Slade trudged into his room alone and left her asleep.
When he woke up in the morning, he headed out toward the living room, prepared to make her a killer breakfast, take care of Robert, and spend a little more time with her.
But she was gone.
The blanket was neatly folded and lay upon the table. Robert’s bowls were placed in the sink. His chest tightened with a strange feeling, and emptiness pulsed in his gut. She hadn’t even left a note. Just a vacant space that still smelled of her sweet scent, and a silence that cut through him with an agony he never experienced.
Chapter Thirteen
YOU WANT ME to set him up with another woman.”
Kennedy shared a glance with Arilyn. They had gathered at Kate’s house after work to go over the expo and play catch-up. They lounged around her living room—Arilyn cross- legged on the throw rug, Kennedy stretched out on the sofa, and Kate holding her throne in her recliner. They wore comfy sweats and T-shirts, and had already blown through most of the large cheese pie. A bottle of Chardonnay held only a few dregs left. The television droned the last credits of a weepy chick flick. Kate had lost the bet and Arilyn had won. Steel Daisies or something ridiculous like that. Robert snoozed contentedly in his doggy bed next to his bunny, still sated on the remains of the pizza crust Arilyn and Ken sneaked to him.
Kate had to give them credit; they’d left her alone most of the week and refused to pose questions regarding her night with Slade. She’d avoided telling her Kinnections crew in order to buy a bit more time to settle her emotions. She knew it cost Ken the most. Her friend actually had an eye twitch, bursting at the seams for all the details, so she’d finally broken down and invited them over for pizza night.
“Yes,” Kate finally answered. “I want you to set him up with another woman.”
Kennedy tapped her fuchsia nails against her lip and waited a few beats. “You did sleep with him, right?”
Kate gave up and gave in. “Yeah, I did.”
Ken arched a brow. “Well? Details, please. All of it.”
She sighed and briefly went over their encounter. Silence beat in the room for a while as her friends processed the information.
“God, Kate, you had a frickin’ orgasm your first time?” Ken groaned. “You are so lucky. It took me forever to even discover why women liked sex in the first place.”
Kate tilted her head. “No way. You didn’t cli**x your first time?”
Ken snorted. “Not even close. Until I met bad boy Caleb Street. He was three years older and drove a motorcycle. I snuck out one night from my window and he took me for a ride.” She gave a lusty sigh. “What a ride it was. After that I swore off nice men forever, they’re too disappointing. How about you, Arilyn?”
Arilyn shifted her strawberry hair to the other shoulder. “Nope. He didn’t even know what a cl*t was, let alone how to find it.”
Kate smothered a laugh at her friend’s crass statement. “Wow, I had no idea it was that hard. Actually, he gave me three.”
They stared at her as if she’d sprouted two heads. “Three?” Ken choked out. “He’s a master.”
Heat bloomed on her cheeks, but she felt a weird type of pride in her lover’s expertise. “Yeah, too bad my being a virgin totally freaked him out. I mean, really, what’s the big deal?”
Arilyn shook her head. “He was probably feeling too close to you. When men bond, the first thing they do is try to cut the ties. Sort of like a wolf caught in a trap. They’ll chew their own paw off just to get free.”
Ken laughed. “Nice visual. Hell, it’s not like you told him you loved him and wanted to get married. You were super cool about it. Okay, so let’s go over the summary one more time. You had amazing sex, he acted like a dick, you kind of broke up, and now you want me to keep him in Kinnections and find him other dates?”
“Correct.”
Arilyn leaned forward and rested her thumbs on her knees. “Sweetie, do you think that’s healthy? Maybe we should just cut him loose.”
“No. We need a crop of new women. I made a tactical error thinking I could force Slade to believe in love, but we’ll never win that battle. We need to match him with a woman with the same philosophies. He’ll feel safe with her, and perhaps be able to open up to a long-term relationship.”
Arilyn nodded in agreement, but Kate knew she was already reaching for her counseling tools. “Okay, if that’s what you truly want. You’re ready to release him to another?”
“Yes.”
“Bullshit.” Kennedy glared and stabbed a finger through the air. “You’re into him. We tried this before, and he ended up at your front door and took you to bed. What makes you think it won’t happen again?”
Kate crossed her arms in front of her chest. “We understand each other now. Realized we want different things. Besides, we needed to get the sex out of our system.”
“Did it bring back the touch?”
Kate snagged her wineglass and drained it dry. “No,” she muttered.
Her friends let out deep sighs. “Aww, shit,” Ken said. “I really thought the sex would do it. What did your mother say?”
“One visit was enough, thank you. She almost got me arrested by sneaking a joint into my purse. I refuse to bother her with this. We’ll just move forward and see if it comes back. Besides, we’re set up for success with or without my extra benefit. Let’s not lose sight of the goal.”
Arilyn nodded with enthusiasm. “Kate’s right. This is happening for a reason to lead her in the next step of a journey. We’ll be patient and open. Let the universe guide us.”
“Me and the universe do not have the same understanding. I find success happens when you kick the universe’s ass and do what you want,” Ken said.
Arilyn gave her a pointed look. “Maybe you need a session of hot yoga.”
“Maybe I need a session of something else hot but much more pleasant.”
Kate fought a grin. “Are we in agreement? Ken will take over Slade’s matchmaking and we’ll move on.”
Ken blew out a disgusted breath. “Fine. I think this plan sucks, but I’ll do it for you. At least he was nice enough to watch Robert so you could go to the expo.”
The image of waking up in Slade’s house flashed before her. Tucked in the blanket with Robert at her feet, she felt safe. Taken care of. He hadn’t tried to drag her into bed or leverage their sexual attraction.
She pictured them having a cozy breakfast together and completely lost it. There was no way she could continue fighting her instinct to surrender to him. So, in the middle of the night, she’d packed Robert up and sneaked out like a bad one-night stand.
She wondered if he missed her when he woke up. She wondered if he even cared or thought twice, or was just relieved he wouldn’t have to deal with her company.
Yeah, she was officially nuts and nuts about him. She had to set him up with another woman before it was too late.
“Oh, look, 9 to 5 is on!” Ken shrieked.
Kate swiveled her head. The classic female buddy movie always made her laugh. Arilyn jumped up and down with excitement. “I love this movie! We need more wine.”
“I’ll get it.” Kate trudged to the kitchen to snag another bottle. “My favorite is when they all get high and imagine creative ways to kill their boss.”
“I love when they wheel the dead body out of the hospital and get caught with it in the trunk!”
“Wait!” Kennedy called out. “I have an idea.”
Kate and Arilyn looked at each other. “That’s never a good thing, Ken. Your ideas usually involve breaking the law or cute boys.”
Her friend practically preened. “It’s girls’ night. We need to let loose. And I bet Kate still has that joint Madeline gave her. Don’t you, chickie?”
“You want to get high?” Kate shrilled.
“Hell, yeah. Go get it.”
Kate paused only a moment. Arilyn looked intrigued by the idea. And for a little while, she didn’t want to worry about Slade or rules or anything. She wanted to hang with her best friends and let loose. “Okay, I’ll get it.”
She scooped it out of the zippered pocket of her purse, searched her junk drawer for matches, and brought it into the living room. They all sat close together around the battered coffee table as Dolly Parton strutted her stuff in the boss’s office.
“I can’t believe we’re doing this,” Arilyn muttered. But she took the joint, sucked in a deep breath, and held it. Kate and Kennedy giggled like teenagers and passed it around.
“You should’ve seen Slade’s face when it rolled out of my purse!” Kate said, inhaling hard.
“What did you say?” Arilyn asked.
Kate snorted. “I denied the whole thing! Said it wasn’t mine!”
That collapsed them into more laughter. “Why do men have to make life so complicated?” Kennedy grumbled, expertly plucking the joint between her fingers and placing it against her lips.
Arilyn let out a dreamy sigh. “Because they’re the other half of us. It’s supposed to be complicated.”
“Is your new yoga teacher complicating things for you, Arilyn?” Ken asked slyly.
Kate studied her friend’s blooming cheeks. “Are you having an affair with your instructor?” she asked in surprise. Arilyn was hard-core when it came to not dating her instructors or students. She held herself to a higher standard than others.
Arilyn frowned and gracefully stole back the joint. “I had a relapse. Once. Twice. Okay, maybe a few times.”
Ken leaned in. “How fun. Are you hiding it from everyone? Do you do it in his office or after hours?”
“Maybe.” Kate laughed. Arilyn was always able to surprise her by challenging Ken’s gutsy questions. “Let’s just say Downward Facing Dog will never be the same for me.”
Ken sucked in a breath. “You go, girl.”
“It’s nothing long-term. He doesn’t believe in monogamy, so I won’t be staying with him for long.”
Kate let out a long breath. “Slade doesn’t either. He believes in oxytocin. A hormone that’s emitted after sex and disguised as love.”
Arilyn pushed the joint into her hands. “Here, sweetie. Have another hit.”
“Thanks.”
“I say we don’t need any men. I say screw them.”
Kate nodded at Kennedy’s booming statement. Funny, her head was floating a bit off the top of her shoulders, but she looked good that way. Almost like a fairy. “Yeah, you’re right. We don’t need men at all. All we need is each other.”
“And good movies,” Arilyn chimed in.
“And wine,” Ken declared. “Forever and ever!”
“Girl power!” they all shouted.
She didn’t remember what happened afterward. The room drifted, warm and cozy, and her friends voices were like music in her ears. She floated to a happy place, where she didn’t care about Slade Montgomery or his next date or his stupid oxytocin. From now on, she’d concentrate on her own journey and have fun and maybe eventually find someone who loved her back.