A Million Tiny Pieces (4 page)

Honestly,
whoever she was, she was already added to the rare list of women who sparked
Phoenix’s interest without her being naked. It wouldn’t have surprised Tarik to
have come back from the gym to find the blonde naked on the couch being plowed
into the leather as Phoenix fucked her into oblivion. That was how the man
worked. No strings. Rarely any lingering interest.

Never
before had Phoenix asked about a tenant in the building, which was the first
warning sign. And now, as Phoenix watched the coffee pour into his cup, Tarik
figured he was pondering the details Tarik had supplied him with. Another
rarity. At least to the point where Phoenix appeared distracted.

Okay,
yes, Tarik had to admit as he glanced down at his phone once again, the woman
was attractive. He’d seen her on the security cameras several times in the last
few months since she’d moved in. Not to mention, a picture of her had been part
of the details he’d pulled up from the complex’s files. However, there was one
thing that Tarik had noticed right away… She wasn’t what Tarik would consider
the type of woman Phoenix generally went after — appearing far too innocent for
the likes of Phoenix.

That
didn’t mean Tarik couldn’t see why the man was interested.

“Why’d
you ask about Mia?” Tarik asked, both curious and wanting Phoenix to look at
him.

“No
reason,” Phoenix answered with a shrug, not tearing his gaze from the coffee
cup. “I think she was the woman I saw in the lobby this morning. I wanted to
know if she was a tenant.”

“Right,”
Tarik retorted sarcastically. “Because you generally inquire about random women
in the lobby.”

“Shut
up,” Phoenix bit out, his green eyes coming up to meet Tarik’s briefly.

Tarik
made sure to capture and hold Phoenix’s gaze for a few seconds before releasing
it. It was an intimidating factor Tarik used to keep people at arm’s length. It
worked on most people, generally. Not Phoenix. No, his boss wasn’t intimidated
by him in the least, and that made for some entertaining times between them,
especially since Phoenix reacted to him in other ways. Ways he wasn’t even sure
Phoenix was aware of.

Tarik
seemed to have a slightly different effect on Phoenix, but — except for that
one night many months ago — Phoenix pretended otherwise. On the other hand,
Phoenix affected Tarik like no one else — man or woman — that he’d ever known,
and therein lay the problem.

Phoenix
claimed to be straight these days, despite the man’s admission to having been
intimate with men in the past, to what degree, Phoenix had never elaborated on.
Not in full detail, anyway. Then again, Phoenix had been drunk the night he’d
rambled on to Tarik about his sexual preferences. Tarik suspected that declaration
had been more wishful thinking than truth, though. Sure, Phoenix worshiped
women and pretended that nothing had ever happened between the two of them, and
because of the latter, Tarik almost believed it. Almost. Phoenix would need to
work on hiding his physical reaction a little better if he expected Tarik to believe
him entirely, though.

And
like Phoenix, Tarik appreciated a beautiful woman and frequently indulged
himself when the need arose. But
unlike
Phoenix, Tarik wasn’t interested
in hiding the other side of himself. From the time he was old enough to know
what physical attraction was, Tarik had accepted the fact that he got a hard-on
for both men and women.

“Are
you ready to head to the office?” Tarik asked, pushing off the wall and walking
to the bar that separated the enormous kitchen from the living and dining
areas. He adjusted his semi-hard dick as he moved toward the incredibly
handsome man who could make him hard purely by looking at him.

“Yeah,”
Phoenix said, sipping his coffee and watching Tarik. “You?”

“It’s
not about me, remember?” he responded caustically. “You’re the boss. I just do
what I’m told.”

“Right,”
Phoenix said with a snort. “You’re a lot of damn things, but obedient certainly
isn’t one of them.”

No,
obedience definitely wasn’t in his repertoire of skills.

“Give
me ten minutes to shower and change.” Offering Phoenix a smirk, Tarik turned
and headed out the front door. He’d need a cold shower before he was ready to
face the rest of the day with Phoenix.

TARIK
TOOK THE stairs down to his floor rather than waiting for the elevator. He
lived on the thirty-third floor, in a condo significantly smaller than the one
Phoenix occupied. Had it not been for Ellen’s insistence that Tarik remain
close to Phoenix at all times, there would be no way he’d have lived in the
same building as his boss. Hell, if Phoenix’s mother had her way, Tarik
would’ve lived in the same condo as Phoenix, but that was where Tarik had drawn
the line. Working with him day in and day out was one thing; having to suffer
living there and always being close to him was more than he could bear.

When
he reached his floor, he pulled his key from his pocket and unlocked the door,
letting it swing shut behind him as he headed for his bedroom. Flipping on the
water in the shower, Tarik pulled off his shirt and walked back to the spare
room he used as an office for the days he worked directly from home. Since they
were always on the road, the space wasn’t used much, but Tarik still
appreciated not having to go to the office to get things done.

Grabbing
his laptop from the small desk in the corner, he headed back to his room, kicking
off his shoes as he walked. Tossing the laptop on the bed, he pushed his shorts
and underwear down his hips and stepped out of them on his way to the shower.
He was nothing if not efficient, and he knew not to keep Phoenix waiting for
too long. Once the man was ready to go, if Tarik wasn’t following behind him,
he’d be left trying to catch up.

He
mentally ran through Phoenix’s agenda for the day while he scrubbed his body
and his hair. As he washed his face, he considered shaving but then shrugged off
the idea. He’d have no choice in a couple of days, or he’d look like a mountain
man, but until then, he simply didn’t have the energy to do it.

As
it was, he wished there was more time in the day to get shit done. If he had
his say in the matter, they’d forego the office and work from home until they
had to catch a plane later that evening.

Tarik
preferred to work out of the condo for many reasons. For one, it was a hell of
a lot easier to keep an eye on Phoenix from there, and since that was a large
part of his job description, Tarik took it very seriously. And two … well,
Tarik wasn’t all that fond of people, to be honest, although, yes, admittedly,
he did have a knack for talking to them. He merely preferred the solitude that
came from working from home.

With
the exception of Phoenix’s mother, Ellen, Tarik seldom had to encounter anyone
other than Phoenix on the days they handled things from either Phoenix’s condo
or Tarik’s. On occasion, there would be a stray woman that Phoenix would invite
up to his penthouse. But aside from hearing the noises coming from the guest
bedroom — if he hadn’t managed to sneak out in time — Tarik didn’t usually have
to deal with the woman. Unless, of course, Phoenix was in one of those moods
where he would invite Tarik to join them. Another reason Tarik didn’t believe
Phoenix was entirely immune to him: since the first chance encounter nearly six
years ago, Phoenix had been inviting Tarik into his sexual encounters quite
often, although he still managed to keep his distance. Tarik sensed that
Phoenix trusted him, felt safe including him in the sexual encounters that he
wasn’t looking to have exploited.

Not
many people knew the extent of Phoenix’s sexual desires. Threesomes were part
of his regular routine or had been until recently. And for the last few years,
the only other person Phoenix invited into the bedroom with one of his many
conquests was Tarik. Not that he was complaining. A threesome was a threesome.
The best of both worlds, as far as Tarik was concerned. However, there were
plenty of times he wished that Phoenix would give in one more time to that side
of himself he worked so damn hard to deny.

As
much as Phoenix wanted to pretend he wasn’t interested in threesomes
or men
,
Tarik knew better. Well, maybe that last part was only partially true. As far
as Tarik knew, Phoenix had never had intercourse with a man. Although they
hadn’t gone quite that far, what had happened between them that one night
nearly eight months ago was proof that Phoenix was interested. It also wasn’t
all that Tarik wanted from Phoenix. But for now it was enough to keep him
hopeful.

Tarik
showered and dressed in record time, knowing not to keep Phoenix waiting too
long or else his mood would take a turn for the worse. After grabbing the Glock
from his bedside table, checking that the safety was on, Tarik tucked it into
the waistband of his slacks, letting his jacket cover the piece. Grabbing his
laptop, he then ventured into the kitchen and pilfered a power bar.

A
second later, like clockwork, his front door opened and Phoenix stepped inside.

“You
done primping yet? We’ve got shit to do.”

Tarik
laughed as he snatched his key off the bar and headed for the front door. Based
on the lack of mug in his hands, Phoenix had already given up on the coffee,
which could be a bad thing for everyone if the man didn’t get enough caffeine.
But he didn’t have time to think about that, because Phoenix was already
heading out the door, so Tarik fell into step behind him, shutting and locking
the front door after they exited.

The
elevator, as usual, took its own sweet fucking time getting to his floor, and
when it finally arrived, Tarik moved inside ahead of Phoenix, hitting the
button for the parking garage after entering a code that would bypass all other
floors, even if someone called the elevator.
It was one of the safety precautions they
rarely used; however, it was one that Tarik had put in place not long after
he’d been assigned to watch over Phoenix. It still amused him that the elevator
was equipped with passcode overrides, but the damn thing took a decade to get
from one floor to another.

Had
it not been for the ruckus stirred up by the lawsuit currently pending against
Phoenix, Tarik might’ve been a little less concerned about Phoenix’s
well-being. Although he didn’t take it lightly, Tarik knew the attempt by the
jealous husband had been an isolated incident. But the way shit seemed to be
going these days, he couldn’t be too careful. It was as though everyone wanted
a piece of Phoenix at the moment. Hell, it was enough fending off the reporters
camping out between the condo, the office, the training facility, as well as
the Arrows Center. Yep, Phoenix was making headlines these days, and Tarik had
been on guard more often than not these last few months.

“Run
down my schedule for me,” Phoenix said as they rode the elevator down to the
parking garage.

“We’re
in Montreal on Tuesday, Tampa on Thursday, then back here Friday. You’ve got a
charity ball Friday evening and a home game Saturday night.”

Phoenix
nodded, his eyes darting toward the numbers on the elevator. “Do I need to
prepare anything for the charity event?”

“You’re
off the hook with this one. No speech for you this time.”

“Anything
else I should be worried about?” Phoenix asked.

“Not
at this time, no.” Tarik wasn’t about to go into detail about the little things
he was in the process of tracking. There was no sense in worrying Phoenix if he
didn’t have to. It was Tarik’s job to ensure that the threats remained as far
from Phoenix as possible.

“You
coming with me?”

“To
the ball?” Tarik questioned, glancing over at his boss. “You want me to?”

Phoenix
didn’t respond immediately, and Tarik waited, meeting those intense green eyes
when they finally slid over to him.

“Yeah.
I do.”

Releasing
the breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding, Tarik nodded. “Then I’ll be
there.”

“THANK
YOU, GEORGE,” Mia said to the older man who kindly held the door open for her
when she arrived back at her condominium building at five o’clock.

“My
pleasure, Ms. Cantrell. And how was class today?”

“Tiring,”
she admitted honestly. She was exhausted, and the only thing she had done for
the majority of the day was sit in one classroom after another and review
syllabi and expectations for the new semester’s classes. Not exactly how she
had anticipated the day going, but at least it was over.

“Do
you go back tomorrow?” he inquired, looking as though he was trying to remember
what day it was.

Mia
stopped inside the door, mainly to get away from the paparazzi who were stalking
outside the building, and then turned to face George to avoid being rude.
“Nope. Like last semester, I’ve got Tuesdays off. I think I might sleep in
tomorrow.”

“Well,
then I look forward to seeing you on Wednesday.”

She
smiled at George and hoisted her bag higher on her arm, thrusting her hands
into the front pocket of her hoodie. As she normally did when she walked
through the grand lobby of the building she now lived in, Mia admired the
decor. It was still new to her, even all these months after she’d moved in, and
she hadn’t gotten bored with the interior just yet. There were always fresh
flowers sitting at the reception desk and on the small tables in the seating
areas scattered about. The grand staircase that led to the second floor, with
its detailed wrought iron railing, drew her eyes. It seemed more like a fancy
hotel lobby than what Mia would’ve expected in a condominium complex in
downtown Austin, but she had learned to expect the unexpected. After all,
having been married to Damien, she’d seen what money could buy.

Mia
made her way to the elevator doors, pushing the up button and watching it light
up. She’d been there long enough to know that taking the stairs would’ve
probably taken less time than waiting for the elevator to arrive. And she lived
on the seventeenth floor, so that was a little off-putting.

It
would’ve also been a bit more cumbersome now that she was hefting a few
required textbooks, however, still probably faster. She found that somewhat
amusing considering how plush the lobby was. They could’ve spent a little less
on fresh flowers and splurged for a set of elevators that were installed in
this century at least. As it was, only one of the two usually worked. Based on a
paper sign hanging on the other set of doors, it looked as though only one was
working now.

As
the doors opened, someone walked up beside her, but Mia refused to look over.
She noticed the elevator car was empty, so she stepped on, hit the button for
the seventeenth floor, and moved back out of the way, not stopping until her
back hit the mirrored wall. The man who joined her punched in a code on the
control panel, and the penthouse button lit up.

He
took a step back and glanced over. Mia was doing her best to avoid his gaze,
but something piqued her curiosity enough to have her eyes slowly traveling up
his tall — he had to be at least six feet, maybe a couple of inches over —
lean, well-dressed form. The suit was a nice touch. Expensive.

She
expected to arrive at a middle-aged face, but what she saw when her gaze landed
on his exquisitely chiseled features had her eyes immediately darting to the
control panel once again.

Come
on, elevator. This is ridiculous.

He
smelled ridiculous.

Good
ridiculous, but still ridiculous.

Damn
it.

“Elevator’s
a little slow,” the extremely attractive,
much-younger-than-Mia-thought-he-would-be, well-dressed man said in a voice
that was rich and dark and way too sexy.

“Dust
collects faster,” she replied absently, meeting his gaze briefly.

The
brilliant smile he gifted her with had her gripping the metal bar that was
currently pressing into her back. She swallowed hard and looked away.

Nope.
Not going to happen.

Mia
was not going to get distracted by a handsome face. Especially not one that
belonged to a man whose suit cost more than her mother’s mortgage in an area
known for its million-dollar homes. Okay, maybe not that much, but perhaps
close. She was done with men like that. Give her one like the guy she’d seen in
the lobby that morning, wearing shorts and a hoodie, looking like he’d just
gotten back from his morning jog. Someone a little less … expensive. Yeah,
she’d willingly take a guy like that. Not one who eyed her like she was next on
his long list of playthings that he wanted to play with briefly and then toss
out.

No,
thank you.

The
elevator dinged, and Mia unclenched her hands, forcing herself to relax.

Without
saying a word, she stepped off, walking slowly in the hopes that the doors
would shut before she reached her door. Last thing she needed was to let some
stranger — no matter how well dressed he was — know where she lived.

The
doors finally closed, and she made a mad dash for her front door, shoving the
key in the lock and letting herself in. Once inside, she even peered out
through the security hole to ensure the good-looking, expensive-suit-wearing,
penthouse-living man hadn’t decided to follow her.

Why
would he?

Jeez.

Letting
her bag drop to the floor at her feet, Mia glanced down at what she was
wearing. Seriously? Why would that guy have any interest in her? She looked
like she should be coming home to greet her mother after a long day at school.

High
school
.

Shaking
her head, Mia made her way to the kitchen and straight to the refrigerator.
She’d done her grocery shopping on Saturday, but as she stood there, she realized
she’d been on a health kick that day. Which reminded her … wasn’t one of her
resolutions to start going to the gym?

Ignoring
the wayward thought, Mia studied the contents of her refrigerator.

Right
now, she simply wanted some Ben and Jerry’s and a clean spoon. That would
suffice for dinner.

Unfortunately,
the only thing she had that could possibly curb her sweet tooth would be the
frozen Greek yogurt she’d bought. And that, honestly, didn’t sound appealing at
all.

So,
instead of trying to pretend ice cream would materialize if she thought about
it hard enough, Mia grabbed an orange from the produce drawer and made her way
to the trash can to peel it. That took a lot less time than she thought it
would, and the next thing she knew, she was back in front of the freezer, once
again looking for ice cream.

It
still wasn’t there.

She
glanced at the clock and then back to the refrigerator.

Hmmm.

There
may not be any ice cream hidden behind the frozen Healthy Choice TV dinners,
but there was a coffee shop next door. They wouldn’t have ice cream, but they
would have some sort of coffee concoction that could easily make up for it.

Smiling
at her brilliance, Mia grabbed her wallet, the paperback she’d bought at the
bookstore conveniently located across the street from the building her last
class was in, and her condo key from her bag before heading out.
Thankfully, she
didn’t age much as she waited for the elevator this time. However, she found
herself once again sharing the car with an incredibly attractive, albeit quite
menacing-looking, man.

This
one looked nothing like the guy in the suit she’d seen earlier — except for the
fact that he, too, was wearing a suit — although he smelled just as good. How
that was possible, she had no idea. With his shaggy dark hair that hung over
his forehead and dark shadowed jaw, plus black suit and crisp white shirt, he
held an air of danger. When his golden eyes raked over her, starting at her
feet and working upward, a shiver raced down her spine, and she fought the urge
to outwardly shiver, hoping he didn’t notice how affected she was by his
perusal.

Lord
have mercy, she was doing it again. What was it with this building? It seemed
each man she saw was as handsome, if not more so, than the first. And where the
hell had they all come from? She’d lived there for nearly five months, and all
of a sudden they’d decided to venture out? Doubtful.

Maybe
there was a hot guy convention or something. Did they do that sort of thing
there?

Doing
her best to ignore him and his tantalizing scent, Mia focused on the numbers
above the door, counting down in her head as each floor passed. A muted ding
signaled the arrival to the first floor, and Mia had to hold on to the bar
behind her to keep from bolting as soon as the doors opened.

“Ladies
first,” the man said kindly, although it sounded more like a growl. A deep,
seductive rumble that made her toes curl.

Forcing
her feet to move, Mia mumbled a polite thank you as she exited the elevator and
made a beeline for the front doors. She could feel his eyes on her, and then
she remembered what she was wearing. Definitely not her most flattering outfit.

You’re
not supposed to care
,
a little voice in her head said as she walked briskly toward the front doors of
the building.

I
don’t
,
she mentally replied to the voice.

Yep,
keep telling yourself that.

Mia
grumbled, realizing she was now arguing with herself.

“Did
you say something?”

Looking
up, she noticed the tall, sexy stranger from the elevator was standing beside
her as George held open the door for them both.

“No,
sorry,” she muttered softly and then turned, quickly heading away from the guy
as fast as she could without looking too conspicuous. She hoped.

With
a heavy sigh of relief, she stepped into the small coffee shop, inhaling the
heavenly aroma. Mia could’ve lived in there if they’d let her. Just to wake up
to that smell every single day.

The
barista behind the counter greeted her with a tired smile, and she ordered
quickly, familiar with the drill. She gave her name, handed over her credit
card, and then stepped out of the way when the weary woman behind the counter
returned it a second later.

While
she waited with two other people for her drink to be made, Mia studied the
patrons scattered throughout the relatively small space. There was an older man
— probably in his sixties — sitting at a table with a laptop in front of him.
He looked deep in thought as he stared at the screen, and Mia imagined him to
be an author, deeply engrossed in the next best seller he was writing. A
dark-haired woman sat in one of the more casual chairs, her legs crossed as she
listened intently to the phone that was stuck to her ear, sipping her coffee as
she nodded her head. In Mia’s mind, the woman was talking to her sister,
debating on where they would go for dinner next weekend. Then there was a young
woman standing with a guy who Mia assumed was her boyfriend a few feet away,
waiting patiently for their drinks.

The
man making the coffee called out a name, and the couple moved forward, taking
two cups and heading straight for the door. Mia moved closer to the wall,
watching them leave hand in hand when she noticed another guy come in.
Narrowing her eyes, she tried to get a better look at him in the dimly lit
space, which wasn’t easy to do with the sun’s reflection off the building
across the street silhouetting him from behind. As he moved closer, she
realized he looked a lot like the guy from that morning in the lobby.

No,
wait.

He
looked
exactly
like the man from the lobby. He was even wearing the same
black hoodie and shorts. Did he not have a job? Then again, maybe he ran twice
a day. Since she wasn’t much for exercise — hence the need for non-fat frozen
Greek yogurt and Healthy Choice meals in her freezer — what did she know about
the habits of runners? Hell, she couldn’t even convince herself to go to the
state-of-the-art gym in her building, opting to hang out in a coffee shop
rather than ratchet up her pulse for the good of her heart.

Then
again, looking at that guy was doing a damn fine job of raising her blood
pressure.

He
made his way to the counter, and the girl who had forced a smile at Mia when
she had been in that spot a few minutes before beamed back at the man as though
she’d recently awoken from a two-hour nap.

“Hey,
Coach. What can I get ya?” 

Coach?
Really? That was his name? Well, it kind of explained the clothes.

Regardless,
those two were clearly on a first-name basis, possibly more based on the way
the woman caressed him from head to waist with her eyes as he stared back at
her.

He
rattled off his order, and that dark, seductive voice sounded eerily familiar.
Like she’d heard it somewhere before. As she allowed her gaze to rake over him,
hoping he didn’t turn around and catch her staring, Mia tried to figure out if
they’d actually spoken to one another.

No.
There was no way. She’d seen him that morning, but he hadn’t talked to her, had
he?