didn’t matter what she wore or whether or not she wore it confidently. She would never turn his head. The girls he dated—and there were plenty of them—were of a higher caliber. They were girls who cared about their appearance, like, really cared. They had magnetic personalities. They tended to giggle at everything he said. He got attention everywhere he went.
He had never, not once, dated a bookish girl with glasses and an affinity for sweatpants. So it was absolute insanity to think he would actually look her way or think of her as anything other than a sister or best friend. Pure insanity.
Where was this coming from, anyway? Why the sudden resentment?
As she entered the room and caught sight of him, he automatically affected the temperature around her. He looked good. Really good. Drawn into the way his T-shirt hugged his muscled torso, she almost missed the girl holding onto his arm.
She was beautiful. Long blond hair hung in wavy curls around her shoulders. Her body was...well, it was dangerous. Maybe even lethal.
See? This was what she had to deal with. She needed to just forget about this and get some sense knocked into her.
Distracted by her wandering thoughts, Micah almost missed the introductions. She wasn’t really paying attention. She caught the name.
Taylor.
Figured. She looked like a Taylor, all blonde and bubbly.
Was this jealousy? What kind of a question is that? Of course it’s jealousy!
Micah forced a smile and waved her greeting to the new arm candy. She was being rude and she knew it. Josh would let her hear it later, but she couldn’t help it. She just did not care right now. Why did she have to be nice to all of his interchangeable arm extensions?
He sent a perplexed look her way, which she chose to ignore. Let him think whatever he wanted. She wanted to leave, to go home. She was acting like a crazy chick with all her erratic roller-coaster emotions. There was no way she could handle being around him right now, especially with this Taylor girl at his side.
Micah left the room and ran into Hanna in the hallway. She reached out and grabbed her arm as she passed by. “I’m leaving, Han.”
“What? You can’t go!”
“I’m just not feeling good.” She couldn’t believe she’d just lied to her friend. What kind of person was she turning into?
“I don’t care. This is a big night for me. This is my housewarming and engagement party.” She let out a deep sigh. “Okay, I didn’t mean that. I care if you really are sick. Are you really? Or is something else bothering you?”
“You’re right. It’s your big night. I’ll hang out a little while longer.”
“Thanks. If you really are sick, I’ll forgive you if you have to go.”
“Gee. Thanks.”
If she could just steer clear of Josh and his new girlfriend then maybe, just maybe, she could survive this party.
“Come with me. I have someone I want to introduce you to.”
Hanna took her by the wrist and pulled her into another room. She obviously didn’t have a choice in the matter. “Just what I wanted tonight—a fix-up.”
“He’s really nice!”
“I’m sure he is.”
Hanna pulled her to a stop in front of a very tall man in a suit. Yes, a suit. At a party.
Uh, I don’t think so.
“Micah, this is Cameron Patterson. Cameron, this is Micah O’Shea.”
“It’s nice to finally meet you. I’ve heard so much about you.” He stuck out his hand in greeting and she took it.
She glanced sideways at Hanna before speaking. “Oh, really? All good, I hope.”
“Yes. Hanna has sung your praises.”
“Has she now?” She threw another look Hanna’s way. She would definitely kill her later. “So do you work with Hanna?”
“Yes. Are you a lawyer, too?”
“Me?” She laughed. “Oh, no. I’m...uh...in between jobs right now. Hanna and I have been friends for forever.”
“Really? So you two grew up together?”
“Pretty much.” Micah’s eyes scanned the room without her realizing what she was doing—subconsciously looking for Josh. No sign of him.
Cameron wasn’t bad on the eyes. He had to be at least six foot four, judging by how he towered over her. He had kind eyes and a pleasant voice, but none of it mattered. Her life was a mess, emotionally and physically.
She wanted to grab hold of his arms, look him in the eye and tell him, You don’t want me. I would be no good for you. I can promise you that.
And that hurt.
Drew had ruined her by dying and leaving her to endure years of grief and pain, and by ruining all her best-laid plans and dreams.
Josh had ruined her, too, with the way he’d babied her all those years. Because of the attention he’d bestowed upon her and the affection he so easily gave, she’d never sought those things from anyone else. Therefore she’d never dated, never faced any of her issues, and most importantly, never healed.
She was of no use to anyone anymore. And it was all their fault.
* * *
Josh had no idea why he’d brought Taylor. She had called and asked what he was doing and on a whim he’d asked her if she wanted to come. But the moment Micah walked into the room, he knew he had made a huge mistake. What had he been thinking?
She’d strutted into the room wearing leather—leather!—leggings and high heels. Her black top dipped low in the front and he fought the urge to cover her with a coat. Her usually riotously curly hair, now straightened into submission, hung like silk around her shoulders and down her back.
Sabina and Jamie introduced themselves to Taylor, but Micah just gave a slight wave. He tried to read her eyes, tried to figure out what she was thinking, but failed.
She wasn’t wearing her glasses tonight, having traded them in for contacts. He liked the unobstructed view of her eyes but missed the glasses. They were more like the Micah he was used to. He preferred her hair in a ponytail and her nose buried in a book. He liked the sweatpants. He was comfortable around that Micah. He could be himself around her. Comfort was not a word that could be used to describe what he was feeling now, with this new version of Micah standing before him.
Leather!
Their gazes locked, her poker-face expression still giving nothing away. She turned abruptly and left the room. The firm set of his shoulders relaxed as she walked away.
Every time she was near, his guard went up. It was becoming tiresome, always trying to protect.
