Page 15 of The Brothers Next Door

Chapter 7

Layla

“This will be your office,” the senior partner of the accounting firm, a middle-aged man by the name of Gary Lappa, said, opening the door to my new office and stepping aside for me to enter before him. It was a decent office, not as big as my one in Bangor, but considering that space was at a premium in Manhattan and I was the new recruit at this firm it was to be expected.

“It’s nice.” Despite the smaller size, it was indeed nice. As I went to the window I was surprised to see how beautiful the view was. The office was on the twenty-ninth floor and it had an amazing view of the Hudson, only partially obstructed by another towering buildings. “The view is amazing.”

He came up behind me, to stand by my side at the window. “I made sure that you had one of the better views in the building.”

Looking up at him, I gave him a smile of gratitude. “I really appreciate that. I can’t believe that I’d forgotten how beautiful the city was. So many people see the bad things of this city, but don’t appreciate that there are also so many good things.”

“A true New Yorker.”

“I didn’t realize how much I missed it here until I returned.”

He hesitated as if searching for something more to say. When he didn’t come up with something he gave me a nod. “I’ll send my assistant in with work to get you started on.”

He’d barely gotten the door closed when my phone buzzed, signalling a text message. Reaching into my purse, I pulled out my phone and looked down. The newly received text was from Nate. I smiled despite myself as I pulled up the message.

Nate: You’ve been on my mind all day. I barely know you and you’re becoming an obsession. I’m looking forward to tomorrow night.

A second message followed the second, timestamped at just a couple minutes later.

Nate: By the way, I wish I’d kissed you a second time.

My smile widened as my heart did a little flutter in my chest. I wasn’t going to get my hopes up on anything when it came to Nate. Just take it day by day and see what happened. If nothing else maybe I could at least make a friend out of the situation since I’d lost contact with many of the people I used to know over the past few years.

Another text came in perhaps twenty minutes from the previous one, making me chuckle at his persistence. Fishing the phone from my purse, I smiled. The smile quickly faded when I realized the text wasn’t from Nate after all. Instead it was from Craig, that lying, cheating SOB.

Craig: I need to talk to you. Call me when you get this.

Fat chance of that! Disgusted, I deleted his message and tossed my phone back into my purse. Boy, did he have nerve—everything had already been said that needed to be said between us.

~*~TT~*~

Darrin

Why in the hell did my shoulder still hurt? It was a simple dislocation. This was hardly the first time I’d dislocated it. Stepping off the elevator, I hesitated as my eyes focused on the woman ahead of me unlocking her door. She looked nice with her black hair piled on top of her head into a loose bun with a number of wispy locks hanging down the back of her neck.

She was wearing a sheer white blouse and knee length skirt combined with a pair of black heels that showed off her amazing calves. My eyes worked their way back up the length of her. Taking a deep breath in, I slowly released it and made my way down the hall, walking briskly past her, getting a whiff of her rose scented perfume. It didn’t matter how hot or put together she looked, or how amazing she smelled, she was still a wack-a-doodle.

I had the key to my door in hand as I reached it and swiftly unlocked and opened it. I looked over in the direction of my neighbour to find her staring at me. Not wanting to be impolite—like it or not, she was my neighbour—I gave her a smile and nod but nothing more, not wanting to induce a conversation before disappearing inside my apartment. No doubt, I was being silly. Chances were I was overreacting and she was a perfectly nice and sane woman. I just didn’t have the inclination to find out for sure, at least not today.

With a soft grunt of agony, I shrugged off my jacket and was about to remove my gun from the holster when a knock came at my door. My twin brother, Nate, was off today, no doubt waiting for me to get off so we could kick back, drink a beer or two, and watch some television.

Opening the door, I was surprised to see my neighbour standing on the other side. I was even more shocked when she stepped forward, placed her hands on my chest, leaned in, and kissed me. Thoughts left me for a moment as the scent of her perfume and the feel of her lush, succulent lips teased mine and I responded, my dick jerking in my pants. It wasn’t until my hands grabbed her upper arms and drew her in, her breasts crushing against my chest, that I came to my senses.

What in the fuck!

I took a step back, pushing her away from me. “What was that?” I asked, my brows knitting together as I stared down at her, confused as sweet fuck.

“I’ve been wanting to kiss you all day as well.”

Huh? This woman really was a wack-a-doodle. “Do you think it’s safe to just go around kissing strange men?”

She fingered my name badge, which said STRIKER, pulling her lower lip between her teeth and looking up at me through long, full lashes. “Considering you’re a cop, I’m sure it’s safe enough. And you’re hardly a stranger.”

Because we were neighbours? I shook my head. “That’s besides the point.” Being neighbours hardly made us more than acquaintances.

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