9. Lara

Chapter 9

Lara

“ H oney, I’m home!” I shout in a sing-song voice as I waltz through our apartment door. My voice gives off cheery vibes, which is ridiculous, given I feel anything but. What the fuck was with that guy at lunchtime? Anger rises within me, mixed with a warmth I don’t appreciate. I need to debrief with the girls, pronto.

At first glance, the apartment appears empty. The open-plan kitchen, dining and living spaces are devoid of life. As I walk inside and make my way towards the bedrooms, I find the first signs of life. Coming to a stop outside Mia’s door, I watch her for a moment. Back hunched, head low and hand moving at an incredible speed, I’m entranced as I watch Mia work.?

From the doorway, I’m unable to see what she’s working on, but my goodness, is she working hard. Trying my best not to scare the shit out of her, I rap my knuckles softly on the doorframe.?

“Hey, Mia,” I say with a wide smile as she turns to where I stand.

“Oh, Lara! I didn’t hear you get home.” She returns my smile before quickly turning to her desk, hastily shuffling items around. “Give me two minutes to tidy this crap up, and I’ll meet you and Harps on the lounge with a wine. We want to hear all about your first day!”

“Did I hear talk of wine?” A familiar voice calls from further down the hallway. We let out a laugh. Turning my head in the direction of Harper’s room, I shout back to her.

“Loungeroom, two minutes!”

A smiling head pops out from a doorway down the hall, and Harper gives me a thumbs-up before disappearing.?

Exactly two minutes later, Harps and I are sitting on the lounge as Mia brings us each a glass of wine. Mia returns to the kitchen to retrieve her own glass and sets herself down by my side with a plop. Harper and Mia angle themselves against the arm of the lounge, both sets of eyes on me.?

“So!” Mia exclaims after taking a sip of her wine. “How was our little girl's first day?”

Harper and I let out a sigh, followed by a laugh, while Mia smiles at us. The first time I met the girls, Mia declared I was the baby of the group. Imagine her shock when I reminded her that although I’m blessed with a baby face, I am, in fact, a year older than her.

Mia decided she didn’t care for the specifics and has referred to me as the baby ever since. I don’t recall when it changed from the baby to their little girl, but it makes me laugh and groan every time.

“It was excellent. Riss is lovely, and the bookstore is a dream.” Taking a sip of my own wine, I let out a small breath.

“There’s a but, I can feel it,” Harper chimes in, raising a brow.

“Majority of the customers were also lovely. Well, all but one.” The girls don’t say anything, so I continue. “There was this guy—no Mia, do not smile” — I raise a finger in warning — “this is not a happy story, remember—this awful guy, who came in while Riss was out for lunch, basically attacked me for promoting and enjoying open-door romance.”

Mia’s eyes go wide, threatening to pop out of her head. Harper’s mouth drops open, and they both stare at me.

“That was almost my exact reaction too.” I take another big sip of the Moscato in my glass that’s going down far too easily.

“Fucking men,” Harper mumbles under her breath, shaking her head once with a slow blink.

“You two will be pleased with how I handled him, though.” A wicked grin tugs at my lips as they both look at me expectantly.

“Oh, do tell,” Harper says, a mischievous look on her face.

“I may or may not have told him the only men who have that level of hatred for open-door romances are those intimidated by them.”

Harper’s eyes light up, and she breaks into the biggest grinat the same time Mia lets out a low whistle.

“You didn’t.” Harper’s voice rises at the end.

“Absolutely I did.” I grin at Harper, and she bursts into a laugh.

“Mia, honey, you’re going to break your jaw if it drops any lower.”

Realising what she’s doing, she snaps her mouth shut and clamps her hand over it. Face turning pink, she tries and fails to hold in a laugh.

“I cannot believe you actually said that. Who are you!” Harper responds, Mia still laughing maniacally.?

“I was pretty impressed with myself until his response was a smile.” Truthfully, that part sucked. He was easily one of the most alluring men I’ve ever encountered. Scratch that; he was the most alluring man I’ve ever encountered. But in that moment? He was downright ravishing.

He was tall but not ridiculously so. If smut has taught me anything, it’s that excessively tall men may be hot, but they don’t make for the best sex in confined spaces. Nor do they make for suitable 69 partners. By my calculations, he’d be the perfect height. And by calculations, I of course mean the way I stared, unblinking, at his retreating form as he walked out of the store. Long enough to determine not only that he would make for an exceptional 6 to my 9, but also that his face would make for one incredible seat.

The dark hair atop his head had that sexy “yes, I woke up like this” vibe going on, and I had the strangest inclination to reach out and run my hand through it. His eyes were a stunning shade of green, as if someone had melted down an emerald and hand-selected it as an eye colour.?

“Earth to Lara?” Harper’s voice draws my attention, and I notice both she and Mia are staring at me with odd expressions.

“Yes?” I say, the word coming out is more a question than a statement. They giggle like little boys in response.

“He was hot, wasn’t he?” It may be Harper who asks the question, but the look on Mia’s face says she’s wondering the same thing.

My mouth opens and closes like a fish trying to breathe on land, no words forming. The giggles only intensify.

“Oh, he was. He so was.” Harper struggles to get the words out, doubled over from her giggling.

I stare at them both incredulously. Was it that obvious? Yikes . I need to work on my poker face. As I let out a sigh, two heads whip towards me. I sit back and run my hand through my hair, my fingers twisting through the blonde ends as I try to ground myself. I’m struggling to come to terms with how hot I found him. For me, hot men are few and far between. Call me picky, but I’m not one to find any old, tall, dark and handsome man hot . Which is why it’s awfully jarring that this one had such an effect on me.

“Not only was he incredibly attractive, but he was wearing a suit. A fucking suit. I could’ve fallen to my knees right there behind the counter,” I confess as my face heats from my admission.

“Fuck me.”

“Lord have mercy.”

Their synchronised replies turn me into the giggling Gertie. My hands come up to cover my face.

I, not dissimilar to many other women around the world, have a big thing for men in uniforms and suits. I can’t explain it, but it’s a thing, and it’s deadly .?

His suit looked like it was custom-made for his body. It fit like a glove, accentuating his broad chest and shoulders. I definitely did not check out his arse as he left, so I cannot confirm or deny if it was as incredible as the rest of him. There’s just something about men with great arses.

“Even though he ended up being a dick, he does sound incredibly hot,” Harper states. “Did you at least get his number?” My eyes shoot towards her. She doesn't look at me as she brings her wine glass to her lips and takes a large sip. Did the horny bitch even listen?

“Harps, I didn’t even get his name. He only knew mine because of the name badge I forgot I was wearing. Anyway,” I say, leaning further into the lounge and placing the toes of my sock-clad feet onto the edge of the coffee table. “I decided to refer to him as Mr Darcy henceforth.”

I felt so confused when he said my name, and in that accent. The deep timbre of his voice made my thighs clench involuntarily, and the confusion was quickly replaced with embarrassment and a twinge of anger.

In that moment, I dubbed him Mr Darcy. It’s unlikely I’ll ever see him again, so his real name is of no interest to me. Between his immaculate suit, the sheer arrogance seeping out of his pores, and his unforgettable face, he was the complete Mr Darcy package.

“A classic Bridget Jones moment, love that for you,” Mia muses, nodding slowly in agreement.?

“Oh, Mia.” I have to pull my lips between my teeth to hold in my giggle. “I was actually referring to Fitzwilliam Darcy as opposed to Mark Darcy.”

“Potato, potato,” she replies, giving a flippant flick of her wrist.