Page 8 of Consumed

But it was no use. Neil broke down, rubbing his eyes as he howled.

Brian wanted to stay pissed, but Neil had a way of wearing a guy down. Finally he gave in. Cracking a smile and shaking his head, Brian flipped him off.

—

It had been four days since Amber met Brian on the train and her life had run completely amuck. Eric was back in town, at least temporarily. He would be back and forth from New York over the next four weeks until the Spanex deadline hit. Knowing she would see him at the office, and because she did genuinely care about him as a friend, she had followed through on her plan to end the relationship with a clean, honest break. But Eric hadn’t been that easy to shake. He’d called every day and finally, on Wednesday, she’d agreed to meet him for dinner.

Now he was seated across the table, holding her hand between the water and iced-tea glasses, and pleading with her to give him one more chance.

“Amber, I know I fucked up. But you mean more to me than I realized. I can’t let you go.”

She took a deep breath. “Eric. What we had was nice, but it was never that serious. You have to know that, too. I mean, one day you tell me they offered you a job at the New York office and the next you were gone. There wasn’t any question. You didn’t hesitate for a minute, wondering if what you had here was worth more than what you might get there. Because you knew. And I’m not mad about it, either. I just think you aren’t being realistic about what our relationship meant.”

“No. That’s not true. I was just confused. I didn’t ask you to come because I knew how much you loved your job, I couldn’t ask you to leave it, and we didn’t have another opening for you in New York. And I thought you wouldn’t respect me if I didn’t follow my professional path

as diligently as you were following yours. I mean, what if I turned the promotion down and then they offered it to you?”

Eric squeezed her hand and then flagged the waitress. “More bread? Thanks.” He turned his attention back to Amber, waiting for her to respond.

Shifting uncomfortably in her chair, she answered him.

“Eric, I guess what I’m trying to say is that I didn’t feel that sad when our relationship ended. I felt like I should be sad, hurt, mad…something. But I really wasn’t. That says something to me. I think it should say something to you.”

She wanted to extract her hand from his grasp, but he had her in a double grip now.

“That’s understandable. I wasn’t a good boyfriend to you before. Distance has given me perspective.”

The waitress arrived at the table with a basket of bread and cleared her throat.

Seeing the opportunity, Amber retrieved her hand and moved a few glasses to accommodate the basket. It wasn’t fair to string him along, and he clearly believed there was more of a chance than she did. When the waitress retreated, Amber removed the linen napkin from her lap, placed it on the table and stood up.

“Eric, I’m sorry. I just don’t feel the way I once did. There isn’t anything more to talk about. I’ll see you around the office.”

She turned to leave, not wanting to wait for his argument. There was nothing he could say to change her mind. She was halfway to the open exit when a steely hand wrapped around her upper arm and spun her awkwardly around. Eric pulled her against him and into a full kiss. His tongue swept wildly into her mouth as his angular joints pressed into her body. He tasted like Thousand Island dressing. All she could think, as he tried his best to pull her into his passion, was that Brian had ruined her for any other man.

Eric pulled back and wiped his mouth with the back of his sleeve, offering up a smoky gaze.

“Should we get out of here?” he asked, trying to weave his bony fingers through hers.

Amber shook her head and pulled her hands away. “I hope we can stay friends. Good bye, Eric.”

Chapter Five

By Friday night, Brian was ready to move on. He’d spent the week vacillating between guilt over what he had done and guilt over what he wanted to do more of. Amber was in his mind at all times. He was embarrassed by what he’d said, but his temper had flared when he realized he’d been played. Tonight, however, his experience with Amber was going to be a thing of the past.

After days of Neil’s berating, Brian relented and agreed to venture back into the sea in search of another fine fish to help him clear his mind of all things Amber. But now, leaning back against the bar at Riley’s, he wondered what he’d been thinking returning to the scene of the crime. He knew Amber came to this bar, but he’d justified the selection with the rationale that he’d never run into her there before and he imagined she wouldn’t risk bringing her boyfriend anywhere near a bar Brian frequented. What if he exposed her for the cheater she was? No, Riley’s was probably the safest spot in town.

But if that were really what he was thinking, then why was he watching the door like a hawk, his cock half hard at the prospect of running into her again?

Neil swaggered up to the bar, flashing the business card he held between two fingers. “This would be number three for me. Or should I say the third number I’ve collected tonight. Reeling them in, baby!”

Brian chuckled lightly, but his friend’s boisterous demeanor wasn’t catching. Brian had already brushed off two passably attractive women for no good reason at all.

Looking for more support, or possibly more competition, Neil scowled and tipped his longneck back, draining it. “Hey man, loosen up and go wash off that babe-repellent you slathered on. We came out to get you a distraction from the piece of tail who took a bite out of your ass last week.”

Brian bristled at the offensive description and then quickly reined in his aggression, reminding himself that Amber wasn’t a woman he wanted to defend. “I know. Here, let’s get another round.” He pulled out his wallet and retrieved a few bills. Waiving them at the bartender he signaled two more beers and then changed his mind and signaled four.

Neil clapped him on the back and laughed. “Now we’re talking.”

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