Chapter Two
Carina
“God, I’ve missed you,” Carina said, squeezing her friend. “Four months is too long.”
Mia hugged her back and whispered, “I’m so sorry. So sorry I’ve been such a shitty friend. That I didn’t call. That I…couldn’t call. But I’m better now. I’m…”
“Happy?” Carina interjected.
Mia’s eyes began to well, but she quickly seemed to regroup at the touch of her man’s hand at the small of her back. “So very happy,” she said, smiling at him.
Mia introduced Carina to her boyfriend, Paul, who was even more handsome than Mia had let on. Mia had also failed to mention just how far she had fallen. The way Paul stroked her back with his fingertips or how he stared at her with equal doses of heat and adoration, one would have to be living under a rock to not see how in love they were.
Without notice, she was accosted by Mia’s friend, and if the gods were smiling, Mia’s future sister-in-law, Erin. “I’m so glad you could come to our engagement party,” Erin said.
“I hope I’m not intruding,” Carina said, meaning every word.
“Not at all. Now, let’s get you a beer,” Erin said, grabbing Carina by the hand. “Maybe two. You can toss one back for the pregnant girl.”
Mia’s friends were wonderful and with every easy introduction, Carina felt herself relax. So much so that she forgot what had prompted her to call Mia this morning. With her guard down she turned, giving one astute and painfully sexy onlooker a peek through the gaping holes in her emotional armor. His penetrating gaze was fixed on her eyes, making her feel exposed and vulnerable.
“Carina, I want to introduce you to my best friend…and man of honor, Josh,” Erin said, tugging at her hand and pulling her in the direction of the man who looked at her with such intensity she could feel the heat even from ten feet away.
Carina’s phone chirped in her back pocket.
“Sorry, but I need to take this. It might be my brother.”
“No problem! Come back over to us when you’re done and I’ll finish making introductions,” Erin said. Mia gave Carina a quick hug and trotted off with Erin. And over to the man Carina could only assume was Josh.
She glanced down at her phone.
“Always loved your ass in those shorts.”
Her stomach churned and her face burned. She didn’t turn around.
What were the fucking chances…
Carina threw her phone into her purse and walked back to the aisle from which she had entered. There was no way her ex, and as of today, her new boss, was going to unravel what she had worked so hard to secure. Carina ascended the steps and made her way to Ashburn Alley, the food mecca at Citizens Bank Park. If that piece of shit was here, she wasn’t going to risk the awkward confrontation that would surely ensue in front of Mia’s friends.
Carina surveyed her surroundings, searching for the asshole she had wasted six months on. She subconsciously raised her hand to her cheek, touching flesh that he had taken liberty to pound this past summer. The physical bruises had faded completely, making no one the wiser, including her four brothers and two best friends. No. No one needed to know that she had almost married a man who had not only cheated on her, but had also fractured her face. This was her burden to bear, an embarrassing secret she had no intention of sharing.
But as much as she hated to admit it, fear mingled with the anger and she suddenly felt that confronting the son-of-a-bitch wasn’t such a hot idea. Her hands began to tremble as she read the message again and she silently cursed her display of weakness. When she finally looked up, no doubt appearing rattled and afraid, the man she had deduced was Josh was standing before her.
He didn’t speak. And he didn’t have to. The heat in his eyes spoke volumes, temporarily distracting her from the immediate threat named Eric Ross. A threat that was walking straight toward her. Carina regained consciousness and panic set in. She looked from Eric, who was about fifteen yards away, and back to Josh.
“What do you need, Carina?”
Desperate, with just seconds to spare, with Eric still out of earshot she asked, “Can you pretend…pretend that you’re with me?”
Josh didn’t have time to respond, not with words anyway. Instead, she felt his hand encase hers as he drew her close. Eric walked up to the seemingly happy couple just in time to witness Josh lean in and place a kiss on that sensitive spot right below her ear.
***
Josh
Josh released her hand, only to wind his arm around her curvy waist. Could he play pretend? Fuck yeah. That was what he excelled at. As he brushed his lips along her heated flesh, he couldn’t help but inhale her scent. Her perfume wasn’t girly or frilly, but seductive and so goddamned enticing that he had to keep reminding himself that he was playing a part.
“Hello, Eric,” Carina said. Her body stiffened in Josh’s embrace.
“And you are?” Eric asked, disregarding Carina and putting all his focus on him.
Josh slid his hand from her waist to the small of her back. It didn’t take long for Josh to decide that Eric was a complete dick. His designer duds had to have cost more than Josh’s semblance of a wardrobe. Who dressed like that for a baseball game? Even Chase, a man who had more money than God, knew that you didn’t dress like a pompous prick for such an event. But what bothered Josh the most was that Eric made Carina uneasy. That fact alone made Josh want to beat the piss out of him.
“Josh Graham.” Josh extended his free hand to shake the bastard’s own. “Carina’s boyfriend,” Josh added. The handshake stopped abruptly at the mention of the word boyfriend.
Who was this asshole?
“Josh…this is Eric Ross,” Carina said. She didn’t even attempt to hide the disgust in her voice.
“Her new boss and principal of Glenview School,” Eric said with a smug smile. “It was nice seeing you at the faculty meeting this morning, Carina. Are you eager to start the new school year?”
Josh felt Carina’s body grow even more rigid beneath his touch. This guy was baiting her, and him as well. Josh slowly caressed her back with his fingertips in an attempt to alleviate her tension. Within seconds, she seemed to relax, which brought a small smile to Josh’s face and the confidence to knock this bastard down a peg or two.
“Beautiful and eager to please. Just two reasons why I adore her so,” Josh said, bringing her fingers to his lips.
The expression on Carina’s face was one of shock and amusement. Her lips curled to form a naughty and appreciative little smile that made his cock twitch. Josh could have stared at her sexy mouth, imagining those lips encircling his cock and sucking him off for hours, but Eric fucking Ross had to ruin everything by just existing.
Eric went from arrogant to flustered. His face was the color of Carina’s fire engine red Phillies shirt. A vein just north of his temple also pulsated at an unhealthy pace, suggesting that Josh’s comment had cut the fucker off at the knees, as he had hoped. “Please stop by my office on Monday morning, Carina. A new family is registering and the student’s mother only speaks Italian. I’m going to need you to translate for her…that is, if you have kept up on your Italian?”
That delicious smile disappeared from Carina’s face. “Oh. Yes, of course. I can help with a translation.”
“Good. I’ll see you on Monday, then,” Eric said with a malicious grin. “Josh, it was nice meeting you.” Neither man attempted a handshake this time around.
***
Carina
Carina expected his hand to fall away, for those fingers to stop putting her body in a trance the moment Eric left. But there Josh stood, his palm against her lower back, still pretending to be something that he wasn’t. She was just about to thank him when her breath left her. Because now that Eric was gone and she wasn’t a bundle of nerves, Carina was finally able to fully take in the man who had come to her rescue.
He was fucking beautiful.
He had thick brown wavy hair, the kind you wanted to run your fingers through. Or fist. Deep blue eyes probed hers and she knew she was blushing. Her gaze drifted lower, to his full lips. They looked so soft. And then they parted, revealing perfect white teeth and a smile that made her legs want to give out.
The warning bells were going off all around her. He carried himself with confidence, caressing and kissing her with such ease that it was impossible not to come to the conclusion that Josh Graham was well-versed in women and sex. The type of man she needed to steer clear of. Being attracted to a man who most likely had a turnstile at the entrance of his bedroom was not wise. She felt guilty assuming that Josh might be a male whore, but God, if he didn’t just give off that vibe!
Reluctantly she took a step back, forcing him to release her. “Thank you for helping me,” she said.
“Who the hell was that guy?” Josh asked.
“You heard him. He’s my boss.” She knew her response was pathetic, but she wasn’t going to tell Josh, a man she had just met, exactly what Eric was. What he was capable of.
“And?” His brow raised. “What else is he, Carina?”
“He’s…” A fucking asshole. A lying, cheating son-of-a-bitch. A dangerous son-of-a- bitch. “He won’t bother me again now that he believes I’m with someone.” She stood ramrod straight, even raised her chin a little to give him the impression that she was strong, that Eric hadn’t just reopened a nasty wound. “That’s all that matters.”