“She’s fine. Safe,” he clipped out. He was always curt when it came to her. I wondered what Quinn’s story was. Who she was running from and why did she need protection?
“I’ve noticed you haven’t been with anyone else in a long time. Are you and Quinn…?”
“No,” he snapped. “We’re not. I really don’t feel like talking about her. She’s a personal matter.”
“Yeah.” I chuckled. “Jade is a personal matter to me, too, and I talk about her ass all the fucking time. With pretty much everyone.”
“It’s not the same.”
“It’s not? Tell me why you don’t make a move on Quinn,” I pressed. I knew that Carter wasn’t like us. He wasn’t the caveman type of guy, or maybe he was, but he wasn’t a manwhore. But I did know this—he was a good-looking bastard, an honest, hardworking man, and Quinn should’ve felt to date a guy like him.
“I can’t,” he said.
“Why?”
“Because I’ll embarrass myself.”
“Why!” I asked again. “Why the fuck would you embarrass yourself? You do realize that you’re technically her boss, earn three times more than she does, and look better than most of the men she interacts with every day.” God, I hated that I sounded like the gay friend, but Carter seriously had to take his head out of his ass.
“Because I’m shite in bed,” he hissed. “That’s why. This girl… she told many times before. I don’t deliver the goods that I…” he trailed off, clearing his throat. “Let’s just say I’ve been told the package looks more appealing than the product inside it. I’ve been enjoying the odd fling every now and then, but recently… Well, since I started liking Quinn, I’m not even confident enough to do this anymore.”
“Is this code for you have a small dick?” I asked, and he punched me in the chest, hard.
“My dick is huge. I’m just not entirely sure how to use it.”
It was so goddamn charming of him. If I were a girl, I’d definitely spread my legs for this guy.
“Fuck, man, if only you had someone like Jade to show you the dos and don’ts.” Sharing Jade was not something I’d usually be down with, and who knows if I could ever get her on board, but Carter was a brother to me. And fuck, I didn’t like seeing him like this. Jade had a way of making me want to beat my chest like a fucking gorilla. If she could do that for Carter, maybe, just maybe, he could find the confidence to pursue Quinn like a normal dude.
“No thank you,” another snap came.
“Why? You don’t find my girl attractive?” I frowned.
“She’s very attractive.” He coughed. “It’s just that she’s not…Quinn.”
Our little chitchat needed to stop because Stefano finally turned off his TV and his light. He padded barefoot to his bedroom, and that was our cue. I slid across the wall of his building, walked quietly to his entrance, and used one of Jade’s bobby pins to unlock his door. The door opened effortlessly, and I sauntered inside, with Carter following closely behind me. I slid my gloved hand along his wall before I pushed the handle to his bedroom door.
Stefano sat there.
On his bed.
Naked.
Exposed.
So fragile.
“Hello,” I said as I entered the room. He reached for his cell phone quickly, surprise and horror coloring his face, but Carter shot the phone in his hand.
Carter was a very good shot, which gave me faith in him. He had the potential to be a stud. He just needed to explore it. I tsked to Stefano, shaking my head.
“You know, Stefano, I hate it when people cheat. I hate it when people fight dirty.”
I took a step forward to him, and he flinched. His face was marred with his fears, and they were so goddamn ugly. He didn’t move an inch so not to piss me off, but it made me feel so annoyed with him. He definitely wasn’t so polite and proper when he kidnapped my girlfriend and cut me open with blades.
“I also hate it when men torture women.”
Another step. His lower lip quivered, and tears gleamed in his eyes, but he said nothing. Just as well, as he knew there was nothing he could say that would have changed his fate.