by Simone Elise
He raised both eyebrows at me, “You know that we’ll pay you well because you are putting yourself in a dangerous situation.”
“Like I told you in the car, Adam, they are my housemates, nothing more. They aren’t my brothers, and I’m not in a relationship with either of them. So you can tone down the concern.”
“Just making sure. I never hire a woman that has strings, because those strings end up screwing everything up.” He shrugged his shoulders “And I’m sick of getting punched in the face by them as well.”
I nodded my head with a small grin. “You have nothing to worry about.”
“So the fact that they are dining here means nothing?” He looked over at the table and then gave me a challenging look.
“It’s their favorite place in town to eat.” I lied smoothly. I was sure Kade hated it here. After all, it didn’t have his two favorite things on the menu—beer and hamburgers.
“Good to hear then.” He leaned across the table, lowering his voice. “Because I have a feeling that you and I are going to work well together.”
“I’m sure I will just be one of the many.”
Adam Jenkins was a twisted and highly clever individual. Many women would fall for his charm and those brown eyes of his. I, on the other hand, have sworn off men altogether.
“Well then, here is to…” He pulled the wine from the cooler and refilled my glass. “A successful and long-lasting business partnership.”
I raised my glass to his. “Cheers.”
I was either making a good decision that would pay off, or jumping into a pit of fire with the devil himself. My eyes flickered across to Kade, and I realized that if this didn’t work out, at least it wasn’t the first sticky situation I would be getting myself out of.
***
I flicked through the numerous gift cards that Adam had left. I had gotten home before the boys because they, unlike me, had to pretend they were there for tea. So they hadn’t left when he had.
I didn’t trust Adam; maybe that was due to what he was employing me to do. Women that do the work that I am about to enter into are known as bait.
We are given someone who is either in a position of power, owed money to someone, or, well, the possibilities are endless. What we do is flirt, charm, and get them where our client wants them, whether that be in a secluded alleyway or in a compromising position.
“You home, Abby?” Drake yelled up the staircase.
Looked like the stalkers were back. I opened my bedroom door, “Yes, now are you going to tell me why you took it upon yourself to stalk me tonight?” I jogged down the staircase and then once at the bottom gave them a hard look. “Really, Drake? Are you going to be one of those exes?”
“Calm down, Abby. Maybe we planned on going there.” Kade had a smug look on his face as they walked past me. “Not everything is about you, you know?”
“Please, you two had a whole evening of poker and drinking planned.” I crossed my arms. “Don’t lie; you followed me.”
“Whatever,” Kade walked off, and I turned to look back at Drake, who was nowhere near as good at lying as his brother.
“Well?”
Drake groaned, “It wasn’t like that, Abby, promise.” He decided instead of continuing a conversation, he would walk off and follow in the steps of his brother.
“You aren’t getting out of it that easy.” I followed him into the lounge. “You nearly ruined everything tonight, and you!” I pointed at Kade, “have no right to speak to me like that in front of people! Seriously, what the fuck was with that comment?”
Kade just shrugged his shoulders and turned his back on me.
I may have been mildly angry a few minutes ago, but his non-caring attitude made my temper rise to boiling in an instant. I grabbed his shoulder and pulled on it, forcing him to look at me.
“You’re disgusting, you know that?”
His eyes hardened. “Well, my opinion of you isn’t that high, either.”
“Would you two cut it the fuck out?” Drake yelled at us “You are both doing my head in!”
“Not my fault she is a fucking walking hormone attack. Just got to look at her and she goes for the kill,” Kade scoffed in my face while talking to Drake.
I clenched my fists at my side. “And what, you’re better, are you? You and your disgusting comments! Not to mention, you seem to just breathe fire on me when I walk into the room, and I am warning you now,” I pointed a finger at his chest while glaring up at him. “If you call me a whore one more time, I won’t be responsible for how I act.”
“THAT’S IT! I’m going out!” Drake roared and stormed out of the room.
Kade and I were too busy glaring each other off to watch him leave, but we knew he was gone when the door slammed.
“Now look what you’ve done, you’ve made my brother leave his own house.” Kade’s eyes were scorching. “Good one, Abby.”
“Oh fuck you, Kade! You are a selfish prick, and I don’t know what I saw in you.”
His eyes rolled with humor, “Come on, babe, you saw what every teenage girl sees, a man she shouldn’t have. You only wanted me to piss your old man off.”
My mouth fell open. “Do you really believe that?”
He nodded his head with determination in his eyes. “Come on, Abby, admit it to yourself! No one is here, just me, and fuck, I already know it, so go on and admit it.” He was towering over me, those eyes staring into mine.
“No.”
“Ashamed?”
“NO!”
“Then what the fuck is stopping you?” he roared down at me. For a split second, I think I saw hurt within his black-gray orbs, but that was until he threw his glass across the room.
I jumped at the sound of it shattering against the wall. His eyes were painted in rage while his face remained unreadable. “You never gave a shit, Abby, you just wanted to fuck me, to fuck off your old man, and ya did.”
All this time, this was what he thought? This was all he thought of me?
A lot of women would back down in this type of situation. Hell, the rage in his eyes would have men running, but me, well, I’m stubborn. I grabbed his arm, forcing his tee shirt sleeve up. “Would I have drawn this if you meant nothing to me?” My eyes glanced at the picture I drew him all those years ago. “You want the truth, Kade? You want me to admit it?” If he wanted to hear it, fine. What did I have to lose? I lost my pride a long time ago and my self-respect the morning I woke up alone.
“Ever since I was sixteen, I loved you. I fell for the one thing I knew I should never want. You think I used you?” I tilted my head up at him. My heart was burning just touching him, and yet I couldn’t pull my hand away. “I couldn’t breathe when you weren’t around and when you did show up, everything stopped, and all that mattered was you were there, and for those few days, everything felt right.” Hearing myself admit it only dug the hurt deeper. I was so stupid.
“I woke up alone in that motel, and it nearly killed me knowing that the one person I trusted that I loved, left.” My body was blanketed by the memory. “You didn’t break my heart, Kade.” My eyes swelled with tears. “You destroyed it.”
The anger I felt for him was nothing compared to the pain I carried because of him. The hours I had lost crying over him.
“Do you know the most depressing thing?” My eyes stared into his. “I would do it all again.” And that truly scared me.
He hadn’t spoken a word. His face held no expression, and his eyes showed no remorse. I took a step back, letting my arm fall to my side. The tears fell while my lungs struggled for air. “You wanted the truth, and there it is.”
He just stood there, and why did that shock me? He is called the Reaper for a reason. My lips formed a tight line, and when I couldn’t take the silence anymore, I turned my back and walked away.
Time had passed, but the wounds still hadn’t healed. How was that even possible?
Closing my bedroom door, I slid down it, leaning my head against my knees. All
this time I had thought I was over him when really I had just been covering the wound up. Now the Band-Aid was off and the tears just wouldn’t stop.
Chapter 20
Abby
I didn’t think it was possible, but the tears did stop. When they did, my clarity followed soon after. I had cleansed him out of my system, and I would love to say forever, but I knew better than to believe that.
“Abby?” Drake knocked on my door before entering. “We’re ordering pizza, are you interested? Oh, wow.” His mouth dropped open.
“How do I look?” I turned my back to the mirror to face him. I never really cared for a cocktail dress, but it was black. It was meant to be sexy, so I hoped that the two would help me tonight.
He slowly nodded his head, “Um, yep, wow.” He finally brought his eyes to mine, “Where are you heading out in that?”
I could tell him the truth, or I could lie. “Nowhere special.” I decided to avoid the question altogether. “I will have to give the pizza a miss tonight.”
“Clearly,” he muttered.
I picked up my oversized purse from the bed and followed Drake out. “So I guess you guys have the house to yourself.”
“Are you coming back tonight?” He still couldn’t take his eyes off me, which gave me a confidence boost.
“Not sure. I hope so.” I gave him a side smile and took the steps one at a time. These high heels could kill me. I was sure of it.
“Abby is heading out, so it’s just us,” Drake spoke into the lounge while I made every effort not to look at Kade.
“Night.” I waved over my shoulder and headed for the front door. It’s not hard to say a word, but it seemed like Kade had just forgotten how to speak altogether. Great that he discovered this after I spilled my every secret to him.
***
He wasn’t someone important, and why Adam wanted me to flirt with him, I didn’t know. But I did it, and I guess I did a good job because after I was done, I got a message saying, ‘great work speak soon, Adam.’
I closed the front door softly and pulled my heels off one at a time.
“Starting to think you weren’t coming back.”
I froze in the foyer, holding my heels, and slowly turned to look through the opening to the lounge. Of course he wouldn’t be in bed like a normal person.
“Well, I am.” I gave Kade a dry look “Surprised to see you are still up.”
“Really?” He walked towards me, “Because I thought it was obvious that our conversation wasn’t over.”
“You mean the conversation the other night that ended when I walked out of the room.”
I wouldn’t let him think he had the upper hand. I hadn’t been like a little girl, hanging on his every word, waiting for him to continue.
“You can’t just dump that on a man and expect him to have an answer, Abby.” The fact he was now standing in front of me made it a lot harder for me to think straight.
“Well, next time I will put it on Post-It notes for you.” I looked him sharply in the face. “Now if you don’t mind, I want to go to bed.”
Want to know what the problem is having an argument with a hotheaded biker? They decide when the conversation ends, so I wasn’t even the slightest bit surprised when he gripped my wrist, turning me back to face him.
“Reel in the bitch, would you, Abby?” he fumed down at me.
“How about you just fuck off?” I spat up at him, with so much rage across my face. I expected him to fight back, to say something that would make me hate him that bit more; instead, he laughed.
His stomach shook with laughter, “Now that right there is why I can’t get you out of my head.” His laughter slowly dried up and he let out a low sigh. “Abby, you want the truth?”
Did I want it? I was still shocked by his laughter, not to mention the words that followed. I slowly nodded.
What was he going to tell me? I braced myself, and his fingers traced the side of my face as he looked at me like I was something special. Don’t fall for it, Abby.
“You and I just can’t work.” His mouth spoke in my ear, “And that is the truth.”
Heartbreaking? No. Heart-shattering? Yes.
He went to pull away, and I gripped his neck with force. I pulled his head back at me, staring into his eyes. “Don’t lie to me. The truth is you are as hung up on me as I am on you.” My eyes flickered to those lips of his. “You can say what you want, but I know the truth.”
“You don’t know anything.”
I smiled, “Maybe you’re right.” I rose to my toes and whispered in his ear, “Or maybe you just can’t get me out of your head.”
I don’t know what I expected, but I sure as hell didn’t expect what happened next.
Chapter 21
Reaper
12 Hours Earlier
Pinning her against the wall, I could nearly feel her panic. My eyes flickered down to her lips, which always seemed to draw my attention.
She wasn’t a young girl anymore. She had grown up to a sex-teasing, heel-wearing woman that caused every blood vessel in my body to boil with jealousy.
I moved my lips to her ear; her head tilted just slightly. “You and I just can’t work.” It was the utter truth, and whether she wanted to hear it or not, I didn’t care anymore. “And that is the truth.”
She had to see it and then maybe once she did, I could stop being so bloody addicted to her.
I went to pull away, and she gripped my neck, forcing me to stare into her eyes. “Don’t lie to me. The truth is you are as hung up on me as I am on you.” Her eyes raged with passion. “You can say what you want, but I know the truth.”
“You don’t know anything,” I said.
Her lips twisted into a seductive smirk, “Maybe you’re right.” She rose to her toes, and whispered in my ear, “Or maybe you just can’t get me out of your head.”
Then she tipped me over the edge, and shit got heated quickly. It took me a flat two seconds to have her legs wrapped around my waist and carry her back in the direction of my room.
12 Hours Later
My door swung open, and the sound of it rebounding off the wall made me sit up straight.
“Fuck, Drake, heard of knocking?” I snarled while my heart pounded at an incredible rate.
Drake scanned my room “Have you seen Abby?”
It was the mention of the she-devil’s name that caused my body to stiffen. “Nope.”
“Her car is in the driveway, her bag is downstairs, and her phone is on the couch. So it makes me think she must be in the house, but I can’t find her.” His words had a judgmental tone to them, but it was his eyes that were really judging me.
“So you kicked my door in just to see if I had her?”
“No, I kicked your door in because she is missing.”
“Maybe she’s just passed out in the backyard.”
“Grow up, Kade.” Drake growled, “So you haven’t seen her?”
“No, I haven’t.” I didn’t like lying to my brother, but it wasn’t like I had a bloody choice. “Now piss off, would ya? I don’t like early mornings.”
Drake didn’t back down easy so he stood there a bit longer, staring me down. Wasn’t until he finally decided that I didn’t know shit that he walked out, closing the door behind him.
Throwing the blankets back, I scanned the bedroom floor, and when shit didn’t make sense, I found myself frowning.
My en-suite door swung open, and Abby’s wide eyes locked with mine. I didn’t know what she was thinking, but my eyes drifted down to her bare legs, and the sight of her half-naked just didn’t help my brain to function.
“Drake’s looking for you.” I strung a sentence together and ripped my eyes away from her. Just don’t look at her, then maybe I wouldn’t say something stupid.
I heard her scoff and couldn’t help but look back in her direction. She tore my top off and threw it at me. In a flash, before I could see anything, she pulled her dress down over her head.
I didn’
t know what I wanted her to say and it wasn’t until she walked out, quietly closing the door behind her, that I realized I wanted her to say something.
Chapter 22
Reaper
Abby was avoiding me. She couldn’t make it more obvious if she tried. When I walked into a room, she would walk out. She blocked every call and made sure that I never had an opportunity to speak to her.
I knew why she was doing it. She didn’t want to talk about what nearly happened. Maybe she was embarrassed, or maybe she just couldn’t face me.
I had taken her up to my room, to do what I had wanted to do ever since I laid eyes on her. If it were up to me, the night would have gone very differently.
Instead, she bailed—literally. She freaked out and ran into my bathroom. I don’t know how many hours I wasted speaking to that bloody bathroom door, but she wouldn’t come out. Not once.
Not until my brother made an appearance.
Was she ashamed? Did she hate me that much?
“Where are you going?” Drake blocked me at the bottom of the staircase.
“Nowhere.”
“Bullshit.”
“Move, Drake.”
“Should I be concerned?” He gave a pointed look at my gun holster. “Not like you to head out with weapons.”
“Not any of your business, little brother.” I pushed past him. I needed to throw my energy into something else instead of wasting it on a pathetic little sex tease.
I could feel Drake’s eyes on me as I walked out the front door. I wasn’t in the mood for conversation. I was in the mood for fucking some shit up, but it seemed like my getaway wasn’t going to be as smooth as I’d hoped. I didn’t like awkward situations and usually avoided them at all costs. But seeing Abby’s car pull up behind my bike, I knew I couldn’t avoid this one.
Abby slowly got out of her car. I tried to ignore her and headed for my bike.
“Going out?”
I turned my head to look back at her. “Yep.”
