Maddy reached for my hand, and together we walked to the waiting taxi. A smile hovered on her lips as the driver rushed out to open my door, all dreamy-eyed. I slipped into the back seat. “Thank you for everything, Mads.”
Maddy’s eyes reflected pride as she closed the door and handed the address to the driver. “Have fun, babe, and make sure to call me if anything comes up. Anything, you got that? I will mama bear my way down there and take on anyone that stands in my way, too.”
From the protective look in her eyes I totally believed her. Only two years older than me, Maddy was the older sister I never had.
Pain of Michael’s words trailed after me as the taxi weaved in and out of Seattle traffic. No man should be able to hurt a woman so deeply, but he had driven each of his points home for damn sure. Maybe Madeline had it right. Maybe this could be the chance I needed to find the steel spine I misplaced somewhere along the way. A few dances with a handsome guy sounded nice. One of those drinks with the cherries, too. Maybe having a little fun tonight wouldn’t be such a bad thing after all.
“Sex with you will never happen. My dick can’t get hard for a little pathetic country girl like you. Might as well cut my losses.”
And just like that my heart tore a little more. Fucking prick.
“Miss?”
I pried my eyes off the floorboard to find the driver desperately trying not to stare at my cleavage.
Maybe I could attract enough attention to show my rotten ex what he missed.
“Yes?”
“We’re here.”
Chapter Two
Cade
I clenched my jaw and scanned the monitors flashing one scene after another of II. Just another night like any other night. I braced my hands on the back of a chair. Throngs of people wanting to be seen and heard. Everyone from desperates wanting to be accepted by the popular crowd, to old players who knew the game all crowded into the two-story exclusive club and all came looking for the same thing—the limelight.
I used to be like so many of those fools. Wanting everyone’s attention and then by the time I had it, I realized the best thing in my life was gone. Elle Morgan. I let the most beautiful soul slip from my fingers because I chased fame and fortune.
Now that I had both…
I sighed gruffly. I turned to Jace, my best friend since forever it felt like most days. He had a drawn brow that gave him a puckered face oddly mirroring my sentiments of the evening perfectly. We had been friends from day one of college, on through football and now our pro days.
“You know, sometimes on nights like this I feel like standing in the middle of the room and just picking and saying that’s the one. Fate picked and I was only the instrument.”
Scanning the other half of monitors lining the wall in our office, Jace chuckled, which only irritated me more. We’ve talked about finding someone who completed us on and off for the past year. We had selective tastes in women with the utmost on the list being okay with our darker desires of sharing our women. And able to take all our devotion to her happiness.
Nothing else mattered beyond that and a kind soul.
Sure, we dated off and on solo, but nothing serious for either of us.
To most it sounded weird, but for Jace and me, we’ve known since college at some point we would end up marrying the same woman. It happened when we unwittingly ended up liking the same girl our junior year and asked her out. Together. She might have found our indecent proposal too sinful for her sweet Baptist Southern soul, but there were a few who we thought might be the one. Then there was Elle Morgan. My God, that woman had it all—heart, soul, killer body. I caught how she looked at my best friend a few times, and it gave me hope. But our relationship was too young. I waited too long to introduce her to my darker side. I had been scared. I didn’t want to rush things and scare her off. Then she left college—no warning, no goodbye. Just gone.
“I’m serious, man. I’m tired. I just want to find someone that I can be happy with already and be done.”
Jace cocked a brow.
“Okay, we. Sorry,” I corrected.
“You’re horny,” Jace countered. “You’re never going to find an Elle Morgan in a crowd like this.”
Fuck, I hated he was right. “No one will ever compare. Half the time I want to track her down.”
Jace pointed at the bank of monitors. “Before hiring a PI and entering stalker territory, tell you what. Go down there, pick up a busty brunette, take her home for a night or two and get it out of your system already.”
I pushed up from where I leaned on the chair and headed for the sidebar in our office. “When’s the last time that worked?” I shook my head. “Waste of time. We’re not like the guys down there anymore. Way too old and I like to think we’ve matured past wanting a new woman every other month.”
Jace was quiet for a long minute and when I turned to him, something dawned on me. “Why the hell haven’t you dipped into the pool lately? Take your own advice and indulge yourself. I thought you liked all the ladies the job attracts.”
Jace stood and joined me at the bar, taking the whiskey and pouring us both a double.
“Maybe you're old—”
“—Fuck you.” I cut in.
Ignoring me, Jace continued. “I’m just tired of glitter and fake everything, especially sentiment. You’re right. It’s been a long time and I’m just… fuck it. I don’t know.”
A hand came around and Jace
