I sat on my balcony, idly watching the boats trolling along the canal toward the outlet for the bay, nursing a glass of orange juice, the English muffin on the plate beside me untouched. It was a beautiful morning, cool with a crisp, slight breeze rifling through my hair. The eastern sky had turned a myriad of muted pinks and yellows as the sun rose. I should get ready for work and yet I found myself unwilling to move.

So, here I sit.

I couldn't get Riley off my mind, and frankly, I didn't want to. At the same time, I also realized that one time with Riley would never be enough. I hadn't anticipated this, the possibility that this deal with Riley would come with so many strings. Not strings that she demanded, not that she ever would. It was done and over with and I should put it behind me and move on. The problem was, I couldn't. I liked her. A lot. I couldn't put my finger on exactly what it was about her that attracted me so, and yet it was so much more than just the surface layer. It was more than sex, more than just the physical moment we had shared. No doubt she was attractive. The sex had been great, and though a novice, she proved a passionate and enthusiastic bed partner. But it was more. Way more.

So what did I want? I wanted to get to know her better. I wanted more of Riley, and this time not with an agreement regarding the taking of her virginity hanging over the both of us. That was done. We had both fulfilled our ends of the bargain. So where did I go from here? What if she didn't want to see me again? Why would she? She had gotten the six-month zero interest loan, and of course, my "reward" for that was the taking of her virginity. I didn't regret that, not really, although now, sitting alone on my patio and contemplating the entire situation, I felt a little bit sleazy. Should I have just given her the loan? I shook my head, lifted the chilled glass of orange juice to my lips, and sipped. Riley had offered me the only thing that she considered valuable, that had a personal value, as collateral of sorts. Should I have taken it? I knew, sensed really, that on her part, the offer of her gift - if you wanted to call it that - had salvaged her pride. An even trade, so to speak.

If I were a real gentleman, I probably could've worked something out with her, because to be quite honest, when she first broached me with the proposition, I had no inclination of having sex with her. I wasn't into virgins, no pun intended. Even though it was Riley who had broached said bargain. Now that the deed was done, I felt like I had taken advantage. How many women had I slept with? I have no idea. To assuage my feelings of guilt, I told myself that I had done my best to make Riley's first-time special, but the foundation had been laid on an agreement. A stupid agreement.

My thoughts had spun around my head ever since she had left the house a few days ago, trying to figure out what it was about her that compelled this attraction I felt. My attitude had shifted, somehow. My perceptions. My desires, and I'm not just talking physical desires here. I had, over the past few days, realized that I wanted more. What 'more' meant I wasn't sure. This was all new to me, these feelings. Shame on me for being sexist, but most of the women I had been with over the past few years were shallow and materialistic. I couldn't deny that Riley had also wanted something from me, but she was different. What she wanted hadn't been for herself but for her parents. If her father had come into my bank and asked for an extension, a renegotiation, or a six-month term zero interest loan, would I have given it to him? Doubtful. If I caved with each sob story that passed my desk I would soon become the laughingstock in the financial community. I'd also be out of business. The business that my dad had worked so hard to build to the success it was when he died, and then I had taken it even further.

Once again, I went back to the beginning. Why had I agreed to this deal? I knew why, but I didn't really want to admit it. It intrigued me. Sure, the temptation was there too, but mostly the intrigue. The thought didn't so much scare me as it made me realize a lot of things about myself that I had never really wanted to admit. Maybe I was just as shallow as those women I had taken to bed all these years. They offered, I took. What would my dad have thought of all this? My path in life – or my lack of one? My business career was one thing, but my personal life? Did I have one? I shifted uncomfortably in my chair when I realized I didn't have much of one. While my business had thrived, my personal life had stagnated. Then Riley had entered the picture.

What would he think of Riley? I smiled. My dad would've liked Riley, and that's when it struck me. Riley was about love, devotion, and loyalty. She had given me something that she obviously treasured and I respected her for what she had done for her family's sake. But where do I go from here?

I knew. I placed the glass of orange juice down on the side table, stood, and headed back inside and up the stairs to change. Not into my business suit. I wouldn't be going to the office today but would call my secretary to let her know when I was in the car and on the highway. I had something else I'd rather do today. Something else that I needed to do.

The diner was busy, filled with over a dozen customers, the smell of scrambled eggs, bacon, cheese and coffee prevalent throughout the interior of the structure. I didn't dine in places like this, and if I stood out like a sore thumb, nobody said anything. I didn't think I did though, wearing a tan pair of khakis, my brown loafers, and a forest green polo shirt. I looked like a regular Joe. Low conversations, an occasional burst of laughter, and the clink of silverware served as a backdrop to a stimulating environment, one that was the complete opposite of the hushed, subdued, and exclusive restaurants I typically frequented.

Actually, I found the stimulating and animated conversations amusing, along with the gossip, secrets whispered, and business discussed, all of it laid out in the open, each table, every person sharing something, discussing something, invoking within me a sense of separateness. Of being on the outside looking in. Wow, the tables had turned, hadn't they? They weren't in my world. I was in theirs. But was it really an 'us vs. them' world? This is what life was all about. This social aspect where net worth played second fiddle to friendship, partnerships, and developing relationships. How did I stack up? Did I think I was better than any of these people? I didn't like to think so, but at the same time, I hadn't ever really thought of it before.

I watched a server brush by me balancing a tray laden with a myriad of plates, laughing as she barely avoided a wild gesture from one of the older men sitting at the counter chuckling with another older man. I marveled at her skill. I watched as she reached the table in the front corner of the diner, lowered the massive round tray and without hesitance, set a plate in front of each customer, remembering what each had ordered, right down to the extra side of sourdough toast, lightly buttered. She looked harried, her face flushed, but she took the time to smile and make sure that her customers had everything they needed. As she turned, the tray now held down flat against her leg, she returned down the aisle and headed back toward the kitchen area to pick up the next table order. She glanced at me, did a bit of a double take, and then moved on. Behind me, I heard her speak to another server.

"Can you take the customer a table three? I've got to get Benji and Niko another side of bacon before they drive their mother nuts."

"Sure thing."

My heart did a funny little hop, skip, and a jump as a recognized Riley's voice. I looked up into my left as soon as the waitress appeared next to my table, her gaze focused on pulling her order pad from a white apron pocket just before she looked at me. When she did, she froze, staring at me, eyebrows lowered in what I hoped was dismay and not anger.

"Wyatt…" She nervously glanced around the diner. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to see you," I admitted, keeping my voice low, aware that the people sitting in the booth behind me might hear what I said. I grinned at the priceless look on her face and then told her the truth. "I can't stop thinking about you, Riley. Don't ask me to explain it because I can't, but there it is."

I watched a blush rise in her cheeks. Again, she glanced around, fingering her order book before looking back at me.

"Um… can I get you anything to eat? A cup of coffee?"

I couldn't resist. I winked at her and watched another flush darken her cheeks, and then decided to quit playing around. "When do you get off, Riley? I need to talk to you."

She glanced at her watch. "It's only eight o'clock. My shift isn't over until eleven."

The server I'd watched just moments ago sped by with a plate of crispy bacon, leaving behind an enticing aroma. She glanced at Riley, then down at me. I smiled as her eyes widened and her mouth formed a perfect O. She too flushed and quickly continued on her way toward another table, placing the plate of bacon in front a set of twin boys who looked to be about seven or eight years old. I saw her turn around, gaze at Riley, and then saw Riley give her a slight nod with a barely discernable tilt of her chin.

To my surprise, the woman returned to my table, stopped beside Riley, stared down at me for a moment, then offered her hand.

"Hi, my name is Sadie. I'm Riley's best friend. And let me guess, you're Wyatt Cross."

I nodded, taken slightly aback as I gazed up at her. So, Riley had obviously confided in a friend. Which made me suddenly realize that I hadn't. Come to think of it, there was no one really, that I would've trusted with this kind of information. "I am." I nodded, then looked back at Riley. "Anyway, can you get someone to cover the rest of your shift for you?"

Riley opened her mouth to reply, a frown marring her brow, but Sadie spoke up.

"I'll cover for you, Riley," she said.

"I can't just leave in the middle of a shift." She stammered. "I—"

She glanced down at me. "Wyatt, this is my job, a job that I need. Can it wait?"

I grinned, cast a surreptitious glance down at my lap and then back up at her. "It could, but it might be a little uncomfortable."

While Riley blushed again, Sadie offered a low bark of laughter. I liked her. "I'll reimburse you for your missed hours," I said. "It's just that there's something that we need to talk about."

Riley stammered but Sadie interrupted. "Go on, Riley. I'll cover for you. You went home because you're not feeling well. Okay?"

I sensed Riley's hesitance, but after a moment of thought, her eyes darting between her friend and me, she offered a nod and reached behind her to untie her apron.

"I'll leave through the back door. I'll meet you by the corner, all right?"

I nodded, left a few bucks on the table and then left the diner, wondering how I was going to tell Riley that I didn't want to let her go. Not just yet.

In less than fifteen minutes, we were on our way back to my mansion. Riley hadn't said anything to me since she emerged from the back door of the diner, but I sensed her nervousness, sitting primly in her seat, hands folded in her lap, not looking at me.

"How have you been, Riley?" I asked, for no other reason than to break the awkward silence as I navigated the streets of St. Petersburg.

"Fine, thank you," she said.

She turned to me then, self-consciously brushing her hand over a small grease stain near the hem of her uniform before hiding it beneath her hand.

"What did you want to talk to me about, and why do we have to go to your house to do it?"

Maybe truth was the best approach here. "I haven't been able to stop thinking about you." I replied honestly. "In fact, I'm so distracted I decided to play hooky from work today." I glanced at her in time to see another blush turn her cheeks rosy. "I was hoping… I was hoping you'd spend the day with me."

She turned to me and replied quite baldly.

"Why?"

Now it was my turn to frown. "If you don't want to, Riley, it's all right. I can take you back to the diner if you want." I felt uncertain. I knew that I wanted to spend more time with Riley, but maybe she didn't want to spend more time with me. I hadn't been joking when I glanced at my lap. My dick wanted to spend more time with her too, but it was more than that. I wanted to be close to her. I wanted to enjoy her company. Yes, I want to have sex with her again, but—

"If I hadn't wanted to come, I would have stayed at the diner," she said softly. "What I meant by my question was why did you want to see me again? The bargain has been fulfilled. You have no further obligation to me."

She paused in thought and then looked at me again, her gaze wary. I wasn't sure what bothered her. "You don't have to worry, Riley. I'm not… you don't have to do anything you don't want to do. I don't have ulterior movies. I just wanted to spend some time with you." The wary expression remained. What was she afraid of? "Look, I haven't told anyone about our deal either, so you don't have to worry about that."

"The only person I told about this was Sadie," she admitted. "Believe me, her lips are sealed. When we share a secret, we treat it like attorneys, or a psychiatrist. You know, patient-doctor privilege? I could even take it further, stating that when we know a secret about the other one, we're like priests who can't divulge anything that's said during confession."

I got it. "So, did you confess your sins to Sadie about our deal? About… about us…?"

Again, a blush, but I didn't get to see it rise completely in her cheeks because I was busy navigating the winding streets back up to my mansion. That blush, it got me every time, made me smile and want to take her into my arms and kiss those warm cheeks over and over again.

"I did. But no one else is to know. So again, I ask, why are we doing this?"

I didn't have an answer, or at least one that I knew would satisfy her. "I'm trying to figure that out, Riley, and in the meantime, it's getting hot and humid and I'd like nothing more than to enjoy a quick dip in the pool. How about you?"

She frowned. "I don't have a bathing suit."

I grinned. "When was the last time you skinny dipped?"