Andrew
I curled my fingers around the golf club, the new gloves Maggie had ordered just for this occasion clinging snugly to the grip. Sinking into my stance, I pulled back, set my eye on the ball, and swung with precision. The club’s head hit the ball with a satisfying smack, sending it flying through the air and onto the grass, about five feet away from the hole.
A booming laugh echoed across the green. “Well done for a man who says he’s rusty.”
I grinned at Paul Nordmeyer, polo shirt stretched tight across a bulging belly and neck red from the sun. “Guess I’m a natural.”
“Beginner’s luck,” he good-naturedly mumbled through his caterpillar mustache. “You’ve been away for so long, you might as well be starting over. How long did you say it’s been?”
I shrugged. “About a year. Used to play all the time, though.”
“All the time” was an exaggeration, but what Paul didn’t know couldn’t hurt him.I stepped to the side, watching as Paul took his turn. The course was close to empty, with the few other people out there probably taking business meetings just like the two of us.
Shit. If only every meeting could be like this.
They couldn’t, though. Only the most important ones I made out-of-office exceptions for. Paul was an important potential client. He owned the second-largest grocery store chain in the United States. That meant he needed to be mine. This afternoon was the chance for me to take his interest in investing with me, dig my claws into it, and get what I needed from him.
“I took a look at those files,” Paul said, bending down to retrieve his ball from the hole.
“Uh-huh.” I nodded to show I was listening.
His mustache wiggled as he scrunched his face. “You know, I’ve been talking to Samson and Walker.”
Just hearing the name of my biggest competition coated my tongue with a bitter taste. “Paul, I can assure you—”
Heavy vibrations against my thigh interrupted me. Gone was the bitterness, replaced instead by a dry tongue. Though I didn’t want to do it, I pulled my phone from my pocket and snuck a peek.
Just as I’d expected. Raven’s school.
Mother fucker.
“You got an important call there, Andrew?” Paul jovially asked—but in that way that made it clear he was really annoyed.
“Uh, it’s just ...” I cleared my throat. “No. Not important.”
Sliding my phone back into my pants, I took my turn, the annoyance running through my veins making me swing too hard. My ball sailed right over the hole, ending up in a bush at least ten yards away. Both Paul and the caddies chuckled.
Face burning and teeth clenching, I mentally ran through every curse I knew. I was in the middle of a meeting with one of the most promising clients I might ever nab, and, once again, Raven was ruining it.
We finished the game, my phone burning a hole into my thigh the entire time. By the time we reached the clubhouse, Paul had given an “I’ll think about it.” Definitely not good enough for me, but at that point, there was a limited amount I could do about it.
“How about dinner this weekend?” I asked as we shook hands at the edge of the parking lot. “My friend just opened this great new steakhouse downtown.”
Paul’s caterpillar mustache did its little dance. That meant he was thinking.
“We’ll see,” he finally said. “It’s going to be a busy one. Good game today.”
“Yeah,” I tensely responded. “Good game.”
I watched him get in his sports car and peel out of the circular drive. Letting out a long breath that was more of a hiss than a regular exhale, I pulled my phone out. One voicemail. But of course.
“Mr. Marx, this is Joyce from the office at South Seattle. I see you signed the note we sent home about Raven’s altercation with another student yesterday. I’m calling because the guidance counselor here would like to meet with you as soon as possible. As I’m sure you’re aware, Raven is treading on thin ice. Expulsion could be in her future. Please give me a call, and we can set up a time. The new counselor is available to meet as early as tomorrow. Thank you.”
The message ended with both a click and buzzing that filled my ears. Raven. Where the hell had I gone wrong?
I’d seen the counselor last year, and she hadn’t been much help, but Joyce had said there was a new one now. Maybe we’d be able to get somewhere with this one.
Hitting the return call button, I called the office and set it up. Tomorrow morning, nine o’clock sharp. Perfect, as I had another meeting that very afternoon that couldn’t be postponed.
But first, a drink.
Andrew Inside the country club was a little busier than outside. People chatted quietly over small tables, and the shiny, wooden bar only had one customer—an older woman drinking what looked like tea. “A whiskey,” I told the vested bartender as I took a seat. “Neat.” He set the tumbler down in front of me, and I took a long sip that burned my nose and throat. It didn’t help any. My problems were still there. What was I going to do if the meeting with the counselor led nowhere? Take Raven to see a specialist outside of school? What if that didn’t work? She never talked about school, but that had to be the problem. Home was fine, somewhat. Nothing went on there. Come to think of it, maybe that was the issue. It had been years since Raven had a friend over. That wasn’t normal. When I was her age, I was practically glued to my friends. If South Seattle wasn’t working out, I could take her out of it. Her senior year had only just started. She could get in at another school. Not priva
Lanie I took a deep breath and stared in the mirror, turning one way and then the other. Was the black eyeliner too much? Yes. Too loud. I was going to work at a high school, not to a nightclub. Grabbing a makeup wipe, I went to rub it off, then remembered it was liquid and would smear all over the place. “Shit,” I murmured, dropping the wipe in the bathroom trash. Heart racing, I adjusted the little strands of hair around my ears and frowned. The look would just have to do. At least I was dressed somewhat conservatively in a button-up and wool sweater. Checking the time, I grabbed my purse and keys from the hook by the front door and locked my ground-floor apartment behind me. There was still plenty of time to get to work, but with my nerves making me shake, I knew I’d be more comfortable once I got into my office. This was the day. In less than an hour, I had my first parent-teacher conference. Hopefully, I’d make it through the meeting without vomiting. I’d had plenty of pa
Lanie “Y-yes,” I sputtered. “Come right in. Mr. Marx, I assume?” “That’s right.” “Have a seat.” He walked over to the chairs opposite my desk, tight shoulders and sculpted rear-end moving with controlled precision. Realizing I was staring, I quickly took my own seat. If I’d hoped meeting Mr. Marx face-to-face would help ease my anxiety, I was sorely wrong. The man sitting across from me was perfection, in possession of the kind of face that could give any professional male model a run for their money. Now, not only was I worried about how well I would perform during the meeting, I was once again worrying about how I looked. Was my makeup still holding up? How was my hair doing? I resisted the urge to touch it and see. Remember the steps. One at a time. Placing my palms on the desk, I smiled. “Thank you for coming to meet with me. I know you’re well aware of Raven’s recent, um, acts.” I checked a cringe. This wasn’t the speech I’d prepared at all. Mr. Marx’s face darkened, an
Andrew Those curves. Not the ones of her hips or breasts. I’d hardly gotten a look at the school counselor’s figure, but she seemed pretty thin beneath the sweater and jeans. No, it was the curves of her lips. They were the perfect Cupid’s bow, slanting down in a delicious, inviting way. Who got to kiss those lips at night? Without warning, jealousy seared through me. Damn the man I’d never even met. Or woman. Maybe Miss Jacobs was gay. How the hell could I know? But at least she wasn’t married. I’d already clocked the bare wedding band finger. Damn, though, the things those lips could do. I could tell just from looking that she was a great kisser. More than that, probably. It was always the reserved, prim women who were the most passionate in bed. “Mr. Marx, who lives at the home?” I rubbed the back of my neck, unable to shake the annoyance. Did we have to talk? I would have been fine with staring at the woman all day. She was that breathtaking. “The two of us.” Karen, thou
Lanie“I knew the second I saw you that you were the one for me,” Andrew Marx breathed, his hot exhale kissing my cheek.I closed my eyes, absorbing his scent, anticipating his taste on my tongue. His lips grazed against mine ever so softly, his tongue darting out to nudge my mouth open.“Ow!” I shrieked, dropping the knife onto the cutting board. Bright red blood spilled from the cut on the side of my finger.“Here.” Erica took my hand and inspected it. “It’s just a little nick. Press this against it, and I’ll get a Band-Aid.”I leaned against the counter and wrapped the paper towel around my finger as she rooted through her first aid kit.“What had you distracted?” she asked.My face grew hot. “Nothing.”Luckily, she didn’t look up at me. “Here we go.”I tossed the paper towel and carefully wrapped the Band-Aid around my finger.“Maybe I should take care of cutting the veggies,” Erica said.“Knock yourself out. I’ll take care of drinking the wine.” Plopping down at the table, I dug
Lanie“I’m not asking him out.” I furiously shook my head. “Although, I did tell him about that art show this weekend.”“And what did he say?”“It had nothing to do with us. I suggested he take his daughter to it because she loves art.”Erica waved her wine glass around. “I’m still waiting to hear what he said.”“He asked if …” I bit down on the smile curving my lips. “If I would be there.”Erica shrieked and lightly punched my arm. “You jerk! You were holding out on me. Why didn’t you tell me this sooner?”“Because I don’t want to get my hopes up,” I wailed. “Am I interested in this guy? Yes. Of course.”“And he’s interested in you.”“Because he asked if I’d be there?” I hopefully questioned.“Don’t make me spell it out again.”“Okay.” Heat crept up my neck. “I believe you.”“It’s about time you did, you sexy, smart beast, you.”I giggled. “You’re not going to kiss me, are you?”“Please.” She snorted into her wine glass. “I got over that phase in college.”For the hundredth time that
Andrew When my cell phone’s alarm went off, I was ready to go. Jumping up from my chair, I killed the screen on the desktop. All day long, I’d been running on anxious energy. An evening spent with Raven. A possible run-in with the sexy guidance counselor. Both of these opportunities were strange and uncertain.At the door of my office, I paused, hand on the knob. Something inside me wanted to go right back to my desk, back to work. The world there was comfortable, and I knew it inside and out. A foreign land lay ahead of me. How long had it been since I explored the world outside of the normal day-to-day?I let out a long sigh. No running back to the computer. Tonight wasn’t about me. This was Raven’s night. Going into the open-style main section downstairs, I crossed the living room and grabbed a glass of water. A noise made me turn around, and Karen popped out of the pantry. “Just getting rid of expired goods.” She waved a can of sweet potatoes at me. I couldn’t remember the last
Andrew“Uh, Dad? Wait up, will you?”“Oh. Sorry.” I stopped so Raven could catch up.“You’re acting so weird,” she pouted. “What’s wrong with you?”My face flamed. “Nothing. Let’s go.”I’d finally met a woman I was attracted to that didn’t seem like a total nutcase. That’s what was wrong with me. Now I had to make sure she possessed the rest of the necessary criteria. Arriving at the corner gallery, I opened the door for Raven, letting her enter first. Automatically, my eyes swept the space, looking for Lanie. At the sight of her, standing near a wall talking to a woman, desire rumbled deep in my core. How had I gone so long without getting a woman in my bed? The last few months, being alone had seemed fine. Looking at Lanie then, I figured I must have been out of my fucking mind. It was the flowing skirt, the tight leggings. The headband holding back that short hair. The way her eyes lit up when she looked around the room and noticed me. It was just everything about the girl. She