AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“But I couldn’t do that without you,” she says, her face tilted toward Jace. “It’s all because of you. I know I need to get my act together. I know it. But…”
“I don’t make it easy,” I fill in.
She smiles. “You do not. But you never make anything easy. That’s why I’m glad you’re with Tenley. She won’t take any of your shit.” A blush climbs onto her cheeks. “She inspires me, you know.”
I understand that. Tenley has a way about her. People might not like her, but they respect her, because she says what she means and means what she says. But I’m not sure I can trust Ellie to follow in her footsteps. She says a lot of things. And the last time Tenley thought she was helping, Ellie had only been trying to cheat her out of cash.
“You could probably learn a lot from her,” I say.
“I think we all could,” Ellie says as Jace comes bounding toward her, falling into her arms.
“Mom! That was so fun! There’s no line. Can I ride again?”
“Sure, go ahead,” she says, releasing him to rush off to the canopy where the ride begins. She smiles after him, waves, and then gives me a cheeky look. “So, why were you two together Friday night?”
I give her a hard glare.
“Oh, so you were tapping that?”
Again, I won’t be dignifying that with a response.
She knows that, so she doesn’t bother to wait. She says, “I still think Tenley needs a boring, safe guy. Not you.”
I smirk at her. “And that’s why I always tell you to keep your opinions to yourself.”
“What?” She shrugs. “I can’t help it. She’s just so…”
“Out of my league?”
Ellie points forcefully. “Exactly.”
She’s probably right. I’ve had that same, niggling feeling, ever since Tenley and I decided to take it to the next level. Yes, we like each other. Yes, we have chemistry, and it was off the charts when we hooked up. But the future is anyone’s guess. We could be nothing at all.
I glance down at the message Tenley sent me. I get the feeling nothing at all would be just fine with her.
“She’s a good person. She’s been sending me notes, you know, every so often. Just to make sure I’m okay.”
I give her a sideways look. “Even after you screwed her?”
“I didn’t screw her! I really did want to go for culinary—”
“Right.”
She sighs. “Okay, okay. I wasn’t sure exactly what classes I wanted to take. But I did want to take something.”
“You need to focus. It’s like I—”
“Stop. We’re not talking about me. We’re talking about you, and your love life,” Ellie says, patting my arm. “Or lack thereof. Tenley is too good for you. But don’t worry. All of my friends like you, for some reason I will never understand. Remember Raquel?”
I shake my head. I really have no clue.
“From Denny’s? Remember? She has red hair? She was just telling me how she wishes you’d ask her out.” When I stare at her blankly, she adds, “I’m just saying that, even if it doesn’t work out with your lawyer friend, you always manage to land on your feet.”
Land on my feet. Yes, I’ve always been good at that. Just call me the Bounce-back Kid.
Jace comes running up, into my arms, this time. “Arghhhh.” I give him my best pirate impression. “Shiver me timbers… What do you say we go on the big log flume now?”
I point to the massive structure hulking in the distance.
He claps his hands, showing no sign of fear. Then he looks up at his mom. “All of us?”
Ellie smiles at him, then at me. “Yes. All of us.”
31
I can’t believe I’ve slacked off this much.
Hunching over my desk, I page through mountains of never-ending dispositions and paperwork. Thanks to Courtney Perry’s change of heart and new decision to go for her ex-husband’s jugular, we have quite a bit more work to do.
My only saving grace is that I know the only other person going for this promotion has slacked off as well.
Not that I’ve really thought about the promotion that much. No, instead, my thoughts have been filled with other things.
Such as Brooks’s washboard abs.
His perfect butt.
His…
I grit my teeth for the thousandth time and try to force my brain to behave. It was nothing. It really meant nothing. What matters is that promotion. That’s your key. You can’t forget that you two are in a battle to the death for that partnership.
Because I can guarantee, he hasn’t.
No, this is probably the first rule in the Brooks Gentry playbook. Disarm your enemy.
And I hate to say it, but he had his dick in my mouth. And other places too. So… mission accomplished.
That’s why I’m on high alert. This morning, I came in at six o’clock instead of my usual seven. I’m prepared for whatever attack he might launch because I know he’s going to come at me even harder now. He’s going to try to bring out the big guns, to level me until I scream for mercy.
