ARROGANT BRIT (A BRITISH BAD BOY ROMANCE) (20 page)

I laughed at the gesture, pulling him into a
heavy embrace. As we separated, Sam drew close, and we hugged as well.

“You’ll do great,” she smiled. “We both
believe in you, Dalton. Just remember: don’t be a stranger. You
can
come back out here without some sort
of existential crisis, you know.”

“I can’t thank you both enough,” I told them.

“You can stay here the night if you need to,”
Darren told me, glancing at his wife just to be sure.

“No need,” I told him. “I’m calling the rental
place and the airlines on the way, dropping the car off, and putting myself
square on the next plane back home.”

“Just like that, huh?” Sam asked.

“Just like that.”

That’s exactly what I did.

I seriously lucked out with a plane headed
back home, although the protocols of the rental lot – and the security line at
the airport itself – almost made me miss the flight.

But a few hours later, I was stepping off of
the plane, climbing back onto my motorcycle, and roaring down the Interstate
towards her apartment.

While I stopped to pump gas, I happened to
flip Facebook open. Flicking through my feed absentmindedly, I noticed a status
update that she’d posted a few minutes beforehand.

“Refreshing end to a long day. Bon appetite!”

Clara apparently had geo-location turned on
for her updates, so I conveniently learned that she was at some swanky Italian
restaurant in town.

She must be having dinner with
Natalie,
I
reasoned to myself while I disengaged the pump and hit the road. Surprisingly,
it wasn’t too far from my location – I could probably make it in about ten
minutes.

Thank you, intrusive Facebook,
I sighed. I liked to leave that
setting off, but it was easy to forget it was there once you’d checked in
somewhere once.

A few red lights and a missed turn later, and
I was parking my motorcycle. I kicked down the stand, pulled the helmet off,
and strolled in the direction of the front door.

It was only as I pushed the doors open that I
realized she might be having dinner with our parents instead… which wouldn’t
exactly be great for a public declaration of love.

Well… I’ll cross that bridge when
I come to it
.

I began scanning the tables from the foyer as
the hostess drew my gaze towards her podium.

“How many?” She asked sultrily.

“Looking for someone. Won’t be long.”

She nodded, her eyes blatantly drawn to my
broad build and biker threads, but a quick glance from me cut her attention
elsewhere.

Can’t see her from here
, I thought to myself as I
stepped around the side and began scanning the restaurant. A pit began to form
in my stomach.
What if I’d missed her?
What if she’d left before I could get here?

That’s when I finally spotted her.

Clara was sitting at a booth, but it wasn’t
Natalie with her. Nor was it our parents.

It was that ex-boyfriend of hers.

I took a step forward to confront them.

But then I paused, because she was laughing,
and the guy was holding her hand across the table. He lifted it to kiss her
knuckles, and she quieted her laughter but didn’t pull back.

Anger exploded inside my core.

My entire world ruptured around me.

I couldn’t just stand here and gawk openly at
them. Guests at other tables were starting to stare at me, and it was only a
matter of time before one of them looked my way.

Fine. Keep him.

With a heavy heart, I resigned myself to my
fate, turned on the heel of my boot, and strolled back out into the crushing
heaviness of the night.

Chapter 19

For one conflicting moment, I thought I saw
Dalton across the restaurant in biker gear. But Jeremy was making me laugh at
some stupid impression he was doing, and when I looked again the biker guy was
gone.

Probably someone else,
I thought to myself.
Besides… how the hell would he know I was
here?

Jeremy hadn’t been as monstrous as I
remembered. In fact, this had been the most fun I’d had all week… although I
was already thinking that this last-minute dinner date was a pale substitution
for the real thing.

The real thing?

I shook my head.

No. I’ve got to move on… for both
of our sakes.

“…Don’t you think?”

I blinked a few times. “I’m sorry, what was
that?
What
don’t I think?”

A resigned smile crossed his face. “Yeah,
that’s what I figured.”

“Hmm?”

“You’ve been distracted all night, Clara.
Fading in and out of our conversation. I mean, I’ve been enjoying myself a lot,
but I’m getting the feeling that you’re not really here with me…”

“What? No, of course I am!” I smiled,
chuckling in a little too high a pitch. “I’m sorry, I just thought I saw
someone for a moment. Here I am.”

I felt a slight brush of warmth as he took my
hand again, although the feeling passed quickly.
What’s getting into me? I know I shouldn’t really get into anything
else, especially not with THIS guy of all people… do I really just want a
rebound fuck?

That didn’t feel right.

I’d been half-heartedly flirting with him off
and on all through dinner, building up towards
something
, but I was starting to think that maybe this had been a
big mistake. Jeremy was clearly far more into this than I was. He could say what
he wanted, but I
knew
him, and I knew
how silver-tongued he could be… maybe it wasn’t right to lead him along…

“You’re fading out again,” he muttered,
shaking his head. He pushed his glasses back up the bridge of his nose, leaning
back and running his fingers through his hair. He was
objectively attractive, but I just didn’t have the energy for
this... or to fight his dominating nature, if it came down to that.

“Look, do you want to just go back home? We
don’t have to do this,” he told me. I sensed bitterness entering his voice. “I
was being honest when I told you earlier that I was just trying to get your
mind off things… but if you’re not going to put in any effort…”

“No, that’s not it at all…” I replied
hastily, feeling bad. I knew he was doing it on purpose, spinning my apathy as
a guilt-trip, but that didn’t change a thing about falling for the trap. “Wait,
we don’t have to do
what?
”

“Fuck,” he shrugged. “I thought that’s what
we were doing after this – just a harmless, meaningless little fuck. I mean,
isn’t that what you wanted – a rebound fuck to get your mind off of that guy?
Something to clear your head…”

I was almost indignant, but the sexy little
smirk that crossed his lips, and the way his eyes seemed to twinkle, undermined
my firm opposition to the idea.

Particularly when I started to remember just
how talented he was in bed – nothing like Dalton, but he could still make me
cum almost on command…

My mind drifted back to the conversation we’d
had over the phone.
Did we even TALK
about having sex?
It was hard to remember, although it must have only been
an hour or two before. Ever since the moment I thought Dalton walked in,
nothing else had really mattered.

“Yeah, didn’t think so,” he growled. With a
flick of his fingers, he summoned over our nearby server, requesting the check.

“No, wait,” I cut in.

The way his eyes flickered to me, and that
subtly triumphant smile on his face, told me that he was just trying to push my
buttons. This was such a bad idea… I needed to get as far away from this guy as
I could, because he could
effortlessly
manipulate
me…

But my words betrayed me instead.

“Maybe that’s what we both need…”

Was it? But this feels so wrong…

I wanted something to help me forget Dalton,
something to just get me through one more miserable night… even if that meant
dealing with the Devil himself.

Staring Jeremy in the eyes, I felt something
breaking inside me. Was I resigning myself to this? I was in so much pain…

No,
I finally admitted to myself.

I can’t do this. Even if Dalton
and I aren’t together… even if we can NEVER be together… I can’t let this
happen.

“I’m sorry,” I told him.

Jeremy’s eyes flashed with irritation.

“Excuse me?”

“I said, ‘I’m sorry,’” I repeated.

He chuckled nervously, his eyes darkly
watching me from behind those wicked frames. Jeremy was clearly surprised… and
I recalled then that he was a man who
hated
surprises.

“Sorry for
what
? Answer carefully…”

I dropped my napkin against my plate. “I
can’t do this. I can’t spend the night with you… I have to get away from here.
From
you.
”

“Clara, that’s
behind
us,” he insisted darkly.

“No, it’s really not,” I told him. “This was
stupid. How could I
possibly
go out
to dinner with you? You’re a complete monster. We were
happy
together, and you destroyed that. I’ve met someone else,
someone who makes me happy. Even if I can’t be with him, he would still
never
hurt me the way that you did.”

Jeremy leaned forward, a downright villainous
flash in his eyes. Although I knew I had the moral high ground, I trembled with
fear at what he might do now…

“Well, Clara, where the
fuck
is he now, hmm?”

“Right here,” a familiar voice rang out.

We both turned, and I gasped in shock. There
was Dalton, standing tall in his leather and watching us carefully. Statuesque
and menacing, my stepbrother stood just a few feet away – glaring with every
ounce of overwhelming power that his body could muster.

“Dalton… I…”

“Oh, this ought to be good…” Jeremy hissed.

Before either of us could say another word,
Dalton was at my side. Kneeling and taking my other hand into his, he stared up
into my eyes. His fury was fading away into something else, something that
intimidated me just as much when it came from him.

Compassion.

“Clara, I don’t care about what stands in our
way. I don’t give a
rat’s arse
about
the reasons why this is wrong. This entire week, I’ve tried to ignore the truth
and respect your wishes, but I realize now that you… complete me. You make me
better. You make me
more.
I can’t
stand the idea of not having you at my side… and I know you feel the same way.”

“Dalton…”

“Come with me,” he told me. “Leave this all
behind and join me.”

I swallowed down my anxiety and surprise.
“But we’ve been over this. Our parents, your traveling, my school…”

“I’m sorry, I have to cut in a second,”
Jeremy laughed. “Did you just say
your
parents?
Like, collective parents? Are you two
related?
”

Dalton flared an insidious glare his way, but
I drew his attention back to me.

“It’s complicated,” I murmured.

Jeremy chuckled. “You think
I’m
the fucked up one? What an
interesting turn of events… I would have never guessed that your
date
was your darling
brother
…”

“I know you want this to work,” Dalton told
me, ignoring him. “This last week has been tearing me apart inside… and it’s
done the same to you. I can see it in your eyes.”

“I just don’t know, Dalton…”

Jeremy laughed even harder. “Oh, this is
seriously happening?
I thought this was
just some sort of a twisted joke, but you
actually
want to fuck your brother. That’s a new one.” He flashed me an evil grin.
“Not sure I’m into incestuous chicks, but hey, if you want to keep things
relative
, I can always make you call me
Daddy
when I’m pumping you full of my
cock…”

“Alright, asshole,” Dalton glowered, standing
up. With a quick movement, he grabbed Jeremy by the throat and tugged him out
of the booth.

“Dalton, wait!” I cried out.

Jeremy’s eyes bugged out with anger. He
grabbed hold of his steak knife, and I saw
exactly
where this was going.

“Look out!”

Dalton’s eyes instantly tracked my gaze, and
he thrust Jeremy forward into the ground as he swiped with the knife. Luckily,
he only managed to catch air with the arc of the sharp edge, and tumbled
backwards into a heap.

“Oh, you are going
to regret that,” Jeremy laughed wickedly as he climbed up from the
ground. He wielded the knife in front of himself defensively, preparing to leap
forward with a jab if anyone made a move. “What can I say, Clara? Can’t
fuck your brother
if he’s in the
hospital with a gut wound, huh?”

“Jeremy,
stop
it!”
Dalton hissed.
“There’s no
reason for this! Just calm down and put down
the knife before someone gets hurt!”

“Put down the weapon,” one of our patrons
repeated, in a surprisingly commanding voice. It was a thicker, tall man in a
turtleneck sweater and a buzzed haircut. I spotted a holstered gun at his
waist.

“Everybody
relax
,” Jeremy hissed, twitching the knife at Dalton. “Everybody
except
you
.
YOU
are leaving here with a fresh stab wound, thanks to completely
fucking up my night. I was going to fuck this girl
ragged
, and I
almost had her
when
you dragged your sorry ass in.”

“It’s over, Jeremy,” Dalton told him. “Put
down the knife. People are calling the cops.”

“No need,” the patron muttered, unfastening
his gun. “I’ve got this under control.”

Jeremy snapped, whipping towards him with the
knife. “No! Fuck you! Fuck
all
of
you!”

The stranger ducked, but he still took a neat
gash to the back of his hand. With a heavy groan, he reflexively punched Jeremy
in the face with his free fist, sending my ex-boyfriend clattering backwards
against an empty booth. The resounding sound of a
click
with his thumb told us all that the safety was removed, and
he was prepared to shoot.

“Drop the knife, son, before you make this
any worse for yourself.”