Page 2 of Daddy's Temptation

“Fine.”

He laughs at my surly acceptance.Well, that’s all you’re going to get, buddy.

Maybe if I can stay annoyed, I can avoid disaster. My annoyance lasts five minutes into the drive when Andre turns the heat up because he notices me shivering. He even changes the radio to my favorite station. Instead of dropping me in front of my building, he parks and insists on walking me to my door. Because he’s a fucking gentleman.

Why can’t he just be a dick like most men?

“Thanks for the ride and for walking me to my door,” I say politely.

Andre tucks a stray hair behind my ear. His touch sizzles through me, short-circuiting my common sense. I throw my arms around his neck and pull him down, searing my lips to his. He hesitates for a second before gripping the back of my neck and holding me to him. His tongue plunges past my lips, taking control of the kiss.

He kisses me like he might die if he doesn’t. I might die if he stops. I press my body to his, loving the feel of his hardness against my softness. I gasp into his mouth when he grabs my ass and pulls me tight to him, trapping his hard length between our bodies. I’ve never hated clothes so much as I do at this moment. I wriggle against him, losing all sense of control.

A throat clears somewhere behind us and rips me right back into reality. I stumble away from Andre, my hand covering my lips. He moves to touch me, and I shake my head… I can’t. I escape into my apartment, locking Andre and temptation out.

1

Candace

I takeanother bite of crispy, meaty, cheesy goodness. Jose Locos might’ve turned itself into a bar to make money, but their tacos are the best in the city. It’s Taco Tuesday, my favorite day of the month. Especially, now that Sugar isn’t my roommate anymore. It’s one of the only times we get to spend time together these days. I can’t blame her, though. If I had a man so devoted to my every need like Oliver, I wouldn’t want to be apart either.

“You going to tell me what’s eating at you?” Sugar asks.

“Nothing,” I say with a forced smile. “Just starving. I skipped lunch.”

I leave off the part about skipping lunch because my boss is a dick. It’s no secret that he’s an asshole—I’ve bitched about him enough to my friends that they hate him on principle. Things have escalated recently, and I’m starting to get the feeling that unless I give in to his advances, I won’t ever move up in the company.

Quitting is sounding better and better, but I’m too damn stubborn for that. I have something to prove, and I won’t let myself throw in the towel.

Honestly, I knew when I went into commercial real estate and development, it was a man’s world, but I’m not averse to hard work. I expected to have to prove myself. When I got hired by Sloan International straight out of college as the personal assistant to the CEO Roger Sloan himself, I was ecstatic. Roger was charming and promised to teach me the ropes so that I could move up in the ranks.

Unfortunately, he wants me for more than my intellect. In fact, I’m starting to think he never intended me to be around long enough to move up in the company. He saw me as young and naïve and perfect eye candy for him and his dirty old man clients. Though, recently he doesn’t seem to be satisfied with just looking… I set my taco down, losing my appetite at the reminder of his clammy hand on my thigh during the weekly meeting with the board.

“How’s engaged life treating you?” I ask, changing the subject.

Sugar gets a dreamy look on her face. “Amazing. Oliver is the best.”

“Have you picked a date yet?” Alice asks.

“Oliver doesn’t want to wait long. He’d drag me to the courthouse if he had his choice.” Sugar rolls her eyes in exasperation. “I told him I want a real wedding. We finally came to an agreement of three months from now. He wanted to only give me two weeks! Even a small ceremony with just a few friends and family like I want will take longer than that to plan.”

Alice sighs. “You’re so lucky.”

Nikki snorts and elbows me. “If you consider being tied down to one man for the rest of your life lucky.”

Jen tosses a piece of tomato that bounces off of Nikki’s forehead. “Just because you’re a slutbag doesn’t mean the rest of us are. Some of us want to find that one man that’s perfect for us.”

Nikki wipes away the tomato juice on her forehead and turns to me. “More for us. Am I right, Candace?”

I take a hearty drink of my margarita, totally avoiding answering. A month ago, I would have agreed with her, but ever since that kiss outside my door, I can’t get Andre out of my head. Hell, it’s been longer than that. I haven’t played with anyone in months. My friendly arrangements no longer hold any appeal.

For the first time in my life, I’m actually jealous that other people seem to fall in love and trust so easily. I hate myself for being jealous of my best friend, but there it is. I’m jealous of how happy Sugar is. I’m jealous that she found her soulmate and that she’s moving on with her life.

I tune out the conversation as the other girls chat about wedding venues and dresses and cakes. Jealousy is an ugly emotion. I should feel nothing but happiness that my best friend’s dreams are coming true. She’s got her dream job and a man who loves her to distraction. She has what all us littles want—a safe place to escape everyday life and be coddled and taken care of by their daddy.

Not able to listen to the happy chatter in my current state of mind, I throw some cash on the table and leave with excuses of an early start to my workday tomorrow. Everyone is so distracted with wedding talk they don’t even question why I’m leaving early. I should be grateful, but for some reason, it hurts.

I’m just full of contradictions lately.

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