“Why? I mean, really and truly … why? I’d have to be out of my mind.”
“You’d have to be out of your mind not to. He’s clearly into you, and he’d be a great fuck.” She paused. “And you and me both could do with a good time from a fit-as-fuck biker. Hell yeah, give me some of that.”
Leah was surprised at Willow’s enthusiasm. “So you call him.”
“Somehow, I don’t think that would yank his chain, Leah. It’s your panties he wants into.”
“He can want all he wants.”
Oh, dear God, a night of naked, sweaty fucking with Carter. He’d be kinky, twisted, warped. He’d do things to her body she hadn’t even thought about, things her imagination couldn’t come up with. She was sure of it. And then she’d regret it forever. He’d ruin her. He’d mess up her head so badly no vanilla Pierce guy would ever compare.
A shiver went down her spine. It tickled over her ass and between her legs, tugging at her clit and tensing her belly. Her heart did a strange little flip as though it had missed a beat and then had to do another to catch up. A full-body quiver attacked her.
If just thinking about a night with him does this to me!
Yes. She had to avoid him. Never call him. Carter Harris was danger with a capital D.
****
Leah stared out her office window. It was at the front of the building, one of the few with a view of the street and reserved for senior associates.
She’d woken with a hollow feeling in her belly—an emptiness that neither lemon tea nor a cream cheese bagel had managed to fill. But she was used to this. It was a symptom of not having her mother walking on the earth.
Frowning, she looked at the sign for Cheers and Beers in the distance. Was Carter there drinking a beer? His shoulders slightly hunched as he sat at the bar in that casual way he had of just being. His legs wide, big biker boots on the barstool, his elbows perched. Or had he taken off? Headed south on his mean machine back to the surf and the sea and his biker buddies.
She chewed on her bottom lip and wondered why he hadn’t gone in convoy with them a few days ago. It couldn’t have just been to chat to her and Willow, that was crazy. Or was it important to him to let Pierce know about the Mexican’s plans for next year? Telling her was sensible, she was the mayor’s daughter after all, and she had the ear of authority. Too much of her father’s ear sometimes, and his eyes, he had a nasty habit of meddling with her life and casting judgment over anything she did that he and Ellen hadn’t pre-approved.
Carter had made her question her previous decision. Why had she come back to Pierce to practice? She could have picked anywhere. She didn’t hold much affection for big cities, but the beach … now that was a different story.
Her phone rang, and she plucked it from her desk as she glanced at the screen. “Hey, Pops.”
“Leah, good, I’m glad I caught you.”
“You did.” She stared out the window again, at the bar in the distance. “What’s up?”
“Ellen, she really needs you.”
Leah said nothing. Her stepmother was at best an irritation, at worst nothing short of a poisonous thorn in Leah’s side.
“Are you still there?”
“Yes, I’m here.”
“This mayoral party is taking quite a bit of organizing. She has a list of things to do as long as her arm.”
“Pops, I’m working, full-time. I have two cases coming up to prepare for and I have Willow to supervise.”
“But the evenings, you could—”
“I work into the evenings.”
He was quiet for a moment. “It would mean a lot to her.”
What didn’t he understand? She was busy, and the mayoral party wasn’t something Leah wanted to attend anyway, so helping with the preparations was hardly a priority. She sighed. “I can’t do much beforehand, but if she wants help on the day…”
“Well, that’s something at least.”
She rolled her eyes.