Two weeks later
“ No . Absolutely not!” Kristen Nickels glared at her closest friend, Margo Edwards. She couldn’t very well walk away from her—not while trapped in an elevator listening to Margo’s latest proposal.
The classy-looking brunette entwined her fingers before her, stopping short of getting down on her knees. “Please? I’d do it for you .”
“The hell you would—” Kristen grabbed the rail as the elevator pulled to a jerky halt, gripping her toes in her three-inch heels to keep from tumbling over. The door moaned open, but no one was there. With her luck the darn thing would probably stop at every single floor on the way to the eleventh, where they had both worked for the last five years. And it would undoubtedly get stuck between floors in a conspiracy attempt to force Kristen to listen to her friend’s pleadings. She should have known it was leading up to this all through their lunch break.
“Look, I know it’s a lot to ask, but I promise my brother is awesome, and you two will get along great. I can’t bear the thought of going on a blind date alone and I’m just dying to meet this friend of his.”
Time to buck up and put her foot down before things got out of hand. Margo’s whine of desperation was getting on Kristen’s nerves. And, was it not getting hotter by the minute in the oppressive elevator? Kristen tugged uncomfortably on the neckline of her blouse. To make matters worse, someone must have eaten their lunch on the run today, because the enclosure smelled like a tuna fish sandwich.
“You know I hate blind dates.” They never turned out well. Besides, Margo was aware Kristen had been extremely busy with work this month. Of course, she had no idea what else was currently eating up Kristen’s time and attention. But Kristen had no intention of sharing any of her private life with anyone right now, even her best friends. She just wasn’t ready. Oh, who was she kidding? She didn’t want to deal with their pity. The looks they would send her way when they thought she couldn’t see them. Why is she asking me to do this?
“Yes, but this wouldn’t be the same as a real blind date. It’s my brother. He’s…he’s like a…a brother. Besides, you wouldn’t be alone. I’d be there too, and Ryan.” Margo tilted her head and drawled the word “Ryan” like he was the object of the affections of a sixth grader. Did she think this was a persuasive argument?
“Margo, look, you are one of my dearest friends. I’d do almost anything for you, but blind dates always turn out bad for me, and a ‘double date’ with your brother is still a blind date for me. I’ve never even met him. And, who is this guy you are ‘dying’ to meet?” There. Way to hold your ground, Kristen. You don’t have time for this right now.
“Ryan’s a friend of my brother’s. I’ve seen him, well, even been introduced to him, a few times when I’ve gone by my brother’s office. Chase always talks about him…”
“That’s funny. You never talk about Chase. I don’t know anything about your brother. What, is he ugly? Old? Fat…”
“Blind.” Margo’s voice softened. Her bright blue eyes grew misty. “He’s blind.”
Kristen’s jaw dropped as she sucked in a quick breath, silencing her tirade. Stunned, she looked down at her prim black skirt and picked at an imaginary piece of lint. “Seriously?”
Margo nodded. “Yes.”
Could I possibly feel like more of an ass right now? Kristen didn’t know how to respond. But she was definitely losing ground. The elevator opened and a man in an Armani suit stepped in. No one spoke as the elevator crawled to the next floor and the man exited.
Margo cleared her throat. “Listen, like I said, I know it’s a lot to ask… But I promise you’ll have a good time. I didn’t want to tell you about his disability because I didn’t want it to influence your decision. I was hoping I could convince you to go without playing the
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