The man behind the desk looked up at me. You could have knocked me over with a feather at how stunning the man was. Online images of him didn’t do him a bit of justice.
“Gretchen Prescott, I presume?”
I nodded and extended my hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr. West.”
“Please, call me Jonas.” His smile rivaled that of a model, but his voice matched the rest of him—masculine and strong.
It didn’t escape me that I didn’t feel anything when our hands touched. I nodded and sat in the guest chair across from my new client.
“Maybe I should explain exactly what it is I do. I’m a sports agent, and I represent the best and the brightest upcoming athletes. My website is my business card, so it needs to be eye-catching and perfect. I’ll be expanding, and it needs to be flawless.” His gaze shifted to where the neckline of my blouse met my breasts. “I’m sure you understand what that is.”
I tilted my head to the side as if I were a puppy acknowledging my understanding, yet I still gave him a nod.
He looked at me with curiosity. “Hold on, your last name is Prescott? Are you related to the golfer Dane Prescott?”
“Yes, he’s my brother.” Finally, something to truly make me smile.
“I’d love to represent him; maybe you could introduce us. He was snatched up quickly. Normally, I represent football, baseball, basketball, and soccer players, but your brother is a moneymaker.”
“I’ll mention it to him.”
Jonas went through more ideas for his site. Naturally, I could accommodate most of them. It wasn’t the largest project I’d ever worked on, but this was a major coup for me.
After I jotted down a slew of notes, I realized it was a good thing he was my only client at this time, because I wanted to knock his socks off.
“Gretchen, do you have any questions?”
I straightened my spine, closed my notebook, and smiled as I said, “No sir, not at this time. I’ll review my notes and formulate an outline we can work with.” Then I realized we’d missed something. “I do have one question. When would you like this site operational?”
“One month, at the most. That won’t be a problem, will it?” Jonas’s eyes bore into mine, almost daring me to say yes.
“No, of course not.” I’m sure there was a hint of you must be kidding in my tone, but I just smiled.
* * *
Stunned, I sat in my car. Going from zero to sixty wasn’t the norm for me. It was clear that Jonas West could be my ticket, the client to truly put my business on the map. With that in mind, I decided to go see my brother Jack.
Walking into JP Enterprises was welcoming. Everyone knew me, so I was never questioned by anyone. His assistant, Carla, greeted me with a smile.
“Hi, Gretchen. How are you today?”
“I’m good, thank you. Is he in?”
“Yes, he just finished a call. Go right in.”
“Thank you.”
I knocked once on the heavy teak door before I pushed it open. My handsome brother was tapping away on his keyboard, clearly engrossed in what he was working on.
Not wanting to startle him, I cleared my throat. His gaze rose and dimples appeared as he smiled.
“Well, well, to what do I owe this pleasure?” He stood, walked around his desk, and pulled me into a hug.
“Hey, Jack. Do you have a minute?”
“For you, I have as much time as you need. Let’s sit.” He motioned toward the black leather sofa in his vast corner office. “Is everything okay, or is that a dumb question?”
“No. I mean, that’s not a dumb question. Everything is fine. I needed to bounce something off you.”
“Shoot.” His brows suddenly lowered and his jaw tensed. “This isn’t about Scott, is it?”
I waved my hand back and forth. “No, nothing like that. Have you ever heard of Jonas West, the sports agent?”
He chuckled. “Of course, why do you ask?”
Suddenly and without reason, my heart rate sped up and I frowned. “Because he hired me to redesign his website.”
“That is your job, right?” Jack stood and walked over to the bar in his office and poured himself two fingers of what I knew to be Scotch. “Would you like a drink?”
“No, thank you. Yes, I know it’s my job, but I wanted to take off and get lost for a while.”
“Can’t you work from anywhere with Wi-Fi?” Jack took a sip of his drink.
“Yes, as long as there’s Internet. Sadly, there isn’t any on a beach.”
Jack set his glass down. “There is at my house in Malibu. Go, Gretch. My place is yours if you want it. You can even use my car that I keep there. This way you’ll have the best of both worlds, and I’ll be able to relax knowing you aren’t sleeping on a beach somewhere.”
My eyes practically popped out of my head. Thoughts of cruising up and down the coast in one of Jack’s cars excited me.
“You’re going to let me drive one of your babies? What do you keep out there? A Ford Focus? A beater?” I laughed, knowing full well he’d never drive anything other than a Mercedes or something equal to that.
“If you think a Mercedes 550e is a beater, then yes, that’s what I drive when I’m in California. And before you say anything about me having an electric car, it’s the way of life out there.”
Ha. I knew it.
The mention of California made me think of Mason. Suddenly, this trip to LA didn’t seem half bad.
“But only if you’re sure, and I’ll be sure to take care of your baby.”
“I don’t care about my car; you be sure to take care of you. When would you like to leave?”
“Yesterday.” We exchanged a smile. “I suppose as soon as I can make the arrangements. Maybe early next week, if I can swing it.”
“I’ll be sure to call my housekeeper and have her prepare the house and have the car charged and ready for you. You should call Dane and get his take on Jonas.”
“Thank you, Jack.” I stood and hugged him, not telling him Jonas had already mentioned Dane. Maybe that was why he wanted me working for him. “You’re the best brother in the world.”
“And your favorite, I know.” He chuckled. “One day you’ll realize your brothers talk, and we all know you tell every one of us we’re your favorite.”
I laughed. “Oh, I know you do. That’s what makes it so much fun. Keeps you all guessing.”
* * *
“You’re going where?” Sophie practically screeched at me. “I want to come. That’s so unfair. While I’m freezing my butt off, you’ll be in sunny California?” Her lower lip jutted out as she gave me her full-on pout.
“You can always come out there. I’ll probably be there a month, or maybe longer.” I bit my lip because I honestly didn’t know when I’d be back.
“A month or maybe longer? You have to admit, picking up and leaving to go across the country for a month is a bit impulsive.”
“I want to be impulsive. For so long I’ve been the perfect girlfriend, the perfect daughter and sister. While I love my family, I need to do this for me. And it’s not like I’m going off half-cocked; I do have a plan, and thanks to Jack, I’ll be staying at his home in Malibu.” I let out a breath. “Soph, I need to reconnect with myself. Get a change of scenery, go to wineries, maybe play volleyball with a beach hottie and do what Californians do.”
“I may not know what Californians do, but I will come and visit you. Are you going to tell Mason you’re going?”
Mason. Warmth flowed through me at the mention of his name. “Of course I’ll tell him.”
“You need a transition guy.” She waggled her eyebrows.
“I don’t need a transition guy.”
“Yes, you do. Everyone does after a major breakup. You don’t want to fall for your rebound guy, so you need someone to have sex with to get it out of your system. Hence, transition guy.”
“You’re nuts; do you know that?”
“Whatever, but I’m right, and Cali
guys are as hot as they come.”
She turned her phone around and showed me the page she was staring at. There he was, my soon-to-be boss, sitting on the edge of his desk smiling his megawatt smile, his shirtsleeves rolled up almost to his elbows.
“If they all look like Mr. West, rebound guy will be easy to find.”
“Except he lives in New York.”
“Doesn’t matter. He’s still hot.”
Once Sophie and I agreed she’d come to visit me and she dropped the transition-guy ranting, she made me feel better about leaving. Telling my entire family, on the other hand, would be different.
That night I slipped into bed, grabbed my phone, and sent a text to Mason. After my chat with Lucy yesterday, I’d been meaning to talk to him, but time wasn’t on my side today. Thankfully, it was still relatively early on the West Coast.
GRETCHEN: Hey there, surfer boy.
MASON: Wow, surfer boy? Can’t come up with anything better than that, princess?
I started to laugh as I let my fingers do the talking, but not before I changed his name in my phone.
GRETCHEN: Sorry, it slipped. And don’t call me princess.
SURFER BOY: You’re texting. Hard to slip.
GRETCHEN: It suits you. How are you?
SURFER BOY: I’m good. I’ve been thinking about you.
GRETCHEN: Do you have time to talk?
When my phone vibrated in my hand and his number appeared, I smiled and slid the ANSWER button to the right to connect the call. As soon as it did, his friendly voice greeted me.
“Hi.”
“Surfer boy?” I laughed.
“If you’re stuck on the surfer greeting, at least change boy to man. I think I’m too old to be called a boy.”
“Yes, you’re so old. What are you, thirty?” I rolled my eyes and started twirling my hair around my finger.
“Did you call just to wound me? I’m twenty-nine. For another few weeks, anyway.” Now he was the one laughing, and the sound made me smile. “So, how have you been, Gretchen?”
“Good, you know. Livin’ the dream.” When he remained silent, I said, “Honestly, I’m fine. I spoke with Lucy, and she told me you know about me and Scott.”
“I feel bad about that. What a way to start off the year. I’m sorry, Gretch.”
“Why? Don’t be. The more I think about it, it was overdue. No one in my family cared for him, nor did my best friend. I hate making mistakes.”
“What mistake did you make?”
I rolled to my side. “Hanging on to the wrong guy for all the wrong reasons.”
“We all make mistakes. If we find perfection right off the bat, we wouldn’t know it, because we haven’t met the wrong person. Maybe now that you see he wasn’t what you needed, the next guy will stand a chance.”
“Yeah, the next guy.”
Images of Mason’s lips on mine infiltrated my brain. What would they feel like? Something about Mason’s voice and his vast dating knowledge was soothing. Although, I didn’t know much about his dating life. Thoughts of the types of women he’d be attracted to filled my head. Not only were the men in California hot, but the women were flawless.
“Gretch? Are you still there?”
I cleared my throat. “Yeah, sorry. Anyway, I don’t want to talk about Scott. I’m calling to tell you I’m headed your way.”
“My way, as in to Los Angeles? You weren’t kidding?”
The upbeat hope in his voice made me smile. “That’s right; your way as in Los Angeles. I’ll be hanging out at Jack’s home in Malibu for a while. I need a break.”
He whistled through the phone. “Malibu, nice digs. Will you have time for a measly city apartment dweller?”
“Ha-ha, very funny. I thought maybe you’d teach me how to surf. It’s on my list.”
“Aren’t you too young to have a bucket list?”
“It’s more of a dream list. So, what do you say, surfer boy? Wanna hang ten with me?”
Mason chuckled. “I’d be more than happy to ride a wave with you.”
His deep voice wrapped around my heart like a warm blanket, making me want to snuggle.
“Great, then I’ll let you know when I arrive.”
“I’ll look forward to it.”
“Take it easy, surfer boy.”
“See you later, princess.”
CHAPTER 10
~ Mason ~
My good friend and neighbor, Spencer, was coming to hang out with me today. When I first moved in six months ago, I was completely lost. Not only was I living in a new state, but I felt like a fish out of water.
One day when I came home from a run on the beach, he was knocking on my door. When I asked if I could help him, he said, “Dude, I don’t have cookies or any shit like that, but welcome to the neighborhood.” Then he lifted his hand, holding a six-pack of beer. “Will this do?”
Ever since that day, we’d been friends. Spencer was a real estate agent, and his family owned the complex we lived in. He was wealthy, but he wasn’t the type to broadcast it. Most of the time he was in a T-shirt and board shorts; the guy lived for the beach. But when he was working; that was a different story. He’d be decked out in a custom designer suit, drove a Jaguar, and he reeked of confidence. He was confident all the time.
Women flocked to us when we went out together. Spencer got more women than anyone I’d ever met. He was charismatic, funny, and I wasn’t too manly to admit the guy looked like a Ken doll, all tall and shit with blond hair, blue eyes, and a smile that was known to make women’s panties damp. We were either each other’s wing man or cock blocker, whatever was called for.
One night a woman who looked like she should be on an episode of Botched came on to him so strong, he grabbed me and kissed me right in front of the entire bar. Catcalls and hollers followed, and after the shock of being lip-locked with a man wore off, we left the bar, but not before Spencer threaded his fingers with mine. Needless to say, we hadn’t been back there since.
My front door flew open, making my head jerk in that direction, and Spencer strolled in. Without a word, he went to my kitchen, grabbed himself a beer, and plopped down on the chair next to the sofa where I was sitting.
“Really, Spence, make yourself at home.” I laughed. “What if I was with someone? Maybe I should start locking the door.”
Apparently this thought never crossed his mind, but I was still glad we had become close friends. I shook my head and got up to grab myself a beer.
“I have a key, remember?” He took a swig of his beer. “Plus, you told me you cooled things off with Amber. Did you find a replacement fuck already?”
All I could do was shake my head at his crassness. “No, but you never know.”
“Nope, I do know. You’ve been out of sorts since you got back from Virginia. My guess it’s that chick Gretchen, am I right? She must be pretty hot to fuck with your head this bad.”
I shook my head. “Gretch and I are just friends. But she’s going to be working in California for a while. She needs to regroup.” Thoughts of Gretchen stretched out on my surfboard in nothing but a bikini made my dick instantly hard. I shook my head to rid it of that image before I embarrassed myself.
“So, when she gets here, I can make a play for her? You know, since you’re just friends and all.”
Spencer brought his bottle to his lips, and an image of me snatching it and smashing it over his head played in my mind.
“I prefer if you didn’t,” I said, and he gave me a knowing nod. “She recently got out of a long-term relationship, and the guy was a total dick. I actually think he was cheating on her.”
“You sure that’s the only reason?”
No, that wasn’t the only reason. The thought of Spencer with Gretchen made me sick. Wait, that wasn’t quite true. The thought of anyone with her other than me made my stomach roll. What’s worse, I’d kill someone if they hurt her. I liked Spencer, but I knew how he was with women, and that’s exactly what would happen.
“Just lay off of her,” I said. “There are enough gorgeous women in this state you haven’t slept with yet. Go hang out with them.”
He set his empty beer bottle on the table and stood with a grin. “I was only messing with you. Grab your board and let’s go hit some night waves. They’re calling for a storm tomorrow, so a bunch of us are heading out to ride tonight. It’ll clear your head.”
“I’ve been picturing Gretchen stretched out on my board all day.”
Shit, the way Spencer’s eyes widened made me realize I said that out loud.
He clapped me on the back. “You’re screwed, my friend. But what better image to have in your head when riding a great wave than thinking about yourself on top of a hot woman?”
My thought exactly.
* * *
College life never changes. Students hustled through campus to get to their classes on time while others chatted with friends, probably talking about the next big party. All I could do was laugh at the memories of when I did the same thing. The same types of guys were here too. You know, the ones who believed they were the big men on campus. Those were the guys I got a kick out of.
The air had been dry lately, and when I saw a kid toss his lit cigarette to the ground, I saw red. It simply took a few strides to get to him. I knew him; it was Bryce O’Connor. He always acted as if he was exempt from the rules since his parents had donated millions of dollars to the school.
I cleared my throat, and the small harem of coeds who hung on to his every word looked at me. When he realized he’d lost their attention, he looked to where their eyes had landed.
“Hey, Mr. McDermott.” Then he smiled at one of the young women before reaching out and twirling her hair around his finger.
“Mr. O’Connor,” I said stiffly, using my teacher voice.
“Yeah, what’s up?” His impertinent tone garnered a few giggles from the girls.
I pointed to the ground at the now extinguished cigarette. “Is that yours?”
“It was.” He laughed, annoying me even more.
“Not only is this a smoke-free campus, but the entire state is at high risk for fire right now. Pick it up, put it out, and never let me see you smoking on this campus again. I don’t care who your parents are—if you cause a fire, you’re out. Got it?”
Charmed: A Prescott Novel (The Prescott Series Book 3) Page 8
