“If it’s embarrassing, sure.”
“When I was fourteen, there was this girl I really liked. I’d been seeing her for a while, and we’d had some pretty heavy make-out sessions under the bleachers at school and in her bedroom when her parents thought we were studying. We finally reached the point where she said she was ready to go all the way, so I met her at a park by her house. It was dark and we crept up into this covered slide and took off each other’s clothes. I got so overly excited that when I tried to put on the condom, I came all over my hand.”
Kate’s eyes widened. “Fourteen? Seriously?”
“Did you not hear the part where I came on my hand? This is incredibly embarrassing information I’m sharing with you.”
“I’m sure it was quite awkward.”
“It was, but since I was so young I got hard again about three minutes later. I pretty much nailed it on the second attempt. In case you were wondering, I have much more control now.”
“I think there are probably other, more legitimately embarrassing, stories you could share. I’m equally sure you’re not going to tell me any of them.”
“Probably not.” He leaned against the metal railing of the steps. “I gather from the plans you made with Kent that an afternoon get-together is an acceptable option for our first date? It just so happens I have a meeting at one o’clock on Monday at U.S. Bank. I’ll swing by afterward and take you to a late lunch. How does that sound?”
Why not? she thought. Curiosity had become the driving factor in her decision-making process. Ian intrigued her in a way Stuart never had.
“I suppose that will work.”
“Speaking of Kent,” Ian said, shaking his head. “He wasn’t a nice guy. After I got done going through his online dating account, I snooped around on his computer. Found quite a few videos on his hard drive. In the clips he’s having sex with lots of different women. I can’t be sure, but it seemed to me by the way he posed them that they might not have been aware the camera was running.”
Kate’s face fell. She imagined a possible scenario in which she was starring in one of those tapes without her knowledge or consent. Then she thought of those tapes being shared and watched by other men, and her stomach lurched.
The cab pulled up to the curb.
“So I’ll see you on Monday, okay?” Ian said. She didn’t answer. “Katie?”
“Can you make those videos disappear?” Kate thought of the women who had no idea they were being recorded or how many men might someday view the videos.
“Consider it done.” He jogged down the steps, and after he opened the door of the cab, he turned around and said, “You think I’m one of the bad guys, Katie, but you and I are more alike than you realize.”
He blew her a kiss, and Kate watched the cab drive away, desperately wanting to believe him.
CHAPTER SIX
Kate ducked behind a large potted plant in the lobby of the bank on Monday afternoon at a little before one o’clock. She was curious about Ian’s meeting and had decided she’d do a bit of sleuthing under the guise of meeting him at the bank instead of waiting for him to pick her up at the food pantry. When he walked through the front door five minutes later, Kate slid down in her seat. He was dressed in a pair of dark jeans and an untucked green button-down shirt, with his leather jacket on over them. He was also wearing glasses. Kate peered carefully around the plant and watched as he pushed the button for the elevator. As soon as the doors closed, she approached the elevator, and when they opened again she stepped in.