Business or Pleasure?: He's Too Hard To Resist!

by Raquel Belle

  Jared rolled his eyes, finding the latter ridiculous. “Someone had too much time on their hands, watching movies and all ... Or perhaps making those damn video games is finally taking its toll on your cognitive thinking.”

  “Fuck you very much, big brother,” Liam said. “As I was saying, your sudden, strange behavior became clear when you mentioned ‘Evie.’ The mythical creature who I’ve been dying to meet. Your unicorn, Evelyn Davis ... She has slayed the dragon that guards your cold, black heart. She has crumbled the impenetrable wall you’ve built around yourself. She has managed to retrieve your soul that was lost in the dark void, and … She has cured your commitment phobia. That woman is my hero.”

  Jared stared, silently, at Liam for a few seconds. His brows furrowed. “I often wonder what Katherine sees in you. You’re such an idiot.” He let out long breath. “All of the hyperboles were totally unnecessary, but you’re right. My views on relationships have changed significantly since meeting Evie. Dating her has opened …”

  “Hold on,” Liam said. “Did you say ‘dating?’ You never told me anything about dating? You don’t date. How did this happen? When?”

  “For a few weeks now. The dating part, at least … We’ve been sleeping together longer, of course, but we decided to officially start dating a few weeks ago. I think I started to develop ... feelings. I couldn’t hide them, and I was acting way out of character. We had a good talk, and now we’re dating.”

  Liam gaped at his brother. “Why didn’t you tell me that you were in a real relationship before tonight? That’s a big deal for you.”

  Jared lifted a shoulder. “I didn’t want to jinx it.”

  A roar of laughter mingled with the music filtering in the bar. “How old are you?”

  Scowling, Jared pointed a finger at him. “Hey, this whole relationship thing is new territory for me. I’m treading carefully. I was afraid to say anything only to have things not work out, and I really didn’t need your smart-ass comments, much less, your smug attitude.”

  Liam held up both palms in surrender. “Okay, okay, calm down. I’m happy for you, Jared. I’ve been worried about you for a while now. I didn’t think I’d ever see you like this.”

  “I’m still the same man you’ve known all your life.”

  “No, you’re not. You seem happier.”

  Jared stared unseeingly into his almost empty bottle. He certainly felt happier, and it terrified him. What if something went wrong between him and Evie? Would she disappear with his newfound happiness? Shaking his head, he forced the negative thoughts away. Often, his subconscious visited that negative, dark place, and he was plagued with thoughts of the huge risk he’d taken ending up, ultimately, in disaster. He had to keep reminding himself that he and Evie weren’t anything like his parents. It was time to stop comparing every relationship to that of his parents.

  Taking a deep breath, Jared nodded. “I suppose I am. And now I have a date for your wedding. Thank god, because I assume Judy is going to be Katherine’s maid of honor.” He shuddered at the thought of Judy—Katherine’s crazy cousin who constantly had marriage and baby fever. For weeks after being introduced, she’d practically stalked him and tried to jump him like an animal in heat every chance she got. His relief when she’d returned to Chicago was overwhelming.

  Liam chuckled, seemingly remembering Judy’s last visit. “You can’t blame the woman. Who wouldn’t want to bag a rich, handsome bachelor such as yourself.”

  Sending his brother a threatening look, he consumed the rest of his beer and slammed the bottle down. “Tell me when you’re getting hitched, already.”

  “Katherine and I decided not to wait too much longer.”

  “Why would you? You’ve been together forever.”

  “Precisely. We talked and came to the conclusion that we can pull things off in three months, since it won’t be anything big.”

  Jared nodded. Three months. It must be nice to feel so secure in one’s relationship to make plans for months to come. Would he and Evie still be together in three months? With his lack of experience with being with one person for more than a week, he had no idea what to expect. “Congratulations, bro. You deserve to be happy.”

  Liam grinned. “Thanks. I’ve been on cloud nine for quite some time now.”

  Jared grunted. “There was a time when I would have mercilessly mocked that stupid grin on your face, but I think I get it now.” He wouldn’t put what he had with Evie in his brother’s and Katherine’s category, but he sometimes found himself with the same foolish grin his brother wore.

  Liam laughed. “How the mighty have fallen. Didn’t I tell you, that you’d get your balls handed to you by the right woman? Prophecy fulfilled.”

  “I couldn’t possibly know if Evie is the right woman. We’re just having fun right now.” Although, he could no longer stomach the thought of being with anyone else, perhaps that would wear off in a few months. “It took you and Katherine years to decide that you were right for each other. I’ve only known Evie for months. We’re not going to up and tie the knot like you two crazy kids.” Something nagged at him. He’d known Evie for months, but he didn’t really know her. She refused to fully open up to him emotionally, and he had no room to complain—being the master of emotional suppression himself. He still didn’t know a thing about her life beyond work and her relationship with her father.

  Liam’s eyes widened. “You? Married?” My head nearly did a three-sixty. “That thought is mind-boggling.”

  Jared agreed with a slight shudder. “Baby steps, Liam. I’m not even sure I’ve got the dating thing down pat yet.”

  Liam pulled his wallet from his pocket. “I should get going. We’ll talk more about your best-man duties. Yes, you were right, not about being the best big brother, but about you being my best man.”

  “You just hate to admit that I’m your hero.”

  Scoffing, Liam swallowed a smile. “My hero is Superman.”

  “Nerd.”

  “Prick.”

  Jared’s lips twitched. “Go on run home to Katherine, you wuss. I’ll pick up your tab.”

  With a scowl, Liam extracted a few bills and threw them onto the bar. “I’ll pick up your tab, and don’t act like you won’t be running to Evie like an even bigger wuss.”

  Jared smirked, unable to deny his brother’s accusation. He did, indeed, have a date with Evie. Glancing at his watch, he stood up. “I can’t argue with you there.”

  Liam bellowed out a laugh and slapped his knee. “Can you say whipped? Man, I can’t wait to get home and tell Katherine about this. She’s going to get a kick out of it.”

  Jared gritted his teeth. “You two go ahead and laugh it up.” His scowl made Liam laugh harder, though.

  Deep down, Jared was well aware that he was whipped, as his brother so nicely put it.

  ***

  Jared couldn’t ever remember being nervous about anything in his life, as the way he felt waiting for Evie to show up. He glanced around his penthouse apartment and wiped his palms on the legs of his jeans. Since leaving collage, he’d avoided bringing any woman he was seeing into his personal domain. Evie was about to see more of him, and particularly, how he lived.

  Jared let out a laugh, unable to believe the level of his anxiety. He executed takeovers, take downs, mergers and so much more in the business world without batting an eyelash, and there he was sweating over having a woman over. Wiping a hand over his face, he approached his well-stacked bar, which hadn’t been depleted as quickly as it would have been pre-Evie. Even his need for liquid-comfort had lessened with her presence in his life.

  Just as he took the first sip of scotch to settle his nerves, his phone buzzed. It was a message from Evie.

  Let me in lover.

  Jared chuckled and headed to the front door. As always, the sight of Evie caused a kick in his pants, and his heart always did a strange flip. He was slightly taken aback by her appearance. She wore more makeup than usual. Her smoky eyes and vivacious red lip
s were stunning, but he’d become accustomed to her more natural look. She had one hand braced against the wall, and she wore a wicked grin. Her silky, dark brown tresses hung in loose curls around her shoulders, and long, tanned legs were on display, emphasized by high-heels. He wondered what she wore under her beige coat, and why she even wore a trench coat.

  Jared’s brows lifted. “You look incredible. Is this your usual attire to have drinks at home?”

  Her eyes twinkled. “I decided to spice up your night a little, lover.” She undid the tie at her waist, allowing the coat to fall open. She held the garment open, revealing smooth, tantalizing skin. “Are you going to invite me in, or are we going to do this in the hallway?” she asked.

  Jared’s eyes bulged. He was sure his tongue rolled out of his mouth and dropped to the dark blue carpet lining the lobby’s floor. The only thing Evie wore under her thigh-length coat were red, lacy see-through panties. He could do nothing but gawk in appreciation, speechless, as seconds ticked by.

  Evie’s cheeks colored. “Oh, my god … Say something. I’m starting to feel a little foolish here.”

  Jared blinked and swallowed. “Sorry, I’m just ... shocked. You drove all the way here and walked through the building’s lobby, passed security with practically nothing on under that coat.” He gazed at her bare breasts and nearly salivated. “Not that I don’t like what I see but that’s not you.”

  Evie pulled her coat together, folded her arms defensively, and huffed. “I know it’s not me, and I’m pretty sure the security guard downstairs assumed that I’m a prostitute. I did it for you. I thought if anyone would appreciate the gesture, it would be you. I went way out of my comfort zone to please you, and this is the reaction I get?” She pouted, drawing his attention to her delectable mouth.

  Jared grinned, snagging her wrists, before pulling her inside. As he kicked the door closed, he gave her a quick, hard kiss. “I appreciate it—trust me.” He reached for her coat, pulled it open, and gave her another slow appraisal. “I appreciate it very much.”

  Evie’s lashes lowered to hide her expression. “I saw the whole naked-under-the-trench-coat thing in a movie once, and I’ve always wanted try.” The pink in her cheeks spread to the rest of her face. “I never had the guts to try it until tonight. I think I’ve failed miserably. I was expecting a completely different reaction from you. You know, like you’d take one look at me, and ravish me against the door or something ... ”

  Jared’s lips kicked up at the corners. Of course that was what he wanted to do, but he’d decided then to talk. “Or ‘something?’”

  She shrugged. “My mind went to a lot of naughty places.”

  “And you say I’m the ‘pervert,’” he said.

  She nudged him playfully and stepped around him to inspect her surroundings, but he caught the slight frown that marred her features. Her gaze swept the black and white themed living room, then jumped to the floor to the ceiling window overlooking the city. “Wow, you have a pretty swanky place. A bit clinical, though.”

  Jared smiled slightly. He could always count on an honest opinion from Evie. “That’s because a stranger decorated the place.” He inspected the space, but he had to agree with Evie— there was no feeling, nothing throughout his entire home that reflected who he was. He hadn’t even noticed, until Evie came into his life, and it was almost as if he was seeing in color for the first time. “Are you going to tell me what’s wrong?”

  Her rounded orbs met his, made darker blue with the concern filling them. Evie blew out a breath. “I could say ‘nothing is wrong,’ but what’s the point in lying?”

  “You’re not one to tell me a lie to make me feel better. Don’t start now.”

  She wrapped her arms around her middle and shrugged. “When you invited me to your place for drinks, I assumed you were inviting me over for sex. That’s what we do when we spend time together.”

  “That’s not true …” He stopped abruptly, realizing that she was right.

  “I wore this stupid outfit, and got a lukewarm response from you, which is out of character for you. I can’t help but think your attraction to me has diminished. You’ve gone longer with one woman than you ever have, so that’s natural. I don’t hold it against you, I promise. I completely understand that you want to move on.” Her lids lowered to hide her expression. “Now, I have to do the walk of shame back to my car for the rest of my clothes. I’m a little embarrassed. Okay, I’m a lot embarrassed …”

  Jared stared unblinkingly at her for a moment, confusion clouding his brain. “Is this you breaking up with me, or you breaking up with me on my behalf?” He inquired slowly. “Because that’s a new one. I’ve never had someone break up with their own self, for me.”

  Evie blinked. “What?” Uncertainty underlined her tone. “I thought you were tired of this? Us? Whatever we had going on ...”

  “You said we were ‘dating,’ Evie.”

  Her eyes narrowed to slits. “And you agreed.”

  “By the way, when you give me that look it means we’re about to argue.”

  “I’m preparing to defend myself in the event that you attempt to blame me for pushing anything on you.”

  Holding up both palms, Jared shook his head. “I wouldn’t do that, so you can switch off the ‘lawyer mode,’ Evie.” He sighed and rubbed a hand over his face. “You’ve completely misunderstood my behavior. Yes, when I invited you over, I did so with the intention of us going wild all night. Maybe even swing from a chandelier or two ...”

  Her lips twitched, as she tried to swallow her grin. “Really?”

  “Definitely. But then I got to thinking …”

  “Uh oh.”

  He placed a finger over her lips. “Just be quiet, and let me get this out, please ... It’s uncomfortable enough as it is.”

  Evie lifted a brow and shrugged. “Carry on.”

  “It occurred to me that you and I don’t really know each other. I made an attempt to get to know you months ago, and you thwarted my attempt. I let it slide, and we did, indeed, fall into a physical relationship. I was fine with it for a while because it was like a dream come true for a man like me—to have a woman who wanted to keep things on the same level as I did. But, I think I’ve changed. I think I want a little bit more with you than just sex—maybe a lot more.” Jared clamped his mouth shut, his heart racing, as he held Evie’s shocked stare. There, he’d said it, and the world hadn’t ended.

  Evie huffed and ran her fingers through her hair, sending her curls all over the place. “Are you being serious right now?” Her eyes blazed with fury, taking him off guard and causing him to take a step back. “Are you upset, Evie? Why?”

  “Of course, I’m ‘upset.’ I’m standing in front of you practically naked, and you want to talk about your feelings. Since when do you get into your feelings?”

  His jaw slackened. “Isn’t this what you wanted? Isn’t this what all women want?”

  “Why you ... the nerve ... I’m not one of your gold-digging bimbos … Damn it, Jared. Has it ever occurred to you that you’re not god’s gift to women? Maybe not all of womankind dreams about getting ‘more’ from Jared Hawthorne. It never ceases to amaze me how full of yourself you can be sometimes.”

  There were no words for the amazement and confusion he felt. He’d lost count of the many times women attempted to change him, to domesticate him. The one time he was willing to change his rakish ways for a woman, she was angry. It seemed he would never grasp the concept of what a woman wanted for as long as he lived. “Christ. This was totally unexpected,” he said to himself.

  Evie glared daggers at him. “I bet. You assumed I’d fall at your feet and just fall over myself, over your declaration of wanting more out of our relationship, didn’t you?”

  “No! I didn’t assume anything. I just thought ... Hell, I don’t know what I thought. I thought we were on the same page. I see now, that I was wrong.” Everything was all wrong. The night wasn’t supposed to end up in an argument. “Wha
t is your problem anyway? I tell you how I feel, and then you throw it in my face …”

  Evie was motionless as guilt danced across her face. She didn’t apologize, as he’d expected. Instead, she threw him into further shock with her announcement. “My ‘problem’ is that I fell in love with and was engaged to a charismatic man like you once before. He turned out to be nothing but a liar and a cheat who didn’t really care about me at all.”

  His jaws slackened. A cocktail of emotions surged through him. He couldn’t believe anyone in their right mind would cheat on Evie. He looked down. “Are you saying that I’m going to lie and cheat?”

  Her hesitation shattered him. “I ... I don’t know. I just know that I won’t be foolish enough to get trapped in a web of false charm and happiness again. Months ago you were running around Seattle with a different woman every week, and now you expect me to believe you’ve changed, and that you want more out of our relationship? That’s just crazy, Jared.”

  Once again, Evelyn Davis was the cause of pain that no one else in his life had ever caused him. Jared had no idea what a broken heart felt like, but he was pretty sure what he was currently feeling was it.

  “I’m going to go,” Evie said. “I’m sure after you’ve had some time to think, you’ll realize that you didn’t mean a word you’ve said.”

  Jared gazed vacantly at her retreating form, as she stomped to the door. Only when the doors closed and seconds ticked by, did he recover. Pulling his jaw up from the floor, he blinked and shook his head. “What the hell just happened?”

  His shock eventually wore off, leaving an ache in his chest. Evie announced that she’d almost married another man, and then blew him off. That was what happened. Why had he taken the risk to open up to her? His jaw clenched so tightly that his molars grated painfully against each other. That would be the last time he made the mistake of thinking he could do well in a serious relationship. Evie’s reaction was a sign that he wasn’t made for a real connection with any woman.