Secret Indiscretions (Carson Cove Scandals 2)

“I’m sorry, say what?” Bryant tilted his head to the side. “My Samantha?”

“She—wasn’t your Samantha when it happened,” I sighed. “It was the summer I went to camp. Fuck man, we were kids. We had no idea what the hell we were doing. We swore that we wouldn’t tell anyone when we got back to Carson Cove—I guess it’s been long enough for that not to matter.”

“I only dated her for like three weeks anyway…” Bryant looked over his shoulder. “I had a crush for a whole year, and I got three weeks that led to absolutely nothing. I think I want that drink now…”

“Help yourself.” I motioned to the bottle.

“The next name out of your mouth better not be Sarah…” Bryant poured a drink and sat back down.

“Your ex-wife? No way, man.” I shook my head back and forth. “She didn’t even go to Carson Cove High.”

“I was just checking,” Bryant chuckled under his breath and took a sip of his drink. “Go on; it’s fun to watch you squirm.”

“I’m not ashamed of any of the names on my list—I just didn’t want to hurt your feelings.” I narrowed my eyes and laughed. “Samantha was the one for you.”

“Yeah,” he sighed. “Right after I did a big swing and a miss at Alexis.”

“Unanswered prayers man—someone was looking out for you back then.” I took a sip of my drink. “You could have ended up being the first guy she had the pleasure of divorcing.”

“Hopefully your secret admirer isn’t batshit crazy.” Bryant lifted his glass and scoffed before he took a drink.

We went through several names of girls I dated, but most of them were happily married. Narrowing the list down to just the ones I was intimate with didn’t result in a light-bulb moment. I really had no idea who could have sent me the carnation—but more importantly—been able to get into Alcott Inc. over the weekend and leave it on my desk. I cursed myself for not installing the security cameras I had been thinking about—that would have cleared the mystery up pretty quickly. It had been a lot of years since high school. I went to all of the reunions—with Mary on my arm. I never ran into anyone that seemed to be disappointed to find out I was living in wedded bliss. Either they hid it well, or I was searching the wrong memories.

“Alright, fuck it.” I picked up the carnation and threw it in the trash, along with the card. “I’m done with this.”

“The puzzle is pretty obvious…” Bryant raised an eyebrow. “In the place where people screamed and leather soared, you’ll find the next clue—you don’t want to look?”

“The football field?” I scoffed. “No thank you.”

“I don’t blame you.” Bryant nodded and finished his drink. “Let me know if you want my help again.”

“I appreciate it. My mind just immediately went to Alexis, but after talking it over with you—I think you’re right. It probably doesn’t have anything to do with her.” I leaned back in my chair.

If there’s someone out there that wants to strike a burned-out match, they should know that puzzles and games aren’t the way to do it.

After I trashed the invitation and Bryant left, I started thinking about Melanie again. There was no way to get her off my mind permanently. If I closed my eyes, I could see those sapphire-blues staring back at me. They held so much curiosity—so much innocence—and I wanted to see them sparkle. I wanted to see the vibrant smile that could light up a room. I had to be careful. At the end of the day, she was still going to be my employee—that part wouldn’t change. We could pretend for one evening, and it would have to be enough to get her out of my system. I was a fool if I let myself believe there was anything else on the horizon exce

pt what was right in front of me. Those gorgeous curves would never be mine.

I’ll just have to live with it.

* * *

Several days later

It was a busy week at Alcott Inc. I interviewed the five candidates, and they joined Melanie with employment contracts confirming their future at the company. None of them negotiated the kind of salary she did—they didn’t even have the courage to suggest a number that was much higher than the one I wrote down. It just confirmed that she was a rarity—someone with the inner drive to go after what she wanted—if she was prodded in that direction. That would come in handy at Alcott Inc. She might even land a management position someday taking care of employees instead of distribution accounts.

All I can think about right now is getting home—I might not even work this weekend. I need a break.

As soon as I arrived at Alcott Manor, I noticed something was off. The front gate was open, and the only way that could have happened was if someone had the code. The house was dark, so I approached with caution as I turned into the driveway. I pulled out my cell phone and prepared to call the cops if the situation required it. My house had never been robbed, but there was a first time for everything. As soon as my headlights hit the front door of the house—I saw something that caught my eye. My front door had been painted—with what appeared to be a large pink carnation.

“God damn it! Are you fucking kidding me?” I slammed the car in park and hopped out.

I should be careful—just in case.

I walked up to the front door and found an envelope tucked between the door and the frame. I snatched it free, tore it open, and found the same riddle as before—but at the bottom was a sentence that wasn’t present on the first letter.

‘Don’t you want to play my game?’