Marie Harte - Enjoying the Show

She flushed with heat and tried to think peaceful thoughts, needing to calm her raging body. Who would have thought that while she’d been fantasizing about him, he’d been doing the same about her? She blushed, recalling the way he’d made her masturbate him, showing her the way he’d fallen asleep night after night, with her in his mind’s eye.

She hadn’t the courage to share her experiences, but planned to the next time they met.

And maybe, just maybe, she’d cater to that unspoken fantasy of his. The one that involved her mouth and his cock…

Six o’clock dawned bright and early, and she found herself immersed in work until the lunch hour. When she entered the small cafeteria downstairs, she bumped into Eddie the asshole. Remembering what he’d said about her on Friday, she smiled. Frigid bitch, hmm? Tell that to Gage.

Eddie stammered. “Hi, Hailey. Would you like to share a table?”

She shook her head. “Sorry, Eddie. I’m sitting with Amy and Beth. We frigid bitches have to stick together. Maybe some other time.”

Hailey reached her friends and saw them looking past her at Eddie.

“What did you say to him?” Amy asked. “He’s still standing there staring after you in shock.”

“Nothing.” Hailey took a few bites of her salad and smiled. “He’s probably surprised I called him on being a complete asshole for insulting me the other day. Though I guess he didn’t really know I was there.”

“Well, you aren’t known for friendliness around the men who work here,” Beth commented. “Not that I blame you,” she said hastily at Hailey’s questioning look. “But not all of them are out to seduce you, you know.”

“Trust me. I know. I’m just in the habit of letting people know I don’t screw around.” She frowned. “Maybe I’ve taken it too far?”

“Maybe,” Amy said, shrugging. “But who cares? Want to hear some real dirt?

Anthony Fletcher is going to propose to Meredith later today. Here at work.”

Glad to hear some good news, and for the change of subject, Hailey and Beth peppered Amy with questions, and lunch passed by in a blur. While Hailey worked the rest of the day, she wondered why she hadn’t confided in her friends about Gage. Only Sydney knew she’d gone to dinner with him. And even that knowledge bothered Hailey on a strange level.

Perhaps she didn’t want to share him, she thought, though he wasn’t exactly an item she could keep a secret indefinitely. There was no way in hell she wanted to see him naked again, with her friends in tow. Uh-uh. No way. She would have to make that clear tomorrow when they met again.

She paused. But would that seem pushy? Too girlfriend-ish? Much as she liked that title, she realized she was supposed to be a modern woman. And sex, even marathon sex, didn’t mean commitment in the eyes of the everyday male.

“But he’s not an average guy,” she muttered.

“What’s that?” Joy, her assistant, asked.

“Oh, nothing. Just mumbling to myself.”

Joy studied her, a small grin on her face. “You know, Hailey. I have to say, you look really good today. Like you’re glowing. And rumor has it you didn’t glare and ignore Eddie like you usually do. You gave it to him but good. I have to ask, what gives?”

Hailey blushed. “I’m not that mean, am I?”

“You’re not mean at all. Eddie Flynn’s a jerk. It’s just that you seem, well, really confident lately. And…happy.”

She frowned. “I’m not normally happy?”

“You’re good at your job. You’re nice to me and the women around here. But you don’t, ah, glow. It’s hard to explain.”

Hailey nodded absently and made up some nonsense about winning money on a bet from a friend. Gage, apparently, had had more of an impact on her than just on her rampant hormones. The man was making her happy. She chuckled to herself and continued typing, wondering what Sydney would make of this.

“Damn. This is what I worried about.” Sydney stared hard at her friend with a frown.

“Sydney? I thought you’d be happy for me. I finally had sex with a guy even you admitted you liked. What’s wrong with being happy at work?”

“Nothing, if that’s who you normally are. Don’t mistake a great lay for more, Hailey.

Or you’ll end up getting hurt.” She sighed. “Oh, forget it. Just promise you’ll take things slow. Sex is all well and good, but when you develop into a relationship, men seem to forget all about decency.”

“Relax, Mom, ” Hailey joked. “Gage is nice and sexy as all get-out. We had a nice weekend, and we’re having dinner here tomorrow night. No one’s said I do, and I’m on the Pill. No babies coming my way.”

“Good.” Sydney breathed a sigh of relief. “Just keep telling yourself that and you’re all set. Now, I have to know. Does he know what to do with his equipment?”

Hailey just looked at her friend and Sydney cursed.

“Dammit. You have all the luck. I have to go. There’s a triple-chocolate cheesecake out there just crying my name.”

Hailey laughed and hugged her friend, then watched as Sydney left her home. The quiet soon irritated her though, and all she could think about was Gage. What was he doing? Was he still working? No, the sun had set. Was he at home, doing a terrible job of cooking? When she’d seen the vast amount of frozen and pre-prepared dinners in his refrigerator, she’d been shocked. No wonder the man had no fat on him. He could barely boil water.

Maybe she shouldn’t have been so keen to give them space. She could have made time for him tonight. Take it slow, Sydney had said. Hailey sighed. She needed to stop obsessing over the man. Surely he had better things to do with his time than think about her every five seconds.

Suddenly depressed at the thought, she fixed herself a cup of tea and plunked down to finish her half-read romance. The hero had blond hair and green eyes, so maybe she would have a few minutes of her Monday without Gage’s face superimposed over everything.

“Put the phone down, shit for brains.”

Gage glared at Derrick. “You know, if you’d get a woman of your own, you’d be much less of a pain in the ass. Do you want Sydney’s number or not?”

“Not if it’s an excuse for you to call your new girlfriend. Damn it, Gage. You agreed to meet her again Tuesday night— tomorrow night. You call her before that, you sound desperate.”

“I am desperate,” he growled. Desperate to be inside her again, desperate to talk to her, to look into her face when she laughed.

“No, you’re not. You, my little brother, hold the upper hand. You just spent the past weekend with your dream woman. You want to appear in control, or she’ll know she has you by the balls. You’ll note she hasn’t called you, has she?”

No, she hadn’t. And the fact bugged the hell out of Gage. Yes, they’d agreed to meet again tomorrow night. But for the life of him, Gage hadn’t been able to push Hailey out of his mind. The way she smelled, looked, tasted…

“Shit, Gage, get a grip,” Derrick muttered, glancing away. Gage flushed, realizing he had the mother of all hard-ons.

“Please. It’s a natural reaction when thinking about a beautiful woman. One you seem to have whenever you’re thinking of a certain redhead.”

Derrick stared. “You’re telling me you have her number.”

“Hailey has her number. Sydney’s her best friend.”

“Hell. Then you can’t screw this up. Not until I’ve at least talked the woman into a date. Look, Gage. Go easy. Meet with Hailey again tomorrow, and for God’s sake, don’t scare her off.”

“Thanks for the concern.”

“I am concerned. And not just for myself. You’re different about this one. Way too enamored.” Derrick frowned. “Maybe you should invite her for a Saturday breakfast, so the rest of us can have our say.”

“No way in hell.” Gage shook his head. “I’m trying to win her over. Sex will do it, a few hours with Mom and Dylan and she’ll run, not walk, away. And then there’s you.”

“What about me?” Derrick grinned. “Women love me.”

“Until you open your mouth,” Gage muttered.

“Fine. Do what you want. But hold out until tomorrow. And whatever you do, don’t bring her flowers or candy or some shit. You’ll look too eager, I’m telling you.”

Tuesday night, at ten to six, Gage stood at Hailey’s door with a bouquet of flowers in hand.

When she opened the door and blinked at him in surprise, he wondered if his brother was maybe right. But as her gaze fell on the flowers, her eyes misted and she had to clear her throat to speak.

“Follow me.”

He grinned. Derrick, you’re the dumbass. He took a few steps inside after closing the door and found he approved of her place. Like his apartment, she had ivory-colored walls and dark brown furniture. A denim couch and loveseat sat around a scarred, knotty coffee table. She had several framed pictures on her walls, of places, actual photographs.

Noting his attention, she blushed, a becoming rose that made him want to bend her over the nearest table and ride her hard. God, the woman had only to breathe and he wanted her.

“Those are places I’ve wanted to visit. And I’ve actually traveled to London, been inside Harrods even.”

“Harrods?” He felt stupid for asking, moreso when she shook her head and mumbled it wasn’t important.

“Would you like something to drink?”

“What I’d like is for you to look at me,” he said gruffly. “What’s Harrods?”

“It’s a high-scale department store.”

“In London, a place you’ve always wanted to go and finally went.”

She smiled at his understanding. “Well, yes.”