Learning to Trust: Sweet Temptation (16 page)

Now,
the office seemed larger, partly due to the large window overlooking the entire
main floor of the club that had been added at Sierra’s request. Definitely an
improvement. But, then again, there’d been quite a few improvements to Luke
since he’d begun sharing his life with Sierra and Cole.

“I
wanted to talk to you about your job,” Luke stated, looking rather grim and
making Kane panic somewhat.

His
job? Hell, this couldn’t have been about his vacation could it? He hadn’t taken
any time off for almost four years, until his recent trip to Hawaii. Surely,
Luke wasn’t upset about that.

“All
right.” Kane wasn’t sure where this was leading, but he was getting more and
more anxious the longer Luke stalled.

“I
think you’re time as the bar manager has run its course, don’t you?”

What.
The. Fuck.

Kane
stared back at Luke as confusion and more importantly fear, churned inside of
him. “Do you have a problem with the way I manage the bar?”

If
Luke had a problem, he’d never once voiced his concerns.

“Not
specifically, no.”

“What
the hell is going on, Luke?”

A
mischievous grin tilted Luke’s mouth, successfully pissing Kane off.
Thankfully, although Luke was his boss and Kane had a high respect for the man,
they had developed a fairly close relationship over the years.

“I
know you haven’t heard everything about what’s been going on with the club, but
I’m looking to make some changes. And I need someone that I trust to take over
a few things for me.”

That
caught Kane’s attention. Hopefully, it meant he wasn’t getting canned.

“And
that means what for me?”
And Lucie?
Kane didn’t ask the second part, but
he was just as much interested in any changes that might impact his future wife
as he was himself.

“I
need someone to manage the membership of my other club,” Luke replied.

“No
offense, but I don’t know what that means. You’ve got another club?”

“I
do. It’s actually in this building.”

Could
the man be any vaguer? Kane couldn’t help but wonder as he waited patiently for
Luke to enlighten him.

“We’ve
seen too many problems lately, which is why I temporarily shut the doors. Now
I’ve got Trent breathing down my neck. He’s not interested in keeping the doors
shut for long, and he wants to know what we’re going to do. This is the first
of the changes I’m looking to implement.”

“Who’s
Trent?”

“Trent
Ramsey,” Luke answered easily. “He’s a silent partner, well, he was silent
until recently.”

“Trent
Ramsey
?” Kane asked, stupefied. “
The
Trent Ramsey?”
Holy shit.
Was it even possible?

“That’d
be the one.”

“And
you want me to manage the membership of the swinger’s club?”

“Well,
that and the fetish club.”

“What
fetish club?” Kane asked, still trying to keep up. He was having difficult
thanks to Luke’s evasiveness.

“The
Club at Club Destiny.” Luke pulled out a folder from the top drawer of his desk
and pushed it toward Kane. “We’ve managed to keep the club out of the media,
which is the reason we have the main club. It’s safer that way. With the member’s
that we draw, their anonymity is crucial to our success. However, after what
we’ve recently gone through, I’ve decided to take a different approach to
membership. That’s where you come in.”

Kane
read the information in the folder, what little bit that there was, before
turning back to look at Luke. “Who will take over my position as bar manager?”

Luke
didn’t hesitate with his next answer. “Lucie.”

Kane
stared blankly at his boss. “You want Lucie to manage the bar?”

“You
don’t think she can handle it?”

“Not
at all.” That didn’t come out right. “I mean, yes, I think she can handle it.
She’ll probably do a better job than I can. Everyone loves her, and she’s one
of the hardest working people I know.”

“I
figure now that she has you in her life, where you should’ve been all along,”
Luke offered, “she’ll have a little more time to devote to the club. You’ll
have the flexibility to make your own hours, work more at home if you’d like
which should allow Haley to see the two of you more often. What do you think?”

Kane
wanted to jump up and down and say yes, but he knew he had to talk to Lucie
first. He’d made the mistake of talking to Luke for her once before, and he
wasn’t willing to do it again.

“I
think you should talk to her first. Then she and I can discuss our options.”
Kane answered. “And if she doesn’t want to?”

“Will
you base your decision on what she wants?” Luke questioned.

“Not
necessarily, no. If she doesn’t want to manage the bar, that doesn’t mean I’m
not interested in this opportunity. Just as long as it doesn’t affect her job.”

“Lucie
and I have a strange relationship, I realize that.” Luke stated calmly. “I
respect her, although I sometimes question her reasoning.”

“I’m
sure she’d say the same about you.” Kane laughed. Luke wasn’t known for his
rational thinking most of the time.

“I’m
sure she would.” Luke answered with a laugh of his own. “If you don’t mind, ask
her to come see me when you get back downstairs. And, I’d appreciate you
getting back to me quickly on this. Trent is looking to move forward soon. He’s
a little concerned about the Walker’s resort. He’s not willing to be outdone,
so I think it’s safe to assume there are more changes in the works.”

Kane
nodded his head in agreement, and then left Luke’s office. As soon as he saw
Lucie by the bar, he told her that Luke wanted to speak with her. She looked a
little concerned, but she stood up straight and made her way upstairs.

Kane
wasn’t sure what was going to happen next, but he knew one thing for sure. This
time, the two of them would work together to determine what was best for their
future.

He
wouldn’t want it any other way.

~~*~~

Lucie
was still reeling from her conversation with Luke by the time her shift was
over the following morning. As she waited for Kane to finish with his inventory,
she replayed the conversation over and over in her mind and still came up with
the same conclusion. This was an amazing opportunity, and she had wanted to
jump at the offer as soon as Luke told her, but she knew she had to talk to
Kane first. She’d learned the hard way exactly what it meant to make decisions
without thinking them all the way through.

“You
ready?”

Lucie
took Kane’s hand when he offered it, following him out to the garage. They’d
started going in to work together after she’d agreed to move in with him. Kane
had convinced her that it was inevitable and since she had so many concerns
about the neighborhood she had been living in as it was, she couldn’t come up
with a good excuse to say no. She was pretty sure Erika was much more
comfortable going back to Kane’s house with Haley as well.

“So,
what did you think about Luke’s offer?” Kane asked as they pulled out of the
garage.

She
smiled over at him, barely able to contain her excitement. Luke hadn’t gone
into explicit detail about what Kane would be doing, but he’d alluded to the
fact that it would be a step in the right direction for him. The way Luke had
expressed his trust in Kane had made Lucie beam with pride. He deserved this
chance. She just wasn’t sure she deserved anything more than what she had at
the moment.

Not
that she had told Luke as much.

“I
think it’s a great opportunity for you,” she admitted, turning to face out the
window once more.

“What
about you?” he asked, and Lucie knew he was aware of the offer Luke had given
her.

“Do
you think I can do it?” She wasn’t going to ask whether she deserved it because
she knew Kane wouldn’t tell her no.

She
had her own doubts, but since she was only interested in doing what was best
for Haley, she wasn’t going to make decisions based on her own self-doubt. She
was moving forward, and the mistakes of her past were just that. She knew she
had to overcome them eventually and dwelling on them didn’t help the situation.

“I
think you’ll be fantastic,” Kane said with a smile. “Everyone loves you. You
already know everything there is to know about managing the bar as it is.”

True.
Lucie had been around long enough to know the ins and outs of Kane’s job. She’d
even backed him up once or twice over the years. She just hadn’t thought this
was ever even a possibility.

“What
did you tell Luke?” Lucie asked, realizing he might’ve already taken the job.

“I
told him he needed to talk to you, and that we’d decide what was best for the
three of us at that point.”

Lucie’s
heart swelled to near bursting. It was hard to even imagine that her life would’ve
gotten to this point. After so many speed bumps along the way, it was still
hard to believe that she had somehow made it to this point. To have Kane’s love
was one of the greatest gifts she had ever known. And now that they were
working together to raise their daughter, everything just seemed to be as it
should be.

Although
she’d love to be able to go back and change the way she handled things, she
knew that no matter how they got to this point, it was where they were supposed
to be. It felt right.

And
that’s exactly what she told Kane.

The
smile he beamed at her made her heart leap with joy. They’d finally done it.

They’d
finally managed to secure their happily ever after.

*** ~~ *** ~~ *** ~~ ***

The
wedding went off without a hitch, but Kane wouldn’t have expected anything
less. After Lucie’s insistence that they only have a few friends and family,
and of course, their precious Haley, there hadn’t been much room for error.

Not
that he had cared who attended. His eyes had been on Lucie from the moment she
stepped into the small church aisle on the arm of Luke McCoy, a man who no
matter what people thought, wasn’t nearly as much of a hard ass as he let them believe.
He’d insisted that he be allowed to walk Lucie down the aisle, and he even told
Cole that he’d fight him for the honor. Originally, Lucie had asked Cole
specifically, but even after he agreed, Luke had contacted her personally
requesting the honor. Although he knew she had been a little nervous, and even
more confused, Lucie had been thrilled with the idea. It meant a lot to her
after what she and Luke had gone through the year before.

They
had followed Haley, who tossed white rose pedals along the way, causing smiles
and laughter from the small group of people, including Sierra, Cole, Logan,
Samantha, and of course Kane’s mother, Susanna, and Lucie’s mother, Carolyn.

The
day couldn’t have been more perfect. Lucie couldn’t have been more perfect.

Their
flight had been a long one, and they had finally made it to the small Hawaiian island
and even managed to get the same cozy bungalow they’d stayed in that one night
three months ago.

It
was dark, and the only light came from the brilliant moon that sat low on the
ocean, casting a bright white glow over everything around them. Lucie had
disappeared into the bathroom a few minutes ago, telling him that she needed to
change. Kane only hoped she was going to get naked because he wasn’t sure how
much longer he could go without getting his hands on her.

When
warm hands glided down his back, Kane almost jumped. He hadn’t heard her join
him. The warmth of her skin against his made him relax instantly. When he
started to turn around, Lucie applied pressure to his back, keeping him facing
forward. He stopped, not pushing any further, figuring she had this all planned
out.

“See
those people down there on the beach?” she asked as she placed a kiss against
his back, sending a shiver racing down his spine.

“I
see them,” he replied. There were four people sitting around a bonfire about
fifty yards away.

“You
don’t want them to hear you, do you?”

Kane
smiled. He didn’t give a fuck if they heard him or not, but he understood where
she was going with this. When her hands wrapped around his waist, her fingers
easily unbuttoning his shorts, Kane didn’t make a move. Within seconds he was
naked on the deck, the glow of the moon offering anyone within viewing distance
an unobstructed view of his naked body.

“Put
your hands on the rail,” she instructed, and he smiled at her attempt to sound
stern.

Kane
placed his hands palms down on the wooden rail that surrounded the small deck.
When Lucie gripped his hips, forcing him to move his feet backward, he let her.
Because of his height and his long arms, there was plenty of room between him
and the railing, which apparently Lucie was planning to utilize because she
maneuvered in front of him, tossing a pillow on the ground and lowering her
naked body to her knees.