Chapter 23: Doppelbanger: Chapter 23

“HELLO?” GINA’S SLEEPY voice is even grittier than usual and gets my blood pumping.

“Tink, it’s good to hear your voice.” My entire body seems to sigh with relief. The tension that’s been lingering for the past few days just evaporates.

“Is it?”

“More than you know.”

“What are you doing, CEO?” Her loud sigh echoes through the phone.

“I had a good time with you the other day.” It’s more difficult than it should be to admit that to myself least of all to her. A ball of nerves gets lodged in my throat as I await her reply.

“I could tell.” Her words ooze sarcasm. It’ll be a long time before I live this down, but that’s okay. I deserve her ire after being such a dick to her.

“This isn’t easy for me, Tink…”

Her throat clears. “I know. I’m sorry. Go on, I’m listening.”

“It just hit me hard. I never expected to actually to be with another woman…I have all this guilt. Logically, I know that she’d want me to be happy, but I can’t shake this sick feeling that I’m doing something wrong.” Dammit. I’m rambling already. I scrub a hand over my face and sigh. “I want to see you again, and not just to have sex with you…although I really, really want that too.” I have a semi just thinking of being with her again.

“I don’t know, Jeffrey. What’s going to happen the next time you have a gut check? I realize you’re going through a lot. I can’t even imagine what you’re feeling, but I won’t be your punching bag.”

“I’m a selfish bastard for asking this of you, and I’ll completely understand if it’s too much. But, I want you in the only way I’m capable. I want your body. I want your friendship. I won’t ask for your heart, because I can’t give you mine, Tink.”

“That’s cool. I only want you for your cock anyway.”

I shake my head, laughing into the phone. “So, does that mean we’re doing this?”

“If is each other then I say hell to the yeah!”

“Would it be too much to ask that we’re exclusive?” I press. “I’ve never done well with sharing my toys.”

“Well, my shit won’t work for anyone else anyway, so that shouldn’t be a problem.”

“Can we be serious here for a second, Tink?”

“Okay,” she breathes out softly, almost inaudibly.

“If it gets to be too much, I want you to tell me, and if someone else comes along, I want you to let me go. Promise you won’t let me keep you from what you deserve, because you deserve so much more than this.”

“I’m damaged goo—”

“Stop,” I growl. “I don’t want to hear that shit. I want you to tell me that you understand. That you’re not going into this with any false pretenses, and that you’ll keep an open mind. The right guy just may sneak up on you when you least expect it and I don’t want you missing out on him for me.”

“Yeah, okay…”

“Promise.”

“I promise.”

We’re both silent for a long pause, before I speak up. “So, when can I see you, Tink?”

“I don’t know, CEO…I’m not sure how this works. What’s allowed? What are we telling ?”

By I know she means my kids. I hadn’t really thought that far out. I don’t want them thinking I’m trying to replace their mother. This is hard enough for me to accept as a grown man. “We’re friends, Tink,” I finally answer. “Friends with benefits.”

“I won’t hide anything from Spencer. I’m telling you that up front. I need someone to talk to about you.”

I chuckle into the phone. “You talk about me?”

“Mostly we talk about your cock…sometimes how big of an asshole you are.”

Now I’m full-on laughing. “Are you free tomorrow?”

“Tomorrow’s Friday…I have work.”

“Can I come take you to lunch?” Jesus, how fucking desperate am I to see this woman that I’m willing to drive two hours for a meal?

“Don’t you uh…have a company to run or something?”

“Perks of being the boss…I work when I want, and tomorrow I want to take a friend to lunch.”

There’s a girlish giggle on the other end of the line and my heart leaps at the sound. “I can take a two-hour lunch from eleven to one. After that, I’ll be working until seven or eight. Spence still isn’t back from maternity leave, so it’s just me.”

“Perfect. I’ll drop the girls off at their grandmother’s house for the weekend, and I’ll be on my way.”

Gina gives me the address to her office, and we say our goodbyes. I fall asleep with a smile on my face for the first time in years. It feels good to have something to look forward to. Something for me.

§

“Tink?” I call out as I’m walking down the hall. “Your secretary said I could come on back.”

“Hey, Jeff,” she mutters without looking up from the chart she’s writing in. It’s a bit of a blow to my ego that she doesn’t appear as excited to see me as I am her. “Do you wanna do this here or my place? I live about ten minutes away.”

“Do what? You don’t have restaurants in this little hick town?”

Her eyes finally meet mine. “Oh…You were serious ’bout lunch?”

“Uhh…yes?”

She shakes her head, rising from her seat and walks over to give me a hug. “Sorry, I thought that was code for a booty call.” She rubs her manicured hands over my chest, straightening out my collar.

Tucking my finger beneath her chin, I tilt Gina’s face up to mine. “I don’t play games, Tink. When I want to fuck you, I will tell you that’s what I want.”

Her throat moves as she takes a big swallow. “Okay.”

“Great. Grab your purse and point me to the nearest sit-down restaurant. Steak and potatoes sound good? Y’all have that ’round here?”

§

Boudreaux’s is a floating restaurant. Like an enormous houseboat on the river. It’s only a few minutes away from her office. Instantly I fall in love with the atmosphere. We cross over a long walking bridge from the parking lot to get onto the boat. My mouth salivates as I’m struck by an array of delicious aromas.

“Y’all follow me,” our waitress Lucy instructs after grabbing two menus and napkin-wrapped silverware from beneath her podium.

“Lucy, can you seat us on the deck? Shade side, please?” Gina asks.

Our waitress nods, switching directions.

I follow behind Tink, admiring how good she looks all dolled up for work. Her navy dress is fitted, hugging all her curves. It ends at the knee with a small split in the back. She definitely handles those high heels better than I did. I laugh to myself. This is the first time I’ve seen her not dressed for the pool. Her long, blonde hair is curled in loose waves and she’s wearing just enough makeup to accent her emerald eyes and pouty lips. She’s stunning.

“This okay?” Lucy asks, stopping in front of the last table this side of the deck.

“Perfect. Thanks, Luce.”

“No problem, honey. Y’all take a look at the menus and I’ll be back shortly.”

“This is a really nice place,” I offer, looking around at the mossy oaks lining the water, the Cajun décor, and tapping my foot to the rhythm of Jolie Blonde. The air is hot, but the shade and fans keep it from being too sticky. I’m taken back to when I used to hang out drinking with my pops on his back patio. He loved his zydeco music. “I’m impressed.”

Tink smiles. “I guess I should have asked if you were okay with eating outside. It’s a little warm today, but this is my favorite spot.”

“Nope. This is great,” I say, opening my menu. “What’s good here?”

“Thought you wanted steak and potatoes?”

“I did…but there’s too much to choose from. Now, I can’t decide.”

“I like the stuffed, baked potato and crab cakes.”

When our waitress returns I order the same as Gina, but with a side of fried catfish and crawfish étouffée.

“Where’re you gonna put all that food?” Tink asks, laughing when the waitress walks off.

I lean back in my chair, patting my flat belly.

“I can’t believe you really drove all this way for lunch.”

“Totally worth it.” I give her a wink. “Now, come dance with me.” I offer her my hand when Wayne Toup’s “Every Man Needs a Woman” starts to drift from the jukebox.

Gina’s eyes bounce around nervously. “But, no one else is dancing.”

“Don’t make me go find another partner,” I tease. “I bet that little old lady staring at us across the deck would be more than willing to dance with a handsome young fella.” The woman catches me looking at her, so I wave, and she beams, waving back. “See?”

Shaking her head to herself, Tink rises from the chair, placing her hand in mine. I lead her out just a few feet from our table, where there’s a little more space, and pull her body against mine. After a few hesitant steps, she loosens up, and I can tell she’s already forgotten that anyone else is here. Her heart beats fast against my chest as she rises up on her toes, curling her arms around my neck. My pulse begins to race.

There’s only Tink and me and this moment, these lyrics weighing heavily between us. I sing the chorus into her ear about every man needing a woman and every woman a man, and her body melts into mine. I’m not sure what’s happening between us. All I know is that this feels too damn good to let it go.

When the song ends, we walk quietly back to our table. I’m unsure of when things changed. When I stopped seeing her as merely an annoyance. When she became this constant thought running on loop through my head.

“You’re looking at me funny, CEO.”

“Sorry,” I laugh. “Just got lost in my head for a minute.”

“I hope you brought your appetites,” Lucy says, arranging our plates on the table between us with the assistance of another server. “That’s a whole lotta food for two tee-tiny people.”