Free Vice (Tortured Heroes Book 1) by Jayne Blue Page B

it.”
    “Hang in there, Sissy. You’re doing a great job.”
    My body froze at the nickname. He didn’t use it often. It was the only thing my parents or Mandy ever called me. My throat felt thick with emotion and I squeezed my hands around the phone. I shut my eyes tight and blinked back tears. I couldn’t afford them now. I couldn’t afford to get sucked back into sadness over all the people who’d let me down and left me. I didn’t have an affectionate relationship with my uncle and probably never would. But it mattered that he was the last man standing and so was I.
    “Talk to you soon,” I said. I couldn’t tell him I loved him. It would break me. And it wasn’t us.
    “Count on it,” he said then ended the call.
    I brushed a hair out of my eyes and stiffened my back. I had just enough time to rein my emotions back in when the door to my office opened a crack after a firm knock. Jase poked his head inside and got my heart racing again. My skin heated along my neck and I knew a slow blush colored my cheeks. It was as much about my conversation with Cy as the sight of Jase, but there it was.
    Jase cleared his throat and stepped into the room. He wore black motorcycle boots, those sexy, weathered jeans and a white tee shirt that stretched over hard muscles. “You okay?” his eyes narrowed. God, he didn’t miss anything. I forced a smile and waved him in.
    “All good. Just checking through orders for the week.”
    He nodded and came toward me. “Just wanted to let you know your new band is here and getting set up.”
    I spread my fingers on the edge of the desk and pushed myself up. Only the desk separated us but I swear I could feel the heat shimmering off him in waves. Everything I said to Cy went straight out of my head. In its place, a slow burn started deep in my chest and spread lower down. This man affected me physically. Pure and simple. I had to get a handle on it before I did something I’d regret.
    “Thanks.”
    “Are they the ones from last night?” he asked.
    “What? Oh. Right. Sorry about that … still. Actually, yes. They were able to get here on short notice.” I stopped myself short of explaining what happened with The HolyRocks . For some reason, I worried Jase might judge. He’d had a front-row seat to Bella’s drama and I didn’t want him to think that’s the kind of place I ran. Even though he’d been here long enough now to have a different opinion.
    “Good. Maybe I can learn to appreciate them better.”
    I smiled and an awkward silence rose between us. In that moment, I had a decision to make. Do I ignore what almost happened between us last night, or do I face it head on? Pretending like nothing happened didn’t seem tenable. I took a breath and stepped around the desk. Jase towered over me and I found myself drinking in every detail of his face again. It was easier on my nerves than looking at his body. He had just the hint of silver threaded through the dark hair at his temples. He arched a heavy black brow and his eyes sparked through those thick lashes. God, he could have been a pirate in a former life. Sultry and dangerous but sexy as hell.
    “Look. I just wanted to … thanks for being cool about last night. I don’t know what the hell I was thinking. It’s easy to just say I had too much wine. And I did. But ugh. I don’t know. It had just been a long day and you were being so nice to me. Plus, you look like … well ... you. I got a little carried away and I’m sorry. Again … just … thanks for being decent about it.”
    My mouth seemed powered by a motor. A bunch of other awkward apologies dribbled from my lips before Jase finally cocked his head, shot me a devastatingly sexy smile, and put his hands on my shoulders. Fire seemed to shoot from his fingertips and set my nerve endings ablaze. It took everything in me not to do just what I did last night and reach up to kiss him. Luckily, I had more sense than before and kept my feet firmly planted on the