one
dean
A blunt was required when having to endure lunch with the president of the junior college I had attended for one semester back before Slacker Demon, the rock band in which I was the drummer, was formed. The best marijuana money could buy should make this bearable.
When my CPA had told me I needed another tax write-off, I had chosen to donate to my only college alma mater. They were always asking for donations. I figured they needed it. Besides, if I was going to move back to the Florida Panhandle, then I needed to invest in the area.
I hadn’t expected to be invited to lunch and asked if I would speak at next year’s commencement. Why the fuck they wanted a guy who didn’t have a degree speaking, I did not know.
What the hell would I say to the kids anyway?Good luck with those degrees. Do some drugs, but not too much. Rock on.
I inhaled the last bit of relief before pulling off my sunglasses and heading inside the main office on campus. The air-conditioning didn’t seem to be pumping hard enough to cool the building down. Must not be in the budget to keep the office staff comfortable during the summer months. Hopefully, lunch wasn’t going to be here. If I had to endure an ass-kissing by a middle-aged man, then I’d prefer to at least be comfortable.
Pushing the door open that was labeledOffice, I stepped inside, and a breeze hit my face. I sighed in relief, turning to see three box fans going full force. They weren’t making things cool precisely, but slightly more bearable.
“When I text you, I expect you to respond, Cam.” A frustrated female voice caught my attention.
I turned to see the back of a woman with thick brown hair piled on top of her head in a messy bun with a pencil through it. She had a hand on her hip, and the blue sundress she was wearing clung to her curves. Probably from sweat. Although all three fans were pointed in her direction, they weren’t enough against this Florida heat.
“That’s not an excuse,” she snapped at the poor guy on the phone. “I don’t care,” she told him. Then, she sighed heavily. “Okay. I love you. Call me as soon as you get there.”
I winced. The dude was being kept under her thumb. I fought back the urge to yell,Run, man! Run like the wind! There isn’t a pussy worth that controlling behavior!
I glanced around to see if anyone else could direct me to the president’s office, but we were alone. I would have to wait for her to finish smothering the guy she was talking to. Then, it occurred to me that perhaps I could save him from this phone call. I needed directions, and Cam needed off the phone with that one.
I cleared my throat loudly.
“I have to go,” she said then spun around, and her eyes locked on mine. I saw them widen slightly as she put her phone down on the desk in front of her.
“Hello, Mr. Finlay. I’m sorry about that. I didn’t hear you come in. I hope I haven’t kept you waiting too long.”
There were two things I realized in that moment. The first, she was sexy in thatnaughty librariansort of way. Her eyes were so big and bright blue that you had to stare at them a moment before moving on. Her lips were full and painted a pale pink, and she had a rack on her that was hard to ignore. The second, I understood poor Cam a little better. He was probably around her age, and she was young—my guess would be mid-twenties. For a guy that age, hot pussy was a powerful force in his life. Perhaps it always would be. The life I had led numbed me to the power women yielded. I knew the deception that they could mask so well. My son’s mother had been a lesson I didn’t need to learn twice.
“Are you done with him? Or do you need to bark more orders before you help me?” I asked, wanting to point out her flaw. I’d like to say it was to make her think about how she spoke to her boyfriend next time, but it was for selfish reasons.
I didn’t want her to like me. No matter how tempting she was, I had sworn off younger women. I was too old for that shit. It was time I started dating women that didn’t want to reproduce and have families. I had a family. My son’s family. I didn’t want to raise another kid. I hadn’t been that great at it the first time.
Those eyes that had appeared so angelic narrowed slightly, and her nice, full lips thinned out. I’d pissed her off easily enough. I’d assumed it would take more rude comments to turn her against me. Normally, it took a lot more damage for a woman to look at me that way. Even after I was done with groupies, they smiled and thanked me as they left. I wasn’t a young man anymore, but I was Dean Finlay. My fame allowed me to get away with a lot. Women and most men forgave me anything. Ass-kissing was something I expected.
“Yes,” she said in a cold tone, and her shoulders straightened as she held my gaze, not once softening the glare she was shooting my way. “Please follow me,” she added.
Then, she turned so quickly that the pencil slipped from her messy bun, and more hair than I’d expected tumbled down in loose curls almost to her waist. It reminded me of a chocolate river—or maybe that was the marijuana getting to me. Either way, that shit was gorgeous. I wanted to run my fingers through it and see if it was as silky and smooth as it looked.
She picked up the pencil and muttered something under her breath, then came around the desk and gave me one last annoyed glance before heading for another set of doors across the room. I enjoyed the view of her ass swaying while she walked ahead of me.
Oh, yes, Cam, I understand why you are putting up with her mouth.
We walked in silence, and the urge to see how angry I could make her took over.
“Are you a student aide?” I asked her, knowing it was very unlikely.
“No. I work in admissions,” she said curtly.
I couldn’t remember the last time a female had spoken to me with such little interest. I was a rock legend. She knew my name; she knew who I was.
“Must be a shitty job,” I said. “Or are you always this … pleasant?”
She stopped and spun around to look at me, her hair swinging with the sudden move. I liked the way it did that. However, I had just made her angrier. There wasn’t even a pretend smile on her face. She was making it clear that she did not like me and my fame was of no importance to her. Damn if I didn’t like that. This was something new.