Page 7 of Doubting Hearts

I stepped back in surprise. “Hey, you didn’t seem to object too much. That tongue of yours could be classed as a dangerous weapon. It’s like a bloody rapier.”

He flushed. “Could you cut that out? I’m being serious. I can’t have people thinking I’m canoodling with the hired—”

He swallowed his words, but the damage was done. My face heated up, and I glared at him. “Canoodling with the hired help? Is that what you meant, Mr. General Manager?”

I heard footsteps coming down the corridor.

“Jesus, Rain, what the hell are you doing? You’ve been gone ages, and we have work to do.” Lucas sounded pissed off. I turned to see him barreling up the hall toward me.

I lifted the tee shirt over my head and pulled it on. “This kind gentleman was just finding me something to wear, Lucas. We’re done now. I can get back to work. The massa has spoken.” My voice was sarcastic, and Toby flinched. Lucas saw the expression on my face and wisely kept quiet. I strode past him, into the barroom, and picked up my hammer. I had no idea what I was going to do with it, but I really needed to hit something. Lucas came in behind me.

“Jesus, Rain, what was all that about? Did you find some nooky in the corridor and give it one? Was it that posh-looking guy I saw you with?”

“No. It was nothing. He was just finding me something to wear.” I pretended to look at the plans of the design, although my mind was elsewhere. My cock was rock hard in my jeans, and it was extremely uncomfortable. “Now can we just forget that twink and get back to work?”

It was only after I’d said the words that I noticed Toby Prentiss standing in the doorway. His face was pale, and he looked as if he wanted to hit me. Perhaps he was taking exception to the word “twink.” But fuck him.

“Mr. Wright?” He moved into the room, pointedly ignoring me. “The owner, Mr. Winslake, says to please order your lunch and drinks at the Baronet Bar and put it on a bar tab. We’ll sort it all out afterwards. He also said he’s very pleased you’re here. He’s really looking forward to having this bar built.”

Lucas nodded uncertainly. “Uh, thanks. But it’s Rain here that’s the boss. Perhaps you should be talking to him.”

Toby’s smile was wolfish. “Oh, I don’t think Mr. Engel and I have anything else to say to each other. So if you don’t mind, I’d rather talk directly to you.” He nodded at Lucas and disappeared.

Lucas stared at me. “What the hell did you do to piss that guy off?

He looked as if he’d like to castrate you with a blunt knife.”

My erect and aching penis gave a twinge of dislike at that comment. “A minor disagreement. He’s an arsehole, and I only like those in certain ways.”

Lucas was eying me with suspicion. “Rain, I don’t know what the hell you did or said, but you need to play nice. This is a big-cost job and could make us. We need the publicity a job like this will get us. Please tell me you’ll leave the bloody staff alone and make peace with that guy. He’s Winslake’s right-hand man, from what I’ve heard, and the two of them are tight.”

“I have no doubt of that,” I sneered, and Lucas shook his head in exasperation.

“Not that way, you twat. There’s about ten years between them, and I’m not even sure the owner is gay.”

I had my own views on that one. Simon Winslake was bi if nothing else.

“That one certainly is.” I motioned toward the door. “Mr. High and Mighty there.” But I hadn’t been lying when I’d told him he was one of the sexiest men I’d seen in a long time. That lean body, the air of authority he had, the way he wore that suit and the dark-blond hair that curled around his face and ears, that malleable mouth and that to-die-for arse….

God, I wanted that arse. And what I’d felt when I’d been pressed against his front had seemed pretty impressive too.

Lucas heaved a long-suffering sigh. “At least it took your mind off Tommy.” He grinned when I looked at him furiously. “Now come on. Let’s get started. We’re working to a deadline, you know.”

He whistled and moved away. I picked up my design and what I called my “blueprints,” a cohesive set of concisely drawn plans for the installation of the bar. Lucas was right. It was time to begin building and forget about the man I’d just kissed and still wanted to kiss some more.