The Syndicates: A Dark Mafia Romance Collection
Page 25
It wasn’t like I’d ever make any money off my art, anyway, and that was really, really sad.
“I’m more likely to get hit by a paper airplane than sell something I drew.” Lifting the cup to my lips, I shivered as the smell clogged my nostrils, and my eyelids fluttered closed in a brief moment of bliss. Sighing heavily, I fixed the top back on and ignored the slight burning of my tongue as it stuck to the roof of my mouth.
“I’m just sayin’, Val, the point of coming out here was so you’d eventually be able to paint full time.” Groaning loudly when Natasha emerged from the coffee place, I stumbled away dramatically, but she simply scoffed at my antics. “Don’t be a gloomy bitch.”
“Gloomy bitch? I’ll show you gloom.” Whipping around, I glared at my sister before catching a flash of black behind her, and all my puff whizzed out of my ears. “Oh, crap.”
“What?” The sun was low enough to cast a slight shadow on the sidewalk, and Carlyle’s stretched as he leaned on the hood of a car. He plucked a cigarette from between his lips to laugh heartily, and the fine hairs on my chest stood up as the sound carried to me. “Oh, go give him your number, Valerie.”
Just as Natasha spoke, Carlyle passed the girl that’d grabbed the donuts his smoke, and I gnawed on my bottom lip as my face heated. She had green eyes, but they could’ve been siblings, and they certainly seemed close as he ruffled her hair.
Suddenly, light brown eyes met mine, and Carlyle didn’t give her so much as a ‘be right back’ before striding down the sidewalk. Panic struck my chest, and my lungs stopped working as embarrassment flamed my cheeks. Did I look as jealous as I was? Oh crap . . . oh man . . .
“Are you following me?” Amusement thickened his tone, and I huffed as my sister’s glare bored holes into my face. It did nothing to release the heat in my cheeks, and he smiled politely even while his eyes scorched me from top to bottom. “I don’t think we were able to introduce ourselves the other day. I’m Carlyle.”
“Valerie.” Thanking God himself that I didn’t stutter, I held out my hand without thinking, and goosebumps swept up my arm when his palm pressed against mine. His hand was so firm, so big . . . oh my God, no! “Um . . . a-about the other night. I wanted to apologize for my sister’s . . . ”
My words died on my tongue when Carlyle started rubbing the top of my hand with his thumb. His polite, slightly smoldering expression didn’t waver, and I blinked hard before pulling back to grip the straps of my purse.
“I admit I haven’t been to a party I’ve enjoyed in a long time. They’re mostly work functions. Next time, give me a heads up.” He talked so clipped and proper, and a shiver lodged between my shoulders when he cocked his head back a little. “Wouldn’t you need my number for that?”
“Oh, right. Yeah.” Now that he was so close, Carlyle was mesmerizing— his eyes sucked me in, and an embarrassed giggle escaped as I fished my phone out of my purse. “We usually party every Saturday.”
“I’ll clear my schedule.” Tapping away on the screen in a new contact, I nodded before Carlyle was looming over me, and he tilted my phone down. His face was so close that I could smell his cologne, and my eyelids fluttered dangerously as I inhaled deeply. His soft hum of appreciation tightened my nipples— from the screen or the peek down my shirt, I wasn’t sure— and I glanced up from under my lashes. “I’ll see you Saturday, then, Valerie.”
I half-expected Carlyle to caress my cheek or something, but he only stepped back and headed to his car. Holding my breath as they sped away, I shivered with the effort it took not to look at the shiny vehicle as it passed me. My heart thundered in my chest, and I turned to my sister in a daze, not really registering her massive, shit-eating grin.
“I’m guessing I’m gonna be ‘sick’ on Saturday?” Blowing a gust of breath, I nodded firmly, and Natasha giggled a little. “