The videos and photos hadn’t been professional.
That was the only thing he could think of that had possibly set Alana off.
But it wasn’t horrible. So they’d gone to a strip club. It was unfortunately part of his job when dealing with rich celebrities.
London exhaled and sat on the edge of his bed. Picking up his phone, he saw he had a missed call from Alana.
Before he could hit her number, Jaxon’s picture came across the screen. London hit the accept button.
Sighing, he answered the call with, “What is it?”
“Well, hello to you too, big brother,” Jaxon chuckled.
“What do you want, Jax?”
Standing, he finished drying himself off and snagged a pair of basketball shorts off his bed. Throwing them on, he walked over and hung the towel on the hook.
“Have you met your neighbors?” Jax asked.
London frowned and walked out of his bedroom. His body was already starting to ache. He had completed a brutal workout, trying to tire himself out.
“Yeah, I have. Why?”
Jogging down the stairs, he headed toward the kitchen, trying not to think of the weekend he had brought Alana here, where he’d taken her in pretty much every room.
Entering the kitchen, his gaze landed on the large island.
Fuck.
The second day Alana had stayed over, he had spread her out on the island and had her for lunch.
He could still hear her scream as she orgasmed.
Shaking his head, he made his way to the fridge.
“So, I’m entertaining some exquisite ladies, and these two chicks come banging on the door. A short one with huge glasses, and a taller one shaped like a Greek goddess,” Jaxon began.
London inhaled sharply.
Short with huge glasses.
That would be Alana.
His Alana.
What was she doing there?
“Okay?” London paused, waiting to see what else his brother had to say.
“I don’t know what was wrong with the shorter one—”
“What do you mean?” London snapped.
“She looked like death warmed over,” Jaxon replied. “Anyway, they both seemed to be confused when they saw me.”
“What do you mean, she looked like death warmed over?” London stalked out of the kitchen, forgetting what he had gone in there for to begin with. If something was wrong with Alana, he had to go to her.
“As in, the woman was sick,” Jaxon advised, exasperated.
“I’ve got to go. I’ll call you back.”
Hanging up on his brother, he found a clean T-shirt in the laundry room and threw on his tennis shoes. He was out the door in five minutes flat and speeding down the driveway.
A sense a déjà vu filled London as he marched down the hall toward Alana’s apartment. This time, the door opened, and her friend Sofie stepped out into the hallway and shut the door. They’d met a few times, but he hadn’t really spent time with her.
Sofie cleared her throat. “London.”
“Where’s Alana?” he demanded.
“She’s inside. She’s not feeling well.”
“I need to see her.”
Brushing past her, he banged on the door.
“I just got her into bed. Can’t you wait—”
“No.”
He didn’t care that Alana was pissed at him. He would apologize, and they would talk about it. Right now, he had to see her with his own eyes to make sure she was okay.
“Alana!”
He knew he was causing a ruckus, but he could care less.
The door opened, and Alana stood there in her nightshirt that stopped mid-thigh, and her bonnet. Not having her glasses on, she squinted up at him.
Pushing the door open, he made his way into her apartment, his heart sinking. She looked miserable.
“What are you doing here?” she asked, taking a step back.
“I heard you were sick.”
“I tried to tell him you weren’t feeling well,” Sofie huffed.
“It’s okay, Sofie. I’m good.” Alana smiled softly. “I’ll call you tomorrow.”
“Okay.” Sofie hesitated, her gaze darting back and forth between them. With a wave, she left out the door, shutting it gently behind her.
“What’s wrong, babe?” he asked as he stepped forward, wanting to hold her.
She held up a hand and grimaced. “You shouldn’t come close. I could be contagious.”
“I don’t care.” He pulled her to him and wrapped his arms around her. It felt so good to feel her soft form against him. “We need to talk, Alana.”
“We do,” she sniffed, her forehead lying against his chest. He slid a hand to her forehead, not sensing a fever.
“Let’s get you to bed,” Scooping her up into his arms, he carefully carried her back into her bedroom.
“If you get sick, I’m not responsible,” she joked.
“I’ll be fine.”
Laying her down, he pulled the covers over her as she leaned back against the pillows, facing him. He took a seat on the edge of the bed, taking her in. Even though she was sick, she was still the most beautiful woman in the world.
“Who told you I was sick?” she asked.
“Jaxon called to say two weird women came over, and one looked like death warmed over,” he chuckled.
She stiffened.
He wasn’t sure why.
Reaching for her hand, he laced their fingers together.
“Look, I just want to explain some things,” he began, studying their hands, taking in the darker contrast of her skin against his. “I’m sure you saw some things online, and I want to say that going out to clubs and parties comes with the job, unfortunately. Before, I would get caught up in everything and enjoy myself immensely.”
“I remember.”
Looking into her brown eyes, he pressed a kiss to the back of her hand.
“But then I met you, and everything changed. You’re all I think about. It’s you I want to be with.”
He wasn’t going to go much deeper than this for the moment. He could wait until she felt better to have the conversation about them moving in together.
“I saw your Instagram page, and I may have gotten a little upset,” she admitted, her grip on his hand tightening. “I don’t like seeing women hanging all over you and trying to get your attention. I know I don’t look like them—”
“What?” He narrowed his gaze on her. What the hell was she talking about? She was gorgeous.
“Don’t patronize me. I’m not tall or thin. I don’t fit the type of women you usually dated.”
“Do you honestly think you aren’t beautiful?”
He still hated that she saw the parade of women who came and went when she looked at him.
“It’s not about me thinking I’m beautiful. It’s knowing that I probably won’t be able to hold your attention for long. I’m different. How long until you’re bored with the geeky girl next door?”
She released his hand and pushed up higher on the bed.
“Is that what you think? That I’m with you because you’re some flavor of the month I’ll soon tire of?” He was starting to get pissed.
She nibbled on her lip and stared at him, not saying a word.