curvaceous. A skin-tight leopard-print dress covers her body; a tank-style top that follows the line of her body all the way down to her bare feet.
“I’m Maggie,” she introduces herself eagerly.
Before I can reciprocate, Rocco steps closer to me, the door moving with him enough to cut her out of view.
There’s chaos in his eyes. Uncertainty and hint of regret as he scans my face intently.
I want to reach out and reassure him. Ease the skittishness in his person. He resembles a caged animal; wild in the way he wants to rip out your throat, savage in the silent burn to be loved.
“I should go.” I speak before he does, turning on my heel and making for the elevator in an awkward rush.
The world, obviously working to do me a solid for delivering me the ultimate in embarrassment, lets the doors slide open immediately. I don’t hesitate in jumping inside, tapping at the close button faster than a new judge on The Voice.
Maggie.
She’s even got a nice wholesome name. What the heck is she doing with the likes of Rocco Shay? More importantly, why the fuck do I care?
I rush out onto the ground floor, making a beeline for the exit doors. But I can’t walk through them. My feet pause, the automatic mechanism forcing the doors open, only to close them again when I make no attempt to move.
I won’t fucking tell anyone you don’t hate me as much as you pretend you do.
Truth is I don’t hate Rocco Shay. Not even a little, and that’s a bitch of a reality check to swallow. He’s the closest thing to a friend I have in this world. Someone who sees the broken pieces of my mind, the fractured shards of my soul and accepts them all without question. Moreover, he seems to appreciate them.
Since the tumultuous end to my last relationship, I threw myself into work. Work couldn’t harm me, not in the way trusting another person could. My work couldn’t raise havoc in my life. It never made me question everything about who I am, about who I used to be in the way another person could.
My career took me in like a guardian angel, keeping me busy enough in an attempt to forget every horrible facet of my life.
Only recently has the brutal reality of loneliness crept in. Years spent alone in the darkness of my nightmares finally catching up to me. Codi and my father aside, I have no one. Dad has his work and Codi now has Parker to steal away her free time. That leaves me with the company of only me, myself, and I. Not to be a bitch, but me, myself, and I can be a total cunt to chill with at times. She’s jaded beyond belief and can be downright negative. Not to mention she is boring as fuck.
Enter Rocco Shay. The absolute brute that fell into my life, bleeding and seemingly as broken as I was.
The man I’d sworn to hate for the rest of my days.
The man who could have stolen the life of my sister away from me.
My best friend.
Jesus Christ. I deserve to be stoned to death.
Closing my eyes, I take a deep breath.
I came here to check on a friend. One, that from a simple look into his slate grey eyes, is not okay.
“Fuck,” I exclaim, apologizing to the middle-aged woman walking into the building on a graceless smile.
He’s occupied, I concede. Happily so. Maggie is beautiful—I don’t let myself read into the pain that slices into me at that—she’ll gift him some peace. Even if it is for the limited time it takes to get his rocks off.
I should leave, I tell myself as I move toward the lone couch in the lobby, dropping myself down.
I’m a fucking idiot, I think, settling into the soft leather and making myself comfortable while I wait.
Stalker much, Camryn? I curse myself as the elevator sounds.
Maggie steps out, waving over her shoulder as she steps from the giant metal box, a smile on her pretty face. She notices me immediately, offering me a quick wink before stepping through the exit doors and disappearing down the street.
Once I can no longer see her, I glance back at the elevator, a silent and somber Rocco braced against the frame, keeping the doors from closing as he watches me.
I stand without invitation, keeping his eyes as I approach. I step past him without speaking, standing at the back of the small space, my