Total pages in book: 105
Estimated words: 102781 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 514(@200wpm)___ 411(@250wpm)___ 343(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 102781 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 514(@200wpm)___ 411(@250wpm)___ 343(@300wpm)
“Did you happen to see where they went?”
He hesitated. “Are you her husband or something?”
“No. Just a friend.”
“You’re not gonna cause any trouble, are you?”
I shook my head. “None whatsoever.”
He lifted his chin. “They went to the restaurant. Closed out their tab about twenty minutes ago.”
I blew out a deep breath. Sure, I felt relief. But it wasn’t because I gave a shit whether Annalise slept with the douchebag or not. It was because I didn’t need crying at the office. I had to work with her now—in close proximity.
I sat at the bar and nursed my beer for the better part of half an hour. The door to the restaurant opened and closed, and the initial stakeout excitement I’d felt started to lose its luster. I considered bolting.
Until the door opened, and I caught a glimpse of the woman coming out.
“Shit.” I looked down into the empty peanut dish I’d polished off, attempting to avoid eye contact. After thirty seconds, I chanced a sneak peek up. She wasn’t standing in front of the restaurant door anymore. I breathed a sigh of anxious relief. But it only lasted one breath. Because on my next inhale, I diverted my eyes from the door and found Annalise in my peripheral vision, walking right toward me.
And she didn’t look too happy.
Her hands gripped her hips. “What do you think you’re doing?”
I tried to play it off casually by picking up my empty beer and bringing it to my lips. “Hey, Texas. What are you doing here?”
She scowled. “Don’t even try it, Fox.”
“What?”
“Why are you following me?”
I feigned being offended, raising my hand to my chest. “Following you? I’m meeting a friend. I had a client meeting a few blocks over.”
“Yeah? Where’s your friend?”
I looked down at my watch. “He’s…late.”
“What time were you supposed to meet him?”
“Umm. Six o’clock.”
“Who are you meeting?”
“What?”
“You heard me. What’s your friend’s name?”
Damn. This was an inquisition. Her rapid-fire questions threw me off. I said the first name that came to my head. “Jim. Jim Falcon. Yeah. Ummm…I just met with a client, and we were going to have drinks after to go over my meeting.”
She added some badass squinting to her scowl. “You’re so full of shit. You’re following me.”
“I left the office at three today to go see a client,” I lied, knowing my door had been closed so she wouldn’t have known if I was still in when she left. “What time did you leave?”
“Four thirty.”
“So how exactly could I have followed you? I think you’re following me.”
“Are you nuts? Seriously, I think you need a shrink, Bennett. I’ve been watching you through the door to the restaurant for a half hour. You’re staring at the door every time it opens.”
I threw up my hands like I was exasperated. “The door is in my line of view.”
“Go home, Bennett.”
“I’m waiting for my friend.”
“I don’t know what you think you’re doing, but I’m a big girl and can take care of myself. I don’t need your protection. If I want to fuck Andrew, whether he wants to get back together with me or not, that’s my decision. Not yours. Maybe you should spend some time thinking about why you don’t have a relationship of your own, rather than being so concerned with mine.”
Before I could get another word in, Annalise turned and stomped back to the restaurant. I sat there for a few minutes collecting my thoughts.
What the hell am I doing here? I’d lost my damn mind.
The bartender walked over and leaned one elbow on the bar. “She’ll come around. They only get that pissed off when there’s something there.”
He saw the confused look on my face and chuckled. “Can I get you anything else?”
“You got any ass back there? Because mine just got chewed out.”
He smiled. “Beer’s on me. Hope your night gets better.”
“Yeah. Me, too. Thanks.”
I took my time walking the three blocks to the parking garage and then sat in the car and shot off a text to Jim Falcon before I forgot.
Bennett: If Annalise asks, you were supposed to meet me for drinks at the Royal Hotel bar tonight at six.
He typed back a few minutes later.
Jim: I’m way too cheap to pay eleven bucks for a domestic beer.
Bennett: She doesn’t know that, jackass. Just cover for me if she asks.
Jim: No, I meant I’ve wanted to check out that place, and it’s too pricey for my budget. So it’s gonna cost you. Three drinks there next time we go out. You’re paying.
I shook my head.
Bennett: Fine. Good friend you are, making me pay to cover my ass.
Jim: You’re lucky we weren’t supposed to fake meet for a dinner. Their surf and turf goes for seventy-five bucks.
I tossed my phone onto the dash and started my car. I’d parked on the second floor of the garage, and there was a long line to pay and exit. A sudden urge to get the hell home hit me as I waited. So of course, every person in front of me paid with a credit card, then I hit the light on the corner of the garage before having to stop for pedestrians at every turn. The street to get back to the highway was a one-way, which meant I had to pass the hotel again.