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THE LAST FRIDAY IN October found Mika happy to finally be back home. She’d gone out with a few co-workers for drinks after work, and was just getting in close to eight. She left her heeled boots haphazardly at the door and headed to her bedroom. While they hadn’t had an early snow, the weather had taken a major dip in temperature. Taking a quick hot shower to warm up before throwing on some pajamas. She settled in for the night and scanned Netflix to see what was on.
Picking a comedy, she stretched out to eat the dessert she’d brought back from the bar. Her sweet tooth was going to kill her one day. Or at least add weight in undesirable places in a few years. Ten minutes into the show her phone pinged. She thought about not even checking it, she was “peopled-out” right about now. Then again checking it didn’t mean she had to reply.
She unlocked the phone and blinked a couple of times. Yes she’d had three cocktails, but she’d eaten a full dinner with them. She wasn’t drunk or delusional last time she checked. Yet the message remained on her screen.
Robert: Call me
What in all the nine levels of hell was this? She’d spent the week since the game ruthlessly shutting down any thoughts of him. Now he was somehow texting her, and had the audacity to give her orders. Of course she’d wondered would he try to reach out after that kiss. However she hadn’t really expected it, and sure enough nothing had happened until now. She couldn’t imagine he thought they were a good idea, any more than she did. Mika doubted he had such a tough time getting laid that he would pursue her when she wasn’t interested. Well okay...her body was, but her mind wanted nothing to do with him.
Mika: No
When no response came she relaxed and ate the last bite on her fork. Two minutes later, her phone rang. She closed her eyes and thought about not answering, but then decided this was stupid, she was tired of running from this man. It wasn’t in her nature to do so, particularly where men were concerned. She’d tell him to take a hike, and that would be the end of it.
Mika answered the phone. “Who dis?”
“Stop it. You saw my name on the caller ID.”
“What do you want?” She made her voice disinterested.
“We need to talk.”
“That’s an opinion I don’t share,” she volleyed back.
“So you don’t think we need to address the fact that we slept together in Vegas? Or that we’re still strongly attracted to each other now?”
“No to both. Vegas was Vegas...shit happens,” she added a hint of steel to her voice. The tone she used at work from time to time, when she had to check a condescending asshole. “There is no law that says you have to act on the attraction you think is present.”
“Just me huh?”
“Apparently. I’m good over here.” Mika listened to the long pause of silence from the other end. Maybe he would let it go. He was a man, which meant he was prideful. Maybe he wasn’t used to being turned down and would want to cut his losses. Instead, she heard a low chuckle over the line that had her holding her breath.
“Okay...I see you want to make this more complicated than it has to be. So be it. We’ll talk later.”
“There's nothing else to talk abo—” She heard the click of the phone and looked to her screen, incredulous as the “call ended” message flashed. “That man’s ego is so damn inflated! It’s a wonder he doesn’t just float off!”
Tossing the phone on the couch she refused to let him ruin her night. Reaching for her drink she grimaced when her hand came back only holding a water bottle. She was actively trying to cut down on her in-home drinking. She’d prefer to be sipping on something more than H2O right about now. Mika tried to stop the conversation from replaying in her head, but it was near impossible. Almost an hour later and she was still thinking about it.
Just who did he think he was? First trying to order her around, then refusing to take no for an answer. Did he really think he laid pipe that good? That one night with him would render a woman incapable of not sleeping with him again? So what if she couldn’t keep her eyes off him when they were in the same room? An electric touch and a stupid hot kiss didn’t mean she was controlled by her hormones. Already edgy she let out a little groan followed by a small scream of frustration when the doorbell rang.
* * *
ROBERT ADMITTED HANGING up had been petty and done partially out of anger. Turning the light off in the bathroom he grabbed what he needed and left. He couldn’t say he was a man with a lot of patience outside of work. Even at work he could be a bit of an asshole, as he convinced people to part with their money and entrust it to him. People preferred confidence and competence at the end of the day, when dealing with large sums of money or their life savings. He had a finite amount of real patience, which he saved and used for his close friends and family. As of right now he’d used up all the patience Mika Harrison was going to get.
For sure he’d taken his shot a number of times in life and been rejected. That was part of life, hell part of being a man. He took his hits on the chin and kept it moving. But he’d be damned if she would dismiss him over the phone like he wasn’t worth at least a conversation. How she could outright deny that there was a spark between them, he’d never know. If they never hooked up again so be it. But they needed to clear the air for any future run-ins they had. Robert didn't believe in letting stuff fester and he wasn’t about to start now. Which is how he found himself standing outside her door fifty minutes later. He rang the bell a second time and waited. Finally, he heard some movement behind the door.
“Who is it?”
He was leaning down to the peephole already, but in a dry voice answered, “Open the door. If you leave me standing outside too long you know someone will call the police.”
Shit. He had a point. Someone in her nice, pricey Canton suburbs would call the police. They would think he was casing the place, no matter how nice his car or clothes might be. She reluctantly opened the door but blocked the entrance.
“Would serve you right if I let them. What do you want?” She looked him over. There he stood, a tall, sexy and aggravated man outside her door. He was dressed in jeans and a nice t-shirt, with an excellent blazer thrown over it all. He shook his head, then slid past her into the house. Closing the door against her better judgement as she was letting the cold air in, she faced him. Crossing her arms under her braless breasts, she saw Robert’s eyes track the movement then remain on her chest. Annoyed that her nipples started to harden she spat out.
“Why the hell are you here? At my house, uninvited?”
“You wouldn’t talk over the phone. So I decided to come here and see if you can ignore this face-to-face.”
“Oh, so this is how you react when you don’t get your way...noted.” Disgusted Mika took a few steps further into the house before thinking better of it. Instead she rounded on him, hands on hips. “Just how the hell did you know where I live in the first place? I doubt Cam or Andrea would have given you my address. At least not without telling me.”
“The same way I texted you. I put my name and number in your phone before I gave it back to you. Got the address from looking at your gps app. Phones automatically mark your home address.”
“What the fuck, Robert!” She threw her hands up. “Do you stalk much?”
“I wouldn’t go that far. I view getting the address as information I needed to send you the wine you won off me.”
“And I guess it never occurred for you to ask?”
“Quicker to just get it myself. You seem to have a tiresome habit of not answering my questions. Besides now maybe you’ll think twice before leaving your phone unattended.”
Mika forgot about keeping her distance, walking forward to poke her finger into his chest. “Where is my wine since we speaking on it? That should have been the only reason for you to ever to show up at my door.”
“It’s on its way, should arrive early next week. But that’s not why I’m here and you know it.” He grabbed her finger as it went to poke him again.
Mika took a step back and he matched it with one step forward. “Why exactly are you here? Besides your perturbing stalking tendencies.”
“To finish our conversation.”
“You hung up in a fit.” Why was she allowing him to still hold her finger? Wetting her lips, she saw his eyes jump to them like a magnet. His own lips tightening in response.
She felt the air around them change, and more softly she said, “You didn’t come here to talk.”
He let her finger drop, reaching up instead to rub his thumb back and forth on her bottom lip. His voice came out low and aroused when he answered. “I did...but I’m thinking we can talk after.”
“After...what?” She snuck her tongue out and gave his thumb a quick lick, followed by a teasing nip.
“Shit, after I get inside you again.” He lifted her up in his arms eliciting a startled yelp of surprise as she hurried to wrap her arms around his neck. “Tell me which way, before we end up taking care of business on these nice wood floors of yours.”
The time to tell him to get the hell out was now. Instead Mika found herself pointing down the hall to her spare bedroom. She didn’t think his patience would make it upstairs. Now that it was decided she relaxed against him. Lifting her head slightly to lick and nibble along his neck. She was tired. Tired of fighting the sexual pull to him. Tired of rejecting what they both wanted and denying the male carrying her in his strong arms. Their brief physical touches already had her needy. She wanted to lick more than his thumb and neck before the night was over.
