Love Thy Neighbor (10 page)

There was a knock on her door followed by that sexy accent. “Hey, you up? It’s me.”

“Dallas?” She opened the door and found him in a pair of running shorts and a Boston Marathon T-shirt. Of course he ran the Boston Marathon. Of course he did.

“It’s a beautiful morning. I was going to head out for a run. Thought you might like to join me.”

She knew she probably shouldn’t. The more time she spent with him, the more time she wanted to spend with him. But it was just a run, right? She’d do that later anyway, so why not have a little company in the process?

“Um, I’m not dressed yet,” she said, looking down at her yoga pants and oversize T-shirt. “Can you wait?”

“Sure, I can wait for you.” He smiled and she came unglued.

“Ah, make yourself at home, I’ll be right out.” She scurried off to her bedroom and pulled her hair up in a high ponytail and slipped into a pair of old baggy shorts. She hoped they wouldn’t fall down halfway through her run.

Coming out from her bedroom with her running shoes hooked on her fingers, she said, “I have to warn you, I’m no Boston Marathoner. I’m not very fast.”

“Not to worry. We’ll take it slow.” He smiled and she wasn’t sure they were talking about running anymore.

“You know,” she said, lacing up her shoes, “I wouldn’t have made it through that wedding last night without you.”

“Glad I could be of service.”

She looked at his biceps and envisioned his buff abs through his T-shirt.

“You okay?” he asked.

“Oh, yeah. Sure.” God, she was practically drooling. She stood up and dropped her key in her shorts pocket. “Shall we go?”

Not risking the freight elevator again, they headed down the stairs and out the side door in the direction of the lakefront. It was a perfect day for a run, with a gentle breeze coming off the lake. In no time they were at the underpass that led to the water and heading south. Running had never felt so easy and effortless to Nikki before.

Off to the east, the lake was calm, the waves rolling rhythmically onto the shore. Seagulls swooped down as dogs chased Frisbees soaring through the air. The sky was a brilliant blue and the running path was alive with joggers, bikers, and people strolling along. She could see the Museum Campus coming into view.

“How you holding up?” he asked.

“So far so good.”

“You’ve got great form,” he said. “You could probably run a marathon.”

“It’s only those last twenty-six miles that concerns me,” she said with a laugh.

“Ha,” he laughed. “Seriously, the last six miles are what kill you. They’re brutal…”

They jogged along, making easy conversation, when suddenly she felt a dull ache in her thigh muscle. Not wanting to be a baby, she pushed through it, gritting her teeth as they passed Navy Pier. But less than a quarter mile later it was an absolute cramp, like a charley horse right in her quad.

“Ohhhh, shit.” She hobbled off to the side, trying not to howl as she doubled over and clutched her thigh.

“Okay. Relax. Breathe.” Dallas jogged over as soon as he saw that she was in real pain. “Is it your knee?”
“No.” She clenched her teeth and shook her head. “Cramp. In my thigh.”

“Okay, let’s stretch you out.” He knelt down before her. “Hold on to my shoulder.” His hand slid up the length of her thigh, his palm warm against her skin. He began to massage her inner thigh, kneading her skin, his fingertips reaching higher and higher, beneath the bottom of her shorts. The whole time, his eyes were locked on hers.

She wasn’t imagining it. He was as into this as she was. The heat coming off her body was hotter than the sun. God, how she wanted his hand to keep moving up her thigh.
Come on, just a little higher.
She was so turned on she had forgotten all about the cramp in her leg. She ran her hand over his shoulder and down his bicep. The whole lakefront had fallen away and—

“Dallas?” a voice called out. “That
is
you.”

Nikki saw the legs first. Long, lean, tanned. She gazed up and there was a gorgeous woman, not sweating like Nikki was, but glistening, shimmering.

Nikki’s thigh went cold when Dallas pulled his hand away. The fire was quenched, but the memory still simmered.

“Bonnie. Hey, babe—”

Great, another babe.

He stood up and gave her an embrace and Nikki noticed that the woman’s hand ran down the length of his body in an all-too-familiar sort of way. Dallas introduced the two, explaining that Bonnie was a model. Well, of course she was. Bonnie started talking about someone named Tammy being good and sore at him, and Nikki began to feel like a fifth wheel.

“You know,” Nikki said, once she could get a word in edgewise, “I should probably give my leg a rest. I’m gonna head back home. Why don’t you guys finish your run?”

Dallas looked at her as if he were confused. “I can come with you.”

“Please?” Bonnie tugged on his arm. “We haven’t gone running together since forever. It’ll be like old times, huh?”

So this was his thing, taking his women for a run.
“It’s okay.” Nikki waved it off. “Go finish your run.” Before he had a chance to protest and before she humiliated herself any further, she turned and started to walk away. All she wanted to do was get the hell out of there.

What a fool she was. By the time she made it home Nikki had convinced herself that she’d imagined the whole thing—even everything from the night before. She’d set herself up for a fall and she couldn’t afford another heartache.

Not now.

Dallas was just being a nice guy, trying to stretch out her cramp. He didn’t have designs on her. That was absurd. Men like Dallas did not go after plain Janes like Nikki. She couldn’t compete with the Bonnies and Tammys of the world. She was a chubby who had a Cinderella night at the ball. Last night Prince Charming across the hall helped her get through a difficult evening. He was her neighbor, her friend, and now her client. She couldn’t lose sight of that. From here on out, she’d keep it professional. Strictly business.

No sooner did she take down her ponytail than she heard a knock. Her heart raced and before she opened the door, she prayed it would be him.

Dallas must have run all the way, his skin slick with sweat, T-shirt clinging to his rock-hard abs. He smelled musky and powerful, and Nikki’s heart leaped at the sight of him.

What was he doing here? What was going on inside his head? Why was he looking at her that way?
Nikki, don’t read into this. Do NOT read anything into this. He’s just making sure you’re okay. That’s it. That’s all.

But then he stepped inside her apartment and kicked the door shut with his foot. She trembled as he took a step toward her.

“You didn’t have to come back here,” she said, her voice teetering on a crack.

He had hold of her with his eyes. She couldn’t move. She could hardly breathe. The heat rolled off his body and she willed herself not to touch him, not to make a fool of herself. He’d made it clear. He was there to help her make Matthew jealous. That was it.

But if that was the case, why was he looking like he could devour her?

He slipped his hand around the small of her back and brought his face just inches away from hers. She was practically panting when there was another knock at the door.
Grand fuckin’ central all of a sudden.

Nikki closed her eyes and leaned her head back.

Whoever it was knocked again. Harder this time.

“You better get that before they bust your door down.” Dallas grinned and took a half step back, his hands resting on his hips. She glanced down and saw the obvious bulge in his shorts. He followed her gaze and said, “Why don’t you answer that and I’ll try and cool myself down.”

Nikki wanted to drag her hand over the rigid cock practically shooting out of his shorts, but instead she reached for the door. She opened it and froze, shocked.

“Matthew? What are you doing here?”

“That’s a fine greeting.” He tilted his head. His sunglasses were propped up on his head and she saw the dark circles under his eyes, probably due to his restless night with Blondie. “I wanted to drop off your mail.” He handed her an intimidating stack with a big Visa bill on top. “Aren’t you going to at least invite me in?”

“Um.” Nikki hesitated and looked over her shoulder. Dallas was apparently ready to pick up his role where he’d left it last night, strategically moving closer toward her. He placed his firm hands on her hips and slipped them around her waist. There was no escaping the yearning of his fingers and the urgency of his cock pressing up against her ass.

Matthew stepped inside, and when he saw Dallas his jaw practically hit the floor. Nikki took some satisfaction in that.

“I didn’t know you had company.”

“No worries,” Dallas said. “I was just leaving.”

She couldn’t help but notice that Dallas had eclipsed Matthew in every way, from his build to his height, to his good looks and sheer magnetism.

“Good seeing you again, Matthew.” Dallas leaned in, pulled Nikki closer and kissed her neck, making her stomach flutter.

Nikki looked at Matthew. He was taking it all in. She knew him so well, she could picture the wheels turning inside his head as he tried to make sense of his ex-fiancée with this sex god of a man.

Nikki licked her lips and showed Dallas to the door.

“I’ll see you later,” he said, giving her another brush of his lips against her cheek, heating her up all over again.

As soon as they heard Dallas’s front door close, Matthew tossed Nikki’s stack of mail on the table.

“So what’s going on?” he said. “You’re already hooking up with your neighbor?”

“We went for a run, that’s all.”

Matthew looked wounded.

“What’s wrong?”

“I guess I didn’t expect you to find a new quote unquote
running
partner so soon.”

“You’re a fine one to talk. You had a date last night,” she protested.

“Yeah, but that dude lives right across the hall from you.”

“You know, for a man who said he wanted out of this relationship, you’re sounding really jealous.” It struck her that even though this was the exact response she’d hoped to induce from him, she wasn’t happy about it. No, now she was annoyed. Maybe she was kidding herself, but who knew what might have happened with Dallas if Matthew hadn’t barged in. She and Dallas were on the verge of something, and Matthew had interrupted it.

“I’m not jealous, Nikki. You’re really vulnerable right now and you shouldn’t be jumping into anything—especially not with a player like that.”

Classic Matthew. No wonder he was such a brilliant lawyer. Master manipulator, an expert at twisting facts and situations to his benefit.

“What makes you think he’s a player? Is it because he’s so good-looking?”

“Because you just can tell.” Matthew swatted his hand through the air. “And what was that bullshit last night on the dance floor?”

“That’s none of your business anymore, Matthew.”

“Listen, I didn’t come over here to fight with you. I swear I didn’t. I wanted to bring you your mail.”

Right, my mail.
Suddenly he had to bring over her mail that had been piling up for the past six weeks.

There was another knock at the door.

“Hey dude, back off, okay?” Matthew snapped.

“Jesus, Matthew,” Nikki reached over and opened the door expecting Dallas, but instead she found Jenna standing in the doorway.

“What took you so long— Oh—”

Nikki stepped aside and lowered her voice. “I’ll explain everything later.”

“Matthew. What a surprise. I didn’t know you were here.” Jenna shot him daggers. She’d gone from being his biggest fan when they were engaged to wanting to kill him for hurting Nikki so.

“Don’t worry, Jenna, put the claws away, I was just leaving.”

“Don’t let the door hit you in the ass on your way out.”

His cell phone rang, and Nikki noticed that a picture of Blondie popped up on the screen. At least he had the decency to send her to voicemail. As he glared at Jenna, he leaned over and planted an unexpected kiss on Nikki’s cheek. “Remember what I said. Be careful. If you need me, I’m around, okay?”

Nikki was still stunned even after the door closed and they heard the elevator ding.

“What in the hell was
that
all about?” Jenna asked. “What went down last night at the wedding?”

Nikki brought Jenna up to speed, telling her every detail including her very public display of affection with Dallas.

“Wow.” Her big blue eyes grew even bigger with each new detail. “That sounds totally hot.”

“Oh, it was. He’s amazing.” Nikki was breathless thinking about it. “I mean, the man can kiss. And his body. All he has to do is look at me and I’m wet. Like sopping wet.”

“Okay”—Jenna held up her hands—“that’s a little TMI. Even for me.”

“But you’re my best friend. If I can’t tell you, who am I supposed to tell? I mean, no man has ever gotten me so turned on before. It’s crazy but I think I could really fall for this one.”

“That’s not crazy. That is so great.”

“That is so
not
great. It’s dangerous. This has red flags all over it.”

“How so?”

“Proximity, for one thing. Always a bad idea to date a neighbor. Especially one who lives directly across the hall from you.” Nikki shook her head. “Wait a minute. Jesus. Listen to me. I’m not
dating
him. I’m pretend-dating him to make my ex-fiancé jealous.”

“Details shmeetails.” Jenna brushed that one away with a wave of her wrist. “Okay, so proximity. What else?”

“You’ve seen Dallas. The man oozes sex. And the women. He has women everywhere. And they’re all nightmares. Perfect bodies. Perfect faces. They’re just
perfect
.”

“Well, obviously that’s not his thing.”

“Thanks a lot.”

“No, I mean, you’re more organic. Natural. You’re beautiful but you’re not all painted up and injected with plastic. So what else? What’s your other so-called red flags?”

“Oh Jenna, I’m so attracted to him.”

“So don’t overthink it.”

Nikki laughed. “Me? Not overthink something? Have you forgotten who you’re talking to?”