Page 49 of Double or Nothing

“Never said it was plan, let alone a good one. It just kind of… happened.”

It happened because I can’t control myself around Sutton. When we were in love, we were the happiest couple in existence. When we were fighting, we were combative as hell. Back then, the happiness outweighed the fighting, but now, the tables have flipped. We’re no longer lovers with occasional lover spats. We’re enemies, with long-lost love feelings still ingrained deep inside of us.

“You deserve to be happy.”

The man sitting next to me is the man I should be attracted to. Smart, successful, kind, the guy who calls his mother every day and spoils the women he dates with affection—not gifts. He’s all the things I miss about Sutton without the things I hate—his temper, the childish tantrums, the extreme jealousy. As perfect as Anthony seems, I’m not attracted to him in the slightest.

“Thank you. Can we talk about something else? Like you? What about you? Any special ladies in your life?”

Anthony finishes his scotch and sets the glass back on the table.

“Not at the moment.”

“But there is someone?”

There’s a flush on Anthony’s cheeks.

“I get why you didn’t want to talk about this stuff.”

“Oh, come on, tell me.”

“It doesn’t matter.” He shakes his head. “She works for me, so it wouldn’t be appropriate.”

“Believe me, I would quit a job in a heartbeat for a shot with you.”

“I appreciate the sentiment, but this woman…” He blows out a breath. “It’s complicated.”

“You are preaching to the choir.” I can’t help but laugh, completely understanding how he feels. It’s how I feel about Sutton. The attraction. The feelings. The tangled web. What feels like it should be so simple is anything but.

The waitress sets our meals in front of us. I take this opportunity to change the subject. Our usual lighthearted conversation got a little deep tonight. It’s time to return to normal.

“See the couple in the corner?” I whisper.

Anthony looks in the direction that my head is tilted, then nods.

“The one where the guy is… sucking on the woman’s finger? What the hell?”

“Yep, that one. Let’s just say, one of them is my client, and that is not his spouse’s finger he’s sucking.”

Anthony’s smile is instant. “Please tell me you don’t play these games with all your clients. I’m becoming afraid.”

“I assure you, Anthony, the things I do with you, I don’t do with anyone else.” The words come out wrong, the double entendre behind them, not intentional in the slightest. “That’s not what I meant. I just—”

There’s no need to finish my sentence because there is no way Anthony can hear me over his laughter. I slap his arm across the table.

“Wish I would have known that was part of the package.”

“Oh, shush,” I say, laughing right along with him.

Anthony quiets, his head nodding in the opposite direction.

“See that woman over there? The table by the window?”

“Mm-hmm.” I stare at him intently, curious where he’s going with this.

“I went on a date with her, took her back to my room, and…”

I check the woman out. Short doesn’t even describe her dress. The hair extensions? Poorly done, and her makeup? Way too heavy. Very much not the type of woman I would have expected Anthony to date.

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