Page 37 of Dark Encounter
Chapter 14
Grace
"Ihate you so fucking much." I leaned toward the mirror and stared at myself. Why had I thought I had the power to bring a man like Erik to heel? He'd flipped the game on me and had me under his thumb. And the sickening part was that I loved it. I loved his attention, his affection, even if it was only when he wanted it. I jerked away from the mirror and paced the bathroom in the library, wondering if I should quit my job.
No. I'd been working at the library for years. It was what my degree was in, and scoring a job on NYU after graduating early was a dream come true. I was a brain. An intellect. I belonged in the library.
"But you don't." I walked toward the door, jerking it open and almost plowing down a group of college students. "Sorry!"
I moved into the hall as they laughed and walked into the bathroom. They had to be my age, but I felt twenty years older. Why? Glancing down at my clothes, I realized they were one of the reasons. Why was I still hiding myself behind frumpy clothes? The man of my dreams could see beyond what I was doing and wanted me anyway. At least physically.
Man of my dreams? I walked numbly toward the foyer in the library, ignoring someone calling my name from an open conference room. The gala was approaching fast, and I was in charge of a huge chunk of it, but nothing mattered.
"Grace Adams?" A handsome guy with a great smile stood at the front desk as I walked out. His button down white shirt and black slacks had me thinking cop for some reason.
"Yeah. That's me." I walked toward him and extended my hand.
The smile on his face widened as he took the liberty of checking me out. My Thanksgiving sweater had been the rage all day long. It looked like something someone's grandmother would wear to a family dinner. My bright green tights matched one of the leaves in the table decorations that ran across the front of the sweater. It was hideous and humorous. I didn't care. It kept me safe, or it used to.
"Do you have a few minutes? I'm detective Matthenson from NYPD. I just had a few questions about your brother's whereabouts a few days ago." He motioned toward the door. "Can you grab a cup of coffee perhaps?"
"Yeah. I can." I turned and walked back toward the office, clocking out and letting Nelly knowexactlywhere I would be. Anyone could pretend to be a cop. This guy was no different.
"I appreciate your time." He held the door and smiled down at me as I walked past him.
He smelled like soap and cologne. Along with his deep blue eyes and smile lines along his mouth, he was almost dreamy. Why the hell couldn't I fall in love with a guy like him? One of the good guys.
"Cole?" Erik walked toward us up the stairs as we made our way down.
"Hey, man." He extended his hand. "Funny seeing you here." Cole glanced around as if trying to remember where he was.
"I was stopping by to look something up in the papers." Erik glanced over at me but didn't say a word. "This is your girlfriend?"
"No." Cole chuckled and placed his hand behind my back. "I'd ask if she were yours."
I stiffened. Had Cole been watching Erik and me?
Erik's stern look melted into a smile. "Watch yourself, cop." He moved past Cole and me and walked into the library. I glanced back to see if he might turn around and threaten Cole the way he'd done my ex earlier that week, but he walked into the library, not turning back once.
"Something I should know?" I glanced up at Cole as we walked down the remaining steps. The pain lacing my chest had to be ignored. It would be there until Erik removed himself from my life, which was hopefully sooner than later. I'd suffer and get over it, going back to my mundane life and chalking up our hot encounters as if they were a story from a good book. A book that was read and the story was over.
"No. I have run-ins with Erik all the time. He's from a rather dangerous family, but I assume you know that." He smiled down at me and offered me his arm as we stopped beside a street light.
I took it and shook my head. "I'm not talking about Erik, so if that's why you're here."
"It's not. I'm here about your brother." We jogged across the road and walked into the coffee shop, the smell of sugar and coffee rushing out to greet us.
I breathed in deeply and walked to the counter as my heart settled a little. I needed to put things into perspective and move on with the parts of my life that I could. Helping my older brother was front and center or needed to be.
After we had ordered, I found a small table near the door and sat down, watching Cole as he got our drinks and took the seat across from me.
"Have you talked to your brother lately?"
"Yes." I took the coffee and pulled the top off before blowing on it softly. "I talk to him all the time. Our parents are too involved in our lives, so the two of us stick together."
"I see." He took a sip of his coffee and glanced out the window toward the library. "And he's older than you, but still in school."
"I graduated in a little under three years." I leaned back and glanced down to pick a leaf off my sweater. "He's president of the Sigmas on campus. Everyone loves Thomas."
