Porter (Men of Lovibond 3)

“Like a professional what? Admit it. You dressed sexy so your boss would look at your tits and ass.”

Dillyn doesn’t beat around the bush. She plows straight through it.

I wasn’t exactly a beauty the last time Porter saw me. I wanted him to see me differently from that awkward teen girl he knew years ago.

And I think he did.

“I wanted to look good when I saw Porter again. What’s wrong with that?”

“No one said there was anything wrong with looking good for your interview. Did he notice? Act interested?”

“He was definitely looking.” I could feel his eyes all over me while I was setting up my presentation. And then I turned around and caught him looking at my butt.

And I liked it.

“Interested or not, it doesn’t matter. I’m only in Birmingham for the summer.”

“Which is the perfect recipe for a hot… summer… fling.”

A hot summer fling with my boss… my dad’s boss? “More like a recipe for disaster.”

“You’re twenty-one years old, Frankee. An adult. It’s perfectly fine for you to have some no-strings-attached fun with a man.”

“It’s pointless to start a romantic relationship that has an expiration date.”

“That’s why it’s called a fling. It’s not intended to last.”

“That’s not why I applied for the internship at Lovibond.”

“Then call it a job perk.”

The server brings my drink, interrupting our debate regarding a fling with Porter, and Dillyn lifts her glass of wine. “Here’s to landing an awesome internship at Lovibond. And to the potential job perks that may go along with it.”

Hot summer fling? No-strings-attached fun? Sex without commitment?

Am I cut out for such things? I don’t know.

Do I want to find out? Absolutely.

“Someone’s mighty early this morning.”

Molly isn’t wrong. I’m arriving earlier than usual; it’s my intern’s first day on the job. It would be shitty of me to not be here to greet her.

“I’m early and I have Starbucks.” I stop at Molly’s desk and remove her coffee from the cardboard carrier. “Grande Pike Place. Splash of coconut milk. One sugar in the raw.”

“Best boss ever.”

“Damn right.”

“Don’t tell Lucas and Oliver I said that.”

I give her a wink and lopsided grin. “No worries. It’ll be our little secret.”

Molly removes the green stick from the drink hole of her coffee and sips. “Man, this is just what I needed this morning. ‘Preciate it.”

“You’re welcome. Enjoy.”

“I know you came in early because you wanted to beat Frankee in, but you’re too late. She’s already here.”

Early again. “How long has she been here?”

“About fifteen minutes.”

She’s an intern who wants to make a good impression. Her desire to impress me will wear off soon enough. “Where is she?”

“Art department.”

Art department is almost a comical label for the room where two desks with computers are surrounded by industrial metal walls. Not a very inspiring work space for a designer.

In my defense, the area isn’t complete. It’s the space where I plan on putting the full-time employee I’ll hire later.

“I knew you’d give Frankee the position.”

How did she know? Because I let the girl do odd jobs around the brewery when she was a child? Because her father is a loyal, dependable employee? Because she’s already Lovibond family?

Or because she’s grown into one hell of a gorgeous woman?

I need Molly to understand that my decision was a professional one. There’s no room for confusion. “The choice was obvious when I saw her designs. She was clearly the best candidate for the internship.”

I don’t fail to see the grin behind Molly’s cup of coffee. “I’m sure she is a wonderful designer.”

I think I could stand here and plead my case all day with Molly about why I chose Frankee but I’m positive she has already drawn her own conclusion. I know that woman well and nothing I say is going to change her mind.

I lift the drink carrier. “Coffee’s getting cold.”

“I notice you have an extra.”

“Thought Frankee might want one.”

“That’s a very nice thing to do for a pretty girl on her first day of work.”

“It’s not your first day, Molly.”

She grins and flings her hand in my direction. “Go on, smartass. Go see to your pretty intern.”

I find Frankee waiting for me in the art department. “Good morning.”

She lifts her face and a broad smile spreads. Fuck, she’s gorgeous. I won’t mind looking at her for the next three months. “Good morning.”

“You’re here bright and early. You must be excited to get started.”

“I am.”

“I’d start the first day with a tour of the brewery if you were any other intern but I suppose you already know your way around this place.”

“Yup. Been knowing my way around here for a long time.”

“Well, since we get to skip the tour, let’s sit for a moment and enjoy our coffee.” I take her cup from the carrier and push it across the desk toward her. “What do you order when you go to Starbuck’s?”

“White chocolate mocha.”

Dammit. “I was so close to getting that. Went with caramel macchiato instead.” Note to self: her favorite is white chocolate mocha.

?

?I like caramel macchiato too. It’s a close second.” She takes a sip and then sucks her bottom lip into her mouth before running her fingers over it. Fuck. “How’d you know I’d want an espresso drink over black coffee?”

When I was sitting in the drive-thru looking at the menu, I couldn’t imagine anything but sweetness—and maybe my hard cock—touching that lovely mouth of hers. “Just a lucky guess.”

Thinking about my dick in her mouth is the wrong way to begin this working relationship. I can’t have thoughts like that about her.

“Well, thank you. It’s a very nice start for my first day.”

I grab the back of the empty chair and roll it around so I can face her when I sit. “Did you have a good weekend?”

“Yeah. I went to Tuscaloosa Friday night to hang with my two best friends.”

“They’re still in school?”

“They are. Both of them were short a few classes to graduate… a little too much partying. They’re knocking them out over the summer and then the three of us are moving to Austin together.”

I had thought it was odd that a woman so young would up and move away from her friends and family. I see now that Frankee at this stage of her life isn’t all that different from the way I was at her age. I did the same thing when Stout and I moved to Birmingham to chase our dreams of starting Lovibond brewery. “It’s good that you won’t be on your own.”

“Have you ever been to Austin?”

“No, but I’m going to a graphic-design expo there in about six weeks.”

“Austin Graphic Expo?”

“Yeah.”

“Ah, man. I wish I could go to that.”

“Why don’t you?”

“Can’t afford the registration fee or the airline ticket to get there or the hotel room.”

That sucks. “If it makes you feel better, the convention is sold out. You couldn’t get in even if you had the money.”

“Well, it doesn’t make me feel better; I still want to go. But I hope you have a great time. Austin is a fun town.”

“I’ve heard.”

“How long will you be there?”

“Four days.”

“If you want, I can make you a list of must-dos.”

“That would be great. Thanks.”

“How did your weekend go?”