Page 44 of The Fake Out

“Blaise.”

“What?”

He ran his hand down his face. “I’m sorry about this morning.”

“Fine. Maybe I should find my own place. Kinda weird living with your dad at my age with my salary.”

He nodded. “You don’t have to move out, but if you want to, you can.”

“Okay, thanks for the permission,” I scoffed.

He glared at me. “Don’t be like that.”

“Like what? Shut you out? Shut down completely?”

“Be too emotional about shit. Fuck, you’re just like me.”

“Cool, great talk, Dad. Can I go now? My girlfriend’s waiting for me.”

“No. I need to talk to you about that,” he said sternly.

I sighed and put the beer bottle down on his desk. “You know what? I’m a grown-ass adult, and so is she. This whole ‘off-limits’ thing is bullshit.”

“Blaise…” Dad sighed.

I stood up and dusted myself off. “V’s waiting for me. I don’t have time for this.”

“Kid, I need to talk to you.”

I fixed him with a glare. “You had years to talk to me about serious things, but you became a shell of a person. I sure as shit don’t want to be like you.”

The hurt on my dad’s face told me I’d hit a nerve, but I was so angry with him, I didn’t care. It was like as soon as I came back here, all that resentment I felt from my younger days came bubbling up to the surface.

I walked out of the office without another word and made my way to Veronica. A tiny brunette sat next to her, and they looked in deep conversation. I wrapped an arm around Veronica’s waist and pushed her hair to the side so I could nose across her neck. “I don’t want to be here,” I whispered in her ear.

I felt her tense, but then she relaxed once she saw it was me. She angled her head, giving me better access to her neck as I kissed her greedily. “Mmm, hey baby,” she purred.

“Can we please leave?” I whispered. “I want to bury myself inside you and make you scream my name.”

Her hazel eyes widened, but then she nodded. She turned back around to the other woman, who smiled at me. It took me a minute to realize she was Noah’s fiancée, Dinah. “You two need to get a room,” Dinah joked.

I winked at her. “That’s the plan.”

Dinah barked out a laugh. For a tiny woman, she had such a commanding presence.

Veronica put a hand on the other woman’s arm. “It’s gonna be fine. The wedding will be great, and you and Noah will live happily ever after, okay?”

She nodded. “I know. It’s…”

“He’s going overboard. It’s only because he loves you, and he wants everything to be perfect,” Veronica assured her. Her eyes slid over to me. “I better go. Someone wants my undivided attention.”

Dinah laughed. “Have fun, you two.”

Veronica went to pay her tab, but I threw some bills down instead. “You have a jacket?” I asked. She was only wearing that thin leather jacket she always wore, and it was a far walk to my car.

She shook her head. “Nah, I’m good.”

I grumbled and took off my suit jacket, then helped her into it. I liked the way her head dipped down, and she thought I couldn’t see her smile at the gesture. “Can we go to your place? I don’t want to be home.”