Things We Left Behind
by Lucy Score
Published by Bloom Books
Book 3 in the Knockemout Series
There was only one woman who could set me free. But I would rather set myself on fire than ask Sloane Walton for anything.
Lucian Rollins is a lean, mean vengeance-seeking mogul. On a quest to erase his father’s mark on the family name, he spends every waking minute pulling strings and building an indestructible empire. The more money and power he amasses, the safer he is from threats.
Except when it comes to the feisty small-town librarian that keeps him up at night…
Sloane Walton is a spitfire determined to carry on her father’s quest for justice. She’ll do that just as soon as she figures out exactly what the man she hates did to—or for—her family. Bonded by an old, dark secret from the past and the dislike they now share for each other, Sloane trusts Lucian about as far as she can throw his designer-suited body.
When bickering accidentally turns to foreplay, these two find themselves not quite regretting their steamy one-night stand. Once those flames are fanned, it seems impossible to put them out again. But with Sloane ready to start a family and Lucian refusing to even consider the idea of marriage and kids, these enemies-to-lovers are stuck at an impasse.
Broken men break women. It’s what Lucian believes, what he’s witnessed, and he’s not going to take that chance with Sloane. He’d rather live a life of solitude than put her in danger. But he learns the hard way that leaving her means leaving her unprotected from other threats.
It’s the second time he’s ruthlessly cut her out of his life. There’s no way she’s going to give him a third chance. He’s just going to have to make one for himself.
Genre
Triggers
Violence, death, memories of domestic/child abuse, alcoholism, unlawful imprisonment
I have been waiting for this book since being introduced to Sloane and Lucian in book one.
It did NOT disappoint.
Seriously.
Things We Left Behind was emotional, gripping, and one of the hottest books I've ever read.
Tension.
Insane chemistry.
Witty banter.
A secret history.
It just all blends together into this delicious story that I couldn't get enough of.
It's not a short book, and yet I finished it in 48 hours.
The story itself was perfect. There was just enough chapters that bring you back to Lucian and Sloane's friendship as teenagers that gives you a solid foundation as to how close they were, and what happened to make these two people seemingly hate one another, but it didn't take away from the overall story in the present. It tied up the storyline that began in book one nicely - if a bit rushed. Afterall, there was a lot going on in this book.
The characters, as always, were the ultimate highlight of the books. Before I get into Sloane and Lucian, I have to mention how much I love how Lucy brings the other couples, and side characters, into the story. They don't overpower the main couple, but they add so much to the book. Knox and Nash's brotherly love - and aggression - is the perfect balance to Lucian's seriousness. Naomi and Lina are great supports for Sloane. One of my favorite parts of the entire series is everyone at the dinner table after Knox secretly decides that Sloane and Lucian need more incentive to behave. The fact that the thirteen year old gets to decide when to punish the repeat offenders - perfection.
When I say I laughed so hard I cried, I mean it.
Back to Sloane and Lucian - after learning everything, I both understand, and am frustrated with them for the years of bitterness and anger between them. Their individual feelings on what happened in the past, and between them, made sense.
And let's be honest here. While their friendship before the event was all kinds of adorable, let's not pretend that the tension and anger between these two didn't make their relationship explosive.
They even argued while having insanely hot sex. AND IT MADE IT HOTTER!
Lucy Score is amazing at writing enemies to lovers.
Because it wasn't just the sex that made this couple the best of the series.
It was everything combined. The back and forth antagonizing, while secretly admiring one another.
The best parts, in my opinion? Despite the happily ever after, they still have loads of banter and give each other shit.
And the one with the most issues between them - Lucian - is the one chasing her in the end. Convincing her.
I love a man who goes after what he wants.
If you love a true enemies to lovers, with heaps of sexual tension you will love this book.
Love.
It.
Seriously, this series might be one of my favorites to date. I can't wait to read more of Lucy Score's work.
The pudgy, grumpy cat I’d inherited along with the house slunk onto the porch looking judgmental as always. The half-feral fleabag had been given the regal name Lady Mildred Meowington. Over time, it had been shortened to Milly Meow Meow. Nowadays, when I had to yell at her for the eighteenth time not to claw the back of the couch, it was just Meow Meow or Hey, Asshole.
Sloane: “You know,”
I said to the baby,
Sloane: “my dad would probably love it if your brother accidentally dumped his ashes today. He’d think it was hilarious.”
God, he was beautiful. Supernaturally molded by the gods beautiful. He would make gorgeous little demon babies.
No. No. Nope. Absolutely not. My biological downward spiral was not going to make me look at Lucian Rollins as a potential mate.
Simon: “Place is looking better,”
Simon had told me when he wandered in through the open garage door.
I’d been covered in sweat and dust, sledgehammering my way through drywall and ghosts.
Lucian: “Is it?”
my twentysomething self asked. It looked like an explosion had hit the kitchen.
Simon: “Sometimes in order to build things back up, you gotta tear them down to the studs. Want some help?”
Just like that, the man who’d saved my life picked up a hammer and helped me raze the ugliest parts of my past.
Simon: If I could have chosen a son in this lifetime, it would have been you. Take care of my girls.
Emry: “I would also like to point out the irony of you encouraging me to start dating again.”
Lucian: “Marriage is right for some people. People like you who can’t stop burning casseroles and need a nice woman to force you to stop dressing like a 1980s sitcom star.”
Knox: “It’s a tough loss. She held up today after Luce here force-fed her a burrito.”
Nash’s eyebrows rose as he cut a look in my direction.
Lucian: “Not a euphemism. It was a literal burrito,”
Knox: “Sloane would break his euphemistic burrito in half,”
Knox predicted with a smirk.
Lina: “Let us in before we freeze our asses off,”
Lina yelled through the front door.
Naomi: “We brought hugs and tequila,”
Lina: “Naomi brought hugs. I brought tequila,”
Stef: “Well, well, well. Who does this beauty belong to?”
Stef demanded, stroking a hand over the cashmere. Shit.
Sloane: “No one,”
Lina: “Is that Burberry?”
Lina asked, reaching for the label.
Lina: “Please tell me you’re sleeping with someone who has really good taste.”
I should have just left his damn coat on his damn kitchen counter. Naomi buried her face in the fabric.
Naomi: “So soft! And it smells amazing.”
Her head came up, a frown pinching her mouth.
Naomi:" “And familiar.”
Stef, Jeremiah, and Lina each took a whiff.
Stef, Jeremiah & Lina: “Lucian,”
All eyes returned to me.
Naomi: “Is there anyone in town you’d consider dating?”
Naomi asked, pen poised over paper.
Sloane: “Where did you get that notebook?”
Stef: “She carries it in a thigh holster,”
Stef: “What about Suit Daddy?”
I opened my fingers over my eyes to glare at him.
Sloane: “Not in this lifetime.”
Stef: “Give me three good reasons why,”
I dropped my hands.
Sloane: “He’s unbelievably rude. He’s selfish. He’s so stubborn and controlling that everything has to be done his way or he loses his damn mind. He’s got the whole rich and powerful thing going, which means he’s absolutely corrupt. He’s involved in politics. And not in the ‘I want to make a difference in the world’ way. But in the ‘I want other rich, powerful jackasses to owe me favors’ way. He can’t connect with other human beings because he’s a soulless robot out to make the biggest pile of money for himself so he can hoard it all like some kind of goblin king.”
My audience was blinking at me.
Lina: “Anything else?”
Lina asked, trying her best to hide her amusement.
Sloane: “Yeah. That stupid coat is worth more than my Jeep,”
I said, pointing at the coat closet.
Sloane: “I googled it.”
There was another long stretch of silence.
Naomi: “So we’ll put Lucian in the no column then,”
Naomi said before writing something down in her notebook.
Stef: “I don’t want to make any assumptions. Is Mr. Right definitely a Mr.?”
Sloane: “As much as I would have zero qualms making out with Alicia Keys after she serenades me with a ballad, I can’t live without the dick.”
Naomi: “Man with penis,”
Naomi said out loud as she made another note.
Naomi: “What else are you looking for in a man?”
Sloane: “Um, I guess he should be funny and kind and generous. And it would be nice if he was into gardening to help me keep up with the backyard. Obviously he should like kids…and books.”
The cat pranced into the room. I patted the arm of my chair. Meow Meow shot me a look of derision and flounced out as if I’d insulted her.
Sloane: “And bad-tempered cats,”
Lina: “Anything else?”
Sloane:" “Good in bed. Really good in bed. Oh, and I’m kind of into reading glasses.”
Stef sighed approvingly.
Stef: “Hot nerds are so hot.”
Naomi: “You’ll have beautiful little nerd babies,”
Naomi predicted, hugging her notebook to her chest.
All four of us watched his excellent rear end as he exited the room.
Lina: “Really nice catch,”
He sighed.
Stef: “I know.”
I sat next to him and watched his big hand move the pink pencil over the sheet. Leave it to Lucian Rollins to make math sexy.
Sloane: “Wow. You really are smart,”
I said when he circled the answer. His mouth curved ever so slightly at the corners.
Lucian: “Don’t tell anyone.”
Sloane: "Your secret is safe with me,”
I promised.
Lucian: “Your turn,”
he said, handing me the pencil. He smelled good. Which made me paranoid that he could smell me. It took me three tries and an infinite amount of patience from Lucian, but I finally got it. I got the next problem on the second try. And when I nailed the right answer on the third problem in one take, I jumped up and spiked the pencil like it was a football in the end zone.
Sloane: “Yes! Bite me, math!”
He backed away. Desperate for just another minute with him, my mind raced for something to say.
Sloane: “Hey! I hate to be that girl, but you still haven’t apologized for the rock,”
I pointed out. He flashed that little half smile, one foot on the porch, one foot on the top step.
Lucian: “Guess I’ll have to do that next time.”
Sloane: “Would it kill you to be polite every once in a while? Or do those suits leach the humanity out of you?”
Lucian: “I’m surprised you didn’t order the glitter pancakes off the children’s menu to go with your mug of granulated sugar.”
Sloane: “Have you ever even had the diner’s hot chocolate? Oh, wait. I forgot. You’re violently allergic to fun and happiness. When are you flitting back to your depressing vampire lair of seriousness?”
Lucian: “As soon as I make it through this breakfast with you.”
I wrapped my hands around the mug and closed my eyes to prolong this tiny pocket of perfection. When I opened them again, I found Lucian’s eyes on me, his expression…complicated.
Sloane: “What?”
I asked, releasing the straw.
Lucian: “Nothing.”
Sloane: “You’re looking at me like it’s not nothing.”
Lucian: “I’m looking at you and counting down the seconds until this meal is over.”
And just like that, we were back on an even keel.
Sloane: “Bite me, Lucifer.”
Sloane: “We used to get along.”
I don’t know why I said it. We had a tacit agreement never to discuss that time in our lives. His gaze slid to my right wrist peeking out of my sleeve. I wanted to hide my hand in my lap but stubbornly kept it in plain sight on the table.
Lucian: “We didn’t know any better then,”
he said, his voice hoarse.
Sloane: “You’re infuriating.”
Lucian: “You’re irritating,”
I gripped my straw like it was a weapon capable of stabbing.
Lucian: “Careful, Pixie. We have an audience.”
Sloane: “Look. Since you’re too stubborn to leave and you’re not inclined to tell me why you and my mother are besties, let’s find some topic of conversation that we can both agree on to get through this interminable breakfast. How do you feel about…the weather?”
Lucian: “The weather?”
Sloane:“Yes. Can we agree that there appears to be weather outside?”
Lucian: “Yes, Sloane. We can agree that there is weather.”
His tone was so condescending I wanted to take the ketchup squeeze bottle from the stainless-steel carrier and empty it all over him.
Sloane: “Your turn,”
Lucian: “Fine. I’m sure we can agree that you dress like a deranged teenager.”
Sloane: “Better than a moody undertaker,”
Bean: “Here’s your breakfast,”
He slid steaming plates onto the table with forced cheer and then oh so casually slid both butter knives into his apron pocket.
Between Petula, Nolan, and Lina all being blatantly unafraid of me, I had concerns the rest of the employees would follow suit and start doing things like knocking on my office door for “a quick chat” or suggesting I host an office holiday party.
She narrowed her eyes and brought a manicured finger to her jaw.
Lina: “Hmm. It’s almost like you want me to bring Sloane into your inner sanctum.”
Lucian: “You’re annoying me. Go home before I fire you.”
Lina: “Be nicer to her,”
Lucian: “Or else what?”
Lina: “Or else I’ll make your work life as miserable as possible while still doing my job. And I’m really, really good at miserable.”
Lina: “Oh! Look! Sloane is here. I’d better go greet her.”
Her long legs wrapped in designer denim ate up the pink carpet between us.
Lina: “Help me. I feel like I’m suffocating in taffeta,”
she hissed, pulling me in for an awkward and unexpected hug.
Sloane: “You must be terrified. You’re voluntarily hugging me.”
Lina: “I’ll voluntarily make out with you if you help me pick a dress in the next ten minutes so we can get out of here. I’m breaking out in hives.”
Stef: “It’s not an excuse. Closet space is very important to a relationship, and the man just doesn’t have enough. It would never work. My wardrobe and I have been through a lot together. It deserves a beautiful, spacious home. Not a few rolling racks next to pieces of an actual motorcycle that he took apart in the living room,”
he said with a shudder.
Sloane: “You’re right. Closet space is definitely more important than being in love and sharing your life with someone. I’m sure you can cuddle up to those suede leopard loafers at night just as easily as you can Jeremiah. You probably won’t even notice the difference.”
Naomi grinned.
Naomi: “See? I told you.”
Stef sniffed.
Stef: “Wedding dress shopping makes you two mean.”
Bonnie: “Are you having premature ventricular contractions?”
Lina rolled her eyes.
Lina: “No, Mom. I’m falling in love with a damn wedding dress.”
Naomi: “Well, I’ve always wanted to see where he works. Does he really have a throne made out of the bones of his enemies?”
Nolan: “Find a dress?”
Lina nearly sprained an elbow reaching for her phone.
Lina: “I did. And bridesmaid dresses. What’s Callie wearing for your beach ceremony?”
Nolan reached for his phone, and the two of them put their heads together over wedding dresses.
Lucian: “You’re giving me regrets about hiring you both,”
Lucian said irritably. Lina looked at Nolan.
Lina: “I think he’s feeling left out.”
Nolan: “You’re right,”
They sandwiched their grumpy boss between them and began scrolling through their photos, explaining each in excruciating detail.
Lucian: “You’re fired,”
he said as he extricated himself from the huddle.
Lucian: “Enjoy your visit,”
he told Naomi, then headed for the glass doors without sparing me another glance. Lina gave a satisfied sigh.
Lina: “That was fun.”
Naomi: “Everyone here seems so happy,”
Naomi said, trying to switch to a more positive subject.
Lina: “It’s hard not to be. The pay is well above fair. The benefits are generous. And the boss is a beautiful beast of a man who no one wants to disappoint.”
I sniffed.
Sloane: “I guess if you’re into the whole fire and brimstone thing.”
Sloane: “Hey. You can’t go. You still haven’t apologized for the rock last spring.”
Lucian: “Next time,”
It was our refrain. Our promise that I’d be back.
Lucian: “What are you doing?”
I asked as she tucked a pillow under my arm.
Sloane: “I’m building a nest. This is how I sleep,”
she explained, fluffing the two behind me.
Lucian: “You sleep with forty-two pillows every night?”
Sloane: “It’s six, smarty-pants. And don’t judge me until you’ve tried it.”
Lucian: “You don’t look broken up about it,”
She shrugged.
Sloane: “She just wasn’t very nice. You could do better. But if you did do better and you were with someone nice, I guess we wouldn’t get to hang out like this. And I kind of like our secret little friendship or…whatever.”
Friendship didn’t describe what I felt for her. I was friends with Knox and Nash Morgan. But I sure as hell wouldn’t curl up with them in a pillow nest to listen to music. Hell, I wouldn’t do that with Addie either. Maybe Cindy Crawford.
Lucian: “I like us too,”
Sloane: “It’s okay. You can hang on to me. I won’t break.”
Ugh. I really needed to make some changes in my life. I wanted to be the one making my friends uncomfortable with over-the-top PDA. I wanted to be making plans for the future with my hot life partner with a large penis. A salacious memory of Lucian’s trouser-covered erection immediately appeared in my mind.
No! Bad, brain! Bad. Lucian was not life partner material.
Lucian: “What has you spoiling for a fight, Pixie? Did another squirrel get stuck in the book return?”
Sloane: “You’re hilarious. So funny. I’m so glad we had this time together. Why don’t I open this second-story window and assist you out of it?”
Sloane: “I don’t know how to react when you’re nice to me,”
Lucian: “If you didn’t make it so difficult, I’d be civil more often,”
Sloane: “It’s probably better this way. You might sprain something pretending to be human.”
Sloane: “I met Holly,”
I blurted out, going for the first topic that didn’t involve us touching each other.
Sloane: “She seemed very grateful for the job. Lina told us how you hired her. Maybe you’re not a complete asshole.”
Lucian: “No one gives a compliment like you, Pixie.”
Lucian: “I don’t have time for this. For you.”
Sloane: “Like I said, no one asked you to play delivery boy.”
Lucian: “And I didn’t ask you to get involved and end your softball career,”
Sloane: “Clearly, we’re even then,”
I joked.
Lucian: “As always, you’re infuriating, irresponsible, and immature.”
His tone was flippant, as if I were barely worth the effort to insult.
Sloane: “And you’re a mercurial pain in my ass,”
I pointed out, feeling the sting.
Lucian: “Always so charming. It’s such a mystery why you’re still single.”
The man wielded sarcasm with the dexterity of a master manipulator. I had the urge to pat myself down and search for physical wounds.
Sloane: “You’re late for your next ritual sacrifice, Lucifer. You’d better be going.”
He smirked.
Lucian: “Thank you for reminding me why our relationship is what it is. Every once in a while, I manage to forget what you really are.”
Sloane:“Is that so? And just what do you think I am?”
Lucian: “Dangerous.”
I flashed him a saccharine-sweet smile.
Sloane: “Do you think you can find your way out, or do you want me to help you down the stairs face-first?”
Lucian: “I think I can manage.
Knox: “I don’t think you’re hearing me. Naomi has decided you both can’t be invited to the same social shit. Which means she’ll schedule twice as much social shit to make sure both of you pains in the ass get the same amount of quality fucking time with us. And I don’t want more social shit. I don’t want more quality fucking time. I want you two to put aside your petty ‘we have a secret feud that we won’t talk about’ bullshit and make my wife forget that you can’t stand each other.”
Lucian: “This is ridiculous,”
Knox: “No. You’re fucking ridiculous for making me do this. So either you both go in there strapped up to these toys, pretend to be adults for the evening, and make my wife happy, or you both go the hell home and think about how stupid you must be for making me the fucking voice of reason in this scenario.”
I glanced down at Sloane, who seemed to be weighing the ridiculous options.
Sloane: “What’s for dinner?”
she asked, eyes narrowed in calculation.
Knox: “Tacos.”
Sloane: “Dammit,”
she muttered and grabbed one of the TENS units.
Lucian: “You’re joking.”
Sloane: “I’m hungry, and I’m proving to the bearded barber here that I’m a better friend than you are,”
Sloane announced. She pulled up the hem of her turtleneck, baring her smooth stomach.
Lucian: “I’m not doing this,”
Knox: “I’m not forcing you. You know the choices and the consequences. But I meant what I said. It’s both of you or neither. And if I go back in there and have to tell my wife that you two couldn’t even agree to not be assholes for however long it takes to shove a bunch of tacos into your face, she’s gonna be upset, and that’ll make me fucking furious. I’ll have no choice but to make it my mission in life to destroy you both,”
Sloane: “What’s the matter, Lucifer? Afraid of a little pain or afraid you won’t be able to control yourself?”
Sloane taunted with a challenge in her eyes. Swearing, I yanked my belt free and untucked my shirt.
Lucian: “For the record, these better be the best tacos I’ve ever had, because I’m not convinced this friendship is worth it.”
Sloane’s green eyes skimmed over the skin I was baring as I slapped the two adhesive pads to my abdomen.
Knox: “Get it out of your system now, ’cause Waylay is sitting between you two. If my girl catches you being dicks to each other, she gets to shock the shit out of you.”
Sloane: “I didn’t insult him, you little punk,”
Sloane hissed to Waylay.
Waylay: “You were baiting him. That’s just as bad. Trust me. I’m basically the queen of trash talking on the soccer field,”
Lucian: “You have to have my unit dialed up higher,”
I accused. It had felt as if my insides were in danger of exiting my body.
Waylay: “Actually you’re only at an eight. Knox and me figured Sloane had an advantage seein’ as how she’s a girl and has had her period for a few decades.”
Sloane: "Exactly how old do you think I am?”
Sloane asked, then shook her head.
Sloane: “Never mind. Just tell me what mine is set at.”
Waylay: “You’re a nine.”
Sloane punched the air in victory.
Sloane: “Yes!”
Naomi was watching us again. I held up a taco and gave her a friendly nod.
Lucian: “Take me to a ten,”
I told Waylay when Naomi looked away.
Waylay: “I don’t know. Knox said the girls aren’t allowed to use level ten at the bar anymore since Garth Lipton almost pooped his pants.”
Lucian: “Take me to ten,”
I insisted tersely.
Sloane: “There’s nothing heroic about shitting your pants, Rollins,”
Sloane said under her breath.
Sloane: “I’m just looking out for you. You could barely handle an eight. I’d hate to see what a ten would do to you. I mean, I’d love it. But I’m being the bigger, more mature adult here,”
she whispered back.
Lucian: “Just because you can’t handle a ten has no bearing on my endurance. I’ll be fine.”
Sloane: “I am a woman. Two weeks ago, I had cramps so bad I had to lie down on the floor of the public restroom at the mechanic’s garage. And then I had to get back up and go do my job for eight hours. I was born to handle a ten.”
Waylay: “You two aren’t saying mean things, but your tones are getting kinda snippy,”
Waylay warned.
Lucian: “Take me to a ten,”
Sloane: “Fine. Tens all around. I’ll show you how to handle it,”
Sloane snapped.
Waylay: “I hate to point this out because I’m definitely having fun here, but I think you guys are losing sight of the reason Knox is letting me electrocute you.”
First Knox, now Waylay. The voices of reason were getting less likely as the evening wore on. Sloane glared at me over Waylay’s head. I glared back.
“Bite me,” she mouthed at me.
“You’re not my type,” I mouthed back.
Naomi: “Is everything okay down there?”
Naomi asked, sounding nervous.
Sloane: “Fine except for Lucian scowling at me like a—”
Sloane grunted, her face contorting in pain.
Sloane: “Worth it,”
she wheezed.
Lucian: “You’re such an idiot,”
I told her. And then I was doubling over, my face hovering over my plate of tacos as an excruciating current of pain tore through me.
Lucian: “It’s in my kidneys.”
Naomi: “Knox Morgan! Why is our daughter electrocuting our guests?”
Naomi shrieked. My friend held up his hands.
Knox: “Daze, there’s a perfectly logical explanation for this.”
Nash: “Jesus. I don’t know which one to arrest first.”
Lina’s eyebrows arched.
Lina: “I’m sorry. Are you trying not to get laid?”
Sloane: “What are you talking about?”
Had I accidentally uploaded the wrong picture? Maybe someone had hacked my account and said I was into ritual sacrifice and attending spelling bees.
Naomi: “It can’t be that bad,”
Lina turned the screen in her direction, and my friend winced.
Naomi: “Okay. She’s definitely self-sabotaging.”
Sloane: “What exactly is so wrong with my profile?”
I demanded, struggling with the dead weight of the snoring basset hound.
Lina: “Let’s ask the experts,”
Sloane: “Don’t you dare!”
But it was too late. The men, who had obviously been eavesdropping again, appeared in the doorway.
Nash: “Someone say experts?”
Nash asked with a charming grin. Lina held up my phone.
Lina: “Tell me why you wouldn’t click on this profile.”
The Morgans leaned in and then out again in unison.
Knox: “Jesus, Sloaney. What are you trying to do, repel dicks?”
Naomi: “Look at that. You’re practically married already,”
On a low growl, Lucian abruptly left the room.
Knox: “What the hell crawled up his ass?”
Knox wondered as he stole Waylay’s spoon and helped himself to some of her cobbler.
Waylay: “Maybe he had to fart,”
Lucian: “Did you just stomp your foot?”
Sloane’s comfort with expressing anger had always intrigued me. But I guess one was free to express their anger when one could control it.
Sloane: “I was picturing your foot under mine,”
Sloane: “Fine. You can come in. But you can’t glare or growl or roll your eyes. And definitely no speaking.”
Lucian: “May I breathe?”
Sloane: “I’d prefer if you didn’t,”
Lucian: “There are some things we never get over. Some things we hide from the light,”
She fluffed her hair out of the neck of her cardigan. It made the generous curves of her breasts threaten to spill over the top of her shirt.
Swarthy Massimo was going to take one look at her and do or say something stupid, and then I was going to have to ruin his fucking life.
Server: “Your crunchy soup, sir,”
the server said, setting down a bowl of soup filled with at least nine packs of crushed-up saltines.
Euge: “Cool, man. I’ll make sure this pretty lady with the awesome rack tips well. What’s your name again? S Loan?”
Sloane: “Oh my God. Okay, that’s it,”
I said, throwing my napkin down on the table.
Server: “If you’re going to punch him, can you try not to get any blood on the tablecloth? The last couple that sat here was on a blind date too, and she dumped an entire bottle of wine over his head. I’m out of fresh linens.”
The bell on the door jingled, and in strode Lucian Rollins, looking just as beautiful as he had when I left him less than an hour ago. Every woman in the place, including the lesbian couple and the ninety-second birthday attendees in the corner, stopped what they were doing and stared. I too fell under his spell as he swept toward me. His eyes were all silver fire. His mouth was pressed in that mean, firm line that made women vie for a smile. His coat today was charcoal gray and billowed behind him like a superhero cape. His trousers were a lighter gray and fit extremely well in the crotch. I hadn’t noticed that at the prison.
Euge: “Man, these guys make a good crunchy soup,”
Euge said through a mouthful of saltines.
Sloane: “Huh?”
I said, not bothering to tear my eyes away from Lucian.
Lucian: “Sloane,”
he greeted me with that gravelly rasp.
Lucian: “Hi.”
Euge turned and found himself face-to-crotch with Lucian.
Euge: “Your pants look expensive,”
Euge announced to the entire restaurant. Lucian shot me a smirk.
Sloane: “Don’t you smirk at me. Apparently his mother made his profile.”
Euge: “Dude, I’m kinda in the middle of something with Rackety Ann here. We’re vibing.”
Lucian: “Rackety Ann?”
Server: “He’s talking about her chest,”
the server offered helpfully. Lucian rolled his eyes and clenched his teeth. He reached out and grabbed Euge by the collar and hauled him out of his seat.
Sloane: “Don’t get blood on the tablecloth,”
Nurse: “Girl, I don’t know what’s happening right now, but I’m a nurse and if you don’t go home with Tall, Dark, and Tight Crotch, I’m gonna check you for head trauma.”
The man next to her nodded.
Husband: “I’m her husband, and even I think Suit Guy is fucking hot.”
Sloane: “Noted,”
Sloane: “That was the worst first date in the history of first dates,”
Lucian: “You’d be surprised,”
Sloane:. “Oh, please. You don’t date. You pick up a rich-guy-trophy-girlfriend takeout menu and place an order. This is different. This is humiliating and a total waste of time.”
Lucian: “What did you expect?”
he asked, looking amused.
Lucian: “Also, where can I get a copy of the rich-guy-trophy-girlfriend takeout menu?”
Sloane: “Don’t be funny or nice. I don’t want your pity.”
Lucian: “I’m not pitying you, Pixie. I’m enjoying your misery.”
Sloane: “Well, you’re doing it too nicely. Be meaner.”
Sloane: “I can’t believe I’m about to say this, but thank you for riding to my rescue…twice today.”
He arched an eyebrow.
Lucian: “I’m impressed. You said that without wincing.”
Sloane: “I was wincing on the inside.”
Lucian: I’m fine.
Sloane: My phone has this cool bullshit detector app, and that “sorry, wrong answer” buzzer noise just went off. It scared the cat.
Sloane: “It’s not them ghosting me! Well, except for that one guy. But that was more literal ghosting. Do you even know what ghosting is?”
Lucian: “I work with a twenty-two-year-old who insists on talking all the time about things I don’t care about. Not only do I know what ghosting is, I could name all the Kardashians if pressed.”
Sloane: “What? No ‘You’re so undesirable men fake their own deaths to get away from you’ jokes?”
Lucian: “Too many punch lines. I froze,”
Sloane: “I mean, you don’t have to tell me. Even though I just spilled my guts to you about my very personal, humiliating dating life. Don’t feel like you owe me anything.”
Lucian: “I gave you a pretzel.”
Sloane: “Half a pretzel,”
Nolan: “Did that guy just bow to you?”
Lucian: “It happens,”
He shook his head and sighed. Nolan: “To walk in your shoes for just a day.”
Lucian: “It’s not nearly as entertaining as it looks,”
Nolan: “Oh, I’d find a way to have some fun,”
He probably would.
Nolan: “You want me to stick around and make sure you don’t need help disposing of a bunch of bodies?”
Lucian: “No. Go away.”
Nolan: “I’ll have Petula ready with bail money,”
he said, putting his empty glass on the bar and tossing me a salute.
Sloane: “What is your problem, Lucifer?”
Lucian: “The answer is always you.”
She slid off her stool and marched up to me.
Sloane: “I have an idea. Why don’t you go fuck yourself and leave me alone with…what was your name again?”
she asked, looking toward the man who obviously didn’t know any better.
Porter: “Porter,”
he said with a thick Southern accent. Porter. I rolled my eyes. He was too eager, too “aw shucks, ma’am.” And I hated the fact that he made Sloane smile.
Lucian: “I’ll make you a deal, Porter. I’ll pay your bar tab—including the drinks you’ve already bought my wife—if you leave in the next ten seconds.”
Porter: “Y-your wife?”
Sloane: “I’m going to murder you with an olive skewer,”
Sloane hissed.
A man in Armani sidled up behind her and leaned on the bar. Sloane, sensing new quarry, peered over her shoulder. She flashed him the sunny smile that I never got out of her. The idiot looked as if he’d won the lottery, then glanced at me.
Lucian: “No,”
I said coldly. I held his gaze and stroked my thumb over the middle of the damp spot I found on Sloane’s underwear. She jolted, nearly knocking over her drink. To steady herself, she gripped my arms.
Sloane: “You sneaky son of a bitch,”
she hissed. Her knee was now pressed firmly against my balls.
Lucian: “Either you and I go upstairs now, or I shadow you for the rest of the night,”
Sloane: “You devious bastard.”
Lucian: “Decide.”
Sloane: “Fine,”
she said with a careless shrug.
Sloane: “I’ll fuck your brains out for one night only. But don’t think this means anything.”
I groaned irritably against his mouth.
Sloane: “Of course you have a big dick.”
Lucian: “And of course you’re disappointed by that fact when I’m about to fuck you with it,”
Lucian: “We have one night,”
Sloane: “Then take your shirt off so we can get started.”
He nuzzled his cheek against my breast, sending arrows of fire straight to my core.
Lucian: “This isn’t the beginning of something,”
His tongue darted out and danced over the other puckered peak. I sucked in a breath.
Sloane: “Do you always talk your dates to death before you have sex?”
Lucian: “I’m simply making sure we’re on the same page.”
Sloane: “I can’t tell if you’re talking to me or my boobs, but frankly, we’re all in agreement.
Lucian: “Christ. How much sex were you expecting to have?”
he demanded, dangling a roll of foil-wrapped birth control over me. I shrugged.
Sloane: “There’s more in the nightstand. I guess I probably won’t need more than one since I ended up with you.”
Lucian pushed my hands away from his dick and rolled on a condom over what had to be a Guinness World Record penis.
Lucian: “You’d be a lot more attractive if you’d shut up.”
Sloane: “Your dick doesn’t seem to mind my mouth,” .
Sloane: “I hate how you feel so fucking good.”
It nearly made me smile through the agony of holding still. I pulled out a few inches, reveling in the slick, wet slide of her flesh against mine.
Lucian: “You’ll hate it even more when you have all of me.”
Sloane: “Yes! More. Harder,”
It was like she was begging me to break her.
Sloane: “God, I hate that you’re so good at this,”
Lucian: “Shut up and take my cock like a good girl,”
Lucian: “Do you still want more?”
I growled. Her eyes fluttered open.
Sloane: “Yes,”
she said without hesitation.
Lucian: “Then ask nicely.”
Her unpainted lips curved in a knowing, female smirk. Her muscles clamped reflexively around my throbbing dick. Yes, Sloane Walton liked dirty talk.
Sloane: “Please fuck me so hard and deep that I have to think about you and that magnificent cock every time I sit down at work tomorrow.”
Lucian: “What’s it’s name?”
Sloane: “Her name is Meow Meow.”
Lucian: “That’s an unimaginative name.”
Sloane: “Her official name is Lady Meowington,”
I said, opening the cheese drawer.
Lucian: “That’s worse. I’m horrified. You’re terrible at naming things.”
I held up two blocks of cheese.
Sloane: “How do you feel about grilled cheese?”
Lucian grimaced.
Lucian: “You eat like a child.”
Sloane: “I’m going to make you the best damned grilled cheese you’ve ever had, and then I’m going to allow you to rub my feet while groveling for my forgiveness.”
Sloane: “Now that your penis has invaded my vagina on multiple occasions, I think you should tell me why you’re so close to my parents. Oh God.”
I sat up straighter.
Sloane: “You didn’t have an affair with my mom, did you?”
Lucian: “I did not have an affair with your mother,”
Lucian: “I’m not above holding a pillow over your face until you stop annoying me, Pix,”
Sloane: “Yes, you are. Please?”
Lucian: “Did you ever have feelings for Knox or Nash?”
Lucian’s question caught me by surprise. We’d mostly lobbed softballs back and forth, participating in a delicate dance around the minefields of our past.
Sloane: “Uh, yeah,”
Lucian: “When?”
he demanded, his grip on my feet in his lap tightening.
Sloane: “Probably right around the time I hit fourteen and they suddenly got hot.”
Lucian: “Do not get emotional about this,”
Sloane: “I’m not getting emotional,”
I insisted even as my voice cracked.
Lucian: “I should have just put the pillow over your face.”
Sloane: “Thank you,”
Lucian: “For what? Not smothering you?”
Lucian: “They’re going to know what you’re busy doing,”
Lucian pointed out, running his hand down my ponytail.
Sloane: “Damn it.”
He was right.
Sloane: “I’ll tell them I’m cleaning the house.”
Lucian: “Naomi will be over here with a truckload of cleaning supplies in five minutes. Pick something they’ll all find unpleasant.”
Sloane: “I’ll go with the truth then. They’ll be horrified,”
I joked. His grip on my hair tightened.
Lucian: “Would you rather spend the afternoon being interrogated by your friends or letting me fuck you?”
Sloane: I’m having my septic tank pumped! The fumes are powerful! Anyone want to come over for game night?
Lucian: My cock is chafed.
Sloane: Good morning to you too. I think you sprained my vagina with too many orgasms.
Lucian: Is there some kind of balm or laser resurfacing treatment for this kind of situation?
Sloane: Repeat after me. “I will not apply a chemical peel to my dick.”
Lucian: I had two charley horses in my calves last night.
Sloane: Poor baby. Drink some pickle juice and then tell me how I’m supposed to not think about our rabid fucking every time I sit down today.
Lucian: : If I have to be haunted by our poor choices so do you.
Petula: “If he starts to look feverish, I want to know. I have a medical team on standby.”
Lucian: “There’s nothing wrong with my face,”
Lina: “The mouth part is fighting its natural frown. You’re almost smiling,”
Nolan appeared behind her holding a cup of coffee and a stack of files.
Nolan: “Whoa. Someone got laid,”
he announced, taking one look at my face.
Lucian: “Don’t make me send you through HR’s six-week sexual harassment training,”
I warned, telegraphing a message of dire consequences if he dared mention Sloane’s name in front of Lina.
Lina: “He didn’t even threaten to fire you,”
Lina stage-whispered.
Lina: “It’s official. Lucian Rollins has been abducted by aliens.”
Nolan: “Aliens that had a lot of sex with him. Initiate Protocol D, people,”
Nolan announced. Employees nearby grinned at him.
Lucian: “You’re both fired,”
Nolan: “So what about you? Big plans for the big V?”
Lucian: “Why do I bother talking to you?”
Nolan grinned.
Nolan: “Because you secretly love me and think I’m delightful.
Nash: Lina is reporting that the head of the evil empire is walking around the office looking like he just got laid.
Knox: Hope this one didn’t steal your watch and your robe.
Lucian: Running an evil empire takes significant focus. I don’t have time for your girlish gossip. Especially now that I have to fire Lina.
Knox: He definitely got laid.
Nash: Let me know if you need to file a robbery report.
Knox: Wait a second. Weren’t you in Knockemout this weekend? Neecey said you called in a pizza order Sunday.
Nash: Don’t tell me you finally gave in to Mrs. Tweedy’s advances. Lucian: What Mrs. Tweedy and I do or don’t do is none of your business.
Nash: I’m begging you. Please don’t drive some poor, unsuspecting Knockemout woman crazy enough to start stalking you. I don’t have the manpower to deal with it.
Sloane: I’ve had three patrons tell me I’m glowing. I had to start telling people I found a new foundation so they wouldn’t know it was orgasmic. How’s your day? Destroy the economies of any small countries yet?
Lucian: Petula has a medical team on standby because I smiled. Lina wants to know why I’m not frowning enough. And Nolan thinks that I secretly love him. I hate everything.
Lucian: Have fun finding a husband who isn’t incredibly disappointing in bed.
Sloane: It’s going to take hours upon hours of exhaustive, naked research on my part.
Lucian: : Are you sure your endurance is up for the task? Perhaps you should consider a training program to improve your cardiovascular baseline.
Sloane: Are you offering to sex coach me?
Lucian: Are you considering the offer?
Sloane: What about the official documents your lawyer is drawing up? I’d hate for you to waste all that money by having sex with me again.
Lucian: : I can have the contract postdated. What are you doing Friday?
Sloane: Friday as in Valentine’s Day?
Lucian: Friday as in Friday.
Sloane: I’m hosting an erotic author for a sexy, adults-only event at the library.
Lucian: And after?
Sloane: I guess after I’ll be training on your very large penis.
Lucian: For science.
Sloane: “Uh, why can’t you be the one to tell them?”
Fran: “Because nobody likes lawyers. You’re a small-town librarian who believes in social justice. You’re smart, you’re pretty, and you’re nonthreatening.”
Naomi choked on her second cappuccino.
Naomi: “She’s a little threatening.”
Sloane: Not that you care, but the attorney has been retained! And she’s taking the case pro bono! She’s on her way to meet Mary Louise!
Lucian: Congratulations, exclamation point abuser. Welcome to the nightmare of the justice system.
Sloane: Has anyone told you that you really need to tone down the over-the-top positivity? No? Weird.
Lucian: Has anyone told you that you’re annoying? I’m the eleventh person today? Not surprising.
Naomi: “Someone has a secret admirer,”
She marched up to us, lugging a case of sports drinks with a gigantic red bow.
I snatched the card out of her hand, my cheeks warming. For later.
Nash: “Who’s that from?”
Naomi: “The card wasn’t signed,”
My face was the temperature of the surface of the sun as I stuffed the note in my pocket and grabbed the case.
Sloane: “Between the two of you, I’m starting to worry about my right to privacy,”
Nash: “She’s tomato red and deflecting,”
Naomi eyed me shrewdly.
Naomi: “My guess is it’s an inside joke gift from her date last week that she’s been annoyingly tight-lipped about.”
Sloane: “Don’t you both have work to do?”
Nash: “What’s this guy’s name and home address? What kind of car does he drive?”
Sloane: “Oh my God. You’re the worst. We went out. We had a nice time. It’s nothing serious. Thank you and good day.”
I tried to dismiss them by taking my drinks and leaving. But Naomi and Nash followed me.
Belinda: “Oops. I seem to have dropped my necklace,”
announced Belinda, an elderly, busty patron who preferred her books steamy. She pointed at the huge crucifix that she’d just unfastened from her neck and tossed on the floor.
Belinda: “Be a dear and fetch it for me, Chief Morgan?”
Nash heaved a sigh and glanced my way. I shrugged.
Sloane: “If you don’t pick it up, they’re just going to keep throwing things on the floor.”
Nash: “I’m ordering new uniforms with tunics,”
Sloane: “The citizens who appreciate the male specimen would be devastated,”
He bent at the waist and hastily plucked the necklace off the floor.
Belinda: “You just made this old lady’s day,”
Belinda said, smugly returning the crucifix to her more than ample bosom.
Nash: “Might want to get that clasp checked, Ms. Belinda, seein’ as how it fell off in the grocery store last week and in the park the week before that.”
Nash: “I’ll do that,”
she lied glibly.
Sloane: Did you send me a case of sports drinks or do I have a stalker who’s concerned with my hydration?
Lucian: I thought it would be more appropriate than flowers and candy seeing as how I’m only using you for your body.
Sloane: You better be stretched and warmed up for go time. I’m not slowing down if you pull a hamstring.
Sloane: “Where’s your car?”
Lucian: “I had my driver drop me off.”
I reached around him to unlock the passenger door.
Sloane: “That’s awfully cocky of you to assume my blind hatred of you didn’t overtake my need for you naked.”
Lucian: “I liked my odds.”
Lucian: “Go pack.”
Sloane: “What? Why?”
Lucian: “We’re not staying here.”
I thought of the can of whipped cream in my refrigerator. The two new lingerie sets I’d bought.
Sloane: “Why the hell not?”
Lucian: “Because if we stay here, someone is going to knock on your door or look through your windows or see me naked when they deliver dinner. You have off tomorrow. We’re going to my place, where my neighbors know enough to mind their own business.”
Sloane: “Your place?”
There were six million things that could and would go wrong with that. First, I couldn’t kick him out of his own place when he inevitably pissed me off. He didn’t answer me. At least not with words. Instead he yanked the neckline of my sweater down and buried his face between my breasts.
Sloane: “A very convincing argument. I’ll pack.”
Lucian: “Are you actually jealous?”
Sloane: “Of course not. I just don’t want to be cavorting with a penis that’s cavorting with other vaginas. It’s not hygienic.”
Sloane Walton was unlike any other woman I’d ever taken to bed.
Lucian: “I’m not cavorting with other vaginas,”
Sloane: “If you don’t get off me right now, Lucifer, I’ll knee you in the balls. And while it would be a destructive blow to women everywhere, I will do what I have to do,”
Lucian: “You’re jealous,”
I said again, thoroughly enjoying myself.
Lucian: “Stop looking at me like that,”
he ordered as he adjusted his raging hard-on.
Sloane: “How am I looking at you?”
Lucian: “Like you need me to fuck you.”
Sloane: “To be fair, that’s exactly what I need.”
Sloane: “How can you still walk and talk with that thing?”
I asked, gesturing at his penis region.
Lucian: “Do not address my cock right now,”
Lucian growled. He was doing some kind of deep breathing exercise and looking everywhere but at me.
Sloane: “It just seems like it gets harder every time. Is that normal? I mean, my boobs feel like they weigh a ton right now. I think my bra is cutting off my circulation.”
Lucian closed his eyes.
Lucian: “Pixie, I can’t get unhard when you’re talking about your tits.”
I grinned wickedly. The benefit of being a woman was that you could be turned on without pitching a tent in your pants.
Sloane: “They just feel so swollen. And my nipples are so sensitive.”
He cursed and bent at the waist. Struggling to Regain Control Lucian was downright endearing.
I sauntered out of the bar, adding an extra swing to my hips, and I felt him watching me the whole way to the door. I was just unlocking my Jeep when I sensed a disturbance in the force.
Sloane: “Cheese and crackers! How did you get here so fast?”
Lucian: “Long legs,”
he said, gripping me by the arm and steering me toward his Jaguar.
Lucian: “Get in,”
Sloane: “What about my Jeep?”
Lucian: “If you think I’m letting you out of my sight after that little stunt in the hallway, you’re sorely mistaken. Get. In.”
I got in.
Lucian: “You baited me at the bar,”
he accused, coasting a hand gently over the flowered silk of my underwear.
Sloane: “How?”
I asked, ready to lie.
Lucian: “That sweater and little fucking skirt. Your fingers brushing my dick when it was already rock-hard for you. Those sexy little glances while you played with your straw. I should teach you a lesson.”
His fingers curling in my panties, the drag of damp silk against my thighs was an exquisite kind of torture.
Sloane: “As long as your lesson involves you fucking me, I’m all for it,”
I said breathlessly. His hand resumed its gentle strokes over the slopes of my rear end. I peeked between my legs and watched his penis slide back and forth through my folds.
Lucian: “I hate not being able to touch what’s mine,”
he confessed.
Lucian: “This is ridiculous,”
Lucian said when I pulled his ballcap lower over his face.
Lucian: “We’re adults, not teenagers. We shouldn’t have to sneak around.”
I zipped my coat all the way to my chin and covered my hair with the hood.
Sloane: “I’m hungry and all you have in your house are frozen, nutritious chef meals. Besides, do you really want Knockemout gossiping about us like we’re some kind of grumpy-sunshine love story?”
Lucian: “I’m the sunshine in that scenario,”
Sloane: “You’re the delusional grump who never wants to settle down, especially not with the beautiful, charming, book nerd next door. I’m the perky, sunshiny heroine who believes in true love. Just not with you because I’m only using you for orgasms.”
He shook his head.
Lucian: “You’re going to miss those orgasms when you meet Mr. Right. There are some things only Mr. Wrong can deliver.”
Sloane: “We’ll see about that.”
He didn’t say another word. No, Lucian Rollins merely tossed me over his shoulder and marched me back to his house while placing a call.
Lucian: “Why am I just now finding out that she’s being threatened?”
he snarled into the phone.
Sloane: “Put me down, you big, gorgeous asshat!”
He ignored me.
Lucian: “You’ll want to see what someone left for her on her front porch. Bring the biggest evidence bags you have.”
Sloane: “Excuse me! This is kidnapping,”
I said, pummeling his back with my gloved hands.
Sloane: “I can explain,”
I said to the group before anyone else could begin.
Sloane: “It’s just sex.”
Lucian slapped a gloved hand over my mouth.
Lucian: “Shut up before you piss me off even more.”
Lucian: “Listen carefully, Pixie. While my dick is in you, whatever you choose to call it, that makes you mine. And while you’re mine, I get to know when someone is scaring you.”
Sloane: “I’m not scared. I’m annoyed. I really liked that welcome mat.”
Sloane: “Don’t you ever compare me to your mother. And while you’re at it, have fun spending the rest of your life alone because you’re too fucking stubborn to learn to do better.”
Lucian: “As long as I don’t have to deal with you on a daily basis, I look forward to it. I pity your future husband.”
Sloane’s laugh was sharp and humorless.
Sloane: “I wouldn’t waste any time thinking about me or my future husband if I were you. Because I’m going to forget you ever existed.”
Lucian: “Good luck with that.”
But she didn’t hear me because she’d already slammed the front door behind her. I whipped it open and stepped outside.
Lucian: “A security company will be coming by this afternoon to install cameras at your place,”
I called as she stormed toward her house.
Sloane: “If they have anything to do with you, then they’re not getting anywhere near my property.”
Lucian: “Don’t be a stubborn idiot.”
Sloane: “You already have the monopoly on that!”
Naomi: “You and Lucian have history. Unfortunately for you as a woman with strong feelings about everything, that means you can’t just have sex with him.”
Sloane: “I can and I did,”
Naomi: “You just broke your pen and crushed your paper cup. Iced coffee is literally running down your arm,”
She pointed out.
Sloane: “Shit.”
He took everyone’s drink orders and went to work under Knox’s watchful eye. Naomi elbowed him in the ribs.
Naomi: “Stop staring and glaring.”
Knox: “I’m not glaring, I’m judging him professionally,”
Man: “I’ll help you get something off your chest.”
I turned on my stool and found a greasy, gold-toothed guy drowning in gold chains. He leered at my chest.
Stef: “Didn’t you hear about the cult?”
Man: “I don’t mind a girlie who’s whacked in the head.”
Lina: “Go away before I make you require an eye patch,”
Man: “Feisty filly,”
he said, licking his thin lips. Joel leaned across the bar just as Nash and Knox started back toward us, but I held up a hand.
Sloane: “Listen, you unshowered, deodorant-avoiding dumbass. I’m in the market for a husband and kids. So unless you’re willing to start showering, see a dentist, and learn to assemble nursery furniture, I suggest you move along.”
Man: “Nobody ever wants to just have a good time anymore,”
he grumbled and wandered off.
Sloane: “That’s because all good times must come to an end, as I recently discovered,”
I called after him.
She sighed and looked moonily toward Nash, who was bent over the pool table, his spectacular ass on display.
Lina: “My fiancé is the most amazing man.”
Sloane: “With the most amazing ass,”
I added, admiring the view. She snickered.
Lina: “It’s true. If I weren’t me, I’d hate me.”
Emry: “The symphony was wonderful. Sacha is wonderful. My family is wonderful. You, my migraine-inducing friend, are what’s wrong with me,”
he said, picking up his glasses and polishing them violently.
Lucian: “I don’t think a therapist is supposed to talk to his patients like that. Especially not ones whose fees helped buy that beach house you’re so fond of,”
Emry: “You can lead a horse to water, but some animals are so dense you have to half drown them before they’ll drink.”
Lucian: “That’s not how that particular metaphor goes. Am I the horse or are you?”
Lucian: "What the hell are you doing?”
Knox was pacing back and forth, rolling his neck and taking turns stretching each arm across his chest.
Knox: “Clearly this guy hasn’t been in a fight over the age of thirty,”
Knox said conversationally to his brother.
Nash: “You gotta warm up,”
Nash instructed, dropping into a squat. Knox rolled his neck again and started performing shoulder circles.
Lucian: “What happened to the days of sucker punching some unsuspecting asshole in a bar?”
Nash: “Throw a punch and pull a muscle in your back so bad you can’t wipe your own ass, then we’ll talk,”
Nash advised, circling his arms backward, then forward.
We were all on the ground. I had Nash on his knees in a headlock. But he was making an admirable effort to dislocate my pinkie finger. Knox had my left arm pulled behind my back, and I had my foot in his groin.
Stef: “Everyone smile and say ‘dumbass,’”
Stef said, stepping in front of us. Jeremiah stepped in front of us and flashed a cheesy smile and thumbs-up as his boyfriend snapped another photo.
I held up the glasses.
Sloane: “If I mean nothing to you, why did you give me more time with my dad? Why did you donate so much money to my causes? And why the hell are you keeping my glasses that I lost at Book or Treat last fall in your top desk drawer?”
Lucian: “Lower your voice, or security is going to carry you out of here,”
Sloane: “Say the words, Lucian.”
Lucian: “If you’re going to waste my time speaking in riddles, you might as well sit down and drink some damn water,”
he said gruffly, heading for the crystal decanter on the conference table.
Sloane: “You love me, you idiot. You’ve loved me since we were kids. You loved me even when I broke your trust. You loved me after I fixed it. You still love me.”
Lucian: “There was never going to be an us, Sloane. He made sure of that.”
I shook my head.
Sloane: “Your father is dead, Lucian. You’re the one who made sure there would never be an us.”
She paused, staring at the mound of pillows I’d arranged in a U.
Sloane: “You remembered,”
Lucian: “I remember every second of us.”
Lucian: “Christ, cat. I’ll feed you. Just give me a minute to find clothes.”
I was naked, and yesterday’s suit was not an option. Between the tree climbing and cradling the soot-streaked Sloane, my suit had met its maker. With the cat obstinately threading her way between my feet, I poked through Sloane’s closet until I discovered a pair of pale pink sweatpants that would have to do. I dragged them over my thighs, seams straining, then unearthed the sweatshirt she’d offered me when I’d chased her home. The ex-boyfriend sweatshirt. I was going to take it with me and conveniently lose it in a trash bin.
Lucian: “Fuck,”
I muttered, looking at my reflection in the full-length mirror. The pants barely covered the top of my ass crack in the back. In the front, the thin, tight fabric did everything it could to accentuate the outline of my cock.
Meow Meow: “Meow,”
the cat said, sounding smugly amused.
Lucian: “Let’s never speak of this again.”
Nash and Lina stood on the doorstep, gawking.
Lucian: “If you woke her up, I’ll be kicking your ass,”
I warned Nash.
Lina: “Uhhhhh.”
Lina’s mouth was open, her eyes wide and riveted to an area below my belt. Nash covered his fiancée’s eyes and choked out a laugh.
Nash: “What the fuck are you wearing?”
Lucian: “The only thing that fucking fit.”
Lina: “No, you’re not,”
Lina said, her voice tinged with hysteria.
They followed me inside and into the kitchen.
Lina: “It’s just as bad from the back,”
Lina whispered. I tried to hitch the pants higher but only succeeded in nearly spraining my balls. She gave a strangled laugh.
Nash: “Jesus, man. Have some dignity,”
Nash said, throwing a dish towel at me.
Lucian: “I have clothes being sent,”
I sucked in an irritable breath.
Lucian: “Fine,”
I growled.
Nash: “Maybe don’t clench so many ass muscles, Lucy. You might owe Sloane a new pair of pants,”
Nash said, slapping me on the back. She blinked, then her eyes widened behind her glasses as if she noticed what I was wearing for the first time.
Sloane: “Those are my pants.”
Lina: “I’m not sure you’re going to want them back. He’s commando underneath,”
Lina warned cheerily as we all trooped toward the kitchen.
Lucian: “No, Pixie, you don’t understand. I could have lost you last night. I’m not going to let that happen again. Ever. If you want ten kids, we’ll have them. If you want a six-story library full of medieval first editions, I’ll buy every book for you. If you want to raise a family here, I’ll move back and feed your asshole cat every morning. If you decide you want to throw it all away and move to a tasteful hut on a tropical beach, I’ll build the fucking hut.”
Sloane: “You’ve lost your damn mind. We’re incompatible. We have nothing in common. We make each other miserable. We can’t stop insulting each other, you sweatpants-stealing lunatic,”
Lucian: “We’ll work on it. I happen to know an excellent therapist.”
I opened my front door to find Lucian’s driver holding several dry-cleaning bags in each hand.
Hank: “Morning, Ms. Sloane. Where can I put these?”
Sloane: “If you were your employer, I’d be happy to tell you where you can put them, Hank. But I’m not mad at you.”
Mom: “It’s our pleasure. And I have to say it’s really nice to see the two of you together,”
Mom said sunnily from the opposite side of the table. I didn’t know if it was a conscious or subconscious decision, but we’d left Dad’s place at the head of the table empty.
Sloane: “We’re not together. He just won’t take the hint and get out of my house,”
Mom: “And it does a mother’s heart good to know that you’re keeping my daughter safe,”
Mom continued, ignoring me.
Chloe: “Mr. Michaels, what are you doing here? Is it because I got four talking warnings during the math test today? I told you I like to verbalize the numbers,”
Maeve: “Mom, please excuse me. I need to deal with something,”
Seconds later, she appeared in the hallway, dragging Kurt and the flowers. I opened the front door and grinned.
Sloane: “Why don’t you two talk on the porch? And remember, hear him out. If a guy is offering you everything you’ve dreamed of, maybe you owe it to yourself to find out if he’s serious.”
Maeve: “Bite me, Sloane,”
my sister snarled.
Sloane: “Why am I finding this folded up under a tote of Christmas decorations in the second spare room?”
Sloane demanded, bursting into the umbrella-wallpapered guest room I’d commandeered as my office, waving her ex’s sweatshirt like it was a flag. I turned away from the command center of screens my IT team had set up for me and gave her my full attention.
Lucian: “Because I was smart enough not to actually throw it out,”
Sooner or later, she had to acknowledge that those feelings she’d had for me hadn’t just vanished into thin air. Unfortunately, that day was not today. She’d thrown a toasted bagel half at my head in the kitchen this morning.
Lucian: “I don’t like the idea of my girlfriend, the woman I’m going to marry and have a family with, cuddling up in an old boyfriend’s disgusting sweat rag and reminiscing about the good old days.”
Sloane: “You don’t want to marry anyone, and you’ve made it abundantly clear with a vasectomy that you don’t want kids. So why don’t you save us both a lot of time and get out of my house!”
She ended on a shrill screech that had Meow Meow abandoning the heated cat bed I’d installed in the window.
Sloane: “And another thing,”
Sloane said, pointing at the retreating feline.
Sloane: “Stop making friends with my cat!”
Grace made a move, but Sloane got there first and shoved her way between us.
Sloane: “Excuse me, Kayla!”
Fury was a fire that lit her up from the inside. She put her finger in my mother’s pale, dignified face.
Sloane: “You do not ever, ever lay a hand on him like that again. After everything that you two have been through, you hit your son for protecting you from a certifiable sociopath? That’s insane.”
Lucian: “That’s enough, Sloane,”
I said, resting a hand on her shoulder. She was vibrating against me.
Sloane: “It’s not nearly enough. You have the worst taste in men. Anthony Hugo is a walking red flag, and you invited him to dinner. Oh, and if you want to spend your money on whatever you want, then get a fucking job, lady. You only get to be a victim for so long before you have to evolve into a survivor,”
Kayla: “You don’t understand what it’s like,”
Mom said with a tearful whisper.
Sloane: “I wanted to be nice to you, to have empathy for poor, victimized Kayla. But that was two decades ago. You’ve had twenty-plus years to grow up. Yet here you are, all those years later, still perfectly comfortable playing the victim. Still accepting your son’s checks because you’re too fragile to stand on your own two feet. He doesn’t owe you, lady. You owe him. For every time he stepped between you and the man you chose over him. For every time you made him responsible for your choices. I’m trying not to blame you for that, but you’re making it really fucking hard.”
Sloane was shouting now. My head of security was nodding in agreement.
Sloane: “You are not to have any contact with Lucian until you can apologize for every shitty thing you’ve done to him,”
The elevator doors opened into a parking garage. Both my cars were waiting, engines running, and half a dozen of my security team were stationed outside. My mother gasped and hurried out of the elevator.
Lucian: “Enough,”
But Sloane wasn’t finished.
Sloane: “And another thing. Go to therapy!”
Sloane: “This doesn’t mean anything,”
I reminded him over the hammering of my heart.
Lucian: “You’re right. It means everything,”
I let out a strangled laugh.
Sloane: “Why are you so obsessed with my boobs?”
Lucian: “For the same reason you’re obsessed with my dick. Because they’re fucking perfect,”
Lucian: “Is this crisis interrupting your beauty sleep?”
Nolan: “A, it’s four in the fucking morning. And B, the wife got me up for a 6:00 a.m. yoga class today… Yesterday. Not all of us run on no sleep and the tears of frightened children,”
Lucian: “Work your therapy magic and fix her,”
Lucian announced, taking a stance near the fireplace.
Sloane: “I thought we were going to dinner at your friend’s?”
Emry: “We are friends. He forgets that from time to time,”
Emry added, crossing to a cabinet and producing a bottle of wine.
I held on tighter to him.
Sloane: “You did nothing wrong, Lucian. That was all on him. He was a broken man who tried to break you, but he failed. On his best day, he would never be able to hold a candle to you. I’m so proud of the boy you were, the man you became. You took back your family name, and made it mean something good. You don’t have him in you. I see more of my father than yours in you.”
Nash: Good luck today. Make sure you can still walk down the aisle next week.
Knox: Oh fuck. Today’s the day our boy becomes a man?
Lucian: Fuck you both very much.
Nash: I’m feeling unloved and used.
Knox: Yeah. Maybe we shouldn’t hold up our end of the deal until Lucy learns to play nice.
Lucian: I hate you both and plan to kick your asses at my earliest convenience.
Sloane: “The urologist? Listen, big guy, I’m great at peeing after sex. I swear I don’t have a UTI,”
she said, eyeing the building in front of us as I locked the car.
Lucian: “We’re here for me, not you,”
Sloane: “Oh God. Did I break your penis with that spinning maneuver?”
Lucian: “Not yet. But I’m sure it’s only a matter of time,” I said, handing her the keys.
Lucian: “That was not the reaction I was expecting. That wasn’t even English.”
Sloane: “Oh my God. You’re willing to have penis surgery just to make babies with me?”
Sloane: “Vasectomy. Babies. He’s going to unsnip whatever they snipped just because I want to have a family.”
The woman led her to the beverage center and pressed a paper cup of water into Sloane’s shaking hands.
Woman: “Well, honey, some men surprise their wives with jewelry. Other men surprise them with surgery on their genitals.”
Sloane: “You read The Midnight Library?”
Her voice rose a full octave.
Lucian: “I read all your book club picks,”
Sloane: “But why?”
Lucian: “Why? Jesus, Sloane. Why do you think? Because I love you. I’m in love with you. I’ve had the last twenty-some years to obsess over you from afar.”
I made a mental note to kick Knox’s and Nash’s asses. The Morgan brothers had outdone themselves to the point of insanity. The entire front porch was buried under four inches of cherry blossoms. It looked as if a florist shop had exploded.
Lucian: “Sloane—”
Sloane: “Okay. This is weirder than a pile of dead rats,”
she decided, still holding on to me and frowning at her own blossom-laden cherry tree.
Sloane: “Where did this come from?”
Lucian: “From two possibly well-meaning idiots who are about to meet their maker. Come here.”
We waded through the avalanche of pink petals to the porch swing. There, on a table at least, was the champagne I’d ordered. Next to it was a bottle of bourbon that I hadn’t, and in front of both bottles was a greasy Dino’s pizza box. I knew I should have called Stef, not Knox and Nash. But Stef was busy with his own grand gesture.
Sloane: “Lucian, what the hell is going on?”
Sloane demanded, opening the pizza box with suspicion. A movement in the shrubbery caught my eye. Knox Morgan, wearing camouflage and green face paint, rose out of a rhododendron with his phone. He gave me the thumbs-up.
“What. The. Fuck?” I mouthed to him.
“Video, asshole,” he mouthed back, pointing at his phone.
I leaned over the railing and shoved him back into the bush.
Sloane: “Lucian?”
Lucian: “There’s something I want to talk to you about,”
I said, returning to her side. My heart was in my throat. I could feel my heartbeat in my head as I closed the distance between us. I had almost reached her when the opening bars of Shania Twain’s “You’re Still the One” sounded from a fat spruce on the opposite side of the porch steps. I spotted the torso of Nash’s uniform peeking out from behind the evergreen. He was holding the speaker of his phone up to a bullhorn.
This was why people hired professionals.
Lucian: “Sloane Walton, I have loved you for so long I don’t remember what my life was like before my heart was yours. It’s changed over the years. But I’ve loved you as a friend, an enemy, a lover. It would be my greatest honor in this lifetime if you would let me love you as my wife.”
I chuckled softly.
Lucian: “Let me put the ring on you, Pix.”
Sloane: “God, I wish you hadn’t just had a penisectomy,”
she said, holding out one shaking hand. We would be editing that out of the engagement video, I decided as I slid the cool, smooth band onto her finger.
Knox: “This is why communication is fucking important,”
Lina: “Seriously? You of all people.”
Knox: “Fuck off. I’ve evolved and shit,”
Sloane: “Geez Louise, Lucian. I’m running out of room on the blow-jobs-when-the-doctor-clears-you tally sheet.”
Lucian: “I’m confident you’ll make room,”
I shoved her out the window onto the roof.
Lucian: “I love you. Now get the fuck out.”
Sloane: “I love you too. Don’t end up in jail,”
Nash: “Go easy on him, Sloaney. He’s shot.”
Sloane: “He shot you?”
She tried to wriggle free.
Lucian: “Where do you think you’re going?”
Sloane: “I’m going to kill him,”
she announced, heading for the door. I nipped her around the waist and pulled her back.
Lucian: “No, you’re not. I don’t want our first time post-vasectomy reversal to be in a conjugal trailer.”
She growled in response. Laughing, I carried her to the porch swing where EMTs converged on us.
A squealing of tires drew my attention, and I watched as Nolan drove right up onto the sidewalk and vaulted out of an SUV. He hustled up the porch steps two at a time, then froze when he saw me.
Nolan: “Thank fucking, Christ!”
he said, slapping a hand over his heart, and then he proceeded to tackle hug me on the swing. Sloane’s laughter was music to my ears.
Lucian: “Ouch! I’m shot, not dead, and you’re not a golden retriever. Get the hell off me,”
Nolan winced, still holding on to me.
Nolan: “I’d let go if I could, but I got airsick in that fucking whirlybird. I don’t know if I’m gonna puke or pass out.”
Lucian: “I don’t care which one you do. Just don’t do it on me.”
She snuggled closer to my side and let out a satisfied sigh.
Sloane: “You don’t think this whole gunshot wound thing is going to push back sexy time even further, do you?”
Lucian: “If we didn’t have law enforcement crawling all over our house and a wedding rehearsal to attend, I’d have you naked right now.”
Lucian: “Everything all right, ladies?”
Naomi: “I’m deeply in love with my husband, but my goodness, Lucian. You look like sex in a suit,”
Naomi said, wide-eyed. Lina dropped the paper bag.
Lina: “Just tell me Nash is here and still wants to go through with this, Suit Daddy.”
He crushed me to him, then winced.
Sloane: “Poor baby. Bullet hole or testicle surgery?”
Lucian: “Both.”
Lina and Naomi squealed.
Naomi: “You set a date!”
Lucian: “None of you are invited,”
Sloane:. “You’re all invited,”
Sloane: “Nope! No! Stop it right now,”
I ordered as I stepped out of his arms.
Sloane: “No more sweetness or I’ll cry and ruin my entire face, and Tiffany scares the hell out of me. She might call off the wedding.”
Lucian: “Tell me what you need,”
he said, a faint smile curving his lips.
Sloane: “I need one of your insulting pep talks. Don’t hold back,”
I insisted, gesturing for him to bring it on. His smile was wicked.
Lucian: “Get your shit together, Sloane. Do you want to look like Alice Cooper in our wedding photos that are going to be splashed all over publications across the country? I thought you were tougher than that.”
Sloane: “Good. That’s good. Keep it coming.”
Lucian: “If I so much as see one single tear on that beautiful fucking face of yours before you walk down that aisle to me, I’ll tell Tiffany we want her to plan every anniversary party for the rest of our lives.”
I gasped.
Sloane: “Mean!”
Lucian: “Don’t be a fucking baby.”
Sloane: “Me? You better keep it together since you’re the one who’s been dreaming about this since the first time you climbed that damn cherry tree,”
Sloane: “Where do you even buy stationery like this? Wealthy Person Mart?”
I demanded, waving the linen envelope under his nose.
Lucian: “Don’t be ridiculous. We shop at Riches R Us.”
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