NYC Angels Flirting with Danger - By Tina Beckett Page 0,39

her cheeks heating. “It was … amazing.”

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

CHLOE CRACKED OPEN another peanut and popped it into her mouth.

The noise in the tapas bar was unbelievable, especially for a Thursday night. She and Layla had to almost yell to be heard. But it was just as well. Her own churning thoughts seemed to leach away into the chaos that surrounded them. It did feel good to get away for a while, which brought up another point. If she was going to stay in New York, she was going to need to get her own place.

That was, if Brad still wanted her to stay.

Why wouldn’t he? He’d been with Katrina after all and had still expected to work with the woman afterwards. Was this any different?

No. She could be just as much of a grown-up as Brad. No more of this idealistic naivety she’d carried around with her for the last six years. Travis may not have knocked it completely out of her, but the reality of the way Brad lived his life sure had. He seemed to have everything together and was perfectly happy. No wonder he’d laughed at her for wanting to hang onto her virginity until marriage. And he was right. What had it gotten her?

No, it was time to make some changes, starting now.

Layla’s hand suddenly went to her wrist and squeezed. Blinking at her, Chloe saw her friend mouth, “Oh, God.”

She followed Layla’s gaze, and her own eyes widened. Brad had just walked through the door with another man.

Oh, no! She’d left a note on his desk, saying she was going out to dinner with a friend. She’d assumed he’d head home, although she had no idea why.

Her head suddenly pounded. What if he was here to pick up a woman? Ugh! Maybe she could crawl beneath a table and hide.

But if Chloe was horrified, Layla looked positively stricken, her face as pale as a ghost’s. Looking back at the men, she realized why.

That had to be Alex.

The men were almost the same height with wide shoulders and powerful frames, but whereas Brad’s hair was an inky black, the other man’s was a shade or two lighter. Female heads followed their progress as they made their way deeper into the place, and just when Chloe hoped they’d head to the bar without noticing them, Brad’s eyes swept the interior and found hers.

Oh, hell.

He bumped the other man’s shoulder and nodded their way.

“Please, no.” Even through sounds of clinking glasses and noisy conversations Layla’s quiet plea came through loud and clear. But there was nothing to do but sit there and watch the nightmare unfold.

Of course the only available table when they’d first arrived had been one with four chairs. And the place was still packed. Any hope of scrambling away or slipping out the door was long gone. Even now, the two men headed toward them.

Brad stood behind one of the empty chairs. “I got your note and assumed you were headed for O’Malley’s. I guess I assumed wrong.”

O’Malley’s was the hospital staff’s go-to place for drinks after work. Was that why Brad had come here instead? Hoping to avoid her? Her heart contracted even more as Alex nodded towards Layla and said hello. Knowing what she did now, this had to be unbearably awkward for Layla. But she displayed none of the panic from a few minutes ago. Instead, her face was as cool as her smile, and she motioned to one of the chairs. “Do you want to sit?”

Brad glanced at her, one brow lifted in challenge. She gave a quick shrug. If he wanted to sit, who was she to stop him? He drew the chair a little closer, crowding her a bit. When his elbow touched her arm as he reached for the peanut bowl, she froze, a quick shiver running through her.

The other man sat as well but, unlike Brad, he kept his distance from Layla. A waitress came over to take their order.

“I’ll have a whiskey. Neat.” Brad smiled at Chloe’s frozen daiquiri. “I see you’re going for the lighter stuff nowadays. Smart girl. Especially if you end up being our designated driver.”

Was he making a reference to her behavior the last time she’d tried drinking straight whiskey?

“Drive your bike?” she said. “No thanks.”

A slow smile went across his face. “But you don’t mind taking a ride every once in a while.”

Her face heated as Layla and Alex both turned to look at her. The question on Layla’s face was as