Page 22 of Crush

Damn right, and that was theonlyreason. Or so I told myself. “Yes, and you can stop looking at me like that.” Gabe clearly thought there was more to my behaviour than I was letting him see. And of course, he was right.

“And that sense of duty hasnothingto do with your dick, right?”

“Right.”

“You’re full of shit. And you have the nerve to wind me up about Leonie,” he puffed, shaking his head.

“What are they doing now?” I asked, motioning for another drink. Gabe’s eyes narrowed as he watched the waitress approach.

“I think you’ve had enough mate,” he snorted, a warning I ignored.

He then glanced behind me again to check the pair out. “They’re talking.”

“And that’s it?”

“No, she’ssuckinghim off in the middle of the restaurant. What do youthinkthey’re doing?” he whisper-yelled.

A silence fell between us as Gabe ordered another round.

“And now?” I said, ignoring his pissy comment.

Releasing a huff of frustration Gabe explained, “And now she’s pushed to her feet and has her bag. Going to the bathroom I would say.” And my mind was made up in a flash.

Fuck it. She needed another warning. Amber believed Hopton’s act that he was some kind of decent guy when that so wasn’t the case.

I thanked the waitress for my order, downed it in one and squared my shoulders. “Back in a tick,” I mouthed to Gabe.

A look of worry passed his features. “Max, what are you going to do?”

Rubbing a hand through my hair and slapping my cheeks I reassured him. “Nothing, I just need a word is all.”

My concerned friend placed a hand on my arm. “Don’t do anything stupid.”

My smile said it all as I turned and headed towards the bathrooms.

Don’t do anything stupid. Would I?

Four

Amber

The fact that my annoying boss had just interrupted my evening festered. For some misguided reason, Max had interpreted my glare as an open invitation to take a seat and steal my food. Although they were leftovers, go figure.

When he’d appeared by our table, I’d almost sprayed a mouthful of wine over my companion. Max’s comment about fucking was also so uncalled for. Howdaredhe? Poor Rory, he’d run off like he’d crapped his pants. The relief I’d seen in his ashen gaze as he took his phone call was severely pathetic. He was intimidated by Max’s appearance and I suppose why wouldn’t he be? He had a brain and a sense of self-preservation, didn’t we all?

There was no illusion that our boss was more than rattled by our presence. Although he tried to hide it, Max wasn’t happy to see us together. His warning about Rory being the type to air his dirty laundry also niggled. Especially considering my tastes in the bedroom were anything but vanilla. Although I was surprised Max had the nerve to bad mouth another man when his own moral compass was questionable; where women were concerned anyway.

Damn the man!

What did they say,think of the devil and he will appear. That’sexactlywhat had happened, even during the distraction that was Rory, Max’s face was always on my mind. He had materialised like a living, breathing threat; aggressive waves bouncing off thosemassiveshoulders. He was wearing his work clothes and whilst he should have looked like a tramp, he was still smoking hot. The man pulled off rough and dirty like no other.

I batted the unwanted thought away. To be honest, Max’s appearance had given me a reprieve from Rory’s loud chewing. During our main course, I’d hadto mentally block the noise out. He’d also spoken with his mouth full, the steak bouncing around in there like a tiny massacre. Bad manners were usually a huge turn-off for me, but I decided to give him the benefit of the doubt. I could see he was nervous. Even more so when Max had appeared.

As he walked away, I watched the tenseness in Max’s shoulders. Was he upset because two co-workers had ignored his stupid policy about workplace relationships? Or was it something else? I struck the thought from my mind. Max Hunter was a puzzle you wouldneversolve.

After freshening up in the ladies’ room, I fanned out my hair and checked my teeth, there was nothing worse than stuck food. Luckily my pearly whites shined right back at me. When I’d stood and excused myself, Rory had apologised and said he needed to make another quick call and that he would meet me back at the table for dessert. I’d mentioned that to our waitress on my way past, not wanting them to think we’d cut and run without paying the bill. I could only imagine my father’s face if I made it into the tabloids again.

My evening with Rory had been uneventful before Max had turned up, but Ihadenjoyed his company. There had been very little effort on my part and I’d found it easy to be myself and not hide behind the icy façade I had created. I’d even let him touch my hand.

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