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  Ayumi didn't have an answer for him, so she stayed quiet while he walked into his en suite. She listened to the water running and tried to think of something to say.

  “She wants attention,” she finally said in a loud voice. “She never got it growing up, so now she does whatever she can to get it.”

  “But why me?”

  “Because you slept with her,” Ayumi pointed out the obvious. That earned her a laugh and Liam finally reappeared, rubbing a thick towel over his wet hair.

  “As good as I am in bed, sweetheart, I don't think I'm quite worthy of stalking,” he chuckled.

  Hmmm, that's debatable.

  “I don't think you even had to be any good – attention is attention. You were giving it to her, now you've taken it away. She doesn't like that,” she replied.

  Before she could say anything else, Liam started unbuttoning his shirt. Ayumi could only stand and stare as he struggled to peel off the clinging material. The wet shirt was tossed onto a counter top, then he pulled open a drawer behind his desk. A fresh t-shirt was laid on the counter, then he started rooting around for something else.

  Her eyes wandered over his cinnamon skin and lean muscles. Watched as they moved and bunched together while he fidgeted about in the drawers. Last night the apartment had been dark, the laundry room had been cramped. She hadn't really gotten to look at him. Now she was soaking him in.

  “This is a bad idea,” she said, slowly moving so she was behind him.

  “What? Oh, jeez,” he was startled when he realized how close she was. “I didn't hear you. What's up?”

  “I think you're annoying, and shallow, and you lie as often as you breathe,” she told him.

  “Is this like a pep talk, or something? Because you kind of suck at it,” he laughed.

  “But you're also nice, and at least with me, you're straight forward,” she kept babbling. If she stopped, she would lose her momentum.

  “Seriously, what's going on? It was a weird night, and now it's an even weirder day,” he sighed, turning to fully face her. She glanced at his chest briefly, then stared him in the eye.

  “The deal is still on the table,” she told him.

  “Oh, your sex-and-nothing-but-sex deal,” he said, yanking the fresh t-shirt on. “I thought you'd rescinded that offer last night.”

  “I've had time to think about it since then.”

  “Hmmm, maybe I've changed my mind,” he replied, leaning back against the shelving behind him. Ayumi shrugged.

  “Okay, good to know. I'll just go find someone else,” she said, turning away from him.

  “You give up to easily,” he laughed, pulling her back around. “I would be honored to be your sex toy, your royal Icy-ness.”

  “We need some rules,” she said, pressing her hands against him so he couldn't pull her close. “No more nicknames.”

  “Oh, c'mon, have you met me? I call everyone by a nickname. Better get used to it.”

  “You're very annoying, you know that, right?” she asked. He nodded.

  “Yeah. But I make up for it in other ways,” he said, leaning down close to her.

  “If we do this, I can't work for you anymore,” she warned him.

  “Okay. You're fired.”

  “You can't fire me – I'm freelance.”

  “Call it what you want to call it, but don't come crying to me when you have to file for unemployment.”

  “Rule number two – no more stupid jokes. Seriously, they're so bad, I can't -”

  Normally, Ayumi hated it when people interrupted her, but when someone kissed as good as Liam, she figured it was okay. She moaned into his mouth and leaned into him.

  “Why so many rules?” he asked when he pulled away to kiss along her jaw. “Are you like a gremlin? Can I feed you after midnight?”

  “I don't eat after eight,” she informed him, raking her fingers through his hair. “I won't be meeting your friends. You won't be meeting mine. I don't like people sleeping over at my house.”

  “What about where and when I can fuck you? Any rules about that?” he asked, swinging her around so she was the one pressed against the shelf.

  “Never at my work,” she replied, wiggling up so she was sitting on the shelf. He barked out a laugh and worked on shoving her skirt up her thighs.

  “Afraid Wulfy will found out about your new fuck buddy?”

  “Yes.”

  “I don't know how I feel about fucking someone who's ashamed of me, maybe I should make you -”

  While they'd been talking, she'd managed to get his belt undone. She didn't want to hear any more cheesy jokes, so she bit the bullet and shoved her hand down his pants. He choked on a word as she wrapped her fingers around the base of his dick.

  “I think you'll get over it,” she whispered. He let out a deep breath and pressed his forehead against hers.

  “You are so different from what I thought,” he whispered back. He had his hands on her thighs and he curled them into fists as she started stroking him.

  “Is that a good thing or a bad thing?”

  “At the moment, it's very fucking good,” he chuckled, and suddenly his hand was on top of hers, showing her how to touch him, how fast to move, how tight to squeeze.

  “We need to work out a schedule,” she told him, leaning closer so she could trail her tongue down the side of his neck.

  “A ... what?” he grunted.

  “Schedule. Of when we should meet up.”

  “Oh. Uh ... every night should be good.”

  “Every night!?”

  “And every other afternoon.”

  “That much sex would kill a person,” she laughed. He yanked both their hands out of his pants and suddenly he was gripping her head.

  “But what a way to go,” he sighed before kissing her again.

  She had gone to his office that day with every intention of actually working. They were still in the process of setting up his online bookkeeping software. Business and pleasure should always be kept separate, in Ayumi's opinion.

  But right that moment, she couldn't imagine doing anything else. She struggled to take off her jacket while Liam quickly unbuttoned her shirt. Her arms were still trapped behind her back when he was cupping her breasts.

  “Your body is sick,” he groaned. “I can't get over it. You shouldn't wear these suits, they hide how amazing you are.”

  “Then what should I wear?” she asked, finally flinging the jacket onto the shelf behind her.

  “Nothing.”

  “You're ridiculous,” she laughed. “And wasting time. I have to be at my real job in forty-five minutes.”

  “So we can have sex twice, then go for donuts.”

  “That's impossible.”

  “You say that so much,” he said, wiggling one hand inside the cup of her bra. “I feel like it's a challenge to prove you wrong.”

  “Maybe it is,” she breathed, letting her head drop back as he rolled her nipple between his fingers.

  “I think this is the beginning of a long and beautiful friendship, Ms. Nakada,” he chuckled, grabbing her hand and pressing it against the bulge in his pants.

  “A long and beautiful partnership,” she corrected him. “And now we're down to forty minutes, Mr. Eden -”

  A loud banging on the office door brought her out of her lust-induced fog. She squealed and practically leapt off the shelf, making herself as small as possible, hiding behind Liam's much bigger form. He laughed at her, then looked over his shoulder.

  “Yeah?” he called out.

  “The fire department is here!” Jan the bouncer yelled back.

  “Shit, I forgot,” Liam said, rubbing his hand over his face. “Okay. Okay! Tell them I'll be right out!”

  “I can't believe we forgot about the sprinklers,” Ayumi grumbled, buttoning her shirt back up. She looked for her jacket, then remembered tossing it over her shoulder. She turned around and leaned over the shelf.

  “This is most definitely 'to be continued', correct?”
Liam asked, pressing up against her from behind, forcing her to bend in half. She bit into her bottom lip and nodded.

  “Correct,” she managed to say, then she bit down again when she felt his hand sliding over her ass. Her skirt was bunched up around her waist, so his hand was free to move over hip, across the front of her hosiery, and down between her legs.

  “Then until 'continued' happens,” he breathed in her ear. “I want you thinking about this all day – understood?”

  As his fingers pressed down and moved in circles, she couldn't even think straight, let alone find her voice. She simply nodded her head and pushed back against him, wanting to feel his hardness against her. He groaned and she felt him biting into her shoulder.

  Fuck the firemen, Ayumi was fully prepared to finish everything they'd started. It was Liam who shockingly had the will power to pull away. She was still panting and trying to remember her own name while he pulled her skirt into place. Then he smacked her on the ass, hard enough to make her yelp.

  “Should be a fun day at the office today,” he teased, all the naughtiness gone from his voice. His words were like a bucket of cold water. She was a soaking wet mess and she had to go to work with Wulf. She swallowed thickly and stood upright.

  “Maybe we should make that another rule – never start something we can't finish,” she suggested.

  “Oh, baby,” he breathed, coiling his arms around her from behind and pulling her flush with him. “Sometimes half the fun is the anticipation.”

  And then he was gone, closing the door to his office behind him before she'd even turned around.

  “I am in way over my league,” Ayumi breathed, collapsing into the chair next to her.

  She let her head fall back and she stared at the ceiling for a while, trying to calm down. Trying to do the math. By the time he'd be done talking to the firemen and dealing with inspectors and whatnot, they wouldn't have enough time do anything fun. And she wouldn't see him tonight because she had a late meeting to attend, then a pilates class, followed by Bikram Yoga. Then the following day, she would be working in Malibu with Wulf, who knew when she'd get home. 'To be continued' would have to happen the day after tomorrow, at the earliest.

  She rubbed her thighs together and glanced around his office. She could go take care of herself. He had a couch, and she knew there was murphy bed in the standing wardrobe. Maybe he'd walk in on her – that could be hot. Or maybe a fireman would, which wouldn't be hot.

  No, she'd just have to wait. She was an adult, she didn't have to give into her baser desires. At least not until she was in the privacy of her own home. So she stood up and she straightened herself out and she collected her belongings.

  Before she left, though, she looked around once more. If she wasn't going to see him or speak to him for a whole day, she didn't want him to forget about her. Didn't want him working out their 'to be continued' with someone else. She spied his desk lamp, the one that curved right over the top of his desk, and she smiled to herself.

  Perfect.

  5

  What have I gotten myself into?

  Liam stared at his ceiling, not really seeing the crown molding or fancy light fixtures.

  No, his brain was too busy reliving the smoking hot moments from his office. Who would've guessed that ice cold Ayumi could be so frickin' hot? Drunken night time sex in his laundry room was one thing – his office had been nothing but the cold, sober light of day. When she'd stuck her hand down his pants, he'd thought he'd died and gone to heaven.

  Before things could get really interesting, though, he'd had to put himself to rights so he could deal with the fire department. He was so busy with that and with Brie kicking up a fuss, he hadn't gotten back to his office until over an hour later. Ayumi had been long gone by then, but she'd left him a present.

  Her panties hanging from his desk lamp.

  He'd shoved them into his pants and then had sent her a filthy text message, telling her in detail what he planned on doing with her panties. She'd sent him one back almost immediately – just one line.

  “To be continued.”

  A day later, though, and nothing had continued. He hadn't heard from her that first night, which hadn't been so bad because the club had been swamped, he hadn't gotten home till almost four in the morning. But the next day was quiet. He found himself staring at his phone, willing her to text. He wasn't going to chase after her, she was the one who had approached him, after all. But he also didn't like dealing with blue balls for two days straight. He needed to know the extent of their rules. Were they allowed to sleep with other people? Was he allowed to just show up at her place for a booty call? Or was this all just a game to her? Something to be done only on her time, on her terms.

  Maybe she was right, maybe this was a bad idea.

  “Shit.”

  Liam was pulled out of his thoughts at the sound of his brother stumbling around. He lifted his head enough to see that Landon was in the kitchen, rubbing his shin.

  “You're just getting in?” Liam asked, propping himself up.

  “Yes, Mom, I'm just getting in,” Landon's voice was snide.

  “You were gone before I left this morning,” Liam ignored the nasty tone. “What did you do all day?”

  “Negotiated world peace. Stopped a van full of nuns from going off a cliff. Went down to the Pier and got a blowjob from some UCLA chick,” Lan replied.

  When he opened the fridge, Liam got out of bed. He stretched his arms above his head as he walked up to the island, then he slid onto a stool. Watched as his brother drank lemonade straight from the carton.

  “Sounds like a productive day. Anything on the job front?” he dared to ask. Landon was temperamental at the best of times – one never knew if he was going to shrug something off, or go into a rage.

  “No, but I guess I'd have to actually look for one first,” Landon replied, putting the lemonade back and closing the fridge.

  “Dude,” Liam sighed, rubbing his hand over his face. “You can't sleep on my couch forever. I could talk to Wulf, maybe he can move Brighton of the place next door and you could have that apartment? I mean, you do own the building.”

  Landon seemed to ignore the comment and started getting ready for bed. His jacket and t-shirt were dropped on the kitchen floor. While he walked, he undid his belt and fly, letting his pants slide to the ground while he moved and stepped out of them.

  “I've got a plan,” he finally replied, digging into a pile of blankets on a chair. Liam got up and walked over to stand next to him.

  “Really? I hope it's better than what you've got going right now.”

  His brother turned around and they stared at each other for a moment. The only light was coming from outside, a street lamp below the window. It hit both of them from the side, lighting up Landon's right side and Liam's left, making them look like two halves of the same whole. Of course, being a twin felt normal to Liam. Everyone else found it neat or fascinating or unusual, but to him it was just life.

  He knew they made quite the pair. Just over six-foot-three, lean and lanky, tone and fit. Active lifestyles and blessed genetics had kept them in shape all through school, then Landon had gone off to run around jungles saving lives, and Liam had continued surfing until the club had taken up too much of his time.

  Whenever they were together, they stood out. Turned heads. And now that Landon had cleaned up and gotten a hair cut, they looked more alike than ever. Almost indistinguishable. Even Tori had mistaken Landon for Liam on more than one occasion, and he considered her one of his best friends – that's how identical he and Landon really were.

  Being twins, they'd grown up very close. Best friends all the way through middle school. High school is when things started to change. Landon's brains and excellent grades had alienated Liam from him and his family. Liam's ease with his classmates, and girls in particular, had alienated him from his brother. By the time they were seniors, they hardly spent any time together. And after they graduated, they went their
separate ways completely.

  Liam had bummed around California for a while, surfing up and down the coast. Landon had gone into medical school, racing through it and passing with flying colors. His scholastic feats made everything Liam did look pale in comparison. Everyone was in awe of Landon and his intellect. His boundless energy. His tireless effort in regards to his education.

  Of course, Liam knew his brother's secret. Boundless? Tireless? Easy to achieve when someone was snorting cocaine like it was going out of style. And cocaine wasn't the only thing – Landon had almost gotten expelled after he'd been caught with speed. No one else knew, though. Liam was the only one who got to see that side of his brother. Phone ringing at three in the morning, a collect call from some far away jail, would he accept?

  And he always, always did. No matter how angry he was, and no matter how many times he'd promised himself never again. It was his brother. So while everyone else treated Landon like he was the Second Coming, and Liam was just seconds, Liam was the one paying for bail. Liam was the one cleaning up vomit. Liam was the one shoving his fingers down his brother's throat.

  And all of that without one single, solitary, tiny thank you.

  “Can we have this conversation in the morning?” Landon groaned. “I'm fucking tired. Twenty-two year olds have way too much energy.”

  Not half as much as twenty-seven year olds ...

  “I'm serious, Lan. My couch isn't some hostel, I'm not Green Peace. Get your shit together, or ...”

  “Or what?”

  “Or I'm calling mom.”

  “I'm calling mom,” his brother mocked him. “Do it. Her couch is more comfortable, anyway.”

  “You're kind of a piece of shit, you know that?” Liam snapped. Landon nodded while he smoothed a sheet out over the couch.

  “Yeah. Good thing I can pass for you whenever I need someone to like me,” he replied, laying down.

  It was said in jest, but it was a secret fear of Liam's. That Landon would get so desperate some day, he'd impersonate his more established, successful brother. It was one of the main reasons Liam kept pushing for Landon to go back into Doctor's Without Borders. He didn't ever want to get to a point where he had to call the police on his own brother.