Page 63 of Degrees of Control

Charlie took a deep breath. Dale had never scared her, not even when he was drunk and grabby and shouting. Somehow, she’d always known it was a façade, an insecure boy’s attempt at being a man, but that didn’t mean she wanted to experience it again. But, it was annoying and tiresome and she wanted it to stop. “We were strangers once.”If we could only be strangers again…

Dale snorted. He was still standing over her and she knew he was trying to intimidate her with his height. “Bea told me he’s some corporate pretty-boy. I thought you were better than that.”

Charlie’s tolerance evaporated. “Dale, that isenough. Stop bringing me meaningless crap, stop texting me when you’re drunk and stop showing up here. If you keep doing this, I swear I’m going to take out a restraining order.”

Dale’s upper lip curled. “You can’t, you’re not a U.S. citizen.”

Trust him to respond to that rather than anything else she’d said. “People aren’t allowed to stalk their ex-girlfriends just because they came out of a vagina in a different country. Get the fuc—”

The sound of heavy footsteps vibrated behind her and a thrill of terror zapped down Charlie’s spine.

He’s here.

She could feel James’ presence crackling at her back like exposed wires. She turned her head and there he was, looking taller, wider and meaner than she had ever seen him, which, considering their sex life, was saying something. He’d traded his suit for jeans and a black T-shirt, and his mouth was set in a hard line. He didn’t so much resemble a “corporate pretty-boy” as a thug from one of those motorcycle crime shows Dale liked so much.

This is not going to go well…

Her American lovers locked eyes. For a second, Charlie thought James was going to skip all the pretense and just punch Dale in the throat, but after a long cold stare, he settled himself in the seat across from hers, looking like a Norse warrior mounting a throne of skulls.

“Sorry I’m late, sweetheart,” he said, looking straight at Dale.

Her ex-boyfriend hissed like a broken gas cylinder. “Who’s your friend, Charlie?”

Spanish tutor? Parole officer?

“I’m the man Charlotte’s beenseeing.” James let the word roll off his tongue in a way that made it very clear he meant “fucking.”

Dale swelled like an angry cane toad.

Yeah, definitely not going to go well.

“I was actually talking toCharlieabout something important before you showed up,” Dale snapped. “Can you give us a few minutes, man?”

Charlie had to admire her ex-boyfriend’s nerve. She could see James’ expression and a smarter person would have long since turned on his heels and run screaming into the night.

James chuckled softly. “Actually,man, Charlotte and I are on a date, so if you don’t mind…”

Leave before I beat the shit out of you.

James might as well have spoken the words aloud, but still Dale remained, glaring at them both, his tattooed arms folded across his chest.

“Got somethin’ to say, champ?” James inquired, extending his considerably scarier arms along the back of the booth. “We can go outside and talk about it, if you like?”

The corners of Dale’s lips turned down and for a brief, terrifying moment Charlie thought she was going to witness a brawl in a vegan café. She could practically see the headlines.Confrontation-fearing yoga teacher incites violence between local musician and former male model. What a skank.

But she must have had some good karma stored up because Dale took a long hard look at James, probably considered his non-existent health insurance, and fled.

James watched him go with an expression of utter contempt. “Jesus Christ.”

He took Charlie’s hand and stroked it between his callused palms. “I’m sorry about that, baby, are you okay?”

“Uh, yeah?”

There was a veritable whirlwind of emotions coursing through her. Resentment warring with admiration and—it made her stomach crawl to think about it—lust. She wasn’t the type of girl to get all moist over violence, but there was no denying the tight, fluttering feeling in her chest. He’ddefended her. Across the cafe a woman with dreadlocks pointed at James’ muscular back and fanned herself. Charlie’s face heated.

I know how you feel, lady. I just wish I could joke about it.

She considered whether to scold him, thank him or to bend over the table and pull down her panties when her phone buzzed on the table. She’d assumed Dale would make contact from a safer location, but this was pathetic even by his standards. It was a text.“Looks like I was right about you, wasn’t I, ‘Charlotte.’”

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