Page 10

TYLER

WAKING FROM Arelaxing sleep, I rolled over to get away from my body heat and find a cooler spot on the sheets and pillows. But instead of finding the refreshing coolness I was looking for, I felt a slight warmth which held an incredible scent that matched the dream I’d been having before a sharp clicking noise woke me up. Memories of the night before came flooding back. Suddenly interested in finding the source of that heat, I stretched out my arm. Coming up empty, I cracked open my eyes.

Where was she?

Coming fully awake, I flung the covers away from my legs and stood up. Instinctively, I knew I was alone, which pissed me off. A quick glance around the apartment confirmed my suspicion. She’d run. What is she so scared of? Why won’t she trust me . . . andwhy the hell does it bother me so much?

The questions in my head followed me into the bathroom where I washed using only hot water. I had sniffed her shower gel when I first stepped into the shower and was greeted by the distinctive scent I would forever associate with Jen. It smelled like peach, but not an ordinary one. No, the perfectly innocent fruit had been transformed into something more exotic by the addition of something spicy. It matched Jen perfectly—a beautiful, sweet woman with an extra dash of sass. While there was no denying I loved how it smelled on her, I didn’t care to smell like it myself. Guess the joke was on me. Grabbing one of the purple bath towels hanging from the nearby bar, her scent wafted up to me as I tied it around my waist.

I wiped a spot on the mirror clear of steam and saw my reflection stare mockingly back at me. Her towel wasn’t the only thing wrapped around me. The memories of last night were entwined in my brain, and her whispered words, secret thoughts I don’t even think she was aware she shared with me last night, clung to my heart.

‘Please don’t break me further.’

What could have happened that made her feel so broken? In the time I had known her I had watched as a few men tried to breach her walls. For a while, she would allow them to scale her defenses only to reinforce them as soon as they got too close. I wasn’t interested in climbing the walls. More than ever, I wanted to be the one to tear them down and help her fix whatever had made her feel she needed to build them in the first place. From a safe distance, I watched her behavior change from snarky to affectionate and devoted whenever she was around Kayla or Aiden. Eventually, even Alex had earned that honor. Somewhere behind that wall existed a warm, generous, and fun girl. I’d seen her last night. All I’d wanted to do was take care of her after the reception last night, but I’d allowed my desire for her to complicate things. Complication? In my line of work, that meant some form of unwanted aggravation. She was complex, that’s for sure, but not unwanted. I knew there was a lot on the line if things got bad between us; we shared too many people in our lives, people who were everything to both of us. And if she thought last night was a mistake, then she should have stuck around to talk about it.

Coffee. I needed coffee. I wasn’t going to be able to think clearly without some caffeine. I quickly dressed in the clothes I kept in my gym bag that I always left in my car. I had brought up with me last night hoping she wouldn’t mind if I changed out of my monkey suit. I gathered up my tux and found my car keys in the pants pocket. As I moved toward the door, I couldn’t help but notice how clean Jen kept her living space. Everything in its place. I suspected it was an unconscious allegory as to how she wanted her life. It made it easy to see a piece of paper folded tent-like on her kitchen table. A closer inspection showed my name written on the outside, so I picked it up and opened it.

Tyler,

Thanks for getting me safely home last night.

I had some things I had to do this morning.

I’ll see you around.

Jen

Things to do, my ass! Apparently, avoiding me was number one on her to-do list this morning.

Well, Jen, I’ll let you have your moment, but you’ll definitely be seeing me around.

I strode out of her apartment and made my way outside to only to find stormy weather. Perfect. A match to my current mood!

I was familiar with the area near Jen’s apartment, and I knew there was a coffee shop just down the block. Casting an eye on the clouds, I decided it wasn’t worth moving the car for such a short distance and walked quickly down the street. Just as my hand touched the door, lightning flashed and thunder boomed. The gust of wind practically blew me in the door. I took in my surroundings, noting an older couple in the corner, their fingers loosely entwined as they sat reading. My smile quickly straightened as I passed by two girls who were overly made-up for wearing the workout gear they were sporting. Neither of them made any effort to hide their interested glances as they perused me from head to toe. One of them was even bold enough to wink at me. I turned my head to study the choices of beverages advertised on the wall. It was a charade. I knew exactly what I wanted—a large black coffee and a cranberry muffin.

My simple order was filled quickly. After collecting my food, I moved away to eat my make-do breakfast and wait out the storm. I started to sit at a table near the window when another clap of thunder reverberated outside. A small gasp drew my attention to a table in the corner, and my gaze settled on a pair of very startled blue eyes.

Well. It looked like my breakfast just got a lot more interesting.