Falling for Trouble (7 page)

He
looked away from Red and stared at Hunter’s closed office door. What in the
hell was going on in there? Oh, he had seen the way Hunter looked at her when
Sophia wasn’t looking. There was clear interest on her boss’s face, a fact that
had him on edge. Abe had seen it for the last four years, but the guy never
made a move on her. It was clear Abe’s silent threats and death glares hadn’t
penetrated Hunter’s thick fucking skull. It wasn’t lost on him that running off
potential boyfriends for Sophia was a really shitty thing. Why should he be
able to be with someone, yet she wasn’t? Telling himself that Sophia never
showed any interest in her boss and therefore Abe was just looking out for her
was a lame excuse. He didn’t want her with anyone because she was his. He had
come to that conclusion, gripped it with the claws of his soul, and held on
tight.

Something
inside of him had snapped and molded into a picture-perfect image of what he
could have…Sophia. Maybe all the years of coping with his pain had gotten old,
or maybe it had been waking up that morning and really seeing her in his
kitchen, tending to him, that he knew it was now time for a change? Whatever it
was wrapped around his mind and refused to let go. Just the image of her messy
hair falling around her face, of her expressive green eyes, pulled at his heart
and had his stomach clenching. It had taken him far too long to come to the
realization that he was in love with Sophia and wanted her to know it finally.

Of
course, all of his musing could be for nothing, but he would never know unless
he tried. The first step in the right direction was straightening out his shit.
She might not know it, but Sophia Kidd was his, and he would prove that to her
until he drew his last breath.

****

Hunter’s
office wasn’t what one would call an average bar office. It looked more like a
small apartment tastefully decorated with hints of masculinity. The walls were
a deep tan and green with dark brown leather furniture tastefully positioned,
and an old, worn-in thick wooden desk taking up a good portion of the room.
There was a door off to the side that she knew led into a small bedroom. He
took his business seriously, even if that meant spending the night to get
everything done.

When
Sophia was seated in the chair in front of his desk, they stared at each other.
The air around Hunter seemed different, charged almost.

“How
are you doing, Soph?” He leaned back in his seat and placed his hands behind
his head. His shirt stretched over his wide chest and she looked away, feeling
embarrassed for looking at him with anything other them professionalism.

“Good.”
She cleared her throat. “I’ve been pretty good.” Shifting in her seat, she
suddenly felt so strange alone with Hunter. She turned her attention back to
him and saw that he watched her intently.

“That’s
good, Soph.” He leaned forward to rest his forearms on the desk. “I was
wondering if maybe you’d like to go out with me sometime.”

For
a solid minute, all she could do was stare at him and blink. He probably
thought she was a crackpot, just staring at him, her mouth opening and closing
with nothing coming out.

“Soph?”
Amusement laced his voice. “Would you like to go out with me sometime?” He
smiled.

“Uh…I…”
Her first instinct was to say no because it almost felt like a betrayal to Abe,
but the logical side of her said the opposite. Why should she wait for a man
that didn’t even see her as more than a friend? Why pine for someone who
brought a different woman home nearly every night of the week? He hadn’t in the
last two weeks, but still, that was a moot point. And why in the hell would she
let herself love someone that didn’t even remember taking her virginity? She
loved Abe, always would, but she needed to realize that her dream world would
never be a reality. Abe would never love her like she loved him, and the sooner
she moved on, the sooner she could actually start her life.

So,
pushing her bleeding heart aside, she blurted out, “Yeah, that sounds great.”

He
looked momentarily surprised, like he expected her to decline, but recovered
and his grin widened.

“Great.
Well, how ’bout I give you a call later to set something up?”

She
nodded and returned his smile. She could see herself falling for Hunter. He was
smart, handsome, and kind. He didn’t drink excessively, sleep with random
women, or pick fights with total strangers.

When
she finally left his office, she was in a sort of daze. She sought out Abe, saw
he was no longer sitting where he had been, and also took note a blonde was
missing. She didn’t let that bother her, not anymore. Tonight was the start of
her new life, a life where she didn’t wish there could be more with Abe
Rochester.

Chapter
Seven

Abe
heard his phone ringing but he was so fucking tired. The sheets were tangled
around him and he reached out, his hand slapping against his bedside table,
trying blindly to grab at the annoyance. The phone stopped ringing and he
relaxed again only to be woken up by the damn thing going off once more.
Peeling his eyes open, he reached for it. His head hurt but it had nothing to
do with alcohol. He had spent half the night staring at old re-runs on the
television because every time he fell asleep, the nightmares consumed him. When
he did finally fall asleep, the sun had just started rising over the horizon. A
glance at the clock showed it was going on eight in the morning.

 
Rolling over, he grabbed his phone, saw it was
Kid, and slid his finger across the screen to answer it. “Hey.” His voice
sounded like he swallowed a bucketful of sand. Despite feeling like absolute
shit, just hearing her sweet and soft drawl had all that washing away. He
scrubbed his hand over his mouth and sat up. Clothes were strewn across his
floor and he reached down and grabbed a pair of boxer briefs from the pile.
After pulling them on, he headed into the bathroom.

“I
didn’t wake you, did I?”

He
chuckled and stood. “You know you did, but it’s all good, Kid.” He smiled and
knew she heard it by the sound of her smile in her voice.

“Yeah,
well, you always were a night owl.” There was a long pause and he wondered what
she was thinking.

“So
you’ll be here in about an hour?”

She
exhaled loudly and he gripped the edge of the counter. A sick kind of feeling
welled up inside of him at the sound. “Kid? What’s up?”

“Well,
I’m not going to be able to come by today…or tomorrow.” There was another,
longer pause.

“Okay.”
That really wasn’t horrible. He knew her life didn’t revolve around him, but
the way she sounded when she said it told him there was more. “You workin’ or
something?”

“No.”

Okay.
“Well, what
about later today? I don’t work. We can grab lunch or something.” At her
silence he went on. “I’d like to see you, Kid. I’d like to talk to you about
some things.” Obviously this hadn’t been his plan, but he knew if he didn’t get
his ass in gear, he was going to lose her.

“I
can’t, Abe.”

Her
short answers didn’t make him feel the least bit better. “What the hell is
going on, Sophia? You’re being very vague with your answers, and if I didn’t
know any better, I’d think you were trying to avoid me.” This was totally out
of character for her. In fact, she had been acting pretty fucking weird the past
couple of weeks. She exhaled roughly and he gritted his teeth.

“Listen,
don’t think I’m blowing you off, ’cause I’m not, but I have…” Her lengthy pause
had his heart thundering in his chest. He lifted his hand and started rubbing
the center of his chest, as if the motion would ease the ache. “I have a date
and I’m meeting him in a little while.” She said it on a breath, and he
couldn’t form any solid words for several seconds.

The
world closed in on him until he had tunnel vision. Why was he surprised? She
was a beautiful girl and any guy who didn’t realize that and want to jump at
the opportunity was a fucking moron. Any man would be damn lucky to have her,
and he just might have blown his chance to be that man.

“A
date? Like with a guy?” She didn’t respond right away, and he looked down at
the screen to make sure she was still there. “Kid?” Obviously he had said
something wrong.

“Why
did you say that?” She was quiet, but he also heard how pissed she was.

Fuck
. This was so
not the way this day was supposed to go. “Say what?” Of course he knew what she
was referring to because after he said it he knew he had fucked up. Still, he
played dumb. Maybe she would take pity on him and give him a break for putting
his foot in his mouth.

“Do
you think that I can’t get someone to take me on a date, Abe?”

He
ran his hand through his hair and breathed out. “Calm down, Sophia. I’m not
saying anything like that. I’m just asking.”
Because I’m a jealous asshole that doesn’t deserve you but still wants
a chance.

“Yes,
I have a date with an actual guy, believe it or not.”

“Where
is all this hostility coming from?”

There
was rustling in the background and then she said, “Listen, it really isn’t a
big deal and I’m sorry for being short with you. I just wanted to let you know
I won’t be there, but I’ll try and free up some time so we can we can get
together later, okay?”

He
wanted to press her, wanted to beg her like some sappy fool to ditch whoever
the hell she was going on a date with and spend that time with him, but of course
he kept his mouth shut. He sucked up his pride and muttered, “Okay, Kid. I’ll
talk to you later.”

 
They disconnected and he sat there staring at
his reflection. The jealousy he felt consumed him, but it was completely misplaced.
Because of all the shit he had done in his life, he had no right. He hung his
head and breathed out. After cleaning up, he headed back into his room and got
dressed. He thought about letting her live her life, just stay the hell out of
it, but then he shoved those fucking thoughts in the farthest recess of his
mind.

What the hell, dude? How
many times have you fucked a girl, knowing Kid was going to stop by in the
morning? She may not want you like you want her, but if you really look back on
all the fucked up shit you did, you would see what a prick you’ve been.

Damn.
He couldn’t be upset with her. Did he actually expect her to never have a guy?
He hadn’t confessed how he felt. An image of long, smooth legs spread in front
of him flashed through his mind and he closed his eyes. For the past couple of
weeks he had been having these odd images of a mystery girl. How sad was it
that he started fantasizing that the woman in his mind was actually Sophia
giving herself to him? It was getting to the point that when he closed his eyes,
she was all he saw. He imagined the pussy that flashed in his mind, and the
scent of flowers that filled his senses was actually Sophia. Yeah, he was a
dirty bastard for thinking such things about her.

He
adjusted his dick because picturing Kid that way got him hard as steel. Once
outside he headed to his bike. Red’s was his destination, and although the shop
wasn’t open for business yet, he knew Seth would be there working on a bike or
car. Red was always there. He still needed to talk to Kid, but obviously that
would have to wait. He didn’t want her mad at him and right now she was. Sophia
needed a little space, and he’d give it to her, because he needed Sophia more
than he needed to breathe.

****

Sophia
pushed the door open to the small café where she was supposed to meet Hunter.
He had wanted to pick her up, all gentlemanly, but she declined.

 
When she called Abe this morning she had lied
slightly. She did have a date, but she could have easily gone to his house and
made him breakfast. She was glad she had decided against going over there,
though. A little time apart would clear her head.

Her
love for Abe was strong, but she needed to sever these feelings if she had any
hope of moving on with her life. They were dangerous and would only lead to
heartache. He might have changed for the better, but how long would that last?
Her heart couldn’t handle going to his house and seeing the naked females,
smelling the sex in the room. She had done it for years and she just couldn’t
do it anymore, wouldn’t do it anymore. Of course she still wanted Abe in her
life, but the way she attached herself to him wasn’t healthy.

Hunter
sat at one of the bistro-style tables to her right. There was a chill from the
air conditioner and she shivered slightly. He spotted her and smiled broadly
while he stood. A smile curved her lips and she made her way over to him.
Because he was sweet, he held her chair out and pushed it in when she was
seated. The fact that he brushed his fingers along her shoulder wasn’t lost on
her, but she liked it. It was a nice, gentle touch that maybe could grow to
more when she was ready.

“I
hope I didn’t come off pushy or anxious when I called you last night.” He sat
in the seat across from her and smiled again.