Page 65 of Her Dark Angel

I could kiss this man for not probing Nash further on what he just stumbled upon us doing.

“I’ll be there in a minute.” Nash’s voice is thick with lust and it only fuels the heat in my cheeks.

After a long pause, Hudson makes his departure, leaving us alone.

Silence quickly settles upon us. I can’t believe that just happened—more so the kiss than Hudson stumbling upon us.

I take a step back from Nash, needing to put some distance between us, or else I fear my entire body will go up in flames and I won’t be able to hold onto my rapidly slipping self-control.

Nash runs a hand through his hair, unable to meet my eye. “Uh, sorry about him. He’s a nosey bastard.”

“It’s fine.” I clear my throat and rock on the heels of my feet. “I, uh, should get going.”

Nash nods and shoves his hands into the pockets of his pants. “Yeah, sure. Thanks again for coming, little devil.”

“Anytime,” is all I manage to say before I spin on my heels and rush out of the venue.

Once outside, I close my eyes and inhale a deep breath. The cool breeze against my inflamed skin is much needed, but it does nothing to ease the fire burning in my core. All I can do is shake my head, hoping it’ll knock some goddamn sense into me.

Nash Beck is wrong for me in every way, so why do I want him so badly that I’m losing my goddamn mind over it?

23

KINSLEY

“So, what is going on between you and Nash?”

My head snaps up at the sound of Sadie’s voice. I blink rapidly at her from across the table while she smiles at me, a knowing look in her eyes. Matt looks between us and shrugs his shoulders as if to say leave me out of this.

Swallowing hard, I force a smile on my lips, acting as cool as a cucumber. “What do you mean?”

“I mean,” she says, twirling her pointer finger in the air at me, “I recognize a woman lost in thought about a man when I see one. Now spill, Kin.”

“Jesus, Sadie,” Matt groans from beside her, shaking his head. “This isn’t appropriate lunch conversation.” Now that he’s all caught up on the whole fake relationship situation, he doesn’t want to hear all the nitty gritty details like Sadie.

Sadie simply leans back in her chair with a look of victory on her face. I know for a fact she doesn’t care we’re sitting in the middle of a restaurant with multiple ears just waiting to hear me drop some gossip. The wandering eyes of the patrons around us don’t go unnoticed by me, but I’ve learned to ignore them.

Right now though… yeah, it’s a little hard to ignore when the topic is about Nash.

A blush creeps up my throat and I have to bite my lip to halt the smile threatening to take over my face. “Shit, is it really that obvious?”

Sadie’s face lights up with joy as she points a manicured finger at me. “I fucking knew it! You sneaky little bitch. When and how did this happen? I need to know every detail.”

“Gross, Sade,” Matt says and shoves a mouthful of salad into his mouth, chewing slowly. He meets my gaze from across the table and offers an apologetic smile.

We both know what Sadie is like, so this isn’t anything out of the ordinary for her.

I blow out a long breath and shrug. “I don’t know what else to say other than it just happened.” I leave out the detail of me going to Nash’s house and dragging his ass into the shower because I thought he was overdosing, and the kiss we shared after the Dark Angel concert two nights ago. As much as Sadie would want to know those details, I can’t share everything with her, especially since Nash is a somewhat private man. “It’s not going to happen again, though.”

Sadie rolls her eyes playfully. “You’re such a liar, Kin. I can see it written all over your face. You’re smitten with Nash Beck.”

I hate how easily she can read my expression, even when I’m trying my best to hide my true feelings from her. As my best friend, she knows me better than I know myself.

“It can’t happen again, Sadie.” Leaning back in the chair, I sigh. I use my fork to push the remainder of the chicken breast around the plate, no longer hungry. “This was never part of the contract, and I don’t want it to be the reason this fake relationship doesn’t work out. The last thing I need is for all of this to blow up in my face and it all be for nothing.”

“How would it blow up?” Sadie questions. “What are you afraid will happen? You fall in love with a man who you care for and treats you well? I know you’re cautious about men, but don’t let that get in the way of your happiness.” She shrugs a shoulder casually and picks up her fork, stabbing the prongs into a piece of medium-rare steak. “You deserve more than a life of caution and fear of love, Kin.”

I swallow hard as her words sink deep into the center of my bones, leaving a bad taste in my mouth. Although she is right, I don’t want to believe her.

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