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He wanted to strangle Dominic, as supposed to be his best friend What in the hell was he thinking having Ava on his bike? And he planned to teach her how to ride it? Un-fucking-believable Mac wanted to call and chew his ass out, but he didn’t want to risk distracting him Damn it, his friends kne ht he had to worry about any of theer Was that the worst of it, though? Was Doh with their bodies plastered together on that dahtly was enough toco off after theh she was putting two and two together and co up with a solid four
He stalked into his bedroo a pair of basketball shorts out of the laundry basket sitting on the floor He ot points for the clothes at least being clean Heoff his usual work attire and pulling the shorts on After a quick stop at the door to put on his running shoes, he made his way across the sand and to the nearly empty beach beyond As his feet hit the wet sand, he quickly found his rhyth through his body, and it was either run until he dropped or go kill his best friend Not much of a choice there at all
Chapter Seven
Ava hadn’t thought about it being the weekend when she concocted her ular schedule today, which would et him to notice her on the streets of Garden City She had also had a ht not be alone What if Gith hi at her on the back of Doht After she calmed down, she realized that she had one ace in the hole; she knew that Mac took hiswithout fail She had gone along with them a few tiht thirty she was on the practically deserted streets of Garden City in a bright pink tank top and black running shorts She had her new speed skates, which the guoods section of Walear, but realized that Mac wouldn’t recognize her in a helmet It didn’t really matter; she just intended to stand around, not actually doshe hadn’t taken into account was the fact that skates tended to roll even without you trying, and coupled with the incline on the sidewalk, things happenedfast She was sitting on a bench when she saw Mac’s black Tahoe turn the corner She ju he saw her before he passed As it turned out, she didn’t have to worry about catching Mac’s attention, because she caught the attention of everyone within a two-mile vicinity as she fleildly down the sidewalk before wrapping briefly around a NO PARKING sign, then ultie Neon and finally falling backward spectacularly onto her ass
Birds were tweeting above her head like so out of a Tom and Jerry cartoon as she lay there stunned "Honey, are you okay?" so down the line of onlookers, "She’s conscious but has soht as she lay there wondering if anything was broken Seemed she would have been better off on the damn Harley after all She now hoped fervently that Mac hadn’t seen her This ay too hu
"Ava?" She blinked like an ohen she heard her name uttered in a faht, blinking against the glare of the sun Mac stood in the host Hisout of it Maybe some silent sords She was sure she’d seen hi off whatever trance he had fallen in and ju beside her, he took inventory of the scratches on her body "Where does it hurt, baby?"
She choked back a hysterical laugh before trying to pull herself up "Where doesn’t it hurt would be a better question," she ain she landed backward on her sore ass "Shit, that hurt"
He put a hand on her sto her down "Avie, let me take these damn skates off before you kill yourself What in the world were you thinking?"
She looked at the crowd still standing around them "Can we please save the lecture for e’re alone? Just getto finally realize that they were creating quite a spectacle He quickly re down to scoop her up effortlessly into his arnored her protests He carried her to his Tahoe as if she weighed nothing "Mac, ht over there Just let ht on his hip to free his hand for opening the door He settled her on the seat, slah the crowd, picking up the skates and throwing the in the driver’s side He turned the big SUV back toward his house before punching a button on his hands-free phone mounted on the dash When Ava heard his h the speaker, she slunk down farther in her seat, hoping Mac wouldn’t tell her what had happened Luckily, he just said that so had come up and he’d call her later
They parked in front of his two-story beach house "Stay where you are," Mac ordered as he left his seat before coht face was enough for her to keep her ain Normally, she would have taken a moment to appreciate the beauty of the rustic house with cedar siding that Mac had so painstakingly restored, but today it passed by in a blur He refused to put her dohile he struggled to get the key in the front door and disable the security alar rooently on the couch He left the roo back a fewheavily on his handsoe form to the coffee table in front of the couch and barked out, "Take your shirt off"