Page 5 of Love Blitz

I couldn’t close my mouth for the life of me. It hung open as syllables, thoughts, and curse words formed around my head. I didn’t even know the dude and I wanted to bust his head open. At least tell him his punk ass ruined a perfectly good thing. Of course, I didn’t know her well enough to know what he was giving up, but I knew she didn’t deservethat.

“Damn,” I finally said as she stared at me. “That’s fucked up.”

Behind her I heard, “Isn’t it though.” The woman had a full smirk on her face and held a shot glass to her lips. “That’s why we had to bring her out the house.” She added, “Get her drunk. Make her forget what his dirty dick ass did.”

My eyes widened. But somehow, I felt me and her homegirl could be cool. I looked atGigithough, and she wasn’t on the same wavelength. Sadness crowded her dark-brown eyes. Her lashes still heavy from the tears she shed. “Hey, my bad for asking you to leave. I see now that shit was too much.” But somehow, I still felt like she needed an escape. “But how would you feel about leaving? Getting out of here but notgetting out of here.” The words I wanted to say got lost. Somewhere like Cam’s thoughts. But I hoped she was catching what I was trying very hard to throw.

A small smile crept up on her face. “I’d like that.”

ChapterThree

Gianna

The last time I left a bar with a guy, I spent years in a relationship with him. In fact, we hit it off so well, we should have been walking down the aisle together. It’d been forever since the last time I thought about how I met Shawn. But hearing Angelo ask me to leave with him was all it took for the memory to flood my mind.

Is this how it’ll be?Would I spend the rest of my life reminiscing about the memories built with Shawn? If so, there was no way I was ever leaving my room again. They might as well lock me up in a strait jacket. Let me bounce against the walls. That would be better than the constant reminder of what I could have had.

I could have gone home alone. Called a ride and left Georgia and Tatiana behind to flirt. Free to fuck the other two guys. But Angelo’s offer sounded better. At least that’s what I was telling myself as I stepped through the bar and out the front door.

As much as I wanted to be alone in my dark room, I didn’t want to be lonely. It didn’t take long to realize that feeling was worse than the heartbreak. The reminder that I was no longer one-half of a couple stung to the core. The fact that I couldn’t sit on the couch and wait for Shawn at the end of the night wasn’t something I needed to think about.

So, although Angelo’s first offer wasn’t something I could manage, the second offer was something I didn’t want to pass up. At first, my legs were wobbly. From the shots, or the idea of being with a man other than Shawn. It wasn’t something that bothered me before. When I was with him, I could walk to the coffee shop with a guy from my office. Or laugh it up with one of Georgia’s friends. Meet Tatiana and one of her many guy friends at the bar. No problem.

But walking to the car alone with Angelo felt like betrayal in the oddest way. I watched his back as he led me to his car—wide, but not like he tackled players on the field. His triceps defined but not in a way that looked like he spent every waking hour in the gym. Oh, then his ass. It was perky. I should ask him for a routine I could do to get my ass like his.

“Right over here,” he said with his hand raised in the air. He crossed the street, and I followed like he was leading me to my happy place.

A smile creeping up on my face. “What is this?” I mumbled. I shook my head and tried to remember I was freshly out of a relationship. One that would have led me to wedded bliss had my fiancé not fucked another woman. That would forever live in my mind rent free. I rolled my eyes and scoffed. “Future Mrs. Victors.”

“Are you okay?” He has dimples.

“Yeah.” I wiped a hand down the side of my pants. “I’m fine.” I pointed to the Cayenne parked in front of us. “Is this yours?”

“Yup.” He opened the passenger side door and waited for me to maneuver around him.

He was in my space in the bar. Not too close where I could pick up his scent. Or feel like he was crowding me. But on the street with his door open, waiting for me to climb inside, Ifelt him.His scent present in the best way. Not like Shawn’s. His was the type that wanted everyone to notice it was there. It invaded your senses in the worst way. When we first met, it was almost offensive it was so strong. Over the years, I grew used to the smell. If I placed my nose in my sheets, I’d still likely smell him. The citrusy bergamot scent never left as often as I’d washed my sheets.

I brushed up against Angelo’s arm, and the soft woodsy smell didn’t assault my nose. “Sorry,” I said as I climbed inside.

He waited until I buckled up. Staring at me as I slid the metal into the holster. “Good?”

I nodded my head with a slight smile and confirmed, “Good.”Was I though?That was still debatable. At least I was no longer crying, or on the verge of a full meltdown.

He sat behind the wheel of the car. His hands gripping the leather before he paused. “I didn’t have a plan in mind.” Those dimples again. “I’m new to the area and…” He wagged his head. “Want to show me around?”

That would be an easy task for me. I was born and raised in Phoenix. Only left for college and returned right back to the scene of the crime. “Sure,” I told him. “What do you want to see?” There weren’t many people who came to visit me in Phoenix. I didn’t play tour guide often, or ever.

“Whatever you want to show me.” He eased the car from the parking spot. “I haven’t ventured out much.”

“Challenge accepted.” I laughed then squeezed my eyes closed. “That was—”

“Hopefully the mission isn’t impossible.”

My eyes widened and I laughed a little harder. The feeling of my chest vibrating and my cheeks spreading was something I missed. A week of hiding out under the covers left little room for laughter. “Okay. Now that we both proved we are a little nerdy.” I cocked my head to watch his profile. “How about take this next right.”

“Nerdy?” He gasped. “I’m offended.” His shoulders straightened and his eyes remained focused on the road. “For the both of us.” He threw me a sideways glance and I smiled. “You have a beautiful smile.”

“As do you.” I teased, “Dimples.”What am I doing?It wasn’t like flirting was foreign to me. I flirted with Shawn all the time. Our banter could go unmatched. It was one of my favorite things to do. Call him mid-day like we first met, talk sexy to him, get him excited to come over. I took a long breath in. “Sorry.” I admitted, “This is a little weird for me.”

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