Obsession (18 page)

For the life of me, I couldn’t figure
out what to pack for the evening. Everything was boring or plain,
or I’d worn it one too many times, making me feel less than
attractive wearing it. When Becca picked me up from the airport and
saw that I was wearing jeans and a simple T-shirt, she eyed me
skeptically, her eyebrows crinkling.

“You feeling all right?”

“
Yes,” I said easily as I
threw my bag in the backseat. “Why?”

Her face smoothed as she shrugged. She
looked adorable in her cream shift dress and nude heels. “You don’t
normally dress down for a flight, that’s all, and you hardly ever
wear your hair up. I just wanted to make sure you were feeling
okay.”

I threw my head back
against the seat. “I know, I’m a hot mess. Maybe I’m feeling a
little out of sorts.
I sure hope I
’ve got
something cute in my closet here because nothing seemed appealing
in Miami.”

Becca pulled out of the airport
pick-up and onto M-37 toward downtown, Grand Rapids. “It’ll be fun
getting you ready for your hot date.”

“It’s not a real date,” I
groaned.

“I know. This really means a lot to
Tyler, and to me. Thank you,” she said gratefully. Even though I
couldn’t see her eyes, I knew she was worried.

“How’s Tyler been?”

A small smile broke
through. “Better. He’s been showing more interest, making a point
to call, and tell me he misses and loves me. I’m excited to see him
tonight. It’s been a week,”
she sighed.

“
Oh, does that mean you
two are staying at your place in Grand Haven tonight?” I asked
casually, secretly hoping she’d say no and that she was planning on
waiting up for me to come home from being out with
Mitch.

Becca laughed.
“Like Tyler’s going
to let you off the hook that easily. He’s just as eager to see what
you can get out of Mitch as Nathan. I’m surprised Nathan isn’t
rushing his way to Grand Rapids to wait up for you.”

Picturing Nathan pacing by the door
like an anxious father made me giggle. “Kobiashi has his press
conference Monday and wants Nathan to help PR with the announcement
of building the amusement park.”

“The what?”
Becca
gasped.

Oops. “Well, I didn’t tell you, but
Kobiashi signed with Conklin to build an amusement park in Miami.
Crazy, isn’t it?”

Becca covered her mouth
and shrieked with excitement. “Oh my goodness,
that’
s so
amazing!
I bet Nathan’s been on cloud
nine.”

“You have no idea.”

From what I knew, Kobiashi had a very
aggressive goal, and Nathan was one to please. With Mitch and Tony
working on-site, I was sure it would get done in time. My
confidence in Mitch and his assistant surprised me. I’d become more
fond of him as a co-worker and respected his professionalism. I’d
even had the clients he’d been working with drop me a few emails
saying how much they adored him and how great he was to work
with.

Pulling into the Condo’s at Riverhouse
felt soothing. Being back here, with Becca by my side, felt right.
It was comforting and a feeling I’d desired the past few months
since Rod had worked his way back into my life.

Becca grinned as we walked toward the
elevator. “Feel good to be back?”

I glanced at her, loving how she could
read me so well. It was like we were sisters and it made me long
for my family, especially my brother.

“I want to come back here, eventually.
Well, as soon as Nathan lets me,” I joked.

“Good luck with that.” The doors to
the elevator opened as we both continued laughing our way down the
hall and to our home.

As if Becca’s grin couldn’t get any
wider, it brightened like the lights in Chicago. “Ty! I didn’t know
you’d be back this early.”

Tyler was standing in the kitchen, the
Conklin grin on his face as Becca made her way to him. He held her
tight while kissing her forehead, his eyes closing as though he
were in heaven.

“Figures you
’d be here early to
give me hell,” I grumbled, walking past their display of affection.
“I’m gonna go throw-up now.”

Finding my room, I tossed my bag on
the neatly kept bed. A housekeeper maintained the beauty of the
elite condo from every high ceiling to each expensive piece of
decorative furniture. Becca’s family gifted this place to us and
told me I was welcome to stay as long as I liked. They were too
kind, and I didn’t deserve it.

“Thanks for doing this,” Becca said,
interrupting my thoughts. And there it was, the soft sparkle in her
eyes, showing her kindness and how she was always looking out for
everyone else. I had to pull it together, push my hormones and
pride aside, and help Becca get her fiancé and our company out of
the trouble they thought they were in, even if I knew it was a load
of crap.

Plopping down on my bed, I threw my
arms up in surrender. “Make me irresistible.”

***

Becca pulled out the tightest dress
she could find in my closet, cursing me for being so small. The
cream color made my tan look perfect, and my hair was curled,
brushing down my cleavage. I was sure to get whatever I wanted out
of Mitch tonight.

Becca studied me as she fussed with my
hair. “You should use the red lipstick.”

“Planning on it.” Puckering my lips, I
applied the rich color, dabbing it with the napkin she handed
me.

“If I didn’t know any better, I’d say
you were excited for tonight.”

I brushed her off, ignoring the small
flutters that were rising in my belly. “What? For a date with a man
who acts like a frat boy?” She couldn’t contain her smile, and I
scoffed at her reaction. “Don’t look at me like that. I don’t like
him.”

“Never said you did. Wear the red
Jimmy Choos.”

I nodded in agreement, sliding them on
and enjoying the extra height they gave me. I didn’t mind being
taller, it gave me the sense of dominance.

“How do I look?”

“Like a minx.”

I gave her a wink along with a
superficial smile as I passed by her to head into the
kitchen.

Tyler did a double take when he saw me
coming, but I smiled inwardly when I realized he was gazing at
Becca. She’d jumped out of her work clothes into gym shorts and a
T-shirt, throwing her hair up and scrubbing her face clean, but
Tyler still looked at her like he’d never get enough.

When his eyes finally peeled off of
Becca’s body, he looked to me.

“You look like Mitch won’t be able to
keep his hands off you.”

I narrowed my eyes at him. “I meant
what I said. If he touches me, he won’t ever be able to have
children.”

Becca laughed.
“Maybe we should
put a cardigan on you and dress pants.”

That wouldn’t work. Besides, a part of
me really loved making him want me. “No, because a girl only gets
what she wants if she looks the part. How else am I supposed to
tempt him into telling me what I want to know if I don’t seduce him
a little?”

“Jamie, I think you are
underestimating your ability to control my little brother. There
isn’t that much going on up there,” Tyler smiled, pointing a finger
to his head.

I let out a growl and stomped into the
kitchen. Maybe I needed a quick shot to get me through
this.

The buzzer from the front desk rang,
letting us know my time to test my ability to keep Mitch at arm’s
length while getting what I wanted had arrived.

“Okay, put on your game face. What do
you have to do?” Tyler asked in the short amount of time it would
take Mitch to get to our floor.

Did he think I was an
idiot?
“Try and get Mitch to spill about
the drugs. Find out if he’s working with anyone on the side and
where and how many properties.”

He nodded, wrapping an arm around
Becca’s waist.

She glanced up at him affectionately,
then walked eagerly toward the door to greet Mitch when he
knocked.

Resisting my urges to jump
him might be hard tonight. He looked delicious in faded, tight
designer jeans and a
button
-up shirt that
showed off his bulging muscles. His sandy hair was neatly trimmed,
and the green of his eyes was anything but dull.

“Hey,
Becca,
” he greeted, giving her a big bear hug. Tyler cleared his
throat and gave him a death glare. He got extremely jealous when
any male gave Becca attention. Mitch was obviously doing it just to
piss off his brother, the similar game I played whenever Nathan was
conveniently around.

“Surprised to see you here, Tyler.
This isn’t a double date, is it?” Mitch asked, looking between us
all.

I walked around the island counter, my
heels clicking loudly. “Nope, just you and me.” My lips popped,
trying to hold back my annoyance for his attractiveness. Why did he
look so damn good when he was dressed down?

Mitch
’s eyes grew wide as they
landed on me. Pure lust filled them. The tingle between my legs
needed to calm down because I wasn’t going to give in to it
tonight, no matter how badly my body wanted him.

“You look amazing,” Mitch
breathed.

“Thank you. What’d you have planned?”
I asked, batting my eyelashes in full-on flirt mode.

Mitch licked his lips, proving I’d be
able to get anything I wanted from him tonight. “Let me tell you on
the way out,” he flirted back. He held the door, checking me out as
I walked by, and my ego lifted, knowing he loved what he
saw.

“
Have fun! Be good to my
best friend,” Becca called after us.

“You trying to kill me tonight?” Mitch
said gruffly as the elevator doors closed.

“You’d already be dead if that were
the case.”

He laughed under his breath. “You’ve
always got something smart to say, don’t you?”

There was no need to argue
with that statement, so I simply shrugged while pulling my
sunglasses from my purse.
“So, what do you
have planned for the evening?”

Mitch took one large
stride so he was standing in front of me and pulled my sunglasses
from my face, his emerald eyes holding my stare.
“There are two rules tonight. No walls and no
excuses.” His eyes provoked me to argue with him, but I didn’t make
a sound. “Okay?” he asked slowly, making sure I understood he was
serious.

I nodded, my words lost in his eyes.
Then he smiled. My heart thumped harder when his dimples made an
appearance. “I want to get to know the real you tonight,
Jamie.”

I gulped, my voice still
paralyzed.

The elevator binged, and Mitch nodded
to follow him. “I thought we’d walk around the city for a bit. It’s
a beautiful night, and ArtPrize just started.”

ArtPrize was very new to me, but I
couldn’t wait to explore the city because of it. Artists from
around the world travel to compete against each other, and the city
was posted with all forms of art.

“Whoa!” I jumped as I
nearly ran into a horse standing outside of our
c
ondo
complex.
He was attached to a buggy, and a
man with a tall hat held his reins. He waved at Mitch.

“Hey! Sorry we’re late,” Mitch greeted
the gentleman. He returned Mitch’s greeting with a warm smile as he
jumped from his seat.

“Don’t worry about it. Where can I
take you two tonight?” The gentleman took off his hat, bowing
toward my direction and reaching for my hand.

“Um, what?” I asked.

Mitch turned in my direction. “This is
our mode of transportation.”

Looking at the giant horse made my eye
twitch. Those things were huge, and shouldn’t be
trusted.

“Come on, don’t be such a baby,” Mitch
teased as he hopped into the carriage. He held his hand out to me.
“Trust me, it’ll be fine,” he encouraged.

Reluctantly, I took his hand, and he
pulled me upward in one swift movement, right to his chest. He
cocked his head, slight grin in place.

“That was shockingly easy.”

“What was?” I asked, my eyes never
leaving his broad shoulders.

“Pulling you into the carriage. I
thought for sure you’d give me shit about doing it yourself like
you did with my truck.”

“I gave you shit because you wanted to
grab my ass and push me in your truck.”

“Hmm, I might have to do that later
tonight.”

I shoved him, pulling my hand from his
grip and taking a seat. He only chuckled, then found the seat next
to me.

“Can you take the long way to the
Grand Rapids Art Museum?” Mitch asked the coachman.

The coachman nodded, clicking his
tongue and moving his reins. The horse moved forward, causing the
carriage to jerk. I wasn’t expecting the movement, so I gripped the
seat, but caught Mitch’s knee instead.