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“Oh, please. I may not know you as well as the others, but even I can spot a lovesick man when I see one. I’ve met the guy she’s with, and you’re ten times the man he is. You should give it a shot.”
BB made a mental note not to be as obvious when he watched Gennessey in the future. “I am not lovesick, but if you see someone I should meet, point her out.”
Chloe smirked. “I don’t need to. She’s the one you’ve been watching like a hawk since she came to work at KSI. It’s funny you think no one has noticed how much you like Gennessey. I can’t blame you. She’s very cool. I think you two would be great together, but that’s just my opinion.”
BB had worked hard to hide his attraction to Gennessey, especially when she spurned his attention every chance she got, but he wasn’t surprised to find out Chloe saw right through his act. She’d been a part of their group as long as Sydney had, so he knew her to be a straight shooter. She never missed a thing and was never shy about saying what was on her mind.
“You’ve got it all wrong. Gen is here on a date. If I go over there and ask her to dance, she’ll laugh in my face, insult me in front of her date, and call me stupid for thinking she wanted anything to do with me. I’d much rather hang out here with you guys.”
“But you like her. A lot. And she likes you too. It’s like those kids on the playground. He pulls her pigtails, and she pushes him down. They act like they hate each other when they really want to be boyfriend and girlfriend. It’s cute at first. Then it’s annoying as hell. You two have moved into annoying.” Chloe downed the last of her cocktail, and BB wondered how much she’d had to drink.
“She’s not wrong.” Wings booming voice carried over the din, and BB suddenly realized Chloe’s rant had drawn the attention of the rest of their table. He was faced with a lot of grins and teasing winks.
BB crossed his arms over the table and leaned forward. “You all agree with her? You think I should shove Gen’s date out of the way and insist she dance with me?”
Wings smirked. “Hell, yeah. Then we can watch her knee you in the nuts for interrupting her date. It’d be the most fun we’d have all night.”
Their group laughed, and even BB had to grin before stealing a glance at their topic of conversation. She and her date had moved from the dance floor to the bar, and he knew what she asked for before the bartender set the Long Island Iced Tea in front of her. It was her drink of choice, and while it packed a punch for some, it had little effect on her unless she consumed several, which she never did. Gennessey wasn’t an indulgent type and would never put herself in a position to be vulnerable.
“Seriously, what is her problem with you anyway?” Chloe was on a roll. BB didn’t take offense to her outspokenness, but he saw Sydney send her friend a look of warning.
“Let it go, Chlo,” Sam told her in a low tone.
BB decided it was time to remove himself from the conversation. He unfolded his long frame from the chair and raised his nearly empty mug. “I’ll get us another round.”
He could feel his friends watching him as he walked to the bar, making a point to stay at the opposite end from Gennessey and the Asshole. His eyes strayed to where they stood as he waited for the bartender to notice him.
From the way she smiled at the guy and rested her hand on his forearm, BB could see she liked him, but she wasn’t serious about him. She never was. Gennessey dated guys long enough for them to be considered a couple, and then something would inevitably break the two of them up.
Sometimes her job as a PI put them off because of the risk that came with the job. Sometimes it was the guy’s problem — either a fear of commitment or of a strong woman or just because they were all assholes.
The others may not understand her aversion to him, but BB understood. He wasn’t a bad guy, but he could be a bit of a player. He never had trouble finding women to spend time with or even warm his bed on occasion. He wasn’t one to date several at a time. He preferred to dote on one woman until the relationship fizzled out.
Though he wasn’t conceited enough to believe he could have any woman he wanted at any time, he was aware of the effect his good looks and easygoing personality had on the opposite sex. Even when he was with a woman, Gennessey witnessed others flirting with him or slipping him their phone numbers. Being someone who didn’t want to play games, she was instantly turned off to him though he had never encouraged that kind of attention.
The irony was if he was with her, he doubted he’d care about another woman. Gennessey was a force of nature. Beautiful, strong, loyal, sexy, smart…she was the whole package. Being with her would mean one of two things — they would run hot and fierce only to burn out in a burst of flames or they would run hot and fierce only to burn even hotter for the rest of their lives.
Because they worked together, any advances made on his part were risky. If they crashed and burned, their jobs could be affected. But BB’s gut told him if she ever would take a chance with him, there was no way in hell they would crash and burn.
“Hey, man,” he called to the bartender. “Another round of drinks for the rowdy table over there and a couple of platters of chicken wings.” He hoped getting some food in Chloe would temper her interest in his lack of a relationship with Gennessey.
What was she thinking, calling him lovesick? Sure, he thought he and Gen could have something great, but he wouldn’t call it love. He knew what love looked like. He’d seen it in the relationships of his friends as well as his own parents. He knew enough to realize he’d never experienced it, and what he felt for Gennessey wasn’t it. He wanted her. He wanted to spend time with her. He wanted to make her laugh. He wanted her at his side when working on a case.
But love? Nah, that’s not what this was.
Before he turned to head back to the table, BB studied her again. Her creamy skin was flushed from all the dancing. Her smile showed off her even, white teeth. Her hair was a riot of ebony curls. She had the sides and top pulled away from her face and secured at the back of her head with bobby pins.
She faced her date, giving him a view of her eyes, which were probably her best feature. The bright cornflower blue, outlined by dark lashes, sparkling with life, drew him in until he forgot where he was for a moment.
Until another face popped into his line of sight. The blonde smiled at him, her own blue eyes heavily made up and nowhere near as compelling as Gen’s. Her dress hugged her body, the skirt rising high on her shapely thighs while the top dipped to show an ample amount of cleavage.
“Hey, haven’t we met before? You look familiar to me.”
BB recognized the line for what it was, but feeling off his game after watching Gennessey with her date all night, he decided to play along.
“You know, I think you’re right. I’m Brennan, remember. And you’re…”
“Nikki. I knew it was you. I’ve never forgotten the night we spent together. You had a great day at work and wanted to celebrate. And I couldn’t resist the chance to get to know you better.” She placed her finger in the center of his chest and drew it down to his stomach in a slow, seductive caress. “How have you been?”
