Addicted

183

"How's tomorrow at 1 p.m. sound, Mr. Brock?" Lilly gushed at the stranger.

"Brock?" I asked, before I could stop myself.

His eyes flicked to me, eyebrows up in surprise.

"Yeeeahh." He let the word roll slowly off his tongue. "Why?"

I shrugged, unsure as to why I drew attention to it. "I don't know. It sounds familiar. Like I've heard it before or something."

He smirked at me, making my knees go weak again. I swear he knows what he's doing to me.

"Maybe I'm unforgettable." He replied, his voice going a little rough, before he turned on his heel and exited the building.

Damn it, I wasn't going to be able to think straight at all during this lunch. I shook my head, a little dazed from the effect he had on me and turned to walk back into Mr. Roberts office. I gave him the drink that he had asked for, hoping he didn't ask what took me so long.

Thankfully, he didn't, being too immersed in some manuscript that he was going over. I took a seat at my desk, and tried to concentrate on the remaining work that I had left to do in front of me. I couldn't keep my mind off of blue eyes, red streaked hair that my fingers itched to run through, and a cocky attitude that I couldn't decide if I like or not.

Subconsciously, I knew that I should be thinking about how this weird guy was in my apartment last night, acting weird, possibly strung out on some kind of drug, but instead I was focused on how attracted I was to him, and wondering why I was drawn to him.

"Chloe, you can take your lunch now, if you'd like." Mr. Roberts voice startled me out of my thoughts, and my head jerked up to meet his gaze.

"Oh, um, thank you." I stuttered out, nervously standing and grabbing my short black leather jacket, and my purse.

As I walked by Lilly, she nodded at me and smiled a little dejectedly.

"Don't do anything I wouldn't do." She replied softly, as I went to walk out the door.

I turned back to her and grinned.

"I don't know you well enough yet to know what that is though, do I?" I winked at her and walked out, slipping my jacket on against the brisk air.

It was still sunny, but the wind was turning cooler as it got closer to Halloween. I loved this season. Fall, Autumn, whatever you wanted to call it, this was my favorite season.

Crisp air, fairs and festivals, haunted houses, and everything spooky. I just wish that I had some friends around to share the holiday with. Loneliness filled my chest as I slid into my car, but I shook it off.

Maybe Lilly would become a good friend of mine.

Who knows? Hell, maybe this weird, handsome as fuck, Mr. Brock guy would become a friend, or more than a friend...that was a thought. A thought that caused me to be more intrigued than I should have been.

I was going fucking nuts, there was no other explanation. I pulled across the street in front of the little sandwich shop, and parked my car. I checked my hair in the mirror, running my fingers through it, trying to make those annoying little fly aways stay down. It was no use.

I climbed out of my car, smoothed my skirt down, and adjusted my skirt. No sense in looking rumpled, even if he was kind of a stalker. I walked across the street and entered the little shop.

It was cute and quaint, not something you see in LA usually. I really like little places like this. They felt...homey.

I looked at the line of white booths against the side wall, with wooden rails above them, before my eyes fell on the one in the back. There HE was. He stood up as I walked hesitantly towards him, questioning why I agreed to do this in the first place.

He didn't look threatening. A memory of his eyes turning black on me last night flashed in my mind and I shivered. It had to be my overactive imagination, a trick of the light maybe.

No one's eyes did that.

"Hey, I'm so glad you decided to come." His voice was softer, deep, and making me feel things that I didn't want to feel.

"I told you that I would, didn't I?" I snapped, angry at myself for putting myself in this situation with a crazy stranger.

He raised one eyebrow at me, but didn't reply as I sat down opposite him.

He sat down himself, after I did.

"So, how can you possibly explain what happened? You were on drugs? Not quite yourself? Who the hell are you even? How do you know my name? Or where I-"

"If you would shut up, maybe I could answer even a couple of those questions." Now that soft voice was stern, demanding even.

I hated myself for the images that flashed in my mind of other times he could use that voice with me. Nope, he wasn't gonna talk to me like that. Not when he was the one that was crazy!

I looked at him, narrowing my eyes, as I watched his nostrils flare.

Damn, how was that hot?

"Well excuse me, but I'm not used to random men breaking into my mother fucking home!" My voice got a little loud, but he didn't try to quiet me.

Instead, his eyes glinted and I could have sworn that I saw a small smile cross his face but it was gone too fast for me to be sure.

"You're right, but how am I supposed to tell you what you want to know if you don't shut up for two seconds?" He was calm now, smirking at me, as my mouth opened to retort then closed again, at a loss for words.

I huffed out a breath and crossed my arms over my chest. He was annoying.

"So explain." I replied, gritting my teeth.

He chuckled at me, pissing me off even more.

"Okay, but you have to have an open mind. To believe in things that you wouldn't normally believe in. I have proof by the way."

I rolled my eyes at him. "I'm a writer, I believe in everything." I retorted.