Page 8 of About that Fling (The Can’t Have Hearts Club #2)

“She told me where you’d be.” He grinned—that stupid, sexy, boyish grin—and Jenna felt her traitorous heart lurch in her chest. “This is the same aunt who told you to sleep with me?”

“Yes,” she snapped. “Also the same aunt who sent me on an errand to a goddamn adult pleasure store. Would you just go? Please?”

She pushed him again, which was a mistake. Her palm remembered the contour of muscle in his arm, the swell of his bicep, and she shuddered a little with the pleasure of touching him. Now he was smiling down at her in earnest.

“Your aunt sends you to a porn store on an errand? Now I’ve gotta hear this story. Come on, meet me somewhere for a drink. I’ll buy you a glass of Sunridge Vineyards Pinot and we’ll talk through this like professional adults.”

“No! We can’t be seen in public together.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Fine. We can go back to my hotel.”

“Definitely not.” Her face flamed. “I know what happens there.”

His grin turned slightly devilish. “What happens there, Jenna?”

His tone was teasing, and she felt her cheeks grow warmer. She didn’t answer, mostly because she was afraid she might beg him to do it to her again.

“Look, we need to talk,” Adam said. “If you’re worried about being seen, I think this is a pretty unlikely place to run into your colleagues.”

“We are not having this conversation next to the bondage aisle at a porn store,” she hissed.

“You’re thinking the vibrator section would be better?”

Jenna bit her lip, then grabbed his arm again. “Come on,” she said, tugging him toward the bank of adult arcade booths at the back of the shop. “These things must be made for privacy.” She grabbed the door of the booth at the far end and yanked it open with more force than necessary.

“You’re seriously dragging me into a porn booth?” he asked, but didn’t resist as she tugged him inside and closed the door. She flipped the lock with shaking hands and turned to look at him.

The space was dark and small, and Jenna was afraid to touch the rickety folding chair leaning up against the wall. A television screen shone lifeless on one wall, and the red light overhead made the air seem smoky.

“Okay, talk,” she whispered.

He shook his head, looking around at the black-painted walls. “I’ve gotta give you credit. This is private. Weird, but private.”

“ Weird doesn’t even begin to describe it.”

Someone pounded on the outside of the booth. “If you’re going to be in there together, you need to pay to play,” the clerk called. “Feed the meter, folks.”

“What?” Jenna glanced around, not sure if she was looking for hidden cameras or an escape route. Why on earth had she let Gertie talk her into coming here?

“The movies,” Adam said, reaching for her. At least it looked like he was reaching for her. Instead, he slid a dollar bill into a slot behind her right hip and pressed a button. The television screen flickered to life, and Jenna blinked as her eyes adjusted to the blare of light and sound.

“What the?—?”

“People come in here to get their rocks off,” Adam whispered. “Not to hold professional meetings. Avert your eyes if you need to.”

“Good Lord, is that porn or a circus act?”

“Must be some sort of clown fetish channel. Hang on, I’ll change it.”

Jenna tried to look away, but found she couldn’t. She wasn’t averse to pornography, but she never realized there was such variety.

“There,” Adam said, settling on a video that featured a busty young woman talking to a plumber. He drew his hand back and looked at her, and Jenna felt her breath catch in her throat. God, had she noticed before how green his eyes were?

You noticed. Damn straight you noticed.

She forced herself to swallow. “What did you need to talk about?”

“Oh, I don’t know—the weather?” He folded his arms over his chest. “The price of petroleum? European Dadaist painters of the early twentieth century? How about the fact that my ex-wife is your colleague and your employer is now my employer and we need to figure out how to deal with that in a professional way?”

Jenna fought the urge to flinch. “I honestly had no idea. I swear?—”

“I know, I believe you,” he said, holding up his hands in mock defense. “It’s not like our first meeting was a free exchange of factual information.”

“No, we were too busy exchanging other things,” she muttered, and felt the corners of her mouth start to lift in spite of her effort to keep frowning.

“I’m not complaining, but it does complicate things,” he said. “How well do you know Amelia?”

She blinked. “Amelia?”

“Mia. I guess she goes by Mia now. My ex-wife.”

“Very well.” She felt her jaw clench. “We met in a support group a couple years ago and spent a lot of time baring our souls. We’re extremely close.”

“Support group?”

Jenna swallowed, not wanting to reveal too much of her best friend’s personal information. Or her own.

“We know each other well,” she repeated. “I’ve heard plenty of stories about you. Not that I knew it was you.”

“Right.” She could see his jaw clenching and unclenching, but he didn’t say more.

“Sounds like it was a contentious divorce.”

“You could say that.”

“I know she was unfaithful.”

She watched his eyebrows lift, and for an instant, Jenna worried she’d spilled the beans on some long-hidden secret.

But Adam just shook his head. “I’m surprised she mentioned that. I wouldn’t think that’s something she’d go around telling people.”

“She’s not proud of it, Adam. She knows she made mistakes, and she owns that. Just as I imagine you own some part of the blame for the marriage going off the rails?”

He was quiet a long time, and Jenna could swear she heard the sound of wheels turning in his head. Or maybe that was the smack of flesh on the screen over her shoulder. She fought the urge to glance at the television as the moaning grew louder.

Adam sighed. “My divorce isn’t the biggest issue here. The conflict is that you and I slept together.” He raked his fingers through his hair, an oddly endearing gesture. “I’ll be honest, I’d hoped to see you again. Not just for sex, but to get to know you.”

“I’m sure we’ll get to know each other through the mediation process.”

“That’s not what I meant.”

“I know.” She sighed. “I wanted to get to know you, too, but I don’t think that’s possible. Belmont has strict policies about dating among co-workers. Even though you’re a contractor, we’re both members of the bargaining team, which technically makes us part of the same department.”

She looked down at her hands, which were clenched so tightly around her purse that her knuckles had gone white.

She released them and felt the blood surge into her fingers.

She met his eyes again. “Look, rules aside, I’m not comfortable with anyone at work knowing what happened between us,” she said.

“I take my career seriously, and I’m not willing to risk things getting awkward in the mediation process. ”

Adam nodded, his expression unreadable. “Fair enough.”

She let the words hang there between them a moment as the flicker of writhing bodies filled the small space. Moans of pleasure pulsed in the air, and Jenna desperately wanted it to be a turnoff.

But it wasn’t. Or at least he wasn’t. Adam was standing so close she could smell the grassy scent of his shampoo, could feel the heat radiating from his body. She ordered herself to take a step back, but found herself moving toward him instead.

She took a deep breath and felt it catch in her throat. “I don’t want Mia to know.”

“About what happened with us?”

She nodded. “It was a one-time thing, so there’s really no point in putting a strain on my friendship with her.”

He seemed to hesitate, then nodded. “I suppose you’re right. She’s not the sort to see the humor in the situation.”

The words stung for some reason. Something about his familiarity with another woman, the intimacy between two people who’d once been married. She tried again to put some space between herself and Adam, but found her feet rooted in place.

“Right, so we agree?” she said, releasing her death grip on her purse so it dangled freely from her shoulder. “No sense complicating careers or friendships by ever speaking of this again?”

“Agreed.”

She tried to read his expression. Was it wistful or just uncomfortable? Should they shake hands, or just say goodbye? Jenna held her breath, not moving.

When he leaned toward her, she felt her whole body dissolve. Her limbs responded without orders from her brain, and she slid her hands behind his neck as she arched up to meet him.

His kiss was hesitant at first. Then there was no hesitation at all as Adam pressed into her, his lips everywhere at once, his hands solid on her hips.

She kissed him back, fingers hungry to explore each curve of muscle in his back.

She devoured him, surprised at her own aggression, but knowing this was the last time she’d ever do this with him.

His tongue found hers, and her hands tunneled though his hair, deepening the kiss.

When she drew back, they were both breathless.

He smiled, hands still on her hips. “What was that for?”

“You leaned down to kiss me.”

“I was moving to?—”

Someone banged on the wall outside. “Pay to play, you two!” the clerk shouted.

Adam shoved another dollar bill into the slot. Jenna swallowed and finally took a step back. “Right. I should be going.”

“Not yet,” he said, catching her hand in his before she could make an escape. “Why are you at a porn shop for your aunt?”

“She’s elderly and can’t drive.” She cursed her hand for reveling in the warmth of his. “She needed me to pick up a few things for a bridal shower she’s attending. Lube, crotchless panties, some sort of whip, and an instructional DVD.”

“Wow. That sounds like some bridal shower.”

“There’s no bridal shower.” Jenna shook her head. “It’s this little game we play where my elderly aunt pretends she’s not a sex goddess who writes wildly popular erotica under a pen name to pay her medical bills.”

“What?”

“And I go along with it and pretend she just bakes pies and does crossword puzzles because it’s easier than having an awkward conversation.”

“You’re kidding me.”

Jenna shook her head. “Look, it started out innocently enough with my aunt writing a few short stories under a pseudonym, but the whole thing snowballed into this crazy erotica career that’s taken off like gangbusters and I don’t know how to handle it and—” she stopped, realizing she’d just revealed more to Adam than she had to anyone, ever.

She shook her head. “Never mind. Suffice it to say, my aunt and I don’t talk about her writing. It’s easier that way.”

Adam stared at her, the corners of his mouth ticking up in a smile. “That’s an interesting family dynamic you have there.”

“You have no idea.” She sighed. “Look, it’s not just me being a prude. Belmont has certain expectations of its executives. As healthcare providers, they have to be above reproach in all things—even their families.”

“But your aunt is writing dirty books, not running a brothel.”

Jenna grimaced. “I see you’ve heard about the old CEO and his wife. For the record, I did my best damage control on that one, but there’s only so much I can cover up.”

“So that’s your job,” he said. “Covering things up. I wondered what the hell a chief relations officer did.”

“I control the messaging coming out of the health system.” Her spine straightened a little as Adam cocked his head.

“Control?”

“Yes, control .” Her mother’s catchphrase caught in her head, an insistence she had everything under control.

“I handle all kinds of things, ranging from PR and media relations to personnel issues, but yes—I suppose it all comes down to getting paid to sweep bad things under the rug and blow sunshine up people’s butts. ”

“At least you’re honest.”

She gave him a smile she knew wouldn’t reach her eyes and pushed the door open. “Honest,” she repeated, stepping into the daylight. “Nothing like being honest about the things I can’t be honest about.”

She turned and walked away, feeling his eyes on her as she vanished out the door.