8. Caden
Caden
I tightened the remaining screw and stepped down off the ladder.
The new camera was installed. The scent of fresh paint tickled my nostrils.
This area of the Langston Windward was newly renovated and now completely finished.
I’d started installing the new security system here.
The entire project would be done in phases.
Setting the screwdriver back in my small toolkit, I checked my watch. Early evening. The day had passed by fast. Grabbing the toolkit, I took the stairs.
From my calculations, Allie would be finishing her later shift. Not that I’d memorized her schedule or anything.
A muscle ticked in my jaw. I’d only seen her once today. Flirting with that young asshole in the lobby.
My hand tightened on the toolkit, the plastic digging into my palm. Did she like him? Was that the sort of guy she liked? Young, easy-going.
Jealousy hit my gut like a spiked bomb.
I blew out a breath. I had no right to be jealous. She wasn’t mine.
I turned into the staff area, stopping in my tracks.
Ro had Tessa pinned to the wall. He was kissing his woman, hard. They were lost in their own world, neither of them aware of anything around them.
I shook my head. I never turned off. I was always aware of my surroundings, no matter what. When I’d first come home after leaving the military, it had been far worse. I’d been jumpy as hell, and always on edge, always ready to fight.
It had terrified my mother. My sisters had stared at me like I was a stranger.
My grip on the toolkit tightened, but then I forced my fingers to relax.
These days, I managed some sort of normalcy.
Except you don’t sleep.
Ignoring the voice in my head, I cleared my throat.
Tessa jerked away. She had fair skin, and her blush of embarrassment was obvious. “Oh, Caden… Hi.”
Ro just turned, grinning smugly.
“Don’t you have a private penthouse? And an office?” I said. “And Tessa’s house?”
She smoothed a hand down her skirt. “We have a little more work to do. Ro has a call.” She rolled her eyes. “He always has a call.”
He ran a hand down her braid. “I have a call with Tristan. He’s got some spreadsheet I have to look at. Tessa is keeping me company.”
“Is that what you’re calling it?”
Ro just smiled. “Allie calls you Broody. Suits you. See you later.” He took Tessa’s hand and dragged her into his office.
Despite how it may have appeared, I was happy for my friend. Ro was a workaholic, driven, and pushed by his own family demons. He seemed far happier and calmer now that Tessa was in his life.
Movement caught my attention, and Allie rounded the corner. My mind went blank.
She’d changed out of her uniform, and fuck me, she was wearing a tiny skirt and a long-sleeved, cream top that looked soft and silky.
Those legs. They were even longer than I realized. I couldn’t drag my gaze off them. They were toned and smooth.
On Saturday, she’d been wearing leggings that had hugged her legs and ass. She might be slim, but she still had an ass. After ice cream, I’d come back to my suite. I hadn’t been able to get my mind off those legs. Or imagining them wrapped around my hips.
I wondered what she’d think, knowing I’d taken my cock in hand and stroked it, thinking of her damn legs until I’d come.
She looked up and shot me a small smile. “Hey, Broody.”
“Allie.” I cocked my head. “Got a date?” The thought felt like knives to my gut.
“What?” Her brows drew together. “No, why?”
“You’re in a skirt.”
“Oh.” She tugged on it. “Ollie’s with my neighbor and my shift is done, so I decided to treat myself to a drink in the Bluff Bar.”
The knives in my gut whirled. “Alone?”
She fidgeted. “Not exactly. I know some guests are having a few drinks. They said to stop by.”
“So a date.”
She huffed. “It’s not a date. It’s a drink. It’s me pretending for an hour that my life didn’t blow up, and I didn’t lose my brother, or leave behind the life I’d made for myself—” She clamped her mouth shut. “It’s a drink.”
With the blond guy. “I saw you flirting with that guy in the lobby.” My words were a growl.
Her mouth dropped open. “I was not flirting.”
I crossed my arms over my chest.
“Broody, that was a conversation, not flirting.”
“He wants more than conversation.” I paused. “Are you into that guy?”
“Blake? No.”
Of course his fucking name was Blake. “The flirting made me think otherwise.”
Her eyes flashed. “It wasn’t flirting.”
I could feel my damn control slipping through my fingers like water. “Fine.” My voice sounded like gravel. “Don’t let me keep you.”
She stared at me for a beat, then she shouldered past me. She was muttering under her breath, and I suspected calling me a few names.
I probably deserved them. My hands flexed, then I whirled and stalked toward the conference room.
I wasn’t going to think about her with that guy, laughing, having a good time.
My cellphone rang and I snatched it out of my pocket. “Castro.”
“Sounds like you’re having a bad day, my friend.”
Instantly, I recognized the voice. “Gunnar. It’s been too damn long.”
I’d served with Gunnar O’Neill in special forces. He was several years older than me and a hell of a soldier. He’d been a mentor to me when I’d first joined the team. Gunnar was solid as a rock, the man you could always count on.
“Good to hear your voice, Caden. How’s the hotel life treating you?”
“It has its days.”
Gunner laughed. “I bet you have everyone quaking in their boots and following your orders.”
I thought of Allie. “Not everyone.”
“Well, I was calling to tell you that I’m out.”
“Out? You left the Army?” My eyebrows winged up. I thought Gunnar would be a lifer. He had no family and the Army had been his home.
A sigh echoed down the line. “It was time.”
I understood that better than anyone. “What are your plans?”
“Don’t have any. I haven’t got a home base or anyone waiting for me, so I’m a free agent. Thought I might come and visit you.”
“I’d like that.” Then a thought coalesced in my head. “You like Colorado?”
“Love the mountains. That where you are?”
“Yes, for now. Small mountain town called Windward. Just so happens I’m looking for someone to run security for the new mountain resort the company purchased.”
“Really?” Gunnar was quiet. “Never thought of working in a hotel.”
“Come take a look.” Gunnar might just be the answer to my hiring problem. “And I’ll throw in a bottle of that Barrel Craft Spirits bourbon you love so much.”
“The Gray Label.”
I snorted. I knew the Gray Label was way more expensive. “Sure.”
“Right. Well, I’ll see you in a few days.”
Sliding the phone back in my pocket, I stared ahead. If Gunnar liked Windward and was keen to take on the job, I could get out of here sooner rather than later.
It should make me happy, but for some reason, the idea felt like a rock in my gut.
No, dammit. That was my plan. Getting out of Windward was what I needed.
I straightened and headed toward the security room.
I had to find something to do. Something to keep my mind off the fact that Allie was having a drink with another man in the bar. Acid welled in my throat and I viciously ignored it.