An Exceptional Twist (33 page)

“Sounds good.
My
treat.” He wanted to
wink, but his good winking eye was currently covered with a
very
manly, not sparkly
patch.

She stopped behind her van, grabbing his
hand quickly. “Stefen, we’re friends now. It doesn't have to be
your treat, unless you let it be mine next time.”

As much as he hated that she only wanted to
be friends, at least they had some sort of title. “Fine,” he
sighed. “But this time, it's mine.”

Tapping her fingers on the steering wheel as
she drove, Leah appeared a bit nervous. She was really quiet for a
moment, then said, “I hope you don't mind, but I invited my, um,
friend, Ben to join us.” She paused a moment. “We went to high
school together and kind of, um, reconnected when I visited my mom
last week.” She glanced quickly at Stefen, biting her bottom lip
like she always did when she was anxious.

So this is the guy.
Thanks to social media, he knew exactly what kind
of ‘friend’ Ben was, but he didn’t necessarily want her to know
he’d been stalking her.

“Sure, no problem,” he lied. But it was a
problem. It was his turn to tap his fingers.

It was odd that she was
introducing Ben as a ‘friend’. Leah hadn't actually admitted to
Stefen that she and this
doctor
were dating, but it was going to be pretty damn
apparent when they greeted each other with a kiss.

Shit. How am I going to get through lunch
with Leah all over another guy?

Feeling jealousy rear its ugly head, Stefen
turned to look out the passenger window. To make this friendship
thing work, he’d have to keep his attitude in check.

After parking, they walked side by side.
Leah still bounced with excitement as they rounded the corner of an
older building. Stefen read the sign hanging above the entrance:
Lovebird’s Café.

Great.
Lovebirds? The place was perfect.

He casually placed his hand on her arm,
smiling warmly as he opened the door.

She looked up at him through her eyelashes,
her eyes smiling. “This was a favorite hangout back in high school.
Well this and the burger joint down the street. There’s a newer,
larger one in Pasadena, but this one’s my favorite. I have so many
fond memories here.” Leah beamed.

“Smells good.” His stomach growled angrily
after taking in the aroma of soup, freshly baked bread, and
cookies.

Even though he knew the guy was coming, he
was caught off guard when she said, “Oh, Ben’s already here.”

Where the hell am I supposed to look?

He stood back as Leah approached her
‘friend’. The guy had short blonde hair, blue eyes, and that
all-American look about him. And he was dressed in athletic shoes,
basketball shorts, and a sleeveless shirt.

Really?
He looked ready for a workout, not lunch with his
girlfriend.

That term almost took away Stefen’s
appetite.

She and the Brad Pitt
wannabe embraced. Only
after
the guy noticed Stefen in the background did he
go in for a kiss.

Leah bashfully turned her head, his lips
landing on her cheek.

Stefen glared at
him.
Serves you right, asshole.

Damn was Stefen glad he didn’t have to see
her kiss another guy firsthand.

“Hey, babe, how ya doing?”

Stefen cringed.
Babe? Already?

He rolled his eyes, hoping
that Leah didn’t catch him. He however caught
her
giving Ben a questioning
look.
Hmm, maybe they are just
friends.

She grabbed Stefen’s arm, pulling him
forward. “This is my friend, Stefen, who I told you about.”

“Yes, you do talk about him.” He gave Stefen
a onceover. “Quite often. Nice to meet you, Stefen.”

Did this prick just puff
up his chest?
Stefen barely contained his
smirk. McDreamy was just as jealous of him.

Good.

“Nice to meet you too, Ben.” Stefen extended
his hand, knowing that manners would go much further with Leah than
a pissing contest.

Thankfully, Ben didn’t ask about the eye
patch. Which made Stefen wonder what Leah told him.

“I'm starving, let's go order.”

Leah started for the counter, when Ben
announced, “Oh, I hope you don't mind, but I already ordered mine.
I only have half an hour. A few of the interns are getting together
to play some basketball.”

Half hour? What an ass.

Stefen looked at him,
sizing him up.
What the hell does Leah see
in this guy?

Ben stayed planted in his seat, while Stefen
and Leah went up to the counter.

“What's good here?” Stefen gave his full
attention to Leah, standing close behind her and breathing her
in.

She played with the necklace on her neck,
then smoothed down her sundress. “I've never had a bad meal here,
but my favorite sandwich is the turkey, provolone, avocado and
sprouts on a French roll.”

Excitement filled her eyes as she looked up
at him. The feel of her body near his was hypnotic. And a little
too…obvious?

Ah, she’s teasing
Ben.
She wanted him to be jealous. This
would piss Stefen off to no end if she was his girl and she did
this to him. But under these circumstances, he didn’t mind playing
along.

He could practically feel
Ben’s eyes ripping him to shreds, but he couldn’t help placing his
palm on her back
. Ha, stupid fuck. If
you’d come and ordered with her, my hands wouldn’t be on
her.

He leaned in further, pretending he couldn’t
hear her. “Is that what you’re getting?”

She nodded, wide eyes on his.

Stefen looked up at the guy at the register
who’d been eavesdropping. He pointed to the menu as he ordered.
“We’ll take two of those, a couple bags of chips, and two iced
teas.”

“You remember everything, don’t you?” Her
hand made its way onto his good shoulder.

His arm snaked around her shoulders. “That's
all you ever order unless there’s Pepsi, of course.”

She smiled widely, definitely milking the
situation.

Stefen chuckled silently, holding his
exclusive credit card high enough for Ben to see as he handed it to
the cashier. He signed the receipt, then led her to the table, his
hand still lingering on her lower back.

Dr. Dipshit was glowering.

Yeah, moron, that’s the
way you treat a lady
.

Stefen smirked at him as he pulled out
Leah's chair. Ben’s food was already there, and he dug in in front
of them. This guy needed training in Manners one-oh-one. He didn't
even get up when she got to the table.

Once they were seated, Ben ignored him
completely.

“So did I tell you I saw Matt Heller the
other day?”

Disgusting. This guy looks like an ogre with
his mouth hanging open while he chews and talks.

Leah sat up straighter, her back stiffening.
“No, you didn’t, but he’s not my favorite person.”

“Why?” Ben asked with a huge piece of
lettuce hanging out of his mouth and mayo on his lips.

What the hell, dude? Nobody wants to see
that shit.

“I remember him showing up drunk at our
graduation, and falling on the bleachers before he got kicked out.
Why was he even there? Didn’t he graduate a few years before us?”
She flipped her hair over her shoulder.

Something’s off with her.
What’s going on?
Ben’s disgusting table
manners almost overshadowed her discomfort, but Stefen didn’t miss
her shifting uneasily in her chair.

Ben shrugged. “He was going through some
rough stuff at the time. It sucks that everyone only remembers that
one incident when he did all these really great things.”

Stefen raised an eyebrow, waiting to hear
about these ‘great things’.

Ben licked his fingers. “He was the best
quarterback we ever had. His future was laid out in front of him,
but things didn’t work out as planned.” Taking another bite, Ben
tossed his sandwich onto the paper wrapper.

Stefen couldn’t hide his grimace if he
wanted to.

Finally, Leah vocalized Stefen’s thought. “I
know you looked up to him, Ben, but what great things did he do? I
only know him as a heavy partier, the asshole who talked crap about
my sister, and the guy that tried to get every girl he met to sleep
with him, including me.”

Ben froze. “He tried to sleep with you?”

Leah sat back in her chair with her hands in
her lap. “Yeah, at Julia Miller's party the summer after we
graduated. You know, right after I saw you at the movies.” She
looked at him, her expression matter-of-fact.

Stefen felt the negative energy radiating
off of her, and he wanted to know more.

Mouth slacking, Ben’s neck bent forward,
“Seriously? He knew I wanted to ask you out. Why would he do
that?”

As entertaining as it was to watch Ben get
upset, Stefen was too focused on his own blood boiling and the fact
that Leah was starting to get so upset. He watched as she looked
down and rubbed her palms together.

“He was so drunk. It didn't take much to
throw him off of me.”

The fuck?

Fury ran through Stefen’s body just thinking
about a guy pushing himself on Leah. She made eye contact with him
and offered a small reassuring smile, letting him know that he
didn’t need to worry.

“He was
on
you?” Ben was finally
as pissed off as Stefen felt.

Their waitress seemed to realize she was
walking into something personal, so she quickly placed their food
on the table and took the plastic number with her.

“Can we change the subject?” Leah gave an
apologetic look to Stefen as she waved her hands in the air.

Ben glimpsed over as if he’d forgotten he
wasn’t alone with her. “Yeah, I'll talk to him later about it.”

Stefen’s hands were fisted
under the table.
I’d love to ‘talk’ to him
later, too.

Leah took her first bite, and Stefen
followed—the way a gentleman should. Although he was still pissed,
he could appreciate how good this sandwich was. Smiling as she
caught his eye, he could see that Leah knew what he was
thinking.

You’re right. Best sandwich I’ve ever
tasted.

“So how’s work going?” Leah turned to Ben,
who was closely watching her and Stefen’s interaction.

Pleased that her focus was back on him, Ben
answered, “Long, draining hours. I can't wait until I'm done with
my residency.”

“How much longer do you have?” She dabbed
her mouth.

Stefen frowned. It was strange that she
didn’t already know the answer.

Ben stretched his legs under the table as
though he was the only one there. “I just graduated from med school
in June and started my residency, so I’ve got at least three years
to go before I can apply for my medical license. I haven’t decided
where I’m going to practice yet but,” he peered at Stefen before
looking back at Leah, “that’s something we can talk about later.”
Ben’s hint was obvious.

Are you shitting
me?
They were planning a future already?
Well, at least Ben wanted Stefen to think that.

“Oh, that long?” The disappointment showed
on her face.

Normally, Stefen hated seeing that look, but
at this moment, he was rejoicing.

But apparently Ben’s cell was more
interesting. He hadn’t even noticed her reaction when he dove for
it. “I'm sorry. I've got to get going now, babe. Nice to meet you,
Stefen.” He muttered the last part as he glared across the
table.

Stefen politely stood up to shake his hand
again. Reluctantly, Ben stood and extended his as well.

“You, too.” Then Stefen impassively sat back
down.

“Do you mind walking me out, Leah?” He
grabbed his keys and cell off the table.

Isn’t it the guy that’s supposed to walk the
girl out? Dumbass.

“Sure.” Leah smiled graciously, and Ben
headed for the door before she even got out of her seat.

Was she used to guys treating her like this?
This bugged Stefen to no end. All women—friends, relatives, or
significant others—deserved to be treated like ladies. He would
have to make a point to teach her that.

Ben opened the door for her, placing his
hand on her waist.

Well, at least he’s
capable of that,
Stefen thought just as
Ben shot him
another deadly
glare.

Or maybe that’s why he let Leah out first.
He didn't want her to see him do that? Stefen didn’t dare return
it. With his luck, Leah would turn and catch him.

A minute later, Leah strolled in. Again,
Stefen stood before she sat.

Apprehensive, but with hope in her eyes, she
asked, “So what did you think?”

“About?” Talking crap about her new
boyfriend wasn’t something he wanted to do, but he wouldn’t lie
either.

“Ben,” she emphasized, fiddling with her
napkin. “We agreed to kinda date but not exclusively.”

Stefen sat back in his chair. Running his
fingers down his jawline, he caught her eyes following his
movement. “Hmm, that's why he was such a gentleman and made sure to
kiss you in front of me,” he blurted that last part without
thinking.

“What do you mean?” she asked
defensively.

“You walked in with another guy, he wanted
to make sure I knew you were with him, that's all.” Stefen
shrugged.

She rolled her eyes.
“Well, I’m not
with
him, but what is it with guys and being macho?”

Stefen raised his eyebrow, pointing out what
he thought was obvious. “That's not macho. It’s just the way guys
communicate.”