Work For It

by Ashley Bostock

  But not now.

  Not after Lina.

  And he couldn’t even get it out of his fucking throat.

  Clearly Dylan had gone about Lina all freaking wrong. Three days later, and he still couldn’t believe it. This required maximum effort.

  He paused at Regina’s desk, waiting patiently as she finished her call and hung up the phone.

  She gave him her biggest smile, making him feel like a million bucks. “Dylan. Why haven’t I seen more of you lately? You know I miss our talks.”

  Dylan grimaced. “I’m sorry about that. Looks like the Broncos might have better luck next year though.”

  “It’s the coach. I don’t like him. They need a new one. They need that Frost guy. He’d get them up to snuff.”

  Dylan chuckled. He was well-aware of who Frost was. “Frost is a college coach. You’re talking professional.”

  “So what?” She waved a hand as if that didn’t matter. “Now tell me the truth. Did you go and fall in love?”

  “Michael told you that?” he said.

  “Honey, I know things. I’ve tried to tell you guys that for years and no one listens.”

  He figured it was as good as time as any to broach the sugar cookie subject. It was on the tip of his tongue. But what did it matter at this point? He was head over heels for Lina, and it didn’t matter how it happened. Only that it did. And she didn’t reciprocate his feelings one bit.

  “Dude, are you going to yak to my grandma all day or get your ass in here? We ordered you the chicken breast. Steamed vegetables. Mashed Potatoes with the butter and sour cream on the side.” Michael spoke in a girly voice from his office door and Dylan could hear the other guys’ laughter.

  The old Dylan would have been right there touting that his body was a temple and he had to treat it as such. But since he’d indulged in all sorts of good things with Lina, he’d come to realize that his body was a temple, but it wasn’t an end-all be-all type of thing. If he ate well seventy-five percent of the time and whatever the hell he wanted the other twenty-five percent, he was doing better than most.

  He’d already started incorporating that into his social media image, posting pictures of himself eating Lucky Charms. #CheatDay. #IndulgenceHappens. #IFeelLucky He’d also begun the next chapter of Dirty Gains and had been researching fitness equipment in high schools as well as state guidelines on what was required for physical education. He wanted an in-depth look at what he was up against and if his idea would even make sense.

  “I’ll talk to you later, Regina.” Dylan leaned over and kissed her cheek. She looked like she was going to say something, but when Julia, Michael’s PR rep came up, Regina got to talking and Dylan walked into Michael’s office with the moment lost.

  Sitting in his usual seat, he took a second to eyeball his friends. Mainly Michael and Cole. They were in love. They were engaged. The only difference with them was that they seemed content. Humble. Proud. Like, not only were they on top of the mountain, but there wasn’t a damn thing that could knock them off.

  “His heads in the clouds. Knew it! Thank you for shopping.” Zander reached across the table and took a fifty from Justin’s outstretched hand.

  “Not again,” Dylan said.

  “Yep. Bet that you fell in love and she isn’t returning the sentiment. Look at you all googly eyed.” Zander laughed.

  Dylan shook his head. “Screw you. How do you guys do it?”

  Michael and Cole stopped their side conversation and looked at Dylan. “Do what?” they asked in unison.

  “Oh, everything. Keep your women happy. Accept this feeling in your chest. Does that ever go away by the way?” Dylan picked up his fork and started picking at his food.

  “You mean the feeling where you will do anything to make sure she’s safe and happy?” Michael asked.

  Dylan thought about it for a second. “Yeah, that too.”

  Cole and Michael chuckled. “No,” they said again in unison.

  “So you fell in love with Lina. You can thank me now,” Michael said as he patted himself on the shoulder.

  “Thank you for what?”

  “I brought her to Colorado for the groundbreaking ceremony and maybe if she hadn’t come to that, she wouldn’t have come back to Colorado to take a break.”

  Dylan shook his head, not sure if he should thank Michael for that or punch his friend. Because Dylan had never felt this way in his life and he couldn’t say he liked the feeling all that much. It was a love slash hate thing. He loved her, and she hated him. He hated the feeling in his chest sometimes. Like now. He felt like such a loser.

  “She doesn’t hate you,” Cole said.

  “Did I say that out loud?” Dylan glanced at four pairs of eyes. All of which were looking at him like he’d lost his mind.

  Cole cleared his throat. “I know she doesn’t hate you because I overheard her talking to Sophia. She thinks you’re holding out on her.”

  “About what?”

  “Your feelings. Duh,” Michael said. As if Dylan should know that. Dylan didn’t know. If he knew, all would be well between him and Lina. He wouldn’t be sitting here with a bunch of dudes trying to figure women out. One particular woman.

  Dylan took a drink of his water. His feelings. She wanted him to talk about his feelings. Wasn’t there anything else he could do? Wear a dress? Put on high heels? Wrangle a bull? Put on a dress and high heels and then wrangle a bull?

  “You really need to go big or go home.” Zander spoke up.

  “That’s what I would do,” Justin chimed in.

  “Give me a break? With who? Your new party planner? Mercedes…what’s her last name?” Zander asked.

  “It’s Mercedes Nicholson. And no. Just…no.” Dylan’s eyes went from Zander to Justin and back to Zander.

  “What about you, Zan?” Dylan said. “What’s up with the poker shark?”

  Zander’s eyebrows rose. “There’s nothing up with Jade. She’s just something to look at while I play. Nothing more.”

  “Keep telling yourself that,” Cole said.

  “So how do I go big or go home?” Dylan asked.

  Michael shrugged. “Simple. Woo her. Go the extra mile. Do something extraordinary for her. As much money as you have the possibilities are endless.”

  Dylan leaned back in his chair. His mind raced with ways he could woo Lina. He thought of what he’d learned about her that she loved. She was a daddy’s girl. She loved to read, write. Loved Lucky Charms. Like almost obsessively. She liked to watch old reruns like he did. She didn’t like to cook but she loved to eat.

  “Give me some ideas,” Dylan said.

  “Buy her a star. You know from that registry? Hell, buy her the Milky Way,” Zander said.

  “No. That’s for prom. Buy her a car. Like Regina’s. Chicks dig convertibles,” Justin said.

  All the while Cole and Michael were shaking their heads. Shaking them with a look on their faces that Dylan read as no wonder they are single, poor bastards.

  Dylan gave the two engaged dudes of the group a pointed look. “What are your guys’ ideas?”

  Cole shrugged. “Go for broke, man. You gotta go big. Be the beast. Get her the library. I don’t know what Lina loves, but that’s the answer. And whatever it is, make sure it’s from the heart. If you want to win her back, prove it to her.”

  Michael nodded. “Agreed. Go for broke. The gesture has to be so grand that she sees that you mean it.”

  Dylan blew out a breath. He could do this. For sure. Definitely. Put his heart on his sleeve. No problem. A gesture so grand that Lina believed him when he told her that he wanted a future with her. That they belonged together.

  What he’d intended to do when he seen Jared at the gym talking to her, touching her. He’d seen red. He didn’t want any man besides himself touching Lina or flirting with her. Especially a douche like Jared. Jared flirted with every female that walked into the gym. He used women. He had a new girlfriend every other week.

  Like I used
to.

  Shit. He used to be Jared! He couldn’t stand the guy. What did that say about his character? That he was a douche and that he needed Lina. He shuddered at the sleaze ball way Jared was trying to hit on Lina.

  “He’s having a revelation. Give him a minute.” Zander laughed.

  Dylan blinked. “Shit. I used to be Jared. You know Jared Stanly? Lina has made me a better person. I can’t let her get away.”

  Michael and Cole fist bumped each other. “Nice. Another one bites the dust.”

  Dylan shook his head. “If this doesn’t work out with Lina, I’m going to be single for as long as I live. I will never meet anyone else like her.” He pushed his chair back and stood abruptly. His heart beat fast. That pressure that he was realizing was love formed in his chest.

  He had to make it right with Lina.

  And thanks to his friends, he knew exactly what he had to do.

  “I’ve got an idea.”

  Dylan fist bumped Michael’s outstretched fist and did the same to Cole’s. “Thanks a lot.”

  As Dylan headed for Michael’s office door, he heard Zander and Justin arguing over which of them, if either, were going to be the next one to fall in love.

  He chuckled and ran smack into Regina, knocking her slightly off-balance. He reached out and steadied her.

  “Sorry. Are you okay?”

  Regina put a hand to her hip, making him think of Lina. “Of course, what do I look like a geriatric patient? You need to watch where you’re going though.”

  “Yes, ma’am. It’s just…I can’t let this girl get away. If you’ll excuse me…”

  Regina gave him a knowing smile. She didn’t seem the least bit surprised at his admission and that gave him pause.

  The sugar cookies.

  Oh shit.

  Dylan cocked his head to the side. “Did Michael mention that I was looking for the person who made sugar cookies for my gym opening?”

  Regina folded her arms across her chest. “Yes, he did.”

  Dylan leaned in close to her, catching her sugary smell. She always smelled like cookies. “Were those yours?”

  “Dylan, Dylan.” She tsked, a sly smile on her face. “Why on earth do you ask?”

  “I have a suspicion that your cookies make men fall in love. I’ve happily avoided them.” Even to his own ears his admission sounded foolish. But he had to know.

  Regina gave him a coy smile. She put a finger to her lips, shushing him. “A real magician never gives away her secrets.”

  “Ha! So they do have some secret ingredient. Did you deliver them to my open house then?”

  Regina brushed him off. “You know I’m old. I don’t remember that long ago. Short term memory is kaput. I can’t remember if I put on underwear today.” Regina started pulling out her blouse to look in her pants.

  “Okay, okay. No need to look here. It doesn’t matter if you’re commando. No one cares. You know what? The cookie thing doesn’t matter. One way or the other.” Dylan could feel the burn in his cheeks. He could feel it spreading down his neck. “Don’t worry, Regina. Bye.”

  Dylan all but ran from Regina’s cackling as he hopped inside the elevator.

  “It’s been a week and nothing,” Lina told Sophia as they sat inside Lina’s rented house. “But he is active on his social media. I’ve been stalking and following, and my little finger can’t help but double-tap. He posted one the other day, and I had no idea that muscle was called The V.” Lina wasn’t ashamed one bit about following him on social media. She wanted to see where he was and what he was up to even though she was still hurt. Plus, she liked the last picture he’d posted of himself eating, guess what? Lucky Charms. She was so proud it hurt.

  Sophia shook her head. “Michael has it too. I love licking it all over. Every time I see it, it’s like brand new. But anyway, something is up. I asked Michael and he said Dylan is way into you. I tried to get details but that was like pulling teeth out of a baby.”

  Lina didn’t know what to think anymore. One minute she was certain that she and Dylan shared the same feelings. The next, she hadn’t a clue what he was thinking. She grabbed the bottle of wine and poured more in her glass.

  Why didn’t you say the words, Dylan?

  That was all she wanted to hear. She wanted confirmation that her whirlwind feelings weren’t one-sided. She saw it in his eyes. Felt it in his touch. That was all she wanted him to do was whisper the words.

  If he wasn’t man enough to say the words she needed to hear, then he wasn’t man enough for her. Period.

  “I don’t think anything is going on. Dylan is too chicken shit to give up his bachelor status. That’s it.”

  Sophia took a drink of her wine. “No. Michael just said that Dylan was a douche. He’ll see reason. He’ll come back to you.”

  Lina shook her head and put her hands up as if weighing something in each palm. “Sophia, do I want him back? How long does it take for a guy to realize he screwed up?”

  “It took Michael a little while. You love him, though, right?”

  Lina took a large gulp of her wine. “Yeah, I do. As much as it pains me to admit it, I understand where he was coming from about not telling me that he was Dylan Truex. If I’d have known that from the get-go, I would have acted like the Lina Armstrong I was in Arizona. All professional and proper. Hardheaded. I would have had a difficult time shoving cereal down his throat the way I did.” Lina laughed at the memory of the look on Dylan’s face when she’d poured them each a bowl of Lucky Charms.

  The look of bliss when he’d actually put the spoon in his mouth.

  Then she remembered the way she felt after her first workout. Sore but invigorated. She had felt like a new person. Which was exactly what she’d needed. It made her whole live life motto seem more real.

  Just as Sophia was pouring more wine, there was a knock on her door. “Who in the hell would that be?” It was six in the evening on a Sunday night and no one knew where Lina lived, let alone knew Lina. She only knew four people in Colorado, one of whom was sitting in front of her and she doubted Cole Carrington was standing on the other side of her door.

  “It has to be Michael for you. No one else knows me or where I live.”

  Sophia raised a brow and motioned Lina to answer the door.

  “Maybe it’s Dylan,” Sophia whispered.

  Lina stopped in her tracks “Maybe not. He doesn’t know where I live.”

  The knocking persisted. “Trust me, these men have their ways. Go. Go answer.”

  Lina ignored the tumultuous feeling in her stomach. She swung her door open and came face to face with Michael.

  “Oh, hi. I told Sophia it had to be you.” Lina ignored her pang of disappointment. Then she berated herself of thinking it could possibly be Dylan. Why did she feel the need to torture herself?

  She ushered Michael inside. “Hey, babe. I came to pick you up. There’s somewhere I want to take you. A surprise.”

  Michael pulled Sophia up from the couch, and Lina looked away at their open display of affection. So sweet. So sick. Sophia giggled, and Lina tried not to listen to Michael’s sweet cooing sounds.

  Get a room, for the love of God.

  “Well, text me if anything new comes up.” Sophia gave Lina a hug and before Lina knew it, she was alone with a half-bottle of wine. Another knock sounded on her door almost immediately. She glanced around, thinking Sophia must have left something behind.

  She pulled the door open. “What did you forget—”

  Dylan stood on her doorstep holding a single red rose. He was wearing a black suit with a crisp white shirt beneath it. A deep green tie hung from his neck. Her heart cried. Life was so cruel. Why did he have to look so amazing? She took a mental stock of herself. Black yoga pants and a thin white sweater that read the cookie made me do it.

  “Surprise,” Dylan smiled. His eyes drifted to her shirt. “Cute shirt. You have no idea how fitting that actually is.”

  Lina glanced down, then back up at him.
“What’s the special occasion?”

  “You are.”

  “Me? Why?” She put a hand to her hip.

  “I came here to apologize and thought seeing me in a suit would make it easier for you to accept my apology. Can I come in?”

  Lina pushed the door open wider and stepped aside. Oh man, suit and the yummy smelling cologne. He was giving her the one-two punch. He stopped just as he was next to her and bent his head down so he was nuzzling his face into her hair.

  “The suit is working, isn’t it? And the cologne? Tell me, Lina, that I still get you hot and bothered.”

  She swallowed while simultaneously trying to keep her legs from turning into jelly. “So what are you doing here?” she asked again because honestly, she couldn’t remember what he said when she opened the door. All she saw was hot muscular badass in a suit that smelled good enough to eat. Yes, sex on a stick.

  “I came to apologize,” he whispered, still not moving away from her ear.

  “For what? You already did.”

  “No, I came for a real apology this time. One you’ll appreciate and accept for the genuine apology it is.”

  She shut the door, forcing him to move into her living room. He took up all the space in here. He was so…large. He looked around, taking in his surrounding while she did what any female with a libido would do. She watched him. Took in the white gold cufflinks at his sleeves. The polished black shoes he wore and how well his legs filled the length of them.

  “So Dylan Truex owns a suit. Dylan Truman wouldn’t ever wear one if he didn’t have to,” she said.

  “God, your sassy mouth knows no bounds. I own a suit, and you’re right, I don’t wear it if I don’t have to.” He pulled the collar away from his neck as he spoke. “But I wanted to for you. I’m sorry for telling you I was someone else and I’m sorry for letting you walk out of my office that day without telling you the full truth.”

  Lina’s stomach dropped. The full truth? It got worse?

  “No, don’t look at me like that. It’s not bad. Well, I considered it bad at one point in my life and then you walked in—or rather I did—and you changed everything for me. You changed me, and you made me see all the things I was missing. Having a heart attack changed me. It made me realize that I’m a douchebag without you—”