I could still feel Dane’s rough stubble against my cheek and his bruising kiss against my lips. Damn him. I was still shaking.

“Hey...you okay?” Huck’s eyes darkened as he took me in. “Who the hell was that?”

“That was Dane.” It hurt to even say his name out loud. “Ran into him earlier and he convinced me to meet him for dinner.”

“Dane? As in Dane Blackthorn?” Huck cursed under his breath, not looking happy with me. And I couldn’t blame him when he’d been the one who’d taken care of me when I was too devastated to even get out of bed. “What the hell were you thinking?”

Yet instead of being angry with me, he pulled me into his strong arms and held me tightly to him, kissing the top of my head. I let out a ragged breath, trying to clear my head and calm my racing thoughts. “What would I do without you?”

“You’d probably do something incredibly stupid.” He let me go and grabbed his jacket. “I hate that I have to run. Are you going to be okay? I can call in if you need me to stay.”

“No...go. I’ll be fine.” Huck usually worked the night shift as an ER doctor over at the hospital, and I knew how crazy things could get. Everyone depended on him being there. “I don’t want to keep you—and I don’t want you worrying. I’m just going to grab my book and hop in the tub. Spend the night taking it easy.”

“Call me if you need anything, and don’t go wasting your time thinking about Blackthorn. He isn’t worth getting upset over.” Huck cupped the back of my neck and pulled me to him, pressing his forehead to mine. “And if he shows up here, you’re to call me immediately. Am I making myself clear?”

“Just go. You worry too much.”

He kissed the tip of my nose and then was off, leaving me to an all too quiet house with nothing but my thoughts.

I still couldn’t believe I’d run into Dane—and at GTC, no less. What the hell was he thinking? The amount of trouble he could get into... Yet I knew what a tight-knit family the Blackthorns were, and I probably would have been more shocked to know that he hadn’t stepped up to help his brother. And though what he was doing was illegal, it was honorable that he was putting himself in jeopardy to help his family. Not that it changed anything.

He’d still devastated me.

I filled the massive soaking tub, grateful that Huck had such an amazing home, and that he’d insisted that I move in with him when my landlord decided to put my place on the market. And though I could have bought the place I was renting, it’d had more problems than not, and hadn’t been worth the money he’d been asking. But that meant I was now living in an amazing home, with a spa-like bathroom most girls could only dream of.

With everything I’d need for a nice long bath close at hand, I gingerly slipped into the steaming hot water, ignoring the sting of heat against my skin, as my naked body adjusted to the temperature. Finally...the tension that had knotted my muscles from the moment I ran into Dane slowly started to ease, my body relaxing as I floated in the delicately scented water.

Fucking Dane Blackthorn. Of all the people to come crashing back into my life...

I told myself I couldn’t let my mind keep straying back to him, but it was damn hard when it’d been such a shock to see him again. And damn it, but he looked so fucking good. Better than any man ought to.

I hated that I’d never gotten over him—and my life sure as shit would have been a whole lot easier if I had. But here I was, still hung up on him. No wonder I was still single—not that Huck wasn’t more than willing to break free of the friend zone. But what was the point? We both knew I was still in love with Dane—even if I couldn’t bear to have anything to do with him. And there was no point in ruining our friendship when any relationship between us would be doomed from the start.

I picked up my book, needing the distraction—only to realize that the book I’d been reading was now a woeful choice, given that it was a scorching-hot romance. I groaned and set it aside, thinking that my attempt to relax was futile—and then, as if sealing my fate, there was a pounding at my door.

Not that I was going to answer it, since I was alone. The last thing I needed to top off my day was to be raped and murdered by a deranged psychopath.

Except that the pounding continued, until I found myself stepping out of the tub and throwing on my bathrobe to figure out what the hell was going on. I half expected to find the cops standing on the porch when I peeked through the glass flanking the door. But of course, it wasn’t the cops.

It was the bane of my existence.

Dane.

“Go home, Dane.” There was no way I was letting him in.

“I already tried that. And it didn’t fucking work.” He paced in front of my door before turning to me, putting his hand to the glass. “I need to talk to you, Avery...please.”

“That’s not fucking happening. There’s nothing to say.” Nothing that could change what happened between us, even if I found a way around my hurt and bitterness.

“I love you, Avery. Doesn’t that count for something?”

He pleaded with me through the glass, tugging at every emotion I had left for him until I found myself unlocking the door, coming face-to-face with him.

“Why are you even here? And to answer your question—no. It doesn’t count for a whole lot after the way you chose to end things.” My heart hammered inside my chest, knowing I was playing with fire. Because no matter how much he hurt me, my body’s reaction to him had always been immediate, and my soul couldn’t help but be drawn to him, as if it had found its missing half.

“I know. Believe me, not a day goes by that I don’t think about what I did to you. But seeing you again has made me realize just what you mean to me. I’m tired of lying to myself, Avery.” Dane closed the distance between us, tangling his fingers in my wet hair as he cupped my face in both his hands and bent his head to mine. “I know you’ve moved on, but for me, there will never be anyone else but you. I’ll never get over you.”

“Sorry, but I’m not buying it. Now if you could please go, I’d appreciate it.”

“Baby...I’m not going anywhere.”