As she set the phone back in its cradle, she noticed Lily waiting on her, a playful grin on her face. "And just what are you grinning for?"Lily held a manila folder in her hands as she swayed her hips back and forth. Her smile turned to a giggle. "Oh, I don't know. Maybe because it's been so long since I've heard that tone in your voice."Cocking her head, her eyebrows pinched together in the middle of her forehead, Jacqui asked, "What tone is that?""Happiness." Lily set the folder down on Jacqui's desk. "You truly sound happy and I've been waiting on that tone for quite a while. You deserve it. And even I can admit, Morgan is yummy to look at. That man can walk by my desk in jeans anytime."Jacqui rolled her eyes as she reached for the folder. "You are being silly."Lily leaned on the desk, her ass now swaying where she stood, instead of just her hips, and by the look on her face, Jacqui was sure the next thing out of her assistant's mouth was going to make her blush. "C'mon. You c
Vince's whole body was tense, one taut muscle ready to snap. With a growl, he lowered his arm and released Justin's throat.Faith stepped in front of Kari and held her away from the men. Kari finally relented, fuming where she stood. "I told you..," she began screaming again, but Morgan held a hand up, silencing her.Reaching to Justin, he jerked the kid up by his shirt and dropped him onto his feet. "I do believe Miss Evans told you to stay away. Now I'm telling you." He leaned in, his face inches away from Justin's. "Leave. Her. Alone. Don't ever come back here. Don't go to her house. Don't call her. It's over. Move on. Or I won't stop Vince the next time he has your neck in a vise, and I'll give him an alibi for when they find your body. Do I make myself clear?"Justin's breathing came in heavy bursts. He was pissed, but he also knew he was beat. He gave Morgan a curt nod. "I don't want the skank anyway.""You son-of-a…" Kari reached for him. So did Vince, but Morgan stopped them bo
Morgan slid out of his truck and then reached into the bed for the equipment he needed to renovate Bert's bathroom. The night was slipping into darkness, stars poking out of their hiding spots as a chill breeze blew, making him zip his jacket a little more."Are they meeting you here?" Faith shut the passenger door of the truck and stood, taking in the wooden framework of the home."Later. She's bringing pizza from what she said. There's a key in a planter that will give us access." He started walking up the walkway. "You sure you want to watch me install handrails? You could be pulling the lever at a slot machine, losing your husband's money, instead."She laughed as she followed him. "That's exactly why I'm here and not there. Besides, I get you all alone in a house for a little while. Every girl's dream.""You've had me alone before. Are you saying once wasn't enough?" He dug the key out of the planter and opened the front door. "I'm glad to know I left an impression.""My first exp
She wasn't able to keep it from her father. He was more observant than she gave him credit for and the moment she had changed her routine, Bert knew it was more than a business meeting. Of course, she decided to go with painted-on jeans, instead of a skirt and that helped give her away. Finally, she confessed her plan for the evening—well, part of the plan. Her father didn't need to be privy to everything, after all. To her surprise, he didn't argue with her or demand to accompany her. Instead, he just said to bring him home some pizza.As she stood in the kitchen saying goodbye, she shifted in place, pulling down on the pant legs of her jeans in an attempt to keep them from riding up into her crotch. Her father chuckled from a chair at the kitchen table. She arched an eyebrow at him. "What?""I was wondering why you chose that outfit to begin with, if you were so uncomfortable, and then I remembered who you were going to see.""What does that mean? I wore jeans in case Mr. Brewer need
Morgan stared at her, still wiping his hands on the towel. "What do you mean? I'm fixing your dad's bathroom. What do you think is going on?"The other woman stepped into the kitchen, a soft smile on her face. "I think I know what she thinks is going on," she said. "And you're wrong," the woman added, directing her last statement at Jacqui.Morgan glanced at the other woman—the stranger—and then back at Jacqui. His expression remained confused a moment longer, and then the light bulb went off, causing his eyes to widen in surprise. "Oh…No!" He smiled as he took a step toward her. "Jacqui, I assure you that isn't what's happening here. This is Faith Greer," he said gesturing to the other woman. "We flew her in from the Brevard office to train my new staff. She's just keeping me company instead of being cooped up in her hotel room." He reached for Jacqui, tossing the towel onto the counter and placing his hands on her upper arms. "There's nothing exciting going on here except her handing
A knot formed in Jacqui's stomach as she entered the kitchen and noticed how beautiful the other woman was, her wheaten hair, her slim, yet curvy figure, firm breasts, and a smile that dropped a person's defenses. She looked beautiful—and not angry at Jacqui. Instead, Faith walked around the counter and took her hand. "Hi there. My name's Faith. Morgan's told me so much about you and, for the record, I told him he needed to warn you, but when do men ever listen."Jacqui smiled back, squeezing Faith's hand in greeting. "They don't. And I'm sorry my mind went…"Faith just laughed. "It's Morgan. My mind would've gone there as well. I love the blouse you have on, by the way. It's gorgeous.""It is at that," Morgan said, looking Jacqui up and down for the first time since she arrived. "Not your typical business attire. I'm glad you decided to relax some." His eyes settled on her cleavage and lingered a moment, a grin spreading across his lips. "I like it. Now I wish I would've left Faith a
Allowing her father to wheel himself ahead of her, she passed through the doors of Sharkie's, a small bar off Popp's Ferry with a rustic motif and an ancient feeling about it. Standing there a moment to allow her eyes to adjust to the dim lighting, she tried scanning the faces for Morgan or Lily, or anyone else she knew for that matter. While she had driven past the place a few times, she had never been inside, and unlike the bar she visited out by I-10, this one she could appreciate. The booths were quaint with leather couches and the tables were of an old finish that glistened when they were polished. The clientele was also of a higher caliber and not leftovers from the day labor place. "Jacqui!" Glancing in the direction her name had been shouted from, she spotted Morgan waving as he crossed the room to meet her. Behind him, she noticed Faith, Lily, Kari, Vince, and a few others she had not met yet. Faith's sendoff party had a decent turnout, it seemed. Her stomach did a small curl
Faith began telling Bert about life on the East Coast, Morgan filling in his comments here and there, as Jacqui half-listened. Her mind drifted to her parents, specifically her father at the moment. He just insinuated that he was having sex with Sophia and it wasn't so much that it bothered Jacqui because it was her housekeeper, but because her father had moved on with his life. He lost his wife only a year before she had lost Marc, and yet, here he was joking around about being with another woman. She knew he loved her mother. She witnessed his grief at her passing while she was deep in the throes of her own mourning over the loss of her mother. Yet, here he was getting on with his life while she was struggling with being stuck in the past. She couldn't just up and leave the memory of Marc and all they had shared, even though another great man stood in front of her, wanting to take the next step with her. Truth was, she wanted to take that step as well, but still had bouts of guilt ab
Dropping the arm holding the towel to his side, he walked over to where Cherish sat and joined her on the bed. He reached out, placing a hand on her leg and gave her a reassuring squeeze. "I'm sorry you're having to deal with this," he told her. He gave a weak shrug. "I guess we never know the full extent of our actions and their consequences until it's too late." He quickly held a hand up, stopping her from saying anything else. "That wasn't a judgment. Promise."She offered him a weak smile. "I didn't take it that way." She shrugged. "Besides, you're right. I didn't realize while I was...you know...how it would hurt you or Jordie, and I sure as hell didn't realize how it would follow me to another job. I was too caught up in what I was doing to even think of anything else." She reached out, placing her hand on top of his. "I'm sorry I was such a selfish bitch."Glen leaned over and kissed Cherish's forehead. When he pulled away, he grinned. "You're my selfish bitch, so it's all good.
Cherish shoved her phone into her purse, closed the final file folder, and shoved herself away from her desk. This day was over, and she was more than happy to see it go. As she stood, however, she realized the day was not completely over. She stood at the edge of her desk, adjusting her purse on her shoulder, as Mary Overton stepped into her doorway, arms crossed over her chest, looking as if she had a corncob shoved deep up her ass. What Bernie saw in the woman, Cherish would never know. Cherish sucked in a deep breath as she paused, waiting to hear what had brought the grump of a woman to her door. "Is there something I can help you with?" Cherish asked.Mary glanced over the room, scowling as she took in the changes Cherish made to the small office. "I see you've rearranged. Making the place more to your liking." Cherish could have sworn the woman gave a disgusted sniff as she said it. "I thought the way Kim had it set up was quite efficient." She glanced around the room with a sn
Glen soaked in her naked body, making no qualms about devouring her with his gaze. He had always thought Cherish was gorgeous and hated when she started to hide her body in baggy shirts and shorts. He wanted to see more of her flesh, more of her body tempting him under tight clothes or low-cut tops. He wanted her to be seductive, sultry, sexy. Hell, he even wanted her to dress slutty for him.Reaching out, Glen ran a hand over her freckle-covered shoulder, up her neck, and into her strawberry-blond hair. Gazing into her eyes, he sucked in a breath as he stared at her. "You, Cherish Lansky, are beautiful."He saw her cheeks redden with her blush, felt her squirm under his touch as his words embarrassed her, but he didn't care. While he thought the words often enough, he failed to say them out loud for her to hear. She needed to hear them. He needed to say them. They needed to get back to the spark that was them when they first ignited each other's passions. Looking at her right then, he
Cherish took a deep breath, deciding to tackle the topic of Rutherford even if Glen hadn't brought it up. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you about Jed. It's been a pretty emotional week all around, and I swear, it just slipped my mind."Glen cocked an eyebrow at her. "A lot of things have slipped your mind lately. I should probably do something about that, eventually."She bowed her head. "Yes, sir," was all she said, but she couldn't deny the tingle between her legs at the thought of Glen punishing her again. She would never have thought the idea of him spanking her would have such an effect on her.He took a sip of his coffee as he studied her, and Cherish just stood there under his scrutiny. After a stretched-out moment, he said, "So, tell me about the conversation now. You said you weren't interested in returning. Is that the truth?"She shrugged. "I don't know, to be honest. And, in the way of full disclosure, it was sort of a mixture of him asking if I would want to return and me aski
Cherish placed the last of the glasses back in the cabinet, her back screaming at her due to the lengthy day she just endured. Jordie was already sound asleep in his bed, his tired little body crashing as soon as everyone left, and the constant energy faded away. She could relate as exhaustion tugged at her as well. She had to admit, however, Glen's idea of having the party at their house opposed to her parents' was definitely a winner, minus the cleanup part afterward. Jordie loved every gift he opened, and he and the other kids made full use of the bounce house. Even a few of the adults climbed inside to get their inner youth on while they made the little ones stand outside the giant inflatable while they took over. The children, of course, were far from happy about not being permitted inside, but they laughed like crazy as they watched their parents bouncing around, trying to do flips, and falling on their asses.Valerie surprised Cherish with how she interacted with everyone else a
Cherish felt the tears streaming down her cheeks, felt the anguish clutching at her heart as she sat there, staring at her mother, the woman crying openly now as she stared back at Cherish. How could her mother ever doubt Cherish's love for her? Because I did a shitty job of showing it. I pushed her with everything I did. Cherish reached out, taking her mother's hand in her own, squeezing it tight. "I've always loved you, Mom. You did nothing wrong. It was all me; I was the selfish bitch who never seemed satisfied and happy. I'm so sorry I ever made you feel that way." She squeezed her mother's hand again. "I should never have treated you that way."Her mother gave her a weak smile, squeezing her hand back before pulling it away. "I love you, too, and I'm sorry I ever made you feel as if you couldn't tell me you were pregnant." She shook her head. "Not a very good mother, huh?"Cherish settled back in her chair. "I think we both made mistakes, but that was then. This is now. I need to
Cherish left the others and walked over to her mother, taking one of the remaining chairs beside the other woman. "Why don't you come join the rest of us? Has to be better than sitting over here all by yourself."Her mother didn't even look at her, keeping her gaze on the children. "Why is she here?" she asked, her back stiff, hands clasped in her lap."There are a lot of shes here," Cherish said, even though she knew to whom her mother referred. "You'll have to be a little more specific.""Your sister's new friend," her mother said, her lips pressed into a thin line. "Why did they have to bring her to a family event? It's rude."Cherish glanced over and watched as Tracey Williams laughed at something Arni said, her feet barely touching the ground from where she sat in the chair. "She's close to Selby and Faith," Cherish said with a shrug. "We permitted Brent to bring Bonnie; why wouldn't we allow Faith and Selby to bring Tracey? She seems to be getting along with everyone all right."
Glen stepped back out into the yard, two camp chairs in his hands. Valerie Driscoll was accustomed to calling all the shots, and he knew she set up her area far away from his mother to try to force a division in the party, drawing the crowd to her, so she could show off. That was one of the reasons he wanted the party at his house, so she wouldn't be able to pull a stunt like this. Yet, she still wrecked division wherever she went.Glen moved to the middle of the yard, close to the bounce house, and set up the two chairs. He turned to find Cherish near her mother, two beers in her hand as she watched him, one eyebrow raised and a smirk turning up the corner of her lip."Excuse me," he heard her tell her mother. "I think I'll go join my husband." She then left her mother's side, Valerie's mouth ajar as she gawked at her daughter's retreating back. When Cherish reached him, she handed him his beer as she slid into her chair. "Your beer, sir," she said, smiling at him.He glanced over at
Glen just needed a few minutes to calm his temper. He knew he had acted rude since returning home, and he didn't mean to snap at everyone, taking out his frustration with Cherish on everyone but her. He shoved his way inside the house and headed for the bedroom at the back of the house. Just a few minutes, that's all he needed.However, what he needed and what he received were two different things. As soon as he plopped down on the bed, his hands clasped together as he rested his elbows on his knees, doing his best to take deep breaths, Cherish walked into the room, shutting the door behind her. He didn't even turn to look at her. He couldn't right then. She had lied. Again. That's all she ever did lately.Cherish walked in front of him and dropped to her knees, sitting back on her heels, her hands on her thighs as she stared up at him. She said nothing. Just knelt there, waiting.Glen closed his eyes, taking another fortifying breath. Before opening them again and staring at his wife.