10. Compare

Raelyn’s pov

No one had ever treated me this way. Never had a man open my car door, buckle me in, or pull out my chair.

I had never had someone put food on my plate to try. The opposite was more likely to happen, since Dylan hated sharing food. I had tried to take a bite of his food once when we started to date, and he got really annoyed by it. Claiming that if I wanted his meal, I should have ordered it.

Growing up, I and Grandma always shared our food, and even in movies, you see people sharing their dessert. Sharing food didn’t seem so weird to me, but because of Dylan's strong reaction, I decided not to try and share food with him again.

Even asking for a sip of his drink would make Dylan annoyed.

I scoffed internally while staring at the beautiful man who was eating more than I thought a human could eat.

I shouldn’t compare Dylan and Torin to each other. If I do, Dylan will come out even worse. I’m stuck with Dylan, and it’s better if I don’t hate him. If I see at least some good still in him.

Dylan has shown me there is no way out. There is no way for me to make money or to leave, and I have accepted this.

It doesn't matter anyway? A man like Torin wouldn’t want someone like me.

Maybe for a night, but not forever.

I have nothing to offer. I'm damaged goods. I’m not smart, I’m not that pretty, and I can’t really do anything well besides maybe keep a house clean.

I’m pretty sure someone like Torin has people to clean his house anyway.

“Raelyn, do you want a bite?” He offered me his fork, which had some food on it. We barely knew each other, yet he didn't act disgusted by the idea of my germs on his fork like Dylan would.

Torin must think I'm admiring the food, not the man scarfing it down.

I shook my head, “thank you, but I’m really full.”

I wasn’t lying. I had hardly eaten anything the past few days, too miserable to do anything but lie in bed. Eating seemed like too much effort.

In reality I had given up on everything until today. Yesterday I had decided that there was no point in fighting or trying to get out.

But now, with a full belly and a man who seemed to actually enjoy my company, I felt a glimmer of hope.

Not that it changed anything about my circumstances. But at least I didn’t feel so down anymore.

Torin offered to be friends. There were so many reasons to say no, but I couldn’t. This has been the best day in years. And even if Torin only wanted my company for some ulterior motive, I couldn't make myself say no to seeing him.

“Maybe we could meet for lunch more often,” I said, surprising Torin. I had avoided giving him a clear answer, and he hadn’t pushed me for one either.

With Torin I didn’t have to watch my words as much.

Here I go again, comparing the two…

Torin smiled. Wow… The only thing I could do when I saw him smile was smile back and admire him.

So we sat there at the small table, his leg touching mine, both grinning like crazy people.

“Maybe dinner too?” While his smirk was amazing, his real smile brought such joy.

I laughed as I shook my head, “now you’re pushing it.”

Torin winked at me, “okay, lunch it is. For now.”

“As friends.” I tried to say sternly.

“Of course…” But why did it sound like Torin didn’t mean it at all?

It had crossed my mind a few times, wondering why Torin was here with me. Maybe he had a thing for married women. To try and get them to sleep with him and then dump them. Maybe he truly felt lonely and recognized my loneliness.

There were several reasons why he would want to have lunch with me, and although none of them really made sense to me because I’m way out of his league, in the end I was just happy to have the possibility of a friend again.

To have someone to rely on. To talk to that actually seemed to listen to my words. When I speak, Torin looks at me; his replies show he has heard me.

When Dylan and I talk, it doesn’t really matter what I say. It has happened on multiple occasions that I was talking to Dylan in bed, and he actually fell asleep mid-sentence. I get one-word answers to long texts. However, he expects me to actively listen to him.

I assumed it was because what I had to say was too boring to pay attention to. But Torin doesn’t seem to think so.

“Your head is really busy, isn’t it?” Torin asked me, looking at me with a puzzled expression.

“What do you mean?” I replied.

“You seem to be thinking a lot, -“

I didn’t let him finish, immediately apologizing. It wasn’t my intention to insult Torin. “I am sorry; I’ll stop. I just, -“

Now it was Torin’s turn to interrupt me, “no, dimples. It’s cute, actually. At times, my mind can be quite busy too. It’s like I’m having whole conversations in there.”

He seemed to find his words amusing, because he chuckled a little. “I’m actually relieved when it’s quiet in there.”

I nodded, “I’m alone a lot, and so I guess I’m used to being alone with my thoughts. There are days that the only person I talk to is the woman at the grocery store.” I quickly covered my face, embarrassed by my admission. “I sound so lame, don’t I?”

Torin took my hand in front of my face and held it in his, “no, you don’t. And now you have me to talk to as well.”

“Yeah, because a billionaire and a housewife have so much in common,” I half joked.

“Well, we might.” He smirked, “now we know what we can talk about tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow?”

Torin squeezed my hand softly before letting go, “yes, you said we could have lunch more often, didn’t you? So, I’ll pick you up at the same time tomorrow.”

It wasn’t a question, even though there were ways for me to get out of this lunch if I truly wanted to. But I didn’t want to.

“Okay.”

“Well, let’s get going then. I sadly need to head back home for some work, but I’ll give you a lift back first.”

I shook my head, “I don’t mind walking back; I could use some fresh air.”

“Then I’ll walk you back.” There was no room to argue. Torin was dead set on getting me back home. It didn’t feel like a control issue though, more like he wanted to keep me safe.

Safe… If only he knew how I haven't felt safe in years.