Time Out, Valentine

by Melinda Dozier

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Time Out, Valentine

  Copyright

  Dedication

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Epilogue

  Thank you for purchasing this publication of The Wild Rose Press, Inc.

  ...a new crowd rushed to the dance floor, leaving them more alone in the back of the room. Thank God.

  It was stifling hot. He tugged his collar from his neck and rolled the sleeves of his white button-up. His glasses slid down his nose, forcing him to take them off and put them in his shirt pocket.

  Luckily in that part of the room, the music wasn’t so loud that they had to scream to converse. He only raised his voice a fraction to ask her the question he’d been wondering since they set foot in the place. “So, you think this is romantic enough for a Valentine’s date?”

  She batted her long lashes in his direction and smirked. “There’re low lights.”

  “Yeah and loud music, people all around.” To help prove his point, someone bumped him in the back, pushing him closer to Lexi. His hand circled her waist and rested on her hip.

  She sipped the drink, moving the umbrella with her other hand, then licked her lips. “It’s the place to be. All trendy couples find their way here.” She cocked her head. “What would make it more romantic? Kissing?”

  A slow smile formed, and he faced her. Not a bad idea. “Actually, yeah.” He placed his bottle on the table behind them, cracked his knuckles, and stretched his neck.

  She laughed nervously, putting her weight on another sexy as hell foot. “What? You’re gonna kiss me? For real?”

  “We need romance.” He grabbed her cup and put it next to his bottle. His gaze dropped to her mouth.

  “You kissing me won’t—”

  He placed his thumb on her lips. “Shhh. Stop talking so we can be romantic.”

  Time Out, Valentine

  by

  Melinda Dozier

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales, is entirely coincidental.

  Time Out, Valentine

  COPYRIGHT © 2015 by Melinda Hildebrand Dozier

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission of the author or The Wild Rose Press, Inc. except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.

  Contact Information: info@thewildrosepress.com

  Cover Art by Diana Carlile

  The Wild Rose Press, Inc.

  PO Box 708

  Adams Basin, NY 14410-0708

  Visit us at www.thewildrosepress.com

  Publishing History

  First Champagne Rose Edition, 2015

  Digital ISBN 978-1-62830-742-9

  Published in the United States of America

  Dedication

  This one is dedicated to my sweet daddy,

  Rufus Dozier, who always brought me

  Valentine’s sweets on Valentine’s Day

  and gave me unconditional love

  every day of the year.

  Chapter One

  Out of 100,000 sperm, you were the fastest?

  Lexi snorted to herself as she sat at the Time Out conference table waiting for the staff meeting to begin. Damn, she should’ve used that comeback when her dumbass quasi-boyfriend dumped her last night.

  If you were twice as smart, you’d still be stupid. She displayed a wide grin as she wrote that line down on her iPad. What did the guy think, anyway? They’d only dated for a week. She didn’t put out for just anybody.

  A co-worker walked into the room. Lexi swiped the screen to open the research information about her latest article for Time Out Online Magazine. No one had to know what she really did for a half-hour—forty fruitless comebacks to make her feel better.

  She sat back in the chair and studied the information on her latest. She was halfway finished with the history behind the iconic West End houses of Portland, but she wanted one last bit of quirkiness—her trademark.

  As others walked in, greeting her, she wondered why her boss had called an unanticipated staff meeting. They had things to do—she had things to do—so she’d keep her mind off being dumped, again, last night. She really wanted a top 100-insult list by lunch.

  It was no big deal, really. Lexi didn’t even like the guy, but it was one dump after another. She dumped. The guy of the week dumped. Her world was one big dump. That’s why, after last night, she decided she would not associate with any more men for a while. It was too time consuming—mind consuming—and she felt incompetent. She would never settle for that, since she was damn well competent. Besides, she could get along fine alone—just her and her vibrating buddy “VeeVee.”

  She sighed and closed her iPad when everyone had gathered round the table. Her boss, Jeremy, stood in the front, clad in jeans, a tee-shirt, sneakers, and a newsboy hat on his shaggy brown hair. She loved the casual atmosphere of the office. Loved that all the workers were buddies.

  Well, most of them.

  She eyed the end of the table where the newbie sat—Grant Reeds. Despite the laid back atmosphere, he wore khaki pants and a plaid button-up shirt, rolled over his muscled arms to his elbows. He’d worked there three months already, and she couldn’t break his shell. Not her friendly smile. Not her tongue-in-cheek comments. Nothing worked on this guy. And she was funny, dammit. Besides that little snag, working at Time Out this past year had been the best professional experience since graduating college two years ago.

  Now, if she could get her personal life on track.

  Jeremy cleared his throat and stood next to his VP, Jennifer, who also happened to be his wife. “So, we called you all here today to talk about a new endeavor.”

  “You’re not selling us out, are you?” Lexi asked and everyone laughed. They knew, as she did, that Time Out was Jennifer and Jeremy’s life. They would never sell.

  “No, Lexi. But we do need to increase sales.” At that, Jennifer turned on the screen and projected numbers from the past months. They weren’t bad, but they were lower than normal. “As you can see, after two years in business, our online magazine has several new competitors. With that comes a bidding war. Bids to advertise, which is the way we make money.”

  Lexi glanced around the table to gauge everyone’s reactions. Most leaned forward, eyes intent on the screen. Everyone except newbie geek, Grant. He was typing away on the keyboard, his eyes glued to his own screen. Was he even listening?

  “So, what’s this big plan?” Lexi’s best friend Aly asked, tapping her pen on the table.

  “We’ve got a proposal.” Jeremy snickered. “Or maybe we’ll get a proposal after this.” Jennifer bit her lip as she laughed with Jeremy. It was annoying, since they were the only ones who got the joke.

  The little bell in her head rang, warning her that something was about to change. “So, what is it?” Lexi prompted.

  Jeremy smiled and held out his arms. “Our Time Out Valentine’s Special. We need our reporters out there experiencing Portland romance.”

  Oh, hell no. She was not doing a romance special. Romance would mean dating, right? Which obviously would include a man, and she’d just given up on men about ten hours ago. She did not want to surround herself with hearts, candies, and chocolate. Well, chocolate yes, but no damn romance.

  Jere
my rambled on; his voice grated with each word. “You’ll pair up and report on why Portland is the most romantic city of all. We’ll need special places, special foods, special treats—Time Out Special. This is our ticket to being different and making more sales.”

  Lexi took a deep breath. She didn’t want Time Out to falter. She was happy working there, and if she had to pair up, she could pair with Aly. In fact, they’d have a lot of fun. She winked at her friend when Aly looked at her, a question in her eye.

  “There’s more to it, isn’t there?” From the far side of the room, Mr. Nerdy came out of his tortoise shell. He ripped his glasses off his face and ran his hand through his hair. She noticed he did this when he was nervous, not that she noticed him before. Much.

  “Right you are, Grant. Jennifer and I have picked your partners.” An instant rumbling fell across the room. Complaints, whines, laughter. Especially from Lexi.

  “You’re shitting me, right, Jeremy?” When he ignored her, Lexi leaned in Jennifer’s direction. “Right?”

  Jennifer gave Lexi direct eye contact, her cheek ticced as she spoke—the one sign that demonstrated Jennifer was dead serious. “Yes, Lexi. We’re not shitting you, and you’ll do this.”

  That shut Lexi down immediately. Deep breath. You can do this. Maybe they set you up with a decent counterpart. There were only five reporters: Jenn, Aly, Josh and Mark—who was gay and he’d be perfect. Yes. Mark. Mark. Mark.

  “Everyone single will partake in this,” Jeremy stated, as if he read her mind. “From reporting, marketing, even networking.” He held out his hand, indicating Grant and his computer geek friend, Harold. Yep. He even had a geeky friend with a geeky name—Harold.

  But Grant’s name was nice. Grant. Nice, manly name to match that manly chest hiding behind the buttons on that plaid shirt. She shook her head. Nope. Nope. Nope. Don’t do that, girl! You’re giving up on men, remember? Especially computer-loving hermits.

  Manly Grant spoke. “Now, wait a minute. I only know computers. I can’t do all that…” He swiped his hand around the table.

  “Yes you can and you will.” The room quieted. When Jennifer raised her voice, everyone knew it was business. “Jeremy and I have thought long and hard about this. Everything we do is for a purpose. And in the end, whatever you do will help you in our company.”

  “Jennifer is trying to say that our sales will result in better business. Better promotion. Better Sales. So, our proposition is this: you and your partner will report at the end of the week on romantic dates in the city. We have one month to raise our sales. The best assignments will be reported… And here’s the kicker…” He paused for a dramatic effect. “The couple who has the most hits to their article will win an all-expense paid trip to Puerto Vallarta courtesy of Portland Travel.”

  “Holy shit,” Lexi mumbled along with the other staff members. Puerto Vallarta would be exactly what she needed to get her mind off all the madness in her life.

  Goodbye dump. Buenos días, México.

  “So, without further ado, your partners. We’ll have six pairs in total. It was a little hard to match up since we have more females than males. So, some of you girls will be matched with another female.”

  “That’s okay with me.” Lexi spoke giving an air kiss in Aly’s direction. She and Aly would have a blast in Mexico. Plus, she really couldn’t deal with another man dumping her, so she’d make do with her best girlfriend. That’d be fun, in fact.

  “That’s right, girlfriend.” Aly giggled.

  Jeremy motioned for Jennifer to click the overhead, and the screen exposed the partner list. The freakin’ partners list with her name at the top.

  Her name next to—oh hell—Geeky Grant…or Manly Grant. Damn.

  Hello dump. Welcome back.

  ****

  Grant glared across the room at the pretty dark-blonde he’d been trying to ignore for the past months. Now he had to be paired with her? He did not like this idea one bit, and being smartass Lexi’s partner was the worst idea. He surveyed his friend and boss, Jeremy, who tried unsuccessfully to hold in a smile.

  “Grant? Grant is my partner? He’s barely said five words to me since he started.” Lexi slammed her iPad on the conference table.

  Grant wiggled in his seat, placing his glasses back on the tip of his nose. “Only because you won’t let me get a word in edgewise.” He stared at the others who snickered around them.

  Jeremy held his palm out to stop Lexi from speaking. “Lexi, there’s a good reason we paired particular couples. I don’t want to go into it right now, especially with the entire staff in the room.”

  “So this wasn’t random? Is this your idea of a joke? Two people who don’t get along—”

  “Who says we don’t get along?” A knot formed in Grant’s throat.

  “I do. You’ve been aloof and rude since you started here.”

  Grant had about all he could take. He stood, raking his hand in his hair. “Listen, Alexia…”

  “It’s Lexi.” She huffed, reclining in her seat, crossing her arms over her chest. The chest that she liked to show off with her low tops. The ones he caught himself staring at too often.

  He smirked, looking past those infuriating and invigorating breasts to her face. “Lexi. I’m sure we can work around whatever problem it is you have with me, but let’s take this in private.” He walked to her and held out his hand. “Shall we?”

  It took five seconds before she reacted. Ignoring his hand, she stood, scurried past Grant with a shove at his shoulder and darted out of the room. Grant didn’t know how to react. What the hell was wrong with this woman? He’d have to show her they could work together on this project—if anything to prove he was a decent guy.

  He’d been ignoring Lexi purposefully, ever since he started at Time Out. Her witty humor knocked him senseless, not to mention that firm ass in those tight jeans she always wore. He couldn’t afford to be distracted, and that was the whole reason why he moved back to Portland in the first place—to get away from distractions.

  Besides, he owed it to his college friend, Jeremy, who trusted him and gave him this job when he really needed it. Returning here was a huge step. Getting this job as Networking Director was another. If Jeremy wanted them to participate in this assignment, then they would. He and Alexia—or Lexi—would make this work.

  He ran his hands through his hair, looking around the room as other pairs connected and planned their duty. Why did Lexi have such a visceral reaction? That really bothered him. He’d done his best to ignore her, and she apparently hated him for it. They didn’t even know each other. Grant had to get to that fiery woman so they could win this challenge. Turning on his foot and heading to the door, he smiled. A challenge it was.

  Chapter Two

  Damn. He’d found her. Not that it was difficult since she sat at her desk in the warehouse office, her cubicle no different from any others in the open room. In her peripheral vision, she saw him standing there, his eyebrows bunched together under his black-framed glasses, and his hands fisted at his sides.

  Lexi turned and leaned back on the desk, her bright blue yoga ball slightly bouncing beneath. Since she didn’t want to look weak, she lifted her chin and stared straight at him. Lexi pointed, her finger almost touching his chest, but she couldn’t quite reach up that far. So, her finger landed more on his tight stomach causing an awareness in her she tried hard to ignore. “You. I get stuck with you.”

  He leaned down, placed his hands on the desk, and put his face inches from hers, his voice barely a whisper. “I don’t know what your problem is, but we’re working together whether you like it or not—and we’re going to win that goddamned prize.” He grinned, raising an eyebrow. “Now you’re quiet?”

  “Well, you’re…like…harassing me.”

  He lifted his head and laughed, that hot adam’s apple bobbing. The sight of it sent a tingle through her body, heating her cheeks—and that was so unexpected. Where the hell did this gumption come from? He barely
even looked at her for months, and now he stood inches away, his musky smell wafting in the air and a crackle, so damn tangible, around them.

  “Harassing you? Hell, you’re exasperating.” He wiped his hand across his brow. “Look, we can either continue talking here where everyone can hear us”—he nodded to the middle of the office where people strolled in from the conference room—“or we can go have coffee to calm you down and figure out what we’re doing.”

  “Calm me down? You’re the one ranting.” She snorted. “Grant the Ranter. I like that.” Standing, she turned off the screen of her computer and grabbed her purse. Why did this guy make her nervous? She had to pull herself together before he noticed.

  “I’m the ranter? You’re deluded.” He shook his head and walked to his desk all the way across the room in a corner, away from any person, the anti-social recluse.

  Lexi followed, splaying her hands about. “Yeah, you rant. Listen to you.”

  When she walked by her friend’s desk, Aly stood. “Lexi, give the poor guy a break.”

  “Ah, to hell with you all.” She marched out the front door and didn’t look back, knowing that Grant followed soon after. She felt his presence, which disturbed her even more.

  Without a word, he caught up to her carrying a stupid messenger bag over his shoulder, crisscrossing that well-built chest. Unexpected for such a geek, though she’d noticed before.

  She studied him through squinted eyes. Glasses graced his caramel eyes, not that she’d noticed them before. Hell, okay, she did. He usually wore glasses, but when he took them off occasionally in staff meetings, she noticed those caramel eyes—seeping with an unexpected sensuality. The plaid button-down hugged his chest in the perfect fit—showing well-defined biceps and corded muscles on his forearms. His full lips were definitely kissable, especially when he licked them like he did before he spoke, always thinking.

  Lexi shook her head and turned the corner. What was wrong with her? Thinking of Geek Grant the Ranter in this way was not helping the matter.