Rock Bottom (Bullet) by Jade C. Jamison Read Free Book Online Page A

don’t know what kind of treatment Dr. Thomas has in mind for you, but counseling is what I do.  I’m willing to help you as much as you’d like.”
    He smirked, a classic Ethan look.  It was a look she’ d seen from him in probably ninety percent of the pictures of him she’d ever seen.  It was arrogant and…sometimes hot.  What the hell was she thinking?  She took a deep breath and steeled herself.  She couldn’t even imagine what he was planning to say.
    He got closer to her, so close she would have been able to feel the heat coming off him if it hadn’t already been hotter than hell, thanks to the mid-July weather pummeling Denver.  “If you want to see me alone, all you gotta do is ask.”  It was so cliché, but she felt her bottom lip pull away from her upper one anyway as her jaw sagged in disbelief.  She had no words, but she felt her brow furrow as she tried to decide if he was serious.  His next words confirmed that he was.  He got even closer, and she felt herself back up into the door jamb.  His eyes searched hers.  “I have to say, though, pretty clever.”
    There it was.  Her tongue.  Finally.  “Look, Ethan, don’t get me wrong.  I sympathize, because I know you’ve gone through hell, and I suppose you are used to women throwing themselves all over you and finding unusual ways of doing it, but when I offered counseling, that was all I was offering.”  She started feeling angry, because his eyes were knowing, his smirk indelible.  She did find him good looking, but he was a cocky douchebag.  She was irritated that he knew he was charming and sexy and equally irritated that he could tell she thought that.  So her next words should have been chosen carefully, but she was whipped into a frenetic anger, and she wanted to be firm about what she was going to say.  “My body?  Not up for grabs.  Not by you or any other man.”
    He cocked his head.  “Really?  You’re a lesbian?  That’s hot…but I never would have guessed it.”
    She was feeling frustrated.  “No, I’m not a—look.  That doesn’t matter.  What does matter, Ethan Richards, is that you are showing me no respect, and you haven’t from the second you walked in here.  You’re acting like this is all a big joke.  And you know what?  If you think it is, then it will be.”  She flicked off the light switch and walked into the hall, waiting for him to exit the room so she could close the door.  When he joined her, the look on his face had changed a little.  That was a good sign.  She grabbed the door and pulled it shut.  “If you want my help, if you want to connect with the group, fine.  But check your ego at the door.  No one here is a rock star.  We’re all broken.”
    Fuck.
    She hadn’t meant to let that one slip.  But maybe he’d take it at face value, that strength would be gained from each other by sharing, but that they all needed fixing of some kind…not necessarily herself included.
    Fortunately, her little outburst had had the effect she’d needed it to.  He looked a little humbler, even though that glint was still in his eyes.  Gone, though, was the smirk and the attitude.  “Sorry.  You’re right.  I do want the help.”  He swallowed.  “Next Thursday?”
    “Yes.”
    He nodded.  “Okay.  I’ll be here.”  He started walking toward the outer door and out into the warm night.  She was not far behind him and closed the outer door to the church, making sure it was locked.  She took another deep breath and started walking toward the sidewalk, glad the night was just about over.
     

 
     
    Chapter Five
     
    WOW.  A LITTLE feisty.  Jenna was going to be a force to be reckoned with, but in a good way.  Ethan walked out slowly, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand.  Part of him was disappointed, because he’d like nothing more than to nail that little number.  But she was smart too.  He’d only gone to college for one year, and he didn’t know that