by Lisa Suzanne
He hands me a card, and I head to the register to swipe it.
“I got it, boss,” Ben says. Ben’s the head bartender at The Port, but as co-co-owner with Carter and Axel, I help where I can.
I nod and hand him the card to finish the transaction. “Figured I’d get it since I was back here,” I say.
“Thanks,” Ben says, and then I head back to my table with three glasses of single malt whisky.
I set one in front of Axel and one in front of Carter. I hold up my glass.
“What’s this for?” Carter asks, raising his too.
“We’re trying,” I blurt out.
“Trying?” Carter asks. “Trying what?”
I roll my eyes.
“Trying…as in you and the misses are trying to have a kid?” Axel asks.
I nod proudly, my chest automatically puffing out. We haven’t been trying long, but it’s been a hell of a lot of fun.
“Wait, you’re trying trying?” Carter asks, still not quite getting it. “My brother, the perpetual bachelor, was actually tamed by a woman and now he wants to have a kid with her?”
“Shh,” I scold. “We don’t need the whole world to know, but…yeah, trying trying.”
“Well fuck me sideways,” Carter says.
I laugh. “No thanks.”
My two best friends touch their glasses to mine.
“To trying,” Axel says, and I grin.
*
SYLVIE
“Shut the front door!” Courtney yells.
“Shh!” I scold, hoping the walls of Emme’s office are thick enough that they can’t hear us. Oh hell, they’re all the way out in the bar—there’s no way they can hear us over the music and the people.
But still.
“She really means shut the fuck up. Are you sure?” Emme asks.
I nod, a smile tipping up my lips. “The test I took this morning was positive.”
“Have you told Carson?”
I shake my head. “I told my two best friends first, of course.”
They both somehow manage to throw their arms around me at the same time.
“Stop! You’ll crush the baby!” I hiss.
They both laugh.
“Sweetie, the baby’s fine,” Emme says. “She’s all protected in your little nest in there.”
“How far along do you think you are?” Courtney asks.
I shrug. “A month or so, I guess. We haven’t been trying that long.”
“I want another one,” Courtney whines.
“I know! They’re so sweet when they’re tiny!” Emme gushes.
I roll my eyes. “You have to keep this a secret!”
They look at each other and laugh.
“You better tell him fast. Emme is the worst secret keeper in the history of the world,” Courtney says.
“I’m gonna tell him tonight,” I say. “How should I do it?”
Emme and Courtney toss out about a hundred different ways I can tell my husband we’re going to have a baby, but I know as soon as I see him, I’ll end up blurting it out. We’ve never been good at keeping secrets from one another, which is a big reason why what we have works so well.
Besides, I can’t wait.
He once told me he’d been willing to wait forever for me, but watching my dad suffer through his illness has taught me that we don’t have forever.
We’ve learned that what we have isn’t really about outwaiting. It’s about strength and endurance, understanding and commitment, patience and passion. Examples of love shine all around us in our family and friends, and together we’ve discovered that our love is built to outlast any obstacles life throws at us.
THE END
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Thank you to all the people who support me so writing books full time is both my reality and a dream come true. The biggest thanks, as always, goes to my husband for his constant support and sacrifices, and to Mason for being the best baby in the world. To my parents for volunteering to watch Mason a couple times a week so I can work. To my friends and family who support me.
To Emily Kidman-Smith for taking so much of the hard stuff off my plate. To Caitlin Edwards for your uncanny ability to polish my words. To Kelly Meintel Werner for always giving it to me straight. To my beta readers (Diane, Sue, Wendy, Jessica, Alissa, Melissa, and Jen) and ARC reviewers. To Team LS, blogger friends, author friends, and reader friends.
To the musicians who create the soundtrack I use when I write and to the authors who write amazing books that challenge me to push myself harder each time.
To you. Thank you for reading Outwait. I hope you enjoyed it and I can’t wait to read your review, and I hope you will keep in touch. I’ve got a lot of books planned for the future, and I can’t wait to share them all with you.
XOXO,
Lisa Suzanne
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Lisa Suzanne is a romance author who resides in Arizona with her husband and baby boy. She’s a former high school English teacher and college composition instructor. When she’s not cuddling baby Mason, she can be found working on her latest book or watching reruns of Friends.
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BOOKS BY LISA SUZANNE
CLICKBAIT
STALEMATE
OUTWAIT
CONFLICTED
NOT JUST ANOTHER ROMANCE NOVEL
VINTAGE VOLUME ONE
VINTAGE VOLUME TWO
HOW HE REALLY FEELS (HE FEELS, BOOK 1)
WHAT HE REALLY FEELS (HE FEELS, BOOK 2)
SINCE HE REALLY FEELS (HE FEELS, BOOK 3)
THE HE FEELS TRILOGY BOX SET
SEPARATION ANXIETY
SIDE EFFECTS
SECOND OPINION
Flip the page for a preview of Conflicted, Lisa Suzanne’s forbidden contemporary romance.
PREVIEW: CONFLICTED
CONFLICTED
© 2016 Lisa Suzanne
CHAPTER ONE
“Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the brand new CEO of Benson Industries, my son and one hell of a man, Mr. Cole Benson.”
The man who was about to become my new boss stepped up to the podium. “Thank you, Dad, and congratulations on your retirement.” He smiled at his father, and then he turned toward the crowd of employees who had gathered in the lecture room. “I’m thrilled to take over the role of CEO from my father, who built Benson Industries on a dime and a dream, as he always says. Together, we will continue to drive products from design to market.”
He started outlining some four-point plan, but my mind drifted. I couldn’t help it.
I’d never met Cole in person. He’d been running the New York office, but he was relocating to Los Angeles to take on his new role.
I was sad to see Jack retire. He’d been a fair and kind boss, really like a second father to me. But as sad as I was to see him go, looking at his son was certainly much better than dear old dad.
I was sitting near the back of the lecture room, so my view was partially obstructed. I couldn’t wait to get a good, clean look at him. I knew he was attractive—I’d been in the office as his father Skyped him, and I’d spoken to him on the phone several times.
I thought back to just about a month earlier when Jack had shown me some photos from a family trip to Hawaii. Cole Benson wearing just swim trunks had taken my breath away. The man was chiseled everywhere, and I just wished I’d had the chance to forward a picture to myself so I could really give it a good inspection. I Facebook stalked him—justifying my actions in my mind with the fact that he was my boss’s son—but all his public photos were from business events.
I
didn’t know what to expect other than the daily temptation I’d face working for a man whose face rivaled a model and whose body rivaled a Greek god.
After Cole’s speech ended and I realized that I hadn’t heard a word aside from his first three sentences, I returned to my desk with the hope I’d meet the man I’d be assistant to. Unfortunately, though, Jack ushered him out to lunch to introduce him to some clients, and they didn’t return by the time the clock struck five.
I glanced at my husband as the alarm clock sounded the next morning. He was snoring away. I couldn’t help the feeling of resentment that came with the fact that he’d gotten home after I’d already gone to bed the night before. Sometimes I felt like he loved his job more than me.
I shook it off. Non-communication with John was nothing new, but what awaited me at work that morning was. I wanted to make the very best impression I could on Cole, so I woke up early and put a little extra effort into my morning routine.
I chose a professional fitted navy shift dress and matching heels. I dried and straightened my hair and polished off the look with a chunky necklace and matching earrings. I felt pretty and ready to meet my new boss.
Until I stepped outside.
Cole’s first official day was a rare rainy Tuesday morning in LA.
I cursed the rain that turned my sleek hair into a frizzy mess. I ran across the apartment parking lot to our assigned space that was nowhere near where we lived as I wished for the umbrella that was stored in—you guessed it—my car.
I barely sidestepped a muddy puddle and patted down my hair. Normally, the apartment I shared with John was only a ten minute drive from work, fifteen if there was traffic. Unfortunately, though, with rain came accidents. So my fifteen minute drive turned into thirty.
It was five after nine when I finally arrived at my desk.
The man I’d drooled over in photos towered imposingly over my desk. Irritation glazed his handsome face as he turned toward me, and I froze for one brief moment as our eyes met.
The photos hadn’t done him justice.
This man flew right past handsome on the hunk meter with his black hair and dark eyes that were fixated on me. A perfectly manicured scruff outlined his strong jaw, and my eyes stopped for the briefest of moments on his full, ripe lips.
He was pulled together, professional, and effortless, and I couldn’t remember another time when just looking at a man had actually taken my breath away.
The attraction was instant and insane. My heart started racing as I thought about that picture Jack had shown me.
I reached up to wipe my mouth to make sure I wasn’t drooling. The only thought in my mind was what he had hidden under that suit.
“You’re late, Ms. Cleary. I expect you to be on time.”
Those were the first words ever directed at me in person from the mouth of the god.
I rushed toward my desk, and I caught a hint of his scent. Fresh, clean, and masculine. “My apologies, sir. Traffic was—”
He cut me off. “Account for traffic in your commute. You’ll stay late to make up your tardiness.”
“Yes, sir.”
I would not cry thirty seconds after meeting my new boss.
But he was right. I’d been late. I’d gotten up early to make a good impression, yet I still managed to make a bad one.
I got my computer up and running as I considered my options. I didn’t want to bother him on his first day, but I wanted to let him know that I was available for whatever he needed.
I stood and knocked on his door.
“Yes?”
I peeked my head in. He was staring at his computer. “Cole, is there anything I can do for you this morning?”
He didn’t look up from his screen. “Come back in twenty minutes and we will discuss your tasks.”
“Okay,” I said, turning to leave.
“And Ms. Cleary?”
I turned back toward him, loving the view of him behind his desk as he finally ripped his eyes from his computer to look at me. “Yes?”
“It’s Mr. Benson.”
I was about to object that his father had always insisted I refer to him as “Jack,” but I didn’t want to make things worse. Besides, he wasn’t his father.
And it was clear that he was going to prove it.
I glanced through the calendar appointments for the next two weeks as I waited for our meeting. As the transitioning CEO, Cole had a ton of engagements with clients in the area. He needed to meet with the heavy hitters to assure them their accounts were safe and nothing would change unless it was for the better. That was where I came in—at least, that’s what Jack had told me.
Since I’d been with the company for six years, I had quite the handle on clients, accounts, and data. Jack trusted me with everything after I’d worked my way up from an intern to his executive assistant. He had depended on me to keep him on schedule and informed about each client. I wondered how Cole’s expectations would differ from his father’s.
I printed the schedule and brought it with me nineteen minutes later to Cole’s office. I knocked on the door. “What?” he snapped.
“Mr. Benson? I think it’s time for our meeting.”
He looked up from his computer at me and raised an eyebrow. My heart leapt in my chest.
God, I couldn’t seem to get past how handsome he was.
“You think?”
“It’s been twenty minutes.”
He sighed. “Sit.”
I sat. “Here’s a list of your appointments for the next two weeks,” I said, handing over the papers I’d printed.
He took them and tossed them in the trash can beside his desk. “Send me digital appointments for each. Set up two reminders—one twenty-four hours in advance and one two hours in advance.”
I hadn’t thought that I might need to take notes during our meeting. I’d never had to do that with Jack. I glanced around for a pen and paper.
He sighed in annoyance. “What now?”
“Can I have paper and a pen?” I felt like a child asking.
“Never come to a meeting unprepared,” he said, tossing a pad of paper and a pen across the desk toward me.
“I’m sorry.” I scribbled down his request for the meeting reminders.
“My father left me a list of what you did for him. It’s extensive. He trusted you with a lot of confidential information, but you’ll need to earn my trust. Thus far, you’re not off to a strong start.”
“My apologies.”
“It seems like you’ve done an awful lot of apologizing this morning. Instead, just get it right.”
“Yes, sir.” I took a shuddering breath, refusing to get upset. I needed to grow a thicker skin if I planned to get past the first day with my new boss.
“For now, you’ll retain schedule and office management, some data analysis, and most client communication. You’ll continue to prepare information and research as needed. You’ll create client presentations, draft contracts, and manage some records. Once you’ve proven yourself, I’ll give you additional duties with more confidential client information.”
“Won’t the contracts have confidential information?”
He gave me a look like I was stupid. “You’ll leave those sections blank and I’ll fill them in.”
I nodded. “I promise to do all I can to earn your trust.”
“This isn’t a presidential election, Ms. Cleary. You’ll earn my trust by arriving on time and prepared.”
“Anything else, sir?” I asked.
“Did you take notes on my four-point plan yesterday?”
I shook my head as I felt the heat creep up into my cheeks. I hadn’t even been paying attention since I’d been caught up in daydreams of Cole Benson wearing swim trunks.
He sighed and looked up toward the ceiling. I pretended he wasn’t rolling his eyes.
“The document with the plan is in the shared folder. Draft an email to the staff that outlines the major points. Send it to me for approval.”
&
nbsp; “Will do.” I tried my hardest to sound enthusiastic and cheerful.
“And get me a reservation for two tonight at Chamonix.”
“How do you spell that?”
“If only there was some sort of device that you could use to find the answer.”
I stared at him in shock as his eyes returned to whatever he was working on.
“Don’t ever ask me something you could google.”
I glared at him since he wasn’t looking at me anyway.
“That’s all for now,” he said, effectively dismissing me. I headed back to my desk to start on the tasks he’d given me, feeling like I was the one starting a new job instead of him.
CHAPTER TWO
I stood in front of my husband, waiting for him to look up and acknowledge that I was in the same room. Finally, I cleared my throat. He raised his eyebrows at me as if to say that I was interrupting him and could I please hurry it up.
“We need to leave in ten minutes.” I glanced at his unkempt bedhead and sweatpants.
“Do we have to go?” John whined.
“Yes. Madi will only turn five once.”
“Just go without me.”
“They’re expecting both of us.”
He turned his attention back to his iPad. “Make something up, then.”
Make something up? I wasn’t going to lie to my family, especially not my sister. Kaylee and I shared everything. Well, almost everything.
I’d left out some of the details about my marriage.
“John, I’m not going to lie for you.”
He sighed dramatically and set his iPad down, looking up at me again. “Tell them I had to work.”
“Our goddaughter is expecting you,” I said, trying to play on his soft spot for our niece, the girl who we’d agreed to raise should anything ever happen to her parents. I glanced at the iPad screen. He had some game going. “That doesn’t look like work.”
“Will you give me a goddamn break? I’m developing video game software, okay?”
“I don’t have time for this.” I still needed to wrap the present, so I left it at that.
And those were the last words I spoke to him that entire day.
Before I’d gotten married, I’d always lived by the rule that you should never leave the house mad or go to bed angry.
But dammit, I was mad. I wasn’t going to be the one to back down this time. John was missing a precious five-year-old’s birthday party—a five-year-old who adored him, by the way—so he could play video games. Or maybe so he wouldn’t have to spend time with my family.