Some Guys Have All the Luck

by Deborah Cooke

  Objective achieved.

  And one he’d never expected to complete.

  No wonder he felt so good when they toweled off together. Cassie’s smile made him feel like a champion and he knew she’d enjoyed it, too. “Pleased?” he asked, knowing it was obvious but wanting to hear her say it aloud.

  This would be it, after all. He only slept with women once, and she’d be heading back to New York. It had been an interval, or not even that. A one-nighter—or a one-morninger—and Reid was surprised to find himself yearning for more.

  He knew better than to wish for what he couldn’t have.

  “Amazed, pleased, overwhelmed, and thrilled,” she admitted, apparently oblivious to the change in his mood. She gave him a quick kiss, then pulled back to study him. Even though it was just a brief touch, it still sent heat through him. Her eyes filled with concern and he turned away. “You’re awesome, Reid.”

  “You’re pretty awesome yourself,” he said gruffly. Reid checked his reflection in the mirror and decided his three-days of growth needed a trim. He got out his razor and fitted the guard on it.

  She wrapped the towel around herself, watching him carefully. “So, did we save the day after all?” she asked, leaning on the long marble counter beside him. The bathroom had two sinks, as well as a shower and whirlpool tub.

  Reid nodded but didn’t meet her gaze. “Absolutely.”

  “I am sorry...”

  “I can’t imagine why.”

  She smiled again and blushed a bit. “You’re being really nice.”

  “No way. I’m not nice. Ask anyone.” He concentrated on his trim, well aware that she was still watching him.

  “Tori thinks you’re nice.”

  “Maybe that’s because Tori is so nice herself. She can’t imagine anyone being otherwise.”

  Cassie laughed a little. “There is that. Do you have a comb I can use?”

  “In that drawer. Toothbrush in the next one.”

  She opened the drawer and hesitated only a moment before taking a new comb, still in its package. She pursed her lips as she considered the contents of the next drawer, obviously seeing that there were several new toothbrushes there. Maybe she’d just been picking a color. Reid refused to worry about it, much less apologize for what he was.

  She knew the deal.

  “Maybe it’s better because we waited all this time,” she said as he finished one cheek.

  Reid was sufficiently surprised to freeze. “Waited? Since when were you waiting for me?”

  She gave him a sly look, one that made him want to do it again. Four times in one morning. There was no way it was possible.

  But that smile made him wonder.

  “I’ll never tell,” she said, finishing her teeth and picking up the comb.

  She was just putting him on. Reid headed toward the kitchen and his discarded clothes. He felt like a new man, one who had made a new beginning, thanks to Cassie and her passion.

  Or one who had accomplished a long-time objective and was freed to move on to the next one.

  That was it. Another item crossed off his list.

  Reid tugged on his briefs and a T-shirt, then headed back to the bathroom. Cassie was brushing her hair up into a ponytail again, leaving all that gorgeous neck exposed. It practically invited a kiss, so he gave her one, meeting her gaze in the mirror.

  “Start fresh at F5,” he said on impulse.

  “What?” She looked surprised.

  “The slogan for the ad with you in it. That’s what it should be. Maybe in your yoga gear, in a Warrior pose with the sun rising behind you.”

  She frowned. “But I’m not starting fresh, certainly not at F5. I’ll be there for the duration.”

  Reid gave her a hard look. “Maybe you should start fresh somewhere.”

  Cassie caught her breath. “You mean getting over Tyler.”

  “I think since he’s married, that might be a good plan.”

  “How is it that someone who doesn’t believe in forever has such respect for marriage?”

  “I have respect for other people’s choices. I have to think that if Tyler wanted you, he would have chosen you. He didn’t. You need to make your peace with that and move on, rather that mooning after him for the rest of your life.” There. He’d said it. He turned away, not wanting to see her cry at the truth.

  If she did.

  Would she?

  Cassie went to the kitchen to get her clothes, and by the time he’d combed his own hair and followed her, she’d put on the tank top and tights. She wasn’t crying, which was a relief, although it prompted his curiosity. “You’re the one who says promises don’t last forever.”

  “And I’m the one saying that objectives can be achieved, but only if you do the heavy work of putting the pieces into place. Maybe it’s time.”

  She leaned against the counter, watching him get a glass of water. “Meaning?”

  “Meaning that if you’re always dreaming of being with Tyler, you might be missing other opportunities for partnership.”

  “With you?” She smiled.

  Reid scoffed even as he felt an unfamiliar pang. “We both know that’s not going to happen. I live here and you live there and we’re both too satisfied with the status quo to make a change,” he said, responding with heat. “Plus you believe in forever and I don’t.”

  “Sounds like you’re protesting too much.”

  He gave her a look for that. “I mean that if you take apart your objective of having a partner and distill it to the essence of what you want...”

  “If I define my objective.”

  “...and then put the pieces into place to increase the likelihood of it happening, then you have a better chance of finding the partner you want.”

  She nodded. “Better than if I’m still mooning after Tyler, as you so charmingly put it.”

  “Exactly.” He confronted her, more interested in her answer than he wanted to admit. “So, what is it that you want?”

  “I told you. A partner.”

  “But why exactly? For financial security?”

  “I’ve got that covered well enough.”

  “More is always better.”

  “There is that,” she agreed and surveyed his house again. She was probably coveting those closets. “You’ve been really lucky with your choices.”

  Reid snorted. “And the harder I work, the luckier I get.” At her obvious surprise, he nodded. “I learned that playing football.”

  “Not luck then.”

  “I don’t wait on luck. I make it myself.” He pointed at her, needing to change the subject. “You’re ducking the question. Why do you want a partner? For sex?”

  “I don’t go hungry there, either.”

  Reid could believe it. “For companionship? For someone to hold your hand or watch old movies with you? For someone to do the grocery shopping? What is it exactly that you want?”

  Cassie thought about it for a minute. “Everything.”

  Reid shook his head. “No one gets everything,” he said flatly. “Pick what’s most important and aim for that.”

  “You are cynical.”

  “I’m realistic. Lesson learned.”

  She eyed him for a long moment and he held her gaze, almost daring her to ask. Instead, she surveyed the kitchen and he could practically hear the wheels turning. “Someone who knows all about me and loves me anyway.”

  Reid laughed, surprised into it. “You might be aiming too high with that one.”

  Cassie smiled back at him. “I know, but let’s work with it. What would I do to improve my chances of finding that person?”

  “Well.” He leaned against the counter and rinsed his glass. “You could make a list of the people who know the most about you, kind of potential candidates.”

  “Other than relatives, that is.”

  Reid pointed a finger at her. “An excellent distinction when seeking a partner.” Cassie laughed, which prompted his smile. “And once you’ve made that list
, you could consider what each of those people don’t know about you.”

  “Then tell them.” She winced.

  “Not all of them. It could be a selective process. Or you could be more forthcoming when you meet someone new who you think has potential. My point is just that if you don’t tell anyone your secrets and your history, then you can’t sit waiting for someone who knows all about you and likes you anyway. You have to take the step to make the achievement of your objective possible.”

  Cassie nodded. “My list would be pretty short. The people who know the most about me would be Kyle and Tyler.”

  “Not Tyler. He’s taken.”

  “Well, so’s Kyle, actually.” She studied Reid. “Who knows your secrets?”

  “No one.” He couldn’t hide his horror at the thought.

  “Well then, how are you going to find a partner?”

  “Oh, you’re mixing up your objectives with mine,” he said easily. “I have no interest in having a partner. We’re talking about you and your objectives.” He bent and picked up his hoodie, then put it on, once again feeling as if he was armoring himself against her.

  Once again, it didn’t work.

  Cassie didn’t let it go. “You mean you want to be alone?”

  He avoided her gaze when he replied. “Yeah, that’s the short answer.”

  “Why?”

  He turned to confront her, but deliberately hid his thoughts. “Learned response.”

  Cassie folded her arms across her chest. “Then what do you want, Reid?”

  “Sex at reasonably regular intervals with no emotional garbage. Otherwise, I’m good.”

  “Emotional garbage,” she echoed.

  “You know, when people try to change the deal from the outset. Making you feel guilty or trying to trick you into doing something they know you don’t want to do.” He shook his head. “Tears.”

  Cassie seemed to be fighting a smile. “You can’t stand to see a woman cry?”

  “Something like that.”

  “I’ll have to remember that.”

  “Why?” He deliberately looked her in the eye, daring her to recall that this was a one-off.

  Her eyes narrowed a little and she shook her head. “Your objective sounds lonely.”

  “Which is part of its appeal.”

  “No one to talk to?”

  “No one to betray me,” he corrected, realizing his mistake too late.

  “Oooh, that sounds important. Women who use tears as a weapon and then betray you. Who was she, Reid?”

  He gestured to the door. “You’ll never know.”

  “What if I want to know?”

  “Well, then, our objectives are in collision. Whoever has the strongest plan will win.” Reid looked at his watch. “Are you supposed to be anywhere today?”

  Cassie looked at the time on the microwave and swore. She shoved on her shoes and grabbed her hoodie as she hurried toward the door. Reid strolled after her and passed her as she tied her shoes. He opened the front door and held it for her.

  “Don’t let it hit me in the ass?” she guessed and he couldn’t keep from smiling.

  “We’re square and that means we’re done.”

  “We don’t have to be.”

  Reid tapped a fingertip on her shoulder, and made an impulsive offer. “You have my number. I’m always ready to negotiate.”

  Cassie exhaled. “I’ll bet.”

  “You know it’s true.”

  “And you think I’ll call you.”

  “You did before.”

  “But that was before.”

  “True.” Reid shrugged and locked the door behind them.

  “And if I don’t?”

  “We’re square, like I said.” He kept his tone light, hating how much he was hoping that she did call him again. It was only Friday morning. More than forty-eight hours until she went back to Manhattan.

  “You really don’t care, do you?”

  He shook his head. “It’s a bad practice to care for other people’s opinions when you want to be alone.”

  “Except for sex at regular intervals.” He nodded, but Cassie shook her head. “You don’t fool me, Reid. No one really wants to be alone. What you really want is to find someone you can trust not to betray you, then be with that person.”

  “Good theory, except I don’t believe that such a person exists.” He indicated the garage. “Want a ride anywhere?”

  “No, thanks.” Cassie headed off at a sprint, her ponytail bouncing, and he wondered if she was impatient to put distance between them. “I don’t believe you, by the way.”

  “Suit yourself.”

  To his surprise, she smiled.

  To his further surprise, he wanted her just as much as he had before she’d come to his house.

  “Thanks, Reid. For everything.”

  He watched her as she ran back to the path, enjoying the view and his sense of well-being. That was that and Reid knew it. He couldn’t regret what had happened but he did regret that there wouldn’t be more.

  Cassie Wilson could call him anything she wanted, but he knew she wouldn’t call.

  It was better that he accepted that, better that he reminded himself it was what he wanted.

  Reid tossed his keys in the air, caught them, and decided to take the truck today.

  Start fresh at F5.

  Cassie ran along the river, thinking furiously. She’d been honest with Reid. She wasn’t going to start fresh at F5, because that bit of her life was damn near perfect. She loved the club and enjoyed her work and knew she could keep doing that for the rest of her life.

  He had a point, though, about moving past her admiration of Tyler. Or more accurately, her yearning for Tyler and her conviction that she and Tyler were meant to be together. Tyler didn’t agree. Amy didn’t agree. Cassie needed to move on.

  She didn’t think for a minute that it would be easy, but they said even the longest journeys began with a single step.

  His idea for the ad was also brilliant. She could see it in her mind’s eye. They’d shoot it in the yoga room at F5 with the view east over Manhattan, at dawn. The Warrior pose would be perfect. She could look resolute and refreshed and not display too much skin. She’d worried about that, about flashing her assets over Times Square, and this would be ideal. They could shoot it as soon as she got back and make it a spring campaign, tying it in with something like Shape Up for Summer. Maybe a discount for people who joined in pairs. A buddy system. Cassie liked that a lot.

  She’d reached the river by the time she had the campaign planned in her thoughts, and considered the rest of Reid’s advice. It made sense to plan for success, to put the pieces in motion to achieve her objective.

  She wanted to find someone who knew all about her and loved her anyway. Well, the current list of contenders was pretty short. Kyle knew more than most. Ally knew a lot, but didn’t even like Cassie much. Tori knew a lot and liked her, but Cassie couldn’t think of another man who she’d trusted with her truth who wasn’t related to her.

  She stopped cold on the path in sudden realization. Reid was the only one. She’d told him a lot about herself in the past day, but that was only because it didn’t really matter. She knew she’d be leaving on Sunday, probably never to return. She doubted she’d ever see him again.

  He’d made it clear that this morning was a one-time deal. And she was good with that.

  Because really, if she was looking for a partner, Reid was a bad choice. The man didn’t do long-term. She doubted he even slept with any woman twice. The toothbrushes, the condoms, and the supply of sex toys said it all. Everything was about a single interval of intimacy, with no emotional ties. She’d known that going in, and if she felt an interest in having more, that was her own mistake. Reid had never made any such promises.

  He had told her what he thought of people trying to change the arranged deal.

  Tears. That he had a vulnerability made her smile.

  Maybe what Reid had given her was g
ood advice.

  And she’d called him Tyler. Gah. Even a bonus orgasm didn’t seem to make up for that gaffe.

  If everything was a negotiation, Cassie thought she was still in Reid’s debt.

  The question was how she would even the score.

  She reached the house to find Tori in the kitchen feeding Emily and Nick gone to the garage. “That was some run,” Tori said, her tongue firmly in her cheek.

  Cassie blushed. “I got distracted.”

  “Uh huh. Who did you meet? Or am I not supposed to ask?”

  “Reid. He’d said he’d show me the new trail.”

  Tori laughed. “Is that what he’s offering to show women now?”

  Cassie took off her shoes, using the movement to hide her embarrassment. It didn’t work.

  “Was it worth it?” Tori asked. “I’ve always wondered about the appeal of bad boys.”

  “You don’t!”

  “I do! But not enough to find out myself.”

  “It was great,” Cassie said, leaving out the bit about her faux pas. She tried to keep her voice casual. “I’m not sure about the bad boy thing, though.”

  “How so?”

  “The selection of condoms was a little disconcerting.”

  “If he was really bad, there wouldn’t have been any,” Tori noted.

  “True. And the collection of new sex toys, offered for my pleasure.”

  “No?”

  “Yes.”

  Tori shrugged. “It would have been worse if they’d been used sex toys.”

  “Oh, yuck!” Cassie said. “You’re right!”

  “And it’s not as if he could ask Andrea Thomas to clean them for him.”

  Cassie remembered the prim older lady with the no-nonsense attitude. “Why would he do that?”

  “She cleans his house.”

  “I can’t imagine she would clean those,” Cassie agreed. It had to be single-use for all those toys. The two of them looked at each other and started to smile. “What if she asked him what some of them were?”

  “Oh, Reid would explain.”