I’ve never had to chase women before. And, though I hate that Anais is making me work for this, I get it. She’s reclaiming her power, exerting some control. In our relationship, I held all the cards, taking what I wanted, never once stopping to consider how it made Anais feel. I was an asshole. I see that now. But just because I was a fucking idiot, doesn’t mean I can’t be the man she needs. There’s no other way. Because the little brat is mine. And I’m going to make her see that.
Like I can sense her presence, my gaze sharpens just as she bursts through a set of glass doors. A guy walks beside her, smiling down at her as if she hung both the moon and the fucking stars. My body tightens. Something a lot like jealousy slithers through me, dark and uncomfortable, but it fades slightly when I look closer. Her body is stiff, her smile forced. She’s uncomfortable.
Something in me snaps, and before I know what I am doing, I’m striding across the quad toward her. She doesn’t look at me, but I know she senses my arrival. Her breath hitches, and her body visibly shivers.
“Anais,” I drawl, stepping into her space.
Her eyes begrudgingly meet mine. “Evan,” she breathes.
My cold gaze flicks to the prick beside her. “Leave.”
He laughs, but its humorless. “I don’t think–”
I cut him off. “I wasn’t asking.”
He glares, puffing up his chest, trying to assert himself. I smother down my laugh. I have at least six inches on this guy and pounds of muscle. Let’s just say, I could destroy him without breaking a sweat.
“Just go, Jarrod.” Anais sighs, clearly sensing the tension. Jarrod scowls, but like a good little puppy, he walks away without another word. “What the hell are you doing here again, Evan?” Anais hisses.
My gaze flicks to my brat. Despite her unfriendly demeanor, just being near her settles something inside me. “We need to talk.”
“No, we really don’t,” she brushes past me, but I catch her wrist, stopping her. She glares up at me, tugging out of my hold. “How the hell did you know I’d even be here? Do you have a copy of my schedule or something?” She laughs but it trails off. Her eyes narrow.
And right now, I hide nothing. I’m an open book.
I don’t bother denying it. Guilty as charged.
I may or may not have bribed the administration office with a generous donation, just to gain access to Anais’s schedule. It was in that moment, I knew I’d fully embraced my inner stalker and really lost my fucking mind. I’ve been underhanded, but achieving my objective remains my priority, and if it gets me what I want... And anyway, I was choosing to focus on the positive side of things. No one could say I wasn’t committed.
She lets out a disbelieving laugh, shaking her head. “You did, didn’t you? You have a copy of my schedule; that’s how you knew I’d be here.” Her lilacs narrow. “You really don’tunderstand boundaries, do you Evan? I can’t believe you.” The disappointment on her face is like a knife to the heart.
I thought women swooned over this sort of shit. The relentless pursuit. They sure as hell do in those goddamn romance books she reads. But in reality, she’s schooling me on the meaning of boundaries, not falling into my arms declaring her love.
This is fucking bullshit.
Still… at least she knows there are no lines I wouldn’t cross for her.
“Anais–”
“I have to go.” She cuts me off before walking away. This time I let her.
Anais is making me work for it and I can’t even blame her. This is my punishment, my karma for the way I treated her. And I deserve every second of her wrath. But I’ll take it, if that’s what she wants. If she wants to play the long game, I’m all in.
If it takes me forever to prove what she means to me, then I’ll fight every day, until my last breath.
Because Anais Lauder is mine.
And I will get her back.
A life without her… well, it doesn’t make sense.
The next night I find myself outside the dingy karaoke bar Anais dragged me to over a month ago. Despite our friendship being on rocky ground, Harrison casually informed me that my little brat would be here tonight.
Call me crazy, but I think my best friend is warming up to the idea of me with his sister and might even be my secretcheerleader. He hasn’t said it outright, but I hear it in the way he talks in our now resumed boys’ nights. Things are still tense between us, but we’re finding our new normal, and that means a lot to me. I honestly believed I’d lose Harrison through all this, but I should’ve known better.
Stepping inside the bar, I scan the crowd, my heart stalling when I catch sight of Anais with her friend Lana, laughing near the stage. If you didn’t know her, you’d say she looks carefree, happy even. But I know better. I see the pain she’s trying so hard to hide. And it kills me knowing I’m the one that put it there. My heart hammers in my chest and I swallow down the emotion tightening my throat. Christ, I’m such an asshole.
Shaking the thought away, I allow my gaze to roam over her body, taking in her tight leather pants and red tank top. She looks like every fucking man’s wet dream. And now, every fucking asshole in this bar is going to see her up there on that stage, dressed this way. My vision turns red as a surge of anger thrums in my veins. I want nothing more than to go over there, throw her over my shoulder and take her home. But I know that won’t do me any favors, right now.
