“What did you say to my wife?” the looming, girthy man asked.
His deep voice resonated between all of us, vibrating off the walls and bouncing down to the elevator door as the sirens crept closer.
“You’ll have no choice but to stay with me after I’m done with you,” he said as he turned back around to face me.
“I’m glad you think so, because when I make you sign those papers? That means it’ll be even sweeter than I’m already dreaming of. Now, get the fuck away from me before I have you arrested,” I hissed.
Then, I slammed the door right in his pathetic little face.
Claudia and Rocky laughed at the man as he backtracked down the hallway, but as I pressed my back into my front door, I hated what my mind told me. Maybe Blake was right. Maybe he had connections so big and so great with everyone in this blasted state that my own lawyer would drop me like a fucking Hot Pocket. I placed my head in my hands and did my best not to cry. He didn’t deserve anymore of my tears. He didn’t deserve anymore of my time.
Then, the television caught my ear’s attention again.
“All I’m asking is for three months of your time. Three months of the two of us acting like we’re engaged, and after that we can go our separate ways.”
I slowly picked my head up from my hands.
“Three months?” the man asked.
“Three months,” the woman said. “That’s all I’ll need to convince the partners of my firm that I’m as well-rounded of an individual as they believe me to be.”
Holy fuck, did they write this movie just for me or something?
“Three months,” the man said.
“Only three months,” the woman said, “and maybe it’ll even get your ex off your back in the process.”
And as the police sirens squealed and raged war outside my condo complex, an even crazier idea popped into my head.
I just had to figure out if Caleb would even go along with it.
5
REAPER
An entire day had passed since I had sat down at that restaurant with Rose for brunch. I stared at my phone, watching the cursor blink on the screen of a fresh text message to her. I knew she wasn’t a morning person. She never had been. That girl had started drinking coffee from the time she was a freshman in high school just to roll her ass out of bed every single day. So, what the hell was I doing, wanting to send her a text at eight in the morning?
“Fuck it,” I grumbled.
Me: Want some coffee and a breakfast burrito?
I shot the text off and figured it would be at least a couple of hours before I got a response. But, to my surprise, she messaged back almost immediately.
I chuckled as I messaged her back.
Me: If it’s too early, let me know.
Rose: If you bring me an iced caramel coffee and a bacon breakfast burrito, you can always come over this early.
I snorted as I rolled out of bed.
Me: Shoot me your address. I’ll act like I haven’t already tracked it down.
Rose: Ah, still dicking around with technology, I see. Just come on if you know the address.
Me: See you soon, then.
I didn’t want to admit to her how much I had worried over her after leaving her like that at the restaurant. She was… different, in a lot of ways. More self-conscious. Not quite the big, bad, strong, opinionated young girl I had befriended all those years ago. It made me want to wring her husband’s fucking neck. Who in the absolute hell takes a spitfire like Rose and smushes her into nothing?
