Thank God it was the middle of the week, and the club was closing at two in the morning. Callie was counting the minutes until Franco turned on the lights and called it a night.

After their dinner at Gino’s, Brundar had brought her home just in time for her to change into her uniform, then dropped her at the club and headed for his night rotation. Which meant that tonight he was free and could walk her home. Or drive her. But she preferred the walk even though her feet were killing her after seven hours of running around taking orders and delivering drinks.

Breathing the fresh air and enjoying the quiet was calming. It helped her sleep better, but not always. Some nights she was plagued by nightmares about Shawn finding her; others, she kept tossing and turning because of wet dreams about Brundar doing all kinds of wicked things to her.

“What are you still doing here?” Miri asked on her way out.

“Waiting for Brad.”

“What’s the matter, Donnie can’t take you?”

The barmaid still wasn’t convinced nothing was going on between Callie and the bouncer, and Callie didn’t have the heart to tell her that Donnie had his eyes on someone else.

“I’m sure he can, but I want Brad to take me tonight.” In more ways than one. At the end of their walk, Callie intended to invite Brundar up to her apartment and have her way with him.

Miri shook her head as if Callie was deluding herself. “Goodnight. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Goodnight to you too.”

To pass the time and not look like she was waiting to catch him, which she was, Callie got busy helping the busboys clear the tables.

A few minutes later, Donnie walked in. “What’s up, Callie?”

Crap. She should have told him he didn’t need to wait for her and could go home. “Sorry. I forgot to tell you that I’m waiting for Brad tonight.”

Donnie lifted a brow. “Does he know that you’re waiting for him?”

“Nope. But he is going to find out.”

“What if he can’t take you?”

“He will have to if you’re gone. Don’t worry. I’ll tell him I sent you home.”

Donnie plopped down on a bar stool and crossed his arms over his chest. “I’ll wait.”

Stubborn man. “Why?”

“First of all because I don’t want to lose my job. No offense, but Brad is my boss, not you. And secondly, Miri is outside, lying in wait for me. I told her I need to take you home. I hope she gets tired of waiting and drives off.”

Poor Miri. Callie knew all about pining for a guy who wasn’t interested. But at least Brundar was attracted to her. He just didn’t want a relationship. Donnie didn’t find Miri attractive.

“Just tell her you’re not interested.”

Donnie grimaced. “I can’t say it straight out like that. I don’t want to hurt her feelings. Besides, she is scary. I don’t want to go on her shit list.”

Callie chuckled. “I know what you mean. That’s one more reason why you should go after Fran. When Miri sees you with someone else, she’ll give up.”

“It’s happening this weekend.”

“Good for you.” Callie patted his shoulder.

“What’s happening at the weekend?” Brundar asked, startling both her and Donnie.

Hand on her racing heart, she turned around. “Could you please make more noise when you walk? You scared the bejesus out of me.”

There was no amusement in his tone as he stared daggers at the bouncer. “Donnie?”

The guy looked so extremely uncomfortable that Callie decided to come to his rescue.

“Donnie is going to ask someone out.”

“Is it someone who works here?” Brundar was still staring at Donnie who seemed to be shrinking under that intense scrutiny.

“Yeah. It’s Fran,” he finally admitted.

Brundar relaxed. “Good luck with that. Just remember to keep your hands and other body parts to yourself on club grounds. Anywhere else it’s none of my business.”

“Yes, boss.”

Callie rolled her eyes. First of all, considering what went on down in the basement, telling Donnie to keep his hands to himself was hypocritical. And secondly, Fran hadn’t said yes yet. She might prove to be a snooty little bitch and turn sweet Donnie down.

“Are you taking me home?” She turned to Brundar. “Donnie waited to make sure I have an escort.”

“Yes.”

“Good.” She turned to Donnie. “Thank you for waiting. I hope the coast is clear.”

The bouncer pushed to his feet. “Me too.”

“What was that about?” Brundar asked after Donnie left.

Forgetting his aversion to touch, Callie threaded her arm through his, but surprisingly he didn’t pull away.

“It’s a soap opera. Miri is waiting for Donnie outside because she likes him, but he likes Fran. He was hiding inside under the pretense of waiting for you to make sure I had an escort, hoping she’d give up and go home.”

They stepped out into the cool night. Callie huddled closer to Brundar. It was a little windy, and her light jacket didn’t offer enough protection.

He wrapped his arm around her and held her tight against his side. “You’re cold. We should take my car.”

“I like to walk home. It's soothing after the hustle and bustle of the nightclub. Helps me sleep better.”

He frowned as he looked down at her. “You have trouble sleeping?”

“Sometimes. I have nightmares about Shawn finding me and threatening to kill me.” She couldn’t tell him about the other types of dreams that had been keeping her awake.

“Would you feel better if I slept by your side?”

Wow. That was such an unexpected and wonderful offer. “Of course. But what about your night rotation?”

“It’s every other day. I can come in the morning after my shift ends.”

She stopped and turned her face up to him. “That would be amazing. I hate sleeping alone.”

He grimaced, and she immediately regretted her words. The only other person she had slept with had been her husband and the number one threat to her life. Sleeping with him hadn’t felt safe in a long time.

“Perhaps you should get a dog. A big one.”

“That’s not a bad idea. But what about the times when I’m at work? Who is going to take care of it?”

“True. I hadn’t thought of that.” He wrapped his arm around her waist as they kept walking.

“I can get a cat. They don’t need as much company.”

“A cat is no protection.”

“I don’t even know if pets are allowed in the building.” Brundar should know. She was certain that he’d rented the place and not his imaginary friend, and it still bothered her that he’d lied. But she didn’t want to confront him about it. Their relationship was too tenuous to withstand a big blow up over a lie that was rooted in good intentions.

The problem was that it sat like a nasty sediment at the pit of her stomach. If she could somehow get Brundar to confess and explain why he’d done it, she could get rid of that bad feeling.

“Did your friend have a pet?”

“What friend?”

“The professor. The one who’s teaching abroad. By the way, you never told me which university he’s teaching at. Or even in what country.”

Brundar shrugged. “I don’t know. I can ask the manager if pets are allowed. Did you see any of your neighbors walking a dog?”

“No. The only neighbor I talked to was the lady in the apartment right next to me.”

Brundar frowned. “I thought she was always traveling.”

“She is. But she came back, and we had lunch together.”

Callie was watching Brundar’s expression closely. The changes were so minute, it was easy to miss them. Except, she’d learned to pay attention. Brundar might be a closed book to everyone else, but not to her.

There was the slight tightness of his jaw, the crease on his forehead, and sometimes, she caught his eyes glowing. Or at least they seemed to when he got angry or sexed up.

“Did you like her?”

“I did. She knows your friend. The professor. But she is convinced he moved out and is teaching somewhere else in the States. Not abroad.”

Brundar stopped walking and put both hands on Callie’s waist. “She must be mistaken.”

Pulling her against his body, he kissed her, his lips smashing over hers, his tongue slipping inside her mouth without preamble, taking, possessing as he backed her against a block wall fence.

She knew what he was doing, but his distraction tactic was working. His aggression turned her on, making her feel boneless, needy, hungry.

When his palm closed over her breast and kneaded, the neighbor and the lie suddenly seemed unimportant.

“Brundar,” she breathed.

Pressing his hard length against her, he pushed his hand under her club T-shirt and tweaked her nipple through her bra. Hard. “Let’s go back to the club and play. Everyone has left already.” His words came out sounding like a hiss—as if he was in pain.

Brundar was in a dangerous mood tonight, and Callie knew that whatever he was planning to do to her, he wasn’t going to be gentle and it turned her on even more.

“Okay,” Callie whispered.

She was more than ready to play.