“I think a lot of things,” he says mildly.
My blood is boiling. “You think this is just a game, don’t you?”
His grin is slow to spread, lopsided, and too sexy. I hate that he looks so damn good all of the time.
“I’m not in the mood for any of this,” I inform him, “and if you don’t call off your lackeys…”
“What are you going to do?” he asks, his grin altering slightly into a smirk.
“I’m not sure you or they want to find out,” I say firmly.
“Is that right?”
“Yes. This isn’t a game, Rob. I’m not going to tolerate any of this. No one should have to.”
“And just what are you sick of tolerating?” he asks.
“You really expect me to believe that you and your friends haven’t talked? I mean, you told them about how I didn’t want to sleep with you again. Guess it wasn’t as good as you thought it was on the cruise for me.”
His nostrils flare, and I know he’s pissed from the way his blue eyes have darkened. That’s all right because I’m pissed off too.
“You can pretend all you want that you didn’t have the time of your life with me,” he starts.
“Clearly it wasn’t good enough to warrant a second go-around,” I snap. “Just as clearly is the fact that I want nothing to do with you. What kind of a guy will have his friends resort to bullying a girl who turns you down? I’ll tell you what kind of guy. A man child. That’s what you are, Rob. You’re nothing more than an immature, worthless—”
“How about we talk about you, hmm?” Rob crosses his arms and leans against the open doorway. He hasn’t invited me inside, and I wouldn’t enter even if he did. It’s as if the threshold of the house is the line drawn in the sand between us.
“How about we not and say we did?” I say in a rush because I know he’s going to rake me over the coals.
“I don’t think so, love.” His smirks grows, and he tosses in a wink, but I do not appreciate the nickname at all. “You can’t tell me that you didn’t know exactly what was intended with that invitation back here to my place.”
“I…”
“And the way you clung to me? I’ve had a few girl friends ride on the back of my bike, and the way they hold onto me versus the way you did… Night and day, Katie. Night and day.”
“It was late at night,” I hedge.
“You’re afraid of the dark?”
“Not nearly.”
“Then why are you using that as an excuse?”
“I’m not,” I snap.
“You led me on.”
“No means no.”
“I didn’t force you to do anything. As I recall, you were very willing, not once but…” He wiggles his eyebrows.
“I consented. I never said differently, but just because I wanted to then doesn’t mean I want to now. I don’t, and I want your friends to leave me alone.”
His eyes flash. “I never told them to harass or bully you.”
“Yet you won’t tell them to stop.”
“They’re grown. They don’t need to be babies, and if that’s how they choose to spend their time…”