Taking Care of Business

by Lauren Dane

  And, pow, Kate was right. Christ. 'Well, see, part of that's true in a sense and it was brought to my attention recently.

  I don't come back to you though and I'm an ass if I gave you any false hope that we'd be back together. I've been happy for you when you had men in your life. I wanted to be sure the girls had stability. I don't hate you, I just don't want to be married to you. You and I aren't meant to be married, you said so yourself. We share two great kids and I never planned, nor do I ever plan, to walk out of their lives. You're part of their lives so naturally we're part of each other's life. But that doesn't mean I come back to you.'

  She levelled a gaze on him and shrugged. 'If that's what you think. She's not here and, yet, you are. What does she think about that?'

  'She told me I was still married to you without the fucking. At the time it pissed me off. But it turns out she was pretty right about it. She also shoved me out of the door when I got the call about Kendall being hurt.'

  'She said that? In those vulgar terms? What kind of woman are you going to expose our daughters to?'

  He stood and washed his cup out in the sink. 'Don't ever call my judgement into question when it comes to the girls, Eve.

  She's the kind of woman I'm in love with. I'm sorry if this hurts you. I am. We've been divorced for seven years. It's apparently partly my fault you haven't moved on so let me be totally clear. I'm not coming back. We've had what I've always thought of as an amicable divorce and have managed to work together on parenting. I'd like to keep things that way. But that doesn't mean we're still married and it doesn't mean I haven't moved on. You need to see other people, find happiness. You deserve it. You're a good woman. Beautiful, intelligent, you run a successful business, there are many men who would love to snap you up.'

  'Just not you?'

  He barely resisted hugging her. He wasn't an asshole, he didn't want her hurt. But he didn't want her holding out false hope either. 'I'm sorry.'

  Kate hadn't spoken to Dix much over the last week. He'd been at the lake house and then at work. She didn't want to call him at home because she hadn't wanted to intrude on his private life, especially since she knew he had his daughters with him.

  He'd left a few voicemails for her and she'd responded but ended up with his voicemail in return. Each message he left made him sound more and more frustrated and she totally understood. She was pretty damned frustrated herself.

  Uncertainty wasn't a place she liked. She'd made the damned decision to love him and then all hell had broken loose and she'd been given way too much time alone to think.

  On her way home from work she dialled Leah.

  'Griffin.'

  Kate smiled at Leah's businesslike clipped tone. 'Hey. Whatcha up to?'

  'I'm about to hit Wegman's. What's up with you?'

  'Just calling to check in, make sure we're still on for next week.' And how nice it was, Kate realised, to be able to see Leah regularly. Just to hang out.

  'Of course, wouldn't miss it.'

  'All right then. I'll let you go seeing as you're about to enter the nirvana of grocery stores.' She hesitated. She'd wanted to talk to Leah about the Dix thing all weeklong but kept hesitating. Stupid of her really.

  Kate realised Leah had been talking and she finally burst out. 'God, Leah, what am I going to do about Dix?'

  Leah laughed. 'I was wondering when you'd finally talk to me about it. Tell me.'

  So Kate did, pouring out her anxiety, fear, anger and frustration. There was more than she'd thought but it came out easily when she was talking to Leah.

  'I just don't know what to think. The thing is, it's all stupid. I mean, he's called even if it's just phone tag. I don't have any reason to think he's blowing me off but Pickles is still in the way. If he doesn't deal with the ex, I don't think we can make it work.'

  'That's fair. I'm never going to be able to look at him without snickering now that I know about the pickle-jar thing. For now I think you need to cut the guy some slack and, if he doesn't show up to your place within the next few days to sweep you into bed, then you can cut his balls off.'

  Kate grinned. 'You always say the best stuff. So, um, speaking of showing up at your place and all. Any Band Boy smack to share?'

  Leah let out a suffering sigh. 'What did you do? Did you do something?'

  'Look, he was all morose and you were so sad and I knew he wanted to go after you and you needed him to and all, so I gave him your home address and number. I'd say I was sorry but we'd both know I was lying so yadda yadda. He doesn't strike me as stalker material and he seriously has a jones for you.' Kate grimaced, waiting for Leah's response.

  'Well, he didn't use them.'

  Kate only barely stifled herself from showing any pity. Leah would hate that. 'Well, you could call him.'

  'I could. But I'm not going to.'

  Kate sighed at Leah's stubbornness. She unlocked the front door to her building, waved at the doorman and found her voice. 'Why not? It's been a week.'

  'Only a week.'

  'And a day even. Gah! Leah! A week can be a long time.' Yeah, really long. She sobered. 'Believe me.'

  'I'll think about it, OK?'

  Kate perked up. Clearly she'd need to put all her own angst into a campaign to get Leah to call Band Boy and jump his squeaky-clean bones until she sullied him. 'You know you want to. He's probably used like eight boxes of tissues and a lot of hand lotion just thinking about you. He's mopey. His mom keeps asking him why he keeps showering so much and hanging out in the basement with his Star Wars figurines.'

  Leah snorted a laugh. 'Ew! OK, so not ew, but eight boxes seems excessive. Anyway, do you really want to go there? Because I'll go there about you and Dix and then we won't have anything to talk about at lunch next week.'

  'Dude, if Dix is jerking off so much he needs eight boxes of tissues in a week, I don't think I'll be enough for him. But OK, truce. For now.' She got out of the elevator and saw him, Dix, finally, standing in front of her door. 'See you later. Call me if you want to talk.'

  35

  Kate hung up, amazed her legs still worked as she moved towards him, hoping her tongue wasn't hanging out. Had he looked this good the last time she saw him?

  He smiled, looking her up and down. 'Hi. After leaving a dozen voicemails back and forth, I figured I'd come to you.'

  His voice was so sexy. She couldn't help herself as she leaned towards him, slid her arms around his neck and tiptoed up to kiss him. Oh he tasted so good, smelled even better. The man was walking, talking delicious.

  Dix caught her body, breathing her in, realising he'd been more nervous than he'd thought.

  'That's a fine welcome.' He grinned as she pulled back and unlocked her door.

  'Come on in,' she called as she sauntered past, carefully hanging her briefcase and purse on a neatly hung peg just inside.

  He did, closing and locking the door behind himself. He looked around the surprisingly feminine and bright space.

  'I . . . I guess I hadn't expected you to have girly taste.'

  She turned and glared at him. 'Girly? Do you see any glass unicorns or big-eyed baby figurines with praying hands and puppies? Girly, humph.'

  Laughing, he tossed his overnight bag just beneath where she'd hung her things. 'I meant, well, flowers and soft colours. Pillows on the couch.'

  'You have pillows on your couch if I remember correctly.

  What does that say?'

  'You're being argumentative, counsellor.' He moved to her and she rolled her eyes and headed down a hall. He followed, liking to watch as she peeled her suit jacket off.

  'I'll have you know,' she said as she entered her bedroom, 'I get paid a lot to be argumentative.'

  His mouth dried up when she shrugged out of her blouse and stepped from her skirt. 'Kate, stockings? My. So very sexy.'

  She sent him a raised brow and hung her things up. She put her shoes neatly in the large closet and turned back to him.

  'My boyfriend at work likes to bend me
over his desk and fuck me. The stockings make it easier.' She paused with a smirk.

  'Charles Dixon, why are you here? Why really?'

  'I'm here for you. Isn't that obvious? How can I talk when you're standing there in a bra and tiny panties with stockings? It's beyond distracting. I haven't had you in a week and I'm dying.'

  The line of her neck beckoned as she laughed. How pretty she was, so at ease with herself as she stood there. A shift had occurred since he'd seen her last. She wasn't hesitant with him at all, instead offering intimacy freely. Still there was a certain wariness in her features.

  'Come on then. I'll put clothes on. We can order some Chinese food and have a beer. I've worked way more hours than I wanted to this week and today is the first day I've been home before eight at night.'

  He looked at her bed. 'You don't have to get dressed you know. I mean, since I'll have to undress you all over again to fuck you.'

  'Don't get ahead of yourself, Charles.'

  Captivated, he couldn't look away as she slid her stockings down, one by one, and took them off. The tiny little dress she put on didn't actually cover much more but it wasn't as if he planned to complain.

  'Your message light is blinking,' he said as he slid himself on to her couch. Very nice.

  'I'm sure. I'm a popular girl.' She passed the machine and dug out a menu. 'So any preferences for dinner?'

  'I like it hot.' He grinned and she laughed.

  While she ordered the food he set his phone to ring only for the girls' numbers and put it on a nearby table. No interruptions for them tonight.

  She pushed an ice-cold beer towards him before sitting.

  Her scent teased him. 'How long until dinner arrives?'

  'It'll be about twenty minutes. They're pretty close.'

  He took several swallows of the beer and dropped to his knees before her. 'Enough time to make you come then.'

  'We have a lot to talk about before we have sex, Dix.' But she hadn't moved. Instead she leaned quite comfortably back into the cushions and watched him, her head slightly cocked to the side. His hand lay against her thigh where the muscles remained loose. She was warm against his palm, familiar.

  'We do. We will talk. I promise. But why get started only to be interrupted by the food?' As he spoke, he slid his fingers up under the dress and reversed, bringing her panties down and off her legs.

  Her eyes seemed to burn as she watched him and he couldn't break his gaze even as he bent to kiss her knee and then up her thigh.

  Her lips parted into a soft gasp when he slid his thumbs up through the furls of her cunt, spreading her juices around her clit.

  'Wet already.' He loved that, it made him feel invincible that he affected her so much.

  'It's the commute; it makes me hot. Oh God . . .' Her head dropped back and his mouth met the place where his thumbs slid back and forth.

  Her taste, Christ, her taste was so good. The flesh of her sex was salty sweet against the rasp of his tongue. He closed his eyes against it, the sharpness of his need for her, and simply let himself feel like he'd come home in her.

  Slowly, slowly, he took long soft licks through her, meaning to take every moment of those twenty minutes.

  It was more than a blow job. Dix's mouth worshipped her, paid homage to her body. Every movement of his hands, tongue and the slight scrape of teeth was reverent.

  She wanted to arch, to get more, but he held her in place. His warning growl rumbled through her sex. She held a hand to his head, revelling in his hair between her fingers. Her other hand slid into the bodice of her dress and found a nipple.

  The sharp pleasure of her fingertips tugging brought a moan from her and then from him. She dragged her eyes open to find him watching her, even as his mouth still worked against her sex.

  He lapped at her like a cat and then flicked the tip of his tongue against her cit rapidly until her entire body began to vibrate.

  God, it was too much. One of his thumbs played at her entrance, teasing in and out while the other played over her rear passage. All she could do was pant and moan while orgasm began to take over her body.

  She came, with a hoarse gasp, her fingers tightening in his hair and on her nipple. Her gasp built into a moan so loud she was pretty sure her neighbours knew she was up to something naked.

  On and on it went and he never backed off as climax reverberated through her body. She finally shoved at him because she couldn't take another second of it.

  He pulled back and kissed her inner thigh. 'You're so gorgeous when you come,' he murmured, petting her mound gently as she slowly came back to herself.

  The buzzer sounded and the doorman let her know the delivery guy was on his way up.

  Dix stood and rearranged her dress. 'Sit here a second. I'll handle the door.'

  She didn't argue.

  Dix watched for a while as she ate and drank her beer before saying anything.

  'How are you settling in? I like this place. It's a good building. The manly man in me is pleased the security is so good.'

  She laughed. 'So good you and my parents got in.'

  'Believe it or not, when I approached and started to ring you, one of your neighbours saw me and recognised me.

  He's one of the referees in the soccer league Adrienne plays for. He let me in. I didn't say who I was here to see, by the way. Not that I wanted to hide it, but I didn't know how you'd feel just yet.'

  'Well, that's good. After someone in the building let my parents in, I sort of read the doorman the Riot Act about being extra vigilant with my visitors.'

  'I take it you weren't happy to see them?'

  'I was in Harrisburg at the time so I lucked out and wasn't here. We're, um, not close. Or rather they think we are, but I know we aren't. Sadly, they just live in Bala Cynwyd, so near enough to menace me on a whim. Anyway, my job is good, surprisingly so. My stuff arrived from Seattle and nothing was broken. How's things with you?'

  'You're so easygoing right now I'm nervous.'

  She laughed and popped the last of an egg roll into her mouth. 'Oh, come on, just say it already. I'm all mellow and full of serotonin and Chinese food. Add the beer and it's all good. What do you have to be nervous about anyway?'

  'You're not worried?'

  She snorted in a very unladylike fashion and it made him smile. 'Well, I'm not worried you fucked your ex at the lake house or that you've found an assistant who does her roots.

  I have concerns but you know what they are.'

  'You can be very vicious.'

  'What? Did I bring up pickle jars even once?'

  He laughed. 'Man, you are! I didn't mean the pickle-jar incident, although I'll give you fifty bucks to never mention it again. I meant the roots comment.'

  'Dix, darling, if you think that was vicious you don't know nearly as much as you think about women. There's so much I didn't say –to you anyway –about that bitch-faced cow you have no idea. Anyway, you're skirting the subject again.'

  'Fine. The girls are good. We're finishing up with getting the new confidentiality and non-compete agreements signed company-wide and you were right.'

  'Glad to hear it. Good. And, duh, I'm frequently right. Learn it now and save us both a lot of headache. What do you mean specifically?'

  He put her plate to the side and took her hands in his.

  'You were right about the situation with Eve. I did a lot of thinking that night as I drove to the hospital and while I was awake all night long. By the time Eve told me I still loved her and that's why I'd never committed to anyone in the years since we'd divorced, well, that was pretty much a big underlined "Kate was right."'

  Kate's jaw tightened and her brows rose before a light came into her eyes just briefly. 'So you had a talk with her about this?'

  'Is that hope I see in your face? Trust?'

  'I told you already, Charles, I trust you. If I didn't, you wouldn't be here right now. Do you have trust issues?'

  He sighed and drew her to the couch, snuggling he
r into his body. 'It's never been an issue because I've never had anyone in my life I felt a sort of possession over. I do with you. I want you and I want you to want me as much. But I don't feel as if you'd betray what we're building.'

  Wow, he was so freaking self-actualised it sort of scared her. 'You know, I thought men were supposed to be all silent and broody and women had to pull teeth to get them to share. I am so turned on by the way you open yourself up. God, I'm such a freak.' She laughed and he kissed the top of her head.