by Ali Parker
"I'm doing my part. I love the environment. It's teaching me more about perseverance than I care to say." She took a piece of bread and turned to face me. "Tell me everything about your conversation with Jonathan. You're signing with his studio, right?"
"I need to get back up to the office. Excuse me, guys. I'll see you later." Damon stood up and bumped his leg on the table, causing the whole thing to jostle and the drinks to spill a little.
"Is it something I need to be involved in?" My father glanced up and pulled his attention from his phone.
"It's the Kissinger account. You might want to be on the call." Damon brushed his hands down the front of his shirt and gave me and Bethany a tight nod. "See you guys later."
"I'll pack up your lunch and run it up when we-" I tried to offer.
"No, just pay the bill and take it home. It's fish, but you should give it a try." He turned and walked away as my dad stood up.
"Well, damn. Never a moment of rest when you're ruling the world, right?"
Bethany smiled. "I guess not. I'm just going to eat whoever's order looks better."
"That would be mine." I smiled and waved at my dad as he said his goodbyes. "Wow. This turned out much better than I thought it would."
"Right?" She let out a long breath and sunk down into her chair before reaching up and pinching the bridge of her nose.
"Hey. You okay?" I reached over and ran my hand over the top of her back, rubbing softly.
"I think so. I don't know." She dropped her hands to her lap and turned to face me with tears in her eyes. "I think I'm leaving the firm. I need to get out of here. I'll just take a few semesters off and try and build up a savings account and then go back for my master’s. I can't work there with him anymore."
"Wait. Hold up." I lifted my hands in front of me. "Did something else happen beside you guys taking a break?"
"No. Yes. I don't know." She reached out and grabbed another roll and the small cup of butter sitting on the table.
"Bethany." I reached out and ran my hand down her arm as my heart constricted painfully in my chest. The poor girl had been so damn concerned about the aftermath of something going wrong, and here we were sitting in the future she envisioned when the relationship started. Maybe things had happened too fast. Maybe that was part of the problem. "Talk to me. I'm right here and you know I'll do anything I can to help."
"I know, but I'm not sure anyone can do anything at this point. He's completely cold toward me, and I get it. I gave the damn ring back and basically spit in his face where our future was concerned." She shrugged and tossed the empty butter container back onto the table. "But he shouldn't have let your father hire Christa's sister to come work as my fucking boss at the firm."
Christa. That was a name I'd love to never hear again. Damon and the blond bombshell witch had been a thing throughout most of their lives, stringing each other along and laughing as the other suffered. He'd finally gotten his wits about him a few years back, but she still seemed to be popping up in his life. I hadn't heard the full story on why my father thought it wise to bring Delilah, Christa's twin sister, to work at the firm. There had to be a good reason for it, but from the outside looking in, it didn't matter the reason. It was killing Damon's chances of keeping things on the up and up with Bethany.
"I agree, but it wasn't Damon that hired her, right?"
"I don't want to talk about this. I live this conversation in my own head all day and night. I need to think about something else before I go bat shit crazy. My friend Krista's trial is coming up soon, and if I'm not missing Damon, I'm thinking about how it's going to feel sitting in a courtroom and testifying against my best friend for attempted murder." She pressed her hands to her face as the waitress reappeared.
"We need a shot of jack. Two please." I gave a cheeky smile and was grateful to hear Bethany's sweet laughter slipping through her fingers. "It's going to work out. Let’s talk about something else that's fucked up."
"Like?" She brushed her hair back and took a deep breath.
"Like me having to see Erica this weekend."
"You're going back up to Seattle?"
"Yes, unfortunately." I rolled my eyes exaggeratedly and smiled. "You wanna come with me? Pretend to by my sister and my girl?"
She swatted me and laughed softly. "Asshole."
"Sorry. Too much? Too soon?"
"No. It's fine. I just love him, Matt. I need to get him back, but I can't bend this time. He has to grow up and understand that our relationship isn't a college fling where we screw all the time and don't talk outside of the bedroom. I'm not living that life. Not even for him."
"Okay, first, TMI, and second, I agree. Asshole." I pulled my napkin into my lap. "I'm going to see Erica this weekend and really consider her offer, I guess. What choice do I really have? Everybody is for me making this move."
"And what about you? Remind me what you're so afraid of." She lifted her hand as I started to go down the list. "And don't you dare tell me for a minute that you're scared of Erica being a man-eater. I know you're not Damon, but you're a Bryant. You're a strong man." She reached out and squeezed my hand, winning me over more than she already had. "A good man. She's a great woman. Give her a chance from a professional perspective at least."
"Maybe." I picked up my burger as they set it down in front of me and took a big bite before glancing over to see her eying the two fish dishes loaded with veggies. I finished eating the large bite in my mouth and cut my burger in half. "This is serious love here."
"I feel it. Give me that." She reached out and snatched it from me before taking a bite bigger than mine.
"I swear you're my sister from another mister."
She laughed and almost choked, which had me chuckling alongside her. I would go to Seattle and check things out one more time. After that... it was time to shit or get off the pot. Period.
Chapter 4
Erica
I spent the next day immersed in projects just to keep myself from thinking too much about my family situation or about Matt. Neither were a healthy place for me to be, so I ignored everything but the pile of to-do's sitting on my desk. I had a standing dinner with my best friend Lanie every Thursday night, and though I really didn't feel like having anyone at the house, it wasn't fair to cancel. She needed to hang out with me as much as I needed to see her.
After driving through the empty streets near my high-rise condo, I parked the car and walked up to my apartment, wondering what other people who had a life, a family, a spouse were up to. They were most likely sitting down to dinner, or cooking with the ones they loved and laughing about the events of the day.
By the time I reached my condo, my heart hurt. How long was I going to hold myself out in hopes that the right guy would come along? It almost felt like any guy was better than the right guy, but it was my loneliness talking. I'd been the center of attention in college, and my father had made sure to make me feel loved and important if no one else did, but now with him gone and college a distant memory, it was just me.
It was always just me.
I pushed the door open and walked in, hanging up my keys, flipped on the light.
I needed a pet. Something to greet me when I walked into my empty condo instead of the silence, which was depressing. Lanie would be there any minute, and as I moved through the darkness, I was almost grateful for not canceling. It would be nice to be around someone that knew me and accepted me in all of my quirkiness.
A knock at the door behind me had me smiling. "It's open. Come on in."
The door opened and my petite best friend from elementary school walked in with a large brown grocery sack clutched to her chest. Whoever was hosting was in charge of providing the kitchen and cleaning up. The other had to pick up the meal and a bottle of cheap wine. We hated the thought of doing it until we were cooking and laughing about life together. Then it was all worth it.
"You look rough." I set Frodo down and walked to take the bag from Lanie.
"It w
as parent teacher conference night." She let out a groan and kicked off her flats. She only came up to my chin and couldn't have weighed over a hundred pounds. Her big brown eyes were full of warmth, and her short blond hair was in a pixie cut that made her look like she was still in her teens. We were an odd pair, but meshed perfectly.
"I thought you loved visiting with your students’ parents." I set the bag down in the kitchen and pulled off my high heels before washing my hands.
"I usually do, but there's this one mom this year. Deborah Turner. Ugh." She started to pull various items out of the bag, and within seconds I realized she'd brought over everything to make my favorite dish - Chicken Piccata.
"Tell me about her. Make me feel better about my pathetic life by diving into the unnecessary angst in yours." I snorted as she pushed her shoulder against mine and gave me a tight grin.
"She's just a bitch. Plain and simple. She obviously didn't get enough attention as a child, and she thinks her daughter, Sandy, should get my undivided attention. The little girl is struggling with her letters and I've worked with her as much as I'm able. There are twenty-two six year olds in the room. It's not like I can turn my attention away from them and just focus on Sandy."
"So get her some help, and maybe have the principal talk to this lady. Seems like she's not being reasonable at all." I pulled out the white wine and let out a soft sigh as I cradled it against my breasts. "Thank God for the relief of a good glass of wine. I don't have a man, my job has become a total drag and I haven't gotten laid in a year, but I have rotten grapes. Life is good."
She snorted. "Life is good. We're both gainfully employed and we have each other."
"Uh oh. What happened to Charles? Charley? Chuckie-boy?" I bent over to pull out various pans for the meal as I teased her about her latest boyfriend. Douche wouldn't begin to cover him.
"He decided that he wants a little more flare in a relationship. He dumped me yesterday."
I stood up and turned to face her, searching for sadness or regret. I surprisingly found none.
"I'm sorry to hear that?" I smiled. "I hated that guy, by the way. He was creepy."
"That's because you're uber-attractive and he used to stare at you like you were a piece of meat." She threw her hands in the air. "Why do I even try? Men suck completely."
"Only the good ones suck." I wagged my eyebrows and was grateful to get a soft chuckle from her. "You'll find the right guy. Just keep trying."
"Where am I supposed to meet someone? In a parent teacher conference? Try again." She huffed and worked on getting the chicken in a skillet on the stove. "I just wish I could bump into a hot guy at the grocery store or in a movie or something."
"In a movie?" I laughed, unable to help myself. "Like you two are the only lone souls in the theatre and happen to be sitting next to each other? He reaches into the popcorn tub just as you do?"
She glanced over at me and rolled her eyes. "No, but it's getting old. I'll be twenty-nine next month. I'm ready to get married, Erica. Unlike you, I'm not good being alone. I fucking hate it."
Her voice broke, and I hated myself for teasing her. Just because my loneliness was well hidden didn't mean it didn't exist. I just wasn't willing to give it a voice for fear of what it might do to me to have to face it head on.
I moved in behind her and wrapped my arms around her, squeezing softly and pressing my cheek to the back of her head.
"It's going to be okay. You're a beautiful, talented, loving woman. You're going to meet an amazing man, and we're going to look back on this time in our lives and laugh."
"And what about you?" She turned a little and I released her.
"What about me?" I ignored the opening to dive into my own pain. I wasn't interested, nor had I had enough wine to open the wound in my chest.
"You're not even looking, are you?"
"Nope. I'm good."
"You can't let that shit that happened with Tanner affect you forever. You have to figure out how to let it go."
"I'm not talking about Tanner tonight. That was five years ago, Lanie. College is long gone, and he was a mistake. Plain and simple."
"He was a twelve-year mistake. It's not that simple. You can't just tuck-"
"Hey." I turned to face her and put my hands on my hips. "I'm not going here tonight. If you want to talk about the handsome billionaire who has my heart fluttering in my chest and my stomach turning at the mention of his name, I'm down, but I'm not talking about Tanner. He's a memory I'd like to leave in the past."
"Okay. I'm sorry." She turned back to the stove and I felt like an ass for jumping all over her.
Tanner Schultz was my high school sweetheart, the boy I thought I would end up with after so many years of sharing my heart, my time and my body with, but things didn't work out. It was a waste of my life and having my heart ripped out of my chest and handed to me after giving myself to him from sixth grade to our senior year in college left me leery of wanting anyone's attention - until Matt.
"It's all right. I just can't go there tonight." I poured us a glass of wine and handed hers to her. "So this new guy isn't really new. I just haven't brought him up too much because I wasn't sure how I felt about him."
"Is this Kent's son, Matt?"
I chuckled. "I guess I have brought him up."
"Only on occasion, and you never really talk much about him, but you've mentioned him. He's the only guy you've mentioned." She took a sip of her wine and set it down beside the stove. "Tell me about him."
After hopping up to sit on the counter beside her, I leaned back and nursed my wine as I worked through what to tell her. A smile spread across my face and warmth filled my chest. Matt was a dangerous choice for me because of how different he was from Tanner. Maybe the attraction would wear off and I would be left having to hurt him and myself, which sucked royally.
"He's about six-five, football type structure, big shoulders and a strong chest. Blond hair, great tan and beautiful blue eyes. He looks like a California boy, but he's all Texas. He's funny as hell and loves to paint and dream in color. He's sweet and considerate, shy and a little nervous around me."
"Wait. This doesn't sound like the usual alpha asshole you go for." She winked at me and moved back from the stove. "Done with the sauce. Just a few minutes and we can plate it up. Did you make the salad?"
"Oh. Shit." I hopped off the counter and worked on the salad quickly as I continued. "I think there's a side of Matt I haven't gotten to see yet. Something tells me that he's very much that alpha male that turns me on so much, but he keeps it hidden."
"Why in the world would he do that?"
"Because he's part of the Bryant family? That would be my guess. His father is pretty dominant, and his brother Damon is an uber-control freak." I shrugged. "Maybe he just wants to stand out enough to get noticed."
"And his mom?"
"She died a few years ago from cancer. His father just remarried. That's the trip I took to Jamaica."
"Oh yeah. Lucky duck." She moved up beside me and peeled the cucumber with a paring knife like a pro. I needed to learn to cook better so I could eventually impress the man I hoped to get before I was too old to enjoy him.
"It was fun, but nothing really happened. Damon proposed to his girlfriend Bethany, who happens to be his step-sister now too." I smiled as she glanced over at me with her eyebrow raised.
"That's not something you hear every day."
"Right? The man knew what he wanted and he wasn't afraid to go after it." I let out a girlie sigh. "I just wish his brother felt like that about me."
"How do you know he doesn't?"
"I don't, but I'm going to find out this weekend while he's in town."
"I think you should tread lightly. Just have a good time with him, and if he's interested, you'll be able to tell."
"You think so?" I popped a carrot into my mouth.
"Oh yeah. He'll be naked and in your bed. Easy enough?"
I groaned and closed my eyes. "I can only imagine."
"Not now, please. I'm still here and we're good friends, but not that good."
We shared a laugh and plated up dinner. The weekend would be telling, but Lanie was right. I needed to be careful in my approach and work hard to just enjoy the time I had with him no matter how profitable it might be. A friendship was better than nothing.
Chapter 5
Matt
I slept like shit the night before, but it was a common theme when I knew the next day might include running into Erica Hall. She was the epitome of sex incarnate in a power suit. From her shoulder-length blond hair that framed her regal features perfectly to the thick swell of her tight ass in her business skirt.
She left me aching all over and wanting to give up my fast from sex. She was the only woman that left me feeling that way, which was all the more of a reason to tuck tail and run. I was just like every other alpha asshole in the bedroom, and therefore avoided it. I couldn't find a woman who understood that my appetite in the sheets had little to do with my devotion and adoration outside of them.
Being someone who craved love like I did, it was just easier to play it safe and keep my relationships more familial and friendly. Anything more than that, and I'd have to explain myself. My passions bled out in my art, but there was so much more trapped inside of me, begging for the opportunity to bleed out across the soft tight body of my father's lead advertising executive. It wasn't something I was willing to let my guard down about, which meant staying away.
The phone buzzed in my lap as I sat on the private jet alone. Jonathan Luntz's name popped up and I breathed a sigh of relief. I could handle just about anyone but Erica. Why she unraveled me so fast was something I needed to figure out and conquer. It wasn't like she was going anywhere anytime soon.
"This is Matt."
"Matthew. It's Jonathan. I take it you're headed into the city this afternoon?"