Page 17 of Shattered Dreams
“We can stop there if you really want to, but that doesn’t end our discussion about you keeping secrets from Storm. Not only is he your lover, but he’s also your dominant. What do you think is gonna happen when you keel over on him?”
He shot her a disgruntled look. “Come on Liz, it’s not like I’m diabetic or anything.”
“No. But high cholesterol can lead to a heart attack.”
He scoffed. “I’m only twenty-eight, not forty-eight.”
“Tell him, or I’ll have Master put a bug in his ear,” she warned.
He narrowed his eyes at her. “You wouldn’t.”
“Wouldn’t I?” she spoke the words softly, but she wasn’t playing around. She wasn’t going to lose her best friend just because he loved to eat cheeseburgers and greasy French fries.
“Fine.” He grumped, as another knock rang through the room, then was closely followed by Tony coming in to remove their cups and stones.
“Fine what?” she pressed as Tony detached the first cup, releasing her captured flesh. It felt amazing.
“I’ll tell him.” He glared at her. “It’ll go better on my ass if I come clean to him, than him finding out through Master.”
“Probably,” she admitted, as Tony moved methodically but quickly in removing the rest of the cups. “But I wouldn’t be surprised if he still paddles you hard for withholding information.”
“Sometimes I don’t know why we’re still best friends,” he grumbled.
“Because no one else loves you quite like I do,” she shot back as Tony removed the last of the cups. God they’d been good while they’d lasted, she’d mused.
* * *
Elliot pulled into the lot next to the strip mall where he’d ordered sushi to go. The little mom-and-pop, hole-in-the-wall, Japanese place was well known to locals for their authentic but delicious food. It’d already been a long day and it wasn’t even one o’clock yet. As he parked his unmarked car, he noticed the couple standing outside their vehicle in a heated discussion. From the distance he couldn’t make out their faces, but their voices carried on the wind.
“Come on. Let’s go back inside.” The woman seemed insistent. “It’s gonna be at least an hour and a half before AAA gets here to unlock us.”
“I can’t, Lizzie.” The man looked like he was on the verge of a meltdown. “You know that.”
“So, you wanna freeze out here?” She placed her hands on her well-rounded hips, which is when Elliot noticed the man wasn’t wearing a jacket. Just a sweatshirt. While it wasn’t as cold as it could get in Colorado, they’d had an unexpected cold snap last night.
“I wasn’t expecting to have to stand outside because you locked the damned keys inside, Lizzie.”
Lizzie.
The name washed over him, and he took a closer look and…shit it was her. Why the hell was she standing outside in thirty-eight-degree weather in just a thin jacket?And where’s her husband?He knew without a doubt that the other man with her wasn’t Maxwell Rodkin. He was too slight, too boyish to be the man who’d been starring in Elliot’s late-night jack off sessions.
For a moment he thought about ignoring the situation, but found himself unable to – what if the man she was with was her best friend, the one he’d only glimpsed curled up around Storm Parker in a hospital bed nearly three weeks ago? Besides as a cop, he could easily pop her lock and get her out of the cold. The urge was so strong, he gave in. “Fuck.” He pivoted on his heel and headed toward the still arguing couple, his hands in his pockets. It took him less than thirty seconds to cross the parking lot to the grey Kia Soul. It was a damned hamster car, but at least it looked like it had good tires on it.
“Well, if you hadn’t insisted that I leave my purse inside the car, we wouldn’t be in this position, Rainy!”
“Excuse me,” he started, hoping that he didn’t scare the hell out of Lizzie, who was now verbally blasting her friend.
“What!” She spun on him, her blue eyes snapping with irritation. “This is a private conversation, and you can see your way out of it!”
He bristled at her tone, tempted beyond all that was holy to swat her jean-covered bottom. “Excuse me?” he repeated in a firmer tone.
Her eyes widened in recognition, then horror crossed her face. “Officer Landon!”
He shook his head in frustration at her use of his title. “I thought I asked you to call me Elliot. Never mind. I’ll make this quick. I know it’s none of my business, but I thought I might be of some assistance – since it seems like you’ve locked your keys in your car? Unless, of course, you want to wait for whoever AAA sends. If so, I’ll just go grab my sushi and leave you to it.”
She gaped at him for a few seconds, until Raine chuckled. “Look at that, I thought only Master had that effect on you, Lizzie.”
She shot her friend a death glare. Evidently, she hadn’t wanted that little fact revealed. “I…look, I’m sorry.” A small smile teased the corners of her lips. “Forgive me?”
