Page 51 of The List
What?
“Missing something?”
“Yeah, she thinks you’re good people.”
She tightened her lips, not giving in to a smile. Clearly, there had been a discussion about her, and Cleo had her back.
“Maybe I am.”
His jaw squared. “Maybe you’re not.”
Addison snorted. “So you don’t believe her?”
“She doesn’t have a great track record at reading people.”
“Well then, I guess there’s nothing more to say.” She grabbed the arms of her chair and lifted a few inches. “We done?”
“Sit. Down.”
She lowered onto her chair and drew in a breath. This man was too intense.
“Like I said, Cleo likes you. I think it has more to do withwhat you’ve gotthan who you are, but I’m willing to let you prove me wrong.”
Oh, you smug son of a bitch!
“I don’t have to prove anything to you.”
His gaze softened. “But you want to.”
Addison scoffed. She’d met a lot of men in her life. More male doctors than she could count. Many were down to earth but not all. The God complex was real, and the arrogance ran high. But Cross was on another level.
“Is that what you think?”
“It’s what I know.”
Addison shifted in her chair. He wasn’t completely wrong. There was a part of her that wanted him to like her. She wanted the whole club to welcome her. They were Knox’s family. And in a sense, she did have something to prove to all of them.
“Fine. How do I prove it?”
“Why come for a month?”
Cleo must’ve shared.Dammit!Obviously it wasn’t a secret, but she hadn’t planned on sharing her reasoning. Telling Cross that she wanted the opportunity to be in the space Knox loved so much wouldn’t go over well with him.
“I wanted to meet Cleo.” She shrugged. “We’d been exchanging letters for so long, I wanted to meet her in person. And since I’ve never been to the state, figured I would make a mini-vacation out of the trip.”
It was a plausible explanation.
He took a drag from his cigarette. “You always get a job on vacation?”
“That fell into my lap. Right place, right time. I’m a bartender back home. Barry needed someone, and I’m here, so I thought, why not?”
It was a basic answer. And the truth.Good job!
“You knew I was with the club that first night.”
What?The accusation was clear and completely false.
“No, I didn’t!” She waved her hand to his chest. “You weren’t wearing your vest. I saw you talking to the others, but I had no idea you were a member.”
