Pulse - Part Three (The Pulse Series) (9 page)

"I'll grab my coat."

***

"I ate way too much popcorn." I loop my arm through Rebecca's as we step out into the busy pedestrian traffic. Manhattan never seems to slow down and as much as I missed the quiet, breezy, still air back home, I was beginning to relish in the fast pace and vibrant nature of this city.

"I want a beer." Rebecca pulls me to the left so abruptly I almost fall off my heels into her.

I follow her lead while I check my phone and see a message from Nathan.

I miss you, Jessica.

Simple, sweet and to the point.

"Did Fingers text you?" Rebecca calls over her shoulder as she scans the storefronts across the street. "Where can a girl get a beer in this neighborhood?"

"There's a pub a few doors down from the restaurant. Everyone says the beer on tap there is great. We can go." I offer, even though I'm ready to climb into my bed and sleep the night away.

"Did he text you or not?" She points to my smartphone. I know she's just being protective. I don't have all the answers I want from him yet but I have enough for the moment.

"He said he misses me." I feel giddy just from repeating the words. It's just a simple text, Jessica. You can't invest too much in him yet. One day at a time.

She stops to stare at a pair of designer shoes in a window. "I should come back tomorrow to get those."

"I think you should." I pull on her arm to egg her along. I just want to have one beer and then get both of us in to a taxi so we can get home. I know she has an early morning tomorrow.

"The new job is great." The half-smile on her face suggests otherwise.

"It's always an adjustment when you start something new." I steer us to the left so we whip around the corner. "Just up the block here." I point.

"I haven't said this yet." She stops in the middle of the sidewalk and people curse, as they have to weave their way around us. "I'm happy that you're here. I'm happy that you moved to New York, Jess."

"It was the best decision I ever made." I pull her into an embrace. "You're the one who convinced me to do it."

"Just think." She turns sharply on her heel as we near the entrance to the pub. "If you hadn't come here you never would have met Fingers and his dick."
I giggle as I push the door open and walk through into the crowded space.

***

"Just one more and then we'll call it a night." Rebecca waves one finger in the air over her head. "Please, Jess. This is like our own private celebration of my promotion."

"If you put it like that…" I laugh from the slight buzz I got from my own glass of beer. Rebecca is already on her third, heading towards her fourth. I don't know how she stays awake. I'd be under the table by now.

"We should totally go back to Connecticut." She slams her hand against the table. "You could show Josh what a cosmopolitan woman you've become."

I glance down at my worn jeans and pink sweater. "I'm not there quite yet. Maybe when I get a promotion, I can do that."

"You have to get away from that asshole." She spits the words out with obvious disdain.

"What asshole?" I don't want to get in another argument with her about Nathan. It's the same song and dance every time. She'll tell me that he's just using me as his temporary fuck toy and I'll tell her I think she's wrong.

"Drew."

"Drew?" I'm surprised when that name jumps from her lips.

"You need to quit that place." She grabs hold of my forearm. "He can fuck up your career. You know that he can."

I wish I hadn't confided in her about what he was doing to me. She was fiercely loyal and if she thought anyone was fucking over someone she loved, she's fight tooth and nail to protect them. She did it with me when I was with Josh, and now with Nathan too. Since I've planted Drew squarely on her bad side, he was in the line of fire, just like the rest of them.

"I should go over there and give him a piece of my mind right now." She stomps her foot as if she's about to storm out of the pub, go to the restaurant and wring Drew's neck.

"At least wait until his shift is over," I joke. I motion for the waitress again but she throws me a hurried glance and I can tell she's got way too much to handle.

Rebecca's hand flies past my face at break neck speed. "His shift is over. The low life is right there."

I peer through the crowd to steal a profile view of Drew sitting at another table. He's talking animatedly to someone else. He's got a tall glass of beer in his palm.  "I should go over there and dump that over his head." The mental image of that alone is enough to satisfy me but Rebecca now has a seed planted in her mind that's going to be hard to weed out.

"Do it, Jess. Just fucking do it." She's pushing my arm, almost knocking me from my chair.

"I can't." I shake my head. "He'll get me fired."

"It'll be so worth it."

"I'll get us a couple more drinks." Or her a drink and me another sparkling water.

"Be quick when you dump it over his head and then run. Kick your heels off if you have to." She nudges me in the side. "I'll grab them on my way out." She takes a quick glance at my worn heels. "Or not. You can borrow a pair of mine."

I shake my head in laughter as I launch into the crowd. I push my way past a few people before I realize that Drew's eyes are locked onto my face. He's raised his brow as if to taunt me. We're not standing inside Axel NY. He's not my superior in this moment. How much would it really hurt if I marched up to him and told him to fuck off?

His eyes don't leave mine as I steadily walk closer and closer to his table. I can see his mouth moving. He's talking to whoever he's with but his attention doesn't divert from me. The soft hum of the noise in the room mutes out his voice until I'm just mere inches away. I walk right up behind the dark haired man he's sitting with.

"I owed you the drinks." Drew rakes his eyes over my body, settling on my sheer sweater and the pink bra that's poking past the neckline. "I bet she couldn't get enough."

"She was so hungry for it." The voice of the man sitting in front of me, with his back to me, sounds so familiar.

"I can't believe you got her in your bed before me. When we saw her in the line at the club that night I thought I'd taste her first." Drew cocks a brow as if to challenge me to say something.

"Jessica always wanted me. I won fair and square when I fucked that sweet, little body for the first time."

I close my eyes.

I feel the air leave my lungs as I tap Nathan softly on his shoulder.

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Deborah Bladon has never read a romance hero she didn't like. Her love for romance novels began when she was old enough to board the bus, library card in hand to check out the newest Harlequin paperbacks. She's a Canadian by heart, and by passport, but you can often spot her in New York City sipping a latte and looking for inspiration for her next story. Manhattan is definitely her second home.

She cherishes her family and believes that each day is a gift for writing, for reading, and for loving.