My dad was not an intimidating man by any stretch of the imagination. He was a basically kind man who worked too hard but loved what he did, had a mind for number crunching, and understood plants better than he did his daughters, though we never doubted he loved us. In short, he was a Typical Dad.

He was on a phone call when I walked into his office Monday morning, clutching my notebook to keep my hands from shaking. I'd purposely worn my hair in a ponytail so I couldn't play with it during our meeting, a nervous habit of mine. Because it was sort of a job interview, I'd even worn khaki pants and a short-sleeved blouse, rather than my usual uniform of cargo shorts and a tank top for working in the greenhouse.

"I understand, Mr. Block. I'll get a crew out there this morning to fix it," Dad said into the phone. He doodled on a notepad in front of him, not giving me any attention. When he was with a customer, he was entirely absorbed in that customer. Our customer service was the reason people kept coming back to Durdee Work, even if our landscapes weren't the most innovative.

If Dad ever got off the phone, I'd have my chance to explain how I could get us to the top of the market in that area too. A fission of excitement crept up my spine and I sat up straighter. I was a Durdee and I loved this place. I knew I could help keep us relevant, rather than continuing to sink in the local market.

"You tell those girls I'll have their sandbox back together by the time they're home from school."

Finally the call was over. Dad straightened his phone, set down his pen, folded his hands on his desk, and looked at me. Expectantly. In a very not-fatherly manner.

I swallowed, trying to tamp down the apprehension rising in me. I hadn't expected him to throw his arms wide and exclaim, "Welcome aboard!" But I'd expected him to say something. Get the ball rolling.

I cleared my throat. "So, I guess I wanted to talk about the possibility of me starting to work with Larry and Kate on designs and proposals for our clients." This was not the confident start I'd wanted.

Larry was our main landscape architect and he'd worked with Dad as long as I could remember. Kate started as an assistant when I was in high school, when our business got to be more than Larry could handle. I knew we weren't growing at the moment, but I was certain some of that was due to lack of inspiration. The Durdee Designers — everyone in the place loved to make bad puns with our last name — needed me to show them how to stay relevant.

For a long moment, Dad didn't respond. Tension crept over my shoulders and my back felt like granite. I gripped my notebook, waiting for him to give me an opening to show him some of the ideas I had.

Finally he sat back in his chair. "You know you'll always have a job here as long as you want to work for your old man."

Relief made my shoulders sag. "Thank you, Dad. I—"

He held up a hand to cut me off. "A job doing crew work, or in the greenhouses, or in the store. I don't have a need for another person on the design team right now. Larry and Kate can handle it just fine."

I scooted to the edge of my chair and put the notebook on his desk. "But Dad, if you let me start working with them, I think I can show you that you do need me. Design has changed since Larry and Kate went to school. That's why I went to school. Let me work with them and I know you'll see better designs and that will bring in more business."

His expression grew stern. "You think you know more than Larry or Kate?"

Yes. Larry wouldn't know a compost bin if it bit him in the ass. "No, that's not what I mean. I mean styles have changed and we don't always do the best job of keeping up with trends."

"Our business is built on classics. Not trends. If people want trendy designs that will require them to re-landscape in five years, they can go somewhere else. But you know how many people come to us to redo the trendy lawn they had done at those other places."

I closed my eyes so as not to roll them. I'd heard the speech before.

Opening my eyes and giving him my best pleading-but-not-desperate look, I said, "Yes, but some trends are here to stay." Like composting. And solar-powered lighting. But I wasn't going to bring up those specifics. It had taken me seven months to convince him that we should even carry compost bins in our retail store.

One battle at a time.

"A mix of Larry's classic, Kate's eye for color and my understanding of newer ideas, the ones with staying power, will give us an edge we've been losing."

His mouth puckered, a sure sign I'd said the wrong thing. "We are not losing our edge. Our profits are steady and we have as much business as we can handle."

I wanted to bang my head on his desk and yell in frustration. Was he deliberately not getting me? Tears burned the backs of my eyes but I willed them to stay put. This was a professional meeting and I would not cry, dammit.

"Claudia, you are my daughter, and I love you. I want you to be successful. But I don't have the budget to add another position like that."

My mind whirled, trying to figure out how to convince him to give me a shot. If I couldn't convince my own father to let me try, how could I convince anyone else? Plus, the idea of working for one of our competitors didn't sit right. If my dad wouldn't hire me, I'd have to leave Milwaukee. The idea had my eyes burning again.

"What about this," I said, thinking as I spoke. "I'll stay on as crew, help on sites, work the greenhouse, the register, whatever. If I work forty hours, that's enough to pay my bills for now." I'd been lucky my parents paid for my undergrad degree and my housing. I was taking over my rent next month, but I had plenty saved from working all through college. I could live on my current salary for at least six months.

"But part of the time I'm here, I'll work with Larry and Kate. Assign me to a project, or have me help them with whatever for ten hours a week. Something. At my current pay rate. Give me six months, and I'll show you that you need to promote me." I watched him, my eyes begging him to accept the proposal. For having completely pulled it out of my ass, it didn't sound so bad.

Dad stared at me, considering me as if I were a shrub and he was deciding if he wanted to plant me or choose a different variety. It was impersonal and uncomfortable, but I did my best not to squirm.

After what felt like eternity, he started nodding.

Yes! I'd sold him.

"There's a new project."

I grabbed my notebook and flipped it open, ready to take notes.

He looked at me, face still stern. "You work with Larry on this, and if we land the account, you and I can revisit this. This is your chance to show us what that fancy degree I just paid for does."

Heart racing, insides leaping for joy, I grinned. "Thank you, Dad. You won't regret this."

* * *

"Hey, you taken your break yet?"

AJ's voice in my ear, a little too close considering we were at work, made me jump. I put my hand to my chest as I turned to him, heart thumping.

His big body was right there, again a little closer than I was comfortable with at work. That didn't stop my insides from feeling squishy or heat from pooling between my legs. My hands itched to slide up his chest and around the back of his neck, to pull him down for a kiss.

Except we hadn't gotten around to deciding how things were between us now. We'd stayed naked until the last possible second on Sunday and I lost count of how many times he made me come. But the hour-long car ride home had been awkward, the tension between us in the backseat suffocating as Kam and Nina chatted in the front.

I'd had to leave for work as soon as we got home, so this was the first we'd seen each other in over twenty-four hours. Which normally wasn't a big deal.

But normally we hadn't spent the prior twelve hours engaged in wild monkey sex.

"Yeah, I was starving, so I ate early." I took a step back, then bumped into the table behind me. Outside it was a warm June afternoon. Inside the greenhouse, it was stifling.

And the way his brown eyes moved over me, a slow caress, only made it harder to breathe.

When his gaze finally came back to mine, he said, "Too bad. I don't have to clock in for another fifteen minutes. Thought you could fill me in on your meeting."

I blinked, so busy staring at his lips as they moved, it took a moment to register what he said. "Oh! Oh, my meeting. You mean with my dad." No, Claudia. Your meeting with the Pope. What the hell was wrong with me? It wasn't like I'd never had sex before.

I'd just never had sex with my best friend before.

"Actually, I meant your meeting with the Pope, but we can talk about your dad too." He smiled, with only a hint of mocking me.

"Ha ha." I pushed off the table and moved around him, heading up the aisle to the rolling cart where I had my clipboard. I was doing an inventory of our perennial flowers for the retail store manager. I heard AJ's shoes squishing on the damp concrete as he followed me.

"So? You joining the Durdee Design team?"

I pushed down the disappointment in my chest and forced enthusiasm into my voice. "I'm assisting Larry on the proposal for a new project. It's due in two weeks." It was ridiculous to be disappointed. Yes, I'd taken for granted that my dad would hire me. But he had to make decisions based on finances, not family loyalty. It made sense for me to try a practice run.

I tossed a grin over my shoulder. "You'll never guess who it's for."

AJ studied me, not taking my bait. "I'm sorry he didn't offer you a full position."

I swallowed hard against the reforming lump in my throat. Damn him. I'd spent all morning trying to clear my head to get rid of that lump. Glad he couldn't see my face, I shrugged. "It makes sense. He can't spend money adding a new position until I can prove I'll pay for myself."

His hand on my shoulder startled me. His fingers digging into the tight muscle there brought tears to my eyes. But it felt so good, and I wanted his touch so badly, I dropped my chin and let him massage away a little of the tension.

He added his other hand to my other shoulder, and I could feel him behind me, strong and solid and a comfort I hadn't known I needed.

"I know," he said, voice low. "But it still sucks."

Laughing dryly, I blinked hard to keep the tears from falling. "Yeah. It does."

We stood in silence for a long moment that gradually became electric as his hands dug into my muscles. My hands tightened on the edge of the cart in front of me until my knuckles turned white. He'd massaged my shoulders a million times before. But today it was different. It was awkward, yet at the same time it turned me on.

Were we already doomed? If we left it at the one night together, could we get back to our easy, comfortable friendship? And if we kept sleeping together, would we eventually get to the point where it was impossible to stay friends?

Why did sex so good have to be so complicated now?

Abruptly, AJ's hands stilled. He removed them and cleared his throat as he stepped back. "So, ah, who's the proposal for? You said I'd never guess."

My brain made a screeching u-turn, trying to keep up with the conversation. "Oh, right. It's the MacArthur Group. The ones who three of their executives just bought the Dragons."

He grabbed my shoulder and spun me. "You're serious?" His eyes were wide, mouth open.

He looked so much like a cartoon, where his jaw should be literally on the floor, that I laughed. It eased some of the tension between us. "I'm serious."

The Milwaukee Dragons had just been sold to three new owners, all of whom were partners at the MacArthur Group. I didn't know exactly what they did to make enough money to buy an NFL team, so I had some research ahead of me. They were also apparently developing a two block area downtown and wanted a significant amount of green space as part of it, which was where Durdee Work came in.

"Did I tell you Luke is interviewing with them? They're looking for a quarterbacks coach."

AJ's older brother was a college football offensive coordinator. AJ had mentioned recently that Luke wanted to make the jump to the NFL, but I didn't know he was looking at the Dragons.

"He said the girl owner is way hot. Like, smokin'." AJ grinned the way he normally did with me, when he mentioned hot women or I commented on hot guys. Then he seemed to think better of it; he straightened his shoulders and said, "I, uh, I mean, woman. The woman owner is hot. I mean she's attract — intelligent. He said she's super smart and really knows her stuff."

I raised my eyebrows. Yeah, Luke had commented on her intelligence. Sure.

AJ looked sheepish. "OK, fine. He said she was smoking hot. But that in no way detracts from her intelligence or ability to own a successful football team. And I have no idea what she looks like, so I have no opinion on the subject."

I kept looking at him.

"What?" He threw up his hands.

"I haven't said anything."

He took a step backward. "I think I need to clock in soon. You around later? I'm off at 7:00."

"I'm having a girl night with my mom and Mara." He and I lived in the same building, so I could see him when I got back. But I stopped myself from adding that. I needed to figure out what I wanted from our night together before I was forced to discuss it with him. And a late night hang out would inevitably force this issue.

He kept backing away, so I couldn't tell if I was imagining the flash of disappointment on his face. "Tomorrow, then."

"You going out to the Mortensen job?" I picked up my pen, flipping it between my fingers to calm a suddenly anxious part of my brain.

He lifted his arm and flexed, showing off his amazing swimmer's arms. "They need my brawn."

"Don't we all," I said dryly.

Grinning, he winked. "Later."

For a moment, we'd been back to our usual banter. And all was right in the world again.