Ego Maniac(4)

“Of course.”

“Thank you.” I lifted my box and had no choice but to face him.

He walked around the table to where I was standing and took it out of my hands before leading me to the reception area. Everything else in the space was dark, but the light from what I’d thought was my file room illuminated the hall enough that we could see each other. We stopped in front of the service door I’d been using for the last week. It dawned on me that the fake real estate agent probably had me using that entrance to avoid getting caught too quickly. He’d told me not to use the main Park Avenue entrance because the building didn’t want dust tracked through on our shoes during the construction. I’d bought everything that scammer had said.

“Got a name, Oklahoma? Or should I just call you squatter?”

“Emerie. Emerie Rose.”

“Pretty name. Rose your last name or middle?”

“Last.”

He shifted the box he was carrying from two hands to one and extended the free one to me. “Drew. Drew Michael.”

I squinted. “Middle or last?”

His smile lit up the dimness as I placed my hand in his. The man didn’t have dimples. He had mouth cleavage.

“Middle. Jagger’s my last name.”

“Nice to meet you, Drew Jagger.”

He didn’t let go of my hand. “Really? Nice to meet me? You’re way more polite than I would be under the circumstances.”

“You’re right. At this point, I might be wishing you were really a burglar after all.”

“Do you have a car? It’s late, and this box is pretty heavy.”

“It’s fine. I’ll just grab a cab.”

He nodded. “Better be careful getting in and out. That skirt seems to have a mind of its own.”

That time, not even the dark could hide the blush. “With all the mortification I’ve suffered tonight, you couldn’t let me just have that one? Pretend it never happened?”

Drew smirked. “It’s impossible to pretend I didn’t see that ass.”

I was thin, but my ass was a little on the large side. I’d always been self conscious of it. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It was a compliment.”

“Oh.”

“Why did your skirt fall down, anyway? Did you lose weight recently or something?”

At that point, nothing could embarrass me any more than I’d already done to myself, so I laughed as I told him the truth. “I had a big burger for dinner, and my skirt was tight so I unzipped it. The door was locked. I didn’t think anyone would be coming in.”

“A woman who eats big burgers and looks like that? Don’t let the other New York women know. They’ll put you back on a bus to Oklahoma.” He winked. And God, was I pathetic that I felt the pitter-patter of my heart speed up.

We walked outside, and Drew waited with me, holding my box until a cab pulled up at the curb. He leaned on the top of the door after I climbed in.

“New Year’s Eve always sucks. Tomorrow will be better. Why don’t you stay in bed, order another big burger, and try to get some rest. I’ll meet you at the police station the day after tomorrow. 19th Precinct over on 67th Street. Say eight a.m.? New Year’s Day will be crazy at the station—still processing drunken idiots from the night before.”

I hadn’t even thought of the police. I guess I did need to file a report.

“You don’t have to come with me. I’ve already intruded enough on you.”

Drew shrugged. “They’ll want my statement for their report anyway. Plus, I’m friendly with a few of the guys. It’ll get you in and out faster.”

“Okay.”

He rapped his knuckles on the top of the cab twice and leaned in to speak to the driver. “Take good care of her. She’s had a shitty night.”

Once we pulled away into traffic, everything that had happened over the last hour hit me. My adrenaline had spiked, and I started to free-fall down.

I’ve been scammed out of my life savings.

I no longer have an office.

I’ve given all of my patients my new address.

My head spun.

Where will I go?

What will I do for a security deposit even if I find someplace new on short notice?

Feeling nauseous again, I leaned my head back against the leather seat and shut my eyes, taking a few deep breaths. Oddly, the first thing that popped into my head was the handsome, dark-haired man with the full lips leaning against my office doorway. His office doorway. And with that image in my mind—in the midst of my spiral down and a massive anxiety attack—I couldn’t stop the small smile that curled my lips.





Drew



I twisted the dial on my watch. Twenty minutes late. She was sexy, and that one little soft spot that remained in my heart actually felt bad for how she’d been conned. But twenty minutes? I billed at $675 an hour. I’d just lost $225 standing in front of the damn police station. I took one last look up the block and was about to head back down to my office when a flash of color turned the corner.

Green. I’d always been fond of green. What’s not to like? Money, grass, those frogs with the bulging eyes that I loved to chase as a kid—but today fond was promoted to favorite as I watched Emerie’s tits bounce up and down in her sweater. For a little thing, she had some rack—went nicely with that curvy ass.