by Alla Kar
Frankie’s lighthearted giggle made me smile. She seemed to be in better spirits. “Do you think master would let you out for lunch? I’m dyin’ to know what happened Saturday night since you ignored all seven of my calls Sunday.”
My smile turned downward. I’d spent all day in his bed, underneath him, on top of him and every which way in-between. “Uh, I have a lunch break comin’ up soon. You want to meet at the restaurant or at his office?”
I could tell Frankie smiled through the phone. “You’re at his office this week that’s right. I can meet you there in thirty minutes. Is that good?”
“That’s fine. See you then.”
I had cleaned up my mess when I felt someone’s palm slide around my waist. I turned, my palm rested against Cash’s chest. “It’s looking lovely,” he whispered.
I glanced up at the mixture of dark and light green on the wall, and the swirls of brown and gold. Looking back, I glanced into the depth of my inspiration. “Thank you. I should be finished by the end of the week or the beginning of next.”
Cash nodded, his fingers slid against my hips.
A long whistle sounded from behind Cash, and I heard Cash sigh. “It’s lookin’ really good out here,” Asher said, sidestepping Cash.
“Thank you.”
“You’re wel—,” Ash broke off, a wide grin spread across his face. “Well, look who the cat drug in.”
I glanced over my shoulder at Frankie. She marched toward us; her chin held high. A slight pink tint brushed across her cheeks. “Hey, Syd,” she said, checking her watch.
I tried not to laugh. It was obvious she was trying too hard not to look at Asher. “Nice to see you, Frankie,” Cash said.
She gave him a simple wave but met my eyes too quickly. “You ready to go?”
Asher, not one to be ignored, stepped forward and scooped Frankie’s hand up to his mouth. “It’s nice to see you again, Frankie.”
Her pink cheeks reddened. “You too,” she whispered.
“Is it lunch time?” Brayden asked, joining from the hallway.
Cash snaked his arm around my waist, at the same time Cash and Asher’s phones chimed.
Asher let out a heavy sigh. “Looks like it’s lunch for y’all. We have a meetin’.”
“Well, you’re more than welcomed to come with us,” Frankie said, checking her watch.
Cash’s fingers dug into my hip; his posture stiffened like a board. “Maybe we could push back the meetin’,” Cash said to Asher.
Asher lifted a brow, pointing toward his cellphone. “Did you not just get the same emergency email that I did?”
I dropped my head to keep from smiling. The obvious irritation in Cash’s tone, not to mention his posture, was evident. “They could wait an hour,” Cash snapped.
Asher clicked his tongue.
Katy cleared her throat from the hallway and jabbed her thumb over her shoulder. “They’re waitin’.”
Cash gritted his teeth and gave her a clipped nod. “Y’all be back in thirty minutes,” he snapped.
Frankie frowned. “That’s not long enough.”
Cash squinted. “Well, good thing you don’t work here then.”
Asher stepped forward; his palm extended toward Cash. “Cash,” he said. “Let’s go. Be nice.”
I felt Cash’s palm tightened on my back until he swiftly jerked his hand away, gave me a swift fuming look and disappeared into the nearest elevator.
Frankie leaned in and whispered. “Definitely the beast.”
Chapter Eighteen
Cash
I hardly breathed on my way to the guest house.
The short distance across my backyard felt longer than the usual hop and skip. Maybe it had to do with the fact that I’d been counting down the minutes since lunch.
After our meeting, Asher and I went over the details of the contract we had just negotiated with a new buyer for hours. We’d been working on a new brand of hunting gear to launch next year. It was important, and I knew that. I knew I needed to be in the meeting, and I needed to take it seriously. But how was I supposed to concentrate knowing Sydney was out at lunch with Brayden?
It’d felt like fire had seeped underneath my skin, and set my chest on fire.
The door of the guest house felt heavy against my palm, but not as heavy as the lump in my throat. I’d tried to make time to check on Sydney after lunch but there was too much to do, and Asher wouldn’t let me get away. When had the roles switched? Since when did he care about timeliness?
Nyla purred at my feet as I searched the room for her. I turned into the kitchen and stopped cold in my tracks. All the fueled anger in me subsided. Sydney’s gray T-shirt hung just below her ass, nicely shaped thighs moved her to a fast rhythm, her pink headphones blasted some song I couldn’t make out. I watched for several minutes as she sashayed around the kitchen and sung out loud.
I’d seen women in less than that, hell I’d seen her in less than that, but the sight went straight to my dick. How could something so simple turn me on so much? I’d wanted to demand to know what happened, but suddenly my dick took over my mind and left me standing dumbly in her kitchen.
She turned on her heel, the platter she held dropped to the ground. “Shit!” she screamed, yanking off her headphones. “I didn’t know you were—,” she stopped to tuck her hair behind her ear nervously.
Slowly, I shook my head, trying my best to fight my lustful fifteen-year-old like hormones. “You didn’t knock,” she said.
I swallowed, raking my hand through my hair. Focus. Right. “No, I didn’t, but it’s not like you would have heard me. I want to know what happened at lunch today.”
She cocked her hip before bending down to pick up the cookie sheet off the floor, and washed it clean. “What do you mean?”
I narrowed my gaze, watching closely as she started to place raw cookie dough on the sheet. I made my way around the counter and stood closer to her. “I think you know what I’m talkin’ about. What happened at lunch with Brayden?”
She pretended to blow at a blonde strand of hair as she thought about it. “You mean before or after he asked for my number? But that was after the orgy we had in the bathroom, but before he told me he was in love with me.”
“You find this amusing?”
She glanced up at me with a smile a mile wide. “I do.”
I wanted to be mad at her. Even though none of it was her fault, and she didn’t invite him to lunch. The thought of them being seen together made me incredibly jealous. She was supposed to be seen with me, not him, no one else, just me. “Well, I’m glad my concern is humorous to you, Peach.”
She turned to place the cookies in the oven, bending over to give me a show of the lace underwear that curved to her ass. “Please, it’s not concern. It’s jealousy.” She stood back up. “You’re just a jealous, old man.”
I couldn’t help but smile. “Old, huh?” I snaked my arm around her waist, dragging her closer to me. “You weren’t callin’ me old the other night, were you?
Her cheeks turned a dark shade of red. “I don’t recall,” she whispered.
“I do,” I whispered, skimming my teeth against her neck. “I remember the soft cry you made when you came. The way your body molded to mine.” I kissed her collarbone, loving the way her fingers fisted my shirt. “And your soft lips that felt so small against mine.” I gripped the nape of her neck, forcing her eyes toward mine, admiring her long slender throat. “I wanted you so bad at work today. I think I’m gonna start havin’ to start clearin’ an hour of my schedule each day.”
She gave me a sly smile. “I don’t think my boss will let me have an entire hour off, sir. He won’t even give me but a thirty-minute lunch break.”
I laughed. “Well, about that—,”
“You were jealous,” she said poking my chest.
I nodded, running my thumb against her cheek. “I was hella jealous.”
She shrugged her shoulders. “I tend to do that to people. I am kind of irresi
stible.”
“That you are.”
She dropped her eyes to fiddle with a button on my shirt, but I knew that was a sign she wanted to say something. “Tell me what you’re thinkin’ about.”
Her tongue snaked out to dampen her bottom lip. “Do you think that the mural is comin’ along okay? I mean—if you don’t like it, I can always paint over it.”
“I love the mural, Peach. Why would you ask that?”
She shrugged. “Just curious.”
I knew why. Because her parents gave her no encouragement at home. She’d been shunned for pursuing her dream, and damned for not following in her family’s footsteps. “I think it’s beautiful, Peach. Don’t let anybody tell you any different, okay?”
Her lips turned into a small smile. “Okay.”
Sighing, I let my hands fall to her waist. “So, on to other things. Do you have plans for the weekend?”
She gave me a bored look. “You would know if I did, Cash. You make my schedule.”
I reached up to tug at my collar. “That I do.”
She grinned, shaking her head.
“So, I have a charity banquet this Friday night for kids with cancer. I want you to be my date.”
A look of surprise crossed her face before she tugged at her bottom lip.
“What’s the matter?” I asked.
Shrugging, she bent down to check on the cookies. I pulled her toward me, trapping her against the stove. “Why did you make that face?”
“I—I just want to make sure that you want me to go.”
I furrowed my brow. “And why would you think I wouldn’t want you to come? I invited you, didn’t I?”
She fiddled with the bottom hem of her shirt. “That’s fancy, right?”
I cocked my head. “Yes, and you’re used to fancy, are you not? I’m sure you’ve been to plenty of dinners with your parents.”
“I have,” she whispered, cutting her eyes up to mine. “But never with a man—a date.”
I smiled. “So, I’ll be your first, what’s wrong with that?”
She let out a frustrated sigh. “I don’t have that great of a reputation, Cash. We’re gonna be in front of important people. I’m not sure you’ll want me by your side.”
My stomach dropped. There wasn’t anything I wouldn’t have done to erase that look on her face. The shame was clear, and I hated it more than the stupid deal I’d made with her mother.
“Peach,” I said. “There isn’t anyone else I’d rather have with me. What’s got you thinkin’ this way?”
Sydney tugged on her hair. “Nothing. I’m just nervous.”
I didn’t believe it, but I let it go. She didn’t seem like she wanted to talk about it. “Those cookies smell like they’re almost ready.”
“Oh!”
She turned and opened the oven, before pulling the cookie sheet out. “I can’t wait to dig into these.”
I leaned against the counter and watched as she slid them all onto a plate with a spatula. “Saturday morning we leave for Dallas, bright and early.”
Her face lit up. “Will I start painting then, or are we just checking it out?”
“We’ll check it out. Consider it a weekend off.”
Her grin widened.
“We can have breakfast in bed,” I whispered into her ear from behind. “Or maybe just stay in bed all day.”
Chills broke out over her shoulders, and I loved the way she hid her smile behind her hair. I’d only had her for one day since she moved in, and I’d been dying to feel her underneath me again.
My phone broke the silence. Asher’s name ran across the screen. “I better take this.”
Sydney nodded but held her finger up. “Just a minute.” She rummaged around in the cabinet, pulling down a saucer, and handing me a plate of cookies. “Here take these with you.”
I kissed her tenderly, ignoring the way my chest felt at her kind gesture.
The lights were already on in my study when I walked in. Joey and Asher sat with their feet propped on my ottoman, scotch glasses in their hands.
Asher raised his glass toward me. “That must have been a quickie. I only called you ten minutes ago, bro. We need to work on your stamina.”
Smiling, I put down my cookies and poured myself a glass before taking a seat behind my desk. “We only talked.”
Joey snorted. “You mean you only pried the details of her lunch out, right? Did the poor kid try to make a move after you mean mugged him for thirty minutes?”
I smiled over my glass. “He didn’t.” I pointed toward the plate of cookies. “The talk couldn’t have gone too bad. She did make me macadamia nut cookies.”
Joey shot Asher I look I couldn’t pinpoint, and I didn’t care to.
I pulled up my emails, but I felt the change in the air quickly. When I glanced up Joey and Asher were still exchanging looks. “What?” I snapped.
Asher shot him a glance, before standing to face me. “We want to talk to you about something.”
I leaned back against my chair. “And what is that?”
Asher looked over his shoulder, and Joey stood up, running his fingers through his hair. “It’s about Sydney.”
His tone aggravated me. “What about her? Get to the point.”
Joey sat his drink down. “I’ve already told you once that I didn’t think this deal was a good idea, Cash. Asher agrees. It’s not—,”
I narrowed my eyes at Asher. “You were there when Mrs. Henry offered the deal, Ash. What the fuck is this about? You didn’t say anything then You were all for it!”
Asher groaned, his normal calm demeanor stiff. “I thought it was okay, but I can tell you like her. You really like her. That changes everything. You need to stop seein’ her.”
Stop seeing her? Why would I stop if he could tell I really liked her? “You don’t think I’ve thought about her finding out? Or hurtin’ her?”
Joey shrugged. “Who the hell knows, Cash? You don’t talk to us about your feelings. It’s not like we would know.”
I threw my hands in the air. “Do you want to have a fuckin’ sleep over to talk about it? I’ve already agreed to the deal. She’s not gonna find out, and if I backed out, I’m scared what her mother will do. She may think we won’t make it, and tell Sydney. The woman is batshit crazy. I can’t risk it because I do like her.”
“We’re not sayin’ tell her or not take the money, but you need to stop seeing her before one of you gets hurt.”
“Wait,” I held up a finger. “You want me to take the money but stop seeing her?” I stood abruptly. “So what exactly is your concern here, Asher? Is it that your brother will have his heart crushed or that she’ll find out and we won’t get the money? I’m a little confused.”
I felt my blood coming to a boil. How dare he tell me to stop seeing her but take the money? I wanted her. Fuck the money.
Asher shook his head. “We need that money to finish going public, Cash. You’re gonna give her some good publicity at the charity banquet, right? Get the money and leave before she finds out. All she has to do is go to the papers and we’re done for. And your heart will be broken in the process of your entire empire crumbling to the ground!”
I let out a laugh that felt foreign and hoarse. “I guess I shouldn’t be surprised by this, should I? Asher, you wouldn’t know what it’s like to truly care about someone if it bit you in the ass. You are the one that’s going after her engaged best friend. If I do anything, it’ll be rip that check to pieces, and tell her myself. Maybe that way she’ll forgive me before her mother has a chance to tell her. I’m not going to stop seeing her. So shove your selfish concern up your ass. I can’t believe either of you.”
Asher tightened his jaw. “We all know how you get, Cash. Your temper is as bad as—,”
Joey held out his arm in warning. “We’re not here to fight.” He gave Asher a warning look, but for what I didn’t know. “Believe it or not but we are worried about your feelings. If you don’t stop now, you’re gonna
get too close, and when things get bad, because they will, you’re gonna be heartbroken. That once iced over heart will shatter into so many pieces that even you can’t fix.”
I wanted to understand. I did to a certain level, but they didn’t. I couldn’t just take the money and leave anymore. That might have been the plan once, but things had changed. I’d let Sydney get underneath my skin. I’d let my guard down, and she’d warmed my chilled heart.
And I couldn’t lose that.
Chapter Nineteen
Sydney
Five grand.
It stared up at me from my mobile bank account. I’d never had that much money in my account at one time. It felt good. I felt like an adult, a productive adult.
I turned off my phone because I realized it was getting closer to time to leave. I’d buried myself in my work all day, anything to distract myself from the dinner that night.
The full-length closet mirror showed a girl I’d always wanted to be. Sexy but classy. I’d never quite got the classy part of it, but I strived for it.
The black dress I wore fit way differently than the funeral dress I’d worn last time. It was sleeveless, a very low v-line that made my cleavage worth looking at, but not too low. The dress fit tight to my waist before flowing out over my thighs and ending three inches above my knee. I’d paired it with nude pumps, and a fancy side braid that Frankie’s grandmother taught me how to do.
I took a step to the side, examining the low back and I felt it. Cash had been ruthless toward Joey in the limo. He’d tossed him a quarter, and told him to get something to eat.
The tension was thick between the two of them, but I didn’t pry. I’d tried not to think about it when we went back in for lunch. I actually hadn’t since then. I was too scared someone would see it on my face, the lust, the pure animalistic need that would be evident on my face.
I’d stared at the shocked look on Joey’s face as Cash, all but shoved me into the back of the limo. I’d hardly had time to think before he’d locked the doors, and pushed himself between my legs.