Page 49 of Wild Thing
Brax laughed softly and raised his glass. “The city is too chaotic for me, but thanks for the rave reviews."
The mutual respect between Brax and Greg was strong. That much was obvious.
“Dylan, how long have you been working at Gellar and Summers?” Laura asked.
She seemed sweet and fun, late fifties, early sixties maybe. Hard to tell her exact age as she clearly enjoyed regular beauty appointments.
"About three and a half years.”
“Laura, I plucked Dylan from the talons of London,” Marie interjected, in a motherly, humorous and slightly drunk way.
Greg leaned towards me. “Did Marie make you an offer you couldn’t refuse?”
“Something like that.” I replied coyly.
The answer was yes, the offer was hefty, but I wasn’t about to let Steven learn that I likely earned a much higher signing bonus than he ever did.
“I just love the UK. How did you enjoy your time in London?” Laura asked.
“I loved it,” I replied, smiling as I recalled all the fond memories from my time there. “I had a placement at an architectural firm for twelve months. I learned so much, but I traveled extensively too.”
A glimmer of mischief danced in Laura's eyes. “Were you single?”
“Laura!” Greg looked shocked at his wife's personal question.
“Oh hush honey—we’ve all had a few drinks. Let me live vicariously through Dylan,” Laura snapped at Greg, before lovingly draping an arm around his chair. "Go on darling, do tell.”
“Yes, I was single.”
“Somebody as striking as you must have had fun with those gorgeous European men!”
Greg rolled his eyes playfully. “You’ll have to excuse her Dylan, Laura’s a romantic.”
While I definitely did have fun with a few European men, there was just one man that was never far from my mind.
And he was sitting right next to me.
“Well, Laura, sorry to disappoint you but you won’t hear many romantic tales from me. I spent the first few months in London heartbroken and miserable,” I blurted. The sudden turn of tone initiated a hush over the dining table. “I left the love of my life back home.”
Brax stiffened in his chair.
Out of the corner of my eye, I could see a heart-fluttering mix of surprise, confusion and satisfaction written all over his face.
Did I say the love of my life? Why the fuck did I share something so personal with everyone?
I blamed the wine.
“Oh darling, that’s awful,” Laura said sadly. “And when you returned?”
I gently shrugged my shoulders sadly. “I moved straight to White Point to take up the position at Gellar and Summers.”
Marie's eyes were ringed with empathy as she learned something new about me. She'd never married, always choosing to put her career first. I wondered if my heartbreak reminded her of her own love lost.
Laura pressed on. “Where are you from originally?”
“Grey’s Forest.”
“Oh, that’s where Brax is from!” Laura exclaimed, excitedly.
