Page 2 of It Destroys Me

Axel drove while I sat in the passenger seat.

The girls talked in the back. Scarlett showed her pictures of the kids while Astrid said how cute they were at least a million times.

Like a cow in a herd, I had been corralled right into the pen. This had been a setup to get me out of the house, and I suspected Scarlett was the mastermind of the entire thing. Astrid went along with it because she’d shown me her cards the other night—that she still wanted me even though I was a fucking train wreck.

We arrived at the restaurant and were guided straight to our table. It was a nice place with candles and white tablecloths. It was midweek, but the place was still packed like it was a Saturday night.

Astrid was about to take the seat beside me, but Axel grabbed the back of the chair. “I’d like to sit across from my wife, if that’s okay. You know, because of the view.” He gave her a playful wink.

Astrid smiled. “I don’t blame you. She’s a hot piece of ass.” She went back around the table.

Axel watched her before he looked at Scarlett again. “Did I mention how much I like her?”

Scarlett chuckled before she took the seat across from Axel.

Astrid made her way to the chair across from me, the dress hugging the small of her back, her thighs toned, everything about her sexy. She sat in the chair and placed her clutch at the end of the table. Her tits were perfect, like a prized painting from one of the greats. She crossed her legs, looked down at the menu, and then lifted her chin to look at me.

I met her stare and didn’t look down.

Axel had no shame. He looked at his menu, up at Scarlett’s tits, back at the menu…back and forth…like he didn’t know whether he cared more about dinner or a rack he’d seen hundreds of times.

Astrid grabbed her menu and looked down at the entrees.

My eyes stayed on her face, appreciating her sharp cheekbones, the way her eyes sparkled like emeralds in the candlelight. The dark makeup around her eyes gave them a smoky look, which matched the rest of the smoke show.

The waitress came to the table, and Axel ordered drinks for the two of them.

“I’ll take a scotch.” I looked at Astrid. “Would you like some wine?” I hadn’t gone out to a restaurant with her in a long time. It felt foreign but familiar at the same time.

“Sure,” she said.

“She’ll take the Bordeaux.”

The waitress left.

I looked down at my menu and felt Astrid’s stare. I recognized it because it felt the same as it had all the times she’d stared at me before. Every stare was like a signature. It couldn’t be forged. I set the menu aside.

“Lasagna?” she asked.

I had been planning to get the chicken marsala, but the playful question gave me a change of heart. “Yes. What about you?”

“I don’t know…”

“You better not get the salad.”

She smiled at my taunt. “I’m too hungry for a salad.”

“I’m getting the lasagna too,” Axel said. “What about you, baby?”

“Eggplant parmigiana sounds pretty good,” Scarlett said.

“That does sound good,” Astrid said. “I think I’m going to get that.”

The waitress brought the drinks, and then Axel ordered for the two of them.

I did the same.

The waitress left with the menus, and we were on our own.