Page 34 of Bittersweet Redemption

Of course, I haven’t told Willa about this. And after her wild accusations, she hasn’t brought it up again.

I peek into her room that she’ll be living in rent-free for a few more weeks while the interior of her house gets fixed. She’s standing there looking down at her bed. I try to look around her to see what she’s looking at, but her body is blocking it.

I push the door open. “Where’s the kid?”

She jumps and turns quickly, her hand flying up to her chest. “Jeez, you scared me.”

“Sorry, I thought you heard me coming.” That’s a lie. I basically tip-toed down the hall. There’s no way she would’ve heard me coming.

“Ro is with my friend Kayla.” She’s looking everywhere but my face. The same thing she’s been doing all week. It’s kinda cute that she feels awkward around me after what we did. She was so confident that night on her knees for me. “The one who brought me to the tattoo shop.”

Ah, yes. I remember that night, but not her friend. I couldn’t take my eyes off Willa in her tiny skirt and silky skin that she let me mark. She asked for someone else to tattoo her, but there was no way in hell I was letting anyone touch her but me. But now isn’t the time to remember that night.

“Why?” He and Willa are attached at the hip, and I know it’s not his weekend with his dad.

Her cheeks turn a cute shade of pink, which makes me wonder why she’s embarrassed about her friend babysitting her kid. “Oh, um, I have a date tonight. So Kayla is letting him spend the night at her house.”

My lungs stop working for approximately five seconds. A date? With another man? I exhale through my nose to calm my beating heart. Yeah, that’s fine. I’m fine with that. She’s my enemy, right? She should date whoever she wants.

Except I’m not fine with that. Not fine at all.

But I can’t let her see that. I casually lean against the door frame as she turns around to study whatever is on her bed.

“A date, huh?” My voice sounds casual, friendly even. Which is good. I want her to think I’m not phased at all by this. She can date whomever she wants. Just like I can date whoever I want. Except I haven’t touched anyone else since this woman became my next-door neighbor.

“Yes. Kayla set me up with someone.”

“So it’s a blind date?”

“Yeah,” she confirms.

“Hmm,” is all I say, which makes her turn back around with a fire in her eye.

“Why do you say that?”

“Say what?” I question with a smirk on my face.

She rolls her eyes and puts her hands on her hips. “‘Hmmm.’ You said, ‘hmmm.’ Why’d you say that?”

“No reason.” There really wasn’t a reason I said it, other than I find it interesting how fucking annoyed I feel about her going out with someone who’s not me. But that’s my problem. Not hers.

“Whatever.” She sighs. “Since you’re here and you’re a guy, which outfit looks best?”

I push off the door frame and walk over to her bed, where she’s got two outfits laid out. One is jeans and a black crop top, and the other is a white bodysuit thing with a black skirt.

“Where’s this date happening?” I ask.

“We’re meeting at Butcher and Bottle.” I know the place. It’s a nice pub about fifteen minutes from here. It also has big booths that provide a lot of privacy, which is not what I want for Willa on this date with some random fucker.

I point to the outfit. “The jeans.” I pick the jeans because Willa in that skirt would bring any man to his knees, and that alone makes me want to rip it up and throw it out so she can never wear it again. “It’s better suited for the restaurant.” Which sounds a hell of a lot better than saying I’m being a jealous bitch and not sending you out with another man in that skirt.

“Ok, thanks.”

To my relief, she puts the skirt back in her closet.

“Have fun,” I grit out as I leave her room.

“Thanks.”