Fredrick slid his laptop bag onto his shoulder, but the weight of Aaron’s words settled much heavier than the strap. The guilt from earlier revved up another notch. Here Aaron was, asking him to look out for his baby sister, and all day long Fredrick had had to stop himself from remembering his fantasy from the night before. If his dad’s call earlier had been a wakeup call, Aaron’s call was a bullhorn blaring that he needed to snap out of it.
Instead of responding, he changed the subject. “If you were there, it must mean you’re in town. How long will you be around?”
“I’m going out tomorrow, but it’s a quick haul up to Virginia. I’ll be back in a week.”
Fredrick turned the lights off in his office. His lobby was illuminated by the backup lights; the rest of the staff had left about forty minutes ago.
“Give me a shout when you’re back in town. It’s been a while.”
“I’ll do that,” Aaron said. “And thanks, man.”
“For what?”
“Looking out for Janiyah. I’m not home, and Dad, David, and Kareem aren’t nearby. We appreciate it.”
And with that, Fredrick’s guilt kicked up way past a notch to catastrophic levels.
CHAPTER 6
Since she’d promised him dinner, Janiyah fussed, pleaded, and threatened to come to his office, until Freddy finally left and agreed to meet her somewhere. He’d chosen one of those fast casual places that prepared your food in front of you. She didn’t have to insist on eating with Freddy, and he wouldn’t have held her to her promise. Dinner served two purposes: she liked keeping the promises she made him, and it gave her an opportunity to convince him to accept her job application.
Freddy’s late nights were becoming more frequent. He usually arrived home at six thirty—except during tax season. When she’d commented the week before about his late work hours, he’d said work was busy and she’d moved on. Guilt eased its way into her conscience for not asking what was happening at his job. He’d busted his butt to be this big success and hadn’t shared it with her. Though she wanted to be mad she really couldn’t.
Another check on her responsibility list: show an interest in her friends’ lives.
She arrived before he did and waited in front of the restaurant. A few minutes later he pulled up. The top buttons of his shirt were undone, and his eyes were slightly red behind his glasses. They got that way when he rubbed them a lot—something he did whenever he was stressed.
“Did you wait long?”
She smiled; he was always considerate of keeping people waiting. “No, just got here. Your big new client keeping you busy?”
“Which one?” He opened the door for her and placed his hand on the small of her back to usher her in. The strong, steady pressure made her body tingle and once again forget they were incompatible.
She moved out of his grasp. “You mean there’s more than one?”
He lifted a shoulder. “I’ve been busy.”
“Apparently too busy to tell me everything that’s going on.”
“As if you care.”
Ouch, that hurt. “I care.”
“Since when?”
“Since good stuff starts happening to you. I mean really, Freddy, you’re like a brother. You should tell me stuff like this.”
“I’ll be sure to let you know in the future … little sister.”
She frowned at the endearment. Before she could answer they were at the front of restaurant. They both ordered sandwiches and followed the guy down the line as he prepared their food. The guy making their sandwiches kept looking between her and Freddy. When he caught her eye he raised an eyebrow. She read the question, and shook her head no, though she felt wrong for it. Why, she didn’t know, since she and Freddy weren’t a couple.
When they got to the cashier and Janiyah paid, the guy pushed aside the woman who’d rung up their order to grin at Janiyah. “When are you going to finally give me your number?”
She glanced uneasily at Freddy. He cocked an eyebrow before turning to take their food to a table. A tiny hint of disappointment that he never cared when other men asked her out in front of him slumped her shoulders.
She turned to the guy. He was cute, always flirted when she came, and often gave her a free cookie. One phone call wouldn’t hurt. “Five, five, five, six, seven, six, five.” He grinned and jotted it down.
Once she sat in the chair across from Freddy he asked, “Do you give out your number everywhere you go?”
“Now you care?”
“I don’t. But what about your dream lover from the mixer?” He took a bite of his sandwich, then licked his lips. A funny kinda vibration scattered across her skin.
“I’m still interested.”
“And if this guy,” he motioned with his head toward the guy, “calls, then what?”
She shrugged. “It’s just a phone call.” She wasn’t here for another lecture on her dating habits. “Enough about me; how was your day?”
“Long.”
That was helpful. “Hey, I asked you here for adult conversation. Not one word answers.”
He raised an eyebrow, a teasing glint in his eye. “Adult conversation? I thought you were forcing me to eat, not looking for a partner to talk dirty with.”
Crap, there her body went tingling again. “You wish.”
“Not hardly,” he said, taking a sip from his straw. “Okay. What do you mean by adult conversation?”
“Tell me about your job.”
“What about it?”
“I don’t know, how you got started, why suddenly you’re so successful?”
“You sound surprised,” he said after taking another bite and swallowing.
“I’m getting annoyed. Just answer the question.”
His lips twitched and the dimple popped out briefly. “Let’s see. I started my own accounting firm two years ago after working as an accountant for Hayworth and Boyd for five years.”
“Why did you start your own firm?” She bit her sandwich.
“I wanted more control. Hayworth and Boyd is a good firm, but they didn’t really care about their clients. It was more about landing the big deals to earn bigger fees. Their smaller clients that really needed help getting their books in order were being pushed to the side. This one mom and pop restaurant that had been a client with them since the early nineties was dumped to make room for an insurance firm. I was the staff accountant assigned to them, and I had to give them the bad news that their account was no longer financially viable to the firm.”
“That’s horrible.”
“I know. I let them know on a Friday and the looks on their faces made my stomach hurt all weekend. On Monday I turned in my resignation. Started my own firm and took on that restaurant as my first client.”
In her mind choirs sang. “Oh, Freddy, that’s wonderful.”
He shifted in his seat and took another sip of his drink. “Please don’t look at me like that.”
“Like what?”
He shook his head. “Never mind. Anyway, that was that and I’ve been in business ever since.”
“How did you get more clients?”
“Pounding the pavement. First I approached the businesses Hayworth and Boyd dumped. And a few existing ones I knew were on the chopping block.”
“Ruthless.”
His cocky look gave him a definite sexy air. “All’s fair in love and war, sweetheart. Most of them were familiar with my work. I was able to hire a few staff accountants and things have run smoothly.”
“How did you land Nebulas? You beat out larger more established firms to get them.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Talking to Liz, I see.”
“Yes, since you refused to tell me the good news.”
“If the ladies last night hadn’t made a big deal out of it you wouldn’t care.”
That burned her stomach. She sat back and digested her guilt. He was right; if they’d said nothing about it last night neither he nor Liz would have brought it up. She thought he�
�d picked accounting just because he was a numbers freak. His job always seemed boring and ordinary whenever he mentioned it. Learning he brought compassion and caring for his clients softened her opinion of his chosen profession.
“You’re right, but that doesn’t mean I’m not enjoying myself.” She smiled at his raised brow. “Go on, tell me about Nebulas.”
“Nothing much to tell. They were on the lookout for a firm to handle their accounts. I’d landed the account of Congaree Family Practice—”
“That chain of doctors’ offices. I didn’t know that.”
“There’s a lot you don’t know.” He finished his sandwich then his soda. “Long story short, I went for it and won.”
She silently chewed the remains of her sandwich. Freddy’s business was bigger than she thought. She’d assumed from his small office and one secretary that he was doing the taxes of a few random homeowners, when in fact he was in charge of accounts for some of the largest businesses in Columbia.
“You’re really successful.”
“You can say that.” No cockiness, no bragging. He said it like it wasn’t a big deal.
“Why do you still live in that apartment? You could be anywhere but you’re across the hall from me.”
When he didn’t answer, she looked up to find him staring at her. There was heat in his gaze that made her wish for one of those soap opera moments where he’d grab her hand and whisper, “You’re the reason, Janiyah. I stay because of you.” Her heart whacked against her ribcage as she was lost in memories of her old crush.
Finally, he cleared his throat. “Actually, I’ve thought about moving.”
She sat forward. “What? You can’t.”
“I can. And I think I might. I can’t be your handyman and random food supplier forever. I know that’s the reason you want me to stay.”
“Well, yeah, but there’s more than that.”
“I thought you’d be happy to be out of the watchful eye of a brother.”
“You’re not my brother.”
He nailed her with a hot stare. “No, I’m not.”
The way he said it, with an underlying hint of promise, made her struggle to take in a breath. Her body slowly warmed from the fire in his eyes. Her curiosity piqued. Too many times she’d suppressed fantasies about Freddy, about as many times as he said something to remind her that she wasn’t what he was interested in. She didn’t read great novels. She wasn’t into the business scene as he was and wasn’t nearly as structured as the women he typically dated. But just once she’d like to discover what was behind the sizzling looks he sometimes gave.
She leaned forward. “Freddy … ”
The sandwich guy came over. He dropped a napkin with a phone number scribbled on it in front of her. “I’ll call you tomorrow.”
Freddy balled up his sandwich paper and stood. “I’ll meet you outside.” He turned and strode out.
“Yeah … sure.” She gave the guy a weak smile before taking her food scraps to the trash can. This was just perfect. Instead of showing Freddy she could take an interest in his job, and give him a reason to accept her application, she’d given him a reason to doubt her. She knew he viewed her willingness to give her number to two different guys in twenty-four hours as a sign that she couldn’t commit to anything. That was far from the truth; she just hadn’t found anything worth committing to. Hell, she had more of a commitment with him than she’d ever had with anything else in her life.
She scratched the back of her head and left the restaurant. There she went again with the thoughts of her and Freddy in some form of a relationship.
He was already at his car. He had his cell phone out and was reading something on the screen.
“I thought about what you said last night,” she said. He gave her a questioning look. “About proving people wrong. You’re right, I do need to do that, but I think I need to also prove to myself that I can do it.”
“You can do whatever you set your mind to.”
“But that’s the thing—I’ve never set my mind on anything.”
“You have your business.”
“That most people consider some hobby. I know I shouldn’t care what people think, but I am tired of the pitiful looks and disregard of all my hard work. I want to prove to them that I can get up every morning, sit at a desk, and not only do a job, but do it well.”
He rocked back on his heels and raised his eyebrows. “Good for you.”
“That’s why I’m applying for your administrative assistant position.”
His panicked expression almost made her laugh. “Why me? Why not ask your dad for a job?”
“Because working for him makes it seem like I need my family to take care of me. I’m perfectly capable of taking care of myself.” She saw the ‘no’ forming on his lips. She rushed forward and clasped his hands in hers. It was a dirty trick, but he never could resist her pleading. “Please, Freddy. It’s just an interview. And if I completely suck, you can tell me what I did wrong. You know you’ll love that.”
He didn’t immediately pull away. The warm spring air became hotter as something sparked between them. The moment only lasted a second. He swiftly slid his hand out of hers, but nodded. “Fine. We start interviewing for assistants on Monday.”
“Thanks, Freddy!” She clapped her hands before throwing her arms around his neck. His strong arms automatically wrapped around her waist. His body was hard against hers, and it felt awesome.
He quickly pushed away. “Yeah … well … I’ve got to get home.”
Her mind whirled from the sensations stirred up by their brief embrace. She wasn’t ready for this to end. She wanted to explore this spark some more. “VH1 is counting down the top R&B hits of the nineties tonight. Want to watch it?”
“No, I’ve a long day tomorrow.”
“I’ll only watch an hour.”
“I said no, little sister,” he said in a rough voice. Immediately his face softened and, he gently nudged her chin with his knuckles. “I’ll see you in the morning.” He opened the door of his car.
He moved to get in the car then stopped. “Oh, by the way … ”
She leaned forward. “Yes?”
“Liz texted me about getting together with her boss. Has she said anything to you?”
Her elation tanked. “Yeah, but she’s no fun at all.”
“You and I have two different definitions of fun.” He smiled, but she couldn’t appreciate the appearance of the dimple. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
He got in his car. She climbed into her Camaro and barely remembered the ride back home. She frowned the entire way as she tried to come to terms with why his interest in Liz’s boss made her feel sick.
CHAPTER 7
“I’m getting cereal!”
Fredrick’s hands slowed as he fastened his tie. It was the first time she’d come over in the week since they’d had dinner. Because of all the extra hours he pulled at the office, he only saw her in passing. Usually as he came in from work and she went out for the night. He should have known she’d pop in today. Her interview was that afternoon.
He finished with his tie and walked into the living room. Janiyah sat at the bar eating a bowl of cereal. He hadn’t realized how much he’d missed seeing her there until just then. Her lime green cami and boy shorts didn’t hurt. He looked away before he let those thoughts take hold. A week of no Janiyah also meant a week without that irritating attraction.
“Morning, Janiyah.”
“Good morning. Not rushing this morning?”
“No, I’ve slept well the past few nights.” He went into the kitchen to pour coffee into a travel mug. After adding sugar, he picked up the paper he’d dropped on the counter the night before. “I saw something in the paper you might be interested in.”
“What paper?”
“The newspaper.”
“You still read the newspaper?”
“Don’t sound so surprised. They still hold useful information about what’s happening in the
world.”
“Yeah, two days after it breaks on social media.”
He dropped the paper in front of her and pointed to an advertisement. “There’s a job fair at the convention center tomorrow. If you’re still in the market for a job, that’s a good place to start.”
She picked up the paper and glanced at the ad. When she lowered it, her eyes sparkled with amusement. “I saw this online last night. But I don’t have to go because after my interview, you’re going to hire me.”
“It’s just an interview, Janiyah.”
“I’m going to knock it out of the ball park, just you wait.”
She dropped the paper and lifted her bowl of cereal to drink the milk. He couldn’t help it—his eyes traveled down the smooth line of her neck to her chest in the lacy top. No bra. Desire kicked up inside him. Her small breasts thrust forward, drawing attention to her hard nipples pressed against the soft material.
He jerked his eyes away, and thought about the two different guys she’d given her number to last week. No telling how many others had asked for it over the past week. None of them had a chance of holding her for long. He was no different. She might enjoy coming over and teasing him, but she’d also stayed away for days. He was in the same boat as the other schmucks who were entranced with her.
He grabbed his keys and laptop. “Lock up after you leave.”
“Any pointers for the interview?”
“Bring your résumé and try not to skip.”
She laughed and hopped down from the bar seat. He turned away from the enticing bounce of her breasts.
“I think I already figured that out.”
“Twelve o’clock.”
“Are you sure? You need to eat lunch.”
“I’ve skipped lunch before.”
She shook her head. “I’ll change that as your assistant. No more meetings through lunch.”
“I’ve got to hire you first,” he said with a half-smile.
She grinned and followed him to the door. He opened the door and stopped. Janiyah’s brother, David, was standing at her door. He held a covered basket in his hand. He turned to Fredrick and frowned. “Do you know where Janiyah is?” David asked. “I knocked and got no answer.”
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