Hotshot (10 page)

I reach out and tag her around the waist, tugging her into me until she’s flush against my body. “Okay, I’ll rephrase. There’s no doubt in my mind you can manage. But in the case you start to struggle, it’s me helping you reel it in.”

“What if I can do it myself?”

“You don’t get it, do you? I know you can do it yourself, but it’s the perfect excuse to wrap my arms around you. Which is exactly where you belong.”

Her breath hitches, and she grips my hips tightly.

“Shaw,” her breathy rasp hits me everywhere.

“Stop,” I force out. “I can’t take it. Six hours. That’s all we have is six hours, then I get you back to myself.”

“Six hours, huh?” her face takes on a whole new expression. One that makes every nerve in my body sizzle.

Her body rubs against mine before she steps back and tips her head, eyes darting between the guys behind us and back to me.

“Shaw Bennett, I’ve been waiting ten years… Six hours is nothing.”

She saunters away, my eyes glued to her ass.

Her perfect, sexy, swaying ass.

I’m buying a boat. My brothers and I have been tossing the idea around for a few years, but we’ve never acted on it. After today, the decision is made. Watching Bizzy’s excitement and hearing her laughter sealed the deal. I’m buying a fucking boat, and I’m taking Bizzy out every chance we get. And next time, I won’t have to share her with anyone. It’ll be just us.

I take a sip of my beer and turn on my phone, noticing several missed calls from a number I don’t recognize. The only message I have is from Mathis, wanting to know if we caught anything. I shoot him a quick text and a picture of the five of us with our catches from the day. Then I Google boat sales in Miami.

“She’s really something, Shaw. You need to hold on to her.” Perry sits next to me and motions with his head to Bizzy.

I look at her, lying on her stomach with her head resting on her hands. Once we started our ride back, she decided to take advantage of the time to work on her tan. When she slipped out of her clothes, exposing her black bikini, I almost jumped out of my skin, my eyes bulging. She gave me a shy smile and laid down, thankfully shielding most of herself. Now, her eyes are closed as she sleeps.

“I don’t plan on letting her go, so don’t get any ideas.”

He gives a little chuckle, shaking his head. “Wouldn’t dream of it. But if she ever gets rid of your ass, I’ll be in line.”

“Afraid you’ll be waiting a long time.”

“Wow, that serious, huh?”

“Absolutely.

“Gotta say, after our meeting, I did my own research on you. Saw that chick you were with at last year’s ESPY awards. She didn’t hold a candle to Bizzy. You traded up.”

I wince at the memory, now thinking of the way Bizzy looked at me when we got in the limo. At the time, I thought she was nervous for Nick since he was presenting and hated public speaking. But now I know better, she was hurt seeing me with a date.

“Yeah, I’d rather not think about that.”

There’s a pause in the conversation as my mind tries to even remember that night. The only thing I can recall is how we partied late, and Bizzy charmed every one of my clients. My date left soon after the event when she realized I wasn’t interested.

“So,” his tone turns serious, pulling me from my thoughts, “I owe you an apology.”

“Done. You apologized to Gail, which means you apologized to me.”

“We really gonna do this? You think you can take me to the next level?”

I notice the same expression I’ve seen endless times on my clients. He wants to be reassured he’s making the right decision.

“On the ice, you’re in charge. Keep doing what you’re doing and kicking ass. Off the ice, stay out of trouble. It’s no secret you’re a hot head; your reputation precedes you. I’m not asking you to change because your reputation is part of who you are. I’m asking you to be aware of your surroundings. You’ve got a lot of people gunning for you, wanting to hit where it hurts.”

“That’s the part of this that sucks. I came out of college only wanting to play. I didn’t think about the rest of this shit. Now, I don’t know who I can trust.”

“Unfortunately, that comes with the territory. Men will be nice to your face, waiting to stab you in the back. Women will come after you looking for a way to get to your money. Everyone will want a piece of you. You can trust me to always have your best interest in mind.”

“You really going to tack another ten percent on the contract?”

“Yep.” I take a sip of beer to hide my grin.

“Come on, man… we’re buds now.” He drapes an arm around my shoulders and gives me a pitiful attempt at looking sad.

I shove him off and shake my head. “I said you can trust me, not that I trust you. You have to earn that.”

“Ouch!” He falls over, clutching his chest. “That hurts.”

Darren and Joe laugh at him, obviously hearing what was said. My phone starts ringing, and Gail’s name scrolls across the screen.

“If it isn’t Cupid herself,” I say with a smile and walk inside the boat cabin.

“I’m only Cupid if you finally opened your eyes,” she replies.

“Consider them opened, but something tells me you already knew that.”

“Well, I will say you’ve been pretty obvious lately.”

“Is that why you’re calling on a Saturday afternoon? To check on my love life?”

“Considering you’ve never had one, I think I deserve to. But sadly, no, that’s not why I’m calling.”

“Everything okay?” A million thoughts race through my mind. It’s not unusual for me to get business calls at all times, and considering my phone’s been off, it makes sense the calls would go to Gail.

“Business wise, yes. I hate to even bother you, but—”

“Gail?”

“Do you know a Sasha Crane?” She pauses, and her hesitation makes the hair on the back of my neck stand.

“I do, why?”

“She’s trying to get a hold of you. Quite persistently.”

“What does she want?” I spit out.

“Apparently, to talk to you. She’s called numerous times today. Your office calls are rolling to me, and I finally answered. I didn’t know who she was, and she isn’t in any of our client files. She said you weren’t answering your cell. When I explained you were out of town and wouldn’t be returning until Tuesday, she assumed you were in Atlanta at Nick’s game. Her attitude turned very hoity, insisting I schedule a meeting for Tuesday.”

“Shit, did you?”

“Hell no, I told her you were booked. She turned into a royal bitch, telling me she is a lawyer friend and has to speak with you regarding a case.”

“She’s no friend of mine, and I wouldn’t call her a lawyer. We have no business relationship.”

“I know. I researched her while she was ranting about how important she is and that I’d regret it if I didn’t do what she said.”

“How’d you leave it with her?”

“That’s why I’m calling. After she realized her ranting wasn’t working, and I wasn’t intimidated, she changed her tune. She apologized a little too sickly sweet for my taste. It was like she was bipolar. She told me she’d drop by the office next week. She’d like to meet me in person.”

“Shit. We need to talk to Angie in reception. I don’t want her near our office.”

“Crenshaw, who is this woman?”

The use of my first name sets me even further on edge. Her tone is a mixture of worry and aggravation.

“That woman is a mistake. A past mistake that wants more from me and seemingly didn’t take the hint when I walked out her door.”

“Is she going to be a problem?”

“No, I’m sorry you had to deal with her.”

“It’s not me I’m concerned about. Maybe you didn’t understand me. Is she going to be a
PROBLEM
?”

The force behind her words is clear; she’s asking about Bizzy. “Absolutely not. She’s nothing to me.”

“Okay, good, so I’ll keep playing interference.”

“Appreciate it, Gail. Don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“You’d never make it. Thank you, by the way, for the flowers.”

“You deserve them, and so much more after today.”

“I’ll settle for the snapshot that just came through. I like that Darren.”

“Jesus.” I look out the back window and see Darren pointing to his phone and grinning like a fool.

“Gail, I need another favor.”

“I must warn you, I’m almost out of miracles. Rearranging your entire weekend took some talent.”

“I need you to find me a reputable boat dealer. I want something large, but not too large that I can’t manage it. It needs to have at least two bedrooms.”

She starts to laugh, and the sound ringing through the line puts a smile on my face.

“I’ll have a something on your desk by Wednesday.”

“Thank you, Gail. I owe you.”

We hang up, and I turn my phone off again, heading back outside. I go directly to Bizzy, who’s now awake and propped on one elbow, laughing at something Joe said.

She catches my eye and winks then turns her attention back to Joe. With that one small gesture, the aggravation of Sasha Crane is easily forgotten.

Bizzy

“Do you want to talk about it?” I ask, crawling into bed next to Shaw.

“Talk about what?”

“Whatever that call on the boat was about.”

“It was Gail, calling about a work issue. But it’s all taken care of.”

“You sure?”

“As far as I’m concerned, it was inconsequential. Someone trying to get a hold of me but Gail handled it.”

“You looked pretty annoyed.”

He reaches over, taking my hand in his and lifts it, kissing each fingertip. “I was aggravated. Some dumbass interrupted Gail’s Saturday, which in turn made her worried enough to call me. But we’ve got it handled.”

I get a nagging feeling that there’s a lot more to the story but decide to drop it because, obviously, he doesn’t want to share. He tugs me into him and kisses me softly then leans his forehead against mine.

“I also asked her to locate a boat salesman.”

“Why?”

“I’m buying a boat. After today, I decided we are going to spend a lot more time on the water.”

“You enjoyed it that much? I thought you’d been on a charter before.”

“I have. Dozens of times. But today was different. Today, I was with you, and seeing how much you enjoyed it made me want to give that to you anytime you want.”

“What?” I jerk back to read his face. “You can’t be serious.”

“I am serious.” His eyes shine bright.

“You’re buying a fishing boat because I had a good time?”

“Sure am. But it will be more than a fishing boat. I want bedrooms, a fully equipped galley, and anything else you request. ”

“Do you know anything about boats?”

He cocks an eye at me with a look of exasperation. “Bizzy.”

“No, I mean it. You’re talking crazy!”

He knifes up, twisting fast, and brings me down on my back. He leans on his elbow, and his other hand pushes my hair out of my face as he runs his fingers along my hairline.

“Did you have fun today?”

“You know I did.”

“So I’m buying one. I think the name
Benn Bizzy
has a nice ring to it, don’t you?”

I suck in a breath at the thought he’d want to combine our names. My pulse starts racing, and I have to bite my tongue to stop the tears that threaten.

Is this really happening? Is this kind of happiness possible?

When I think I can speak without my voice cracking, I cup his cheek and run my thumb across his bottom lip.

“I think it’s a great name.”

“Then it’s settled.”

“You have more money than sense, you know that?”

“Probably, but anything that’s within my power and reach that puts a smile on your face, I’m going to do it.”

“Just so you know, I’m a pretty simple girl.”

“The only thing simple about you is your modesty. Otherwise, you are deep and passionate, with a loving nature that captures everyone in your web. Anyone lucky enough to be in your presence can feel your warmth. If I had to describe you to anyone, they’d think I was lying because beauty like yours is so rare.”

His words sink in, filling me with so much love for this man, I want to burst. My hands thread through his thick hair and trail down his cheeks, the stubble on his face leaving a tingle in my fingertips. “Shaw?” I swallow hard, trying not to lose my courage.