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“How have you been?” he tried again, and I could see his booted feet as they approached the desk, his dusty toes work worn and used the way I guessed boots were intended. I lifted my gaze to the window, peering closer at the truck he’d arrived in. It, too, was dusty, as though he’d been off-roading or hauling machine parts or whatever it was men with trucks did.
My only real experience with that kind of thing was the commercials on TV, but trucks here in the city tended to all be shiny and clean.
But, the two things combined—the boots and the truck—caused an itchy sensation on the back of my neck. One that had me thinking maybe I was being a bit harsh.
Blowing out a breath, I turned to face him and instantly regretted it.
His face was so open and genuine, his dark hair falling haphazardly across his forehead and his brown eyes wide. He really was too handsome for his own good.
“I’ve been good, thanks. Busy.” Gesturing around the shop, I continued, “This all happened pretty fast, so there’s been a ton of stuff to get done.”
“You’re telling me.” He laughed lightly. “Last time I saw this place, it was deserted. Now you look like you’re open for business.”
“Not quite, but soon.” If I could get the last of the sterilization equipment delivered and installed this week, that was. “I am planning a grand opening on Halloween, actually.” I eyed him cautiously. “You should come by.”
“We’re hoping to open next week as well,” Asher added, and I nodded. I had known they’d been getting close, too, because I’d spent the last two weeks overseeing my own project while casually spying on theirs. The place was now decked out with gorgeous oak tables, a fully stocked bar, and a gleaming stainless-steel kitchen, the kind of which I’d previously only seen on television.
Just yesterday their crew had hung a gorgeous sign over the door, a classy, industrial thing made of wood and iron which proclaimed the placeSmoke and Ashes, a trendy smoke house and bar, specializing in whiskey.
It looked wicked cool, and I was secretly dying to try it.
“Well, alright, then,” I said awkwardly.
“Good,” he answered, hands stuffed in the pockets of his jeans as he stared at me with a crooked smile on his handsome face.
Silence—something I’d never been good at dealing with—took over as Asher continued to stare at me with those guileless brown eyes, daring me to talk, to smile, and I bit the inside of my cheek to stop myself from speaking. There was no way I was going to break first. I had questions, things I really wanted to ask about Asher and his whereabouts for the last month, but I refused to be that girl.
Desperate. Needy.
Weak.
So, no. I wasn’t going to talk first. If Asher Dunn had something to say to me, he could damn well say it.
Chapter fifteen
Asher
Shewaspissed.
If I was being honest with myself, I liked that she was pissed. One of the reasons I found myself thinking about her so often in the last month was her fiery disposition. I was a man who liked a challenge, after all.
Looking at her now, I could see the defiance stamped on her face; she didn’t want to admit that my absence had bothered her, and that was okay. Her actions were screaming way louder than her words ever would.
Taking a moment, I let my gaze roam over her, seeing her now, dressed in the way she wanted to present herself to the world. I remembered the first time I’d laid eyes on her, lurking outside the window and soaked to the bone. Standing in the rain with her makeup smeared and her hair drenched, she’d looked lost, vulnerable, and meek, when now I knew she was anything but.
The second time, she was casual, dressed in her comfortable clothes with a fresh face and her hair tied up. It was how I imagined she’d look in the morning, all soft and serene after a long night of fucking. She’d give me a gentle smile, not a defensive snarl, and when I’d stroke her, she’d purr like a kitten for me.
Yeah, I definitely wanted to see that Ricki again.
But right now, she was a goddamn vision, her hair down and glossy, her eyes painted to dramatic perfection, and her outfit chosen with care.
Yeah, Ricki was dressed in her armor and ready for battle, and I was willing to give it to her.
The woman made me want things I hadn’t ever considered before, and I needed to show her that I wasn’t giving up without a fight.
So, standing there, in a business she had built from scratch and clearly infused with all the best parts of her personality, I was doing my best to appear unaffected, when all I really wanted to do was reach out and grab her by the back of her neck and haul her against me. My cock twitched at the visual that thought created in my brain, Ricki pinned between me and that desk she was currently leaning against, one leg hiked up around my hip as I trailed my fingers along her thigh, those sexy as fuck fishnets the only thing between me and what I assumed would be a hot little pussy.
Biting back a groan, I shifted my hands in my pockets, trying to make room inside the denim while my dick continued to perk up, as eager as I was to pick up where Ricki and I had left off last time I’d seen her, but first, I had to smooth the waters a little.
