The doorman, the same as the night before, smiled and nodded his head as I passed in a hurry.
I hailed a cab when I got outside Warren’s apartment building. The driver yammered on about some festival happening in Brooklyn later that night. I nodded politely but said nothing.
When the cab driver made it to my building about ten minutes later, I paid him before getting out.
Then I saw Melvin leaning against the brick wall next to the front door.
Ugh. I don’t need this now, I thought, seriously debating whether I should just walk away and go to work in old clothes. It wasn’t like my co-workers would mind.
Melvin spotted me before I could decide though. Smiling, he walked over.
Everything about him was broad—his shoulders, his gait, and even his thinking. The latter was the main reason I wasn’t interested in dating him anymore…
“Hey, girl,” he said, stopping in front of me.
“Hey, Melvin. I’m in a hurry.”
“You weren’t home last night.”
I tilted my head to the side and studied his face. “How do you know that?”
“Oh, let’s just say I’m the protective type.”
“No, that’s just creepy,” I said, walking around him. “Anyway, I need to go.”
“Hold on,” he said, grabbing me.
Agitated, I looked at his grip on my arm, and then up at him.
He let go. “You still haven’t confirmed our second date.”
“I’ve been busy. And, to be honest, I’m not interested.”
“You got someone else?”
“No,” I lied. “But even if I did, it wouldn’t be any of your business.”
Warren and Melvin had known each other in Afghanistan, but I was sure they didn’t talk anymore. So I knew as long as I didn’t tell either of them about the other, I should be fine.
“Damn. When did you grow so cold?”
“That’s not helping your case. Like I said, I’ve got to go.”
“Fine, I’ll call you later,” he said as I walked away.
“Please don’t,” I called over my shoulder.
My hands trembled as I fumbled with my key to unlock the front door of the building.
When would I be able to afford to live in a place with a doorman?
Inside my building, I slammed the door shut and turned to look outside. Melvin had left. I breathed a sigh of relief and then headed upstairs to get ready for work.
* * *
Melvin was still nowhere to be seen when I left the building again. On the entire walk to my nondescript office building about a mile from my apartment, my thoughts bounced back and forth from Melvin to Warren.
Warren. I had slept with him again. Did I finally have him out of my system? He had satisfied my physical needs, but I felt like he could offer me so much more…
At work, I ran into Kim in the break room while getting another cup of coffee to keep me going.
She smiled when she saw me. “You weren’t answering your phone last night,” she said.
“Oh, I might have hooked up with someone,” I said teasingly as I headed to the coffee machine on the counter.
“You? Hookup with someone? I need the details!”
Kim and I had been friends for years. We shared practically everything with each other.
“Maybe later,” I said, pouring coffee into my mug. “How are you and that new guy working out?”
“Which one?”
“The tall one with the beard. I can’t remember his name.”
“Drew? He was like two men ago. You need to keep up!”
“Are you ever going to find a decent man?” I asked before taking a sip of coffee.
She sighed. “I don’t know. There aren’t any good guys left who aren’t already in a relationship.”
“Right?”
“Was it the guy from Afghanistan that you hooked up with last night? Melvin?”
I frowned, staring down at my coffee.
Kim raised her eyebrows. “No?”
I looked up, noting the excitement on her face. “No, it wasn’t Melvin. I met another guy in Afghanistan too…”
“Warren? Yeah, you told me about that crazy night right before you left.”
“He caught up with me a few days ago.”
“And Melvin found you like a week ago? That’s so weird.”
“I guess.”
“You should hook me up with Melvin if you’re not interested in him,” Kim said after a brief pause.
“Really?”
She shrugged. “Why not?”
“He’s really not my type at all, but I won’t judge you.”
“You better not.”
I smiled. “All right. I’ll send him your number. Is that cool?”
“Yeah. Who couldn’t use a little more muscle in their life?” She wiggled her eyebrows.
Whether she and Melvin hooked up or not, hopefully it would distract him enough so that he would quit stalking me.
“Well, I should go,” she said, interrupting my thoughts.
“Yeah, me too. I’m on chapter thirty-two of editing this novel and I need to get it finished today.”
“Good luck.”
“Only four more chapters to go, but this author can go on and on, dragging scenes out way too long. I never know what to expect.”
“Can’t be any worse that the one I’m editing right now. You doing anything for lunch?”
I shook my head. “No. We can get something together.”
“Sounds good. Don’t send Melvin my number yet though. I want to think about it some more.”
“Okay,” I said, and then headed toward my desk for another day of work, helping other people with their written words but writing none of my own.
It didn’t bring me joy, but at least it paid the bills.
CHAPTER 19
Warren
When I woke up and saw her gone, I wondered in the back of my mind why she hadn’t told me the truth about her and Melvin the night before. Granted, I hadn’t mentioned it either, and s we had both been rather preoccupied. But still…
As I drank a cup of coffee in the kitchen and attempted to wake up, my phone rang. Thinking it might be Rose, I quickly grabbed it. But I didn’t recognize the number.
“Hello? Who is this?”
“Is this Warren Lewis?” a man asked in a heavily accented voice.
“Maybe. Who is this?”
“It’s Jahmir. Do you not remember me?”
“Jahmir, old friend! How have you been?”
“Not good, Warren. Not good at all.”
Another man’s voice suddenly piped up. “You will come back here, Mr. Lewis, and finish what you started.”
I froze. “Who is this?”
“My name is not important. Jahmir’s life will be spared because he got me in touch with you. But if you do not comply, I will burn this whole village to the ground.”
“What do I care?” I asked as nonchalantly as possible. If he knew I cared about the people, he would be able to use them as leverage—and I didn’t want that.
“You care, Mr. Lewis. Did you forget what you have done in our country?”
“What are you talking about?”
“You are stealing our resources.”
“I’m not stealing anything,” I said. “By the way, this conversation is probably being recorded.”
“Do I sound like I care?”
“Who am I speaking with?”
“You will know my name soon enough. For now, understand you need to come back to Afghanistan and finish what you started.”
“Look, I have no idea what you’re talking about. Put Jahmir back on the phone.”
“Beware, Mr. Lewis, we have eyes all around the world.”
The call ended. I stared at my phone’s screen, still unable to believe what had just happened.
Did Melvin have something to do with it? If he did, it would explain why he had suddenly reached out to me nearly a year after w
e’d left the Savage Soldiers.
I pushed Afghanistan out of my mind, hoping this was just a dirty joke because Melvin was still bitter that I refused to go into business with him again.
To take my mind off it, I thought about Rose and our night before.
After finishing my coffee, I left my apartment and walked a few blocks to the nearest Central Park entrance. All the while though, I couldn’t stop wondering why Rose hadn’t told me the truth. Determined to confront her about it, I sent her a text saying, ‘Your place or mine tonight?’
She replied quickly with: Start at my place ;)
The winking smiley set off something within me. The more I thought about her not telling me about Melvin, the angrier I became.
Just how much would she lie about and did lies of omission count?
My thoughts went back and forth the rest of the afternoon while I ran errands before returning to my apartment for a nap.
CHAPTER 20
Warren
By the time evening rolled around, I had myself worked up, ready to go off on Rose for keeping secrets from me. The closer I got to her apartment, the more upset I felt.
Sure, she was a good lay, but it wasn’t worth this game she was playing. What the hell had I been thinking? I hit the buzzer for her apartment around six o’clock.
I already had it set in my mind that after confronting her, we would either fuck our brains out or I would leave and get drunk alone.
She buzzed the door open right away, and I went inside.
On the elevator ride up, an apparent housewife, her hair still in curlers, turned to smile at me. I smiled back and nodded, hoping she got off before me.
We stopped. The door slid open and she got out, glancing over her shoulder. I hit the button to close the door, fully prepared to give Rose a piece of my mind. I had given her too much of my time already. If she didn’t come clean about everything, I would kick her out of my life. It was that fucking simple.
The elevator door slid open on her floor. I stepped out and headed toward her apartment. With each step, I mentally prepared myself for the confrontation.
She wasn’t expecting me to ask her about Melvin, which gave me an advantage.
I rapped on the door three times. She opened it a few seconds later, a smile on her face. Her curly hair was wet and she wore a half-open robe that exposed her soft cleavage.
“Hey, you’re early. Come in. I just got out of the shower.”
“We need to talk,” I said, walking in and shutting the door behind me.
“Can you talk in the shower?” she teased, pressing her body against me.
I stepped away.
“Uh oh.” She frowned. “What did I do?”
“I don’t know, Rose. Did you do something?” I crossed my arms over my chest. “Or fail to mention something, rather?”
“What’s this about?”
“Something you’re not telling me.”
“Oh, like those samples in Afghanistan Jahmir asked you about? Or that whole smuggling thing that you were involved in? Not getting that story ruined my career, you know that, right?”
“You seem to be doing pretty good for yourself,” I said, glancing around her living room.
“Not as well as you,” she shot back.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“You’re living large for someone who recently got out of the military and isn’t working.”
“I saved up money,” I said, dropping my arms.
“That’s what you told me.”
I stepped forward and put my hand on her arm.
She pulled away. “You’ve got a lot of nerve coming in here and lecturing me about honesty.”
“Come on,” I said. “Let’s take that shower. We can talk about it later.”
“I’m already clean. You ruined my mood.”
I took a deep breath, not taking my eyes off her beautiful face. She looked even sexier when angry. “Come on, Rose.”
“You’re not coming on, or in, anything tonight.”
“Oh yeah? Well you’re not the only woman in the world.”
Her lips pressed together tightly as she stared at me. “Are you saying you’re fucking me and other women at the same time?”
“That’s not what I said at all, but you’re one to talk about sleeping with other people.”
“What the hell are you talking about?” she asked, her voice growing louder.
“Why don’t you tell me.”
“Get the hell out of here, Warren. You’re an asshole.” She stormed over to the door and flung it open.
“Whatever. Like I said…”
“I heard what you said,” she yelled. “Now get the hell out!”
As soon as I made it into the hallway, she slammed the door behind me.
I walked back to the elevator, wondering what the hell had just happened and debating whether I should go back and ask her about Melvin.
No, she would have told me if she wanted to, I reasoned. The thought resonated with me as I took the elevator down to the first floor.
Fuck you, Rose, I thought as I went outside.
I needed a drink.
Sitting at a bar a few blocks away from my apartment, nursing a drink, my phone rang. I dug it out of my pocket, seeing the strange number Jahmir had called me from again.
What now?
I ignored the call, hoping the problem would go away on its own.
CHAPTER 21
Rose
After Warren left, I grabbed my phone and sent Kim a text message, telling her to come over for drinks. She agreed immediately.
I went to my bedroom and got dressed while waiting for her, all the while wondering what the hell was Warren’s problem. I had gone out with Melvin only once, and we hadn’t done anything. And even if we had, it was none of Warren’s damn business.
It wasn’t like I was playing both men.
I grew angrier about the situation the more I thought about it. By the time Kim arrived half-an-hour later, I was fuming.
She came in and closed the door behind her. “Where’s the wine?”
“In here,” I said, walking toward the kitchen.
She followed me as I retrieved a bottle of wine and opened it on the counter.
“Grab some glasses,” I said.
“You’re not with Warren tonight?”
“Ugh. Don’t even get me started.”
“What did he do?” she asked, opening the cupboard to get glasses.
“He came over demanding to the know the truth, but didn’t come out and accuse me of anything. I don’t get it.”
“Did he find out about that Melvin guy?”
“I don’t know how he would. Unless Melvin is talking to him again…”
“If that was the case, Warren probably would have said something.”
“Right.” I poured us each a full glass of the mid-range quality red wine.
Kim lifted her glass. “Here’s to a girls’ night out then.”
“A girls’ night in, rather.” We clinked the glasses together.
“You don’t mind, do you?” I asked.
“Staying in drinking? Not at all. You have more wine, right?”
“I always have more wine.”
“Good. They should let us drink more wine at work like the French, don’t you think?”
“Um, I don’t think the French go to work drunk.” I laughed.
“But I read about it online.”
“Speaking of online—you want to check out Melvin?”
“Yes, please!”
I headed into the living room with her following behind me. After grabbing my laptop, I joined her on the couch as she poured herself another glass.
“Okay,” I said, sitting down next to her. “Let’s do some Facebook stalking.”
After a few minutes, I had signed in and located his profile page.
“Wow. He’s buff! Are you sure you want to pass him to me?”
“He’s definitely not bad to
look at, but he’s not for me,” I said.
“Really? Why not?”
I shrugged somewhat uncomfortably. “I don’t know.”
“It has something to do with Warren, doesn’t it?”
I took a drink of wine, ignoring her question.
“Anyway, I’m sure he’s fine,” she said, scrolling through his photos. “Aw, he has one of you and him in Afghanistan.”
“What?” I leaned forward, peering at the screen. “I don’t even remember that being taken.”
“Well, you had a lot on your mind at that time, right?”
“Yeah, I guess…” I sat back as she browsed through his other photos. “Well?” I asked.
“I’d go on a date with him,” she said, nodding approvingly.
“Yeah?”
“Hell yeah!”
“I’ll give you his number then,” I said. “Maybe it’ll get him off my back.”
“As long as he gets me on my back,” she said, grinning.
I laughed, pushing her gently before sitting up and grabbing my phone. “Here you go.” As I read off the digits, she put them in her phone. “Put it on speakerphone,” I said as she dialed.
“Okay. Hold on…”
As the phone rang, I felt like a middle school girl making a prank call for the first time.
“Hello, is Melvin there?” Kim asked.
“Me. Who is this?”
“Kim.”
“Well, hello, Kim…”
“I got your number from Rose.”
“Oh, did you now?”
“Yeah. I told her you were hot.”
“Really?”
“Yep,” she said, turning to look at me.
“Well, what can I do you for?” he asked.
“I thought we could go out or something.”
“Sure,” he said. “You doing anything tonight?”
“Tonight?”
“Yeah, tonight.”
“Well…”
“Let’s go grab a drink and see where it goes from there.”
She looked at me for affirmation. I shrugged and then nodded my head. The sooner he moved on, the better.
“Sounds good to me,” she said.
“Great. You want me to pick you up, Kim?”
I shook my head violently.
“No, we can meet somewhere,” she said.
“All right. I’ll text you an address.”
Lawless Hero: A Bad Boy Military Romance (Savage Soldiers Book 4) Page 8
