Not Even Close (A New Generation) by Elizabeth Reyes (books to read in a lifetime txt) 📗

“You’re getting dressed.” It was more of a statement than aquestion.

Byron looked up at her. “Yeah, I gotta open up the shop. I’malready late.”

“But last night you said we’d finish today,” she sulked.

Peering at her, Byron tried in vain to remember what she wastalking about. “Finish—?” He caught himself understanding what she was sayingnow. It was embarrassing but it made sense if he was that out of it. “We didn’tfinish?”

“We never even got started.” She huffed playfully. “We’d justmade it into your bedroom, started to undress and got in bed, but when yourhead hit that pillow you barely whispered the words; we’ll finish tomorrow,then passed out.”

Letting his head fall back as he buttoned his fly, Byron laughedfeeling like a douche. “I’m sorry. I’d make it up to you now but I’m already lateto open.” She was sulking again, so he explained further as he moved around theroom quickly. “I probably have customers and employees waiting outside. I heardthe phone downstairs ring and the door buzz earlier. Phone’s ringing again now.My brother doesn’t like when I open late.”

His cell phone rang distracting them both momentarily. Byronrushed to it knowing it had to be one of the guys. He just hoped it hadn’tgotten back to his brother that the shop was still closed. So, he was relievedto see Gus’s name on his screen.

Holding his hand up for Irma to give him a moment, he hit the answerbutton. “Dude, are you that hungover you’re not gonna open today?”

“Nah, I’m just running late. You here already?”

“Yeah, so’s the rest of the crew and some customers.”

“Cool,” Byron said rushing to the door that headed downstairs.“I’ll let you guys in and you guys can get things going while I finish gettingready.”

Irma heard him so he didn’t bother to explain where he was going.He didn’t even have shoes on yet, so he’d be back as soon as he let them in. Oncehe had the guys in, he rushed back upstairs to finish getting ready. Irma wasalready dressed and gathering her things together.

She gave him a coy look when he walked into the bedroom. “I’msorry, sweetheart.” He smirked despite the heaviness he still couldn’t shake aboutVannah.

It was the weirdest thing. It’s like even if his head couldmomentarily put it aside, something inside him was still feeling it. His heart?Nah, that’d be ridiculous. And he wasn’t about to spend another entire day dwellingon it either. But it gave him an idea.

“Tell you what.” He looked up as he put his shoes on. “Why don’tyou come back tonight? We’ll continue where we left off—minus the booze.”

As expected, she smiled big and nodded immediately. “I can dothat. I didn’t have any plans for tonight. Since I knew I’d be out late lastnight I didn’t think I’d feel up to it two nights in a row. But this isdifferent. I can make you something. I’m an excellent cook, you know.”

That stopped Byron in his tracks and he almost let out a groan.He already knew no matter what she made him it wouldn’t even be close to Vannah’scooking.

“What’s wrong?”

Glancing back at her after realizing he literally froze in place,he started up again. “I was uh, just trying to remember something.”

She smiled with a nod. “So, what should I make you?”

“Actually, I’ve been craving pizza. I’ll just order fromPurgatory up the street. Haven’t had them in a while.”

Thankfully, she agreed without argument. The last thing hewanted was to spend the evening talking culinary shit. It was already exasperatingas hell that he couldn’t get his mind off her.

Once Irma left, Byron went downstairs and got started on his day,determined to immerse himself in his work and keep his mind off of Vannah. Hesucceeded to for the most part. But he’d purposely asked Nine to schedule extrahelp that afternoon a few days ago, so he’d be free if Vannah was able to getthe afternoon and evening off today.

When those guys came in for their shifts that would’ve relieved himhad he made those plans, it was yet another reminder of what he was trying sohard not to think about. Even though he knew neither Beast, Nine, nor Orlandowould’ve minded him staying on the clock when they were fully staffed for theafternoon, he called it a day.

Byron was in no mood to entertain Irma that early. They’d agreedon her stopping by any time after eight, so he still had plenty of time to sitaround and dwell. He wasn’t having it, so he grabbed his gym bag and keys andheaded out to 5th Street. Ifanything, he’d work off some of the pent-up tension that way, then get back andwork it off some more with Irma.

Rolling the kink he’d been feeling in his neck ever since seeingVannah at the restaurant yesterday, Byron walked into the gym with a purpose. Asmuch as his head kept telling him to move the fuck on and stop dwelling on thisshit, a part of him was holding out and it was making him crazy. So, sheclearly hadn’t felt as besotted with him as he’d been with her. But the factremained she still hadn’t responded to his last text. If this really was her thingto be dating multiple people at once then wouldn’t her MO have been to respondwith at least an, okay, maybe another day? They’d been glued to theirphones going back and forth all day every day for the past week. Now hemakes one comment about spending time with another female, and she disappears? Somethingwasn’t adding up. Not that he was hoping she’d reach out. He still didn’t trusthimself not to snap, and he didn’t want to give her the satisfaction ofconfirming just how much more she’d already begun to mean to him than he did toher.

Nine did a double take when he saw him and started toward him. “Heyman, you talked to your brother today?”

“No, not today.” Byron glanced down at his phone just in casehe’d missed a call or text from him. “Why? What’s going on?”

“Nothing I just tried calling him earlier to ask about the partfor that Cadillac. He