Fool For You (Made for Love Book 4) by R.C. Martin

open my mouth to object, but she speaks again before I can.
    “And you know what else? There’s no such thing as no strings . There are always strings . Especially if you’re having sex. Sometimes, I swear, our whole world is in denial! Sex is extremely intimate. You can trick your brain into thinking it’s not, but there’s more to your body than your brain. And for you to approach her and suggest your company with no strings—I mean, do you ever stop and think before you say shit like that? Maybe she thinks she’s worth strings. And you know what? She is . So maybe you and all of your asshole glory can’t comprehend how the idea of casual sex with you could be offensive, but not all women are interested in the idea of offering you their bodies with the promised illusion of no strings. ”
    “Christ, woman—do you always ramble when you’re trying to convince me I’m an asshole?” I ask, remembering her long-winded speech from earlier this year, when she told me to stop coming onto her. I’ll never remember everything she said, but I do recall hearing her call me an asshole more than once before she suggested we be friends.
    “Just apologize to her, Jude. That’s all I’m saying.”
    She turns away from me, looking out her window as she grows silent.
    I think about what she just said—some of it, at least. I don’t agree with her, of course. I’m not a man who does relationships. I consider it fair that I express that before any woman can get the wrong idea. Relationships are overrated. Love is simply a concept—a choice—and people change their mind like they change their wardrobe. To choose to be in a relationship, hoping to fall in love, is a fool’s errand. In the end, there is always a possibility that it all amounts to nothing.
    I’ve been in love before. I know what a relationship looks like. The things that are expected—faithfulness, commitment, love—they are all just choices . To trust another human being to make the same choice every day—it’s foolish. I learned that the hard way, and I’m never going back there.
    So I will not apologize for my honesty. It is a choice I can live by. It is a choice that I can swear by. And I will get Teddy in my bed. One way or another, I’m a man who gets what he wants. It’s a promise I made to myself long ago, and I keep my promises.
     
     

     
    I press my head against the filing cabinet, the cool metal against my forehead a welcome sensation. I close my eyes and, for a moment, it’s as if I can feel his long, warm fingers on my face. Even now, in my solitude, just remembering him makes me short of breath. I told him I wasn’t flattered by his proposition—which is true. The fact that he wants to see me naked— me, a complete stranger —it means nothing more than that he has a penis and he’d like to use it. That’s not an uncommon desire among men.
    But the way he looked at me…
    I don’t know that anyone has ever looked at me quite like that before.
    I gasp, almost choking on air when I feel a hand press against the small of my back. I whirl around, surprised and disturbingly disappointed to find Geoffrey looking at me with a concerned scowl. I cover my face with my hands, wondering why I thought it could be anyone else—why a tiny part of me wishes it was Judah .
    “Teddy, why are you hiding in the supply closet?”
    “I’m not. I’m not hiding,” I say, not sounding the least bit convincing. I sigh, dropping my hands to my sides as I look up into his blue eyes, filled with question. “I needed a minute.”
    The corner of his mouth curls up into a devious smile. “Theodora Rose Fitzpatrick.”
    I bite the inside of my cheek, fighting a smile, willing my irritation to reign supreme in this moment. He’s about to call me out, and I’m not ready for it.
    “I’m not even going to ask if you think he’s hot because we both know he’s a walking wet dream.” I blush and his smile grows wider. “Did he ask you out?” I nod