No.
I shove off the couch and walk out to the kitchen, my hands shaking. I absolutely cannot go there—with him or anyone else. It’s been twelve years since I was stupid enough to let a man into my life and I won’t survive another heartbreak. Bracing my hands on the countertop, the calendar on the wall catches my eye and I suck in a breath. I should have just taken this whole week off and gone to Fiji or something. I could be lying on a beach, sipping a cocktail instead of obsessing about the one night I wish I could forget.
Rounding the island, I walk back over to the couch to grab my phone, contemplating if I should call one of my past hook-ups but I’m greeted by a text from Chance.
Chance:
I know you felt it, too.
Goddamn it.
He’s right and I hate it. Of course, I felt it. Was there anyone in a one-block radius that didn’t sense the electricity between us? I should just dismiss the text, call someone to scratch this itch, or go to bed but the pull is too strong. Even as I tell myself to ignore his message, my fingers are already tapping out a reply.
Me:
So, what if I did?
Sinking into the couch, I wonder if I just made an epic mistake and sold my soul to the devil.
Or if I even care anymore.
Chapter Three
Chance
Me:
You ready to go out with me yet?
I press send and smirk, imagining her reaction as I tuck the phone back into my pocket and grab my bottle of beer from the table. It won’t work; I understand that, but she and I both know there is something here and I’ll keep pushing until she gives in.
“What is that dumbass smile on your face for?” Kodiak asks and I shrug.
“Nothing.”
“Bull…”
The slam of a door upstairs cuts him off and we both slowly turn toward the stairs as Storm appears at the top and stomps down them, a look of murder on his face. I glance over at Kodiak, who shrugs before glancing over at our VP again.
“Move your ass. We got shit to do,” Storm barks, slapping a folder down on the table in front of me without stopping as he continues marching toward the front door.
“Yeah. Good luck with that,” Kodiak mutters, watching Storm shove open the door and step outside. I haven’t got a fucking clue what’s going on with my best friend lately, but he’s been crankier than usual. Taking one last pull of my beer, I grab the folder and my cut off the back of the chair before following him out. When I get out to the parking lot, Storm is already sitting behind the steering wheel of his truck, his arms crossed over his chest, and I jog over to the passenger side and climb in.
“Where are we going?”
He glances down at the folder in my hand before backing out of the parking space. “Read that shit and you’ll have your fucking answer.”
“Jesus, man. What the hell crawled up your ass and died?”
“Go fuck yourself,” he grumbles as he pulls away from the clubhouse and I shake my head as I lean back and flip open the folder, scanning its contents quickly.
“First of all, fuck you, too, and how hard would it have been for you to just say we have a surveillance job to do?” I ask as I flip through the pages, trying to soak up as much information as possible before we reach our location. Our client is a local business owner who hired us to watch his employees and find out where they go on their breaks. It seems easy enough but annoying as shit. I started doing the PI work because I liked the job and I wanted to help people but doing this kind of thing makes me hate it.
“Probably about as hard as it was for you to just open the fucking thing and read.”
Closing the folder, I slap it down on my lap and stare at him. “Seriously, what the fuck is your problem?”
“Just leave it alone,” he snaps before sighing and running his fingers through his hair. Yeah, something is definitely going on with him but pushing him has never worked in the past. Storm and I have been friends since we were kids, but he was different back then. He’s been through more shit than most people deal with in two lifetimes and even as his best friend, I don’t know how to help him sometimes.
“Things okay with Alison?”
“I said to leave it the fuck alone,” he roars and I shake my head, turning away from him to hide my smile. Of course, it’s about Alison. Since the moment she walked into his life, he’s been all sorts of twisted up about the woman. I would feel bad for him if it wasn’t so fucking funny that he can’t seem to get his bearing when it comes to her. My phone buzzes in my pocket and I yank it out, eager to read the response from Carly.
Carly:
Has hell frozen over?
I laugh out loud, picturing the challenge on her face when I asked her for her number in the parking garage and wishing she was standing in front of me right now so I could see it again. Storm glares in my direction, his gaze flicking down to the phone in my hand before returning to the road.
Me:
If I say yes, will you?
With a smirk on my face, I tuck my phone back into my pocket and shake my head. From the moment I met her, standing on Alison’s lawn in that sexy as hell black dress I wanted to peel off of her and the red leather jacket that seemed out of place but somehow still fit, she’s all I can seem to think about. As troubling as it was at first, I’ve decided to embrace it. Not like I had any kind of choice. She turned her haunting gray eyes in my direction and it was like a punch to the gut I couldn’t walk away from. It’s fucking insane because I know nothing about her and the situation is less than ideal but from the jump, I’ve had this nagging sensation deep down in my soul that she’s special—that there’s something different about this girl. And her playing hard to get is only making me more interested. I’m fucking dying to find out what makes her tick, what makes her melt, and why she seems so hell-bent on avoiding the attraction between us. My phone goes off again.
Carly:
Probably not.
Me:
Only probably not?
Seems we’re making progress.
“Who the fuck are you talking to?” Storm grumbles as we pull up in front of the business we are keeping an eye on today. I shrug.
“Carly.”
His head whips in my direction and he stares at me for a second before shaking his head. “No.”
“What?”
“You can’t see her.”
Flashing him a tight smile, I cross my arms over my chest and my brow quirks up. “What the fuck makes you think you can tell me to stop seeing her?”
“You’re gonna fuck things up with Alison and I,” he says, meeting my glare and not backing down. Storm may be my best friend, but he is fucking delusional if he thinks he gets a say in this.
I let out a sardonic laugh and nod. “Yeah, seems like you’re doing a fine job of fucking it up all by yourself.”
The tension in the cab skyrockets and he clenches his fists. “You don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about.”
“Sure, I do. You’ve been an unreasonable asshole since the break-in so I’m sure she’s just about over you and your shit.”