Reid: Vested Interest #4 Read online

  She let out a long breath. “Oh. So, you aren’t angry with me?”

  I stared at her. Her eyes were so blue they reminded me of a picture I had seen of a sunlit ocean. But her gaze was worried, overcast like a cloud drifting across the water.

  “No, Becca. I’m not angry.” I leaned a little closer, unsure why I was doing so. “I could never be angry with you.”

  “Okay,” she breathed out.

  “I’m sorry I upset you.”

  She gripped my hand. I hadn’t even realized I was still holding hers in mine. “It’s all good. Right?”

  “Right.”

  I glanced at her lips. She stared at mine. Her breath caught. I felt as if an invisible string was drawing me in. I pushed closer, wanting, needing something.

  Her.

  “Reid!” Aiden’s voice boomed out from the hall. “What the hell is up with the six pizzas that arrived at the front desk? On my credit card, no less!”

  Becca and I stood, backing away from each other, the moment broken. Our hands separated, and I felt the loss immediately. She smiled sadly. I hated her looking that way.

  “Want some pizza?” I asked, wanting to make her smile.

  “Did you really order pizza on his credit card?”

  “He said he wanted some earlier. I only saved us time.” I shrugged. “He’ll eat most of it anyway. He always does.”

  Aiden appeared in my doorway, a huge slice held in one hand, a pizza box in the other one. He narrowed his eyes as he studied us, then grinned.

  “Next time, it’s on Maddox.”

  “Okay.”

  “I put the rest in the lunchroom. Help yourself.”

  “You’re only taking one?” I asked sarcastically.

  “Cami is limiting my carbs.”

  I snorted, and he grinned. “I gave you fair warning, Reid. Once I finish this one, all bets are off!”

  He disappeared down the hall, laughing.

  I indicated the door to Becca.

  “You heard him. Go grab some.”

  “Are you coming?” she asked.

  “I’ll be right behind you. I need to close what I was working on.”

  She walked away, and I followed her movements with my eyes. I sat down heavily in the chair where she’d been sitting.

  If Aiden hadn’t interrupted, would I have had the balls to kiss her?

  Did she want me to?

  I had no idea. Even worse, I had no clue how to figure it out.

  Maddox strolled into my office, Aiden on his heels. Maddox glanced around, his eyebrows rising as he took in the unusual neatness of my area. I had done a complete overhaul of my office after Becca had been there. Sandy had been shocked and delighted when she saw it that morning. She was even happier when I asked her to help me pick out some more new shirts and pants. It was easy to make the old broad smile.

  The added touch was the framed Yoda poster I’d bought and hung across from my desk, hoping to make Becca laugh the next time she came in. She hadn’t seen it yet, but I knew she’d be around soon enough. Her glitch was set to go off in a couple of hours.

  Maddox sat down, crossing his legs. “Turning over a new leaf, Reid?”

  Aiden pushed my door shut and flopped into the other chair. The legs groaned in protest. “I think he’s trying to impress a certain pretty marketing manager.”

  I rolled my eyes, though I knew my ears were turning red. “Whatever. I cleaned a little.”

  “How long did it take you?” Maddox asked with a grin.

  “All night. I found my wallet I thought I had lost. It still had fifty bucks in it.”

  Aiden high-fived me.

  “Great poster.” He jerked his thumb toward Yoda. “I love the little green guy.”

  Maddox rolled his eyes. “Please don’t do your imitation. It’s scary.”

  “Whatever. Just jealous you are, mmm-hmm,” Aiden quipped, his voice making my eyes widen.

  “Dude, no,” I groaned.

  He shook his head. “Appreciation for my talent, you have not, mmm-hmm.”

  Maddox smacked his head. “No, you have no talent. You sound as though you’re about to expectorate.”

  I chuckled watching them. They glared at each other, then joined my laughter.

  I slouched in my chair. “So, what’s up?” I glanced toward my screen. “I haven’t sent the wrong shit out again, have I?”

  Aiden chuckled, while Maddox shook his head. “No,” he said. “I’ve been thinking about having you install the security program at another place.”

  “Oh yeah? Cool. I think I’ve got all the bugs worked out, but more feedback would be awesome. I want it perfect for Ridge Towers.” I dug around and found a pen. “Where?”

  “The apartment Becca is renting from me,” Maddox stated.

  My head snapped up, and I met his eyes. He was regarding me closely, his expression serious, but his eyes were amused. “We thought, perhaps, your time would be better spent using a direct approach, rather than fixing her computer every day.” He arched a knowing eyebrow in my direction.

  “Um . . .” I swallowed. She’d had to come see me many times last week. We hadn’t had another moment the way we did the first day, but I kept hoping. The problem was I kept freezing and my brain couldn’t come up with the words, and the silence became awkward.

  “There have been a lot of glitches with the machine,” I said, the words lame.

  “Glitches?” Maddox laughed. “I work across the hall from the two of you. She is in here daily with a problem, or you’re trotting down the hall to her office to help fix something. If the machine has that many problems, we should simply get a new one.”

  “No! I’ve got it handled.”

  Aiden stroked his chin. “Strangest thing too, I can’t find a single ticket in the system about Becca’s constant computer trouble.”

  “Oh yeah, well . . .” I rubbed the back of my neck. “It’s easier to help her out, rather than crowd the system with tickets.”

  Aiden’s head fell back, his laughter booming out in my office. “Crowd the system? Reid, since you came on board, we have no tickets. No downtime. No errors.” He wiped his eyes. “Fess up, boy. What are you doing?”

  I sighed. “I send little viruses to freeze her computer so she has to come see me. I wanted to take the time she’s here to talk to her.”

  “And how’s that working for you?”

  I tossed my glasses onto my desk. “It’s not.”

  Maddox leaned forward. “You are such a wimp.”

  “I know.”

  “You talk to Sandy. You talk to Liv. All the other females in the office. Why can’t you talk to Becca?”

  “I can talk to the rest of them because I’m not imagining their mouths wrapped around my dick every second of the conversation! I don’t think about how I want to throw them on their desk and bury myself inside of them to see if it would be as fucking awesome as I dream it would be!” I burst out, slamming my hand on my desk.

  They both gaped at me. Maddox glanced down, fighting his smile, but Aiden’s grin was wide. “You are so fucked.”

  “Well, I want to be,” I muttered.

  “You got it bad.”

  “Tell me about it. My fucking hand is sore, and I keep running out of lotion.”

  “TMI,” Maddox drawled.

  Aiden hunched closer. “Okay. Listen up. Maddox is going to tell Becca he wants to install the system at her place. You’re going to arrange a time suitable to her. You are going to show up and bring her a coffee. Smile at her. Chat as you’re working, the way you chatted with Cami while you set up my place. Think with your big head, not the little one.”

  I met his eyes. “It’s not little. Trust me.”

  He groaned. “Whatever.”

  Maddox snorted. “The point here is, be yourself. She likes you. You like her. Get to know her as a person. Let her see Reid outside the office.”

  “How do you know she likes me?”

  Maddox rolled his eyes. “W
hy do I feel as if we’re twelve and passing notes at school? She asked me about you once. I got the feeling she was interested. But she’s a cautious young woman. So unless she thinks you feel the same way, she is not going to approach you.” He stood. “Man up. I’ll go let her know, and the rest is up to you.”

  He walked out of the office, leaving me with Aiden.

  “He’s right. Stop playing around. You want this girl? Go for it. I know this is all new to you, but the fact is, only you can do this, Reid.”

  “You’re right. I’ve been an idiot.”

  “Yep.” He walked to my door. “Now, go get your girl.”

  A few hours later, I stopped in the doorway of Becca’s office. She was busy, her attention on her screen, her hand using the mouse to create some visual. Her brow was furrowed in concentration, and the tip of her tongue peeked out between her lips. I had to swallow, imagining how much I wanted her tongue in my mouth.

  I studied her quietly, taking in her professional appearance. Not a hair out of place, her suit unwrinkled, her makeup light. Her office was organized, her desk precise. She even had a coaster under her cup of coffee. She wore a pair of reading glasses, the half-moon frames highlighting her bright blue eyes, making her even prettier.

  Not to mention sexy. She was so sexy it made my heart race.

  I glanced down at my black jeans and blue button-down. Self-consciously, I patted down my hair. I knew it was all over the place. Compared to her, I resembled an unmade bed, as Bentley often referred to me. Could she possibly be interested in someone like me?

  I raised my hand to knock when she glanced up. Her eyes met mine, and for a moment, nothing existed but her and the hypnotic spell she had on me. She smiled, wide and sweet, the dimple in her chin clear.

  “Hi.”

  I shook my head to clear it. “Um, yeah. Hi.”

  She leaned back, the movement causing her blouse to tighten across her chest. I tried not to stare at her breasts.

  I failed.

  She cleared her throat, and I snapped my gaze back to her face.

  “So Maddox asked me to install the security system at your place?” I asked. I was shocked to hear how steady my voice sounded.

  She nodded. “He told me you would be coming by.”

  I stepped in, edging my way to her desk. “Is that good for you?”

  Let it be good for you, I pleaded silently.

  “How long do you need?”

  I shrugged. I could easily drag it out to a day or two. “I need to scope out the apartment first. Check the door and windows for the right layout. See what would work best. Map it all out and make sure I bring all the right equipment. The install is only a few hours, barring any complications.”

  I planned on there being lots of complications.

  “Okay. So you need to drop by one night and do the install another day?”

  “Yeah. How about tonight? I could swing by and get any info I need, and we’ll go from there?” I faltered, remembering it was Friday. “Unless, of course, you have plans.”

  Please don’t have plans.

  Relief flooded through me when she shook her head. “Nope. Tonight is good.”

  “Great.”

  “You don’t, ah, have a date?”

  I wanted to snort. I hadn’t had a date in a couple of years. The last one was such a disaster that I decided to stop trying.

  “No.”

  “Okay, so tonight works. What day is best for the install?”

  “Once I figure out what the best setup is for you, I have to get all the pieces ordered in. Next weekend should work. Saturday is best,” I stated firmly. I could have her all to myself for the day if I played my cards right. “I like to come early in the morning.”

  Her eyes grew round.

  Realizing what I had said, I grabbed the back of my hair, yanking on it in frustration. “I mean, I prefer to start early.” I gripped my hair again. “In case there are any issues,” I finished lamely.

  I expected her to laugh. Or throw me out of her office. Instead, she smiled. “Saturday is fine.”

  “Okay, great.” I began to leave her office. “I’ll see you tonight.”

  “Reid.” Her voice stopped me.

  “Yeah?”

  “Don’t you need to know where I live?”

  I wanted to laugh. I knew exactly where she lived. I might have been in the neighborhood a couple of times, hoping to bump into her.

  Because I had turned into a Becca stalker. A fumbling, idiot of a stalker.

  I smiled, offering her a half-truth. “Maddox gave me the address.”

  “All right. I’ll see you tonight.” She smirked. “If not before.”

  I couldn’t resist. “It’s a date.”

  I hurried away.

  Time dragged on until I could finally go to Becca’s apartment. I was edgy at work all afternoon, and I didn’t mess with her computer. I needed to play it cool. If that was possible.

  She had dropped by my office to confirm the time, laughing in delight over my poster.

  “Yoda is the best, he is,” she quipped looking far cuter than Aiden while doing her imitation. She winked before leaving. “I think you got that just for me, Reid Matthews.”

  I didn’t deny her words. I was too busy searching the internet looking for other Yoda merchandise to make her smile.

  I gathered my stuff, shoving it into my messenger bag. I had changed my shirt, brushed my hair, yet when I looked in the mirror I was still a mess. I needed to ask Maddox how he always managed to look so . . . unwrinkled. However, I decided against it. He might try to take me shopping. Maybe I would ask Sandy—she loved looking after me, and she would be all over giving me advice.

  I walked to Becca’s, stopping to grab coffee on the way. The little corner shop next door to the coffee place had buckets of flowers outside. I gazed at them, wondering if Bentley was right about when to give flowers, or if I should listen to Aiden. A stooped, old woman wearing an apron, with her gray hair piled high on her head, shuffled outside and offered me a smile.

  “You like?” she asked, her English fragmented.

  “They are pretty.”

  “For your girlfriend?”

  I sighed. “I wish. Just a friend, unfortunately.”

  She gave me a huge smile, the movement deepening the wrinkles in her face. Reaching up, she patted my cheek. “Give it time. You a good-looking boy.”

  I chuckled.

  She bent and plucked a small bunch of daisies from a bucket. “Here. Bright. Pretty. Not too much, yes? To say have a nice day.” She winked. “Soon, you bring her roses. I promise.”

  I laughed and handed her the five dollars the sign displayed for the flowers. I wasn’t going to argue with her logic. I liked it. I didn’t know if Becca liked roses, but I was willing to find out. I’d bring her any kind of flower she liked.

  Have a nice day. That worked.

  The intercom was full of static, but Becca knew who it was and buzzed me up to her apartment. When she opened the door, she looked so different from how she did at the office, and I tried not to gape. I certainly stared. Her hair was long and loose, cascading down her back like a ribbon of dark silk. She wore leggings and a T-shirt that hugged her curves. Her feet were bare, the toenails bright red.

  Her eyes widened with delight when she saw the flowers. “For me?”

  I couldn’t resist teasing her. “No, I was gonna take them home—give the place some ambiance, you know?”

  She blinked, her cheeks coloring, and the odd shyness I’d caught glimpses of appeared. I liked knowing I could bring that out in her. It made me braver than normal.

  I thrust the small bouquet toward her. “Sorry, I was teasing again. Yes, for you.”

  “Why?”

  I shrugged. “To make you smile.”

  “Reid,” she breathed out. “How incredibly thoughtful. I love them!” She leaned up on her toes and brushed a kiss to my cheek. The gesture was sweet, and I enjoyed how her lips felt on me. I
wanted to feel them all over me. She was close enough I could smell the scent of her skin—it was light and airy, reminding me of flowers and sun. I resisted sniffing her.

  “Come in.”

  I followed her in, trying not to notice how the leggings clung to her perky ass and toned legs. It was impossible. It was a great ass. My cock agreed with me and I had to adjust myself before she turned around.

  I set down my bag and took in her apartment. The kitchen was small but nice, the living area a good size. The kitchen was open, separated with a tall counter, and she had two stools tucked underneath. There was a small sofa in front of the window with a chair beside it. A little table sat in the corner, and she had a compact desk. Leaning against the wall were some shelves, the brackets on the floor. The rest of the room was empty.

  “I’m still unpacking,” she explained. “I left the things I dislike to the last.”

  “You dislike?”

  “Putting up the shelves, hanging pictures. When I use a hammer, I seem to hit my thumb more often than the nail.”

  I grabbed the opportunity and indicated the shelves. “Do you need some help to put those up?”

  Her eyes glowed, making her blue irises brilliant.

  “Really?”

  “Sure, I can do that.” I glanced around. “Hang your pictures, hook up your electronics. That sort of thing.” I met her gaze. “I’m your guy.”

  For everything, I added in my head.

  She wrinkled her nose, which made her look adorable. “I don’t have many electronics.”

  I gaped at her. “What?”

  “It’s so complicated. I rarely watch TV, so I don’t have one yet.” She tapped a component sitting on the counter. “I enjoy music. I use my Bose system a lot.”

  “What about streaming? Netflix?” I loved my computers, but nothing beat watching a movie or TV show on the big screen.

  She grimaced, pulling open a cabinet and taking out a small vase. “I’m great with computers and software, but to be honest, electronics overwhelm me. If there is a show I enjoy, I stream it on my laptop.” She filled the vase with water, adding the flowers. Smiling, she set them on the counter.

  “I can’t remember the last time someone gave me flowers. My dad, probably. These are so pretty!”