With Every Breath (Slow Burn 4)

Damn his arrogant, smug ass straight to hell. She was here. So why was he so intent on making a scene when he’d been the one so adamant that things be perfect for Gracie’s debut, had been pissed that Gracie’s feelings would be hurt if all her friends weren’t here.

She glanced left and right looking for an escape route, any escape route so she could melt into the crowd and not be there when Sterling shoved into her space. Or maybe she could fake a sudden onset of the flu or some wicked stomach virus. Food poisoning! But then she hadn’t eaten her forgotten takeout in her car because the damn man had forced a confrontation on her turf and well, after that, her appetite had fled.

A waiter bearing a tray full of champagne glasses brushed by her and she lunged for one of the glasses and then on impulse grabbed another one. If this wasn’t a double-fisted drinking occasion she didn’t know what was. She gulped down the contents before the waiter had time to move on and she plunked the empty down with a thud and quickly nabbed another two. The waiter gave her a wary glance and hastily went on to the next patron.

Too bad they were serving smaltzy alcohol and not something more fitting. Like vodka or tequila. Preferably in a solo cup instead of a tiny-ass shot glass. She needed all the liquid courage she could muster for what she could only describe as the night from hell.

Avoiding one person was difficult enough, though God knew she’d had plenty of practice avoiding Sterling. Hell, she’d become an expert. But having to avoid not only a knuckles-dragging-the-ground Neanderthal but also a woman she considered a friend, who just happened to have the ability to read minds, stretched even Eliza’s impressive set of skills.

Knowing that Sterling was the lesser of the two evils because he could think what he wanted, she resigned herself to having to grind her teeth and somehow get through the next hour without getting close enough to Gracie to be busted. At least he couldn’t see into her head and know everything she was thinking.

The damn bastard’s eyes were full of laughter though his lips and expression reflected none of the humor in his gaze.

“You came,” he drawled.

She sent him an acid look that normally withered the recipient but Sterling didn’t even flinch.

“Wow, your powers of observation are astounding,” she mocked sweetly, giving him her most saccharine smile. “And you stating the obvious is ever so intelligent. I find smart men soooo attractive. Too bad you’re lacking in the IQ department.”

“I must be stupid,” he said, his words laced with sarcasm and a bite she’d become all too acquainted with.

She lifted an eyebrow, shocked to hear those words coming out of his mouth. If he was nothing else, he was decidedly sure of himself. Confident. Arrogant. Cocky. No one could ever call him humble.

“If I had half a brain, then I’d stay the hell away from you,” he growled.

Only because she lifted one of the two champagne glasses she held to her lips was she able to prevent her mouth from falling open. What the hell was that supposed to mean?

“Then use the other half and do what the missing half would if it were present,” she said sweetly. “Because apparently common sense left with the missing half as well. Stay the hell away from me, Sterling, and make us both happy.”

And then it happened again. He smiled, teeth flashing, and he threw back his head and issued a throaty laugh that gave her actual goose bumps. His smile and that laugh were so devastatingly sexy they should be outlawed. Jesus, no wonder he had a veritable parade of women in and out of his bedroom.

His gaze drifted down to the two champagne flutes she had a death grip on and his eyes continued to twinkle with silent laughter. Even forced to be in his company for a short time was worth hearing him laugh and seeing that breathtaking smile. Twice she’d seen it now. In the same day. Surely the world was ending.

Or at least hers was.

Her thoughts quickly sobered because once again, for just a few seconds, she forgot herself. Forgot that this was her last night to see Ramie and Ari. Grief overwhelmed her because she wouldn’t get to say goodbye to Gracie. And in the morning she’d say a silent farewell, a permanent farewell to the people she worked with. Her family. And, God, Dane.

Sterling’s eyes narrowed, losing the amusement so prevalent just seconds before. His lips became a thin line and his jaw bulged, his cheekbones more defined as he stared piercingly at her.

“What the hell is going on with you, Eliza?” he asked quietly.

She lifted her glass and drained the contents, glancing frantically around for one of the servers, though she still had one full glass left. Seeing no one, she raised her last glass to her lips, or rather was in the process when Sterling intercepted it, wresting it from her grasp.

“What are you doing?” Eliza demanded. “That was my drink!”

“Your third,” he said dryly. “Is this the only way you can work up the courage to face me? By getting shit-faced as soon as you walk through the door?”

She fought the heat and betraying flush that crept slowly up her neck. She never blushed. Nothing embarrassed her. Pissed her off? Yeah. And she tended to get red in the face then, so she would have no problem passing off her embarrassment as rage.

“Sorry to have offended your prudish sensibilities,” she said snidely. “Or maybe there is a drink limit I wasn’t aware of? You getting cheap, Sterling? Can’t afford free booze so you expect everyone to limit their intake?”

He shook his head, the half grin, half grimace back in place. Well, at least he was no longer prying or trying to pry into her thoughts.

“You are so full of shit, Eliza,” he said in what sounded like an exasperated tone but nothing seemed to fluster the man. Not that she’d ever witnessed. “Now, what were you thinking about a minute ago? Care to share?”

So much for him no longer being nosy.

“No, I don’t care to share,” she said in a frosty voice. “I don’t care to share anything with you, Sterling. Not your company, not your presence. I don’t want to share the same space or even the same air you do so get out of my way and leave me alone.”

He didn’t respond, instead turning as if to walk away. Oh God, please let her prayer be answered. Just when she thought her fervent prayer had been granted, Sterling snagged her elbow and deftly escorted her through the crowd.

Apparently God was occupied with far more important things than indulging in her cowardice. She could hardly blame him. After all, she’d rather save her prayers for when she really needed them, and she would need them soon.