Chasing Happy (Texas Desires #1)

by Rylie Roberts

  “I’m supposing this means you made it right,” Margaret messaged. He narrowed his eyes at her comment and typed quickly back.

  “You’re overstepping your boundaries.”

  “Reed Prescott, answer the question. I will not expand this reservation if it’s for one of your floozies.” He lifted his brow. Only because he was in such a good mood did he respond with his first thought, not the one where she was finally fired for being such a pain in his ass.

  “Floozy? You’re showing your age. I think you need a refresher course in the fact you don’t seem to understand you work for me.”

  “She’s a nice young woman and you need that in your life.” He sighed and tried to remember she cared.

  “Not that it’s any of your business, but yes, I believe she’s having dinner with us tonight.”

  “Mr. Prescott, are you still with us?” came a voice from his computer. He looked down to see all the faces looking toward him. He had tuned out his web-conference and missed something in their exchange. He thought back over what he may have heard and nothing came to mind. While he tried to get back on track with the meeting, Margaret’s new message came through.

  “I’m proud of you. I added another to the reservation. Just a small note, what does ‘you believe’ mean? Shouldn’t you confirm?” This was the exact reason why he never dated before. Girlfriends required mental energy he didn’t have time to spare. He had to get his shit together. Business before hos or so his buddy Cole would always say. He turned back to the webcam.

  “There’s been an emergency arise. Send me those last few minutes in email. We need the quarterly projections increased by two percent, and I need your revised projections reflecting that change to me by the end of business today.” Hopefully he’d covered his tracks. He exited the web conference before anyone could respond and began to mentally chastise himself. Two percent was asking a little much on a division that was continually producing and exceeding expectation, but he always pushed. That was his part of the game and the strategy worked, at least with most of his holdings.

  Lara hadn’t called him. He resisted the urge to go downstairs and ask why she hadn’t, remembering what happened the last time he’d gone to see her. Lara held power over him, some sort of control, and if she were within reach, he knew without question he’d have to touch her. The touches had progressed between them—not a smart decision for the workplace.

  Picking up the phone, he dialed her extension. She picked up on the fourth ring. Good thing, he’d have hated to leave a message and would have probably gone downstairs to find her.

  “Hello…” Her voice was soft, sultry, and pleasing to his cock. He wouldn’t have plumped faster had she stroked a hand down the front of his slacks.

  “You sound sexy as hell. Is that the way you always answer the phone?” he teased, and then he adjusted himself to get a little more comfortable.

  “Of course not, only when the big boss calls,” she said, and he grinned even bigger. The voice was still sexy, but she was back to teasing with him, like she’d done when she thought he was gay. Lord, he rolled his eyes at that one.

  “Big boss, huh? So that voice is reserved just for me?”

  “Only you! Who else would I talk to like that? Actually, no one here really even talks to me since our picture was in the paper. I don’t think I’m too well liked.” Her voice was still light and teasing but her words touched his heart on a different level. He didn’t have a lot of friends in the workplace, but he had five lifelong buddies that filled any void in that area. He decided to file that bit of information away for later.

  “It was tough leaving you when you were sleeping. You’re beautiful,” Reed said, staring out across his office but only seeing her with her long dark hair splayed across her back and pillow, her angelic face soft, those luscious full lips slightly parted. “Except you snore.”

  The silence his first sentence got came to an abrupt halt with that new info. “I do not! No one’s ever told me I snore before.”

  “So you’ve had lots of overnight bed partners?” Why in the world had he asked that question? More so, where in the fuck was the immediate spark of jealousy coming from? He’d just been teasing.

  “Of course not! At least not like the way you just made it sound. Our walls are paper thin. Kade would have made fun of me endlessly over that one.”

  “How many sexual partners have you had?” The unplanned question surprised him. He couldn’t let it go and knew this wasn’t a conversation for now, but the possession he felt raged through him.

  “How many have you had?” she shot back. He could tell she was teasing. He totally wasn’t at all.

  “A lot. Now you answer.” There was silence on the other end of the line. He closed his eyes, dropping his head back against the seat. He was already fucking this dating thing up. Dating meant they’d spend lots of time together to slowly discover the little things. Besides, whatever her answer, it truly didn’t matter. What mattered was from this point forward.

  “I’m sorry,” he said into the phone, deciding honesty was the best approach. “I told you, I haven’t had a girlfriend before. I don’t really know the rules. You’ll have to help me along.” There was silence for several long moments, and he wondered what he might have said wrong that time.

  “I haven’t either. I don’t know the rules, but I’ve been with two guys, neither was anything to write home about. I didn’t think I was into…” Her voice lowered before she continued. “You know…sex,” she whispered even quieter. “Until what we did.” That perked him right up.

  “That’s good to hear.” He wanted to say more, could have taken the call in a completely different direction, but he refrained. Anticipation was turning out to be its own kind of aphrodisiac. “I called for a reason before I got side-tracked with that possessive thing that I don’t even understand. Are we on for dinner tonight?”

  “Sure. You said it was business. Is there anything I need to know?”

  “No, it’s an informal deal. Celebration of successful negotiations. There will be wives there—there usually are,” he added.

  “What should I wear?” Her clothing… They always seemed to wind up right here. He needed to get that corrected as soon as possible. She’d have to do some serious shopping if she planned to stand by his side. He jotted down a quick note to make that happen early next week.

  “If you have one of those little black cocktail dresses, that works. Or anything like that. I can have one sent to you.” Reed offered, remembering the ugly little clothes she wore yesterday.

  “No, absolutely not. You’ve done too much of that already for me. I’m sure I have something to wear,” she shot back.

  “Hmmm… All right. I won’t argue this time, but I have lots of these little dinners that pop up. You’ll have to have suitable clothing. I can’t have people thinking I’m a terrible boyfriend if you wear the same things over and over.” He got silence on that too. “Did I mess up again?” Had he inadvertently called out her fashion sense?

  “No, not at all.” Her voice was soft and sweet. What had he done to cause that? His alarm went off on his scheduling program at the same moment a call buzzed in. “I need to go. I’ll pick you up at six. Remember to get on the pill. I’ve promised myself I won’t go without a condom again until we’re protected. If you need a doctor, we can call Candace—you met her that first day in my office—and she can hook you up.”

  “I don’t have a doctor here.”

  “All right, I’ll email you her direct numbers. She’s like family. She’ll question me too much if I call her.” The call ringing through went to voicemail, giving him a brief moment of silence before it started ringing again.

  “Do you want people to know?” she asked.

  “I think the associated press took care of that for me. I gotta go. I’ll see you tonight.” He disconnected the call and answered the next in line of web-conferencing meetings he had every Friday. Before he sent the email to Lara, he had to decide
if Candace should know. If she found out, then everyone in his family would know. How did he feel about that? The answer to that question was a negative one, but Candace was his best chance of getting Lara on the pill quickly.

  As he listened to all the attendees report, he pulled Candace’s information up on his cell. Lara protected was more important than anything else.

  Chapter 15

  Occasionally Margaret got it right. Reed stood at the front door of Lara’s tiny apartment dressed in a Dior black suit with a sedate blue tie, holding a large bouquet of fresh cut flowers that Margaret arranged for him to bring. He would have never thought of that on his own.

  He arrived early, but his need to be with Lara outweighed decorum. He couldn’t wait to get there this evening, but as he went to knock on the door, he hesitated, losing his nerve. A bit early might be a stretch. He was twenty minutes ahead of schedule. He’d already told himself as well as Margaret, and then Candace when she’d messaged him this afternoon, that he wasn’t playing Lara. Arriving this early seemed to prove those words more than anything he had done before. He missed her and just wanted to be around her. So be it.

  He took a deep breath and lifted his knuckles to rap lightly on her door. She answered a minute or two later, and he stood there, speechless. She wore a small, black beaded cocktail dress, matching high heels, and she’d gathered her hair away from her face to cascade in perfect waves down her back. Just like he was coming to expect every time he saw her, she was stunningly gorgeous. An array of emotions played across her face as her gaze landed on the flowers.

  “Those are beautiful,” she cooed, jarring him into action.

  “They’re for you.” He held out the bouquet before he continued, “You look lovely, Lara.”

  “You’re the handsome one. That tie really brings out your eyes. Come in.” She brought the bouquet to her nose and breathed in the blooms. “These are my favorite. I love the oriental lilies. Am I late or are you early?” she asked, leaving him in the foyer. He’d spent last night in this apartment, but was again shocked at how small the place looked. The foyer was really the living room or kitchen, depending on which way he moved. He took a couple of steps toward her and watched as she pulled a vase from a very overcrowded cabinet and filled it with water.

  “I was ready, so I just came. I should have waited,” he said, dropping his hands inside his pockets.

  “No, I was ready too. I was getting antsy, making myself nervous. I don’t know what to expect tonight,” she said, looking at him over her shoulder. “I made a quick run by a consignment store at lunch. They told me this dress would work. I don’t know if it does or not. I couldn’t afford the wrap that goes with it.”

  Her honesty and frankness were so refreshing to him. “You should have let me cover the cost; it’s my business dinner.”

  “I’m pretty sure that when you accept a dinner date with someone, you don’t expect them to buy your clothes. I need to expand my wardrobe. My mentor at Wake Forest might have steered me wrong in her insistence of the corporate value of pearls and the nondescript black business suit.” She dropped the flowers in the vase, fluffed them a little, moving a couple around before placing the vase on the small table between the two rooms. “Thank you for these. Now it’s the second time I’ve gotten flowers. You’re breaking all sorts of new ground.”

  From the beginning, he really liked her good-hearted, teasing manner. He wanted a kiss and figured that was what girlfriends did for their guys. He stepped in behind her, wrapping both arms around her waist. They were becoming fluid together. She didn’t stiffen or move away. Instead, she leaned back into him. He pulled her tight against his chest, running his nose along her hair until he reached her ear. “I’m not exactly sure what you’ve done to me, but I couldn’t stay away. I needed to be here. That’s why I was early.”

  She placed both her hands over his and angled her head back toward him. “I’m nervous. I’m trying to just go with it, but I’m not sure what we’re doing.”

  “We’re dating, like you wanted,” he teased and kissed her cheek, feeling better with her in his arms.

  “Why me?” she asked quietly, staying serious, a little crease of concern wrinkling her brow. He couldn’t make light of the question, but he also couldn’t answer either. He didn’t know why he was so into her. How did he put into words the way she eased him? When he didn’t answer right away, she tried to step away. He tightened his arms, turning her toward him.

  “From the minute I walked into my office and you were standing in the window… From right then, I just needed to know you. I can’t say why. I honestly don’t know. You aren’t my usual type.”

  “What’s your usual type?” Both her hands were splayed on his chest. It wouldn’t take much for her to lift them around his neck. He liked that move.

  “I’ve stayed clear of anything that drew too much emotion from me,” he answered honestly.

  “So your normal type’s someone who…” She stopped and just looked at him.

  “Someone I don’t think about again. I think about you more than I should.” He judged that to be a good response, because her face lit up with a smile and the worry line across her brow disappeared. “Candace told me she talked to you today.”

  “I have an appointment with a friend of hers Tuesday at lunch.” Good. He needed to get checked out too, but he liked the idea of being able to be skin on skin with her.

  “She likes you,” he confessed.

  “She likes you. She asked so many questions. I didn’t know how to answer them. She said you grew up together.” Her hands finally lifted around his neck. Not a patient man, he leaned in, trying to kiss her lips.

  “No kissing! This took time. It’s two colors and a liner.” As she spoke, she pointed a finger toward her lips. “These north Dallas women don’t play where their makeup’s concerned.” That had him laughing because he knew the truth behind her words.

  “We should go,” he said, stepping back from their embrace. “So how long’s an appropriate time to wait to kiss you?”

  “At least until after dinner. I don’t care about bad breath as much my carefully applied lipstick.” He barked out a laugh at that one. “Now fill me in on who I’ll be meeting. Is there anything I should know?” She went for the door, but he moved faster, managing to get the door open before she could.

  “You should wait to let me get the doors. You’re a hard woman to impress with my good manners,” he teased, stepping back.

  “Kade gets mad at me too. Can you lock it?” she asked, stepping through. “Now, who are we meeting?”

  “I don’t know anything about the wives, just the two men. We signed contracts today. I’m acquiring their company,” he explained, checking the door to make sure it locked. He wrapped an arm around her as they walked toward the elevator. He pressed the down button. As they waited, he fingered one of her curls. “They’re older men, doesn’t mean their wives are but possibly.”

  “All right, that doesn’t give me much to work with. We need to work on that. I take the PR of your company seriously,” she said, waggling her eyebrows.

  “It’s the best I’ve got, but I’ll do better next time. I do know the restaurant. You’ll love the food,” he said, letting her on the elevator first.

  “Now you’re speaking my language.”

  ~~~

  Lara sat quietly at a small table close to the bar, nibbling at a dessert she’d ordered. Dinner had turned out to be a far more sophisticated affair than she had planned and she was thankful she’d taken the time to shop during lunch. Reed sat close by, much like he had for most of the evening, but this had been purely a business dinner. The wives of the two men had forty years on her and zero interest in getting to know her on any level. Both the wives abandoned dinner before dessert and way before the men decided to migrate to the bar.

  As much as she felt like a sore thumb, the outcast to the group, Reed refused her offer to leave him to the men and insisted she stay through the aged bran
dy declared the best on the market. That was three glasses ago.

  Reed’s hand came around her back and brushed down the length of her hair. “You ready to go, gorgeous?” he asked. He didn’t lower his voice, and her eyes darted up to see everyone at the table staring her way.

  “Whenever you are,” she replied hastily and smiled. She never let the smile falter as she realized her potential mistake. Maybe he was asking her to leave them alone. “I can get a cab if you’d like to stay.”

  “Of course not.” Reed dismissed her suggestion and lifted a hand to gain the waiter’s attention before turning back to the men. “I’ve enjoyed tonight. It was a pleasure doing business with you gentleman,” Reed said. Lara read his words for the lie they were. No way could he have enjoyed this evening on any level. The waiter brought him a check and he scribbled his name at the bottom.

  “Son, you’re a fine man. I’m not sure we could have asked for better in this buyout, but I have some unsolicited advice. It’s at the end of a man’s life that he looks back and sees what he’s missed. You should take some time to yourself, enjoy this charming young woman. Slow down some.” Mr. Stanton spoke in a deeply Southern accent from across the table. Lara smiled her genuine smile and bit her lip, waiting for Reed’s reaction.

  “I appreciate the advice, Mr. Stanton. Now, if you’ll excuse us, I intend to act on your good word and take Lara out dancing. Please stay and enjoy another round on me.” That surprised her. Nowhere in any plans for tonight had they talked about dancing. She didn’t dance. Did he not remember how they met? The permanent fake work smile she had in place faltered as he rose and began to pull her chair out behind her. The two other men stood when she did.

  “It’s pleasure to meet you, Lara,” Mr. Stanton said, taking her hand warmly in his. “You get this guy to take a break now and again.”

  “I’ll try,” she said, not seeing that happen at all. She turned to the other man, Mr. Wallace. He was a little cooler toward her, just giving her a nod. She didn’t question that at all. Her whole focus was on the impending dancing and how in the world to get herself out of this predicament.