Page 34 of Misguided Vows

“Can you leave me the fuck alone?” are the first words out of my mouth. I could throttle him. And had I not met him before, I’d be in absolute disbelief by his sheer audacity at being here right now.

“Alina,” he drawls arrogantly.

“Wow, it seems like you’ve finally remembered my name with that one brain cell of yours,” I say with a vicious smile. “Now, leave.”

The door opens, and the contractor who I’d been speaking to ten minutes ago, starts to speak but stops when he notices the way Will and I are facing off.

“He was just leaving,” I tell the contractor.

“No, I wasn’t, and we’re not done,” Will argues, and there’s a threatening edge in his tone that catches both me and the contractor off guard.

“It’s not urgent, miss, I can wait inside,” the contractor says in a thick Boston accent and all but runs back inside.

I turn on Will with my finger in his face. “You can’t just show up here. This is my job, and you need to kindly fuck off. Whether these are your friends or not, it doesn’t give you the right to piss me off whenever you please.”

“Alina, I came to apologize.”

I try not to laugh as I place a hand on my hip. He’s deadly serious now. “For what, exactly? Humiliating me? Almost getting me killed? Because I’m pretty sure Anya is capable of it. Stalking me? Pissing me off every chance you get? Interrupting me at work? Shall I continue?”

“It’s a rather impressive list, isn’t it?” Will acknowledges.

I throw my hands up in the air, exasperated. “Can you take anything seriously?”

“I’m takingyouseriously,” he says, and it catches us both off guard. He frowns at what he just said. “Come on. I know as much as I piss you off you also enjoy the challenge. I know that despite it, we have fun, don’t we? Please let me make it up to you.”

I shake my head in disbelief. I don’t know why he’s so focused on me, and yes, it’s flattering; yes, I do like the challenge. Yes, we’re sexually charged around one another, but I can’t make out what this connection is exactly. I know there’s depth to Will despite him hiding behind his humor and wit. I know this well because he’s not the only one who hides behind a mask and keeps everyone at an arm’s length. And it’s that intrigue making me want to discover more about him, to unravel him as much as he’s probably trying to figure out me, that’s the problem. What if I’m wrong? What if there is no depth and I’m wasting my time?

That startling realization brings me to a halt. Because why do I care about his layers? wasn’t it only physical attraction and a little banter and fun before he stepped too far?

I have to cut whatever this is here and now. I already have enough to think about without my friend’s brother chasing my skirt. “Thanks for the apology, but no, thank you.”

“How about another bet?” he suggests.

My mouth falls open in shock. I clearly didn’t hear him correctly, right?

Did he just suggest another bet?

He’s either deadly serious or absolutely trying to get another bite out of me. And it works. Every fucking time.

“So you can rig the next one too?”

“Nope. You pick the terms and the prizes this time. And I’ll play along like a good boy.”

“How would that benefit you? Win or lose, I could choose that you fuck off either way.”

“I think you’ll be fair. I mean, my prize should still stand. You let me have you for one night. And for yours, you pick what happens if you win.”

“Not if,when,” I correct him.

Damn, I just played right into his game.

I hate that I’m so competitive.

I hate that I want to play any type of game with him.

I just can’t shake him. Is it just sex? Is that what we need to do to end this? Just fuck already?

That’s when a car pulls up to the curb and Dawson and Honey climb out. Honey is carrying a bag of what looks like baked sweets.

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