Layla (7 page)

I rolled my eyes. “Yes, it’s with Kyle.”

“So you guys are dating now?” Janet asked excitedly.

“No, we aren’t,” I said quickly. “He has season tickets to the Yankees and they are playing the Giants tonight. He invited me along.”

“And you expect us to believe that?” Cassie asked. “How’s he in bed?”

I glared at her. “Nothing is going on between us.”

“Well, something should,” Janet said. “He’s a catch. I’d date him if I met him first.”

“Well, he’s all yours if you want him,” I said.

“You know you like him,” Janet said.

I ignored her. “I saw John again last night.”

“What?” Cassie said, almost dropping the bottle of wine. “Where?”

“Kyle and I were having drinks when he walked inside the bar,” I explained.

“I hate that asshole,” Janet snapped. “What the hell did he do? Did he say something to you?”

“No. I asked Kyle to ta
ke me home. I hoped if John thought Kyle was my boyfriend, he’d leave me alone.”

“Did he?” Cassie asked.

“He didn’t talk to me and I don’t think he followed me here. Kyle spent the night just in case.”

“Wow,” Janet said. “You told him?”

“No,” I said quickly. “I asked him to do it with no questions asked.”

“He must really like you,” Cassie said. “He had no
idea what he was getting into.”

I shrugged. “He cares about me as a friend.”

“Yeah okay,” Cassie said as she opened the refrigerator. “What the hell is all of this?”

“All of what?” I asked.

“Why is there food in here—that isn’t expired?”

Janet’s mouth dropped. “Let me see.” She looked inside then turned back to me. “Wow. Someone’s really making a life change.”

“Kyle bought those.”

Cassie and Janet both looked at each other, silently communicating.

Janet stared me down. “I understand that you aren’t looking for a relationship right now. That relationship with John was horrible and heartbreaking. But Kyle seems like a real catch. Give him a chance, Layla.”

“No,” I said. “He’s my boss and my friend. I don’t want anything else.”

“So you wouldn’t mind if I dated him?” Janet asked.

“Why would I?’ I said with a straight face.

“Really?” she said.

“Go for it,” I said. “I don’t care.”

“Why don’t you like him?” Cassie asked.

“I do. He’s just not—my type.”

“Then what is your type?” Janet snapped. “Wife-beating assholes?”

“That wasn’t funny,” I said.

“I wasn’t trying to be,” Janet said. “Cassie and I both like this guy. Don’t be stupid and let him get away.”

“You met him one time!” I snapped.

“And he already has our approval,” Cassie said. “So he’s obviously a good guy.”

“Tell us one thing about him you don’t like,” Janet said.

I shook my head.

“You can’t think of anything,” Janet said.

“I can think of plenty of things.”

“Then tell us,” Cassie said as she crossed her arms over her chest.

“Well…he kept stalking me even after I said no.”

“That’s romantic,” Janet said.

I rolled my eyes. “He bought me groceries even when I asked him not to.”

Janet just shook her head.

“He…”

“Face it,” Cassie said. “The guy is perfect.”

“No guy is perfect,” I said. “I’m sure he’s hiding something.”

“No
t every guy is psycho like John,” Cassie said.

“And Jared wasn’t but he didn’t want me,” I said bitterly. “I just don’t attract the good guys.”

“I think you’re just being paranoid,” Janet said as she touched me on the arm. “Give this guy a chance. If not, you’ll lose your turn. Some other girl will pick him up. Don’t keep him hanging for too long.”

“I appreciate your concern,” I said to them. “But I can take care of my own love life.”

“We just want you to be happy,” Cassie said.

“You’re both single and you’re happy,” I snapped.

“But we aren’t getting over a horrible relationship,” Janet reminded me. “We’re looking for guys like Kyle. You have him, Layla. He’s sitting right in front of you.”

There was a knock on the door.

“That’s him,” I said happily, glad this conversation was over.

Janet opened the door.
“Hey, Kyle.”

“Hi…I wasn’t expecting you two to be here.” He stepped inside then placed his hands in his pockets. He wo
re dark jeans and a Yankees jersey.

“It’s wine night,” Cassie explained. “But Layla would rather hang out with you.”

“I apologize for ruining your plans,” he said.

Janet touched him on the shoulder. “It’s quite alright. You two have fun.”

When my friends were standing behind him, they both glared at me, silently threatening me. They shut the door and disappeared.

“Am I interrupting anything?’ he asked.

“No,” I said quickly. “Are you ready to go?”

He stared at me for a moment, looking at my shirt and hat. “Even though you’re wearing my competitor’s
merch, you look really adorable right now.”

“Adorable?” No one had ever called me that in my life, not even my dad.

“Yeah. I like the sporty outfit.”

“Well, we’re going to a baseball game, not a fancy dinner.”

He smiled. “Well, I like it. I think you should dress like that more often.”

“I think I will. It’s very comfortable.”

Kyle put his hands in pockets while he sighed. “Well, this is awkward.”

“What?”

“I’m clearly a Yankees fan and you’re clearly a Giants fan…”

I shrugged. “I don’t care.”

“You’re going to be the only Giants fan there.”

“Oh well.”

He laughed. “As long you’re okay with that.”

“I support my team no matter what. If people mess with me, I’ll take them out.”

“I believe you. Just don’t give me a black eye. I have a meeting tomorrow.”

“Then don’t push me.”

Kyle opened the door. “Let’s head out.”

We left the apartment and took a cab to the
stadium. It was packed with people marching into the stands. Kyle and I walked into the crowd but kept getting separated. He grabbed my hand and pulled me forward until we reached the front gate. After he handed over our tickets, we hit the concession stand.

“What would you like?” he asked, standing very close to me. Guys pushed through the crowd and a few bumped my shoulder. I ignored them. Kyle moved slightly, taking the slight hits from people as they walked by, protecting me. I was going to make a rude comment about it but I decided not to. He was just trying to be a nice guy.

“I’m buying,” I said.

“What?” he said with a laugh. “I invited you. Let me pay.”

“No. You offered me an awesome seat. We are literally three rows back. Let me get you something. That’s fair.”

“Nope.”

“I owe you for groceries anyway.”

“We haven’t gotten paid yet.”

“I have a credit card.”

He shook his head. “I understand you pretty well and I can see what’s going to happen. I’m going to say no, you’re going to get mad. I’m going to say no and you’re going to start yelling at me. Let’s just avoid that. You’re an alpha and I’m an alpha. We are going to have to take turns.”

“I’m an alpha?”

“You didn’t notice that? It’s your way or no way. It’s really annoying.”

I glared at him. “I understand the feeling.”

“So, just let me get the snacks. You can get mine next time.”

I sighed, deciding to just let it go. “Okay.”

He smiled. “I’m so glad that went well. I was expecting you to pull your hair then hold your breath.”

“I’m not two.”

“That’s debatable.”

I pushed him lightly, smiling.

He nudged my shoulder with his gently. “So, what are you going to get?”

“I’m afraid you’ll judge me.”

“
Are you going to get a tofu hotdog and vegan chips or something?”

“No…”

“Then we’re good.”

“I wanted to get a chili dog with extra
onions, a bag of chips, animal crackers, crackerjacks, and Pepsi.”

“Damn.” He started laughing. “Where do you put it?”

I touched my stomach. “Right here.”

“Well, it doesn’t show.”

“So, you aren’t judging me?”

“No. That’s really hot, actually.”

“What?” I asked, surprised. “Really?”

“Whenever we have catering at work, most of the girls don’t eat anything because they are starving themselves. I end up taking a lot of it home. It’s nice to be around a girl that doesn’t care about superficial stuff like that.”

“Well, I pay for it.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m not skinny.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Yeah you are. You’re perfect.”

“You haven’t seen me naked so you don’t know what my belly or my ass looks like.”

Kyle. “You could always show me…”

I glared at him.

He nudged my shoulder again. “You know I’m kidding. But I don’t believe that. I’ve only seen you in your clothes, but I can tell your body is definitely…sexy.”

I crossed my arms over my chest and looked at the menu, not really looking at anything. I didn’t feel awkward or uncomfortable by his words. I didn’t know how I felt. I’ve never been complimented like that before. No one ever said I was outright ugly, but they didn’t compliment me either. John and I used to have sex, but I never felt like he was particularly fascinated with my body.

“I’m sorry. I did it again,” he said.

“What?”

“I made you uncomfortable.”

“No, you didn’t.”

“Good. It’s hard to compliment a girl without sounding totally perverted.”

“You aren’t perverted?” I teased.

He smiled. “I’m not always a gentleman, let’s put it that way.” Kyle approa
ched the counter and ordered our food, which cost almost fifty dollars. We carried our food to our seats.

“I can’t believe how close we are!” I looked around
, seeing the dugout and the field.

“Can’t complain,” he said as he opened his chips.

“This is so awesome.” I took out my phone and took a picture. “I’ll show Cassie and Janet next time I see them.”

“You’re welcome to come with me next time, even if the Giants don’t play.”

“Really?”

He nodded. “I like spending time with you.” He leaned
back and ate his chips, like his words weren’t incredibly affectionate and sweet.

“Who do you normally come with?”

“My friends. Since I only have two tickets, they get competitive about it. If I take one friend, the others get mad. Which is why having you makes my life easier.”

I laughed.  “What about bros before hos?”

“You aren’t a ho.” He ate his chili dog while I ate mine.

The game started and everyone filed into their seats. When I looked around, I realized I was the only person wearing a Giants jersey. I was surrounded in a sea of blue.

Kyle caught the look. “You feel a little awkward, huh?”

“No,” I said quickly.

“Okay.”

The Giants scored and I stood up and clapped. A few people behind me booed. I didn’t care. When the refs called stupid fouls, I screamed and yelled, throwing a fit.

Kyle clapped when his team scored and laughed whenever I got too invested in the game. “You’re really into this, huh?”

“It’s not just a game. It’s more than that,” I said.

“Wow. I think you might be the coolest chick ever.”

I laughed. “I don’t know about that.”

“My sister is really awesome, but if her husband wanted to watch the game instead of playing with the kids, she always got pissed.”

“Well, her husband should play with the kids and watch the game at the same time. Two birds with one stone.”

He chewed his crackerjacks and watched the game.

“Why don’t you take him? He’s family. Your friends can’t get mad.”

“He passed away,” he said simply.

“Oh.” Now I felt like a total bitch. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t know.”

He patted my hand with his and left it there. “Don’t worry about it.”

I didn’t pull my hand away because I thought it would be insensitive. He grabbed it and brought it to his thigh, holding it in his grasp. Kyle acted like this was perfectly normal. I was too scared to move so I let him be.