Chapter One
Cierra
What do you say to your best friend when she’s going through what she calls the worst breakup of her life? Trick question—you don’t say anything, just take her out to the coolest club in San Francisco and try to get her to stop crying long enough for you to have a little fun.
“Don’t you think you should slow down, Kels? I mean, we’ve only been here for a couple of hours and you’ve blasted through six tequila sours.” I handed her another tissue as black streaks trailed down her cheeks.
“I can’t believe the asshole dumped me. I hate him!” Kelsey blew her nose, then drained the last bit of her drink.
The asshole who’d broken my dear friend’s heart was Trace Prescott. She’d met him at a charity event about six weeks before. Kelsey had used up half her paycheck to pay for her ticket to one of the most prestigious charity events of the year. It was that night that she’d met Mr. Asshole, or the love of her life as she’d gushed to me a couple of weeks before their breakup.
“Most men are assholes. Remember the guy I went out with who couldn’t make our date because he had to meet with his parole officer? He’d forgotten to mention the fact that he’d just gotten out of prison when we were setting up our date. Or the biologist who kept insisting that I was a distant cousin because I looked like his great aunt Ethel? At least you had some fun.”
“That’s what makes it worse. I’m still in love with him, and he stomped all over my heart.” For the umpteenth time that night, the tears started flowing. “I need another drink.” She jumped up and then fell back into the chair, her hands flying to her head. “Oh damn, the room is spinning.”
Rising to my feet, I placed my hand on her shoulder. “Just stay seated. I’ll get the drinks.”
“That’ll give you a chance to flirt with that hot bartender again. Oh, make mine a double,” she yelled as I walked away.
Not a chance in hell I’m doing that. I planned to bring her a limeade. In Kelsey’s inebriated state, she’d never know the difference. I snaked my way through the labyrinth of people, doing my best not to wobble on my five-inch heels as I made my way to the bar.
I’d talked Kelsey into coming to the club because I thought a night out would do her good, and there were a lot of good-looking guys who came here. And… okay, Dane, the bartender, was really hot. The last time I’d been there with Allie and Megan, I could’ve sworn he was hitting on me big-time. He didn’t ask for my number, but then we couldn’t really talk that much with the loud music crashing around us. I figured if I came here more often, maybe we’d hook up. Since Beta Club had been on Kelsey’s list for a while, it hadn’t taken much convincing to get her to try it out.
After a few more elbow punches to random patrons, I finally made it to the bar. Even though I was behind several people, I felt like I’d made it to the top of Mt. Everest. I pulled down my tight dress and fluffed my hair with my fingers as I waited for the line to move. A couple of guys were checking me out and I grinned to myself. My short dress was working its magic. I had picked it out a few weeks before and was unable to deny just how good it looked, clinging to my butt and pushing my not-so-ample breasts up to create a cleavage that would’ve made Dolly Parton blush. Pitch-black and clingy, it was the kind of dress you wore out if you wanted everyone in the room to pay attention to you, and it seemed to be doing its job pretty well so far.
Finally a space opened and I leaned on the bar. My lips curled into a smile as a couple of guys shifted out of the way after raking their eyes over me. As I waited for Dane to come over, his muscles flexed so wonderfully as he picked up cases of wine, I felt someone push against me from behind. Before I could react, a deep voice hit my ears at the same time a warm breath danced across the side of my neck.
“Hey.” His low and gravelly voice sent a shiver up my spine. “You look pretty dangerous in that dress.”
Tingles skated across the nape of my neck. I needed to find out if the guy attached to that voice was anywhere near as sexy as he sounded right then and there. But just as I was about to swivel around in my heels to look him in the eye, Dane appeared in front of me and gave me a lopsided grin while he eyed me up and down.
“Hey, Cierra.” He nodded. “What can I get you?”
I stood there staring at him while I debated whether I should pay more attention to the stranger behind me or to Dane, the guy who’d had a starring role in my fantasies for the past couple of weeks.
“Do you want another round?” he asked.
“Uh… yeah, but instead of the tequila sour, make it a limeade,” I replied, batting my lashes. He winked at me, threw in a generous measure of vodka for my drink, poured Kelsey’s drink in a glass, and then handed them across the bar to me. He made sure that our fingers touched briefly as he passed them to me, flashing me that deadly smile before he vanished to deal with his other customers. I stood there for a moment, feeling on top of the world until I saw him flash the same smile to the trio of women who giggled and leaned over the bar, giving Dane a perfect view of their cleavage.
Did you think his smile was just for you? I shook my head, mad that I had spent over an hour getting dressed for a lopsided grin and the hope that he may want my phone number. All he probably wants is a big tip.
With drinks in hand, I held my breath and spun around to see who the sexy voice belonged to, but a woman in a silver sequin dress stared back at me. Deciding the guy had been a creep who probably thought I’d melt all over him over one lousy pickup line, I made my way back to our table.
Kelsey’s tears seemed to have finally dried up, and she grinned weakly at me as she took her drink and swallowed a large gulp. “I didn’t think you were coming back,” she said.
“This place is packed. It took forever to make it to the bar, and then I had to wait in line.” The memory of the stranger’s voice washed over me. I shook my head as if that would dispel it.
“How’d it go with the bartender guy? Daniel?” she asked, poking at the ice in her drink with a straw.
“Dane, and honestly, I have no idea. I don’t know what’s him actually being into me and what’s him just doing his job, you know?”
“Yeah. Men can be such jerks. Did you guys talk?”
“Not really, but the bar was really crowded with people.”
“Maybe you can catch him when things die down at closing.”
I nodded in response. Kelsey peered over my shoulder and covered her mouth with her hand.
“I can’t believe he’s here.” She shook her head. “What the fuck is he doing here?”
“Who?” I asked, craning my neck.
“The asshole who shattered my heart.”
“Trace Prescott?” I shifted in my chair and looked in the direction Kelsey’s glare was focused.
Then I saw him. Even though I’d never met him, I’d seen plenty of pictures of him in the tabloids. Being an heir of one of the wealthiest families in California and an untamable bachelor, he was a favorite for the gossip magazines. In his pictures, he always had a blonde, stacked woman draped over his arm. Frankly, I couldn’t believe Kelsey had even gone out with him. He was known as a womanizer and confirmed bachelor. I’d warned her, but she kept telling me that he just needed to find the right woman and he’d settle down.
“He doesn’t look upset that we broke up at all, does he?” Kelsey asked.
“No,” I answered as my gaze took in the two buxom blondes wrapped around each side of him.
“Asshole,” she groaned.
And the guy was, but he was also stone-cold, drop-dead gorgeous—way more handsome than his picture in the papers. My first impression of him was raw sex and power. He had broad, well-defined shoulders, thick, dark hair, and eyes the color of a polished shard of metal. Gorgeous, lush, long lashes surrounded them, the kind I would’ve killed for. There was no doubt about it: Trace Prescott exuded feral maleness at its best. Or at its worst, judging by the way Kelsey had been crying. I felt like a traitor.
“Don’t pay attention to him. He’s not worth it,” I said as I tore my eyes away from him. “You’re going to be okay, you know that, right?”
She smiled at me weakly. “I know. I was just so into him, and I thought he felt the same way about me. And he was so fucking rich. I hated blowing this one.”
“You didn’t blow anything, remember? He’s the jerk who cheated on you, so if you regret anything, it should be that you wasted six weeks of your life.” I took a sip of my vodka tonic.
“It wasn’t a waste,” she snapped. “He wined and dined me. Even bought me a diamond bracelet. Anyway, he didn’t actually tell me he was cheating on me.” She sighed deeply, her gaze reverting back to him.
I didn’t think it was the time to remind her that the diamond bracelet was his thing. There were a ton of blonde, large-breasted women in San Francisco sporting diamond bracelets courtesy of Trace Prescott. “I thought you told me you caught him.”
She pursed her lips together. “No, I didn’t. I said I suspected it because he broke up with me. Anyway, he’s a player, and I’m pretty damn sure he was banging someone else while he was with me. Women know these things.”
I nodded. “What was the reason he gave you for breaking up?”
She shrugged and stared off into the distance. “He just… ended it. Told me that he wanted to be with someone like me but knew that he couldn’t settle down yet.”
“That sounds like a line,” I blurted out before I had a chance to stop myself, and she shot me a dirty look.
I picked up my drink and drained it. After a few minutes, I stood up. “I’m going to the bathroom. Do you want to come?”
She shook her head, her eyes glistening. “Grab me another drink on your way back.” She picked up her empty glass. “This one is the best Daniel has made all night.”
“Dane. Okay, I’ll tell him to make you the same thing. Be back soon.” The side of my mouth twitched as I left the table and headed to the ladies’ room.
On my way to the bathroom, the loud music, the crush of bodies, and the heat of the packed room overcame me, and I slipped out the front door to breathe in the cool night air. As I leaned against the brick wall in front of Beta, I sensed someone staring at me. I turned slightly and met the green eyes of the infamous Mr. Asshole.
I stood there stock-still as his gaze swept from my feet to my eyes and back again. He cocked his head and threw me a crooked smile, and I felt myself flush slightly. He was even more gorgeous close up, but it didn’t matter. The guy had stomped over Kels’s heart, and he had the gall to stand there checking me out when I’d seen him inside with two women flanking him. The jerk took womanizing to a whole new level.
I straightened my shoulders and raised my eyebrows at him. “What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” I demanded, tossing my hands in the air.
He didn’t seem fazed by my reaction. “Just admiring the way you look in that dress,” he replied in a deep, gravelly voice.
The same voice that had made me tingle at the bar. What the hell? So Mr. Asshole was also Mr. Sexy Voice? For a few seconds, I was left speechless—something I rarely am. Then he smirked at me. That just pushed my buttons.
Glaring at him, I pointed my finger. “You’re nothing but an asshole!” I laughed inwardly; that wiped the smirk right off his face.
He shook his head. “I’ve never received that reaction before from a pretty woman when I compliment her.”
Ugh! How did Kels ever put up with him? “I don’t want empty compliments from a no-good player. You gave my friend a ton of compliments, made her think she was number one in your life, and it was all lies. Why any woman would want you is beyond me. They probably go out with you just because you’re rich. If you had nothing, you’d be relegated to empty Saturday nights and watching porn.” Shaking slightly, I took a deep breath.
Mr. Asshole stood there for a moment, his expression infuriatingly unwavering. I drew myself up to my full height and lifted my chin to meet his gaze. A bemused smile twitched on his lips. “Who’s your friend?”
I tightened my hands into fists at my sides. “Don’t pretend you didn’t see Kelsey inside.” What a jerk!
He ran his hand through his hair. “Kelsey. I should’ve known. She was into drama, so it figures you’d be her friend.”
“You’re not even sorry about what you did to her, are you?”
“What am I supposed to have done to her?” He smiled broadly and I had to clench my right hand with my left to keep myself from slapping the smugness off his face. I didn’t need an assault charge, but he was making jail look extremely tempting.
“Amazing. You’re a real gem. Not.” I took a couple steps backward.
“You’re assuming a lot of things about me,” he said, his deep voice pricking at my skin.
“I don’t assume. I know.”
“Do you?”
“You’re so full of it.” I barged past him, and for the split second that our shoulders touched, it felt like a jolt of electricity passed from my shoulder to his. I flung open the door and marched over to our table, totally forgetting about getting the drinks or flirting with Dane.
When I arrived at the table, I saw a decent-looking guy sitting next to Kelsey. He had his chair pulled so close to her that there wasn’t any space between them, his arm draped around her shoulders. Leaning close to her, he was saying something in her ear when I approached.
“Hey, Cierra,” Kelsey greeted me while she shuffled closer to her new male companion. “This is Charlie.”
“Chandler,” he corrected, but she waved her hand, dismissing him.
“Nice to meet you,” I said, taking his hand. I was still steaming over the confrontation I’d had with Kels’s ex. All I wanted to do was go home.
Running her fingers up his arm, Kelsey put on her pouty little girl face, the one men loved and I hated. “Charlie’s been buying me drinks and saying so many nice things to me.” He grinned and squeezed her tighter.
I was glad she’d hooked up with someone, especially since Mr. Asshole was in the club and I knew it bothered her. Kelsey always seemed to spring back after a breakup; she had a knack for quickly finding another man to replace the previous one.
“I’m kind of tired. When do you think you want to take off?” I asked.
She pulled her cheek away from Chandler’s mouth and frowned. “What did you say?”
“I’m asking how much longer you want to stay. I have to work tomorrow.”
She turned to Chandler and whispered something in his ear, and he nodded eagerly. She smiled. “I’m good if you want to leave. Charlie’s going to take me home.”
I stood up and leaned over to grab my cardigan and purse. “I’d get his name right first,” I said as I picked up my things. I know it was petty, but Kels was getting on my nerves big-time. I mean, I’d just gone to bat for her with her jerk ex, and she acted like I was in the way. Sometimes she was so self-absorbed and clueless.
Before she could say anything, I waved at her and walked away. As I was leaving, I saw the jerk leaning against a pillar, staring at me. When I made eye contact, he lifted his drink and winked at me. Unbelievable! I tossed my long hair, raised my chin, and walked out the door without a backward glance, happy that I’d never have to lay eyes on Mr. Asshole again.
The rays of the early morning sun filtered through my eyelids and woke me up. The sunlight flooded in, and I cursed for having forgotten to close the shutters the night before. I pulled myself up and wished I could cut off my throbbing hungover head. Glancing at the clock radio on my nightstand, I resisted the urge to snuggle under the comfy blanket and close my eyes.
I couldn’t afford to be late, especially with a new boss taking over the helm at Velocity, the prestigious advertising and marketing firm I’d worked at for the past five years since I got out of college. Mr. Linder, the CEO, was stepping down on doctor’s orders, and a new CEO was taking the helm.
Gulping a cup of black coffee, I hoped it’d give me the energy surge I needed to get through the day. I had to be on my toes today since the new CEO would want to meet with all the department heads. Normally, I was one of the team players, not the head honcho, but since Lindsey had to take medical leave, I’d been put in charge of the department. At first it’d freaked me out, but after I proved that I knew what I was doing, I began to relax and enjoy myself. The project we’d been working on was a new cell phone, and we were gearing up to launch it in the next few weeks.
I didn’t have time to walk the three blocks to the parking garage to get my car, so I hopped on the trolleybus and leaned my head against the cool glass window, watching commuters, storefronts, and buildings blur by. I’d definitely be mainlining coffee and water just to stay awake. I checked my tote to make sure I had enough aspirin to get me through the day.
Velocity was in the financial district, so the bus ride wasn’t that far from my apartment. I totally lucked out with my one-bedroom. Once I graduated from college, I swore I wouldn’t have any roommates, but living in a city that has the highest rent prices in the world, I ended up sharing a two-bedroom with five women for the first three years of working at Velocity. Thanks to my pay increases and rent control, I snagged a sweet deal on a one-bedroom in lower Nob Hill. My building didn’t have a doorman, the laundry room was in the basement and looked like it belonged in a horror movie, and my place was a little bigger than a postage stamp, but I loved it. And it was all mine.
The trolleybus jerked to a stop, and I jumped off and walked the short block to the tall building whose floor-to-ceiling windows glistened in the sun. Velocity occupied the top five floors of the skyscraper. Glancing at the enormous brass wall clock in the lobby, I noticed I had a few minutes to spare. I was dying for a double espresso, so I rushed over to the Brewing Cup kiosk and placed my order.
The first sip was pure heaven. I slung my tote on my shoulder, spun around, and bam! I slammed into someone, and hot espresso spilled over both of us.
“Crap! Why the hell were you standing so close behind me?” I was beyond mad, and I had not only burned my hand and chest but also ruined a beautiful silk blouse that cost me way too much money even on sale.
“Why the hell don’t you look before you dash?” a deep voice laced with irritation said.
I froze to the spot, not even wiping the coffee off my hand as it dripped to the floor. The blood rushed to my ears. No way. It’s not possible. A lot of men have deep voices. But not that voice. I slid my eyes up and met the steely gaze of Mr. Asshole. What was the chance of that? This day was quickly turning out to be one of my worst ones.
Exasperated, I grabbed a stack of napkins off the counter and tried in vain to salvage my new blouse. “Protocol is that you stand a few feet away from the person ahead of you in line. You don’t stand on top of them. You made me ruin my blouse.”
He narrowed his eyes. “I made you? I’d say your awkwardness is the culprit.” Blowing out an exaggerated sigh, I threw my cup of coffee in the trash can. “Let me buy you another one.”
“No. I have to go.” I ran my eyes over his navy-blue suit and didn’t see any remnants of my coffee. I shook my head and turned to leave when he caught me by the elbow. A tingle shot through my arm. What was it with him? The few times we’d inadvertently touched, my body did weird stuff. Okay, he was good-looking, and the way his gray eyes resembled storms gathering over the Pacific was totally sexy, but this was Mr. Asshole. And I had to keep reminding myself of that.
“You’re pretty cute when you’re mad. I noticed it last night.”
“And you’re still a jerk. I guess some things never change.” I pulled away from him and rushed over to catch the elevator before it closed. Staring at my refection in the gold-toned door, I looked a mess. The dark stain covered most of the front and sleeve of my blouse. This is going to be a long day.
“Don’t ask,” I said as I made my way to my office, Sofie following me in. Even the awesome view of the bay—I totally lucked out in getting this office—didn’t do squat to alleviate my mood.
Pointing to my ruined top, she said, “Isn’t that the overpriced blouse you just bought a few days ago?” I groaned and nodded. “Wow, what happened?”
“A jerk happened. He was standing so close to me that when I turned to leave, I slammed into him. Who stands that close?”
“Was he at least cute? Remember Maya in Accounting? That’s how she met her husband last year. She bumped into him at Brewing Cup.”
“Believe me, there’s no way I’d ever hook up with this guy. He’s a total womanizer, and he’s so full of himself. He thinks he’s God’s gift to women. And the smartass look on his face is infuriating.”
“You got all that just from bumping into him? He must’ve been drool-worthy.”
“It’s a long story,” I said as I rummaged through my desk, trying to find a file.
“I wish I had an extra blouse I could loan you.”
“It’ll be all right. I don’t have any meetings today.”
Before Sofie could reply, our senior vice president, Mr. Barnaby’s, voice crackled over the intercom. “All department heads please come to the conference room on the forty-second floor.”
My stomach sank and the throbbing headache I’d had since I woke up pounded relentlessly against my temples. With the whole coffee incident, I forgot that the new CEO took the helm today, and I was going to meet him with coffee covering my blouse. Can this day get any worse?
I rode the elevator up the three flights and went into the conference room. It was full, so I leaned against the windowsill and glanced down at the ropes of cars and people on California Street.
“I’m not an expert in many of the aspects of Velocity, so I hope you will be open to me when I ask questions….”
That voice again. It can’t be. No. I averted my gaze from the street scene to the front of the room, where Mr. Jerkface stood tall and confident in his navy-blue suit that didn’t show a drop of coffee. I slinked down, hoping he wouldn’t see me amid the sea of people, but he did. His eyes locked on me and I felt pulled into their depths. For less than a second, the room was quiet, and then he continued with his speech.
My cheeks burned and I folded my arms over my chest.
My new boss was Trace Prescott, the man I chewed out the night before and spilled coffee on that morning.
The day definitely got a whole lot worse.