Page 27 of EverGreene
“You’re scaring me here, brother.”
There was no way around it; I was just going to have to spit it out. “Ever moved here a little over a year ago because of some situation with her ex, and I’ve been keeping tabs on her since she’s been here.”
Cole slammed on the brakes, causing the car to fishtail and skid on the gravel, sliding nearly sideways before it came to rest just shy of the ditch. “Are you telling me you’ve been stalking a woman for a year?”
“No. I mean, yes. Technically, I guess. But I never meant for it to go beyond a simple drive by her home, or casually showing up at a party I knew she would be attending, where she saw me, asked me to sleep with her, and because I kept my mask on, doesn’t know who I am.”
“Jesus Christ, man.”
“And did I also mention that she happens to be my coworker, with whom I also share an office? She sits next to me every day and has no clue that we slept together.”
Cole stared at me, mouth agape, processing what I would be willing to bet had to be one of the top five most batshit stories he’d ever heard.
“You have to tell her, Loche. It’s not fair to her to keep this up.”
I nodded. “I know. But she actually seems to really like Vengeance.”
“That’s good, right? You want her to like you. It’s kind of the whole point.”
“Except that’s just it. As much as she likes Vengeance, she absolutely despises Loche.”
“But you’re the same person.”
“Am I, though? Vengeance is this mysterious masked man. He could be anyone. He’s exciting, whereas from Ever’s point of view, Loche is this jerk at work who only got to where he is in life because of who’s in his family tree. Loche took a job from her that she was more qualified for. He’s damaged and doesn’t deserve someone like her. Hell, after she finds out what I’ve done, she may not want anything to do with me, even if she forgives me for everything else.”
“You’re lucky Malachi isn’t in this car, because he would have smacked you over the head for talking like that. You aren’t damaged goods, and I doubt this girl would think that, either. If she’s as into Vengeance as you say she is, then try to take some of Vengeance’s energy into the office with you. Make her fall for Loche, or at the very least, like Loche. Just make sure that whatever you choose to do, you tell her. And make it sooner rather than later.”
“I just don’t want to lose her.” My words stunned even me. Ever wasn’t mine to lose; she never had been. So, why was I so afraid of losing what I never had in the first place?
“You’ve got it bad.” Cole took his foot off the brake and corrected the position of the car on the road as we continued toward Malachi’s place. “I can’t wait to meet her tomorrow.”
“When you set up the cameras, I need you to arrange for the footage to be sent to my phone as well as hers.”
“I’m totally not going to help you stalk your non-girlfriend girlfriend.”
Cole. His moral compass was always pointing due north, unlike the rest of us. Which was saying something, considering one of us is a man of the cloth.
“It’s not like I’m asking you to set cameras up inside her house. Nowthatwould be crossing a line. Although…” My mind traveled to how exceptionally grateful I would be to have a hidden camera in Ever’s bedroom right now, complete with a birds-eye view of her lying on her bed, her back arched while an orgasm tore through her body.
“No, Loche!”
“Okay. Okay.”Party pooper.
Chapter 9
Ever
My one working headlight illuminated Loche when he stepped behind his SUV to give me space to park in the ramp in my spot next to his. He frowned, watching me pull in with an expression mimicking my own.
“I really don’t need a chaperone to escort me inside,” I said, throwing my tote bag over my shoulder. The collar of his jade green button-down shirt peeked over his wool coat, telling me that, if I hadn’t known it already, it was Friday.
“Good morning to you, too, Ever,” he said, flashing his perfectly symmetrical, annoying as hell, Loche smile. His pearly white teeth contrasted with his tan skin, making them stand out even more.
One thing about Loche was that he was always put together. Every strand of his jet-black hair fell perfectly in place. His clothes were pressed and looked like new, even though they were far from it, and he always smelled like he’d just stepped out of the shower, clean and fresh like rain. But if you looked closely, the dark circles underneath his eyes were asapparent as his heavy eyelids. “From the look of you, it should still be the middle of the night. You do realize you have to get up in the morning, right? Most bars around here close at midnight, so what are you doing for the rest of the four hours?”
“Taking an interest in my personal life? I figured it was only a matter of time.”
“In your dreams.” I rolled my eyes, acutely aware that his were still trained on me, most likely holding back some snarky retort. “But really, your under-eye bags have bags. You look exhausted.”
