Back to Life Series Box Set

by Danielle Allen

  “Yeah, I don’t live too far away so it shouldn’t be that bad of a drive. I may get caught in a little rush hour traffic, but I should be okay.”

  My hands were clenched tightly as I stood, still avoiding eye contact with him. “Oh okay. It is late…well, early. I should get some rest as well.”

  CJ seemed to hesitate for a second before standing.

  I started to walk toward the door when he grabbed my elbow. “Are you okay to walk? Let me put you to bed first.”

  “No, it’s okay. I can—ah!”

  He scooped me up in his arms and carried me into the bedroom.

  “I can walk!” I squawked as my body melted against his. He cradled me the ten feet before sitting me on the edge of the bed.

  “I just wanted to make sure you were okay. I wouldn’t have been able to sleep thinking that you fell on the floor and no one was here to rescue you.”

  I looked him in his eyes. “I rescue myself.”

  He smirked. “I don’t doubt it.” He looked around. “Let me grab your phone.” He left the room and returned with it in his hand. “Will you unlock it please?”

  “Why?” I eyed him suspiciously. There had to be some sort of spellbinding power in the tone of his voice because even as skeptical as I was of whatever he was trying to do, I still unlocked my phone and handed it to him. “What are you trying to do?”

  He punched something in and then handed it back to me. “I just called my phone so we have each other’s numbers. If you need me, call me. If I don’t answer, I’m probably in a meeting so just leave me a message and I’ll call you as soon as I can step away.”

  “I’m not going to pull you from an important meeting.”

  “Making sure you’re okay is important, too.”

  Despite my best efforts, my heart skipped a beat. “You don’t have to—”

  “Emily.” CJ bent down so that his face was inches from mine. “I know I don’t have to. I want to make sure you’re okay. I want you to reach out to me if you need me. That’s what friends are for.”

  Friends.

  The word echoed in my head and filled me with disappointment.

  Unable to talk, I nodded. Being so close to him was intoxicating and heartbreaking at the same time. He was a good man. He was kind, generous and unbelievably sweet. We had chemistry and a great connection. But I knew that friendship was all that was going to exist between us. He wanted to bail on the thing that was brewing between us the moment I elaborated about the end of my marriage.

  I felt the rush of unfettered emotion come over me and I held my breath, hoping the feeling would go away.

  It’s bad enough Anthony ruined our marriage with his secrets and lies, but now I have to try to date as a divorcee?

  Reaching down, CJ rested his hands on the bed, next to my hips and put his lips against my ear. I closed my eyes as I inhaled the cologne that still fragranced his skin.

  “Call me when you need me.” He paused, letting the words settle before speaking again. “Call me when you’re ready.”

  His breath tickled my skin and sent a shock wave straight to the apex of my thighs.

  Without another word or any kind of clarity, he stood, turned and walked out of the bedroom. Moments later, I heard the click of the hotel room door closing with a firm click of the automatic lock.

  “Well damn…” I breathed, shivering. I could still feel his closeness.

  I fell backward, letting the soft mattress and comforter envelop me. I didn’t want to read too much into it, but my body had already started making assumptions. Curling into a ball, I decided there was no harm in indulging the fantasy for a moment. I understood what he meant when he said ‘friends,’ but my body clearly did not.

  Before I forgot, I saved his number in my phone and stopped myself from sending him a ‘thank you’ text message.

  That would come off as a little too eager and that’s—

  The sound of my phone vibrating on the charger interrupted my thoughts. I couldn’t help, but assume it was CJ. With a smile, I lifted my phone.

  And then froze.

  “This cheating bastard ruins everything!” I grumbled before making a point to hit the button to ignore Anthony’s call with excessive force. “Can’t even have a fantasy without this jerk ruining it.”

  Chapter 7

  Friday, January 13th – 7:38pm

  “Hello?” I answered the phone groggily as an unfamiliar Atlanta based number flashed on my screen. I would’ve ignored it, but it could’ve been about my car.

  “Emily?” The warm musical tone of voice said my name like a question. She sounded familiar, but I was too tired to think too hard about who it could be.

  “Who’s speaking?” I asked as I rolled myself over onto my back.

  “It’s Addison Fry, co-owner of December. Best friend of the man you went home with last night.”

  I groaned, only making her cackle. “Hi, Addy.”

  “You sound tired!” She squealed. “Now I don’t want details because Addo is like a brother to me, but I figured you had a late night when I got a text telling me to go ahead and open without him tonight. Even though it’s my night to open, I expected Addo to show up since he always ends up showing up early regardless of whose night it is. I thought that was odd, but it wasn’t until Big Mike got here that I found out that my best friend left with my sexy new friend.”

  My lips cracked into a smile. “I have no clue what you’re talking about.” I looked at the clock on the nightstand by the bed. “It’s almost eight o’clock!”

  I slept. I actually slept. Twelve whole hours of sleep.

  “Yeah sleepyhead. It’s almost eight. How long have you been sleeping?” She lowered her voice. “Oh my God… Is he still there?”

  I stifled a laugh as I pushed myself up into a sitting position in the darkened room. “He’s not here. And it wasn’t like that at all. It was…” I smiled. “It was nice. We just talked.”

  “Talked?” Addison sounded shocked. “You just talked or you both talked?”

  “We both talked. It was a conversation. It was really good,” I explained as I rolled out of bed and headed toward the bathroom.

  “Oh wow!”

  I grabbed a towel and turned on the hot water in the shower. “Why do you sound so surprised? Did I strike you as the easy type?”

  “Easy? No. You struck me as the ‘my boyfriend fucked up so I’m out for revenge’ type.”

  How did she know?!

  I laughed out loud. “I don’t know how I feel about that comment,” I responded playfully.

  “As someone who has been there, feel good about it. You wanted to get over someone by getting under someone. It’s normal. It doesn’t work for shit, but it’s normal.”

  I laughed again. “Noted.”

  “So do you like him?”

  Caught off guard, I stopped breathing for a second. “What?”

  “Do you like him?” She repeated herself before music started pumping through the background. “Hold on.”

  Is she asking because he said something? Wait, no, Big Mike told her about CJ and me leaving together. She didn’t hear anything from him. I wonder if she knows that I’ve been friend-zoned. I mean, I could just say—

  “Okay, sorry about that. DJ is doing sound check so I had to go to my office for a minute.” She paused before asking the question again. “Do you like him?”

  I stripped out of my clothes. “Yes, of course. He’s a great guy.”

  “He is a great guy. I know he comes off as a bit rigid, but he’s one of the good ones.”

  I smiled to myself. “I can tell.”

  “He’s been through a lot.” She said the words carefully as if unsure of what I knew about him.

  “I know.”

  “Ok.” She let out a breath into the phone. “Ok, good. I’m glad that’s out of the way. Once he told me that he wouldn’t be in until later and then Big Mike said you two left together, I had to make sure you knew how awesome he is.”r />
  I smiled at her protectiveness, but I wanted to make sure it was clear that CJ and I were friends. I opened my mouth to dispute and deny that anything happened, but Addison started talking again.

  “I know you were at December because something happened with your boyfriend. It was written all over your face. And I just don’t want Addo to be a rebound.” She lowered her voice solemnly. “And if he talked to you, he must like you so… don’t hurt him.”

  She sounded more serious than I ever heard her. I didn’t know why her response made me a little sad and a lot nervous, but it did.

  “I won’t,” I promised softly, gripping the phone tightly.

  “Great!” Addison’s voice returned to its natural upbeat state. “So I take it that you’re still in town since you sounded like you just woke up.”

  “Yeah, at least for another night. Checkout was supposed to be today, but I keep putting it off. But I will be checking out tomorrow. There’s a lot of unresolved crap I need to deal with at home.”

  “Well, you told me you needed time to clear your mind and that was why you’re in Atlanta this week. So save the unresolved crap for tomorrow’s Emily. Tonight’s Emily needs to cut loose. What are you doing tonight?”

  “I have no clue. That was my first good sleep in a week so the possibilities are endless.”

  “You should come to December tonight. Mainly so I can see you before you go. But also because I wouldn’t want you to disappear without seeing Addo again.”

  I laughed awkwardly. “Are you trying to set us up or something?”

  “Yes.” Her tone was so serious, it was funny.

  “What?” I asked with a laugh.

  “I want him to be happy and I’ve never seen anyone capture his attention like you did. And then when Big Mike described how you two skipped to the parking deck hand-in-hand—”

  “That did not happen!” I interjected with a laugh.

  “Well, something happened or you would’ve denied the fact that he spent the night so get your ass in gear and come see me!”

  “Sure, why not?” I grinned as I stared at myself in the mirror. “I’ll be there.”

  We hung up the phone and after I took a long hot shower, I sat wrapped in an oversized towel on the edge of the bed. I took my time moisturizing my skin.

  My phone vibrated, alerting me of a text message.

  CJ Addo: Have you picked up your car yet?

  Emily Diaz: Not yet. I was going to take a taxi to get it.

  CJ Addo: Can you be ready in thirty minutes?

  Emily Diaz: That’s doable.

  I waited for him to respond, but he never did.

  He’s probably busy. I pursed my lips. But that sucks.

  I was hoping he was going to ask me if I needed a ride. I had so many flirty replies ready for him. I smiled as I replayed them in my mind. It wasn’t until I pulled on my little black dress that I actually laughed out loud at my mental responses.

  I’m hilarious!

  Although it was easy to flirt with him, I knew I shouldn’t do it. Something felt different with him. There was a mutual attraction and a genuine friendship that seemed to bond us during our late night chat. But there was also this energy that I couldn’t ignore. I didn’t know if it was on my end because I was vulnerable or if it was on his end because he opened up to me. I didn’t know what or why the energy between us was so intense, but I didn’t trust it.

  That’s the kind of shit that makes you say ‘I love you’ way too soon.

  I decided to forgo makeup and just tint my lips with a berry gloss. After sliding my feet into my black flat boots, I brushed my hair into a sleek, high bun. I was sliding the last pin into place when I heard a knock on the door.

  Housekeeping probably thinks I died in here, I realized as I made my way to the door, swinging it open with purpose.

  I don’t know why I was as startled as I was, but I was completely surprised and let out a small yelp. “Oh God! What are you doing?”

  “Uh—hello to you, too,” CJ greeted me sarcastically. His sexy smirk was in place.

  “Hey! Hey, sorry.” I stepped back and waved him in. “Come in, come in. But seriously… What are you doing here?”

  He walked in and I took the opportunity to take in his dark denim jeans, moss green, mahogany brown and white button up shirt, and coordinating green dinner jacket. He looked more like a model for an advertisement for December than the owner. From his short, close cut hair to his mahogany boots, he was even better looking than he was the night before.

  I tilted my head to the side as I took him in. Yes, please.

  I tuned out for a brief second. The door clicked closed behind me and I jerked my eyes up to his just in time.

  “…you hadn’t picked up your car yet and we are heading in the same direction so I thought…” His voice trailed off as his eyes skated across the soft curves of my body in my formfitting dress. His tongue eased between his lips as he wet them. “You have plans.”

  It wasn’t a question, more of an observation.

  His eyes scanned me, lighting me on fire. My pulse quickened. There was something erotic about the way he assessed me silently. I didn’t feel judged or objectified; I felt appreciated and worshipped. The electricity between us was palpable as it pulled us closer together. I watched him swallow hard before snapping his eyes back up to mine.

  He licked his lips again. “I apologize. I just didn’t…” He gestured to my outfit. “Wow.”

  The longer I stared into his brown eyes, the harder my heart pounded. “Wow, what?” I asked as I moved a fraction closer to him. There was so much space between us, but slowly something deep in my belly was guiding me to him.

  “You look… incredible.”

  My skin tingled. “So do you.”

  He bit his lip and stepped a little closer to me. “I’m not just talking about your clothes. You look beautiful.” He took another step toward me. “Absolutely beautiful, Em.”

  I felt my face warm up. “Thank you.”

  Although his face held the same indifferent expression, his eyes conveyed so much more. The quick way in which he looked down communicated his uncertainty. And I didn’t know what to say since he was right to feel how he felt.

  I, too, was conflicted. I was over the relationship with Anthony because the trust was gone, but I wasn’t over my feelings for Anthony. The love and the loss still existed in bounds. But I couldn’t deny the attraction I had to CJ—it was way too intense to pretend that it would just be a rebound.

  I don’t feel like this because I’m reeling from what’s going on with Anthony am I? If that was the case, I would’ve felt like this toward Connor, right? Or any of the other guys who tried to talk to me last night, right?

  He cleared his throat, grabbing my attention, before he asked, “Do you have plans tonight?”

  It was clear he was trying to come off as casual, but he failed.

  “I do. I’m actually going to—”

  The knock on the door alarmed me as I spun around quickly.

  “I should leave you to get ready for your…outing.” CJ started walking toward the door with me.

  “Wait, what?” I stopped just as I reached for the door handle and turned around to face him.

  Not realizing I was stopping, CJ collided with me. I stumbled backward and his arms were around me instantly. My hands gripped his biceps as our bodies were mashed together. Looking up, I couldn’t read his expression, but the tension between us crackled. His eyes burned into mine making me dizzy. My gaze fell to his lips.

  “You bumped me,” I whispered breathily as I shook slightly.

  “And then I caught you.”

  I inhaled a sharp breath and lost myself in the effect of the closeness of him. My stomach flipped—and then flipped again and again. Our faces somehow gravitated closer until the firm, insistent knock on the door startled us apart.

  I jerked my eyes from his and spun around to open the door.

  “Housekeeping!”
The older woman with the sleek bun greeted me as she forced her way into the room.

  I stumbled backward. “Well, I guess you should come on in,” I mumbled sarcastically.

  The housekeeper didn’t even acknowledge my tone as she dropped the towels off in the bathroom. She grabbed the used towels and stuffed them in a bag. “We came by to clean earlier, but we were unable to get in.” She looked at CJ and her eyes widened. “Do you need anything besides towels until tomorrow?”

  I gave her a friendly smile. “No, thank you.”

  She gave one more sidelong glance to CJ before leaving.

  Once the door clicked closed behind her, I walked to the mini refrigerator and grabbed two bottles of water. The interruption was exactly what we needed to redraw the lines and redefine our friendship.

  Friends.

  “Do you want to know what my plans are for tonight?” I asked, trying to make my voice sound as playfully platonic as possible. My cheeks warmed thinking about how close we were only minutes ago, but I pushed the feeling away.

  Friends. We are friends.

  CJ seemed caught off guard by my question and for a brief moment, he looked uncomfortable, vulnerable even. “No.” His face settled into his emotionless expression and he continued. “You said you had plans and you don’t owe me any explanations.”

  Smiling, I remained on the other side of the room, afraid to get closer. I lifted my eyebrows. “You wanted to hang out with me tonight, didn’t you, friend.”

  There was an unintentional edge to the word ‘friend’ and he smirked.

  “I wanted to check on you,” he corrected me slowly. “I was offering to take you to get your car. That’s what friends do.”

  “I don’t think that’s what you were doing when you came all the way over here looking like this.” I gestured from his head to his feet. “No, you made yourself irresistible and then you surprised me to catch me off guard. That’s not what friends do. That’s what seductresses do. Are you trying to seduce me?” I feigned shock as I put my hands to my chest. “Are you trying to seduce me, Friend?”