Page 41 of Miss Typed

The bed was the most comfortable place to watch the movie. Chloe lay on one side still dressed in her robe while I sat up against the headboard on the opposite side. Delicious peeks of her body were visible every time she shifted.

We’d already eaten steak and shrimp before settling on the romantic comedy she wanted to watch. With the way she relaxed and laughed, I could tell she was enjoying it. I, on the other hand, spent the movie fighting the erection which had plagued me ever since we’d both gotten onto the bed.

As soon as the credits rolled, she hit pause. Facing my direction, she bit her lip. “You were right when you guessed it was my brother who got my family in financial trouble. He took money from a loan shark and convinced my mom to sign over the house as collateral.”

I sucked in a breath, feeling privileged she’d finally shared this information with me. “What did he need the money for?”

“He developed a drug and gambling problem and owed a lot of money. He’d been living on his own for a few years, and would bum off my mom when he could, but I had no idea how out of control he was. James and I were never close.”

She almost sounded guilty, as if it was partly her fault her brother had gone bad because they hadn’t been tight.

“Where is James now?”

“Haven’t a clue. He skipped town while I was living in LA. My mom called me in a panic, and I went home and struck a deal with the loan shark to make weekly payments. Then quit school, took this job and the rest you know.”

My fury was barely contained over her own brother putting her in this situation. “How much money?”

“One hundred thousand plus interest. I’ve paid seventy thousand. But who knows how much the actual payoff is at this point. I would think forty would more than cover it.”

Small-time loan sharks were known to be ruthless about interest, which meant I may need to intercede to ensure she could truly be free of him. But I was learning in order for her to accept my help, I had to earn her trust.

“I was a Marine Corps infantry officer.”

She took the change of subject in stride. “I can see that about you.”

My lips curved into a smile. “A little over a year ago, when I was deployed to Iraq, I was on patrol in a Humvee when we hit an explosive device.” I swallowed hard at the memory. “Luckily, no one else was severely injured, but I lost my left leg from the knee down.” A couple of my Marines sustained burns, but had now recovered and were still serving.

She swallowed hard. “You had to get out of the service after the accident?”

“I could’ve stayed on desk duty or switched from infantry to something else, but I couldn’t do it. I was meant to be infantry. Anyhow, after a year spent undergoing surgeries at Walter Reed in Bethesda and then doing physical therapy, I was released from active duty. Since my degree is in computers and I needed to get away, Reid pulled some strings to procure me this cybersecurity job at Delmont.”

“You didn’t want me to know you were friends. Why?”

She was incredibly perceptive. “Because I’m not proud of having gotten a job because of my friendship. I’m sure there were much more qualified candidates who’d applied for it.”

“Doubtful. Thank you for sharing with me.”

I was grateful she didn’t press for more details. “Do you trust me, Chloe?”

She sighed. “I want to.”

“Then give me all the information you have on the loan shark. And hold off making the final payment until I can do some research on him.”

“Why?”

“Because loan sharks are infamous for changing the terms and charging outrageous interest. Let me make some calls and get you a real total before you send a payoff. Come Monday, only wire him what you normally would.”

“All right. I can do that.”

My relief was immediate. “Good. Let’s get some sleep.”

“Okay. But you don’t need to take the couch. We can lie in the bed together like now.”

I was torn. I’d either be tortured all night lying chastely in bed with her, or I’d be on the couch unable to get comfortable. “Okay. I’ll sleep here.”

She turned off the television, and we both turned to face opposite walls.

“Good night, Chloe.”