Cake. Lauren Dane

sorry. I get wrapped up in work.”

      “Apology accepted. Coffee is fine. I have work to do tonight anyway.”

      “Night deliveries?” He frowned. “Is that safe?”

      “No, I’m done working for the day. I have schoolwork to do. I’m meeting someone I’m doing a group project with. I have time to eat cookies, but I need to bike back home in a bit.”

      “I’ll give you a ride. It’s raining.”

      “It’s Seattle—it’s always raining.”

      “What is this project?”

      “It’s a short animated film. Shane, my partner, is doing all the edits so I’m going to his apartment to see the progress.”

      Gregori glowered a moment.

      “Why are you grumpy? Grumpier than usual, I mean.” She grabbed milk from his fridge for the coffee.

      “What makes you think I’m grumpy?”

      “I have eyes. Milk?”

      He nodded and she poured him a dollop before putting the carton away.

      “You’re frowning at me. Excessively.”

      “Did you bring your art to show me?”

      She sipped her coffee. “I might have some in my bag. If you, say, wanted to tell me why you’re grumpy.”

      “Oh, so it’s like that?”

      She laughed. “Yes, yes I think it is. Maybe I don’t want to show it to you when you’re testy. What if you hate it and then you frown at me over it? I could get a complex. And wouldn’t that be a shame?”

      He grinned, the dark cloud of his mood chased from his features. “I highly doubt you’re capable of complexes.”

      “Hmm. You should know a hell of a lot more about women, buster. You’re constantly drowning in them, so why are you acting like you’ve never seen one?” She winked. “I’m not superhuman. Of course I’m capable of complexes. Back to you and your issues, please.”

      “It’s complicated personal business.”

      “Personal.” She rolled her r like he did. “Your ex-wife.”

      One of his brows rose. “Well, aren’t you industrious?”

      “I’m totally industrious. It’s a gift. However, I know she’s in town because she called to yell at Kelsey when I was there earlier.”

      “She yelled at Kelsey? About what?”

      “Oh, no thank you. I’ve already told you more than I should have. Kelsey is a badass. She can handle your ex-wife.”

      “She’s difficult. At one point I suppose I found it exciting. Now it’s just exhausting.”

      “Stop getting back with her then.”

      “Are you giving me relationship advice, little bird?”

      Little bird? She fought a blush.

      “Sure, why not?”

      “Can I give you relationship advice, too?”

      “Sure. If I have one, you can give me advice on it.”

      “I do not get back together with her. We’re divorced. She wanted it, but years later, I’m certainly relieved I gave in.”

      “I’ll be blunt. Stop having sex with her. Ex sex is never a good thing. You fuck her a few times and then it always crashes and burns. It’s not like you’re hurting for company.”

      He supposed, though, that he was. Not hurting precisely, but he was lonely. Prentiss was someone he’d known, intimately, for several years. Sometimes that was comforting. Not so much these days. He’d grown up, but she hadn’t. It was less exciting and more vexing.

      The truth was, he found the woman across from him far more interesting than the one he’d left several years before. Apparently his mother had been right and he was finally growing up.

      “Also? You’re not a nice person when you two get back together.”

      He paused. “I’m not?”

      “No.”

      “What do you mean?”

      Wren looked up from her cup and right through him. “You know what I mean.”

      “No. I don’t. Be honest.”

      “You’re a selfish dick when you’re with her. You drink way more. You party too hard. Harder than you already do. She wrings you out and fucks you up and toys with you and then she leaves and you have to put yourself back together again. Your work suffers. You’re not even like those artists who work better when they’re depressed.”

      He sucked in a breath. He’d told her to be honest. She’d taken him at his word.

      “It’s been a year since the last time. I’m not interested anymore. That’s why I’m grumpy. She’s persistent.” A year ago it would have worked. Now it agitated him.

      “So you yelled at her in Russian?”

      He laughed. “I did. It’s my emotional language. When I’m really pissed off, I end up thinking and speaking Russian. She doesn’t speak it. But she gets the swear words and the tone. She went through my mother to get my new number. I don’t like that. I’m trying to keep her away.”

      “That’s why the door downstairs was locked.”

      “Yes. I don’t want her stopping by.”

      His ex-wife was a drain. On his life. On his bank account. On everything.

      “That’s good. Locking the door, I mean. Try not answering her calls. You know, to underline it.”

      “That’s some pretty sage advice. Do you have a pesky ex I don’t know about?”

      “No. My life is considerably less exciting than yours. I’m a woman. I think she’s going to keep coming at you until you finally underline your no. That back-and-forth has been part of your relationship. Part of the zing.”

      He paused. That part was true. And maybe his hunger for someone who knew him as more than the guy in the headlines. But really, Prentiss didn’t know him that much better than the hangers-on did. Not anymore. It’d been a long time since he was the man who she’d been married to.

      “Maybe at one time. But I’m too old for it now. I just don’t have the energy for it.”

      “So stop having sex with her.”

      He leaned back, feeling a lot better. “It was good sex.” But the emotional hangover wasn’t worth it.

      She rolled her eyes. “Pfft. Good sex isn’t that rare. I’ll never understand men who keep going back to the crazy-ex well. Jeez. Then you all act so surprised when she goes nuts.”

      “Enough about her. Show me your work.”

      She put her cup down and pulled a pad from her bag. But she didn’t hand it over right away, clutching it to her chest. “Some of this is still rough.”

      He leaned forward, totally unable to resist. “I like it rough.”

      She sucked in a breath, a pretty flush building up her neck. She thrust the pad into his hands and grabbed her coffee.

      He paged through, impressed. Her work had a sense of humor but with an edge.

      “Do you handle all of this? The story and the drawing? Or is this a group project thing?”

      “That’s all me. A new series I’m working on. Once it’s polished I’m going to shop it around. Time to really get out there and see if I can do this for a living.” She shoved a cookie into her