is still technically the CTO of Scuttle, but he only shows up to work about one day per quarter.”
“Leaving you to do all the work?”
“Not all of it, but a lot of it. I’m fortunate to have good people working for me now, but in the beginning I was on my own and had to put in a lot of hours. That didn’t leave a lot of time for developing meaningful relationships.”
It seemed like a logical explanation. I would imagine that establishing a company that netted a billion dollars every year required an insane amount of hard work. But I suspected there had to be another reason that he had remained single. “That’s it?”
“Sure. Why not?”
“It’s just, if you meet someone that you really like, you’ll find time for them. It’s that simple. It doesn’t matter how busy you are, or how many millions your company is making, you’ll find a way to be with them. If you’d met ‘the one,’ there’s no way you would still be single now.”
Dexter turned to study me, his beautiful face just inches from mine. “I suppose you’re right about that. But then, I only just met you a few days ago.”
Gulp. I was pretty sure Dexter was implying that he thought I might be “the one.” Was it even possible to know something like that so soon? We hadn’t even kissed yet!
“Again with the charm,” I said, trying not to picture our wedding and children. “Give it a few more hours. You’ll be sick of me soon enough.”
“You’re probably right about that,” he agreed, laughing when I elbowed him in the ribs.
It was such a relaxing ride that we began to settle in, leaning against each other. We exchanged funny stories from our past, teasing each other good naturedly. I loved hearing tales of a nerdy Dexter trying to flirt with girls and failing miserably.
By the end of our loop, I had fallen half-asleep, my head on Dexter’s shoulder. His arm was around me now, his hand gently stroking my shoulder.
“We need to hop off soon,” he said reluctantly. “It’s time for the next stop on our adventure.”
“Do we have to?” I sighed dramatically. “I’ve finally gotten comfortable.”
“We can stay on the bus, but we’ll miss our dinner reservations.”
He knew exactly the right thing to say to get me to move.
We had looped completely through the city and were now at the Thames. Dexter led us to a quaint looking restaurant directly overlooking the river. When he gave his name to the host, we were immediately ushered to a table by the window.
“I could get used to this celebrity treatment,” I said as I looked out over the water. The sun was beginning to set and a cool breeze came through the open window.
“It has its perks.” Dexter looked at me over the candles that decorated the tabletop.
“I don’t think I’m dressed appropriately,” I said, observing that everyone around us was dressed quite nicely. “I’m probably ruining your image.”
Dexter continued to stare. “Not a chance.”
“Why are staring at me like I’ve grown two heads?” I nervously patted down my hair.
“I’m sorry. I’m still getting used to your beauty. Sometimes it takes my breath away.”
It sounded like a line from a cheesy romantic comedy. Or the line of a man determine to get a woman into bed. But I also knew exactly what he meant because I felt the same way around him.
I would catch him at a certain angle, or like now in the candlelight, and my attraction to him would flare up, igniting a fire within me that I had never before experienced.
There was no way to deny it- I wanted Dexter Sanders.
“You should see me when I wake up in the morning,” I joked. “My hair is out to here and if I didn’t sleep well I have these big, dark circles under my eyes.”
“I hope to see that someday,” he said with a meaningful look.
My entire body flushed with warmth. “Just friends,” I reminded him, completely lacking enthusiasm.
We placed our orders and Dexter requested a ridiculously expensive
“Leaving you to do all the work?”
“Not all of it, but a lot of it. I’m fortunate to have good people working for me now, but in the beginning I was on my own and had to put in a lot of hours. That didn’t leave a lot of time for developing meaningful relationships.”
It seemed like a logical explanation. I would imagine that establishing a company that netted a billion dollars every year required an insane amount of hard work. But I suspected there had to be another reason that he had remained single. “That’s it?”
“Sure. Why not?”
“It’s just, if you meet someone that you really like, you’ll find time for them. It’s that simple. It doesn’t matter how busy you are, or how many millions your company is making, you’ll find a way to be with them. If you’d met ‘the one,’ there’s no way you would still be single now.”
Dexter turned to study me, his beautiful face just inches from mine. “I suppose you’re right about that. But then, I only just met you a few days ago.”
Gulp. I was pretty sure Dexter was implying that he thought I might be “the one.” Was it even possible to know something like that so soon? We hadn’t even kissed yet!
“Again with the charm,” I said, trying not to picture our wedding and children. “Give it a few more hours. You’ll be sick of me soon enough.”
“You’re probably right about that,” he agreed, laughing when I elbowed him in the ribs.
It was such a relaxing ride that we began to settle in, leaning against each other. We exchanged funny stories from our past, teasing each other good naturedly. I loved hearing tales of a nerdy Dexter trying to flirt with girls and failing miserably.
By the end of our loop, I had fallen half-asleep, my head on Dexter’s shoulder. His arm was around me now, his hand gently stroking my shoulder.
“We need to hop off soon,” he said reluctantly. “It’s time for the next stop on our adventure.”
“Do we have to?” I sighed dramatically. “I’ve finally gotten comfortable.”
“We can stay on the bus, but we’ll miss our dinner reservations.”
He knew exactly the right thing to say to get me to move.
We had looped completely through the city and were now at the Thames. Dexter led us to a quaint looking restaurant directly overlooking the river. When he gave his name to the host, we were immediately ushered to a table by the window.
“I could get used to this celebrity treatment,” I said as I looked out over the water. The sun was beginning to set and a cool breeze came through the open window.
“It has its perks.” Dexter looked at me over the candles that decorated the tabletop.
“I don’t think I’m dressed appropriately,” I said, observing that everyone around us was dressed quite nicely. “I’m probably ruining your image.”
Dexter continued to stare. “Not a chance.”
“Why are staring at me like I’ve grown two heads?” I nervously patted down my hair.
“I’m sorry. I’m still getting used to your beauty. Sometimes it takes my breath away.”
It sounded like a line from a cheesy romantic comedy. Or the line of a man determine to get a woman into bed. But I also knew exactly what he meant because I felt the same way around him.
I would catch him at a certain angle, or like now in the candlelight, and my attraction to him would flare up, igniting a fire within me that I had never before experienced.
There was no way to deny it- I wanted Dexter Sanders.
“You should see me when I wake up in the morning,” I joked. “My hair is out to here and if I didn’t sleep well I have these big, dark circles under my eyes.”
“I hope to see that someday,” he said with a meaningful look.
My entire body flushed with warmth. “Just friends,” I reminded him, completely lacking enthusiasm.
We placed our orders and Dexter requested a ridiculously expensive
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