NICE GIRL TO LOVE (THE COMPLETE THREE-BOOK COLLECTION)(104)

Ouch. How the woman managed to make that into a biting insult was precisely why she was keeping her butt in the stall.

“Seriously? Connor? Are we talking about the same man who wore out the Hanley twins? Because from what I hear, he’s into some kinky stuff.”

“Really? I thought he was pretty vanilla. We only had sex a few times because of that stupid one-month rule of his but…meh, it was alright. I tried to get him to go to a bondage club with me but like I said, he wasn’t into it.”

Abby felt bile rising up in her throat.

“Well, he must be doing something right because he’s slept with half of the women out there tonight and most of them are still fawning all over him.” A syrupy sweet giggle. “Maybe he’s into the innocent virginal type now. A lot of these high-powered guys like doing the whole role playing thing. Maybe corrupting the really pure ones gets the kinky side to come out.”

A toilet flush effectively drowned out their voices for a few precious seconds before the clacking of stiletto heels brought with it a voice she vaguely recognized. “Oh god, I’d let him dress me in braids and a schoolgirl outfit if that’s what it would take.”

Janelle. One of the women she’d been talking to earlier. Wasn’t she married?

“Well if he’s into threesomes, why don’t you just ask his date to let you join in? She probably lets Connor do whatever he wants.”

Abby couldn’t breathe. Bracing her hands against the stall walls, she tried to keep the room from spinning even more than it was.

“Ooh, ooh! I heard Rachel got him for a one-nighter by just showing up at his house in a trench coat and crotchless panties. Ohmigosh, can you imagine his date wearing something like that?”

The women laughed.

Abby shut her eyes and fought the waves of nausea slamming into her. She could hear her own heartbeat thrumming in her ears, a gray haze blanketing her vision.

All those women…

One by one, she heard the women leaving. But she couldn’t get their voices to leave her head.

All those women…

And now she was trying to become one of them.

After emptying her dinner in the toilet, she went to the sink and stared at her reflection. Turning on the faucet, she cupped handfuls of water and splashed her face over and over again.

But no amount of water could wash all the ugliness of the past ten minutes away.

She grabbed a napkin and wiped away every last trace of the cosmetics on her face. Pulling a hair tie out of her purse, she jerked her hair back up into a ponytail. Half of it was drenched anyway.

Even if Connor didn’t want to leave yet, she was getting the hell out of the building.

“Abby, there you are.” Connor dropped his phone back into his pocket. “I was starting to think you abandoned me for the night.” He smiled, studying her hair. “Hey, you pulled it back. You look cute.”

Cute. As in gollie-gee-whiz adorable. The walls started closing in on her again.

His grin faded. “Are you okay, sweetie?”

“I’m feeling a little sick. Do you mind if I head home already? I’ll call a cab.”

“Don’t be silly. I’ll drive you.” He quickly took her purse and put a steadying hand on her back. “Do you want to sit down for a bit more? You look really pale.”

“No, I just want to go. Are you sure it’s okay for you to leave already? It’s not even nine o’clock. What about the party?”

He shrugged. “What about it?” His worried gaze deepened as it drifted over her face. “If you feel faint, let me know. I’ll carry you the rest of the way.”

For some reason, that caused a riot of laughter to hit her in the belly. And she couldn’t stop it. Her head started spinning again but this time it felt like it was floating away.

“Abby, I’m calling an ambulance. This looks serious.”

Finally the giggle fits stopped. “No, I’m fine. I just…have a really bad headache. It’s making me a little loopy.”

He opened the car door for her and gently helped her in.

Abby’s head was in complete disarray. How could this man be the same one the women were talking about earlier? It’s not that she wasn’t aware of Connor’s past. His one-month rule alone was a good indication. But just the sheer numbers were hard to wrap her brain around. After being with all those women, how could one woman ever be enough for him? She pressed her fingers into her temples.

“I don’t want you to stay alone tonight, Abby. If you’re not comfortable staying at my house, I can sleep on your couch and keep an eye on you there.” He paused for a beat before adding quietly, “Or I can drop you off at Brian’s if you’d prefer.”

She heard the hurt in his voice when he offered the last option and though a part of her was tempted to choose it, she shook her head. “I’ll be fine, Connor. Alone. But if I need to talk to someone, I promise I’ll call you.”

And while this was yet another fib to add to the stack this joint custody dating was racking up, this one, she truly wished she could deliver.





CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN


ABBY WAS ALREADY HALFWAY ASLEEP when she dropped down into bed to turn in for the night. And she was down to only a quarter consciousness when her phone rang.

“Hello?” she muttered sleepily into the receiver.