Unexpected Daddy: A Bad Boy Hockey Romance
Page 9
I left the apartment again, locking the door behind me even though I’d only be a minute. On the way toward the flight of eight stairs, I saw the silver-tone nameplate on the door of the apartment closest to mine.
C. Henley.
Inwardly, I cringed. I really hoped not to have some crotchety old neighbor to deal with, but I wasn’t really in the position to negotiate. I’d needed an apartment, and this one was available on short notice in a decent part of the city, with enough room for Levi to be comfortable and have the space he needed to be a kid.
I made it out to my car and back into the building in record time. Making my way up the stairs with the box full of kitchen supplies, I tripped, unfamiliar with the staircase, and fell flat on my stomach. Everything from the box spilled out and scattered everywhere.
“Christ, are you okay?”
I hadn’t even seen him until he spoke, too engrossed in my own embarrassment and utter disbelief at the moment. Then, when I raised my gaze and saw the tall, chestnut-haired man staring at me with piercing blue eyes full of concern, I was more embarrassed than I’d ever been in my life.
Which sparked anger within me, justified or not.
“I’m fine.” I looked away, unable to meet his eyes again as I scrambled to pick up the kitchen items from the stairs and floor.
He ducked down onto one knee, obviously not concerned about the dirt or mud on the floor, and helped put things back into the box. “That was a nasty fall though—”
“I said I’m fine.” I pushed his hand away, heat flaming in my cheeks.
I didn’t see the expression he wore, but I heard the shift in his voice. “I was just—”
“You were just interjecting yourself in something that doesn’t concern you. I said I’m fine,” I snapped, throwing the last of the items into the box. “But thanks.”
I rose to my feet, catching only a fleeting glimpse of his face. Very attractive, very confused, and...
Hurt.
Damn it, I thought to myself. The rational part of me knew he’d only been trying to help, but the humiliated part was bigger and much louder at the moment. It occurred to me to wonder if that was the new me—angry, harsh, and standoffish. Or, maybe that’s just what was left of the old me. The me I’d been with Ethan.
Either way, that version of me was dead, leaving only the smoldering fury inside me. And judging by the way I’d just lashed out at an innocent bystander, that smoldering fire was bound to ignite eventually, and when it did...well, I wasn’t sure I wanted to find out.
Releasing March 1, 2019! Get it HERE!