Page 85 of Rivals & Revenge

She shook her head. "Nope. Not mybusiness."

"Since when did that stop you before?" I teased.

"Tierney's new to relationships. I just don't want to see her get hurt. That's all."

I stepped backward, my arms folding across my chest, suddenly defensive. "I didn't-"

Her hand flew up, halting my reply.

"I know. I get it. The problem is, you're so thick headed that you don't get it." she turned, facing me head on. "Do you really think that given the contents of that phone call, she was just itching to have you fuck her brains out?"

"I—she-"

Her head shook from side to side. "No Ahren. She wanted to stop you from doing something stupid and getting yourself killed. She offered you her body to work out your frustrations on. It—she's still learning about relationships and I don't want her to think that's normal and healthy, because it's not."

"I—"

"Also, your bedroom is not as soundproof as you think." She rushed out, burying her face behind her coffee mug.

A smile broke across my face, and I nodded. She was right, of course she was.

"We're fine, Connor. But for the record, I'll apologize and work on handling my own shit next time. I don't want to fuck this up."

"She's an odd combination, isn't she? Wide-eyed and innocent, yet calculating, almost cold-blooded." She mused.

I nodded. "Yeah. That's my girl."

"Where is she?"

"She's sleeping. I wore her out-"

"Nope. That's the end of that convo. Next subject."

I barked out a dry laugh. "Fair enough."

"So, you're all calm now?" she asked, her voice softer and more tentative than I was used to.

Yet another reason to hate this fucking bitch. She had knocked the fire out of the two strongest women I'd ever met. While Tierney seemed to be getting hers back, Connor had been shaken to her core. She might not ever be the same, and I hated that.

"Yeah. I told you. I'm fine."

"She's changed you."

"Yeah, well. I can't quite put into words what I feel when we're close. It's deep—primal, she's mine. There's no other way to say it."

She shook her head slowly. "That's good. Not what I meant, though. Wrong her."

"What do you mean by 'changed me'?" I scoffed.

"Well," she started, a sly smile curling on her lips, "you've always been an arrogant, cocky asshole. As long as I've known you, anyway. But since all this started, well—now you're an angry, arrogant, cocky asshole."

"I—"

"Not saying your anger isn't justified. But the anger makes you less charming." She pinched her fingers together. "Just a little."

"Thanks for putting up with me."

She smiled and nodded.

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