Sex, Lies, and Online Dating Read Online Free Page B

table were the shredded remains of his pillow. He hadn’t been able to take Millie out for a run or to retrieve decoys in a while. She was bored, but at least she’d stayed out of the garbage this time. Not that there was anything in it now.
    That was the problem with leaving a two-year-old Irish setter alone for too long a period of time. They tended to find trouble, but at least she’d only shredded his pillow.
    He hung his jacket on a kitchen chair, then moved across the kitchen. The last female he’d left alone had been his fiancée, Amanda, and she’d shredded his life. While he’d been out making a living, making the world safe from bad guys, she’d been screwing Shawn, his best buddy since high school.
    Quinn pulled an empty garbage can from beneath the sink and carried it across the room. As long as he lived, he didn’t think he’d ever forget the afternoon he’d found them naked in his bed. He’d never forget the look on their faces or the accusations spilling from the mouth of a woman he’d loved.
    “I’m always alone,” Amanda had said as she’d pulled up the bedsheet to cover her bare breasts. “You’re always working, and I’m always here by myself.”
    He’d pointed to Shawn, who’d jumped out of bed and begun pulling on his pants. “You’re obviously not always alone.” The handle of Quinn’s H&K 9mm had pressed into his waist as rage had pounded through his chest with every beat of his heart, clawing at his stomach until he’d thought he might get sick.
    “We didn’t mean for this to happen,” Shawn had said as he’d grabbed his shirt.
    “You didn’t mean to shove your dick in my fiancée?” In that moment, Quinn had understood the crime of passion; he’d understood the blind fog and consuming fury that made a man lose control and seek vengeance.
    “What did you expect?” Two pretty little tears had slid from Amanda’s eyes even as she’d placed the blame squarely on him. “This is your fault. You’re cold and unfeeling.”
    He’d laughed, a raucous mix of anger and incredulity. “Get the fuck out of my house,” he’d said. His hard, flat voice had filled the room as hate and anger had raced through his body. Years of experience and control had curled his hands into fists before he’d been able to do anything stupid. “Both of you.” Something in his eyes, or in the tone of his voice, must have shown just how close he’d been to violence, because they’d both grabbed up their clothes and run.
    Quinn didn’t believe he would have used his pistol on Amanda and Shawn that night, but he couldn’t say that if they’d stuck around he wouldn’t have beaten Shawn to within an inch of his life just on principle. He doubted it, though, because deep down in the pit of his soul, he knew that there’d been some truth to Amanda’s accusation.
    He moved aside a kitchen chair and reached for the near empty remains of what had once been his pillow. Millie didn’t even bother hanging her head in guilt over the destruction. Instead, she walked through the mess, scattering feathers in her wake. If it hadn’t been so wet outside, he would have shut her in her kennel while he cleaned up. “Out,” he commanded and pointed to the entryway leading to the living room. Her big brown eyes looked over her shoulder as she slowly left the room. Wasn’t it just like a female to try and make him feel guilty for something she’d done?
    Quinn tossed the pillow in the garbage, and feathers floated up and stuck to his shirt. It had been a little over a year since he’d found Amanda and Shawn together. He’d heard that the two had married and now had a kid, a mortgage, and an SUV. Living the American dream, while he was still living la vida loca. Him and Millie. And that was perfectly okay with Quinn. There had been a time when he’d thought he could have it all. When he’d thought he could have a wife, a few kids, and a minivan, but some shit just wasn’t in the cards. Not for