Accidentally On Purpose Part 5

"Oh." I swallowed my food before speaking again. "The answer is still no."

"Cool."

"I mean..."

"Yes?" He looked at me warily.

"I'm not seeing anyone. I..." I hesitated. Luke was a very good listener and good at keeping secrets, something I learned a long time ago, soon after meeting him. I was having some family issues and during one of our very first lunches together, I unloaded on him; but I didn't know if I could tell him about Kyle. At least not directly.

"I had a fling...thing...with someone not that long ago," I admitted.

"And you want more than a fling," he guessed.

"No, no. I mean, maybe if circ.u.mstances were different, but..." I sighed. "He's had a steady girlfriend for a long time. It should have never happened."

"Wow."

"Yeah, I'm a horrible person."

"No," he sat up straight. "I didn't say that, and I don't think that at all. I'm just surprised."

"Well, it's over."

"Do you...have feelings for this guy?"

"Not really," I lied. "It doesn't matter anyway. He's not mine to have and even though I hate his girlfriend, I'll never feel right about s.c.r.e.w.i.n.g her over. I don't like the guilt I feel."

"Hey, we all make mistakes," he said softly, giving my hand a quick squeeze. "But are you sure it's over?"

"For me it is."

"What about him?" Just as he asked that, Kyle walked in. His eyes immediately fell on Luke's hand resting on mine. He boldly stared at me as he pa.s.sed by.

"I hope so," I whispered.

Luke looked at Kyle's back with a thoughtful expression. If it connected in his head, he didn't let on. He turned back to me.

"I had a motive when I asked if you were seeing anyone," he said, with a sly smile.

"Oh?" I c.o.c.ked an eyebrow.

"Would you like to go out on a real date with me?"

He's asked me out before, too, and I always gently declined, but looking at him now, I didn't understand why I had always said no before. Luke was gorgeous, super smart, and he made me laugh, and he was very single, unlike Kyle.

"I would love to," I smiled warmly at him.

Later that night while I was reading in bed, my phone rang. I knew who it was before I looked. Kyle had been calling or stopping by a few nights a week just to shoot the breeze. I liked talking to him like this. He was only half as obnoxious as he was at work, and the conversation came easily. It was a compromise of sorts. We could carry on this friends.h.i.+p, but it had to stay out of the office, and it had to stay platonic, and the last part was the hardest part.

"What was up with the hand holding?" Kyle asked after I answered the phone.

"It was a friendly gesture," I answered in a bored tone.

"You two looked really cozy."

"Yeah. I suppose we were."

"Are you sleeping with him?"

"Wow. Not that it's any of your business, but no. I'm not. What if I were?"

"There's rules against that kind of relations.h.i.+p at Sterling Corp," he said smugly.

"There's no rule against me sleeping with Luke."

"Yes, there is."

"No, there's not," I rolled my eyes. "He's not my boss, but I guess you should fire me, because I did did sleep with sleep with him. him."

"He doesn't count."

"Neither does Luke. Is that the only reason why you called me? To question me about Luke?"

"Maybe. I was curious, but I feel better knowing you're not dating him."

"I said I'm not sleeping with him. I didn't say I wasn't dating him," I said.

"You're dating him?"

"Kind of. He's taking me out Sat.u.r.day."

"I don't like it."

"I'm not asking you to, and I don't really care," I lied. "You're stepping over that platonic line again."

"Sorry." He didn't sound sorry at all.

"Yeah. Do you have anything else to talk about?"

"What are you wearing?"

"Goodnight, Kyle."

I clicked the phone off before he could object.

Chapter Nine

"Wow, you look hot." Luke was standing at my front door, checking me out with a big s.h.i.+t eating grin on his face.

I was wearing short shorts and a tee s.h.i.+rt so riddled with holes it looked as if I had been shot. A lot. The shorts and s.h.i.+rt had matching bleach stains and perpetually smelled like Lysol no matter how many times I washed them. My hair was in the messiest of buns and I was sporting a pair of pink rubber gloves that went almost up to my elbows.

"What are you doing here?" I asked, completely fl.u.s.tered to find him at my door.

"Don't tell me you changed your mind."

"About what?"

"Our date?"

I shook my head. "Our date isn't until tonight. Nine o' clock."

"Let's face it, Emmy. We're both getting a little too old for late night dates."

"You meant nine in the morning?"

"Well, it's nine, and it's morning, and I'm here, so..."

I suddenly felt extremely stupid. Now it all made sense - the pancakes he wanted to treat me to, the trip to Atlantic City, and something about having me home before it got too late.

"I'm sorry," I said, waving him in. "I'm such an idiot."

"Yeah, but at least you're appropriately dressed for our date."

I threw a rubber glove at him. "Make yourself comfortable in the family room or living room, but don't step on my kitchen floor." I wagged a finger at him. "It's still wet."

I took the steps two at a time to go properly get ready for my date. I showered in record time, dressed in jeans, a tight black sweater and a pair of black Timbs. I brushed my hair, pulled it back in a tight ponytail and grabbed my leather coat.

"You look fantastic," Luke said when I found him watching ESPN in the family room.

"Thanks. I'm sorry I made you wait."

"You didn't take long at all, especially for a girl."

"Well, thanks thanks," I said. I s.n.a.t.c.hed my Coach bag off of the couch. "Ready?"

We decided to skip the pancake breakfast and hit up the drive-thru at Dunkin Donuts instead. We drove to Atlantic City talking, laughing, and arguing about what music to play on the radio. We were only forty minutes into our date and I was already finding myself attracted to Luke in ways I'd never thought I could be. Even though we had been friendly with each other for a long time, I was feeling a little fluttering in my chest, something I didn't feel in the past with Luke. I tried to wave off what I was feeling, and nearly succeeded until we were on the boardwalk.

It was late January and the temperature by the ocean was always much cooler, especially with the wind-chill. I should have worn a warmer coat, but I wanted to look cute. Now I was paying the price. I was so cold that my teeth chattered violently, making a loud clacking sound.

Luke took off his coat and put it on my shoulders.

"Oh, no," I said trying to hand it back to him. "You'll f-f-f-freez-z-ze," I managed.

"I will be fine until we get into the casino." He again wrapped the coat around me. His hand brushed against my cheek and the fluttering returned four fold. He took my hand and led me down the boardwalk.

We sat side by side for a couple of hours, leisurely playing the fifty cent slots. At some point, we both turned in our seats so that our legs were entwined while we talked, played, and sipped on the complimentary drinks the casino supplied. We did a little shopping on the boardwalk and ate at the Hard Rock Cafe before jumping back on the expressway.

In the car, Luke drove with one hand on the back of my seat and the other on the wheel. I leaned in his direction as much as my seatbelt would let me.

"I hope I didn't bore the h.e.l.l out of you today," he said.

"Don't be ridiculous. I am having a great time. I have to admit, I've never had a first date at a casino."

"It wasn't one of my better ideas."

"No, it was fine - different. I like different sometimes. If we didn't already know each other, it could have been awkward."

He smiled at me, and we drove in silence for a couple of minutes. Every few seconds he would glance over at me, his smile unfading.

"I'm sorry I kept saying no," I said, breaking the silence.

"What?"

"You've asked me out before, a few times over the years. I said no, and now I regret it."

"It's okay. It took you awhile to realize what a fine specimen I am."

"I didn't say all of that that," I gave him a warning look. I looked at the time on the dash. It was almost six, still early. We spent the whole day together, but I wasn't ready to end the date. "So, what are you going to do with the rest of your weekend?"

He looked at me with a slightly guilty expression.

"What?" I asked. When he didn't answer, I pinched his arm, making him laugh and pull away. "What?"

He replaced his hand on the back of my seat and sighed.

"I was hoping that you would have had such a great time that I would have my second date with you tomorrow."

"What if I wasn't interested or what if I were busy was.h.i.+ng my hair?"

"I would have to gracefully bow out and thank you for the one good day you gave me."

"Such a gentleman."

"And then I would go back to work and spread ugly rumors and write dirty things about you on the men's bathroom wall."

"d.a.m.n. I guess I should go out with you again. I don't need another another story written about me on the bathroom wall." story written about me on the bathroom wall."