than being jammed into the points of the shoes.

“I don’t know where to begin with this,” I said.

“You can be honest with me, Clemson. In fact, I want you to be. I hope you’re comfortable enough to just speak your mind.”

“I am. You always make me feel safe. I know I can talk to you about anything.”

I took a deep breath and just let it all spill out.

“Right when I listed my profile, I met a guy. Not on the dating site where I met you. In real life, for lack of a better term. We’ve been seeing each other this whole time, but I never told him about you or what I did to secure my tuition.”

“And now you’re feeling guilty about hiding it from him?”

“Well, it’s a little more than that. Yes, all those things, but that man at the table tonight? Luke Allen? He’s the guy I’ve been seeing.”

Brian’s eyes went wide.

“He invited me to the same event this evening, and I lied to him and told him I had a team obligation that I couldn’t get out of. We had a fight last night on top of everything else because he said he doesn’t feel like he’s my priority and that he’s more invested in us than I am. I didn’t have a chance to smooth that over today, and now, after what happened tonight—well, I’m pretty sure I’ve ruined things.”

Brian had lifted my feet into his lap and was rubbing the soreness away while I spoke. It was such a heavenly feeling. I rested my head back on the sofa and closed my eyes. He was quiet for a while, and I worried that I’d said too much.

“Are you angry?” I asked.

“Not at all. What would I be angry about? Never did I say you couldn’t date. It’s been my experience, though, that a lot of men don’t understand a relationship like ours. That there can’t be a nonphysical bond between two people. So you may do all the explaining you can, and he still won’t understand. I don’t know what to advise here.”

“Adding to it all, he’s trying to get you to do business with his advertising firm, and I feel like I’ve really made a mess of things for you both. If you were truly thinking of giving him your business, I hope this doesn’t get in the way.”

“Darling, it won’t,” he said with a grin. “Don’t worry yourself over my business decisions, okay?”

“Okay,” I said. “What’s the smile for?” I asked in a lighter tone.

“You. You make me smile. Your heart is so big. You want everyone to get along. For everything to be right in the world. It’s such a young, fresh outlook. I wish there were a way to hold on to that.”

I chose to take that as a compliment. If I was a more negative person, I might take that to mean that I was naïve, but I liked my version better.

“Will you spend the night?” he asked abruptly.

I leveled my gaze with his. “I thought—” I began, almost panicking. We never did more than kiss, and I was in no emotional space for sex with a new person tonight.

He chuckled. “I have a guest room with your name all over it. I just don’t want to go back out into the cold.” He motioned toward the windows. “Looks like rain is coming.”

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