Playing for Kicks (Play Makers Book 5) (45 page)

“It’s not that. We didn’t even talk about
pay, so I think Erica’s estimate was probably correct.”

“But he
did
offer you the job? If not,
he’s a bigger asshole than John
says
he is.”

“Johnny doesn’t like him?” Tess pursed her
lips. “I didn’t know that. I wonder why.”

Sean stopped himself from telling her the
truth—the big dog thought Rorsch took advantage of Erica’s trusting
nature. Exploited her for her brains. Her talent. Not to mention
her hotness.

“Anyway,” she continued. “He offered me
two
jobs. The one with Erica, which he equates with flipping
burgers, which to him means not very challenging. Not that I care
as long as I help her out and get extra income. Or I could choose
Job Number Two and work directly for him. As some sort of
protégée.”

“Doing
what?”
He flashed an apologetic
smile. “You’re multi-talented, no doubt. But computers?
Programming? Do you even
like
that stuff?”

He expected her to laugh, but instead, she
assured him, “It’s something else. Some sort of brainstorming gig.
Where you watch the birth of an idea then see it through. It was
flattering, actually. Just so weird and unexpected.”

“Yeah.” Her expression was indecipherable, so
he took another route. “What about your journalism career? It’s
just taking off.”

“That’s what
I
said. And he said he’s
already written two books while working a demanding job. He thinks
being busy stimulates creativity, and I agree. The trouble with
bartending is the late-night hours.” She laughed at herself. “I
could barely keep up with him. So I really don’t know what this is.
But he called it the opportunity of a lifetime, and that’s probably
true. Shadowing Carlos Rorsch? A true Renaissance man?”

He watched as she struggled with the idea.
With that new image of herself. The same way
he
was
struggling with it. It was almost surreal, but if she wanted
it?

“You’d kick ass for sure,” he told her
firmly. “The question is, does it interest you? And the
big
question is . . .” He summoned his best Tantric grin. “Would
you move to Portland?”

Chapter
Fourteen

Only Sean Decker could find the romance in
this business proposition, Tess decided. If she moved to Portland,
they would sleep together. Eat together. Do so much more together
than if she commuted from Seattle.

That alone was worth taking one of these
jobs, wasn’t it?

Plus, Rorsch had thrown down the gauntlet
during that crazy interview. Challenged her. And while that sort of
tactic didn’t usually work on her, she had played along because she
thought they were discussing the job as Erica’s assistant, and that
job wasn’t a challenge at all.

Wasn’t that why it appealed to her?

Sean was waiting for a reply, so she told
him, “If I take either job, I’d probably move here. The only thing
keeping me in Seattle is Zone D. And I could visit there a lot. And
visit the other Ed too.”

“Makes sense,” he agreed.

She smiled at the hopeful tone. “There’s an
apartment complex near the Rorsch campus where a lot of the
employees live. Erica says it has a good reputation. And reasonable
rent. Cheaper than the Ashton for sure, even if they give Murf a
discount.”

“Sounds good,” he mused. “Or you could live
here. I’m just throwing that out,” he added quickly. “For now. Or
the future. Whatever works for you.”

Her heart pounded. Live in this paradise with
the man of her dreams?

“If we did that, I’d want to share expenses.
Seriously, Sean. I know you make more money than I do, but it’s the
principle of the thing.”

“Most of my expenses would stay the same. But
yeah, we could share groceries. Not fifty-fifty, since you eat like
a horse—”

“
Silence.”
She looped her arms around
his neck. “It sounds like so much fun. So I’ll think about it.
Thanks.”

His kiss rocked her, and she wanted to give
in to it, but she needed one more piece of advice. And he seemed to
get the message, because he interrupted his sexy assault to ask
cheerfully, “There’s more?”

“Just one thing. But it’s important. So
promise me you’ll be honest?”

“I’m always honest with you, babe. That’s the
deal.”

She winced, reminding herself she had to get
better at that. Not that she lied a lot, but it had been an easy
way to avoid controversy growing up. And with other guys. With
everyone, really.

That had to change. And it would, thanks to
Sean.

She locked eyes with him. “Rorsch said I’m
afraid of success. Which is so strange, because people told me that
for years. Not just my parents, but teachers and guidance
counsellors. Except they called it fear of
failure.
Still,
same difference, right?”

“Man,” he said, chuckling. “Someone needs a
trip to Hawaii—
stat.”

“What?”

“You don’t have fear of success, baby. You
are
a success.” His voice deepened. “And you don’t have fear
of failure either. Why would you? That’s someone else’s trip, not
yours.”

She smiled wistfully. “Thanks, Sean. I needed
to hear that. But still . . . what does it have to do
with Hawaii?”

“Remember what your sister said? Hawaii gave
you permission to be yourself. And yeah, you’re protective of that.
Maybe even paranoid about it. But otherwise? You’re effing
fearless.”

Fearless? Did he honestly believe that? It
meant so much.

And she
was
paranoid about losing the
ground she had gained in Hawaii. Leave it to Sean to appreciate
that. To be as protective of it as she was.

“You’ve put a lot of thought into this,
Romeo,” she murmured. “So have I, to be honest. Trying to figure
you
out. Not just for the article but for myself. For
us.”

“I know. You couldn’t afford to shack up with
some beach bum.” He chuckled. “I’m glad I finally passed the
test.”

“You think this is about Dad’s curse?” She
sighed. “Maybe a little. But mostly, I was just so bizarrely
attracted to you. So I had to be sure.” She smiled wistfully,
tousling his hair. “You
do
have a surfer-dude vibe, you
know. But it’s my favorite part.”

“Good.” He brushed his lips over hers then
murmured, “Just don’t let Rorsch play with your head.”

“So you’re saying I should take the job as
Erica’s assistant?”

“You’d crush either job. So I’m not choosing
sides.” His hand crept under her skirt. “Maybe we should sleep on
it.”

She sighed happily. “I want to. But I
promised Erica a full report right away. In person. So we need to
be quick.”

“Quick is my specialty,” he promised. “Even
though . . .” He eyed the fancy black suit. “I had huge plans
for this.”

“What kind of plans?” she asked breathlessly.
“Because Erica can definitely wait.”

• • •

When they arrived at the McSpurling home,
Erica was already on the porch. “Finally! You said you’d come
straight here.”

“Hello, Erica,” Tess said teasingly. “How was
your day?”

“Oh, stop it.” She gave her a hug, then
hugged Sean and whispered loudly, “He offered her the job, right?
And she accepted it?”

“It’s kinda complicated, so I’ll let Tess
tell it.”

They followed their hostess into the living
room, where Johnny was waiting. Tess was dying to ask him what he
didn’t like about Carlos Rorsch, but hesitated in case he hadn’t
shared his misgivings with his wife. Not that that was likely.

“So?” The QB gave her a hearty embrace then
held her at arm’s length. “Do you work for my wife now? Because
that means you work for me, too.”

“I’ll work for
you
for free, big
fella,” she assured him with a wink.

Erica tried again. “You had the interview?
And . . . ?”

“Brace yourself. Because he offered me
two
jobs, Erica. One as your assistant, one as
his
assistant. It’s seriously confusing.”

Erica gasped. “He’s stealing you from
me?”

“It’s complicated. He’s see the job for you
as routine. In a good way. I provide support for you, I get a
paycheck. But if I work directly for him, he’s grooming me—I
think—to do more. Like an intern or something.”

“He wants to turn you into another Erica,”
Johnny interrupted. “Big effing surprise.”

“Pardon?”

“The guy
hates
sharing her with the
New York office. Even though she technically works for Caldwell,
not him. He can’t get his way with
her,
so he tries to hire
her best friend to play that role. It’s sick.”

Shocked, Tess looked at Sean, who shrugged
and said, “I think you impressed Rorsch today. And you’d kick ass
as his protégée. But John has a point. You’re pretty, you’re smart,
you’re Erica’s friend. You’re nothing like her in a lot of ways,
but maybe to this guy, those ways don’t matter.”

“Exactly,” Johnny muttered. “Because we
all
know what matters to
this
guy.”

“No,” Tess told him gently. “He didn’t come
on to me. Not even a little.”

“And he hasn’t come on to me either,” Erica
insisted. “Not once. The problem is, I oversold Tess. Raved about
her. How unique she is. It’s all true, but it never occurred to me
he’d want her for himself. What a burn.”

“Tell her about the flipping-burgers part,”
Sean suggested mischievously.

Tess sighed. “He basically thinks the job
with you is more like a glorified go-fer. Whereas with him, I’d be
more challenged.”

“Oh, really?” Erica drawled. “He’s so dead
it’s not even funny. I told him a million times you’d be
brainstorming with me. Not photocopying or answering the phone,
although . . .” She smiled in apology. “Maybe sometimes.”

Tess laughed. “Photocopying is my dream job.
If it weren’t for paper jams, I’d be in.”

“So it’s settled? You want me, not
Carlos?”

“She didn’t say that,” Sean protested. “It
came out of left field. And it’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
So . . .”

Tess gave him an appreciative glance. “If I
had to decide today, I’d go with photocopying and brushing Erica’s
hair. But I promised Mr. Rorsch I’d think about the shadowing gig.”
Hesitating, she asked Erica, “Aren’t you tempted to take it for
yourself? Be based in Portland full-time?”

She shook her head. “I worked hard to get
where I am in advertising. I don’t mind doing odd jobs for Rorsch
Enterprises since they supply me a West Coast office, but I don’t
actually
work
for Carlos. And I like it this way.” She eyed
Tess curiously. “Did you remind him about your journalism
career?”

“Several times. To the point where I felt
like he was messing with me, so I started fighting back a
little.”

“I bet he liked
that,”
Johnny drawled.
“Feisty but not too feisty. This guy’s so predictable.”

Tess wanted to defend Carlos Rorsch, but the
front door slammed open and a cheerful voice boomed, “Hey, Bammie!
Get over here.”

She laughed and met Bam halfway, pleased when
he pulled her into a bear hug.

Then he scolded her, saying, “We missed you
at the game. It hurt my feelings.”

“I’m sure Rachel made it up to you,” she
drawled. “And I’m making you a turkey. So we’re even.”

Grabbing her, he propelled her into the
living room, and they quickly decided pizza was the best way to
celebrate Tess’s job offers, especially if Tess would serve them
drinks while they waited for the delivery guy.

Pleased, she took their orders. For Johnny, a
martini, while Sean and Bam went for margaritas.

Then she turned to Erica. “Let me guess: a
dirty martini?”

“It would put me to sleep. So I’ll just have
a Coke, thanks.”

Tess gave her a teasing smile. “You didn’t
drink in San Francisco either. Are you pregnant or something?”

She expected Erica to laugh, and when she
grimaced instead, Tess kicked herself.

Wow.

Then Erica sent Johnny a not-so-subtle
glance. “I need to talk to you. In private.”

The QB’s eyes widened. “Huh?”

Taking him by the arm, his wife flashed an
apologetic smile at their guests, then hurried him out of the room
and down the hall.

Bam scowled. “What the hell just
happened?”

Tess instinctively reached for their
hands—Bam’s
and
Sean’s. “You guys . . . Don’t you
see? Erica’s pregnant.”

“The big dog knocked her up? Already?” Bam
asked, his tone filled with wonder.

Tess focused on Sean, knowing this had to be
huge for him. And when his smile was so wide, so goofy, she knew
how much he wanted this for his friends. And maybe someday for
himself.

“Unbelievable,” he marveled.

Bam sounded angelic too when he asked, “Do
you think they’ll call him Bam?”

“You’re an idiot,” Sean said with a laugh.
“It’s Baby Aaron, remember? For his brother?”

“Oh, right.”

“Or it could be a girl,” Tess reminded them.
“Either way, you’ll be Uncle Vince and Uncle Sean.”

“Vince?” Bam objected. “How about Uncle Bam
and Uncle Deck? And Aunt Bammie.”

“Auntie Tess,” she corrected him wistfully.
“You need to call Rachel right away, you know. After that, come
home with us and we’ll order that pizza.”

“Nah, I’ll just head back to my place. The
teach is gonna want to talk about this all night. Me too,” he added
with a giddy smile. “We’re having a baby.”

“You’re an idiot,” Sean repeated, but Tess
was pretty sure he felt the same way.

The Triple Threat was having a baby.

• • •

Still dazed by their lovemaking, Erica smiled
happily into her husband’s eyes. “Wow.”

“Yeah, not bad,” he agreed. Then he winced.
“You think it’s safe, right? For the baby?”