Vicky,
comes in five days a week to check on her, and take care of household stuff. I
get over there twice a week, but…" I didn't want to share all my private
business. Nathan didn't need to know. "I can't do everything for her. I
make her nervous sometimes. We're lucky to have Vicky, but she's not cheap. So,
I do freelance editing, make extra money to pay for her. It works out
okay."
Not the whole story, but enough. We walked
the rest of the way in silence, except for a yawn that slipped out.
"Thanks for working this late
shift."
"No problem. I'll send you my notes.
I've got ideas."
"I'm sure you do."
He smiled, and damn it, my heart
stuttered. I could swear I saw desire in his eyes.
"Get some sleep, and we'll meet up
around two o'clock tomorrow. Or rather, today. Call me when you're awake."
We stopped outside the front door of the
lobby. His convertible, parked off to the side, brought back memories of our
evening together. I trembled slightly, hoping he didn't notice.
"So we're good now?" He laid a hand
on my shoulder.
That darn tingle again. "We're good.
And what I said, back there, I'm serious. About us, exploring what we
started." OMG. I had to stop talking. Nathan would take off running any
minute. But even though my mouth went dry at the thought, I truly meant what I
told him.
He took his hand away. "I'll see you
tomorrow afternoon."
Tired as I was, I lay in bed awake for a
while. I couldn't believe what I proposed to Nathan. Would I really do that? Have
casual sex? With my boss, a guy I hardly knew?
It didn't matter anyway. Despite what he
said, Nathan didn't want to have sex with me. He was only being kind. Maybe he felt
the tingle of a spark when we kissed, but not enough to take it any further.
I'd have to be content dreaming about him, treasuring the memory of his lips on
mine.
Sleep finally came after I read five
chapters of my book, letting me escape to another world.
CHAPTER SEVEN
I stood in the kitchen of my condo and
shot down a whiskey, trying to burn the vision of Chris and Juan from my brain.
It was no use. I kept picturing their naked bodies, heard that soft moan of
pleasure from Chris. Who looked a lot like Amber. Or how I imagined Amber would
look nude. Oh yeah, that's really what I needed to think about, how Amber
looked without her clothes.
Fuck me. I wanted her so bad, and damned
if she didn't suggest we hook-up while she was here. Nothing would make me
happier, but I told her no. No way could I have sex with that woman and not get
totally into her. I already knew she was smart, funny, and we got along great.
In virtual space, that is. In person, every time I touched her, or even got too
close, this magnetic pull made me want to grab her and run my hands over her
body. Then my tongue.
Even though I'd showered earlier, I jumped
in again, hoping to cool off. Didn't work. I lay in bed for fifteen minutes,
tossing and turning.
She said she wasn't innocent, that she'd had
lovers, and that she was okay with a causal relationship. Other people did
that. They had more than one person they dated and they knew nothing permanent was
expected. The way I did it in L. A. But this wasn't Los Angeles and Amber
wasn't just anyone. She was different than the women I hung with. What did she
say, she didn't just fall off the corn truck? Funny.
My cock voted "hell yes" on
taking Amber's offer of sex. My gut, the place I listen to when making
multi-million dollar business decisions, surprisingly agreed. After hearing her
story about her sister, damn, she was tougher than I thought. She had to be some
kind of strong to deal with that situation. And working a part-time job with
her full-time one? She never complained or told me she was too busy to take on
a project. She handled everything I threw at her on the job.
Maybe she could handle this as well, a
long-distance, non-exclusive relationship. Maybe I could too, could push back
my feelings for her, let it be just about sex. Because,
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