Page 69 of Clash

“You’re prettier up close. I wasn’t too sure you were actually pretty, seeing as you hardly come out of Bessie’s house.”

He called her Bessie… was he not close with her?

“She’s been a godsend to me and my son. I don’t know where I would be if it wasn’t for her.”

His face soured. “Oh, you have a son?”

“Yes, he’s almost five.”

Walter fixed his tie and frowned. “I’m not a kid type of guy.”

Before I could say that this wasn’t going to work out, wondering how Bessie could get something so wrong, the waitress came over to take our order.

Without looking at the menu, Walter said, “I’ll take the biggest steak you have, make it medium rare and pair it with your best but cheapest wine. She’s just going to have a salad, no dressing, and a water. She really needs to mind her figure.”

“Excuse me?” I yelled, forcing him to look at me. “What the hell does that mean?”

He shrugged. “You’ve had a kid, which means you’ve let yourself go in places that most men adore. I can get you a membership to my gym. A few hours of working out each day might do you some good.”

The waitress shot me a pathetic look, one I knew all too well. This was exactly how Eric used to treat me, but never in public. This man had some balls.

In anger, I turned toward the waitress, ready to teach this man a lesson on how to treat women. “Actually, what’s the most expensive thing you have on the menu?”

The woman smiled. “Our steak and lobster. We also have a bottle of red wine that everyone raves about. It’s three hundred dollars a glass.”

“I’ll take all of that.”

Walter’s eyes rounded. “Then you’re paying for your own meal,” he exclaimed.

“Unfortunately, that’s where you’re mistaken. You see, you’re the one who asked me out on this date tonight, and I’m not about to have some pompous asshole try to tell me what I can and can’t eat. So, unless you want me to inform every woman who lives in Austin what a self-absorbed prick you truly are, I suggest you pay for my food, Walter.”

His mouth ticked ever so slightly, but he waved the waitress off, telling her to bring me what I wanted.

“I’ve never had a woman talk to me like that before. It’s rather invigorating. Maybe you’ll prove to be useful after all?”

Rolling my eyes, I took small sips of my water, doing my best to ignore the conversation that turned from bad to even worse.

“Bessie told me you’re just getting out of a marriage. Why the sudden divorce? In my religion, marriage is a sacred vow and divorce is heavily frowned upon. It’s why I’ve never been married. I don’t do relationships, and women tend to want to end them early.”

“Geesh, I wonder why?” I mumbled under my breath.

He threw his head back, laughing. “Gina, you’re a breath of fresh air.”

The waitress appeared with a bottle of red wine, and I quickly downed it, needing the reprieve.Maybe if I called an Uber I could get out of this early?Bess had dropped me off, so I didn’t have a ride home. She said I could just get a ride home with Walter, but there was no way in hell that was happening.

I felt something touch my leg, and I jumped. Only to catch Walter winking at me while smiling. “It’s been months since I last had sex. I’m probably a bit rusty, but I’m sure you’d enjoy it just the same.”

“Um, that’s so not happening.”

His smile stayed, almost like he didn’t hear me.

“I’ve been told that women never forget a night with me.”

“Probably because they’re repulsed,” I muttered. Again, he didn’t hear me.

“What did you say?”

The waitress then brought over our food, but I suddenly wasn’t hungry. I took two bites of everything, then laid down my fork, smiling evilly at the man sitting across from me.