any of the men.”
“Okay,” I said, glad to change the subject. “What time?”
“Whenever is convenient,” he replied. “I’ll come pick you up.”
I thought about another confrontation between Ryker and Parker, decided I didn’t want to deal with that.
“No, that’s okay. I’ll grab a cab.”
He stood in front of me, his eyes on mine, his expression serious. When he didn’t say anything, I shifted uneasily from one foot to another.
“What’s wrong?” I asked when I couldn’t handle the silence any longer.
But Ryker didn’t reply. Instead, he leaned down and kissed me.
It was different from before. His touch was gentle, his hand cupping my cheek and jaw. I brought my arms up to rest my hands against his chest, the soft fabric of his T-shirt warm from his skin.
I didn’t track how much time passed, but all too soon he was releasing me. “I’d better go,” he said. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” He squeezed my hand.
“Okay. Thanks for coming over tonight,” I said. “It would’ve been really awful to wake up alone after…that.”
“Waking up alone is a choice,” he replied. “You just let me know if you want that to change.”
His lips tipped up at the corners in that wicked grin of his; then he was gone.
Chapter Eleven
I dressed carefully for work the next morning, not that I had a lot of choice in the matter. I was so sore, I could barely move. The bruises on my face and abdomen were a deep purple. I could conceal those on my stomach much more easily than those on my cheek and eye.
The button-down blouse I wore was tucked into my skirt, but I didn’t add my usual belt. I didn’t think I could handle the press of it against my skin, at least not for an entire day. Makeup I caked on my face, which helped, but the huge pair of aviator sunglasses I wore hid more than the concealer and powder.
Ryker’s parting comment last night had me rethinking that anti-one-night-stand resolve I had going on with him. I wanted him. He was dangerous, unpredictable, and full of sharp edges. He made no promises and asked for none from me. And God help me, I wanted to dip my toe into the fire that raged between us…even if I got burned.
Although I’d prepared myself to see Parker and confront him about the man in New York who’d helped me last night, he had already been to the office and was gone by the time I arrived. He’d left a stack of work on my desk along with notes and a message that said he’d be out most of the day.
Lovely.
Not that I minded putting off the clash between him and me—I wasn’t someone who enjoyed confrontation, especially with my boss.
People passing by took a little too long staring at my sunglasses, but I ignored them. It wasn’t as though it mattered for my job performance if I wore sunglasses or not. I figured most people thought I was recovering from a nasty hangover, and I’d rather they think I was a drunken lush than see the bruises on my face.
“Are we hiding from the paparazzi?”
I glanced up. Megan’s dry question made me smile, but that made my face hurt, so I stopped real fast.
I didn’t want to lie to her, but she wasn’t going to buy the hangover thing, so I slid my glasses down.
“I kinda…got mugged…last night,” I explained.
The grin on her face changed to a look of horror. “Oh my God, Sage,” she said, hurrying around the counter to me. “Are you all right?”
I shrugged, pushing the sunglasses back on. “They roughed me up a bit, but I’m okay.”
“Did the cops catch them?”
“No, but I’m supposed to go to the police station this morning and look at pictures, maybe pick them out,” I replied.
“Let’s get some coffee and tell me what happened,” she said.
“Okay,” I readily agreed. Since Parker wasn’t here, I didn’t feel guilty for stepping out of the office for a few minutes.
“Any update on Brian?” I asked as we rode down the elevator.
She sighed, following me out into the lobby as the elevator doors opened. “Well, a few of us went to happy hour the other night, and he actually came. I was hoping maybe we’d hook up after, but he left when everyone else did.”
“He didn’t hang around, ask you to dinner or something?”
Megan shook her head. “Nope. I managed to prolong it a little by asking him to walk me to my car, but he