Imperfections (11 page)

Isabelle's face turns beet red. "Chloe, I told you that in secret, big mouth."

"Who here hasn't hooked up and had a one-nighter in college. At least you married yours and you're happy," Chloe says, looking around the table at us.

Everyone here except for me. Couldn't bring myself to do a one-night stand, that's just not me. I came close with one or two guys but I couldn't.

Tapping her fingers on the table Chloe whispers, "Omg, don't look, there is a hottie looking over here."

"Where?" Isabelle says, looking in the direction of the guy by the door.

"I said don't look."

"I think he's walking over here to our table. If I wasn't in love with my husband—"

"Well I sure as hell don't have a husband. I'm willing and able to fulfill all his fantasies, he is smoking hot!"

"You're acting like you've never seen a man before." I turn to see the smoking hot man and I can't believe my eyes. Ava. I know she has something to do with him showing up here. She picks up her glass of water to take a sip and I mouth to her, "I'm going to kill you." My back is turned to him and I feel him walk up behind my chair. I can see Isabelle and Chloe practically drinking him in from head to toe. I hear his deep rich voice roll over me and my body tenses with nervous energy.

"Good afternoon, ladies."

That's all Chloe needs, she springs to her feet and leans over the table so he can get a look at all her perkiness. I can barely keep my eyes from rolling back in my head; she has no shame when it comes to men. I want to yank her back down in her chair and zip her sweatshirt up under her chin.

"Hello, my name is Chloe, is there something we can do for you?"

"Hello, Chloe. The gorgeous young lady you're sitting next to is my cousin."

She smiles, sits down in her chair and turns to Ava. "Ava, why didn't you tell me you had a cousin this handsome?"

I don't need to turn around to know Nick is smiling at Chloe. I can hear it in his voice. Ava gets up from the table and puts her hand around Nick's arm. Looking at Chloe, she brings him over to stand between me and her. Damn, they are right; he looks really good in his suit and tie.  A designer suit, tailor-made for his body. On another man it would look good but on Nick it looks downright sexy.

"You have enough handsome men already swirling around you. I don't think you need another one, Chloe."

"You can't have too many of those. I'm starting to see that quality is better than quantity."

"Hmmm, I'm sure you are." Ava presses her lips together, bats her eyelashes at Chloe and flips her hair over her shoulder. "Nick, you can take my seat on this side next to Cat and I'll sit next to Chloe."

Nick gives Chloe a dazzling smile before he sits down. Ava takes a chair from the next table and forces it between Chloe and Nick, and that's when Isabelle stops staring and introduces herself.

"Hi, I'm Isabelle."

"It's nice to meet you, Isabelle, I'm Nicholas but you can call me Nick."

Looking at Nick and Ava side by side would make anyone feel like they are lacking in the looks department. "What an amazing coincidence that of all the restaurants in Manhattan you just happen to come into the same restaurant we're at," I say, looking at Ava. Coincidence my ass; this has Ava written all over it. God, when he smiles at me like that it drives me crazy, especially when I want to give him and his cousin a piece of my mind.

"It's not a coincidence at all, Catherine."

"Catherine?" The only time he calls me by my full name is if he's introducing me to someone I don't know.

"That is your name, right? When I spoke to Ava she said she was going to be with three friends and one of them if I'm not mistaken is named Catherine."

Oh, he wants to play!

"Nick, are you going to join us for lunch?" Chloe asks.

"Unfortunately I can't. I have to get back to work, I only have time to grab something to go."

Isabelle rests her arms on the table to ask him a question and twirls a lock of her blond hair around her finger. "Where do you work if you don't mind me asking?"

Leaning back in his chair like he doesn't have a care in the world, he gives her his full attention. I can see Isabelle is caught off guard, looking directly into his unusual clear gray-blue eyes. I know how she feels; those eyes have had the same effect on me for years. All he had to do was look at me and I would have given him anything if he would have asked. Poor Isabelle looks like she's blushing from his full attention. I wish he would answer her question, he's acting like he's about to make out with her.

"I don't mind at all. I'm a lawyer on the upper east side."

"You must really like the food here; it would take you at least forty-five minutes to get here."

"When I find something I like it doesn't matter how far I have to go to get to it. I'm a man who knows what he wants and what he likes. If I can't get it to come to me, I'm going to go get it."

With that he turns his head and looks directly at me and so does everyone else. He is not subtle at all. I know I've been ignoring his calls. After Kate and I had the talk about Ava, I didn't feel like talking to him. I didn't even tell Ava about it yet.

"If you're this passionate about your food, you must be equally, if not more, passionate about everything else you do," Chloe says, pulling her hair behind her ears.

Here she goes, she's my girl and I know if I needed her she would be right by my side, but damn, back off, you have plenty of men to pick and choose from. This one's taken.

"Yes, without a doubt. I'm vigorously passionate in everything I do. I like to be satisfied and I aim to satisfy." He looks at Chloe, putting one strong capable hand on the table.

Chloe runs her finger across the top of her exposed breast speaking huskily. "I think I might need legal representation in the near future. If I do, could I call on you for a consultation?"

Ava sets her glass on the table, looking at Chloe. "For what? Sexual harassment? If only I could be so bold I would have a man now."

Nick clears his throat and smiles at Chloe with her eyes narrowed staring back at Ava. "Anytime you're ready. Ava has my number, you can get it from her."

"Yeah, sure, I'll do that," Ava says.

Ava's not going to give Chloe anything except a piece of her mind. Nick's phone rings and he looks down at it. When he looks up he's smiling at me.

"What?" I snap, irritated with him. Everyone looks at me and I feel the need to explain myself. "Both of you can stop looking at me, I'm not being rude. Nick and I have actually known each other for years. He likes to push my buttons."

"Cat and I actually do go way back. So please excuse her rudeness," he says smoothly.

Isabelle and Chloe look at each other. Ava takes a bite of her chicken salad and smiles at them. He does this to me every time. One minute all I want to do is stare into his eyes, the next minute I want to throw my drink at him for getting to me.

"The last time we talked you said you had some job interviews lined up, how's that going?"

I clear my throat, put my napkin on the table and fold my hands in my lap to answer his question. I try to feel less inadequate with him smiling at me like nothing happened while my friends, quiet as mice, take a keen interest in what Nick and I are saying to each other, instead of every word coming out of his mouth alone.

"Fine. I'm pretty sure I'm going to get the position I interviewed for yesterday. It's a Catholic school and I'll be taking over for the kindergarten teacher when she goes on maternity leave."

"That's great." He looks down at his phone and taps the screen a few times.

Ava asks, "Is it the second teaching position you applied for?"

I nod my head yes. Nick's phone rings, he says excuse me and answers it.

"What's up? Yeah, I can make it tonight. I'm at lunch with Ava and your sister. You know those two wouldn't be caught dead together. Your other sister. Yeah, I'll let her know." He puts his phone down and turns to me. "That was Chris. We're going to meet up with some friends at a club in the city tonight, you should come."

"I don't know." I'm not sure I want to spend all night staring at him, and who said my brother wants me hanging with him and his friends while they pick up girls. There's no doubt in my mind that's what they'd be doing once the drinks kicked in.

"I would love to come; you don't have to ask me twice, I'll be there." Ava clasps her hands together on the table and beams at Nick.

The corner of his lip turns up when he looks at her. "I'm sure Chris would love that."

"I'm sure he will," Ava says.

He turns to Chloe and Isabelle. "If you ladies don't have plans tonight, you're more than welcome to join us. There is nothing a man likes more than to be surrounded by beautiful women."

They both smile at him like two school girls with their first crush.

"Thank you, but I can't. I have to go home and make dinner for my husband and baby boy who I miss already," Isabelle says.

Chloe pushes out her bottom lip in an attempt to make a sexy pout which looks ridiculous. "Thank you, but I can't either. I already have plans for tonight. Bummer, but I'll take a rain check."

"No problem. So, Cat, what about you? Chris told me to let you know."

"Come on, Cat, I'll be there with you, we'll have a few drinks and dance the night away. Who knows, maybe we'll pick up some fine-ass guys that look like Brad Pitt and Ian Somerhalder. Now that's my idea of a good night; looking into those eyes all night while we do some other things, rated R for raunchy."

I laugh at the way Nick's eyebrows pull together squinting at her. That's his shut-the-hell-up look. She gets the picture and presses her lips together.

"What? I'm just saying. Can't a girl think out loud?"

"Yeah, as long as she's speaking for herself and about herself."

"Well excuse me."

"Okay, you two, simmer down." I feel like a school teacher scolding my students in the caféteria at lunch time. "I'll come with you, Ava, and I will not be scoping out the place for hot guys tonight." Nick visibly relaxes and Ava rolls her eyes and flips her long hair over her shoulder in Nick's direction. The closest she could come to flipping him the bird.

"I have to get back to work."

"Okay, I'll see you tonight," I say.

"I'll text you and my overheated little cousin the address," he says, looking in Ava's direction.

"Whateva."

"Yeah, whateva." He leans over Ava as he gets up from his chair and gives her a peck on the cheek with a little smile. "You're lucky I love you."

Ava smiles back at him. "No, you're lucky I love you. See you later."

"Ladies, it was nice meeting you. Enjoy the rest of your day."

"I will and I'll be getting that number from Cat. I doubt I'll be getting it from Ava anytime soon," Chloe says, smiling at him.

He catches me and everyone else off guard when he leans down and gives me a quick peck on the cheek too. Without a backward glance, he strolls past me out the door with a smile on his face.

"Oh my, Cat, you naughty girl; is there something going on between you and who I thought was going to be my future baby daddy?"

"No, Chloe. We're just friends. We've been friends for years, nothing more."

Twirling a lock of her curly hair around her finger Isabelle says, "I'm not so sure, Chloe was trying but I think he was more into you."

"Hey, he gave me a look or two," Chloe says defensively.

"We're just friends and he's involved with someone already."

"There was no ring on his finger and if he doesn't have a ring, in my book he's fair game. If he was happy with what he had at home, he wouldn't be looking at you like he wanted to strip you naked and have his way with you. Trust me I know that look. I get it all the time in the store."

"It's not like that with us, Chloe!"

"Okay, but I'm just letting you know what the rest of us saw."

Isabelle's phone rings and we look at her. Her ringtone is "Rock-a-bye Baby".

"What? It's my babysitter. Shoot, I'm late." She jumps up, grabs her purse and puts twenty dollars on the table. "Guys, I'll see you later, call me and let me know how tonight goes. I have to live the night life through you guys for a while. I'm happy with my little man and my big man but once in a while you need to get away from your own life.

"Later." Chloe waves.

"Bye," Ava and I say.

"I would love to keep talking men with you two skanks but I also have to go." Chloe grabs her purse and throws some money on the table.

"It takes one to know one. Where the hell you off to?" Ava says to her.

"I have to classy myself up for tonight and act like I'm a refined young lady. Don't forget to send me your cousin's number because if Cat doesn't want him I'll definitely pick him up. I know exactly what to do with his fine ass."

Ava stabs a cherry tomato with her fork and points it at Chloe before looking up at her.

"You keep waiting for that."

After she leaves, Ava leans forward in her chair staring at me. Not saying what's on her mind.

"I know you want to say something, what is it?"

"See, I'm not the only one that can see Nick has a thing for you."

"Stop it. I should tip over your chair and knock you on your ass for telling him to come down here."

"I did no such thing. He asked me what I was doing today and I told him. I swear to you I did not invite him. He said he was hungry and he liked the food here. I didn't even know he was going to show up."

"I'm sure you didn't."

"I didn't, but I'm glad he did. Now I get to spend the night with Chris."

"And his friends. It's not a date."

"I will take him anyway I can get him. You never know what a night of drinking can lead to; hopefully it'll lead to his lips on mine."

This is going to be like watching an episode of
Tom and Jerry
. "Do me a favor? Don't try to push things with Nick and me tonight, I want to hang out and have fun."

"If you promise me that you will have a few drinks, and I mean real drinks; none of that fruity girly stuff you usually drink, and find yourself a hot guy to bump and grind on the dance floor with. Okay?"