by Lexi Wilson
I took a few deep breaths, my chest feeling tight. Even though I’d been the one who suggested I get practice, the idea of actually going out and flirting with guys sent my pulse racing.
It didn’t feel like moving on anymore. It felt like walking into my doom.
Chapter 7
Daniel
Another Friday night, and another night out with Hunter. This was idiotic, especially considering what happened last Friday. If I’d not been wandering around at some stupid bar, I wouldn’t have run into my assistant, and a lot of the awkwardness of the past week wouldn’t have been an issue.
“This place looks great,” Hunter said, eyeing the gathered crowd. “A lot more happening here than that boring place we went last week.”
Yeah, boring place, if only that were true. I glanced over my shoulder at the door. It’d be easy to make an excuse and go. I could easily claim some big business deal was in jeopardy.
The thought made me feel ashamed. I couldn’t lie and bail on my best friend. He was on the prowl, and he needed my support, no matter how much I didn’t want to be there.
For whatever reason, about a month ago, Hunter started freaking out about the fact that he was hitting middle age and wasn’t married with kids. So he decided he needed to find a woman—and soon. Even though I’d pointed out that hitting bars and clubs was probably not the best way for a guy in his forties to find wife material, it was hard for him to put decades of single life behind him. He needed a wingman, and I wasn’t about to leave my best friend high and dry, even if I wasn’t interested.
I honestly didn’t get why he was even bothering with all of this. The man was good-looking enough, and never had all that much trouble with women. His main issue was less attracting women, and more to do with his poor taste.
Every man understood there was a difference between the woman you just wanted to have some fun with and the woman you wanted to bring home and make a life with. Hunter liked his women pretty, flighty, and superficial. It was no wonder he’d had trouble finding someone to make a future with, let alone someone to bear his children.
Not that I’d done all that much better, but at the same time I wasn’t looking like my friend was. I didn’t want to be a dad, especially since I felt I was having to take care of my sister. Sure, being married didn’t sound all that bad. True, I’d not been married yet, but I’d gotten close once about ten years back.
It had fallen apart when we both realized we were going through the motions of what we thought we should be doing, rather than because we wanted to spend the rest of lives together.
After that, time and business had interfered. I’d dated women, slept with more than a few, but everything petered out after a while. The next thing I knew I was forty-one and still single. Then again, I was a forty-one-year-old billionaire, so it wasn’t exactly a bad life.
Hunter and I stepped into the thick crowd. The place was popular, I’d give it that. At least in terms of quantity of potential targets, my friend would have a lot of choices, though the crowd was skewing about ten to fifteen younger than us.
The man did own his own business though, which was always an advantage. Women sought security, and a man with a successful business was more impressive than some flighty bass player.
“I still think you’re going about this the wrong way,” I said. “Especially, if you’re serious about wanting a wife and not just someone to pick up for a little weekend fun.”
Hunter grinned. “Hey, no one said I couldn’t have some fun and try to find a decent woman along the way. You used to play ball. You get this. You can’t hit a home run if you never take a swing.”
I grunted. Baseball metaphors? Seriously?
“You’re going to be disappointed,” I said, “and you’re the one who told me this was about finding something that lasts. You need to find someone with common interests, common background, that kind of thing.” I gestured to the crowd. “Not denying there are plenty of hot women here, but this is random. There are no guarantees here other than appearance.”
Hunter shook his head. “Yeah, and I’m sure you strutting around frowning at everyone isn’t going to help, either. You’re scaring off all the ladies who might be interested.”
“Well, you know the score,” I said. “I’ll try and keep an eye on you, but women will feel less threatened if it’s just you, so I’ll go watch from the bar, and you can give me a sign if you want back-up.”
“Yeah, I know,” he said, tilting his head and staring across the way. “Anyway, I think I’ve found a good candidate for a future Mrs. Stevens. Too bad I still don’t have that ‘official breast inspector’ t-shirt.”
I groaned. “We’re not in college anymore, and I’ll remind you that even back then the women didn’t find it funny.”
“A little humor never hurts, and I can already tell that my candidate will appreciate a good crude joke.”
I snorted. “You can tell all that from across the room, huh? Or has working around all that coffee given you telepathy?”
“Just saying you can tell a lot about a woman from the way she laughs when she’s chatting with her friends.” He gave me a little salute and slipped into the crowd.
I shook my head, both exasperated and amused at his antics. Whatever else I might think, Hunter seemed like he was having a good time, which was more than I could say for myself.
Not nearly drunk enough to enjoy the night yet, I pushed through the throng of people to make my way to the bar. The huge tightly packed crowd made it slow-going, but I needed a drink, and these people better get out of my way.
After an excruciating journey, I finally arrived at the bar. “Whiskey on the rocks,” I told the bartender. “Make it a double.” Probably not the safest plan without much food in my stomach, but I wanted a buzz sooner rather than later.
The bartender nodded and turned to prepare my drink. A little alcohol would help the whole night go faster. Hunter could do what he wanted, but I sure wasn’t going to pick up some random woman ten years younger than me at a bar.
The bartender finished pouring my drink and placed it in front of me. I handed him my card, and he ran it quickly. I thought about opening a tab, but I wasn’t sure how much I was going to drink that night. I was starting with a double shot of whiskey, after all, and we weren’t planning on spending the entire night there.
The whiskey would last me for a bit. Or so I figured.
I was just about to pick my glass up and down my drink when a soft body pressed into mine. The warmth of the new arrival mingled with mine, and something about it felt familiar, like I’d experienced it before. I blinked and looked down.
What the hell? Talk about a night of surprises. The body pressing against me belonged to Morgan. My prim assistant wasn’t dressed like I’d ever seen her before, either. She’d always been easily described as beautiful, but now I couldn’t help but think of her as anything other than sexy.
The clothes helped. Even last week when I’d run into her at the gastropub, though she was obviously a little more relaxed than normal, she was still wearing her work clothes, nothing like the sexy number before me now.
She wore a short, low-cut black dress that clung to her body, providing more than a nice view of her ample breasts as it tightly outlined her nice ass as well. I stirred and hardened a bit at the sight. I’d always known she had a good body, but this was the first time I’d been able to see it directly.
I’d also never actually seen her hair down before. Her long dark hair fell past her shoulders, and her make-up accentuated her eyelashes and full lips. Kissable, definitely kissable.
It took only a split second to think of what else she could do with those lips. My cock turned to stone in my pants. This was bad. Very bad.
Even with Morgan still pressed against me, I downed my whiskey in one gulp. The alcohol burned as it traveled down my throat. Still far too sober. Far too sober.
She pulled back a bit then leaned forward, giving me a clearer view of her cleav
age. I prayed the whiskey would kick in soon. Otherwise things were going to get very, very uncomfortable.
“I don’t have time to explain,” Morgan whispered, “but just play along. It’ll really be a help.”
“Huh? Play along with what? I think you need to expl—”
The next thing I knew, Morgan threw her arms around me and pulled me in for a kiss. Her lips touched mine, and my brain short-circuited as I tried to figure out what was even happening. I’d only come out tonight to be a wingman for Hunter, not to kiss my assistant.
First, the kiss began as nothing special, just her lips meeting mine, but without any conscious thought, my tongue darted out and eagerly parted her lips. I wanted—no, needed my tongue in her mouth. I pulled her against me, her soft breasts pressing against my chest.
Our tongues warred in her mouth, the harsh taste of whiskey mixed with some sort of fruity flavor. I briefly wondered how many drinks she’d had tonight. Probably more than my one. My tongue slid over hers, savoring both her taste and the taste of the alcohol.
I inhaled deeply. The floral scent of her shampoo filled my nostrils. Everything about this woman, from her drink choice to her shampoo, was just too feminine and enticing.
Morgan let out a soft moan into my mouth. The sound sent a jolt to my already hard cock. I almost pulled her tighter against me so I could grind against her center before the sound of the bartender clearing his throat behind me pulled me out of my all-too-real fantasy.
Shit. We were in public, not my bedroom, and not only that, I was kissing a married woman. Wrong. Everything about this was wrong. I’d let my dick do my thinking and not my head.
I pulled away, blinking. Morgan stumbled back, her lips swollen and red from the kissing, her cheeks red, whether from the alcohol or me, I couldn’t say. She swayed and fell against me. I wrapped an arm around her waist trying to ignore the wonderful feel of her breasts pressed against me.
Given the way she was moving and the taste in her mouth, she was obviously drunk. That had to explain why she’d suddenly come up and kissed me. Then again, no one did anything drunk that they didn’t want to on some level. Morgan was obviously as attracted to me as I was to her.
I let myself think of that as promising for a second before I reminded myself she was off-limits.
A loud noise cut through the noise of the crowd, and my head snapped at that. Jacy walked toward us in a red dress as scandalous as the black on Morgan wore. She was clapping for some reason, and I soon spotted Hunter coming from a different direction, a huge grin on his face. He gave me a thumb’s up.
I had no idea what was going on.
Chapter 8
Morgan
Oh my, oh my. This Friday night out had taken a very weird turn, one that felt good at first, but now just confused me.
Yes, I’d been drinking, and not a little, but that didn’t help protect my mind from the shock of what had just happened. It wasn’t supposed to be like that. I was just supposed to give him a quick kiss, almost innocent, and the next thing I knew his tongue was in my mouth, and I was draped against him and seriously wondering what it would be like to be beneath him and moaning his name.
Holy cow. I glanced down at my dress to make sure my hardened nipples weren’t too obvious. My center pulsed with need, and I resisted the urge to rub my thighs together.
Even then, still pressed against Daniel, desire lit up my entire body. I wanted to know what it’d be like to run my hands along his muscles without fabric in the way and to have those large hands caressing me, running up my sides, caressing my breasts and squeezing.
I quietly gasped at the thought, and heat circulated through me from my toes to my head. It had been a very long time since I’d experienced simple lust to that degree.
The kiss had awakened something I’d not felt in two years, something I’d thought was all but dead. There was no doubt now that I wanted Daniel, and judging by the way he kissed me, it was obvious he wanted me. For a brief moment, I let myself wonder what it would be like to give in to the feeling.
Reality came crashing down around me. I couldn’t be making out with my boss in the middle of some bar. Yes, Jacy had brought me here so I could practice having fun and flirting with guys, but that was way different from sticking my tongue down his throat.
If I didn’t get things under control soon, he might not even be my boss come Monday.
“Um,” I said, finally pulling away from Daniel’s body. His wide eyes showed he was as confused about the whole thing as I was. I might be able to salvage the situation once he knew what was going on. “Sorry. I get this was all confusing. Thank you for saving me, Daniel.”
I decided I should wait to explain on Monday. For now, I just needed to get away from him before my body betrayed me again. I took a single step toward Jacy but stopped at Daniel’s arm gripping mine.
“Where are you going?” he asked.
“Off with Jacy.”
Daniel shook his head. “I think we need to sit down and discuss this.”
“No, it’s okay. Everything’s fine now.”
He shook his head. “This situation is many things, but fine is most definitely not one of them.”
“Can’t it wait until Monday?”
“After what just happened, I don’t think so.”
My stomach lurched. My boss wouldn’t fire me in the middle of a bar, would he? Then again, I’d kissed him in the middle of the bar, so I could hardly complain about it being unprofessional.
Daniel pointed toward a recently vacated table. “We’ll sit there.” His tone didn’t suggest he was willing to take no for an answer.
My mind struggled through the thick webs created by the alcohol as I tried to decide what the best move was. Embarrassment and concern were at war in my mind, not helping things along a bit.
I thought about grabbing Jacy and just taking off, but Daniel wasn’t a man I could just annoy and avoid the consequences. He wasn’t just my boss. He was a billionaire CEO, not to mention one of the Northwest’s Most Eligible Bachelors of 2018!
It didn’t help that this entire awkward situation was my fault. I was the one who had come up to him out of nowhere and kissed him, and if I tried to blow him off now, it might very well cost me my job. The least he deserved was an explanation why I’d done it.
I nodded, “Okay, lead on.”
Daniel moved toward the table, this time with a frown on his face. It’s like he had flipped his billionaire aura on. Before, everyone had to all but shove to get through the thick crowd. Suddenly, people moved for him like he was Moses parting the Red Sea.
It disappointed me in a way. I was hoping to have more time to think over how I was going to explain everything before we got to our table. If only the crowd hadn’t been so darn cooperative.
Jacy followed along, smirking at me whenever I glanced her way. Of course, she was the one who kept insisting I go after Daniel and must have been feeling pretty good about herself just now. That look suggested she was too damn satisfied for her own good.
I sighed. The sad part was that I couldn’t even blame my friend for this one. She might have been encouraging me to go after my boss to other day, but she hadn’t told me to kiss him. I was the one who’d spotted Daniel, and I was the one who figured he’d be a good way out of the problem I’d ended up in, a problem I needed to explain to him if I wanted to have any hope of salvaging this ridiculous situation.
We all sat at the table, joined by a grinning good-looking blond guy who seemed really familiar. Like startlingly familiar, but I couldn’t figure out where I’d seen him before. Maybe he was some actor or something. It’d make sense for an actor to be hanging out with a billionaire.
I stared at the blond guy, still certain I’d seen him before. “Have we met?”
“Oh, yeah, many times,” he said, still grinning. He shrugged. “We see each other almost every day.”
“Really? Do you live in my apartment building?” I thought I knew my neighbors well, but
then again, I’d gotten a lot more anti-social in general since the death of my baby, even before moving to the new building. The blond guy didn’t look like a friend of my ex, pseudo-ex or whatever.
I blinked, then Daniel elbowed the man’s side. The other man winced, then shot me a sheepish grin.
“No games,” Daniel said. “I’m not in the mood, and I doubt she’s in the mood either.” His confusion from before had turned into obvious annoyance. Not that I could blame him. Besides, I was very confused about who the guy was, despite his claims.
“Hunter Stevens,” he said, offering his hand. “I own the coffee shop that you patronize every morning on the first floor. We do see each other almost every day, even if I’m not always the one serving you.”
Recognition flooded through me, and my face heated. “What? I guess I didn’t recognize you without your apron and hat.”
Hunter laughed, the sound light. “No problem. The important thing is that you’re coming in and spending your money.” He turned toward Jacy. “Now, who is your beautiful friend here?”
She beamed a smile at him. “I’m Jacy.”
“Pleased to meet you, Jacy. Why don’t you come and get your coffee at my shop? You can come down from the office.”
My friend gave him a sultry smile. “I don’t work with her; I’m just her friend. Maybe I should be making a trip across town though.”
“It’s a shame you don’t get to experience it.”
Jacy licked her lips. “There are a lot of things I’d like to experience.”
Daniel loudly cleared his throat.
Hunter and Jacy stared at each other, obvious heat in their gaze. Geeze. Talk about undressing someone with their eyes. But in this case, they were doing it to each other. Wow. Lust at first sight.
Daniel stared at me, a mixture of what I was pretty sure was anger and lust in his eyes. He didn’t say anything, and I tried to gather my thoughts into something approaching rational patterns. The aftermath of the kiss had somehow blasted the alcohol haze out of my head, and now I kept wondering if I’d even have a job come Monday because of my stupid kissing stunt.