The Wrong Brother (a perfect for you novel Book 1) Page 7

  “You don’t want one?”

  “You know what I want.”

  She wanted to ask, “Me?” Because that was what she wanted. She wanted him to want her—desperately.

  Of course, she couldn’t blurt that out.

  She walked around the counter toward the dining room that connected with the living room. She took a few steps near Jaxson, tossing him the beer.

  He caught it with ease. His mouth started to open as if he wanted to ask why she was throwing it at him when he noticed Dane standing behind her.

  “I didn’t hear the knock on the door. Who’s your friend?” Jaxson asked, casually, although he eyed Dane like a suspect in a lineup.

  “I was wondering the same thing. What does ‘partner’ mean, exactly?” Dane’s eyebrows burrowed further into a frown.

  Gabby shifted so she could see them both. “Partners. You know, as in work partners.”

  “Work? What do you really do, besides take a job under false pretenses?” Dane asked with a strained breath. His jaw clenched, then unclenched.

  She wanted so badly to walk up to him and smooth her hand across his scruffy jaw, relax the tension in his features. Erase the pain she put in his eyes.

  Jaxson stood up. “Oh, shit, is this him?”

  “If by him, you mean, Dane Holloway, then yes,” Gabby replied, her heart breaking. She honestly had no idea what to say or do anymore. The situation was becoming more awkward as each minute passed.

  And, for the first time, she didn’t do awkward so well. Where was her usual spouting out whatever came to the tip of her tongue? Her loose lips. Her sarcasm. Her finesse with words in any situation.

  “Interesting,” Jaxson said with a sleek smile.

  She responded with a glare.

  Jaxson could rankle her nerves without even speaking. His sly smile inched up a notch as he looked at Dane. “We work for the NYPD, in the homicide division. We’re partners.”

  “You’re a detective?” The shock coated Dane’s features from his eyes to the aching frown to the subtle way he jerked back.

  “Clearly not a very good one.” She couldn’t hold in the ridiculous laughter. Nothing was funny, but it slipped out.

  She raised one of the beer bottles to her head to cool herself down and the raging headache she could feel coming on.

  “Hey, Gabs, why don’t I step outside on the balcony. You two can talk.” Jaxson walked around the couch to the sliding glass doors, then turned toward Dane. “Let her speak before you judge. You can be pissed, that’s your right. But Gabs doesn’t do anything unless it’s important to her.”

  Gabby waited until Jaxson stepped outside, then walked around Dane with a wide birth, careful not to touch him, and stepped back into the kitchen. Because if she touched him, she might crumble to pieces, and that was the last thing she wanted. She refused to let him see her in a moment of weakness.

  She put the two beers back in the fridge and turned around, wondering if Dane followed her.

  Of course, he had. She wasn’t sure why she thought he might leave. His expression still wasn’t inviting. He looked like he wanted to punch something.

  “Maybe I wanted a beer.”

  She scoffed. “Then you should have grabbed it when I offered.” Her face morphed into sadness. “I’m sorry, okay? You have every right to be mad at me. What did your brother say? That’s why you’re here, right? He told you.”

  He leaned against the counter, folding his arms and legs like he used to do in his office when they had their little spats.

  God, it felt like a lifetime ago. Had they only known each other for a short week?

  “My brother is a known liar. He lies more than he tells the truth. I wanted to hear it from your lips. I told myself it didn’t matter. That you didn’t matter. But it does matter.”

  She folded her arms as well but didn’t lean against the fridge where she stood. “My best friend, Mia, was dating your brother. She came to me last week, saying she thought he was cheating. I told her to dump his ass if that was the case. No man who does that is worth the time. She wanted proof. She begged me to apply for his temp secretary position and find out the truth. She wanted solid proof before she accused him of anything. I’ve never been able to say no to her.”

  “Why? Why can’t you say no to her?”

  Dane waited for her to answer. He could see it was a difficult one to answer.

  Interesting.

  The array of emotions that flashed through her eyes told him it was a very complicated answer.

  So strange. Why was it so complicated?

  And why did he want to pull her into his arms and smooth her erratic emotions away?

  “I just can’t. She didn’t realize your brother stole your secretary and that you were the one needing a new secretary. She didn’t even tell me that Champ had a brother. She didn’t know that. She simply said his name was Champ Holloway. I never heard anyone call you anything other than Mr. Holloway. I just assumed you were him. Doesn’t show very good detective skills on my part, does it?”

  Her version wasn’t much different from Champ’s. He couldn’t figure out why he had come here. He told himself he would forget her with ease.

  Except he hadn’t.

  He dreamt about her all night. The entire day crawled at a pace with nothing but her on his mind. Suddenly, he found himself at her doorstep.

  The minute she opened the door, he wanted to yell his rage at her for lying.

  The other part of him wanted to grab her into his arms and kiss the daylights out of her, like now.

  “So, what did you tell her? You worked an entire week with me. I imagine you came home every night and gave her updates. What did you tell her?”

  Why was he torturing himself? What did he expect her to say? That she thought of him in sexual ways she shouldn’t—like he stupidly had all week.

  “I told her that you work too much. That I didn’t think you were cheating on her. That if you were cheating on her, it was with your work, not a woman.” She took a step toward him. “You do work too much, you know. We saw the Statue of Liberty today. I thought of you. You don’t even appreciate the view from your office. You need to get out more, Dane. You look tired.”

  “I would never cheat on a woman. I’m not my brother.”

  He didn’t want to focus on the “we” part of that conversation. She had to have been talking about her partner Jaxson. Jealousy, an emotion he had never felt before regrading a woman, flooded his system. Hit him straight in the heart like an arrow hit a bullseye. She shouldn’t be doing anything other than working with that man.

  “That’s what I told her. But it doesn’t matter because I was working for the wrong brother. I’m sorry for deceiving you. I couldn’t care less about Champ’s feelings, but you, I never meant to hurt you. I’m sorry, Dane.”

  Before Dane could respond, not even sure how he should—because damn it, he still wanted to kiss her breathless despite the fact she lied—the front door opened. Small clicking sounds reverberated through the hallway. A beautiful redhead stuck her head into the kitchen, faltering in her steps when she saw him leaning against the counter.

  “Hey, Gabby. I didn’t know you had company."

  “Yeah, lots of company right now. My life’s never this busy, and suddenly, it is.” Gabby blew out a breath, pointing at Dane. “This is Dane. Cha—”

  “Champ’s brother,” the woman finished for her. “It’s all my fault. I made her do it. Don’t hate her.”

  So, this was Mia. His brother was a complete idiot for cheating on such a gorgeous woman. Beautiful red hair that cascaded around her shoulders in simple, yet perfect waves. Her deep brown eyes shined with glory as the makeup surrounding her eyes grabbed your attention. She wore bright red lipstick that screamed to a man, “kiss me!” She had on a tight black dress that showcased her every curve, giving her an elegant yet trendy feeling. Her high heels reminded him of Gabby and how they’d probably hurt Gabby’s feet if she were wearing them.


  His eyes glided to Gabby for a brief second.

  Long brown hair with a tint of red. It looked a bit messy. Windblown, most likely. She said she had taken a ferry ride. Yet, on her, it looked sexy instead of making her look like she had a rat’s nest. No makeup, except for a light shade of pink lipstick. Loose lounging pants and a ratty old t-shirt that looked like she wore all the time, indicating it was a favorite.

  Gabby looked ready to relax for the night and veg out in front of the TV.

  Her friend Mia looked ready for a night out on the town.

  Dane wanted Gabby more and more with every breath he took, with every short glance her way.

  But she lied to him.

  “I’m sorry what my brother did to you,” Dane said. He wasn’t even sure why he apologized. He hadn’t done anything wrong. He never apologized for his brother, either. That was a first.

  “Uh, thank you.” Mia shifted on her feet and didn’t meet Gabby’s eyes as she asked, “Is someone else here? What did ‘lots of company’ mean?”

  “Jaxson’s on the balcony.” Gabby glanced at the clock. “Why aren’t you still at work? You look a little too dolled up right now.”

  Dane looked over at Mia, taking in her outfit once again. She was a beautiful woman. She wasn’t Gabriella, though. He knew everyone kept calling her Gabby or Gabs, but he could only see her as Gabriella. He would continue to call her only that.

  “I needed…you know, some time off. I wanted to pop in and say hi. You were out cold this morning when I left, I wanted to make sure you were okay.”

  “I’m fine. But you’re hiding something from me. Let me see your phone,” Gabby demanded, holding out her hand.

  Mia circled the island counter, moving farther away from Gabby and more toward him. “There’s nothing on there of importance.”

  “Mia! Did Champ call you? Are you seriously thinking about seeing him again? I worked a whole week with the wrong man just to find out if that man was cheating on you. Newsflash—he was!”

  “I know. I hear you. I need to get a few of my belongings from his apartment. He asked me to come get them and talk a little. That’s all,” Mia said in a small voice.

  “You are not dressed for a little trip to get your belongings. But if that’s the case, I’ll go with you.”

  “Can we not do this in front of his brother? I’ll be fine on my own. I—”

  “You’re not going there alone,” Jaxson interrupted, popping in as if out of thin air. He took a place close to Dane, glancing between Gabby and Mia. “You’re not going there either, Gabby.”

  “Oh, you’re going to stop me?” Gabby shoved a hand on her hip, raising her brow in defiance.

  Dane wanted to chuckle at her cute stance. So fierce and demanding. It reminded him of the times she reprimanded him in the office.

  “Unless I miss my guess, you haven’t finished talking it out with Dane. And you should. Not to mention, you have a hot head sometimes.” Jaxson shook his head, rolling his eyes. “All the time. You wanted to punch the man in his office when he was screwing the woman on his desk. I’m not sure you can control your impulses this time.”

  Jaxson looked at Mia. “Did you hear the part where I said he was screwing another woman on his desk? You’re a beautiful woman, Mia. You’re amazing. You have the best friend in the world who took a vacation from her real job to help you out in some crazy scheme. If she would’ve told me about it, I would’ve talked her out of it and helped you handle this guy. You deserve better. You shouldn’t even be contemplating going back to this asshole.”

  Jaxson glanced at Dane. “No offense to you. I know he’s your brother.”

  Dane shrugged, suddenly not so worried. The jealousy vanished—almost, but not quite—as Jaxson’s concern for Mia was clear. “He is an asshole.”

  Jaxson nodded with a smile. “See, even his own brother thinks so. I’ll go with you to get your stuff. You can go exactly like that, even though it’s a little too beautiful, in my opinion. But hey, we can use that. We can shove it in his face. I’m your new date for the night. That’ll grate on his nerves. Trust me.”

  Mia bit her lip, the indecision clear.

  Dane stood up from the counter. “My brother is a liar. He’s not worth your time. Go with Jaxson and get your things, then leave without another word. It’ll irk my brother to see you arrive with another man. I almost wish I could see it.”

  “Wow, you really don’t like him, do you?” Jaxson asked with a small laugh.

  Dane turned toward him. “Only when I have to.”

  Dane waited with the other two for Mia’s decision. He wanted to push her and Jaxson right out of the apartment. He had made up his mind. He was done being mad at Gabriella.

  And he wanted her all to himself now.

  “We could be here all night with your indecisions. Gabby makes executive decisions all the time for you. I’m making one right now. I won’t see you dating that guy again.” Jaxson rounded the counter, placing his hands on her shoulders. He pushed her forward.

  “Okay, Jaxson,” Mia said quietly, as she obediently let him push her out of the kitchen.

  Dane saw Jaxson wink at Gabby and throw her a sweet smile. He wasn’t worried about that anymore. That was nothing.

  “What the hell just happened?” Gabby asked after she heard the front door close.

  “You have no idea, do you? You should brush up on your detective skills.”

  She glared at him. “Excuse me?”

  “Your partner, Jaxson. He likes your friend, Mia. I have to say I was jealous of the man for a moment. Not anymore.”

  “Jealous?” she whispered.

  He took a few steps toward her. “Jealous. I would’ve pushed them both out myself if he didn’t take the initiative. Before you quit, I was debating whether or not to fire you.”

  “Fire me? I was a damn awesome secretary. You had no reason to fire me.” She advanced at him, poking him in the chest.

  He grabbed her hand, letting the fireworks explode throughout his body at her electrifying touch. His gaze caught a large jar filled halfway with quarters.

  “I have no idea why you even have a swear jar when it doesn’t seem to stop you.” He stepped closer. Her eyes flashed with fire. “I couldn’t justify dating my secretary. I also didn’t want to lose seeing your face every day. I had such a dilemma. And now, I don’t.”

  He tenderly brushed her lips with his. The soft moan that left her mouth had him dropping her hand and embracing her within his arms as his tongue dove in. He never wanted to let this woman go, or lose the intense emotions rushing throughout his body.

  6

  Gabby tore her lips away, pushed her hands against his chest, and backed up a few steps, almost running into the fridge. “What’s going on?”

  He looked confused. “I’m pretty sure we were kissing and enjoying it.”

  “You’re mad at me. Your Scrooge-like face said so.”

  “Do I look like a mean, unsmiling slimeball right now?” He lifted his lips into a grin, washing away the previous angry vibes.

  She could never resist his smiles. Especially since he rarely smiled.

  A very unladylike chuckle slipped out. “Calling Scrooge a slimeball is a bit harsh.”

  “He almost destroyed Christmas. Everyone should love a holiday that tries to milk every dime out you for the sake of presents people don’t need.” The twinkle in his eye and the smile still brightly displayed had her heart racing. Something was about to happen, and she wasn’t sure what—or if it should.

  And he was joking with her. At least, he better be joking with her because she loved Christmas and not his version he so eloquently pointed out.

  Her lip tilted up. “You better tell me you like Christmas.”

  He closed the distance, placing a gentle hand on her cheek. “I like Christmas, especially if you like it because that means I get to see one of your beautiful smiles. I shouldn’t confess it, but I love your smiles.”

  Wow. H
ow they both thought alike, loving each other’s smiles.

  He sighed, yet he still displayed a gentle grin. “You’re right; I was furious up until you opened the door. It melted away when I saw your beautiful face again. I missed seeing it today.”

  Oh, she wanted to keep teasing about Christmas. He had made her heart pound even faster at his sweet words, but she couldn’t dispel the odd feeling he was still upset. “You’re not mad anymore? Just like that. I only have to flash a sweet smile and boom! All better.”

  His smile dimmed but didn’t completely disappear. “What you did…I don’t forgive people who lie to me.”

  She clutched his wrist, where his hand still held her cheek. “Then why are you kissing me? Is this some sort of revenge? Because I could kick your ass ten ways to Sunday.”

  He kissed her as low masculine laughter echoed between them. “I almost want to see that happen. You’d probably do it very well, as well as you organized my office. You’re different. You’ve been so different from the moment I met you. I can’t stand dishonesty.” He ran a hand down his face as a low moan escaped. “I guess I understand why you did it.” Then his sweet, delicious grin reappeared. “I don’t want an ass-whooping from you. I forgive you. Let's move on.”

  “Moving on sounds nice,” she said softly.

  It sounded so nice. It felt surreal. Like her dreams—and she had quite a few of them over the past week—were coming true. Was she in a dream right now?

  “You don’t look so sure. If you want me to leave…” Although he said the words, he made no move to step away.

  Apparently, with him, she couldn’t hide her emotions. Because when she was working, she never displayed what she was thinking.

  Her hand clamped around his wrist tightened, then softened. She needed to keep her cool and go with the flow. Not let her emotions get the best of her. Keeping her cool was always something she struggled with. At work. With relationships. In life.

  “I’ve had these…thoughts in my head since I met you. I don’t want you to leave.”