The Tangled Series Complete Digital Boxed Set (Bad Boy Rock Star, Millionaire, and MMA Fighter Bundle) (44 page)

Thane

I left the salon, cursing myself for not only questioning Sera like she was some kind of a criminal, but then for almost losing my self-control. For almost… kissing her.

But those lips…

Those full, sensual lips of hers.

Fuck.

I clenched my jaw, trying to forget how they’d been partly open, just waiting to be claimed. I knew, from the look in her eyes, and the way she’d been breathing, that Sera wouldn’t have pushed me away, either. That she’d felt something, too.

Or… maybe I was wrong.

Maybe she would have told me to fuck off. But not before I’d gotten myself a taste. Thinking of my tongue in her mouth while I pulled her hair out of that tight bun of hers incited some kind of feral growl in the back of my throat.

Fuck.

I tried telling myself that it was only because I hadn’t had a woman in so long. That anyone with a pretty face and a hot body would cause the same reaction. But, deep down, I wasn’t so sure. I’d seen plenty of attractive women at the gym checking me out, strutting by in shorts that barely covered their crotches. Yeah, they looked edible, but for some ridiculous reason, I just couldn’t stop thinking about Sera – the mousy, unpretentious woman who dressed like a librarian, and tried to make herself so damn… indiscreet.

But you couldn’t hide that kind of natural beauty. To me she stood out like an emerald in a pile of river rocks. She glimmered with a radiance that couldn’t be muted.

I wanted that gem.

I wanted that gem
badly
.

I wanted to run my hands through her silky, dark hair. Tear the buttons off of that blouse she’d been wearing, followed by the silk bra I imagined to be covering those mouth-watering breasts. Then get a taste of more than just her lips.

I reached down and adjusted myself. Driving with wood wasn’t exactly comfortable. I needed to get ahold of myself.

I tried thinking of Monica as I drove. Monica getting a pedicure. Her large, bony feet riddled with bunions, age-spots, blue veins, and maybe even gout. Even plastic surgery couldn’t correct everything. I smirked as my hard-on began to subside.

Thank you, Monica!

Turning the radio up, I drove by a local beach and noticed a woman jogging by. She had her hair pulled back into a loose bun and her oversized breasts bounced as she ran.

An image of Sera and her breasts popped back into my head. They seemed to be the perfect size. I pictured myself fondling them and almost missed a stoplight.

Fuck!

Back to being hot-and-bothered, I rubbed the back of my hand across my forehead and turned up the air conditioning. I needed to pull myself together. Sera and I couldn’t happen.
Wouldn’t
happen.

I was not going to go there with her. Not even try. The last thing she needed was another asshole in her life.

Sera

I tried forgetting about everything that had happened, or almost happened, back in Thane’s office, and concentrated on my next client’s nails. It wasn’t easy, however. The fact that I was the one being crucified as a child abuser, and Ray was an actual murderer, enraged me. All I could do was thank my lucky stars that Fred had been able to pull some strings to help us disappear. The only thing that concerned me now, however, was the fact that Ray had been seen around the diner again. I was frightened for Sam’s safety, and didn’t know what to do.

“I have to make a quick phone call,” I said, as my client’s nails were drying. “I’ll be right back.”

“No problem,” said the quiet young woman named Amy.

I got out of my chair and removed the mask from my face. “Thanks. I’ll try and hurry.”

“I’m not going anywhere,” she said, smiling.

I took the cell phone out of my purse and noticed that I’d had three missed calls, one of them
from
Sam, the other two numbers labeled “Private” again. Sam had left a message, so I listened to it. It basically confirmed everything Thane had told me, about Ray being seen in Seattle. I tried calling him back, but it went to voicemail after several rings. Biting the side of my lower lip, I called Fred.

“Did you hear from your brother?” I asked when he answered.

He sighed. “I spoke to him. I’m a little worried, to be honest. If Ray found out that your mom was dating him, then he could be in hot water. This isn’t good.”

I closed my eyes and groaned. I was hoping he would have told me not to worry. That Sam would be fine. “We have to do something. I’ll die if anything happens to him.”

“Now, don’t go stressing out too much, young lady. I’m actually trying to talk him into coming out here. At least for a few weeks, until we can figure something out.”

“Oh, good,” I answered, sighing in relief. “I hope he does.”

“Me too. He said he’ll think about it, which is a good sign. One thing about my brother, however, he doesn’t like to run and hide. So asking him to do just that probably isn’t sitting right with him.”

“Maybe not, but he needs to realize that Ray is not only insane, but unpredictable. Sam is just not safe there,” I said, feeling a strong sense of foreboding, similar to the last time Ray had showed up in Seattle.

“I’ll try calling him at the diner,” he said. “Since he’s not picking up his cell phone. Maybe if he knows how worried
you
are, it will help make his decision easier.”

“Whatever you have to do. And if you can’t reason with him, I’ll try talking to Sam.”

He chuckled. “Or, I’ll have Emma. She can talk anyone into anything. That girl has more people twisted around her little finger…”

I smiled. “She certainly does.”

After I hung up with Fred, I dropped my phone back into my purse and headed toward my booth.

“Where did this come from?” I asked, noticing a small grocery bag on the shelf, next to my table.

“Oh, that’s from some guy named Thane,” said Amy, pulling out her wallet. “He said he hopes you like roast beef.”

I raised my eyebrows and looked inside the bag. There was a deli sandwich, a small bag of potato chips, and a large bottle of water.

“That was nice of him,” I murmured, closing the bag.

“
He
was nice,” said Amy, lowering her voice. “What I wouldn’t do to have that guy bring
me
lunch.”

I laughed. “Well, he is single. Maybe we can arrange that.”

She reached into her jean pocket and pulled out a wedding ring. “I’m married. I just took it off so that you wouldn’t get any acrylic on it.”

“I understand. Wow, nice ring,” I said, noticing how large it was.

She looked down at it. “Thank you. I’d still trade it in for a few nights with Thane, though.”

I looked at her in astonishment.
Wasn’t anyone happily married anymore?

“Really?”

She handed me fifty dollars. “I’ve been married twelve years. Unfortunately, my husband forgot that he was twice in those twelve years. Needless to say, I wouldn’t feel too guilty about it.”

“I suppose not.”

“Keep the change,” she said, putting her purse around her shoulder.

“Thanks.”

“Are you married?”

“Uh, no,” I lied.

“Good. Take my advice and stay clear of it. It’s overrated and full of unwanted surprises.”

From my own experiences, I had to agree.

Sera

After Amy left, I walked back over to Thane’s office and knocked on the door.

“Come in.”

I cleared my throat as I stepped inside. “Thanks for the…” I stopped abruptly when I noticed him on the phone and then lowered my voice. “Oh, I’m sorry.”

He was sitting behind his desk with his headset on, listening to someone speak.

I motioned back toward the doorway to let him know I was leaving, but he held up a finger, to stop me.

“Listen, Tony, I’ll call you back and let you know tomorrow. I like the estimate you gave me; I just want some time to think about what I’d like to have done, exactly.”

I folded my arms under my chest and waited.

“Okay,” he said, still staring at me. “Talk to you soon.” He hung up and tossed his headset onto the desk. “So, what can I do for you?”

I smiled. “I just wanted to say thank you for buying me lunch. You didn’t have to, you know.”

“I know, but I did promise you food today.”

“Still, thank you. I’m starving and I do love roast beef.”

“Good,” he said, standing up. He cracked his neck – first one side, and then the other, then stretched his arms out while I stood gawking.

He looked at me again. “Is there anything else?” 

Great, he could probably tell I was ogling his Olympian body. I turned toward the doorway and began walking. “No, I’m just a little lightheaded from lack of food and being around that acrylic. I’m going to go and eat before my next customer arrives.”

“Listen, about earlier…”

I turned back around. “Thane, seriously, it’s fine. I can even understand why you’d question me. I’d have done the same.”

“I’m not talking about that.”

“Oh. What are you talking about then?”

He was silent for several seconds and then his eyes darkened. “I’m talking about what I said to you earlier, about you having beautiful eyes.  You do, don’t get me wrong. But, looking back, it almost sounds like… a come-on. And, I just want you to know, I wasn’t trying to flirt with you, or anything. I was just stating something that popped into my head at the time.”

I laughed nervously. “Oh, hah… No, I didn’t think you were flirting at all, so don’t worry about it.”

He shoulders relaxed. “Okay. Well, good. Just wanted to make sure you knew that. Thinking back, I thought it just sounded a little funny.”

“No, I understand. And thank you. For the compliment.” Surprisingly, I felt a twinge of regret. Not that I wanted to get involved with him.

“Of course. You know, I think it’s important to hand out compliments to others. Sincere ones, obviously. It’s good for morale. Don’t you think?”

I nodded. “Yes. Definitely.”

He gestured toward the door. “You should probably tackle that sandwich before you get too busy to enjoy it.”

“Yes. Thanks again,” I replied, watching him shuffle around some papers on his desk. “Thane?”

He looked up.

“You’re… a good man,” I said, surprising myself.

He didn’t say anything.

“An honorable man,” I went on, feeling that I really needed to tell him this. That it was urgent that he knew. “And you need to let go of the guilt.”

His face paled.

“It wasn’t your fault,” I said, hearing the words echo through my mind as I repeated them. The words that weren’t mine, although I was definitely saying them.

“What are you talking about?” he asked, his voice strangled.

I opened my mouth to say something else. Something that was on the tip of my tongue, but the words failed me.

He stood up and moved toward me. “Sera. Where is this coming from?”

I put my hand against my lips and backed away. “I’m sorry. I don’t know.”

Which was the truth.

I’d always gotten ‘feelings’ or ‘impressions’ before, but nothing like this. This time it almost felt like I was being guided, which was new and very frightening.

He looked as bewildered as I felt. “You’re very pale. Maybe you should sit down?”

My mouth suddenly felt so dry that it hurt to swallow. I smiled weakly. “You know, I think that I’m just going to go and eat that sandwich.”

“Okay. Good idea.”

I quickly turned around and hightailed it out of his office before any more psychic babblings got me fired.

Thane

After Sera left the office, I stared at the computer screen blindly, thinking back to my last MMA cage match. Images flashed through my head of bloodied fists pummeling into Zack Mayer’s face, the crowd cheering me on. The way his head snapped back and forth each time my knuckles connected with his face. Even now I could still remember the rush of adrenaline as I beat the hell out of the guy who I thought had fucked my fiancée. The guy she’d implicated after hearing rumors that
I’d
been the one unfaithful to her. Bullshit rumors that had come out of nowhere. Sure, I’d cheated on other women in the past. Hadn’t given it a second thought most of the time. But never on Carrie. Not the woman I’d fallen in love with and wanted to marry.   

I closed my eyes, still hating myself for the way I’d lost control. Zack certainly hadn’t deserved any of it. Hell, even if he’d been with Carrie, he hadn’t deserved what I’d unleashed. The fight had been so brutal, fueled by hatred and rage. Truth was that the moment I’d stepped into the ring, he’d never had a chance. Not only had I knocked him out, but he’d ended up in a coma. Then, two weeks later – six feet under. If that wasn’t bad enough, he’d left behind a young child. A son he would never get to see grow up because I’d lost my fucking mind.

No, Sera, I was not a good man, and definitely not an honorable one…