One Night Only

Part 3

Lindsey had some time to spare. Lauren called the day before and let him know that he was going to meet her two closest friends. She told him to come over at around 7:30 pm and it was just past 6 pm. Of course, he wanted to make a good first impression, so as soon as he got home from work, Lindsey jumped into the shower, then put on a pair of dark blue jeans and a black shirt with a matching blazer over it. However, he wasn't too focused on the upcoming dinner as he sat on his bed, holding a piece of jewelry Stevie left behind four days ago. Sighing, he fell onto the mattress and rubbed his eyes. Why couldn't he stop thinking about her? It was just sex, it was all it was supposed to be. Maybe if he hadn't found Stevie's bracelet, if he hadn't had a reminder of her, it would be easier. 

Sitting back up straight, Lindsey shook himself mentally. He had to stop thinking about the woman he was never going to see again. Gone, forgotten. Not really...

Sighing heavily, Lindsey got up to his feet and walked out of the bedroom. He located his car keys and was out the door. On his way, Lindsey stopped to buy Lauren flowers. Deep down, he felt guilty about his infidelities, he just... that was they way he was. He was a good looking, charming man, who did really well with the ladies. He figured that what Lauren didn't know, didn't hurt her. 

Running a hand through his hair, Lindsey took in a deep breath and plastered on a smile. He rang the doorbell and Lauren appeared a short moment later, her smile bright and sincere.

"Hey!" 

"Hey, baby." Lindsey embraced her and she went straight for his lips. "You've missed me, huh?"

"Of course, we haven't seen each other for a couple of days." She nodded, noticing the bouquet of roses. "And what's this?"

"These are for you." Lindsey held out the flowers and Lauren attached her lips to his again.

"They're gorgeous! Thank you." She inhaled the scent deeply and went to look for a vase. "Come in here, Lindsey."

Lindsey followed after her into the living room, where another woman had made herself comfortable on the couch. She turned to look and stood up, then approached him and held out her hand.

"Hi, I'm Jane."

"Nice to meet you, Jane. I'm Lindsey." He smiled, introducing himself. 

"Very nice to meet you, finally." Jane added with a chuckle. "I started thinking that you're just a very handsome fruit of Lauren's imagination."

"No, I just had to keep him away from you, getting your paws all over him" Lauren joked, moving to stand next to Lindsey, her arm wrapped around his back. "The girls have been pushing me to organize a gettogether since the first time I mentioned you."

"That's right, we're waiting for someone else, aren't we?" Lindsey asked, his arm around Lauren's shoulders, his other hand in the back pocket of his jeans.

"Yeah, we're still waiting for Ms. I'm-Always-So-Freaking-Late." Lauren rolled her eyes and pulled away from Lindsey. "I have to check on dinner. I'll be right back." She gave him a quick kiss and walked out, leaving Lindsey alone with Jane.

"She's all over you." Jane chuckled, showing Lindsey to take a seat beside her. "It's sweet."

"Lauren's pretty great." Lindsey nodded, clasping his hands as he slightly leaned forward in his seat. "I like her a lot."

"And she likes you, too. I've heard wonderful things about you, Lindsey." Jane said, picking up her glass of wine. "You better treat that woman right."

"I, uh... yeah, I fully intend to." Lindsey gulped, wondering if it was appropriate to ask Jane for a sip of her wine, since his mouth had gone dry.

"Jane, could you answer the door, please!" Lauren asked from the kitchen, when to doorbell rang.

Jane jumped to her feet and rushed to let Stevie in. "He's already here and he's gorgeous." Were the first words out of her mouth, when Stevie stepped inside.

"Oh, yeah? Lucky Lauren." Stevie laughed nervously. "I'll give this to her and come in to meet the man." She showed to the bottle of wine in her hand, to which Jane nodded and returned to Lindsey. "Hey." Stevie greeted Lauren with a hug. 

"Hi!" Lauren beamed at her friend. "There's a bottle already opened in the living room, I'll save this for later."

"Sure." Stevie shrugged. "Is there anything I can help you with?"

"No, but thanks." Lauren took Stevie by the hand. "Come on, I can't wait to introduce you to Lindsey."

Stevie tried her best to pretend she was doing fine. The truth was, her heart was beating out of her chest and right before she had to leave her apartment, she tried to come up with a good enough excuse to get herself out of this dinner party. She felt sick and she felt like the worst friend on the planet. The last thing she wanted to do right now was meet Lindsey.

"Baby, I'd like to introduce you to my best friend." Lauren's voice caught Lindsey's attention.

"Nice to-" Lindsey began saying before he turned his head to look. "Meet you." He finished, his eyes growing wide. There was no way, he had to have been having a nightmare. 

"You too." Stevie nodded. "I'm Stevie."

A little lightheaded, Lindsey approached her and slipped his hand in hers. "Lindsey."