“It was once, and I sure as hell didn’t touch him,” Ky scoffed, shooting a stern look of warning at Josh. I watched on amusingly as a silent conversation started between them. I will admit that the thought of Ky and Josh doing that was definitely a good image to keep locked in my head.
“The things you find out,” I teased with a raised brow. “That’s kind of hot though.”
“Not happening,” Ky growled and moved closer toward me, putting his body between Josh and me.
Josh deep laughter filled my ears. “Rightio Tarzan I’m not touching your girl. There is no fucking way I’d let you share her anyway.”
Hearing Josh call me Ky’s girl sent a searing heat through me. So much had changed in such a short amount of time. I wasn’t hiding behind a mask anymore and I wasn’t pretending. I didn’t know whether it was because I was seeing Ky every day and talking to him just about every hour or whether it was because he was so damn confident and told me how it was without regard or fear of my reaction.
“When is dinner arriving? A girl is famished.” Ashlyn’s husky voice rang from the hall and the sound of two sets of footsteps bounced off the tiled floor. She wasn’t alone. I felt Ky’s body tense against me and immediately I grabbed his hand, interlocking his fingers with mine. Ashlyn and who I now assumed was Lachlan appeared from around the corner and stopped dead in their tracks as both of their eyes landed on a highly unpredictable Ky.
“Stay with me,” I whispered, leaning protectively into the side of his rigid body. Ky’s grip on my hand burned with strength. Without a second of hesitation, he twisted his body and stood before me with a face of thunder. My legs parted instinctively and his body was soon flush against mine. My hands fell to his waist and gripped the cotton fabric of his t-shirt anxious to keep him from running. I didn’t care who was in the room, who was watching us with wide eyes, who was confused by my actions. My only focus was Ky and the torment flashing within his darkened eyes.
“We need to leave. We can’t be here.” Ky’s breath caressed my ear as he whispered so pointedly. “Please,” he continued to beg.
“No.”
He pulled away so quickly tearing the soothing warmth of his body from mine. I felt the air leave my lungs the moment his brows pinched together, and his eyes began to scrutinize me. Panic engulfed me, swallowing me whole, leaving my body completely frozen in fear. I did it again. One simple word spoken. No. What the hell was I thinking? With complete desperation to flee I pushed back on the stool, but his strong body was like an impenetrable brick wall and I was cornered. I lost all ability to hear, to feel, to breathe—the comfort I had just felt with him disappeared into thin air. All I saw were those eyes and the unreadable look on his face. Like the world was taunting me, time faltered and then stopped completely.
Before my eyes, his face transformed and softness flashed before me. With a delicate caress his fingertip traced my jawline, and then lingered on my bottom lip while his eyes never left mine. The tension in my body floated away as he took a step back toward me and this time his arms fell around my waist. “You said no,” he breathed effortlessly.
“I’m sorry,” I stuttered, the fear that was strangling me slowly easing. “We can go.”
“Never apologize for saying no. Never.” Ky’s voice was so strong yet pleading with me to believe.
“Eden?” a strong Australian accent questioned. Ky swung around toward Lachlan and by the tension in Ky’s shoulders I knew something silent was spoken between them. “Ashlyn was just telling me about her new friend. I am Lachlan, but my friends call me Lachie.”
“Hi Lachie, it’s nice to meet you.” I held out my hand and was greeted by a strong handshake. Ky remained still, silent, and on guard beside me. The tension in the room was palpable. You could slice it with a knife. “Can you teach me Australian?”
The silence was swallowed by riotous laughter. Was what I asked really that amusing?
“Eden, Australian isn’t a language! Pretty girl, you crack me up. Ky please keep her around, purely for my amusement,” Josh said through roars of laughter.
“Australian slang you idiot,” I retorted and rolled my eyes
Once they stopped laughing at my request we all settled in the living room around the coffee table. Josh had outdone himself with ordering dinner, and we gorged ourselves with pizza. Conversation flowed but I noticed that Ky was sticking close to my side and barely saying a word.
“Are you going to talk to him or at least speak with Ash and see what’s going on?” I asked softly. “I think that’s what you need to do.”
I tried to read the expression crossing his face, but I was at a loss. His eyes beamed of sweet honey, wide and alert, taking everything around him in. I sucked in a deep breath as his hand softly brushed my thigh under the table, and I froze awaiting his next move.
“You’ve got an amazing ability to make me see things I never thought I would.”
He rose from the space beside me, and everyone’s attention fell to him, awaiting his next move.
“Lachlan, kitchen?” His voice showed no hint of emotion. “Josh, you should come too.”
“Uh, sure.” Lachlan seemed unsure, and I knew he had every reason to be. Ky was highly on edge so anything was possible.
I watched the three of them leave the living room and head toward the kitchen, and I sighed in relief. I felt eyes on me, and I removed my gaze from the three men talking softly in the kitchen to turn and find Ashlyn looking at me with wide inquisitive eyes.
“What?” I laughed nervously.
“I wish you could see what you are doing.”
Okay.
What was I meant to say to something like that? A million scenarios ran through my head. I wasn’t trying to do anything. I was simply trying to bide my time while I was in New York until I went back to my comfortable life, with my comfortable home and my comfortable façade. This city uncovered memories I wished I never had and it put me in places I never wanted to revisit; it made me look over my shoulder and question everyone who gave me a second look. And now those stupid text messages were become more regular.
“I meant that in a good way babe.” Ashlyn rose from the floor and grabbed my hand and pulled me toward the couch. Thankfully it provided a view of the kitchen so we could keep an eye on what was happening, not that we could actually do anything if a fight broke out.
My gaze traveled into the kitchen until it found Ky. He stood beside Josh with his arms folded defensively over his chest and his brow etched with a frown as he stared at Lachlan. Lachlan looked animated as he spoke and time and time again he would shake his head. My interest flared as I watched the three men. How was Lachlan possibly going to get out of this mess? He would have to have a good reason because Ky’s anger was on clear display.
Grinding his jaw … Check. Glare in his eye ... Check. Intimidating stance... Check. If Ky had 'Beyond pissed off' boxes, they’d all be checked.
“I love my best friend, he is the best guy I know, but I also know his downfalls.”
Ashlyn’s soft voice pulled away from the looking into the kitchen. I shifted on the couch and turned to Ashlyn and found her eyes on me and worry etched over her face.
“The Ky I am seeing now; the Ky who isn’t staying at work until early hours of the morning, the Ky who is sitting on the floor eating pizza, the Ky who is now standing in the kitchen attempting to make amends with someone who broke his best friend, is different and it’s because of you,” she continued in a rush and her words hit me square in the gut.
“I, ah, I’m not really doing anything. I don’t have much experience with guys so I’m probably really awkward and standoffish. I am actually really nervous around him, around all guys most of the time.”
“Have you been with anyone… since?” she asked softly, and I knew exactly what she was talking about.
“Just one.”
“Was he a boyfriend?”
I thought of Colby and happiness flooded me. Our night together was somethi
ng I would never forget. For those couple of hours we spent together, he made me feel like I was a goddess who wasn’t broken and that I could actually feel and be loved. He had kissed me and touched me lovingly, and I trusted him with every ounce of me.
“He is my best friend. It was just once, and it meant the world to me. People think he is this scary guy cause of his tattoos and what the press says, but he is the sweetest and most kind hearted guy I have ever met.”
“Hold on a second. Tattoos. Press. Best friend. Holy shit.”
“Colby,” I admitted, and Ashlyn’s eyes shot wide.
“As in ‘the sex god drummer from The Fallen’ Colby?” her voice screeched.
“As in ‘my best friend, teddy bear, sweetheart’ Colby.”
“Fuck me.”
“You’ll get to meet him at the shoot,” I admitted with a smile. “He is a ladies’ man so I am sure he will flirt with a beauty like you.”
“God, I’ll probably die.”
“Please don’t die. You are my only girlfriend here.”
Laughter sounded from the kitchen and called an abrupt end to my chat with Ashlyn. Standing against the kitchen island, the three guys laughed and drank beer like they were the best of friends and that it wasn’t just moments ago that Ky wanted to physically hurt Lachlan. Ky moved his gaze from Josh and his eyes found mine. I was locked in as he completely dissolved me in one look. He was confusing. The man eyeing at me so intensely, so enticing, wasn’t the man who snapped at me in his office just a couple of days ago. The way he was looking at me now sent shivers down my spine; it made the hairs on my arms stand to attention and made my mind cross to a place that had been closed off for four years. To say that I was dangling on the edge of reality and fantasy was probably the best way to describe it.
Once their beers were finished, Ky, Josh, and Lachlan walked into the living room. Their eyes jumped from me to Ashlyn and then back again.
“What have we missed?” Josh asked as he sat beside me on the couch and his arm fell across my shoulders.
“Just girl talk,” I responded with a smile.
“And by girl talk, do you mean talking about boys?” he teased with a wiggle of his eyebrows.
“Joshua Crawford, I feel sorry for the girl who finally sweeps you off your feet.”
“I have no plans of being swept any time soon Ashy.”
“Ky, your brother has seriously lost his mind.”| Ashlyn laughed and wrapped her arm around Ky’s waist. “Come make me one of those famous Ky Crawford cocktails.”
Ky nodded while still looking at me closely. Ashlyn pulled him closer, and they walked toward the bar chatting quietly amongst themselves. I turned back to Josh and Lachlan and fell into conversation about Australia. I finally learned some of the Aussie slang that I had originally asked for before realizing that Australian impersonations really weren’t my thing.
The night soon came to an end, exhaustion was hitting me full force, and all I wanted to do was crawl into bed. Tonight was completely unexpected, and I never thought coming here would result in Ky telling me he wanted to kiss me again, or that I’d have girl talk on the couch and meet an Australian. It was a crazy whirlwind in my head and I was still trying to sift through the layers. After saying our goodnights, I walked out with Ky and waited in the warmed of the foyer waiting for the cab to arrive to take me back to the hotel.
I suddenly felt shy under the intensity of his gaze and his smirk hadn’t left since he walked me down. “I have every intention to ask you to stay tonight, but I won’t because I’d only want you to say yes for the right reasons and I know you aren’t there yet.” His voice was so smooth.
It was about this time that I stopped breathing.
“Don’t look panicked. I’m not asking you Eden.” The cab driver hit the horn as he pulled up and Ky pulled me close to the warmth of his body, placing a sweet kiss on my forehead. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow. Stay safe.”
Walking into my darkened apartment, I switched on the lights and the space immediately illuminated. It had just clocked over to midnight, and I couldn’t stop thinking about the awkward goodbye I shared with Eden.
So much had changed in such a short amount of time. I was no longer working sixteen-hour days; I wasn’t spending more time at work than I was at home. Fuck, I even had food in my fridge these days. That wasn’t Ky Crawford. She was getting under my skin at an alarming rate, and I was losing sight of what I had set out to achieve in the first place.
The sound of my phone ringing echoed through the air and as I looked at the screen, I was shocked to find Eden’s name flash on the screen.
I pushed the answer button.
“Ky, please come and get me.” She didn’t even give me a chance to speak.
“Eden, what’s wrong?” I asked, rushing back towards the door and grabbing my keys.
“Someone’s been in my room.” Her voice was so panicked and breathless with fear.
My body went rigid. “Eden, go to the front desk. I’ll be there in ten minutes.”
I hung up the phone and bolted out of my apartment, determination flooding my veins. I bypassed the elevator because of the time it would take to go down fourteen floors; I couldn’t risk stopping at any floors and wasting any more time. Time was not on mine or Eden’s side right now. I ran down fourteen flights of stairs to get to the underground garage with only one goal in mind. Get to Eden.
I was at Hotel De Luca within eight minutes, having made five traffic violations in the process. As I pulled to the curb, I found Eden standing outside on the sidewalk with her arms wrapped tightly around her body as her eyes darted around feverishly looking for protection and any sign of danger. My car was in park before I could blink and I sprinted from the car until I was in front of her. My desperate eyes scanned her face and her body for any signs of hurt. She was shaking so violently and the look of pure fear on her face tore at my defenses. I pulled her close to my chest, one arm around her waist and the other around her shoulders, allowing my hand to rest on the back of her head. She fell into my arms, and I felt the rigidness of her body soften against the warmth of my chest. I didn’t know how long we stood on the sidewalk, all I knew was that I’d give her what she needed until she pushed me away.
“I should go and see if there is another room available.” Her muffled words against my chest startled me.
“Eden, there is no way in hell that you are staying here.”
Her blue eyes flashed up to mine.
“You are coming back to my place. You can stay in the spare room until we work something out. There is no fucking way you are staying here.”
“Can you come with me while I pack up my things?” she asked timidly.
“Eden, I’m not letting you out of my fucking sight. You are going to get sick of the sight of me before this month is over. We will get your things and then head to my place. Are you okay with that?”
“Yes.”
She unwrapped herself from my body and attempted to step away. Like hell. My hand shot out and grabbed hers and immediately her fingers laced with mine so tenderly and so needy. We walked in silence through the foyer and toward her room and my mind felt like it was running a marathon and I couldn’t see the finish line. Eden hesitated as she slid the card through and the door unlocked.
“I’ll go in first,” I soothed and gave her hand a squeeze in a desperate attempt to offer her protection and comfort.
Her suitcase lay in the middle of the bed in total chaos. It was obvious that someone had been ratting around in it. My stomach clenched and I felt bile rise from the pit of my stomach and sit precariously in my throat as I focused on the bras and panties spilling out of it, thrown around and disturbed by some dirty fucking asshole’s hands.
“Do you want to stay in the hall and I’ll pack everything up?” I asked softly.
“No!” She gasped and shot me a pleading look. The color in her face had drained and her eyes showed nothing but sheer terror. Her hand grabbed hold of my arm for d
ear life. “Please don’t leave me out here.”
“Hey, hey, it’s okay. I’m not going anywhere. Let’s get in here and get your stuff together and get out of here.”
I sat on the edge of the bed while Eden packed up her belongings at rapid speed. My eyes traced her every movement and I couldn’t ignore the fact that she was trembling and her shaking hands caused her to drop everything she picked up.
“Eden.” I spoke so softly that she froze and turned to look at me. “Come here.”
She crossed the room and fell into my open arms and unleashed a deep sob into my chest. I felt the cotton of my shirt dampen under her tears and my arms tightened. She was completely falling apart in my arms and I felt at a loss of what I could provide her.
“I’m scared,” she admitted when she pulled away and looked up at me. “I’m really scared.”
“What can I do to stop you from being scared?” My fingers tucked the hair that had fallen out of her braid behind her ears and her eyes closed under my touch.
Her voice strained as she responded with, “I don’t know but you being here is helping.”
“How bout we finish this and then we can leave?”
“That would be good.”
Eden stepped away from me and went about collecting her laptop and camera gear and continued shoving her belongings back in her suitcase. Seeing the expensive items not touched confused the fuck out of me. A breaking and entering like this was always for the most expensive items that could be grabbed but here they still sat, out in the open and begging to be taken. I couldn’t shake the feeling that this wasn’t just a random act, and it sent shivers soaring down my spine.
One name kept circling in my head: Chris Edwards.
Fifteen minutes later, with Eden’s suitcase in my hands, we were walking out of the hotel and toward my car.
“Thank you so much for coming to get me.” She said as she watched me load her bags into the trunk of my car.
Be My December Page 17
