Page 26 of Double or Nothing

“This is serious,” he says.

“My new client is Sutton.”

“Sutton? As in the rock star, Sutton Cole? As in your ex?”

“The one and only,” I say as I plop into the chair across from his desk. “What the hell am I supposed to do?”

“I can take him if you want,” he offers. This time, he’s not trying to steal a client. It’s him trying to help a friend he knows is beyond deeply affected by Sutton Cole, regardless of the years that have passed.

“Believe me, I did everything I could to get Jack to give him to you, but apparently, he requested me specifically.”

“We both know why.”

I angle my head to the side and glare at him. “And why is that?”

“He still wants you.” Callum shakes his head and laughs. “You two are a mess.”

“He’s a mess.”

“Oh, please. You still have a thing for him, too.”

“I do not.”

“I call bullshit,” Callum smirks.

“Think what you want, Cal, but Sutton and I were over a long time ago. There is no way in hell I would ever go down that road again,” I tell him, his accusation infuriating me.

“You seem to forget who helped you put those broken pieces back together. Pieces that never fully fit because he took some with him the moment he stepped onto that plane.”

I met Callum not long after Sutton left, and my mom died. I was broken beyond repair, everyone in my life I loved had just left me, and I felt like I was drowning in heartache.

Then, like a life ring being tossed to me, Callum stepped into my life. Even back then, Callum only had his eyes on one thing—money and success. He made it clear love wasn’t an option for reasons he still refuses to tell me to this day. My heart couldn’t handle anything more than what Sutton put it through.

My body, however, desperately needed to shake the memory of Sutton. For a time, Callum and I were pure sex. He was exactly what I needed, the type of man to make me forget all about my jerk of an ex.

Then one day, he found me, broken down, crying. It was my mother’s birthday, my first without her, and everything hit me that day. I cried so much, my body hurt. Every emotion running through me made me feel as though I had been hit by a damn Mack truck. I had expected him to take me to bed and fuck away the sadness and pain like we always did. Instead, he wrapped his arms around me and hugged me. He befriended me. He helped me. The sex stopped. Our friendship began. Even now, we might be competitors at work, but I know at the end of the day, he has my back and my best interest at heart.

“You seem to forget just how broken I was. Do you really think I would ever give him another chance?”

“Yeah, I do. Your feelings for him are that damn strong. Even now.” A wicked smile crosses Callum’s face, the look he gets when he’s up to no good, which is more often than not. “In fact, I bet you a thousand bucks you wind up in his bed before the week is over.”

Callum’s also a complete asshole.

“You are so on,” I say as I extend my hand to him. This is one bet he doesn’t stand a chance of winning.

Feelings or not, no way in hell will I ever end up in Sutton’s bed. Not after what he did to me.

Chapter 16

Sutton

The moment I step into the bar, all eyes are on me. It’s a blessing and a curse. As much as I love the fame, moments like this, I would prefer to disappear into the crowd. Be someone no one knows or gives a damn about.

The only reason I came to the bar was to escape Kat and the memories of her Mac stirred up with his bullshit idea. Not to mention the hope it instilled of what might happen when we see each other again. She’s all I’ve been able to think about since Mac brought her up.

Hell, she’s been all I’ve been able to think about since he mentioned the word Vegas. That’s all it took. That one simple word dragged me back five years and made me relive every amazing moment with her.

After Mac gave me my itinerary for Vegas, I stormed out of the office and headed home, but it was too quiet, deafening almost. The silence only made me get lost in my head and my heart. Thoughts of Kat overran me, and I couldn’t take it anymore. I needed noise. I needed something external to quiet the noise inside my head.

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