Carter Reed

Theresa and Amanda were both wide-eyed as they witnessed the exchange.

They’d been around Carter, but I knew both were still frightened from conversing with him. Theresa had gotten over her disdain for him long ago. She seemed tongue-tied around him, even after Ben’s death and staying at his safehouse until Amanda was ready to move out. They murmured quiet hellos to him but conversed with each other after that. The drunken loud state Theresa had been in was shot down, way down.

I frowned. They should’ve been comfortable enough to say more than hello to him, but that wasn’t the case. When Carter showed up, he talked to me or Noah. Amanda confessed she was still scared of him, and Theresa confided that she didn’t know how to talk to him.

Theresa said something now and Noah looked over. As he was pulled into their conversation, Carter moved his hand up and down my back again. He murmured, “I hope I don’t have to sing because I came. I don’t think that’d be good.”

I sucked in my breath. Too many lustful temptations were going through me as his hand continued his caresses. “No.” Sneaking a glance around the room, it was how I thought. Most everyone was watching our table, but the attention was no longer on their boss. It was on Carter.

I couldn’t blame them. I couldn’t even blame the media. Their obsession wasn’t dying down.

“So,” Theresa spoke up. The brave one. Her smile teetered as she caught my gaze, but she pushed forward, “Carter, I hope you’re not trying to be incognito with that get-up.”

He stiffened but glanced down.

I burst out laughing. “He was.”

He grimaced at me. “Didn’t work?”

Theresa was building more confidence. She laughed with me, shaking her head. “I don’t think you can go anywhere in this city with that face and be invisible.”

I sucked in my breath.

Carter threw me a look from the corner of his eye, but he shrugged. “I thought I’d try to fit in with The Richmond work force.”

“Good luck. That’s not going to happen,” Theresa teased him. “Too mysterious and too gorgeous.”

Noah frowned at her. “I thought you were my date.”

“We’re not on a date. I work for you.”

“Because I’m stuck with you,” he shot back, but the grin that appeared took away any negative connotation.

She gasped and hit his arm.

And the two went back to their pseudo-flirting/bickering again.

Amanda shook her head as she watched them. She caught my gaze and pretended to roll her eyes upwards in annoyance. We both knew better. She only wanted Theresa to be happy. I did too, but it was more for Amanda. She’d been brought in from the cold. Theresa and Amanda would be attached at the hip from now on. I wasn’t worried because no one understood how cold it was on the outside like I did. I’d been there, right alongside her.

My chest lifted as I took a deep breath.

Things were better.

They were going to stay that way.

There was no reason to think of the past. It wasn’t going to happen again.

“You okay?” Carter asked, touching my arm.

I nodded. “Yeah.” Managing a tentative grin, I meant to reassure him. It didn’t work. His eyes sharpened and he knew something was wrong. “I mean it. I’m fine. Just thinking of past demons.”

An hour later, the karaoke was in full effect. So was the drinking. Even Noah seemed a little friendlier than normal. And because of that, the rest of the coworkers sensed it and grew brave. A few approached the table. We moved to a back corner and Carter was positioned at one end. Noah was on the other end so the coworkers approached his side, but they couldn’t stop from glancing at Carter.

They all noticed the hand he held over mine on the table. None spoke to him. I didn’t think they dared, not yet, but they were curious. Correction, they were fascinated. After the seventh person, this time she was openly staring at Carter, I grew restless. Nudging him in the leg, I gestured to the aisle. “I’m going to refill the pitcher.”

His eyes narrowed. He knew what was going on but folded out from the table. The girl squeaked and scrambled away. She must’ve not have been expecting that he would move.

He’s not a statue, you moron. My inner bitch was raring to go, but as I started to move past him, he took my arm. Holding me close, he murmured in my ear, “It’s okay. You don’t have to protect me.”

I bristled, “I know, but you’re not a goddamn animal from a zoo that got loose.”

He chuckled, the sound brushing against me. It warmed me and a surge of desire flooded inside. Just like that, one laugh and I wanted him.

“If that’s the case, they should be running in the other direction.”

I snorted. “Yeah, well, I’m worried a few will go into heat and start throwing themselves at you.”

He laughed again. “And you have nothing to worry about in that case either.”