by Natalie Ann
But this was big. Well, sort of big. Big for the business in her eyes. A stepping stone for more business in the entertainment field because Tessa had just called her back and said she’d like to meet sometime next week to start setting up all sorts of merchandise for multiple bands she represented.
These were the things she’d wanted her father to branch out to years ago. Not just printing up labels and logos on coffee cups and pens, calendars, and T-shirts. It was to expand to something more. Something bigger and keep with the times.
She grabbed the fliers she’d just printed for the blues band that would be playing at Fierce in a few weeks, then went into the lobby of the building and over to the elevator.
When the elevator’s doors opened on the sixth floor, Cade was standing there in his doorway, shorts on and a T-shirt. Another one that was fitted closer to his chest and arms that should be illegal. He was also barefoot, making her feel both uncomfortable and relaxed at the same time. There was so much to him that just made her mind work overtime.
“Hey,” she said.
“Come on in.” He held the door open a little wider. “Thanks for bringing them here. I didn’t plan on going into the office today. I’ve got way too much to do and didn’t feel like being bothered by anyone.”
Like his utter male presence was bothering every single one of her hormones right now?
“Not a problem. It’s actually closer to come here than go to Fierce, and the parking is easier.”
He shut the door behind her, grinning the entire time. He was always so happy and lively. Except when he was sitting in her car with wet clothes on, but she pushed that off as reading more into something than it was. She might have been moody had she taken a bath in front of a group of people too.
“We’ll go back to my office then and I’ll look everything over. Here, give it to me.” He reached his hand out and took the package.
“Guess what?” she said when they got in his office. She just couldn’t keep it bottled up anymore.
“What?” he asked, looking up. She knew she was bouncing slightly, and his eyes made a point to go to the jiggle in her chest. Oh well, she was giving him a show. And the heat in his eyes was giving her one too.
“Tessa just called,” she almost squealed. Then she slapped her hand in front of her mouth. She’d never squealed a day in her life, but for some reason, she was completely giddy around Cade. “And we’re meeting next week to set up a time to go over a whole merchandising line for multiple bands she represents.”
“That’s wonderful,” he said, reaching for her hand, giving it a squeeze, then not letting go.
The heat in his eyes was now eating a hole in her brain, not letting her think before she grabbed him by the shirtfront, then plastered a kiss on his lips. “I’m so excited. I can’t thank you enough.”
He stilled but didn’t let go of her hand. “That’s twice now you’ve kissed me,” he said slowly.
“Sorry.” Her smile dropped. “I shouldn’t have done that.” She went to back up, but he wasn’t letting go.
“Don’t be sorry. I guess I’ll only be sorry if you tell me I can’t even the score. The look in your eyes right now is answer enough, but I still want you to tell me that I can yank you in and show you how I’d really like you to kiss me.”
Her heart was racing so fast she was sure it was going to burst through her chest wall and start running down the hall on imaginary legs. But rather than answer him, she took her free hand and slid it around his neck and tugged him in closer, then put her mouth on his and showed him the way she really wanted to kiss him all along.
He released her hand, then threaded his fingers through her hair and held her head in place, his mouth slanting over hers again and again. His tongue going in and out with her trying to catch him. To hold him tight. To let him know she was a worthy foe. She couldn’t remember ever being this frustrated over a teasing kiss before.
“Stop,” she mumbled.
He pushed back fast. “Sorry.”
“No,” she said, yanking him back in. “Stop teasing me,” she growled. “Don’t you dare stop kissing me.” This time she pressed her body to his, not giving him much space to move back, and kissed him the way she was craving.
***
Cade was thinking he was in heaven right now. Or maybe it was hell. It’d be hell if he had to stop again. He would, and he could, but he sure the heck didn’t want to.
It seemed Alex didn’t want to either.
He’d been trying to be as gentlemanly as he could for weeks, but she kept making the first move.
She kept reaching out and touching him, then kissing him, and well, his patience was being tested more than he could ever remember it being tested before. As far as green lights went, he was thinking it couldn’t get any brighter.
“Alex,” he said, moving his lips to her neck. He really didn’t want to stop touching and tasting her, but he was curious as to what was going on. Was it kissing and stopping? Was it more? Was this just a celebration of sorts?
Would he be able to fight back his bodily response much longer, because the buddy in his pants was calling for the curtain to be lifted?
Since when did he want to know the reason why a beautiful woman was plastered against him?
“Hmm,” she said, her fingers running down his arms and back up.
“What’s going on here?” he asked, telling himself she wasn’t like any other woman he’d been with, even if right now she was showing signs of someone she hadn’t been all along.
“We’re kissing each other.”
“I know. I like it. I like it a lot. I guess the question is why?”
She leaned back a bit and he saw her face start to redden. He didn’t want her to be embarrassed. Him and his big mouth. Why couldn’t he just let her continue on like she was? It’s not like they both weren’t enjoying it immensely.
“Wow. I’m so sorry. That was completely wrong of me to put you in that type of situation. I have no explanation for my actions.”
He grabbed her hand and pulled her to the couch in his office. “Yes, you do. Just say them. I’m sure you’ll find my reasons for wanting this conversation are the same as your reasons for doing it.” At least he hoped so.
She looked unsure and he took a risk and kissed her again. Softly this time, then deepening it until he felt her body yield against his. That was promising. “Now talk,” he whispered.
“I’m attracted to you,” she said.
He snorted out a laugh. “That’s good. It’s mutual then.”
“I haven’t been with anyone in a long time. Maybe your male presence is just clouding my judgment.”
She said it with a smile, but he was still slightly hurt. That it was either the fact she was horny or he was good looking. Two things he’d heard a lot in his life and some of the things he’d been trying to break away from for years. He didn’t want to be wanted because he could be a trophy or a prize to someone.
He didn’t drop his smile though. He wouldn’t let her know what he was really feeling. Not yet. “How long is a long time?”
“Over a year, almost two actually,” she said. “I’ve been working on the business. I got out of a bad relationship. I just don’t have time for something serious.”
“What do you have time for?”
“I don’t know. This was a mistake,” she said, pushing back to stand up.
“We aren’t done talking,” he said more firmly. She paused, but he pressed on. “What’s a mistake?”
She hesitated, then answered, “I just thought maybe you wouldn’t mind a no-strings-attached type thing.”
“Friends with benefits?” he asked, shocked she was bringing it up. Most women didn’t. And with this, his feelings of being someone’s toy dropped even lower. How do you break away from that?
“Yeah. And forget it. I’ve never done that before. It’s just, I like you. I’m really attracted to you. But I’m in a place in my life where I can’t open myself up to someone
other than the physical. I just thought, I’m obviously craving it like mad since every time I’m with you lately I just want to touch you. I’ve never been that way before either.”
Some of his hurt was overridden with a boost to his ego because what guy didn’t love hearing that a woman he was interested in wanted to touch him whenever they were together?
“I’m feeling much of the same.”
“You don’t want a relationship though, right?”
“Why’s that?” he asked as straight-faced as he could. He was trying not to be insulted by her confused look.
“Because everyone always says you never take anything seriously. I’ve even seen parts of that myself. Relationships are a serious business. I just thought...if we knew going in, then there’d be no hurt feelings or broken expectations.”
Made sense, even if he was feeling some of his past singe his skin in embarrassment right now. He wouldn’t admit it though.
The thing is, could he really give her what she wanted and keep his feelings in check? He’d never had that problem before, but suddenly he was having a hard time just talking about the possibility of her proposition.
If he said no, that he didn’t want to do it, would she find someone else? The way she looked, her personality, all of it together, she’d have no problem finding any guy to jump on her offer. He didn’t want to give her a chance to find another guy.
“So you want to go have sex right now?” he asked just to see her reaction.
She hesitated, then said, “I’ve got work to do. I just thought that maybe it could be a bit more. We could go out first. Not just meet up and do the deed.”
He laughed at the face she gave. Uncertainty for someone who just more or less said she wanted to get down and dirty with him.
“I wouldn’t have it any other way. But you know, if we go out first, like to dinner, that would be a date of sorts. True friends with benefits do just meet up when one of them has an itch they need scratched. Hence the terms like booty call.”
“You know the rules better than me,” she said.
He didn’t admit or deny. “How about dating with no strings on one condition.” He was surprised he said that, but there was no way he was letting her out the door without somehow sealing the deal.
“What’s that?” she asked.
“That we are only seeing each other,” he said firmly.
“That sounds a lot more like a relationship than friends with benefits.”
“Not if we’re upfront with no expectations of diamond rings. Sound better?”
She laughed at him. “I won’t buy you a diamond ring, no worries there.”
“That’s better,” he said, reaching for her. “We can commence this deal with a kiss before you go back to work.”
This time when he kissed her, he put everything he had into it. All his hurt, all his frustration, and all his feelings of wanting more than she was willing to give him at the moment. But like everything else in his life, he’d just take what he could and try to be happy with it.
His body ended up covering hers, laying her back on the couch, letting her know that if she said she was willing to go to his room right now, he was not only ready, willing, and able, but also eager.
After a few minutes, he sat up, pulling her up with him. “That was all full of promises I hope you can keep,” she said, her eyes glowing brighter than phosphorus.
He smiled. “I guess you’re just going to have to find out. The ball is in your court. Let me know when you’re ready.”
She gulped, then nodded her head but stood up fast. “I’ll be in touch.”
He dropped his head to the back of the couch and wondered how he was going to be able to do this and keep his distance. And why the hell was he finally feeling something more for a woman when she didn’t want the same thing?
Karma was definitely a bitch.
Only Went So Far
Alex was wondering what possessed her to make that proposition to Cade. She’d never considered a friends with benefits relationship a day in her life. She even lied when she said that she’d been thinking of it.
She hadn’t been. Not until it slipped out of her mouth.
She knew he wasn’t the type to settle down and she honestly wasn’t sure she had the time or energy for it herself, nor was she sure she could handle the hurt again if she put herself out there only to find out it didn’t mean the same to him.
But she wasn’t lying when she said she was extremely attracted to him. And it had been a long time since she’d been with a man. Battery operated toys really only went so far. She was craving a little bit of affection with an orgasm at this point in her life.
She figured he’d jump all over the chance for a situation like she was offering, but he seemed to hesitate. Then he negotiated with her. Like a lawyer. What the hell?
Why didn’t she realize that for what it was when it was happening? He wanted the upper hand. That had to be it. He was the man and he wanted to be the one to control it.
Or she was over thinking again because now she just set herself up for something with Cade and she wasn’t sure she could actually keep as much of an emotional distance as she was hoping for?
She drove back to her shop trying to push the whole encounter from her mind. He’d said the ball was in her court and basketball had never been her sport. Work had to come first.
When she walked through the front door, she saw Ralph out front talking with Ella Fierce. If Alex’s face started to heat up thinking of what she and Ella’s brother were doing a few minutes ago, she was going to say it was the heat outside. Not the heat of Cade’s body on hers, because damn, he was smoking.
“Ella,” Alex said. “I didn’t know you were stopping by.”
“I was out running errands and wanted to stop in quick and see if you had a minute.”
“I was just getting her name and number for you,” Ralph said. “Everyone is running around right now, but they’ll be back. I was watching the front.”
“Sorry I was gone so long. It took me a bit longer than I thought.”
“I told Ella you were running stuff to Cade’s. She said Cade wasn’t in the office today.”
Her inner thermostat just started to rise as if five fireplaces were roaring in a ten by ten room. “I ran them to his home office.”
“Was Cade even up yet?” Ella asked, smiling.
“Of course he was. It’s almost noon.”
“That doesn’t always mean anything,” Ella said. “When we were kids Cade would sleep in until my mother had to go in and all but drag him out of bed by his big toe. On school days he was the last one up and in the shower, then out the door in five minutes.”
“Really?” Alex asked. “That’s surprising considering how he never has a hair out of place.”
Ella laughed. “That started his freshman year. He was all about the hair gel and trying to be different from the rest of the boys. I almost broke his fingers when half my hair products went missing one weekend.”
Alex burst out laughing. That she could see happening. “I hope he bought you more.”
“He did. Anyway, we like to pick on Cade, but he’s a good guy. All my brothers are, but Cade, well, Cade is his own special brand of something.”
Alex wasn’t sure what to make of that. “Meaning?”
“Meaning that he isn’t taken seriously very often because he wants people to think he is all about fun. The truth is, Cade might run deeper than all my brothers, but few people ever see that.”
Now Alex was starting to feel guilty for making assumptions with Cade. “I don’t know him well enough to say one way or the other.”
“That’s true,” Ella said, holding her stare. “Well, I’m sure the more you get to know him, the more you’ll see under the fun is a heart of gold. Twenty-four karat gold. The softest and most malleable. The one that could break the easiest.”
“We’re just friends, Ella,” Alex said.
There was no way anyone could know t
hat she wanted more with Cade. She wouldn’t even admit to Cade that it was more than the physical; why the heck would she admit it to his sister?
“Friends should know those things too.”
“Was there something I could help you with?” she asked, changing the subject. “You said you were stopping in while running errands.”
“Oh yes,” Ella said, pulling out a sheet of paper. “I had this idea. Normally I would run it by Cade, but I wanted to see if it was possible before I got him all excited about it.”
Alex took the paper and looked at what seemed to be a cut-out of the letter “F” in front of a light on the wall. “What material are you looking to do this with? I’m not a metal or glass cutter.”
“Actually, I don’t want it cut out. I know the picture looks like that, but I couldn’t find what I really wanted. I was thinking either clear or red squares of glass, then putting a bulb behind them, having a few placed throughout the bar and maybe the restaurant on the walls. I want it to be like a shadow box. Is that the word I’m looking for? Anyway, if you could etch it like you did that plate for my mother.”
“Okay, I see where you’re going with this. I could do that with the glass for sure if you could get the boxes somewhere. Or get them built. That might work better, having it custom-made.”
“Let me look into it then. I was wondering if I ordered just a test one and then found some glass, could you do a few sample ones so I could show the others and see what they think?”
“I’d love to. I think it’d look awesome. Why don’t you want Cade to know, if you don’t mind me asking?”
“No major reason. He’s not the only one that comes up with ideas, but if I tell him, he’ll run away with the idea and change it up on me. The boys always did that. I never seemed to have anything for myself,” she said, grinning.
“That’s kind of sad,” Alex said, once again glad that she was an only child.
