Its complicated, p.15
It's Complicated, page 15
“What, Gemma?” he said rolling his eyes.
“I think that you will be a much nicer person once we have Sarah in a beautiful, committed relationship because then you won’t have her to back you up all the time because she’ll be too busy with her new man.”
“What the fuck are you talking about?” he said angrily and I grinned inside at his obvious distress. Just the thought of Sarah being in a relationship upset him. He let out a huge sigh and shook his head. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to swear.” Sarah looked at him with a frown.
“What was that about?”
“Sorry, I don’t know. I’m just... What are you talking about, Gemma?” He glared at me before turning to Sarah. “What’s she talking about ‘when you’re in a committed relationship with someone?’ Am I missing something here, Sarah? Are you on this dating app as well? Like what’s going on? Is this your way of trying to tell me that you’ve found someone? Is this why we’re on this double date?”
“Well it’s not really a double date, is it Harry?” Lucas said.
“What are you talking about?” Harry now looked annoyed.
“Well,” Lucas said in his calm voice, “You told me that you’re here as Sarah’s best friend so it’s not really a double date. Gemma and I are on a date and you two are just here as people having a drink, I suppose. It’s just, I guess, three friends and a potential boyfriend having a drink. Not really a double date. I know maybe I’m being too particular, but as an attorney, words matter and scenarios matter and situations matter. And in a court of law, this would not be considered a double date.”
“Wow. Don’t you ever turn it off?” Harry said with a frown.
“Harry!” Sarah hit him in the shoulder. “Come on, be nice.”
“I’m being nice. I just don’t under...”
“I was joking, Harry,” I said with a forced smile. He really was so annoying. “Sarah doesn’t have anyone. Don’t worry. She’s all yours.” I rolled my eyes and then I whispered into Lucas’s ear. “I don’t think he knows it yet, but I’m pretty sure that Harry wants Sarah very badly.” He looked me in the eyes and he nodded.
“I am absolutely positive of that as well,” he said with a little wink and we both laughed.
“What’re you guys whispering about?” Sarah said, frowning. “I want to know.”
“Just sweet, little nothings,” I said with a grin. “Do you guys want to play darts or something?” I saw that there were some dart boards across the corner and wanted to get the guys on another topic of conversation.
“Yeah. Let’s play a game of cricket,” Harry said. “I always love some darts.”
“Yeah, I’m down for that,” Lucas said with a smile. “Anything you want, Gemma. You know, your wish is my command.”
“Really now?” I looked over at him. “My wish is your command, huh?”
“Yeah, so your first wish is to play darts?”
“Sure.”
“So you have two more wishes. Remember to choose wisely.”
“Oh, I think I know what I want my second wish to be,” I said flirtatiously.
“And what’s that?”
“I think I would like for you to kiss me,” I said. I wasn’t sure if it was the alcohol talking or just the fact that I could smell his warm, musky scent when he was next to me so closely. But I didn’t care that we were here with Sarah and Harry. I didn’t care that we were in the middle of a bar. I didn’t care that this was our third date. I wanted him to kiss me and I wanted him to kiss me and show me why he should be the one I ended up with.
Within a few seconds, Lucas’ lips were pressed against mine. His hands were in my hair. I could feel his fingers trailing behind my ears as he kissed me, his tongue sliding into my mouth. I kissed him back passionately. I didn’t even care, but Sarah and Harry were watching. If anything, it made me feel even more alive. My nerve endings were even more sensitive to the fact that this kiss was deep and passionate and it was making me feel things I shouldn’t be feeling in the middle of the bar. Every part of me was tingling. I reached up and ran my hands through his hair before running them back down his back and then to his front, pressing against his chest. I felt his right hand, sliding down, cupping my breasts lightly and I gasped as I pulled away. “Lucas, no,” I said blushing as I looked over at Sarah and Harry, who were both staring at me and gawking. Harry was glaring at me and looking like he felt very uncomfortable. Trust Harry, the biggest player in the world, to be acting like we’d committed a huge sin. “Sorry about that, guys. We got a little bit carried away,” I said.
“A little bit?” Harry raised an eyebrow. “I would say get a room, but,” he shrugged, “I don’t think you guys care about that.”
“Sorry, Gemma. That was my fault,” Lucas said, as he reached over and lightly brushed my lips with his thumb. “I can never just give you a small kiss. Once my lips touch yours, I always want more.”
“No, it’s okay,” I laughed. “We got a little carried away, but that was my fault as well.” I fanned myself. “Whoa, that was hot. Shall we order some more drinks before things get even more out of control?”
“I think that sounds like a good idea,” Harry nodded and called over a waiter. “I think you have a very long day in front of you, Gemma, so maybe pace yourself a little bit.”
“Yes, Harry. Thank you,” I said, my lips thinning as I looked over at Sarah. I absolutely could not stand this guy and as soon as Sarah ditched him, the happier I was going to be. I looked over at Lucas. He gave me a small smile. I felt his hand on my knee, squeezing, and I knew that he was thinking the same thing as me. If we weren’t on this double date, we would be making out hardcore. And I paused, thinking to myself. We might even be in the bathroom fucking right now. I knew we were both hot and heavy and I knew we both wanted it. So maybe as much as I hated Harry being here with me, it was for the best because the last thing I needed was to fuck Lucas in the bathroom before Connor showed up for his date because knowing my luck Connor would find us going at it and then everything would be shot to hell.
Chapter 15
“Well, Lucas seemed like a pretty nice guy,” Harry said, as he looked at me with a small smile. “I’m surprised.”
“Why are you surprised, Harry?”
“I’m just surprised that you could get someone so good.”
“Excuse me?” I looked at Sarah and she just shook her head. She knew that Harry wasn’t winning me over with his obnoxious comments.
“Harry, that is not funny.” She glared at him.
“What? I’m just joking around. Can’t Gemma take a joke?”
“I can take a joke, Harry, but can you?” I glared at him. I was not going to let him bring me down from my high. Lucas had just left from our date and it had been just as magical as I thought it would be. I’d been really lucky that he had gotten called into work to file a motion to suppress some evidence for a trial he was working on. I didn’t even have to be nervous about the fact that he would come back to the bar because he had to go to work. It was perfect.
“Connor’s going to be here in about an hour. Please remember you’re not to say anything to him,” I gave a pointed look at Harry, “about the previous date.”
“Now, now Gemma, would I do such a thing to you?” He gave me his most innocent smile. “Seeing as you’re so sweet and angelic and I’m just a bad boy that goes around dating lots and lots of women without letting them know. Oh wait, that’s not me, that’s you.”
“I don’t date women.”
“Yeah, but you seem to be dating a lot of men and it doesn’t seem like any of them know about each other.”
“What are you talking about? They all know I’m dating other guys. I did meet them on a dating app. That’s the whole purpose of the app, to go on dates.” I rolled my eyes and then I looked over at Sarah who was drinking her martini and grinning.
“Sarah, I’m going to kill him if you do not tell him to shut up.”
“You know I can’t control him,” she chortled as she stared at me, “but I will try my best. Harry, be good, okay?”
“I’m doing my best to be as good as I can,” he grinned at her. “So what do you girls want to drink?”
“I’ll have a strawberry margarita, please.” I looked at him.
“Sure. And you Sarah?”
“Um, I’m not sure. I think I’m good for now.”
“Oh, come on, I know you want something.”
“Well, maybe a passion fruit martini?”
“Okay, I’ll be back.” He stood up and walked over to the bar. We’d decided about halfway through the date with Lucas, that it was a lot faster to go to the bar and order the drinks ourselves than wait on the waiter to approach the table.
“So,” Sarah leaned forward and grinned at me, “Lucas is absolutely gorgeous!”
“I did tell you that, right?”
“Yeah, you did, but I just didn’t think he would be so gorgeous. Wow!”
“Yeah, he’s really hot. And he was so nice as well and intelligent and thoughtful.”
“And he looked like he knew how to kiss” she grinned. “I’m slightly envious of you. I want someone to just lean forward and kiss me like that.”
“Girl, I wanted him to do a lot more than kiss me, trust me.”
“Well, right now my vote is leaning toward Lucas. Connor has to really be hot and funny and intelligent, if he even stands a chance.”
“Trust me, Sarah, when you meet him he’s going to blow Lucas out of the water. But I mean, I am starting to think that Lucas could possibly be the one.”
“Oh yeah? Why is that?”
“I don’t know. I like that he’s really honest. And I like that even though he wasn’t necessarily looking for a relationship, he seems to be leaning toward it because he finds me to be the right sort of girl, you know? I’d rather be with someone that wants to be with me than just wants to be with anyone.”
“Yeah, I know exactly what you mean,” Sarah said with a little sigh. “It’s like, you don’t want someone who’s just taking you out because you’re around and you’re a woman. You want someone that wants that special person you are.”
“Exactly. I knew you’d understand.” I heard a beep from my phone and looked down. “Oh my gosh, Lucas just texted me. Listen to this, ‘Had an awesome time with you and your friends. I hope we get to do it again soon. I can’t wait to see you and do more than kiss. Lucas.’”
“Wow.” Sarah grinned. “So he’s stepping up to the plate big time. What’s he mean by “more than kiss”?”
“I think you know exactly what he means, Sarah. I think that my next date with Lucas is going to be pretty hot and heavy.”
“Oh, I can’t wait to hear about it!”
“Me, too. Let me text him back.”
“Wait.” Sarah grabbed my hand.
“What?”
“What about your fifteen-minute rule?”
“My, oh... you mean the forty-five-minute rule? Yeah, that’s true.” I looked at her and then decided to put my phone back into my bag.
“You’re not meant to text before forty-five minutes, right?”
“Yeah, that’s true. I know it sounds like such a childish game to play, but it really works. If you show you’re too eager, they just don’t want you.”
“Even now, after your awesome date?” She gave me a surprised look. “Are you sure?”
“I mean, I don’t know one-hundred-percent. But, I haven’t had the best luck with dating, so I’m following the rules pretty strictly.”
“Oh yeah, that book you read, right?”
“Yeah. Maybe I’ll lend it to you sometime. Maybe you can use it on Harry because I...” I stopped speaking as Harry walked back to the table, glasses in hand.
“Did I just hear my name?” he said, as he sat down, a smug look on his face. “Or were you just saying how handsome I look in comparison to Lucas?”
“I think not,” I looked him up and down. “You’ve got nothing on Lucas.”
“Oh really?” he said with a little pout, though that wasn’t exactly the truth. Harry was one of the best looking men I’d ever seen in my life. Not that I would ever tell him that. He had a big enough head as it was.
Sarah looked at him and patted him on the shoulder. “Don’t worry, Harry. You’re still attractive enough.”
“What do you mean attractive enough?” He frowned now as he looked at her. “Who do you know that’s better looking than me? And do not tell me that you think that Lucas is better than me.”
“Would I say that?” she said with a grin.
“I think not, Sarah, because you’re my best friend and—”
“What does that have to do with anything?” I interrupted him. “Because she’s your best friend, she shouldn’t find other guys attractive?”
“No, that’s not what I’m saying,” he looked at me through narrowed eyes. “I’m saying that because she’s my best friend, she will let me think that I’m the most attractive guy that she’s ever seen just because she doesn’t want to hurt my delicate little ego.”
“There’s nothing little about your ego,” I said and rolled my eyes. We glared at each other for a few seconds.
“Guys, I just do not understand why you do not get on.” Sarah threw her hands up in the air. “I mean, really, you’re both my best friends and you are so frustrating. Every time we are together you bicker back and forth. If I didn’t know better, I’d think the two of you were into each other or something.”
“Or something,” I said and shook my head. I was pretty confident that Harry was into her and that she was into Harry and the two of them were too dense to see it. I knew a part of me could help them figure it out, but I didn’t want to. I didn’t want Sarah to be with him. He was a douchebag and she could do so much better.
“Okay. Well, Connor will be here soon, okay? Just remember, we just got here a little bit before him and we’re on our first drink. We need to clear this table quickly because I do not want him seeing these empty plates or these empty glasses. Actually, Harry, would you be a dear and bus the table for us?”
“What? He looked shocked. His jaw dropped. He was a millionaire and I was asking him to bus the table. I wanted to laugh out loud at his expression.
“Please, Harry,” Sarah batted her eyelashes at him. “You know Connor’s going to be really suspicious if we have all these empty glasses and plates when he gets here.”
“I’m not the busboy, though.”
“Harry, please do it for me.”
“Fine.” He stood up and grabbed some of the glasses and walked them back over to the bar.
“Wow!” I said looking at Sarah impressed. “I totally didn’t think that he would do that.”
“I know you think that Harry bosses me around all the time, but trust me, I’ve got a few tricks up my sleeve as well. I can get him to do whatever I want,” she said with a smug expression. “Well maybe not whatever I want, but pretty much whatever.”
“Oh yeah? Well, I’d like to hear more. Do tell.” I leaned forward. This time I was the one that was curious to hear more about her love life. “Has something happened between you and Harry, Sarah?”
“What are you talking about?” She blushed and looked away.
“Oh my God, Sarah.”
“Yeah?”
“Has something happened between you and Harry?”
“Well, I wouldn’t say anything’s happened, per se.” She looked back at me, her face red.
“What do you mean, per se? Has something happened, yes or no?”
“Well, you know how we like to watch movies and stuff.”
“Uh huh, yeah, which I think is weird by the way, but I’ve told you that several times. I have no male friends that I share a bed with and watch movies together.”
“Yeah, but it’s different. We’ve been—”
“I know,” I cut her off. “You’ve been friends since you were little kids, yada yada. It’s still weird. You’re adults now. You don’t share the bed with your friend.”
“We share the bed all the time.”
“Yeah, but we’re girls. We’re not into each other like that.”
“And Harry and I are not into—” She stopped herself as Harry walked back to the table.
“Okay, these are the last glasses and plates.” He grabbed them and then growled, “I’m not busing the table after this. This is totally not”—
“Shut up,” I cut him off and laughed. “And thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” he said and rolled his eyes as he walked away.
“So tell me quickly, Sarah. What happened?” I whispered, “Before he comes back.”
“Well, the other night we were kind of in bed and we were watching the movie.”
“Okay, okay. I get it, I get it. And?”
“And he was pretty hard.”
“What do you mean he was... Oh!” My hand flew to my mouth. “Are you saying he was hard, hard?”
“Yeah, he was hard, hard.”
“And you know this because?”
“Because I was kind of on top of him.”
“You what?” I screamed and then looked around. Several people at other tables were looking at me. “Oh my God, sorry, I didn’t mean to be loud, but what do you mean you were on top of him?”
“Well, we were play fighting.”
“Oh my God, are you freaking joking me right now? You were play fighting with your best friend in bed and you could feel his hardness and yet you think there’s nothing going on?”
“Yeah, I know it sounds crazy.”
“Sarah, you need to figure this out,” I laughed, “because as far as I’m concerned, you and Harry got a lot of issues going on and the sooner you get rid of them, the better.”
“What do you mean?” She looked innocent and surprised.
“I mean that, whatever it is you guys have going on, it’s more than friendship and maybe you should figure that out. Maybe that’s why you don’t have a boyfriend. And that’s why he doesn’t have a girlfriend.”
“He sees plenty of different girls.”
“No, he doesn’t. Yeah, he goes to work functions and maybe dinner and stuff with these women, but he’s with you almost all the time.”
