Total pages in book: 155
Estimated words: 157672 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 788(@200wpm)___ 631(@250wpm)___ 526(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 157672 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 788(@200wpm)___ 631(@250wpm)___ 526(@300wpm)
“Mishap?” The question is loaded with skepticism.
The night in the bar flashes in my mind. The way she closed down and bolted when she discovered I was a cop. There’s something behind that look that settles uneasily in my gut. It’s more than apprehension; it’s fear.
“What kind of mishap leaves welts and scars on your skin?” All light-heartedness is gone as she shuts down.
“Willow—” I stop, not sure exactly what to say.
“Forget I asked. It’s not in your file so it’s obviously irrelevant to your rehab treatment plan. Which makes it none of my business.”
“Willow—”
She cuts me off. “I’ll let Koch know about our session. You did well. He’ll return on Wednesday.”
It’s clear I’ve been dismissed when she wheels the cart away without another word.
My phone dings and I hold in my groan when I check the message.
Ford
You almost fucking done?
I glance around for Willow, not finding her, Bex, or Lucas anywhere.
Ford is waiting with a scowl when I hit the waiting room.
“Took you for fucking ever,” he grouses.
“No one asked you to come supervise.”
“Try and tell Rowan that.”
“Get your woman under control.”
He balks as if I’ve hit him, his facial expression going hard. “You fucking high?”
It was a dick thing to say. Even if it’s partially true. She may be overbearing, but her heart is in the right place.
“What crawled up your ass?”
I ignore him, heading for the door.
“Oh, shit. Is that the woman from the bar?”
I twist to see Willow talking to the receptionist. Her eyes meet before her attention goes back to the papers in her hand. Even in the brief second, I caught the flicker of heat between us.
“Yeah, it’s her.”
“Tell me you at least got her name this time.” Ford’s tone is laced with amusement.
“Yeah, I got her name.”
“Makes sense now. Your grumpy ass got shot down, again.”
Goddammit, the last thing I need is to take his shit. I should learn to keep my mouth shut.
He has no idea I had her name within an hour of her leaving Tom’s. DMV record was easy but I was sitting on the information. The woman obviously had hang-ups about my job.
It was one fucking kiss.
But it wasn’t. It was the way I was drawn to her at first glance.
The way she felt in my arms.
It was an awakening and I’d been holding back.
Not anymore.
3
WILLOW
“You know I love you, but you’re being stupid.” Bex pops the lid off her salad and glares at it with contempt.
“Is it safe to sit?” Lucas motions to the empty chair.
“Only if you’re ready for a talk-some-sense-into-Wills conversation.”
“Figures it’s girl talk.”
“Sit down and give a male perspective,” she snaps at him.
“This should be fucking great,” he mumbles, plopping next to me. “What did she do now? Kiss another stranger because she can’t kick a guy to the curb?”
“Something like that. The stranger isn’t a stranger anymore. He has a name, Talon Simms.”
“The guy with the shoulder? Now I get the tension.”
“Yes, she’s being stupid.”
“Backhanded insults not appreciated.” I spear my lettuce with more force than necessary. My mood has been shitty since Talon left yesterday.
“It’s not an insult, it’s an observation. The guy is obviously into you, and you’re turning him down because why? He’s a cop.”
“When I grew up, an officer of the law was a noble profession and well admired,” Lucas adds.
“When you grew up? What are you, my grandma? We’re the same age.”
“You’re playing it safe. Safe is not good for you. He-who-should-be-castrated was safe. And he was a bore,” Bex goes on.
I love the little names Bex comes up with when referring to Joe. But sometimes her words hit a little too close for comfort. “Another insult. Every time you call him a bore reflects on me.”
“Don’t be a baby.”
“I’m not being a baby. Seriously, I was with him for a long time.”
“Yes, and in that time, what did he ever do that was exciting? ”
“If he was that awful, what does that say about me?”
“That you have a soft spot for the unfortunate.”
“I’ve always wondered if you had to schedule sex with dipshit.”
I drop my fork, my appetite completely gone.
Lucas has been in school with Bex and me for years. He met Joseph a few times, but it was near the end of our relationship when things were basically dead.
He doesn’t know how correct he is about the sex.
“They did,” Bex outs me. “Well, until they stopped having sex altogether because he was getting it from the side chick. Which I thank him for not sharing the diseases.”
“Oh my God, can we not talk about this?” The essence of a headache throbs at my temple.
Bex’s hand covers mine, her eyes going soft. “This may not be the best place to discuss it, but I’ve held it in for too long.”
“We’re in the break room at work. It’s the absolute worst place to discuss anything about my pathetic life.”