by Sarah Morgan
THE FOLLOWING FRIDAY, Jake strolled into Romano’s to talk to Maria and saw Paige at their usual table in the corner, talking to Frankie and Eva.
Jake only saw Paige. The late-evening sun sent light dancing across her dark hair and she was laughing with that wide, generous smile that always made him want to smile, too.
He’d been in San Francisco for the past couple of days, and he’d thought of her every minute. His concentration was shot. People had to say things to him twice.
For years he’d kept his hands off her, and he had no idea how.
It was a wonder he hadn’t blown out a few mental circuits.
He wanted to haul her into his arms and make up for lost time, despite the fact that they’d spent every spare minute of the past week doing exactly that.
“Hi, Jake.” Matt stood up, and Jake realized with a start of shock that he hadn’t even noticed his friend.
Paige had filled his field of vision.
He was about to say something when Maria appeared from the kitchen.
“Jake!” Always demonstrative, she walked across to embrace him just as Paige glanced across and noticed him.
Their eyes met and held briefly, and then she turned back to her friends.
The way she smiled at him had changed, he thought, releasing his mother. Everything was colored with new shades of intimacy and knowledge.
Maria gave him a questioning look. “Are you joining your friends or are you expecting another guest? Matt told me you’re seeing someone.”
He wished now that he hadn’t confessed to Matt that he was seeing someone. He also wished that Paige wasn’t so stubborn about not telling her brother about the shift in their relationship.
But even while part of him was working out how to persuade her it was the right thing to do, another part of him was wondering how Matt would react.
He’d made Jake promise that he wouldn’t lay a finger on his sister.
That had been almost a decade ago, he reasoned. She’d been a vulnerable teenager. This was different.
“No guest. Not tonight.” And the person he was “seeing” was right there in front of him.
He strolled across and took the seat next to Paige, surprised by the lift in his mood.
Being with her always did that to him.
They all shuffled across to make more room but still space was tight.
“How was your trip to San Francisco?” The bright, cheery way Eva asked the question told him that she knew what was going on, and it didn’t surprise him. The three women were as close as sisters and shared everything from makeup to confidences, so there was little chance that this new development hadn’t been noted.
As someone who had never felt the need to hide his relationships, it didn’t bother him. The only thing that bothered him was that Matt didn’t know.
He was going to address that.
On the other hand, was there any point in telling him about something that was probably going to end soon?
Maria put a heaped plate in front of him. Spaghetti with meatballs.
It brought back memories of his childhood. For a moment he was six years old again, sick to his stomach, and scared. His life had unraveled like a ball of wool in a cat’s paw. His world had been blown apart, his future dark and uncertain.
He’d learned a lot of things that night. He’d learned that adults talked in quiet voices when they didn’t want children to hear, he’d learned that Maria, their neighbor, was the best cook and the kindest person he’d ever met, and he’d learned that love was the most unreliable emotion there was.
He glanced at his plate and then briefly at Paige.
Her open, honest smile shook the foundations of his confidence.
She’d said that she was tough enough to handle their relationship, but could she?
What if he hurt her?
“How was business?” Matt pushed a beer toward him. Normal. Friendly.
The fact that he was so friendly made Jake feel worse.
It was time to be honest with his friend.
“Business was good.” He reached for his fork. “How is Urban Genie?”
“Busy.” Frankie had abandoned her pizza and was scribbling notes on a pad next to her plate. “Right now we have more business than we can handle.”
“But we are handling it.” Paige picked at her food. “We have good contacts, and we weren’t the only ones that Cynthia got rid of. I’ve been on the phone for the best part of two days.”
Because he couldn’t wait another moment to touch her, he dropped his hand to her leg and discovered that her thigh was bare.
“Someone asked me today if we have a website,” Eva said. “I guess we need one. Something that says what we do. What do you think, Jake?”
He couldn’t think of anything except Paige and the smooth softness of her skin. He moved his fingers higher.
What was she wearing? Shorts? A skirt that barely skimmed her bottom?
His brain fused.
Matt raised his eyebrows. “No thoughts?”
“Thoughts?” He was incapable of thoughts. He was going crazy. He couldn’t form a sentence. “On what?” He glanced down.
Skirt, he thought. It was a skirt. But there wasn’t much of it.
She had incredible legs.
“A website.” Matt gave him a curious look. “What’s wrong with you?”
“I’ve got a lot on my mind.” Paige. Naked. Those long legs wrapped around him. Those were the things on his mind. “What’s the problem?”
Paige took a sip of her drink. “The problem is that we’re having to field all these calls, and some of them are for small tasks. Dry cleaning and things like that. We’re getting no work done because we’re answering the phone all the time. We need to filter calls from clients.”
Frankie twisted spaghetti around her fork. “Maybe we need a receptionist.”
Jake forced himself to concentrate. “What you need,” he said, “is an app.”
“Why do we need an app?”
He could feel Paige looking at him but he kept his eyes on his plate. If he looked at her, he was pretty sure he’d kiss her and hang the consequences. “You’re a genie, aren’t you?” Hopefully humor would cover up his clumsy approach. “People are going to want to rub your lamp.” He dug his fork into his pasta.
“That’s not such a stupid idea.” Matt reached for his beer. “Could you do that for her?”
Jake swallowed the food in his mouth before it choked him. “Do what for her?”
“Design the app,” Matt said patiently. “What is wrong with you?”
“I’m hungry. I can’t think when I’m hungry.” And he couldn’t think with Paige’s bare thigh pressed against his. He contemplated making some excuse. Vanishing to the men’s room, and then taking a seat on the other side of the table when he returned.
“You want me to take your sister on as a client? You’re kidding. I’d rather rub my flesh with an armadillo.”
Frankie grinned, but Paige made a little sound of protest. “I’m great to work with.”
He kept his eyes on his plate. “You’re a control freak, Paige.”
“I’m a perfectionist.” She hesitated. “Although I admit there are times when I like to be in charge. You’re not afraid of strong women, are you, Jake?”
He thought of her, riding him lightly, that wicked smile on her face.
“There’s strong and there’s controlling. You can’t even order food in a restaurant without wanting to go and cook it for yourself.”
“I like things the way I like them. What’s wrong with that?”
“Nothing. Except that I also like things the way I like them. You and I together would be a fast road to frustration.” It would also be a fast road to sexual oblivion. He knew. He’d already taken that road. “I don’t want to work with you. I might kill you. But I can give you some tips.”
Matt frowned. “Are you seriously refusing to help my baby sister?”
Baby? Baby?
Thi
nking about what they’d done together made heat break out on the back of his neck.
“Yeah. I’m seriously refusing. I let her run my event.”
“Which we did brilliantly,” Paige said, and he inclined his head.
“Which you did brilliantly. But that was your expertise. I draw the line on taking you on as a client. It would ruin a beautiful relationship. I don’t want to mess that up.” Except that he’d already messed it up. Or she had. He could no longer remember who was responsible for what had happened between them. The whole thing was a hot blur of chemistry and steamy moments.
“Nothing will get messed up. I don’t want anything complicated,” Paige said. “But maybe you can’t handle it.”
He wondered whether she was talking about the app or their relationship. “The complicated part isn’t the technology. I could put that together for you while drunk.”
“Then what’s wrong?”
Why the hell was she asking? She knew what was wrong.
“I’ll talk to one of my team. Get them to work something up.”
Matt looked baffled. “Why don’t you do it yourself?”
Because things were getting complicated with Paige. It had only been a week, and already he felt unsettled. He never felt unsettled in relationships. His relationships were the one simple part of his life. “I don’t mix business and friendship—”
“You’re building her an app,” Matt said mildly, “not sleeping with her.”
Eva knocked her drink over, flooding the table, and Paige shot to her feet, long legs glistening with sticky liquid.
Frankie pushed a napkin in her direction, and Jake slid out of the booth before he could be tempted to lick it off her bare legs.
“I’ll build your damn app,” he muttered. “And Dani can find someone to help with receptionist duties until you’re on your feet.”
Paige brushed past him on her way to the restroom, and for a brief moment he felt the heat of her body against his.
Then she was gone, leaving him disorientated.
Holy shit.
He stood for a moment, wondering how he was going to unravel this.
Frankie, ever practical, had finished mopping the table, and Matt sat down again.
Jake saw Paige walk around the back of the restaurant and vanish toward the restrooms.
“I’ll get you another drink,” he said to Eva, and followed Paige.
He caught her before she could step through to the restroom, closed his hand around her arm and drew her outside into the narrow passageway that ran alongside the restaurant.
He pushed her against the wall, caging her.
“What are you doing? What’s wrong with you?” Her eyes widened. “You don’t need to build an app if you don’t want to. There’s no need to—”
“You’re driving me crazy.” He could smell her hair and the faint scent of her perfume. He wanted to strip off her clothes and kiss his way down her delectable body. Instead, he kissed her lips, hard, demanding and felt her moan against his mouth.
“Jake—”
He jammed his fingers into her hair, holding her head still for his kiss, feeling the bite of her nails in his shoulders as she kissed him back.
Far in the distance he heard the muffled sound of conversation and laughter, the scent of garlic mixing with the humid summer air, but out here there was nothing but the two of them.
He pressed her back against the wall, slid his hands up her bare thighs and felt her strain against him.
“I missed you,” he murmured.
“You were gone for two days.”
“It was too long.” He stroked between her legs and felt her gasp against his mouth. “You want me, too.”
“Yes—”
Who knew how far that kiss would have gone, but then there was a clatter from the kitchen, interspersed with colorful Italian swearing.
Paige pulled away, eyes wide.
They stared at each other, gazes locked, and then it occurred to him that if they didn’t go back to the table soon, someone would come looking for them.
He moved his hand. Reluctantly he stepped away from her. “We need to get back. What are you doing this weekend?”
“I— Nothing. Working, I guess.”
“Spend it with me.”
He couldn’t believe he’d said it.
He’d never spent an entire weekend with a woman. Two consecutive days.
Paige smiled. “That sounds good. What do you want to do?”
“You need to ask?”
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
If you think love is the answer, you’re probably asking the wrong question.
—Frankie
“ARE YOU JOINING us this weekend?” Frankie closed down her laptop and stood up. “Eva and I are taking a picnic to Central Park tomorrow.”
Paige shook her head. “I need to work.”
Frankie gave her a long look. “Does your ‘work’ have rock-hard biceps, a very sexy smile and run this place?”
Euphoria mixed with anxiety. “Do you think I’m crazy?”
“Honestly? Yeah, I do.” Frankie slipped her laptop into her bag. “I’m fond of Jake, but the guy is a notorious player.”
“I’m playing, too. I’m having fun.”
“Are you? Because that’s great, as long as you don’t fall in love with him.”
Paige felt her whole body tense. “I won’t.”
“Are you sure? Because this is the fourth weekend in a row you’ve spent with him and if you’re dreaming of carriages and white dresses, that’s not Jake.”
“I know that’s not Jake. I’ve known him longer than you have.”
“Yeah, the difference is that I haven’t been in love with him for most of my life.” Frankie stuffed a thick pile of papers into her bag and Paige swallowed.
“I’m not—maybe I was once, but not now and—”
“Good.” Frankie pushed her glasses up her nose. “So your only other problem is Matt. Have you told him yet?”
Paige felt a rush of guilt. “No. It was just one night and—”
“And now it’s a few nights.” Frankie’s voice was flat. “You should tell him, Paige. Creeping around in a relationship is a really bad thing. Believe me, I know. I was brought up with creeping. It always, always comes out in the end and when it does it’s always hideous.”
Paige knew she was thinking of her mother. “This is different. What would I tell him? We’re having fun, that’s all. We’re both unattached. It’s probably going to end soon. There’s nothing to tell, Frankie.”
“You’re setting fire to the sheets with his best friend. That’s something he should know. What does Jake think?”
It was the one point of disagreement between them.
“He wants to tell him, but I made him promise not to.”
“That’s tough on him. You’re putting him in a difficult position.”
Paige sighed. “Frankie—”
“I love you. You’re my best friend. But I’m worried about you. This is going to come back and bite you. If Matt finds out, he’s going to be hurt and then you’ll be hurt, too. I don’t want that to happen. I like Jake, but that won’t stop me killing him if he hurts you both.”
Paige rubbed her fingers over her brow. “I’ll think about it. I’ll see how it goes this weekend. Before you leave, is there anything new I need to know?”
“Everything is under control. The wedding is organized. They wanted me to recommend a photographer so I called Molly.”
“Good choice.” They’d all worked with Molly at Star Events and found her to be a talented photographer. “We should ask Molly if she’d like to be one of our preferred suppliers. Anything else?”
“Matt asked me if I could quote for designing a roof garden. Victoria, who normally does that for him, is overloaded.” Frankie heaved the bag onto her shoulder. “I’d like to help out, but I understand if you’d rather not overlap business.”
“We’re partners,” Paige said. “You don’t
have to ask my permission. If you’d like to do it, then do it. And I can’t think of anything better than sharing business contacts with my brother.”
“You didn’t want favors.”
“This isn’t a favor. He’s employing our services. I’ll charge him.”
Frankie grinned. “You’re turning into a ruthless tycoon. I’ll say yes then and go over to the space with him and take a brief. It’s a big place over on the Upper West Side and they want to throw a party once it’s done. A kind of ‘roof warming.’ I’ll make sure Urban Genie gets the chance to pitch for that.”
Frankie left the room and Paige settled down to work.
She made it through the afternoon without making any major errors. She put together financial estimates for two events, made appointments to see two new venues and took calls from two people looking for a job. She added them to a list and promised she’d be in touch if, and when, they started recruiting.
Until they were established she didn’t feel safe employing people. She didn’t want to have to lay people off.
She settled down to work on a pitch for a major marketing event and by the time she looked up again the sky was dark and lights had come on all around the city.
She stood up and stretched, her bones aching from sitting for too long in one place.
“You’re working late.” Dani stood in the doorway, her hair tumbling around her narrow shoulders. “Jake asked me to talk to you about what you need. Said you wanted someone to answer phones and stuff. Laura can do that for you. She’s smart. Been with us a couple of weeks.”
“What did she do before?”
“She was at home with kids. Lost a bit of confidence and found it hard to get back into work. Now she’s working for us.”
“You took her on?”
“Not me. Jake. She was a risky hire, but Jake is never afraid of risk. He saw something in her that others didn’t. He’s almost always right.” Dani eased away from the door frame. “I’ll bring Laura to you tomorrow and you can explain what you need. She used to work as a receptionist in one of the big hotels before she had a family. When she gets her confidence back she’s going to be great. You going home anytime soon?”
“Yes. Actually no, probably not.” Paige blinked, realizing her mind had been miles away. “Not for a while. I have work to do.”