Chapter Three

Romilly waved goodbye to Elanie and started on her way home. Toby practically bounced around, smelling anything and everything. Despite the dog needing a serious dose of ADHD medicine, she loved the little terrier.

“Hey, Romilly!”

The deep masculine voice had her heart racing as she turned and saw Kaiden running toward her. She smiled, waiting for him to catch up. Once again, his gorgeous body and handsome face left her a little speechless. Or, perhaps “tongue-tied” would be a better phrase.

He stopped in front of her with a huge smile. “I was hoping to see you again.”

“You, uh, were?”

Why did he smell so … yummy? The man was sweating from jogging. He should stink of dirty gym socks and sour BO. Maybe a little crotch rot. He wasn’t supposed to smell like a cupcake she wanted to lick.

Where did that thought come from?

“Yep. I was wondering if you would like to have dinner with me?”

She blinked, and it took her a few seconds to corral her lustful fantasy. “You want to take me on a date?”

“I do.”

“With me?” She pointed a thumb at herself.

He chuckled. “Yes. You sound surprised.”

“Yeah. I guess I kind of am.”

“Oh, I should’ve asked if you had a boyfriend o r— ”

“No!” she cried, then cleared her throat. “I mean, no, I don’t have a boyfriend. I’m single.”

He cocked his head. “So, do you want to go out with me?”

“Absolutely.”

“Great.” The intensity of his gaze held her spellbound. “Since I’m new, where would you suggest? I’m not picky. I like everything.”

“Then this’ll be easy. I like everything, too.”

He grinned. “How about Mexican?”

“The best Mexican food is a place called The Smiling Taco.”

“You’re kidding.”

She shook her head. “Nope. I don’t kid when it comes to food.”

“All right, then. Hand me your phone and you can text me with what time works for you.”

This man was a total stranger. A mouthwatering piece of male perfection, but still a stranger. Despite that, she didn’t hesitate to unlock her phone and hand it over. Blame it on her hormones. While he inputted his digits, she noticed a few people in the park pointing and whispering at them. Guess they thought he was male perfection as well. Then he was done and handed her cell back.

“Don’t forget to text me,” he said.

“I won’t.”

For a moment, his gaze fell to her mouth and all she could imagine was him kissing her. Her heart hammered in her chest and it took all her strength not to drool. Then, he seemed to notice they were starting to draw a crowd.

“I better go.” He leaned over and kissed the top of her head. “I’ll see you tonight.”

Then he jogged off, and she couldn’t help but stare after him and hope he wasn’t a creep. It would break her heart if he turned out to be a pervert. Or an asshole. A few of the people that had been staring at Kaiden now pointed and stared at her. Disturbed, she turned and hurried away with Toby jogging at her side.

****

Kaiden tossed his keys on the foyer table as he walked into his suite. Operation Girlfriend was underway, but the gawking spectators gave him pause. He had to tell Romilly who he really was and see if she wanted to be in the circus that was his life. Of course, he also needed to see if they connected. He couldn’t be around someone who might be a gold digger or a raging bitch, no matter how much he needed her as a shield for his career. Although he didn’t get that vibe from Romilly, he still needed her to be a good conversationalist.

His phone rang and when he pulled it out of his pocket his ex-best friend’s name flashed on the screen. Trying to contain his annoyance, he connected the call and braced himself.

“What do you want, Nick?” he asked harshly.

“Kaiden.” His tone held relief. “Thank you for taking my call. I know it’s not been…”

“Nick, what do you want?” he asked again, inserting a little more anger into his tone.

Nick sighed. “I saw you on the news. I was worried.”

“There’s no reason for you to worry about me.”

“I’m still your friend. I still care about yo u— ”

“Stop!” he roared. “You don’t have the right to say you’re my friend. I almost lost everything because of you, so stop calling me. Stop fucking thinking about me.”

Nick’s harsh breathing came through. “I’m sorry, Kaiden. About everything.”

“If you are still my friend, as you say, then do me a favor and lose my number. Goodbye, Nick.”

He hung up and closed his eyes, trying to calm down. He and Nick had once been thick as thieves. They’d played football together through middle and high school, but Nick had decided not to pursue football as a career. He’d gone on to become a lawyer.

Just then a text message came through from Romilly, asking if seven was okay. He immediately texted back and confirmed it was good. Then she sent him three emojis. A thumbs-up, a smiley face, and a unicorn head. He wasn’t sure what the unicorn head meant, but it made him chuckle, and right then it was exactly what he needed.

He also needed to expel the restless energy Nick’s call left him in, so he grabbed a bottle of water and headed to the hotel’s gym.