Page 18 of Bad Love

First thing I notice is there are women. Beautiful, glamorous women. And lots ofthem.

In jaw-droppinglocations.

Crystal-blue waters kissed by the sun. Sand and white buildings. Skyscrapers like the ones in New York but bearing signs with characters I can’tread.

His bio says he graduated from an Ivy League school and runs the marketing department for Hunter’s Cross after previous work in advertising, though it doesn’t describewhat.

He totally downplayed his status in the car. Calling himself, what—reckless and the life of theparty?

Which begs the question,why?

Hunter doesn’t seem the kind to mask his accomplishments. If anything, he seems like he’d shout them from the rooftops of those sameskyscrapers.

The fact that he’s legitimately accomplished adds to the grudging admiration I feel for the fact that he’s Daisy’s friend and seems completely at ease witheverything.

Curiosity drives me to type his name into a search bar.It’s part of myresearch.

The results say he’s part of a wealthy New York family with a history of corporate success and entrepreneurship. There are smiling images of him at Hunter’s Cross functions and fundraisers. The captions laud him as a philanthropist—another thing he didn’tmention.

Scrolling down, I find otherimages.

Ones with a distinctly more editorialflavor.

And lessclothing.

Holy…

There’s one of him shirtless, his jeans riding low, looking into the camera as if he wants to do something wicked toit.

A flush crawls up my chest to my cheeks. It’s as if he can see me looking at him. As if he knows I’m staring at his half-naked and all-masculinebody.

I slam the lid of my notebook shut and take a second tobreathe.

I’ve stopped crediting every twist and turn to God’s personal machinations, but I do believe that we’re given curveballs through some cosmic idea of fairness that makes things hard onpurpose.

This is a test. Ofcharacter.

I will use this assignment to show I can handle the pressure, the situation, and Logan Hunter himself with grace and professionalism. I will come out the other side stronger and with moreconviction.

I pick up my spiral notebook and take out the folded sheet of paper with "My Adventures" at thetop.

It's a long list on purpose, because life is meant to be experienced through diverselenses.

Glassblowing.

Ukuleleplaying.

Eventaxidermy.

There's nothing on that list about sexy clients with smug grins and too-lowdenim.

And there won'tbe.

A sip of wine cements my conviction before I write “NO fantasizing about hot strangers” at thebottom.

I underline ittwice.

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