Page 69 of Fighting For You
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
Jess
“What are you doing here?” I asked, sounding more than a little accusatory while I held the elevator doors open and gave Jack a nod indicating he should stay put.
Was Kurt a threat? No, at least in theory.
Was he an idiot? Yes, indeed, and Jack didn’t need to deal with this man.
“Hey, Jessie. I’m glad to catch you. Blackthorne was having me do a sweep—oh, Mr. McKean.” Kurt’s smile widened into a friendly, pleased expression that hit just the right notes of surprised but not overeager.
So he still had that ability going for him.
I sighed and waved Jack out so we could free up the elevator.
“Jack McKean, this is Kurt Spangler. Heworked with us back in North Carolina for a while and is now a part of Blackthorne.”
The two men shook hands and Jack, being the congenial man he was, asked a few polite questions of Kurt. The two went back and forth a few times before Kurt brought it back around to me.
“Yeah, Jessie and I go way back. I mean, all of us do, but with her it’s different.” He somehow transformed his face into a puppy dog look that would fell even the least feeling among us.
“Oh, I didn’t realize.” Jack turned to me. “You two need a minute?”
“No, I’m?—”
“Actually, could we? She can clear your room and we’ll just stand right outside if that works for you, Jack.” Kurt grinned.
Ugh.He still had it. I knew this because I’d seen him here and there, charming everyone he came in contact with and balancing that side with the dark, almost rough air he gave off as a member of Blackthorne. The combination was killer to certain kinds of people, and though Jack didn’t seem all that enamored with him, he didn’t seem bothered that this man would want to talk to me while I was working.
“No, we’ll wait until after my shift,” I insisted.
“Nah, Jess, really. I’m just going to get cleaned up. If you’re good to talk now, that’s great.”
Jack McKean, everybody. World’s most inconveniently accommodating client.
But instead of protesting, I nodded, my teeth clenched so hard my jaw muscle probably tripled in size. I could object and make more of a scene, draw even more attention to how much I didn’t want to speak with my ex, or I couldtake care of Jack, shut his door, and then get real with Kurt and likely get through all this much faster.
Option B, even though everything in me pushed for Option A.
After clearing Jack’s room and confirming with HQ that he was settled in and I was taking my post at the door, I turned to find Kurt leaning against the wall with arms crossed and a little smile on his face.
I used to think that smile meant something—like he was secretly admiring me and so glad I was his. Like he wanted me.
Embarrassment flashed through me at the memory of feelinggladI’d given in and dated him, then said yes to his proposal. How had I felt so secure?
“Even after a run, you look great,” he said, his voice low and as sincere as it could be.
“What do you need, Kurt?”
His smile faded in what seemed to be genuine… something. Thoughgenuinewas no longer a word I associated with this man.
“I need to apologize.” He stepped forward, hands behind his back and chin ducked in a way that made him appear genuinely regretful.
Dread hit, rapidly squelching the embarrassment. “I don’t need anything from you.”
“Then maybe I need this, okay?”
As much as I’d braced against seeing him, as much as I wasn’t in love with this person and had made peace with myself for what’d happened in the past, I couldn’t say no to him. And just now, I couldn’t escape it even if I wanted to.
