Read Nightie Night: The Lingerie Series (Stir Sticks & Stilettos) for Free Online Page B

goodnight.”
    Turning, I moved quickly to the
couch and grabbed my purse. I closed my laptop and shoved it in my briefcase. I
rushed to the door.
    “Kalan, hold on a moment.”
    My feet paused at the sound of my
name. I still felt drawn to him and I hated myself because of it.  Facing him,
I said, “Look, I need to go.”
    “We’re not done here yet.”
    The hell if we’re not. “I have…um…family…game night.”
    Arching an eyebrow, he stared at me,
seeing through my lie. “You said you had already let them know you wouldn’t—
Hey, buddy. Yes, we’re still doing brunch and the movies tomorrow. Why are you
still up?”
    Saved by a little boy who wanted to
talk to his father.
    Not wasting any more time, I left.
As soon as I passed the glass walls of Aaren’s office, I ran.
    Instead of going right to the bank
of elevators, I turned left and then a quick right to the stairs. I couldn’t
risk waiting and having Aaren catch up with me. I shoved through the emergency
door and closed it softly behind me. One hand gliding along the rail, I raced
down the steps. 
    My thighs were on fire by the time I
made it from the fourteenth floor to the basement car park but I didn’t care. I
ignored the stinging in the back of my eyes as I fought against the tears. I
was not going to allow myself to cry over a selfish bastard. Nope.
    A dog would always be a dog, but it
was my fault for not asking the right questions. There I was like an idiot
believing his sad story about his parents. It was probably a lie he used
frequently to get into gullible women’s panties. It worked all too well on
me.
    Thirty-five minutes later, I pulled
into my parents' house. I had already dropped a bag there in the morning
because my grandmother, who lived with my parents, asked me to take her to the
zoo in Asheboro tomorrow. They may not be expecting me for game night, but if I
didn’t come over at all tonight, they would worry. I hated to make my parents
worry, even six years after my hospitalization. I could have called them and
said I wasn't coming tonight, but I didn’t want to be alone.
    Not because I was afraid, but
because I needed the company to escape my own thoughts.
    Seeing the street filled with
vehicles of my family made me smile and lifted my spirits some. Entering the
house, I was greeted by the riotous voices of the Henderson clan and the game
of Pictionary in full swing.
    From the door, I could see Chase,
Oriana and Lenny. My best friend, sitting beside her fiancé of a month, waved
at me. I gave her a small smile. Oriana and Chase had finally found love. Why
couldn't the same thing have happened for me? The burning in my eyes returned
with a vengeance. Maybe I should have gone home.
    “Kalan, you’re here.” Lenny, one of
my Uncle Nile's children, called out. “Your team needs you. These cheaters are
wiping the floor with us.”
    I knew Lenny was referring to his
twin, Darrell. Recalling my look in Aaren’s bathroom mirror, I realized that
before I could be around my family, I needed to shower and change.
    Yelling into the family room, I
said, “One second. Let me get out of my work clothes.” Running up the stairs, I
turned right at the landing and entered my room. In the center of the bed was
my dark blue small suitcase. Instead of the purple and white the room had been
when I grew up in it, it was now mauve and cream. Four years ago, I helped my mother
redecorate it to something more adult and packed away all my teenage memories.
    With my back pressed to the door, I
took a few breaths. I needed to get myself together.
    A tapping at the door sounded behind
me.
    Shit . I cleared my throat. “I’ll be down
in a second. I just need to change.”
    “Kalan? It’s Oriana. Can I come in?”
    Sighing, I was grateful that it was
my best friend and not one of my relatives. Turning, I pulled the door open and
stepped away, going to my case.
    “When you came in you didn’t look well,
so I wanted to check on you.”
    Looking