Page 41 of Sizzling

“Briar,” I corrected before I could stop myself.

Hearing him call her Melissa annoyed me. Sure, she’d been born with the name, but she’d escaped that life and tried to wipe it clean. Least he could do was respect her name change.

King looked up at me in the rearview mirror again. “Whatever. Does it matter what I call her?”

“Oh, to him it most certainly does,” Thatcher replied with his cigarette clamped between his teeth.

“You got a thing for her?” King asked.

“No,” I said firmly.

“He just wants to fuck the hell out of her,” Thatcher added. “But then so do I. I’m just not moody as fuck about it.”

My hands fisted at the thought of Thatcher touching her.

King rolled his eyes and looked back at the road. He reached for the radio and turned the music up.

I had some time. While King was dealing with his baby girl and wife, I could make a little visit to Miami first. What I was going to do when I got there, I wasn’t sure, but I needed to find out what she was up to. I wished I could forget Briar but if she was about to get herself into trouble, I … I just needed to know what kind of trouble and why. Maybe then I could let it fucking go.

I’d fought going back for over a week now, and it was getting more difficult. There was a real good chance she’d pull her pistol out the moment she set eyes on me. I was prepared for her to hate me. I’d asked for it with the way I treated her last time. That had been more for my benefit than hers, and at the time, I’d thought her ego could take it. But the hurt look in her eyes was still replaying in my head. Damn if it wasn’t fucking me up. I didn’t want to give a shit about her, but Thatcher was right. I did want to fuck her. I knew if I did, it wouldn’t fix anything. That wasn’t the kind of woman you got out of your system. She was the kind that took your soul.

• Seventeen •

“Wasting your time. She requires deeper pockets.”

Briar

A flat tire. Shit! I had to be at work in an hour, and I was going to go get some groceries first. Staring at the offending tire, I tried to think through my options. I didn’t have many. Changing a tire wasn’t something I’d ever had to do. Maybe I could pull up a YouTube video on how to do it.

“Need some help, neighbor?” a male voice asked behind me.

Turning. I saw Ajani Michel, Mr. Fourth Floor, walking up to me. I guessed taking help where it was offered was my only option.

“I thought I told you to run. Save yourself,” I replied in a teasing tone.

He gave me a small shrug. “I like to take chances. I’m a rebel like that.”

Great. He was still giving me a flirty smile. I hadn’t scared him off even a little bit. Fine. He was a man, and I had a flat tire.

I pointed at my tire. “Seems I do have a slight problem.”

Ajani studied the tire for a moment, then gave me a cocky grin. “You got a spare?”

I nodded. “That I do have. The knowledge on what to do with it though I don’t have.”

“Then, it’s your lucky day. I’ve changed many,” he said, then waved a hand toward my trunk. “Want to pop that open so I can see what we have to work with?”

I wasn’t going to have time to get groceries, but I would make it to work on time. I could just order a pizza for Dovie’s dinner. I’d hoped to get her something from the deli that was a little bit healthier, but this would have to do.

“You’re a lifesaver,” I said, taking my key from my pocket and pressing the button that sent the trunk slowly lifting.

“Eh, well, I didn’t say I was gonna do it for free.”

Of course not. I tried to hold my smile. “What’s your price?” I asked, already knowing he wasn’t about to give me a dollar amount. My warning speech of crazy hadn’t fazed him in the least.

“Dinner,” he replied.

I nodded. “Okay then, you want me to order you a pizza, or do you prefer Thai? Because I know a really good place not far from here. I can pick it up and bring it to you.”

---