It burned to hear Julian say something like that to me. He should know me better than that. I turned to face him, hand still balled into fists at my sides. “Because I fuck around like that, Julez?”
He squared up with me. “No. You’d never cheat on a woman whom you were dating. But none of us knows what the fuck you’re exactly doing with Quinn. You say you like her and you say you want her, but you’ve never mentioned anything about actually making her your girlfriend to us or to her.” He let out a breath and reined in his demons. “She can’t read your mind, Chase. She’s out with another guy because you never told her she couldn’t be. Own that, man.” I knew Julian didn’t really doubt me, but it was clear that Iz was upset on her friend’s behalf and Julian didn’t stand for Isabella being upset.
In. Any. Way.
The line had been drawn the second Q had called Avery and Iz and told them what she saw, and while I knew Nick and Julian would always be on my side, it was evident that the girls stood firmly on the other side. I needed to fix this shit. “The redhead she saw coming out of my condo was Kane’s function date.”
Nick and Julian immediately knew what I was referring to and instantly relaxed. The girls still looked mutinous, though. “Kane has a friend that attends functions with him whenever he needs to make an appearance at a high profile event. She’s his H.R. manager and good friend. He does it so that he can attend the functions without any dating drama. They stopped by my condo on their way to an art gallery fundraiser because she had a small tear in her dress and my condo was on the way.”
Avery started chewing the shit out of her bottom lip and Isabella started ringing her hands together. “After she fixed her dress, she and Kane went about their merry way and I was left sitting at home alone all night hoping Quinn would fucking call me.” I knew I was putting a lot of myself out there by confessing that little gem, but the girls wouldn’t cave otherwise. Normally I applauded their loyalty, but right now, not so much.
I pulled out my phone and dialed Kane. “Hey, Chase.”
“Kane, I need you to, please, tell me where you were last night.”
“What? Oh, hey…am I on speaker?” He sounded as confused as he should be.
“I’m here with Nick and Julian and I just need you to tell them where you were last night.” I didn’t mention the girls because I didn’t want them thinking that he was collaborating a concocted story I planted.
“I went to the art gallery fundraiser with Wanda.”
“Did anything unusual happen on the way there?”
“What? What the hell, Chase? What’s all this about?” I could hear his questioning tone clearly.
I let out a breath. “I promise to explain later, right now I just need you to tell them about your evening last night.”
“Well, I wouldn’t say it was unusual, but Wanda tore a little slit in her dress getting in the car. and since you were on the way over, we stopped by so she could sew it up.” He sort of laughed over the phone. “I was actually kind of surprised you even had a needle and thread. That’s female-”
“Thanks, Kane.” I said and hung up.
I looked over at the girls and guilt was evident all over their faces. I knew they didn’t know me well enough to know that I wouldn’t cheat, but they didn’t know me well enough to know if I did, either. I deserved the benefit of the doubt. Someone…anyone…should have asked me about the redhead leaving my condo.
“Now that we’ve cleared that up, someone better tell me where the fuck Quinn is.”
The girls exchanged a glance as Nick told all. “She’s having dinner at Balto’s. The plans were made for six, so you have plenty of time to get over there.”
“Nicholas!” Avery shrieked.
“Sorry, Imp. I was willing to stay out of it when I thought Chase was seeing someone else and their hookup was casual. Now that I know it’s not, there’s no way I’m going to let Quinn be on a date with another guy.”
“Ditto,” was Julian’s only reply, as Isabella looked over at him with an equal look of shock on her face.
“Thanks.” I headed towards the door when I realized the girls didn’t know me like the guys did and they needed to understand something about me.
I turned back around to face them. “I need you two ladies to understand something. What Quinn and I have may not be as serious as what the four of you have, but it’s serious enough. She’s not a hookup, a booty call, or something to do when I’m bored. I like her as a friend, but I also care about her as something much more.” The girls looked visibly upset as I continued, “I know you ladies don’t know me that well, but I would never cheat on a woman. Never. But when it comes to Quinn, I can’t see past her to even think about wanting to be with someone else.” I turned the door knob and yanked open the door. “She’s all I want and I’m going to make damn sure she knows it by morning.” I stormed out the door as the girls nodded their understanding. I just prayed I’d get to Quinn before she did something I was going to regret.
Quinn was fucking mine.
Chapter 9
Envy: Because fighting is against the law folks!
Chase~
The drive to Balto’s was the longest twenty minutes of my fucking life. I wanted to speed through every red light I came across, but common sense held me back. All I needed was to get pulled over, thus taking me longer to get there.
I had texted Julez and Nick telling them to be on standby for the next hour. The way I was feeling right now, it wasn’t outside the realm of possibilities that they might have to bail me out of jail. It all depended on the type of guy Quinn was out on a date with. If he cared about her at all, I predicted a full blown testosterone filled fight in the middle of the restaurant. If he didn’t, I still predicted a full blown fight; only this one would be tinged with a bit of estrogen. Quinn was no doubt going to kick my ass with what I had in mind.
I pulled up and already had my money out as the valet rounded the front of my car. “I won’t be here long,” I informed him as I handed him a hundred. “Just watch the car for me really quick.” The kid nodded as I damn near ran into the restaurant.
I wrenched open the front door and approached the hostess’ podium. I could see her eyes take on an appreciative spark as she smiled. “Well, good evening, sir. How may I help you?”
I was scouring the bar and what seating tables I could see from where I stood, trying to locate a glimpse of purple. “I have a family emergency and I need to find my wi-”
I finally spotted her. Her back was to me, but that light brown silk with purple was unmistakable. I couldn’t see the douchebag on the other side of her clearly, but I didn’t really need to. It didn’t matter if he was 4’5” or 6’7”; Quinn was leaving with me.
I ignored the hostess and stormed my way over to Quinn. Her laugh was cut short as my shadow loomed over her. She looked up at me and her face was riddled with shock. “Chase…?”
“Am I interrupting?” I couldn’t disguise the venom in my voice.
She quickly shot her date an uncomfortable glance. “Blake, uh, this is my boss…”
I didn’t think I could get more pissed, but…surprise!…I could. Later, I’ll plead insanity, but right now, I didn’t care how I looked. I reached down and hauled Quinn up by her arm. “Chase!”
Her date dared to stand up. “Whoa, man, what the hell?”
I threw Quinn over my shoulder in a fireman hold and grabbed her purse as she started protesting. “Jesus Christ, Chase! Put me down! Are you fucking crazy? Put me down!”
I ignored her and focused all my attention on Blake. “I am her boss, but as of right this fucking second, I’m also her boyfriend. So, I strongly suggest you delete her contact from your phone because you won’t be using it ever again.”
I had to give him some credit, he didn’t immediately back down. “Now hold on, you have-”
His bravery didn’t last long as I stepped into his space with a squirming Quinn still on my shoulder. “The only reason I’m not beating y
ou an inch within your life right this second is because I’m pretty sure you didn’t know she was taken.” I stepped closer. “But now that you do know, I will hunt you the fuck down and kill you if you ever contact her again. We clear?”
He threw his hands up in a surrender motion and stepped back.
The fucking pussy.
I reached in my pocket and threw down a couple of hundred dollar bills on the table. I marched through the restaurant with a foul-mouthed-sailor-cussing Quinn on my shoulder and all I could hope for was that it all happened too quickly for anyone to put this disaster on YouTube.
I reached my still running car and flung Quinn over and onto her feet. “You-”
I drilled my hand into her hair and fisted it so hard; her arms actually reached back and grabbed a hold of my wrist trying to ease the hold. I leaned into her face. “You can get into the car peacefully or I can throw you in the fucking trunk, Quinn. I don’t really care either way, but you will get in that fucking car.” She stared up at me wide-eyed. “Now!” I roared.
She nodded as much as my grip would allow her and to my utter surprised, she opened the car door and slipped inside when I released her. I gave the stunned valet another hundred and finally got into the car. We drove off in silence, and thank God. My blood was dueling in fire and ice, and I feared if she had said anything to me while I was driving, I’d plow us into the nearest street light and end both our miseries.
I haven’t felt this violent since the last time I pulled my dad off my mom and beat the shit out of him for touching her.
I pulled into my private garage, and still without a word, walked around the car to open the door for Quinn. She avoided my gaze as she got out, but I honestly couldn’t tell you if it was due to nervousness or blind fury.
My money was on blind fury.
I had no doubt she was planning my murder the entire ride over. Especially, after I grabbed her hair the way I did and spoke to her in front of the valet.
When I remodeled my unit, I had an elevator installed in my garage for my lazy days. Having to walk up the two flights of stairs to get to my front door worked well for warding off solicitors and the like, but it sucked when the weeks were long and I was kick ass tired.
I wanted to use it now, but I feared we’d kill each other if we were confined in that small box. So, with my hand on the small of her back, I ushered her out of the garage to the stairs and followed behind her as she climbed up. I was so pissed; I couldn’t even appreciate the view of her ass walking up the stairs.
Quinn came to a stop on the landing and stepped aside so I could unlock the door. However, there was no way I was going to walk through the door first and give her a chance to run off. So, after unlocking it, I stepped back and with my hand on her back again, I guided her in.
Apparently all she was waiting for was for me to shut the door, finally giving us some privacy. She whirled around on me, and I swear, sparks were shooting from her dark brown eyes. “Who in the fuck do you think you are, Chase?!”
“I thought I made that pretty clear tonight when I broke up your little date.” I should probably be more wary, but we were in the living room. The real weapons were in the kitchen. I felt fairly safe as long as the knives were out of her reach.
She glowered. “You had no right, Chase, none at all!”
I did a quick inventory of the living room. While the knives were safely tucked away, there were still plenty of objects in the living room that could take flight if she reached them quick enough. “That’s where you’re wrong, Quinn. I have every right. You’re mine and I’m sorry if I wasn’t clear enough about that, but I’m making it crystal clear now.”
The most awful laugh erupted from her throat. “Yours? Hardly,” she scoffed. ”While your dick may be impressive, Chase, it’s in no way big enough to make me sit around and wait my turn. Blake’s got more than enough to keep me occupied in between your phone calls!”
I had to take a step back from her before I killed her. I was surprised I could even speak with how heated my blood was.
I was the easy going one, damn it!
But her reference to another man’s dick-which I knew had been inside her at some point in her history-was pushing me to the edge. “You want to compare our dicks, Quinn? Is that it? Because I know for a fact mine is bigger.”
She scoffed and crossed her arms over her chest. “Really? Do tell.”
“Because that pussy ass motherfucker let another man walk up and take his fucking date from him!” I bellowed. “No man-no real man-would ever let something like that go down, Quinn. They would risk the beating in order to save their manhood. That piece of shit practically cleared the way for me. Is that the kind of man you’re attracted to, Q? Is that the kind of man you want as a boyfriend? Because if it is, then I guess I’m not your boyfriend after all, because I would kill any motherfucker that touched you, let alone tried to take you from me!”
She was not impressed with my speech, at all.
At. All.
Her brow arched and her voice froze. “You’re not my boyfriend, Chase. And why would you want to be. I don’t have red hair.”
I still had to keep my distance from her, but I wasn’t sure how much longer my restraint would hold out. “Call Ace or Iz and ask them about redheads.”
Her fury gave into confusion. “Huh?”
“I said call either Avery or Isabella and ask them about redheads.” I needed this shit clear up and soon. I didn’t know how much longer I could keep my hands off her.
I wanted to wipe all thoughts of Blake out of her mind.
She looked at me as if I was setting her up for a trap, but I held my ground. She grabbed her phone out of her purse and I stood silently by as she dialed.
I’m not sure who she called because she didn’t mention a name in her salutation. “Hey, yeah, look I’m at Chase’s and he told me to call you and ask you about redheads. Do you…uh huh…what?...Yeah, okay…Yeah, thanks.”
Now I stood tall with my arms crossed over my chest. This was her fuck up and this time she had better come to me on her fucking knees.
Except her stubborn fucking ass didn’t.
“I don’t know what you want to hear but I had every right to jump to the conclusion I did. We never outlined what this thing between us was. If you had caught a man coming out of my apartment door, you would have thought the same thing,” she snipped with a dainty shrug of her shoulder.
I couldn’t stop the laugh that escaped.
This goddamn woman.
I finally calmed down enough to step closer to her. “No, Quinn, I wouldn’t have, because I wouldn’t have walked away and made up my own mind about it. I would have walked to your door and beat the fuck out of the guy until you convinced me that you weren’t fucking him. That’s how that would have gone down. And unlike you, I would have asked you to explain.”
She still didn’t give an inch. “You sure are getting a little bit worked up over a casual hookup, Chase. A casual hookup that hasn’t even happened yet, might I add.”
She was making me fucking crazy.
Fucking. Crazy!
I didn’t do crazy. Julian did crazy. Even Nick, when he was pushed into it. But not me.
Never me.
At least, not until this package of all-things-chaotic came into my life.
I took a deep breath, and really counted to ten, before I spoke, “Quinn, this thing between us is not casual. It’s not a booty call or a random hookup. Whether you like it or not, we are dating. You are going to be my fucking girlfriend no matter what you try to tell yourself.”
Her eyes rounded to the size of dinner plates. “Are you insane? You can’t just declare me as your girlfriend like I have no say in it. That’s…that’s…well, I don’t know what that is, but it’s not fucking normal, that’s for sure.”
I nodded. I knew I could strong arm her into being with me, but that’s not what I wanted. I wanted her willingly and happily. I’ve never had a girlfriend before, so m
y relationship skills might be a little rusty, but I wasn’t going to let Quinn be anything less than my girlfriend. “Let’s make a deal.”
She straightened herself to her full 5’5” and met my stare. “What kind of deal?”
“Give me tonight,” I said. “Give yourself over to me completely just for tonight. If by tomorrow you still don’t feel anything for me other than basic lust, then we’ll leave this thing between us as a one night stand and part ways as friends.” I reached out and grabbing her arm, pulled her body flush with mine. “However, if you wake up feeling addicted. If you wake up feeling like you can’t wait for me to be inside you again. If you wake up wanting to stay for breakfast, then you commit to being my girlfriend. I’ll agree to keep it a secret at work, but off the clock your mine. Your body and soul are fucking mine,” I hissed.
Her chest started rising with her rapid breathing and her eyes were clouded with the hint of lust and eagerness. “I’ll be the only one?”
Little did she know, she’s been the only one since I first saw her at Xavier’s.
Her wit, her temper, her looks, her personality, her…everything, had me hooked.
I brought my hand up to cradle her jaw and I brushed my thumb over her lower lip. “Babe, you’ve been the only one since I first saw you at Xavier’s. As long as you want me, you’ll be the only one to have me.”
She looked like she didn’t believe me, but because she wasn’t a coward, she took the deal. “Okay, Chase. One night where we hold nothing back and the morning will decide for us. But you have got to swear that we will remain friends if one of us decides this isn’t for us.” She looked so determined. “I will not let this fuck things up between Avery, Iz and the guys.”
“I promise.” Never breaking our gaze, I pulled my phone from my pocket and dialed Julian. “Everything good?” he asked in lieu of a greeting.
“Yeah, everything’s good. I’m just calling to let you guys know that Quinn and I won’t be at work tomorrow. We have a lot to discuss and it’s going to keep us up all night.” I hung up in the middle of Julian’s whooping and hollering.
Chasing Quinn Page 11
