Bella Chapter 5

"What an utter fucking asshole jerk," I muttered for at least the thousandth time. I was still fuming mad about how Boomer had acted last night. It was late afternoon, and I was finally alone, so my bad attitude could be let out. All morning, I had to smile and act happy while getting through my lessons. My last student left ten minutes ago. Throwing another shovel of dirt on the pile I was making, I kept muttering. When I got done digging this hole, maybe it would be deep enough to bury Boomer's body in. This thought made me smile.

Diane tried to talk me out of my bad mood when we left the bar, so I told her what she had missed, including what Boomer had said at the end. She thought I wasn't giving him the benefit of the doubt. I told her the only thing I was willing to give him was my cowboy boot up his ass.

I think what infuriated me the most was I let his words about being his woman to the two other men go to my head. I knew it was him acting, but they still made me feel good. That's what you get for fantasizing about a man. They never turned out the way you thought they would. There were too many assholes, creepers, and outright dangerous ones. I'd met enough of all three to know.

The sound of an engine had me dropping the shovel and walking around the house to see who it was. I rented this property from an older gentleman. He gave me a decent enough rental price for the stable, the corral, the small house, and the land it all sat on. I would love to have a bigger place that I owned, but I couldn't afford it. Vet and feed bills for six horses were expensive, even if I was making decent money with my lessons. Also, he was okay with anything I wanted to do to the property within reason, hence the holes I was digging to make a new flower border in the backyard.

I was taken aback to see Londyn pulling in. She usually called before dropping by, even though I always welcomed her visits. I rushed over to the car to see what was wrong. I stumbled to a halt when she got out. She had a somber expression on her face, but she didn't appear to be overly upset. There were no signs of crying. Hopefully, it meant everything was okay between her and Torpedo. I was still getting to know him, but from what I learned and saw so far, he seemed to be a decent guy. I knew he loved her, and she loved him. Too bad all of his club brothers weren't like him, I thought snidely.

"Hey, girl, what brings you out to my neck of the woods? Is everything alright?" I asked as I gave her a hug.

She gave me a hard squeeze. "I came bearing gifts. I figured you could use some wine and chocolate and maybe a movie. We haven't had a girls' night in a while. I tried to see if Diane could join us, but she's got something planned with Sadie. She said to drink and eat enough for her." She reached in to get her purse and a shopping bag. After she got them, I hip-checked the door closed.

"You had me at wine. Let's go," I told her happily. The digging could wait. My shitty mood was already lifting. She giggled as she followed me inside.

We went straight to the kitchen. "Let me change and wash up a bit. Give me ten minutes. Don't start without me." I gave her a warning look.

The ho just laughed at me. Shaking my head, I went to my bedroom. I was coated in dirt and sweat, and I smelled like horses, so I thought the hell with it. The world's fastest shower was coming right up. I got the water going, stripped, and found clean clothes. Hopping in, I let the hot water pound down on me as I lathered and rinsed. I'd wash my hair later.

By the time I was done, dried, and dressed, it was seven minutes later. I sprinted from my bedroom. I found her sitting in the living room with two glasses of wine poured, the bottle, and an assortment of chocolates on my coffee table. I vaulted over the back of the couch to land next to her.

"God, you gave me a heart attack. I don't know how you do stuff like that and not kill yourself. I'd fall flat on my face," she grumbled.

"Years of gymnastics. You're just jealous that you're not as flexible as me. Don't be a hater. I'm sure Torpedo still likes what you can do," I teased her as I wiggled my eyebrows.

She smacked me on the arm. "Hush. I'll have you know, he loves what I can do. Not everyone can be a contortionist."

I grinned at her as I picked up my glass and took a healthy swallow. "Yum, this one is great. Have we had this one before?" I asked as I picked up the bottle. The label didn't look familiar, but I didn't necessarily remember every one we tried.

"No, we haven't. It's one the old ladies at the club told me about. It's so good, isn't it?"

"It is. Now, for the chocolates, hmm, eeny, meeny, miny, moe," I said as I looked over them. It was a French assortment of chocolates by a company called Li-Lac. They were in a box with purple flowers on it and a brown label. I'd never seen these. I selected one and then popped it in my mouth as she took one. We both moaned. Oh my God, it was to die for. I savored it before I had to ask.

"Where did you get these? I know I've never had them. Did the old ladies tell you about these, too?"

"They're made by the oldest chocolate maker in Manhattan. They are delicious."

"Wow, so did they tell you about these? Where can I buy more?"

She gave me a sheepish glance, then took another drink of her wine. Warning bells went off. Why was she being evasive? It was a simple question.

"Londyn, where did these come from?" I asked sternly this time.

"They were given to me to give to you. I think it's sweet and so unexpected. Why don't we watch a movie? How about a romantic comedy?"

"Tell me right now who sent them," I ordered.

She sighed. "Okay, please don't get upset. I agreed to bring them because I knew you were mad, and I thought this was a way to break the ice. Boomer sent them."

I came to my feet. My fists landed on my hips, and I glared at her. "He sent them! Are you kidding me? Why in the world would you bring me anything from that asshole? Was the wine from him, too? Get them out of my house. I don't want anything from that man."

She snatched up the box before I could. If she hadn't, I would've tossed it in the trash. "Calm down. Let me explain!"

"There's nothing to explain other than why would you do it? Do you have any idea what he did? What he said to me?" I hadn't talked to her to tell her, but maybe Diane had.

"I actually do. Lyric, Cami, and Lorelei were talking about it. When I heard them, I went to confront him. He said he didn't mean it like you took it. He wanted to apologize, but he was waiting for you to cool off. In fact, he wanted to follow you when you left The Hangout, but Sin told him to wait. I gave him hell, then told him I was coming out to make sure you're alright. He asked me to bring these to you and to let you know he was deeply sorry. He'd like to talk to you."

"Oh hell no, he's not using my best friend to butter me up! The jackass can't even do his own apologizing. Londyn, why would you do it? You know it was more than those three women there last night. What did the guys have to say? Did you talk to any of them?"

I caught her hastily hidden grimace. My hackles rose more. My gut told me I wasn't gonna like whatever she heard. I stood there waiting, tapping my foot. She tried to look anywhere but at me, but then she caved. Her hands went up in the air.

"Fine, I did find out what else was said, but not from the guys. The ladies told me the guys accused Boomer of liking you, which was why he said those things." She stopped.

"And," I prompted, trying to ignore how my heart skipped hearing he liked me.

"Please, don't make me tell you. He was still upset. I know he didn't mean it."

"Out, you need to go home. I thought you were my friend, not his."

"No! Okay, he denied it, then admitted he did want you, but since you were my friend, he knew it wouldn't be okay for him to have sex with you and then move on. He doesn't want a wife and kids like the others. He's happy having sex with whomever he wants."

I felt like I'd been hit in the stomach with a fist. Despite how mad I was at Boomer, there was a tiny bit of me that had been hoping, praying maybe, that he liked me, as in really liked me, a foolish dream I now knew. I was good enough to fuck, but that was it. I dropped onto the couch. She scooted over and took my hands in hers. I saw the worry on her face.

"Honey, I don't think he actually means it. All those men want to settle down. I refuse to believe he's any different. Heck, when he flirted with me, it didn't feel like he was doing it just to get laid. He—"

"He flirted with you? You never told me this," I said hoarsely.

"He did. All the single ones did. The point is, if Torpedo hadn't warned them off and went after me, there were others who I'm told would've gladly taken his place. Torpedo never said a word about Boomer being any different."

"That's because, in your case, he could see himself with you long term. Now that Torpedo has you and you're not an option, Boomer has changed his mind. He lost out on the one he wanted, you. God, I'm so damn embarrassed. I bet all the women were talking, weren't they? And not just the three who were there last night?" I asked, horrified. I wanted so badly for her to deny it. Her silence told me I was right.

I buried my face in my hands. Talk about unrequited feelings. I might've been trying to deny my attraction and interest in him, but I knew it was a lie. However, he only saw me as a piece of ass, a booty call. No wonder he said what he did about how I was dressed. God.

"Stop it. If Boomer is stupid enough to pass on someone as wonderful as you, it's his loss. He needs to be embarrassed, not you. Believe me, you have men who gladly want to be the one for you."

"Oh yeah, show me where they are because I don't see them."

"I can name four of them. When he said what he did, Daredevil said Boomer was stupid, and he was right to leave you alone because you weren't a one-night-stand woman. Daredevil also said it meant the way was clear for the rest of them who did want an old lady."

I glanced up at her. "Really? Daredevil said that?"

"Yes. I knew the way you were acting that you liked Boomer, and I hoped you two would get together, but you're too wonderful just to be a notch on his bedpost, honey. Daredevil is right about that. You know what you should do, don't you?" She had a wicked grin on her face.

I was scared to ask, but I did anyway. "What?"

"You should see if you could have a chance with one of the other four. I haven't known them long, but Daredevil, Ashes, Vicious, and Dragon are all terrific guys. I tell you what, how about I tell them you're willing to go out on a date with each of them and see if you hit it off with any of them? Even if you don't and all you do is become friends, it would be the best revenge."

"Revenge?"

"Yes. Show Boomer that you don't care what he thinks, and who knows? If you settle down with one of the guys, he'll know he could've had you if he wasn't such a manwhore."

Typically, I would never date four men in a couple of years, not even if they were all first dates. However, I was hurt and angry. It probably wasn't the best time to make a decision, but I did it anyway. Determination filled me. Even if there was nothing there, I still owed it to myself to give them a chance and to make myself feel desirable. They were all extremely attractive men. If what she said was true and I had four guys who wanted a chance with me, I should take it.

"I think you're right. How do you think we should do it? I don't want you to just announce in the middle of their clubhouse I'm taking date requests."

"You let me handle it. I'll talk to each guy myself and feel them out to see who's interested in more than sex. For those who are, I'll give them a little nudge to ask you out. And I think we shouldn't just contain it to the club."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Come on, you've had Will asking you out for ages. And what about the guy who brings the feed and hay for the horses? What's his name?"

"Travis," I replied.

It was true. Both guys had asked me more than a few times to go out, and I kept kindly turning them down. In Will's case, he was the father of one of my students. It felt weird to me to say yes. What if we hit it off? How would Walker handle it? As for Travis, he was good-looking and seemed nice, but I wasn't sure I should do it.

I'd turn thirty this year like Londyn. I did want to have a husband and kids. My history made me hesitant to date, but I had to get over it if I ever wanted to have a family. This was my chance. All of them were attractive men, especially the Infidels. What did I have to lose other than a few nights? What if one of them could be the love of my life, and I missed them by being scared?

Resolve filled me. The hell with Boomer, he could kiss my ass. I owed it to myself to put myself out there. This method was preferable to making a profile on a dating app. I heard so many horror stories about the kinds of guys on those things. It was true, some people did meet a great one, and they ended up married and happy, but there were a lot of trolls and unsolicited dick pics to get to those if you ever did. I met her gaze. She wore a hopeful expression. I smiled.

"Let's get me some dates. When do you want to start, and who should we start with?"

She squealed and clapped her hands. She began to talk a mile a minute. At first, I shot down her suggestion to involve the other old ladies, but after she explained her reasoning, it made more and more sense. They had their fingers on the pulse of everything at the club. Finally, I told her to see which women might want to help. There was only one caveat. I didn't want Boomer to know he was the catalyst for my dating marathon. As far as he would ever know, I never knew what he said, and he'd never know I liked him.

She assured me the women would go for it. Apparently, they were less than happy with what he said when they heard it and wanted him to eat his words. Luckily, I felt the exact same way. We spent the next few hours planning, drinking, eating the chocolates, and laughing. When she left, I felt much lighter.

???

Operation Bella's Beaus, as we were calling it, was underway. I almost called it off a thousand times, but each time I got up the nerve to tell Londyn not to do it, she cut me off before I could say a word. The ho knew me too well. The last time was last night. I called her in a panic before my first date tonight. Her greeting when she answered the phone was not a typical friendship one.

"Listen, bitch, you're not canceling your date. Do you hear me? You're going on this one and all the rest, even if I have to drag you there, kicking and screaming. Come on, you have six, hear me, six men all eager to take you on a damn date. Most women would kill to be you. You're going. I'll be over tomorrow to help you pick out something to wear and help you calm the hell down. You've got this.

It took a while for her to talk me off the proverbial ledge and make me see this was a good thing. And she kept her word and came early to help me get ready. I was still kinda in shock over the fact that every single guy had said yes to a date. She and the Infidel ladies handled the conversations with the four there. She wouldn't go into details on what was said or how they did it, but they were done individually. Each guy was told that no word would be spoken about our date until after it was over. They didn't know who their competition was, as Londyn called it, but they did know there were others interested in dating me.

She claimed it was good to let them know they had rivals for my attention. It would make them bring their best game. I told her I didn't want to play games. She waved off my objections, stating it was a figure of speech. I made the decision to get the less anticipated dates out of the way first, which meant first up was Will.

I'd taken care of letting him and Travis know I was finally accepting their offers. Travis had appeared happy about it. Will seemed way too eager, which made me want to tell him I changed my mind. I sure hoped he didn't think dinner meant sex afterward because he'd be disappointed. I'd never in my life slept with a guy after one date. In fact, it took quite a few to get me to consider doing it.

I insisted on meeting him at the restaurant. It wasn't a matter of not wanting him to pick me up and know where I lived since he obviously already did. It was in case I had to bail. A woman should always have a way to leave, whether on her own or with a friend to come to her rescue. I had even gone as far as to tell Londyn to be on standby. If she got a text from me, she'd pull the old emergency phone call trick. It wasn't original, but hey, it would work, I hoped.

I was dreading this date. Will was older than the guys I'd dated in the past, but it wasn't his age that was bothering me. It was him. He didn't give me creeper vibes like some, but he just seemed too eager, if too eager was possible. Then add to it the whole Walker thing, and I just wanted it over with. I didn't see the night ending with me wanting a second date, but I would try to keep an open mind.

Pulling up to Connor's, I sat in the car for a few minutes, taking deep breaths. At least I'd get to try this new place. It was a very recently opened fine dining restaurant. We were getting more fine dining places in town, which was nice. There were a couple of others along with this one I hadn't tried, and I was actually looking forward to seeing if they lived up to what I heard.

It was seven o'clock on a Friday night, so the place was busy. I hoped he made a reservation, or we'd be waiting a while to get a table. I was dressed in a pair of black slim-fitting ankle pants. They were paired with a pair of strappy high heels and a pretty top. Since it was cool outside, I had a jacket with me. My hair was curled, so it had soft waves in it. My makeup was subtle, but I wore more than I did on a regular basis. Londyn told me not to wear my best outfits for this one or the next and to keep the dresses and skirts at home.

Even if I had grown up on a ranch and spent much of the time in jeans and getting dirty, I still was enough of a woman to like dressing up and feeling pretty. When I was young, my mom always did so whenever she and Dad got a chance to go out for a date. I jumped as my phone chimed. I took it out of my purse and looked at it. It was a text from Londyn. Opening it, I snorted.

Londyn: Get your ass out of the car and go inside. No chickening out. Move.

Goddamn, did she have eyes on me, or did she just know me that well? Probably both. I shot off a quick reply.

Me: I'm going. Get off my ass, ho. I'm taking applications for a new best friend after this.

Her even quicker response made me smile.

Londyn: As if you could find someone better. I'm the best, bitch. Have fun.

Me: TY. TTYL.

Shoving my phone back in my purse, I took one last deep breath and then got out. The walk to the door seemed to take forever. I was almost there when it swung open, and out came a smiling Will. He must've been watching for me. God, I hoped he hadn't seen me sitting in my car like an idiot. He came toward me with his hands held out. I wasn't a huge hugger unless I knew someone, so instead of letting him hug me, I took his hands, squeezed them, and gave him what I prayed was a decent smile.

"Hello, Will."

"Hello, Bella. You look beautiful. Thank you so much for finally giving me a chance. Our table is ready. I hope you'll enjoy this place. It's great, I think." He let go of my hands and gestured for me to precede him. As I did and he held the door open, I felt his hand on my lower back. An unwarranted thought popped into my head. His hand sure didn't feel as lovely as Boomer's had when he touched me there. Forget that asshole, I scolded myself before pushing thoughts of him into the dark abyss.

By the end of the evening, I'd like to say I had the time of my life, but I couldn't. It wasn't terrible, but I found the conversation boring, and I had a hard time not yawning. He was a gentleman, so that wasn't an issue. I guess the best way to explain it was that he was trying too hard to impress me, and what he thought bored me to tears.

He chatted a little about Walker, which I enjoyed. His son was a good kid, and I liked him. However, the majority of Will's conversations were about his work as an investment banker and how he had invested wisely and made more than a decent living. He told me how he was able to take care of his family without his future wife ever having to work. He dropped names of the successful people he made investments for, which I thought was a breach of confidentiality or something. He told me all about his houses and cars. Yes, he had more than one of both. He described the wonderful vacations he liked to take.

Now, I knew some women, maybe most, would be impressed by this, and money alone would be enough to have them more than happy to date and snag him. I wasn't one of them. Money was nice, and sure, you needed it, but it wasn't the end-all-be-all to me. I was tempted more than a few times to text Londyn under the table, but I didn't. I swore to myself I wouldn't do it unless the guy was a creeper, which he wasn't.

At the end of the night, he walked me to my car and opened the door like a gentleman. I was worried he'd try to kiss me, but he didn't. He did try for a hug, which I reluctantly gave him. He waited until I drove off before getting into his car. Overall, I'd give him high marks for being a gentleman but low marks for the rest. I felt zero physical attraction for him even though he was a nice-looking man. There was no spark.

I barely made it home before my phone rang. No surprise, it was Londyn. I kicked off my shoes and went to my bedroom to strip, get into my pajamas, and take off my makeup. I put her on speaker as I did.

"How was it?" was her excited-sounding greeting.

"What? No hello. Jeez. And how do you know I'm done with it? I could still be at dinner or at his place getting naked."

She laughed, the cow. "Yeah, right. As if you'd go back to a guy's place after one date to get naked. Please. As for how I know you're done, I have my ways."

"I swear to God, if you have Phantom spying on me, I'll kill you."

I learned from her what he did for the club. The guy was some kind of hacker guru, and the thought of him spying on my dates gave me the willies.

"Of course, I don't have Phantom spying on you. It's Tamysin. The guys have no idea what we're doing," she said with the "duh" implied in her tone.

"Oh, so it's fine to have Tamysin spy but not Phantom. I swear, you're scarier every time I talk to you."

"Thanks, I think so too. Okay, so tell me all the details."

"Didn't Tamysin already tell you? Or better yet, didn't you sit at your computer and watch my whole date for yourself?"

"Sure, I watched, but I couldn't hear what was said. I'm gonna guess it wasn't great since I caught you stifling more than a couple of yawns. What was he saying?"

"Oh my God! I was joking about you watching it. Londyn, how could you?" I asked, aghast.

"I'm sorry, but I knew how nervous you were and that you didn't want to go out with him. I wanted to be ready to send you encouraging texts or whatever if I needed to. How about this? I promise not to watch another one. You can do them on your own, and if you need to be saved, you'll text."

I was somewhat mollified by this, but I would still remind her of it a few times. It was what friends did. Plus, it was sweet, in a weird way, to have her have my back like that. I let several heartbeats pass before I answered her, just because I was a good friend like that. If you couldn't mess with your friends, then who could you mess with?

"Fine, but if you don't stick to it, I won't go on the other dates."

"I swear. So tell me, was it terrible, and are you considering a second date?"

"No way will I do another one. I was bored to tears," I told her before launching into a ten-minute rundown on what he talked about. When I was done, she was more upset than I was.

"I can't believe that's all he talked about. Has he learned nothing about you from all the times he's spoken to you?"

"I guess not. I swear, I'm so drained, I don't know if I can go out tomorrow night."

"You have to! You can't reschedule or chicken out. The next one has to be better than Will."

I wanted to get the dates over with as fast as possible, so rather than dragging them out doing one a week, I gave up three Fridays and Saturdays in a row to the dates. Tomorrow night was Travis. We were going to The Briny Blue, another new restaurant. It was advertised as a seafood place. I was hoping it would be better than tonight, although the food had been good. Londyn and I were on the phone for a while longer until Torpedo came looking for her. The way she was giggling, I knew he was trying to sex her up, so I got off the phone. No way did I need to hear her getting some.

Relaxing back in bed, I tried to get my tired mind to settle. Even though I had a date, I worked all day, and I had to work tomorrow, too. The only days I had off from lessons were Sundays. I had a couple of people who had started to board their horses with me, and they paid for their care, feed, and anything else they needed. They were allowed to come ride whenever they wanted, so on Sundays, they might be here, but I didn't have to supervise them. As I slipped off, I kept trying to imagine what tomorrow night would be like.