shared earlier. It had felt good, really good, to have his arms around me.
The thought made me frown. True, I’d always been attracted to Parker, but I needed to quit thinking like that. We had a professional relationship and that was all, no matter how sexy I found his controlling, power-wielding ways, which in itself felt like a reaction I shouldn’t have to those particular traits. He was also incredibly smart, another weakness of mine when it came to men.
“You’re probably wondering how Ryker and I know each other,” Parker said.
I glanced up at him, my eyebrows lifting. I hadn’t expected him to bring it up again, but he wasn’t looking at me, at least, not at my face. His gaze seemed to be on my foot, dangling in midair from my crossed legs. The sunny yellow of my peep-toe pump cheered me a bit, as it always did. Parker’s gaze slid up my leg, following my torso, until he met my eyes.
I cleared my throat delicately, trying to ignore that once-over. “The thought had crossed my mind.”
His lips lifted slightly, giving me that pleased feeling I always got when I said something that amused him.
Parker leaned forward, bracing his elbows on his spread knees with the glass cradled in both hands, his gaze resting on the amber liquid in its depths.
“We grew up together, he and I,” he began. “Met when we were just kids. We were thirteen, maybe fourteen. We lived in different parts of town, though. I was fortunate; my family was well-off and we lived in a good neighborhood. Ryker wasn’t as lucky. He lived alone with his mom. His dad had run off and left them when he was five.”
A pang of sympathy struck me. I’d been blessed with two parents who’d been happily married for over thirty years, but families like that weren’t nearly as common anymore.
“How did you meet?” I asked. It sounded like Parker and Ryker had been on opposite sides of the proverbial tracks.
“He was one of those kids who lived in a bad part of town that they let attend a better school somewhere else. It was my school. He stood out, of course. The kids there were all wealthy and it was obvious he wasn’t. I wanted to get to know him, somebody so different from anyone else I’d known, but he wasn’t into making friends.
“Then one afternoon, I helped him out of a fight,” he continued. “We were inseparable from then on, the poor little rich kid and the rebellious loner. Odd, looking back on it now, but we were kids. We fascinated each other.”
I could picture it in my head, two scrawny teenage boys. One in worn clothes that were hand-me-downs, the other in pristine name brands, eyeing each other with suspicion and yet wanting to know more.
“So you’re friends,” I prompted when Parker didn’t continue.
“We were friends,” he corrected. “Past tense. Long story short, we joined the Marines together, even got assigned to the same platoon, but our friendship didn’t last past our discharge.”
Curiosity raged. Parker had been in the Marines? I’d had no idea. “Why not?”
“Life kind of got in the way,” Parker mused, “and that’s an even longer story.” Lifting the glass to his lips, he drank the rest in one long swallow, set it on the coffee table, and stood. “I should be going,” he said. “I just thought, after today, you had a right to know that while there’s a past between Ryker and me, it didn’t end happily. Be wary of him, if he comes around you anymore.”
I nodded, wondering if I should confess about dinner Saturday, but Parker was already digging out his car keys and heading for the door. I hurriedly set down my glass and jumped up to see him out.
“Um, thanks for the ride home,” I said as he opened the apartment door.
Parker turned to look at me. His gaze seemed to skate over me before resting on my eyes. “You’re welcome,” he said. “You’ve worked for me for a while now, Sage. You’re very…valuable to me.”
Parker didn’t do thank-yous or heap praise, so this comment sent a curl of pleasure through me. I smiled. “Thanks.”
He gave a curt nod, then was gone, bypassing the elevator in favor of the stairs.
Closing and locking the door, I hurried to the window, pushing aside the curtains to look down at where he’d parked. A few moments later, I saw him emerge from the building and head to his car.