Page 5 of Suspicious

He folds his broad, tattooed arms across his chest. “You think what you did last night was fun? That calling me in the middleof the fucking night, rambling on about how you’d fucked the company. Then started crying, no, sobbing to me about how you’d wished you’d never left to go to San Jose thirteen years ago and that you wished you’d stayed in LA. You thinkthatis fun?”

My eyes widen, and I let out a gasp. I have no memory of saying those things to him…at all.Gnawing on my bottom lip, I lift a shoulder. “I was drunk. People say and do things when they’re drunk, Alex.”

He narrows his eyes on me. “Bea, you know everyone here calls me Loki.”

Huffing, I slump further into my chair. “Well, it’s been years since I’ve spoken to you. And if, in a moment of weakness, I called you last night, it’s because I wanted to talk to Alex…not Loki.”

“Alex doesn’t exist anymore, Bea. At least not the Alex you knew. If you were expectingthatguy, then maybe you should leave now.”

My heart races frantically as I continue to stare at him, seeing the darkness in his eyes taking over the spark that was there. I’m losing more of him, and it’s killing me to watch it happen right in front of my very eyes.

The fact is, seeing him, even though he’s so fucking different, is a refreshing and exciting experience I didn’t even know I desperately needed. I honestly don’t remember calling him last night. Waking up here this morning was terrifying, but maybe this is what I’ve been needing.

Maybe this is what we both have been needing.

Finding my inner courage, I slide my hand up over the table to reach out. His eyes widen as I place my hand on top of his. The instant our hands touch, that inferno of fire burns so hot it’s like I can’t control the rush of emotion, but I try anyway.

The best part is he doesn’t pull away, just stares at me, his chest moving faster with his intensified breathing.

“Loki, I know shit between us is strained, and I know me calling out of the blue last night was weird… for both of us. But I really do want to thank you for coming to pick me up. I lost myself last night. With news of the app’s data breach, I knew the only way to get a handle on it was to talk to you, and it scared the absolute hell out of me.”

I take a deep breath. “I thought to give myself some courage to call you, I’d go to the bar and have a few shots of tequila, but the more I drank, the more anxious I got. So I kept drinking, and then it all just became a blur, then turned black. When I woke up with a note on the bedside table telling me I was here, at the clubhouse…”

Groaning at my own stupidity, I drop my eyes from him and run my free hand through my shoulder-length blonde hair. “Oh God, I don’t remember anything I said or did… I’msosorry, Loki.”

“It’s fine, Bea…” He lets out an exaggerated exhale and rolls his shoulders. “I’m just glad you’re safe.”

His concern lifts my spirits for a moment, and I forget about my atrocious hangover. I glance back up at him, studying his face. The years have been kind to him, especially with that added rugged charm that wasn’t there before. The fiery inferno smoldering between us is impossible to ignore, but neither one of us is willing to act on it.

There’s too much history between us.

“I didn’t mean to drag you into this mess… I just don’t know how to fix it without you.”

“We’re friends, right? Friends look out for each other,” he states, the words almost a whisper on his breath. But there’s a trace of something deeper in his eyes. Something that mirrors what I feel but can’t bring myself to admit.

We’ve never beenjust friends.

We don’t know how to bejust friends.

But maybe that is all we can be now—after everything.

“Yeah… friends,” I reply, the words feeling heavy and unwelcome right now.

An awkward silence filters over us. The heaviness of our shared past and unresolved feelings we have been avoiding for over a decade linger in the air. I clear my throat, trying to break the tension.

“I should really get that coffee,” I mumble under my breath and move to stand, but as I do, the room spins with my quick movement. I stumble on the spot, my hand reaching back out to grip the table, but instead, Loki is beside me in an instant, his arm wrapped around my body to steady me.

“Easy, Bea,” his deep voice growls, almost a warning, but somehow, it’s sexy as hell.

With his hard chest pressed to my back, my eyes turn up to look at him, my breathing rapid, and his scent invades my senses. He’s all leather, sandalwood, and danger which is something I’m not used to from him. But somehow, it only makes my spinning head swirl even more. My body shifts, turning to face him. We’re close, his arms still gripping me, and I lick my bottom lip.

“Thanks for the save,” I whisper, meeting his gaze once more.

The darkness in his eyes lifts slightly, a glimmer ofmy Alexshining back at me. His hand slides out, sliding a stray piece of hair behind my ear. “I’ll always save you, Bea.”

Oh, sweet Jesus.

That same spark that once brought us together is still very much alive. But with it comes the angst of everything that went so terribly wrong and the fear of repeating our past mistakes. His hands slide down, lingering on my arms, our faces inches apart. The air is thick with the things we haven’t said to each other, the years of avoidance and despair. I swallow hard, feeling the pull of him, the desire to bridge the giant gaping chasm between usfrom when I left all those years ago.

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