Nicole Edwards - Temptation

“I hear ya.” Logan sounded content with at least the commitment from Luke. “Did you find anything out about the missing liquor?”

“No. I’m looking for the invoice from this morning’s delivery to verify that, but it seems to have been misplaced.”

Logan was the only person Luke had shared his concerns with, not wanting the person responsible to know Luke was on to them. Since his twin was a silent partner in the club, he figured Logan deserved to know they were losing money.

“The invoice or the delivery?”

“Both.”

“Did you check the cameras Alex installed last week?” Logan asked, referring to the security cameras they hired CISS to install the week before.

After the last delivery came up short, Luke had been at the end of his rope.

“Not yet. I’m doing that now.” Luke confirmed.

“Let me know if you need my help with anything. I’ve got to run to a meeting, but I expect you at the house tomorrow at eight.”

“I’ll be there.”

With that, they ended the call and Luke pulled up the security cameras on his computer, running through the footage from that morning’s delivery. This would’ve been the first delivery since the cameras were installed. Since Luke kept the installation on the down low, not even Kane knew they were being put in.

Five minutes later, Luke was watching with disbelief as Lucie Werner, Club Destiny’s weekday bartender was handing the delivery guy what appeared to be cash as he set aside two cases behind the dumpster near the delivery dock. Sonuvabitch.

Lucie? Seriously?

Luke couldn’t deny the fact she was the one on the screen, but in all of his life, he would have never expected Lucie to steal from him. She’d been employed by Club Destiny for three years and aside from being one of his most loyal employees, she was also a single mother of a four year old. Why in the hell would she be stealing from him?

A knock on his office door had Luke closing the window on his monitor. “Come in.”

Jacob Hayman walked in, holding the missing invoice in his hand. “Sorry, boss. Kane said you were looking for this.” Handing over a slip of paper, Jacob turned to leave.

“Hey, Jacob. Have you seen Lucie today?”

Luke watched the other man intently, noticing the slight wince as he shrugged his shoulders. “Not today.”

Was Jacob helping Lucie?

“If you see her, let her know I’d like to speak with her.” Luke said, and then turned back to his screen as nonchalantly as he could manage. There was no sense letting on that he suspected anything just yet. He’d known Lucie for a long time, and she was the last person Luke would expect to do something like this. If she was stealing from him, she had a damn good reason.

Luke wanted to know what that was.

When Jacob left his office, Luke called downstairs. “Hey, Kane. You see Lucie this morning?”

“I did. She stopped in rambling about leaving something in her locker. She wasn’t here long though. Why?”

“If you see her again, let her know I’m looking for her.” Luke wasn’t going to go into details.

“Will do, boss.”

So this was how the incredibly wealthy lived, Sierra thought to herself as she navigated the streets of Sam and Logan’s gated community. The houses that lined the well-manicured streets were nothing short of mansions with giant oak trees lurching toward the evening sky while branching out in all directions.

When she pulled into the circular drive of Sam and Logan’s massive estate, Sierra took note of the numerous cars lining both sides of the driveway and the handful pulled into the extra spaces in front of the three car garage. She pulled into an open area and sat motionless, her car idling while she tried to convince herself this was where she should be.

Finally, after putting off the inevitable for far too long, Sierra climbed out of her car and headed up the walkway toward the house. Just as she reached the front door, a male voice called her name, and she turned in time to see Cole strolling in her direction, looking so damn sexy her heart hurt.

He looked just the same as she remembered, confident and gorgeous, even in his casual, faded jeans and a black polo shirt that encased all of those sexy as hell muscles.

“Hey.” She was at a loss for words, her heart beating fast and hard against her ribs. She hadn’t seen him since that last day in Vegas, nor had she heard from him. Momentarily she was struck by his sheer masculine beauty until she realized she hadn’t heard from him. And here he was, acting as though they were long lost friends and he just happened to run across her while they were both out at the same place. What happened to him not backing down?

“How’ve you been?” He asked tentatively as he stepped closer, keeping a safe distance, but Sierra felt the warmth of his presence all the same. Apparently he was acknowledging the fact that he hadn’t bothered to call her either.

“Busy.” Well, it was the truth. She’d been busy doing a lot of things. Thinking about him. Thinking about Luke. Wondering what the hell happened and how she had experienced ecstasy for only a brief moment before it was ripped away from her all too quickly.

“I heard you landed a couple of clients from the conference. Congratulations.”

“Thanks.” Sierra figured her mother was the reason for the gossip, or possibly Sam, which didn’t surprise her.

She must have been staring blankly at him because Cole placed his arm around her, as though they hadn’t spent the last few weeks not talking, and led her to the front door. Rather than knocking, he walked right in like he owned the place.

The second they were inside the brightly lit foyer, they were greeted by a big black dog, his tail wagging, and his tongue lolling out of the side of his mouth. Sierra stopped momentarily, instinct telling her to tread carefully. The animal was a beast, and she didn’t want to become dinner.

“He won’t hurt you. Bear’s just a big teddy bear. Aren’t you boy?” Cole leaned down and gave the dog a firm pat on his back.

“Is he Logan and Sam’s?” Sierra asked, offering a tentative hand toward the dog. When Bear merely pressed his giant head into her palm, Sierra smiled and offered him a gentle rub.

“No.” The one word answer was said with a little irritation, but Cole didn’t offer any further explanation and Sierra didn’t ask.

“There you are!” A cheerful voice called from the living room, and Sierra looked up to see Sam coming her way.

The woman was dressed casually in a pair of faded Levi’s and a red t-shirt that accentuated her shoulder length blond hair, and a pair of Dr. Marten’s on her feet. Sierra hadn’t bothered to ask what the dress code was, so she felt a little overdressed with her jean skirt, black t-shirt and her favorite suede black boots, but she wasn’t uncomfortable. She was somewhat grateful she had taken the time to dress up since she had run into Cole.

When Sam reached in for a hug, Sierra returned the gesture, but when she stepped back, Cole was no longer beside her. She didn’t want to look obvious, so she kept her eyes on Sam, not wandering around the immaculately decorated house looking for him like she wanted. What did she care? He hadn’t bothered to call her at any point in the last few weeks, so her pride shouldn’t let her be curious about where he went.

Even if her body was begging to find out. Damn hormones.

“Did you have any trouble finding the house?”

“Not at all. Your directions were spot on.” Sierra stated, taking a step back. “I love your house, by the way.”

“Thanks. Technically it was Logan’s first, but I can’t complain.” Sam smiled sweetly. “You look like you could use a drink.”

She did? Well, the fluster was likely thanks to Cole’s unexpected presence. “That sounds great.”

“What can I get you? Wine? Vodka? Soda?”

“That’s a tough one.” Sierra grinned. A few minutes ago, before she saw Cole, Sierra would have been satisfied with a glass of wine. Being that her body had ignited despite her insistence that it sit down and shut up, she figured she’d probably fare better with the hard stuff. “I’ll take a vodka and 7Up if you have it.” Sierra said as she followed Sam through the living area into the wide open kitchen complete with stainless steel appliances and all the bell’s and whistle’s.

Sam smiled. “My kinda girl.”

From the moment Cole caught sight of Sierra from the corner of his eye, he’d been mesmerized yet again. For the last two weeks, he’d done everything in his power to stay away from her. He hadn’t called. He hadn’t shown up at her house. Nothing. All in hopes that somehow Luke would come to his senses. Apparently the man was more stubborn than Cole had given him credit for.

Seeing Sierra was a complete surprise, especially knowing that Luke was in attendance at this little shindig put on by Logan and Sam. The instant he saw her, Cole knew Luke’s twin had an ulterior motive. And Luke’s new sister-in-law was a matchmaker with a heart of gold, but Cole feared she was getting in over her head this time. Not only had they invited Luke and Sierra, they’d also invited Ashleigh Thomas and Alex McDermott. If they were expecting fireworks of epic proportions tonight, Cole suspected they were in for a show.

Granted, when Logan extended Cole the invitation, he’d attempted to say thanks, but no thanks. Logan hadn’t let him off the hook that easily, which explained why he was standing in the shadows watching Sierra as she disappeared into the kitchen with Sam. His preference would have been to hang around, continue to breathe in the uniquely fascinating scent of the woman and to see the smile that shone on her sweet face. Instead, the second he’d had a chance, he’d walked away from her.