Page 21 of Love You Like That (Excess All Areas 4)

“I’d like that.”

“What do you want to drink?” Alex asked.

“Gin and Tonic, please. With the Dyers Medallion gin please.”

When they had placed their drinks order, Alex turned and saw Zoe walking towards him with her coat on. Her eyes were too bright, her smile utterly fake. “I need to go. One of my authors needs something that’s on my laptop. But please—“ she glanced at Antonio “—don’t let me ruin your evening.”

“I’ll walk you back.”

“No.” She held out her hand. “It’s two minutes, I’ll be okay. Enjoy your drink. I asked Chaya to let me know how much my share of dinner was.”

“Will that be cash or card?” he heard the bartender say behind him.

Shit. “One second, Zoe.”

“Honestly, it’s fine.”

There was that word again. He pulled out his wallet and paid quickly. But when he turned around, Zoe was gone.

Fuck.

“Cheers,” Antonio said, offering his large glass to Alex’s pint. “Honestly, when I saw it was you, I debated coming over to talk to you. I didn’t want to disturb you with your…girlfriend. Friend?”

Alex looked back toward the door. “Friend.”

Warmth seeped through his cardigan as Antonio ran a fingertip down his bicep. “Well, that’s good news. My day just got even brighter. I live close by.”

Why had she left? For a moment he wondered if it was because he was with a guy.

No.

It couldn’t be. Because she’d talked openly with him about flirting with guys. Zoe definitely wasn’t homophobic.

“Hey, are you okay?” Antonio asked. “If you’d rather go with your friends, I get it.”

Alex shook his head. He couldn’t be a dick to a guy he’d had no business messing with to prove a point to Zoe. The least he could do was be kind. “No. I’m good. Let’s go grab a seat.”

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