like he did with everyone else who was new to him. With women who appeared close to his own age, the thought of whether or not to fuck them often crossed his mind. He would have fucked her. That’s as much thought as he could spare toward Jody right now.
No, not completely true. She amused him. Not many women caught his attention and managed to keep it for as long as she did. Curiosity about others was never a pastime for Ross. But this woman was the niece of a rock star, and the daughter of wealthy parents. She could turn out to be… interesting.
Why not?
Yeah, and she kind of grew on him the longer he was around her. There was definitely some fire in her. She didn’t take a second of shit. Plus, she struggled with her own attraction to him by not really liking him. He liked the juxtaposition, which was definitely something he could imagine working with.
Back to the present moment, he asked, “Why are you staring at me?”
Her head didn’t turn, and her facial expression didn’t change. In an even, measured tone, she answered, “I’m not at all convinced that you even want to be here.”
“Not true. I was just thinking that if I want to stay here and have an in with the band, I’d better be extra nice to you.”
She flipped a glance his way, surprise showing off the whites of her eyes. She had big, bright, animated eyes. The light colors mixed with the dark in a swirling collage. She had unusually pretty eyes. “Crap, most people don’t admit their intention to use me.”
“They just do it without your knowledge?”
“Never without my knowledge, although they try. Lots of them try to do it.” Walking on the sidewalk now, she moved with easy efficiency and speed. No lollygagging or window-shopping for her. She had somewhere to be and she fully intended to get there, although he expected she always reacted this way.
“I’m not trying.” He had to hurry to keep in step with her.
She rolled her eyes and sucked on her lip for a moment. “You’re doing it, using me, that is. I got it.”
“No. You don’t get it.”
“Cryptic. Please, Mr. Karahan, I already have your number.”
Before him the lead sky seemed to sink with gravity as all the gray shades and puddles streamed across the roadway. Tall buildings filled the gaps here and there. “You don’t have it because I never gave it to you.”
“I don’t need your glib explanations. You’re careless and reckless, and you don’t care about anything or anybody. You’re also talented. Something which you have little humility about. You pretend not to care, but I can see through that.”
“No, you’re wrong.” No one ever complimented him. No one ever listened to him and he had no coaches, mentors or parental love. No siblings either. Obviously. He killed the only brother he ever had. He wasn’t being careless; because no one cared for him.
Until now.
Maybe he wasn’t handling all the attention very well. It felt foreign, and so odd, he wasn’t sure how to fuckin’ act with it. How to accept it. He couldn’t even talk about his damn desire to tap two sticks on some drums. No one even knew about his interest, let alone, that he was a friggin’ beast at it. He knew it, but could not tell others about it. Jody kept digging for details and showing genuine interest so his first response was to lash out, ignore her, and snap. He was used to that. But now it seemed awkward and weird. Fuck. This is why he never looked for relationships or good opportunities.
He only applied because he never expected to be chosen and now, he didn’t know how the fuck to deal with it.
They entered a building using her key card and went straight to an elevator. He followed her, reluctant to even try to fit into an environment he knew he could never feel comfortable in. He never visited a city like this. How could he function successfully? Worse still, he didn’t want anyone to know how out of place and insecure it made him feel.
He glanced around as they exited the elevator into an empty hallway. Other doors were closed and the well-lit hall had highly polished hardwood floors. It appeared very utilitarian and clean. Her heels clicked on the shiny floor. She opened the door to unit sixteen. Once inside, she walked towards the kitchen and set down a packet she