Abel (5th Street 4)

Lifting a finger to her assistant, Emily, who peeked in her doorway, she spoke quickly into her cell phone. “Can I call you back?”

“Okay, but you better because I really think you need to think this through a little more. I don’t know what makes me more anxious: that even though you won’t admit it I think you’re still very vulnerable to getting hurt, or the fact that you’re doing this with one of Noah’s closest friends. I don’t wanna hate one of my husband’s good friends, Nellie, not to mention business partner, but I will if he hurts you.” She stopped to sigh dramatically. “Even though you’ve been extensively warned that this may very well happen, I’d still hate him.”

Nellie smiled. “You won’t have to hate anyone. Cross my no-longer-breakable heart, and, yes, I will call you back when I’m on the road, which should be fairly soon.” She hung up and looked at her assistant. “Did it come through?”

Emily nodded, smiling big. “They want everything that’s left.”

“Yes!” Nellie clapped her hands together as she stood. “I’ll get on this right away. We have signed docs, right?”

“All of them.”

“Fantastic.” Nellie did a little dancing walk as she reached Emily and hugged her. “I couldn’t have done this without you. Thank you so much!”

“All I did was relay the messages and some faxing.” Emily pulled back to look at her. “Which reminds me Logan left a very odd message for you while you were on the phone with Roni.” Emily’s face contorted. “Slightly Stupid. It’s on. He said that you’d know.”

Nellie brought her hand to her forehead. She’d forgotten all about that. “Oh my God, he got the tickets. I didn’t think he would, and now I have to go to the concert with him.”

“What concert?”

“Slightly Stoopid with two o’s no u. They’re that band I like. I even have one of their songs as my ringtone. They’re playing at The House of Blues this month, but it was sold out last time I checked. He asked if I’d go with him if he could get tickets, and like an idiot thinking there was no way he could get them, I agreed.”

The corner of Emily’s lips rose. “Logan’s pretty hot. I don’t see what the problem is.”

Nellie walked back to her desk, lifting her chin. “Because he started dropping hints about us going out almost immediately after he was contracted. I know technically I’m not his boss, but it still feels inappropriate. Not to mention I think it’d be awkward to go out with someone you work with.”

“Well you’re not his boss, so it wouldn’t be inappropriate, and you don’t really work with him. You said it yourself he’s contracted and you only see him once in a while.”

This was true, but with the mixer turning into something so much bigger than she’d anticipated, she’d be working a lot closer with Logan now. And Nellie didn’t know if hot would be a word she’d use to describe Logan. Abel definitely was, but Logan fell more into the handsome-with-a-hint-of-vulnerably-sexy-thrown-in category. Thinking of Abel and the words hot and sexy all at the same time brought back memories of his last visit.

I wanna take you from behind. Just remembering his words and the way he had followed through with what he wanted had her puddling in places she had no business puddling while she was still at work with her assistant in the same room.

“Why are you blushing?” Emily giggled. “Oh my sweet Jesus, don’t tell me you and Logan have already . . .” Emily covered her playful smirk with both hands.

“No! I just told you I’ve never agreed to go out with him much less just . . . you know. I’m not like that.” The hell she wasn’t, but she wasn’t about to tell sweet little Emily the torrid details of the amazing time she’d been spending in Abel’s arms—under his professionally chiseled body—on him, below him, on her back, on her knees, against a door . . . She fanned herself now.

“You’re doing it again and now you’re fanning yourself?” Emily plopped down in the chair across from her. “Okay, what gives? Something has you as red and hot as chili pepper. Spill it.”

Emily was right. She was hot as a chili pepper. It wasn’t something, it was someone, and, no, she wasn’t about to talk about this here, especially not with all the sordid images and details that were flying at her now. But she’d at least relieve Emily’s curious mind about Logan. “There is nothing going on between Logan and me, other than my agreeing to go to a concert with him. I was just thinking of someone else. That’s all you’re getting. Now scoot. I have a lot of coordinating to do.”

Emily stood, frowning. “Fine, but if Logan calls again, I’m grilling him.”

Nellie laughed. “Grill all you want. You’ll be sorely disappointed.”

After putting a few things together and making some calls about the cocktail mixer, one of the biggest she’d coordinated to date, she wrapped it up and left. She’d been so excited she’d forgotten to check her phone. Logan often called her office phone when she didn’t answer or respond to her texts. He was persistent that way. Sure enough, she’d missed his call and he’d texted her. She read his text.

Slightly Stoopid, baby. You and me in a couple of weeks. No more excuses!

She refrained from groaning as she picked up her laptop bag and purse. It wasn’t that she didn’t find him attractive. He actually was attractive and witty, but he’d only been contracted as a project accountant a few weeks ago, and he’d been determined he’d get her to agree to go out with him ever since. Something about that was a slight turnoff. Sure what woman didn’t enjoy being pursued by a good-looking man, but he was a bit too unrelenting. She didn’t want things to get awkward for them when they had to work together.