8. Callie

“You did WHAT?”

A distant clatter followed Bianca’s shock, drawing a laugh from me as I lounged back on my bed and toyed with the tier of my house coat. Freshly showered after getting home, I was soaking up the strange new peace that existed in my soul ever since my morning with Sawyer.

“I fucked him,” I said and a childish surge of excitement rushed up through my chest like I was still a teenager. “Or he fucked me. I’m not really sure where the line is here. And I didn’t want to tell you this at the restaurant because this is not dinner conversation.”

“Oh, it absolutely is,” Bianca declared. “But I’m not willing to wait so spill the beans. Tell me everything!”

“He invited me to his office and talked about how there’d been some unprofessionalism among his staff, to the point that I thought he wanted to contact HR. But he was really talking about me, or him in regard to me, and the next thing I knew, he was standing behind me like this hot shadow.”

A shudder stole down my spine as I replayed the moment in my mind. His presence stole the air from my lungs and I craved that sensation.

“He sounded so jealous and my mind was not working because I never knew he noticed me or was interested. Then he was against me and fuck, Bianca, The filth he was saying.”

“Details!” Bianca demanded.

“Well.” Warmth flushed up my throat and I pressed my thighs together, soaking up the pleasant ache that rose. “He talked about wanting to fuck me wherever he wanted. Keeping me under his desk and drunk on his cock.”

“Kinky fucker.”

“Exactly! But it turned me on so hard, so quickly and then his hand was in my pants and you can fill in the rest.” I’d been so caught up in the image he was painting that when he started fingering me, I’d been certain it was a dream. A really fucking good dream.

“I can’t believe this. When you get fucked at work, you get an orgasm out of it,” Bianca laughed heartily. “When I get fucked, it’s just a shit tone of invoices and burst bags of dog food.”

“Awwh, I’m sorry. Would it make you feel better or worse if I told you he only fucked me after I came?”

“Oh, so he took care of you properly, huh?” Bianca said, followed by another clatter. “Does this guy have any friends?”

“Yes,” I mused, mulling over Liam, and even Kane popped into my mind. “But I think Sawyer thinks they were flirting with me. He sounded so jealous and Liam was quite flirty this morning, but I didn’t think anything of it. Beyond oh shit he’s fucking gorgeous.”

“One of the perks of being single and not committed is that you don’t have to choose, right?” Bianca teased.

“I’m not cocky enough to think more than one man is interested,” I laughed, winding the tier around my fingers. “But I can certainly dream about it.”

“And yet Sawyer seems to think different.”

“He’s a man,” I pointed out, finally sitting up. “They see everything differently.”

“Ain’t that the truth.”

“Okay, I need to get dressed,” I said. “You can ask me about everything else when I get to the restaurant, okay?”

“Gotcha, see you soon!”

The call ended. I stood, musing through just what to wear to dinner with my best friend when an email blinked onto my screen. Reading that it was from my mother’s hospice caused my heart to stop immediately in my chest.

Fuck!

I forgot all about the bill. I’d been utterly distracted by Sawyer all day. Opening the email, my still heart plummeted into my gut.

It was a receipt for payment covering my outstanding bills.

What payment? I hadn’t made any payment.

Dialing the hospice, I began wrestling myself into some clothes while waiting for someone to answer. By the time someone didanswer, I was almost fully dressed in a knee-length dress and corset.

“Hello?”

“Hi, yes. My name is Callie Everheart. I’m calling about an email I just received regarding my outstanding bill?”

The clack of keys sang over the line as I hurried around looking for my keys and purse.

“Everheart… Everheart… ah, yes! Your outstanding bill has been paid.”

“By who? I haven’t sent anything to you guys today.”

“Let me see.” More clacking as I located my keys by the door and slung my bag over my shoulder.

“The bill was paid by one Eli Talbot.”

I stumbled to a stop in the middle of my hallway.

What the hell was Eli Talbot doing paying my hospice bill?”

——

“What the hell are you playing at?” I demanded, throwing the office door open so forcefully that it clattered against the wall and bounced back at me. I caught it with one hand while Eli’s secretary scurried in under my arm.

“I’m sorry, sir. I tried to stop her.”

“It’s fine.” Eli, perched on the corner of his desk, raised one hand and waved her away. “Callie. What a pleasant surprise.”

“This isn’t a pleasant visit,” I snapped, striding forward. It had taken me twenty minutes to get here, fueled by anger and reassurance from Bianca who was holding our table at the restaurant.

“On the contrary.” Eli glanced up from the newspaper in his hand and snaked his gaze down me. “All dressed up for me? You shouldn’t have.”

I ignored that comment and focused on the reason I was there. “What the hell are you playing at, paying my hospice bills? We were not friends and we certainly don’t know each other well enough for something like that.”

Heat danced across the surface of my skin, flaring each time the hot anger in my chest twisted and sparked. I was so angry I knew I would burst if I paused even for a moment.

“What an odd way to say thank you.”

“I’m not saying thank you, I’m asking what the hell!”

Eli sighed dramatically and folded up the newspaper. “Thank you would get you much further.”

“Tell me why!” I yelled, then I caught myself and took a step back. The last thing I needed was to overstep, as much as I wanted to slap that smug smile off his smarmy face.

“It’s simple. You walked my dog, and Bianca had talked about you with such love that when I learned you were struggling with a bill or two, I stepped in to help.” Eli stood from his desk and moved around to his chair. “That’s all there is to it.”

“Bullshit,” I snapped. “Things are never that simple with men like you. How did you even learn about my financial situation?”

“Men like me?” Eli raised one brow and slowly sat down. He ignored most of my sentence. “Would you say the same if your boss, Mr. Crane, paid that bill? Although I imagine he never would since he clearly doesn’t pay you well enough in the first place. If he did, you wouldn’t have an outstanding bill, would you?”

Somehow, his comment about Sawyer bothered me even more, and I bit back a deep noise of fury. Sawyer paid me enough, but medical bills of all kinds were eye-watering.

“What I get paid – in fact, any aspect of my life is absolutely none of your business you creep. Did you wake up this morning and contemplate just how many ways you could overstep boundaries with someone you don’t know” What kind of insanity was this?

“All I’m saying is maybe you need to re-evaluate when someone does a good deed,” Eli smirked, steepling his fingers together. “Such a volatile woman you are.”

Anger surged like a hot wave and I stepped forward, ready to yell until I was hoarse. Thankfully, sense caught up with me.

“Stay away from me, and stay away from my mother, understand? Take your good deed elsewhere.”

——

“Talk about creepy,” Bianca groaned, lightly stabbing some pepper onto her fork. “I’m so sorry. What are you going to do?”

Toying with my own chicken, I shrugged and absently stabbed at my pasta. “I have no idea. I’m going to cancel the payment and refund it for sure but I just don’t understand why. I don’t believe that bullshit about it being a good deed.”

“Are you sure?” Bianca tilted her head as she ate. “He’s always been so pleasant when we meet. Maybe you just had one bad experience that’s tainted him and this really is just a rich guy trying to do something nice.”

“Whose side are you on?” I snapped.

“Yours,” Bianca replied in the same tone, then lifted one hand with her palm up. “I’m just saying. He paid a bill and given how you were struggling, maybe it’s not such a bad thing y’know? It gives you some breathing room and he’s not asked for anything in return. Maybe keep it.”

She drained her wine glass and flashed me a supportive smile.

“All I’m saying is that it doesn’t help to contemplate all your options now that you’ve had time to sit with what he did. I won’t deny that it’s really fucking weird, but then he’s rich. Rich people play by different rules.”

Amidst the restaurant’s hubbub and my waning hunger, I had to relent that maybe Bianca had a point. Despite the sleaziness I was certain hid behind his intentions, he had paid a bill I had no hope of paying yet. Maybe this really was just the breathing room I’d been looking for.

“Maybe,” I sighed finally, abandoning my meal and leaning my elbows on the table. “Either way, I’m going to cancel the payment. Or save up and pay him back just in case.”

“Whatever makes you feel better,” Bianca nodded. “But for now, that bill is paid, and your mother’s treatment is secured. That”s a silver lining, no?”

She had a point. The rest of dinner passed quickly, and as our appetite shifted from food to alcohol, the desire to go somewhere and get a real drink rose. Mostly, I wanted to forget just enough that Eli vanished from my mind, but I maintained the delightful memory of my morning with Sawyer.

“So, where should we go?” Bianca asked as we stepped out into the street and she wrestled with her bag getting caught in her strap.

“Here, let me help,” I laughed, taking the strap in my hand and working with her to free the tangle. “How about Joey’s? They should have two for one, right? We like tasty and cheap.”

“Sounds good!”

“Callie?” A voice I recognized caught my attention. As I finished with Bianca, I turned and found myself face-to-face with Kane. There was something strange about seeing him out here in the middle of the street like a regular person when he was a billionaire.

“Kane! It’s good to see you.”

“You too.” Kane leaned forward and patted my shoulder briefly, then flashed Bianca a warm smile. “Sorry to interrupt. I’m Kane.”

“Bianca,” she grinned. “Charmed, I’m sure.” Her gaze wandered over Kane even as he turned back to me, and she was not subtle about it.

“Having a good night?” he asked.

“It’s definitely been a kind of night,” I chuckled. “We were just heading out for drinks actually.”

“Join us!” Bianca cut in, taking my hand and looping her arm through Kane’s. “It’s always more fun with one more!”

“Oh, I’m sure he has stuff he needs to—” I started to say, but Bianca had already started walking and dragging both of us with her. I caught Kane’s gaze over the top of her head, and he grinned.

“I could spare time for a drink.”