Page 11 of Skin Deep

“What would you do if you slept with someone and then found a letter from him kicking you out of your business location?”

“Shut up.” Meg’s gasp was all Amy needed to hear. “Is he still breathing?”

“I didn’t find it until after he left.” Amy frowned. “I don’t think he meant to leave it.”

“Hold up.” Meg put her phone down for a moment, and Amy heard the low rumble of her sister’s boyfriend John’s voice. When Meg reappeared, her cheeks were flushed. “Okay, what am I missing?”

“It seems that the mall I leased my space from is owned by the family of a guy I had a one-night stand when I was in Europe.” Pushing off from the chair, Amy started to pace. “I had no idea until he came in today. When I recognized him, he said he wanted a tattoo, but I’m guessing he was here to give me this letter.”

“Why the hell would he be kicking you out?” Meg’s brow furrowed. “You’re booked solid. You bring people in.”

“Seems the other retailers don’t like my aesthetic.” Amy smiled without mirth. “They signed a petition.”

Meg swore, the colorful word echoing Amy’s own thoughts. Fred didn’t owe her anything, but to find out that he’d had this letter in his pocket when he’d pulled her astride him?

Not. Cool.

“What are you going to do?” Meg sank her teeth into her lower lip as she thought.

“TPing his office seems a bit juvenile, but it might be satisfying.” Amy smirked when her oldest sister snorted.

“Getting him drunk and tattooing a penis on his forehead is probably illegal, huh?” Meg rolled her eyes. “All the fun things are.”

“I think I need... I need some kind of event. Something that will bring in people, a lot of people, as a reminder of what I bring to this place.” Amy pursed her lips as she concentrated. “But also something that gets under his skin. Which shouldn’t be hard. He’s one of those uptight suits. No offense to John.”

“Mmm, those uptight suits are always the best in bed.” Meg sighed dreamily, stopping when she caught Amy’s pointed glare. “Sorry, kiddo. Thinking cap on. Um...if this was my catering company, I’d probably set something up outside the front door. Like a party, maybe. And advertise to draw people in.”

“A party,” Amy repeated as the idea took root in her mind. “I think you’re on to something. I have to think a bit. But I know one thing for sure.”

“What’s that?” On the screen, her sister bit into a cookie, reminding Amy that she hadn’t eaten since breakfast herself. She ignored the rumbles of her stomach, though, chasing the tendril of the idea before it floated away.

“He’s not going to be able to pretend that this letter doesn’t exist anymore.”

CHAPTER FIVE

“I STILL DON’T understand why you deleted that waitress’s number, man.” Andy, one of the new interns at Vaughan Enterprises, shook his head as he and Fred made their way from the parking lot and into the plaza. “She was so hot.”

“I wasn’t interested,” Fred repeated, his teeth grinding together of their own accord. His father, Fred Sr., had tasked Fred with taking his new intern out for lunch to welcome him to the office. Fred hadn’t been thrilled, because the new guy grated on his nerves, but hey, it was part of his job.

If Andy—or was it Randy?—didn’t shut up about the waitress, or about hot chicks in general, though, Fred might just have to give in to the urge to dump the fresh grad into the nearby fountain.

“If you didn’t want her, you could have at least given her number to me,” Andy-Randy grumbled, flicking his thumb and forefinger together to the beat of music that was steadily growing louder as they walked. Fred recognized the song as Tiffany—it was going to be stuck in his head all day now. “I could have shown her a good time.”

“Are you serious?” Fred stopped in his tracks, looking down at the younger man and not bothering to hide the disgust on his face. “If she’d wanted you to have her number, then she would have given it to you. What is wrong with you?”

Andy-Randy rolled his eyes, then jerked his chin toward the first row of shops. “Hey, what’s going on over there?”

Fred followed the direction of his gaze. A long line of people snaked around a corner, some dancing to the music that was now loud and clear. He mentally ran through the list of nearby shops to think who could possibly have generated so much traffic. Not the luggage place, or the one that sold imported perfume and gave him a headache. The cupcakes at the bakery were actually pretty gross, so probably not them, either. Which left...

Amy. It left Amy.

Memories of the night before flooded his mind. The way she’d climbed astride him and taken what she wanted from him was the sexiest thing he’d experienced since...well, since her.

He wasn’t overly bothered by the way she’d kicked him out immediately after, either. He’d felt it, too—that click between them. He’d felt it five years ago, just a flicker—a spark. Last night that spark had ignited, and he knew he wasn’t the only one who’d felt it.

She’d needed some space, and he’d given it to her. But he’d be damned if he was going to let her push him away entirely. Anticipation quickened his steps—every cell in his body perked up at the thought of seeing her.

When they rounded the corner, he saw that the lineup indeed started at Four Sisters Ink. Amy was up to something. What was going on?

---