No Strings Attached (18+)

Chapter 2

I frowned, "You know, if you want to be evasive like this, I'm just gonna assume you're in the mafia."

Nick chuckled, "I mean, if you want to, I'm not going to stop you."

I was only half kidding. With his strong jaw and fathomless gaze, I could easily see him as a man of violence, getting his hands dirty for the sake of his 'family'.

And I agreed to spend the night with him...

Amazed, I stared into his eyes.

"What?"

Cocking an eyebrow, I asked, "You promise you're not going to kill me?"

A second later, ceramic met Formica as the waitress set down my coffee cup, then Nick's before pouring from a steaming carafe.

His eyes twinkled with mirth as I blushed.

When she walked away, he whispered, "We're going to have to leave an amazing tip now."

"You mean, 'I'm' going to."

"Hey-"

"I insist. I gave you a lot of shit that you probably didn't deserve, and you still decided to save my ass. It's the least I can do."

"If you're sure-"

"I am."

"Okay." He grinned, "Just so we're clear, though, I'm rolling in mafia money - it wouldn't be any trouble."

Snorting, I picked up my mug, taking a scalding sip.

"Good?"

"Hot." I coughed. "Right now, that's basically the same thing."

Wrapping my hands around the cup, I warmed my chilled fingers as I breathed in the steam.

"So, can I ask..." he began, cautious.

"Hmm?"

"What's the story with you and your boss?"

Immediately, my mood soured.

"You don't have to answer-"

"It's fine," I grumbled. Sitting back, I took a sip and began, "So, I'm the newest member of the squad, and as you might expect, I get the shit that nobody else wants to deal with."

"Like?"

"Public appearances, charity events, the kind of gigs that pay beans, where you need to show up in full uniform and makeup and smile till your cheeks hurt."

"Sounds fun."

"It can be. I don't mind it, most of the time - it's just paying my dues, and I get that."

"But?"

"But one of the assistant coaches, Dave decided that it would be fun to tell me that I was booked for a kid's football camp this weekend along with some of the other girls. I don't have the most reliable car, so he offered to drive me." Scoffing, I shook my head, "We got here, and suddenly, 'they must have rescheduled the camp.'"

"Of course." He muttered.

"And, wouldn't you know it, the hotel 'messed up' our reservation, so we'd have to share a room."

"Oh, god."

"He clearly thinks I'm an idiot, because when I called him on it, he kept insisting it was all just a wacky mistake. Finally, I just told him to drive me home, and the truth came out." I grimaced, "He gave me an ultimatum, and I walked."

"I'm sorry."

Glancing up, I joked, "Are you apologizing on behalf of your gender?"

His eyes met mine, "For being pushy about sharing a room. I can't imagine that it was fun to hear that after everything else."