I wiggled away from him. “What did you say to Jeremy?” I demanded.
Adam blinked in confusion. “What are you talking about?”
I crossed my arms over my chest, freezing my butt off, but refusing to let on how cold I was. “When you came over and said you had to talk to him. What did you say to him?”
Adam frowned. “It was about the caterer. They overcharged us around five hundred bucks. He was the one who signed the contract, so I needed him to sort it out.” He narrowed his eyes at me. “Why do you care?”
I glared at him, wondering if he was lying to me. But Adam didn’t lie to me. That’s not how our relationship worked. My anger seeped out of me and turned into despondency. If Adam hadn’t warned him away from me, that meant—
“It’s nothing,” I said softly, feeling like an idiot.
Adam’s expression softened. “Don’t waste your time on him, Lena.”
I squared my shoulders defensively. “What do you mean?”
Adam gave me a sad little smile. “Let me guess, you thought he liked you. He told you he’d find you later. Then he completely blew you off.”
My cheeks flushed with embarrassment. Adam, picking up on my mortification, gave me a hug. “Jeremy Wyatt is the biggest man whore I’ve ever met. He plays with women. He’s a great attorney and a decent friend but he’s an ass to women. He’s all about the conquest, then he loses interest. He’s notorious for using and losing.” He kissed the top of my head. “You’re too good for a guy like Wyatt. And I don’t want to have to break his arms for messing with you. You’re young, Lena. And a little naive. A man like Jeremy would eat you up and spit you out.”
Even though I bristled at Adam’s description of me, I couldn’t help but feel like the world’s most stupid female. I had always prided myself on not falling for a line. I didn’t go for guys who were only after one thing. I was known for my ability to see through male patented bullshit.
I guess my douche meter was on the fritz.
“It was nothing. I would never take a guy like Jeremy Wyatt seriously. You don’t need to worry about me.” I put my arms around Adam and hugged him tightly. He may be annoying, but I knew I could always count on him.
“Good. I’m glad to hear it. Now get inside before you freeze to death. I need to make a phone call.” Adam shooed me inside.
“Who are you calling?” I asked, being nosy.
“Just an old friend I haven’t spoken to in far too long.” He gave me a gentle shove. “Now go and give me some privacy.
“Are you calling Meg?” I asked excitedly, hoping he was finally extending an olive branch to the girl he had been friends with up until he decided to hitch his wagon to Chelsea’s hoe train. I loved Meg; she had been like a sister to me. I sure hoped he was finally talking to her again after so long.
“That’s none of your business. Get lost, Sherlock.” He gave me a sad smile that only talk of Meg brought out. He hadn’t called me Sherlock since we were kids. Meg gave me the nickname when I was seven because she claimed I was the smartest person she knew.
“Alright, tell her hello from me if that’s who you’re calling,” I said, hurrying back inside.
Now that I had no reason to stick around, I was more than anxious to leave. Even though I had just told my brother that I was fine, I was anything but.
It was more than my pride that took a bruising. The truth was I had liked Jeremy. And I had really thought he liked me. I couldn’t have been imagining it. We had genuinely enjoyed each other’s company. There had been a spark between us. A connection. I couldn’t shake the feeling that there was something there.
I should just talk to him. Maybe it was some sort of miscommunication. Maybe I had given him mixed signals. Maybe he thought I was the one not interested.
I’d find him and ask him what’s going on—
“Oh, sorry.” I came up short at the sight of a man and woman pressed against the far wall of the hallway. I had been trying to find the coatroom, not expecting to stumble on the beginnings of a bad porno. One of the woman’s legs was wrapped around the man’s waist, her dress riding up her thighs high enough that I could see her pink underwear. Her hands were in his dark hair, his mouth on her neck. One of his hands was between her legs and she was making high-pitched mewling noises in the back of her throat that reminded me of a cat in heat. Whoever she was, she sounded ridiculous. I had to smother my laughter.