All men are the same.
I tried not to picture him in bed with another woman.
Even if he did ask me out again, I had to turn him down. Everything in my life was getting better and on track. The last thing I needed was for a guy to mess that all up again.
Just then, I saw Crystal walk into the studio from her lunch break. She saw me on the phone. So to be polite, she stayed out front and helped a few students.
“Grandpa wants to talk to you.”
Before I could say anything back, Caley handed the phone over to my father. “Hey, sweetheart! How’s everything in River Valley?”
I told him all of the latest gossip since they no longer lived here anymore. Honestly, my dad was a shameless gadfly, savoring every morsel of gossip he could get his ears around.
“The Johnson’s are getting divorced, but not just because Mark had a roving eye. Turns out, so did his wife, Caroline. He came home and caught her in bed with her trainer.”
“Well, I’ll be damned!”
“From what I heard, she’ll get the house though. He wants to move to Florida, which is no surprise. He’s never liked it here.” I was just about to tell him more about Caroline when I saw Richard walk in. “Dad, I have to go. I’m sorry. A student needs me.”
“Okay, dear. We love you!”
“I love you too, Dad!”
I quickly hung up the phone and scurried onto the floor, indicating to Crystal that I needed to be alone for a minute.
Richard stood in the entryway, smiling at me and looking unbelievably gorgeous. He was wearing a grey suit that was just tight enough to show off his thigh muscles, and the black shirt underneath outlined his abs.
The same abs that were on top of me just a few nights before. I tried hard to steady my breath as I walked closer to him, noticing how the streaks of grey in his hair brought out the color of his suit.
Suddenly dating a much older man wasn’t such a bad idea.
“Hey, welcome to my studio,” I managed. “What brings you by here today?”
He smiled, once again revealing those dazzling white teeth, and leaned on the front counter. Another student walked in, allowing a breeze to waft into the studio that blew his cologne right into my face. “Are you wearing Polo Black by Ralph Lauren?”
He tilted his head.
“Guess I’m not the only man you’ve been with who has good taste,” he said.
Even the way he spoke made my knees weak.
“I used to work at Morris’s Department Store, back when I was saving up for this studio, and they sold it. It’s one of my favorite scents.”
He leaned in closer to me, no doubt wanting me to get a more potent whiff.
“Yep, Morris’s still sells it,” he said with a grin, “I love your work ethic. It seems you are always busy, busy…just like me.”
I had to steady myself on the stool behind the counter. Even though I didn’t remember a whole lot from our night together, suddenly, images of him naked and on top of me flooded my mind.
“Thanks. So, what brings you down here?” I tried to be as casual as possible. “You seem excited about something.”
“I had an amazing morning, Annie, and I wanted to tell you about it. It’s lunchtime, too. Care to grab a bite to eat with me?”
My first instinct was to accept his offer, but my intuition told me to hold back. His steely eyes could have seduced the yoga pants right off of me.
“Oh gosh, I would, but I have classes all afternoon. I planned on just having a protein bar for lunch. I’m so sorry!”
He nodded and seemed to believe my lie. I had absolutely no classes that afternoon, and I’d be ordering Italian food as soon as he left.
