“Okay!” Josephine interrupted with a shrill voice. “Let’s talk about something else now. Who’s watching Game of Thrones? How awesome are Daenerys and her dragons?”
If I had pet dragons, Dean would have already been burned to a crisp long ago.
“I’m going to use the little girls’ room,” Casey said.
I pushed my chair back and stood to join her.
“Mind if I tag along?”
Her smile faltered, but she nodded. I trailed after her, trying to ignore Dean’s heavy stare on my back. I’d thought my hatred for the man had reached an all-time high when he’d fired me, but somehow he’d found a way to ensure his spot as number one on my worst enemies list.
I was washing my hands in the sink when I met Casey’s eyes in the mirror. Honestly, I couldn’t figure out what she was doing with Dean. She was pretty and nice; Dean would suck the life right out of her.
She offered me a tentative smile and before I knew it, evil, albeit funny lies were starting to spill out of my mouth. Dean had played his cards in front of the entire table and now I was going to play mine.
“That’s so great that you’re willing to date Dean even with the, uh, y’know…” I motioned in a circle below my waist. “… situation down there.”
She tilted her head with narrowed eyes. “What?”
I shot her a pitying smile. “Yeah. It’s pretty bad. He almost lost it all together after the electric shaver incident last year.”
She swallowed and then dropped her lipstick back into her purse. Even with her head down I could see her eyes widen in shock.
“Are you serious?”
“Oh no.” I clapped my hand over my mouth as if I’d just spoken out of turn. “I’m sure he was going to tell you soon,” I said, squeezing her shoulder. “I think he just wanted you to get to know him first.”
She groaned and threw her head back. “How long did he think he could go without telling me? Guys like him think they can get away with shit like this just because they’re rich.”
I nodded as if I completely understood. “I know. Personally, it wouldn’t bother me. Except, well, Julian let it slip that Dean refuses to give…” I lowered my voice. “…oral. Even now.”
One of Casey’s eyelids twitched slightly. “I am so over men in this city.”
“Try to cut him some slack. I think he’s just guarded after the Russian mail-order bride fell through last year.” I sighed. “Anastasya.”
Too far? Maybe.
She heaved out a breath and shook her head. “Whatever. I don’t need this. I’m a Knicks cheerleader. Do you know how many guys I could get?”
I nodded with an understanding smile. “Hundreds, I bet.”
“Thanks for telling me though. Girl code, right?”
I grinned. “Exactly.”
We finished primping. She let me borrow some of her red lipstick and I swiped it across my pout, feeling as if I’d just played a winning hand. My hair looked good and there was a healthy glow on my cheeks from walking around the city all day.
Was I being devious by sabotaging Dean’s date?
Without a doubt.
Did I feel guilty as I left the bathroom with Casey on my heels?
I’d never felt so good. Being a diabolical villain was definitely a good look for me.
Chapter Ten
Dean
Dinner was going terribly. Honestly, George R.R. Martin’s red wedding had fewer awkward moments than that evening. When Casey and Lily returned from the bathroom, Casey pulled her phone out of her purse and focused intently on the screen like a sixteen-year-old out at dinner with her parents. I tried to get her attention, but she waved me off as her fingers flew over her iPhone. When I glanced up around the table, Lily was trying to hide a smirk and doing a fairly shitty job of it.
Josephine was busy talking about her job, but I knew Lily wasn’t listening. She stared down at her fingers, twisting them up in her napkin. I knew she’d said something to Casey in the bathroom, I just didn’t know what.
She glanced up and saw me watching her. I narrowed my eyes and she mirrored my expression. It was a silent duel with no witnesses and no judges, but I’d be damned if I let her win.
“All right, here are those drinks,” the waiter announced, leaning over Lily to place her drink to the side of her plate. He followed the pattern around the table, handing me my old fashioned, and then faltering when he got to the extra rickshaw. Lily met my eyes and quirked a brow. I leaned back in my chair and took a deep swallow of my old fashioned. It was perfect, familiar, and most importantly, what I’d ordered.
Lily flashed the waiter a kind smile. “You can set it in the middle. I’m sure someone will drink it.”
I’d only been around Lily three times, but I could already pinpoint what it was about her that irked me: she was opinionated and too stubborn for her own good.
“Y’know, I think your drink choice says a lot about you,” Lily said from the opposite side of the table. Casey slipped her phone into her purse and glanced up, clearly aware that there was about to be a scene. I knew better than Lily. We wouldn’t get along, we wouldn’t be friends. The best thing to do at a dinner like this would be to ignore each other, but Lily kept pushing my buttons.
“How so?” Casey asked when I didn’t take the bait.
I rolled my eyes.
“Perhaps Dean’s a little old fashioned himself? Set in the old way of doing things?”