by CY Jones
I was expecting a handshake, but as soon as she sees me, she flings her tiny self at me, enwrapping me in a tight hug, reminding me of Jodie.
“Sorry,” she says, stepping back. “I was just so excited to see the designer who was working on my home. Your work is amazing, way better than that other lady.” Her words are rushed like she was hopped up on coffee.
Blushing I tell her, “I’m so happy you liked the changes. It’s an honor to work for you.”
“Trust me, the honor is mine. I have to admit I was worried when Harrison said another designer was taking over mid-project, but when I saw your design ideas he sent over to my people, I was like ‘this girl gets me’.”
“I have to admit, I totally stalked you on social media to try to get a feel for your style.” I immediately look down, hoping that didn't come out as weird as I think it did. I’m relieved when she starts laughing before throwing her arm around my shoulders.
“Paige, I have a feeling this is the start of a beautiful friendship.”
For the meeting, Harrison had an area set up for us to sit comfortably and she leads me over there. I’m grateful to see the pastries set up on the table since we didn’t have time to eat, but it’s the coffee machine that immediately grabs my attention. I almost set out to find Harrison and kiss him when I see the K-cups of Death Wish Coffee in my favorite flavor and I make a beeline for them.
Chuckling, Starlight says, “I take it you love coffee.”
“Coffee is life. I’m sure if they cut my veins, coffee would leak out instead of blood,” I reply as I turn the machine on and watch it pour into my cup like I’m in a trance.
Once I’m properly caffeinated, I get to work, pulling out my MacBook and showing her what I came up with for furniture design. A lot of pieces will have to be custom made, so the sooner I had her approval, the better. Starlight liked bright, bold colors and clean lines. What I had customized for her was unlike anything I have done, or seen, before.
We work for hours, with her adding her two cents in here and there. Before I know it, it’s lunch time and Harrison walks in to see what we’re up to.
“How are things going in here?” He asks as he takes a seat at the table.
“Harrison, I don’t know where you found this girl, but I’m pissed you didn’t originally have her working on my house.”
Harrison shrugs, looking straight at me intensely. “It’s a mistake I don’t plan on ever making again. I have no interest in letting her get away.” I get the double meaning in his words and I blush hard. Quickly, I pick up my mug of coffee to cover up my embarrassment.
“Better not, she’s such a gem.” Turning her iWatch, Starlight frowns at the time. “Gosh, time flies when you’re having fun. I’m late for rehearsal.” When she gets up, her bulky guard moves from his spot on the wall and walks by her side. I rise too, stretching a bit. Starlight hugs me again and we set up a date to have lunch. When she leaves, I’m still reeling over how much Starlight loved my ideas. She even said she’s definitely going to recommend me to her friends. That’s freaking huge. An endorsement from a pop star will boost my reputation tenfold.
“Why do you look so shocked?” Harrison asks. “You have to know how talented you are. You have this knack of knowing your client and it shows in your work.”
We’re walking out to his car and I think over what he just said. When I buckle up, I turn to him. “I never really thought of it that way. When I take on a job for someone, I make it my mission to research that person so I can get a feel for their style and not just my own. I only add my professional two cents here and there.”
“What about when you flip houses? There’s not usually a person the house is for yet,” he questions.
“That’s when it’s all me. The house is like an empty canvas and I’m free to do anything I want. Sometimes it works out, sometimes I have to start over, but I never put the home on the market until it’s just right. That would always drive Justin crazy because he was always complaining about staying on the timeline so it can be sold and we can move onto the next house.”
“The more I hear about your ex, the more I think he was a douche,” Harrison says honestly.
“You act like you don’t harp on people to get the job done,” I point out. A contractor works on nothing but timelines.
“In my work, yes,” he agrees, following my line of thinking. “But flipping homes is your own timeline. It’s on you when you want the home finished. He shouldn’t have pushed you to hurry up, just to do another home.”
I’m lost in my thoughts, asking myself, is Harrison right? Sure, Justin had his moments, and a lot of times I wanted to shove a bottle in his mouth every time he complained about a job taking too long, like an overgrown baby. It’s funny the little things you notice when you’re not with someone. The ride is quiet but comfortable, no one speaking until Harrison parks.
“We’re here,” he says and I look up to see we’re at one of my favorite deli places.
“Oh my gosh,” I squeal. “I love this place. Their turkey reuben is the bomb.”
“I take it that’s what you want,” he says, laughing at my enthusiasm.
“Yes and a large lemonade.” He pats me on the ass and sends me off to find a table while he orders.
I’m scrolling through my emails when I frown at one left from a generic address. Thinking it’s junk mail, I open it and my blood runs cold when I read the message. I’m sure I’m pale as a ghost and quite a sight. Taking the seat across from me, Harrison asks,“what’s wrong?” His face has a serious look on it, his eyes searching, but I don’t answer. I just continue to stare numb at my phone. “Siren,” he tries again. With a shaky hand, I hand him my phone and he curses when he sees the message attached to the photo sent to me. A photo of me braced against the wall with my legs wrapped around his waist while we go at it with our mouths. The message is clear and I have no doubt this is from the person messing up Harrison’s jobs.
Quit now whore or I’ll ruin you
“Someone saw us,” I mumble, still white as a ghost.
He doesn’t answer, instead he pulls his own phone out and starts making calls. First to his friend working the case at the police department and then his foreman to have them go through the security footage on Jodie’s house. Harrison was pissed and I couldn’t blame him. This person was literally a stalker, always knowing where he’s at and when to hit him. When he’s done, he moves and sits next to me, pulling me close to his strong body. The waitress brings our food, but neither of us acknowledge it or her. He holds me close, like he’s trying to insert his strength in me.
“I promise, siren, no one will hurt you. I swear I’ll find out who the fuck is doing this and end them.”
“How did they even know where you were?” I ask scared. Did they somehow follow him or me?
“I don’t know, siren, but I’m doing everything I can to find out.” We’re both silent. I let him hold me until I stop shaking, then I start thinking about this rationally. Sure, it’s an incriminating picture, but in retrospect, it’s not that bad. It’s just of two people getting very fucking acquainted and it’s not like anyone can tell we’re not at our own home.
Finally, I pull myself out of my head. Harrison warned me of this. Granted it was before I got involved with him, but I knew someone was out there, sabotaging his jobs. “I’m okay now, really,” I add when he cocks a brow at me.
“You don’t have to sa..”
Holding up my hand to interrupt whatever he’s about to say. “You warned me about this. The email took me off guard at first, but now I know what to expect and to be more careful. No more on the job sexy time,” I say smiling, and he shakes his head.
“I swear, I’m going to kill this person. Eric better hope he finds them before I do,” he mutters.
“What are they saying?” I inquire, taking a bite of my sandwich. With the shock over, I am starving.
“He says this person may be a woman. They seem more jolted than a simple disgr
untled employee.”
“Do you think he’s right?”
Sighing, he blows out a breath and says, “the hell if I know.” He’s agitated. The not knowing is really getting to him and, for someone used to being in control, this was a nightmare. I take his hand in mine to comfort him like he did me. Immediately, he starts to relax and brushes his thumb across my hand softly.
“It’ll be okay. I’m not going anywhere. Just like the government, I don’t negotiate with terrorists,” I tell him to cheer him up and it works. He kisses me deeply and I fall into him, my heart beating a mile a minute as I fall in deeper and deeper for this man.
We finish eating quickly so we can stop by the police station. Harrison’s friend wanted to look at my phone to see if they could track the email or track any digital footprint left behind. A couple hours later we leave, having learned nothing. The email was sent from an email with a fake name, made mere hours before it was sent to me. Whoever did it was smart to not leave any evidence behind, proving they have some sort of hacking skills. Something they already knew with how easy it was for them to hack into Harrison’s security. Eric promised he was working as hard as he could and reassured us he’d find whoever this person was, but I could tell it wasn’t enough for Harrison.
Since we already wasted most of the work day, Harrison drives me back to his place. Once there, he gets busy on the phone, taking the matter in his own hands. While he was busy, I ordered take out and made myself cozy on his couch. I turned his huge flat screen on, but I wasn’t really watching it. If anything, it was watching me. When his doorbell rings, I pay the delivery boy and lay the food out on the table. It seemed like hours pass before Harrison is finally off the phone and he pulls me into his body, holding me close.
“You’ve been busy,” he says, eyeing the food.
“So were you. Did you find anything out?” I ask.
“I have someone looking into it who doesn’t care about silly things like laws,” he answers mysteriously. “Eric is a cool dude, but following the straight and narrow isn’t working.”
“Oooh, is he like one of those ‘don’t ask or I’ll have to kill you’ type people?” I ask, intrigued.
“Baby, this isn’t like a movie,” he says, laughing.
“What? Your friend could totally be a spy.” I like that idea better, so I go with it.
“Come on, let’s eat before the food gets cold,” he replies, pulling a seat out for me. I sit and savor my food, thinking about all the work I need to catch up on. Taking the day off set me behind and tomorrow I really need to put myself into gear to catch up. Once we’re finished, Harrison washes the dishes and I pull my MacBook out to make orders for Starlight’s house and keep track of the things coming in this week for Jodie's. I also look through house ads for the guy who wanted me to flip a house in Long Beach. I found one, but it was more than a fixer upper. If I take it on, it’ll have to be torn down and rebuilt. By the floor plans, I could already tell it’s out of code for that area.
“What are you doing?” Harrison asks, taking a seat beside me.
“I met a potential client at Jodie’s farewell party. He wanted me to find a house in Long Beach to flip. This is the only one I’ve found so far.”
Leaning further into me, he takes a look at the house, scrolling through the details and the floor plans. Finally, he says, “it’s decent, in a great location, but it needs a lot of work. Just from the picture I can tell it needs a new roof and the whole exterior needs to be repainted, plus I don’t think that bonus room is to code.”
“Yeah, I was thinking about just tearing the whole thing down.”
“You could do that, but you’ll want to get the house for less than they’re asking for. 500K is way too much to pay with all the work it needs.”
“I know. I’m going to set up an appointment for tomorrow to do a walk through so I can come up with an acceptable price.”
“I wish I can go with you, but I’m behind now and I just took on a job in Hollywood Hills right on the forest border line. With what happened today, I want to personally supervise the security cameras going up. We’re also adding additional sensor lines around the property since the home is sequestered in a forested area. I’m not playing with this bitch, whoever she is.”
I send off the message to the realtor and then emailed the client, letting him know I may have found a house. He emails me back right away, excited and I promised to keep in touch. Once done, I put my laptop away and then snuggle close into Harrison’s body. He wastes no time draping his arm around me. Like some domestic couple, we lay in each others arms watching TV. Despite the email mishap, I felt very content. My feelings were growing instrumentally with each passing second I spent with him, but like a scaredy cat, I was scared to ask him how he felt. This intense feeling couldn’t be one-sided, I just knew it. I can’t even remember ever being this content. Not even with Justin, and I knew him all my life.
Opening my mouth, I go to say something, but I chicken out at the last second and kiss him on his cheek instead. “What was that for?” He asks in a grumbly voice that immediately makes a beeline to my cunt.
“Just because I can,” I answer.
“Well, in that case,” he says, kissing me hard. Like a boa constrictor, I wrap myself around him and he wastes no time carrying me to his bedroom to ravish me. All night long he makes love to me until we both pass out, exhausted.
14
Unwanted Reunion
Paige
Early the next morning, Harrison drops me off at my place, leaving me with a sweltering kiss hot enough to melt my clothes off. If we had time, I totally know we would have gone for round two. To thank me for my awesome blowjob yesterday morning, he woke me up early with a hot wakeup call of his own and had me cumming on his tongue within minutes. I can’t explain it but the man just has this power over my body. It’s like we can’t get enough of each other. Fucking Harrison was like a drug and I was far too addicted to turn back. Fuck rehab, Harrison is all I need.
After a nice hot shower, I was able to beat the morning traffic to Jodie’s house. The floor I started to lay down still wasn’t finished, so I worked on that. When I was finished, I signed for a couple deliveries before heading out to Long Beach. The realtor wasn’t here yet so I walked around the property, peeking into the windows trying to catch a glimpse inside without anyone around, and that’s exactly how he finds me when he clears his throat loudly, scaring the crap out of me.
“Oh shit,” I curse, holding my hand to my heart and freeze when I see who caught me. “Justin,” I whisper.
“I didn’t take you for a peeping Tom,” he jokes, but I don't laugh. Instead, I narrow my eyes at him as my anger comes barreling to the forefront. I haven’t seen him since the day I had lunch with Jodie, and here he was, standing before me in all his hot glory. I wanted him to be bald or have a pooching belly. I didn’t want to see him looking like a wet dream. His dark hair is impeccable and, despite the breeze coming off the ocean, not a strand was out of place. His suit is designer, perfectly tailored to his tone body. His skin was even clearer, and he was flashing his million dollar smile, but even standing there, looking like a perfect piece of art, I quickly realize he isn’t my dream anymore.
“What are you doing here?” I question.
“A buddy of mine saw your name come up on inquiries on this property and passed it along to me,” he answers like that explains everything.
“And why would he do that?” I ask, raising my brow, suspicious. If Justin is here to sabotage me, so help me, I’ll cut his dick off. Try fucking the State of California without that, buddy.
He doesn’t answer, instead he changes the subject. “This doesn’t look like the usual properties you go for.” Typical Justin, avoidance is his forte.
“It’s for a client,” I say simply.
“You look great, by the way. Like really great.” His words are rushed and, may I dare say, he looks nervous. He’s dropped his cocky realtor attitude and I briefly
wonder, what’s up with him?”
“Thanks,” I reply. “Umm are you going to open the door?”
“Yeah. I mean yes, I should do that so you can take a look around, huh?”
“Yeah, that would help,” I snark and he laughs nervously, fumbling with the door.
When I stepped inside, I could see the potential this place has, but hell, it was a money pit. The plumbing was old and the electrical was a safety hazard. No way was this shit is up to snuff with the fire marshal, but fuck, the view it presented made me look past all of that because it held 360 degree views of the water. It’s on a private beach, which is the reason behind the high asking price. As I look around, Justin stays close behind me, which was totally not his MO. I know for a fact he prefers to stay outside while a future client looks around the space to give them room.
“So, what do you think?” He asks once we circle back to the front.
“I like it, but we both know it needs a lot of work. 500K is high of an asking price. I’m willing to put in a bid for 450K,” I answer.
“I don’t know, the man who owns this place is a stubborn old bastard. He wants to retire to Florida to be closer to his grandkids and will hold out for the perfect price.”
“That’s not good to hear. I have a gut feeling this house was the one and I don’t want to lose out on it, but I also don’t want my client to overpay.”
“How about I talk to him? Soften him up a bit and then I’ll let him know your bid,” he offers.
“Thanks, Justin. That would be really nice of you.”
“Of course, anything for you.” He runs his hand over the back of his head, suddenly nervous. I’m about to ask him what’s up when he blurts out, “do you want to go to lunch with me?”
