TOO MANY WOMEN, NOT ENOUGH OF ANYONE
1599 Words
Adrian woke to the sound of his phone vibrating.
He opened one eye.
Unfamiliar bedroom.
Heavy curtains.
Morning light slipping through the edges.
Then he remembered.
Nina.
He turned.
She was asleep beside him.
Adrian reached for his phone.
Seven notifications.
Two emails from Marcus.
A message from Sophie.
One from Ollie.
And three from women.
He opened Ollie’s first.
You looked miserable last night.
Adrian frowned.
He typed:
Good morning to you too.
The reply came immediately.
I’m serious.
That’s your first mistake.
Three dots appeared.
Then:
Lauren?
Adrian stopped smiling.
He locked the phone.
Beside him, Nina stirred.
“Morning.”
“Morning.”
She stretched.
“You’re leaving, aren’t you?”
“I have work.”
“It’s Saturday.”
“Software doesn’t know that.”
She laughed.
“You really are exactly as advertised.”
Adrian sat up.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Don’t look offended.”
“I’m not.”
“You’re charming, busy and emotionally unavailable.”
He stared at her.
Nina smiled.
“Relax. I knew what I was signing up for.”
There it was again.
His reputation arriving before he did.
Adrian got dressed.
Nina watched him from the bed.
“Will I see you again?”
“Probably.”
“That’s not very romantic.”
“I never claimed to be romantic.”
She laughed.
“Definitely as advertised.”
Adrian smiled and left.
But her words followed him into the lift.
He had once been romantic.
Embarrassingly so.
Flowers for no reason.
Long messages.
Remembering anniversaries nobody else considered important.
Planning surprises.
Believing that effort could protect a relationship.
Now women laughed when he said he wasn’t romantic.
Because they believed him.
Maybe he believed it too.
⸻
His company occupied most of his attention during the following weeks.
A major client had offered them a contract that could transform the business.
Marcus was almost unbearable.
“This is it,” he said, pacing Adrian’s office.
“You said that about the last contract.”
“That was also it.”
“They can’t both be it.”
“There can be multiple its.”
Adrian laughed.
“You sound insane.”
“I sound rich.”
“You’re not rich yet.”
Marcus stopped.
“Neither are you.”
“Exactly.”
“Then stop smiling and finish the proposal.”
They worked late for four consecutive nights.
On Friday afternoon, the signed contract arrived.
Marcus shouted loudly enough for half the office to hear.
Adrian read the email twice.
Then leaned back.
They had done it.
Not everything.
Not yet.
But enough to know the company was no longer an experiment.
Employees gathered.
Someone produced champagne.
Marcus gave a terrible speech.
Adrian stood among the people they had hired and felt something he rarely allowed himself to feel.
Pride.
This was real.
He had built something.
Later, Marcus pulled him aside.
“Party tonight.”
“I’ve had four hours’ sleep.”
“Exactly why you need alcohol.”
“That logic is frightening.”
“Everyone’s coming.”
Adrian sighed.
“Fine.”
The celebration moved from the office to a private club in Soho.
By eleven, Adrian was surrounded by colleagues, friends and strangers.
Then Ollie arrived.
He hugged Adrian.
“Congratulations.”
“Thank you.”
“I’m proud of you.”
Adrian looked suspicious.
“Have you been drinking?”
“Several.”
“That explains the emotion.”
Ollie laughed.
Then his expression changed.
“Lauren’s here.”
Adrian went still.
“Where?”
Ollie nodded toward the opposite side of the room.
Lauren stood with two women near the bar.
She looked beautiful.
She also looked happy.
Adrian hadn’t spoken to her since their last call.
For weeks, he had convinced himself that was exactly what he wanted.
Seeing her made the lie harder to maintain.
“She hasn’t seen you,” Ollie said.
“Good.”
“Go talk to her.”
“No.”
“Why?”
“Because there’s nothing to say.”
“There’s always something to say.”
“Ollie.”
“Fine.”
Adrian reached for his drink.
Then Lauren looked across the room.
Their eyes met.
She didn’t look angry.
That would have been easier.
She simply smiled politely.
Then turned back to her friends.
Adrian hated it.
“What were you expecting?” Ollie asked.
“Nothing.”
“You’re staring.”
“I’m not.”
“You absolutely are.”
Adrian turned away.
“Get a hobby.”
“You are my hobby.”
Before Adrian could respond, a woman approached.
“Adrian Cole?”
He looked at her.
She was stunning.
Tall.
Deep brown skin.
Elegant black dress.
Confidence in every movement.
“Yes?”
“Bianca.”
She offered her hand.
“We met at Marcus’s launch event last year.”
Adrian remembered vaguely.
“Of course.”
“You don’t remember me.”
“I do.”
“Liar.”
He smiled.
“Would you prefer an honest apology?”
“I’d prefer a drink.”
“That can be arranged.”
Ollie muttered, “Unbelievable.”
Bianca looked at him.
“Sorry?”
“Nothing. I’m leaving.”
He walked away.
Bianca turned back to Adrian.
“I’ve heard interesting things about you.”
Adrian groaned.
“Please don’t say it.”
“The Stud Man?”
“There it is.”
She laughed.
“You hate that name?”
“More every day.”
“You don’t behave like someone who hates the reputation.”
Adrian studied her.
“Maybe people exaggerate.”
“Do they?”
“Usually.”
Bianca moved closer.
“Then perhaps I should investigate personally.”
Adrian smiled.
Normally, he would have enjoyed the challenge immediately.
Tonight, his eyes betrayed him.
They moved toward Lauren.
Bianca noticed.
“Someone important?”
“No.”
“That’s a very quick answer.”
“She’s an old friend.”
Across the room, a man had joined Lauren.
He whispered something into her ear.
Lauren laughed.
Something unpleasant tightened in Adrian’s stomach.
Bianca followed his gaze.
“Old friend?”
“Yes.”
“Right.”
Adrian looked back at her.
“What?”
“Nothing.”
“Say it.”
“You’re jealous.”
He laughed.
“No.”
“Definitely jealous.”
“I don’t get jealous.”
“Everyone gets jealous.”
“I don’t.”
Bianca smiled.
“Whatever helps you sleep.”
Adrian ordered another drink.
When he looked back, the man’s hand rested lightly on Lauren’s waist.
Adrian’s jaw tightened.
Ridiculous.
Lauren wasn’t his.
She had never been his.
He had made sure of that.
So why did he want the man to move his hand?
Lauren looked over.
She saw Adrian watching.
Then she saw Bianca beside him.
Their eyes held for a moment.
Adrian expected something.
Jealousy.
Pain.
Anything.
Lauren simply looked away.
That hurt more than it should have.
Bianca touched his arm.
“Dance with me.”
Adrian looked at her.
“Why not?”
He followed her.
The music was loud.
Bianca was beautiful.
Men watched her.
Women watched Adrian.
Everything about the moment should have fed the ego he had spent years building.
Instead, he found himself wondering whether Lauren had left.
After the song, he returned to the bar.
She was gone.
Ollie appeared.
“Happy?”
Adrian frowned.
“What?”
“You spent half the night watching Lauren while another woman was practically wrapped around you.”
“Nothing happened with Lauren.”
“That’s not what I asked.”
Adrian finished his drink.
“I’m going home.”
“Alone?”
“Yes.”
Ollie’s eyebrows rose dramatically.
“A historic evening.”
“Shut up.”
Outside, London was alive.
Adrian walked instead of calling a taxi.
Cold air cleared his head.
He told himself Bianca hadn’t interested him enough.
That was all.
It had nothing to do with Lauren.
His phone vibrated.
Bianca.
You disappeared.
Then another.
I thought the Stud Man had better manners.
Adrian almost smiled.
He typed an apology, deleted it, then put the phone away.
Another vibration.
For one second, he hoped.
Lauren.
It wasn’t.
Sophie.
Mum wants Sunday lunch. Don’t invent work.
Adrian smiled.
I’ll be there.
He continued walking.
At home, the apartment felt unusually large.
Everything inside it had been chosen carefully.
Expensive furniture.
Clean lines.
City lights through enormous windows.
It represented everything his younger self wanted.
Success.
Independence.
Proof.
Adrian loosened his tie and sat on the sofa.
His phone remained silent.
He opened his contacts.
Scrolled.
Stopped at Lauren.
He could call.
Say he was sorry.
Ask whether she wanted coffee.
No seduction.
No games.
Just conversation.
His thumb hovered over her name.
Then Vanessa’s voice returned from years earlier.
You need a woman to prove that you’re enough.
Adrian locked the phone.
No.
He didn’t need Lauren.
He didn’t need anyone.
That was the whole point.
He walked toward the bedroom.
On the way, he caught his reflection in the dark window.
Successful.
Confident.
Desired.
The man he had fought so hard to become.
Yet for the first time, Adrian wondered whether there was a difference between not needing someone…
and being terrified of needing them.
The thought irritated him.
So he buried it.
Just like everything else.
But the Stud Man was beginning to discover something his rules had never prepared him for.
A man could have more women than he once dreamed possible…
and still go home feeling completely alone.
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