Page 81

ADRIAN

M ore than a half dozen calls, all declined.

And that was after she made it a point to hang up on me.

My little lamb didn’t have to answer her phone, though.

Not when the tracking device on her car told me exactly where she was headed.

The airport. The international departures lane.

But it was her own words that clued me in to who she was with and why the two of them were there.

She was taking her pretty little assistant along for the ride to punish me for spying. A plan that might have been a tad more effective if she kept it to herself. But she couldn’t, not when she was so fired up her mouth did all the thinking.

That was the thing about Marisela. Her rage often got the best of her. Still, I wouldn’t change it, because it meant I got the best of her too. Seeing as no one made that woman more enraged than I did .

I grinned at the thought, quickly pocketing my phone as I leaned against the doorframe of Bugs’s room.

Staring at him while he continued to stare at his computer screen.

For a guy so fixated on watching everything that was going on in this place, he didn’t seem very apt at knowing when someone was watching him instead.

“Looks like you’ve been made, kid.”

He jolted at the sudden sound of my voice—he was getting used to his implants, not switching them off as frequently—and minimized whatever it was he was working on before meeting my glare.

Which told me he was either in the middle of downloading some porn or trying to creep on his coworker again.

I could only hope it was the one option out of the two that wouldn’t get him killed.

Because Dr. Michaels would kill him. Our latest addition had already proven the lengths he was willing to go to keep other men away from his girl. Even if that girl was oblivious to the fact she was his.

I really couldn’t judge, though, now could I? Killing was the least of what I would do for Marisela while dying was a given if it came down to it.

“What makes you say that?” Bugs asked. Skepticism causing the dimple on one side of his mouth to stick out. He didn’t think getting caught was a possibility after he’d scrubbed his history clean and fabricated a different one for himself. But I knew it wasn’t just possible. It was inevitable.

I taught my little lamb more than chemistry in those tutoring lessons of ours. I taught her the importance of critical thinking. And she was finally starting to see the bigger picture.

“Not what. Who . Your boss called and gave me an earful. Accused me of spying on her. Or I suppose she accused you of doing it for me.” I shrugged.

“Either way, Marisela knows who you are now and she’s not too keen on having you around the office anymore.

It’s the unemployment line for you, Mr. Walker .

Then again, I’m pretty sure I can get you an interview at Briarwood…

In case you haven’t heard, I know a guy. ”

I was being a smart-ass. Mostly because I was trying to lighten the mood and keep the kid from spiraling.

I could already see the wheels turning in his head, the panic and the desperation.

He’d somehow convinced himself he loved this girl, and I’d be the first to admit I didn’t do much to stop it.

Like I said, love was one hell of a motivator. Too bad this wasn’t that .

The kid just needed to get out into the world.

Spend less time on that computer of his and more time talking to real-life women.

It was why the side job at Tate’s company had been so good for him.

I’d seen the change, the confidence and cockiness.

Of course, the implants helped. But it was more about getting out of his own head, away from Donnie and their codependence.

The problem was, all the doctors he’d seen told him different was bad, when really different was his superpower.

He also needed to stop jerking off so much and finally get laid.

Clean out those clogged pipes and think a bit more clearly.

Preferably with someone who didn’t have a psycho ex hell-bent on making sure no one with a dick got within a five-mile radius of her.

And that included the vibrator Dr. Michaels stole out of her nightstand.

I was judging that one. If you were jealous of a vibrating purple dick, your insecurities ran much deeper than your scars.

Besides, Bugs didn’t love Emily. He was distracted by a pretty girl with a nice rack that didn’t change colors when you tried to touch it.

Not that it mattered if he did, because she was never his to love.

She was Dr. Michaels’s—even if the fucker had an odd way of showing it.

Some guys sent girls flowers. My colleague went the more gruesome route and sent his girl body parts instead.

But the sentiment was there, and I could appreciate sentiment. Even if Emily couldn’t.

“You have to let her go, Bugs, before this shit gets too messy. You got me.”

He nodded once. Albeit reluctantly. Like a toddler who was just informed he couldn’t have dessert before dinner. “Yeah, I got you.”

“Good. ?Cause I’ve got a plane to catch and you’re the only one I trust to keep the place from burning down.”

Now I had his attention.

“Where you going?” He was already up on his feet and walking towards me. His abandonment issues as blatantly obvious as his deflating erection.

Guess it was porn this time .

“I’m taking a vacation.” I shoved my hands into my pockets as I tried to picture it. “Think I’m gonna rent myself a nice little villa somewhere in the Spanish countryside.”

“Spain? Why are you going to Spain?” he asked me.

“Because wherever she goes, I go,” I replied.