The Harder You Fall Read Free

abandoned the dark side, or he’d be receiving special toppings on tomorrow’s order.
    â€œI hope you—” choke “—enjoy.” She placed the bacon-and-marshmallow sandwich at the edge of his desk, in his periphery without actually broadcasting how precariously it teetered. Yes, the sandwich was protected by paper, but the floor was the floor and to a man of West’s fastidious nature, it would be utterly tainted the moment the two made contact.
    Maybe she still dipped a toe in the dark side every now and then.
    Just to be contrary, she said, “There’s a life outside of computers, you know.” He wanted her to go, so she would stay a little longer. “You should check it out.”
    He never glanced her way. “Send me a link, and I will.”
    Har har.
    As she watched him click clack at the keyboard, she thought that maybe...wow, this was hard to admit but...being his friend would have been kind of awesome. Except for his weird dating quirk, he’d clearly managed to get his life together. A feat she only dreamed of achieving. He could have shared his secrets for success.
    â€œYou should be nicer to me, you know. I’m Brook Lynn’s maid of honor, and you are Jase’s best man. I can make your walk down the aisle easy, or I can make you wish you were dead.”
    â€œI’ll take my chances.”
    Frustrating man! Why did he hate her so much?
    She vividly recalled their first meeting at the town’s annual Fourth of July barbecue. She’d noticed the trio of new man-meat standing beside a booth selling strawberry ice cream cones. West had been the first to snag her interest, and when he’d looked over at her, she’d experienced an instant, full-body sizzle. Then he’d raked his dark gaze over her and his lips had twisted in disgust. Disgust! An emotion she’d easily recognized because she saw it reflected back at her every morning when she looked in the mirror.
    Big girl that she was, she’d tried to talk with him about it. Problem? Let’s find a solution. But he’d turned to Beck and muttered, I can’t be here , as if her presence ruined his good time.
    Her already fragile self-esteem had plummeted, and she’d eagerly accepted Beck’s offer of comfort. A man who’d made her feel like the center of his world.
    Until the sun had risen the next morning.
    Great. Now she wanted out of this office, like, yesterday. “The lottery is up to one hundred and thirty-eight million. I should probably buy my ticket.” She tried for a breezy tone, but just sounded desperate. “See ya around, West.”
    â€œLotteries are a tax on people who suck at math. You know that, right?”
    â€œSomeone’s gotta win, and I’m good at getting lucky.”
    A muscle jumped beneath his eye, a testament to growing anger—why anger? “Which guy are you after now?”
    Was that a slut reference? “I’ll tell you which guy I’m after,” she snapped—only to remember her bet with Brook Lynn.
    Right. Hide the hurt.
    â€œBen and Jerry, that’s who. Hope you enjoy your sandwich,” she repeated. “Or not. Yeah, probably not.” With another sugar-sweet smile, she bumped her hip into the edge of his desk. The computer parts and papers scattered along the surface rattled and shifted, and as she glided toward the door, she heard a telltale thump .
    A very black curse echoed off the walls.
    Without turning around, she lifted a hand and waved her fingers at him.
    â€œI expect a new sandwich, Jessie Kay.”
    â€œLet’s see what that expectation gets you...”
    She really needed to get out of the food-service industry. But first, she needed to figure out what she wanted to do with the rest of her life. Besides gut-punching West at some point, of course.
    Only one slight problem. So slight it probably wasn’t even worth mentioning. She’d barely graduated