Chapter One
Some days it didn’t pay to get out of bed.
Today was not one of those days, or so Tawny Torres had thought a few hours ago. Now, as she made her way back from lunch to her desk, she had some doubts on the matter. Determined not to let getting stood up spoil her mood, Tawny shoved all thoughts of what’s-his-name out of her mind and focused on her to-do list.
She crossed off “blind date.” So maybe it was with more force than necessary. A girl’s entitled to a little anger.
Now she could focus on the next item, “get promoted.” Today was the day. For the past two weeks, her new boss, Mr. Leduc, at Powers Bank & Trust had promised he’d name the new loan officer, and this morning he’d finally posted a notice for a staff meeting. This was it. After eight long years, countless hours of overtime, bending over backward, and kissing ass, she was going to get her reward. Not that being a loan officer was her ultimate goal. Nope, but it was the next step in “the plan.”
Powering up her computer, she glanced around the bank, letting her gaze linger on the empty office to her right. A month ago, her friend, mentor, and immediate supervisor Jane Flannery had transferred to Boston, paving the way for Tawny’s move up the corporate ladder. Jane had even recommended Tawny as her replacement when she left. Her former boss assured her the position was hers. A done deal, or would be if the new manager would stop putting off the inevitable.
“Tawny.” Emma called to her from across the lobby as she hurried over to Tawny’s desk. “I know it’s not official yet, but congrats on the promotion. Really, they should have promoted you to bank manager when Mr. North retired, instead of the guy they brought in. You know how to do everyone’s job around here, and no one works harder than you do.”
“Thanks. I’ll settle for head loan officer for now. Are you still interested in moving over to this side of the house?” The young woman had been hinting for the past couple of years about her desire to move away from the teller department, but since her return from maternity leave a couple of weeks ago, her interest seemed to have waned.
“Definitely. With little Ava’s arrival, it’s even more important to me now than before. To be honest, if I could, I’d be a stay-at-home mom. It’s the best job in the world and I worry about her every minute I’m away. You should have heard the horror stories some of the other moms told in my Mommy and Me class. The thing is, my husband doesn’t make enough on his salary alone. Not for our goals. We have preschool to think of so we can get her in the right primary school, or she won’t get accepted into an Ivy League university.” She started pacing back and forth in front of the desk. “Some of the moms I met at playgroup had started preparing for this stuff before they were even pregnant. I’m so behind the curve.”
Tawny laid a hand on her arm, stopping her in her tracks. “Relax, Ava will be fine and I’ll be happy to put a good word in for you with Mr. Leduc.”
Her coworker thanked her and hurried back to work. Tawny shook her head and brought up her e-mail. If Mom had her way, Tawny would be an Emma clone, popping out babies right and left and worrying about nannies, tuition, and the future of someone whose sole agenda was sleeping, eating, and pooping. She wouldn’t even be Tawny anymore, simply someone’s mom or wife. She’d cease to exist. If she followed her mom’s wishes. For now, she had enough on her plate worrying about her career. Besides, marriage and kids would come in time. She had it on her list.
“Hey, the Martins stopped in to sign their loan papers while you were out. They were walking on cloud nine.” Mark James stopped in front of her desk, drumming his fingers.
“No problem, any time.”
“Thanks again for helping me get the paperwork done and getting them approved. I guess I better learn to handle them on my own”
“It’ll come in time.”
Little stress lines dug in deep at the corners of his eyes, between his brows, and at the corners of his mouth. “Mr. Leduc wants to see you.”
“Okay, thanks.” Tawny looked to the manager’s office and back to her coworker. Was the new guy axing employees already? “Is everything okay, Mark? You look upset.”
“I’m fine. Everything’s fine. It’s all going to be fine,” he mumbled as he walked away.
***
Ignoring the happy souls around her in the pub, Tawny lined up her target, focused on one image and one image only, and let her weapon of choice fly.
Bull’s-eye!
Right in the schnoz, or where she’d pictured her former boss’s big, fat nose would be on the dartboard. That made three in a row. Maybe another three or three thousand and she’d be able to release the remains of the anger radiating through her body. She downed the rest of her Cosmo, flagged the waitress, and ordered another. She’d rather be home chilling with her favorite guys, Ben & Jerry, but she’d been summoned. Epically crappy day or not, she wouldn’t let her best friend down.
Of course, there was nothing in the BFF rulebook that said a little liquid fortification couldn’t be called upon. Just enough to enable her to plaster on her yay-it’s-hump-day smile and not ruin everyone else’s day. Not enough to plot out acts of revenge and end up wearing orange coveralls for life. Orange was seriously not the new black.
Caressing the sharp tip with her thumb, Tawny studied the board and imagined her next target. Visual firmly pictured, she let that baby fly with everything she had, taking great satisfaction as the needle embedded in the soft material.
“You’re leaning a little to the left when you release. Hold steady and you’ll get a bull’s-eye.”
Tawny turned to the luscious, but taken male specimen giving her advice and smirked. “Actually, I hit exactly where I was aiming.”
“Oh yeah, and what where you picturing?” Her best friend, Cherry Ryan, studied the board as she laid her purse on the table next to Tawny’s empty glass. “Or should I not ask?”
“Doglover12’s left nut sack.”
Jason, the luscious male specimen and her bestie’s fiancé, flinched. “I think that’s my cue to hit the bar for drinks. Tawny, what are you drinking tonight?”
“Already got one on the way, sweetums, but thanks.” She planted a wet one on his cheek before he scurried off.
Cherry picked up the next dart, lining up the target. “So, what did Doglover12 do to deserve losing half of his pride and joy?”
Tawny waved her off as she took the drink from the waitress. “It’s nothing. Don’t worry about it. Already forgotten. Besides, you called saying you needed me, not the other way around. What’s up?” She took a sip of her drink, savoring the burn as the vodka slid down her throat. “By the way, you look pretty hot in that sundress. I like how the purple brings out the blue in your eyes, and you’re going to have to show me how to do that braid thingy with my hair.”
“Nice try, sister. We’re not talking about me until I know why you’re slicing and dicing some guy I’ve never heard of before now.”
Propping her elbows on the tall table, Tawny rested her chin on her laced fingers. “Really, it’s nothing. Not even the bad part of my day.”
“Which is why you’re sucking down Cosmos like they’re Kool-Aid. You may as well as spill your guts because you know I’m not going to give up until you do.”
“Dios! A Chihuahua with a bone has nothing on you. Fine. He stood me up at lunch today. Actually, that’s not true. Apparently, he showed, saw me in person, and left. Then he sent me a text saying, ‘Sorry, I like my women a little less voluptuous.’”
Cherry flinched. “Where do I find the jerk and how do you want him to die?”
And that was why Tawny loved her friend. Not only would she bail you out when needed, she’d hide the body for you.
“I can see why you were on the verge of giving up dating when you met Jason. Hey—” Tawny looked over toward the bar. Over six feet of deliciousness, with spiky dark brown hair, serious blue-green eyes, and one of the best hearts she’d ever known. Yeah, the world could do with more of his kind. “Do you think we could clone him? You know, with a different face, of course, because otherwise that’d be creepy.”
Cherry smiled dreamily as she glanced toward the love of her life. They’d make beautiful babies, ones with Cherry’s auburn hair and Jason’s eyes. “Trust me, Prince Charming has a few personality faults. Impatient tops the list. Why do you think he keeps pushing for a wedding date?”
“Having a guy who’s crazy about you and in a hurry to spend the rest of his life with you is a fault?” Tawny sputtered.
“You’re right. It’s pretty damn hot. But he has other flaws. He leaves the toilet seat up and he can’t cook more than a few basics, he’s stubborn, and . . .” A sigh escaped as Cherry glanced once again toward Jason. “What I’m trying to say is, everyone has their warts. It’s just a matter of finding the one you can live with. The one who sets your soul on fire with one look.”
Tawny had met that guy, the one who turned her into a jittery schoolgirl with her first crush. The one who made her burn for his touch. The one who made her want to throw caution to the wind and say the hell with her plan and let life happen on its own. Unfortunately, she wasn’t that girl. She had a mission with goals to achieve and she would, whether alone or with a man at her side, remained to be seen.
The waitress walked by and Cherry ordered a Bay Breeze for her and another Cosmo for Tawny. Cherry waved off Tawny’s protest. “I get the feeling you’ve earned a double shot today, and don’t worry, Jason will drive us home. Now, hit me with the big bad. What else happened?”
Heat rushed to Tawny’s cheeks, flooding her body with embarrassment as she remembered her boss’s hand on her ass, him pushing her against the wall. The panic that had set in, freezing her brain, keeping her from fighting the bastard off. Did she let the anger rule when he told her she could be his mistress, but would never hold a management position in his bank? No. She caved. His word against hers, he gloated. No point filing a complaint, he said. So, she took the coward’s way out and quit.
Modify it, she told herself. Go with the simpler answer, one that won’t drag everyone into her hell.
“I got fired.”
“Whaaat?” Cherry reached for her drink, chugged the last quarter of an inch, and slammed the glass down. “Give me a sec, my brain is still trying to wrap itself around what you said, but it keeps coming up with What. The. Heck. I thought you were up for a promotion. What happened?”
“Imagine what my brain is doing.” Tawny absently stared out the window, trying to figure out what she could have done differently. “I came back from the disaster known as lunch and Mr. Leduc—the guy who got Mr. North’s job—called me in. Basically, he thanked me for applying for the position, however, they felt Mark was a better fit and he was terribly sorry to have to tell me they were letting me go. Economic setbacks, blah, blah, blah.”
“You’ve worked there for eight years and Mark’s been there what? Two?”
“Yep.”
“What about your recommendation from Jane or Mr. North’s promise?” Cherry asked, clearly stunned.
“Figments of my imagination?” Tawny suggested.
“This makes no sense. You were the stronger candidate, especially with your degree. I remember you saying Mark didn’t hold one.”
“Honestly, the new guy strikes me as the old-fashioned kind. You know, it’s a man’s world.” Just let it go, she silently begged as she sat at a nearby booth.
“Seriously? Do you have proof?” Cherry asked, scowling at her empty glass and taking the spot across from her.
“No, and I wouldn’t want to get Mark fired anyway. He’s a good guy and is the sole moneymaker for his family. So, there you have it. I got stood up and axed all in one day.”
“Fired. Wow.”
“Who got fired?” Jason asked as he slipped into the booth next to Cherry.
“Me,” Tawny said.
“What?” David Farber, Jason’s best friend asked as he slid onto the seat next to Tawny.
Just great. The day just kept getting crappier and crappier. Not that she hated David; in reality, the man did things to her she’d rather not address. Things like making her heart race and urging her to scoot closer without saying a word. Usually guys with light hair did nothing for her. Maybe it was his piercing blue eyes that seemed to look right through a woman’s armor straight to her heart. Whatever it was, his playboy ways put him at the top of the “never-doing” list.
On most days his c’est le vie attitude balanced everyone out, kept tensions low and the environment happy. Today she wasn’t in the mood. Cherry and Jason would understand the severity of the position she was in. David, with his Peter Pan syndrome, would probably think of it as a summer vacation.
“I really don’t want to talk about it,” Tawny said.
“You sure? These shoulders can take it, if you need one,” David offered.
She looked into his smiling eyes and fought the urge to smack him. “Seriously? You’re going to pick the worst day of my life to hit on me? Getting stood up and fired isn’t enough?”
“The guy’s an idiot. My offer was one of friendship. Nothing else.”
Cherry and Jason both sat with their mouths hanging open. Tawny wasn’t sure if they were shocked at what she’d said or at David. “Look, can we table this discussion for the night, please? Neither event is the end of the world. Didn’t you have something you wanted to talk about or tell us?”
Cherry sat with her hands intertwined with Jason’s. She looked up to Jason, then back to Tawny before looking down at her hands. “It’s not important, we can talk about it later.”
“Cherry.”
Her friend glanced nervously at her fiancé and smiled. “We’ve set a wedding date.”
Tawny whipped out her smartphone and pulled up the calendar. “That’s fantastic. When’s the happy day?”
“The second Saturday in October,” Cherry hesitantly told her.
David reached across the table, exchanged some kind of man-code handshake with the groom. “Congrats, Cupid. It’s about time you made an honest woman out of our girl here.”
“Trust me, I’ve been trying for weeks,” Jason responded.
After noting the date on her calendar, Tawny shut that app down and brought up her notes app. “October of this year, correct?”
Cherry gave her a small smile and nodded.
“Three months to plan a wedding? Lucky for you, I’m a very organized person and between the two of us we should have no problem. Thank goodness your classes don’t start until the end of summer.”
A quick look passed between the lovebirds, and Tawny waited for the other shoe to smack her upside the head. “Actually, I’m going to need a little more help from you than normally would be asked. See, the director of the community center found out about me going back to school for counseling, and she asked if I could do an internship-type thing now. It’s in the evenings after I get off work, which doesn’t leave a lot of time for wedding stuff.”
“No problem. Tell me what you need me to do and it’s done. You know you can count on me.” Tawny started making a list of all the essential tasks.
“Dave, we were hoping as Jason’s best man, you’d be willing to help Tawny out. Maybe check out some venues together, some cake testing, that sort of thing.” Cherry looked at the two of them with mournful puppy eyes and pink staining her perfect Irish complexion.
“Anything you need from me, sweetheart, I’m happy to do.” He turned to Jason. “What about Brody?”
“What about me?” The third part of the three amigos slid into the booth, shoving David totally into Tawny’s personal space. “Sorry I’m late. This client is going to kill me, if I don’t kill her first.”
The guy looked beat. Strain lines raced out from the corners of his eyes, while dark circles shadowed the area underneath. Somewhere between the office and the pub he’d ditched his suit coat and tie and rolled up the sleeves on his button-down shirt. The man was a total one-eighty from David, who dressed in jeans, a faded T-shirt, and work boots. Different styles, different personalities, all linked by a shared past and the same wary look in their eyes. Mama mia, they were a potent dose of testosterone when put together.
The edgy boy next door, the charmer, and the rake. It was the first thought that came to her mind when she’d met Jason, David, and Brody, and after getting to know them she’d realized her instincts had nailed it dead-on.
“I’m the best man. You cool with that?” David asked.
“Yep, more work for you, and I get to sit back and watch the circus.” Brody flagged down a passing waitress, asked if they’d ordered, and then put in his drink and food order. “You two need anything from me, just say the word.”
Jason’s smile spread from ear to ear. “How about you help Fubar plan the bachelor party? This way none of us will end up in jail and I’ll still be able to get married.”
“Oh sure, leave the most important task up to the stuffed suit. No worries, Cherry, we’ll all be sitting around playing bingo and home in bed by nine o’clock,” David teased.
The guys ribbed each other, exchanging insults as only true friends who’ve known each other a lifetime can do. Tawny sat back in her space, lost in her own thoughts. Mentally she listed out what she’d need to do tomorrow: check bank balance, update résumé, and scour every job website out there. She’d hold off telling her parents for now. If she got lucky, she’d find another job before they even knew and she could save herself the headache from the multitude of lectures they’d dish out. Speeches about if only she’d find a good husband, she wouldn’t have to worry about finding a job, or how it was a woman’s place to take care of the home and raise the children. This might be the new millennium, but her parents were squarely stuck in 1950, living in between Ward and June Cleaver and Ozzie and Harriet Nelson.
“You okay?” David had leaned over to whisper in her ear, and if she turned just right her lips would match up perfectly with his.
Turning her head only far enough to acknowledge him, she noted his usual playful smile was gone. This serious David pulled at her with an intensity she’d never felt before. “Couldn’t be better. Hanging with friends, a drink in one hand and all the free time in the world ahead of me.” She tried to keep the sarcasm out of her voice. Key word, tried.
“My offer still stands if you need someone to talk to. Anytime, day or night.”
Tawny cocked an eyebrow at the offer.
“Honestly, I’m offering as a friend, and I promise to be on my best behavior.”
When he looked at her, she felt like no other women existed in the universe and no one else mattered more to him. Warmth spread through her body, setting her on fire. Her breath slowed. Her gaze dropped to his mouth. Were his lips as soft as they looked? She caught herself before she reached up and ran her fingers along his jawline, felt the stubble of his beard tickle her palm, or tested his lips.
“I’ll keep it in mind.”
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