BreakMeIn Read Online Free PDF Page B

come up with. Satisfied, he downed the rest
of the contents and spun to wash the cup. It was then she noticed a slight sway
in his hips.
    If she listened carefully enough she heard the beat of U2’s Sunday
Bloody Sunday .
    Curious, she stepped forward and pressed her hands against
the glass. He moved effortlessly to the beat, perfectly in sync with the rhythm
of the song. His head bopped, his lips moving as he sang the words.
    The man couldn’t carry a tune to save his life.
    Never stopped him from having a little fun with it. In high
school they’d frequented quite a few karaoke establishments. But late in their
sophomore year of college he said he didn’t have time for their outings
anymore. There were a lot of things he’d turned a cold shoulder to for reasons
only he knew. If her suspicions were correct the reason had Vivian’s name
tattooed all over it in fat, black permanent marker.
    The muted sound of glass breaking caught her attention. A
cold knot of dismay formed in her stomach as she watched Alex rinse out beer bottle
after beer bottle before discarding each into the recycle bin just a few feet
away. She counted at least eight before her disgust forced her to stop keeping
score.
    Oh Alex, what are you doing to yourself?
    Her breath coalesced on the window just as he turned and
their gazes collided.
     
    Elena’s beautiful face came into view as the fog on the
glass vanished. In the few seconds before she realized he’d met her gaze, he
caught a glimpse of her face completely unguarded. One of the gaslights lining
Main Street shined behind her, highlighting all the different shades of red in
her hair to make her appear to be some kind of ethereal angel.
    His angel.
    He had no right to think of her in such a way. She wasn’t
his and never would be. Not after the little show he’d given at the club last
week.
    His gut clenched as he made his way to the front door. This
late at night he hadn’t expected anyone to find him with the music blaring, his
sleeves rolled up with hours to go before the shop opened for the morning rush.
He usually did his best work with the house coffee blends this late at night.
Or that was what he told himself in order to stay out of the house during the
time when he was reminded the most about Vivian.
    He flipped the switch off the expensive sound system his new
sister-in-law had purchased for him as a birthday present. He hadn’t talked to
Elena since she’d sped out of the lot, but he also hadn’t made great strides to
contact her either. The scent of her perfume spilled over him as she stepped
past and into the warmth of the store.
    “Hey.”
    “Working late?”
    He flipped the latch on the door to lock them inside. “Seems
as if I’m not the only one. Just fixed up a test batch of decaf, want some?”
    She dropped her bag by the small collection of overstuffed
chairs and an aged coffee table. “You mean you want a guinea pig.”
    “Well, that too.” Alex laughed tightly as he maneuvered
behind the counter. His fingers trembled as he flipped the espresso machine off
and knelt to look for something under the counter. In truth he simply wanted to
give himself a moment to calm his nerves.
    Despite her request he couldn’t forget about what happened
at Element Twenty-Six. Like a fool he’d actually imagined Elena in her white
leather and himself in the role of one of those submissives he’d seen. Even
more of a fool he’d used it as fodder to jack off. The first time in several
years he’d felt enough enthusiasm to take care of himself.
    And damn if he hadn’t liked it. A lot.
    He was still embarrassed by his reaction to what he’d seen
before he’d hauled off and interrupted. When he’d thought about exploring more,
submitting to a woman was the last thing he would have predicted his brain to
conjure.
    Now he couldn’t stop thinking about everything.
    It was as though the incident at the club had made his life
even more miserable.
    “You look busy, I don’t