THIRST

by Deborah Bladon

  I counter his offer with one of my own. It’s not ideal, but it works for me. “What about lunch tomorrow?”

  His response is immediate. “I’ll have something brought into my office. I’ll text you the address. You text me the time.”

  His office?

  I stand too, feeling like he somehow won our battle of wits, even though it feels like I was the only one playing.

  “Tomorrow it is.” I take a step back from the table. “I’ll see you then.”

  “If not before,” he says with a lift of his brow.

  The innuendo in his words isn’t hidden at all.

  Unless fondue takes all night, Rocco is going to be standing at his window when I get home.

  ***

  It turns out cheese fondue takes a lot longer than I expected.

  A lot of that had to do with the fact that Sophia was getting the fondue ready while I read bedtime stories to her daughter, Winter.

  I couldn’t stop at just one, so story time seeped into the nine o’clock hour and now I’m standing in my apartment after midnight wishing I hadn’t indulged in that much rich food so late.

  My place is dark. I skipped past the overhead light switch and headed straight to the window as soon as my door was locked.

  There’s a light on in Rocco’s apartment, but he’s not in sight.

  Disappointment rushes over me, even though I kept telling myself on the subway ride home, that I didn’t want him to undress for me tonight.

  Of course, I did. I do.

  Who wouldn’t? The man has the body of a Greek God and a face that can stop traffic.

  Glancing down at my watch, I blow out a heavy sigh.

  I need to rest. I have a morning filled with meetings tomorrow, followed by lunch with my neighbor.

  I steal one more look at his window before I slip out of my dress and into my bed.

  The soulful sound of music coming from the apartment across the hall, lulls me to sleep with thoughts of Rocco on my mind.

  Chapter 23

  Rocco

  I gaze down at my desk and the take-out containers.

  Chinese food.

  I know Dexie likes it. I watched her eat it after it was delivered to her apartment one night.

  Jesus. If she knew that, she’d order Harold to install blinds on the windows of her apartment today.

  “Do you need anything else?” Jared’s voice pulls me from my thoughts.

  “Privacy.”

  “I figured as much.” He adjusts the tips of the navy bow tie around his neck.

  I give him the once-over. His dark blue pants are tailored. The pinstriped shirt he’s wearing isn’t off the rack.

  He’s dressed to the nines today, so I ask the obvious question. “Do you have a job interview?”

  “Where the hell would I find a job that pays me as much as you do?” He huffs out a laugh. “I’m here until you die, Rocco.”

  “I get the message.” I nod. “I would have preferred a different delivery.”

  “Fine,” he spits out. “I’m here until you retire, so don’t do that for at least another thirty years. I need to pay off the mortgage on my apartment.”

  I smile. “Duly noted.”

  He glances over his shoulder at his desk. “I’m having lunch with someone.”

  “A date?” I cross my arms over my chest. “Do I know her?”

  “You haven’t met,” he says, scratching the base of his neck. “She’s related to a client.”

  That should sound an alarm for me, but it doesn’t. Silas tuned me into what was going on when he texted me a picture two nights ago of Jared at a bar with him and his sister.

  My assistant couldn’t take his eyes off of the woman.

  My silence is enough to spur Jared to confess. “Fine. I’m crushing hard for Silas’s sister, Monique, all right?”

  “Crushing hard?” I cock a brow. “How old are you again?”

  “Old enough to know that I sound like an idiot when I talk like that.” He laughs. “I’m taking off and I can’t promise I’ll be back today.”

  I’d balk at that, but I’m hoping that Dexie is going to extend her lunch hour beyond sixty minutes. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Jared. Enjoy.”

  He’s out of the office before I can get another word in.

  It’s fucking perfect.

  I’m getting everything I want.

  Time alone with Dexie Walsh and the chance to talk about all those nights spent at our windows.

  I missed her last night because I hit the gym at midnight to work off my restless energy, but if our meeting goes well, tonight will be different.

  Glass won’t be separating us; nothing will be.

  ***

  “I want to be transparent.” She bites on the corner of her bottom lip. “I mean, I need to be transparent.”

  I need to be fucking you.

  I shake those words away, instead shifting my focus from her mouth to her eyes.

  Her left iris is slightly darker than the right.

  I’ve never met a woman as unique as Dexie Walsh.

  “I’m meeting Rhoda tomorrow to talk about my business. We’re having a drink after work.”

  Her chest heaves on a sigh and my eyes drop to the front of the cream-colored dress she’s wearing.

  It fits her like a glove.

  I noticed the dress the second she walked in and when she brushed past me to toss her purse onto Jared’s desk, her ass grabbed my full attention.

  The fabric is hugging her every curve.

  “You’re wasting your time, Dexie.” I close the empty take-out container in front of me.

  The food wasn’t half-bad. I may indulge again, but only if she’s by my side.

  “I knew you’d say that,” she mutters.

  I smile at the slight dig. I like her spirit and the fact that she’s not falling all over herself trying to secure a deal with me.

  “I’ll have my proposal in your hands soon.” I take a sip of water before I place the bottle back down on my desk.

  I took the wooden chair in front of my desk and offered Dexie the office chair behind it. It’s moderately more comfortable.

  Her gaze scans the room. “I didn’t picture your office looking like this.”

  I’ve never seen the value in paying a premium to rent office space I’ll rarely be in.

  This two-room space is big enough to house Jared’s desk in the waiting area and mine in the main office.

  It’s uncommon for any of my business associates to stop by here. I can count on one hand how many face-to-face meetings I’ve taken white sitting behind this desk.

  “I didn’t picture you working in an office like Matiz.” I sit back in my chair. “Tell me how you ended up working there.”

  She takes a breath. “The staffing agency I went to hooked me up with Matiz.”

  It’s a succinct answer. She plays her cards close to the vest. My time at the poker table has taught me how to read people, including beautiful women.

  “Is the job more important than Dexie Walsh?”

  “My company?” she clarifies with a raised brow.

  I study her face. “Or the woman. You decide.”

  She considers her answer. “It’s not more important, but it’s essential.”

  Most of the entrepreneurs I’ve worked with have handed me the same song and dance at the beginning of our partnerships. I get it. I’ve always understood.

  Everyone needs money for the essentials. You can’t pay rent, buy food or clothe yourself without cash. Hope is not currency in the real world.

  It is in mine.

  I pay my partners to immerse themselves in their dream.

  My offers always include a salary if the person I’m working with hasn’t taken the leap to full-time goal chaser.

  Dexie isn’t there yet. I understand, but I want to hear it from her.

  “I have a degree in marketing,” she goes on without any prompting from me. “I moved to New York so I could see firs
t-hand how the big names are selling their handbags. I study all the online ads that the designer brands run. I pick them apart until I understand every nuance. The font of the text is vital. The color of the background can make or break a sale.”

  I don’t interrupt. Instead, I lean forward and focus on every word she’s saying.

  “I took the position at Matiz because their marketing department is brilliant. I could get by with working part-time for my friend, Sophia. She heads a clothing line. I learn something every time I work a fashion show with her, but I crave the knowledge I get from my job.” Her hands knit together on the desk. “When it comes to marketing a product, whether it’s a tube of mascara or a tote bag, every aspect matters and if I don’t understand each small thing, I’m not putting the value on my brand that it deserves.”

  I almost rise to my feet to give her a standing ovation.

  “Impressive,” I say quietly. “Your approach is impressive.”

  “I have to choose the partner who will complement my approach. I know that you understand.”

  “You think Rhoda is that person?”

  She draws her bottom lip between her teeth, her eyes searching my face. “I think a partnership with Rhoda would be less...”

  “Complicated?”

  Her cheeks bloom pink. “I don’t live next door to Rhoda.”

  I lower my voice even though we’re the only two people here. “You mean Rhoda hasn’t seen you almost naked.”

  Working on a quick swallow, she bats her long eyelashes. “I was stunned when I saw you at the pitch session.”

  “The feeling was mutual.” I inch forward on my chair. “Imagine my surprise when I walked out of the conference room and found you sitting there. It took my breath away.”

  Chapter 24

  Dexie

  Rocco knows the impact of his words.

  I see it on his face. His mouth curved up when I swallowed hard after he told me that seeing me in the waiting room at the pitch session took his breath away.

  Breaking our gaze, I glance down at his desk and the take-out containers and chopsticks.

  I ordered food from the same place the first night I moved into my new apartment.

  I was surprised to see he’d ordered it for lunch, although the restaurant is only a few blocks from here.

  I was more taken aback by the way he’s dressed. He’s wearing a light blue button-down shirt that’s open at the collar and a pair of black pants.

  Part of me wonders if he traded in the T-shirts and jeans to impress me.

  “Dexie,” he says my name gently, luring my head up. “Let’s talk about this. Let’s talk about what’s going on between us.”

  I study his face. It was so much easier when he was a nameless stranger that I watched through my window at night. Now, he’s my potential business partner.

  “What’s there to talk about?” I try to sound flippant, but I know the expression on my face gives me away.

  I’m confused.

  I’ve never been this attracted to a man before. If I hadn’t run into him at the pitch meeting, I would still be racing home each night to stand at my window to stare at him.

  “You liked what you saw when you looked into my apartment.”

  It’s a declaration that I can’t deny. I was practically drooling all over the pane of glass when he had the towel wrapped around his waist.

  “I liked what I saw,” he goes on, his gaze drifting over my face. “I want to see more.”

  So do I but I want a business partner more. At least, I think I do.

  I lean back in the chair. “Things are different now, Rocco.”

  “Why?”

  I rub my hand over my forehead. “There’s a chance that we’re going to be working together. My company is my life. I feel like I’m on the cusp of finally getting what I want and I can’t risk that.”

  His eyes narrow. “You don’t think we can get to know each other on a personal level at the same time we enter a business partnership?”

  “I don’t have any experience in that,” I say honestly. “Do you?”

  The way his jaw tightens answers my question for me. He’s fucked other women that he’s partnered with.

  It makes sense. He’s a handsome man with a body that makes me weak in the knees. His other female business partners must feel the same attraction to him that I do.

  Rhoda just rose on my sliding scale from a D to an A-plus.

  I won’t be stung with a needle of jealousy whenever I hear her talk about who else she is partnering with.

  I’m not naïve enough to think that sex with Rocco would lead to a relationship, but intimacy without at least some familiarity attached to it doesn’t work for me.

  I’m not looking for a promise of exclusivity before I go down on a man, but I like to know something about him beyond what excites him in bed.

  My phone buzzes. I reach down and fish in my purse for it. I scan the screen before I silence it.

  Rising to my feet, I scrub my hand over my forehead. “I need to get back to work.”

  He’s out of his chair. “I’ll go with you. We’ll continue our discussion on the way.”

  I shoulder my bag and round his desk. “You don’t need to do that.”

  He steps in front of me. It’s not a move meant to intimidate me. I can see that in the tenderness in his eyes. He’s concerned or maybe curious. There’s something unspoken lingering in his expression.

  “I can’t ignore what’s happening between us.” His voice is deep. “I’m very attracted to you. I want to get to know you better.”

  I want the same thing, but it’s not as cut and dry as he seems to think it is.

  “I have an important decision to make about who I want to partner with.” I sigh. “This is a big deal to me and I don’t want to fuck it up by letting my attraction to you cloud my judgment.”

  His mouth curves into a smile. “You admit that you’re attracted to me?”

  I hold his gaze, my lips parting. “I need to get back to work.”

  His hand jumps to my face, his thumb grazing a path over the corner of my mouth.

  For the briefest moment I think he’s going to kiss me, and I know that I won’t stop him, but that’s not what happens.

  He brings his thumb to his mouth and flicks his tongue over the pad of it. “Lemon sauce and you. Delicious.”

  Arousal perks deep inside me.

  I take a deep breath and move back one full step. “Thank you for lunch.”

  “It was my pleasure. I’ll be in touch.”

  “See you soon,” I say before I realize the weight of those words.

  “Indeed,” he shoots back as I walk past him on my way out the door.

  Chapter 25

  Dexie

  “If I weren’t a very happily married woman, I’d be baking some muffins to take over to your neighbor’s apartment right about now.”

  I bark out a laugh. “What?”

  Sophia glances back at me from her perch on my windowsill. “I spot at least four hot men over there. Is your neighbor one of them?”

  He’s the hottest. Just look for the messy brown hair, the chiseled jaw and the lips that look like they’d take you to heaven and back.

  I can’t say those words to Sophia because she’d set to work baking something, anything that I could take over to Rocco.

  “Aren’t you the one who is always telling your daughter that it’s rude to stare?” I dump a pouch of microwave popcorn into a large ceramic bowl. “You’ve been sitting there since you got here, Sophia.”

  “There is nothing on television that will compare to this.” She motions for me to hand the bowl to her. “Come sit next to me.”

  I shake my head. “Try and pull yourself away from that and join me on the couch.”

  Her gaze flits back to Rocco’s apartment. “It looks like they’re going to play cards.”

  It makes sense. Rocco isn’t a stranger to a deck of cards. The million dollar purses he collected wh
en he was playing professional poker are proof of that.

  “We can play cards,” I offer with a laugh. “What’s that card game that you’re always playing with Nicholas?”

  “Strip poker.”

  I turn to look at her. “You don’t know the first thing about poker.”

  “That’s why it’s my husband’s favorite game.” She slips the strap of her red tank top down her shoulder. “I’m always nude before he sheds one piece of clothing. He likes it that way.”

  I laugh. “You two are relationship goals. You know that, right?”

  She stretches her legs, readying to stand. “I know that if I were you, I’d be borrowing a cup of sugar from that man in the next building.”

  “You don’t even know which one is my neighbor.” Reaching for the remote, I settle on the couch.

  “My money is on the one in the blue shirt.” She stands, yanking up the waistband of her black yoga pants. “I caught him looking over here. I can’t say he’s as hot as Nicholas, but he’s close, Dex.”

  I scroll through the channels, oblivious to what is on any of them.

  I haven’t stopped thinking about Rocco since I left his office this afternoon.

  When I first got home from work an hour ago, he already had company. I ducked into my bathroom, took a shower and put on a pair of white shorts and a blue T-shirt.

  I tried to avoid looking at his apartment, but my willpower was no match for my curiosity.

  When I did finally glance in that direction, I was met with his gaze and then a lift of his hand in a wave.

  That’s when Sophia called to ask if she could drop by to show me a few new sketches for her spring collection.

  I welcomed the distraction until she walked in and headed straight to the window.

  “Bring your sketchpad here,” I say, patting the couch next to me. “Show me what you’re working on.”

  “In a minute.” Her hands fall to her hips. “Why are you doing everything you can to avoid looking over at your neighbor? Is there something you need to tell me about the two of you?”

  I’ve thought about telling her that Rocco is one of the investors who are interested in partnering with me, but I don’t want to tell Sophia any half-truths. I’m not ready to confess that I treated him to a slow striptease through the window.