by Vicki Green
“Yo! Kane!”
My head snaps up to Caylan walking toward me, concern covering his face. I wonder if Irish is okay. I finish fastening my tool belt and close the lid of the toolbox in time for him to reach my truck. “What’s up? You okay, man?” He leans against the back of my truck and I’m a little relieved to see the corner of his mouth lift slightly.
He looks down and then his eyes move up to mine. “Yeah. I’m good. Uh….” He looks around and then stares at the trailer. “That, uh, woman. The one that is kinda leading this thing? Well, uh….”
I shift my stance, fire beginning to boil inside me. “Just spit it out, Caylan.”
He nods at the trailer. “Well, she’s been here for a while and has already changed a few things. We had to rip out a couple of frames and start over on a section.”
I look over at the trailer, that fire flowing through me as I clench my fists by my sides. “What the fuck?” I growl and start walking towards the trailer. I hear Caylan’s fast footsteps in the gravel behind me.
“Now, Kane. Maybe you should calm down first and….”
I stop at the door and turn my head. By the look on his face I’d say he knows not to continue. I’m about ready to have a field day.
Chapter Two
Bria
“That looks so much better. Thanks, Charles.” I look up when I hear the door hit the outside of the trailer. Kane’s standing there with anger radiating from him. I wonder what’s wrong. “Look, I need to go. Okay.” I push end on my phone and set it down on the desk. “Something wrong?” I ask, one brow raised high.
He walks over, more like storms, and crosses his beefy arms over his chest. “Just what do you mean coming in here and having my guys change shit? How much time did that set us back?”
I look at him indifferently and shrug. “My designer came up with a great modification. It’ll be worth it in the long run. Don’t worry.” I lean back as his eyes darken. He leans down, his fists on the desk, scowling.
“Don’t worry? You can’t just make changes and then tell my crews to carry them out without me being here.” He stands up straight, his body shaking as he pokes his finger into his chest. “I’m the lead crew chief.” Poke. “I give the orders.” Poke. Poke. “I’m the one they follow, not you.” He turns and starts to walk to the door, his feet heavy on the tiled floor.
“Well, they did what I asked. Just the same in the end.” I start to look at the computer when he growls.
“No. It’s. Not. Don’t fucking do that again!”
He walks out and slams the door and I jump with the sound. “Sheesh. I wonder what made him so grumpy.” I smile as I look back at the computer feeling a little victorious.
After the long day with all the eyes of the guys searing through me, especially this Kane guy, I just want to go home and have a glass of wine while relaxing in the tub. Which is exactly what I do. My feet hurt from walking in those damn high heels on the gravel and I know everyone thought I was nuts wearing my silky dress at a construction site. “Appearance is everything. You must always look the part.” Daddy’s voice enters my head as I rub my foot. I wish my body could conform. I walk to my bedroom and drop my shoes onto the floor of my closet, too tired to put them on the shoe rack. I grab my camisole and matching panties and walk to my bathroom. After turning on the water, making sure it’s a comfortable temperature, I walk to the kitchen and get a bottle of my favorite wine from the rack and open the drawer, taking out the corkscrew and work it until I can pull out the cork easily. Grabbing a wine glass from the cabinet, I pour until it’s full and then push the cork back into the bottle, setting it on the counter. My eyes close as I take the first sip, relishing in the taste. God, I need this. Picking up my phone from the breakfast bar, I walk to my bathroom, remove my clothes and step into the water, sitting down and getting comfortable. My phone alerts me to a text immediately and I roll my eyes. I look down over the tub and see Smoky sitting on the bath rug looking up at me. “Well, that didn’t take long.” She blinks, knowingly. Picking up my phone I look at the text and sigh.
Father: I hope everything went well today. I want a full report by morning
“Yes, Father. Thank you for asking. I’m great. How are you?” I think smugly to myself.
I set it down and slide down into the water more, taking a huge drink of my wine and close my eyes. Guess it’s going to be another late night of reports. Why can’t I just have one night off? One night just to be me? “Nothing is handed to anyone. You must work 24/7 in order to get ahead and stay on the top.” I take another huge gulp. “Oh, just shut up.” God, I’d love to say that to his face. Just once. Of course, I’m sure that would be the one and only time as he would boot me out on my ass right after. My phone vibrates on the side of the tub and I’m not sure I can bear looking. Curiosity wins and I set my glass down on the ledge and pick up my phone.
Irish: Bria. Come to Pops Bar. Come on! You know you want to
Irish. I really like her. She’s snarky and has attitude, always standing up for what she wants. We’ve spent some quality time together and for once, I think I could actually have a friend. I’ve always had to be leery of everyone, most only wanting me for my money. I’ve mistaken that before, thinking they actually wanted to be my friend because of me, and that didn’t end well. I could go have a beer. One beer. God, that sounds fantastic! I text back quickly.
Me: Be there in half an hour
Her reply comes back and I smile.
Irish: Good. I’d hate to have to come find you
I sit up, water splashing over the side, and take the last big drink of my wine then wash up. Once I’ve let the water out, cleaning the tub as it does, I make haste fixing my makeup and brushing my teeth. My hair is a mess from the day, so I run a brush through it and let it fall down around me. It’s still a little curly from the heat today. When I get to my closet, I look at all my dresses. God, I don’t feel like dressing up. I make a quick decision and pull out a drawer, find a pair of my skinny jeans and put them on. The waistband hugs my hips. I grab my black fitted strapless top. It barely covers my ample breasts and the lace bodice stretches down my sides and fits tightly over my curves, leaving a little skin between it and the low riding waistband of my jeans. I grab a pair of my doc marten flat sandals and smile to myself. Daddy would be mortified. Right now, I don’t care. I want to be myself for one night. I grab my keys from the tray on the table beside the front door, pull my license, some money, and my credit card from my purse and stick them in my back pocket. After locking up and getting in my car, I head over to the bar. A beer. I can’t wait to have one. It’s been too long. No gin and tonics for me tonight!
As I drive my mind wanders to a face with scruff. Brown eyes that about melted off my panties – and that body. Oh. My. God! I get wet just thinking of those large muscular arms wrapped around me. Shaking my head, I laugh out loud. What in the hell is wrong with me? He’s so out of my league. I mean, he’s strong, confident. I can tell he’s a womanizer just by looking at him and from what I’ve learned. His demeanor, his body movements, and he’s self-assured, not to mention how he looked at me. His eyes were filled with hunger. Like he could devour me and then spit me out, moving on to his next victim. I’m not naïve. I know he goes from one woman to the next. No, I definitely don’t need that in my life. But God. One night. Just to have his body covering mine. I can only imagine his thick cock entering me, how I’d have to adjust for him. Shit, Bria! Stop thinking about him, about that. It’s not like you’ve gone all the way before anyway. I’ve never had time for a boyfriend, much less a one night stand. Not that I’d have a one night stand anyway. I’m just not that kind of girl. Too bad brown eyes seems to be that kind of guy. I sigh out loud. It wouldn’t work out anyway. We are from two different worlds. His is one I’d love to be in though. His family seems close knit, down to earth, like they actually love and care for each other. Mine on the other hand is deemed as pretentious. Rigid, no love, no caring, well, except for my b
rother. I would have shattered long ago if not for him. He’s the only person who keeps me sane.
“Oh, my God, Bri. Quit thinking so much,” I murmur to myself. I swear my body has heated up about one hundred degrees just thinking about him. Imagine if he were to actually be near me. I need to get my mind back into the zone.
I pull into the crowded parking lot but luckily I find a place to park at the end of a row of cars off to the side. I’m a little nervous going in by myself but I put my game face on, acting like the cool and confident person I’ve been trained to be my entire life. Music is playing inside. The floor boards at the entrance vibrate with the beat. The front door is ajar, so I walk in, looking around for any familiar face. Such a homey atmosphere. I just love it and remember the great time I had the last time I was here. Irish is sitting at the bar counter, and my mouth turns into a smile as I walk over and stand beside her. “I’m so glad you’re already here.”
Her head turns and her eyes widen as she smiles. “Yea! You came! Here.” She turns the other way and looks at a man who looks familiar. “Get up and let Bria sit down.” She all but growls at the poor man. I look at him and he just winks at me, smiles at her then looks up at me as he vacates the stool. Why does he look so familiar? She looks at me and beams. “Here. Sit down.” She pats the stool and I walk over and sit down. I look at the man who is now standing behind us and smile at him.
“Thank you.” He winks at me again.
“No problem, boss lady. It’s my pleasure.” He takes a drink of his beer and smiles.
Boss lady? That’s where I know him from. He’s on one of the crews. I look at Irish and see she’s talking to a pregnant bartender over the counter. “Uh, what’ll you have, Bria?” She looks at me and I cross my legs and sit up straight. I look at the pretty bartender and smile.
“I’d love a bottled beer. Light, please.”
The bartender smiles back, gives me a nod and walks over to the large glass refrigerator against the wall. I turn to Irish when she leans over. “That’s Taren.” She looks back at the man behind us and gives him a sneer. “Brock’s soon to be wife.”
I look back at Brock and then at Irish. “Oh. How lovely.”
Brock looks at me and winks then sneers back at Irish. “Yeah. Soon, Irish. Quit nagging me about it. We have a plan.”
She sits back and takes a drink of her beer. “It’d be nice if your plan included getting married before my niece Jenae is born.” She growls at him again and I have to hold my laugh in. I just love her and her attitude. He rolls his eyes but there’s a smile on his face when he takes a drink. His eyes shift to mine and he winks again.
“Here you go.” Taren sets a beer down in front of me and I pick it up, taking a much needed drink. Oh, my God! I haven’t had one in so long. It tastes heavenly. The cold liquid flows over my taste buds and down my throat and I let out a contented sigh.
“Thank you. How much do I owe?” I start digging through my back pocket and pull out a twenty.
She laughs. “On the house. Any friend of Irish’s.” Irish looks at me and smiles. Beaming is more like it.
“Oh, I couldn’t.” I set the twenty down on the counter and push it towards her. Irish’s hand covers it and pushes it back to me.
“Bria. This is Taren. Brock’s beautiful yet very pregnant girlfriend.” She looks over her shoulder at Brock quickly then back at me. “Your money’s no good here,” she says through her smile.
I smile back and then look at Taren. “Lovely to meet you, Taren. When are you due?” I look down at her hand covering her swollen stomach and then back into her sparkling eyes.
She looks down at her stomach and back up at me. “I still have about four and a half months left. Not much longer.” She looks at Irish lovingly. “It’s been a secret but my bestie knows Brock and I plan on getting married in about a month.” She sticks her tongue out at Irish, playfully. She really is quite beautiful, but then again so is Irish. I’m really starting to like both of them more than I care to admit. I’ve never really had friends, most only liking me because of my wealth. It’s hard to find someone who likes you just for yourself in the world I live in.
Suddenly, an older woman comes out from the back, carrying a plate of food and walks towards us. She sets the plate down in front of me, heaped with a rather large hamburger and mounds of French fries, accompanied by a bottle of ketchup and mustard. “You’re too skinny. You need some of Mimi’s home cooking.” She winks at me and then walks back through the swinging door. That was weird.
Irish laughs and gives me a stern look. “That’s Mimi. She makes the best food ever. She’ll get really testy if you don’t eat. You don’t want Mimi’s wrath.” She laughs and I look around as Taren and Brock laugh too. I normally don’t eat this late at night and especially this huge amount of food. In fact, to keep my figure I usually eat light and only healthy food but the aroma swarming around me is making me drool. I pick up the ketchup and pour a generous amount on the plate, having to move some of the French fries over to accommodate. Picking up a fry, I take a bite and I swear I just moaned out loud. I shift my eyes around and see they are all smiling at me, knowingly.
“Oh, my God!” I murmur around the fry.
“I know, right?” Irish laughs.
This food is almost orgasmic. Taren leaves to help a customer and Brock leans over Irish’s shoulder. “I gotta go.” He looks at me and winks. “Got an early morning and I don’t want Kane to kick my ass.” He kisses her cheek and she reaches behind her and pushes him away then rubs the skin on her cheek like he just gave her cooties. I love how they are a big happy family. It makes me sad that I don’t really have one except for Charles but I’m so thankful I have him. I really should bring him here and introduce him to everyone. He’d love it here and I know they’d love him.
Brock sets down his empty beer bottle and leaves. I pick up the huge hamburger and sink my teeth into it, eliciting another moan. I stop and look around to find Irish smiling at me. “I know. I do the same thing every time I eat anything here. Don’t worry. Everyone does it.” I close my eyes and savor all the tastes. Seriously, best thing I’ve ever eaten. We sit in silence for a bit, not at all uncomfortable. I’ve been wanting to ask Irish some questions but I’m a little leery. After eating over the half of the humongous burger, I’m stuffed. I take a drink of my beer and clear my throat. She looks at me as she nods at Taren to get us another beer.
“So, the start of construction is going rather well. Don’t you think?” Ugh! Stupid. Taren sets our beers down and I chug almost half of mine. Irish gives me a strange look and I swallow hard. I look down and start peeling the label from the bottle. “You and your friends seem really close.” I take a peek up at her and see her head cocked. She’s probably as confused as I feel. “I mean…. That’s nice to have such close knit relationships with people – uh, friends.” Oh, my God! I sound like an idiot.
She purses her lips, trying not to let loose her smile. “Why don’t you ask me what you really want to ask me, Bria?” I look at her in surprise. “Oh. Don’t give me that ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about’ look.” Placing my hand over my heart, I try to appear like I don’t know what she’s talking about. She lays her arm down on the counter and leans in closer. “He’s single. Very single. Really too single.”
“I don’t know what….”
“Cut the crap, Bri.” She laughs, trying not to sound too harsh. “Kane. I’ve seen you look at him at the site.” She sits up and grabs her beer, taking a long drink. My heart is beating so rapidly. I’m not sure if it’s because she knows or the mention of his name. “It’s okay. You’re only human and a woman. Let me just warn ya. He doesn’t do relationships and it’s very rare if he even has a repeat with the same woman. He just says he’s living life at its fullest but I’m not sure he can ever settle down. Not sure it’s in him. Still….” She lets out a sigh and leans in close again. “We’ve been friends a long time. I kinda….” She looks around and then back at me li
ke she’s about to uncover the secret of the world. “Well, I had a thing for him but I just couldn’t stand his wild ways. Besides….” She sits back up and takes another drink, letting out a laugh. “We’re more like family. Brothers and sisters just don’t….” She shivers and I get her point. Very clearly in fact. I hold up my empty beer bottle to Taren and point it at Irish. Taren smiles, nods, and walks to the cooler to get us another one. “Hey!” I look over at Irish to see her face filled with concern. “I didn’t mean anything by it, Bria. Really.”
I give her a smile. She really is sweet underneath that rough exterior. “No. I’m fine! Truly. And just for the record….” Taren takes that moment to set down our beers, taking my empty from the counter and trying to take Irish’s as she finishes. They both laugh as they have a tug of war. Taren finally takes it, laughing as she walks away. I have no idea what it would be like to have a woman as a best friend but watching them, I’d love to try. Irish looks at me and raises one of her eyebrows. “So he’s kind of good looking.” Her other brow raises to match the other. “But I’m not a one night stand kinda gal. I’m more of a wine and dine woman who wants a real relationship.” She gives me a curt nod, holds up her beer, and I pick mine up, clanking it against hers.
