A Taste of Trouble

by Gina Gordon

  She held out the container to Patti, who declined with a slight shake of her head, her mousy brown ponytail shaking.

  “Don't let my dad see those,” Patti warned. “He told me the other day his customers are getting fat and it's not because of the beer.”

  Liv laughed and shrugged off her comment. “He's probably the one with the expanding waistline. He's my best customer.”

  The McLeans had taken Liv in as a surrogate daughter when she'd met Patti in her first year of University. They gave her a job and a place to call home since her own family lived two hours away.

  The wave of a hand at the opposite end of the bar caught Liv's attention. The group of unfamiliar men that had showed up at the beginning of her shift was in need of a refill. “I'll be right back.”

  Liv approached the group. “Drinks, boys?”

  “Can we have a pitcher of Heineken this time?” The vocal one of the group looked up from the papers he was reviewing. He had a warm smile and shiny brown hair, but he wore his dress shirt and tie like armor.

  The blonde of the group was partial to sweater vests. The other dark-haired man looked like he had just stepped out of AP magazine—he had that rocker grunge look perfected. All three of them were attractive. Not usually her type—but still attractive. But just like every other male who walked through the doors of this bar, they were ordinary.

  “You got it.”

  While concentrating on pouring the draft, the hair on Liv's arms and neck stood at attention when the cold March air filtered in from the open door. A new customer walked up the steps toward her. As he walked by, her stomach tightened and her breath became heavy.

  The man was eye candy at its finest. Intense green eyes? Check. Black power suit? Check. Broad shoulders, strong jaw, hair styled to look messy? Check, check, and check. Without a doubt, he was the most gorgeous man she had ever seen.

  “Jake!” Vocal Guy yelled from his seat at the bar.

  And his name was Jake.

  It was the sound of the beer pouring onto the floor that brought Liv back to earth. She cursed and quickly pushed back the tap.

  She needed to get her head in the game. He was just a man. One hot, sexy, hunk of a man.

  She approached the group and placed the pitcher on the bar, avoiding eye contact, and spun around to grab four glasses from the shelf. She stupidly glanced into the mirror that spread across the back of the bar and locked eyes with the stranger.

  The intense heat from Jake's stare burned its way down her back, only to settle in the pit of her stomach, a brush fire of desire smoldering in her belly. Heat licked through her body at the thought of his strong hands caressing up and down her arm, across the swell of her breasts, down to the moist juncture between—

  The bang of the washroom door made her jump and brought her out of her trance. What the hell?

  She shook her head to stop the lustful images, but failed. Liv struggled with the glasses but one got away from her, shattering into a thousand pieces on the floor. Her cheeks burned as the heat that had taken over her body turned from desire to embarrassment.

  She shifted her weight from one foot to the other, the sound of the glass crunching under her. With a quick breath, she bent to clean up the mess—and retreated from nervousness.

  “Is the glass okay? It took a pretty good beating.” Jake's smooth, mellow drone surrounded her, covering her skin with gooseflesh.

  “I'm fine.” She stood and threw the bigger pieces into the garbage, realizing that he'd asked about the glass and not her. “We have others. I'll…get you another one.” Damn! She couldn't even form a coherent thought and her words came out in a stutter.

  “No need. I'll take a bottle of Budweiser.” His cheeks were rosy from being out in the cold. He had a crooked nose and a tiny scar near his hairline on the right side. And his eyelashes—they were the longest eyelashes she'd ever seen on a man.

  “Not a problem. I'll—”

  “It's okay, really.” He raised his hand to frame his mouth, as if wanting to tell her a secret. He licked his bottom lip before he spoke. “I don't really like draft.”

  Why did he have to draw attention to his lips? Liv imagined them kissing every inch of her body.

  She needed to get a grip. Where was the cool, confident Liv? She'd been so wrapped up with her bakery that she'd neglected any type of participation in certain bedroom activities. This was just a typical reaction to a sexual dry spell.

  She grabbed a Bud from the fridge, then placed a coaster on the bar, followed by the bottle, twisting it until the label faced her. Despite being flustered by this man, her serving ritual hadn't disappeared. She glanced up. Jake was giving her a curious stare.

  “We're going to take this down to the pool table.” Dress shirt guy interrupted before Jake had the chance to comment. He stared between them. “Are you still able to serve us?”

  “Of course.” It might be better that way. Then maybe she wouldn't be so distracted with Jake sitting right in front of her.

  The men grabbed their coats and drinks and walked around the bar to the lower level. Jake was the last to walk away, but before he did, his eyes settled on her. His stare left a trail of heat that started from her toes and made its way to her cheeks. When their eyes met, she struggled for air, and quickly turned away.

  “Why are you so flushed?” Austin was just finishing off the last few crumbs of a cupcake. The Tupperware container now sat on the bar instead of the counter behind her.

  “I'm not flushed.” The bang of the bathroom door made Liv jump, and Patti's slim figure made its way back to the bar.

  “Yes you are…and jumpy,” Austin said.

  Patti took her seat, her eyes darting from Liv to Austin, then back to Liv. “Why is she so flushed?”

  Austin's laugh was drowned out by a group of customers who'd walked in the back door. They forgot to use inside voices as they scoped out a table on the restaurant floor.

  “I'm not flushed,” Liv yelled over the crowd.

  “All right.” Patti lifted her hands in surrender and leaned back on her stool. “Don't get your panties in a twist.” She might have thought her conveniently timed sip of beer hid her smirk but it was visible in her brown eyes.

  “I think Liv's panties are being affected by that delicious man over there.” Austin shoved the last of his cupcake into his mouth.

  “He may be delicious, but he has no effect on my panties.” Liv cursed under her breath. Her response was a little too quick, a little too animated. And as for her panties, she'd gladly hand them over if it meant further interaction with Jake. But Austin didn't need to know that.

  “So you know exactly who I'm referring to.” Austin was too pleased with himself and too smart for his own good.

  She couldn't be that obvious…could she?

  The small printer behind them screeched out an order. She poured two drafts and placed them on the service counter, then returned to her friends, where she poured two well drinks.

  “Who are we talking about?” Patti played with a napkin, folding it into a triangle.

  “Bud Man.” Austin gestured to the object of Liv's inappropriate—however, exciting—distraction.

  Patti lifted her eyebrow. “Bud Man?”

  “The sexy beast drinking the bottle of Budweiser.” Austin pointed to the pool table. Liv tensed. She refused to look over, but she only hoped Jake wasn't watching her friends gawk and point. She'd embarrassed herself enough.

  “Holy Marc Jacobs, look at him take a swig.” Austin fidgeted in his seat. “I need to readjust my pants!”

  Liv joined her friends in their game of staring and locked eyes with the sexy stranger. Immediately, his eyes penetrated right through her nervous facade.

  She backed away, in the hopes of diffusing her desire, and dropped off her drinks to Meg, one of the waitresses. When Liv turned to Patti and Austin, they were huddled together, whispering between sips of beer. “Can we please stop ogling the customers?”

  But she un
derstood quite well their fascination. There was some strange pull that made her want to park herself in front of the man. She would be content to sit there all night admiring his broad shoulders, his straight, white teeth, that smile, and his eyes—eyes that stared right through her. In the short time he had been in the bar, Jake had stolen her concentration and lit a fire deep within. He had her primed and ready to surrender. But Liv would not surrender. Ever.

  “Liv, you need to take that man home with you.” Jake obviously had Austin's stamp of approval.

  “Seriously? You both have active love lives. Do you really have to live vicariously through mine?”

  “Hell yes!” Austin was always in for sex talk.

  Patti, on the other hand, was more reserved. Or as Austin liked to call her—a prude. Liv knew she could count on Patti to deflect the conversation. “Brett and I are over the whole honeymoon period. I could use a little excitement.”

  Traitor.

  “Bakery? Dream come true?” Liv reminded her friends of her priorities.

  “We're not saying you have to marry him. Just have some fun.” Patti suggesting Liv “have some fun” could only be a direct result of Patti's relationship with Brett Daniels. He used to be their sexy next-door neighbor, but now he was Brett, her tatted-up, live-in artist, and the man who loved her best friend.

  “He looks like he'd be a lot of fun.” Patti sighed and leaned on the bar, placing her fist under her chin. Liv was positive a shimmer of drool sat at the crease of Patti's mouth.

  “Not to mention,” Austin said. “That man looks like he knows his way around a woman's body.”

  Liv followed Austin's gaze to Jake. Luckily he was too preoccupied with taking a shot to notice their stare fest. “I like sex just as much as the next girl, but really, it's just sex.” Liv turned to rip the tiny slip of paper from the printer and read the drink order.

  “Just sex?” Austin threw his hands in the air. “You must be doing it wrong.”

  “I think I know how to do it.”

  “Honey, don't you get that spark?” Austin placed his hand on his chest. “That feeling? When you know just by a look or a simple touch that you just have to have that person? That when you do, it will be a mind blowing, religious experience?”

  Never. Not until today. As soon as Bud Man walked through the door. She scoffed and grabbed a few bottles of beer from the fridge and pulled another chit from the printer.

  “Religious experience? Please.”

  “If you question me, you haven't had it.”

  Austin was right. She'd never had a religious sexual experience.

  “Liv?” A customer called her name from the corner of the bar.

  She held up a finger, letting him know she'd only be a minute.

  “You're getting busy. We'll get out of your hair.” Austin slipped on his coat. “Let's go, Pats. I'll give you a ride.” He kissed his fingers and pressed them to Liv's cheek. “See ya, honey.”

  “Don't work too hard.” Patti danced her way to the door, her small hand waving behind her. “Make sure to stop and enjoy the scenery.”

  Liv smiled. She was pretty sure that by “scenery,” Patti meant Jake.

  With Austin and Patti now gone, she concentrated on her customers. She looked around at the familiar faces, but ultimately, the faces around here were strangers. She had no connections beyond her close circle of friends and family. Suddenly, she felt alone.

  Instead of curling up against Jake's yummy body tonight, she would be curled up with her business plan. Or a book. The trials and tribulations of a romance heroine were an enjoyable distraction, but never failed to remind her of what real life could never give her—a happy ending.

  But maybe Austin was right. Jake could be a good time. Just a one-time attraction. What harm would it do for her to have one last fling before her business consumed her? Just the thought of everything she had on her plate made her entire body tense.

  Jake grinned from the pool table, and just like that, her stress gave way to desire. The tension in her chest softened, then settled a little lower. Who knew a smile could tug at the zipper of her jeans? With barely a word, this man had her fantasizing about bending over the glass washer, letting him take her any way he wanted.

  Maybe a romp in the sack was just what she needed. But not just any romp, one with Jake.

  Chapter Two

  Jake Miller had no idea when he agreed to find Liv that she would be so…hot. She was nothing like the women he usually went for. She was casual, understated, and seemed to be a little uneasy around him.

  Dressed in jeans and a T-shirt, she was the sexiest thing he'd ever seen. He had the overwhelming urge to rip that white T-shirt off her body and slide those tight, well-worn jeans down her thighs. The small flash of skin where her shirt met her waistband made him ache. He imagined what was underneath that thin material: perfect round breasts and lush pink nipples.

  “Jake.” A hand punched at his arm, trying to get his attention. Brian Roberts looked at him with a smirk. “It's your turn.”

  Jake and Brian had been friends since high school, through University, and now in their adult lives. They were as opposite as two men could get—Jake always focusing on women and Brian on his studies. It would probably explain why Brian was now a straitlaced accountant and Jake was a smooth-talker for hire—a public relations executive for Weston Communications. Jake admired Brian for living out his passion—even if he thought numbers were the most boring thing in the world. It wasn't until two years ago that Jake followed suit, steering clear of female complications to follow his passion of photography.

  Jake rounded the table and lined up his shot. Classic rock music—his favorite—played in the background, and could barely be heard over the large group that had decided to take up the entire dining room. But the noise coming from their tables wasn't as big a distraction as the bartender. He couldn't help his eyes scanning the room for her every ten seconds. It was starting to affect his game.

  He pulled back and missed the shot, trying to bank it off the end of the table into the middle pocket. Brian cursed beside him.

  Her friends had left, and the bar traffic had picked up. He watched her work, flying from one end of the bar the other, from draft tap to washer. She was cool, steady, and determined. Despite nagging voices and orders being thrown out at her, she handled the pressure with precision. Not at all like the fumbling, flustered woman who'd served him not fifteen minutes ago.

  He shook off his thoughts about the beautiful bartender, but there was no denying that this was the first woman in years that had affected him so quickly, so innately. Even with just a few words, he knew Liv would be a test his willpower, and Jake realized that maybe this mission he'd been assigned wasn't going to be as easy as he'd anticipated.

  His main objective: to rendezvous her with his boss. As the CEO of Weston Communications, Robert Shelton was the best at targeting up-and-coming talent, and as far as Shelton was concerned, Liv was the next big thing in cupcakes. He wanted to secure her before the other vultures realized her potential. It was the reason why Jake admired the man, and the reason why Shelton was the best in the business. He knew people were special before they even knew it themselves.

  In return, Jake had been promised a VP position and a corner office, and would have the position he needed to make a lateral move to the art business. For him, taking pictures was a hobby. He held no delusions of becoming a famous artist, but he put his passion to good use and turned his art into a way to raise funds for charity. He loved the art industry—the galleries, the champagne, and the schmoozing. A job as a PR exec for an art gallery was his idea of heaven, and he'd spent the last two years making contacts, learning the industry. He would stop at nothing to get there, and no woman—even a sultry, sexy, heart-stopping woman—was going to stand in his way.

  “Jake.” Miles's voice called out from a distance. For a minute, he'd forgotten he was here with friends. “Are you going to tell us what happened with that chick last
weekend?”

  Jake groaned. Last weekend he'd gone on a date, and his dates were now so few and far between that his friends felt the need to hear every single detail.

  “Did you get any?” Tony walked to the opposite end of the table, waiting for Miles to take his second shot.

  Miles Harper and Tony Griffin were also long-time friends, remaining a constant in Jake's life for the last ten years. Miles had dropped out of University after their first year, and found his calling in video game design. Tony, an acoustical engineer, stayed behind to complete a master's program. Jake often wondered what all three of his friends saw in him. They were all science and math nerds with technological savvy; Jake used his computer to edit pictures and search the Internet.

  Miles bent and lined up his shot. When the ball hit its target, he smiled.

  “Ass!” Brian mumbled more colorful words under his breath.

  His friends were inspiring. All of them lived their passions. Jake was by no means the most successful. He'd been promoted and recognized many times, but it never satisfied him. Whereas Miles, content to work from home and wear track pants to do his job, was the happiest person he knew.

  Two and a half years ago, Tony won a Juno—a Canadian music award—for his work on an album. Watching the expression and pride in his friend being recognized for something he truly loved was exhilarating. And Jake wanted that feeling.

  He made the decision to go after his own dreams and do something more creative and substantive with his time. And so his entry into the art world and raising money for Alzheimer's research began.

  “Don't think I'll see her again,” Jake answered. She had been nice, sweet, beautiful, but she didn't fit into his plan.

  “Nothing for the highlight reel?” Jeff asked.

  “She had a great view from her condo on Front Street. That was pretty much the highlight.” Just as the words flew out of his mouth, Liv approached. His stomach jumped.

  A grin curved her lips. She'd definitely heard. And she definitely thought he was a joke. “How are we doing, boys? Another round?”