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He followed me out of the bathroom, scrambling after me. That’s why it took so long to get back to her. He rambled on and on about what he saw, but he never fucking mentioned making eye contact.
I also don’t like how he yelled at Nora. It made my blood boil, and I almost lost my shit. I need to take a step back from everything because I never lose my shit. I’m known for how calm, cool, and collected I am in stressful situations. I can only assume I reacted so strongly because it was Nora, which is something else I need to get a hold of.
She’s my client. Period.
Nora shifts to get more comfortable in her seat. “Well, I don’t want anyone outside my circle to know, so that isn’t a problem.”
I need to tread carefully here. “No, I mean everyone, Nora. Including Alex and Emily. Not that I think they would do anything, but I think the closer to the vest we hold everything, the better off we’ll be. Does that make sense?”
“No, it doesn’t. Why would we do that?”
I sigh, understanding her confusion, but I also need her to understand where I’m coming from. “I think it’ll cause less confusion and chaos. That whole thing with Alex was because he made too many assumptions and reacted out of fear instead of rational thought.”
“Well, part of that is because he didn’t know who he was looking for. Wouldn’t telling them what this guy looks like have prevented that?”
She makes a good point. Unfortunately, I can’t just come out and tell her why I need her to do this. My gut has screamed at me all afternoon, and I can’t just ignore it. It’s been right more often than not.
“I don’t think it would have changed much, honestly. He reacted off adrenaline, and that caused me to be pulled away from you, leaving you vulnerable. Nora, we were off chasing a ghost when the real threat could have made a move.”
“I don’t know if I agree with you. I trust you, don’t get me wrong, but I think as many eyes out there as possible is better.”
“If you really believed that we would tell your other friends, cupcake. We have too many cooks in the kitchen as it is.”
Her gaze slides over to me and narrows in aggravation. Maybe in reaction to me calling her cupcake again, or maybe because I called her bluff. Either way, I’ll never complain about Nora Reyes’ eyes being on me. The nickname cupcake just slipped out one day, and once I said it, I didn’t want to take it back.
It suits her. I love sweets, and cupcakes are my favorite. It has all the flavors of a cake in a pint-sized perfect bite. That fits Nora to a tee. Sweet and pint-sized, with just the just the right amount of bite.
“Alex and Emily aren’t just anyone. They’re my closest friends, and I trust them with my life, SJ. I know you’re still getting to know them, but they’re on our side.”
I can’t say that I agree completely with that statement, but her look of worry has me backtracking a bit.
I don’t want to cause any friction between her and her friends. I would never want to do something that isn’t in her best interest. However, she’s too close to it to see if they don’t have her best interest in mind.
“I’m sorry, Nora. I’m being cautious. Can you promise you’ll at least think about it?”
She relaxes back into her seat at my admission. The tension in her shoulders drops as she reaches over to squeeze my forearm. My skin warms where she touches, and I immediately feel the loss when she pulls her hand back into her lap.
“I don’t think we need to worry about it, but if you insist, we can talk about it later.”
That’s probably the best answer I’ll get out of her, at least for tonight. I simply nod as we pull into the crowded parking lot of the dance club, where we’re meeting her friends.
I mentally prepare myself to potentially see Nora dancing with another man. I slam my eyes shut and groan at the unwanted image that pops in my head.
“Don’t look so grumpy, big guy. Let’s go let loose tonight,” she says as she waits for me to come around the car to get her.
I don’t move immediately to get out because I don’t want to.
A breathtaking smile appears on her face. I have to keep my eyes on hers because if they dip down to the short, low-cut black dress she has on, my thoughts run away with me.
“Not too loose though, Nora.”
She smiles harder at the warning. “You a little worried over there, big guy?”
I huff, then a low, deep chuckle spills from my lips. “Worried isn’t the right word.”
“Then what is the right word?” She leans forward in the small space, her breasts pushing up and out of that dress with the movement.
It takes everything in me to only glance briefly at her breasts before my eyes dart up to hers, a challenging glint in them.
