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“I used to. I gave it up to come home and help Dad at the track. He couldn’t afford to pay his employees anymore.” I notice the frown on her lips, and I don’t like it—a face that pretty should never be sad. I want to immediately fix it.

  “Well, maybe when my investor buddy comes through you can go back?”

  Her eyes flit to mine. “I would love to. It just sucks all my friends back at school will be ahead of me now.”

  “You’re still young. You’ll make new friends.” I point out. “What were you studying?”

  “Psychology.”

  My eyebrows shoot up. “Wow. That’s impressive. You’re smart and hot. That’s a pretty badass combination.”

  She giggles. “Thanks. I wish more guys thought that way. A lot of them have problems with women who take school so seriously.”

  “What do you mean?” I ask completely confused. “I love smart women—all women, actually.”

  “I haven’t had great luck with men.”

  That’s a shame. I rest my elbows on the table and lean forward. “Maybe you’ve just been dating the wrong guys?”

  There’s a heat between us as we stare each other in the eye. I know she feels it too, because a slight blush creeps up her neck into her cheeks, making me think about what she’d look like after an orgasm. One that, at the moment, I would love to give her by sinking between her sweet, creamy thighs and licking her into oblivion.

  Images of what’s hidden beneath those clothes, and the way her mouth tastes, toy with my brain and my cock twitches in anticipation.

  I open my mouth to tell her fuck the dinner—let’s get out of here and I’ll give her something else she’s starving for when our overly chipper waitress with bottle-blonde hair approaches the table. “What can I get you two to drink?”

  I shake myself out of my daze as I try to clear my sex-crazed brain from thinking about fucking Holly any longer. I can only endure so much torture. “A Bud Light.”

  “A Coke, please,” Holly says.

  Once the waitress is gone, Holly taps the table with her index finger and directs her attention at everyone else in the place but me. It’s like she’s afraid to look at me again. I completely get it—the attraction between us is hard to deny, but we both know we need to fight it. There can never be anything more than innocent flirting between us and last night needs to be kept locked away.

  It’s a bad idea to mix business with pleasure. Even I know that.

  Before I can start a conversation about the track, her eyes grown wide and she tries to hide her face behind her hands. “What are you doing, Holly? You look like a crazy person.”

  “Don’t say my name,” she whispers harshly, ducking down and grabbing for a menu.

  “What? Why?” I turn around in my seat and notice a guy standing at the bar joking with the pretty, busty bartender. He’s about my height, at least six foot, and is covered in tattoos, just like me. His head is shaved along with his face. She can’t possibly be hiding from that guy. I turn back around and find Holly hiding behind the menu she picked up. “Why? Don’t you want the guy at the bar to see you?”

  “Yes. Please let me know when he’s gone.”

  If I weren’t so puzzled by this uncharacteristic deviation from the normal Ice Queen act I’ve seen from her so far, this would be hilarious. But my concern for her outweighs my personal amusement. What in the hell did that guy do to her? “Tell me who he is first.”

  She sighs dramatically and I bet if I could see her she’d be rolling her eyes. “He’s Jackson Cruze.” The tone in her voice makes it seem like it should be obvious to me who the guy is.

  I glance up at the ceiling and try to go through my mental files on why that name sounds so familiar. It hits me. I do know that name. I saw it in one of the motocross magazines I read on the plane from Kentucky to here. I do a double-take of the guy and then ask her, “He’s the MX hotshot, right? The one getting all the press right now?”

  “Yes,” she hisses.

  I lean back in my seat. “Shouldn’t you want to talk to a guy like that to get him to promote the track?”

  She drops the menu and stares me in the eye. “No. He’s the last person on earth I want to speak to.”

  I fold my arms on the table and lean in. “Why? I don’t get it.”

  Holly’s lips pull into a tight line. “He’s my ex-boyfriend.”

  Light bulb. “Ah, I see. How recent?”

  “Two weeks.”

  Ouch.

  I nod. “I take it things didn’t end on great terms?”

  “No. He cheated on me. From what I’ve heard from the guys around the track who didn’t say a word to me while we were together, he’d been sleeping around for a while. He made it into the pro-circuit while I was away at school last year, and I guess he’s been with all the slutty, bimbos throwing themselves at him on a daily basis behind my back.”

  That’s a story that hits a little too close to home and I find myself rolling my hands into fists in my lap. “Let me guess, you were blindsided when you caught him?”

  She shakes her head. “He owned up to it after he forgot about the two-year anniversary date we were suppose to have.”

  I glance back and narrow my eyes at Jackson and say to Holly, “He sounds like an arrogant little shit stain that needs his ass beat.”

  Her soft lips twist like she’s fighting back some tears. “Maybe so, but I even after everything he did to me, I don’t wish him any physical harm.”

  I know I haven’t known Holly very long, and it’s insane to feel protective over her, but I know exactly what she’s going through. Being cheated on sucks, especially when the person you love blindsides you.

  How dare that douchebag do that to this beautiful, caring girl who obviously loves him. She’s a fucking prize, and if that little twerp couldn’t see that, he didn’t deserve her anyway.

  “Oh, God. He’s coming over here. Ignore him,” she orders.

  I open my mouth to protest, but Jackson stops at our table. “Holly? How are you?”

  Holly stares up at him and smiles. “Hi, Jackson. I’m fine.”

  His eyes drift down her body and linger awhile on her tits beneath her white tank-top. “You look great.”

  What he means to say is that her tits look great—which they do—but after the way he treated her she shouldn’t give him the satisfaction of looking at them. She should tell him to piss off, but she doesn’t. She actually bats her eyes at him and as she tells him he looks good too.

  I don’t fucking get chicks. At. All.

  This asshole did her wrong. Why is she being nice to him? One minute she hates him, and the next he has her under some sort of fucked up spell that’s turned the baddest chick I know into, well…she’s acting just like the shallow groupies who try to get my attention. Why would she even want him back after what he did?

  This isn’t good. Doesn’t she know with this groupie act she’ll be just another easy mark for him? He’ll have the same thing on his mind that I normally do when it comes to women—fuck ‘em and dump ‘em—and Holly is too good for that. She’s not some random bimbo out for a good time. I’ve been around her long enough today to know she’s loyal and fierce, and deserves so much more.

  I’m going to make sure that happens.

  I reach across the table and intertwine my fingers with hers. “Who’s this, baby?”

  Holly attempts to pull away, but I squeeze my fingers together, holding her in place. The little touch works. Jackson’s brown eyes zero in on it, and I smirk at Holly.

  It takes her a couple seconds to realize that I’m helping her out and she smiles at me. “This is my friend, Jackson.”

  I let go of her hand and stand up from the booth and extend my hand. “What’s up, man. I’m Trip.”

  Jackson sizes me up, glancing down at my biceps before allowing a smirk to fill his face. He’s confident, and thinks he’s better than even me. If he’s not careful, I’ll wipe that smart-ass grin off his face for him. “I thought I knew all o
f Holly’s friends?”

  I continue shaking his hand, squeezing a little tighter. “I’ve known her for a little while now—she’s really something.” I look down at her and wink.

  Jackson lets go of my hand, and flexes his fingers. This time it’s my turn to wear a shit-eating grin.

  He turns to Holly. “I know we aren’t on the best terms right now, but I’d love to stop out at the track. Would that be okay?”

  Her face lights up. “Of course! We’d love to have you there.”

  “Great. It’s a date. I’ll be there tomorrow,” Jackson answers with a grin before he turns back to me. “Nice to meet you, Trip. I’m sure I’ll see you around.”

  I nod. “You can count on it.”

  I take my seat and shake my head as Holly watches Jackson walk out the door. “What do you see in him?”

  She turns back to me. “I don’t see anything in him.”

  I roll my eyes. “Give me a break. If I hadn’t saved your ass, you would’ve been a pile of girl-goo all over the floor. If you want to make a guy like him jealous, you have to be a challenge. You can’t go around throwing yourself at him.”

  “I wasn’t throwing myself at him.”

  I point at the table. “Yeah, you were. Trust me. I know what I’m talking about. You want this guy to notice you and kick himself for letting you go, you’re going to need my help. You have to make him come crawling back. He needs to suffer for doing you wrong, so he’ll know not to ever do it again.”

  She crosses her arms. “Why would you even offer that? I’ve been a royal bitch to you for the most part. What’s in it for you?”

  I shrug. “I want my time here to go as smoothly as possible. I’d like us to be friends as well as co-workers. I feel like shit for how I treated you at the club and I’m hoping this will get me on your good side. Your friendship will make my job fun. This little pact will provide my entertainment while I’m here and you’ll be getting something in return. I’d say that’s a win-win.”

  She toys with a strand of her blonde hair. “So, you’re saying if we form this un-holy alliance, the only thing I have to do is be nice to you? There’s nothing else you want in return from me?”

  I shake my head. “Nothing else. I promise. I only want your friendship and the chance to help you make a cheater pay. I have no love for cheaters. I know first hand how many fucking problems cheating in a relationship can cause.”

  Holly narrows her blue eyes. “You’ll behave?”

  “Yes. I promise I’ll keep my dick in my pants when it comes to you. I’m starting to like you too much to fuck you, anyhow.” I tell her the honest truth, because I know now she’s the relationship type, and that’s not what I’m here for. I don’t want to pretend like I’d be into one with her because I won’t allow myself to play her just to have sex. I won’t be able to toss her aside like I do the rest. I already like her to much to do that.

  “That makes no sense. You like me too much now to sleep with me? That’s just an odd thing to say, but whatever. The deal seems pretty simple, and I would love to give Jackson a taste of his own medicine and make his ass jealous. It’d be nice to prove to him I can find someone else too.”

  “The way I see it, Holly, if my buddy goes into business with your dad, we’ll see a lot of each other. I would like us to be on good terms. I’ll probably be around from time to time after my month here is over and I’d like to walk into your office and have you greet me with a smile instead of a scowl. You’re far to pretty to have an ugly expression on that beautiful face.”

  She bites her bottom lip. “I completely get what you’re saying. I don’t want a bad relationship with you either. I think teaming up with you could be fun, but no more flirting with me.”

  I shake my head. “Jackson believes we’re together, so we’re going to have to play the part. There will be flirting—lots of it. It’s the only way this will be believable.”

  She leans back in the booth and chews her thumbnail while she weighs up her options.

  “Clock’s ticking,” I say. “You better make up your mind. He’s coming to see you tomorrow. You can either allow me to fondle you in front of Jackson, making him insanely jealous, or you can go back to hating my guts. The choice is yours.”

  Her eyes soften. “I never said I hated you.”

  “Actions speak louder than words, sweetness. You haven’t had many kind things to say to me today.” I extend my hand across the table to her. “What do you say? Do we have a deal?”

  She leans forward and places her hand in mine. “Deal. And I promise I’ll start being nicer.”

  Looks like my time here just got a hell of a lot more enjoyable. I smile and give her hand a shake. This looks like the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

  Chapter 5

  I Wanna Be Bad

  HOLLY

  What the hell did I agree to? That’s the only thought that keeps flitting through my mind as I stare straight ahead on our car ride back to the house. This little game is dangerous. Trip is dangerous. I know that. Every sense in my body screams it. It’s worrisome that I’ve agree to act like Trip and I are an item, considering I know that I’m attracted to him physically, but what he was offering was too sweet of a deal to turn down. Jackson needs to see that I can move on and that my life doesn’t revolve around him. I can’t let him know he nearly broke me.

  When I was seventeen, Jackson Cruze was my everything. Even now, it’s a hard to pretend I don’t feel something for him. I’ve drooled over him since I was old enough to like boys in the first place. The moment he came to my father’s track and flashed his dimples at me I was a goner. Jackson was my first real crush, my first boyfriend, and the first guy I ever fell in love with—that all means something to me. What he did to me doesn’t instantly erase all that, although I wish it would. As much as I hate it, I want him back.

  Trips downshifts the Mustang as we round the corner and slow down. He pulls into the drive leading to the office and our house. “Where should I park?”

  I point to our house. “You can pull up there since you’re staying with us.”

  His eyes slide in my direction. “That’ll help you know.”

  “What?”

  “Me living with you. It’ll drive Jackson nuts knowing we’re probably sleeping together every night.”

  I shake my head. “I think you’re wrong about him. He won’t be that jealous over me. He left me, remember?”

  He cuts the ignition and sets his gaze on me. “He wants you. He wouldn’t have attempted to push my buttons by making a date with you in front of me if he wasn’t. Jackson wants me to know I’m treading in his territory.”

  “Jeesh, you make it sound like it’s a pissing contest.”

  “In a manner of speaking, it is. In his eyes, the man that fights for you the hardest will win. We just have to see how far he’s willing to take this.”

  “What if he doesn’t?” I drop my head down, hating the thought of being rejected by Jackson yet again.

  Trip softly pinches my chin and forces me to look into his eyes. “He will. You’re worth fighting for. Any idiot can see that. Now that he sees you’ve moved on so easily He knows he was a fool for ever letting you go. It’s his turn to feel the sting of rejection. Trust me, he wants you back.”

  My mouth drifts open and I stare at Trip’s inviting lips. He’s not at all like I expected. When I first laid eyes on him, I wanted him. But after I saw how our kiss meant nothing to him, I assumed he was just another lame asshole who only cared about getting some ass. This side of him though, is caring and helpful. It makes him even more appealing, which is a very bad thing. It’s wrong to want him, especially considering he’s helping me win back the affection of another man.

  His eyes search my face, before he ultimately decides to release me. “It’s getting late. We’d better go inside so I can unpack and get a good night’s rest. We’ve got an old boyfriend jealous tomorrow, remember?”

  I swallow hard and nod in agreement
still looking into his eyes. “Sleeping with you would be good.” He laughs and I quickly throw my hand over my mouth. I immediately try to correct my mistake. “I mean, sleeping would be good.” This only makes him laugh harder and I let out a frustrated breath. “Stop. You know what I meant.”

  I want to shove my head in a pile of desert sand.

  “I think it was a subconscious slip,” he says, adjusting his hat and winking at me before he opens his door to get out.

  I trail behind him after I shut the car door behind me. “It was not.”

  He steps up onto the porch and leans against the house right by the door. I feel his heated gaze on me while I fish the keys from my pocket. “Keep telling yourself that, sweetness. It’s okay to admit you’d like to fuck me, because I think it’s pretty clear I’d like the same thing. It’s too bad we can’t now that we’re co-workers and co-conspirators. I’m pretty sure that’d be bad for business.”

  “Shhhh,” I scold him. “My dad might hear you.” I growl when the second key I try in the lock doesn’t work. “Come on.”

  Trip leans down and whispers in my ear, “I know just the thing to relieve that tension.”

  I lift my shoulder, trying to shove him out of my ear as I allow the door to fly open. “Yes.”

  He chuckles as he follows me inside. “That was pretty enthusiastic. I can only imagine what that would sound like when you’re—”

  The lights flip on in the foyer and Trip quickly closes his mouth, while my cheeks burn even hotter. No one wants their parents to hear a conversation like that.

  Dad tightens his paper-thin blue robe around his small waist and glances up at the clock above our heads. “I wondered when you two would get back. Dinner’s in the refrigerator if you’re hungry.”

  Guilt pours over me. “Sorry, Dad. I should’ve check with you before I agreed to go out to eat with Trip. We should’ve invited you.”

  He rubs his eyes. “It’s okay. I was really tired anyhow. Well, now that I know you’re home safe, I’m heading back to bed.”

  “Are you still feeling sick?” I ask, completely concerned.