Page 44 of Need

At his words, I curled in on myself. My legs came up onto the couch, and my arms wrapped around my knees. “He doesn’t,” I whispered.

I felt his hand on me, and I jumped. He pulled back. “I’m sorry, Anna. I just... I’m worried about you.”

When I finally calmed myself down, I answered him. “Don’t be.” My voice was still shaky, and he didn’t look convinced.

There was movement from behind Cal, and I glanced up to find Stephan looking straight at me. His eyes were guarded, as if he was trying to force himself not to react or something.

Cal began speaking again, and it brought my attention back to him. “Can I ask you something?”

He seemed more hesitant now. I nodded. His mouth opened and closed again. I watched, but didn’t say anything.

Cal looked back over his shoulder at Stephan, who’d returned his focus to his computer. He turned back to me. “How long have you and Coleman been dating?”

Dating? Cal thought that I was Stephan’s girlfriend. “I’m n—” I stopped myself. If I denied being his girlfriend, Cal would want to know why I was living with him. I wasn’t ready for anyone to know that, especially not Cal. “We’ve been together for almost two months.”

“Almost two months?” Cal’s eyebrows rose high on his forehead. “Two months? What does the man have, magic or something?”

The last part he said almost under his breath, but I heard him anyway. “Be nice, Cal Ross,” I snapped.

Cal looked at me again as if he didn’t know what to say. Then he sighed. “All right. I’ll leave Coleman be for now.”

“Thank you.”

And I was thankful. I didn’t like it when people said bad things about Stephan, or even hinted at them. He’d been better to me than anyone had. And he was helping me.

My eyes drifted back over to where he was working. I noticed the way his shoulders were slumped forward a little as he leaned into the computer screen. How his long fingers typed effortlessly on the keyboard. It brought back the memory of what those fingers had done to me last night. I felt the heat of a blush burning my cheeks.

Cal was talking again. He was telling me about his and his dad’s business. I made myself focus on what he was saying.

Stephan

When I’d first seen Cal there in the lobby with Brianna, I’d wanted to grab her and take her out of his reach as fast as possible. Ross was not on my list of favorite people. He fell into the category of individuals I had to tolerate given his family’s support of the foundation.

That reaction had lasted only as long as it had taken me to realize that Brianna had gone down to see him. On her own. I still felt the need to protect her, but it was mixed with a feeling of pride as well.

The last thing I wanted was to have Ross in my home, but I wasn’t about to leave her alone downstairs with him. He was from her past. He had connections to her father. And he’d been nothing but a thorn in my side since he’d taken over from his own father. I didn’t trust him.

I left him in the living room, and brought Brianna into the bedroom with me while I retrieved my laptop. I would let them talk, but I would be watching. No reason I couldn’t try to make some progress on the work I’d brought home at the same time.

Before we headed back out to where Ross was waiting, I pulled her into my arms and kissed her. Maybe it was stupid or immature, but I wanted to leave my mark on her. I wanted her to think of me while she was talking to him.

Her eager response to my kiss caused me to get a little carried away, and I pushed her back against the wall, wrapping my hands in her beautiful brown hair. By the time I released my hold on her, she looked properly disheveled. Let Ross think about that while he sat and talked to her.

He stayed longer than I would have liked. It was well after six by the time he walked out my door, giving me a hard stare and Brianna a vow to return soon. I had to suppress the retort on the tip of my tongue.

As soon as the door closed, I had her in my arms.

She was stiff for about two seconds. I knew I’d caught her by surprise. Then she sighed, and slipped her arms around my waist.

Given the time, I decided we would once again go out for dinner. Tonight, I wanted something casual. Brianna was in jeans, and I wanted her to feel comfortable. Mitchell’s American Bistro was perfect. When we walked in, it was clear I was overdressed in my suit and tie.

The hostess showed us to a booth and left us with our menus. Brianna had been quiet on the ride there. Not that she was usually overly talkative, but it was the kind of silence that seemed to speak volumes. I knew there was something on her mind so I waited until our server had taken our orders and disappeared into the kitchen before addressing it.

“What are you thinking, Brianna?”

She pressed her lips together and thought for a minute before answering me. “You don’t like Cal.” Instead of following that up with a question, she just left it hanging there.

I decided to answer her anyway. “No. I don’t.” Anxiety returned to her features with this confirmation. “Was there something else you wanted to know?” She glanced over at me, and then down. Before she could open her mouth I added, “And a question this time, please.”

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