Page 317 of The Tempted
“Okay, okay, fine,” I pouted, dropping back into my chair. “My car is fucked,” I blurted out.
“What’s wrong with it?”
“The thing starts when it wants, the tires are shot and the brakes squeak,” I rambled.
“I’ll take care of it when you go back home and send a tow for it,” he promised. “You need anything else? Money? Books?”
I shook my head. It was one thing for me to ask him for help with my car, a desperate plea on my behalf, but I wouldn’t take a cent from Anthony. After I quit the nursing program I had to give up the paid housing—a perk of having an all-expenses paid education. That’s how I became Mia’s roommate. I had to become an adult, and being an adult, well, it kind of sucked.
There was a knock on the door, pulling me away from my thoughts and Anthony away from his worried stare down.
“Come in,” he bellowed.
The girl who was crawling around the floor in front of Riggs popped into my brother’s office, waving my phone in the air.
“Sorry to interrupt Mr. Anthony,” she smiled. Oh, poor thing she obviously hasn’t met Mrs. Anthony yet. It might be worth extending my stay just to see Adrianna’s reaction to this girl. She turned her eyes to me.
“How’d you get my phone?” I asked, stepping toward her and snatching my phone from her hand.
“You left it at the front desk,” she bit her lip. “It keeps going off, someone named Tiger seems desperate to get in touch with you,” she added sweetly, before turning to my brother and flashing him a smile.
I felt Anthony come up behind me and peer over my shoulder at my phone.
“Who’s Tiger?”
I had no idea who Tiger was, but that was for me to find out not my overprotective, sometimes overbearing, older brother. I shoved the phone into my pocket, turned on my heel and rose on my tiptoes to kiss his cheek.
“Glad we had this talk,” I said hastily, before turning and heading out of the office. “I’ve got to go.”
“Lauren,” he called out as I closed the door to the office and hurried through the gym. I made it out the door without a hitch, meaning no unnecessary run-ins with a certain hot biker. I didn’t pull my phone out of my pocket until I was halfway down the block and sure my brother hadn’t followed me.
My phone definitely was blowing up, eight unread text messages from...Tiger. I walked toward the train station as I opened the messages.
Tiger: Guess who?
Tiger: Do you need a hint?
Tiger: I’m a tiger in the bedroom.
Tiger: Not that you would know that. Yet. But you could imagine.
Tiger: Tell me Kitten, do you imagine the things I could do to you?
Tiger: I bet that’s why you aren’t answering me. Take your hand out of your pants Kitten, let Tiger do the job.
Tiger: Shit. I’m just joking.
Tiger: Sort of.
My lips quirked in amusement. Hot and funny…my dream guy. My fingers worked the keyboard of my phone to reply.
Me: How did you get my number and more importantly how did yours become saved in my phone?
The little gray cloud appeared, signaling that he was typing his reply and for some reason, unknown to me, that made me smile again.
Tiger: Wouldn’t you like to know. A man never tells his secrets. Where are you?
Me: Maybe the right woman was never around to try.
