Page 17 of Satisfied
“No problem. It’s not much work really,” he assures me, and we talk for a little while before my attention is pulled away the second Abby walks out of those gates.
The earth shifts on its axis as I watch her, looking like a goddamned walking wet dream in that short dress and a denim jacket she snatched from my closet. Long jet-black hair blows around her face as she looks around, searching…
Her lips stretch into a wide smile when she spots me.
“I’ve gotta go. Let’s talk later, Kyle.”
“Sure thing.” He laughs as I cross the road to get to Abby, stepping up onto the sidewalk when something stops me.
A feeling, so sudden and strange, it’s almost like ice-cold water being splashed over my body. I tear my eyes from Abby to look around, and that’s when I see it. The black car with tinted windows parked down the street. Although I can’t see inside, I suspect the driver’s eyes are on me.
I’m about to go and investigate when Abby steps in front of me and her beaming face steals my attention. “Hey,” she says, leaning in and brushing her lips over mine in a move so shy and sweet it sends my pulse racing.
“Hey, yourself.” I grin, wrapping an arm around her waist and pulling her hard against me, intentionally shifting her body so I can get a good look at the car. I manage to memorize the plate before it speeds off, filing the number away to check it outlater. It could belong to an innocent person, but there’s no harm in checking.
Shoving the thought aside, I push back to look at Abby, fixing my expression so I don’t alarm her. “So, how was your day?”
“Good, but I spent the majority of it thinking about you.”
“Well, that makes two of us.”
She giggles, slipping her hand into mine as we walk to the car together. I help her inside and shut the door, looking around to make sure whoever was watching us has already left. Fuck, I need to take care of that bastard as soon as possible. I can’t wait to go out with Abby without her having to look over her shoulders, terrified that her ex will jump her at any moment.
Fuck. I won’t let him ruin tonight for us. I force in deep breaths and push down my own frustrations before climbing into the car.
“Hey, are you okay?” Abby asks when I settle in.
“Of course, why would you ask that?”
“Hmm, I don’t know. Feels like you have something on your mind.”
I have a shit ton of things on my mind, the most dominant of all being that pesky ex I need to get rid of, but that’s not something I need her to worry about. I reach over and take her hand, bringing it to my lips and watching with pleasure as her cheeks pick up a pretty pink hue. “I have a surprise for you.”
Her eyes light up with delight. “A surprise? What is it?”
“It wouldn’t be much of a surprise if I told you, would it?”
“Gimme a hint?”
“Nope.”
She spends the entire ride home trying to convince me to tell her what the surprise is, and I take it as a win when the mention of her ex doesn’t come up. The fear she often carrieswhen we leave in the morning is absent, and in its place is only excitement.
“You’re a really tough nut to crack.” She sighs as we step out of the elevator and walk to the door. “I can’t believe you wouldn’t even give me the smallest of hints.”
“We’re here now, so you’ll just have to see for yourself,” I say, taking out the key and experiencing a moment of panic when I consider what my sister might have done to the place after I asked her to bring in the flowers. “Close your eyes.”
“Huh, why?”
“Abby—”
“Alright, okay.” She laughs, covering her eyes with her hands when I turn to open the door. I take her shoulders and guide her inside, pleasantly surprised to note that my sister didn’t change much, other than arranging bouquets all over the room. Perfect. “I smell roses. Is that the surprise? Did you get me flowers?” Abby asks excitedly.
“Wait here,” I say, closing the door before walking in to light the candles. “Don’t open your eyes yet.”
“You sound nervous. It’s so cute.” She giggles, the sound carrying to me as I turn on the projector before walking back to her. “You don’t have to be nervous. Whatever it is, I promise you I’m going to love it.”
“I’m not nervous.” It’s a lie. She doesn’t call me out on it, but from the smirk on her lips, I can tell she’s not buying it. “Okay, open your eyes now.”
