Playing the Field (Hot-Lanta Series)

by Quinn, Meghan

  “Oh, maybe we can get some of those scones when I get back and you can eat them off of me.”

  Not even paying attention to Austin anymore due to Reid’s hips flexing into her she just mumbled a yes.

  “Alright babe, I guess I will talk to you later.”

  Right before she was going to hang up Reid let out a moan, biting her shoulder, she held herself back from screaming with delight.

  “What was that? Are you with someone right now?”

  Shit. Between clenched teeth on the verge of coming all over Reid she said, “No stubbed my toe. Talk to you later.”

  She hung up. She would have to do damage control later but she didn’t care at that point. She was lost in ecstasy with Reid. He gave her one final pump and they both flew over the edge together. She laid her head on his bare chest, basking in his muscles as he slid his hands up and down her back.

  “So was that the ol’ boyfriend?” Reid asked.

  Molly guffawed and said, “Uh, no. He likes to think he is but I’m not into any titles. He is a good fuck but since he is out of town I called on you. I hope that’s alright.”

  “My win, his loss. You haven’t changed at all since college. Still the same old free-spirited girl. I like it.”

  Molly thought about his comment for a second and realized he was right. Ever since Luke left her behind, she slipped back into her old ways before he tamed her. She was wild and free and able to fuck whoever she wanted, drink however much she wanted and play around with prescription drugs. She had no responsibilities and her biggest concern was what thong she was going to wear that day. Things started to look up for her.

  “You haven’t changed much besides the bulging biceps and new more improved moves in the bedroom. I get so hot when you tell me what to do. I like a guy who can take charge.”

  “What are you doing today?”

  “Hm, let me think about that. Oh yea that’s right, absolutely nothing.”

  “Good” he said kissing her with the same passion he did last night. “Let’s take a shower, you’re spending the day with me today.”

  Happy with herself and making the decision to contact him last night, she followed him into the shower and lost herself in his wondering hands.

  Chapter 12

  Jane’s wedding was only in two days. The guys were going to be coming home soon and Patty had not heard from Marc since she left for the bachelorette party. She checked her phone the next morning after ridding one of the worst hangovers she ever experienced and noticed she called Marc at some un-Godly hour. She sent him a couple of good luck text messages before his games but still didn’t hear anything from him. She wished she could replay the night, not be drunk and realize what she said to him. It must have been bad since he had not talked to her at all.

  She was looking over the list of tasks he wanted her to accomplish. She completed all of them except for one, ask Jane for a raise. The other tasks were pretty easy and fun. She felt more like her old self every day.

  Running through the Centennial park fountain made her feel free-spirited, torching everything from Gino made her feel like she was closing the door to the past and letting other people into her life, talking about her issues only made her stronger and more accepting of herself.

  Patty always got to work earlier than Jane and Lucy. She made sure coffee was being made and she always enjoyed getting a head start on her e-mails so she could spend the day planning events. Jane came through the door looking a little less than her little perfect self, more frazzled. Patty knew Jane was stressed with her own wedding. Patty was not sure if asking for a raise was a good time right now. Marc did say she had to get all her tasks done by the time he got back for the wedding. Ugh, stupid Marc. She sent him a text again to see if he could give her some encouragement.

  Patty: Hey Sully, have not heard from you in a while. Just wanted to make sure you were doing alright. Saw you had a good night at the plate yesterday. About to complete my last task, asking Jane for a raise. Fingers crossed. Miss you.

  Patty waited for Jane to settle in her office before she bombarded her. Patty made a few phone calls to some of the vendors that would be providing services at Jane’s wedding. The florist confirmed their arrival as well as the bakery and DJ. Everything seemed to be running smoothly. Jane’s dress was hanging in Patty’s apartment as well as the bridesmaids dresses. She would transport them to the hotel the night before the wedding where they would all be staying. Brady insisted on getting the girls a massive suite to get ready in. It was generous and such a sweet idea, the only thing Patty dreaded was having Lucy and Molly cross paths.

  Lucy was not in the wedding but she was a big part in making everything happen, so Jane begged her to stay with them the night before to make sure everything went on without a hitch. Patty already volunteered in sharing a bed with her that way Molly and Jane could have their best friend time before the wedding.

  At this point though Patty was not even sure Molly was going to show up. No one had heard from her since the bachelorette party. Jane went to Molly’s apartment the other day to check on her and she was nowhere to be found. Molly’s disappearing act was another reason why Jane must be frazzled. Patty’s phone beeped and startled her. She looked down and saw a message from Marc. Her heart fluttered for some odd reason. She tapped her phone to read it.

  Marc: Good Luck

  Good luck? That was it? That was all he had to say? Patty’s worry turned straight into rage. The nerve of him. She went through his stupid list and accomplished all the tasks he laid out for her leaving only one more to accomplish and all he had to say was good luck? That bastard! She wasn’t going to send him a message back but she could not help herself.

  Patty: Is that all you have to say to me? Good luck? I’ve completed all these tasks for you and you could give two shits whether or not I complete them. Well screw you, Marc. Have a safe flight.

  Patty was fuming. Why did it matter so much to her anyway that he cared? His friendship mattered to her but she also had plenty of friends so she could do without him. His friendship anyway was more of a nuisance than anything. He was always trying to help her and make her better, it gets tiring after a while having someone on your back all the time.

  She twiddled her pen between her fingers and looked at a picture on her bulletin board of the two of them. She sighed in frustration. Screw him.

  She got up from her desk, straightened her skirt and went to Jane’s office where she was meticulously typing away on her computer. Patty knocked on the side of her door. Jane looked up and waved a hand at her to come in.

  “Be right with you Patty, just finishing up this last quote for a wedding. Have a seat.”

  “Take your time.” Patty said while eyeing the pictures of Jane and Brady that were framed and hanging in her office. They were such a gorgeous couple.

  “Sorry for the wait. I’ve been so stressed lately.”

  “Understandable, I couldn’t imagine all the stress you’re going through right now. I called the florist, DJ and bakery for your wedding this morning. They’re all set. I hooked them up with the manager at the hotel so they know exactly where they need to be. I wrote up all the information to give to Lucy so she can manage day of and you can relax.”

  Jane shook her head in disbelief and smiled. “You are an angel, Patty, thank you. I can’t believe the rehearsal is tomorrow and then I’m getting married. I‘ve done so many weddings in my lifetime but you never really understand the stress of a wedding until you are the actual bride. It’s crazy, you will see one day.”

  “Most likely I won’t.” Patty said softly.

  “Why do you say that? Patty you’re a gorgeous, young woman. Any man would be lucky to have you. You’ve come along so far since when I first met you. I think you’re ready to get out there again. You just have to take the leap.”

  Patty just shook her head trying to hold back tears

  Jane got up from her desk and sat across from her in the opposite chair. “What’
s wrong sweetie?”

  Patty wiped a loose tear from her cheek and said, “I don’t know. I thought I would be happy. I only have one more task to complete but I just don’t feel right.”

  “Did you tell Marc you only have one more to go?”

  Patty mockingly laughed.

  “What did he do?” Jane asked in a serious tone.

  “He is such a jerk. He has not talked to me in a couple of days, he has not answered my text messages and when I just told him I only have one task to go and I miss him he was short with me. I don’t get it. I think I might have said something to him when I was drunk from your bachelorette party but I don’t remember. I’m not sure though and I can’t find out because he won’t talk to me. Frankly I don’t even know why I care if he talks to me it’s not like he’s my only friend. I have other friends. It’s just so frustrating because he was all gung ho about this stupid list and now he doesn’t care. What was the point?”

  Jane placed her hands on Patty’s shoulders and said, “Shh, calm down sweetie. First of all, the point of the list was to get you out of the life slump you were in. Look at you now, you’re thriving and doing amazing. I have never seen you more energetic and confident, it’s refreshing. Secondly, have you ever considered the idea that you might just have feelings for Marc?”

  Patty laughed at Jane. “I don’t have feelings for Marc or any man for that matter. I’m unable to obtain such feelings since Gino ripped them from me. Yes, its fun to tease and flirt with him but that is as far is it goes. I might have changed but I still have a heart of black. I don’t ever see myself opening my life up to another man. It only leads to trouble.”

  “You are selling yourself short if you do that Patty. You deserve to have a man in your life that cares about you, loves you and treats you the way you deserve to be treated.”

  “It’s not in the cards for me, but thank you Jane.”

  Jane gave her a pitiful looking smile. Patty knew Jane felt bad for her. Patty, like Marc? Really? That was not possible. They were only friends and she shut herself down from having romantic feelings. She just wanted a career and to be successful which reminded her the reason she came into Jane’s office.

  Patty turned to Jane and said, “Can I talk to you as an employee right now and not a friend?”

  Jane nodded, got up from the chair she was sitting in and proceeded to sit back behind her desk. “Please do, what’s on your mind?”

  Patty gathered up all the courage she could find. “I know this is a stressful time for you right now but I have to do this now before I lose the courage.”

  Jane held up her hand, “Please don’t tell me you’re leaving me.”

  Stunned Patty said, “Oh my God, I could never do that. I love it too much here. I wanted to talk to you about a possible raise. I feel like I’ve pulled my weight around here plus some. I never miss a day of work and I’ve come up with ideas to make our daily operation…”

  Patty didn’t get to finish because Jane interrupted her. “Patty, you don’t need to explain to me what you do around here. I was going to wait until after the wedding but you beat me to the punch. I already have a raise in the works for you. I was talking to Brady the other day and realized how much I rely on you and your excellent organizational skills, I could not survive without you so I decided to give you a ten percent increase in your salary. If that is alright with you?”

  Patty was shocked. Purely and truly shocked. She could not believe what Jane was saying.

  “Are you serious? Of course that is ok with me. Oh my God, thank you Jane. Thank you so much.”

  “Don’t thank me, you deserve it, girl. Thank you for your time and commitment to the company. You have really helped JB Events thrive. Now just do me one thing.”

  “Anything…”

  “Don’t shut Marc off. He cares about you more than you even know. Give him a chance. The boys come home tomorrow night. I would hate to see you two feuding at the wedding.”

  Smiling Patty said, “I didn’t know you were the boss of my personal life as well.”

  “Get used to it. Now get out of here and get to work.” Jane said with a smirk.

  Patty scooted out of Jane’s office, returning to her own desk, grinning like a fool. Lucy came in at some point while Patty was in Jane’s office and she looked positively dreadful. What was going on with her?

  Patty checked her phone to see if there were any text messages from Marc and there was absolutely nothing. Perfect! Just perfect now if only she could decipher why there was still an empty feeling in her stomach that would be great.

  ***

  When Lucy walked into the office she noticed Patty and Jane were having a private conversation. She wondered what that was about. She hoped Patty wasn’t leaving. She knew Patty was being pushed to her limits with helping so much with Jane’s wedding as well as picking up any slack Jane was lacking since she was busy with her own wedding. Lucy just hoped it didn’t drive Patty to her breaking point.

  Lucy tried to help out as much as possible but lately she had been so tired. She felt like she could barely keep her eyes open. Maybe the late night sex-capades she was having with Connor were part of the reason. Ever since they announced their love for each other they were practically inseparable, except for when they absolutely had to go to work. Even then they were constantly texting each other or sending e-mails back and forth.

  Things with Connor were going to well, it made her nervous. Nothing like this ever happened to her, let alone this fast. She was just waiting for something to come along and screw it up, like some kind of love child he didn’t know about, or maybe an ex who was desperately ill and needed him for support. Or maybe a tidal wave would attack the coast and swallow him whole, or a tornado of some sort. The weather was freaky these days; she wouldn’t put it past Mother Nature.

  Connor was the perfect man, so attentive, loving and truly cherished her for who she was. He loved her when she was the nerd at the little café, reading her book, in her frumpy clothes and glasses. She had never been the type of girl that guys stop in the middle of the street to get another look at, but with Connor, he treated her like she was. Like she was by far the prettiest woman on the earth.

  She sighed with content as she looked at the wallpaper on her computer of them together. How did she get so lucky? That was when Patty came back from the meeting she had with Jane looking extremely happy. That was a good sign. At least she wasn’t leaving.

  A screen popped up on her computer. Connor was chatting with her online.

  Connor: Hey my love, I miss you already.

  Lucy smiled from ear to ear. She felt like a giddy little school girl but didn’t care. She was looking forward to bringing him to Jane’s wedding, dressing up with him and dancing with him until the late hours of the night.

  Lucy: Hello there, I miss you too. I wish we didn’t have to go to work.

  Connor: Someday we won’t have to worry about it. I have plenty of money in the bank. We can just run away and own our own island. We can name it something like Luck of the Carrot.

  Lucy: LOL, Luck of the Carrot it is. What will we do on this island? Sell coconuts to locals?

  Connor: I don’t plan on interacting with anyone else on our island besides you. The whole reason of owning your own island is so you are not disturbed by other people.

  Lucy: I see and what would we be doing that people would disturb us?

  Connor: Oh I’m pretty sure you know what we would be doing. The same thing we’ve been doing every night for Lord knows how long. I hope you’re ok with that.

  Lucy: I think I could manage. Last night was incredible. I don’t know what you did different but I felt like I was on a different planet.

  Connor: Ha, that is for me to know and for you to never find out.

  Lucy: Oh I see how it’s going to be, two can play at this game.

  Connor: Give me the best you got, love. Hey I won’t be able to come over tonight. I have to fly to New York for a meeting. I will be b
ack tomorrow late afternoon though. Would you like to meet me at my house?

  Lucy: A meeting?! Ugh, stupid jobs. I can’t, I have stuff to do for Jane’s wedding and then we will be spending the night in her suite at the hotel. That means I won’t see you until the wedding.

  Connor: Damn, I forgot you will be staying with her. Well I guess I can wait until the wedding. I won’t like it though. Just be prepared to leave early and to be attacked by me. I made a reservation in the hotel so all we have to do is take the elevator up and strip your clothes off.

  Lucy: Mr. Cartwright you’re always thinking ahead.

  Connor: Another reason to love me.

  Lucy: There are so many reasons. I better get to work I have some calls to make.

  Connor: Me too. I will call you tonight when I get to New York and settled. I love you.

  Lucy: Love you too.

  Lucy could not wait for Jane’s wedding. It was going to be one of the best nights of her life.

  ***

  Molly lay on the dining room table in Reid’s hotel suite, drinking a bottle of Jack Daniels, smoking a cigarette and watching intently as Reid finished up licking her. She had never felt so free in her life. She spent the last week with Reid, drinking and fucking. Her two favorite pastimes. Jane tried getting in touch with her several times, as well as Luke’s parents, Patty and unfortunately Austin. She didn’t care to answer them back but with Jane’s rehearsal being tonight she thought she would throw the old girl a bone.

  Molly sat up as Reid took a swig from her bottle while she grabbed her phone.

  “I need to make a call real quick. Do you mind?”