His Every Desire (Contemporary Romance Box Set)

by Alexis Winter

  He nods. “That doesn’t surprise me. He’s changing, that’s for sure.”

  “I don’t know what else to do. I told him to enjoy his party tonight, but tomorrow, we’re having a serious talk about the future of this relationship. Maybe if I put myself out there, he’ll see he’s about to lose me. I’m hoping things will go back to the way they used to be.”

  3

  Levi

  She wants things to go back to how they used to be? Does she not know that Nick has always been a douche bag? He’s always cheated on her, but I guess she doesn’t know about that, and I can’t be the one to tell her.

  “Do you really think he’ll change, though? It seems to me like he’s having the time of his life.”

  She bites her lower lip. “That’s what I’m afraid of. I mean, what if he picks this new life over me?”

  “Would it really be that bad?” I ask, feeling like I’m crossing a line.

  “I have nothing, Levi. I don’t have much money saved. I don’t have a place to stay. Hell, I don’t have anything but clothes. How can I start over with nothing?” she asks, and I can see that cool exterior of hers start to crack. She looks sad and broken. Just looking at her like this breaks my heart. She’s too good to be treated this way.

  I take a deep breath and slowly release it. “Dani, I know we’re not close, but I wouldn’t let you be homeless. I have a spare room you can use until you can get back on your feet. If you decide to, that is,” I add on. I don’t want to convince her to leave Nick, but I don’t want her to have an excuse to stay and be treated like shit either.

  I stand up. “I’m going to go tell Nick, goodbye, and head home.”

  “Wait, your jacket,” she says, about to take off my coat.

  I hold up my hand. “Keep it. I think you’ll need it more than me tonight.”

  I open the door and step back into the loud apartment. I walk through the living room, looking for Nick. Just as I decide to say fuck it, the bedroom door opens, and he comes out with a half-naked woman behind him. I grab his arm and pull him into the quiet office.

  “What the fuck are you doing?” I ask him, shutting the door behind us.

  “Hey, man. I’m glad you showed up.” He’s smiling wide. His eyes are red and bloodshot. It’s easy to tell he’s three sheets to the wind.

  “You’re fucking other women now in the bed you share with Danielle while she’s home?” I hold my arms up at my sides.

  He waves his hand through the air, dismissing my thoughts. “What’s it matter? She’s not going anywhere. Where’s she going to go?” His mouth is hanging open, but the corners are lifted into a grin.

  I shake my head. “You’re seriously turning into an asshole, man.”

  I go to step past him, but he places his hand on my chest. “Look, I’m sorry. Okay? I’m just…my head is all fucked up right now.”

  “What’s going on?” I ask, sliding my hands into my pockets.

  He walks around me, over to the drink cart, and pours a drink. Mildly staggering, he moves to sit at his desk.

  As I’m walking over, he places a small velvet box on top.

  “What’s this?” I ask, picking it up and opening it to find a rather large, pricy engagement ring. “You plan on proposing?”

  He nods. “Yeah, and my head is a fucking mess. I mean, I never wanted marriage.”

  I shake my head in disbelief. “Then why are you doing it?”

  “I have to do something to keep her. She has one foot out the door already,” he points out. “I’m sure if she had a place to go, she’d be gone already.”

  “If you’re fucking other women, why do you even care if she leaves?” I close the box and set it back onto the desk as I fall into the seat across from him.

  “Me and Danielle, we’ve been together since freshman year of college. I owe her this. She’s put in her time, she’s been supportive, and I always promised that if she waited it out with me until I got this job, I’d take care of her. I’m just trying to keep my word.” He shakes his head, causing his blond hair to fall out of place.

  I don’t even know what to say.

  “Plus, she’s safe. I won’t have to worry about her taking me for everything I’m worth. She’ll be the perfect trophy wife to roll out in front of the board members.” He laughs.

  “So, you don’t plan on changing?” I ask.

  He laughs again. “Hell no. I’m having too much fun. I mean, it’s perfect, isn’t it? She’s the cherry on top of my perfect life sundae. Meanwhile, I’ll be in New York doing whatever the hell I want.” He smiles wide like he has it all figured out.

  I stand while shaking my head. “You’re a real asshole, man.” Without another word, I throw open the door and leave the office. Leave the party altogether.

  When Monday morning rolls around, I shower, dress, and head into the office. I feel angry and pissed off on Danielle’s behalf. More than anything, I need to avoid her today. I can’t tell her the things I want to tell her, and being with her and holding things back is basically a lie. Lying makes me no better than Nick. God, I fucking hate him for putting me in this position.

  As I’m walking up to the doors at work, I catch a glimpse of Danielle out of the corner of my eye. She’s back at that fountain, drinking a cup of coffee while reading. I wonder if they’ve talked. I wonder if he proposed yet. I know I should avoid her, but I have to know.

  I walk up to her, and she closes her book while offering up a small smile. “Good morning.”

  “Morning. How was the rest of the party?” I ask, sitting down beside her.

  She laughs. “I accidentally fell asleep on the patio.” She turns to her side and digs something out of her bag. “Here’s your jacket back. Thanks again for letting me borrow it.”

  I take the jacket, but ask, “What?”

  She nods. “After you left, it was so quiet, and I was warm for the first time. The last thing I remember is laying my head back.”

  “And Nick didn’t bring you in?” I feel the anger rising in my chest.

  She snorts and rolls her eyes. “Nick didn’t even know where I was. I found him asleep, face down in the middle of our bed. When I woke him in the morning, he thought I was the maid at the hotel he’s been staying at in New York. He called me Vicky.” She snorts and rolls her chocolate brown eyes.

  I shake my head. “So, did you two…you know. Figure anything out?”

  “Not yet. We’re having dinner tonight. So I guess we’ll see.” She smiles and looks up to the sky with hopeful eyes.

  “I thought you were supposed to talk the next day?” I ask, confused, and now angry.

  “We were going to, but Nick had some things come up at the local office, and he had to rush off. Why do you seem so angry?”

  I look at the time on my watch. “I better get in there. Good luck, Dani,” I say, standing and walking away before I can spill any secrets.

  There are more files piled up on my desk today, so I actually have to sit in the office and work all day. But as soon as five o’clock rolled around, I’m running toward the door. I climb behind the wheel of my car and peel out of the parking lot, breathing a sigh of relief when I don’t run into Dani. I don’t know how long I can keep seeing her and not telling her the truth. She needs to know. She deserves to know. But I don’t want to be the one that hurts her either. I guess all I can hope for is for her to turn him down when he asks her to marry him.

  God, what if she says yes, thinking he’s made the decision to choose her instead of this new life he’s been living? Why am I feeling so much stress over a relationship that’s not even mine?

  Because Dani is a great woman who deserves better. She’s smart and kind and beautiful. She doesn’t deserve to be taken advantage of. If she were mine, I’d never let her go. I wish I could show her what she’s really missing out on. Maybe that’s what I should do: show her how she should be treated, and hope she decides to leave Nick.

  Fuck. Nick would kill me for touching her. For being
the reason that she leaves him.

  How long can I keep this up with them? This will-they-won’t-they crap is getting old. It’s not my place to tell her what he’s doing behind her back. I’m his friend, not hers. Annoyed by the whole situation I’ve brought upon myself, I go straight home and open the liquor cabinet. I pour a single glass and throw it back. It slides down too smooth, and I decide to ditch the glass. I grab the bottle and take it back to the couch with me. I throw myself down and take another long drink.

  I wish I had someone to talk to about how I’m feeling and why I’m feeling this way. I just need to push both of them from my head. He isn’t a friend anymore, and she never was. Sure, she’s hot and cool to talk to, but I’m sure it’s not worth all this extra baggage. It’s not like I’m in love with the girl. I barely even know anything about her. I don’t know where she grew up, what her favorite food is, or what she likes to do other than read.

  That’s it. My mind is made up. I’m done with Nick and all his bullshit. And when it comes to Danielle, I’ll just avoid her completely. It’s not like either of us go out of the way to talk or hang out. I’ll push her out of my mind until I no longer have to. What they do in their relationship is their business.

  I lift the bottle to my lips and take a long drink. I drink and drink until I find my vision doubling. After I don’t know how long, I stand and go for a long, hot shower. I strip out of my clothes and turn on the hot water. Stepping beneath the stream is relaxing and relieving. I close my eyes and feel myself start to sway due to the alcohol.

  I decide I better wash off quickly before I end up falling and busting my ass. When I step out of the shower, I wrap myself in a towel and fall into bed, too tired from thinking and too drunk to do anything but sleep.

  “Levi,” someone shouts from behind me.

  I turn my head around to see Danielle running up behind me with a big smile. I take a deep breath, then stop walking and turn around, so she doesn’t have to chase me down the hall in those heels. “Hey, what’s up?” I ask, rubbing my pounding forehead due to my hangover.

  She holds up her left hand, showing me her new engagement ring. “It worked. I told him things had to go back to how they were or I’m leaving. He decided to commit. Can you believe it?” Her brown eyes are sparkling, and she’s wearing a wide smile.

  “Yeah, I believe it,” I mumble, not at all happy that she’s still falling for his shit.

  “What?” she asks, confused.

  I plaster on my fake smile. “I mean, of course he did. I wouldn’t want to lose you either,” I say, recovering quickly.

  Her mouth drops open like she just caught on to my little secret.

  “If I were him, I mean.” I look at my watch. “Sorry, Dani. I have to get to this meeting. We’ll talk later.” Without another word, I turn around and leave before she can stop me.

  Anger and annoyance pump through my body every time my heart beats. And that only angers me more since I just decided I’d stay out of their business. Even though I want to, I just can’t keep my distance. I want more for her. I want her happy. I realized I just want her.

  Fuck. When did that happen?

  I mean, I’ve always been attracted to her. Who isn’t? She’s beautiful. But I never had a problem keeping her off my mind before. Why is this suddenly a problem now? Maybe it is because I thought she was finally going to leave him. It’s not just that I want her; I want her to want a better life—a life away from him. It doesn’t even have to be with me.

  I remember hearing about a similar situation with Callan and his wife. I wonder if I should talk to him about it, ask how he was able to keep himself in check. I head down to his office, and he’s sitting at his desk, behind his computer.

  “Hey, man,” I say, walking in.

  “Hey, Levi. What’s going on?” he asks, leaning back in his chair.

  “I have something on my mind, and I wanted to ask your advice.”

  He presses his lips together as he thinks it over. “Okay, shoot.”

  I nod and take a deep breath, preparing myself. “Alright, well…I heard something a while ago. Something like, when you started having feelings for Val, you did certain things to keep yourself away from her, given that she was your best friend's sister, right?”

  He nods slowly. “Yeah, I guess. I mean, it wasn’t the smartest idea. But what about it?”

  “There’s this girl, and she’s with my ex-best friend. And he’s a complete ass. He cheats on her all the time, and he’s never home as he’s always away for work. And when he comes home, he’s more worried about parties than spending time with her. I was hoping she’d leave him because I’ve found myself having feelings for her, but he proposed to keep her from leaving, and she accepted.”

  “Ouch,” he mutters.

  “So now, I clearly can’t do anything about these feelings I’m suddenly having toward her. So, my question is, what did you do to keep your mind off Val?”

  He laughs. “I hate to break it to you, man. But if your heart already made up its mind, you’re doomed.”

  I groan, “Okay, then how do I get over her then?”

  He shrugs. “Pick up another woman? Try and distract yourself. But I’ll be honest, nothing works.”

  “Great,” I mumble as I stand, preparing to leave his office.

  I put my hand on the door.

  “Levi,” he says.

  “Yeah?” I ask, turning back to look at him.

  “If he’s as bad as you say he is, he’s bound to get caught. Just be patient and wait it out. Stay close with her and become her shoulder to cry on. When things go down, she’ll run right into your arms.”

  4

  Danielle

  It’s been a week since Nick proposed, and he’s been in New York working ever since. A part of me is nervous about our engagement, but the other part wants to believe that Nick is serious about us, that he’s going to go back to how we used to be. When I told Levi the good news, I thought he’d be happy for me, but it was clear he wasn’t. Maybe he just isn’t convinced Nick is willing to change.

  As I’m leaving the office for lunch, I see Levi walking up ahead. I jog up to him. “Hey, want to grab some lunch?” I ask.

  He stops walking. “I was going to go across the street for a salad.”

  I smile. “Sounds good to me. Care if I join?”

  “I guess not,” he replies, resuming his walk.

  We both walk across the street together, not saying a word. When we’re seated in a corner booth, and we both place our order, I open my mouth to speak.

  “Levi, tell me what’s going on.”

  His eyes grow wide. “What do you mean?”

  “With us. Ever since I told you about the engagement, it feels like you’re avoiding me.”

  “I just don’t want to get in the way, that’s all.”

  “How could you possibly get in the way?” I ask, reaching over and covering his hand with mine. Something weird happens when we touch. My hand starts to tingle, then burn. It’s like we’re sharing an electric current.

  His eyes zero in on our hands, and I quickly pull mine away, wondering if he felt it too.

  “If you and Nick have figured things out, I’m happy for you. I really am. But I don’t want him thinking that something is going on with us. Figured it’d just be easier if we weren’t seen talking and hanging out at work.”

  I wave my hand through the air. “Nick isn’t worried about you and me. He’s been in New York since he proposed. We talked, had dinner where he proposed, then he packed and went back for the workweek.”

  “So, since you two are getting married, and he’s mainly stationed out there, does that mean you guys will be moving?” he asks, brows pulling together.

  My mouth snaps shut as I think it over. “I don’t know. We haven’t had time to talk about it yet.”

  “After all of this, how can you trust him, Dani? How can you be here while he’s there? You’re living two separate lives.” He picks up his water and
takes a long drink.

  I shake my head. “He’s never given me a reason to not trust him, Levi. I mean, sure, since he’s gotten this job, he’s acted a bit different. He’s partied more and experimented with drugs, but he promises I’m more important to him than any of that. He said he was just lost and confused with this new life of his, and that it was time he went back to normal.”

  “And I could say I’m the Queen of England. It doesn’t make it true, Danielle,” he spits out.

  My mouth drops open. “Why are you mad at me?” I ask.

  He shakes his head. “Never mind. I’m sorry. I’ve just had a bad day. I’m going to go.” He stands, pulls out his wallet, and drops a twenty on the table before leaving me sitting alone.

  I can’t do anything but watch his back as he walks away from me. What just happened? Talk about some mixed signals.

  I end up sitting and having lunch alone before going back to work, but for the rest of the day, I’m distracted. I can’t figure out why Levi would be so mad at me. I can’t help but think maybe he knows something I don’t or that he doesn’t want me to marry Nick. But why does he care? Nick is his best friend. But I guess they haven’t been close for a long time. Does he blame me for that? Does he think that if we get married, he and Nick will no longer be friends or something? It’s all so confusing. And it’s not like I can ask him. I highly doubt he’ll tell me what’s going on in that mind of his.

  When the day ends, I go home to my quiet apartment. I change out of my work clothes and into something more comfortable. As I’m preparing dinner for myself, I pick up the phone and call Nick. The phone rings until it goes to voicemail. With a deep sigh, I hang up the phone and go back to the stove to finish cooking.

  For the rest of the week, Nick and I play phone tag, and we never get to talk, but that’s okay because he’s coming home this weekend, and I’m sure we’ll have plenty of time together to celebrate our engagement. On my way home from work, Nick calls, and I’m actually able to answer.