Page 39 of Friends With Benefits

“You look…I don’t know. Different.”

“Bah.” Kerri waved a hand dismissively. “I just had a really good class.”

Sela was still looking at her strangely.

“So, the party went well,” Kerri said. “All your planning paid off.”

Sela nodded and smiled with satisfaction. “Yes, I thought it went well. Lots of high-profile clients came. It’s good for getting word out about the new spa. Hopefully it will spark some interest, maybe bring in some new clients.”

Kerri nodded enthusiastically. “Definitely.”

“So what’s up for you today?”

“I’m working on hiring some new instructors,” Kerri replied. “I’m adding new classes, but I’m pretty much maxed out. I know some girls who are interested in teaching, so we’re going to talk.”

Sela frowned. “Don’t you have a structured interview process? How will you know if they’re qualified? Or suited to the job?”

Kerri grinned. “I’ll just know. Trust my instincts.”

Sela’s frown deepened. “You can’t run a business on instincts, Kerri. What…”

Kerri interrupted, losing her patience a bit. “I’ve been doing okay so far, Sela. Just because I’m leasing space from you doesn’t give you the right to tell me how to run my business.”

Silence expanded between them, then Sela held up her hands and leaned back in her chair. “You’re right,” she said. “But it also doesn’t give you the right to try to tellmehow to runmyspa. Or how to decorate it so the ‘energy flows’.”

Kerri’s chest tightened. She couldn’t believe Sela had said that. She’d just been trying to help. And she knew what she was talking about. “It’s not exactly the same,” she said slowly. “The reception and waiting area are wheremyclients come, too. I want the atmosphere to be warm and welcoming for them, too.”

They just looked at each other, and then Kerri shrugged and turned and left. Sela was so dominating, always the big sister. Even though Kerri knew she should stand up to her, her mind went empty when she had to argue with Sela. It had always been like that.

This arrangement wasn’t going to be as easy as she’d thought. Sela’s offer had initially seemed heaven-sent, coming at the exact moment she needed help. She’d been having such a hard time finding appropriate commercial space for her studio when her lease had been cancelled, she’d almost thought she was going to lose her business. But when Sela had made the proposal, Kerri had never anticipated conflict between them.

She should have known, though. It was always like this between them. She could never measure up to Sela’s perfection—in Sela’s eyes or in their family’s. Or even Mitch’s eyes when it came to business, apparently.

Mitch had just finished a Monday morning meeting with another collaborative lawyer and a couple who were divorcing, curiously amicably. He was happy about that though, because his mind wasn’t fully functional. He was having a hard time getting Kerri out of his head and the law in.

So what were the rules in a situation like this? If it had been any other girl, he would have already called. But it was Kerri. They didn’t talk every day. Sometimes a week would go by without them talking, although they almost always saw each other on weekends when they got together with friends.

Should he call her? What would he say? Christ, this was stupid.

He was completely blown away by how sexy Kerri was. They’d been friends for so long, and he knew she was attractive, but over the years he hadn’t pictured her in bed like he had in the last few weeks. Who knew she was so hot?

God, he was getting hard again thinking about her. The way she’d responded to him like he was hottest thing going, the way he’d made her come so hard. So many times. Jesus. It was all he could do to stop himself from getting up and leaving work to go find her. He’d do her in the middle of her yoga studio if he could.

Which thought led his dirty mind to another: how much impact did her yoga have on those muscles of hers? She could squeeze him like a fist when he was inside her. It was insane.

Maybe she knew some kind of tantric secret. Oh man. Now he was really hot and he had another client meeting in five minutes. A good workout at lunch time would help.

He called Garth Layton back, the lawyer who’d approached him about reopening the custody agreement for Mariah and Bob Sinclair.

“I talked to her on Friday,” he told Garth. “And exactly as I thought, she totally rejected the idea. There’s no way in hell she’ll let him have the kid for her birthday this year.”

“He’s willing to go back into court to fight for this,” Garth warned him.

Mitch sighed. “Yeah, I figured that. I told her that was a distinct possibility. She’s willing to take the chance of having to go through that again.” He didn’t mention to the other attorney the fact that the legal system was slow enough that they wouldn’t even have a court date until well past the girl’s birthday. Especially if Mitch took his time with things. His gut clenched again.

“You’ll hear back from me,” Garth promised.

After hanging up, Mitch really wanted to talk to Kerri. She’d always been the one he could talk to about pretty much anything. Enough of not seeming too eager. He was fucking desperate.

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