She hadn’t uttered the word fling in a long, long time. And the other night, when she’d looked at him with honest-to-God love in her eyes…yeah, he didn’t think he had a damn thing to be scared about. Darcy might not have said it out loud, but he knew she felt the same way he did.
Being the first one to show vulnerability was a terrifying notion for him, but he realized it needed to be done. If he opened himself up and told her how he felt, he was confident she’d find the strength to do the same.
Fueled by that confidence, Reed left the office and headed out to the parking lot. The club didn’t open for another hour, which gave him plenty of time to drive over to Darcy’s, tell her he loved the shit out of her, and make it back in time for opening hour.
Twenty minutes later, his heart pounded as he climbed the front stoop of her building. Rather than wait to be buzzed in, he punched in the code she’d given him and strode through the door, making a beeline for the elevator. When the doors dinged open on the fourth floor, shaky legs carried him all the way to her apartment.
Okay, he could totally do this. So what if he’d never professed his love to a woman? He was thirty years old. It was about time he introduced three new words into his vocabulary.
He reached her door, frowning when he heard Darcy’s voice drifting from the apartment. Figuring she was on the phone, he quietly let himself in, not wanting to interrupt her. He’d taken two steps when another voice wafted out of the living room.
“Yes, it’s an impulsive move, but I love him, and this feels right.”
Shit. It was Skyler.
Reed suppressed an aggravated groan and hesitated in the front hall. No way in hell was he going to do this in front of an audience. His palms were already clammy enough without the added torture of seeing Skyler smirk at him while he dropped an L-bomb.
“Hey, don’t knock it ‘til you try it,” Skyler teased after Darcy murmured something Reed couldn’t make out. “I bet it won’t be long at all before you’re the one moving in with your boyfriend.”
He edged back to the door, then froze when Darcy’s protest echoed through the apartment.
“Reed’s not my boyfriend.”
The pain that ripped through his chest was strong enough to shred his heart to pieces.
Reed’s not my boyfriend.
His body went colder than a glacier, little pinpricks of agony digging into his skin. No, of course he wasn’t her boyfriend. He was nothing but her goddamn fling.
How could he have forgotten that?
There was a long pause, and then Darcy spoke again. “He’s just…”
Another pause.
This time Reed didn’t wait for her to go on, because he was perfectly capable of finishing that sentence all by himself.
He’s just a fuck.
He’s just the bad boy I’m killing time with until I find my real boyfriend.
The jagged pieces of his heart tore up his chest, leaving him bloody and destroyed as he ducked out of the apartment and gingerly latched the door behind him.
In the corridor, he sagged against the wall and dragged both hands over his scalp. Lord, he was such an idiot. He must have misinterpreted all those tender looks she’d given him, all the unspoken words that he’d assumed meant she felt the same way.
ASS. U. ME.
Yup, what a perfect fucking phrase, but luckily the universe had stepped in before he’d made an even bigger ass of himself by confessing his love to a woman who thought he was…“just…”—he wasn’t even going to bother filling in that heartbreaking blank again.
Setting his jaw, Reed stalked to the elevator and punched the down button, then waited for the doors to open and marched right through them.
All without a backward glance.
…
Darcy bit her lip as Skyler’s knowing blue eyes twinkled from the other end of the couch.
“He’s just what?” the other woman teased.
“He’s just…” Darcy gasped. “…my boyfriend.” Her eyes widened. “Holy shit, he’s my boyfriend.”
“And?” Skyler prompted.
“And I love him.” Her pulse quickened. “Damn it, Skyler, I love him.”
“Hey, why are you angry at me? Actually, why are you angry at all?”
“I’m not angry. I’m…”
She shook her head a couple times, hoping it would knock her jumbled thoughts into balance.
She was in love with Reed. When on earth had that happened?
But no, she knew exactly when it happened—when he’d shown her the true meaning of passion. When he’d opened up to her about the loneliness of childhood and how hard it had been to grow up without parents. When he’d taken a little boy under his wing and given him the father figure he’d craved.
When those deep blue eyes locked with hers.
When their lips met.
When…God, whenever she was with him.
Reed Miller might not have looked like her ideal mate on the surface, but Darcy knew without a doubt that he was perfect for her. He challenged her, he thrilled her, he made her feel alive in a way no other man ever had.
“Do you think he loves me back?” she blurted out.