Read Getting Even for Free Online Page B

else?”
    “More stories?”
    Trevor shakes his head. “No, tell me about you. Your life.”
    My heart flutters. Okay, so he likes me. That’s good to know, because I really like him. “Well,” I begin, “I’m from Idaho.”
    “Idaho?” Trevor looks at me like I’m nuts.
    “Yep.”
    “Wow,” he says. “I didn’t know there were black folks in Idaho.” There are laugh lines around his eyes as he smiles.
    “That’s the first thing people always say, but yes, there definitely are.”
    “Atlanta’s a far way from Idaho. Why’d you move here?”
    “Because I always knew there was something bigger and better out there. Not to knock Boise, but I craved big-city life. I also wanted to go to a black college, and there aren’t any there. I applied to Spelman, got accepted, and the rest is history.”
    “Any regrets?”
    I wonder if he’s talking about my moving to Atlanta or about us. “No. No regrets.”
    “Good,” Trevor says.
    Maybe it’s the wine, but my tongue is suddenly feeling loose. I lean across the table and say, “You know, I’m really glad that Rhonda matched us up. Before this, I was pretty jaded about dating. Seems I kept meeting the same type of man—the wrong one.”
    “Same here,” Trevor says. “The wrong woman, I mean.”
    Trevor and I share a chuckle. As our laughter dies, I glance away, wondering if I should invite him home now. No, not yet. There’s no need to rush.
    So instead I ask, “When was your last relationship?” Depending on what he says, I’ll get an idea of where his head is at. If he’s hung up on someone else. As much as I want to have sex, I don’t want a one-night stand.
    “It’s been a while for me,” he answers. “Four months.”
    “That’s not so long,” I comment. I hope he’s over this woman. “Were you in love?”
    Trevor shrugs. “I thought I was, but in the end I realized I wasn’t.”
    He’s being a bit evasive. I wonder if I should be concerned. Then again, he might not want to talk about it because it was a bad breakup.
    “Ever been married?” I ask.
    “Nope. What about you?”
    “Oh yeah. But thankfully, I came to my senses.” I force a grin. I don’t want him thinking I’m bitter. “He was the wrong man, but hey, it happens.”
    I notice that Trevor’s eyes have shifted to beyond my shoulder. He seems to have tuned me out. Oh, shit. I sounded like a moron and now he’s turned off.
    But his eyes linger, and I realize he’s not avoiding me but looking at something else. Or someone else.
    I quickly glance over my shoulder and peruse the restaurant. I see a family of four, two young couples, a table with two men.
    Damn, I’m obviously being paranoid, but it’s easy to be paranoid when you’ve dated the men I have.
    When I turn back to Trevor, he is grinning at me. I have his undivided attention again.
    He reaches for the bottle of wine and pours the dregs into my glass. “I don’t know you very well, but I feel confident in saying that it’s your husband’s loss.”
    “You don’t have to convince me,” I agree.
    I see the waitress coming toward us and I finish off my wine. The evening is going better than planned and I’m not ready for it to end. I’m thinking that maybe I’ll throw caution to the wind and have a specialty coffee. I can always stay at Trevor’s place, or he at mine, and get my car in the morning.
    “Have you had a chance to check out the dessert menu?” the waitress asks.
    “I’ll have a Baileys coffee,” I tell her.
    “Nothing for me,” Trevor says, but he’s not looking at the waitress. He’s looking past her.
    Now I know I’m missing something. Trevor is definitely preoccupied. Either he’s suddenly not digging me, or there’s someone here that he knows.
    “Trevor,” I begin slowly. “Is everything okay?”
    “Sure,” he answers quickly, but his body language says he is lying. His jawline is tense, and he suddenly looks irritated.
    I’m confused. “Trevor, did I say something