Surviving Brooklyn (Brooklyn Series Book 1) Read Online Free Page B

leak into me.
    I hung up with him and threw on a red rockabilly dress with a black chest-belt and black pumps. I let my black hair flow and applied my make-up. The red dress made my skin look lighter, but it also made my blue eyes pop with color. This was my last night before work began, and I wanted to look my best.
    One last glance in the mirror and I turned to leave with Kate. Tonight was going to be fun.

     
     
    A few hours had passed and dinner at Pure Wine & Food had been great. I loved the environment, and Kate loved their vegetarian cuisines. We were walking out to leave when I turned and ran into a hard male chest. It had to be the wine that left me stuttering my apologies as I bent down to pick up my purse. I suddenly felt hot as I brushed against the man handing me my jacket that had also fallen to the ground. I didn’t even make eye contact until I had straightened.
    “You all right?” Mark asked.
    “Yeah, I am good,” I stuttered. “What are you doing here?”
    “Your dad called me,” Mark answered as if it was no big deal.
    “Since when do you consort with the enemy?” I asked, letting my distaste for my father shine through.
    “When we have a common goal.” Mark responded with a smile that lit up his face. My annoyance that my dad had called him was making him laugh, and that irritated me even more.
    “What exactly is your common goal?” I placed my left hand on my hip and prodded his hardened chest with my right.
    “You,” Mark stated nonchalantly. He took my hand in his to keep me from poking him again. Retaining my annoyance was hard around Mark. He made me feel as though I could take on the world with him by my side, and everything would be all right. He made me think I was some kind of an enigma.
    “Me?” I asked.
    “You.” Mark brushed my hair back behind my ear when the wind blew it across my face.
    “What about me?” I asked, warmth in my voice. Mark was just that type of person; he could piss me off while making me want to coddle him. It was made worse by his dimples. I was infatuated with his dimples. They added to his character and made him look handsome and mature but with a slight amount of childishness that made him irresistible.
    “Invite me home with you,” Mark whispered as Kate came upon us.
    “Hey, Mark,” Kate said, looking down at Mark’s hand that was still covering mine. She glanced back up at me and winked. Then her lips moved silently to the sing-song phrase she had said days earlier. Lucky for me, Mark’s gaze had not left me, and I was saved from the humiliation of trying to explain what Kate was saying.
    “Hi Kate, how are you?” Mark asked without looking in her direction. He was staring into my eyes as if he was waiting to see if I would acknowledge his request from a moment ago.
    “I’m great! I am just drunk enough that I am heading to Eddie’s.” Kate mentioned Eddie candidly, as if he wasn’t the soon to be ex-boyfriend.
    “Are you serious?” I asked, wondering what was going through her head.
    “Yes, I know we have no future together, but that doesn’t mean we can’t use each other for sex until we are ready to move on.”
    I closed my eyes so she would not see me roll them with her comment. I wasn’t going to talk her out of it. Maybe she needed this to see that he wouldn’t change.
    “Text me when you get there,” I said softly. “Mark, would you come home with me and go over the notes?” I asked, because I had not forgotten what he wanted.
    Kate waved goodbye to me, and Mark took my arm as we walked  down the street. I noticed a black town car slowly cruising just behind us. People in New York City did not know what traffic laws were, so it wasn’t strange to see that kind of car, but it was odd that it was moving so slowly.
    I put it out of my mind as we rounded the corner and Mark lifted his arm to hail a cab.
    “Remember the last time we shared a cab? Mark asked with a sly grin.
    “I remember. I puked all over your