The Contingency Plan (The Lonely Heart Series) by Latrivia Nelson Page B

had e x pected. 
    “Doesn’t he know about protection?  A condom would definitely have prevented the situation all together.”  In her mind, she knew that she would never see him again without thinking of large amounts of sperm. 
    Sully put up his index finger and narrowed his eyes.  “Here’s the super personal part.  He handpicks the girls in advance, has them screened for STDs, then sets up the times because he hates using condoms.  He said something about being allergic.”
    “They make special condoms…”  She stopped he r self.  Why bother?
    Sully seemed unmoved, obviously because he was all too familiar with his friend’s fetish.  “Some men just like to go raw.”
    “Ugh.”  She shook her head. That was too much. 
    “What?” He shrugged with a laugh.  “We used to…go raw.” 
    Charlie blushed involuntarily.  “We were mono g amous.”  She tilted her head.  “Weren’t we?”
    “How can you even ask that?  See, that’s why I hate to discuss Dane’s situation.  After hearing it, a woman completely thinks all men are dogs.”
    “I thought that well before you told me about Dane,” she said with a wink.
    That cut Sully’s hopes down a bit. He redirected. “I never was a dog with you.”
    “But you admit to being a dog at some point, with some woman, right?”
    “Why would I admit to something like that?” he felt himself digging a deeper hole for himself but was determined to dig himself out.  “I was in love with you.  I would have never done anything like that to you, with or without your consent.”  That was a completely true statement whether she knew it or not.  He only hoped that she believed him. 
    For some reason, that small confession made Cha r lie feel so much better, and even though she tried, she could not hide the light in her eyes.  So, she settled for rolling them.  “Loved me…yeah right.”
    There was no need to beat a dead horse.  Sully knew that he had turned the corner with her.  The tug of her lips at the corners let him know that she thought a great deal higher of him than she put on.  Success was imminent.
    He took another sip of his martini and wiggled down in his seat.  “So for two million dollars, can you get the board of directors on the line for an emergency call on a Saturday?” Sully waved over the pudgy purple-haired waitress who was lingering a few booths in front of them.  “Ma’am, we’re ready to order.”
    “Be with you in a sec,” she said, sending a text message on her phone.
    Sully cracked a smile.  “You gotta love New Yor k ers, right?”
    ***
    Two hours, a dozen oysters, one rib eye steak and two million dollars transferred later, Sully and Charlie sat exhausted in the back of the restaurant with their I-phones nearly dead, napkins written all over with strategies and numbers and plates and glasses su r rounding them.  The consensus between the two was that it had been a productive meeting, well worth the time. 
    Sully had defended his friend’s position and e n couraged the board to support Dane based mostly on his highly regarded recommendation, and Charlie had proven that she was the person for the job of Pres i dent. 
    With everything etched in concrete mostly, there was nothing left to do but focus on each other.   
    Trying to let loose a sly burp from too much soda, Charlie rested her head back on the booth and looked up at the dim light.  “Well, that was exhausting,” she said, pushing her feet up out of her shoes. The imm e diate relief of pressure off of her big toe was delicious.  Dazed off in a sense of calm, she almost forgot that her ex was sitting across from her. 
    Sully concurred with a half-nod before he buried his head in his hands.  “Tell me about it.” He had just brokered a deal and busted his ass in the name of friendship just to arrive at this point.  And while he did have an ulterior motive, he would definitely let Dane know that he owed him big time