Page 11 of Parker

He blinked, his focus brought back to the present—and the woman currently sitting across from him. “Sorry, what?”

“Are you okay?” Dr. Sydnee Blake frowned. With her brows scrunched together, she ran her dark, assessing gaze over him as she spoke. “That’s the third time in the last ten minutes you’ve drifted off mid-conversation.”

Really? Well, shit.

“Sorry, Syd.” Parker offered his childhood friend an apologetic smile. “Guess I just have a lot on my mind.”

“I’d say so. What’s going on? You never lose focus like that.”

No, he typically didn’t.

Shrugging it off, Parker picked up his iced tea and took a sip. With a quick swallow, he answered with a casual, “Nothing.”

He should have known the too-smart-for-her-own-good woman wasn’t letting him off the hook that easily.

Syd’s blue eyes narrowed. “Try again.”

It’s no use, Collins. You know she’s like a dog with a bone when she’s worried about you.

Parker sighed. “You’re not going to let this go, are you?”

“Nope.”

Didn’t think so.

Taking another sip, he put his glass down onto his usual table at the one restaurant in town he could dine in peace. “Okay, fine. But you have to promise not to laugh.”

Her rosy lips curved as her head began to shake. “You know I can’t make that promise.”

“I mean it, Syd.” Parker rested his elbows on the crisp white tablecloth. “This is…serious.”

All signs of humor vanished as a deeper concern marred the sweet woman’s pretty face. “Okay, now you’re really scaring me. What’s going on, Park?”

The worry in her voice warmed his heart. He and Syd had known each other since he was ten, and she was eight, and in spite of her gorgeous looks, impressive smarts, and amazingly sweet personality, he’d never seen her as anything more than the little sister he’d never had.

“I’m good. Honest.”Sort of.“But there’s this woman—”

“Oooh…now I get it.” Sydnee sat back in her seat and chuckled. “There’s always a woman with you, Park. So what is it this time? Your newest conquest trying to pressure you into marriage or having a baby? Or both?” Her dark curls swayed with a shake of her head. “I swear, Park. One of these days, you’re going to meet a woman who looks at you and sees more than just dollar signs. You just need to quit wasting time with those gold diggers, always sniffing around and hold out for the right woman to come along. Because she’s out there, you know?”

She wasn’t wrong. In all his adult years, Parker had never had an actual serious relationship with a woman. An unfortunate side effect of being a billionaire bachelor, he supposed.

But he also wasn’t as generous with his affection—or his bed—as the press had led the public to believe. Not even close.

But this wasn’t about that. This was different.

Jinxwas different.

Was there a natural chemistry between the two of them? Sure. Had he pictured a gorgeous woman staring back at him when he heard that raspy voice of hers in his ears during their online chats and phone calls? Absolutely.

But the physical wasn’t what drew Parker to Jinx. How could it be, when he’d never seen more than Jinx’s fictional avatar?

No, the connection he shared with her ran much deeper than the flesh. When they spoke, it was as if she reached him on a whole other level. One built from intelligence, a sweet and sassy disposition, and a shared love for all things tech.

And as Sydnee had so bluntly pointed out, the other women who’d come in and out of his life—present company, excluded—looked at him and saw nothing more than a chance to gain money, fame, and a fortune.

They were always more than happy to use him to elevate their own social status. Of course, the second he broke things off—for their benefit as well as his own—those same women would turn on him the first chance they got.

It’s why he’d sworn off relationships—casual or otherwise—a few months back. The only exceptions were Sydnee and Jinx.

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