“I should go,” I whisper.
“I’ll call you.”
I reach my hands to his, which are framing my face, and I pull them off me. He grips my hands, and as I walk back, he lets mepull myself from him, making an effort not to be the one to let go first. I force myself to turn away and head for the car.
The driver confirms who I am before he pulls out, heading for my apartment. I settle back into the seat, my eyes falling closed as a breath leaves my lungs.
Fuck, Rosie. What are you doing?
CHAPTER 25
just another dirty little secret
Caleb
“So hypothetically, if I wanted a woman to,justsleep with me…like exclusively…how do I do that?” I’m doing my best not to sweat and shift on my seat at the bar table, where I sit with all the guys, minus Matt, at our usual table at Pucks. To say I am crumbling with my obsession is an understatement. I had no qualms about my ability to get a woman to sleep with me, but I was feeling increasingly out of my depth when it came to one woman in particular.
“Hypothetically?” Lucas asks through a smirk, and unfortunately, I seem to have garnered all their attention.
“Yeah, like…obviously Idon’twant to be exclusive with anyone…because that’s just not me. But if Ididwant to? You guys have girlfriends, serious girlfriends, so how?” I mostly direct that at Noah and Jessie. I don’t know that Lucas has any game, he rarely takes home women these days but seems quite content pining from a distance. He can pretend it’s a secret, but apparently the only people who haven’t noticed where allof Lucas’s attention is, is the woman of said attention…and her brother, Jessie.
“First of all, I actively told Addison I wanted to be with just her and then was just…there, all the time.” Noah lifts a lazy shoulder, sipping his beer while Jessie looks like he is searching for patience as he shakes his head slowly.
“There?”
“Yeah, like she tried to go on a date. I ruined it.” He flashes a smug smile. “She was sad, I was there. She needed space, I wastherein the distance. She was angry, I took her somewhere that was safe for her to let it out. You just kind of have to be there, and make your intentions clear.” I nod, feeling a frown pull at my face, not really sure how to apply that to my current situation.
It’s not like I am sleeping with anyone else, I just don’t know if Rosie is.And every time I let my mind picture what she’s doing when she isn’t with me, this blinding rage takes over and it takes everything in me not to storm over to her apartment in some weird caveman,me Tarzan, you Janedisplay of alpha-ness. She’d made it clear what our arrangement was, painfully clear…could not be clearer…and I lost all courage to ask her to be exclusive after the way the gala night ended two weeks ago. But wondering where she is and who she is with, whether they are getting her cheeky side, seeing her blush, or hearing those sweet moans? It’s driving me insane. It is also beginning to affect my work.
“You could try using your words, like a grown-up.” Jessie grumbles, shaking his head. He and Ethan are slightly older than the rest of us, being in their thirties, Noah and Matt are close to my age, Lucas is a couple years younger, so I suppose the most adult response would come from him. I just ignore him though. He doesn’t get it. He could pull the whole caveman thing because Casey was a wispy little thing and wanted to be swept off her feet.
But I know for afactthat if I tried to sweep Rosie into a bridal carry and demand she be my girlfriend, I’d get a ton of Spanish curses and a heel to the back of my head. She is skittish, at best, and far too proud. So, I need to be more creative.
I look over at Lucas and Ethan, but they both just shrug.
“Who’s the unlucky woman you’re trying to lock down?” Lucas spits through a grin, and a grunt leaves my throat.
“None of your business. You lot aren’t very helpful.” I give up on the hypothetical insinuation, I don’t know that my walls are that sturdy, and they can probably see right through me.
“Look.” Jessie huffs impatiently. “Just tell her how you feel, set ground rules and boundaries and then a little of what Noah said. If she’s that important, you’ll be patient. Short of that, you can’t reallydoanything. It’s not like you can tie her up and kidnap her.” The mention of ties reminds me of that night in her apartment when I was tied to her chair, and a satisfied grin tips the corner of my lips. The desire must show on my face because Ethan kicks my leg under the table.
“No, youcan’tkidnap her,” he emphasizes.
“I wasn’t going toactuallykidnap her.” I huff at him…but then think a little more on it. “But what if she’d be into that sort of thing?”
“I don’t think women are into some guy breaking into their apartment in a balaclava, tying them up, and kidnapping them,” Ethan scolds.
“Check her bookshelves and then decide that,” Jessie says under his breath, and we look at him. Noah chokes on his drink through a laugh.
“What?” Jessie demands, his cheeks blushing gently, and I have to bite down on my amusement.
“Please elaborate,” Lucas encourages.
“I’ve heard Casey talk about the books she, Addy, and Rosie read. That girly book club is bonkers. You should have seentheir theme last Halloween. I am genuinely terrified.” I stopped listening at the mention of Rosie and the books she reads.
“What books do they read?”
He sighs, wiping a hand down his face. “I don’t know, man. Like stalkers and creepy shit with masks. The girls are insane. Casey usually just giggles, but Rosie? Woman is possessed by a demon, I swear it.” The guys at the table release like a joint shiver, and I have to take a drink to hide the blooming smile that spreads across my face. The Rosie they speak of—my Rosie—is a fucking animal and I am obsessed with that side of her.
