Badd Motherf*cker(23)

“Wait.” Sebastian’s voice halted me. It was a growled order, rumbling so low and so powerfully I had no chance of resisting.

I couldn’t move. I felt him come up behind me, felt him grab me and spin me around. “Why’d you do that?”

“Do what?”

“Jump in like that.”

I shrugged. “Instinct. I told you already, my dad is a cop and a former Marine, and I’m his only kid, so he taught me everything he knows and then some.”

Sebastian was too close. “You kicked my brother’s ass, and he’s a Navy SEAL.”

“I wouldn’t say I kicked his ass, but even Navy SEALs are still men with sensitive balls.”

“He didn’t mean it. The choking or the bitch comment.”

“Felt like it, in both cases. And I don’t take being called a bitch any better than I do having a man put his hands on me against my wishes.”

“You wrist-locked me.” This was from Zane, behind us both. “It was muscle-memory instinct.”

I stepped past Sebastian. “Yeah, and what about calling me a bitch?”

He was on his feet, albeit gingerly, and limped over to me. “That was uncalled for, and I apologize. I was pissed off, and you got in the way of it.” He held his hand out for me to shake. “Can we start over? I’m Zane Badd.”

I shook his hand. “Dru Connolly.”

Zane glanced past me to Sebastian. “Since when you do you do girlfriends, Bast?”

“I’m not his girlfriend,” I said, before Sebastian could answer.

“Not yet,” Sebastian murmured under his breath, just loud enough for me to hear.

“Not ever,” I said, shame and embarrassment over my behavior last night blasting through me. “I need to find a flight back to Seattle.”

Sebastian frowned down at me. “Why?”

“Because nobody knows where I am. I sort of ran away on the spur of the moment, and I—”

Zane spoke up, then. “Sorry, sweetheart, but you’re not going anywhere.”

I whirled on him, ready to get pissed all over again if he was trying to order me around. “And why not?”

He leaned past me and pulled open the door, revealing a torrential downpour, and then let the door close. “My flight here landed just barely ahead of this storm, and I heard the pilots saying all flights were going to be canceled for at least the rest of the day, if not longer. This storm is huge, and nasty.”

“Shit.” I turned away from both men and moved to sit at the bar. “I’ve got to call Dad at the very least. ”

Sebastian pushed Zane toward the door to the upper level. “Come on, we’ll talk upstairs.”

When they were gone, I pulled out my phone and unlocked it. Sixteen missed calls, nine voicemails, and forty-seven texts.

Fourteen of the calls, seven of the voicemails, and forty-two of the texts were from Dad, everything else from Michael.

Really? He had the balls to try and get hold of me after what he did? Dumbass.

I was tempted to delete everything from Michael unheard and unread, but I didn’t—I couldn’t. I’d been with him for four years, and couldn’t just dismiss him that easily, as much as I wanted to. I was still in shock, I think, still mentally and emotionally processing what had happened, what I’d seen.

Yet another reason to keep my distance from a man like Sebastian Badd. I knew the old adage about the best way to get over someone was to get under somebody else, but I didn’t roll that way. It wouldn’t work. No amount of casual fucking could erase four years of my life with Michael. No matter how spectacularly Sebastian might fuck me, it wouldn’t fix my broken heart.

It would be fucking spectacular, though…or, should I say spectacular fucking.

Shit. I was not supposed to be thinking about how good Sebastian would be in bed.

Bad Dru. I wasn’t fucking him. I was going to go back home and deal with the mess that was my life.

The problem was, I didn’t want to go back home. I didn’t want to walk the Seattle streets and see our favorite restaurants and bars. I’d have to go back to my condo. I’d smell him on my sheets, and I’d have his toothbrush in my bathroom, and his pubes in my shower drain, and his size medium condoms in my bedside table, and his clothes in the drawer I’d given him. He was woven into every facet of my entire fucking life, and I didn’t have the slightest clue how to unravel it all.

Against my own will, my thumb tapped the messages app, and brought up the text message thread with Michael.

Dru, it wasnt what you think., please call me!!!!

She meant nothing to me baby i swear. It was a moment of stupidity please please please forgive me! Ill do anythng!