Page 32 of The Promise Of You

My insides fire up, and my mouth gapes as my gaze trails his wide shoulders. Any strength I had leaves me at the sight of his strong arms, remembering how they held me all night. Remembering the feel of his wounds under my fingers. Of his skin against mine.

Remembering him inside me.

I fight the urge to throw myself at him.

Because the way he wanted me is etched into my memory.

And now? Now, he doesn’t even look my way. His beautiful green eyes are dark and cold. I run out the door before he turns his gaze to me.

eleven

Justin

The shock wave hits me first in the gut, then knocks the wind out of me.

I'm frozen in place once she steps out of the darkness of the pub, and I recognize her. But she’s already fleeing me, her beautiful blue eyes watery, the dark brown waves of her hair flowing behind her as she runs outside, her hands clenching at her heart.

Hands that were once grasping at my shirt, at my neck.

How could this happen? Who did I piss off in the universe to always, always mess shit up spectacularly?

Anger balls my hands into fists and clenches my jaw.

“What is wrong with you?” Haley’s mouth is hanging open, her hands on her hips, her head tilted just like Moose’s.

Clover is already gone, storming out of the pub, head down, shoulders hunched, steps hurried.

Defeated.

My heart hammers inside my ribcage. What is wrong with me? “Did you hear what she said?”

“Yeah, that we weren’t welcoming.” She crosses her arms, daring me to question that.

“She insinuated I had something to do with her uncle’s heart attack.”

“You’re exaggerating.” She straightens her spine. “It maybe wasn’t very… tactful, but… she seems like a lovely person—”

“Nice tits and ass alone don’t make you lovely.” The way this is going, the fact she’s who she is, I might as well get her out of my system now. Because this is not happening.

Matter of fact, this was never meant to happen.

Haley crosses her arms and juts her hip out. “I wouldn’t know about her tits and ass. Glad we got that straightened out. So a woman can’t have nice tits and ass without being blamed for it?”

“Holy fuck, Haley, that is not—”

“That is totally what you said! And stop swearing! It’s not good for business.”

I roll my eyes. Hiring my sister for temporary help might have sounded like a good idea, but sometimes it’s like having my mother in my face. I love my mother and all. But fucking Christ. Can I get a break? “You know who she is?”

She rolls her eyes. “Yessss. The new restaurant manager or… something.”

My Clover.

“She seems nice and… it looks like she will fix up the dump the restaurant became.”

One night.

“She’ll make the whole block look nicer. That’ll be good for you.”

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