Page 13 of Sweet on You
Ronnie
I stood there, my feet cemented in place. Lex was on adate. Or at least, it looked like he was on a date. When Yvonne and I first walked into Greico’s, he was sitting at the bar with her and she had her hand on his arm, her thumb circling his wrist in gentle, rhythmic patterns. Was this why he turned me down last month? Was this his new girlfriend? Or was he the kind of guy who asked me out one minute, only to get turned down and ask another girl out for the same night?
I swallowed… maybe I didn’t have any right to be angry. I did say no to tonight, after all.
I tore my gaze away as Yvonne’s arms folded. “Didn’t you tell me hejustasked you out to dinner a couple of hours ago?” she asked, and I found myself nodding.
“He did.” Didn’t he? Or did I totally misinterpret that, too, like I had misinterpreted all of our flirting for the past two years? I had only just started to tell Yvonne about that in the car, but I also conveniently left out my terrible lie about the dog. That stupid lie that I had no doubt would come back to bite me in the ass.
“Do you want to go eat somewhere else? We could do Jolie or even Elsa’s—”
“Hell, no,” I interrupted. This wasmytown and I’d be damned if I was going to run away with my tail between my legs because some British guy who’d only moved here a couple of years ago turned me down for a date.Hell, no. Realizing my words were a little harsh, I did my best to give Yvonne a reassuring smile. “Really. I’m fine,” I said softer this time. The line in front of us for the hostess inched forward. Greico’s was one of the best Italian spots in Maple Grove and it almost always had a wait for a table. Luckily, the turnover was quick and the wait was never so long that a glass of red wine wouldn’t pass the time.
Yvonne snorted as we watched Lex and the girl he was with stand. I didn’t recognize her, but despite Maple Grove being a small town, I didn’t know everyone. “You’re a bigger person than me, then,” Yvonne said. “When Steve and I were apart, I could barely be in the same room as him.”
I smiled and looked over at my soon-to-be-sister. “Well, Steve can be kind of an asshole sometimes,” I joked. “As his little sister, I can say that. But you two had a lot more history than Lex and me. I asked him out once a couple of months ago. He said no. He asked me out tonight—I said no… and apparently, he found my replacementfast. That’s the end of our saga. Our tragic love story.”
I shrugged and for a split second, I almost believed that myself.
Until Lex and this woman hugged. No… not hugged. Embraced. It was an emotional moment—even from across the bar with a crowd of people separating us, I could see the intense connection and moment between them as they held that embrace. Finally, pulling back, the woman touched her palm to his cheek and he lifted her other hand, kissing her knuckle.
It wasn’t like they were making out or being inappropriate. But something in that moment was far more intense than any kiss I had witnessed. Far more intimate.
And it was a punch in the freaking gut.
The two separated and the girl walked in our direction—toward the exit. But I couldn’t move. I couldn’t tear my eyes away from Lex. Yvonne was right. He had just asked me to dinner a couple of hours ago. And now here he was with this other woman? How many women was he seeing regularly? It didn’t make sense. Lex didn’t strike me as a guy who dated a bunch of women at the same time… yet, the evidence was right here in front of my face.
The woman gave us a nod and a passing smile as she exited the restaurant. The sort of smile you give a stranger. And as the woman’s shoulder brushed by me, Lex’s eyes lifted, colliding with mine.
Ifelthis gasp. Was he embarrassed? Good. He should be.
He raked a hand through his hair and his chest rose and fell with one heavy breath before he crossed the bar toward us. He stuffed one hand into his pocket and tucked a manila envelope under his arm.
“He’s coming over here,” Yvonne said, stating the obvious and smacking me with the back of her hand.
“Iknow. I can see that.”
He approached cautiously, like you would walk up to a cat if you didn’t know if it was feral or domesticated. “Hello,” he gave a little wave before shoving that hand back into his pocket.I can think of somewhere else he could shove that hand…
“Hi Lex,” Yvonne said. She was always the sweet one in our friendship. She was sweet, Kyra was sassy and sexy… and I was… hmm. What was I? Brassy. I was the one with the temper. What’s the difference between sassy and brassy? Sassy is playful and gets her point across in a tongue in cheek manner. Brassy… shoots from the hip. Brassy says what she means and usually gets labeled as a bitch. Or, as my teachers used to say in the notes sent home to my mother…Veronica has a chip on her shoulder the size of Texas.
I hated getting in trouble, but I hated bottling up my emotions even more. And thank God for my amazing mother. Marty Tripp used to sign the letter and send it back with her own note scribbled on the bottom:Some of the most interesting cups have chips in them and every one of them has a story behind it. PS – Ronnie’s chip is the size of China, not Texas.
“Ronnie,” Lex said, giving me a quick nod of his head. “How’s the dog doing? What’s his name again?”
Shit. What the hell did I name that stupid, fake dog?
Yvonne answered—because why wouldn’t she? She was the only one between the two of us who actually had a dog and we both knew it. Nor did she know about the stupid lie I told when I was backed into a corner.
“Gatsby?” Yvonne asked. “He’s doing great. His cancer is still in remission.”
Lex smiled at her. “That’s great,” he said, then turned back to me. “How’syourdog doing?” he asked again.
Panicked, I glanced at Yvonne before she could answer and she immediately snapped her mouth shut, her eyes going momentarily wide before I answered, “He’s good. And…” I wracked my brain. I had chosen a name of something that was right in front of me… oh yeah! “Penny. Penny’s his name.”
“Right,” Lex said. “Penny.” I couldn’t tell if there was a hint of sarcasm or disbelief in his tone.
“Well, maybe tomorrow we could takePennywith us during my training session.” Although I couldn’t see my own face, I sure felt the color drain from it.
