If he does, then I will allow him to grovel until our baby turns five and then think about forgiving him.
If he lies…
I’m going to murder him.
“Andie, don’t call. It’s probably not a good idea.”
Fuck calling.
Me: How are your “meetings”? Want me to bring you a burger from Bender’s?
Roman: I’m deep in contracts. No thanks, baby. I already ate.
Me: What else are you “deep” into?
Roman: Hoping to be deep into you later.
Me: Wow…figured your appetite would be full from Wednesday.
Roman: I can never get enough of you.
Me: I know, right? Between me and the big tits bimbo you had lunch with on Wednesday, you’re barely sated.
Fuck giving him the opportunity to tell me the truth.
Roman: What are you talking about?
Dani: I love you.
Me: Oh, you know! Too full from staring at her big tits to eat? Had to leave and get a taste?!?!?!?!
Dani: You’re pretty
I look up to see Dani smiling at me, her eyes glossed over. “What? You look angry. I wanted to cheer you up.”
My phone dings again, and I pull my eyes away from her.
Roman: What are you talking about? Are you feeling okay today?
Me: Fuck you…I feel fine. I’m not a cheating asshole!
Linc: Hey, I need to talk to you.
Jesus! I’m being blasted by everyone I know.
Roman: How am I cheating? What’s your problem?
Dani: Your ice cream is melting.
Me: Don’t act like you don’t know. I know you were at Bender’s on Wednesday!
Linc: Can I come by?
Just what I need right now. I have bigger fish to fry than having to deal with Linc, too. He always seems to show up at the worst times, but I can never tell him no.
Roman: She was a client, Andie.
Me: Fuck you. I hate you.
Linc: Why? What did I do to you? You know you love me.
Me: Oops! Sorry, wrong person. Yeah, let’s meet up later. I miss you.
This time I make sure to send my message to Roman.
Me: Fuck you. I hate you.
Roman: You don’t hate me.
Dani: You don’t hate him.
I lift my head up to see Dani hovering over my phone. “Oh, I hate him,” I assure her.
Me: I do. Don’t come over tonight. I’m sick and won’t be back in the office today.
Roman: Don’t be ridiculous! Come back to work…you’re not calling in sick.
Anger floods through me. I’ll be damned if I’m going to let him boss me around—even if he is technically my boss. This has nothing to do with work and everything to do with him being a liar!
Me: I’m inviting Brett to my place. He’s a tit man like you. But I’m sure he will appreciate them more.
Ha! Take that, asshole.
Roman: Of course I appreciate your goddamned tits!
Roman: Andie, you fucking stay away from him.
Roman: I’m coming over.
Roman: Answer me dammit! I swear to God if he touches you, I’ll kill him!
Linc: Perfect. I’ll find you. I have an idea where you’re at.
I roll my eyes at the last text and reply back to Linc.
Me: Been stalking my Facebook again I see…
Dani: I’m sorry I just took a bite of your ice cream. It was yummy.
My eyes flit up from my screen to see Dani giving me puppy dog eyes. Damn girl gets away with everything with that look. I stick my tongue out at her before turning my attention back to my phone.
Me: Fine, I’ll go to his place. I hate you.
Roman: Andie! You have the wrong idea here.
Me: That’s a shame because that’s the idea I’m sticking with.
I slam my phone down, not needing any more of his bullshit. I should have figured. A fucking hot, successful guy like him could never be faithful. He wouldn’t want to stick it out with a moody, fat, pregnant grump like me. I should have never dropped my guard with him.
But we had something. I know I didn’t dream that up.
Had.
A grumble leaves my throat, and I bang my fist on the bar.
“Brett, I’m gonna need a bigger bowl of ice cream.”
Fuck Professionalism
I SCRUB MY FACE WITH my palm and let out a grunt of frustration. That woman makes me batshit crazy sometimes. It’s just the hormones, though. Has to be it.
Guilt sits heavily in my chest. She knows I went to lunch with Diane on Wednesday. That fucker at Bender’s must have told her. And now, apparently, she has quite a few ideas about Diane and I—all of them the worst possible scenarios, no doubt.
Why can’t she just leave well enough alone?
Because she’s motherfucking Andie Miller.
Drama queen to the nth degree.
Her fiery passion and sailor mouth are normally what I enjoy most about her. But when they’re turned against me, things get tricky. I like her wrath when I’m buried deep inside her. All other times, though, are more complicated.
Despite Diane and I accomplishing what we’ve been working together on all week, I am frustrated. This is supposed to be a happy day for me. One that I’d hoped to share with Andie soon. I’ll have to do some smooth talking to calm her down. It’s not what she thinks.
I mean, yes, I’ve met up with Diane every day this week.
Yes, Diane and I have had lunch together.
And yes, Diane is doing her damnedest to help me.
But I’m not a pig, like Andie is so quick to assume. Goddammit, she pisses me off sometimes. I’m about to fire off a text, asking her to stay at Bender’s until I get there—because that’s obviously where she is and learned of Diane from—when my office door swings open. I expect to see one of my siblings or even Reagan’s assistant Suzy. A part of me had even hoped it was Andie, ready to rumble. I’d have yanked her clothes off, bent her over her desk, and fucked the fire right out of her until she listened to every damn thing I had to say.
But it’s not Andie.
It’s some crazy-eyed looking motherfucker with a chiseled jaw.
“Can I help you?” I snap, my voice a little too harsh for my visitor. I mean, he could be a client, but based on his thuggish appearance and the disdainful look on his face at my appearance, I highly doubt that.
The man’s gaze skips over me and darts right over to Andie’s desk. That simple action—as if this stranger knows my woman and where she sits—has me rising to my feet and my fists clenching. The man is bulky with a thick neck that’s sporting some colorful ink, snaking its way up his throat toward his jawline. His black T-shirt has the word “SWAT” emblazoned across the front and is stretched to the limit over his solid frame. I may have an inch or two on him, but he’s bigger than me. Hell, he’s even bigger than Ram.
“Where’s Andrea?” he questions as he saunters over and picks up a sleeve of crackers on her desk. He tears it open and shoves a cracker in his mouth.
I crack my neck and wonder who the fuck this guy thinks he is waltzing in here like he owns the place. “Lunch. May I help you?” It takes everything in me to maintain a decent level of professionalism when I’m getting bad vibes from this prick and am dying to tear his throat out with my teeth. Something about him rubs me the wrong way.
He turns and sits his ass on the edge of her desk. It’s just a desk from IKEA, and if he keeps swinging his legs like a goddamned kid, the entire thing is going to implode from beneath him. The thought has me smirking. I’ll buy her a new desk, but seeing that shit would be worth it.
“Just looking for Andrea,” he tells me in a cheery voice that grates on my nerves. He tugs a grey beanie off his head and scratches his dark buzzed scalp, before putting it back on and crossing his arms over his chest. His black eyebrows lift up in question. “How’d she get a job like this, anyway?”
T
he asshole steals another one of her crackers and chomps away.
“She applied and she got it. Andie is an excellent assistant and more than capable. How do you know her?” I demand, my voice faltering and allowing some anger to seep in. Fuck professionalism. I’m three seconds from pummeling this asshole.
His mischievous green eyes narrow as he sizes me up. I don’t like being under this loser’s scrutiny. “She and I go way back.” He winks at me, and I suppress a growl.
“She’s not here. I have work to do but I’ll tell her you stopped by…”
“Linc,” he finishes with a grin that produces a dimple on his left cheek, giving him a playful, innocent look despite his hardened exterior. I’m not some pretty girl who will fall for this asshole’s charms, though.
“Get out of my office, Linc.”
His dark eyebrows rise almost to the edge of his beanie. He must sense my barely contained rage, but instead of shrinking away like he should, it seems to provoke him. I can tell he’s the antagonistic type. “We all know Andie isn’t qualified for a job like this. Who’d she have to blow—”
“Don’t fucking finish whatever is about to come out of your mouth,” I snarl, all sense of decorum gone.
He smirks at me and shoves his hand into his back pocket to produce his wallet. Then, he flips it open to a picture. When he holds it up for me to see, fury bubbles inside of me.
Andie is young in the picture. Maybe eighteen or so. Her bright blue eyes are heavy-lidded as though she’s stoned or something. Her normally long blonde hair is cropped short and curves just under her chin. She’s fucking adorable in the photo. What isn’t so fucking adorable is this asshole in front of me sitting beside her in the picture. His much skinnier arm is draped around her shoulder. He’s smiling as he seems to be speaking something into her ear.
They look happy.
Too happy.
Why is her motherfucking ex-boyfriend in my goddamned office?
“Get out!”
He laughs—fucking laughs—in my face as he snaps the wallet closed. “Nah, I’ll wait right here. Does she still smell like that lavender shampoo she always used?” he taunts.
I know he’s poking at me, and it pisses me off.
“She smells like me because she’s my girlfriend. Now get the fuck out before I knock your pretty teeth out,” I roar, my chest trembling with rage.
He edges closer to me until his chest bumps mine. All joking has left his demeanor as he glares at me. “Your girlfriend, huh?” he snaps. “That’s not what I heard.”
I shove him hard away from me. “I warned you. Get out before I make you,” I seethe.
The brave punk stalks back over to me and gets right back in my face. “Is Andrea really with an overbearing dick like you? I swear to God if you hurt my—”
“She’s mine!” I bellow as I grab a handful of his stupid shirt. “If you so much as touch her ever again I’ll kill—”
“I’ll touch her whenever I want because she’s my—”
“SHE’S NOTHING TO YOU!” I scream and shove him harder this time. “SHE’S HAVING MY BABY!” He stumbles against the wall and a picture crashes to the floor.
“You knocked her up?! And I’m just now finding out about this?” he yells back, hurt lacing his tone.
I hope his heart is fucking broken to bits.
“It’s not your place to know about—”
“ROMAN!”
Linc and I both jerk our gazes to the woman in the doorway. My little sister Reagan is glaring at me in horror. I shake away the rage and take a few steps back, so I don’t knock this asshole’s head right off his shoulders. She waltzes into the room, looking too pretty and petite to be in his presence. Reagan is innocent and this thing in my office has future carnie written all over him with his stupid neck tattoos and fake-ass “SWAT” T-shirt. I don’t want that fucker near Andie or Reagan.
“What the hell is going on in here?” she demands, her small hands going to her hips.
Linc’s anger melts away as he regards her with his dumbass dimpled grin. “Just having a talk with Andrea’s psychotic ‘boyfriend’.” He steps closer to my sister. “But I’d much rather talk to you.”
Reagan’s firm stare lingers on him for a second before darting to mine. She’s a great CFO because numbers are her thing. My sister analyzes data faster than anyone I’ve ever known and interprets it in a way that makes sense. She has solutions to problems. My sister is a fixer.
Which is exactly why I don’t like the way she’s now regarding Linc, as if he needs a little fixing. I’ll fix his face with my fist. Problem solved.
“You know Andie?” she questions him.
He nods. “I do. And I love her.” With that comment, he looks over his shoulder and gives me a smug stare.
Red.
Motherfucking red.
I charge with my fist ready to slam across his jaw when Reagan steps between us. She jumped in the middle of her fair share of fights between Ram and I back in the day. My sister is fearless when it comes to furious big boys swinging fists.
“Move,” I seethe.
She shakes her head. “You move your ass right back over to your chair.” Her small hand gestures with exaggeration to my seat.
I growl but force myself to step away before I whip this fucker’s ass and get myself involved in a lawsuit. I drop into my chair so forcefully, I’m surprised it doesn’t collapse beneath me.
Reagan turns to look at Linc once more, and I hate how close he stands to her. The way he seems to sniff her perfume. The goddamned way he licks his bottom lip as if he’d like a taste—
“SIT DOWN, ROMAN!” she screeches.
I realize I’m back on my feet ready to climb over my desk to beat the shit out of him. With a huff, I obey my feisty sister.
“Everyone is going to calm down,” she says in a soft tone. “Now who are you?”
“Lincoln Carter,” he replies and extends his massive hand out to shake hers. “You can call me Linc, angel.” His smile broadens at her as he lays his flirt on thick. It only makes me want to choke the look right off his face.
She simply chuckles at him and shakes his hand. I hate how small she seems next to this giant fucker. “Reagan Holloway. Nice to meet you.” I grit my teeth when she leans in to him. “And I’m immune to,” she says and waves at him, “whatever this is.”
I bite back a laugh. She’s had a little more bark to her ever since her man troubles in California sent her back home to us. Now, she has some bite to go with it.
“This is the beginning of something beautiful,” he assures her with a smoldering grin. “Anyone ever tell you that your hair is smooth. Like unnaturally smooth. Like fucking Disney-princess smooth?” He lifts a hand and tugs at a strand. “I like it.”
“Enough,” I snap, ending his shameless flirting. I’m about to call Ram in here, so we can tag team this idiot. “He needs to go.”
“Roman,” Reagan huffs. “Chill. If he’s a friend of Andie’s, he’s a friend of ours.”
Linc chuckles and shoots a dark look my way. “Oh, we’re a whole lot fucking more than friends.”
“You asshole!” I spit as I stand so fast the chair goes sailing behind me and crashes against my credenza. “Come say that shit to my face!”
I ignore Reagan’s protests and all fear of a potential lawsuit as I stalk over to Linc and send a splintering punch right across his jaw. He stumbles away, shaking away the blow to his head for a brief second, before he charges back at me. His massive hand clutches my throat as he tackles me. We both hit the ground hard. I haven’t gotten into many fights in my life, but all of them were with Ram. It’s hard to hurt someone you love. But this asshole, I could hurt him all damn day. I land a few punches to his ribs, but his grip on my throat has me seeing stars. Luckily, I manage to roll him over onto his back where I have the advantage. There’s commotion all around us, and soon I’m physically torn from him by my younger, but stronger, brother.
“What the fuck?!�
�� I roar in protest as he drags me away.
“Everybody just calm the hell down!” Reagan screams.
Ram’s grip tightens on my biceps. “Dude, stop whatever the hell you’re doing right now.”
I’m about to open my mouth when Andie comes storming into the office with a stumbling Dani on her heels. Is she drunk in the middle of the day?
“I forgot my vitamins in my desk drawer, but don’t worry,” Andie snaps, her fiery eyes on mine. “I’m going home sick. You make me sick.”
Linc starts laughing hysterically, and I fight against Ram to let me go at him. “S-She doesn’t even like you,” he chokes out between breaths.
As if just realizing there are others in the room, Andie tears her gaze from me and it lands on her ex-boyfriend. When she sees him, standing there all disheveled with blood trickling down his bottom lip, she loses all anger with one ragged breath.
“Oh my God! Linc! What happened to you?” she demands as she all but runs over to him.
I watch with crushing devastation as she throws her arms around his neck. He watches me over her shoulder and winks. The hug he gives her is full of warmth and love.
“Stop,” Ram growls in my ear.
“He,” Linc tells her in a fake-ass shaky voice, “punched me. Your boyfriend hates me.”
She jerks away from him and glares at me. “He’s not my boyfriend anymore,” she answers him in a cool tone. “And I hate him.”
This makes him laugh more, but all of her focus is back on me. How can she even like this guy? I thought what we had was unbreakable, goddammit!
“You,” she snarls as she stomps over to me. “I can’t believe you have the audacity to hurt him when you’re over there breaking my heart, you cheating asshole!”
There are two shocked gasps that I recognize as belonging to my siblings. I reach for her, but she bats my hand away. “Andie, it’s not what you think—”
“Isn’t that what all cheaters say?” Linc questions, adding in his unwanted two cents.
Ram growls behind me. “Dani. Reagan. Get him out of here. Please.”
Our sister nods and she ushers Linc toward the door, her small hand gripping his elbow. He goes all too fucking willingly, which causes more rage to surge through my veins. Dani stumbles over her feet and lets out a hiccup before closing the door behind them. Finally, Ram releases me.
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