Page 45 of Walk on the Wilde Side
Kinsley is sitting up in her bed as I crack open the door. "I made it home, and I thought I'd get to sleep late, too, but your alarm went on forever."
I step into her room. "Sorry about that. I fell asleep on the couch." There's no way in hell I'd tell her about what happened on that couch. Kinsley, like everyone else in our social circle, is always insistent that Zander and I haven't found anyone else because we are destined to be together. And just as often, I remind her that Zander Wilde can have any woman in town, and nerdy Nevada Mason isn't ever going to be enough for him. "Thanks for bringing out my blanket. It got cold last night," I say as I'm leaving her room.
"You were already cozily tucked in by the time I got home. Wait, so you didn't carry out your own blanket?"
I freeze and turn back to her with an even more frozen smile. "Uh, wait, maybe I did. Just had too much wine and I forgot."
Kinsley throws off her covers and crawls to the end of her bed to sit, hanging her legs off the edge. "Oh no, I know that look, that hesitancy in your tone. You had a visitor. A visitor who left you sleeping on the couch and sweetly tucked you in with the quilt from your bed." Her eyes round. "Was it Dane? Are you back together? I thought you might end up fixing what broke. He's awfully cute and rich."
"You change your opinion like I change my socks. It wasn't Dane. What is broken can't be fixed there. We aren't a match. Not that he hasn't shown up at the shop a few times with flowers. And that's part of the problem. I made it clear that I'm allergic to most flowers. I even provided the train of sneezes to prove my point, yet he still brings me damn flowers. He was in the shop yesterday at noon, but I told him he should probably find a different sandwich shop. He left angry, but I think he finally got the hint."
Kinsley laughs. "Hint? You basically hit him over the head with your rejection by telling him not to come to your shop. I'm sure he'll move on soon. Besides, he's got other problems."
"Oh, what's that?" I ask.
"Well, Indi swore me to secrecy—" she says and ends the declaration with a yawn. "You and your stupid alarm."
I'm usually the last person to latch onto gossip, but I prod her for more information. "Secrets don't count when you're sharing with your sister," I say.
Kinsley tilts her head like a puppy. "Um, not sure I've ever heard that rule."
"That's because I just made it up. But fine, if you don't want to tell me?—"
"All right, I'll spill."
I knew reverse psychology would do the trick. I should have started with it. "So, what other problems?" I ask to remind her where she left off with her big secret.
"Zander and Jameson expected to be paid yesterday. It's like the second payment in the contract, and Dane said he didn't have the money. So clearly, Mr. Richie Rich is having financial problems. Jameson and Zander think he's doing something shady on the side, something that has him nervous and cagey."
I sigh. "Poor guys. And I think they're right. A few times when I was with Dane, he got a phone call, and the calls were always filled with tension and then he'd be in a shitty mood. He never explained what the calls were about, and I didn't ask. I guess that's because I just didn't care enough about him or his life." Another sigh. This one was forceful enough to blow a strand of hair off my forehead. "I've got to stop dating just for the sake of dating. I'm an independent businesswoman. I don't need a man to complicate and screw up my life."
Kinsley scoots back to her pillows and tucks her legs back under the quilt. "So … you gonna tell me who tucked you in last night? And I know it wasn't you. You never sleep on the couch."
I shrug. "It's a secret, and I'm far better at keeping them than you."
"Mean big sister." She heaves a pillow at the door as I'm leaving.
I shower and dress in record time. I'll wait until I get to the shop for some coffee and toast. Kinsley's room is quiet, telling me she went back to sleep. Our chat reminded me just how glad I am to have cut ties with Dane.
I'm having an impossible time trying to block last night from my mind. Zander's kiss left me stunned and disoriented, but what happened on the couch has left me walking around almost as if my head is not attached to my body. I'm in a fog of confusion, and my emotions are all over the damn place. A busy morning at work will do the trick, I say to myself as I walk out the door.
I walk out to the driveway and reach my car. An ocean breeze seems to be bringing in a cold front. I shiver, wishing I'd pulled on a sweater. Once I get to work, I'll warm up. I lift my key fob to open the car and someone grabs me. My scream is short-lived and instantly muffled by a large, grimy hand. Another person wraps a blindfold tightly around my eyes. I'm grabbing at the hands and arms, but they outnumber and outmuscle me so much I don't have a chance. I hear a car's engine and the sound of a van door sliding open. My feet leave the ground. I kick out once before two hands take painful hold of my ankles. I'm immobile and blindfolded. I'm temporarily freed from restraints as my body is chucked into the back of the van. Before I can scream or grab the blindfold, something sharp hits my head. I watch the gritty floor of the van come closer before losing consciousness.
twenty-one
Zander
I left Nev on the couch. She was sleeping soundly, so I tucked her in with a blanket and dragged myself home. It wasn't easy leaving her. I could have stayed there all damn night with her in my arms. The light coming through the blinds on my window is muted, but it's already late morning. I came home thinking about Nev and how badly I wished things were different between us. The frustration sent me straight to the bottle of whiskey I had saved in the kitchen cupboard. I'd be paying for those four shots for the rest of the day.
I walk to the window and open the blinds. Gray clouds hang low over the ranch. Ronan is on feeding duty in the barn, but he isn't always reliable. I pull on my jeans and boots and head out. Coffee will have to wait, and I'm going to make it as thick and black as tar. I don't hear frantic hungry snorts coming from the barn, which is a good sign.
I'm surprised to find that Ronan is still there sweeping the barn aisle. He looks back. "There he is." He looks past me. "You alone?"
"No, I've got a parade of people behind me. Yeah, I'm alone."
Ronan shrugs. "You were still in bed, so I figured you had one of your many visitors." He stops and leans on the handle of the broom. "Actually, now that I think about it—you haven't brought anyone home for months, and last night you turned down a game of strip poker with three hot women. You didn't miss much on that, by the way. We ended up at their apartment over in Bassett, and everyone got so drunk we couldn't even shuffle a fucking deck of cards let alone play poker. Colin and I passed out on their floor and dragged our sorry asses out of there this morning before they woke up."
"Yeah, and that's why I haven't brought anyone home lately. Tired of drinking and fucking and then starting the whole damn cycle over again. Guess I'm getting too old for the constant partying and meeting new women. Restarting relationships with women from the past is getting old, too."
