“Only in aviation?” I stared at her. “Are you being serious right now?”
“I’m always serious when it comes to the company,” she replied before looking around for the chef and motioning him back when she caught his eye. “Was that all?”
“No.” I crossed my arms and raised my chin, my gaze locking on hers when she turned back to me. “Leave me out of your schemes next time, Mother. I mean it. I’m not here to play games, and I don’t have time to be inundated by the fallout of yours.”
Before I’d even finished the last sentence, I saw that she planned on ignoring me. Like she always did.
She got this faraway look in her eyes, already moving on from this conversation in her head. For anyone who knew her as well as I did, my mother could be an open book. She simply didn’t always care enough to hide her intentions.
To her mind, it would be a done deal that Faye and I would get together eventually. She thought it made sense, approved of Faye as a match, and thought I would bend to her will if she tried hard enough for long enough.
Good luck with that, Selena. There was no way it was happening, but she wouldn’t just lie down and accept it if I told her that right now.
“I need to get to the office,” I said instead. “I’ll see you later.”
She gave me a wave with her fingers and went back to discussing Dad’s diet and menu for the week with the chef. Before I even made it to the garage, she’d have put our exchange out of her mind.
I’d thought I’d made myself crystal clear at lunch, but it seemed she hadn’t even begun to get the message. Not my problem.
If she thought that my being back would mean I’d fall in line with her often outrageous plans or misconstrued ideals for my life, she had another thing coming. I’d only been back for a short time, but she’d learn soon enough that I wasn’t going to let her push me around. I hadn’t in the past, and she’d had a lot more leverage over me then. I had no idea why she was under the impression it would be different this time.
Either way, if she wanted to waste her time leaking bullshit rumors to the press, then so be it. I already planned on having my assistant block the address and number of every unsolicited sender in my inboxes. After that, I’d speak to our actual PR department at the company to explore options surrounding getting some relevant news out there about my taking over as CEO.
It had been on my to-do list anyway. Selena’s latest stunt had just made it move up a few places on said list.
Archer was already waiting in my office when I walked in, his dark eyes glinting with humor when he held up the takeout coffee he’d brought for me. “You look like you’ve been through the wars this morning. I’m assuming you’ve seen the gossip, then?”
“I have,” I grumbled, managing a small grin when I took the coffee from him. “Thanks for this. Caffeine might enable me to act like I’m not ten seconds away from losing my shit today.”
He made a sympathetic noise. “I got you a double shot. When I saw the news, I thought you might need it since I didn’t recall you telling me you’d had a hot date with a girl who was practically your fiancée.”
“Nope. I just didn’t know at the time that my mother’s stunt included leaking some false information to the media.”
“Are you kidding?” Surprise flashed in his eyes. “Your own mother leaked that shit?”
“Yep.” I moved in behind my desk and started up my computer, glancing at him over the screen as I shook my head. “I should’ve seen it coming. At the very least, I should’ve known she’d pull something like this.”
“Why would she?” He cocked his head, rubbing his chin between his thumb and index finger. “Surely the press will realize you’re not actually in a relationship when you’re not seen together again.”
“My mother thinks we will see each other again.” My eyes rolled when I opened my emails to find a flood of new emails on the subject. I jabbed my hand toward the screen, giving it a half turn so he could see what I was referring to. “She set all this in motion for the publicity, and she’ll keep them guessing until she convinces me to go along with her plan.”
“Will you?” he asked.
I snorted. “Not a chance, but she won’t accept it if I tell her that. We’ll have to see how all of this plays out. In the meantime, we need to get our own media strategies in place. We’re both young and new around here. I might not agree with her methods, but she’s right about needing to set the public at ease.”
“We’ll work it out,” he said confidently. “I’ll set up a meeting, but why don’t we have our own strategic session?”
“We can if you want, but I’ve never been very good at playing the media.” I shrugged when he gave me a disbelieving look. “What? I’ve never had time for it, and even though I understand why people are interested in what’s going on at the company, I’ve never really gotten the interest in our personal lives. It’s not like we’re celebrities.”
“Maybe not, but you are one of the richest families around.” Archer laughed and ducked when I crumpled up a sheet of paper and tossed it at his head. “What? I’m just saying. There’s always interest in the well-off families. I bet you could even get your own reality show if you wanted.”
“If you ever make that joke in front of my mother, I’ll throw something a lot heavier than paper at you,” I warned, groaning as I covered my face with one of my hands. “She’d be on the phone to a producer within minutes, no doubt.”
He let out a low whistle between his teeth, his brows climbing. “You really think so?”
I nodded. “I’m almost positive she’d make it happen if she thought it’d be good for the company.”
“Well, if it makes you feel any better, I don’t really understand why people would want to know anything about your personal lives either. Feel like doing that strategic planning session while we also just have a beer and blow off some steam later?”
I considered his offer. “Sure. Where do you want to go?”
“There’s a new bar everyone’s talking about.” When he saw my eyes widening in warning, he gave his head a shake and chuckled. “No, dude. Not like that. Trust me, there won’t be any press there, and it’s not the kind of place I’d imagine your high-society girlfriend would hang out.”
“In that case, it sounds perfect. But she’s not my girlfriend.”
When we arrived at the bar he’d mentioned hours later, I saw what he’d meant. This wasn’t an upscale, après-work place. It was a dive bar with a ton of drinks specials, a large dance floor, a burger bar, and classic rock music flowing through the speakers at this hour. Undoubtedly, the music would become more upbeat later when the dance floor started filling up.
I was pretty sure Faye Marston wouldn’t be caught dead in a place with peanuts on the tables, beer served in pitchers, and gigantic burgers dished up on paper plates. I, on the other hand, loved it instantly.
The vibe was relaxed, the drinks cold and cheap, the food delicious, and the music good. Archer and I tossed around some ideas about how to handle our media presences, but eventually decided to leave the details up to the professionals. As long as they focused on us as professionals, we wouldn’t have any problems.
We were back to discussing my mother, and I was telling him about our conversation this morning when I noticed a familiar face across the room. The dance floor between us had started filling up, but that was definitely her.
This city was small, but it wasn’t that small. Brittany and I running into each other? Again? That was fate, and I wasn’t even going to try to resist it.
14
BRITTANY
Let’s go out, she said. It will be fun, she said. It had been ages since we’d gone out on a girls’ night, and Shelley had insisted it was time.
We were out with a couple of the other female teachers. Shelley was being a good sport, telling jokes and ordering drinks with funny names, but I wasn’t really feeling it. My mood was down in the dumps, and I honestly didn’t know why I’d agr
eed to come out.
An awkward exchange I’d had with Beckett earlier on in the day had left me feeling shaken and worried. He’d mostly been giving me the cold shoulder since we’d broken up, which had suited me just fine, but now he was suddenly digging into my comments from a parent-teacher night that had happened months ago.
The meeting I’d had with him had been extremely uncomfortable. I’d expected things would be different once we’d broken up, which was why I’d been so careful and hesitant about it, but I hadn’t expected him to go digging into the past. It was like he was looking for something to nail me with, and I had a feeling he wasn’t going to stop anytime soon.
Thankfully, he could dig as deep as he wanted, and he still wouldn’t find anything he could really use against me. I took pride in my work, and I surpassed every standard set by the school. If the fact that my comments had been written in shorthand was the worst he could come up with, I was probably safe.
For now.
I’d have to watch my back, though. Bruising his ego had painted a giant bull’s-eye on me, and it seemed like he was coming after me with all guns blazing. Sure, maybe I shouldn’t have done it in public, but he couldn’t honestly have thought anyone would stick around for that kind of treatment.
“Cheer up,” Shelley said from her spot beside me, flashing me a wide smile as she picked up our pitcher of margaritas. “Beckett is just acting out. He’ll get over it soon enough.”
“I hope so,” I replied and refilled my glass, taking a long sip of the tart and tangy drink. Salt from the rim lingered on my lips, and I licked it off before taking another sip, turning to face her as I set the glass down. “Has he been giving you any trouble?”
“Me? No.” She shrugged her narrow shoulders, green eyes lighting with glee. “Let him try. I’m Team Brittany all the way. No one deserves to be treated like that. If he wants to be petty by messing with me just because I’m friends with you, we’ll make sure every girl he might come across knows just how vile he really is.”
“Why do I get the feeling you’re going to do that anyway? You look like you’re enjoying the thought way too much.”
She waggled her fiery eyebrows at me. “That’s because I am. He’s an ass. Until he learns how to behave properly, it’s our sisterly duty to warn girls away.”
“Oh, brother.” I dropped my face into my hands, but I couldn’t help laughing just a little. “Have I ever told you that I’m glad you’re on my side?”
“Nope, but I know you love me.” She winked and pulled my hands away from my face with both of hers, scooting back on the bench as she did. “Now come on. We’re going dancing.”
A whoop went up around the table when the other girls heard what she said. They wasted no time sliding out of the booth and making their way over to the dance floor.
I wasn’t feeling quite as enthusiastic, but I followed Shelley anyway. Maybe getting lost in the rhythm of the music was the way to go. It had never really happened for me before, but there was a first time for everything.
Sitting around moping wasn’t a viable alternative option, so I let her drag me through the crowd and tried to get my head in the game. About halfway to the dance floor, something in the air shifted. My skin prickled as the sensation of being watched settled over me like a blanket.
I jerked my head up, looking around until I spotted Tristin across the room. What the heck is he doing here?
At least I’d solved the mystery of who was watching me. His eyes were heavy on mine when our gazes met, and then he lowered his to do a long, slow perusal down the length of my body. Something about his gaze made electricity shoot through me.
My body lit up like a firework, my worry and uncertainty over what was going to happen with Beckett melting away under Tristin’s heated eyes. The space and people between us blended into my peripheral vision, and the music was replaced by the sound of blood rushing in my ears.
Every part of my being zeroed in on my awareness of him as we stared at each other across the crowded room. When he was looking at me like that, it was difficult to believe that those photos of him with another woman had been taken just a couple of days ago.
Well, if he wants another woman, fine, but he might as well see what he’s missing. My gaze stayed on his as I moved onto the dance floor, intent on making him eat his heart out.
Shelley and the girls had thrown themselves into the sultry tune, their heads bent together as they laughed about something while swaying to the music. None of them seemed aware of the fact that my attention wasn’t on them.
Dancing provocatively wasn’t like me at all, but I couldn’t help myself. Tristin sat at a table with another guy, but his whole upper body had turned to face me. He was wearing a white button-down shirt with the top two buttons undone.
There was a suit jacket hanging over the side of his chair that matched his light gray slacks. His dark hair was slightly messy on top, the ends just long enough to lift and let the muted yellow light behind him make the strands shine.
Shadows partially hid his face, but the strong planes of his jaw were visible. I could see it was set, ticking as he watched me put on a show for him.
My hips moved from side to side, my arms up and my loose hair gathered in my hands. I had my head dripped slightly back, but my eyes remained firmly on him.
The dark-haired man with him glanced between us with a faintly amused expression on his face. He refilled his glass, then twisted around in his seat at their table and began chatting to a couple of girls sitting behind him. I didn’t know who he was, but the girls seemed to like him. He had them giggling in no time, leaving Tristin’s attention to me.
With his companion otherwise occupied, his gaze burned into mine. One of his hands rested on the table, and his fingers curled into a tight fist. His full lips formed a smirk, and he suddenly stood up.
Unhurriedly rolling up his sleeves with that smirk still in place and his eyes on mine, he started moving forward. My heartbeat sped up when it dawned on me that he was coming over, confidently striding closer with a determined gleam in his eyes.
He didn’t stop until his chest was almost against mine, his hand moving up and the backs of his fingers brushing against my cheek before he pressed it against my ear. His head dipped down, his lips against the shell of my ear to make sure I could hear him above the music.
“Fancy meeting you here,” he murmured, his other hand coming to rest lightly on my hip. “Are you following me, Brittany?”
“No.” My head jerked back to look at him, and I saw the amusement flickering in his eyes. “You jerk. I thought you were being serious for a second there.”
My voice was in danger of being drowned out by the music, but he was still standing close enough to hear me. He laughed, and his fingers flexed on my hip.
“Maybe I was hoping you’d say you are following me,” he said, smiling as he buried his hands in my hair with my own. “May I have this dance?”
As he asked the question, he twined his fingers through mine and pulled them down to our sides. My hair tumbled down with nothing left to hold it up, but I didn’t care. It probably looked like a bird’s nest right about now, but heat ignited in Tristin’s eyes when he moved even closer to me.
“You looked like you’ve just been fucked,” he murmured, his lips back against my ear as his arms circled my waist. “So, about that dance. You still haven’t given me an answer.”
With the spicy scent of his cologne enveloping me and his hard body against mine, the best I could do was nod. It was good enough for him, though. His arms tightened around me, and then he was moving.
Tristin and I had danced together before, but it had never been like this. I didn’t know where he’d learned to dance like it was foreplay, but it sure as hell felt like that was what we were doing.
His leg slipped between mine, his breath warm against my temple as he held me close. My hands trailed up along the defined muscles of his back, over his shoulders, and further up until my fingers curle
d into his hair.
It was soft and silky, sliding between my fingers as we moved. My nipples peaked in my bra, and with his chest mashed against mine, I wondered if he could feel them. I should’ve been embarrassed to be getting this turned on in a public place and with a man who was possibly seeing another woman, but I wasn’t. This was Tristin—my Tristin—and the way he was rubbing against me was too hot for me to feel anything but lust.
Besides, Tristin wasn’t a cheater. If he was dancing this way with me, he wasn’t dating anyone else. Deciding to trust that whatever might have changed about him, that wasn’t part of it, so I surrendered to the music and let my body lead the way.
15
TRISTIN
I hadn’t been this turned on in years. Dancing with Brittany was setting me on fire, burning away every thought except for those about her.
Somewhere in the back of my mind, I knew that we were in public. I held on to that one rational thought as tight as I could. It was pretty much the only thing keeping me from stripping her out of that dress right here and now.
It wasn’t even a particularly tight or sexy dress. Just a light blue T-shirt-looking thing with these little white flowers on it. There was a brown belt cinched around her waist and plain sandals on her feet, but none of that mattered.
This was Brittany I was dancing with. Her soft body against mine and her blue eyes half-lidded with need as she stared up at me. She was what mattered. I wouldn’t have cared if she was wearing a burlap sack. I still would’ve been desperate for her.
The air between us was charged with energy as we ground our bodies together, our gazes locked as we got lost in one another. I’d only had one beer, but I felt drunk, completely intoxicated by the woman in my arms.
Bad For You Page 10