“Bagels? What kind?” Before I can respond, she glances inside and her bright eyes get brighter. “Everything? Oh, my God, get in my mouth now!”
“Don’t tempt me,” I murmur, and give her a predatory grin.
She laughs and her cheeks turn pink. She grabs the bag and skips toward the kitchen, flashing me glimpses of her lace-covered ass as she goes. I shift the growing hard-on in my pants and follow her.
She’s already ripped the lid off the cream cheese container and is digging into it with a knife. I smile and sip my latte and sit down next to where she’s standing at the kitchen table smearing cream cheese on a bagel. My phone starts to ring in my pocket. I stand up, yank it out and turn it off before dropping it with a thump on the table. As I sit back down, I look up and find her staring at me with wide, curious eyes. She hands me the bagel covered in cream cheese.
“Thanks.” She smiles, but her eyes are on my phone. “My manager is on my case.”
“About managerial things or parental things?”
I bite off a big piece of bagel and chew. “He doesn’t like the girls’ stuff for the clothing line. I need to review it.”
“Is that all?”
I kind of shrug.
She finishes chewing a bite of bagel and then adds in a softer voice but just as calm, “Does he still want you to get back together with Liz?”
I take a long, slow sip of my latte. That’s all the answer she needs. Her face falls. I take her hand. “It doesn’t matter what he wants.”
She nods, but I can tell she doesn’t believe me. I don’t blame her. She’s known me for years, and she’s watched me make all my decisions based on exactly what he wants. I put the latte on the table and stand up, leaning toward her with my hands on the table between us for balance. “He influences my professional decisions, not my personal ones.”
She still doesn’t look convinced. “Trey was a personal decision.”
Wow. Okay. I should have known Stephanie would call me on the one thing that proves what I just said isn’t the total truth. That’s what attracts me to her. She has no tolerance for bullshit or half-truths.
“This time is different.” I reach out with one hand and slide it into her messy hair before cupping the back of her head and bringing her lips to mine. The kiss is long and slow, and I can’t help but feel I’m more into it than she is. And I hate that.
When we break apart, she gives me a weak smile and then reaches for her latte and changes the subject. “Can I see the women’s clothing?”
I nod, even though I still want to talk to her about this and find a way to make her believe me when I say Don’s preference for me dating Lizzie makes no difference. Instead I walk over to my laptop on the built-in cabinet I use as a desk in the corner of the kitchen. I flip it open and a few seconds later the design sketches for the women’s clothing line are on display. She’s leaning over my shoulder, staring at the screen, her blue eyes narrowed critically as she takes in the tights, tops, jackets and hoodies.
“Thoughts?” I prompt. When she bites her lip, I add, “Be blunt.”
“You’re catering to the puck bunny crowd,” she announces, and gives me a sympathetic smile. “Those are the girls who want in your pants, not the ones who want to buy your pants.”
She’s looking at me with a serious but kind expression. As I pull my eyes from her and back to the screen, I see what she’s talking about. All the designs are tight with far too much sparkly fabric and too many plunging necklines.
“I’m betting they’ll hire some big-titted model with collagen lips and no athletic ability in the ad campaign,” Stephanie explains, and turns to walk back over to her bagel and coffee on the table. I grab her wrist and spin her back to face me, pulling her right up against me.
I let my lips graze hers softly. She looks…closed off. Not distant, but definitely not like she’s looking into the eyes of a man she just let be inside her for half the night. She’s putting up walls. She’s pushing me back into the friend zone. Or at least it feels that way.
“I’m not into big tits and collagen,” I tell her quietly, but with truth anchoring my words and giving them weight. I let my lips wander to her cheek and her jaw. “I’m into athletic builds and proportional breasts.”
My lips tickle her neck and she wiggles. It makes me smile. I lift my head and kiss her. It’s hard and dominant because I’m fucking needy and worried that she’s not going to let this happen. Let us happen. My tongue touches hers and I feel her melt and submit to her feelings. She’s not just letting me kiss her now; she’s kissing back. When I finally pull my lips from hers, I finish my sentence. “And I sure as hell don’t like collagen lips. I like soft, natural ones that have a beautiful pink color to them after I kiss them.”
She smiles despite herself. “Well, you might get outvoted.”
“I won’t. It’s my decision. I’ll send them my changes based on your feedback tonight.” She nods, but again it’s not filled with any kind of confidence. I hate that so much. “Steph. Hey.”
She looks up at me, and the lack of certainty in her eyes is painful. “I know what I want and it’s not a slutty clothing line.”
She smiles.
“It’s also not Lizzie,” I tell her, and hold her tighter around her trim waist. “It’s you.”
Her arms are around my shoulders and her fingers snake their way into my hair. “I want you too.”
