A Love Least Expected Read Free

been.
    I picked up speed trying to weave my way through the other patrons and distract myself from the sensation of his hand heating my lower back. When I reached the table the girls had ordered another round.
    “Hey Payton, what took you guys so long?”
    The heat crept up my cheeks as guilt swamped me, but three sets of eyes demanded answers. I decided to give them a half-truth. Maybe half-truth was too strong a statement, I would give them half of the story.
    “The same old story. Some total jerk was trying to get busy and Cade swept in and saved me. Then he escorted me to the washroom to ensure I wasn’t accosted. Imagine all the trouble we’d be in if we didn’t have him watching out for us.”
    As I said the last words, I searched his gaze for understanding. I willed him to understand what I was trying to say to him through my conversation with the girls. That he meant too much to me, to all of us to risk throwing it away.
    “Hey, Kylie is your roomy still out of town?” I asked hoping that she was.
    “Sure is, won’t be back until next Wednesday. Why Pay?”
    “Can I crash at your place tonight? I just don’t want to deal with being alone.”
    “Sure Pay, no problem.”
    The sound of pity in her voice made me cringe and I studied my empty glass. The girls were quick with the reassurances that Danny had to go mistaking my request for being lonely. How wrong they were. I was always the last stop when Cade drove as my apartment was only blocks from his. The fifteen-minute drive alone with him after the interlude in the hallway threatened to be too much for me to handle. Add to that my place was empty and I didn’t need any more temptation tonight.
    I offered the girls a weak smile and glanced over at Cade. His eyes narrowed at me, his gaze filled with suspicion, but he didn’t call me on it.
    Kylie ordered two more rounds of shooters that I declined. Dawn was over on the dance floor with her flirting conquest of the evening, she never took them home. Avery sat chatting animatedly with Cade while I brooded in silence. The pangs of jealousy bothered me more than anything. Cade didn’t belong to me, he was all of ours, but the reminder fell on deaf ears.
    Already the strain of sitting only feet away from the first man to cause that kind of reaction in my body was taking its toll. The urge to move closer and tempt his resolve burned and my fingers itched to be buried in the dirty blond mess of hair. My thoughts kept drifting to possible scenarios that ended with both of us naked, sweaty and satisfied.
    Time crawled as they continued to imbibe copious amounts of alcohol while Cade and I exchanged questioning glances. As the bar tender announced last call, the girls declared we had exorcised the ghost of Danny to their satisfaction and we could go home.
    I began the arduous task of layering my outer garments to fight the bitter chill outside. Really, it was no wonder people ended up being single in this time of the year. Everyone resembled giant marshmallows, bundled in hats, coats and scarves. You were lucky to determine the gender of the people around you let alone whether or not you found them attractive.
    Cade was already protected from the elements when he announced, “I’m going to bring the car around. Stick together and meet me out front.”
    He tugged his hat a little lower over his ears, turned away from the rest of the group and headed towards the door. His hands stuffed deep in his pockets as his form disappeared through the door.
    A new pang of guilt stabbed at my chest. Maybe I’d hurt his feelings. No, that couldn’t be. If he hadn’t stopped me, I would still be testing our new found connection. If anything, he rejected me, even if it was for all the right reasons. The fact still left a bitter taste in my mouth.
    I had the talk with Danny a few days ago when I realized I could no longer stand spending time with him. So considering the timing, it screamed rebound, but my reaction to him said