Page 61 of Fumbled Beginning

Her eyes snapped to mine. “Is it a crime to call someone after a certain time?”

“So, if one of my ex-hookups called right now, you would be okay with that?”

“That’s different.”

“The fuck it is.” I raised my voice.

Oakley’s head popped up from the end of the couch.

“Our relationship is strictly professional now. You have nothing to worry about.”

I pointed to her phone. “What on earth could he need at ten thirty at night?”

“He probably wants to talk about the conference coming up in Nashville.”

My eyes bugged out of my head. “You’re going away with him? To a conference?”

“He needs to meet with our team in Tennessee to go over some legal documents.”

“Rylee, that sounds fishy as fuck. Why would they need to send their in-house lawyer to a conference?”

“I don’t know. Why don’t you ask the owner of the company. He is the one that requested that we both attend.”

“Maybe I will.”

“Woah!” Her hand shot out to my chest. “I’m going to stop you right there because I’m not liking your tone there, buddy.”

“Well, I don’t like the fact that you were planning on going away with your ex-boyfriend without telling me.”

She hopped off the couch. “First off, I’m not going away with Dom. We have a work convention. There will be thousands of other people there in attendance. Second, Dom isn’t a threat to you in any way, shape, or form. Third, the reason why it hasn’t come up in conversation is because Dom never crosses my mind. I don’t even think of him outside of work. That’s how insignificant he is. And last, I would never cheat on you or anyone, ever.”

I sighed. “I’m sorry for snapping at you. I know you’re not a cheater. I was caught off guard, that’s all.”

“And I apologize for not telling you sooner.” She walked back over to sit on my lap. “You have to trust me like I trust you. If anyone should be jealous, it’s me. You could dump me today and find someone prettier, smarter, younger, or whatever the hell you wanted.”

I squeezed her side. “I don’t want anyone else but you.”

She looked into my eyes. “Neither do I.”

“I’m sorry if I’m coming across as a jerk. It’s been a long time since I’ve been in a relationship.”

Rylee brushed her fingers along my forehead. “I didn’t realize you were ever in a relationship. I assumed you’ve always been single.”

I cleared my throat and trained my gaze across the room. “It was a long time ago.”

“Was it serious?”

“Yeah, it was.” A burning sensation started to grow in my chest. I wasn’t prepared to talk about this. It was uncomfortable, and whenever the topic of my ex came up, my skin got itchy.

“What happened?”

I threaded my fingers through hers. “Remember, I told you that I had a lot of baggage?’

“Yes.” She swallowed. “I’m assuming this has something to do with it.”

“It has everything to do with it. I want to tell you, because you deserve to know, I’m just so tired right now, but I promise we will talk about it, okay?” I squeezed her hand.

She seemed like she wanted to say something but changed her mind. “Okay, I just have to ask you one question, and I’ll leave you alone.”

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