Read Pleasure Bound for Free Online

buttons.
    “Again? You’re seeing this new guy a lot.” He succeeded in making his voice sound teasing, despite his clenched jaw.
    She grinned. “I don’t know. It’s been a whole two dates so far … not counting the weekend.”
    He hated the wistful look in her eyes as she thought about her new lover. Damn, it should have been him!
    As soon as the doors opened on their floor, she flew out of the elevator and down the hall.
    “Sorry, gotta run. See you later.” Her voice trailed down the hall, then she disappeared into her apartment.
    As Ty walked down the hall, he heard the elevator bell and glanced back as the door of the second elevator opened.
    A tall man in worn black denim jeans and vest, a black leather jacket thrown over his shoulder, stepped from the elevator. His sleeveless black T-shirt accentuated the tattoos on each bulging bicep. The long, colorful tattoo on the right Ty recognized immediately, though it had obviously been updated with newer pigment since he’d last seen it five years ago.
    “What the hell are you doing here?” Ty’s voice grated harshly through the hallway.
    “Ty?” Zeke pulled the sunglasses from his face, revealing olive green eyes, a little warmer and more vivid than Ty remembered.
    At Zeke’s surprised expression, Ty immediately realized Zeke wasn’t here to see him. That meant …
    “You God damned son of a bitch, you’d better not be here to—” Ty bit off his sentence as he heard a door open. He jerked around to see Marie peer down the hallway.
    “Ty? Is something wrong?” she asked.
    He gritted his teeth, shot a sharp glare at Zeke, then turned back to her.
    “Of course not. This your friend?” He almost choked on the last word as he nudged his head toward the bastard standing just down the hall from him.
    She spotted Zeke and the concern in her eyes melted to a soft, wistful gaze, her lips turning up in a smile. Ty’s chest clenched at the sight.
    “Zeke. You’re here. Sorry, I haven’t started dinner. I got in late.”
    “No problem. We can just order in.”
    Marie’s gaze switched from Zeke to Ty then back again. “Do … you two know each other?”
    Ty’s eyes blazed as his teeth grated together.
    “Yeah, we … went to the same high school,” Zeke answered.
    Ty strode toward his apartment and unlocked the door, then disappeared inside without another word.
    *   *   *
     
    Zeke watched Marie stare at Ty’s closing door. Zeke walked toward her and resisted the urge to take her in his arms and kiss her, not wanting to further antagonize Ty if he happened to come out of his apartment again.
    “Sorry, Ty doesn’t usually behave that way. Did something happen?” she asked.
    “He was just … surprised to see me here, that’s all.”
    “I was sure I heard raised voices.”
    “I didn’t say he was happy to see me.”
    Her eyebrows arched. “I take it it’s a long story?”
    He nodded as they entered her apartment and shut the door.
    She sat down beside him on the couch. “I’ve got the time.”
    He shrugged. He did not intend to tell her about the rift between him and his old friend. He didn’t know what kind of relationship existed between Ty and Marie. Even if he did, he wouldn’t reveal any secrets from Ty’s past. He wouldn’t do anything that Ty might interpret as a further betrayal of their friendship.
    Ex -friendship as far as Ty was concerned—Zeke’s chest tightened at the thought—but Zeke would never give up on them. Ty had been the best friend Zeke had ever known, and if there was ever anything he could do to mend the rift between them, he’d do it. If it hadn’t been for Ty, Zeke’s life would be very different right now. In fact, he’d probably be in jail.
    “How about you get me a beer instead?”
    “Then you’ll talk?”
    He slid his arms around her and tugged her to his body, then devoured her lips until she was breathless. “I can think of way better things to do than talking.”
    He kissed her