Red Hot Obsessions (117 page)

It was all Josh could do not to turn and pummel Dan’s nose in. Considering he hadn’t thrown a punch at the guy since he was 15 years old, he knew the urge spoke volumes of the possessiveness he felt toward a woman he had no friggin’ right to feel territorial over.

“Tony’s not in a good place right now,” he said, giving only half the truth. “I can’t get into the details, but suffice to say Carissa doesn’t need to get tangled up with him.”

Dan quirked an eyebrow but didn’t push for more. Thankfully, the two of them had developed a mutual respect for one another over the years, particularly when it came to their work. Josh couldn’t say the same for all of his family members, but at least Dan got him and, in this case, he seemed to respect the line Josh had to draw between his professional and personal relationships.

Unfortunately he was probably going to have to blur that line himself if this shit between Tony and Carissa didn’t simmer down.

He hated to do it— No, he
should
hate to do it, but he couldn’t seem to muster the emotion with any amount of sincerity.

“Aaand…they’re off.” Dan chuckled behind his beer before he broke into an off-key chorus of bow-chicka, wow-wow.

Josh shifted his attention back to his lead guy and the woman who’d given him more wood than his junior high stack of Playboys, just in time to see Tony slip his arm around Carissa’s waist and guide her out the yard’s side gate. Presumably toward the front of the house. Possibly to his truck. Probably to his bed.

Dammit all to hell.

This whole mess had moved faster than he’d expected and there’d been no time to come up with a tactful plan for intrusion. Which meant he’d have to improvise. The Marine in him was usually prepared for anything, but this? He downed the rest of his beer and slammed the empty bottle down on a nearby table.

This was a disaster in the making.

Chapter Two

Sometimes Carissa despised
herself for being such a good girl, because no matter how desperately she tried to be a bad girl—hence the sexy underwear and the flirty dress—she inevitably failed on the follow-through.

Tony sobered up quite a bit and he’d made it abundantly clear that his interest in her went a lot further than sharing burgers and a couple hours of conversation and dancing. But after the initial thrill of his flirtation wore off, Carissa conceded, somewhat bitterly, that she was really nothing more than a big chicken shit. No amount of Victoria’s Secret lace was going to change that.

Sure, she was attracted to Tony, but who was she kidding? Neither of them wanted anything serious and the one night deal wasn’t exactly her style either. She’d proven that to herself three years ago.

Thankfully, Tony seemed to understand, albeit with mock disappointment, and he hadn’t given her an ounce of grief when she insisted on driving him home. Strictly as friends, of course.

“Hey, I hear congratulations are in order,” he said as they rounded the front of Maddie and Dan’s house, making their way toward the street where they’d both parked. “You’re now the proud owner of the house I grew up in.”

Carissa pulled up short. “You’re kidding me.”

Tony shook his head, smiled and grabbed her hand, tugging her along again. “Nope. My mom lost the place about a few years ago. Couldn’t afford to keep up on the payments after Dad died. The bank tried to rent it out for a while, but I guess that didn’t work out either.”

And that was the very reason she’d been reluctant to buy a foreclosure. The thought of profiting from someone else’s misfortune, especially in such a close-knit community, made her sick to her stomach.

“I am so sorry,” she said, truly meaning it and wondering why she wasn’t made privy to this information sooner. She’d known Tony since she moved to town a few years back. Surely someone would have mentioned his family’s connection to the house by now.

“Aw, don’t you worry that pretty little head of yours. Mom moved in with my aunt over in Hastings and now I can’t get the two of ‘em out of the bingo hall. Safe to say she’s a lot happier than she’s been in a long time.”

“That makes me feel only slightly better.”

“I didn’t bring it up to make you feel bad,” he paused to chuckle. “I just thought you’d like to know a little history about where you’re putting down roots.”

Now she felt like a real thief. “I’m not moving into the house, Tony, I’m just flipping it.”

“No way.” The wide-eyed look he gave her was laced with something more than surprise, but he looked away before she could decipher it.
Crap
.

She bit her lower lip, thankful for the moment of silence as they passed through the shadow of a big oak tree and eased back into the dim glow of the streetlights. Attempting to appease her discomfort and guilt, she explained, “I’d like to buy something outside of town someday. Preferably with a little land so I can plant a garden and a ton of flowers. Flipping this house is just a means of having more money down the road.”

Tony squeezed her hand. “A green thumb, huh? You strike me as a city girl, not the country bumpkin’ type. You’re from Lincoln, right?” She nodded, relieved he didn’t seem to hold a grudge or even pass judgment on what she was doing to his childhood home. “How did you ever end up here?”

“I came to visit Maddie one weekend after she moved in with Dan and realized I liked it so much I didn’t want to leave.” Of course, the abbreviated explanation made the decision to permanently change her address seem so much simpler than it really was. In reality, many factors had contributed. Most of which Carissa preferred not to think about, much less share.

He grinned again. “Yeah, this place can have that effect on a person. I thought about moving over by my mom a few times, but this is home, you know? All my friends are here and I’ve got a hell of a job. Can’t ask for more than that.”

Carissa gave a quick, reluctant smile. “Hudson Contracting, right?”

“Yep. Been with Josh for six years now. Since the beginning,” he said proudly. “Even helped run the company for a while when he was overseas.”

Oh, yes, she was aware. When Josh shipped out, he’d left his beloved business in the hands of his most trusted employees. Reed and Dan had helped too, doing all they could to ensure Josh’s life’s investment remained intact and successful in his absence. She’d moved to town a few months after and had been impressed with their loyalty.

“So what’s it like working with your ex?” Tony shot her a conniving grin. “Fletcher has a hard enough time keeping his nose out from where it doesn’t belong on any given job; I can only imagine how uptight he must be with you taking on a reno.”

Carissa shrugged. “Reed’s fine. But we’ve only just started. Come August I'll probably have a different opinion of him." And that was just because Reed was the county building inspector, not her ex-boyfriend. Surprisingly, she and Reed had a decent friendship independent of their working relationship.

When they’d split last summer, it had been on amicable terms and they’d remained close. She, more than others, knew what a perfectionist he could be and how that impacted the way he worked. He did everything by the book and he wouldn’t allow her any exceptions just because they shared a few memories.

“I gotta tell ya, you and Fletcher came as a complete surprise to a lot of people.”

Yeah, her too. Still, she was curious. “Why do you say that?” she asked as they slowed near the line-up of cars and trucks crowding the sides of the street.

“He’s never been the settling down type, long as I’ve known him. For him to get serious about a woman, even for a short while, came completely out of left field. Of course, when there was an amazing girl like you involved,” Tony paused to elbow her in the side and wink, “it was a little easier to understand. Took a while though.”

She smiled and wrapped her arms around herself as the wind kicked up, making her shiver.

“You cold? I’ve got a sweatshirt in my truck I could grab.”

She hesitated, but ultimately the trembling won out. “Sure.”

They arrived at his vehicle and she waited patiently while he dug his keys from his pocket, unlocked the doors and reached into the backseat. When he emerged with a gray hoodie with a red Hudson Contracting logo emblazoned across the chest, she grimaced.

Oh, the irony.

She should have told him she’d changed her mind, but at the risk of looking like an indecisive fool, she let him bunch up the fleece and help her into it.

Then he tucked his keys into her palm and moved in close.

“There you go, gorgeous. Happy now?” Still holding her hand, his thumb stroked over her knuckles while his free hand came up to smooth her hair behind her ear. His fingers lingered at her jaw. “You
are
an amazing girl, Carissa.”

“Tony…”

“Shh, I know.” He put a finger to her lips and smiled. “If you ever change your mind about going on a real date with me…”

She reached up and lifted his fingers from her face, lowering them so that both of their hands hung loosely between them. “I’ll keep it in mind.”

With that, he sighed and wrapped her in a friendly hug. “For the record, I’d do the right thing by Reed if you reconsidered. Make sure he was cool with us and everything.”

“That’s such an archaic rule.”

“Maybe so, but it’s the proper thing to do and it’s the way our circle of friends has operated since…cripes, since high school. Guy code and all that shit.” He straightened up from the embrace and then leaned in again to kiss her cheek. “See, I can be a gentleman. Much as it’s killing me.”

She laughed out loud and squirmed against him as he took a playful nip at her ear. “Tony!”

“Sorry! I couldn’t resist—”

“Then let me help.”

Both she and Tony jumped at the deep growl that came out of nowhere, and she barely had time to process that they weren’t alone when a large arm snaked around her waist and yanked her backward.

Time reduced to slow motion, and she tried to search Tony’s face for answers, but his expression was just as pinched and confused as she felt.

Glancing down, she saw her sandals intermingled with a pair of big, broken in boots that connected to long, lean legs covered in a pair of dark-washed jeans. Her gaze slid up to where her dress caught high on her thighs, the thin material pinned between her rear end and the lap of the brick wall behind her.

Slowly, her senses began to recalibrate and her nose picked up on the first clue—a fresh, spicy scent that was painfully familiar.

Oh no.

Her eyes continued to journey upward and when they landed on the thick, tattooed arm cinched possessively around her middle, her stomach twisted into a tight, repentant knot.

This was not happening.

***

Josh watched Tony’s face morph into a million different shades of pissed off and it felt damn good to know the control had shifted back to him. He’d deny accusations of being a control freak, but it was no secret that things tended to work out better when he was in charge.

Loosening his grip on Carissa, but still holding her close, he kept his focus trained on Tony. So maybe he felt a little like a dick for how he was handling this. He hadn’t planned on going all friggin’ caveman about the situation, but something ugly and possessive took over the moment he saw Carissa in his friend’s arms and his suspicions were confirmed.

Leaning in and around, he pecked at the corner of Carissa’s mouth. “Nice sweatshirt, babe. You take it from my place last night?”

Panic flashed in her amber eyes and he felt her sharp intake of breath. Surprisingly, she didn’t move.

Tony did however, his hands fisting at his sides. “You’ve gotta be kidding me.”

To that, Josh gave a cocky chuckle. “Wish I was, man, believe me. Not exactly how I wanted this thing between Carissa and I to come out, but…” He went to tangle his fingers with hers to add effect to the ruse and encountered Tony’s keys tucked in her hand.

“Come on, baby girl, you’re killing me,” he muttered, the words not a part of his act. He gave his head a shake and tossed the keys back to his friend. Catching them against his chest, Tony snarled.

“You could’ve just told me,” his foreman growled at Carissa. “
Christ
.”

“I…I…this isn’t…” she stammered, her shocked paralysis beginning to wear off.

“Save it.” Tony cut her off with a hand in the air. Then he shot a hard glare toward Josh. “You know this is messed up, man. What’s Fletcher think, huh?”

Josh ignored the question, mostly because he didn’t want to think about it. “What’s messed up is you trying to make moves on a new woman when you haven’t taken care of business with the last one.”

Tony’s face turned roughly the same shade crimson as his truck. “Don’t you dare go there.”

“Too late.”

“Screw you.”

“I was just giving him a r-ride home,” Carissa stuttered. “And, Tony, this isn’t what you think. Really.”

“Don’t worry, Car. I’m plenty capable of taking care of myself, regardless of what Hudson here thinks.” His tone was so bitter, he might as well have spat on Josh’s boots. “And whatever the hell is going on with you two? I want no part in it.” With that, he climbed into his truck and tore off, throwing gravel in his wake.

Carissa reacted immediately with a ferocity Josh hadn’t expected. She stomped at his feet, which actually hurt thanks to those spiky shoes she was wearing, and she dug her short, but deadly fingernails into his arm until he had no choice but to let her go.

Even then, she spun and gave him a hard shove. Despite the ten inches and close to a hundred pounds he had on her, she still sent him staggering backward.

“What
the hell
is wrong with you?” she yelled, her eyes flashing unadulterated anger.

“You don’t want to get involved with Tony right now.”

“Like you have a clue what I want?”

Yeah, he had a pretty good idea. “Trust me, Car, it’s for the best. You’ll thank me some day.”

“For making Tony think I slept with you?” Her voice began to rise, but the question ended on a shameful whisper.

He couldn’t help the smirk that played on his lips. “Ah, but you
did
sleep with me, babe.”

She blinked and threw her hands in the air. “Not last night, I didn’t!”

“Last night, three years ago...does it really matter?”

“What?”

He lifted a shoulder and in a bored, lint-picking tone, replied, "We had sex, Carissa. You’re no longer fair game to my friends. Tony needed to know, simple as that.”

She balled her fists against her thighs and her copper eyes blazed with fiery emotion. For a second, he thought she might charge at him. "So this Neanderthal stunt wasn't about my well-being after all, but rather that stupid man-code bullshit?”

In a roundabout way, yes, though his initial intentions were sincere. His decision to put a stop to Tony’s endeavors was made with both Tony's and Carissa's best interest in mind, but at some point along the way, that goal changed. He suspected it might have been when he spotted Tony moving in for the kill, in a manner far too reminiscent of his own efforts with Carissa when they’d met three years earlier.

Since attempting to explain himself wasn't likely to ease her rage, he shrugged again and let her think what she wanted. Her assumption was, after all, at least partially true and, in the end, all that mattered was the distance his intervention put between her and Tony’s personal drama.

“Unbelievable,” she said, driving both of her hands back into her dark hair. Then she let out a bitter, unexpected grunt. "Where was all this honesty with Reed, huh?”

He grimaced. “It was kinda hard to give Fletcher a head's up about me and you when I was halfway around the world.”

“And when you came home?”

He cocked his head to the side and shot her a half-lidded glare, because…
really
? No thanks to her, Reed had gone all gaga and googly-eyed by the time his double deployment ended. Though it hadn't sat well in Josh's gut—and still didn't, for that matter—he’d elected to keep the solitary night he’d spent with Carissa to himself. It had gone against every ounce of his better judgment—and a vow he’d made to Fletcher more than a decade before.