Over My Head Read Online Free Page B

the drunks at the club. I can’t let you pay for a hotel.”
    Astra rolled her eyes, groaned and fiddled with the handle. “I should be happy you’re not like most guys. Promise me you really are a nice guy and didn’t do shit to my car so I’d trust you.”
    “Hold on.” Slade stilled her actions. “Lay it out for me. I don’t mess with cars or hurt women. Other than the light, what’s wrong with your car?”
    “Not here. Please? We can talk upstairs. I promise.”
    “I don’t know that I get what you’re doing, but I’ll take you where you want to go.” If it killed him, he was going to find out what the hell was going on. “Want to play Mrs McMann?”
    “Yes.”
    “You got it.”

    Astra settled into step beside Slade, matching his long strides. Mrs ? She’d never been a Mrs and belonging to him sounded too good to be true. But why? She deserved a bright spot in her life. God knew she’d spent too much time in the crumbling building Tiny insisted the dancers all live in. Too much time alone and too much damned time knowing things she didn’t need to know.
    She grinned as she took in the sight of the gleaming marquis lights. No wonder she loved the Capricorn Hotel. The neon and stucco reminded her of a time long past. A time when men had cherished their women, and women had trusted their men implicitly.
    The twenty-minute ride between Carrington Falls and Jarvis might as well have been a ride into a whole new world. The fears, tensions and frustrations in the Sanborn couldn’t breech the walls of the Capricorn. There, she could tell him the contents of her heart.
    She’d watched Slade for the past six months. There was something about him that broke the mould. He wasn’t like the other bouncers. He’d smile while kicking a man out of the club. He waited for the girls to leave—to make sure they got home or because he was a control freak, she wasn’t sure. Part of her couldn’t care less.
    “Hon?” His large hand engulfed hers as he stopped in the spacious foyer. “Would you like a suite?” He dropped his voice to a whisper. “I’ll get a couple rooms if you’d rather.”
    “A couple?” Astra wrapped her hands around Slade’s biceps. “I invited you and I insist you stay with me. I’ve got the most to lose here.”
    “Hon…”
    Now was her chance. If she didn’t tell him about the mistakes in her life, she might not have a chance to make them right. A song in her head played the words—‘ trust in your faith’ .
    Well, faith, don’t fail me now. “Can I trust you?”
    Slade cocked his head and a serious look crossed his eyes. “Absolutely.”
    No hesitation, but finality. That she could work with. Maybe she’d found one of the good guys after all.
    “We need to talk.”

Chapter Five

    Slade followed Astra into the luxury building. Something felt off about their being at a hotel. For all he knew, she could do something drastic to him upstairs. He doubted it, though. The fear in her eyes didn’t kick his cop senses into overdrive. No, the oddity was the frankness in her voice and the tremble in her hands.
    She’d acted so calm and collected at the counter. Like she knew what she wanted. The contradiction wasn’t lost on him. The sway of her ass called to him like a siren’s song as she sashayed to the elevator. He should walk away. Should get into his car and drive back to the Sanborn. He should, except the longing and desperation in her face arrested him. Call him a sucker for a woman in distress.
    When the elevator doors closed, Astra levelled her shoulders. “You work for Tiny, right?”
    “Like you.”
    “That’s what I want to know.”
    The bell for their floor pinged, interrupting the conversation. “That,” she said, shaking her head, “is the fastest elevator I’ve ever been in.”
    “Yeah.” Slade followed, hot on her heels. The speed of the elevator was the last thing on his mind. The last time he’d been to the Capricorn had been the night he’d