Unexpected Encounter (Singleton)

by Taige Crenshaw

  “I’m curious how you ended up with them working for you.” Lila squeezed his arm. “Also when I’m here, I never see them arrive, but they conveniently pop up when I’m leaving for the day. It is kinda disconcerting. There isn’t even a car in your drive for either of them.”

  Driscoll laughed then said, “They do it deliberately. They like to build on the mystique that they see all and know all. They used to live in the house and it was good. We weren’t home that often so we had space when we traveled instead of being underfoot. When I retired, they decided they would move out before we killed each other from being in each other’s company so much.” He exited the side gate then strolled with her down the walk.

  “Irene lives a few houses over that direction.” He pointed behind him then gestured up ahead. “And Aida is that way. Close enough they can walk to work and if anything comes up they can be available. Once they are off the clock for the day, I don’t like to disturb them. Although they get pissy when I’m working and come check on me even when they have stopped work for the day and gone home. They say it is their task to make sure I eat, sleep and do daily things like bathe. I tend to get focused and block everything out. Anyway, back to them appearing out of nowhere and in time for when you leave. When they pop up is because they probably studied your pattern and know when you leave to go to work. So it makes it seem like they come out of nowhere.”

  “Oh… That explains it.” Lila shook her head, laughing. “I wondered if they had the house bugged or something to know what happens. I didn’t realize they didn’t live in the house.”

  “Nope. They have their own homes.”

  “Space is good to have.” Lila leaned against him as they walked. “You get focused when working and block everything else out, huh?”

  “Yep.” Driscoll chuckled ruefully. “That sort of leads to how they ended up working for me.”

  “Tell me.”

  He glanced up as they passed Aida’s place. “I met Aida first. She was the girlfriend of one of my band members. They’d been together for a long time.” He cleared his throat as it got thick. “He died in the crash. They were engaged to be married.”

  “Oh no.” Lila hugged him. “That must be hard on her.”

  “Yeah. She still misses him, as do all of us.” Driscoll didn’t let the emotions overwhelm him, instead focusing on his story. “When I met Aida, we had just started to make it big. Women were coming and going for all the guys in the band. When she started dating him, we didn’t even think about it, figuring she wouldn’t be around long. She used to cook for all of us and we enjoyed it but figured eventually our friend would move on. I remember the day that I refused her food because I was busy writing a song that had been filling my head.” Driscoll chuckled. “Have you ever had a pot of rice thrown at your head?”

  “Ummm…no.” Lila stared at him. “She did that? Aida doesn’t seem the type.”

  “She calmed down a lot. But when she was younger, she had a temper. Well, she still has a temper but controls it better.” Driscoll remembered the blaze in Aida’s gaze. “Thankfully I ducked in time to avoid the pot knocking me out. The band was shocked that she’d had the gall to do that. I was just wondering if she had any more food to throw at me. I asked her and her reply is what sealed our friendship.”

  “What did she say?”

  “That she wouldn’t waste any more of her good food on my mangy ass.” Driscoll laughed. “She insulted me and smiled as she did it. It was refreshing from having people kiss my ass because I was becoming a ‘superstar’”—he made quotes with his fingers—“I knew even if my friend decided to break up with her, I was going to keep her as a friend. Thankfully, he wasn’t idiot enough to let her go—he and Aida were together for many years. Sometime during that time she became my house manager and I put her on payroll. My friend kept asking her to marry him, but she kept saying no. None of us had any idea why.”

  “So her insulting you is why you decided to be her friend.” Lila shook her head. “You are one strange man, Driscoll.”

  “Eccentric. That’s what Irene called me the first time she met me.” Driscoll chuckled. “And yes, her insulting me is what made me know she wouldn’t put up with my shit or let me get away with it, no matter how supposedly famous people think I am. The bluntness and treating me like a person is why I became friends with Aida then Irene. Hell, Aida was easier to hire than Irene was. I met Irene because of Aida. They are best friends and have known each other for years. It was about a year after I hired Aida when I met Irene for the first time. I’d heard of her and that she was a great assistant for the CEO of a company she worked for. I didn’t think anything of it. Not until she came to see Aida and reorganized my calendar.”

  “She didn’t work for you and did that?”

  “Yep. When I asked her and basically told her how dare she do such a thing, she told me someone needed to get my shit straight. Then proceeded to tell me she didn’t understand why such an eccentric man would not have someone who could put up with and adapt to his eccentricity. Someone to make sure he could be as weird ass as he wanted to be without worrying about the details he didn’t choose to. And damn if she wasn’t right.”

  “So she wanted a job?” Lila waved at Spencer and Regina as they passed them where they stood in their driveway.

  “Hell no! And those were her exact words when I offered her the position. She loved her job and didn’t want to leave it.”

  “Good for her.”

  “But I was determined to convince her. I failed miserably, no matter how I tried. I enticed her by sending her my calendar and begging for help. She would get it straight for me, send it back and tell me to hire someone. Even gave me a list of people, but I wanted her. I knew we would click as a team and not just anyone would do. Trusting someone with all my stuff isn’t easy to do, but I knew with her I could.”

  “So how did you finally convince her to work for you?”

  “I didn’t convince her. She showed up one day and told me she was now free to take me on. Her boss was dumb enough to let her go because his new wife didn’t like him having an assistant who looks like Irene.”

  “Wait, he fired her because she is beautiful and his wife was insecure because of it?” Lila frowned. “That can’t be legal.”

  “I know. After she told me the story, I made sure he paid financially for it.” Driscoll bared his teeth. “Irene didn’t care either way, but I wanted him to feel it where he would understand—his wallet. He paid for it. By then, Irene was working for me and living up to and beyond what I’d expected. Her old boss’s wife didn’t last long. Less than a year, and Irene’s old boss came begging her to return to work.” Driscoll shook his head. “She told him off. I never knew until then she could curse like that. And she’s been working for me ever since.”

  “That was an interesting story.” Lila held his hand. “Both of them were. Basically Aida and Irene are invaluable to you.”

  “Yes. I would lay down my life for either of them.” Driscoll stopped. “Well, fuck. That’s it. Come on.” He turned, tugging her behind him.

  “Wait, where are we going in such a rush?” Lila hurried to keep up with him.

  “Invaluable and laying down your life.” He increased his strides. “That’s the premise missing from my song.”

  He hummed under his breath, lyrics filling his head. Automatically he headed home and when he arrived he went to his studio.

  “You’re back sooner than we thought you would be,” Aida said from behind them.

  “The walk with Lila helped me get my head clear.” He stopped just inside his studio.

  “I didn’t do anything,” Lila replied.

  Driscoll kissed her gently. “You did. Talking with you made me see what I needed to see. Sit.”

  “I’ll just go—”

  “For fuck’s sake, just sit down.” Driscoll glared at her. “I don’t have time to argue. I need to work.” He turned away and went to his console then sat.

  �
�Do you need a two-by-four to bean him over the head?” Irene entered the room and scowled at him.

  “Yeah.” Aida passed him, also giving him a look. “Don’t mind Snarky Puss, he gets like that and forgets to act like a human being.”

  “Shit, I’m sorry, okay?” Driscoll faced them.

  Lila was sitting on the couch with Aida and Irene on either side of her. The two women were glaring, but Lila’s eyes twinkled with laughter.

  “You’re lucky you apologized.” Aida folded her arms over her chest. “We like her and we’re keeping her.”

  “Yeah.” Irene crossed her legs, lifting an eyebrow. “She’s the only person you’ve dated we actually like.”

  “You can’t just keep her. She’s not a cat or dog or some pet.” Driscoll looked around. “Wait, where’s Reggie and Vere?”

  “At the groomers.” Irene rolled her eyes. “I told you they were going there.”

  “I don’t remember you telling me that,” Driscoll said to Irene as he gestured to Lila to come closer.

  She rose then came toward him. He glanced up at her and placed his hands on her upper thighs.

  “Sorry for being—”

  “A snarky puss.” Lila gave him a peck. “No worries this time. Do it again and I will get that two-by-four.” She patted his cheek.

  “Now I see why they like you. You have violent tendencies like those two, who supposedly work for me. Sometimes I think it’s the other way around, how they take such pleasure in running my life.” Driscoll laughed. “Yeah, guys, we might just be keeping her.”

  “I’m not a pet.” Lila snorted. “I only get kept if I want to.”

  “So do you want to be kept?” Irene asked.

  “Get to work,” Lila told him before stepping back and turning his chair around. “I’ll be waiting for you when you’re done. Now, Irene, as for your question, I’m not sure if I do. Especially since someone keeps trying to get me to tell her my schedule. And that same someone keeps trying to convince my assistant to give her the information.”

  Driscoll listened absently as they talked while he started writing.

  “I keep doing so because I need to know,” Irene replied.

  “You don’t need to know,” Lila said. “You’re just trying to control things. I don’t like being managed. My assistant said they told you that. I would heed his words.”

  “Give it up, Irene. Looks like you’ve met your match.” Aida laughed.

  “And you’re not getting away with this either, Aida. Why are you always trying to feed me or find out what I like to eat?”

  “It’s what I do,” Aida replied.

  “How about I feed you instead?”

  “You cook?”

  “No need to sound so surprised,” Lila said. “How about I make us all dinner later?”

  “Sure. But if Driscoll is still working, you’ll have to use a special touch to get him to eat.”

  “He’ll eat.” Lila sounded sure.

  “How can you be sure you can make him eat?” Aida asked.

  Driscoll paused, waiting to hear what Lila would say.

  “Because you’re going to teach me your trick to get him to,” Lila said cheerfully.

  “Good answer.” Aida laughed. “I just shove the food under his nose to get him to eat. He knows what happens if he doesn’t eat my food.”

  “He told me about that. He was exaggerating when he said you threw a pot full of rice at his head, right?”

  “Nope, I did throw it at his head and was all set to throw more food at him even though I told him different. I thought there would be anarchy when I threw the food, but he took it well. The rest of his band members were more upset that they wouldn’t get any food. They were a hungry lot who loved my food.”

  “So, ladies, fill me in on the wackiness that is Driscoll.”

  “That’ll take a long time.” Irene chuckled. “Since it will take time, that means you’ll stay kept at least for a little bit while we fill you in.”

  “We really need to work on your tendency to want to keep people,” Lila replied.

  “Just you at the moment.” Irene tsked. “Keeping folks is a good thing. Makes them know they are appreciated.”

  “It’s called detainment, and since you didn’t offer me any strawberry or coconut, I’m inclined to think you don’t really want to keep me,” Lila teased.

  Driscoll grinned. She loved his T-shirts and always made sure to let him know. She got as much of a kick out of them as he did.

  “Oh, God, she’s paraphrasing his T-shirts,” Aida hooted. “He is converting her to the Driscoll side.”

  “Run, run,” Irene said deadpan.

  They all laughed. The women continued to converse as Driscoll’s attention became focused fully on what he was creating.

  * * * *

  Driscoll stretched, glancing at the clock. He was surprised to see how many hours had passed. He looked at the almost empty plate of food beside him and distantly remembered someone shoving it under his nose and demanding that he eat. In the next second he touched his lips, smiling as he recalled the kiss Lila had given him when he’d taken his first bite of food. The meal had been delicious and he’d gobbled it down as he’d continued to work. Throughout the day as he’d worked, he’d heard Lila in the background as she’d chatted with Aida and Irene. Then sometime during the day, Stuart had also come by but had soon left. Driscoll frowned, realizing it’d been quiet for a while. Turning in his chair, he smiled as he spotted Lila stretched out on the couch, sleeping.

  He glanced briefly at the song and knew it was done, except for his doing a test recording. Driscoll went to her and knelt by the couch. Lila blinked open her eyes with a sleepy smile on her face.

  “Are you finished?” Her voice was husky.

  “For now.”

  “Good. Irene reminded me to remind you.” She chuckled. “Try to say that a few times fast. Anyway, she wanted me to prod you in case you had plans to work tomorrow. It’s the start of the Locke Family Gathering. Are you sure it’s okay for me to go? I would think the event would be for family and close friends. I know you and Spencer and a few Lockes, but I’m not sure if I should go.”

  “You’re going. You’re gonna be with me. I’m family, even though a few of my friends and family hesitate to claim me since I’m so, as they like to say, ‘weird’.” Driscoll laughed.

  “I bet they do.” Lila shrugged. “Okay. I’m gonna stop worrying about my intruding and go to have a good time. I can’t believe it’s a three-day event.”

  “Yep. It’s always been that way and has always been held at Locke Estate One where all the parents of the Locke clan live. Usually kicks off on the Saturday before Labor Day then ends on Labor Day.”

  “What happens if Labor Day weekend is forecasted to be a wash out and you can’t have events outside?”

  “They have contingencies for that to move the events inside. They still have the kick-off on weekend before Labor Day but inside at one of the houses of the family. Then throughout weekend, they have events at Moments who have loads of space, or various houses they designated for circumstances of bad weather. It’s just a matter of logistics and making sure people are aware of where they need to be and when. There is an email chain to keep people informed as well as a calling tree. There hasn’t been a whole three days it was a wash out so some would be outside at some point.”

  “Sounds like a lot of planning goes into these events.”

  “Yes it does. Moments—the event company Reggie co-owns—takes care of things for it. Oh, I forgot to tell you that Storm will be there. Bella usually asks him, but he isn’t always able to make it. He will this year, along with his brother.”

  “Really? That’s great, I’ll have some people I know there.”

  “There will probably be many people you know there. It’s a lot of people who come.” Driscoll studied her then stroked his finger down her cheek. “You could have gone to bed instead of sleeping on the couch.”

  “This is
n’t a couch, it’s a cloud.” Lila snuggled deeper into the cushions. “I don’t know where you got it, but I so need me one. It’s fabulous.”

  “I’ll let my furniture designer friend know you said that. He custom made many of the pieces in my homes.”

  “This is custom made? The man is a genius knowing just the right way to put this together to make you feel so good.” Lila moaned deep in her throat then moved in a slow, sensual movement.

  “Hey now, you’re only supposed to make those sounds with me.” Driscoll placed his hands one over the other next to her head then put his chin on them.

  “Maybe I forgot what we do to get me to make those sounds.” Lila crinkled her eyes and a wicked glint entered them. “You could remind me.”

  “I could.” He leaned forward.

  She met him and they kissed deeply. Driscoll sat back on his heels.

  “Let’s go to bed.”

  “No, here.”

  “Do you have a fetish with doing it on the couch?” Driscoll teased. “Our first time was on your couch as well as a few other times too. We also did it on mine in the living room.”

  “Maybe it’s my goal to have sex on each and every couch in your house, as well as mine.” She winked. “Are you up for it?”

  “Damn right I am.” Driscoll yanked off his shirt. “But just as a caveat, I have a few houses and many couches.”

  “I’m willing if you are.”

  “Of course I am.” He pulled down his zipper and rose briefly to take off his jeans and underwear. Grabbing a condom from his pocket, he placed it within reach.

  Lila sat up and he removed her clothing with quick movements. He cupped her plush breasts then tweaked the nipples. She whimpered and put her hands over each of his.

  “Love that you’re so sensitive here.” Driscoll lifted one hand and stroked along the shell of her ear. “And here.”

  Lila shivered. “Too slow. You’re moving too slow.”