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Sipping on her drink, sat back and enjoyed the cool evening air—rare for Houston. It had been a while since they’d been able to go for a night out and it only showed her how much she actually missed it. Work had been suffocating her lately, so she was excited to unwind this weekend.

“That man hasn’t stopped staring at us.” Before could turn around and see which one, Jessica stopped her. “Don’t turn and make it obvious.”

“Then you have to give me details because apparently I’m the only one who can’t see him.”

“Handsome,” Allison giggled. “But way older than us.”

“Looks like he has his life together,” Jessica added, obviously staring in the man’s direction. “Well-groomed beard and that shirt looks expensive .”

“Maybe you should go over there,” suggested to Jessica. “Make the first move, you know?”

The waiter came over and set down a drink—one that none of them had ordered. “Compliments of the gentleman at the other table,” he explained.

looked up at the waiter, who seemed to find that rather cute and then finally turned to see which man had bought her the drink.

“Seems like he wants you,” Allison said before ordering herself another cocktail.

on the other hand, had to remind her heart to beat as she stared across the open space to the man who’d ordered her the drink. He was handsome and well-groomed—everything the girls had said—but what they’d failed to mention were those deep, forest-green eyes that often still haunted her nightmares. He was a carbon copy of his son, as if the man himself had aged a decade or two and now sat in front of her. whipped around in her seat, and immediately her friends knew something was up.

“What’s wrong?” Jessica asked. “I think he’s rather handsome.”

“I know him.”

She couldn’t look at them, her eyes trained on the cocktail before her. For just a few moments, she reverted to the girl she was eight years ago. Then, she remembered that she was no longer a doormat. She squared her shoulders, grabbed the drink, and stormed over to the man.

He smiled, eyes burning into her as he let them travel over her figure. The sundress she wore didn’t leave much to the imagination. Clearly, he didn’t know who she was. After all, they’d never met. She’d only seen him occasionally during school functions, and made sure to keep her distance.

“I can’t accept this,” she said rather firmly as she set the cocktail on his table.

“And why is that?”

“Because I’d rather forget the memories of your son bullying me throughout high school. ”

The man’s brows hit his hairline, and his eyes raked over her body again. They paused on her left arm before he cleared his throat and met her gaze again. “I wasn’t aware of that.”

“I believe that was his point.”

“If I had, he’d never have gotten away with it.”

“I’m sure you’d have tried.” With that, turned and walked away, not wanting to escalate the situation.

Sitting back down, she was faced with curious and accusatory eyes from Jessica and Allison.

She sighed and relaxed into the lounge chair. “His son bullied me in school.”

“The boy that drowned your final papers?”

“Yes.”

“Oh, so you told him to fuck off.”

“More or less.”

“Well even if you said it in a kinder, more polite way, I’m still proud of you.”

“Thanks, Jessie. It did feel good.”

Allison frowned. “Shame, he doesn’t look that old.”

“I think he was a teen dad.”

Jessica steered the conversation away from the man, and relaxed. But it seemed that Mr. Richman wasn’t one to back down easily. It wasn’t long before he appeared next to her.

“I’m sorry for what Luka put you through. I just wanted to say that I’m not my son.” He handed her a small note. took it, hesitantly, but he seemed to relax. “There’s no pressure.”

She watched him until he climbed into a black supped-up tru ck and drove away.

“What does it say?” Jessica pressed, craning her head over the small table between them to see the note.

looked down and unfolded the scrap of paper. There, in neat handwriting, was his name and phone number. Her first instinct was to rip it apart but then Allison’s words stopped her.

“What sweet revenge it would be to seduce his dad. Imagine his face when you’re sitting across the Thanksgiving table as his potential new stepmom.”

That did sound tempting.

After a while left her friends and went home, contemplating all night. She laid awake for ages, unsure of what she should do. Luka had made her life a living hell the moment he’d seen her so-called disability. Yes, having been born without her left hand had made her life more challenging, but she nor her parents had ever felt like she was less than ordinary. That night out had given her more to think about than she cared for.

The next morning, she’d been stirring her cereal around in the bowl so long it had gone soggy. Frustrated, she decided to just rip off the Band-Aid. Snatching her phone, she entered his number and fired off the text before she lost the strength to do so.

Hi Boyd,

It’s . From last night.

Hi ,

I didn’t think I would hear from you at all .

I’m still not sure if this is a good idea.

Would you feel comfortable meeting up for coffee to talk?

Do you know a good place near you?

I enjoy the one in Discovery Green.

When are you free?

I can be ready in an hour.

Give me an hour and a half depending on traffic.

I’ll see you soon.

Coming soon…