The Write Choice

Chapter 13

Chloe was the first one to break the silence. Her green eyes grew huge. "You're...dating...Brandon Dawson? When...how?"

Melanie opened her mouth to reply, but Heather interrupted her.

"I can't believe it." She looked shocked--like she had just learned every shoe at Macy's was buy-one-get-one-free. "When did this...or how did this happen?"

She paused for a minute to see if her friends were actually going to let her speak. "We kind of hit it off on the trip to Singapore. We've actually only been on one date...last night." She took a nervous nibble of bread. "He took me to this Italian restaurant in North Beach." She stared off for a minute, then gushed like a little girl. "It was so romantic! He spoke Italian to the waiter. We rode in his limo."

All three friends shrieked at the same time.

"God Melanie, you've hit the jackpot with this one," Heather exclaimed.

"Is he good in bed?" Chloe asked abruptly.

Melanie almost spit out her champagne. "We've only been on one date. What kind of girl do you think I am?" she asked mischievously.

"The kind of girl that would jump on that hot body and then spill to her girlfriends. Remember, I've seen pictures of him in my investigation. But," she paused as she filled her glass again. "I need to double-check my sources next time. You dating him was not anywhere on the radar."

"Well, we didn't sleep together...but we did kiss."

Chloe's green eyes widened again. "There's hope for you yet."

"And...how was it?" Heather inquired impatiently.

Melanie looked up pretending to remember. "It was...magical."

Chloe and Heather now stared off into space for a moment; Melanie figured they were wondering what it would be like to kiss Brandon Dawson.

Heather's brown eyes narrowed. "What does your work husband think of you dating the boss?"

Her friends often teased her that Jake was her work husband because of all the time she spent with him. "How many times do I have to tell you guys—Jake is not my work husband!"

"Uh...excuse me ladies."

Melanie looked up to see Brandon standing next to their table. Her cheeks instantly flushed a dark crimson.

Crap! I hope he didn't hear the work husband remark.

Brandon was still wearing the brown three-piece suit with the pale blue shirt. He no longer looked intimidating like he did in the meeting. He looked gorgeous.

"Um...what are you doing here?" Melanie questioned.

"I just thought I'd stop by to say hello and meet your friends." He flashed his dazzling signature smile and extended his hand to Chloe. "I'm Brandon Dawson."

She looked at him with that dreamy look Melanie had seen so many times on Hailey's face...or any woman when they met Brandon. Chloe's hand shot out in front of her automatically.

"And you are?" Brandon waited for an answer.

"Uh...Chloe. Ya, I'm Chloe."

"It's great to meet you Chloe. Any friend of Melanie's is a friend of mine."

Except for Jake, Melanie thought.

He turned to Heather who also had the dreamy look on her face.

Afraid she may have also forgotten her name, Melanie added. "This is Heather."