Free No Ordinary Bloke by Mary Whitney Page B

meeting. Thank you.”
    He squeezed Allison’s shoulder. “See you later, Al.”
    “Bye Trey,” Allison said, as we both watched him guide Melanie to their table far out of sight.
    A waiter then popped in to take our drink orders which helped distract Allison. When the waiter left, I leaned back in my seat and announced, “So I’ve decided to forgive you for abandoning me that night.”
    Allison guffawed in laughter. “Oh you have, have you?”
    “I have.”
    “And what made you come to this decision?”
    So far I’d been teasing her, but what I had to say next needed to be said in all earnest. “I fancy you too much to be angry with you.”
    “Oh, David…” She placed a hand on her heart. “I like you, too. A lot. But—”
    “No need to say anything more.” I smiled and returned to a more teasing tone. “That’s why everything is all right. One day you’ll see the error of your ways on your own. There’s no need for me to hold a grudge about it. We can be friends.”
    “Friends? Do you have any female friends?”
    “Of course. You met Natalie.”
    “You used to date Natalie. Or something with her.” She rolled her eyes. “That’s why you’re friends.”
    I leaned across the table a bit and whispered excitedly, “Are you saying that to be friends you have to shag the person? Because if that’s your prerequisite, I’m happy to oblige whenever you need—”
    “No.” She laughed. “I meant that about you, not me.”
    “Ridiculous. Angus and I are friends, and we’ve never had sex.” I sat a little straighter. “Not that there would be anything wrong with it. We’ve just never hit it off.”
    “I meant women.”
    “Bollocks. I have female friends who I haven’t shagged.”
    She nodded warily and rightly so. I did have female mates who I never had sex with, but I didn’t have a female friend who I wanted to shag, but hadn’t. Allison would be a first. Sitting in that restaurant, I felt how desperately I wanted to be with her. She was smart, but vulnerable, pretty, but sexy, and funny, but elusive. I wanted to shag her non-stop and then follow her around like a puppy dog for as long as she’d let me. If I had to pretend to be friends with her, I’d do just that.
    When she didn’t say anything, I had to lighten the mood. “So is the problem that you’ve never had a female friend you haven’t shagged? You must expect I’ll be like you and unable to control myself around.”
    She burst out in laughter. “Yeah, that’s exactly what I was thinking.”
    “I thought so.”
    She grinned and looked down at the tablecloth. After tracing the edge of the table with her finger, she raised her head. “It would be a shame if we weren’t friends. You’re a really great guy.”
    “I agree.”
    “That it would be a shame or you’re a great guy?”
    “Both.” Exhaling in relief, I picked up the menu to center myself. It felt like a victory.

    A little over an hour later, I dropped Allison back off at her office building. She promised to ring me when she was in London in a few weeks. That was going to have to do for me now. After I left the Greystone building, I waited another hour to let the lunch crowd leave before I rang Angus to get the rest of his dirt on Trey.
    Angus was gleeful when he took my call. “Smooth. Yes, smooth you are, mate. That Allison is a looker and sweetheart. Steal her away from that arsehole Chabot. Please. It will be a win for the common man.”
    “It’s going to take some work.” I leaned against the wall of the JFK British Airways lounge. “Tell me more about him. Why do you think he’s screwing around on her?”
    “He brings in women he describes as clients, but there’s way too much wine drunk for it to be just about business. The hours are sometimes quite late as well.” He waited a second and added cautiously, “You’re not going to tell her are you?”
    “Fuck no.” My voice was even more alarmed than his. “That’s a sure-fire way to cock