Burn (Breathless #3)(23)

He smiled. “That’s where trust has to enter, Josie. Consider what I’ve told you, how it will be, and then when you say yes, we’ll go over the more intimate details of our arrangement.”

Chapter eight

Ash wasn’t someone who liked waiting around. Especially for something he wanted. He was too used to getting what he wanted, when he wanted. No wasn’t a word in his vocabulary and the more time that passed since his dinner with Josie, the more on edge he felt.

Not even the situation with Brittany had been able to distract him from his preoccupation with Josie.

His sister had settled into her apartment and had reported to work at the Bentley in their administration. So far she seemed to be doing well. He received regular reports about Brittany from the manager, who was satisfied with her performance so far. He’d commented that she was punctual, a hard worker and seemed eager to make her job a success.

Tonight he had dinner plans with Brittany, and he would have looked forward to it were it not for the fact he had yet to hear from Josie. It had been a week since their dinner, and he’d been very confident that he’d hear from her in a matter of days. He’d seen the look in her eyes. She was intrigued. She was obviously attracted to him. And the things he’d offered seemed to appeal to her.

So why was it taking so damn long for her to respond? Or did she even plan to? Maybe she’d gotten home and immediately talked herself out of a relationship with him.

He knew he should have pressed for an answer the night they’d gone to dinner. She’d been precariously close to consent. He’d seen it in her eyes and in her body language. Whether she consciously realized it or not, she wanted him and she wanted the kind of relationship he proposed.

This was new territory for him. Never had he been in a position where he had to wait for a woman to make up her mind whether she wanted to be with him. The women he’d been with in the past hadn’t hesitated even a minute. They’d been all too eager to hook up with him, no matter how long things lasted.

And in fact, there had been several who hadn’t gotten the message that they were over. The last woman he and Jace had been together with—not counting Bethany—had not taken the end of her fling with him and Jace well at all. She’d been pissed and acted very much the woman scorned even though he and Jace had made it abundantly clear that it was a temporary arrangement.

He replayed the evening Josie and he had dinner. Yes, he’d definitely been blunt and straightforward. Maybe that scared her. Maybe he’d come on too strong too quickly. But he didn’t want to mislead her. He wanted her to know exactly what she was getting into with a relationship with him.

“Hey, man.”

Ash looked up to see Jace standing in the doorway of his office. Ash motioned him in and Jace sauntered toward the desk, closing the door behind him.

“You’ve been quiet lately. Anything wrong? How has the fallout over Brittany’s defection been?”

Ash rolled his eyes. “Predictable.”

“Meaning what?”

Jace took a seat across from Ash and pinned him with an inquisitive stare.

“Oh, you know my dear old mother and father. Dad is too much of a spineless wimp to do or say much of anything. He just toes the line with Mom and whatever she says goes.”

“They been giving her shit?” Jace asked with a scowl.

“Well, they showed up at the apartment you’re letting her use. Ordered her home and told her to quit being a child. This is a thirty-year-old woman my mother was dressing down, mind you. When Brittany refused, Mom wanted to know how she afforded the apartment she was living in and how she was making it on her own. Brittany told her it was none of her business how she got the apartment and that she was making it like most people made it. By working.”

Jace chuckled. “Good for her. Wouldn’t have thought she had it in her to stand up to the wicked bitch of the east.”

“Me either to be honest,” Ash admitted. “But she seems determined to make a break from the family. I’m proud of her. Mom can be intimidating and you have to understand until recently Brittany has always done what Mom wanted her to. No questions asked.”

“Must be a hard adjustment for her,” Jace said in sympathy.

“I’m having dinner with her tonight. You and Bethany want to join us? I’d like Brittany to meet Bethany. Brittany hasn’t associated with the best female friends. They were never her real friends and Brittany knows that. When the chips are down, they aren’t riding to her rescue. They dropped her like a hot brick.”

“Sure. I’ll call Bethany and make sure we don’t have other plans.”

“Thanks. Will be nice to take my mind off other things.”

Too late he realized how telling that statement would be, and the last thing he wanted was to discuss it with Jace, who would most definitely latch on to it and wouldn’t let it go.

“Anything you need help with?” Jace asked, his brow wrinkled with concern.

“Nah. Not unless you have a way of making a woman acquiesce to your demands.”

At that Jace’s eyebrow lifted. “A woman? Do tell. This has to be worth the price of admission.”

“It’s complicated,” Ash muttered. “She’s being difficult.”

Jace laughed. “Show me one woman who isn’t!”