Free Love.com by Karolyn Cairns Page B

what she needed to get over her impossible attraction to Ian. She was so sure of her date’s success; she splurged on a new dress. She threw caution to the wind, ignoring the fact it wasn’t on sale. She was worth it, wasn’t she? After tonight, she wouldn’t be dating anymore. She would settle into a comfortable routine with Gregg, have quiet nights with good wine, and forget about Ian Sawyer forever.
    She became irritated when she glanced at her watch and saw Gregg was a half hour late. She was impossibly punctual. This was a definite red flag for a first date. After it became apparent Gregg was detained, she texted him. She was relieved when he texted her back . He was on his way.
    Emily ignored the waitress . The girl swept by once more to see if she was ready to order. She knew she was tying up the table, could see the girl was growing miffed. She threw her a bone and ordered a bottle of wine and a salad. Emily stewed over Gregg’s tardiness for another twenty minutes. She ate her salad and drank another glass of wine before the door opened and Bachelor #1 swept inside.
    Gregg looked disheveled as he swaggered into the bar area. His sport coat was soon discarded over a chair. His tanned, handsome face was unbecomingly flushed as he ordered another drink at the bar. So far, he hadn’t even looked around to find his date.
    He wasn’t in the greatest athletic shape as he appeared in his photo either. Emily was dismayed to see he had more than a few extra pounds around the middle. Still, she was relieved she wasn’t the only one who fibbed on their profile. The picture he submitted was at least ten years younger than he appeared. He had to be in his early forties, not the thirty-four he put in his biography.
    Gregg was still handsome, still the man he claimed until he looked over at her table and promptly turned away, looking elsewhere. It was obvious he was looking for the model in the picture, not Emily.
    The waitress arrived to ask her if she was ready for her bill. She gestured to her date, asking the girl to tell him she was here. Emily watched the waitress approach Gregg with baited breath. He turned back around. He gazed at her with dismay evident in his expression. He tossed down his rum and Coke and approached, looking wary as his watery blue eyes slid over her with disappointment so obvious, it was rude.
    Emily could smell him before he was standing in front of her table. She knew he was drunk, the fumes nearly making her gag. She stiffened in obvious disapproval, unable to believe the guy would show up to a first date intoxicated.
    “You must be Emily?” Gregg shook his head and sat down before he staggered and fell, chuckling at his own private joke he refused to share. “You look different from your picture. How long have you been here anyway?”
    “Not that long,” Emily lied with a pasted smile, hiding her disgust. Gregg was obviously wasted. “You don’t look like your picture either, by the way.”
    “I look a lot closer to it than you do, darlin’. At least the picture was me! You got a lot of nerve to say anything!”
    “Yeah. You looked like your picture fifteen years ago!” Emily looked contrite and shook her head as Gregg hollered back for another drink to their waitress. “I don’t think you need any more to drink.”
    “I don’t think I ever asked you, honey,” Gregg said with a nasty slur, his blue eyes narrowed as they settled on her in a nasty way. “You aren’t that bad to look at, on second thought. Why don’t we just have a drink, and see what we see?”
    “I think I’ve seen enough,” Emily replied sourly. “I hope you take a cab home. This date is officially over!”
    “Whoa, now! Easy! I can see we got off to a rough start,” Gregg mumbled as his drink arrived. “Just calm down , Emma! Don’t get your panties in a twist. I had a rough day at work. Let’s just get to know one another, ok? You got me here, didn’t you? Might as well make the best of