I chuckled and played along with his joke. “Yeah, okay. I’m sure plenty of women would just love that idea. I’d definitely have no problem finding a willing participant.” I threw a sarcastic look in Harrison’s direction.
“Hey! I just told you they do it all the time in movies! I’m fairly certain it’s also a plot point in some of Sophie’s books.”
“And do you know what both of those things have in common?” I asked, then answered while launching a throw pillow at him. “They’re fictional.”
Harrison held his beer out to steady it against the onslaught of down-feather-stuffed decor, and sniggered. “I was only kidding!” He righted himself, adjusting to accommodate the newly-acquired pillow. “It honestly probably wouldn’t work anyway. It’s too overdone.”
I scoffed. “Yeah. That’s why it wouldn’t work.”
“No, you’re right. It wouldn’t work because you’re a cowardly ass,” he fired back, and if he were anyone else, I’d lose my shit on him.
“Shut up and start the game before I leave you here to suffocate in your throw pillows.”
He snorted, but did what I said, and seconds later we were back to gaming as if he hadn’t just thrown out the stupidest idea I’d ever heard.
After about an hour, Harrison got fed up with trying to play video games with me, and I couldn’t blame him—I was truly atrocious. Sophie was due back from work soon, and they were still new enough where I absolutely did not want to be around for their reunion after being separated for eight hours. I told him I’d keep him updated on the promotion front, then hopped on my bike, and started it up. Twisting the throttle back slightly, I took off, giving it more gas once I got to the main roads.
When I hit a red light, I stopped, but my mind kept going.
You’re a coward, Archer! A fucking coward!
My teeth ground against each other, my foot bouncing against the pavement. The mental war raged on inside my head as I glanced around the street. People were going about their day-to-day lives without a care in the world, yet here I was, caring a great deal about what one particular brunette thought about me.
The light turned green and I made a split-second decision, gunning it in the opposite direction of my house. I should’ve slowed down, but slowing down might’ve given me time to talk myself out of what I was about to do. Turning up the radio and trying to let that, and the hum of my motorcycle drown out all other thoughts, I headed for the police station.
“Archer Mack! What can I do for you?” Paul, the dispatcher on duty, asked as I approached his desk.
“Wallis owes me a favor, and I need an address.” I spit the words out before I could stop myself.
TWELVE
DARCY
I was mid-deadlift, sweat dripping down my face, and between my shoulder blades, when I heard a knock at my door. Linnea and I always had dinner together on Sundays like we had growing up, but that wasn’t until later. Shayna was out of town for the weekend, and I doubt she’d gotten back early considering I had no texts from her. There wasn’t anyone else who ever stopped by except for the mailman who, in the three years I’d lived here, had never once knocked on my door.
Grabbing the towel I had draped over my bench press earlier, I dried my face so that I didn’t look like a complete disaster for whoever was on the other side, and swung open the door.
I froze, a greeting on the tip of my tongue. Nothing could’ve prepared me for the man standing on my doorstep.
Archer stood in all black, one hand clutching his motorcycle helmet down by his side, the other propped against my door frame. It was such a casual stance for someone who should know he wasn’t going to be receiving a warm welcome. A tiny part of my brain also registered that it was a very hot stance too, but that was probably the pregnancy libido talking, and she needed to shut up because this was Archer. We didn’t like him, or his dick at the moment—no matter how incredible said dick was.
Stop it.
Focusing back on the present, I watched his eyes roam over my body, and I crossed my arms over my chest, drawing his attention back up to my face.
He straightened, hand dropping from the doorframe to point an accusatory finger in my direction.
“I’m not a coward,” he finally muttered, green eyes colliding with mine.
My eyebrows shot up. What the hell was I missing? “Okay, great.”
“I’m an ass, but I’m not a coward.”
A sarcastic laugh slipped through my parted lips. “I’m so glad you’re self-aware. Feel free to have this epiphany of yours elsewhere.” I moved to slam the door in his face, but it never made it. Glancing down, I saw the tip of his black steel-toed boot in my door, and anger raced down my spine. The audacity of this man.
Ripping the door back open, I opened my mouth to tear him to shreds, but he beat me to it.
“Just wait, okay? Look . . .” He glanced back over his shoulder like he was contemplating leaving and abandoning whatever mission he came here on. When he looked back at me, his demeanor was different. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry about the other night at the bar, and I’m sorry about right now. I’m not . . . good with people.”
