(Present Day)

San Francisco, California

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I BETTER BE DREAMING right now.

Just when I was finally getting the image of Hayley’s lips off my mind and drifting to sleep, my cell phone was sounding for the fifth time in a row. Glancing at the clock on the wall, I noticed the time: Three o’clock.

Leaning over my nightstand, I grabbed my phone and held it up to my ear. “Yes?”

“Is this um...Mr. Walters?”

“For your sake, it’s better if it isn’t.” I groaned. “Who is this?”

“Mr. Walters, it’s me. Sean from your developmental A-team.” He paused, not saying anything else for several seconds.

“Okay, Sean.” I tried to keep the annoyance out of my voice. “Is my office at Statham Industries on fire?”

“No, sir.”

“Is my office at the private company’s site on fire?”

“No, sir.”

“Is this a fucking emergency?”

“It is to me, sir.” He cleared his throat. “You see, you’ve been holding interviews all month with outsiders, people who don’t hold a candle to any of the current team members at Statham, and I’m getting concerned that you won’t consider any of us when you make the final transition next year. I’m worried sick thinking about this, and I couldn’t sleep without getting this off my mind.”

I sat up in bed, looking around my room. Surely, someone was pulling a dumb-ass prank on me, and a late-night comedian was going to jump out of my closet at any moment now.

“I mean, if you want to leave a few of the guys behind, that’s understandable,” he said. “But I’m on your A-team, sir. Your A-Team.”

“Please tell me this isn’t the only reason you called my personal line at three in the morning.”

“You’ve always told us that we should fight for what’s fair.”

“I’ve also told you not to call me with bullshit.”

“I need to know, Mr. Walters.” He sounded as if he was near tears. “I need to know right now if I’ll be given a chance to follow you to your new company.”

I hesitated a few seconds before answering, preventing myself from saying the words I really wanted to say. “Sean, I’m going to ask everyone on my A-team to come with me to the new company. However, per the contracts you all signed with Statham, you’re required to train your replacements before you can leave, so I was simply getting a head start and making sure all bases were covered by trying to find new team members and replacements.”

“Oh.”

“Yes. Oh. Is there anything else?”

“Well, now that I have you here,” he said. “Employee reviews are coming up, and I think I deserve a raise, so—”

I ended the call and sent him a “Save that shit for when I see you in person” text. I shut my eyes once more, attempting to succumb to sleep, but my phone rang again.

“Yes, Sean?” I answered. “Is the building on fire this time?”

“Um, I’m looking for a Mr. Corey Walters,” a familiar male voice said. “Do I have the wrong number?”

“Unfortunately, not.”

“Well, good morning, Mr. Walters,” he said. “It’s me, Chief Tomlin with the Ohio Police Department.”

“I know who you are.”

“Well, I apologize for calling you at this hour, and I wish I were calling with better news, but I’ll just get straight to it,” he said. “Your father was booked for criminal recklessness at a casino last night, again. Should I expect that you’ll be sending us another check to prevent us from putting this on his record?”

I sighed. “Yes.”

“Will you be able to send a separate check for your mother? She’s in for public urination.”

“What? How is that even possible?”

“She followed us out of the casino as we arrested your father and peed on the trunk of one of my squad cars, sir.”

Jesus Christ... “Yes.”

“Okay. I’ll let them go scot-free as long as you send the payment by three o’clock this afternoon. Let’s go with five thousand dollars for each this time.”

“Thank you.” I ended the call and shook my head. I knew better than to expect a “Thank you for helping us again, son,” or “Sorry we did this. We’ll try to do better,” message from them when they were released. Those words weren’t in their vocabularies, and I wished I was ruthless enough to let them sit behind bars for more than a day at a time.

I’d once thought they would change when I started to make millions since they always complained about never having enough money, but that only made them worse.

No matter how much money I gave them, they squandered it on casino floors, wealth building scams, and expensive, yet worthless items they eventually pawned. They couldn’t live honest lives if they tried, and I’d given up on ever establishing a normal relationship. I simply helped them out whenever they were in trouble, sent them vouchers for free counseling (they never showed up), and asked the local authorities to call me before pressing any charges against them.

It was getting to the point that I wished that they would commit a felony that no check of mine could cover.

Needing some fresh air, I got out of bed and left my room—heading for my terrace. I was halfway there when I spotted Hayley blatantly breaking rule number one.

Dressed in a tight pink tank top and a blue pair of my boxers that she clearly stole from my side of the house, she was sitting on my counter and stirring a cup of coffee. Next to her, were trays of baked cinnamon rolls, muffins, and what appeared to be flat cakes frosted in the likeness of Scrabble pieces.

“I think we need to add another rule to the list,” I said, stepping closer. “What the hell is all this?”

“Sorry.” She looked up at me. “I couldn’t sleep.”

“Would you like me to take you back to the Four Seasons? Maybe your first week there was just a fluke, and you’ll sleep better now.”

“No.” She rolled her eyes and set down her cup. “Would you mind staying out here with me for a minute?”

“Would you mind putting on a goddamn jacket?”

She smiled and slid off the counter. “Fine.” She walked right past me, to my side of the house, and pulled one of my suit jackets from the closet. She put it on, fastening the lone button, and returned to her place on my counter. “Better?”

Worse. “Sure.” I picked up one of the cinnamon rolls and tried not to stare at her mouth. “Is this what you normally do when you can’t sleep?”

She nodded. “It’s this or sleepwalk, apparently.”

“Are your nightmares still about your mom being sentenced to prison?”

“For the most part,” she said. “I’m shocked you remember that.”

“I don’t.” I ate two more of the cinnamon rolls. “How long exactly do you need me to stay out here?”

“Until I feel like going back to my room.”

“And when will that be?”

She shrugged. “Maybe in two hours or so.”

I don’t think so. “In that case, let me help you speed that up.” I walked over and grabbed her hands, pulling her off the counter and tossing her over my shoulder. I carried her into the living room and tossed her onto the couch.

She blushed as I motioned for her to lay down, and I knew she could see my cock hardening in my sweatpants.

I placed a blanket over her like I used to when we were younger, adjusting the pillows at the angle that never failed to make her go to sleep. Without saying another word, she rolled over on her side and took a few deep breaths.

I was about to walk away, but she suddenly rolled over and looked up at me. “Can I say something, Corey?”

“No. Go to sleep, Hayley.”

“You haven’t asked me why I’m still a virgin yet.”

“I wasn’t planning on it. Don’t tell me.”

“It’s because none of my boyfriends ever got close enough for me to want to sleep with them,” she said. “And I want my first time to be with someone I know.”

“I’m sure you know plenty of people.” This conversation was officially over.

“No,” she said, smiling. “I really don’t.”

“Well, you will.”

“You used to be my best friend, Corey,” she said. “You wouldn’t sleep with me if I asked you to?”

“Hayley, I wouldn’t sleep with you if you begged me to.” I lied. “But thank you so much for helping me solidify what rule number four has to be.”

“What is it?”

“No talking about fucking.” I walked over to the fridge and wrote those words on the white-board. “Especially if you’re a goddamn virgin.” I returned to my room before she could say anything else, and I didn’t even try to go to sleep.

It was time for another cold shower.

“Torture” isn’t the right word for this arrangement at all.