Best Friends With the Billionaire (The Rochesters) (8 page)

Yeah, right, lucky. Lucky to be friends with a hot, sexy guy who didn’t want to kiss her. She caught Kirk’s eye. He’d glanced at her several times while he talked to Hank, as if he were checking up on her or something.

“Oh, I don’t know,” she said, raising her voice so the men could hear. “Maybe Kirk’s lucky to have me. After all, I let him take me to Rawlins just to talk business.”

Hank laughed. “You have a point there, Cassie.” He glanced at Kirk. “And I think she’s right. You are lucky to have her.”

Cassie gave Kirk a brilliant smile. “See?”

Kirk’s expression was enigmatic. “That’s me—bursting with luck,” he said.

Their waiter approached them with the next course, and the conversation moved on to general topics. As the dinner wore on, Hank became more interested in Cassie, and she found herself telling him about her work in Sydney.

“Sounds like you’re succeeding in a male-dominated field,” he said, seeming impressed. “Good for you.”

“But you’re not in that job anymore, are you?” Shawna asked, arms folded across her chest. “Now that you’ve moved back to San Francisco.”

“I’m looking for a job in my field,” Cassie smoothly replied.

“Isn’t your family company involved in property management?” Hank asked Kirk. “Why don’t you get your girl a job in your company?”

As Kirk glanced at Cassie, she felt her neck and chest growing warm. “Well that’s a great idea, but Cassie likes her independence, don’t you, sweetheart?”

Her heart did a jumping jack, even though the “sweetheart” was for Hank and Shawna’s benefit.

“It’s true,” she said. “We don’t like living in each other’s pockets, do we, honey bear?”

Kirk’s eyes widened, and she gave him an impish grin. Bet he hadn’t seen that “honey bear” coming. His gaze lowered to her cleavage, and his mouth tightened. Why? Had she dropped something down her dress? He looked away as she fussed with her napkin.

Hank leaned back and patted his stomach. “Well, that was a great meal,” he said to Kirk. “Say, I’ve got a great idea. Why don’t you and Cassie join me and Shawna at the baseball park this weekend? The Giants are playing the Dodgers, and I got a corporate box. What do you say?”

“That’s very kind of you,” Kirk said without hesitation. “We’d love to come, wouldn’t we, Cassie?”

Cassie cleared her throat. “Oh, I’m sorry, but my sister’s bachelorette party is this weekend, and I’ll be away in Carmel.”

Kirk’s face tensed. He hadn’t consulted her. He’d ignored her efforts at dressing up, and he’d accepted invitations without asking her. He was behaving like a typical boyfriend, and she wasn’t going to take it lying down.

“But Kirk is mad about baseball,” she continued, turning to Hank. “He’s a huge Giants fan, so he’d love to go to the game with you and Shawna.”

“That’s settled, then.” Hank nodded. “We’ll make a day of it.”

Shawna batted her eyelashes at Kirk as she simpered, “I don’t know much about baseball. You’ll have to teach me the finer points.”

The waves coming off Kirk were pure irritation, Cassie knew. She knew, too, that this wasn’t the end of it.

On the drive home, Kirk said tersely, “Since when am I mad about baseball?”

Cassie fiddled with her seat belt. “You like baseball.”

“I think you enjoyed pushing me into going to the game.”

“You’d already accepted!”

“But I didn’t know you were going to Carmel. I’d like you to come with me.” He cast her a quick frown. “Can’t you cancel?”

For a second she considered it. Kirk was asking for her company, but so was Lillian, and her sister had never done that before. “My sister’s bachelorette party? I don’t think so.”

“But you don’t go in for all that girlie stuff, and you like baseball, too. And it’s important I keep Hank sweet at this stage.”

She blew out a breath. So he only wanted her at the baseball game because of his business deal, not because he wanted to spend time with her. Deep down, she knew she was being a little irrational, but couldn’t Kirk see that going to her sister’s bachelorette party, even if it was “girlie stuff,” was important to her?

“I’m not canceling. I’m going to Carmel.” She crossed her arms and stared ahead.

They completed the journey in frosty silence.

…

Kirk opened the front door and let Cassie precede him into the house. His shoulders were stiff, and his back ached. It felt like he’d been bracing himself all night, and his frustration had reached breaking point.

“How long are you going to sulk?” he bit out, the effort of holding his silence finally cracking him.

Cassie spun around, her cheeks reddening. “I’m not sulking. You’re the one being difficult.”

Of course he was being difficult. All through dinner he’d had to sit next to her and pretend she wasn’t the most gorgeous woman he’d ever seen. Each time his gaze had strayed to her cleavage—and from his position next to her he’d had a very tantalizing view of her breasts—he’d had to yank his eyes elsewhere. His hand had vibrated with the urge to slide over her thigh and explore her enticing skin. His nostrils had flared with every whiff of her light perfume. He’d been tortured for hours, trying to rein in his imagination. He was in a bad mood, and the prospect of going to the baseball game with the Parnells and without Cassie didn’t improve it one bit.

He made an impatient gesture. “Hank Parnell is stringing me along. I wish he’d sign the deal, and we could get on with business.”

She sighed, blinking a few times. “Business. I forget that’s all it is.”

She turned away, but her foot caught in the hall rug, and she stumbled sideways. Kirk leaped forward and caught her before she crashed into the wall.

“For God’s sake,” he burst out, his emotions fraying fast. “Those damn shoes of yours.”

“Damn shoes? I bought these damn shoes for
you
, you dork.” She bit her lip as if she hadn’t meant that to slip out.

His hands were still around her waist, holding her firmly, and the seductive warmth of her body began to unravel his mind as the meaning of her words sunk in.

He shifted his hand, spreading his palm across the small of her back. “You bought them for me? You think I’d go for those shoes?”

She blinked, uncertainty shimmering in her eyes. “Don’t you?”

The catch in her voice hooked him, tore away more of his restraint. “Jesus,” he groaned. “Yes, your shoes are amazing.”

Her face brightened like sunshine emerging from the clouds. She licked her lips. “And…and what about my dress?”

The sight of her moist, red lips so close to him made his blood roar. He traced his hand up her back, following the curve of her spine until he reached her neck. He stroked the exposed flesh, his breath quickening as he watched her pupils dilate. Their faces were mere inches apart; in her stiletto heels she was almost as tall as him. He cradled his fingers around her nape and bent toward her.

“Your dress is crazy hot,” he murmured, closing in on her. “As hot as you are.”

He touched his lips lightly against hers, holding back the urge to crush her. For a second he savored the fragile moment, wanting to preserve it in his memory, but then the quivering lushness of her lips broke through his control. He pulled her into his chest and kissed her deep, the passion in him bursting through the barriers. Cassie made a muffled gasp before she circled her arms around his neck and kissed him back like there was no tomorrow.

The abandon of her kiss was like gasoline thrown on a raging fire. He lost himself in the panting sweetness of her mouth, his tongue sweeping past her lips to flick against hers. His hands had a mind of their own, trailing over her back and hips as he explored her body, thrilling at the novelty. For so many years he’d taken Cassie for granted, had never wondered what lay beneath her non-provocative clothes. But now she was a mystery he was desperate to solve, the hints thrown out by her clingy silver dress too seductive to resist.

Curling one hand around her hip, he backed her up against the wall. He paused in his kissing in order to watch her face as he cupped his other hand around her breast.

With a moan, she leaned her head against the wall and arched her back, her breast nestling farther into his eager palm.

Lust scorched him as he stared at her. Cassie was extraordinary. Beautiful. One in a million. He leaned in again, his need for her irrepressible, and their mouths met in a sizzling conflagration.

The kiss softened as they paused for air, but he didn’t want to stop kissing her. He moved his lips more gently over hers, and their embrace became tender, slow, honeyed. Fresh emotions raced through him. God, this was somehow even better. This kiss was like velvet—dense, warm, soft. Like coming home. His heart skipped a beat as he recognized the feeling. This was the strange yearning he’d experienced off and on for the past few years. This was the reason he’d stopped dating a few months ago—because all the women he’d kissed had left him feeling the exact opposite of this.

But this wasn’t a woman he was dating. This was Cassie, for God’s sake. She was his best friend, not some random date he could feel up in the dark.

He broke off the kiss abruptly and tore his hands away from her. She was pressed up against the wall, hair coming down, lipstick smudged, eyes as big as saucers, lips parted as she panted for breath.

His heart squeezed as terror shook him. Oh Christ, what had he done to Cassie?

“I’m sorry.” The words jerked out of him. He sucked in a desperate breath and rubbed the back of his neck as he fought for self-control.

“For what?” she whispered.

“For…everything.” The self-control was taking a while to return. He stepped back, feeling horribly off-balance. “For taking advantage of you. I didn’t mean to kiss you. It’s just that”—he thrust his fingers through his hair—“Shit, I don’t know. Maybe I’m a pig.”

She swallowed several times, as if she had trouble composing herself, too. “Y-you’re not a pig.”

Her hair was all tangled around her flushed cheeks, her lips looked like crushed strawberries, and all he wanted was to hoist her into his arms and carry her upstairs to his bed, where he’d unwrap that sparkly dress from her and kiss every inch of her body. Heat throbbed in him; his erection strained against his zipper.

Yes, he was a pig. A damned stupid pig, too. Cassie was driving him wild with her unexpected sexiness, but he couldn’t risk their friendship. If he’d learned one thing from his calamitous marriage and his serial dating, it was that love was a chimera, always tricking him. Love wasn’t for him. The women he took to his bed knew they were only hooking up for a brief time, that they would soon part ways without any false promises on either side. But how the hell could he do that to Cassie? Impossible. Unthinkable. No way could he treat her like one of his casual hookups. Her friendship meant too much to him.

“It won’t happen again,” he said—loudly, harshly, as if he needed to convince himself.

A look of hurt bewilderment hovered on Cassie’s face. Shit, what had he done? Had he wounded her already? He turned away from her, unable to witness the effects of his carelessness. He had to get away from her before he said something stupid, or worse, kissed her again.

…

Growing dismay filled Cassie as Kirk walked away from her, his back and shoulders rigid.

Don’t blow it. Don’t blow it. For God’s sake don’t blow this.

The refrain echoed in her head, pounding louder and louder in time with her heart, but damn it she couldn’t figure out her next move. The sparkling shock and delight he’d triggered with his kiss was ebbing away, overtaken by a fog of indecision and fear.

How many years had she waited for Kirk to take notice of her? Well, she hadn’t exactly waited because she’d never dared to hope. She’d resigned herself to forever being his buddy, which wasn’t a bad thing at all because it still meant she got to see him.

But now
finally
the unthinkable had happened. Somehow she’d gotten through to him. For the first time ever Kirk had looked at her as a woman—a desirable woman—and his scorching hot kisses had been beyond her imaginings.

But as quickly as the storm had broken, it had blown over. Kirk had pulled away. Apologized for his animal behavior. Didn’t he realize how insulting that was to her?

And now he was walking away from her, and it seemed this wonderful, precious moment would become something embarrassing they’d never mention again—unless she said something. Quickly. Now.

She cleared her throat. Her voice rose, wobbly but determined. “Why do you get to decide what does and doesn’t happen between us?”

Kirk stopped in his tracks. He spun around, his expression wary. “Excuse me?”

She followed him into the living room, her stomach a seething mass of butterflies. She couldn’t let him see how nervous she was. Pausing, she flicked back her hair in a way she hoped conveyed confidence.

“You heard me,” she said, resting one hand on her hip, smoothing down the rumpled material of her dress with the other. “We’re both adults, equals. Why is it up to you whether we kiss or not?”

He muttered something under his breath as a furrow appeared between his eyes. “Cassie, it’s a bad idea.” He spoke like he was explaining something to a child. “We’re friends. Good friends. We’ve been friends for years, and I want to continue being friends long into the future. We
can’t
kiss.”

“Because it’ll ruin our friendship?”

“Exactly.”

“Do you compartmentalize everyone in your life? One section for the people you kiss, another section for your friends, and never the twain shall meet?”

“I think that’s best.”

“Well, I don’t have such strict rules. When I do my laundry, I mix colors with whites, and as long as I set the temperature correctly it all seems to come out fine.”

The furrow on his forehead deepened. “This isn’t a joking matter, Cassie.”

“But it’s not life and death, either.” She swallowed, her confidence wavering at the sight of his closed off expression. When Kirk made up his mind, he stuck to it. He could be so stubborn at times, but somehow she had to convince him. She took a couple of steps toward him, her feet unsteady in the unfamiliar heels. “In fact, by kissing me you’re doing me a favor.”