"No, you're a dumbass," she pointed out in a bored tone.
He threw up his hands and slumped down in the chair behind him. "Okay, Faith, I'm a dumbass. Now tell me why I'm such a dumbass, because obviously I'm too much of a dumbass to see!"
She sat down in her chair with a smirk. "Nice sarcasm, Nathan. And I thought that was Micah's job."
"I heard that," Micah called from the hall.
"Not to mention eavesdropping," Nathan growled. "Micah, I'm going to kick your f**king ass if you don't get the hell away from Faith's door."
He got up and stalked over to look down the hall. To his supreme irritation, Micah stood there with Connor and Gray Montgomery and they all wore shit-eating grins that told him they'd overheard every word of his argument with Faith.
"Assholes," Nathan swore. "The lot of you.".
"You raise your voice to Faith again and I’ll kick your ass," Gray said mildly.
"Oh, like I’d do anything to her even if I'm tempted to strangle her," Nathan said in irritation. "She's being a royal pain in my ass."
"I heard that," Faith called.
Nathan threw up his hands. "Get lost, okay guys? If I wanted the greater Houston area to know what I was talking about, I'd take out an ad."
"That's not a bad idea," Connor said thoughtfully. "We could rent a billboard. Tm sorry, Julie. I'm a blind, deaf and dumb moron who doesn't know what to do with his dick,'" he mimicked.
Nathan sucked in a deep breath, walked back into Faith's office and slammed the door as hard as he could.
"You break my door and you're going to fix it," Faith said.
"Faith, look at me," Nathan said as he walked back to her desk. He leaned over until their faces were a few inches apart. "Cut the crap for a minute and help me, okay?"
Her expression softened. "I can't help you, Nathan. You f**ked this up. I'd tell you to fix it but it's really too late. Julie . . . she's hard. Girl holds a grudge forever. She's decided to give up on you and move on. Once she's decided on something, getting her to change her mind is like getting a pit bull to give up a prime steak."
"So her giving me the best blow job of my life during a massage was her kissing me good-bye?" Nathan asked dryly.
Faith's cheeks turned pink, and he felt bad for speaking so bluntly in front of her.
"Sorry," he mumbled.
Faith sighed. "I think that was supposed to be showing you what you're missing out on and what you've given up by not noticing her before."
Nathan's eyes narrowed. "So you knew what she was going to do?"
Faith raised one eyebrow. "I knew she was planning something. Just not what, exactly."
"Vengeful heifer," Nathan muttered.
Faith grinned. "That she is."
"Well screw that," Nathan said as he shoved away from her desk again. "She can't just take those kinds of liberties with my body and walk away."
Faith burst out laughing. She laughed so hard that tears rolled down her cheeks. "You sound like an outraged maiden," she gasped.
He grinned. "Who says I'm not? I was innocent before she corrupted me. If she thinks she can use me and then discard me, she's mistaken."
Faith wiped at her tears and laughed harder. "Innocent, my ass. Dear Lord, I was feeling sorry for you, but now I think my sympathies have shifted to Julie. I'm not entirely sure she realizes what she's gotten herself into."
"No," Nathan said silkily. "She has no clue what she's started. But she will. Very soon."
Chapter 3
Julie hopped out of her sporty two-seater and walked up to Damon Roche's front door. He and Serena were both at home, according to Serena anyway, and supposedly Serena had warmed him up for Julie's request.
Of course Serena might still be mad over Julie and Faith kidnapping her a while back, so Julie couldn't be totally sure that Damon would have a clue why she was here.
She knocked on the door and blinked when a large man wearing shades answered. She squinted for a few seconds as she stared at him.
"Dude, you look straight out of the Mafia," Julie blurted. "I tried to tell Serena that Damon was probably a drug dealer."
To her surprise, Big Dude broke into a grin. "You must be Miss Stanford. Miss James is expecting you."
"And not Mr. Roche?" Damn Serena.
"Mr. Roche is expecting you as well," he returned smoothly. "They're in the living room."
She followed him inside the gorgeously furnished house. No wonder Serena had agreed to move in. Compared to Serena's tiny apartment, this was a freaking palace.
They walked into the living room, where Julie was surprised to see a fire burning in the hearth. Damon sat on the couch and Serena was beside him, her head in his lap as he stroked her hair.
"Miss Stanford is here."
Damon turned, and Serena scrambled up, her long black hair falling over her shoulders in disarray.
"Thank you, Sam," Damon said. "Would you have Carol bring refreshment for our guest? Julie, would you care for some wine?"
She grimaced. "Beer, if you have it."
Damon smiled. "Of course. Sam, have Carol bring Julie a beer. Serena and I will take wine."
Serena got up and hurried over to Julie. Julie found herself in a hug as Serena squeezed fiercely.
"You have to tell me how it went with Nathan," Serena murmured.
Julie grinned. "Just like I planned. And now I'm here for part two of the plan."
Serena rolled her eyes as she backed away.
"You did tell Damon why I wanted to see him, right?" Julie asked anxiously.
"She did," Damon said with amusement. "Sort of. She said she'd leave the actual details for you to explain but that you were interested in using my facilities for a little fantasy fulfillment."
"Yeah," Julie said wistfully. "I'm totally down for some great sex."
Damon laughed, and that's why Julie liked him. He didn't have an uptight, judgmental bone in his body. Plus, he loved Serena to pieces, and what woman wouldn't want that kind of guy for her friend?
"Come sit, Julie. You can fill me in on these fantasies of yours while we wait for your beer."
"Hell, I might need a few beers before I can tell you about them," she muttered.