Patient Darkness: Brooding City Series Book 2 Read Free

mundane lives, she rose from the queen-sized bed and set about preparing herself for the evening. While her neighbors might have been winding down from the day, her night was just getting started.
    She had been ready for the past half hour, ever since she’d texted her date for the evening. A silky cherry-red chemise clung intriguingly to her chest while hanging just long enough to give teasing glimpses of her thighs. At just over five-nine, she had plenty of leg to work with, and she could look down on most people when wearing heels.
    Alex frowned at her strawberry hair, which was slightly mussed from lying on the bed. She took a fine-toothed comb to it, drawing out the slender strands until she was satisfied. She considered adding lipstick, but settled on a clear, flavored gloss instead. Knuckles rapped lightly against the steel door, and Alex glided out of her bedroom and down the hallway. She passed the bathroom, guest room, kitchen, and living room before reaching the door, and her lover’s hand was raised to knock again when she opened it.
    “Hi there,” he said, his lips spreading in a vulpine smile. The red curls of his hair stood out sharply against his black clothes. You look fantastic , she heard him rehearse in his head. A moment later, his mouth caught up to his brain.
    “Thank you, Sam,” she said, smiling at the compliment. “You’re always such a sweetie.” She stood in the doorframe another moment, letting his eyes drink in all that they could, before stepping aside and waving him in.
    “Sorry I’m late,” he explained, walking as far as the kitchen before turning to face her. “I was having drinks with a friend and—”
    Alex cut him off as she planted her lips upon his. They were still cold from being outside and tasted like cheap beer, but she didn’t care. His body, too, was cold, but she would soon fix that. Sam’s brain was still processing the comment about his friend, but she pushed away the name and the thought from her mind. It was background noise that she didn’t need to hear right now. A second later, she felt his primal urges rise to the surface, and she found herself pushed up against the wall.
    “I needed this,” she sighed, moving to work the leather jacket from his shoulders.
    “What kind of gentleman would I be to keep my lady waiting any longer?”
    He thinks he’s terribly clever, doesn’t he? She pushed him away, down the hallway toward her room. “Has anyone ever told you that you talk too much?”

Chapter Three
     
    True to his word, Greg had left a Coke in the freezer.
    Unfortunately, the timing had made it so the bottle was fully frozen by the time Brennan was able to recover it. “Hey, Greg,” he called out, putting the plastic bottle on the counter to thaw.
    “Yo,” came the dignified response from, of all places, the bathroom.
    “I can see you’re busy.” Brennan opened the bottom right cupboard, one which wasn’t casually accessible, to see which of his bottles had been pilfered by his underage nephew. If Greg throwing up in the toilet was the worst of Brennan’s concerns, he could count himself a lucky man.
    Oddly, though, nothing seemed out of place. Two dozen bottles of locally brewed beer were still in their unopened box. The bottles of Stoli and Belvedere, both gifts from Sam, still had a fine layer of dust coating their unbroken seals, and the Captain, usually mixed with Coke, was more or less in line with the volume he remembered.
    “I thought you didn’t want any of the hard stuff,” Greg said from behind, stepping out of the bathroom. Brown hair threatened to sweep down over his eyes, more representative of a much-needed haircut than any particular fashion choice. He wiped his mouth with one hand, and he shivered in spite of the long-sleeved shirt and sweatpants he was wearing.
    Brennan’s knees popped as he rose to his feet. “Just making sure you didn’t get into my stash.”
    “You have a stash?”
    “Like you didn’t already