Hard Hit (IceCats 3)

I cringe. She has some serious ass issues right now. “Oh, Nico, come on. Aviva, I’m sorry. Are you okay?”

“No, my ass hurts.”

“I’m sorry.”

“I made him go buy me a donut for the ride.”

“Good.”

“And ice cream.”

“Smart lady.”

“I may even make him buy me something pretty.”

“Do it, boo.”

“Oh, I will,” she groans. “My poor ass.”

“I’m sorry. But, question,” I say, tapping my chin. “How’d you know I slept with Kirby?”

“He called Nico, and Nico told me.”

“Oh, so I must have been incredible.”

“Sure?”

“Sure?”

“Yeah. Tell me how it happened,” she demands, exasperated. “I thought you went out with Allen last night.”

“I did. Things didn’t work out because Kirby showed up, and yeah, I can’t think of anything but him. And oh my God, Veev, it was absolutely amazing. He’s incredible,” I gush, my stomach doing flip-flops. I keep reliving what we did, the way he touched me with such care, looked at me, made me feel everything ten times over and then some. It was just perfect. “I knew he was special, but damn, he rocked my world.”

She hesitates, which confuses me. “Jay, then why did you leave?”

I bring up a brow. The way she says that makes me feel like I did something wrong. So, of course, I deflect. “Wow, I didn’t know Nico and Kirby were that close.”

“They are,” she informs me. “Kirby is really bummed you left.”

“He is? He fell asleep! What was I supposed to do? Wait around?”

“I get that, but why haven’t you called or texted or even left a note?”

“I was going to at noon!”

She doesn’t miss a beat. “He has a lot going on with Celeste, and he doesn’t need someone playing with his heart right now.”

“Whoa! Veev, relax,” I say quickly and defensively. “I know all that, and I’m not playing with him. I plan on calling. I just figured he was tired, and I would call at noon after I finished all my conference calls and shit.”

“He thinks you just wanted to hook up,” she says. “And Nico seconded that.”

My jaw drops. “What the hell? That’s not the case at all. Tell Nico to not only stay out your ass but my business!”

She scoffs. “Jay, what are you doing? It’s not unusual you left like that. It’s classic Jaylin. You don’t sleep over at guys’ houses, and you don’t call. So, if that’s your plan, then just don’t call him.”

“What the hell!” I complain once more. “I told you before I thought he was different, someone I could commit to. And Jesus Christ, that was sorta a first date and hookup. Relax. Give me a fucking minute.”

She lets out an annoyed breath. “I know you, and I worry about Kirby. He doesn’t have the best history.”

“Well, I don’t plan on adding to that history,” I say, and then I pause. That was a bold statement. “Fuck, give me some credit, Veev.”

“I am not knocking you at all. You live one hell of a life, Jaylin. I envied you before I found Nico. You’re so bold, so confident, but I don’t want anything else hurting Kirby.”

“Oh my God, Aviva. I’m not going to hurt him. Shit, I’ll text to see if he’s awake. Also, I feel very attacked,” I snap as I put her on speaker and text Kirby, Hey.

I know, very original.

“I don’t mean to make you feel like that. I just worry that no one ever thinks to protect Kirby, and I’m super mama bear right now. I already cried four times because Callie is leaving me.”

Ah. That all makes sense. Aviva isn’t usually emotional. She’s a hard-ass like me, but this makes sense. “It’s okay. I’ll fix this.”

Kirby: Who’s this?

“Ah, he texted me back. Hold on.”

“What did he say?”

I ignore her as I tell him it’s me.

Just then, Jaime, my assistant, comes over the speaker. “Ms. Raventorn, you have a Mr. Kirby Litman here to see you.”

“He’s here!”

I look up and meet Kirby’s gaze. He holds his phone in one hand and a rose in the other. My heart explodes in my chest as a grin takes over my face. It’s as if I’d forgotten how gorgeous he is. His dark hair is a mess at the top but clean shaved on the sides. His dark eyes are intent on mine, and I love how even in athletic shorts and a tee, I find him irresistible. I’m so used to dudes in suits, or stupid lab coats, it’s refreshing to be into someone so casual.

“Veev, I gotta go.”

“Yeah, call me.”

“Yup. Jaime, send him in.”

I watch as he acknowledges what Jaime says while I get up, fixing my skirt before coming out from behind my desk. He walks toward me like a cat on the prowl. His eyes never leave mine. The heat rushes through me like a tsunami, and fuck, I want him even more than I did last night. I open my door just as he reaches it. “Hey.”