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“She came back, and he married her in a hot minute,” I said with a nod. Quickly, I rinsed my dinnerware and placed it in the dishwasher. Then I held out a hand for his. When I was finished, I leaned against the counter and watched him put away the leftovers.
“I read Oak’s last book,” he said. “Fucking creepy. I got up and checked all the motorhome’s windows and the door—and maybe, the closets, too.”
“And what were you going to do if you found someone?” I teased.
“Scream? I don’t know,” he laughed. “I have to admit, the story freaked me out, though. That man has a dark brain.”
“Which is why he doesn’t tell anyone who he is.” I chuckled. “And he honestly thinks none of his friends know.”
“I’ll try not to let on, I guess, but I have questions! Dude…who hurt you?”
I was about to tell him I wanted to know, too, when a knock rapped on the front door, startling both out of the moment. As if cold water splashed over me, I was snapped out of the camaraderie we’d fallen into. For a second there, it was almost like old times. When we’d been friends. When we’d been in love.
“Expecting someone?” he asked, glancing toward the door.
“No.” Talk about creepy. It was dark out, and generally, if someone stopped by unannounced at this hour, I pretended I wasn’t here. What could I say? Text me before showing up with no notice.
“Axel,” an annoyed female voice called loudly when neither of us moved.
“Shit,” he groaned, his shoulders sagging and his head dropping forward. His hands planted on his hips as he slowly shook his head back and forth.
“Oh my God, do you have a—”
“An assistant,” he cut in. “It’s my assistant.”
Closing the short distance between us, he cupped my face with his hand. Despite the gentle touch, I jerked. Then I shivered as his thumb brushed over my jaw.
“Don’t ever think that, Brisk. There’s no other woman in my life. There hasn’t been anyone since you.”
“What?” I gasped, hardly registering that he’d called me by the nickname he’d always called me since we were young, Brisk—him and no one else. I doubted anyone even knewwhyhe called me that.
Leaning in, he brushed his lips over mine. “Only you.”
Breathless, I stared at him but before we could get lost in this moment, the banging came again. Axel swore, and the electric pleasure that had sizzled through me evanesced away.
Eleven
Bristol
With a growl, Axel stomped to the door. He yanked it open so hard the hinges were in danger.
“What, Marta?” he demanded in a near yell. “What the fuck are you doing here?”
When I tilted my head, I could just barely see the woman beyond him in the hallway. From my vantage point, I made out flawlessly smooth honey-blonde hair that tumbled past slim shoulders. His visitor wore a black suit with the skirt that barely came to mid-thigh while it hugged her thighs. When she pushed past him into the apartment, I saw her four-inch black heels with the flash of red sole as she walked.
She didn’t look anything like someone I’d associate with NASCAR. She was too sleek and too polished, seeming like someone from Real Housewives of Somewhere. And this Marta appeared to be a good ten years older than Axel and me. Not that it seemed to matter to her, if the hungry look in her stare meant anything. She practically devoured Axel. And I was pretty sure she had no idea I was even in the room.
“I’m making sure everything’s going alright,” she explained, placing perfectly manicured, red-tipped fingers on his arm and sidling close to his side. “I’m your assistant. I’m supposed to assist you. Inanyway you need. Making sure you haveeverythingyou want.”
Seriously?
Bile rolled up my throat as I took in the scene. And the way she saideverythingscored across my nerves like a razor.Only you,my ass!
“You could have called,” Axel said, yanking away from her and not seeming to buy what she was trying to sell. I wasn’t entirely sure, though. “I just got here yesterday, and this is mytime off. I don’t need a damn babysitter.”
“Assistant,” she purred, and my eyes narrowed. “Ready toassistyou.”
“I don’t needan assistantduring my time off, either,” he grated. “What is wrong with you?”
