Obsession (9 page)

“
Wow, that really hit a
nerve, didn’t it? Actually, I was referring to both comments. The
only person I use cheesy lines on is you.”

“I’m so flattered,” I grumbled into my
beer, taking a rather unladylike gulp. I was relieved he didn’t
really know the few guys he’d pointed to earlier.

I felt Mitch’s soft green eyes
examining me. When I finally set my beer down, I noticed his bottom
lip caught between his teeth. That look made me feel like this
evening could take a turn in a direction I mentally wasn’t willing
to go. My body, on the other hand, might fight my brains
wishes.

Mitch’s eyes met mine as his teeth
released his bottom lip. “Why do I feel like there’s a party girl
under that deliciously form-fitted dress?”

My heart pounded rapidly as he leaned
closer. A promiscuous, no attachment romp session with this
incredibly attractive construction worker sounded right up my
alley.

I leaned forward, my body betraying me
as my face became barely inches from his. “Maybe there is.” My
voice was sultry as my tongue traced my bottom lip. My eyes found
the stubble of his jaw, my fingers now curious to touch the
texture. His arm slid over the bar, making a shield between us and
the busy workers. Calloused fingers gently brushed my forearm
sending shivers of expectations throughout my entire body. There
was no stopping what might happen next.

“What the fuck, Mitch?” Nathan barked,
causing me to jerk out of the haze Mitch created between
us.

I quickly spun away so I
was facing the bar, grabbing my beer and downing the rest of its
contents.
Fuck, that was
close
. I needed to order a water and then
find my way home,
fast
. No way was I going to let anything happen between
us.

“
What?” Mitch asked,
craning his head toward Nathan in annoyance.

“I just got off the phone with
Kobiashi.” My head whipped in Nathan’s direction. His brows were
crinkled and his face was red. “Did you really get arrogant with
him?” Nathan shouted so the entire bar could hear him.

Mitch stood from his stool. He crossed
his arms and glared down at Nathan. Mitch looked like a giant
compared to Nathan’s thin frame. By outer appearances, they were
from different worlds, one impressively put together while the
other comfortable and at ease.

“No, he got in my face first,” Mitch
growled. “He was being the arrogant one. He was being adamant and
making unrealistic demands.”

“He owns half of Miami. He can say
whatever the hell he wants.” His finger pointed at Mitch’s face.
“Don’t EVER get in his face again, do you understand?”

“Don’t talk to me like I’m one of your
low henchmen, Nathan.”

“Then don’t act like one.” Nathan
roared. “What am I going to do with you? You’ve already made a mess
of Grand Rapids. Are you trying to sabotage everything I’ve worked
for in Miami, too?”

“You have no idea what’s going on in
Grand Rapids. And I’m not going to kiss some bullshit company
owner’s ass just to gain his business. We’re better than that,
Nathan.”

“When are you going to grow
up?”

“When you pull your head out of your
ass!”

Mitch slammed his beer down and barged
out the back door. Once the door swung shut, Nathan turned to the
bar top, placing both hands on the edge as his head tipped
down.

“He can’t fuck this up,” he muttered
through gritted teeth.

The scowl on my face was in full form.
Kobiashi was being a jerk, and Mitch shouldn’t have talked to our
biggest client the way he did, but Nathan also didn’t need to yell
at him.

Without thinking, I climbed off my
stool and went out the back door.

A breeze brushed against the bareness
of my arms as I searched the back porch. A few smokers were
chatting quietly on the deck. I found Mitch resting on the banister
facing the beach. The moonlight reflected off the water, and the
sound of the gentle waves was soothing.

I leaned against the banister. “Well,
that was awkward and embarrassing.”

A low, frustrated sigh escaped Mitch’s
mouth. “I don’t need your sass right now, Jamie.”

His reaction to my smart comment made
me wince. I hadn’t meant to fuel his anger. My intentions were to
defuse the situation. “I thought you liked when I was
feisty?”

My recovery was quick, and made his
lip twitch upward. We stood silently under the stars for a few more
moments. Normally, silence like this was extremely uncomfortable
for me, but tonight, it was calming. Finally, Mitch stood tall from
the banister, his hands gripping the wood frame tightly.

“I really didn’t mean to piss Nathan
off like that.”

“
Nathan will get over it,”
I said, brushing it off as though it was no big deal. “You know he
can talk his way out of anything. If I didn’t know any better, I’d
say Kobiashi has a crush on him.”

That statement got a slight laugh from
Mitch. “I’m sure Nathan would give him a chance if it meant he’d
get what he wanted.”

I shook my head. “He’s not his
type.”

Mitch’s eyebrow rose in question. “Are
you his type?”

“I’m missing a few key components to
his usual preference.”

“And what would that be?”

I laughed.
“
Well
,
a penis, for one.”

Mitch threw his head back
and joined my laughter. His cool green eyes caught mine. “Want to
get out of here?” Licking his lips, he leaned in,
“
I promise
it
’ll be a night you
won’
t
forget.
”

My teeth caught my bottom lip as I
contemplated his invitation. “That’s an overused line,” I whispered
as my body instinctively moved closer to him. He shifted slightly,
moving his arm across my stomach and to the other side of the
banister, caging me with his body. My heart raced with his
proximity, the urge to reach my hands onto the collar of his shirt
and yank his mouth down to mine was overbearing.

“You know you want to. Your body is
practically begging to touch me right now.”

My lip twitched as I shook my head.
“I’d never admit that.” The cockiness in his voice made me want to
slap him then rip his shirt off and lick his chest.

“
Let’s go,” Nathan’s voice
vibrated from the back door to the bar. Mitch moved his head, his
nose brushing against the shell of my ear. Shivers ran down my neck
all the way to the pit of my stomach and lower as he let out a
slight breath.

“Jamie,” Nathan commanded again,
completely breaking my trance with Mitch.

My trembling hands gently pushed
Mitch’s chest so I could move in Nathan’s direction. The irritated
breath Mitch released didn’t go unnoticed by Nathan or
me.

“What?” I snapped, my head whipping in
Mitch’s direction.

Mitch slowly turned so his back was
leaning against the banister, his arms wide. His demeanor was smug,
causing the shivers that traveled down my body to turn into fire. I
hated his cocky side.

“Nothing. Go be with Daddy. I’m sure
he’ll satisfy the flame I just lit inside you,” he
teased.

“You’re a prick,” I muttered, my face
burning with embarrassment. His head cocked to the side as though
he were daring me to say more.

“Let’s go,” Nathan grabbed my bicep
and tucked it under his arm. “I’ll see you in my office on Monday
in Grand Rapids,” Nathan added sternly toward Mitch.

“Wouldn’t miss it, big brother,” Mitch
mocked as we walked out the door.

I shrugged my arm from Nathan’s the
second we got out of the bar. Nathan calmly walked next to me, his
long stride keeping up with my quick pace to his yellow Spider
Ferrari. Holding my tongue was nearly impossible as he opened my
door.

Our ride was silent until we were
halfway home, then our festered anger got the best of
us.

“Don’t get caught up with Mitch.” The
temper that Nathan was trying to hold in still seeped through his
words.

“Excuse me?”

“You heard me.” His grip on the
steering wheel caused his knuckles to turn white. “He’s not stable
right now. Tyler and I think he’s using again.”

I scoffed. “I know users,
I’ve seen them one too many times, and he is
not
using.” I closed my eyes, trying
to erase the memories from my head.

“Oh really?” His tone pissed me
off.

“Yes, Nathan. I did a work study
program at a police department my junior year of high school. I’ve
seen junkies strung out on all sorts of drugs.” I hated talking
about that time in my life, a time I so desperately wished I could
take back.

“You lied to me today,” Nathan said as
we arrived at the condo.

He shut off the car and opened his
door, slamming it shut. I huffed and reached for the handle,
wanting to open my own door. I met him head on, the only object
between us being the door.

“You lied. You told me everything went
fine today,” Nathan growled. I scrunched my eyes in confusion.
“About Mitch and Kobiashi!” Nathan shouted in
frustration.

I rolled my eyes and walked around
him, slamming the door in the process. “Don’t ignore this. That was
a poor decision not to tell your CEO that his site manager mouthed
off to his biggest client.”

I stopped in my tracks, halfway up the
steps to the condo. My hands found my hips as I stared down at
Nathan. “One, don’t turn this into any bullshit job situation, and
two, Kobiashi was a dick to your brother. He could use some harsh
words sent in his direction.”

“No, and no.” Nathan scolded. “This IS
work related. We may be friends, but we will always be work
associates. As long as you’re working under me, honesty is crucial.
If I can’t trust you’ll tell me the truth, especially when it deals
with our biggest client, don’t think I won’t get rid of you.” His
blue eyes were as cold as ice.

Fortunately, I had the fire to put
them out.

“I’m the most trustworthy person on
your team. Don’t ever fucking threaten to replace me, Nathan.
You’ll regret it the rest of your life. I told you, Kobiashi was
being a jerk. He needs a challenge. That’s the type of man he is.
If anything, Mitch will always be someone Kobiashi can respect
because he stood up to him. He didn’t jump when Kobiashi said how
high. He gave him the facts, and still said it’d be possible. You
can’t always give a client what they demand, Nathan.”

“There’s still a certain way to handle
it. Mitch was rude, not professional. I just spent twenty minutes
trying to reassure Kobiashi everything would be fine.”

“Did he ask for a new on-site
manager?” I challenged.

Nathan’s jaw ticked in irritation.
“No.”

I raised a brow, proving my point.
Nathan sighed in frustration with his fists balled to his sides. He
knew I was right, and that was something Nathan never handled
well.

“You still need to stay away from
Mitch.”

I spun on my heel to go inside. I
didn’t need to be lectured by Nathan anymore.

“He may not be using, but he’s
involved with Chino and his drug scheme in Grand Rapids. Besides,
he only sleeps with whores.”

“And what exactly would you consider a
whore? A one night stand?” I spat, throwing my purse on the table.
Nathan closed and locked the door, then proceeded to undo his
tie.

“You’re too good for him,
Jamie.”

“Who said I was into him? He’s
obnoxious and conceited, just like his brother.”

“I may be obnoxious and conceited, but
I’m not a drug dealer.”

“Give me a break. Mitch isn’t smart
enough to deal drugs. I’d sure hope you’d be able to figure that
out.” I scoffed, flopping down on the couch. Nathan stood in front
of me with his arms crossed. He was prepared to keep arguing, and I
really wasn’t in the mood.

“Someone is hiding drugs on our
properties in Grand Rapids through Chino. Considering he’s always
on-site, we have a strong belief it’s him.”

I crossed my legs and arms. “I’m
telling you right now, that man isn’t capable of handling a
multi-location drug scheme. You and Tyler need to look
elsewhere.”

“Do you think I want Mitch to be the
one who’s hiding drugs? Of course not, but he knows our building
sites the best. That’s why we think it’s him.”

“
Well, it’s
not.”

Exasperated with the conversation, I
stood and made my way toward my bedroom. I slammed the door shut
before Nathan could come after me. I was tired of listening to his
bullshit business side. I’d talk to him in the morning when we
weren’t fuming.

My mind flashed back to the moment
Mitch’s nose brushed my ear and how it made my skin come alive with
need. I pulled open the bottom drawer of my nightstand to find
every woman’s secret joy. Setting BOB down on my pillow put a small
smile on my face. I’d clean up for bed and then be put to a
peaceful sleep by some vibrating magic.