My best,
Sadie, from Valerie Wu’s office
Haven grins proudly.
“Well done, my fearless, inspiring snow leopard.”
“Thank you.” She sighs, relieved. “I was really hoping this funding would come through. And I also just had a great call with my new business partner.”
“Is that so?”
She wiggles her eyebrows. “So great, in fact, that we are going to kick your ass.”
And that’s all it takes. My competitive fire is fully stoked once more.
“Woman, I am going to love competing with you and Vaughn and beating the two of you every single day.”
She parks her hands on her hips. “Good luck. We’re double trouble now.”
“Which makes it all the more exciting when I kick unholy ass every day.” I get up from the couch, stalk over to her, toss her over my shoulder, and carry her to the bed, where I put her down. “Besides, competing with you gives us a chance to fuck it out every night,” I say as I strip off her shirt.
“So it turns you on when I tell you we’re going to destroy you?” she asks in the sexiest voice I’ve ever heard.
I nod. “It absolutely does. Because I’m going to crush you.”
Then we do what we’ve always done best.
We fuck it out.
The next day, I return to work, ready and energized as I walk into the lobby of the skyscraper.
When I reach my floor, Ford and Viviana are waiting outside my office.
31
Josh
I make a show of checking my watch. “If memory serves, you won’t know about a bun in the oven for another week.”
Viviana stares at me, her expression unreadable. “I barfed this morning. I wanted to share the news with you first before I head to the lit department meeting.”
“Did you? That’s awesome,” I say, excited for her.
“No, asshole,” she says, since Viv always talks to me like one of the guys. “I didn’t barf, and I wouldn’t expect to barf so early. We still don’t know. We’ll know soon, but that’s not why we’re here.”
Ford gestures to my office. “Let’s chat.”
A dart of worry shoots through me, but I try to make light of it. “This sounds mildly ominous.”
“Only mildly,” Ford echoes as he shuts the door behind me.
I sit at my desk, and they park themselves across from me. “Okay, who died?”
Viviana bats first, concern in her eyes. “Has he contacted you yet?”
“Who?”
Viviana glances at the door and whispers, “Austin.”
The hair on the back of my neck stands on end. “No, why? What’s going on?”
“I have some friends at the gym where he works out. I rep one of the celeb trainers there who wrote a fitness book.”
I sit up ramrod straight. “And?”
“Apparently, there are a handful of women who have worked with him in various capacities. A physical therapist. A nutritionist. Even the team’s receptionist.”
My gut churns as I realize where this is going. I knew that guy was bad news. “How bad is it?”
Ford cuts in. “He’s not the worst. But it seems he has quite a habit of making lewd comments to the women he works with. Suggestive comments.” Ford makes a rolling gesture with his hand.
“The kind of comments that suggest a woman should get on her knees and suck his dick if she wants to keep working with him?”
Ford taps his nose and points at me. “Bingo.”
I groan, sinking back in my chair. “This is one hell of a Monday morning back at the office.” But it seems to be the sign I need.
Viviana offers a sympathetic smile. “Sorry. We wanted you to hear it from us before you heard it from Dom. But the news is starting to get out.”
I turn to Ford, recalling our conversation from the other week. “Ford, you know this is when I stop evaluating him on his performance, right? Tell me you know that, man.”
“I abso-fucking-lutely know it.”
My phone buzzes, and it’s Dom’s assistant calling me to his office.
The wheels are turning quickly in my head, picking up locomotive-like speed. I tell her I’ll be there shortly, then Ford and Viv leave. Before I go upstairs, I fire off a quick email to Austin.
On the elevator ride to Dom’s office, I feel no nerves. I experience zero questions. I have complete clarity about what will happen next, and then what will happen after that.
I open the door as he barks into the phone. “Polly is sick. The fertilizer you gave me is shit. Total shit. And my wife is not happy, and I’m not happy, and no one is happy. Fix this now.”
As he shouts more orders, I do something I’ve never done in his office.
I sit.
When he hangs up, he turns to me. “Listen, glad you’re back. I need you now more than ever. You’re my rock star, Summers. And we’re going to need to finesse the fuck out of this Austin news that’s starting to leak. Get a publicist and work on the whole ‘innocent until proven guilty’ angle.”
I say nothing, and Dom stares down at me as if he just realized I was sitting. “What are you doing?” He sounds unnerved.
I smile, so damn certain of where I stand on this front. ON every front. “No.”
“Excuse me?”
“No. I won’t work on the whole ‘innocent until proven guilty’ angle.”
“Why the fuck not?”
I meet his gaze, certainty my foundation. “Because Austin’s an asshole. He’s pushing one hundred on the asshole level.”
“He’s gold on the field, Josh. We’re his agents. We need to look out for him.”
I shrug, cross my leg, and draw a contented breath. Because I am indeed content about this decision. And I’m content about what will happen next. Everything is coming together in my head. I know where I’m going. I know where my professional future lies. I have the map, and I’m following it. “Nah. I don’t think so.”
His eyes might pop out of their sockets. I swear they’re on springs now. “‘I don’t think so’?” he repeats like a parrot.
I scratch my jaw, exhale, and nod. “Exactly.”
“But that’s what we have to do.” He points at me. “That’s what you have to do.”
Clarity, it rocks. “And yet, I’m not going to.”
“Why the fuck not?”
“Because I’m not repping him anymore.”
“Are we doing this again? Where you just bow out because you goddamn feel like it?”
I inhale deeply, that certainty fueling me. “Seems we are.”
“No, we’re not. You need to work on this.”
I laugh, knowing I have an ace in the hole. Maybe Dom’s content to let Austin potentially ruin the reputation of the firm with his sorry one, but he’s not going to mess with mine. “Let me make myself completely clear. Austin is a misogynistic dick. Case closed. But hey, you can feel free to rep him.” I stand.
He points at me, steam rising from the top of his head. “You don’t give me your sloppy seconds. That’s not how it works here.”
“That’s cool. Because I don’t work here anymore either. I quit.” I walk to the door, stopping as I’m about to cross the threshold. “I hope Polly gets better. Here’s a tip. Maybe stop yelling. That might help her perk up.”
Then I walk the hell out.
32
Josh
The barista hands me a black coffee. “Just the way you like it.”
She slides a lavender matcha latte with caramel something or other to Ford. “And here’s your regular.”
“Mmm. Smells as delish as ever.”
“Or as disgusting,” I say as we head to a table in the corner for a meeting. This is exactly what I envisioned when I walked into Dom’s office about a week ago. Well, maybe not this coffee shop. But this next step.
“Don’t be knocking my beverage of choice.”
“I can’t not, Ford. You know that.”
We sit,
and the guy across from us shouts into his phone, “Get the chia seeds. I’ll Venmo you the money later!”
I heave a sigh, gesturing to him. “We can’t keep meeting like this.”
“No shit. We need office space, and we need it stat.”
“I’ve got calls out and another meeting with a realtor later. But what about a name? We need to settle on a name.”
Ford takes a drink then sets down the steaming mug. “Alphabetical is the only way to go. Grayson and Summers, my man. Grayson and Summers.”
“Summers and Grayson has a particularly nice ring to it.”
He shakes his head. “You can’t win this one. It has to be Grayson and Summers.”
“You’re such a hard-ass.”
“So are you.”
“And I take that as a compliment of the highest order from one of the founding partners of Summers and Grayson.”
Ford said sayonara the same day I did, taking off right along with me to start our own shop. Viv’s still there, but she’s in the lit department, and all is well with her.
I take a drink of the coffee then set it down. “So, tomorrow you find out if you hit the jackpot?”
He nods. “She’s taking the test first thing.”
“I’m rooting for you guys,” I say. “You’re not worried, though, about the effort it’s going to take to run a new business while starting a family, are you?”
He shrugs. “Nah. I mean, it would be nice if it didn’t all fall on the two of us, but that’s how it goes.”
An idea sparks from out of nowhere and ignites, bright and fiery.
“What if it didn’t all fall on the two of us?”
33
Haven
We round the corner and head into the restaurant off Park Avenue. Josh called me midmorning and asked if Vaughn and I could meet Ford and him for dinner. As if I couldn’t figure out what he wanted to talk about.
Vaughn and I are early. Because I know Josh’s style. He’s always early. “So we have to be earlier,” I say to my partner.
“I love it. You have all the intel now on one of our top competitors.”
“But listen—we don’t want it to seem like we had the exact same idea.”
Vaughn flashes an easy grin. That’s what I like about him. He’s easy to get along with, easy to do business with, and still tough as nails when it comes to negotiating.
“Don’t worry, Goldie,” he says, using his nickname for me, since he has a thing for nicknames. “I’m the master at making it seem like anything is someone else’s great idea. Like the time I mentioned how much fun volleyball on the beach was, and I knew that would lure Lucas and Jackson to swing by.”
I shake my head appreciatively. “Have I mentioned how much I like your sneaky, devilish side?”
“I believe you have. Many times.”
We grab a table at the swank sushi place that my boyfriend loves—it’s still strange to call Josh my boyfriend, but it’s completely wonderful too. Vaughn and I order wine and chat about how our new firm is going.
A few minutes later, Josh strides in, looking sexy as sin in a suit and tie, like he always does. I drop a kiss to his cheek, then say hi to Ford, who’s by his side.
“Looking lovely, Haven,” Ford says.
“And you’re as sharp as ever.”
Ford claps a hand to Vaughn’s shoulder. “Good to see you again, bro. So stoked you left Dick Blaine. But how the hell were you there in the first place?”
Vaughn shrugs and smiles. “What can I say? There was this girl I was seeing at the time, and she convinced me I’d make more money there, and I’d need more money if I was going to want to be with her, and so on.”
“Ouch. I trust you’re not with Miss Monopoly anymore?”
“She’s long gone.”
“Anyone new on the horizon?” Ford asks.
Josh shoots him a look. “What? Are you a matchmaker now? You going to set him up with Viv’s sister?”
Ford’s eyes widen. “Not a bad idea. But I was thinking how about one of your sisters?”
I nudge Vaughn’s elbow. “Let’s see. Amy, Tabitha, or Quinn? I’m trying to picture—”
“Hey now. Can we leave my sisters out of this?” Josh laughs, takes a seat, and steers the conversation exactly where I expected him to. “Lady . . . and gentlemen, let’s cut to the chase. How does Delilah, Channing, Grayson, and Summers sound to you?”
I beam privately. I had a hunch. A damn good one, and this is exactly what I wanted as well. What we wanted. But I know a thing or two about negotiation, so I maintain my game face like I’m staring down a double black diamond run in the Olympics. “I hadn’t thought of that before.”
“Yeah, me neither. What makes you guys want to do that?” Vaughn asks.
Josh leans forward, an intense look in his dark eyes. “Listen, you two bring something special to the table. You’re former athletes and you’re sharp as nails. You’re fierce and loyal and devoted. You think outside the box. And the two of us,” Josh says, pointing from Ford to himself, “we know contracts. We know deals. We find loopholes and exploit them. The four of us would be unstoppable.”
“A powerhouse,” Ford adds.
Vaughn leans back in his chair and strokes his chin. “Sort of like an all-star team, you’re saying?”
“The 1927 Yankees,” Josh adds, since the man loves his baseball metaphors.
“The fab four,” Ford adds.
Vaughn turns to me, his bluff in full force. “That’s an interesting idea. Huh. What do you think, Haven? Lady and the champs?”
I take a drink of my wine and glance at the ceiling like I’m considering this partnership for the first time. I turn to the guys across from us. “Tell us more.”
Josh and Ford share more of their vision, and it’s everything we could want. It’s the perfect match. When they’re done, I look at my business partner again, shrugging nonchalantly. “It’s not a bad idea.”
“Not a bad idea at all.”
“Especially since you put my last name first. Delilah.”
Ford jumps in. “Hey! She’s not first alphabetically. Vaughn’s is as in Vaughn Channing.”
Josh smacks his arm. “Dude, ladies first. Don’t you know that?”
Later that night, I spill everything to Josh. “I wanted the same thing. To work with you two. I just wanted you to think you were first.”
“You’re so clever. Always working the angles. Negotiating till the end. Should I make you negotiate for orgasms?” He crawls over me on the bed, caging me in with his arms.
“You would never make me wheel and deal for Os.”
“And why’s that?”
I loop my arms around his neck. “Because you love giving them to me.”
He drops his mouth to my neck, pressing a hot kiss to my skin. “What can I say? All my cards are on the table with you.”
“And I like it that way,” I say, squirming as he blazes a trail of kisses up to my ear.
He breaks the kiss. “Like it?”
I grab his chin. “Love it. Like I love you. Madly.”
“And for that, you deserve your favorite thing.”
“Sounds like I won,” I whisper.
But then, I’m winning at everything with the man I love. The man I missed. The man I’m so damn glad is mine again.
For now, and for always.
34
Ford
The next morning, I’m awake before the sun. I’m up before the goddamn birds. Hell, I barely slept a wink all night.
In the last few days, I’ve offered up ten thousand prayers to the universe, and thrown all my coins in all the fountains in the city. Last night I wished upon a star.
Again.
I made the same damn wish I’ve made every time I’ve seen a star during the last several months.
You hear about friends who send the puck screaming into the goal on the first shot. And that makes you think it’ll be that way for you.
It hasn’t been that way for
us.
It’s been eight months, and don’t get me wrong, the last eight months have been fantastic. We’ve enjoyed the kitchen counter, the washing machine (Viv digs the assistance the spin cycle offers), the dryer, the dining room table (Don’t worry, future Thanksgiving guests, we cleaned up), the couch, the staircase (That shit hurts and my back was a mess for days), as well as the shower (Why doesn’t anyone tell you that up-against-the-wall shower nookie should be an Olympic event? And if you make it to the end everyone gets a gold medal), and, of course, the bed.
And if we have to try another month and another one too, I will give it my best every damn time.
But I want a baby, and so does Viviana. And I want to give my gorgeous, brilliant, sexy wife everything she wants.
I arrange the pregnancy test on the bathroom counter just so.
I tiptoe downstairs and check on the cupcake I ordered in case it’s the news we want.
I let the dog out. I let the dog back in. I go upstairs.
When Viv stretches, yawns, and her eyes flutter open, I flash her a smile. “Good morning, beautiful.”
“Good morning, hot stuff.”
She takes a long breath, then swings her feet out of bed. She pads to the bathroom and takes her time brushing her teeth.
When she spits out her toothpaste, I tap my toe. “Woman, are you trying to torture me?”
“I don’t want to have morning breath if I kiss you when it’s positive.”
My eyebrows shoot up. “One, I do not care if you have morning breath. Two, don’t jinx us.”
She shrugs and smiles. “I have a good feeling.”
I grab her arm, desperate to know if she knows something. “Why? Did you take one last night?” I shoot her a stern stare. “You better not have found out before me. You will definitely get spanked then.”
“Again, not a punishment.” She wiggles her hips and juts out her breasts. “I just have a feeling. The girls are a little more . . . sensitive.”
Overnight Service (Always Satisfied Book 4) Page 16