Total pages in book: 158
Estimated words: 160684 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 803(@200wpm)___ 643(@250wpm)___ 536(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 160684 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 803(@200wpm)___ 643(@250wpm)___ 536(@300wpm)
“Effie?”
She liked hearing her name being spoken by Steele. She couldn’t see him, nor did she know him, so there was no reason why she should react that way.
But she liked it a heck of a lot.
“Let’s go talk in your office,” Steele added.
“No, we won’t be talking in there,” Grady replied. “We need to talk; we’ll do it somewhere else.”
There was a beat of silence.
“It’s fine, really,” Lucy said. “I’m all right, Steele.”
She rolled her eyes. Lucy was laying it on thick.
“Hey, Grady, Steele, there’s a problem with the alcohol order,” an unfamiliar voice said.
Grady sighed. “I’ll be there in a minute.” He stepped back into the office and shut the door before turning to look at her. “You. Stay here.”
Then he grabbed a set of keys out of his desk drawer and left.
But not before she heard a key turning in the lock.
Did he . . . did he just lock her in here?
Getting up slowly, she moved to the door and tried it.
Shit. Fuck.
That asshole. Obviously, he thought she was going to run.
Which you were.
Yeah, but that didn’t mean he got to lock her in.
She tried to find a comfortable position with her back spasming. But nothing helped. Also, her feet were aching from her stupid shoes, but she didn’t want to take them off. She looked at the clock.
God damn it.
Where the hell was he?
5
Damon Steele eyed his best friend curiously.
Grady was usually a closed book to everyone but him. He kept his true feelings and emotions locked down tight. Only letting things slip through his guard when they were alone.
Except for right now. He was glaring down at Lucy. Steele wasn’t sure why, exactly. Sure, Lucy was annoying. But Grady didn’t usually look at her with such fury in his eyes.
Steele couldn’t quite work out what she’d done. Was it because she’d been unkind to the woman who’d fallen while doing her interview? Steele had never known Grady to be protective over someone he’d just met.
Grady wasn’t really that protective of anyone. Sure, he took care of the staff that worked here. But he didn’t favor one over the other. He just considered that part of his job. He didn’t feel anything for them.
Curious.
And why did he lock his office door? He never locked his office door unless . . . unless he had a woman in there.
Grady wasn’t known for mixing business and pleasure. So the rare time a woman had been in there for anything other than business was when Steele put her there.
In fact, he couldn’t remember the last time Grady had slept with a woman without Steele instigating things.
Hmm. That didn’t seem healthy now that he thought about it. Maybe he needed a word with the other man.
Maybe you haven’t been looking after Grady as well as he takes care of you.
And perhaps he should head back to the office to see why Grady had locked it.
If he has a girl in there, it’s none of your business.
Yet, he was curious.
And he hadn’t been curious about anything in a long time.
Life had become monotonous, with only brief bursts of color to intersperse the gray. Sometimes, he thought the only reason he got up in the morning was because Grady wouldn’t let him wither away.
And because Grady wouldn’t do well without him.
He was all Grady had.
So, yeah, feeling curious wasn’t normal for him. The last time he’d been this interested in a woman was when Millie came into Pinkies that first time.
Now . . . there was a woman who made life interesting.
He envied Quillon. His life would never be boring. Although, he also had a lot on his hands. Millie ate life and didn’t always stop to think before doing something.
That was something that Steele would have squashed straight away. Because any woman of his wouldn’t be putting herself in danger.
No fucking way.
But since he never intended to have a woman of his own, that shit didn’t matter.
He watched Grady breathing ice at Lucy, who actually looked slightly concerned. He should interfere. Even though he didn’t really care about Lucy, he knew that if she quit, Grady would have more on his plate that he didn’t need.
“Grady, didn’t you need to go deal with the alcohol issue?” he asked.
Grady turned to eye him. Then, he seemed to gather himself. “Yes, I’ll get onto that. But you need to remember this, Lucy. Do not speak about anyone who works here like that.”
“She doesn’t work here,” Lucy replied.
“She was interviewing for a job. And you need to watch the way you speak to people, or you are gone.”
Something flashed in Lucy’s face. Something ugly. And Steele made a mental note to watch her.
“Steele?” Lucy turned to him, her eyes wide and pleading.
Was she serious with this shit right now? Was she expecting him to side with her? Over his best friend? The person he cared about most in the world?