Called Up (17 page)

She cocked an eyebrow.

Sensing she was willing to go with it but needed a nudge in the right direction, he wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her all the way in. Close enough for him to nestle his head in her chest—okay, so that part was for him—while he brought one hand up to play with her breast. “Tell her I had plans for breakfast but you’ll be back first thing.”

Well, fuck, if he had the reputation he may as well use it to his advantage. If Nate thought he was meeting up with some other woman in the morning, then even if the man did suspect something, it would make him think twice. At least, Deke hoped Nate would. It wasn’t Deke’s first choice to deceive his friend, but this was one of those cases where protecting someone was more important than telling the truth. Of course Nate would flat-out kill him when he found out, so whether he was protecting Nate or himself was the question.

When Fitz hesitated, however, he realized he was actually worried maybe
Fitz
wasn’t entirely certain. At least that’s probably why he sounded a little too sharp when he added, “You know they’ll believe you.”

Except that wasn’t the case. When she tilted his head up it was clear from the look in her eyes she was thinking more about
him
. “You are so much more than that,” she said, laying a soft kiss first below his right eye and then his left. “I may not be in the market for a boyfriend,” she said, echoing his thoughts a little too closely for comfort. “But I don’t doubt you’d be a great one.”

Then, as if they did this every night, she pushed him backward so he was lying down on the bed, and crawled up over him. “Okay, lover boy, it’s time to go to sleep.” She rested her head on his chest. “Can I borrow something to sleep in?”

Now they were talking. “Absolutely freaking not.”

Chapter Nineteen

Deke, as it turned out, was a snuggler. To her complete surprise, Fitz was, too. It hadn’t been an option with the other two guys she’d been with—one had roommates, one still lived with his mom and she was so not going
there
—so she’d never really thought about it. If she had, she probably would have said that, after the whole sex thing, she’d want her space back. Her
body
back. It was something physical, as far as she was concerned. To give more of herself than that was too dangerous; overnights came a little too close to that kind of connection. But Deke was different. He already had a huge part of her, so that road had already been traveled.

Plus, she couldn’t get enough of touching him. She wanted her legs tangled up in his and his arms around her. God, even first thing in the morning he was perfect. He tasted like coffee and cream and the feel of him against her, hard in all the places she was soft, had her aching for more.

“Babe,” he mumbled, pulling her closer as he rolled over, not fully awake.

Which was fine. Perfect. It gave her some time to properly appreciate him, something she hadn’t had the opportunity to do last night. She’d been too overwhelmed by the raw sensation of it all for the beauty of him to sink in. He was beyond magnificent to look at. She was compelled to reach out and run her hand over all that sumptuous skin, although she didn’t want to wake him. She wanted to savor what had happened, not talk about it. Yet when he cupped his hand around the back of her neck and drew her into a hungry kiss, she couldn’t help but respond.

“What time is it?” he eventually murmured.

With reluctance, she lifted her head, saw the time on the bedside clock, and nearly jumped straight up in the air. Eleven a.m.? She
never
slept this late.

Shit. Shit, shit,
shit
. She had her interview with Sam at eleven thirty.

Scrambling for her clothes, she couldn’t help but glare at Deke as he chuckled and turned over so that he was now lying on his stomach, head resting on his hands no doubt in preparation to go back to sleep. She was tempted to smack his lazy ass and make him get out of bed, but then there was the potential of him wanting to talk through what had happened between them, something she very much wanted to avoid. Not that they shouldn’t be talking it through. As big deals went, having sex with one of your best friends definitely had the potential to be up there, especially when it had already happened once and you’d assured yourself it wouldn’t ever happen again. But despite his whole staying home with the babies comment, so far so good.

Also a plus was that she didn’t need to explain where she was going. Since her destination happened to be Sam’s hotel room, that was definitely a good thing. According to Doug, the reason she was meeting Sam there was that he hadn’t even officially announced the foundation, so it was still all in top secret mode. Also a good thing, as far as she was concerned.

Oh, and thank God her key card had been pushed under the door along with a note from Dorie.
You missed our run but I’ll forgive you—if you provide details.

Ha. Not on her life.

Fitz flew upstairs for the quickest shower in the history of man, set a personal record for getting dressed and took the stairs rather than the elevator because Sam’s suite was two floors below hers and it was faster that way. Tucking her portfolio under her arm, she knocked on the door.

Sam’s assistant opened the door, a polite smile on her face that evaporated the second she saw who it was. “
Fitz?
” Then she smiled broadly as she pulled the door all the way open. “What an incredible pleasure it is to see you here.”

“Hi, Hannah.” Fitz knew Sam because he had been Nate’s friend long before he’d been Nate’s boss. But she knew Hannah because they’d worked on several events together over the years thanks to Fitz’s job. Getting that response from someone she knew on a purely professional basis was not a bad sign at all.

“Sam will be up in two minutes. He’s actually having brunch with Nate right now,” Hannah said, pouring Fitz an unsweetened iced tea without even asking.

Oh, hell. Trying to keep her smile calm and serene, Fitz asked, “Will Nate be here, too?”

“No, dear.” Hannah’s eyes lit up with her smile. “Sam wanted to see for himself who our mystery candidate was before letting any of the investors know.” At the sound of the key card on the door the other woman smiled again. “He’s been dreading it a little bit, I’m sorry to say. But this is going to be a wonderful surprise.”

Fitz certainly hoped so. She wasn’t entirely sure since Sam came to a sudden stop right inside the door, a look of confusion on his face. And then came a big smile. “Well, what do you know,” he murmured. “Never in my life did I peg ‘Jane’ as Fitz Hawkins.”

“Jane?” Fitz asked, puzzled, as she took a seat on one of the couches at Sam’s invitation to do so. She sure as hell hoped it had been her portfolio they’d looked at. Then again, even if it wasn’t, her foot was in the door and she wasn’t about to let them push it out.

“Jane Doe,” Sam said, a smile on his face as he sat down across from her. “That was all Doug gave me. Now I see why.”

Okay then. Go, Doug.

Sam leaned forward. “Does Nate know you’re meeting with me?”

Fitz shook her head. “I thought it would be better for us to talk first.”

And talk they did. Sam grilled her for forty-five minutes, in fact, asking about everything from investment strategies to office management. “I have to be honest,” he said as their meeting came to a close, “I took this interview as a favor to Doug.”

“Also because you were thoroughly intrigued,” Hannah piped up from where she was sitting at a desk across the room. “And because the portfolio blew you away.”

“Yes, also because,” Sam conceded with a smile. “I was looking for someone with a little more experience, but there was something about your portfolio that kept pulling me back.” He cocked his head. “You think you’re ready for the big leagues?”

To be perfectly honest? Fitz had no freaking idea. But there wasn’t any question he’d thrown at her that she hadn’t been able to handle. And if she’d learned anything from having Nate Hawkins as her big brother, it was that confidence went a very long way. “One hundred percent.”

It made Sam laugh. “That’s the same answer Nate gave me when I asked him if he thought he was good enough to build a baseball team around.”

Well. Fitz had to smile at that. “I guess you have your answer, then.”

Sam sat back, eyes narrow, even as a smile came over his face. “I guess I do.” He stayed like that for a minute, his gaze never leaving hers. Which was pretty damn uncomfortable, but Fitz had been around Nate long enough to know the mind games these guys played, so she knew not to show it.

And it appeared she passed the test. As he stood, Sam said, “I have a group of investors, Nate included, that will be part of the formal interview process. Will that be a problem for you?”

“Absolutely not,” Fitz said, standing up as well. Nate would find out sooner or later and if it was because she’d gotten as far as interviewing with the board, then she was okay with that. And other than the oddity of being interviewed by her brother, Fitz had no qualms sitting at a table with big-name players surrounding it. In fact, she loved the idea. “I’d be honored to have the opportunity to show them what I can do.”

With a nod to Hannah, Sam said, “Let’s set that up then. It won’t be for another month or so as we’ve just begun to gather names. But you will definitely be on the list.”

“Great.” She tried to keep her smile subdued as she shook hands with him and gave Hannah a hug goodbye.

She waited until the elevator came to do a celebratory dance. It was tempered only when it occurred to her Deke wouldn’t be happy about this at all. She didn’t for one second think he’d been serious about her having his babies, but, no, he wouldn’t be happy.

This hadn’t even been an official interview, however. Yes, it had gone well, but who knew how these things worked? Sam might already be having second thoughts. So she’d deal with it later. Compartmentalizing, not avoidance. At least that’s what she told herself.

Along those lines, however, she did have to admit this whole thing with Deke had gotten her thinking. And when she got up to her suite and saw Nate and Dorie stretched out together on one of the lounge chairs out on their balcony, she found herself wondering what it would be like to love someone enough to take the risk they might one day leave. To believe strongly enough in the fact that they loved you back.

Nate looked up right then and raised his hand in greeting, shifting in a way that made it clear Dorie was asleep and he was trying not to wake her as he reached down on the ground for something.

A bottle of water, it appeared, as Fitz went through the door that connected their suites and joined them. Water he almost spilled all over himself when he looked up at her and registered the suit she was wearing, before muttering, “No fucking way,” as he looked back out over the cityscape below.

Well, okay then. Sooner it was. She supposed she hadn’t fully expected to get it by him, especially not after finding out he’d had brunch with Sam. She was just glad she hadn’t needed to have a whole long conversation about it before she went.

“Way,” she murmured, sitting down in the lounge chair next to him.

He shook his head. “You know I’d practically be your boss.”

“You’re practically my boss now,” she reminded him.

He took a sip of water. “That’s different.”

“How so? Because you’d be the only one of my bosses who knows I’ll run stark naked down the hallway if I see a spider while I’m taking a shower as opposed to five out of five?”

Because she had done that once. March Madness, a few years back. Even Cal had witnessed that one. The worst part? All five guys had looked up at her streaking down the hall and then, as one, turned back to the TV. She’d had to actually grab Jason by the ear—he was the closest—in order to get one of them to help her out.

Nate stared at her for a minute then looked away again. “Why didn’t you tell me you wanted a change? We could figure something else out.”

Fighting the urge to glare at him, she reminded herself that he was her brother. He loved her. It was in his nature to want to take care of her—which was part of the problem. Maybe she wanted for once in her life do something all on her own. Maybe she
needed
to know she could rely on herself for when the time came. But instead of actually coming out and saying so, she chickened out. “Because I wasn’t sure I did. I’m still not sure I
do
. But I’d like to see where it goes.”

Nate wasn’t happy about it. That was obvious from the way he set his jaw. But he did say, “I can’t think of anyone who would do a better job than you would.” Then he quietly added, “Sam would be lucky to have you.”

Fitz fought off the tears that came to her eyes. “Thanks.” It was one thing to think about having a new job, another entirely to consider what it would realistically mean to say good-bye to everyone. She’d never had to do that before. Her parents didn’t count because she’d never had the chance to say it. And she talked to them every week. But whatever. She’d be fine.

Changing the subject, Fitz nodded down at Dorie. “You must have tired her out,” she said, wishing she could take it back immediately when Nate raised his eyebrows. “With the dancing, I mean. She was totally into the dancing.”

With a soft laugh, Nate said, “That she was.” Then, a little harder, he said, “You, too.”

“Mmm.” Fitz decided that was agreement enough. Especially because she wasn’t sure if she was pissed at him, since he’d no doubt sicced Deke on her, or grateful, due to what had happened after that. Not that she’d be mentioning any details to Nate, of course. “More parties tonight?”

“Probably.” He reached down for the water. “If that’s what you guys want to do.”

It wasn’t. Not if she couldn’t dance with Deke, at least. “Maybe we could just do some sightseeing. I bet the view from that park above the bridge is awesome at night.” Then again, she was just happy to be somewhere other than Inspiration, so she’d be okay with anything. She shrugged. “Whatever is good.”

Nate barely even seemed to be listening. She was pushing herself out of her chair when he said, “Did you sleep with him?”

She jerked her head up so fast she actually hurt her neck. “
Sam?
” Did he seriously just ask her that?

“
No,
for fuck’s sake,” Nate snapped with the appropriate amount of denial. “With
Deke
.”

Oh.

Fitz felt her cheeks flush and she quickly looked away as Nate swore under his breath. But after taking a deep breath, she turned to meet Nate’s gaze head on. “That’s your business how?”

Eyes narrowing, because he of course had his answer right there, Nate just looked at her for a minute, not backing off at all. “I don’t want to see you get hurt.”

Breaking the stare, Fitz fell back into the chair and looked out over the city again. She didn’t want to see her get hurt, either. Which was why she’d had sex
with Deke, not pledged her life to him. Two very different things.

Since that conversation would have gone over as well as it had with Deke, although for entirely different reasons, Fitz found herself instead asking something she’d never expected to say to Nate. “Do you ever think about Dad?”

Dorie sighed in her sleep and there was the sound of traffic from far below, yet the silence from Nate was overwhelming.

“Do you ever worry that maybe it’s in our blood?” Fitz asked, pushing it. “That maybe even trying to be happy is just an all-around really bad idea?”

Maybe not the best thing to ask a man who’d made a majorly public declaration of love to the woman he’d be marrying in a few months. Whatever, though. He was her big brother and he’d obviously figured a way to come to terms with it. She truly wanted to know how.

To her surprise, he laughed. Then he gave a maddening, completely useless answer. “Nope.”

When nothing else came, she turned back to him. “That’s it?”