Out of Bounds by Dawn Ryder Page B

tomorrow.”
    Celeste’s uniform was wet in places and her hair slicked back with perspiration. It was the most disheveled Sabra had seen her bombshell buddy in years.
    “So will you.”
    Celeste sent her a smile that was bright with victory. “It’s a pain I like, and it’s addictive.” She stared at the bruise on the side of Sabra’s face. “You’ll see.”
    There was a tone in her voice that made Sabra reach over and hug her. Celeste laughed softly at her.
    “I’m fine, Sabra. Better than fine. I’m great, because I’ve chosen to be.”
    Sabra gave her friend a hard look. “When is Caspian due out of prison?”
    Celeste shrugged but didn’t quite pull off the nonchalant gesture. “He has plenty of friends who could come after me if he wanted vengeance.”
    “He’s playing the good boy for the benefit of the parole board.”
    Celeste’s expression hardened. “No doubt, but I refuse to think about him. He isn’t worth it.” She clicked her car remote and the taillights flashed on her Corvette. “Why couldn’t you and I be lesbians again? We have so much in common.”
    “Because we’re both pathetically strictly dick.” Sabra reminded her.
    Celeste shook her head and pulled open the door of her car. She slid behind the wheel of the stylish sports car with a natural grace that should have been illegal after the hours they’d been training.
    Sabra collapsed into the driver’s seat of her sedan, grateful to be off her feet. Her butt hurt and so did her legs. Her back felt as if it were going to be on fire in the morning, but she still wasn’t sorry she’d pushed to stay for a second class. Tae kwon do was going to be like everything else in her life—being average wasn’t going to cut it for her. She wanted to be at the top and that meant pushing herself. It meant facing challenges.
    Alone in the car, she had no energy left to ignore how much Tarak Nektosha was testing her resolve—or that she’d turned her back on the challenge he presented. Oh sure, she’d done it for all the right reasons—noble reasons, moral ones that didn’t change how frustrated she was with how brief their moments had been. Even with him gone, she felt like she was waiting for his return. It was a dangerous little feeling, one that might grow strong enough to strangle her if she didn’t clip it fast.
    Not that she really had to do anything.
    The man was gone. Sure, he’d be back, but she doubted he’d be interested in her. Men like him didn’t spend their time trying to rekindle fires that hadn’t given them what they wanted.
    ***
    “Should I fire my chef?” Nartan asked. “Or just save you from yourself by calling that little raven up?”
    Angelino’s was full, but the private dining room was empty except for Tarak and Nartan. Even the staff was sealed behind a soundproof, clear door. Nartan got five grand a night for the exclusive table with a balcony view of the Pacific Ocean.
    “She works for me,” Tarak growled. “I can call her if I want to.”
    Nartan took a sip from a tumbler of whisky. His features tightened as the strong liquor slid across his tongue. “You want to,” he decided. “A little too much, which is why you are sitting here, growling.”
    Tarak lifted his middle finger and sent his friend a single-finger salute.
    Nartan offered him a toast. “Cussing me out won’t change anything.”
    “What does that mean?”
    Nartan swirled the whisky around the glass for a long moment. “It means you came to see me because you know I won’t kiss your ass and avoid mentioning the elephant in the room.” He looked up, locking stares with Tarak. A lifetime of events locked them together in a brotherhood that was the closest thing to family either of them had. “Or in this case, the shadow of a little raven in your eyes. You’re thinking about her.”
    “I need to stop.” Tarak reached for his own whisky but only curled his fingers around the glass. It wasn’t what he craved. “She works