It’s okay. I’m okay. I’ve had worse at the bar, and this isn’t the first massage client to ever hit on me. He is the first to touch me, though, and that makes me feel gross. A scalding hot shower is definitely in my future.
The thought has me opening my eyes and striding down the hall to the little bathroom in the clinic. I wash my hands thoroughly, letting the water wash away some of the ickiness I’m feeling. It cleanses me, the water warming up my icy hands while I’m at it. Normally they’re hot when I work on someone, but right now it doesn’t feel like there’s an ounce of circulation in them.
When I’ve taken more time than I probably should have, I head back down the hallway, stopping outside of the room Eddie is in. It’s good timing because the door opens two seconds later, and he steps out.
I take a step backward. “I’ll show you out.”
It’s at this moment I realize my mistake. I should have gotten Celeste from reception to walk him out with me because I have no choice but to turn my back on him now.
Thirty seconds. That’s all that stands before me and freedom from this man.
Without waiting for him to answer, I turn, heading for thedoor that will lead us into the reception area. He’s hot on my heels, closer than I’d like him to be, but I zero my gaze in on the door that will save me.
“I still don’t understand what I did,” he says from behind, and I force myself not to shudder with the proximity of his voice. My imagination must be playing tricks on me. I did not feel his actual breath against my neck. I couldn’t have.
“There’s a zero tolerance for swearing in a manner like you did, or calling me baby,” I tell him plainly, reaching the door.
“I didn’t do that.”
This time he’s so close I know I feel his breath against my hair, and as I pause my momentum to pull the door open to reception, a hand skims across my ass. It propels me forward into the main area, and I barely have time to register the people in the room as I spin towards the man coming out behind me.
“Whoa, why’d you stop like that? I didn’t mean to touch you, I swear,” he stammers, eyes darting around the area.
“You need to pay and leave,” I tell him, putting my hands on my hips. “Celeste will take your payment.”
“But you didn’t even finish me,” he exclaims, gesturing back towards the massage room.
Someone growls behind me, low and ominous. “You wanna repeat that sentence?”
Chapter 31
Wyatt
“Shedidn’tfinishmymassage,” the man says, losing some of the indignation with his correction. “I paid for an hour.”
“And then you were inappropriate,” Bryn reaffirms, standing her ground.
The revelation makes me see red. It doesn’t matter what this man said or did to her, if it crossed a line, Iwillput him through a wall.
The man’s eyes tighten, one side of his mouth curling up in a snarl. To blink would have been to miss it, but I see it as it unfolds, and for what it is. Suppressed rage.
“I told you I didn’t do anything. You heard me wrong,” he claims, throwing his hands up in innocence.
“We both know I didn’t,” she says, and I step up to her side, hands balled into fists. “You do not want me to repeat what you said or what else happened.”
Grinding my teeth together, I take another step forward,putting myself between the two of them, coming nearly toe-to-toe with the guy. He’s scrawny. Not much muscle on him. Doesn’t mean he couldn’t be scrappy, but growing up with three brothers means I know how to fight good enough that I’d take this guy in a second.
It helps that I’m seeing red.
“Pay your bill and get out.” The words come out through myteeth, tight but controlled. “Or we’re going to step outside.”
His nostrils flare, and the flash of his eyes tells me he’s thinking about the latter. I give him a minute to size me up, deciding whether or not it’s worth it, but finally he shrinks back, looking at the receptionist.
“Fine,” he says, moving around me to the counter. I’m right on his heels, crossing my arms as we both come to a stop in front of Celeste. He’s not getting within touching distance of either woman while I’m here. “But I’m giving this place a one-star review.”
The tension is thick in the air. No one but Celeste speaks, and it’s only to tell him how much he owes. I tower over him, knowing I probably look like some kind of bouncer at a bar, ready to throw a rowdy drunk out, but I don’t care. It’s been a shit day, and this hasn’t helped.
Two minutes later, he’s headed towards the door, and as he grabs the handle, he turns around, looking directly at Bryn. “Great tits, by the way.”
