Still You Still Me Still Falling novel Chapter 133

"Could I treat you to dinner?" Sheila asked.

"You want to buy me dinner? Hell must be—"

She knew exactly what he was about to say.

Not letting him finish, she cut in, "Yes, tomorrow night. Around six o'clock. Does that work for you?"

"Sheila," Edmond's voice dropped an octave, smooth and dangerous. "Are you sure about this?"

"I'm sure." She glanced at the phone Lanny had slid across the table and read off the name of the restaurant. "Tomorrow night. Are you free?"

Dead silence fell over the line.

Sheila gripped the phone, her knuckles turning white again.

The two older men were practically holding their breath, terrified he was going to say no.

Seconds ticked by like hours before Edmond finally spoke. "Tomorrow night? Fine."

Not wanting to give him a chance to say anything else, she quickly replied, "Great. See you tomorrow, then."

She ended the call.

The room remained completely silent for several moments.

Lanny finally snapped out of it, looking at her in disbelief. "How did... how did you just..."

"That was..." Clarence also looked bewildered. "You just hung up on him?"

"What else was I supposed to do?" Sheila asked innocently. "I was just asking him to dinner, right?"

"But..." Lanny started, trailing off. "I just got the feeling that the vibe between you two was a bit..."

*A bit abnormal.*

But he didn't have the nerve to actually say it.

"Clarence, if there's nothing else, do you mind if I head home now?" Sheila asked.

"Are you full, sweetie?"

"I'm stuffed."

"Alright, drive safe."

On her drive back, Sheila racked her brain, trying to figure out why on earth Edmond had taken her call.

And even if he took it, why did he agree to the dinner?

"I actually have some explaining to do, too," Sheila said quickly.

"You said you needed a favor," Edmond replied. "What is it? And what do you need to explain?"

She gave him a brief, hurried rundown of the situation.

Edmond let out a cold, sharp laugh. "You've got some nerve, Sheila. I'll give you that."

"I'm sorry, my back was against a wall," she pleaded. "If I had any other choice, I never would have called you."

Her words only fueled his anger. "Who do you think you are? You think just because you ask for a favor, I have to grant it?"

"Of course not. I know that's impossible, which is exactly why I wanted to explain things to you."

"Fine. Explain."

"You don't have to show up tomorrow," Sheila instructed. "Tomorrow night, when I'm sitting there with Lanny, I'll call you again. You don't even have to answer. Or if you do, just reject me flat out..."

"And why the hell should I take orders from you?"

Sheila blinked, stunned. "Look, I know I shouldn't have called. I know we agreed to never contact each other again, and I can keep that promise, but this was an emergency—"

Before she could finish her sentence, Edmond hung up on her.