by Thea Dawson
She looked at him with alarm. “What, like illegal things?”
“No, not illegal …” He sighed. “Look, when you’re a hot-shot twenty-something single guy with more money than sense, you can get girls like that.” He snapped his fingers. “I mean, it’s insane. All the guys I work with take advantage of it. I’ve taken advantage of it. I’m a dick, Rachel. If you were dating a guy like me, I’d punch him in the nose.”
“If you start telling me about your sex life, I’ll punch you in the nose,” she replied. “Better yet, I’ll tell you about my sex life.”
He made a face. “You have sex? You can’t have sex. You’re my sister.”
“Exactly. There are some things siblings shouldn’t share. Now, why can’t you keep your job and just quit being a dick?”
He shrugged. “In theory, I guess I could. But I don’t like the whole culture. Everything about it, I mean, everything, comes down to money. If it’s not how much you’re earning for yourself or for your company or how big your bonus is, then it’s how much you spent on your car, your apartment, or your vacation. I don’t want to live my life by that yardstick anymore.”
“So quit.”
“I’m going to.” His nod was decisive, but his expression was uncertain.
She waited. “… When?”
He blew out a breath of air. “When I get up the nerve. When I’ve saved a little more money. Paid down a few debts. When I figure out what I want to do next.” He gave her a sheepish grin. “When I’m ready to ask Mom and Dad if I can move in with them again.”
She clapped her hands. “Maybe we can talk Deb into moving back too, and we’ll be one big, happy family again—boomerang boy,” she added.
“I give you permission to tease me as much as you like. You’re the one person I’ve always been able to count on to tell me what she really thinks of me.”
Rachel leaned across the table to give his arm a reassuring pat. “As far as I’m concerned, you’ll always be the jerk who put a garter snake in my bed when I was six.”
“I’m glad you’re back, Rache. We missed having you around.”
She smiled into her coffee. “Yeah, I kinda missed you guys, too.”
The siblings sat in silence for a few minutes, drinking their coffee, then Aaron lowered the paper again. “Speaking of … I wanted to talk to you about something.”
Rachel glanced quickly at her brother. Had he noticed her and Bryce on the deck after all? They hadn’t exactly been discreet. She lifted her eyebrows questioningly and took a sip of her coffee.
Aaron leaned closer. “Your friend Holly—how well do you know her fiancé?”
Rachel’s eyes narrowed. “Just met him for the first time last night. Why? Do you know him?”
Aaron rubbed his chin. “Not really. I know a couple of guys who work in his office.”
“And?”
“And I’ve been to a couple of parties he was at.”
Rachel rolled her eyes. “Just spit it out, already. What about him?”
Aaron chewed his lip. “He’s kind of your typical Wall Street hot-shot. Actually, he’s sort of everything I hate about Wall Street. He parties and sleeps around a lot. Rumor has it, he does coke and pays for call girls …” He grimaced. “I always liked Holly. I think she could do better.”
Rachel stared at him, her mouth half open. “You sure about that? I mean, about the coke and the call girls?”
Aaron shrugged. “I wouldn’t swear to it in court or anything. I haven’t seen him do coke or pay a call girl, but nothing really surprises me anymore. If he was dating you, I really would punch him in the nose.”
“You think he’s cheating on Holly?”
Aaron met her gaze squarely. “Look, like I said, I can’t swear to anything. But if he wasn’t cheating on her, I’d be amazed. Guys like that not only want it all, they think they deserve it all. The respectable wife in the suburbs, the hot girls on speed dial in the city. I’ve seen it dozens of times. Steve isn’t any different.”
Rachel stared morosely at the kitchen wall behind Aaron’s head. “Shit.”
Aaron settled back in his chair, his expression uncomfortable. “Sorry. Maybe I shouldn’t have said anything.”
“Don’t be. Savannah’s convinced he’s bad news, too.” Rachel spread her hands out helplessly. “Thing is, I have no idea what to say to Holly. I mean, it’s all just rumor and innuendo, right? We can’t prove anything?”
Aaron shook his head. “Sorry.”
“Well, I guess if you get any real dirt on him, let me know.”
“Of course.” Aaron became engrossed again in the crossword puzzle, leaving Rachel frowning and thoughtful as she finished her coffee.
12
Monday morning, Rachel sat in her car like she had the day of the interview, her hands sweaty, and her stomach twisted into knots. Had she really been the one to suggest they could “deal with it” on Monday?
He was her boss, and he’d kissed her. They’d joked about it being awkward, but now it really was awkward.
The one kiss for the road had turned into long, wonderful minutes where lips and tongues had tangled, hearts had beaten faster, and the cold night had warmed up quickly.
She peeked in the rearview mirror and smoothed her hair down one more time before getting out and making her way into the office building.
The door to his office was open when she walked in. He stood up as soon as she walked into the reception area. “Good morning,” he said.
It should have made her feel a little better that he looked almost as nervous as she felt, but it just ramped up the butterflies in her own stomach.
Which didn’t feel like butterflies so much as tiny little B-52s, zooming around and threatening to unleash chaos.
“Morning. How’s Nora?” She kept her voice cheery and casual.
“She’s good. Just dropped her off at Leslie’s. Would you mind coming in here for a few minutes once you’ve had a chance to settle in?”
“Sure.”
Rachel put her purse under her desk and took her coat off, hanging it up on the coat stand next to the front door. She surreptitiously wiped her palms on her skirt and took a deep breath. Grabbing a pen and a notebook off her desk in case she needed to take notes, she turned and marched into his office.
He was still standing, so she didn’t sit down. She put on her brightest smile. “What’s up?”
“We should talk.” He wasn’t smiling.
Crap. That was what people said right before they broke up with you, or tried to let you down gently or whatever.
“Okay.” She hoped he didn’t hear the slight tremble in her voice.
He put his hands in the pocket of his pants and shifted his weight uneasily. “I, uh, enjoyed the party at your parents’ house. Thank you for inviting me.”
He was being too formal. She didn’t like it, but she managed a pleasant nod.
“I enjoyed it, too. Thanks for coming.”
There was a drawn-out pause before he spoke again. “I hope it goes without saying that I’ve never done anything as unprofessional as kiss an employee.”
“Me neither. I mean, a boss. A co-worker. Whatever.”
He glanced at her. “Uh, good. And frankly, the last time I, um, mixed business and pleasure, I ended up with a baby I didn’t even know I had.”
The nerves were rapidly congealing into crushing disappointment. Rachel nodded, trying to rally. “Bryce, if you don’t want to … you know … we can just go back to where we were before Saturday. It’s no big deal.”
His eyes narrowed. “Is that what you want?”
“Well … no.”
“Me neither. I just don’t want things to get awkward between us.”
She burst out laughing. He looked put out at her levity.
“Things are already awkward, in case you didn’t notice,” she pointed out.
He ran a hand through his hair, and his expression morphed from anxious to sheepish. “I guess they are. I’m a lawy
er, Rachel. I don’t want to be the asshole who harasses his employee, and I don’t want to be the guy who gets sued, either.”
“Gah!” She huffed in exasperation. “You’re so … sexy when you’re all ethical and sensible and standing behind a desk like that.”
Surprised laughter burst out of him and turned into a reluctant smile. “I can safely say no one has ever said that to me,” Bryce replied.
The butterflies settled down with a sigh of relief. The ice was broken.
She shrugged apologetically. “My family will tell you I don’t have great filters.”
“Do you have any filters?”
“My point is, if you harass me, I will harass you right back. Deal?”
Bryce’s expression was distinctly warmer, and his eyes glinted with amusement, but his voice was still serious. “I’d like to see where this could go, Rachel, but I think we still need some … guidelines. Boundaries.”
She chewed her lip. “Yeah … How about this: no hanky panky at work, and I start looking for another job?”
He winced. “I hate to drive you away, Rachel. Plus, I really like working with you. You’re doing a good job.”
“True. And thank you. But this is just a temp gig anyway until I figure out what to do next. I’ve got a lead on a job in the city that might be more my speed. Plus, my boss?” She made a face. “Total hard ass.”
“He can be a jerk,” Bryce agreed. “But he means well. What do we do in the meantime? Until you find something else?”
“I promise not to sue you. And we have make-out sessions in your car after work. How do those boundaries work for you?”
He laughed again, and her insides got warm and gooey. He was a good-looking man even when he was grouchy, but when he laughed, he was just beautiful.
He shook his head in surrender. “I guess we’ll just make it work. You’re worth a few risks.”
She nodded. “The stupider the risk, the more I’m worth it,” she declared. She walked over to his side of the desk and stood close to him. “Do you think maybe we’d feel less awkward if we just kissed?”
“I thought you said no hanky-panky at work?”
She shrugged. “I’m a big believer in making exceptions when necessary.”
A smile broke out across his handsome face as he took her in his arms. “I like the way you think, Cohen.”
He was involved with his receptionist.
He was a living stereotype, a cliché, a hypocrite … and he was happier than he could remember being in ages.
Despite the many still-sleepless nights and the lingering sense of guilt around Nora’s appearance in his life, it was the best December Bryce could remember.
Fortunately, it was a quiet time of year, and he spent much of his time in the office catching up on work he’d missed during Nora’s first week with him and answering Rachel’s incessant questions about how to run the office.
Her no-hanky-panky-at-work rule notwithstanding, she still found ways to flirt with him. He’d find goofy Post-It notes in strange places, like the inside of the refrigerator and on the seat of his chair. She’d pat him on the shoulder as he walked past her or make suggestive faces at him when she was supposed to be taking notes.
For the first time since he’d taken over his father’s office, he was actually enjoying his job.
After work, the two of them stretched the limits of Leslie’s daycare hours by making out in his car in the dark parking lot like randy teenagers until he couldn’t put off picking Nora up any longer. These make-out sessions left him both horny and exhilarated.
It took a couple of weeks, but the first chance he got, he had Rachel over to his place for takeout.
“Someday, I’ll take you out on a real date,” he promised her over beef chow mien. He held Nora on one arm as he ate.
“I don’t mind staying in.” Rachel cracked a grin at him. “I’m just hoping she goes to sleep so we can have a make-out session on the couch, because that car? Kinda cramped.”
He gave the baby a stern look. “Hear that, Nora? Early bedtime tonight.”
Nora kicked and wiggled and made a noise that sounded like, “Bah!” They both laughed.
“Let me grab her for a while so you can eat something.” Rachel took the baby out of his arms and walked with her around the kitchen, swaying gently and humming something.
He ate his dinner, keeping her in his peripheral vision. Even though they were staying in, she’d dressed for a casual date, wearing a cream-colored silk blouse, a denim skirt, and most intriguingly, a pair of over-the-knee suede boots. He’d always thought over-the-knee boots were kind of tacky, but he was revising his opinion. On her, they looked both tasteful and sexy. Probably not right for his office, but in his kitchen? No complaints.
Rachel, still swaying around the kitchen, turned to face him, the baby’s head tucked under her chin. “I think she’s falling asleep,” she whispered with a wink.
He shoved his plate away, his food still only half-eaten. “Well, I’m done with dinner.”
She gave a soft laugh. “Finish up properly. I’ll go put her down.”
He tidied up the kitchen while she was gone, and then she was back, wrapping her arms around his waist and looking up at him with an expectant smile. It wasn’t long before they were on the couch, and he was kissing those lush lips and tangling his fingers in her curly hair. She pushed him back and climbed onto his lap, trailing kisses along his neck and pressing her full breasts against his chest.
His body responded, and he tightened his grip around her waist. “I am the worst boss,” he mumbled into her ear.
“You’re a little grouchy sometimes, but you’re not that bad,” she murmured back.
He chuckled. “That’s not what I meant.”
“You shouldn’t be thinking about work anyway,” she replied, undoing the top button of his shirt.
“What should I be thinking about?”
“Me. Duh. I can’t believe I have to explain these things to you. I thought you lawyers were supposed to be smart.”
There was more kissing and some delightful fumbling, and then they were stretched out lengthwise on the couch, her blouse partially unbuttoned, his hand cupping one breast, and her eyes closed, her lips parted in a most gratifying expression of pure desire.
“I don’t suppose you’d like to take this into the bedroom?” he whispered, his heart pounding.
She opened one eye. “You think I’m going to put out just for Chinese food?”
“A guy can hope, can’t he?”
She opened both eyes, and her face grew serious. “We have to talk, Bryce. There’s something you don’t know about me.”
Her sober expression took him aback. “What?”
She took his face in both of her hands and gazed at him intently. “I am a total slut for Chinese food,” she whispered.
There was a beat, then she burst out laughing before rolling off the couch and pulling him to his feet. “Come on! But keep the noise down, or we’re going to have some very awkward company.”
“I thought you might want to take things more slowly,” he said, scrambling to keep up with her.
“In case you haven’t notice, I’m not much for subtleties,” she replied. “I want you, you want me. Let’s do this thing.”
Tugging on his arm, she pulled him into the bedroom. Once they crossed the threshold, she turned around to face him.
“You hired me under false pretenses, you know.”
He raised his eyebrows. “Oh? How did I do that?”
“Because when I accepted the job, I thought you were going to be shirtless all the time, but no. It’s all button-ups and ties with you, isn’t it?” She pulled his undone shirt all the way off his shoulders. “Well, mister, it’s time to start making it up to me.” She kissed his collarbone, and her soft hands smoothed themselves over his stomach, setting off new waves of lust.
“Yeah, well, if I have to take my shirt off, you do too,” he murmured. “Fair’s fair.”
> “You got me there.” She gave him a teasing smile as she began to slowly undo the remaining buttons of her blouse.
“I could probably do that a little faster for you,” he suggested, but she shook her head.
“Patience.” She finally got to the last button and shimmied out of the blouse, letting it slide to the floor.
He gazed down at her. Her breathing was getting heavier, and her nipples were peaked beneath the thin lace of her bra. He wondered if he could talk her into doing a real striptease for him sometime, maybe one where she ended up with nothing on but those boots, but it was too soon to hit her up with kinky fantasies. Tonight, he’d be more than satisfied with something less adventurous. He put his hands on her breasts, brushing his thumbs across her nipples, and was rewarded with a breathy sigh.
“Wait a sec …” she gasped. “Let me get out of these boots.” She sat down on the bed to unzip the long boots.
His hands itched to hold her breasts again, ideally without a bra between them, but he reined himself in. “I love those boots,” he told her.
She flashed him a grin as if she knew exactly what he was thinking with regard to the striptease. “Me too, but I’ve got tights on underneath, and it’s just going to get complicated.”
She kicked off the boots, then undid the zipper of her skirt and pulled it off, along with the tights, leaving her in her bra and a very fetching pair of matching panties.
“Hey, leave something for me,” he grumbled. “I was looking forward to undressing you.”
“The rest of it is all yours.” She threw herself back on the bed, her arms outstretched, and her eyes closed. “All right, you Neanderthal. Ravish me.”
He chuckled. She was so sweet, so silly, and so undeniably sexy.
“Neanderthal at your service,” he murmured as he bent down to kiss her.
He started with her feet, which were as smooth and plump and pretty as he’d imagined. She responded delightfully to having her toes kissed, wriggling and squirming and begging him to stop—and to not stop.
He spent a few minutes on her inner thighs, kissing the smooth skin and teasing the apex without removing her panties.