Free VAIN - Part Three (The VAIN Series Book 3) by Deborah Bladon

I ask sweetly. That's probably how he knows my name. Maybe he has one of those photographic memories that captures snippets from the past and files them away in some corner of his brain.
    "We fucked."
    I feel the color drain from my face the moment I lock eyes with him. "You and I fucked?"
    "We met at a club there." He leans a touch forward. "We went up to my suite."
    I stare at his face, ignoring the words he's saying. "You're him?"
    "Don't look so surprised," he says jokingly. "I thought I was more memorable than that."
    "You look nothing like I remember." I clench my jaw. This is the guy that I couldn't stop thinking about for years? There's no denying he's hot but why can't I place his face? Why did I hold onto that memory so long when the details were obviously so misplaced?
    "It hasn't been that long," he stresses the word 'that', making a clear point that we slept together only four years ago. Why does it suddenly feel like a different lifetime ago? Why did I make such a big deal over him when I can't even remember his face?
    "Why are you here?" I search the area behind him, my eyes locked on the couple sitting in silence. She's studying the menu while he reads the paper. They're so disconnected. I've watched them for a few minutes and they haven't said one word to each other.
    "I'm dating one of the sous chefs." He bolts his head to the side to get within my scope of vision. "Jessica."
    "Jessica is a sweetheart." I lock eyes with him briefly. "You're lucky to have her."
    "I am." I can hear the confusion in his voice. "You're sure you don't remember me?"
    "I thought I did," I confess. "I remember we had a lot of fun." I blush as the words leave my lips. Fun? This is the guy that fucked me for hours and I call that fun? Why does it mean so much less now than when Noah asked me about him just a few months ago?
    "I'm glad I ran into you, Alexa." The expression on his face doesn't match the words. "You've helped me with something."
    "I've helped you," I chuckle. "With what?"
    "With realizing how lucky I am to have Jessica." His face shifts slightly at the mention of her name. "I love her a lot."
    "I'm glad." My eyes bolt to the bank of windows at the front of the restaurant. There's a man wearing a hoodie covering his head peering through the glass. His face is memorable. I'll never forget it. Forty years from now I'll still recall each and every detail of every part of him. He smiles slightly as his eyes lock with mine. "I need to go. My life is waiting for me."
     

Chapter 17
     
    "Who was that guy?" Noah looks down at me. "That looked intense."
    I shrug my shoulders. "That was Nathan."
    "The Nathan." He pulls air quotes around the two words. "The best sex you've ever had Nathan."
    "Apparently," I say quietly. "I didn’t recognize him at all." I'm still reeling from that. What does it say about me? Have I fucked so many men that I've lost track of what they look like?
    "You didn't?" He can't hide the grin that's pulling at the corner of his mouth.
    "Forget him," I say flippantly.
    "I will," he tosses back. "You already have."
    I smile softly. "I have. What are you doing here?"
    "I wanted to see you." He fidgets from one foot to the next. The worn sneakers he's wearing gliding across the pavement of the crowded sidewalk. "I just wanted to see your face."
    I smile at the confession. I reach for his hand. "I have to work a few more hours."
    "I can't come inside, Alexa." He motions towards the crowded restaurant. "I can sit out here on that bench for a while."
    I glance down at the wooden bench a few feet from the entrance to Axel. "Will you wait for me?"
    "Forever." He reaches down to kiss me gently on my lips. "I like that you forgot him."
    "Who?"
    His lips curve into a wide smile. "Everyone but me."
     
    ***
     
    "Will you stay with me tonight?" He loops my arm around his before resting his hand over mine.
    I snuggle my palm into the soft fabric of the hoodie he's wearing. Paired with dark colored sweat pants he looks