Looking him over, she ran her eyes down his jeans and back up to his face. Then, she shook her head like she was fighting with herself.
“Okay. I’m originally from Georgia, and while I love a lot of things about that place, I took speech lessons during school to disguise my accent. A lot of people these days will—how should I say this? Judge you just because of a slight inflection in your voice.”
Josh couldn’t have been more stunned if she’d admitted she had a third eye.
“Be serious.”
She grinned, and then she completely floored him in her Southern lilt, “Why, I am being serious, sugar. It ain’t my fault I do such a good job of hidin’ my accent.”
His eyes widened, and he felt a genuinely happy smile spread over his face. She was adorable, and with that accent, she was absolutely lethal.
“Wow,” was all he could manage.
She spun on her heel about to move away, but he reached out and snagged her arm, pulling her back against him. Josh pressed his chest and body against her back and breathed against her ear.
“I didn’t think you could get any sexier. God, was I wrong,” he whispered.
Josh felt her take a deep breath, and he let go of her arm. But she remained right where she was, leaning against him.
“So do you always cover it?”
Turning to look at him over her shoulder, she whispered, “That’s two questions. You said only one.”
Josh conceded, knowing this was a bigger step than what she had wanted.
Then, he found himself nibbling her ear. “Come on. Give us a chance, Shelly?”
He was pretty sure he wouldn’t get an answer.
What he hadn’t counted on was Mason walking through the kitchen doors.
***
“This is not what you think,” Shelly stated as she quickly stepped away from Josh.
Mason looked from her to his friend, and then back to her with a smug grin. Shelly almost gave into the urge to punch him.
“Oh?”
Shelly marched over to Mason, looking up into his laughing blue eyes.
Mason was tall, well over six-feet. He probably stood around six-feet-three, but that didn’t stop Shelly from glaring up at him.
“Then what is it, Shel?” he asked her, grinning like a loon.
Shelly jammed her fists on her hips, furious that she’d been stupid enough to cave in for one lousy minute.
Narrowing her eyes, she snapped, “None of your business!”
Laughing, Mason looked over her shoulder to the silent man standing just behind them.
“Should I start addressing you as Mr. O from now on?” he asked Josh.
“Mason, shut up,” Shelly warned through clenched teeth.
Looking back down at her, Mason shook his head. “Sorry, Shelly, this is too good to let go.”
He stepped around her, and she turned, watching him move toward his friend. Josh had his eyes on her while she was trying to somehow melt into the floor. Finally, he dragged his gaze away to look at Mason.
“What happened to ‘hell no’? And what was the other one? Oh yeah, ‘she’d burn me to a crisp’?” Mason asked Josh.
Walking over to the two men, who were now about to discuss her like she wasn’t there, Shelly asked Josh, “Burn you to a crisp?”
Suddenly, this was a much more important issue than getting Mason to shut the hell up. Josh looked at her with a crooked smile, and then he had the audacity to wink.
“Yeah, because you’re so damn hot.”
Mason let out a loud laugh as Shelly fumed at Josh.
Damn him! He’d just confirmed everything with that single sentence. Even though it had been a fairly reasonable assumption about the two of them, up until that moment, they could have played it off. Right?
“Ha! You just couldn’t help yourself, could you, Daniels? I knew it! She’s totally your type!” Mason exclaimed.
“Ah, hello! She is still here, you morons.” Sighing as though she was extremely put out, Shelly turned on her heel, stalking to the door, when she heard Josh call her name.
Turning, she looked at him, standing there next to the grinning idiot, otherwise known as Mason.
“The deal?” Josh asked.
Lifting her chin, she shook her head. “Is done.”
Leaving it at that, she turned, storming out of the kitchen, and went back to her date.
***
Josh stood there, watching the doors swing slowly back and forth until they stopped.
“Holy shit! When did this all happen?” Mason questioned with a devilish smile.
Josh rolled his shoulders and shook his head. “Nothing happened. We just got together a couple of times.” He paused. “We had a deal.”
Mason moved around him to the fridge, opening it and grabbing a couple of beers. He turned and passed one to Josh, who took a long sip.
“What kind of deal?” Mason questioned.
“A fucked-up one.” Josh raised his hand and ran it through his hair.
“I didn’t think you two really talked. Although, Lena and I did start to get vibes. Do you even know her full name? That burned my ass once—big time,” Mason explained around a grin.
“Just barely. God, what a mess. That night at the club—”
“I knew it!” Mason shouted, interrupting Josh’s train of thought.
“Huh?”
“I asked her about that night, and the little brat lied right to my face.”
Taking another sip, Josh nodded. “Doesn’t surprise me. She wanted to keep it our dirty little secret.”
“Hmm, I don’t understand,” his friend stated as he leaned back against the counter.
Josh shook his head and pointed his beer toward the door. “The deal she’s talking about—that night at the club, we came to an arrangement of sorts.”
Mason slowly grinned at him. “Oh, this just gets better and better.”
“Are you gonna shut the hell up, so I can tell you? Or keep interrupting me?”
Holding his beer up, Mason nodded. “My apologies. Please go on.”
Rolling his eyes, Josh continued, “We both agreed that we liked what we saw and wanted to explore it, but then she told me it needed to stay a secret, and it was just going to be sex.” He stopped, waiting for Mason to comment. When he stayed silent, Josh asked, “Do you really have nothing to say to that?”
“Oh no, I have plenty. I was just waiting for permission to talk, sir.”
“When did you turn into such an asshole?” Josh asked with a smirk.
“Hey, man, I was always this way. You’re just feeling sensitive right now because Sexy Shelly closed the lid of the cookie jar.”
Josh shook his head and placed the now empty bottle back on the counter.
“I never got into the cookie jar.” Well, maybe I dipped my fingers in a little—okay, bad pun—but nothing else.
“So, why the secret? And why is she here tonight with her boss if you two are—well, you know—heating up the sheets?”
“Because we’re not. We fooled around in the parking lot and today at her office, but that’s it.”
Mason’s mouth fell open as he asked quietly, “At her office? In the hospital?”
Josh felt a smug grin spread across his lips and nodded. “Yep. She made sure she gave me a very thorough physical.”
“Ha! I really didn’t think you’d touch her since you dubbed her the Man-Eater.”
“Yeah, me either.”
Mason finished his beer and pushed off the counter, walking toward the door. “You never told me why she doesn’t want to date you.”
Josh shrugged, following him. “She didn’t make any sense, but she said something about losing focus and ending up wanting too much.”
Mason stopped and stated, “Well, surely, that isn’t a bad thing.”
“Apparently, it is when you’re Shelly Monroe.”
Chapter Nine
The dinner wrapped up fairly quickly after the disaster in the kitchen
. Shelly had barely glanced at Mason or Josh the whole way through dessert, and once that was gone, she stood, grabbed Roger’s arm, and pulled him out the door. Lena had watched her carefully but kept quiet, and Shelly had to wonder just how long it would take Mason to share his juicy gossip.
As Roger walked her to the lobby door of her condo, she was so preoccupied with thoughts about Josh and how she’d been looking forward to finally getting into bed with him. Now that the opportunity was gone, she totally missed the cue that Roger McKinney was leaning in for a good night kiss.
Completely blindsided, Shelly froze and clamped her mouth shut. Feeling her tension, Roger stepped back, giving her a regretful look.
“This,” he said, motioning between them, “isn’t going to happen, is it?”
Shelly sighed and shook her head with an apologetic look. “I’m sorry, Roger.”
He smiled at her and stuffed his hands in his pockets. “Nah, don’t be. It’s okay.” He paused and then asked, “You and Bob the Builder—there something going on there?”
“No!” she answered a little too quickly for her own good.
Roger nodded, reaching out to stroke a hand down her cheek, “Well, maybe there should be.”
Shelly felt her mouth open, and then shut without saying anything.
What can I say?
She didn’t want to date a man that was unreliable, especially in this economy. Been there, done that. “Not going to happen.”
“Hmm. Well, I’m going to leave you to it.”
She watched as he started to walk down the path back to his car.
Then, he stopped and turned to her. “Shelly?”
She looked at him and smiled. “Yeah?”
“Thanks for taking me tonight. I had a good time.”
Giving him a genuine smile, Shelly nodded, wishing there was something there.
“You’re welcome, Roger. Drive safe.”
He waved, walking back to his car. “Sure will. Have a good night!”
***
Josh just walked through the door to an excited ninety-pound Mutley, who was currently jumping up on his hind legs and placing his huge paws on Josh’s chest. Reaching up to scratch his dog’s head, he smiled as Mutley ran a huge tongue up his cheek.
“Hey, boy. How you doing?”
Mutley’s tail wagged as his mouth fell open, letting the same wet tongue loll there as though he was grinning. Pushing him down, Josh watched the dog circle him, and then he made his way through the hall down to the kitchen.
“Want some dinner, buddy?”
Sitting by his bowl patiently, Mutley looked at him as if to say, Well, yeah, genius.
Moving to the pantry, Josh pulled out the dog food and went over to grab Mutley’s bowl.
He was still thinking about the evening and Shelly’s quick departure after the scene in the kitchen.
He didn’t understand why she was so upset about Mason knowing they were involved. No, not involved. That implied they knew one another, which they certainly didn’t. Fooling around—those were the words he was looking for.
For some reason, she wanted to give off the impression that she was interested in men who were, as far as Josh could tell, so boring they could put her to sleep.
Why? That’s what he wanted to know. What did she mean she didn’t want to get involved with someone like me because she’d get too distracted?
The woman baffled him. She was such a firecracker, yet she wanted to settle down with someone like Paul the Bore or Dr. Douche Bag.
After feeding Mutley, Josh walked over to the sliding door, leading to his back porch. Opening it, he walked outside and looked up at the stars. It was so beautifully clear tonight. It was a perfect evening to take a walk with a hot woman. However, the woman he wanted to walk with had instead walked out the door tonight with another man.
He was such an idiot to still be thinking about her. That’s it, he thought as he pulled out his cell, intending to delete Barbie the Man-Eater from his phone and life. But, when he got to her number, he found himself dialing it instead.
***
Shelly’s phone buzzed right as she climbed into bed. Looking at the cell, she leaned over and saw DD displayed on the front. Picking it up, she shook her head, telling herself she shouldn’t. Like that ever worked.
She answered and put it to her ear. “What do you want, Josh? I told you tonight. The deal is done.”
“Well, hello to you, too, Shel.”
Closing her eyes, Shelly slid down, laying her head on the pillow, and allowed herself a minute to fantasize that the deep sexy voice on the other end of the phone was instead coming from beside her on the bed and not through the earpiece.
“I want to keep the deal,” the voice told her.
Shaking her head and keeping her eyes closed, Shelly relaxed. “You broke it. The deal was sex, no strings, and definitely no Mason. You broke all three rules.”
She heard him sigh, and if she had to guess, she figured he was running his hand through his hair.
“I want a new deal.”
Laughing, Shelly asked, “A new deal? Just like that? What else can there be, Josh? I told you that I don’t want to get involved.”
“With me,” he interrupted.
“Huh?” Shelly asked, confused.
“You don’t want to get involved with me. You’re quite happy to parade around a string of completely wrong choices, yet you won’t even give me a five-minute date.”
He paused, and Shelly knew what would be the next word out of his mouth.
“Why?”
Finally, she opened her eyes and looked at the ceiling. She started to count the little boxes that were painted in checkered black and white across it, which she loved.
“Because you’re not my type.”
“Excuse me if I don’t believe you. You fall apart all over me.”
Letting out a frustrated sound, she replied, “Not sexually. It’s pretty obvious that part works. It’s everything else.”
There was a pause, and then he asked, “Like what? I’m not in the health industry? Because that’s ridiculous.”
“No! Geez, Josh, why do you care? You told Mason you didn’t even want to date me. I believe ‘hell no’ was the answer he said you gave him.” Moving to sit up, Shelly leaned back against her pink headboard. “Look, I just think it would be better to forget all of this. Nothing really happened—”
“I beg to disagree. Something most definitely happened. You’re just being stubborn. Give me a new deal.”
He paused, and Shelly heard a bark in the background.
“Do you have a dog?”
“Huh?”
“A dog? I heard a bark. I asked if you own a dog.”
“Yeah. His name’s Mutley. Stop changing the subject.”
“I’m not a fan of dogs. They’re too slobbery.”
Shelly could almost hear his eyes roll.
“Of course, you’re not. Are you always so perfectly put together?”
Feeling a grin on her mouth, she lowered her voice. “Do you always look like you just got out of a woman’s bed?”
The phone went quiet, and the silence was so thick that it was hard to hear his words as they slid through the phone and into her ear.
“Is that how I look?”
Groaning softly, Shelly let her eyes close, thinking about how sexy Josh Daniels was. Everything about him appealed to her, and right now, she wished he was in her bed on top of her.
A new deal? Do I really want to do this?
“Shelly?” he asked in a voice that was designed to seduce.
“Yes, that’s how you look. You always look like you just rolled out of some woman’s bed—as if her hands tunneled through your long hair, hanging on for dear life.” She paused, and then tacked on the end, “And, to answer your question, no, I’m not always perfectly put together. I’m not right now.”
***
Josh knew there had never been a better opening for phone sex—ever.
> That, however, was not what he wanted.
Knowing exactly what he wanted, he said, “A new deal, Shel. Stop trying to distract me. Give me one.”
He moved to sit in the reclining chaise lounge he had on his deck, waiting patiently for her answer. Mutley had laid down beside him, resting his big head on his paws as he watched him with a raised eyebrow. He swore his dog understood everything he was saying.
“Okay, I have one,” she announced.
Josh had to remind his cock it was not coming out to play tonight.
“I’m waiting,” he told her.
He heard her take a breath as though she was unsure, and then she asked, “What are you doing next weekend?”
Josh hadn’t seen that question coming. He thought about the barbecue he was supposed to have with his brother, and then shrugged. It isn’t like I have to go to that.
“Nothing. Why?”
There was complete silence.
Then, as though she’d change her mind if she didn’t get it out, she asked quickly, “Want to go on a road trip? Can you ask your boss for some time off? I was thinking I could leave Friday morning and make it home by Monday night.”
“Hey, Doc?” Josh interrupted.
“Yeah?”
“Where are we going?”
There was another stretch of silence, and then, “You’ll come with me?”
Josh chuckled, wondering what the hell he was doing. But, deep down, he knew. He was getting involved. He was just hoping she’d take it easy on him.
“I’d like to say I already have.” He heard her take a deep breath. “But that’s a different conversation. Yes, I’ll come. Are you going to tell me where?”
Josh looked down at Mutley, who had raised his head with his ears perked.
Yep, you’re coming, too, bud. Josh thought with a grin, knowing Shelly would freak out.
***
Shelly was biting her lip, gripping the cell phone tight.
What the hell am I thinking, inviting him home with me?
In all honesty, she knew her plan was genius. Her father would have a fit when she walked through the door with Josh, but on the other hand, she found the idea of having him with her more and more appealing for other reasons.
“Savannah, Georgia.”
“As in your hometown?” he asked quietly.