“Fair enough. But here’s a little memo of my own from me to you and anyone else who wants to be in our business. I love that man more than I ever thought I could love another human being, unconditionally and irrevocably”—which wasn’t a lie at all, I realized—“and if anyone has to worry about getting their heart broken in this deal, it’s me. Having said that, if anything goes down between Noah and me and you feel the need to kick my ass, then you’ve got it to do. I’m not intimidated by you. So if you ever feel froggy … jump.”
Polly sucked in a deep breath and I could actually hear her swallow. I kept my stare intense, never wavering as I faced Lexi down. She was an Amazon of a woman who very likely could’ve annihilated me, but I wasn’t going to back down. That would have been a show of weakness, and although I felt vulnerable as a snail out of its shell when it came to Noah, I most certainly was not a weak person by nature.
Lexi’s scowl broke and one corner of her mouth lifted up into a smile, Noah’s smile. “I swear to God, if I weren’t already married, you and I would be eloping tonight.”
I smiled in turn and Polly let out the breath she was holding. “You two are a match made in heaven.” She shook her head. “If we’re done seeing whose ovaries are bigger than whose, can we get back out there to our men?”
“Absolutely,” Lexi said, linking her arm through mine. “Mine are bigger, by the way.”
“Well, that remains to be seen,” I tossed back as we stepped through the door.
My smile dropped immediately when the sea of people in front of us parted and I caught a glimpse of Noah. He was standing across from an older dark-haired man who was very handsome, and he was smiling and nodding. But what made my stomach churn in knots was the woman hanging on Noah’s arm. Draped like she was part of his wardrobe was a tall, strawberry-blond woman who reminded me a lot of Ginger from Gilligan’s Island. She was movie star material, and she looked like she knew it, too.
“Lexi, please tell me that’s your sister.”
“Ugh, please! That hussy only wishes she shared the same gene pool.”
“Then who is she?”
“That … would be Julie,” Polly answered with disgust in her voice. “Aka the octopussy. Rumor has it she fucked eight guys at once—after she and Noah broke it off, of course. Don’t ask me how she did it.”
“Octopussy, huh? I guess that explains why she’s got her slimy tentacles all over my man,” I said, seeing a whole lot of red and, admittedly, a bit of green. My mind started drumming up all sorts of lethal maneuvers from Mortal Kombat, all of which I knew I could certainly pull off, given as pissed as I was.
“Want me to do the honors? I’ve been itching to cut that bitch for a long-ass time now,” Lexi offered. I really adored Lexi. She was quickly becoming my sister from another mister.
“No, thanks. I’ve got this,” I said as I threw my shoulders back and made my way toward my man.
I heard her laugh from behind me. “Ribbit, ribbit.”
14
THE DAM BREAKS
Noah
I fucking hate Julie. As I stood there with my uncle Daniel and aunt Vanessa, there was nothing I could do about Julie’s unwanted and unsolicited attention. Except to drink more, and quickly, so that my body would hopefully be numb to her repulsive touch. I would need to scour with an SOS pad or something as soon as I got home.
Not long after Delaine—who looked delectable in that gown, by the way—disappeared with Lexi and Polly to the bathroom, the traitorous bitch had made a beeline straight to where I stood. As if she thought I was champing at the bit to see her again. On the contrary, it had totally slipped my mind that she might be there, but like I said before, my mind hadn’t been anywhere near right since Delaine walked into my life.
“Oh, fuck me,” Mason had sighed as something behind me caught his eye.
Of course I had to turn around to see what all the fuss was about, but as soon as I did, I wished I hadn’t.
“Well, as I live and breathe … Noah Crawford,” the familiar sound of my ex’s voice cooed. She was trying way too hard to sound sultry, and it didn’t suit her—at all. She might have looked good, but I wouldn’t know because all I could see was her bent over while her asshole was being plugged from behind repeatedly by David’s cock.
“Well, as I suffocate myself and hope to die … Julie Frost,” I replied in a bored tone.
“Aw, play nice, Noah, and I just might give you a second chance by the time the night is through.” As if I was ever going to go back down that road again.
“Fuck you,” I said simply, and turned my back on her.
“That’s the plan.”
She sounded so sure that shit was going to happen that all I could do was scoff and finish off my champagne. I was going to need something stronger to get through the night. “Who was stupid enough to bring a whore like you to something this classy anyway?”
“Watch your mouth, Crawford. That’s my date you’re insulting,” David approached our little clan and slipped his arms around Julie’s waist from behind. “Told you my date was a real looker.”
I would have wagered my left nut that what he expected to gain from that little donkey punch of a move was one hell of a reaction out of me, one that would be explosive and detrimental to my position in the company. He expected me to lose it in the middle of a room filled with not only employees but clients—both current and prospective—not to mention board members. It was a good plan, but one that didn’t stand a chance of working when a bitch like Julie Frost was involved. No way was I giving him the satisfaction. So I gritted my teeth and forced a smile.
“You’re looking good tonight, David. Where’d you get the tux? Backstabber’s Emporium?” I asked. To their credit, Brad and Mason did their best to cover their laughs.
“Very witty. Did you come up with that all on your own, or did your girlfriend help you? Oh, wait, that’s right. Your girlfriend is with me.” David’s obnoxious laugh made me clench all my muscles to keep from knocking him the fuck out. “I’m going to the bar to get a real drink. Want to come, babe?”
“No, thank you. I think I’m going to hang out here for a bit and talk about old times with Noah.” Julie kept her eyes glued to me. Not that I was looking at her in turn; I could just feel her eyes undressing me. Yeah, so not going down that road again. She’d had her chance, and blew it out her ass—literally.