We get into the Town Car, and as soon as I’ve closed the door behind me, Louis steers the car away from the curb.
“That was really excellent,” Quinn says lightly, looking down at her phone. “I’m not going to do a big push on this one because it will look too heavy-handed, but we’ll get the photos circulating by tomorrow morning. You’re bound to get a couple of low profile mentions, which is perfect for our purposes.” She looks up at me and smiles, and I feel a little jolt of surprise. There’s something in her eyes that wasn’t there this morning. Part of it is confusion—after I got all fucking weird out there, she knows something’s up but she doesn’t know what—but part of it goes much deeper than that. She’s practically glowing with it.
I smile back at her, because fuck, she’s gorgeous, and despite all of it, I like her to be close to me.
Even if it is a recipe for disaster.
“I’m looking forward to the next one,” I tell her, both of us acting like it’s important to maintain the facade in front of Louis.
For about twenty seconds.
That’s as long as I last before I slide across the seat toward Quinn, wrap my arm around her, and pull her in for a hard, deep kiss.
“Wow,” she says softly when I pull back to look into her eyes. “What did I do to deserve that?”
“Isn’t it enough that I wanted it?”
“Wanted it?”
“Want you.”
“I want you, too,” she whispers in my ear.
“Come home with me.”
“I can’t.”
I laugh out loud. That’s Quinn Campbell—give her a direct order and she’ll refuse.
Just wait until I have her back in bed again.
“You can.”
“I can’t. I promised Carolyn I’d go for drinks with her as soon as this was over.”
This is probably some kind of sign that I should take a minute—a day, even—and get my mind right about this situation before I fuck up my entire life. “Okay.”
Disappointment flickers across her eyes, but then she gives me a sultry smile. “Tomorrow, maybe?”
“We need to drop Quinn off at her place, Louis,” I say. He gives me a jaunty salute in the rearview mirror and takes the next left.
Two hours later, I’m eating alone at the Purple Swan.
It’s something I rarely allow myself to do. I’m already off-script for a Friday night. Instead of hosting a table full of loud assholes and gorgeous women in the main room, I’m seated in the smaller, more formal private dining room at a table for one.
All I can think about is Quinn.
All I can think about is how this ends.
All I can think about is how to get around having to end it, but there’s no way to avoid it.
“Chris!” a voice booms behind me, and I turn to see my best friend in the city, Jax Hunter. He’s been a busy guy lately now that he’s married, and we haven’t seen each other in a while. His wife, Cate, is on his arm. They’re both beaming.
“Buddy!” I say, standing up and clapping him on the back. “How’ve you been? Where the hell are you these days?”
He and Cate share a conspiratorial look.
I don’t get it at first, and then Jax gives Cate’s still-flat belly a pointed look and raises his eyebrows at me.
“Are you kidding me?” I say with a big smile. Jax shakes his head. “Oh, my God—that’s fucking incredible news.” I reach around Jax and give Cate a hug.
“What about you? You got that promotion, I see! Nice work.”
“Oh, it was nothing,” I joke. I’d love to sit down with Jax and tell him about Quinn, but he’s already moving on.
“We’ll see you around the club. Maybe not quite so often, though!” he tells me, and then I’m looking at their backs as they make their way to a round table next to the picture window at the back of the room.
My heart twists with jealousy.
Then at least one thing seems crystal clear: I could have what they have, and I could have it with Quinn.
I just have to figure out how.
Chapter 23
Quinn
Something changes between us. It’s like Christian is trying to make up his mind about something, but I don’t know what it is.
Maybe it’s me.
After the Bowery appearance, Christian starts texting me—and not quick and dirty notes to plan our next rendezvous. In fact, he doesn’t ask me to come to his apartment, not on Saturday, not even on Sunday.
At first, when the messages start coming in, I’m not sure what the hell is going on at all.
Tell me about you. How many siblings do you have?
None!
Only child?
Only child.
Must have been lonely.
When you’re an only, your birthday budget is huge :) You want a big birthday budget? ;) I want a lot of things…I’m greedy.