CHAPTER FOUR: in which they meet in the present part 2- VEGAS

Present day

VEGAS

“Vegas, it’s so nice to see you.”

His words barely registered. I was too busy inhaling his scent of mint, sandalwood, and musk. Drinking it in while I had the chance. The moment I pressed closer, he dropped his arms from around me. I bit back a sigh of frustration. Jae still had those clean notes and hard lines. At least he hadn’t noticed my tears.

“It’s nice to see you too, Jae.” I dredged up the nickname I had given him. I’d come up with it after he confessed he wasn’t the man Shrondra had paid for. More embarrassed than angry at his duplicity, I uncharacteristically let him feel my wrath.

***

The light in the hotel room reflected on the lenses in his glasses, hiding his dark eyes from me. “I’m sorry, Vegas,” he said, hanging his head like a dog that ate the cat food. “I wanted you so I thought ...”

“You thought what?” I asked, buttoning my blouse up to my chin. “What were your intentions exactly? To get some and go home?”

My best friend had paid for me to get laid. I went along with it, mainly out of curiosity. This “Timothy James” was a transaction between consenting adults, nothing more. But with this man, this stranger ... It was different. It was seedy and—

“Oh!”

He gathered me up in a hug, crushing me to his chest. I was so startled by the movement; I didn’t protest. He felt good, like a warm blanket on a cold winter’s night. It had been ages since a man had wrapped me in his arms. I let a sigh of contentment escape my lips, and I freely let my body revel in the experience.

“It wasn’t like that, Vegas,” he breathed. “I came to the hotel intending to get drunk at the bar, then sleeping it off.” He pulled out a card key with the image of downtown pictured on the front. It was just like the one the clerk had given me when I checked in. “I was celebrating my divorce.”

He paused, waiting for my reaction. I didn’t know what to say, but I knew what I didn’t want. And that was to break our contact. So, I simply nodded for him to continue.

“It wasn’t really a celebration so much as a mourning. My ex-wife and I haven’t lived together for over a year. It hurt like hell when I signed the last bit of paperwork. I came here...” he let out a weighted sigh that stuttered through his chest. “I just want to forget.”

I moved to look up at him. Jae’s dark eyes were sad, every slight crease weighted with anguish. My heart swelled for this unknown man. He was feeling the utter destruction I had felt when Terence called it quits. That numbing of the heart, that all-consuming feeling of hopelessness that struck like a wrecking ball. Our pain bound us together. And despite his subterfuge, my comforting gene took over. I was willing...no; I wanted to see it through.

***

The noise of the fundraiser came back before my senses did. When Jae reached out to touch my elbow, I didn’t resist. “Talk to me, Vegas. Tell me what you’re thinking.” Our gazes met. His eyes held concern. To him, mine probably looked bewildered. 

He pulled me closer...

Snap out of it V! You’re engaged!

I stepped back. Out of harm’s way. “Um, I was just thinking I needed some air.”

Jae nodded so vigorously, he dislodged a piece of hair from its coif. The dark strands hung over his brow and curled over one liquid brown eye.

Damn, I love his eyes. 

“Let me go with you.” Without waiting for my reply... or giving me a chance to escape, Jae propelled me through the crowd and out the doors. Once we were away from the sea of faces, he grabbed my hand.

My left hand...

The ring!

His thumb moved in a slow arc across my knuckles. When the enormous diamond halted his progress, tension crept over his back like a cat stalking a bird, and he dropped my hand as if it had scalded him. 

In the hallway, a few people milled around talking and laughing in quiet tones. Jae whipped his head first left, then right, searching for what I assumed to be an out of the way place.

“There,” he said, pointing his head to an alcove behind a few leafy potted plants. He stalked off without another word. 

After a beat, I followed him a few paces behind.