Sweet Spot (Summer Rush #1) (9 page)

She thought she’d have more than enough time to banish the ugly memories, but she still woke up screaming and thrashing, begging for her life and feeling as though her hands were bound while his threats echoed in her ear.

“What’s this I hear about you having a new boyfriend?” Brant asked, holding her at arm’s length. “Are you really dating Rowan Nixon?”

“Not anymore.” It had been five days since she’d heard from him. He’d probably forgotten about her by now.

He glanced at Walker. “I thought you said they were together?”

“Last I heard they were,” Walker said, shrugging. “But how the hell should I know? She doesn’t tell me about her personal life.”

Because her brothers were overprotective and didn’t think anyone was good enough for their baby sister. Except Rowan. Walker had made it clear he thought
he
was good enough. Probably because he was angling for front row seats to his next game.

“I can’t think about that now,” she said, hoping they wouldn’t ask questions she couldn’t answer. Like why she’d pushed Rowan away without giving him a chance. She’d been asking herself that question ever since she watched him walk out of her brother’s office.

Her safety would always be more important to Brant than her love life, or lack thereof, so she asked him, “Do I need to take any special precautions?”

“For starters, you can take my Mustang,” Walker said. His “spare” car was the classic car he’d lovingly restored because he’d obsessed over it as a teen and believed he’d never be able to afford one. “It’s safer than the bike. Plus, your ex doesn’t even know I own that car, so he wouldn’t know to look for it.”

Tenley loved her bike and the sense of freedom Pearl promised every time she straddled her, but Walker was right. She wouldn’t feel safe out in the open like that, where any maniac with a grudge could have a clear shot at her.

But she knew how much he loved that car. “Are you sure?”

“You’re more important to me than a set of wheels,” he said, as though he could read her mind. “Take the car.”

“It’s not a bad idea for you to think about staying here,” Brant said, leaning on the arm of Walker’s leather sofa. “Just for a little while.”

“I don’t want to turn my whole life upside down.” She knew she’d have to make some concessions, but he’d already taken too much from her. “I’m staying at the apartment with Stacey. Besides, I can’t leave her there alone knowing he’s out there. He might come looking for me, and that would put her in the line of fire.” At least Tenley had a prayer of defending them if her ex showed up on their doorstep. Her friend was defenseless.

Walker seemed to consider that before he said, “You could both stay here.”

Brant chuckled. “You’d want your ex-girlfriend staying here with you?”

“She wasn’t my girlfriend.” Walker swiped a hand over the dark stubble on his jaw. “She was a hook-up.”

“Oh?” Tenley said, deciding to test him. “Then it won’t bother you that she’s dating Ace Phillips.”

Walker’s jaw dropped. “Shut the hell up! Since when?”

Huh, so he wasn’t as immune as he pretended to be. Interesting.
“Less than a week, I guess. But they’ve been together almost every night. I think he’s spending the night at our place tonight. Which reminds me, can I crash here? They can get kind of loud.”

Walker’s neck was corded as he folded his arms. “Are you telling me she’s sleeping with this guy already?”

“Why should that bother you, Walker?” Brant asked, tongue in cheek. “You said she was just a hook-up.”

“It doesn’t bother me. Why the hell would it bother me?”

Brant and Tenley refrained from laughing as they watched their brother stalk down the hall and slam his bedroom door.

“He took that better than I thought,” Tenley said, sinking into the couch cushions and kicking up her feet.

***

Tenley sneaked into the apartment early the next morning, hoping to grab a quick shower and change her clothes before work without having to run into the happy couple.

She liked Ace and she thought he was good for Stacey, but she always got the feeling he was sizing her up, trying to figure her out, and it made her uncomfortable.

“Hey,” Ace said, making her jump as she closed and locked the door.

“Shit, you scared me,” she said, her hand to her chest. “Why’re you up so early?”

“I like to train first thing in the morning,” he said, raising his coffee cup. “I was going to whip up some eggs. You want some?”

Her stomach was grumbling, but she wasn’t sure breaking bread with one of Rowan’s best friends was a good idea. “I have to get ready for work.”

“Stacey said you guys didn’t start ’til nine.” He glanced at his watch. “It’s only six thirty. That’s why I let her sleep. You have plenty of time. Come on, join me. I hate eating alone.”

The lure of freshly brewed coffee finally convinced her. She sat on a stool at the breakfast bar between the small dining area and kitchen, watching him whip up scrambled eggs for himself and a cheese omelet with toast for her.

“So why’d you screw my buddy over?” he asked, tossing a tea towel over his shoulder.

She should have seen that coming. “Is that what he told you?”

He passed her a cup of coffee with sugar, milk, and a smile to soften the blow. “He didn’t have to tell me anything. I’ve known him a long time. When he gets all quiet and broody, I know there’s a reason.”

“And it’s usually a woman?” she asked, adding another teaspoon of sugar to her steaming brew.

“No, it’s rarely a woman. But this time, the pieces fit,” he said, stirring his scrambled eggs in a smaller skillet. “He was psyched about meeting you, then all of a sudden he doesn’t want to talk about it. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out something went wrong.”

“If he doesn’t want to talk about it, what makes you think I would?” She could tell Ace was the kind of guy who didn’t pull any punches, so she felt comfortable calling him out.

He grinned. “I can push you. I can’t push him. There’s a good chance he can kick my ass. You can’t.”

She didn’t appreciate being underestimated, but not many men could stand their ground against Ace Phillips. Even with years of kickboxing under her belt, she still wouldn’t stand a chance. Not that a guy like Ace would ever go toe-to-toe with a woman. She could already tell he was too much of a man for that.

His smile slipped, and he tipped his head toward the door. “Since you didn’t come home last night, can I assume there’s someone else?” When Tenley didn’t respond, he said, “Don’t worry. I won’t tell him. I wouldn’t do that to him.”

“I spent the night at my brother Walker’s place.”

“Ah, yeah, this brother I keep hearing so much about.” His lips were drawn tight as he set two loaded plates between them.

“Stacey’s talked to you about Walker?” Tenley couldn’t believe she’d talk to her new boyfriend about her ex-boyfriend. What was she thinking?

“Just in passing.” He shrugged, trying to play it off as if it didn’t matter. “She mentioned something about you working for him.”

“Then you know they dated?” she asked before popping a bite of cheese-laden perfection into her mouth.

“Yeah, she said something about it.” He looked wary, as though he were holding his breath. “She said it wasn’t serious though. Was it?”

Tenley thought about Walker’s reaction when he’d found out Stacey was sleeping with someone else. “Um, I don’t think so.” When someone tapped on the door, she gasped, her eyes widening. “Who could that be?”

“Relax,” Ace said, resting his hand on her shoulder. “It’s just my training partner. We’re going to hit the gym.”

He walked to the door and checked the peephole before he opened it.

Tenley swore softly when she saw Rowan walk in.
Ace couldn’t have warned me?

“Hey,” she said when Rowan’s eyes landed on her.

“Hey,” he said softly, looking as uncomfortable as she felt.

“I’m just going to get changed and say good-bye to Stacey,” Ace said. “Be right back.”

She gestured to the coffee pot on the counter across from her. “Coffee’s hot. Help yourself.”

“Thanks.”

The sight of his broad shoulders in a tight gray T-shirt made her heart thump erratically. If she’d had half a brain, she would have screwed him senseless before she sent him on his way. At least then she would have had memories instead of worthless fantasies.

He turned to face her, taking in her skinny jeans, black tank top, and ballerina flats. “You’re up early. I thought you don’t start ’til nine.”

“I just got in.” She sipped her coffee as she waited for his reaction. Testing him was cruel, but she wanted to know if he’d care that she may have been with another man last night.

“You just got in?” He leaned back against the counter, bringing the mug to his lips. “From where?”

At least he wasn’t jumping to conclusions. “I spent the night at my brother’s.” She tipped her head toward the bedrooms. “Thought I’d give those two a little privacy.”

“I asked Stacey why they don’t just spend the night at Ace’s place. You know what she told me?”

Tenley wasn’t sure she wanted to guess. “No. What?”

“She told me that she doesn’t like leaving you alone. She said you have wicked nightmares. What’s that all about?”

Stacey hadn’t known her when Justin was a part of her life, and since Tenley didn’t talk to anyone outside of her family about her ex, Stacey had assumed she’d suffered from night terrors since childhood, and she let her believe that.

“Who knows why people have night terrors?” she asked, tearing her gaze from his. “It’s a mystery, right?”

“Is it?” His eyes locked on hers as though he could hear what she hadn’t said.

She cleared her throat, desperately hoping he’d be willing to change the subject. “So how’ve you been?”

“I’ve been better.” He took a sip of coffee. “You?”

“Same.” With a fork, she pointed at the skillet. “There’re some eggs left over. Help yourself.”

“Did you make them?” he asked with a smirk.

“No, your friend did.”

He shrugged. “They should be edible then.”

“And if I made them, they wouldn’t have been?” she asked, trying to hide her smile.

“I didn’t say that.” He scoured the cupboards until he found a bright pink plate that made him grimace. “Seriously?” He held it up. “You expect me to eat off this thing?”

“What’s wrong? Does it threaten your masculinity, big guy?”

He chuckled before dumping the rest of the scrambled eggs onto his plate. “No. Nothing threatens my masculinity.”

As her eyes trailed over his muscular body, she realized he was right about that. He was all man. No doubt.

He slid his phone across the counter. “You wanna take a picture? Make it last?”

He was so full of himself that she had to laugh. But she was glad he wasn’t making things awkward. After their last meeting, she wasn’t sure what to expect when or if she saw him again. “I’ll pass, thanks.”

Rowan watched her watching him as they both brought forks to their mouths slowly. It was obvious they were both hungry, but not for eggs.

“I figure we should clear the air,” he said. “Since your friend is dating mine, we’ll probably meet up like this from time to time. Might as well be civil, right?”

“Sure.” She’d been preparing for this role her whole life—pretending everything was fine when it wasn’t. “Why not?”

“You still seeing the sleazy car salesman?” he asked, his gaze on his plate.

“I was never really
seeing
him.” She polished off her last bite of food before moving to the counter. She piled the dirty dishes into the sink and added soap to the mix while submerging her hands in the hot water. “Just a few dates.” More like hook-ups, but she wouldn’t tell him that.

Rowan’s chest was suddenly pressed to her backside, his arms curling around her as his empty plate disappeared into the water. She swallowed before holding her breath, questioning what he might do or say next. He was hard.
Everywhere.
She wondered how long it would take him to lose those shorts and whether they could be quiet enough to keep it from Ace and Stacey.

“What are you doing?” she asked when his hands settled on her hips, his lips nuzzling her neck.

“Thinking maybe we could keep it casual.”

Casual sex? Any other time, she would have jumped at the chance, but knowing her ex could be waiting downstairs made her hesitate.

“Unless you’re not into it?” Even before she answered, his hands were working the button and zipper on her jeans. “If not, just say the word.”

No.
It was playing on her lips, but she couldn’t make herself say it, even though she knew she should. Her life was already too complicated without adding a lover to the mix.

Her only response was a sharp intake of breath when he slipped a hand inside her black lace panties. He took that as a green light. She leaned back into him, needing the support of his big body when his fingers teased her. Circling, probing, thrusting…

“Oh God, Row…”

“Sssh,” he whispered, kissing her neck. “We don’t want them to know, do we?” He leaned forward, using his free hand to shut off the tap when the water reached the edge of the sink. “We can keep this just between us. That’s the way you want it, isn’t it?”

She felt as if she should say something, but she couldn’t. All of her focus was centered on the wicked things he was doing with his fingers. He slid his thumb back and forth, the movement hypnotizing. She bit her lip and shuddered as the momentum built.

“Yes… don’t stop…” She rolled her head around like a bobblehead, dropping her chin to her chest as her breath came in short, ragged gasps. Heedless of the water and soap dripping from her hands, she curled them around his neck, into his hair, and thrust her breasts out when he tweaked her nipple through the thin cotton.

Finally, wave after wave rolled through her. He slowly stroked her back to sanity, every part of her body still pulsating.

“I got you all wet,” she said, grimacing as she set her hands on the counter, trying to steady her legs.

“I could say the same.”

Tenley laughed, dropping her head as she tried to get her bearings. Before she could, they heard Ace walking down the hall, whistling.