The Merger (6 page)

“I thought we were going to order Chinese.”

“And I thought you were going to be home hours ago.”

“I got caught up.”

“In the lawyer?” she asked with the side of her mouth turning up into a grin.

He took an enormous bite from the pizza. “With.”

“She’s cute.”

Spencer nodded slowly. “I suppose.”

“You suppose? You’re going to act as if you didn’t notice she was cute?”

He took another bite while she stared at the slice. “She’s got a lot on her plate right now.”

“Like?”

“A cheating husband which led to him being an ex-husband.”

“Bastard.”

That made him smile and he offered her another bite of the pizza.

Tiffany leaned in close enough he could feel her pressed against him in all the right places.

“She’s free game,” she said looking up into his eyes as she chewed.

“Remember the bitch lawyer?”

That made her step back a bit. “From Oregon?”

“Yep.”

“That’s her?”

“Yep.”

“Oh, screw her.” Now she moved in and pushed her body tightly to his. “I thought this was something for me to keep my hands off you for.”

She reached her hands behind him and gave his ass a squeeze as she worked her mouth against his.

A moment later she pulled back. “Crap, Spencer!”

He just looked her in the eye as she stepped back from him.

“You’re off the market for a while.”

He picked up his beer from the counter and took a long pull. It had gone warm and he held it in his mouth for a beat before swallowing hard.

“I didn’t say that.”

“You didn’t have to. That was like kissing my brother.”

He chuckled. “You’ve kissed your brother?”

She slapped him on the arm. “You know what I mean.”

He sipped from the bottle again and as he swallowed he walked the beer to the sink and poured it down the drain.

“I don’t see any future with the lawyer, so don’t get bent out of shape.”

“Oh, good. You just want to sleep with her too?”

He turned and narrowed his gaze on her. “That’s not fair.”

“I know. You and I aren’t heading anywhere either and that’s always been the case. It’s nice to have a sure thing once in a while. Not just for sex, but also for hanging out, weddings we don’t want to go to, or pizza in a nice place. Sometimes I just want to be around family and you have the best one for that.”

Spencer couldn’t agree more. He walked toward her and pulled her into his arms. She rested her head on his shoulder.

“You and I have something that no affair, marriage, or divorce can break apart.”

“Kinda nice isn’t it?” Her voice resonated in his chest.

“Yeah.” He kissed the top of her head. “What about this Clark guy?”

She snapped back and was grinning. “Isn’t he yummy?”

“I don’t want to answer that.”

“I’m going to happen to be
around
tomorrow when he comes home. I think that there could be something for us while he’s here.”

“Don’t get hurt.”

She moved to him and cupped his face in her hands. “You either,” she said as she pressed her lips to his again and then pulled back. “You like her more than you’re letting on. I can’t get a good kiss out of you.”

“I don’t want to like her.”

Tiffany patted his face. “Problem is you were born and raised to give everyone a chance.” She stepped back and gathered her purse from the counter. “It’s one of your biggest faults.”

She pressed her lips to her fingers and blew a kiss his way. “I’ll see you tomorrow. If you need
consoling,
I’ll bring ice cream. It looks like you and I are on a hiatus from the bedroom.”

With
that,
she was gone and he was alone in his pretentious penthouse with Tiffany’s kisses on his lips and Julie on his mind.

It had been a long time since Julie enjoyed the pleasures of a Saturday morning of leisure.

With the merger between PLL and BBH, she’d been working overtime for months. Of course, she
was
as she’d told Spencer, just being thorough.

Excepting Libby Grayson, the entire Grayson
family
had been nothing but generous and kind to her. When her parents
died,
they’d covered her law school tuition so that she could continue doing what she’d had a passion for. Mr. Grayson had given her
a job
and she’d done right by them for years.

Finding out the same family had fired her—that was a blow.

She knew there was more to it and she knew Steven’s involvement with Libby had something to do with it. It had been the most stressful year of her life, that was for sure. Surpassing even the years she’d lost her parents and all of her inheritance had trickled away as she took care of her ex-husband’s bills.

For that reason
alone,
she was going to enjoy her Saturday to herself in her new town and her new apartment.

Julie pulled up in front of the grocery store and parked at the end of the lot. She didn’t know if she’d get
the chance
to join Avery for yoga or not, so she’d better get in as much walking as possible.

Funds were limited for a few weeks so groceries would be equally limited, she decided.

Food that was affordable was unquestionably less healthy, but it would have to do until she’d secured a few paychecks. Then she could find an organic, whole food kind of
grocery
store and eat better. She was sure that from the look of her, Avery would be able to help her with that.

As she strolled down the cereal aisle, she contemplated her choices.
Usually
she didn’t eat cereal, but this week it would be a staple. She settled on Special K with red berries and moved on. When she turned her
cart
she noticed the butcher block. She was going to need at least one decent meal and maybe she could stretch it out. She began to look at the selection, but
a conversation
just beyond her had her turning her head.

“I think you’re crazy. Steak?”

The redhead laughed easily. “I want a sure thing.”

Julie’s heart caught in her throat. It was Spencer and the redhead shopping for groceries. How much more intimate could that be?

She lowered her head. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail and looped through a Star Wars baseball cap. The last thing she needed was them noticing…

“Hey,” his voice came through softly and she realized he was standing right next to her.

She turned her head. “Hey.”

“You should get a few veggies to go with all that boxed food,” he commented and she narrowed her eyes on him.

“When I have a paycheck I’ll do that. Right
now,
it’s survival.”

“I could loan you…”

She shook her head. “You’ve done more than I ever could have expected. I won’t be taking a loan
too
.”

“Too bad my mom’s garden hasn’t started to produce yet. I could have loaded you up. Give it a month or so.”

She nodded. “Thanks.” She looked over at the redhead who was leaned over the counter speaking very seductively to the man in
the white
jacket. “Planning a nice dinner?”

“I don’t know what she’s doing. She’s lost her mind,” he said loud enough that the woman turned and smiled.

“I’m sure you’ll enjoy it. I’d better get going.”

She turned and walked as quickly as she could to the front to pay, and then out of the store.

Spencer watched her nearly run from him. What was that all about, he wondered.

“Okay. What should I make to go with it?”

He turned back to Tiffany. “Does the guy even like steak?”

“What guy doesn’t like steak?”

“A vegetarian.”

Tiffany’s eyes widened. “Oh. I don’t know.”

“This is why you don’t cook for someone you spent an hour with.”

“You do if he’s as sexy as Clark.”

“I think you’re insane,” he laughed as he pulled the cart from her. “Are you almost done?”

“Yes. I need some pasta and some salad. I’ll just cover my bases.”

“I can’t believe I’m going to let you use my place for cheap sex.”

“Well, you’re too preoccupied to let me have sex with you. I’m going after the accent.”

He laughed. He loved Tiffany because she was just like one of the guys, only with perks.

~*~

Tiffany
had, in fact,
scored the date with the accent. All Spencer could hope for was that she’d either go back to his
place
or she’d wash the sheets when she was done.

She was very sure they were going to stay at his
place
since the corporate apartment Clark was staying in had two tenants.

Usually,
Spencer would call up his brother and hang out with him and his wife, but he knew Courtney was going to ask questions.

He’d tensed under her touch yesterday. He’d never known a blind woman could see so much, but she did.

Spencer wasn’t ready to explore what he was feeling. He’d wait to see his brother another day.

So, the question remained, what was he going to do for the night since his place was otherwise occupied?

As he drove through the streets of Nashville, he thought about calling Clara and seeing if her husband was performing. But, Clara was pregnant too. She wouldn’t want to go out. Ed and Darcy had their hands too full to entertain him and so did his other cousin Christian. He let out a grunt. When did everyone grow up?

They were all married and having babies. Well, everyone but him and Avery.

That settled it. He’d go to Avery’s and hang out. Maybe he could convince her to
not
have a pink and black cake for their birthday.

Since he hadn’t gotten his Chinese food the night before, he stopped and picked up carryout. Oh, Avery would squawk over it. It would make her ankles swell and she’d have to do another few hours of yoga to combat the sodium, but he was confident she’d still eat it.

He parked out back next to her Mercedes and walked up the back porch to the back door. Julie’s car wasn’t in the drive. That was probably better. He didn’t need to have her there, or even as near as the basement.

Spencer knocked on the door before pushing it opened. He really wished she’d keep it locked.

“Hey, you here?” He called out.

“I’m upstairs. I’ll be down in a few.”

He set the bag on the table and retrieved two plates.

When Avery walked into the kitchen, still putting on her earring, she wasn’t dressed in the usual yoga gear he’d expected. Her long black hair was curled and her
makeup
was fresh.

“Ah, are you going out?”

She adjusted her necklace. “Yes. What are you doing here? What is this? You brought Chinese food? You know I don’t eat that and I can’t stay away from it.”

She sniffed at it.

“I need a place to hang for a while. Tiffany is using my apartment.”

She scrunched up her face. “Yuck.”

Spencer shrugged. “Where are you going?”

“Pete has an engagement at work. His date
canceled
last minute and I’m his escort.”

“Escort.” He laughed. “You two are a riot.”

“Meaning?”

“The guy is in love with you, has been since childhood, and you just string him along.”

She reached into the takeout bag and pulled out a fortune cookie. Breaking it open she said, “What about you and Tiffany?”

“What about us?”

“Don’t you just string her along?”

He pulled out an eggroll and took a bite. “No. We did date and we know it doesn’t work. We have sex when it’s convenient, but I don’t string her along.”

Avery looked down at the fortune in her hand. “I think this relates more to you.”

She handed him the fortune and he read it.
Love is coming for you. Open your eyes.

He crumpled up the paper and threw it at her. “Funny.”

“Hey, I have to go. Stay and eat. You can use the spare room if you need a place for the night. I’ll be in late.”

“Do you have protection in your purse?” He called out as she walked through the back door.

“Shut up, Spencer. I hate you.”

“I know you do.” He laughed as the door closed and he was alone in her house.

His life was pathetic, he decided, as he took out another container of food and dished it out on a plate. They’d only given him chopsticks, which wouldn’t work for him. He simply had never mastered the art of them.