Reid closed his eyes, wishing the sidewalk would crack open and swallow him up. Fan-fucking-tastic.
Brynn’s fingers curled into fists, her nails digging into her palms, but she forced herself to choke down the rest of her reaction. She would not give Reid the satisfaction.
She eased her elbow from his grip and gave the supermodel-like girl a polite smile. “Thanks, but I was just leaving. I think I may be exactly one too many. Have a good night.”
Brynn hiked her purse strap further up her shoulder and traipsed past the woman.
“Brynn, wait—”
But she pretended she didn’t hear Reid and kept walking, her steps picking up speed. She just needed to get in her car, lock all of this out before she embarrassed herself. She had no claim on Reid. Had no right to feel so possessive. No logical reason to want to yank that bitch down by her ponytail and scratch her eyes out.
Two steps more.
A hand clamped over her forearm and spun her around. “I said wait, goddammit.”
“No, Reid,” she said, her voice losing its calm edge. “Let me go. I want to go home.”
“Look, just let me explain.”
She snorted and glanced back toward the house. Jace and Barbie had gone inside and shut the door. “I think I can figure it out. I don’t need a diagram. Thanks.”
“No, it’s not like that.” But the guilty shift of his eyes said otherwise.
She sighed. “Reid, it’s fine, okay? It’s none of my business. But I think it’s a good idea if we just end whatever has been going on with us right now.”r: Roni LorenHe adjusted the crotch of his jeans, then picked up the phone to dial a familiar number.
“How’d it go?”
Jace tilted his chair back and closed his eyes. “It’s done. She’ll be there on Wednesday.”
“Thanks, man.”
“Dude, are you sure you want to do it this way? I kind of feel like a dick.”
Reid sighed. “Trust me. I know what she needs even if she doesn’t.”
Jace snorted. If he were a betting man, he’d put his money on Reid’s balls getting handed to him on a plate, but he’d learned long ago not to try to change his friend’s mind once he had it set on something. “I hope you’re right. For both your sakes.”
EIGHT
then
Brynn rolled her wrist, her hand aching from all the notes she’d taken during her boss Davis’s staff meeting, and sank back into the conference room chair. She glanced around the oval table and noticed everyone’s eyes had glazed over. Davis stepped around the whiteboard he’d been scribbling on and stood behind Brynn. “Any questions, people?”
Most shook their heads.
Davis’s hands settled on Brynn’s shoulders and squeezed, the unexpected touch jolting her from her daze. “Did you get all of that, Brynn?”
She cleared her throat and tried not to squirm beneath the unwanted touch. The man didn’t like her, so his seemingly friendly gesture was all for the benefit of the other workers. “Uh, yes, sir, of course.”
“Excellent. So Brynn will type up the notes for everyone and e-mail them to you before the end of the day,” he said, patting her shoulder one last time before heading to the door and swinging it open. “Thanks for all your attention this afternoon.”
Brynn gathered her things and followed everyone out. She’d hoped to pin down Reid earlier in the day to discuss the previous night’s disaster of a make-out session, but they’d all been so busy it’d been impossible to say more than a few passing words. So she was happy to see him veer toward her desk instead of his own as they trailed out of the meeting.
As she slipped into her seat, Reid sank into the chair at the front of her desk, his customary grin noticeably absent. “Hey.”
“Hey, yourself,” she said, dropping her legal pad and pen on her desk. “I was beginning to wonder if you were avoiding me.”
He frowned. “Course not, just been busy. But I do have to confess, I’m here to deliver a bit of good and bad news.”