Cash (Sexy Bastard #2) (20 page)

“Scout’s
honor.”

“You were never a Boy Scout.”

He gives me a quick kiss that promises
everything and pulls away before I can pull him back.

“So much to learn about me.”

That’s right. Now just let me in,
you stupid, stubborn man.

The small club is packed with fans and
people from work. It’s everything I wanted and more to help
launch Misty as a new musical force to be reckoned with. Even Mathias
has come out of the woodwork to see the new talent I’ve dug up.
He toasts me with his glass when Cash and I enter. Well, maybe I’ll
be getting another possible contract from Triton Entertainment.

Rob is going to get a raise. If this
doesn’t impress LA then I’m not sure what will. They
loved her music, but to sweeten the deals we were making, I wanted to
make sure they knew she could pack a room.

I think we have a winner.

Cash lets his hand rest on the small of
my back and it eases the worry that’s settled in my stomach.

“Are we going to end this night
by stealing more champagne?” Cash whispers in my ear.

“Not an open bar.”

“Since when has that ever stopped
us?”

Rob gives me a two finger wave from the
side of the room where he’s nose deep in his iPhone. Sometimes
I wonder if that boy ever unplugs. Then there’s Briggs, and to
my surprise Meyers is with him.

“The two men approaching us are
the name partners at my firm,” I tell Cash. He gives my hip a
squeeze as if to say he understands.

“Ms. Sunday,” Meyers says,
coming over a tumbler of whiskey in his hand. If there ever was a
person to look out of place in a nightclub it is Meyers. Still in his
perfect business suit, he looks like he belongs in court. Even Briggs
has gone more casual for the evening out.

“Mr. Meyers.” I can feel
Cash beside me giving me courage I’ve never felt around Meyers.
Briggs studies him like he might need to step in and be surrogate
parent. “Can I introduce you to Cash Gardner, my…”
what is the word we’re using for us? “My
friend.”

I settle with the friend term and wait
for any reaction from Cash. There isn’t any. We are friends.
Just hold it together.

“You wouldn’t by any chance
be the Gardner involved—” Cash jolts next to me like
someone just touched him with electrodes. “In the group that
owns all the bars and nightclubs, would you?”

Cash doesn’t
say anything. I squeeze his arm willing him to say something to
Meyers. But his mouth just opens and closes like he’s trying to
capture words. What is it that has him running scared?

“That is…I…uh.”

“Cash can be tongue tied
sometimes, but yes, he is a partner in Altitude and a few others here
in Atlanta. Their newest one’s called The Library, which opens
in a few weeks.”

Meyers beams like he’s just been
given a puppy. I’m immediately on guard: this is not the Meyers
I know. His attitude turns on its head, and he’s much nicer
than I have ever seen him. If I had a nickel for every time he smiled
at me, I wouldn’t have two nickels to rub together. “I
knew your group managed several bars in the area, but I had no idea
that you were opening a new one.”

“It’s going to be our best
one yet. You should check it out sometime,” Cash says, finally
finding his words again, his fingers finding their way under the edge
of my jacket and shirt to play with the skin on my hip. I lean into
him and can feel his heart thundering against his chest.
Open
up to me
, I will him silently.

“Well, Savannah here is a
fantastic entertainment lawyer, but if you ever need another eye for
business our law firm is a full service.”

“She’s told me all about
Briggs, Meyers & Associates, and I know the boys and I have been
looking for a good law firm. I assure you, discussing your firm is on
the agenda for our next board meeting.”

“If you need any further
information, Savannah has all of my contact numbers. I’d be
happy to set something up—” Meyers says.

“I’ll make sure Cash gets
the information,” I say, grabbing Cash’s hand before it
can roam any further. Meyers smiles in thanks. He makes his excuses,
and Briggs gives me a glowing look.

“I think it’s safe to say
you just cinched your promotion,” Briggs says. Relief floods
through me. I did it. No more worrying about Richard The Dick. “Very
nice to meet you, Mr. Gardner, although I think we’ve
technically already met.”

“Yes, sorry for cutting out early
last time—I…we…” Cash looks at me for help.
This is your mess, big man. It’s your turn to get out of it.
“It was a rough week for both of us.”

“I hope things have lightened up
and you two can properly celebrate Savannah’s promotion.”

“It’s definitely going to
be a celebration for the books.”

“Save that for when she makes
partner,” Briggs jokes. “Enjoy your evening. Savannah,
I’ll see you in the office on Monday, and we can talk about the
direction you want to take the department.”

Briggs gives me a hug and he whispers,
“He seems to be a good fit for you, Savannah. Keep him on his
toes.” With one more toast to me, Briggs departs to find his
own people. I can hardly believe the words I just heard. I got the
promotion. All of this hard work, and I can now breathe easily.

Rob pounces as soon as the name
partners leave. He plays it cool and introduces himself to Cash. I’m
still floating on cloud nine, but Cash charms Rob as smoothly as he
does his customers at the bar.

When Cash excuses himself to get me
another drink, Rob wastes no time.

“He’s a good catch.”

“Hm-mmm.” I track Cash as
he goes to the bar and easily laughs with the bartender. He fits in
no matter where he goes. It’s easy to just be with him. There’s
no tension or worry like there was with Tanner. I can just be with
Cash and it’s the most wonderful state of being.

“You want me to cancel Dog-Man?”

Rob’s question brings me straight
back down to earth. Dog-Man? Who the hell is Dog-Man?

“What?”

“You set it up a while ago.
Drinks with a dog walker you met…” I give him a blank
stare. What the hell is he even talking about. “Okay, that look
says enough. Consider it canceled.”

“You’re a fucking god send,
Rob.”

“Thank you ma’—”
He cuts himself off. It is, after all, a night to toast to me. The
least he can do is cut the ma’am crap.

Well done, Rob. There is hope for you
yet.

“So what are we calling your
lovely date?”

“Oh he’s not…”
I mean to say he’s not my date, but the word dies on my tongue,
because I want him to be my date. He gets another round of laughs
from my colleagues, and I realize this isn’t just a onetime
thing. It’s also a little too late for the whole one time idea.

I want something more from Cash. Even
if he has secrets that he refuses to share, as long as they’re
not a kid in the closet I can survive it. He’s worth it.

“I vote Shaker Boy.”

“No.”

“He’s a bartender, right?
Or did I get my wires crossed. Is he Dog-Man?”

“Rob, have I ever told you that
I’m glad you use that brain of yours for good and not evil.”

“I’ll figure something out
with Shaker Boy.”

“You are not calling Cash Shaker
Boy.”

“Shaken and Stirred?” Rob
offers and I glare at him. There is no nickname for my…for my
Cash. “Oh wait, I know. Dirty Martini?”

“You’re now just naming
drinks. And let me repeat myself only once more: you are to not give
Cash a nickname.” Anyway, I think to myself, he already has
one. Cassie, Shelby, Avery, Ruby and I named the guys of Altitude
Sexy Bastards one time, and it definitely fits them.

“So he
is
sticking around.”

“Hell yes,” I say, catching
Cash’s eye. He has half the paralegal department ready to form
a harem. Back off, ladies. The man is mine.

“Go find him before he charms the
pants off the nearest female.”

I find Cash and I pull him away,
wanting just a little time between us.

“Come on, there’s a great
spot over here.”

“Why Savannah Sunday, are you
trying to lure me into a dark corner?”

“You know it.” I trail a
kiss over his cheek and standing on my toes I whisper, “Want to
get out of here? I’ll make it worth your while.” His hand
slips into mine, and we can’t get out the door fast enough. I
feel like I’m a teenager again, sneaking around under my
parents’ noses.

We’re almost to the door and
freedom, when a woman does a double take at Cash. I try to ignore it.
Lots of women would do this. I mean, I’ve done it. Plus we’re
still not anything so I don’t have any grounds to get mad about
her open invitation.

“Cash?” the woman says.
She’s striking. Blond hair, the right proportions. Dress is a
little on the boring side, but definitely someone Cash would charm
out of her clothes.

“Morgan,” Cash says like he
just woke up from a nightmare.

He knows her name.

Okay. Okay. It’s not the end of
the world. I knew this was a possibility—and more likely a
probability. Still, the whole exchange hits me like a punch to the
stomach.

“I thought that was you.”
She gets up from her seat, and I get the full picture of this Morgan.
She’s beautiful in that country club polished sort of way. Not
the person I would have thought Cash would be into—maybe his
tastes have varied more than I originally thought. “I’m
so glad I ran into you again after—”

“We were just leaving,”
Cash cuts her off. His grip on my hand tightens and before I can so
much as get out a hello, he yanks me toward the door. Whoever she is,
I’ll never know.

He’s silent on the ride back to
my place. I try asking a few questions and he just turns on the
radio. By the time I get to my apartment, I’m not surprised
when he just parks out front.

Still I can’t
help but ask, “Are you coming up?”

This sort of thing is going to happen,
right? I mean, he’s been with so many women, we’re bound
to run into them when we’re out. If he closes down every time
this happens then we’re never going to get anywhere.

So come on Cash, let’s just go
upstairs.

“Not tonight.” He scrubs
his face with his hands.

“Okay.” I nod, trying to go
along with this, but I can’t make myself get out of the car. If
I want this, it’s time to take a stand. “Is this what’s
going to happen every time we run into someone from your past?
Because if I’ve done the math right, we’re never going to
be able to go out at this rate.”

“I don’t
want to do this tonight.”

“When do you want to do it?
Because I’m here, and I don’t care if we run into your
exes. I knew that would happen. Neither of us was exactly virginal
when we met.”

“Savannah—”

“I don’t
care about the women you’ve slept with, because right now, I’m
in your bed. Just talk to me.”

“I’ve got stuff I have to
do at Altitude.” He focuses squarely on the steering wheel. For
once, Cash Gardner is not there with a quick come back and a knock
out attitude. His past has him hiding. Fuck it if he thinks I’m
just going to roll over and let him hide.

Do not shut down on me.

“Cash--”

“I’ll call you later.”

And just like that, he cuts me off.

“Call me when you fucking grow a
pair,” I say, getting out of the car and slamming it shut. One
minute we’re sneaking out to go have crazy, wild sex, and the
next he’s dropping me off. He stays until I’m inside but
peels out before the door is even shut behind me.

Dear Morgan, go fuck yourself.
Actually, Cash, go fuck yourself, too.

Savannah

The morning after my disastrous date
with Cash, all I want to do is wallow in bed with a cup of tea and my
favorite film. Luckily, it’s the weekend, and while there’s
still plenty of work to do I can put it all off. I get up once to
make some tea and crawl onto my couch. Going back to bed will just
remind me of Cash. I flip on my favorite movie and settle in for a
good ‘poor me’ session.

I shouldn’t let this get to me, I
chastise myself. I knew this would happen. He doesn’t want
something long term. Isn’t that why he’s always so much
more interested in the ‘here and now’? No room to grow
into something more.

I check my phone hoping for something,
anything from Cash, but find a text from Cassie instead. She must
know something I don’t: all I get is an order that she’ll
be picking me up at ten for a girl’s day.

The clock on the wall already says
nine. Knowing Cassie, if I try to evade she’ll just bust in and
steal me away. Might as well get up and get ready to face my
abduction. In truth, I could probably do with a bit of saving from
myself. Hopefully, she won’t ask anything about Cash, because
that’s a subject I’m putting under lock and key and I
don’t think even her skills will crack me.

When Cassie picks me up, I’m
almost certain that I can get through this day without talking about
Cash. In the hour I had to prepare, I’ve rationalized our
entire relationship. It’s been great sex, and that’s all
it needs to be. Just really good sex.

But I can’t help wanting more.

Knowing me too well, Cassie’s
bribed me with a green tea latte and idle chatter about Ryder, the
club, her job, anything to lull me into a false sense of security. I
need the detox. It’ll help me with the feelings of rejection
that are growing stronger every minute. Last night was the first time
since Cash and I started this crazy dance that he didn’t spend
the night. I take a sip of my tea and try to prep a strategy for
dealing with Cassie.

Up to now, I’ve been able to
avoid the awkward questions about Tanner and Cash by just avoiding
being alone with my best friend. But now, with Cash throwing me onto
an emotional roller coaster, the only way out of this whole thing is
to completely move on and act like nothing ever happened.