It would be so enormously satisfying.

I imagined pushing my right foot down on the gas pedal.

I heard the thump as the front of the car hit him.

I could hear his startled cry as he rolled up onto the hood, the shocked look on his face as it hit my windshield.

I put my foot on the gas pedal.

I shook my head and drove out of the parking lot.

But as I turned out of the lot, I reached for my cell phone. I clicked through the address book until I reached DANTE, and hit the send button.

It rang twice. “Dante Bertucci.”

“Hey, Dante, this is Jordy Valentine.”

“Hi, Jordy.”

“I just wanted to call and apologize for last night,” I said smoothly. “I was wondering if I could make it up to you somehow?”

“There’s no need to make up anything.” He laughed into the phone. “I was a little surprised that you disappeared, but I figured Chad had something to do with it.”

“Yeah, well.” I laughed. “I still feel kind of bad about it.”

“Tell you what—why don’t you come over to my place tonight around seven? I’ll make you dinner,” he purred into the phone.

“If you’re just trying to get back at Chad—”

“Chad has nothing to do with this,” Dante replied. “That’s over. Come on over tonight and I’ll show you what I mean.” He gave me the address.

“See you tonight,” I replied.

I closed my phone and smiled. Dante would never be interested in someone like me, right, Chad? Obviously he would only use me to try to make you jealous—as if someone as beautiful and perfect as you could ever be jealous of a loser like me, right?

So much for getting rid of the negativity and starting over.

Dante’s house was in Avignon, a separate township just over the city line. I plugged his address into my car’s GPS and headed out at a quarter till seven. I chewed on my lip as I drove. My workout with Jay that afternoon had been strange—he’d acted weird through the whole two hours—distant and unfriendly. This was a change. This was our first workout since our steam room adventure, and several times I’d wanted to ask him if something was wrong. When the session was over, I’d grabbed my bag and left the gym, not showering there like I usually did.

I shouldn’t have done anything with him. That was a mistake. Obviously, it changed things, even though he said it wouldn’t.

I shook my head as I turned into Dante’s subdivision. Maybe I should just find a new trainer. I’m not paying him to be rude to me.

The GPS directed me into the driveway of a beautiful, two-story brick house. I turned the car off and sat for a moment. I was a few minutes early. I looked at the lawn, which was perfectly manicured. Rows of rose bushes lined the front porch. A fountain bubbled in the center of the lawn. Behind the house, palm trees towered over the roof. I got out of the car and started up the walk, thinking, This is crazy, I shouldn’t be doing this. Remember positivity, no more negativity. Look at how fucked up things are with Jay now. Do I really want to go down this path? I climbed the steps to the porch. I’m not really interested in Dante, I’m only interested in getting even with Chad, and that’s really unfair to Dante.

I started to turn to go, but then I heard Chad’s voice in my head.

“He wouldn’t be interested in someone like you.”

“We’ll just see about that, Chad,” I muttered, and knocked on the door.

The door opened, and Dante stood there in a yellow Speedo, wiping water from his chest. “Sorry.” He smiled. “I was taking a swim and lost track of time. Come on in.”

I walked into the house and gasped. The entryway went all the way to the roof, and there was a skylight. The entryway opened into a huge sunken living room, and as I walked down the steps I couldn’t get over how beautifully decorated it was. The floor was covered in a deep plush carpet my feet sank into. The walls were painted a soft coral, and the entire back wall was glass, with a stunning view of a swimming pool landscaped to look like a grotto. I walked over to the wall of glass. “Wow.” The entire backyard was lush with vegetation. “It looks like a jungle out there.”

“That was the idea,” Dante said from behind me. “Why don’t you go on out and have a seat? I’ll put some clothes on and meet you out there.”

I started to say not to bother but bit my tongue. “Okay.”

“There’s an open bottle of red wine on the table out there,” he said, turning to walk down the hallway. “Help yourself.”

The yellow bikini barely covered his backside, and I watched him go. Get a grip, Jordy—don’t even go there. I opened the sliding glass door and stepped into the backyard, then closed the door behind me. There was a picnic table just outside the door, and the patio was covered. I poured myself a glass of wine and sat at the table.

A cool evening breeze stirred the wind chimes, and the waterfall at the near end of the pool splashed soothingly. It was very quiet back there, and all the stars were out in a dark purple sky overhead. If I didn’t know better, I’d think I was out in the country somewhere, I thought, taking a sip of the wine. It was a Chilean pinot noir, and was quite good. Excellent taste in wine, a gorgeous home—Chad was crazy to walk away from this. I turned to the sound of the glass door sliding open again. Dante smiled at me. He’d put on a white cotton guayabera shirt and loose-fitting surgical scrub pants. He gestured at his clothes. “I hope you don’t mind, but when I’m home I like to be comfortable.”

I refilled my glass. “I don’t mind at all. This is really good wine.”

“Glad you like it.” He filled a glass for himself and we clinked glasses. “And I’m glad you’re here.”

“Why am I here, anyway?” I asked, setting my glass down on the picnic table.

Dante flashed me his perfect white teeth. “I like you. I want to get to know you better.” He shrugged his powerful shoulders. “Is there something wrong with that?”

“Chad thinks you’re trying to make him jealous.”

“Chad thinks everything’s about Chad,” he countered evenly. “Do we need to talk about him? It’s a beautiful night, don’t you think, and I would rather talk about you.”

“Me?” I was flattered, in spite of myself. “What do you want to know, Dante?”

“Do you really speak three languages?” He got up and walked over to the house, and flipped a switch. Pachelbel’s Canon began playing softly through concealed speakers. He sat back down, raising his eyebrows.

“Four, actually.” I took another sip of the wine. “If you count English.”

He laughed. He had a nice laugh, and I smiled back at him. I turned and looked back at the jungle. “It’s very peaceful back here.”

“That was the idea,” he replied. “I work really hard, and my job can be pretty stressful, so I wanted a tranquil space where I could come relax when I got home.” He shrugged. “The whole house is designed to be relaxing, so every place you go is comfortable. Every room, every chair, every couch, everything is in harmony and balance. Would you like a tour?”

“Maybe later.” I laughed. “I’m just so relaxed back here I don’t want it to ever end.”

“Life getting you down?” he asked, an eyebrow arching as he reached for the bottle to refill his glass.

“A little.” I wrapped my arms around myself. “But sitting back here, I feel like I can take care of everything. Nothing seems important back here.” I smiled at him. “Thanks for inviting me over.”

“My pleasure.” He glanced at his watch. “Dinner won’t be ready for about another hour. You want to get in the hot tub?”

“I didn’t bring a suit.”

“I can loan you one.”

“You just dried off.” I shrugged. “Maybe later?”

“You spoil all my fun,” he teased. “Now I’ll have to come up with another way to get you out of your clothes.”

I stood up and pulled my shirt up over my head. “All you have to do is ask,” I replied, tossing my shirt to him. He caught it, folded it, and placed it on the table. I kicked off my shoes and started to undo my pants.