“How’s your bourbon chicken?” I ask as she grabs a piece before putting some sticky rice in her mouth.
“It’s good.” She gives me a fake smile, it breaks my heart.
“Don’t bullshit me, Sass. How are you really doing?”
She stabs her chopsticks into the rice. “I’m fine. Right now, I don’t want to talk about myself. Why don’t we talk about you?”
This is a diversionary tactic and I know it. Obviously she’s not ready to discuss completely what went down, and I respect that. I have too. “What do you want to talk about?”
“What had you so wound up earlier?”
I grab a piece of my sweet and sour chicken with my own chopsticks and shove it into my mouth to give myself time to formulate the answer to her question. There are many times when I’m not free to speak about what’s going on in my business life, and there were many times with Lacey where she didn’t want to hear about it.
“Why are you being such an ass tonight, Reed?”
I don’t mean to be an ass, but I’m worried about the job I’m working on right now. In order to come in under budget, we’re going to have to cut some corners, and it’s times like these I hate that the market dictates so much of my job.
“Babe, I don’t mean to be an ass.” I pull Lacey into my arms. She sighs and snuggles closer to me. “The price on marble and granite are going up—up by more than they were when I first put in my bid on this job. I’m worried we won’t make the profit we need to. If we don’t make the profit we need to, then payroll might not be met, and I’ll have to dip into some of the liquid assets for the business,” I explain.
She’s quiet for a few minutes. “This is why I like working for myself and by myself. Does this mean we won’t be able to go to Gulf Shores in a few weeks?”
Seriously? I’ve just explained to her I might need to dip into savings to pay my guys, and she’s worried about if we’re going on vacation. When she does this type of shit, it kills me because I know she’s more than this. “Don’t worry, Lace, you’ll get your fucking vacation.”
“Don’t talk to me like that.” She pulls back. “We’ve been working our asses off for the past year. We deserve this.”
It strikes me that the Lacey of a few years ago would have never said she deserved anything. As my business has gotten more popular and hers has gotten more solvent and able to sustain a certain amount of income, her tastes have gotten more extravagant. I’m not saying mine haven’t—but fuck I still keep Ramen in the truck on the off-chance I need to eat it.
“And I’m not saying we haven’t been, Lace, but what if this continues and I have to lay off workers to remain solvent? It’s a fear I have every job.” But she doesn’t want to hear that, because she’s stuck in her own little world she’s made for herself.
“That’s your problem, Reed, not mine.”
“You okay?” Sass asks, interrupting my thoughts. Not everything with Lacey was bad, obviously not if I was going to marry her, but the fact I’m being made to face some hard truths reminds me that not everything was good either. I’m no longer looking at my situation with rose-colored glasses. It’s the biggest wake-up call I’ve ever had. The woman I was spending all my time missing was also a person who drove me nuts on a semi-regular basis.
“Yeah.” I clear my throat, wondering how much I want to share with Sass. I get the distinct feeling Sass would understand. She would sympathize with where I’m coming from, and the two of us would be a unit. “I met with a developer today, and he wants me to oversee a new subdivision over on Hidden Creek. It will start with ten houses that will eventually be part of a pre-planned community. In order for me to meet his deadline, I’m going to have to take on ten workers. While I know it’s for the better of the company, and right now Spartan County is seeing the kind of growth we haven’t seen in decades, I’m worried the strain on the company will be too much.”
“Like you won’t pull the profit margin?” she asks as she takes a drink of her Corona.
She fucking gets it already. “Exactly. While RS Construction is doing well, we still have a small margin with which to play with. Materials, delivery charges, or gas goes up too much too quickly, there’s not a snowball’s chance in hell I can stop the bleeding quick enough to keep on all the employees I have plus the new ones I’m gonna have to hire. That shit keeps me up at night.”
“Justin and I talk about that a lot. It’s a delicate balance not many people understand. You hold people’s lives and livelihood in your hands.”
I nod as I take a drink of my own Corona. “I feel that responsibility too. Lacey always said I took it more seriously than I should.”
Sass rolls her eyes. “The only thing she felt was her nail when it broke. You’re a good businessman, Reed; that’s why you worry about it. You’re excellent at what you do, and I know you’ll work this out, however it needs to be worked out. You know Justin and I have your back and will help you with whatever you need.”
That was the amazing thing about my friends, they would. They’d even help me hang drywall if I needed it. “I know.” I roll my shoulders to release some of the tension that’s seeped in while we’ve been talking. “Right now, we need to have a swim, wash all this tension and doubt away.”
I get up from the table and hold my hand out to her. “What do you say, Sass?”
There is no hesitation. She puts her hand in mine, and I know it’s that blind trust that’s going to be my undoing.
CHAPTER NINE
Sass
Reed had the right idea when he suggested I use his pool. The water washing over my body is taking away all the stress of the day and leaving me with a much calmer feeling. Even the upset part of me is feeling better, and life doesn’t look so glum now. I hate when Justin and I fight. It’s even more unusual the older we get, and this time was a real doozy. I try to push those thoughts out of my head—this is supposed to be relaxing me. As I lean to the left, I suck in a breath of air and stroke further down the pool. Having swam out most of my aggression and frustration, I stop and lean against the side of the pool, trying to catch my breath. Swimming is a good workout, and I should probably do it more often.
Reed is watching me; I can feel it deep down in my bones. His eyes have followed me the entire time I’ve been in the water. It’s unnerving, but at the same time, I welcome his eyes on me. There’s a part of me that wishes I knew what he sees when he looks at me like this. His eyes are soft, like he can see right through me, like he knows more than I want him to. It’s not like I’m a closed off book, but I don’t let many people get too close. Justin, Morgan, and that’s about it besides my mom and Reed. It’s a leftover feeling from when my dad died. If people aren’t close, it can’t hurt when they leave.
“Good idea?” he asks, pushing off his wall and treading towards me. The pool isn’t huge, and it doesn’t take him long to get over to me. I dip my head in the water to push my hair back from my face. It surprises the hell out of me when he puts his arms around my waist and supports my back, bringing me up so I’m face to face with him.
“What made you cry earlier?” he asks out of the blue. I figured he wouldn’t press; he knows I’m the type of person to keep things in, but here he is asking me, not letting me get too deep inside my own head.
There’s a part of me that doesn’t want to tell him. This is family business, but Reed is nothing if not family, and I’m comfortable with him. I also know he doesn’t blindly take my brother’s side in everything. He’s fair and listens. “It was Justin,” I admit, thinking back to the argument the two of us had.
“The fucking account is overdrawn now, Cassandra. These are things we can’t let happen. Fuck, this has never happened in the years I’ve owned this business. You should have been paying more attention.” He slams the piece of paper from the bank down on the desk.
I’m in shock, because I didn’t even know this bill was coming out of the account, and I’m frantically trying to find the invoice. “I don’t know what happened.”
My voice is small and I hate it, but I also hate to disappoint my brother. The three guys who walked in with him are trying hard not to look at me; they’re trying to make their way out of the office when they realize how personal this is. I’m trying hard not to let my anger come through as I realize he’s going at me in front of our employees.
“You better figure it out. I’m on my way now to move money. Thank God Morgan works there and she called me. I got her call before I got the letter.” He slams his hat back on his head. “You can’t make mistakes like this and still pay our employees. Figure it the fuck out.”
I jump as he slams the office door, still trying to figure out where the invoice even came from. I hate when he yells at me, it’s like my dad yelling at me. Disappointing him kills me, and I take a deep breath, willing my fingers to stop shaking. I’m going to find the invoice that caused the overdraft, even if it kills me. When his truck starts up, I let the tears fall. I won’t let him see me cry, but I know they have to escape, I know I have to let the emotion out. I allow myself five minutes, and then I square my shoulders, resolving to fix this.
Reed nods after I recount the details to him. “Somehow that doesn’t surprise me.”
“Normally we can work together just fine. I mean we’ve been brother and sister for twenty-four years.” I give him a cheeky grin. “But sometimes he can get to me, and he’s not always nice when he does.”
He pushes us towards the wall until my back hits it and he’s crowding me. I’m enveloped by his heat, surprised by my reaction towards him. I want to curl up in a ball and ask him to hold me until this is all better. His voice is soft but firm when he makes his request. “Wanna tell me what happened?”
He’s not going to let this go. In his eyes I see he truly wants to know, but this feels too intimate. It feels like a real relationship. I have to remind myself it isn’t what it seems. I have to warn my stupid heart that he’s being a friend, and that’s all. He cares because he’s known me most of my life, and if anyone understands what a dick Justin can be, it’s Reed. Still, I open my mouth and the words rush out.
“I made a mistake,” I admit, my voice small. “To be fair though, it was because of him and his fucked up filing system.”
He brushes my hair back from my face so he can look at me. His eyes are dark with an understanding I haven’t received all day, and it almost makes me want to cry again. “Everybody makes mistakes, especially when you first start working for a family business. There are things you have to learn, just like you’d have to learn anywhere else. The bad part is everyone expects you to be perfect from the get-go, and that’s not feasible in some instances.”
“Right?” I sigh. “A bill was due, and I didn’t enter it because it wasn’t in my invoices. I didn’t know Justin gets this one emailed to the company email address. I didn’t know to look for it,” I defend myself. “I saw it, but I didn’t realize what it was. Maybe I should have asked.” My voice trails off.
I lean into him when his arms tighten around my waist, his big hands trailing up and down my back in a comforting rhythm. His voice is soft when he asks the question I’ve been waiting on. “Was it ugly? I know how he can be.”
I let out a laugh, because with Reed I can be myself. I don’t have to be the tough girl. He sees me as a woman, not as a sister who shouldn’t disturb anything and who should know all of the ins and outs without having truly been explained them. “Ugly doesn’t even begin to describe it. He berated me in front of a crew because he’d assumed the bill was paid and used the money on something else. Now there’s an overdraft on the account, so he had to go to the bank and take out savings to cover it. I had Morgan move what he took out of the company savings back from my own savings account, so there’s not a shortage. It was the most embarrassing thing I’ve ever had to go in there and do. That’s why I was crying when you saw me. All the other customers were looking at me, like they knew what kind of mistake I made. Morgan even looked at me as if I were a pitiful little kid. I can do this,” I continue. I want him to see I’m an adult; I don’t want to feel this small and stupid around him. “I can make sure the business runs smoothly, but I also have to be informed of all the bills,” I defend myself.
His warm hands tighten around me, the tips grazing the waistband of my bikini bottoms. There’s pity in his gaze, and I hate it. I hate that he’s looking at me like I’m having a nervous breakdown. When in reality I’m upset and disappointed. “Sass, you shouldn’t have done that. You shouldn’t have moved your personal money unless it was absolutely the only way to keep you solvent. And it wasn’t. When you make a mistake, you can’t bail the business out, because there’s usually an account just for those instances. If we moved money every time our businesses had a shortage, we’d all be broke. It comes out in the wash.”
It’s hard to explain, even to this man who’s seen our family at its worst and its best. “I did. Justin helped put me through school; he made sure I did what I wanted to do, and I never had to want for anything growing up. After dad died, he sacrificed everything. The least I could do was take care of a mistake I made, but the way he handled it hurt, and it was embarrassing. How do I face those guys again?”
“He did all of those things for you because he wanted to,” he argues, shaking his head at me. “Justin might want you to look at him like he’s a martyr, but he took the responsibility on himself. No one ever asked him to.” He boxes me in by moving his hands up to the concrete edge of the pool deck. Leaning in, he nuzzles my neck with his nose and mouth. Moving up towards my ear, his voice is soft. “Now, taking it out in front of a crew, that was wrong, he should have kept the argument between the two of you.”
My stomach flutters as he breathes hot against my skin. We’ve never been this close physically before, and it’s doing things to me. My nipples tighten against the top of my swimsuit, and since this is a serious conversation we’re having, I hope he can’t see it. My body has wanted this for a long time, and the touches he’s freely giving me are driving me nuts.
“It doesn’t make me feel any better.” Because the fact of the matter is I was spoiled as a kid by my brother, and as an adult, I still am. To know I put him in financial difficulty makes me sad, like I’m even more of a burden.
“Don’t take that on yourself, please don’t,” Reed continues. “Justin can be a mean son of a bitch when he wants to be. To get in your face in front of a crew pisses me off. There is going to be a time when he’s gonna need your help, and you’re gonna need to lead that crew. Him yelling at you in front of them gives them the right to talk to you in the same way. He fuckin’ knows better than that.”
I can see how this is going go. Reed’s gonna run his mouth to Justin, and then Justin will assume I’ve run to his best friend and talked shit about him. That’s not what I wanted at all; I wanted to say my piece and be done with it. “Please don’t run to Justin and start shit. It’s not at all what I wanted. I just wanted you to listen and see my side of things. I don’t want you and Justin to get into an argument over me.” I put my hand in his, twining our fingers together, hoping the touch centers and grounds us both.
He looks at me, his eyes growing darker. I’ve never seen him look at me this way, and I’m not sure how to respond to it, I don’t know what it means.
His voice is low. “What exactly do you want, Sass?”
A part of me knows what he’s asking; the other part of me isn’t sure. Deciding to throw caution, I cup my hands around his cheeks and pull his chin down so we’re almost to eye level. “What I want is to forget this shit day I’ve had. Can you help me with that?”
I can see him fighting what I’m asking. He’s going over it in his mind, back and forth. I don’t want him to do that. There’s been an undercurrent of something between us, and I want to know what it is. Unconsciously, I lick my lips. His eyes lock on my tongue as he mumbles son of a bitch under his breath, and before my question is answered, his lips capture mine. It’s the hottest kiss I’ve ever experienced in
my life. It starts off slow, with no tongue, and that in itself is erotic, because I want it so much. Then with the barest of touches, he starts to inch his way in, testing the waters to see if I’m going to relax and let it go. Relaxing is the furthest thing from my mind, but I force my body to live in the moment. My legs hook tighter around his waist, digging my heels into his ass and pushing his cock harder against the bottoms I’m wearing. I want more, and I want him to claim me, imprint me, make sure anyone else who looks knows I’m his. Finally, when he takes full possession, I’m gripping his hair between my fingers and kissing him back with all the passion he’s giving me.
CHAPTER TEN
Reed
Never in my life have I heated up as quickly as I do when Sass opens her mouth and lets me explore. Her fingers grip my cheeks, bringing my lips closer to hers, pressing them tightly together before abandoning my skin and delving deep into my hair. Her fingertips grip tightly at the ends of my hair as she presses herself roughly against my body; the tiny points her nipples make under her bikini top rub against my chest.
“You want this?” I ask her, needing to hear it from her, needing to make sure I’m not forcing her into something. It’s been a while for me, and I’m more eager than I normally would be, but I have to remind myself who this is. I try not to let myself think about how this is going to affect our friendship. I’m only thinking about how good this is going to feel for both of us. Noticing her as I have for the past few days has been hell on my libido, and I want her more than I’ve even admitted to myself.
In a move I never would have anticipated from her, she runs her lips along my jawline and nips my earlobe with her teeth. My dick jumps at the sensation. “I’ve always wanted this.” Her voice is as husky as I’ve ever heard it.
I halfway know what she means, and it causes my stomach to tighten at the implication, but I brush it aside, telling myself it doesn’t matter. Fuck it, I know exactly what she means. She’s wanted me since she was a fourteen-year-old kid. For ten years she’s looked at me as if I’ve hung the moon and the stars. Today, tonight, I’m playing catch-up. There’s a desire in her eyes I’ve never seen; or maybe I haven’t wanted to see it, because I knew if I let myself acknowledge it, I’d have to admit that Sass wasn’t a little girl anymore. There is absolutely no doubt in my mind as she presses against me; she’s all woman now.
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