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His face scrunched up in confusion.

“What?” I asked and then finished the last of the alcohol.

“Melvin called me all excited about a week ago. He said he found her and that they were dating.”

“That’s not possible. I just saw her yesterday.”

“She didn’t tell you?”

“No, she didn’t say anything. He didn’t either. I talked to him earlier today.”

Ryan shook his head. “That man is bad news.”

“Tell me about it. He wants me to go into business with him.”

“Of course. You have the money.”

“Yeah, but I don’t know if I can trust him. And now I find this out.” I shook my head. “Maybe I can’t trust either of them.”

“Some days it seems like everything was so much simpler in Afghanistan. I mean, it was more dangerous, but we knew what to expect, you know?”

I nodded. “Definitely. Melvin showed up after I found her.”

“And you figured why not add good ol’ Ryan to the mix, huh?” He laughed then finished the rest of his drink.

I raised my hand to fetch the bartender for another round. And then I turned off my phone.

Fuck Rose if she tries to call, I thought, still unsure of what to think after she had flipped out on me the other night. I didn’t need that kind of confusion in my life. I had enough of my own crazy to deal with.

Ryan and I spent the rest of the night catching up, drinking and forgetting our problems. Then we parted ways after he picked up a brunette with big tits.

On the way back to my apartment, I turned my phone back on, thinking about giving Rose a call and seeing if she was okay. When I saw no messages come in, I put it in my pocket and kept walking.

Maybe it’s for the best, I told myself. If this business opportunity with Melvin turns out to be legit, maybe I’ll be able to have something in my life with actual meaning...

As I climbed the stairs to my third-floor apartment—part of my daily routine for keeping in shape—my phone rang. I dug it out of my pocket and saw Rose’s name. After half-a-second of consideration, I ignored it.

With liquid courage running through my veins, I didn’t see any need for her in my life anymore. I had done fine enough without her, and I would keep doing fine without her.

She appeared in my dreams that night though, chasing and teasing me in a thousand different ways. I woke up the next morning with the hardest boner I’d had since my teenage years.

What was that woman doing to me?

CHAPTER 17

Rose

When he didn’t answer my call, I figured it was late and he was probably asleep. The next day, with each hour that passed, I became more obsessed with talking to him.

I still wasn’t able to explain my craziness after we’d made love, but I was ready to try. He kept appearing in my thoughts and I wanted to give him a chance if he would have me.

After controlling my urge all day, I broke down after dinner and sent him a simple text message saying, “U around?”

He answered with a simple, “Yes.”

“Can I come over? Talk?”

A minute passed. Then another. No answer.