Collateral Damage: A Small Town Romance Read online

  No, woman, Anna was a woman now, and feisty as ever. I hadn’t seen her since high school, not until my brother called me and asked me for a favor. I’ll never forget the way she looked when she walked into that office to interview for the position of my brother’s office manager. She hated me. I couldn’t say that I blamed her. I would hate me if I were her too. Hell, I hated me anyway. So, as I looked at this woman in front of me, I realized that I would never have the woman I really wanted, so I would have to make do with the one I was with. Or, the one I could be with.

  “Can I buy you a drink?” I asked, giving her a sly grin.

  She raised an eyebrow and jerked her head toward the bar. I got up, slipping my hand around her waist as I walked with her to the bar.

  “What are you drinking?” I asked as we stepped up to the counter.

  “Champagne, Dom Perignon,” she said with a grin.

  Perfect. Someone with expensive taste. It didn’t take much to deduce that she was only after my money. Too bad for her, all I was offering was a night in my bed. She didn’t need to know that yet.

  I flagged down the bartender and ordered champagne for her and another scotch for me. I leaned against the bar and watched her, waiting for her to make another move. I knew it was coming. She wasn’t getting what she wanted just standing there, and since I wasn’t offering anything besides a drink, she would be forced to get to the point real fucking quick. The bartender placed our drinks in front of us and I took mine, my gaze never leaving hers as I swallowed my drink.

  She slid a strand of hair behind her ear and then let her hand glide down her chest lightly, brushing over her breast. My eyes of course followed her hand, just like she wanted. I saw the little smirk, her thinking she was winning. I took another drink and waited. She bit her lower lip. Why did girls always think that was so sexy? Hey, I’m a sex kitten. Come toy with me. Doing shit like that got you flat on your back for twenty minutes and then booted out the door. Which was exactly what would happen tonight. Maybe if she had approached me like a normal person and tried to have a fucking conversation, things would have gone differently. But this seductress routine would only get her so far.

  Deciding I’d had enough, I swallowed the rest of my drink and then took her hand in mine, leading her to the coat check. Handing over my ticket, I waited for her to do the same. Of course, she only had a wrap. It was forty-five degrees outside in Chicago and she brought a fucking wrap. When the attendant handed me my wool coat, I slipped it on and buttoned it up. She should know better. It wasn’t the temps in Chicago as much as the wind. It bit into your skin and made it feel a hell of a lot colder than it was. She could freeze. She barely slipped her wrap on before I pulled her out the door and hailed a cab. I never drove around Chicago if I didn’t have to.

  “260 East Chestnut,” I told the driver. He nodded and pulled away from the curb. I could tell by the way the woman’s eyes widened that she knew where I lived. I wasn’t rich. I was well off. I saved my money a long time for that apartment, and I wasn’t ashamed to own it. But I hated that this woman knew what that apartment signified.

  She slid up next to me and ran her hand up my thigh, cupping my dick in her hand. I slowly looked at her, not giving away a thing. When she didn’t get the response she wanted, she slowly started stroking my cock until I was hard. I snatched her hand and placed it back on her own thigh. She could work me all she wanted in my apartment, but I wouldn’t embarrass myself by walking through my building with a woody.

  I smiled seductively to soften the blow, and luckily, that was enough to appease her. When we pulled up to my apartment, I paid the driver and placed my hand on the small of her back to lead her inside. She shivered on the walk to the door, and rubbed her arms when we stepped into the heat. I escorted her to the elevator, nodding at Ed, the night guard, as we passed. He smiled and waved in return, laughing at the woman I had beside me. Ed had seen me with more women than I cared to remember. Tonight was no shocker for him.

  She stood beside me in the elevator, her confidence growing by the minute. She thought she was the one to take me home and bag me. Had she even realized that I hadn’t bothered to ask her name? I smirked to myself because this really was too easy. I stepped out of the elevator and led her to my door. Her eyes widened as she stepped inside. Hardwood floors, crisp white walls, white kitchen cabinets, a glass dining room table, a dark brown leather sofa…all those things made the place look expensive, but what sold the place was the view. I had one of the best views in the city. With floor to ceiling windows, I had the perfect view of Lake Michigan. From my living room and my bedroom, I could see the Magnificent Mile. And from the other side of my living room, I could see the ferris wheel at Navy Pier.

  “This is amazing,” she said breathily.

  “I know.”

  She slowly turned to me and walked over, her hips swaying with each step. She smiled seductively and ran her fingers down my chest. “Do you want to take this to the bedroom?”

  I pulled on my sweatpants and headed out into the living room. The brunette was pretending to sleep in my bed. She was faking it, hoping she could stay the night and get breakfast in the morning. That wasn’t going to happen. I would let her cool down from the fucking I just gave her, but when she came looking for me, she would be on her way, and I would feel no remorse.

  I walked over to the wet bar and poured myself another scotch. Walking over to my living room windows, I looked down at the lights below. I loved to watch the cars moving along Lake Shore Drive. The lake was dark at this time of year. There were no boats out there now that the lake was freezing over. I missed summer in the city. I loved how it stayed lighter at night and I could see the city busy below me. Now it was dark at five o’clock at night and the winter felt like it would never end.

  Thanksgiving was just around the corner, just two weeks away. I would be going home to Indiana, and it would be nice to spend the holidays with my brothers, but I always felt off when I was home. As long as I stayed on the farm, it wasn’t too bad. But on Christmas Eve, my brothers and I always went out for drinks in town. I wasn’t sure that would happen this year since Eric was with Kat. He went last year, but that was different. Kat was pregnant and she just wanted to go to sleep early. But after what happened with them over the past year, Eric was always by her side. I couldn’t blame him, but I missed hanging out with just my brothers. Everything was changing.

  And then there was the fact that my ex-girlfriend was now working for him. I spoke to her when I had to, but she was different now, not at all the girl that I used to know. I supposed that was my fault, but what was done was done. There was no going back and changing what happened between us. But every time I went home, I had to hear about Anna. Eric was always going on about her, whether it was how she scared the crap out of him or how she was making his life so much easier around the office.

  I was happy I had gotten the job for her, but in doing so, I brought her back into my life. It was screwing with my head. I had a good life here in the city. I met tons of pretty women and my career was never better. But on the weekends, a secret thrill ran through me at the prospect of going home. Maybe I would see her this weekend. Maybe I would drop by Eric’s office on a Saturday and run into her. It never happened, but deep down, I always hoped it would. She was the one that got away. The one I let slip away. No, she was the one I ran from.

  “Hey,” the woman said as she slipped her arms around my waist from behind. I didn’t even hear her sneak up behind me. She nibbled at my ear and I found myself swatting at her like a fly. She was irritating the fuck out of me. I didn’t want her, period. The only thing I wanted, I got from her, and now it was time for her to go home.

  “Thanks for coming over. I’ll call you a cab.” I pulled her arms away from me and turned out of her hold. Walking over to my phone, I pulled up the number for the cab company and dialed.

  “What?” she snapped. “It’s the middle of the night.”

  “I know. I have to be som
ewhere early in the morning.”

  “Where?”

  “That’s none of your business.”

  She threw her hands on her hips and scowled at me. “Is this seriously how you treat women? You take them home, screw them, and then toss them out?”

  I hung up the phone and walked over to her and stared her straight in the eyes. “Don’t give me that bullshit about how badly I treat you. You didn’t even bother to ask my name, and I know I didn’t get yours. You came here to get one thing from me.”

  “I didn’t have to ask your name. I already knew it,” she sneered.

  My eyebrows raised, but not at all in surprise. “So, you knew who I was and you came here to get what? Did you think I was going to fuck you and fall in love with you? You should have been a little less obvious about your endgame.”

  Her nostrils flared and she reached out to slap me. I caught her hand and held it tight in my fist. “Don’t you ever try and slap me again. When you throw yourself at a man, you’ll get treated like a whore. Word of advice, next time you expect more from the guy, get his name and share yours. Then, don’t fucking go home with him that night.”

  “You prick,” she spat.

  I smirked and stepped back. “You can get your shit and get out.”

  “Gladly,” she sneered.

  I called the cab company and ordered a cab for her. Even though I didn’t have to, I went ahead and gave my card number to pay for her cab. She came storming out moments later and slipped her shoes back on.

  “The cab should be here any minute.”

  “I don’t want your money.”

  “If I believed that I might have asked you to stay.”

  She glared at me one last time before walking out my door. I locked it behind her and ran my hand down my face with a sigh. I really needed to stop fucking every random woman that hit on me. I was tired of dealing with the bullshit, but I also knew there would never be another woman out there for me. Anna was it, and I fucked that up thirteen years ago.

  Anna

  “Oh, and I need you to schedule-”

  “The appointment with the Bensons,” I interrupted Eric. God, he was irritating me. The man was a control freak. He hired me to do a job, but he was constantly looking over my shoulder to make sure everything was done. I was good at my job and I knew what I was doing. I didn’t need him to remind me of every last little detail. “Eric, I’ve got this. Everything is ready for tomorrow. Go home to Kat and leave me to finish this up.”

  He sighed and ran his hand over his face. “Are you sure?”

  I rolled my eyes at him. “I swear to God, if you don’t get out of here, I’m going to quit.”

  His eyes widened and he shook his head slightly. “I’m leaving.”

  “Good,” I snapped.

  He grabbed his coat and walked out the door. When I finally heard the click of the door, I relaxed back in my office chair and sighed. Things were always more difficult when he came into the office. He always felt he needed to know every last detail of what was going on. And I understood that. This was his business, but you had to trust someone, and I would never screw him over. I wasn’t that kind of person.

  I wrapped up the last of my emails and sent Eric an email with the invoices that needed his approval. I shut down my computer and turned off all the lights before locking the door and heading out. The days were getting shorter, meaning that when I left work, it was already dark out. I got in my car to head home, if you could call it that. I lived in a single-wide trailer that used to belong to my parents on a half acre of land. It was basically falling apart, but it would do for now. I had been saving up for a place of my own ever since I got this new job. It was slow-going, but I was hopeful that in another year, I would have the money I needed for the down payment on a house. I had something very specific in mind, and that was what I wanted. I didn’t want to settle for anything less. So, if that meant that I lived in this trailer for another year, but then I had my dream house, I would take it.

  I pulled onto the road out of town and turned up the music on my radio. I was a sucker for country music from the nineties. I rarely listened to anything else. Friends In Low Places came on and I cranked the music, singing my lungs out as I drove further out of town. I turned down my road, but didn’t make it more than a hundred feet when my car started stuttering. Frowning, I turned down the radio and listened as my car slowly spluttered to a stop. I turned off the ignition and tried again, but nothing happened. The engine wouldn’t turn over.

  “Shit.” I slammed my fist down on the steering wheel. What was I going to do? I pulled out my phone and searched for a number for a tow truck. I was just pulling the number up when headlights pulled up behind me and the car door slammed. I wasn’t stupid. I was staying in the car with my doors locked. There was a tap on my window and I scowled as I looked at the bane of my existence. Irritated that it had to be him that pulled up behind me, I unrolled my window.

  “What?”

  “Are you having car trouble?” he asked. Robert Cortell. Ex-boyfriend, destroyer of lives and happiness, evil villain that probably kicked puppies for fun. And worst, total douchebag that broke my heart. I hated him.

  I glared at him. “No, I was thinking about having a picnic, so I pulled over to find a good place to stop. Leave me alone. You’re interrupting me.”

  “Why don’t you pop the hood and I’ll take a look,” he said, ignoring me completely. He walked around to the front, but just for kicks, I ignored him. I continued searching on my phone for a tow truck. I would call them and have them pick me up and take me home. Robert could go screw himself.

  I was just about to call when he reached inside and unlocked the door. Before I knew it, the door was yanked open and he was popping the hood.

  “Hey! What are you doing?”

  “Looking at your car.”

  “I don’t need you to look at my car.”

  I got out and hustled around to the front of the car where he was bent over, looking at the engine. I scoffed when I saw him. He was in a fucking suit that probably cost more than a year’s utility bills. His hair was slicked to one side, and it made me want to murder him. I hate that he turned into this pretentious suit. It didn’t really matter what he was like. I wasn’t sure why I was pissed. It wasn’t like we were going to end up together or anything. But when I looked at him, there was no sign of the boy I once knew. All that I saw was a rich asshole that only cared about money and where he could get in life with that money.

  I didn’t need the light of day to see that he was even more good looking than when we were kids. He still had that beautiful dark, wavy hair and gorgeous blue eyes. When I closed my eyes at night, I still saw him staring at me with that hypnotizing gaze. I could tell that he had bulked up over the years, not that I hadn’t already checked him out the last time I saw him. His jawline was harder, sexier. It was so wrong.

  “Did you try starting it again?”

  “No,” I said sweetly. “When it died, I just threw up my hands and decided it would be best not to test the engine.”

  He smiled and glanced up at me. ”It’s nice to see that you still have that wonderful personality.”

  “It’s amazing how decisions in life can shape you into the person you are. I see going off to that fancy school turned you into a pretentious prick.”

  He nodded. “It looks like sensors went out in your engine. It’s not something I can fix.”

  “Like I would let you.”

  “And what were you planning on doing? I mean, besides planning a picnic in the middle of the night.”

  “There’s this amazing new service called a tow truck. You call them and they take you to wherever you need to go, and then tow your vehicle to a shop for repair. You should check into it.”

  His jaw hardened and he shook his head. “You were going to call some random guy out here to help you? Do you realize how dangerous that is?”

  “People do it all the time. And besides, it’s not a random stran
ger. The guy owns the garage in town and I happen to know his sister.”

  “Oh, well,” he threw up his hands. “I’m so glad you know his sister! Because all guys that have a sister are fucking saints!”

  “Maybe if you had a sister you would have turned out better,” I snapped.

  “Just get in my car. I’ll take you home.”

  “What? I’m not going anywhere with you. I would rather walk home than step foot in a vehicle with you.”

  “Yeah, well, you’re close to me leaving you behind right now.”

  “Good!” I grabbed my purse out of my car and killed the lights. I slammed the door and took off on foot down the road.

  “What the hell are you doing?”

  “Walking!” I shouted over my shoulder.

  “Are you fucking crazy? It’s cold out, and you’ll probably get eaten by a coyote.”

  “Better that than spending another second with you.”

  I heard him jog up behind me and I scoffed. Typical Robert, barging in and taking over in any way he could. I used to like it when he did that. Now I despised him for it.

  “How far is it to your place?”

  “I’m surprised you don’t remember. You used to sneak out of your house at night to come see me.”

  “You still live there? In that crappy, piece of shit trailer?”

  I spun around and he immediately stopped when I was just inches from him. “Is that a problem? You never seemed to care when we were in school, but now it’s a problem?”

  “I just thought that you would have moved into someplace else by now. It’s been thirteen fucking years, Anna.”

  “Well, not all of us got to go off to a fancy school and get big paying jobs as lawyers.”

  “Hey, I worked my ass off to get where I am today.”

  “And I worked my ass off so I could stay where I am.”

  He scoffed. “Where, in the gutter?”

  I glared at him, my nostrils flaring in anger. “Wow, you know, I knew you were an asshole, but I never realized that you had fallen this far.”