Page 35 of Sweet Hate
“I’ll come take a look tomorrow. I’m almost finished with my current job, and I’ll talk to my client and delay starting the next, but if it needs an entire rewire, it’s gonna take some time. I’ll do my best, but I don’t wanna promise you shit I can’t deliver.”
A familiar laugh distracts both of us from our conversation.Oh no, no, no.
Lucas’s eyes widen in recognition as he turns around and promptly stands up.
“Haven fucking Blake, where the hell did you come from?”
Her eyes widen as she looks away from Mia, another old school friend of ours. She lets out a squeal and runs across the bar, launching herself into his arms like a fucking spider monkey.
Where the fuck was my monkey greeting?
Well, maybe if you hadn't acted like a total asshole, you’d have those delicious thighs wrapped around your waist right now instead of his.
I can see her pink sneakers sparkling where they are crossed around his back—wait, is he holding her ass?
He fucking is.
My nostrils flare in rage as I stare at his hands. I want to cut them off. The relaxed, wide smiles they both have on their faces while his fingers flex on her ass makes the whiskey churn in my gut. If he doesn’t put her down soon, there’s a strong possibility he won’t live to see another day.
You’d never be able to hide the body.
Despite the jealous rage ripping through me, I can’t tear myeyes away. She looks incredible tonight wearing a short blue denim dress, with buttons that run from tits to mid-thigh. My hands itch to undo those buttons and explore what ridiculous scrap of lace she has hiding under there to taunt me with today.
But then she plants an almighty kiss on Lucas’s cheek, and I see red. I don’t want her lips anywhere near Baby Thor. The urge to walk over, rip her out of his arms and carry her out of here like a caveman is strong.
No. Don’t do it.
Her lips shouldn’t be touching him. They belong to me. Lucas has been in her orbit five fucking seconds and is like a kid in a candy shop stealing all her sugar.
I grind my teeth and look down at a shredded napkin on the bar.Shit. Did I do that?
“When did you get back in town, Haven? I’m so sorry to hear about Grams’s bakery,” he tells her as he slings an arm casually around her shoulder now that she’s standing beside him.
Still. Fucking. Touching. Her.
We’re about to have a one-armed electrician.
She's totally oblivious to me sitting here. I’m invisible to her. And that shit hurts.
Mia strolls over and greets me with a hug, finally alerting Haven to my presence. The arch of her brow is all I get before she turns her attention back to Lucas.
I down my nearly full glass to keep me from doing something I’ll likely regret. Thank fuck I’m not working for a few days. Cap wouldn’t be happy with his lieutenant storming in hungover tomorrow, especially with the rumors floating around about his retirement. If I want a chance at becoming firehouse captain and hitting my career goal, I can’t be getting wasted.
However, that thought does nothing to stop me now as I signal the bartender for another.
She’s wrecking my control and fucking with my life both personally and professionally, and she doesn’t even know it.Hell, I might as well not be here. Lucas seems to have forgotten all about me too.
Surreptitiously, I watch her interacting with our friends. She’s different. Confident. Self-assured. No longer seeking me out with her eyes for reassurance like she used to.
I hate that.
Don’t get me wrong, not because she’s confident. I fucking love that. Seeing her rip into Leroy will go down in history as one of my favorite memories of her.
But it also shows how far we’ve grown apart. She doesn’t need me anymore.
That’s fine.
I don’t need her either.
