Page 22 of Unofficial

If Jess can move on, well, so can he. Hell, he's the one who should have moved on already, but for some reason, he felt it was disrespectful. Now, he can be his true self.

Turning on his stool, Kade scans the room and spots a small woman with red hair sitting alone at a table. Bingo.

Grabbing his glass, he walks over and smiles. "Mind if I sit here?"

The woman shrugs. "Go ahead."

"What's your name?"

"Noelle," she says, her nostrils flaring.

How could he have pissed her off already? It's been less than thirty seconds. "Hi, Noelle. I'm Kade."

"I know."

Shit, that's why she's angry. They've met before. Did he sleep with her? He has never forgotten a woman he's slept with in the past, but he supposes there's a first time for everything. She doesn't look familiar, though. "We've met before?"

"You don't remember," she says and smirks. "But you thought you could come over here and charm me into going to bed with you. Tell me, would you have even bought me a drink first? Or would we have to go Dutch?"

"I just came to have a conversation," he says and holds his hands up in the air in surrender. For a tiny girl, she's got a big attitude.

"You don't want to ask me to dance?"

Narrowing his eyes, he knows he's never danced with this woman a day in his life. He'd remember it because she's barely five feet tall. He has over a foot on her, and that doesn’t make for a comfortable dance. "Excuse me?"

"Isn't that how you work it? Get me to dance and then try and take me home to your bed? Strip down to nothing and let you ravage my body until I'm blissfully sated and falling in love with you just to have you rip the rug out from under me?"

What the hell is this woman talking about? "I have no idea what's happening right now, but I can assure you, I have never danced with you before. I'm not sure how it would work with our significant height difference, but as for the rest of it, I'm not sure I'm interested anymore."

Smirking, she shakes her head. "Height doesn't usually matter when it comes to the type of dancing you specialize in, Kade Finely."

"I'm gonna go now..."

Just as he stands and grabs his drink, she places a hand on his wrist to stop him. "You don't remember meeting me. I'd be hurt if I didn't know you were nothing but the resident playboy here at the bar."

"I'm sorry I don't remember you. Did I take you home one night in a drunken stupor and not remember it or something? I don't really know any other reason you'd be so pissed at me."

Her drink splashes in his face, and she releases his wrist. "We met through my best friend. I think you know her fairly well. Jessica Massey."

Noelle. Jess's best friend with the red hair and fiery personality he didn't particularly care for. Dancing makes sense now. It's how he and Jess met.

Tim hurries over with a towel. "That seems quick, even for you."

"This is Noelle," Kade says, taking the towel and wiping his face. "She's Jess's best friend."

"Oh, shit," Tim says and laughs. “She’s the one who came in looking for you.”

"Yeah, I'm gonna take my tab now."

Noelle holds a hand up. "You know what? Put his drinks on my tab. I got 'em."

"What's your game plan here?" Kade asks. "Revenge on Jess's behalf? Is that it?"

"I want you to know you aren't as hot as you think you are. And the way you broke her heart isn't okay. How you treat women isn't okay. You're a damaged man inside, and I hope to hell you fix yourself before you continue your selfish and damaging ways and piss off the wrong woman."

"Like the one who just tossed a drink in my face on behalf of someone else?"

Smiling, she pulls out a fifty-dollar bill from her purse and sets it on the table. "Just remember, some of us are crazier than others. We know to cut three tires instead of four so your insurance won't cover it. Play your cards right, and you might just end up with candy on your windshield in the July heat with soda on your paint while you're working all day, letting it sit in the Texas heat. Maybe even figure out a way to sneak some glitter into your air vents. Good luck getting that shit out of your truck."

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