CHAPTER12
After pullingthe last hot roller out of her hair, Angie fluffed the ends and studied her reflection in the mirror for a long moment while trying to ignore the pinpricks of excitement and anticipation dancing across her skin.
“This is ridiculous,” she groaned before bending over at the waist.
She sprayed her hair from underneath, then flipped her head to let the curls fall back into place.
“This is a business meeting,” she said under her breath.
So why did she feel like an army of butterflies had suddenly decided to hang out in her stomach? What was it about Crow that made her anxious, breathless, angry, and tingly all at once?
Staring at herself in the mirror again, she pulled back her shoulders and lifted up her chin. “We’re meeting to go over something that pertains to my job, that’s all,” she said as she finger combed a few wayward strands from her face.No big deal.
The sound of her phone ringing made her heart leap into her throat.
“Get a grip,” she mumbled as she picked up her cell. When she saw Crow’s name flash across the screen, disappointment trickled through her.He’s canceling our dinner.
“Hello?” Her voice came out harsher than intended, but she didn’t particularly care.
“Hey. I just wanted to let you know that I’m gonna be about a half hour late.”
Before she could answer she heard a woman’s voice in the background saying, “Hey, baby, let me bring that to you.”
“Hang on a sec, Angie,” he said into the phone, then he must’ve covered the microphone on the cell because all she could hear were muffled voices.
What seemed like forever passed before he said, “I’m back. Sorry about that.”
Before she could respond, the woman with the sexy—annoyingly sexy—voice said, “I’ll be right back, baby.”
Angie felt like someone had kicked her straight on in the stomach. At that moment, all she wanted to do was cuss him out and end the call. Confusion slid over her.Why am I so pissed off right now just because I heard a woman talking to him?She wasn’t supposed to feel this way. It was ludicrous, yet, she couldn’t deny the burning sensation in her belly or the pain in her jaw from clenching her teeth.
“Are you still there?” he asked.
“Yeah.”
“Did you hear me when I said I’d be a little late?”
“Why don’t we just forget about dinner. You can call me at work tomorrow and let me know what your concerns are with Madera Crossing.”
“What’s wrong with you? Are you pissed ’cause I’m gonna be late?”
“No. It just seems like you’re a bitbusy.”
“What the fuck does that mean? I’m at the club and something came up that I have to take care of. This isn’t a big deal, but you seem to be making it into one.”
She knew she should stop and leave it alone, but the words spilled out before she could stifle them. “It sounds like you’re preoccupied with someone.” She grimaced. How petty and catty that sounded.
“Someone? What’re you talking about?”
“I have to get going.”
Crow’s low chuckle rumbled through the phone. “Are you bent outta shape because you heard Ruby talking to me? You don’t need to worry about that.”
Jolts of indignation streaked through her. “First of all, I don’t get ‘bent outta shape’ on anything. And secondly, it’s none of my business who talks to you.”
“I don’t know, it seems like you’re pissed at me and I’m trying to figure out why. Ruby’s the only thing that’s making sense right now.”
“I’m notpissed,” she said through clenched teeth.