SASSY IN STILETTOS ARe version (23 page)

“Micha, you have to listen to me.” He took a step
toward her. “Sabine isn’t my wife. We used to work together.”

“Funny, she seemed to know a lot about your sexual
proclivities for someone who isn’t your wife.” Micha waved the knife in the air
before sliding it into its sheath and stuffing into her carry-on.

Caleb breathed a sigh of relief. At least she
wouldn’t be aiming for anything vital on him. “She was my cover when I worked
for the State Department. We were married once for a mission, then immediately
divorced once we got back.”

“Whatever, I don’t care. Not my business.” She
grabbed two folders and tossed them into her bag. “Can you get the fuck out of
my apartment now? I need to finish packing.”

“Where the hell are you going? Have you forgotten
there’s a stalker after you? I’ve been hired by Adele to keep you safe, and I’m
not letting you out of my sight.”

“Should have thought of that before you lied to
me. And you can relax, I’m not a total moron. I’m moving into the Westhorpe. You
can have one of your goons watch me there. That’s more than enough security.”

He strode toward her. “Micha, you have to listen to
me. Yes, Sabine and I used to have a relationship, but that’s been over for
years.”

Micha turned her back and stalked into the second
bathroom. “Like I said, Caleb. I don’t give a shit.”

“Yes, you do, Micha. You wouldn’t have run out on
me if you didn’t care.”

She whirled around, nearly running right into him.
“I left because I don’t want to spend another minute with someone who was lying
to me. You know how I feel about liars, Caleb.”

“No, you ran because I made you feel something
last night. Deep down you know this isn’t about her. You’re scared, and you’re
running. You know I’m not married. And you know that neither Jaya or Alec would
let me sniff around you if I was. Alec loves you like family. You were looking
for a reason to run.”

“Fuck you,” she spat.

Caleb’s temper simmered to life. “There now, you’re
too smart a woman to only limit yourself to one phrase.”

She opened her mouth again and then snapped it
shut.

“Micha. I know you’re scared, but don’t run from
me. Don’t go looking for a reason to bolt. We can be good together if you’d let
it happen.”

“Caleb, how am I supposed to believe you? She was
in your house. Came in with a freaking key. She took one look at me and asked
if you were still doing that thing with your tongue in all sorts of hidden places.
Why the fuck does she know that?”

He would kill Sabine. He would actually kill her. Body
disposal might be a bitch, but he’d find a way. “We used to sleep together. She
might have guessed. I don’t know. Micha, don’t do this.”

“It’s done. I want nothing to do with you, Caleb. Get
out.”

“Damn it, Micha, I love you!”
Oh
shit
. The words tumbled out of his mouth before he could stop them. Had
he really fucking said that? The words were premature, but they were true. She sure
as hell wasn’t ready to hear them yet though.

Her head snapped back like he’d slapped her. Her
eyes widened, and she staggered back. She voice was soft when she said, “You do
not
love me.”

Well the words were already out, no way to recall
them. He doubled down. “I
do
love you, and you love
me too. You just need to let go and let it happen. You can run all you want,
but I’m not going anywhere. As long as it takes, I’m not going to let you run
far.”

Micha shoved past him and into her bedroom,
locking the door behind her.

***

Micha sat behind her bedroom door, shaking. Pain
sliced through her. How the hell had her life become so screwed up? He was
right. She was running. But she wasn’t a fool—that woman was something to him.
She’d completely let go and let herself be vulnerable. And she’d woken up to
some woman in his apartment.

Unable to move, she wrapped her arms around
herself and rocked.

After fifteen minutes or so, there was a soft
knock at her door, and she quickly palmed the gun she had sitting beside her. “Caleb,
I swear before God, if you do not leave, I will fucking shoot you.”

“Honey, it’s Ricca. Jaya and I come in peace.”

Ricca
? How the hell had
the two of them known to come? She certainly hadn’t called. Stupid moron
probably called Alec, who sent the cavalry. “I’m fine. You guys don’t have to
stay. Go away. I’ll call you later.”

Jaya snorted. At least Micha thought it was Jaya.
Ricca was too ladylike to snort. “You really think we’re going to leave you
now?”

Micha sniffled. “Yeah, I was kind of hoping.”

“When are you ever going to learn, Micha? When one
of us is down, we’re all down,” Ricca said. “You want me to make something to
eat? Never too early for Caliloo.”

Micha couldn’t help the small smile that broke
free. Ricca’s Trinidadian dish was one of her favorites. But even food couldn’t
coax her out now. “Thanks, Ree, but I’m not in the mood.”

“It’s five o’clock somewhere. You want me to make
you a mojito?” Jaya offered.

“No, I want to be left alone.”

“That’s the thing, we can’t really leave you
alone, babe. We’re family, so you might as well open the door, let us in, and
tell us what the problem is, My,” Jaya said.

Micha was not opening the damn door. Those two
thought they could swoop in and solve all her problems. “You want to know what
the problem is? Caleb fucking telling me he’s in love with me. Oh, and he is
also under the delusion that I’m in love with him too.”

She was met with silence. They thought it was nuts
too. That proved it—he was a moron. A lying, cheating, I-already-have-a-wife
asshole. That’s what he was.

Finally there were hushed whispers that sounded
like arguing. Then Ricca spoke. “Well, he’s not too far off, is he, My?”

Micha stood and yanked the door open. “Are you out
of your mind? I am not in love with the lying idiot. I hate him. After what he’s
done, I really hate him.”

Ricca and Jaya stood to face her. Rica breathed a
sigh of relief. “Glad to see you open the door.”

“I wouldn’t be happy, if I were you. What makes
you think I’m in love with him? He’s insufferable, and stubborn, and so sure of
himself, and too good-looking for his own good, and he’s fucking married.”

Jaya’s brows snapped down. “Say what?”

Ricca’s eyes bugged. “No, he’s not.”

“Oh, yes he is. After I woke up this morning. You
know, after we spent all night screwing our brains out and he had me all onto
that whole intimacy train, deep gazes into the eyes accompanied by really dirty
sex, I woke up this morning to find his wife rummaging through his fridge. The
bitch had a key.”

Ricca didn’t speak. She merely turned on her heel
and headed out the door.

Micha and Jaya stared after her. “Where the hell
is she going?” Micha asked.

Jaya folded her arms and took up post at the
window seat. “If I know Ricca, she’s on her way to give Caleb a piece of her
mind.”

Micha smirked. “Sometimes I swear she’s even scarier
than me.”

Jaya raised an eyebrow. “We all know you’re soft
in the middle. Only the shell is a little hard. Mostly your head.” Jaya tugged
her down onto the window seat so they could stare into Caleb’s apartment
together.

“Well, honey, it’s no secret that that man’s been
into you for years. You’re too stubborn to see it.”

“Who the hell are you calling stubborn, Pot?”

“No one, Kettle.” Jaya smirked. “I’m just
wondering. Did you actually run out on him because of some crazy woman in his
apartment? Not that that isn’t a valid reason for running out on a man.”

“Yes, how many times do I have to tell you that? There
she was in all her beautiful glory like she belonged there.”

“If he was married, don’t you think we’d actually
know about it? None of us have ever met her. Even Alec doesn’t know about her.
And he tells Alec everything. The two of them are closer than Alec is to his
own brother.”

“So you’re taking his side?”

Jaya rolled her eyes. “Look. All I’m saying is the
Micha I know would have cussed out the crazy bitch and run her off. The Micha I
know wouldn’t have run like a dog with her tail between her legs. Especially
not after
finally
sleeping with Caleb. You would
have stayed to stake your claim, if anything. You gave up another round of
orgasms to some woman? Who the hell are you, and what did you do with my best
friend?”

Micha chewed her lip. Sure a couple of weeks ago,
she would have laughed that skinny bitch out of Caleb’s apartment. At the very
least caused a ruckus large enough to summon the police. So what was so
different about this morning? “I couldn’t stand there. After everything with
Caleb, and this stalker, and my job, and then Caleb was so sweet to me last
night, I…” Micha paused.

“Go on. You what?”

“I let go. I gave up control to him. I just went
with it. I enjoyed it. It was the closest I’ve felt to anyone, maybe ever, and
it scares me.”

“I’ll bet you did.” Jaya giggle. “Did you tell him
that?”

“You mean the man with his wife, or whoever the
fuck that was, standing in his kitchen? No. I was a little preoccupied, and I
can’t tell him that.”

Jaya frowned. “Why not?”

Because he’ll break my heart.
“‘Cause it’ll complicate things. And you know how I feel about complications.”

“Right. Well, all I’m saying is I know you’re a
smart woman. I know you wouldn’t deliberately run away from love. It’s so
fleeting, and even if it’s scary to fall like that and completely trust someone
else, I know you understand how rare that is, and you wouldn’t voluntarily run
from it. Not my best friend. You’re way too bright to do that.”

Micha clamped her mouth shut. Across the way, they
watched Caleb’s rangy frame head to the door. When he yanked it open, the
diminutive tornado that was a pissed off Ricca shoved hard at his chest. She
didn’t get very far, so she shoved again. When that didn’t work, she took off
her heels and started beating him with them. All the while screaming at him.

Micha chuckled as she imagined what her friend was
saying. Likely her full Trini accent would be in force. And likely she was
threatening him with ancient African religions and Voodoo and what they could
do to his balls and genitals. Then she scowled at him and tried to beat him
again. But this time, he enveloped Ricca in a hug to restrain her arms.

“Oh, that can’t be good,” Jaya said.

“No,” Micha agreed. “I’ve been telling her for
months she should come with me to Krav Maga.”

Jaya giggled. “Can you really see tiny Ricca and
her huge boobs fighting off assailants?”

“I have boobs. You simply strap them down and get
to work.” She cast a worried glance at Jaya. “You think we should go over
there?”

Jaya shook her head, her eyes dancing. “Nope. He
won’t hurt her. He’s already setting her down. Oh damn, he’s taken her shoes.”

Ricca made a valiant snatch for them, but he held
them out of reach. Glancing at Jaya and Micha, Ricca shrugged. Caleb looked
over as well, and Micha held her ground. Across the courtyard she could feel
his fevered gaze on her. She kept replaying the scene in her head over and over
and over again.
I’m in love with you, and you love me too. I’m
in love with you. I’m in love with you.
God, why did he have to do that
to her? Why did he have to make her feel like this?

Ricca stormed out of Caleb’s and was back at Micha’s
in two minutes. Her hair was disheveled and her eyes were bright. “That oaf
took my Jimmy Choos!”

“The nerve of him,” Micha mumbled.

Jaya giggled. “To be fair, you were using them as
weapons against him. He didn’t really have much of a choice.”

Micha indicated her bedroom. “I have the same
pair. You can grab mine.”

Ricca headed for the bedroom adjusting her askew
clothing.

Micha stopped her. “Did he say anything?”

Ricca rolled her eyes. “Only that he meant what he
said, and that he loved you, and that the woman was not his wife, but a case he
was working.” She shrugged. “I’m inclined to believe him. The skank wasn’t there
when I barged in.”

Skank. Wow, Ricca must have really been pissed. Skank
wasn’t part of her repertoire. She watched her friend stalk toward her bedroom
and called out once more. “Oh, hey, Ree?”

Ricca whirled around, her thick hair billowing in
a cloud around her. “Yeah?”

“Thank you.”

“It’s nothing you wouldn’t have done for me,”
Ricca said.

Jaya took Micha’s hand. “She’s right, you know. We
have your back. If Caleb has a secret family, then I’m next in line to deliver
him an ass whooping. But maybe, he’s telling the truth.”

Micha scowled, and Jaya held up her hands. “I’m
just saying. Maybe this one time he deserves the benefit of the doubt.”

But it wasn’t just about giving him the benefit of
the doubt. Last night he’d gone on and on about how she should trust him and
open up to him. She’d told him about the lowest in her life and he never once
mentioned his past. Wife or not. She was the one vulnerable and exposed and he’d
kept himself closed off. That’s what stung the most.

“I thought we established that Caleb Atkins was to
be your protection.”

Micha looked up from her computer to glare at
Adele Westhorpe. “And I thought we established that while you might run my
professional life for the time being, you weren’t my parent.”

Adele smoothed her bob and sat across from Micha.
“You’re being childish.”

“By all means, have seat.” Leaning forward in her
chair, her hands clasped, she pinned Adele with a glare. “You said I need a
babysitter. And I have one. Several actually, if the small troop that followed
me from the hotel this morning is to be believed. So what’s your problem? I’m
following your arrangement to the letter.”