“Yeah,” he chuckles. “She will be. In about six months or so.” I frown at his answer. “She’s pregnant.”

“Oh,” I whisper.

He casually paces to the door and knocks gently. “You okay, babe?”

“No,” the girl answers with a groan from behind the door.

Shit. I hope she doesn’t think I’m treading on her toes. I never came here for a man, let alone someone else’s, but I know how women work and I don’t want her thinking that’s my motive. He could at least have told me before I came here. I sling my bag over my shoulder and pick up the handle of my suitcase.

“What are you doing?” Torran asks, coming back in to the room.

“I didn’t realize. I’m sorry. I don’t want to make any trouble for you,” I stutter, stepping forward to leave.

“What?” He frowns then looks between me and the closed door. “Oh. You mean Meg?”

“Yeah. I don’t want her thinking I came here to−”

“To what?” He steps closer to me, there’s a body’s width between us and due to his height and my lack of it, my eyes are at his chest level, watching its rise and fall quickening. I slide my gaze up to his, and I’m caught in his amused glare.

“Uh, I should go.” But my feet won’t move.

He lets his shoulders relax and smiles gently at me, breaking the tension a little. “Meg isn’t my girlfriend. She’s a friend, and my receptionist. And if she was my girlfriend, she would be fine with you being here and having coffee with me because we’re friends, right?”

“Friends,” I muse.

“Yes. Friends. That is why you’re here, isn’t it?” he smirks and I narrow my eyes at him.

“You’re a fucking asshole, do you know that?” I stomp my foot and scowl at him, but he takes no notice of me whatsoever.

“Yep.” He barks out a laugh. “Firebird, I thought you were badass, but you’re so easy to wind up!”

“Shouldn’t you check to see if your friend Meg is okay?” I grumble, feeling a little embarrassed, but also trying to hide the smile that forces its way from my lips.

“She does this twenty times a day at the moment. It’s a waste of time her being here.”

“Then why don’t you be a good boss and send her home on paid sick leave?” I prop my suitcase back up and push a hand in to my cocked hip.

“Well, smartarse, I would do that but I know she won’t go unless I have a replacement and I don’t have one.” He turns to finish making the coffee.

“I’ll do it,” I blurt out before my brain has even processed what I’m saying.

“You?” he laughs dropping the teaspoon on the worktop.

“Uh. Ummm. Yeah, I”

“Well, I suppose it would be great for business to have a new face behind the desk. And you’re pretty cute.”

“Cute?” I snap, my voice raising an octave.

“Yeah,” he laughs raising his brows in jest. “Cute.”

“You can wipe that smirk off your face. I am not cute.” I point my index finger at him, trying to sound as stern as possible, but it’s not working. Not with him at least. In fact, he takes no notice of me whatsoever, again.

“You really wanna work here?” he asks seriously. “I mean, it makes sense to let Meg have some time off.”

“I guess it wouldn’t hurt for a few weeks. Just until she starts to feel better. How hard can it be?”

Torran extends his hand out to me and I hesitate before slowly placing mine in his, and we shake on it.

A fresh start. A different direction. New friends.

Chapter 11

“Spike?” I hear Denham’s heavy footsteps come through the apartment as he calls. “Spike?”

“Jeez. Where’s the fire?” I mutter under my breath. “I’m in here,” I call from my bathroom.

“Hey, uh, what’s going on?” He takes in my smartly dressed appearance and looks at me with a tightly scrunched brow. “No joggers. No scrappy old tee-shirt. Who are you and what did you do with my brother?” He chuckles at his lame attempt at a joke and leans against the door frame.

“FYI, joggers and a tee are probably the most comfortable clothes I could wear when I’m stuck in this chair for at least twelve hours a day, but I decided I could put up with these pants for a couple of hours.”

“The chair isn’t comfortable?” He steps forward, worry crossing his features.

“D,” I sigh, “This chair is the best that your money could buy. Don’t read too much into what I’m saying. It’s as comfortable as it can be. But when you sit for hours on end with very little movement, you could be sitting on a fucking Lay-Z-Boy and your body would still hurt.”

“I hear ya.” He nods curtly, his lips pulled thin. “So, you just decided to smarten up?”

“Yep. That’s what usually happens when you’re going out for the night.” I throw the comment out there, trying not to make a big deal out of nothing. Well, what should feel like nothing, anyway.

“You’re going out?” His voice raises with surprise.

“Yeah.” I push my chair forward and grab my watch from the dresser before fastening it on my wrist. “Why?”

“Nothing, I just … I mean …”

“Lost your words, D?” I question with a smirk on my face. I knew this would surprise him. In fact, I surprised myself when I decided it was time to take my life by the horns and try to live at least some of it.

“Well, you gotta admit, it’s not like you’ve been partying every Saturday since it all happened, is it?”

“No, and I decided that’s going to change.” I sit up straight in my chair, looking directly up to Denham. He looks at me with a mixture of worry and admiration. “I’m sick of hearing myself moaning. I hate the fact that I mope around in this apartment day in, day out, and although nothing has changed, and I still hate my life and the whole unfair, fucked up situation, I might as well be fucked up in the bar with a Jack and coke in my hand.”

“Wow.” He raises his brows then blinks. “Not sure where that all came from, but I agree.”

“Well, it came from Tara. She’s pretty clued up, even if she acts like a fucking teenager sometimes.” Thinking of Tara and her simplistic outlook on life make me smile one of the most genuine smiles I have done in a long time.

“Tara?”

“Yes. You know we went out for lunch last week? She kinda gave me a good talking to.”

“Oh, I can imagine,” he laughs, rolling his eyes.

“And I know it might have taken a while to sink in, but I think it worked.”

“Good. Here …” He picks up my cell from the top of the chest of drawers next to him and tosses it to me. “You’re going to need that then. So where are you going? Who are you meeting up with?”

“I’m going to Hell,” I joke, playing on the name of the bar downstairs. Heaven and Hell. “I thought I’d see if there were any familiar faces down there. Can’t face going out on the strip at night just yet.” My breaths shorten at the thought of being exposed to the world like that. It’s too soon for me. I know this fear should be loosening by now, but I can’t pry its claws from my chest.

“Hey, a week ago you wouldn’t have left this apartment, so downstairs is a huge step, man. One at a time.”

I grab my aftershave from the counter and spray some on. Good to go. “All set.” I take a deep breath, tamp down the nerves that are starting to make me twitchy and push the electric wheels forward. Denham moves aside to let me pass and follows me through to the lounge.

“I’ve got a few things to do, then I’m supposed to be picking Ari up from a dinner meeting she has with Beth and some suppliers. But I can cancel if you want me to?”

I frown at him and tilt my head, wondering if he’s talking to me or himself. “What? Why would you need to cancel?”

“I thought maybe you’d want me to come with you.”

“Nah, man. This is something I have to do and I think I can be stronger if I’m forced to just deal with it, ya know? Besides, if it gets to be too much, I’ll just come back up here. Easy as that.” I make light of it, pretending that it really isn’t a big deal, the smart clothes and expensive cologne masks the smell of fear, but the reality is, I’m fucking terrified.