It Started with a Crack by Piper James

Chapter Five

Dakota

Shit. Shit, shit, shit. I was so fucked.

I’d been hiding out in my apartment all day, avoiding the reality of my predicament. I thought if I just stayed in bed, blocking out the rest of the world, everything would be okay for a while. But unfortunately, reality came a-knocking. Literally.

Damian had stopped by earlier, pounding his fist against my door and yelling loud enough for the entire complex to hear him as he officially evicted me, giving me forty-eight hours to get my shit and get out. After things quieted down, I cracked open my front door to retrieve the yellow slip of paper I knew would be pinned to it—the official eviction notice.

Damian was a dick. All that shouting, letting everyone know my business was payback for that shot to the nuts. Like it was perfectly okay for him to try to extort a blowjob from me in return for giving me an extension on my rent. He was definitely making dear old dad, Lucifer, proud. Jackass.

And then, to add a fucking cherry to the top of this shit pile of a day, Noah Perry called to inform me he would now be my point-of-contact for the sale of the ranch. And I’d been a total bitch to him on the phone.

Damn it.

I’d promised myself when I started this job that I’d always be pleasant and professional, no matter who my clients were. I needed to build my reputation, and letting my personal problems affect my work was not the way to do that. At least, not to get the reputation I wanted.

I knew I shouldn’t be too hard on myself, though. Noah was used to me being a bit of an ice queen around him, so he probably thought that call was just business as usual.

I climbed back into my bed and pulled the covers over my head with a groan. I wished I could just hide here forever, but that was impossible. But I could hide out for a few more hours, at least.

And instead of obsessing over my impending homelessness, I let my thoughts drift to Noah.

“Do you want to dance, beautiful?”

My heart nearly thumped right out of my chest as the deep timbre of his voice heated my blood. We’d just met, but I felt an instant connection I couldn’t deny. Noah Perry oozed sex, and I’d been squeezing my thighs together all night while fighting the urge to lean into him. To rub my scent all over him and mark my territory.

Every time he spoke, his voice vibrated in my bones. Every time he smiled—which was a lot—my heart picked up its pace.He had a wild streak and a kind heart, was funny as hell, and took a joke just as easily as he dealt them out.

He constantly found reasons to put his hands on me—innocent touches, like holding up his palm for a high five when he zinged one of his brothers or tucking a loose strand of hair behind my ear. But nothing about Noah was innocent, and I saw the way his nostrils flared at even the most casual contact. I saw the fire banked in his dark eyes.

By the time he asked me to dance, our thighs were practically touching and his arm rested over the top of my chair. Every so often, his fingers would brush against my arm, sending a wave of chills through me every single time.

I nodded even though The Watering Hole didn’t actually have a dancefloor. We found an empty space between the tables, and Noah opened his arms. I didn’t consider the possible ramifications. I didn’t think about where this—whatever it was—might go. I didn’t think at all.

I pressed myself against him and let my fingers tangle in his hair like they’d been itching to do all night. It was just as silky and soft as it looked, but my fascination with it got cut off as Noah’s knee slipped between my legs. I lost all sense of reason and, thanks to the liquid courage I’d been drinking all night, I began to move, rolling my hips and rubbing myself against him.

Fuck, it felt good, and I arched my back, pushing my breasts into his chest as I rode his thigh. I forgot where we were for a moment, but Ember’s voice cut through the haze of alcohol and lust guiding my actions.

“Get it, girl! Yeehaw!”

I straightened, my spine ramrod stiff, but Noah seemed oblivious, staring at me with those soulful eyes that promised a night of wild passion with some amazing foreplay and more than one orgasm. And I wanted it all.

“I have to pee. I’ll be right back,” I said, biting my lip as images of his naked body pressing me down into a mattress swirled through my head.

Oh, yeah. I was going to freshen up, then I was going to suggest we go back to my place for a little more privacy. I used the restroom, washed my hands, and gave my reflection a short pep talk about playing it cool.

Noah and I wanted each other, that much was obvious. But there was something about him. Something that promised more than physical pleasure. Something…deeper.

I knew it was crazy. I’d only known him for a few hours. I ordered myself to think only of tonight, and let the rest work itself out later. I refused to be a stage five clinger.

When I left the restroom, my eyes found Noah instantly. He was near the bar, sucking on a fresh beer while talking to two of the most gorgeous women I’d ever seen. Both had long, glossy blonde hair curled into fat waves. One wore a short skirt with a skin-tight baby tee showing a fair amount of midriff, and the other wore a pair of low slung boyfriend jeans and a halter top that exposed her creamy white shoulders as well as a decent amount of cleavage.

As I struggled with indecision, not knowing whether to approach them or head back to the table with my tail between my legs, Noah laughed. He shook his head, and gave them a full-dimpled smile. My feet moved forward, some instinctive part of me wanting to stake my claim.

That’s when I heard it. Most of his words were garbled, but one stood out like a bell tolling in the middle of a silent night. Threesome.

In the five minutes I was in the bathroom, Noah had moved on from…whatever I’d imagined was happening between us. He found something more intriguing and went for it, asking the two beauties if they wanted to have a threesome.

“Fuck,” I growled, throwing the covers off my face.

It hurt worse than I’d wanted to admit. I’d made some excuse to the others and skedaddled out of there before Noah even knew I was out of the bathroom.

I didn’t know if those women took him up on his offer or slapped his face. I didn’t want to know, because it didn’t matter. None of it mattered, because I barely knew him and there was nothing between us.

If that’s the case, then why does it still hurt so badly?

I pushed the errant thought away. The only thing that hurt was my dignity. I thought he wanted me, but apparently, he just wanted someone. Any warm body would do, and it hurt my fucking pride. That was all it was, and I needed to stop acting so butt hurt every time I saw or spoke to him—especially if we were going to have any kind of professional relationship while I was in charge of selling the Golden Eagle Ranch.

My phone rang, startling me, and for a brief second, I was sure it was Noah. I plucked it from the nightstand and breathed a sigh of relief when I saw Belle’s name flashing on the screen.

“Hello?”

“Hey! How’s it going?” she asked, her voice a little more chipper than I could handle at the moment.

“I’m good. How are you?” I said, hoping my dejection wasn’t obvious in my voice.

“I was calling to talk to you about the baby shower,” she said, her words slow and even. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. What do you mean?”

“Dakota.”

“Annabelle,” I shot back in the same firm tone.

“Something is wrong, and you might as well just tell me what it is. You know I won’t let it go.”

I threw my head back against the pillow, took a deep breath, and told her everything. My epic level of brokeness, my late rent, my encounter with Damian last night, and the eviction notice I’d received less than an hour ago.

“What the fuck, Dakota?” she shouted. “I knew you were having problems but you said you had it under control.”

“I know,” I said. “And I do. Or…I will. I’ll figure something out.”

“Just let me help you,” she said. “It can be a loan, if you want.”

“No,” I started, but she was already talking furiously to someone else, repeating what I’d told her. My jaw tightened. “Who are you—?”

“Dakota. It’s Ryder.”

“Hi, Ryder,” I said with a sigh.

It seemed I was being tag-teamed.

“Listen, Belle tells me you don’t want to take money from us, and I totally understand where you’re coming from.”

“Thanks?” I said, the word coming out like a question. I had no idea where this was going.

“I think I have an acceptable solution,” he said. “You can move into the ranch.”

“What? No. I couldn’t,” I argued, but he was hearing none of it.

“It’s sitting out there empty,” he went on, ignoring my arguments. “You can stay there until it sells and serve as a sort of caretaker for the place. Make sure it’s clean and show-ready when someone shows an interest. And when it does sell, you can take your commission and find a new place. It’s a win-win for everyone.”

I knew what he was doing. He was trying to help me while making it look like I was helping him, too. The place was locked up tight with new everything, and no one was there to make it less than pristine. No. This was all for my benefit, and my pride was ordering me to say no.

But how could I? What other choice did I have? I could live in my piece of shit car. I could beg Ember to let me crash on her couch. I could go crawling to my parents’ house in Florida…

Fuck no. I’d live in the gutter before I did that.

But I didn’t have to. Ryder was giving me an out. The perfect solution.

“Okay,” I said. “I’ll do it.”

“Excellent,” Ryder said. “I’m going to put Belle back on the phone so I can get online and rent a moving truck for your stuff.”

“You don’t have to do that,” I blurted.

“Dakota, we’re all friends, aren’t we?”

“Yes.”

“And what kind of friends would we be if we didn’t try to help you in any way we could? Helping you move is friendship one-oh-one. Just go with it,” he said, and there was a light scuffling as he gave the phone back to Belle.

“Don’t argue with him,” she said, and I could hear the smile in her voice. “It’s a wasted effort. He’ll just do what he wants, anyway.”

“Thanks, Belle. And tell Ryder thank you, too.”

“Don’t mention it,” she said. “Like Ryder said, this is what friends are for.”

“I love you guys,” I murmured, my eyes burning with emotion.

“We love you, too. Now, go pack. Ryder just signaled me, and he got the moving truck for tomorrow morning.”

“Yes, ma’am,” I said, laughing through my tears.

We ended the call, and I looked around my bedroom. A tiny thrill of excitement shot through me for the first time in weeks. I was getting out of here.

I was leaving this shabby complex and getting away from Disgusting Damian.

Maybe letting my friends help me wasn’t such a bad thing, after all. They were giving me a fresh start, and I wasn’t going to let it go to waste. Climbing from the bed, I grabbed some clean clothes and headed for the shower.

I needed to go out and find some packing boxes. Tomorrow was moving day.