Chasing Happy (Texas Desires #1)

by Rylie Roberts

“What did you do?” Margaret ripped the phone out of his hand and placed it back on the cradle. She was red hot mad and it was all directed toward him. Why did this feel like he was living an episode of the Twilight Zone? She’d been fine a moment ago. What happened that had her fuming at him?

  “What did I do with what?” he asked defensively. Anger licked at his restraint, and right now, he needed a level head. “You need to fill me in on why you’re staring at me like that.” He rubbed a hand down his jaw, resisting the urge to close his eyes. His headache was coming on strong.

  “She’s trying to return the clothes. Why’s she doing that, Reed?” Margaret glared down at him.

  “What clothes?” he asked.

  “All of them. Everything you’ve given her. She left them in the buyer’s office this morning. Helena arrived to the stack of them left with a manager. They’re not sure what to do.”

  “Send them back to Lara,” Reed said, reaching for his phone to call Lara. Margaret should have known that answer. It wasn’t rocket science.

  “She’s made it clear she doesn’t want them.”

  “Send them back anyway with whatever excuse works. I’ll take care of this,” he said, looking for Lara’s office extension.

  “You do that, Reed Prescott. You make this right. Women like her don’t stumble into your life without reason. You had a chance at something good. You make this right.” Margaret pointed a finger in his face. He had a mother, albeit a pathetic one, he didn’t need Margaret’s attitude this morning. His problem with making that point? Margaret echoed the words his heart anthemed since last night.

  “I’ll take care of it. Send the clothes back to her.” He dialed Lara’s number and it went to voice mail. He slammed down the phone. He could feel the tic in his jaw jumping. It was already eight forty-five. Lara should be at work by now. Maybe she was running late from taking the time to return his shit this morning. That thought pissed him off that much more. He’d call her back in fifteen minutes, and she better answer that damn phone. Frustrated beyond words, he dialed security. He wanted to know more about that hurt little girl she used to be.

  ~~~

  “Man, you look different,” Jonathon said as Lara came out of her office. She ignored his words, giving him a polite smile, and lifted her coffee mug in his direction. She knew she looked nothing like she had, but there was comfort in her old style of business professional, and honestly, having her hair up off her shoulders was just easy to manage throughout the day.

  Funny though, she’d worn flats this morning. She’d chosen these to help ease some of the burden on her feet from those high heels, but these cheap flats weren’t near as comfortable as the heels Reed had purchased for her. She’d have to remember that in the future, maybe replacing them as soon as possible.

  She entered the break room where a large group of her co-workers were gathered. She hadn’t made it into the inner office circle yet. Several worried faces turned in her direction, but she must have been deemed worthy of hearing their conversation, because they turned back to what appeared to be a giant gossip-fest in full swing.

  She poured her coffee, added cream, and listened to tidbits being bandied about. Words like “big office” and “she’s not that pretty” were the most commonly used phrases. Lara smiled for the first time that day. Whoever they were talking about was currently getting raked over the coals.

  “I’m tired of his women getting preferential treatment. I worked hard to get where I’m at.” Lara understood that one too. The workplace should be fair if nothing else.

  “Mr. Prescott just gives them the jobs to shut ’em up.” Lara startled at the name, spilling a little coffee from her mug. She looked over, and one of the gossipers was reading something from her phone. The words “foundation” and “rare appearance” stood out.

  She left the break room in a rush, not waiting around for any more details. She certainly didn’t want them to know she’d personally been at the foundation dinner. Visions of the man who confronted Reed, along with his much younger companion came to mind. Did he own Press, Inc.? And more importantly, would that mean Reed was related to the owner of this company?

  She carefully placed her coffee mug on its warmer, thinking over the possibility of what she’d heard. Since she spent the morning in the marketing department going over the latest strategic plan for the Asian deal, she took a minute at her computer and typed a simple “Mr. Prescott” in the search field since she didn’t know the man’s first name.

  The first image to pop up on her screen showed the older man who had made Reed so upset last night. Lara sat back in her chair, biting at her fingernail. So, he did own the company and apparently was also related to Reed. Maybe his father? Surely not, he had to have fifty years on Reed. Maybe grandfather? Lara stared at the screen a second more, contemplating what she’d heard in the breakroom.

  The one big plot twist that wasn’t making any sense in the gossip story was how angry Reed had become at his family member. Ugly accusations were tossed out. Reed was bold, but she didn’t see that being a good move if his family employed him.

  Another thought occurred. Who were the women in the office connected to the senior Mr. Prescott? Had she met them without even knowing? She ignored the creep factor of that particular old man dating such young women and quickly typed another search command, simply typing Reed Prescott’s name, before hitting the images options. Photos took shape on the screen. Reed was front page news across world. Immediate panic set in when she saw herself standing right beside him in the photos. Lara quickly clicked the link to an article attached to the photo, only to find the page not found. She hit the back arrow and that same process happened several more times. There were pictures of her and Reed, but the stories weren’t available.

  She typed Reed Prescott’s name into the search bar and clicked the web option. The first story link was from Business Weekly. She began to read the article and her heart stopped in her chest. Panic set in as her fingers began to shake. Dear Lord, how had she not known? He was the youngest entrepreneur on the Forbes 500 list. He owned or had holdings in hundreds of different businesses across the world. He was based out of Texas and the estranged grandson of Burl Prescott who wasn’t seated as high on the list as Reed.

  Her mouth went dry as her stomach rolled.

  “Jonathon,” she called out, still staring at the screen. Her great plan to avoid Reed Prescott at all cost just got a hell of a lot harder.

  “Yes,” he said, appearing out of nowhere.

  “Does Reed Prescott own this company?” she asked and closed her eyes, waiting for the answer.

  “Yes…” She felt the color drain from her face as she turned toward him and met his gaze. “Are you okay?”

  “Oh God.” She rolled back in her chair and dropped her head between her legs. Breathing heavily, she knew she was about to hyperventilate.

  “I’ll take it from here.” Apparently passing out wasn’t as imminent as she thought. Her head popped up at Reed’s voice in her office. He was looking at her like Jonathon had when he saw her this morning. Like he wasn’t entirely sure it was her. Her heart began pounding in her chest double time.

  “Hey, Mr. Prescott,” Jonathon said and then asked her, “You need some water or something, sunshine?”

  “No…” she said with a shaky voice. It was more a no to Reed being there with her than anything Jonathon asked.

  She watched Reed come into her office uninvited and clap Johnathon on the shoulder while giving him an easygoing grin. What a lie. There was nothing easygoing about that man. Her cheeks flamed as she remembered how easily he’d manipulated her last night. Oh God! It was her they were talking about in the break room. She dropped her head back between her legs again.

  “Give us a minute?” she heard Reed ask.

  “Sure. Shut the door?” Jonathon asked, already heading out.

  “No,” she called out quickly, but Reed’s voice was stronger and louder.

  “Yes, please.”
Of course her assistant followed the boss’s directive. She heard the door shut and saw Reed’s tennis shoes close to her chair. She didn’t want to look up; she just wanted him to go away. Over her life, she’d gotten herself in some funky situations, but this might actually take the cake. Could she be any dumber?

  “Do you need a paper bag?” Reed asked. His hand came to rest on her back. She couldn’t allow him to touch her. She shoved up and backward all in the same move, creating distance between them. That morning, her bright idea and sole strategic plan had included dodging Reed Prescott at every turn, but never in all her wildest dreams had she expected him to come in like he owned the place because he did Own. The. Place. Oh God!

  “You look like the young girl that ran out in front of me.”

  She schooled her features and tried hard to think. Calm, cool, collected—yes! That was what she needed to maintain! Until horrific images of him between her legs sent immediate warmth flooding across her entire body. Embarrassment flooded her senses. In what world did this extraordinary man ever want anything to do with someone like her? Unaware that she’d held her breath, stars began to twinkle around her eyes. In a rush, she exhaled deeply. With sheer force of will, she gathered her composure. She linked her fingers together in front of her and crossed, then uncrossed, her legs where she sat in the chair. She wasn’t equipped to deal with this. Why the hell hadn’t she listened to Kade?

  “I’m more comfortable…” She started weakly, then stopped to clear her throat when her voice cracked midsentence. He grinned and fully faced her. She moved her eyes to the wall right behind his head. “I’m more comfortable with the door open.”

  “I can’t imagine why, but had you answered your phone the dozen or so times I called, I wouldn’t have been forced down here. So you saw the picture?” Reed asked. He stood directly in front of her seat and stared down at her, crossing his arms over his chest.

  “Yes, and I know who you are, and you lied to me.” Her voice broke again.

  “I never lied. I omitted…”

  “I’m being talked about all over this office. Now I know why I got this big office. I’m being lumped together with all your other women. I didn’t know.” She couldn’t hold the anxiety in any longer; her hands were flying, moving with every word she spoke. She stood abruptly, rubbing her temples with her fingers, trying to come up with some way around this.

  “Why in the world do you hide your body under those clothes?” Her fingers stopped moving, and she looked at him incredulously.

  “How can you even think of a thing like that right now?” The words were more an accusation than a question.

  “Lara, I want us to start over,” Reed said. He took the steps separating them and she moved backward. “I fucked things up last night.”

  “You lied to me.” She couldn’t get past that thought. Forget last night; every thought she had centered on right this minute. All the time they’d spent together had been based on deceit. How had she not known?

  “I never lied.” He was inches from her. His scent flooded her overburdened brain cells. Panic filled her heart. Slowly, he reached out and took her upper arms in a gentle hold. He drew her close to his body. The loud drumming in her ears required she put distance between them in order to think straight. She broke away and moved, but he followed. “I can’t ever remember being with a woman that didn’t know who I was or who didn’t want me for my money. You were so refreshing. I never lied. I just didn’t come clean up front.”

  She felt like a caged animal with her cell getting smaller and smaller by the second. Reed towered over her, backing her into a corner. Chaos reigned supreme as her heart tripped in her chest when she bumped against something behind her. His fingertips grazed her shoulders.

  “I’m sorry about last night. I have no excuse for my behavior except to say that will never happen again.” His fingers traced up her neck, and she physically braced herself for them to continue on to her face. Would he kiss her? No, he couldn’t kiss her. She was never going to speak to him again! He tilted her head up toward his.

  Her eyelids slipped closed and her lips parted. Seconds passed with only the hammering in her heart keeping her focused on how much she didn’t want this kiss. She could smell his cologne—God, she loved that scent. Her fist bunched into his T-shirt. Seconds passed and the only thing she felt were his hands in her hair. He removed her clips and fanned her long hair over her shoulders. Her eyes popped open.

  “You should never hide yourself like this. You’re too beautiful. Fuck it if anyone around here gets jealous,” he murmured, his breath caressing her face.

  She stared up at him silently.

  “I want us to start over,” he said quietly. “What do you say about that?”

  “You want to date me?” she asked, trying to make sense of his words. Even saying them out loud didn’t help.

  “I don’t have time for dating, but we can call it that,” he murmured, leaning in to place a small kiss on the corner of her mouth. It was a very sweet move.

  “What would you call it?” she finally asked, trying to maintain some sanity. His hands were making that task impossible. His fingers skimmed her face before grazing lower. He caressed her shoulders until they worked their way under the collar of her cotton dress shirt. She was thrown off when he unbuttoned the top button, giving his fingers more access to her skin.

  “Where are the cosmetics I bought you? They brought out your eyes. You have remarkable eyes.” He kissed the other corner of her mouth.

  “Reed, answer my question.” She placed both hands on his chest, but couldn’t quite push him away like she’d intended.

  “I want to have sex with you regularly.” His hands framed her face again and his lips began to lower to hers.

  Her breath hitched inside her chest and her heart pounded so loudly she couldn’t hear herself think. Never in her life had anyone ever said something so crazy to her. Regular sex? She turned her face away seconds before he made contact. “Like exclusive sex?”

  “If that’s what you want. I haven’t done anything like that before, but we can give it a try.” He turned her face back and his lips captured hers. Much like last night, the minute their mouths touched, nothing else mattered. There was a brief gentle persuasion to open, but honestly, it didn’t take much. His tongue slid forward and she met him halfway. She was drawn into the tight embrace of his arms. He lifted her off her feet, his brute strength easily accomplishing his task. Her hands clasped his muscular biceps, trying to hold on.

  He increased the tempo of the kiss. Reed ate at her mouth, his teeth nipping and his tongue probing. She opened further under his insistence. It was all the encouragement he needed. Reed turned her head and delved deeper. She gripped her hands tighter around his arms. She was drowning under his very skilled tongue. Only her need to breathe had her wrenching away from the kiss, gasping as his hands slid underneath her shirt. When had he untucked the ends? One of his palms ran up her back while the other slid forward, cupping the swell of her breast over her lacy bra. His lips worked their way to her jaw and settled on her ear.

  “I want you,” he whispered softly. He licked around the shell of her ear and slid his hand under the fabric of her bra. He palmed and kneaded the underside of her breast as his fingers worked her nipple into a hardened bud. “Your taste stayed with me all night. I couldn’t jack myself enough to get you out of my mind.”

  To prove the statement, he ground his hips forward, rolling his hard, stiff cock against her belly. There would be no saving her panties at this point.

  She’d never been in a situation like this before. His hands circled her waist as he lifted her. He was so strong, so capable. She knew what he was doing, and deep down, she wanted what he offered. She laid her forehead on his shoulder as he pulled her skirt up and shoved her panties aside until the thin material broke free. Instinct more than anything had her wrapping a leg around his waist.

  “You’re so wet. It’s such a turn-on.” His fingers slid
deftly inside her. She held back her deep moan, allowing only their panting breaths to fill the silence of the room. His thumb worked her nub. She slid her other leg around his waist and bit into his shoulder as she wrapped herself completely around him. She’d lost all ability to reason, driven only by her desire for him.

  He moved her body slightly to the right and anchored her firmly against the wall. She had no idea when he had freed himself, but she tossed her head back as his long, hard cock slid inside her. It was the most intimate moment of her life. He completely filled her, stretching her more than she ever thought possible. Her eyes widened and remained riveted to his as she exhaled under the deep invasion. She saw the intensity they shared reflected back in his depths, her connection to this man stronger than any other before.

  “I can’t move,” he whispered softly. She wasn’t sure she’d heard him right. Her eyelids slowly slid closed, and she tightly wrapped her arms around his neck, drawing him closer to her.

  “Be very quiet,” he breathed into her ear as he slid out, easing some of the burden only to thrust forward again, driving deeper this time. She panted and rolled her hips, clenching as he reared back, slamming forcefully into her again. “You’re so tight.”

  He slowly picked up the rhythm, moving faster and harder, driving all coherent thought away. It wasn’t until his hand covered her mouth that she even realized she’d been whimpering. “Shh, baby. You can be as loud as you want later.”

  He never stopped pistoning his hips as he skimmed a hand down between their bodies. His forefinger easily found her clit. He applied pressure and began quick, fast strokes with his fingertip. She dropped her head to his shoulder and bit down seconds before the orgasm racked her body, sending her soaring over the edge. She registered her body bucking. She wasn’t sure if he was doing that to her or if she was, but she rode out the sensation, letting the moment take her as she clung to him with everything she had.

  ~~~

  His orgasm steadily built. Even as risky as this was, Reed still tried everything in his power to hold off his release. She felt too damn good wrapped around him to want to rush this moment. The strong spasms of her tight channel drove him to wildly buck into her over and over again. The sexy little sounds she made as her body trembled in his arms were his undoing.