And that question led to an entirely different line of thinking. What if he really was over it already? Was I that forgettable? That easy to get over?
Oh my God, I’m depressing the shit out of myself! Stop it Delilah!
“What the hell’s wrong with those roses?” he asked, pulling me out of self-pity mode.
I turned to look at the raggedy bouquet I’d been working on earlier before being sent away by Tori. “Oh, uh…”
“They’re for a dude’s side piece,” Toni answered. “We don’t put a lot of effort into those kinds of orders.”
“Smart.” He grinned at Toni and I could see the way her eyes glazed over at the swoon-worthy sight. For crying out loud, Toni was a badass! She wasn’t supposed to get all mushy over a guy. I needed to get him out of my shop, and fast. Not only for my sanity, but for the sake of my employees as well.
I clapped my hands in front of me. “Well, we’ve exchanged hellos, but I really should be getting back to work. Lots to do. And I’m sure you’re super busy today.”
“Nope,” he responded nonchalantly. “No plans today. My schedule’s wide open. Maybe I can help out around here.”
Wait… “You want to work? On a Sunday?”
“Sure,” he shrugged casually before standing tall and coming around to my side of the counter, standing way too close, his yummy smell invading my senses. “I’m a quick learner. Give me something to do.”
“Don’t you…” I had to shake my head to get my bearings. “Don’t you have some work of your own you can be doing? You were just complaining about being swamped since your assistant quit.”
He grinned at me like he had a secret. “The assistant position is covered, but I appreciate your concern for me.”
“That’s not—” I began to argue, to tell him I wasn’t concerned about him, when he reached over and pushed my glasses up the bridge of my nose. The gesture felt just as sweet as it had the first time, damn it!
Instead of moving his hand from my face right away, he trailed the tips of his fingers along my forehead and down my cheek, tucking a loose strand of hair behind my ear as he went. A brief look over his shoulder showed that Toni had just witnessed the entire thing, and was currently standing with her mouth hanging open, what the whaaaaa written all over her face.
I tried to move a step back, only to be foiled by the stupid L-shaped counter blocking my path. Stupid L-shape. I hate you, counter! “So what do you say?”
I blinked. Then I blinked again. “About what?” The moment I could smell his cologne all my synapses had misfired. My brain was fried.
“About me helping you, cutie.”
Oh God, I didn’t know if I was strong enough to withstand him calling me cutie much longer.
Just as I opened my mouth to politely ask him to step away — you know, so I could function like a normal human being without his hotness clogging my brain, the bell of the door rang again.
“Lilah Bug!”
“Oh balls!” I cursed under my breath as I looked at Richard in a panic, silently begging him with my eyes to move back before my father caught on to the fact we were standing far too close to each other.
“What’s going on? Who’s the guy shoving you against the counter?”
Too late.
“Hi, Daddy,” I spoke sweetly as I sidestepped the wall of muscle before me. To his credit, he looked just as freaked out as I felt the moment the word Daddy came out of my mouth. I let out an uncomfortable laugh as I made my way over to my father and stood on my tiptoes to kiss his scruffy cheek. “This is Richard, Dad. He’s my and Devon’s neighbor. I’ve been a little backed up and he came to help me out.”
Dad looked suspicious, obviously not buying my excuse as he stared Richard down. “That’s what Toni’s for. She keeps you from getting too bogged down. That’s why I told you to hire her in the first place. Have you been taking on too much work again? You always do that. I told you—”
“Work to live, don’t live to work,” I spoke at the same time he did, rolling my eyes for added effect. I’d gotten that very same lecture about twice a month ever since taking over Flora. No matter how old I got I would always be his little girl, and he would always treat me as such. Which meant putting up with him hovering over me at times and threatening anything with a penis that looked at me for longer than five seconds — the acceptable amount of time for a man to look at a woman as allotted by my father.
“I’m not taking on too much work, Dad. I promise.”
His bushy brows furrowed. “Then why are you so swamped that you’d need this…” he trailed off, curling his lip in Richard’s direction. “…guy to help?”
“I got sick yesterday, Mr. Northcutt. No biggie, but with me out Del was kind of in a bind.”
God bless Toni. If I swung that way I’d have kissed her right on the mouth, and the appreciative look I shot her said as much, causing her to let out a laugh that she quickly tried to cover with a fake cough.
“Well,” Dad said. “I’m glad you’re feeling better, Toni.” He shot a sideways glance at the still-quiet Richard before looking at me. “If you need help you can always call me, Lilah Bug. You don’t need to depend on a man who’ll probably use chivalry as a way to get into your pants.”
“Daddy!” I shouted, my cheeks suddenly heating with intense embarrassment. I couldn’t bring myself to look in Richard’s direction, even as he cleared his throat and spoke up.
“Sir, I can assure you, that’s not my intentions. I just wanted to help your daughter out.”
“I know how men think,” Dad scoffed. “And I know what I saw when I walked in here. How you were staring at my daughter wasn’t the way a man who just wants to help looks at a woman. What exactly are your intentions, huh?”
Toni released another choked laugh, clearly enjoying my humiliation. “Oh, my God. Dad! Richard is just a friend. There’s nothing going on. And besides, if Mom found out I was letting you come in here and help I’d never hear the end of it. And neither would you. You’re supposed to be retired, remember?”
He batted my comment away like it was nothing, but I knew it was all for show. He knew as well as I did that Mom would make both our lives miserable if she found out he was working again. “What’s this guy even know about plants anyway, huh? He’d probably screw up more than help! And I don’t like the way he stares at you.” He turned back to Richard who, I could have sworn, looked a little paler than usual.
I wanted the ground to open up and swallow me whole, but since that wasn’t happening, I was going to have to use a different tactic to get my father out of the shop before he could embarrass me any more than he already had. “Dad, if you don’t leave, I’m going to have to call Mom.”
He narrowed his eyes at my threat. “You wouldn’t.”
“I would. I love you with all my heart, but don’t for one second think I won’t throw you right under the bus. You know the rules. No working. I’m not going down because of you. If it’s between you or her, I choose her. She’s way scarier.”
I could have sworn I heard him mumble “traitor,” under his breath. Choosing to ignore it, I gave him my sweetest smile, the one that always got me out of trouble with him growing up. “I’ll see you tonight for dinner, Dad.”
He looked at me, then Richard, then me again before announcing… loudly, “I don’t like the looks of that guy, Lilah Bug. After that Brant jackass, you need to find a nice, stable boy—”
“Dad! Stop talking!” I yelled, slapping my hand over his mouth. “I’m not looking for any relationship, with a nice, stable boy or anyone else. And there’s nothing going on with Richard, so will you please just stop!?”
“Brant,” Richard spoke, drawing our attention. “You mean that douche that showed up at your apartment last night? The guy I ran off?”
I saw a calculating gleam in his eye as he shot me a quick smirk. What the crap was he up to?
“He showed up at your house?” Dad asked after pulling my hand from his mouth. “Why
didn’t you tell me?”
“It was nothing—” I tried, but Richard interrupted.
“He came running back with his tail between his legs, begging her to take him back. Wouldn’t take no for an answer when Del told him to leave, so I did what I felt I had to do to get rid of him. I pretended that I was her boyfriend so the dipshit would get a clue.”
I was disappointed when the look I gave him didn’t melt the skin right off his too pretty face.
“Ha!” Dad barked out a loud laugh, then moved over to clap Richard on the back. “Good man. Tell me, son, how mad was he?”
Good man? Son? What freaking alternate universe had I just fallen into where my father was actually getting along with a man he thought wanted in my pants? The smile Richard game me was positively smug. The rat bastard. He was totally up to something, and I was helpless to do anything but watch.
“Not so mad, really, but I’m pretty sure if we’d stuck around any longer he would have burst into tears.”
My father’s head fell back in laughter. “Oh, I’d have paid good money to see that.” He smacked Richard’s back again. “You know, you might not be so bad after all. Lilah Bug,” he said, turning his attention back to me, “you should bring Richard to dinner tonight.”
What. The. Hell?
“Uh… I don’t… what I mean… that’s not such a good idea.”
Dad frowned. “Why not? You said you two are friends. And he’s obviously got your back when Jace and I aren’t there to look out for you.” Sweet Buddha, I felt like I was a little girl again. Telling my father that I didn’t need a man to look out for me would have been absolutely pointless. Dad was from the old school way of thinking, where men were the protectors, the providers for their family.
Richard patted Dad’s shoulder and spoke, “I’d love to, sir, but I’m afraid I’ve already got plans for the evening.” Was it just me or did my father actually look crestfallen. “My brother’s getting married in a few weeks, and I promised I’d go by his place so his fiancée could boss me around with last minute errands. Believe me, I’d much rather have a home-cooked meal, but what can you do, right? They’re family.”
Did he…? Son of a bitch, that asshole just winked at me!
“A man with a strong sense of family,” Dad spoke more to me than to Richard. “That’s commendable, son. Consider that an open invitation. My wife and I would love to have you over for dinner.”
“That’s very kind, sir. Thank you.”
“Please, call me Ken.”
“Well, Ken, if the invitation’s open, I’d love to join you and your family for dinner next Sunday. That is, if your wife wouldn’t mind.”
“Not at all. We’ll see you next Sunday then.” The men shook hands before Dad walked over to place a kiss on the top of my head. “Watch out for this one, in the meantime, will you?” he pointed at me. “Make sure she’s not working herself to the bone.”
“Oh, you have my word, Ken. I’ll keep my eye on her.” Even though my poor dad was clueless about the hidden meaning behind Richard’s words, they rang loud and clear to me. And the flash of heat in his icy blue eyes could only mean one thing.
I was so screwed. And not in the good way.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” I hissed once the door to Flora closed behind my father.
He got close to me, caging me against the counter once again. “The way I see it, the ball’s in my court now, friend.”
My belly flip-flopped, my thighs clenched involuntarily, and I was pretty sure I stopped breathing right then and there. I was no match for his seduction technique. He definitely had the advantage since my body refused to listen to my brain and all but begged me to reach out and touch him.
But before I could, he leaned in closer, placed a lingering kiss on my neck, just below my ear, and headed for the door. It wasn’t until he was gone that I was finally able to pull some much needed air into my lungs.
“Giiiiirl,” Toni hummed appreciatively from behind me. “You’re out of your league with that one. Might as well just strip naked and let him have your way with you now. It’s inevitable.”
Oh, if she only knew the half of it.
I RUBBED AT MY aching temples, wondering for the thousandth time today if I’d made a huge mistake.
It all started earlier this morning when I woke up to the sound of Eminem blasting through my bedroom wall. I lay there for a few seconds, hating myself for mouthing along to the words that were now seared into my memory, when the pounding started, followed by a shrill voice yelling, “Rise and shine, Boss Man! Time to start the day!”
I wasn’t sure if it was a good or bad thing that my newest assistant seemed to be a morning person, especially when there was a knock on my door not even five minutes after I’d gotten out of the shower.
“Sweet Christ, woman! I’m not even ready yet!” I shouted as I tucked a towel around my waist, made my way to the front door and jerked it open, ready to lay into Devon for already proving to be a pain in my ass.
Only it wasn’t Devon standing there. It was Delilah, looking adorably sleepy and just a tad bit confused. “Uh… Devon said to bring this over to you?” She held up a travel mug that smelled an awful lot like freshly-brewed coffee. “She said something about having to keep her new boss happy and that I should bring you coffee while she finished getting ready.”
I immediately took back all the bad things I thought of Devon earlier.
“Did you really hire her as your new assistant?” she asked as she stood in the doorway, shifting from foot to foot. I watched with amusement as she desperately tried — and failed — to keep her eyes off the certain part of my body currently covered by the towel. When I cleared my throat, catching her eyes once again, I smiled, letting her know she’d been busted. I couldn’t put into words just how turned on I got at the sight of her cheeks turning that deep pink every time she got embarrassed. Seeing that flush made me want to do whatever I could to push her buttons.
I took the travel mug from her hand and sucked down a long sip, letting the caffeine work its magic. “It’s on a probationary basis right now, but it’s safe to say that if she keeps sending her cute roommate to my door with coffee every morning, I’m liable to make it permanent.”
There was that flush again. Christ, I could feel my dick twitching behind the terrycloth.
She narrowed her eyes behind those glasses before pushing them back up her nose. “You’re really not going to take the friends thing seriously, are you?”
“On the contrary,” I told her, leaning against the doorframe and taking another sip. “I’m taking it very seriously.”
“Then why are you still all…” she waved her hand around in the air, “…flirty and stuff?”
I shrugged. “You call it flirting, I just call it being friendly.”
“That’s not how friends act!” she declared, propping her hands on her curvy hips and drawing my attention to her tiny silk sleep shorts. Jesus, is she wearing underwear under those things? The towel was no longer able to hide the effect of what staring at Delilah did to my body. “S-see!” she stammered, turning beet red as she pointed in the general direction of the semi, poking out beneath the towel. “That’s… that isn’t… that’s not… friends don’t give friends erections!”
“Noooo…” I dragged out, enjoying how flustered my cock was making her. “I think you’re confusing that with friends don’t let friends drive drunk. There’s no rule on erections. And, cutie” I leaned closer, inhaling the faint smell of honeysuckle, “I’m in a constant state of arousal around you.” She sputtered loudly, eyes wide, mouth hanging open. “And friends are always honest with each other, so you can trust I’m telling the truth.”
She sputtered again. “That’s not… you can’t… ugh! I can’t even with you!” She turned, her ass looking un-fucking-believable in those shorts, and stomped back toward her apartment.
“Thanks for the coffee, cutie,” I called back. “Looking forward to this kind of
thing every morning!” She shot me the finger just before her door slammed shut.
As I got dressed, I started to think that hiring Devon was a stroke of genius if she was already putting her powers to use for good instead of evil.
But then, the day progressed.
If I hadn’t been living it myself, I might have laughed, or thought it had to be some kind of prank, but I wasn’t that lucky. I couldn’t even claim it was her quality of work, because, despite my refusal to admit it, she was fucking brilliant at her job. No, that wasn’t it, it was her personality that made my head feel like it was two seconds away from exploding. She was loud, brash, and completely unprofessional at times, but fuck if she wasn’t efficient.
Case in point, what happened about an hour into the work day:
“Yo, Boss Man,” Devon interrupted, walking into my office without so much as a knock, eyes trained on the folder in her hand. “I’m going through your expense report, but keep coming on these receipts for some place called Tranquility Spa. Is that like one of those happy ending rub-and-tug places? And can you even expense those? If so, sign me the hell up!”
I’d been on a conference call at the time… and hadn’t hit the mute button before the question passed her lips. If the client I’d been on the call with hadn’t had a sense of humor — even going so far as to ask me for the address of the place (side note: it was not a happy ending rub-and-tug kind of place), and if Devon hadn’t managed to get a week’s worth of filing done in less than two hours, I might have lost my shit. Instead, I brushed it off and made it a point to let her know that she should always knock before entering.
At least she had the decency to look apologetic.
She’d waved me off when I stopped by her desk to ask a question about my schedule, covering the speaker just long enough to ask, “Can’t you see I’m on the phone? Jeez, manners much?”
When one of the other admins suggested it would be more professional for her to refer to me as Mr. Locklaine instead of Richard or Boss Man, she laughed and said she’d get on that just as soon as she started squeezing her ass into panty hose, wearing pearls, and time traveled back to the 1950’s. Then she suggested the woman ‘pull the stick out’ and stop watching so many episodes of Mad Men.
Opposites Attract (The Locklaine Boys Book 2) Page 10