Mark gave a snort of disgust. “Her mother is one evil bitch. There’s no way I would have put Angel at her mercy.” Realizing his slip too late, he prayed that Brant hadn’t noticed his nickname for Crystal.

Predictably, Brant parroted, “Angel?”

Shifting nervously, he muttered, “Um, sorry. Crystal, I mean.” He could only hope that Brant thought he just couldn’t keep up with all the women he interacted with. Before he could ask further questions, Mark launched into an explanation of his first statement. “I was going to take her to the hospital, but she got really upset. Said her mother had left her there overnight once when she was young. She’d been scared to death and in pain. Now she has some sort of phobia over it. So I took her to my house and called a doctor. It was a nasty viral bug, and she was really sick for almost forty-eight hours. Would you have wanted to move her in that condition if I had called?” Brant looked uneasy now. Since the other man was a bit of a neat freak, Mark couldn’t imagine him dealing with what he had this weekend, and the look of horror on his face confirmed it.

“It sounds like we all owe you our gratitude,” Brant admitted. “Plus, you may have a small point about Declan’s mother-in-law. I haven’t interacted much with her, but Dec says she’s hell on wheels. I think Crystal’s been in her line of fire since her divorce. I guess both her mother and ex-husband are trying to pressure her into reconciliation.”

“Maybe they both need someone to spell it out for them. Ang—Crystal isn’t interested,” Mark retorted. What in the hell was he doing? He had no idea how she actually felt. For all he knew, she was dying to get back with her ex-husband. Even more worrisome was the fact that it pissed him off to even think about it. She wasn’t Mark’s, and he didn’t want her to be. He was just feeling strangely territorial after taking care of her for a few days. He’d never done something like that before, so it was only natural that he would be concerned about her—right?

Brant studied him for what seemed like hours but was probably only seconds. “We’re friends, Mark, and what you do in your personal life is your own business. Unless it involves someone that I care about.” Indignant, Mark opened his mouth to protest, but Brant waved him off and continued. “Crystal is so far out of your league that you two might as well be from different worlds. She might have been married, but like Ella, she’s led a very sheltered life. I know she’s attractive and would appeal to most men—especially once someone spends some time alone with her. But she wouldn’t know how to handle your world. You’ve got to know that, man.”

Pinching the bridge of his nose, Mark attempted to regroup before he blasted his friend. He was sick and fucking tired of being judged. He’d always had a healthy sex drive, and yeah, he liked to be in control. Was that a crime? He’d never had a woman complain. And he certainly didn’t make promises, so he couldn’t be accused of giving them false expectations. “Nothing happened between us,” he said curtly. “Yes, she is beautiful, and of course, I’m attracted to her, but I didn’t act on it. If I did decide to pursue something with her, though, that would be between us. But at this time, I have no intentions of doing so. Which makes this not-too-subtle warning unnecessary.”

Brant didn’t look like he believed a word that Mark was saying, but he simply responded, “Fair enough.” Glancing down at his watch, he stood, saying, “We’re running a few minutes late for our meeting. Are you ready to go?”

Mark gathered the papers that he needed and followed the other man out the door. His guilt lay like a heavy weight on his shoulders because he’d just done something that he hated. He’d lied to one of his best friends. He couldn’t stay away from Angel. He missed her already and knew that it was just a matter of time before he sought her out.

Chapter Four

“Well, hello, Hollywood!” Mia wolf-whistled as Crystal made her way across the restaurant to where her friends were waiting. Mia Gentry handled the installations of new communications systems for Danvers and was dating Seth Jackson, who owned the luxurious Oceanix chain of hotels. She had actually met Seth while doing an installation at his hotel. Gwen Day also worked for Danvers in the accounting department and was engaged to Dominic Brady, one of the owners of East Coast Security. East Coast had offices in the building and also provided security for Danvers. Crystal had met both of them through work, and they’d become fast friends. Mia was outspoken and at times irreverent, while Gwen was sweet and funny. She was also noticeably pregnant, which Crystal could admit to herself that she envied. If only Bill hadn’t been so . . . repressed in every way, maybe she would have had a family by now. Of course, he’d blamed their difficulties conceiving on her and had refused to even consider that he might have been the problem. Her doctor had mentioned when everything checked out fine with her that maybe Bill had a low sperm count. He’d completely shut down on her when she told him. As per usual, any problem in their marriage was always her fault. Heck, hadn’t her own mother often agreed with him?

Gwen gave her an admiring look as she took her seat. “Wow, you look amazing. Is that a new dress?”

Shifting uneasily, she said, “Um—yes, it is.”

Mia lifted the tablecloth to peek at her feet and let out a sigh of pleasure. “Damn, girl, those shoes are to die for. Actually, this whole look is sexy—but it’s really different for you. You know I’m always up for a shopping trip, so why was I left out of this apparently epic one?” She stuck out her bottom lip in a pout.