CHAPTER FIVE

BRYAN

Opening the door, he fought the groan at the back of his throat at seeing who was standing next to his oldest brother.

“What the fuck are you guys doing here?” he asked trying to recuperate some of his blood from down south.

“We love you, too.” His partner, Tyler Thorne, winked as he stepped into the place. Tania Monroe, another detective on the force, stepped in handing him a basket.

“Happy house warming. Thanks for the invite,” she said sarcastically, and his head fell back and he looked up at the ceiling

“I would have invited you. You know, once I got my shit moved in?”

“I’m actually hurt you didn’t ask Thorne for help. Instead, you had me help lug your shit,” Garrett whined playfully, which made Bryan do a double take.

It was good to see Garrett happier than he had been in a while. His brother’s eyes glittered with amusement. “So, where is that sexy little roommate of yours?” Garrett asked, and Bryan felt irritated as he shook his head.

“Why?” he asked, sounding more pissed than he felt. His dick was finally calming down, but one mention of her, and his buddy down south had a mind of its own. He wanted to be around her but didn’t want to share her attention.

What is with the possessive semi-jealous shit I am feeling?

“I’m ordering pizza, dumbass. We should ask her to join us.”

“Sexy roommate? You told me you were moving in with a college buddy,” Ty commented, and Bryan’s hands clenched.

“Man, turns out this asshole lucked out.” Garrett chuckled, and all Bryan could do was shake his head as he watched Garrett’s face sober up and look off to the distance, his dark eyes almost fucking twinkling. “She’s looks like a walking pin-up wet dream,” Garrett whispered loudly. He could feel his blood start to heat up.

“She’s in her fucking room, idiot, so watch the way you talk about her. Remember the last time you ran your fucking mouth about a woman?” he warned, reminding his oldest brother of how he had almost messed things up between Grace and Marcus.

“I’m just saying, she is more than beautiful.” He shrugged, looking slightly chastised.

“You guys are pigs,” Tania shared, thankfully stopping him from shoving his idiot brother.

“Come on, babe, you know I think you’re a walking wet dream, too!” Garrett grinned, and the three guys watched Tania roll her eyes, completely unfazed by Garrett’s antics.

“So, are we ordering food or what, because I didn’t come all the way over here to braid each other’s hair,” she remarked, and he wrapped his arm around his tiny female friend.

“You tell ’em, gorgeous!” He grinned when she winked and caught the eye roll his partner shot him. “I’ll be right back.”

When he walked over to Valerie’s bedroom, nervousness started to flow through his bloodstream. He knocked on her door, and when it opened a bit, her cheeks flushed pink and he smiled at her.

“Yeah?”

“My co-workers and brother are here. We are ordering pizza and hanging out.”

“Oh, cool. Thanks for the heads up. Don’t worry, I’ll stay in my—” He frowned. She thinks I’m asking her to stay away?

“Want to hang out with us?” he cut her off before she could insinuate that he was that much of a dick.

“Look, handsome.” She stopped talking, biting her lower lip, and he knew she had no clue how fucking sexy she was. She opened her door a little wider, inviting him in, and he stepped into her space, making sure to leave the door ajar. I can only handle so much temptation. Looking around the space, he liked it. It suited her. White clean walls, everything light and airy and neat. “I know we keep getting caught in, umm… awkward situations—“

“Awkward?” he asked, his head whipping around to look at her.

“I just think that—“

“We are everything but awkward around one another.”

“Whatever. It’s just how I told you this morning. I think—”

“Val, it’s pizza and beer and a stupid baseball game on TV.”

“With two other cops and whatever your brother does.”

“He doesn’t do anything,” he shared, and she scrunched her face slightly.

“Whatever, it’s just better if we keep—“

“What do you have against cops?” he asked, his curiosity piqued.

“What?” She stood still, her back straightened and her face paled slightly. “Nothing, just…”

“You read a lot,” he noted, looking behind her at a bookshelf that seemed to be bursting at the seams with paperbacks. It was a lame attempt to distract her, but he wanted to hang out with her and his friends. “Romance?” he asked, tilting his head, and she rolled her eyes.

“What do you have against romance?” she asked defensively, and his lips twitched. He liked how feisty she was. How she didn’t let him give her shit. And instead of giving her space, like the red warning bells in his head were telling him he should, he took them as a challenge.

God, she is a pretty little challenge.

“Nothing.” He took a step closer to her. Feigning interest in the books behind her, letting his hand skim hers. “Do you have Beyond the Stars by Grace Rivera?”

“What?” she asked, looking at him, the tips of her fingers skimming his. He wasn’t sure if she even realized that she sought out his touch, but he would work with it.

“Beyond the Stars by Grace Rivera,“ he repeated and noticed how her eyes were on his lips.

“I have it on my Kindle.”

“It’s a good book.” He shrugged.

“How do you even…”

“I read it.” That was the truth. He had.

After his brother had declared finding the story he wanted to turn into a movie, he’d downloaded the Kindle app onto his phone and read it. Marcus and Donnie had their work cut out for them, but they were far from wrong. The story was perfect to start off their production company.

“I don’t have that one in paperback.” She blushed, and he grinned, silently wondering how hard he would have to work to create that blush all over her body.

Focus, B!

“Come hang out with us, and I will hook you up with a signed copy,” he offered, trying to keep his focus on the goal at hand, getting her to come and hang out.

“How?” She frowned, and he shrugged.

“Why does the how matter? Come on. Pizza. Cool people, well, Tania is, Ty’s alright in his own way, and Garrett’s a wild card; it all depends on his moods.” She looked at him, something playing in her eyes, but before he could ask, it left.

“Fine,” she sighed. “But you have two weeks max to get me that signed copy or you owe me, mister.” She pointed at him with a serious don’t-fuck-with-me expression on her face. It made her look so damn adorable that his heart ached in his chest.

He ignored the ache and whatever the hell it could mean. Instead, he took her hand into his and shook it, strumming his thumb back and forth over her skin, a cocky grin playing on his face.

“Deal.” He winked.

***

To say that Valerie fit into his small group of friends and his brother would have been a gross understatement.

She’d fit like a glove.

Tania was more than happy to have another female in the mix to help her talk crap to them. Together, Val and Tania ganged up on them, giving them crap on everything. From the teams they cheered for to what was ordered on the pizza. It was the most fun he’d had in a while.

Now, standing outside of the house next to Ty’s Explorer in the driveway, he was itching to get rid of Garrett and Tyler. Tania had just left, but not before exchanging numbers with Val and making plans to meet for lunch later in the week. When he’d heard that, he had to admit he liked it. He liked knowing that Val was building a bond with Tania.

Tania Monroe was a ballbuster and a badass in her own right, but she was also a cool chick. Val could do with a friend like her. A huge puff of smoke hit his face, snapping him out of his thoughts.

“Fuck, man, you need to cut back on those,” he muttered as Garrett took another hit from his cigarette. The air that surrounded them made his stomach roll. The scent of the cigarette with whatever fruity shit Tyler was vaping was starting to get to him.

“Okay, Mom. You used to smoke more than I did,” Garrett pointed out. He wasn’t wrong. Before Courtney and his marriage imploded, he was a walking chimney.

“Used to, as in I don’t anymore.”

“Look, man, I’m gonna say this as your friend,” Tyler spoke, and he looked at his partner, already knowing he wasn’t going to like whatever he was going to say.

“Don’t.”

“Just listen.” The seriousness in his voice told Bryan where this was going. “She’s hot.”

“She is.”

“She is also not your type.” That he wasn’t expecting. “I’ve known you a long time. So just take in what I’m saying as your friend. Don’t get involved here.” A low burn hit the pit of his stomach, but before he could put his friend in his place, he kept talking, “You don’t shit where you eat, B.”

“What does that even mean?” Bryan asked, his eyes narrowed, knowing exactly what he meant but choosing to play dumb.

“You know what it means. But let me spell it out for you. You don’t go back for seconds, man. After the divorce, the women you hook up with are one, maybe two dates max. That’s it.” Tyler pointed toward the door of the house. “That girl inside, not only do you live with her, so you really shouldn’t go there, but you can tell she’s different. She’s the kind who deserves more than what you usually give a woman. Not being a dick, Bryan, just being honest,” Tyler reasoned, and again, he wasn’t wrong.

Not that Bryan had been an ass with the women he’d hooked up with in the past. He had always been upfront and honest about what he could give, which was usually nothing more than a good time between the sheets.

Glancing at the house, he ran his fingers through his hair. The thought of only having her once didn’t sit well with him.

No way in hell would one time be enough.