A chill went down her spine. Had this been nothing but revenge?
Her coat, she needed her coat and purse. They were in a heap on the floor. She grabbed them both and pulled her coat on. “I have to go.”
“Missy?” T.S. was frowning now.
She held up her hand, holding him off. “You thawed the ice queen. I hope you’re happy.” She found her own pride deep inside her. It was slightly in tatters, much like her underwear, but it was still there. “And I really am sorry about before. I’m sorry I never gave us a chance.”
She hurried down the steps. Heavy boots fell behind her. He stopped her when she got to the outside door. “Missy, what’s wrong? Are you okay?”
“I’m fine.” She tried to smile but knew she fell short. “I’ve got to get back to work.” She looked at his face one final time, knowing this was truly the end. She couldn’t simply have sex with T.S. Not without there being something more between them. He hadn’t offered that. He wasn’t responsible for her feelings. But she had to get away from here.
She hurried down the street to her car, feeling his eyes on her until she drove away.
Chapter Twelve
“I don’t understand what the hell happened?” T.S. glared at Candy, who’d cornered him before he’d been able to leave the apartment. He’d sat on the floor for about an hour trying to understand what had gone wrong between him and Missy.
The sex had been out of control. She’d been with him all the way. He was certain of that. But then it had all changed. She’d pulled away from him both physically and mentally.
He’d accepted her apology even though he’d wanted much more than that. When she’d opened herself to him physically, he’d thought they’d had a chance. She still wanted him. And he sure as hell wanted her. It had all fallen apart after they made love. Had she changed her mind after all? Decided she didn’t want to be with an ex-con?
“You must have done something.” She poked him in the chest with her index finger. A frown marred her usually smiling face. “She called and said she wasn’t coming back to work. And she was upset. I could tell. Didn’t you two talk?”
“Some,” he admitted. Not as much as they probably should have, but he hadn’t been willing to open himself up if they were still finished as a couple. He’d wanted some guarantees this time before he spilled his guts about that part of his life. He wanted to forget it had ever happened. Why did women always want to pick things apart? Why couldn’t she just accept him as he was?
“You had sex, didn’t you?” Candy crossed her arms over her chest and glared at him.
Was she a mind reader or did he have “I just had sex with Missy” tattooed on his forehead? He wasn’t about to confirm or deny her accusation. Of course, being a woman, she took that for agreement.
“You did. How could you?”
In spite of the seriousness of the situation, he grinned. He couldn’t help himself. “I thought Lucas would have done a better job teaching you about sex.”
She punched him on the arm. It startled him more than it hurt. “Be serious. What did you say to her?”
He shrugged. It wasn’t really Candy’s business. But she was Missy’s best friend. Maybe she could help him decipher Missy’s actions. He sure as heck couldn’t on his own. “Things were going okay.” That was stretching the truth slightly. “She apologized. I accepted. Then things got heated.”
Her eyes narrowed. “Then what?”
“Then she left.” He was still stinging over that. She was sending out all kinds of mixed signals to him. It was driving him crazy.
“Think back. What exactly did you say?”
T.S. rubbed his hand over his face and thought back. “I told her she was hot. Not icy at all.”
Candy frowned. “Not icy? What does that mean?”
He shoved his hands in the back pockets of his jeans and rocked back on his heels. He’d never met another woman besides his mother who could make him feel this defensive. Scratch that. Missy was now at the top of that particular list. “Lucas was telling me what some of the guys have said about her. I think she overheard it when she first came in.”
Candy closed her eyes and, if he wasn’t mistaken, she sounded like she was praying. “God save me from men.”
“Hey, I didn’t call her that. Those guys are morons. Anyone can see there’s more to Missy than meets the eye.”
“No, not everyone can.” Candy glared at him. “Are you going to leave things like this?”
He’d had enough. It was time to head home. He wandered over to the kitchen counter and grabbed his jacket, sliding it on as Candy followed close at his heels. “Not my call.”
She put her hand on his arm. He stared down at where it rested on his jacket. “You once gave me some advice and a warning. Now I’m returning the favor. Don’t hurt Missy.”
He had to bite back his retort. What about Missy hurting him? He was the injured party here.
“Did you talk about where your relationship was headed from here?”
“No. We didn’t talk much after those first few minutes. She ran off after.” No way was he saying more than that. Not that he had to. Candy understood what “after” meant.
“Think back, T.S. If you didn’t give her any indication you were ready to talk, to pursue your relationship, then she might have thought this afternoon was about evening the score, so to speak.” When he didn’t say anything, she continued. “Of course, if today was about nothing but sex and scoring, then you got what you wanted.”
Could she really have thought that? Women were so different from men. And T.S. was the first to admit he didn’t have the first clue about male-female relations. He usually stuck to one-night stands or hooked up with a woman who only wanted sex and nothing more. Missy was his first woman he’d ever wanted more with.
He swallowed hard, the lump of emotion in his throat almost choking him. He wanted Missy in his life today, tomorrow and for all the days that followed. She wasn’t a one-night stand or a just-for-now woman. She was…everything.
Candy’s voice softened. “If she doesn’t mean anything to you, then let her go.” She paused and nibbled on her bottom lip before continuing. “If she does mean something to you…”
He went to her, leaned down and kissed her cheek. “Lucas is a lucky man.”
She smiled and her entire face lit up. “He is lucky, but so am I. I want you both to be happy.” Her sincerity rocked him to his core. Happy. He wasn’t sure he’d even known what that was until he met Missy.
In trying to protect himself from more hurt, he’d driven her away. If he truly wanted Missy, he’d have to man up and do what needed to be done. The question was did he truly want her in his life? And for how long?
He pictured the long years ahead, much like the ones that had come before. He’d been content. He enjoyed his work and his friends. But there was something missing. Deep in his heart, he was lonely, much as he’d been as a boy with an absent father, a violent older brother and a mother who tried her best but was working twelve hours a day, six days a week to put a roof over their heads.
“I gotta go.” He left and didn’t look back. He heard Candy closing up behind him. He hit the sidewalk and quickened his pace. Had Missy misunderstood what he’d meant? What had he meant? He’d been so sated after making love to her he hadn’t been thinking beyond the moment.
That was the problem. When it came to women, he rarely thought beyond the moment. All that mattered was the here and now. If a woman didn’t like it that was her prerogative. He adored women. He was good to the ones he’d dated, but they knew going in he wasn’t a forever kinda guy.
He reached his truck, climbed in and put the keys in the ignition. He sat there, staring blindly out the window at all the people rushing down the sidewalk. What if he wanted to be a forever guy?