Wild for You (Crave Book 2) Page 9

  "I'm sure your mother appreciates that."

  That bright, sincere smile appeared again. "She definitely does. Especially now that she can send the grandkids home when they start to act like their fathers."

  "I'm sure," Cam said with a laugh. "So what did you end up getting your degree in?"

  "Marketing with a minor in business administration."

  Okay, so maybe Colette's friend, Natalie, knew what she was talking about. But also it raised the question—why wasn't Lee working somewhere else? Somewhere where she could make a heck of a lot more money than we could pay her.

  Cam, bless her soul, knew exactly what I was thinking because she said, "I don't mean to pry but with a degree like that and the fact that you graduated cum laude, why aren't you working in Dallas for a big firm or somewhere in town where you can make a lot more money?"

  Lee smiled, but it was weak. "You want the honest answer or the one that sounds the best?"

  "Honesty, please," I said.

  "I've never wanted to live anywhere but Farley. I liked college but I missed home. And I like the idea of working for a small business. It will give me a chance to learn and grow with the company."

  I glanced at Cam. That sounded a lot like something she'd told me when she was getting ready to graduate college. I'd asked her to get an apartment with me in Dallas but she wanted to go back home. She liked it there and couldn't imagine living anywhere else.

  I saw her expression and knew that she wanted to hire Lee based on that answer alone. But that wasn't necessarily a smart business practice, so I asked a few more questions about her work experience and if she would be willing to develop a marketing plan for the shop.

  Cam chimed in a few times but I knew that everything Lee said only cemented her decision.

  After a half hour, Cam rose to her feet and I followed her lead. "Thanks for coming in today, Lee. Can you give me a few minutes to talk to Cam? Feel free to grab a drink or something while you wait."

  Lee stood as well. "No problem."

  As soon as Lee walked out of the office, Cam turned to me. "I want to hire her."

  I bit back a sigh. "I do, too, but we should at least check with her references first."

  Cam nodded. "We should do that, but I can tell you right now that if Natalie Phelps recommends her, all her references will, too."

  "So you want to give her the job immediately?" I asked.

  "Yeah, I do."

  "Then, I defer to your judgment. I pitch in around here, but this is your baby."

  Cam nudged me with her elbow. "Stop that. It's a joint endeavor. Let me go grab her and tell her she got the job."

  She left the office and returned with Lee in tow. I'd moved to the chair behind the desk by the time they entered and Cam rolled her eyes at me, probably because I was swinging back and forth in the swivel seat.

  "Lee, Sierra and I discussed it and we would like to offer you the job," Cam said.

  Lee's smile was radiant. "Really?"

  "Yep," I answered.

  "Great! When do you need me to start?" she asked.

  "The sooner, the better," Cam replied.

  Lee seemed to mull that over. "I'll have to shift some of my clients around. You'll mostly need me in the afternoons, correct?" she asked.

  Cam nodded. "The shop is closed to customers on Monday, but we're open from two to eight Tuesday through Saturday and three to eight on Sunday. We come in early to prep, so noon to eight would be your usual shift most days once we're ready to have you here full-time."

  She nodded. "Any idea when that might be?"

  Cam looked at me and I answered for her. "Probably early next year."

  "Okay. Can you give me a week to reschedule my cleaning clients before I start?"

  "Of course," I answered.

  Cam and Lee decided her first day would be toward the end of next week and she left with a smile still on her face.

  "Now that the interview is done, on to more important things. Do we want to have lunch delivered or go to the cafe to eat?" I asked her.

  "Pizza," Cam replied with a laugh.

  "That's the reason we're friends—pizza."

  "And because it's one of the only places in town that delivers. Just call it in. And get me a salad."

  I shook my head. "Ruining a perfectly good pizza with salad. Maybe I was wrong about the reasons we're friends."

  I grinned as she laughed again. But I got us both a salad when I ordered.

  Cam insisted I go home a few hours before closing time because I'd put my foot down and told her she was leaving early tomorrow night and taking Sunday off. I'd wanted to argue about going home, but my feet were killing me. I still hadn't gotten used to being on them all the time. So, after picking up some frozen tamales, refried beans, and chips and salsa at the grocery store, I headed to her place to take a shower and put my feet up.

  I'd just finished the former and was eager to begin the latter when my cell phone rang. I glanced at the screen and smiled. It was Ben.

  "Hey, you," I said when I answered.

  "Hey back. How was your day?"

  "Long. Yours?"

  I could hear the smile in his voice when he replied, "Same here." After a pause, he asked, "What are your plans for tonight?"

  I squinted at the clock on the wall. Eight o'clock. Cam would be home in an hour and a half.

  "I'm having dinner with Cam."

  "What about tomorrow night?" he asked.

  "I'm working at Crave until closing time, then nothing set in stone. Have any suggestions for what I should do?"

  "You could come see me."

  I stretched my back and winced. Damn, I was sore. "I'd love to, but I don't know if I'm up to it. I'm feeling a few aches and pains from working on my feet all day. I don't know how Cam does it."

  "Well, I might have just the thing for that."

  "A massage therapist on speed dial?" I asked, hopeful.

  He laughed a little. "Not quite that good, but I do have a jetted tub big enough for two and lots of hot water."

  "Throw in a massage with your own two hands and we have a deal."

  "Unless you're up for a little more than a back rub, a massage probably wouldn't be a good idea," he said.

  "I think it will be exactly what I need to convince me," I teased.

  "Then what time will you be here?" he asked, his voice lower and softer. His tone was intimate, sexy.

  And it gave me a flashback of Sunday night when he rasped insanely dirty things in my ear as he fucked me.

  I shivered again. "I told Cam I was covering for her tomorrow night and Sunday so she could have a break. So I should be able to get out of there around nine or a little after."

  "Let me know."

  "Oh, and Ben, one other thing."

  "Yes?"

  "I'll be very hungry."

  "I guess I'll go shopping."

  "See you later, Ben Murphy."

  "Can't wait, Sierra Watkins."

  I was smiling as I hung up. He gave as good as he got. I liked that. I liked it a lot.

  I needed to be careful. Liking him too much would be bad for me.

  At the thought, the smile left my face.

  I needed to remember that this was only fun. Nothing more.

  Well, I wouldn't be worried about whether I'd shaved my legs this time. I'd make sure to do it in the shower tomorrow morning.

  Now, enough mooning over Ben. I had food to warm up and TV to watch.

  Which was exactly what I was doing when Cam came in the door a little after nine.

  "Something smells good," she commented.

  "Tamales," I answered, shooting the plate in front of me a guilty look. I'd tried to wait on her but the hunger pangs were painful.

  "Oh, tamales. That sounds good but I'm full," she muttered, dropping her bag on the side table by the front door. "And I'm pooped."

  "I offered to stay and help," I pointed out. "And why are you full?"

  "Because Brody came by with sushi."<
br />
  "What?"

  "Yeah, Monica asked if she could have Jacks this weekend, even though it's not her scheduled visitation, and he said yes. He was feeling down in the dumps so he brought me sushi and we ate dinner together." She paused and stared at her fingers. "I also asked him to go to the movies with me tomorrow night."

  "You did?" I asked, my voice rising an octave. Then, I grinned. "So you and Brody are going on date, huh?"

  Cam shook her head. "No, it's a friends thing. Not a date. I'm being a good friend by distracting him from the fact that his daughter isn't home with him."

  I laughed. "Sure, sure. Y'all are just friends."

  "Shut up, Sierra," she said, resting her head against the back of the couch.

  Normally, I would have kept teasing her, but I could see the exhaustion in her face.

  "It's just that we're finally getting along," she stated. "And I want to keep it that way. I always liked Brody until his senior year of high school when he turned into a jerk. And I think I can like him again as long as that part of him never returns."

  "Hey, I'm not going to judge you. I'm pretty sure you know about all of my bad choices and you've never judged me." I paused. "But I may still tease you about it."

  Cam's eyes opened long enough for me to see her roll them. "Of course you will. You wouldn't be Sierra Watkins if you didn't."

  I laughed. "Well, since you're full from sushi, I'll put the leftovers up. We can have them for lunch tomorrow."

  Cam sighed. "I need to take a shower, but my legs hurt."

  "Want me to give you a boost?"

  "Nah, I'll get there eventually."

  When I returned to the living room, Cam shoved herself to her feet. "I'm gonna take a shower and go to bed. See you in the morning."

  "Night, Cam."

  I watched her disappear down the hall and wondered if my friend realized that she was still half in love with her nemesis from her teen years.

  9

  I collapsed on the mattress next to Ben, my body still shuddering from the vestiges of climax. We were both breathing hard and covered in sweat.

  "Wow," I mumbled, my eyes closed. "I don't think I've worked out this hard in a long time."

  Ben's laugh was breathless. "You call this a workout?"

  I opened one eye and stared at him. "We're both panting and sweaty. Pretty sure that's something that happens when you exercise."

  "Get up with me in the morning and I'll show you what a real work out feels like."

  It was my turn to laugh. "Oh, you're an adorable, funny man," I said, patting his bicep with my hand.

  Wait a minute, he wanted me to stay the night? This was heading into dangerous territory too quickly.

  I opened my mouth to say no, but closed it when he turned over, propping his head up on his hand. Whoa, so pretty.

  "C'mon, it'll be fun," he said, distracting me from ogling his muscles.

  "Okay, now I'm pretty sure you're just insane. How could you call torturing yourself fun?" I felt myself weakening. His body was so warm and hard, and he was touching me. My limbs weighed too much for me to lift them. And this bed was so comfy.

  "You won't know until you try it," he said, stroking a hand over my hip. His fingers trailed over my inner thigh. "I can provide incentive."

  Okay, that got my attention. But there was one tiny problem.

  "You've convinced me but I can't."

  "Why?"

  "I have to go home tonight. Cam's out with Brody right now, but she'll be home later and she'll expect me to be there."

  Ben's hand stopped moving on my thigh. "What?"

  "I know, I know. It's ridiculous, right? I mean, I'm a grown woman. I shouldn't have to worry about what Cam thinks if I want to...to...spend time with you. But it would just complicate things."

  "Why would it complicate things? Cam would understand." Ben said.

  "Maybe but if Colette finds out, she won't. It'll be daydreams of marriage and babies, it won't matter that we've only known each other about a week."

  "That does sound complicated," Ben murmured.

  "I just don't want this to be weird when it's over. For anyone."

  Ben was silent for a moment, then his hand continued to trail along my thigh. "It won't be."

  I smiled at him. "Good."

  "But did you say Cam was out with Brody?" he asked.

  I nodded. "Yeah. They went to the movies. She said it's a friends thing, but I'm pretty sure she's lying to herself."

  Ben chuckled. "Did she tell Brody it was just a friends-only movie? Because my brother has always had a thing for her."

  I grinned at him and smacked his shoulder. "So I was right! Brody does like her."

  "He always has but she was too young in high school and then Monica got pregnant, so it was too late as far as he was concerned. I'm glad he's not wasting his second chance."

  My heart melted, just a tiny bit, for Brody. I'd only heard Cam's side of the story from their younger years, but it sounded like he'd been between a rock and a hard place and had handled it the best way a teenage boy could, which probably wasn't the best way at all.

  Ben's voice interrupted my thoughts. "I don't know about you, but I need some time to recover. Want to watch a movie?"

  I glanced over my shoulder at the digital clock on the nightstand. Almost nine-thirty. "I don't know. If I come in at four a.m. again, Cam's going to get suspicious. And I'm supposed to go to her parents' for lunch tomorrow."

  Ben chuckled. "Then I guess I'll see you there."

  "What?"

  "Colette invited me."

  So I would have to sit at the table with him, thinking about all the things we'd done tonight and trying not to squirm. Wonderful. That didn't sound like torture at all. Maybe I should just stay over and work out with him in the morning because it would be less painful.

  "That won't be weird, right?" Ben asked me.

  "Of course not," I insisted. "It's not like I'm going to have a big red A stamped on my forehead."

  "If you're not married, then why would you have an A for adulteress?"

  I scowled at him. "Way to get technical there. You know what I meant."

  Ben grinned. "Accuracy is important."

  "Blah, blah, blah."

  He kissed me. "Excellent use of your words."

  "Speaking of words, one more and I get dressed and leave."

  Ben rolled over on top of me, pinning me to the bed. "And how are you going to do that?" He tilted his head as he considered me. "Maybe I should hold you hostage until you tell me what your tattoo means."

  His face was only a few inches from mine and he was laughing at my puny struggles to escape. Until I licked the tip of his nose.

  "Ugh," he said, pulling his head back. "Really?"

  Now, it was my turn to laugh. Until he wiped his nose and stared down at me, retribution in his eyes.

  "Don't even think about it," I said.

  He only grinned, but it was pure evil.

  Oh, shit. I poked him in the ribs and scuttled off the bed when he reared back to escape my fingers.

  "You're in trouble now," he said, chasing after me.

  I barely managed three steps because I was laughing so hard before he grabbed me and pressed me into the wall. I guffawed and tried to twist free, but he had a good grip on me.

  "Don't!" I cried, kicking and yanking at his arm around my waist.

  We were both laughing and shaking. I kept trying to break free and he kept finding another way to hold me.

  "Uncle! Uncle!" I yelped as his hand skimmed my ribs, sending me into a giggling fit.

  "Oh, ticklish there, huh?" he asked.

  "Ben Murphy, I will Photoshop a picture of you with a goat, write a caption professing your unnatural love for barn animals, and share it far and wide if you don't let me go right now!"

  He hummed beneath his breath. "I don't know. Might be worth it. Especially when I finally get the story about your ink." His hands moved over my ribs again, on both sides th
is time and he tickled me without mercy.

  "Gah! Ack! Stop! Stop!" I shrieked as I struggled in his hold. It wasn't until my knee came perilously close to his naked genitals that he relented.

  "Whoa, whoa. No need for that sort of behavior," he said.

  "It was an accident," I said, panting. And it was, though I wouldn't have felt too badly about it if I'd caught him with my knee. Okay, maybe a little bad. "But you would have deserved it if it wasn't."

  I didn't mean it, not at all, but he didn't need to know that.

  "Vicious woman," he commented, giving me a quick kiss. Obviously, he wasn't fooled by my cold words.

  His hand trailed up my abdomen to my breasts and I wiggled against him. I was definitely interested in another round, but I needed a break.

  "I thought we were going to eat and watch a movie," I said, letting my head fall back so I could look up at him. He was so much taller than me that I could almost accomplish it.

  Ben laughed and released me. "I didn't say anything about eating."

  Probably because he'd done that earlier. I shivered at the memory. "Well, I did. I didn't get to eat dinner because someone didn't have it ready when I got here."

  He shook his head and I walked over to the pile of clothes on the floor, fishing around until I came up with my ginormous t-shirt. It was loose and came down to mid-thigh. And it was the softest piece of clothing I owned.

  Perfect. I would be adequately covered and comfortable.

  When I straightened to slip it over my head, I squeaked and jumped back. Ben stood inches away.

  "You don't have to get dressed," he said.

  "Oh, yes, I do."

  His hands came to my waist. "No one will be here to see."

  "It's not that. I don't know you all that well, but I do know enough to understand that you won't keep your hands to yourself if I parade around you naked."

  He grinned and released me. "Good point."

  "But you can feel free to stay naked, if you want. I have incredible self-control."

  "Says the woman who didn't get to eat the dinner I slaved over because she jumped me the moment she walked in the door."

  Of course he would point out the real reason we hadn't gotten to dinner.

  "Touché."

  I would never ever tell him, but he was just as much fun out of bed as he was in it. I was in danger of actually liking him as a human being.