Total pages in book: 105
Estimated words: 100277 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 501(@200wpm)___ 401(@250wpm)___ 334(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 100277 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 501(@200wpm)___ 401(@250wpm)___ 334(@300wpm)
As if he sensed me, Rafe’s eyes flew across the room and he saw me.
I stared at him in open disgust and turned on my heel. I needed a drink and the bar was in the kitchen.
Jealousy and hurt burned in my chest as I pushed my way to the kitchen counter where the hired bartenders mixed cocktails. I slapped a hand down on the counter to get their attention. “Whiskey, whatever you got, straight up.”
A hand slid across my back and I jerked in surprise to find it was a stranger I’d pushed past to get to the bar. He leaned into me, his hand pressing deeper into my back. “Drowning your sorrows, gorgeous?”
“Yup, sure am.” The bartender pushed the shot glass of whiskey toward me. “Thanks.” I shoved a tip toward him as I took the glass and threw back the whiskey.
It burned like a motherfucker down my throat and then exploded in a cascade of heat across my chest. “Another.”
“Make that two.” The guy said. He still had his hand on my back. It felt icky and presumptuous, but I didn’t shove him off. Rafe had let Camille put her hands all over him, after all. If I were the Star Shine Meadows of six months ago, I wouldn’t have given a rat’s ass if a handsome stranger came on to me while I was on a date with another man, because that Star had smart rules against monogamy!
“Friend of the groom or the groom?” I inquired.
The stranger laughed. “I work with Josh. I’m Brent.”
“She doesn’t care and get your hand off her.”
I stiffened at Rafe’s voice, and Brent and I turned to look up at my boyfriend, whose face was harsh with anger.
Brent dropped his hand, muttered something unintelligible under his breath, and hurried away.
Scaredy-cat.
“Whiskey,” the bartender said.
I whirled around and threw back the second shot.
I felt Rafe’s heat at my back and then his lips near my ear as he demanded, “What the hell are you doing?”
“I’m drinking.” I shrugged without looking and silently ordered another whiskey from the bartender. But the bartender was looking at Rafe, and whatever he saw there made him turn away to serve someone else. I glared up at Rafe. “Are you just determined to ruin my night?”
His hand wrapped tight around my biceps. “Come with me.”
Not wanting to make a scene at his friend’s party, I bristled but allowed Rafe to lead me out of the kitchen. To my surprise, he led me out of the apartment.
“Where are we going?”
“Home.”
Home?
Icy silence settled between us as Rafe dropped my hand to hit the button for the elevator. As we got on and it descended to the first floor, I felt an invisible pressure on my chest as the tension between us grew with our silence.
“Rafe?”
“We’ll talk at home,” he bit out, as he pulled out his phone. “I’m booking an Uber.”
“So we’re just not going to talk until we’re back at the apartment?” I seethed as my panic increased.
Rafe cut me a dark look. “We’re not doing this in public.”
My stomach somersaulted. Right.
If I could have smooshed myself up closer to the passenger-side door of the Uber that arrived, I would have. Anything to be sitting as far away as possible from the man who was about to hurt me worse than anyone ever had.
I almost didn’t get on the elevator in his building. A huge part of me just wanted to bolt instead of endure the coming conversation. However, a bigger part of me was so pissed at him for dragging this out and I wanted him to know it.
As soon as I walked into his apartment, I made a beeline for the bathroom so I could start packing my shit.
“What are you doing?” Rafe growled in irritation as he followed me in. I looked up at him in the reflection of the mirror and noted his eyes were on the toiletries I was shoving into my toiletries bag.
When I turned to face him he pierced me with a look of anger and disappointment that made me want to smack him across the face.
“No.” I pointed at him. “You don’t get to look at me like that.”
“You let a stranger put his hand on you at the bar you were determined to get smashed at because you saw me talking to my ex? What? That qualifies you to flirt with someone else?”
I laughed at the ridiculousness of his statement.
Rafe’s expression darkened and I didn’t care if I’d never seen him look so angry.
“I let another man touch me? I did that?”
“Yes, and I want to know why!”
“Uh, how about because the first chance you got, you were all over your ex and she was all over you?”
“Bullshit.”
“She was touching you!” I yelled. “Stroking your lapel and your chest and you were just letting her. What? Is it Humiliate Star Day?”