Alicia's Folly by C A Vincent Read Free Book Online Page B

unwittingly killed what little humor he had left in him at the moment. “You seem distracted, despite – everything. Is last night’s call still upsetting you, even now? I hope I’m not keeping you from important business.”  
    The call wasn’t “upsetting” him. It outright pissed him off. He wasn’t willing to share just yet though, so he tried to think of something to change the subject, other than sex, and came up blank. Add to that the fact Alicia was now worried she was keeping him from work and it would only be a matter of time before she told him they should go separate ways. Their server, her timing impeccable, approached with his order and he damn near bit her head off.  
    “I’m sorry,” Alicia apologized once the no-longer-smiling woman took off. He’d have to leave her a monster tip to make up for his attitude toward her. “I probably am monopolizing too much of your time. I should – ”  
    “Don’t,” he cut in. He started to take a bite of his food then dropped his fork. The eggs looked like they were done perfectly – poached but with the yolks still runny enough to dunk his toast in – and the bacon was crisp to the point of almost being burnt, just the way he liked it. He wasn’t interested in eating any of it all of a sudden. “The call wasn’t work related and you’re not ‘monopolizing’ my time, so there’s no need to apologize. I’ll apologize to the waitress for my temper by leaving her a big tip.”  
    “But you’re more upset now than you were last night. Do you want to talk about it? I’m a good listener,” Alicia offered. His gut twisted. That was the last thing he needed. Talking about his ex with the woman he hoped to seduce. Nate shook his head and tried to eat again. The fork didn’t even make it off the plate this time. Looking up, he saw she was watching him worriedly.  
    “My ex is arriving at some point today. Apparently she has some hugely important issue she wants to talk to me about. We didn’t part on good terms.”  
    Nate kicked himself mentally, wondering why the hell he’d just spilled the crux of his sudden bad mood like that. He didn’t reveal personal stuff to strangers. He kept things close to his chest and got to know people before confiding in them like that. Hell, it took him three and a half years to reveal even a little about himself with Jared and they’d shared a dorm room through most of college. He pushed his plate away.  
    Alicia stood to leave. Nate struggled against the urge to beg her to stay. He didn’t want to spend the day waiting and walking on eggshells, wondering what the hell Elizabeth had to say. But he’d likely just put a big “Vulnerable & Needy” stamp on his forehead for all to see. He wouldn’t blame her if she took off running.  
    At least you know she’s not pregnant , the voice of reason provided as Alicia came around to stand beside him. Expecting her to pat him on the shoulder and say goodbye, he was wholly unprepared for what she did do.  
    “Scoot back,” she ordered softly, tugging on his chair. Too surprised to argue, he did as she said. When there was more space between himself and the table, she sat on his lap with her back to him. She smelled so clean and fresh, like soap, sun and – her – he couldn’t help inhaling deeply. Unable to prevent it, he became hard.  
    Whether on purpose or not, Nate would never know, Alicia wriggled her bottom more firmly onto his lap. It was all he could do to keep from groaning out loud. Just as he was about to take hold of her hips to keep her still, she turned to sit across his legs, his plate in her hand.  
    “This is going to be incredibly messy, but oh-so-yummy. Are you ready?” she asked, showing him what she’d done. To his surprise, his eggs and bacon were now nestled between the slices of toast in what promised to be the most interesting breakfast sandwich he’d likely ever eat. Normally, he would take offence to anyone touching his