All of Me by Gina Sorelle Read Free Book Online Page A

Contini was a cop
on the force who’d married a neighborhood girl his parents had approved of. 
Both nice people, but miserable as hell together.  Now Joey had a drinking
problem and his wife was stuck at home with five kids she resented.  It was an
ugly situation, but had nothing to do with Nathan trying to live some semblance
of a normal life.
    But there were a
lot of reasons Nathan shouldn’t move in with anyone.  For starters, his fucked
up workout scenes, need for absolute cleanliness, and frequent nightmares.  But
it felt like an average, normal thing to think about moving in with a woman and
Nathan was a big fan of anything average and normal.  Plus, the thought of
never having to start up another relationship?  Worth the price of admission.
    “It was a thought.  No
big deal,” Nathan said.  “Just thinking things through.”
    “Yeah, well, keep
thinking, D.  You move in with that woman and you’ll be miserable.  She’s not
right for you.”
    “Who is?  Someone like
Leila?”  Nathan sank another ball.
    “It would do you some
serious good, my man.  Help you let go a little.  Loosen you up.  Screw a few
hundred Leilas and then think about settling down.”  Danny grinned. 
“There’s a lot of fun to be had out there.  Trust me.  You just gotta get into
the right mindset.”
    Nathan wasn’t capable
of that mindset and they both knew it, but it made Danny feel better to blow
smoke.
    “And speaking of
fun…how hot is that Stella chick?  I’m thinking of looking her up in the system
and doing a little recon.  She’s got a smokin’ body and a hot little mouth to
go with it.” 
    Nathan froze.  Because
it wasn’t until that moment that his conscious mind caught up with his
subconscious mind and he realized she was there.  Had been there since
he’d laid eyes on her. 
    Lurking in his brain. 
Fucking it all up.  Fucking everything all up. 
    Nathan walked to the
bench to grab his water bottle.  He wasn’t thirsty, but he needed to try
washing down the fist in his throat. 
    “So whaddya think? 
Wanna look her up and do a little drive by tonight?” Danny asked.  He grabbed a
towel off the bench and wrapped it around his neck. 
    “She’s not your type. 
An Italian girl like that…”  Nathan rubbed at a sudden tightness above his
sternum.  “All trouble.  She’d chew you up and spit you out. I lived in a whole
neighborhood full of women like that before the system.  You don’t mess with
‘em, trust me.” 
    “I’m all about those
dark eyes and wild hair, bro…”  Danny’s grin had Nathan rubbing his sternum
raw.  “And they’re feisty.  Wildcats in bed.  What-“  Danny pointed at Nathan’s
manic chest rubbing.  “You got some heartburn?  Or…what’s going on there?”
    “Yeah, heartburn.  From
that Taco Bell last night.”
    They walked toward the
station.  “All that talk about Italian chicks got me hungry.  And horny, but
mostly hungry.  Let’s do Italian tonight,” Danny said.  “Marinelli’s sound
good?”
     
    ***
     
    Stella popped a fried
mushroom into her mouth and chewed thoughtfully.  She shrugged and said, “I
don’t really have an interest in going into management.  Look at all of the
crap you go through.”  She tossed a few more ice cubes into her glass of
Riesling and sipped.  “I’m not looking for any more drama in my life.”
    “One day you’ll be too
old to pound the floor though.”  Christopher waved off Stella’s offended expression. 
“Not for like 10-“  Stella’s eyes narrowed.  “Er, 20 years.  But, still.  You
should do the Master’s now and get it over with.  Before you get all
conventional and start popping out babies left and right.”
    The second mushroom
stuck in Stella’s esophagus.  She took an overly large gulp of Riesling to wash
it down.  “No real concern about that.  For a lot of different reasons.”  At
Christopher’s softened eyes, she scoffed.  “Not going