Break Free: MMF Bisexual Romance Read online

  “Yes?” The way he says my name is so sexy, my pulse speeds up.

  “How about I buy you a cup of coffee sometime. Or dinner. What do you say? Will you go out with me for real?”

  Chapter 3

  Jay

  Well, that was different. I noticed Rachel from the moment she first came into the coffee shop. She had something about her that made her stand out from the crowd. It was more of a nervous energy at first, but it soon changed into something more positive. Even when her ex put in an appearance, she didn’t go off the rails.

  It was pretty funny that she wanted me to be her fake boyfriend. For as long as I’ve been coming here as a break from my busy office, nothing like that has ever happened to me before. I get a lot of stares here, but attractive women don’t ever approach me. Especially the way Rachel did. I liked it. Every woman who ever strikes up a conversation with me always expects me to make the first move. Which I’d do, of course.

  If I was ever interested.

  That doesn’t usually happen. I get what I want when I want it, and it’s usually temporary. I don’t have the time for a relationship. I was actually relieved when my last one ended. Sex when I want it works fine for me. It’s not hard to get, not at all. What’s hard to avoid is the women I meet who’re looking for more than I’m willing to give.

  But Rachel’s making me rethink all that. I want to get to know more about her. It’s been awhile since I’ve felt that way, so I’m going to see what happens. Everything about her makes me want her.

  I frown at my phone. Even in the few minutes that I took my attention away from work to one-up Rachel’s ex, it’s blown up with an insane amount of messages. I mean, for fuck’s sake. This is too much. I love my work. There’s nothing else I’d rather be doing with my time. But the sheer volume of demands on my attention these days is also what’s convincing me that I should get my mind off it for awhile. Balance is supposed to be the key to success, or something. I’m already super-successful, but there’s no ceiling. I’m not going to stop until I want to. I still have big goals, and I intend to see them through.

  I shoot off a few terse replies to the most urgent of all the messages and ignore the rest for now. I have to shut down my phone for a minute. I drink the rest of my coffee as I look up and check out the coffee shop. It’s crazy busy today, with only a few lulls here and there. I wish I knew why, and whether or not it’s going to quiet down soon. It’s a different kind of noise and rush than happens in my office. Usually having it in the background helps me focus, but not today. Today it’s not working for me. Or rather, not anymore. It was until Rachel showed up at my table and distracted me in ways I wasn’t expecting.

  Setting my empty cup down, I decide against getting another drink. I turn my phone back on and reassess the messages, scanning over the new ones that have come in too. I’m going to have to get my assistant to screen out even more people than she does already. It’s not always like this. We’re about to launch a brand new line, so the craziness makes sense. But it’s a little too much today.

  My mind goes back to Rachel again. We’re going out for dinner tomorrow night. It’s a good sign that she picked dinner when I gave her the choice of that or coffee. It’s much easier to go from an evening date straight to sex than a half-assed afternoon coffee meet up. And there’s nothing I want more than to see her sexy body, naked and ready for me. Her dark hair messy after a long hot night. Her green eyes and how they might change when she’s coming long and hard.

  Hell, I was ready to take her back to my place even as her ex was babbling on about whatever the hell he was talking about. But putting those kinds of thoughts out there so soon to Rachel wouldn’t have worked out. I can tell she’s the kind of woman who likes romance. And for some reason, I’m wanting to give it to her.

  I’m a straight-forward guy, not one for skirting around an issue. No matter what’s on the table. But when Rachel asked me to go along with messing with her ex, I went with it. He’s nothing to me and it was fun to pull it off. He struck me as a dick anyway right from the start. And once it became clear that he cheated on Rachel, I was all in for sure. It’s one thing to be done with a relationship and move one. Whole other ball game to not tell the other person about it.

  And how much of an idiot was he to not notice how his girlfriend was flirting with me. Quite the pair, those two are. Rachel’s too good for the likes of him.

  I have to get out of here. I can’t focus. That’s really unlike me but on the very rare occasion that it does happen, I know I need to change something up. It’s late enough in the day that I don’t need to head back to the office, except to pick up my car.

  I spend part of the drive home figuring out where to take Rachel for dinner. Somewhere high-end, but not so much so that it’s too formal. I think she’ll like that type of place. I don’t imagine that dickhead she was with last took her anywhere special, so there’s only a low bar to clear there. If anything at all.

  And it strikes me that I’m not just thinking about what Rachel and I will do tomorrow night, but after that. With my last ex, things just happened without much thought or planning on my part.

  Now I’m actually looking forward to where I can take this. I’m a planner. In my view, everything needs a schedule or a time line or it’s not going to get done. Having a woman randomly show up in my life and throw everything off isn’t something that ever happens to me. I’m not quite sure why I want to go for it with her. I like knowing what’s going to happen, in any situation. Rachel strikes me as being a little unpredictable.

  For some reason, I’m already enjoying that.

  Chapter 4

  Rachel

  I’m actually early when I arrive at the Avoca offices. That’s so unlike me, but this is my new start. New job, new life. I’m not going to do anything to mess it up, or jinx it. Job hunting is hell right now, and I was truly getting desperate. I need this job just as much as I want it.

  Plus I didn’t get much sleep last night what with everything on my mind. I still can’t believe it. Jayden the hot coffee shop guy and I are going out tonight. New job, possible new relationship.

  For once, my life is right on track. I can’t stop smiling when I get off the elevator at the 33rd floor. Everything about this office says high-end and professional, and I like it a lot. This is going to be great.

  “Can I help you?” The receptionist is pleasant and brisk.

  I flash my visitor’s pass at her. “Hi, it’s my first day today. I’m supposed to meet with Sandra.”

  “Of course. I’ll call her for you. Have a seat. Would you like something to drink?”

  “No thank you, I’m good.”

  I sink into the surprisingly comfortable bench while she speaks in low tones into her phone. I’m trying to keep my mind on being here. I want to make a good impression on absolutely everyone today. I want this to be a job I can keep for a long time.

  But my thoughts drift over to my date tonight with Jayden. I can’t wait. It’s all just too exciting.

  “Rachel? I’m Sandra.” A tall woman’s standing before me. Instantly I focus on her. Just like the receptionist, she’s dressed better than I am. Not by much, but this is my brand new outfit and it’s just not quite at the level it should be. I’m going to have to do some more shopping. Not that I mind that at all but until I get paid, I’m living on a very shoestring budget. I’ll have to figure something out fast.

  “Nice to meet you.”

  “Come on with me. I’ll show you around, get you to meet everyone, and then we’ll get you started.”

  “Great.”

  Time flies by fast with all the information coming at me. I’m starting to worry about remembering everything. Sandra takes me to what’s going to be my cubicle and even though she half-apologized for it, it’s nicer than the one I had at my last job.

  “So, Rachel.” Sandra checks the time. “It’s almost eleven thirty. How do you feel about taking an early lunch? Normally you could start working now
, but we have a company-wide meeting at one o’clock sharp, and I need to tie up a couple of loose ends before it starts. I can take you down to the lunch room but I’ll have to leave you there, if you don’t mind.”

  “No, of course not. Whatever works for you.” And I’ll be glad to have the time to review all of the hastily-scribbled notes I hurried to take as Sandra told me all about how everything works here, and what my role is going to be.

  Even the cafeteria is miles better than the one at my old job. It’s impressively massive, for one thing. And the food selection is unreal.

  Sandra only gets a salad to go. “Sorry, Rachel. I’ve really got to run. Let me introduce you to a few of my friends.”

  She takes me over to a round table with only a couple vacant seats. Every single one of the women there is just as good-looking and well-dressed as she is. But there isn’t much time to feel self-conscious. They’ve already gotten well into their lunches and I need to get going to catch up. I’m an unfortunately slow eater as it is. I’m the one who needs a head start, not other people.

  Everyone’s just as friendly as Sandra, and I’m having a good time by the time we have to get back upstairs. We’re getting off the elevator when I realize I don’t know where Sandra’s office is, or how to find her.

  “I’ll take you to her.” Damn, I can’t remember the name of the one who’s offering to help me out. My brain’s still on information overload from everything I tried to take in this morning.

  She leads me to an office that I’d assumed belonged to one of the partners. If an assistant gets to work in one of those, I’m definitely motivated to climb the ladder here.

  Sandra’s on the phone but she waves at me to come in. Her call lasts awhile and by the time she’s done, she’s getting up and collecting her things.

  “That call went on way too long, but I couldn’t end it any sooner. It’s nearly time for the big meeting, Rachel. We should get to the boardroom now. Meetings here always start right on time, if not a little early. We’ll need to hurry.”

  By the time we get there, the big room’s already crowded. It’s standing room only. Sandra and I squeeze into the back somehow, and we soon get separated by others crowding in. No matter, I can catch up with her after. I glance over to make sure I have an eye on her. This floor is a maze and I’m not entirely sure I could find my way back to her office by myself if I lost sight of her completely.

  I’m not sure what this meeting’s about, or why I’m here. Just that Sandra told me part of it is going to be an address by the owner of Avoca. They’re making some changes to the company, and apparently it’s all going to be a big deal for everyone. Except me, since I don’t know what’s been like so far. So it’s nothing for me to worry about.

  I’m only paying half-attention when someone starts up the meeting. I kind of miss what he’s saying, but I glance up as he’s introducing the next speaker and everyone starts clapping. He’s the highlight of this meeting and when he appears from out of the crowd and walks out to where I can see him, I can’t stifle a gasp.

  Oh. My. God.

  It’s Jayden.

  The man I roped into faking being my boyfriend yesterday is standing in front of the room. He’s the owner of the entire company.

  Which means he’s my boss.

  Someone jostles me and the notebook and pen I have in hands slip out of my grip. They clatter on the polished floor, echoing loudly since the clapping’s subsided. The room quieted right down as everyone’s waiting for Jayden to begin speaking.

  Nearly everyone turns their heads back to see who’s making all the noise. My heart pounds as my cheeks flame. I’m about to bend and retrieve my things from the floor, so I can hide my face at the same time, when Jayden looks directly at me. There’s a flicker of recognition as he sees that it’s me. Me. The clumsy new employee that he’s supposed to go out with tonight.

  Fuck.

  He begins speaking, as smoothly as if I hadn’t interrupted his nice introduction. Awkwardly I accept my things from the guy standing beside me, who’s managed to pick them up smoothly and quickly. He gives me an encouraging smile as I mouth a thank you to him.

  My face is still beet red as I try to calm down. At least no-one’s looking at me anymore. What a way to make a an impression on my first day.

  As badly as that went, my mind’s racing with something else. Jayden’s my boss. And the head of Avoca. Why didn’t I ask him what he did for work yesterday?

  Because I didn’t expect him to ask me out. We’re supposed to go out tonight. And if I don’t get myself fired for disrupting the company meeting or make another huge mistake in the next few hours, is that even okay? There are rules about that sort of thing, but they’re so different from company to company.

  Should I cancel? But wouldn’t cancelling on my boss be worse than going out with him?

  Oh god. Why is this happening?

  Chapter 5

  Jay

  I finish my presentation and leave without a glance to the back of the room. I don’t need to be there for the rest of this meeting, and I have work to do.

  To say it was a surprise to find Rachel in the back of my boardroom is a huge understatement. It did nothing to distract me from what I had to say, but she’s sure on my mind now.

  Going out with someone who works for me isn’t a great idea. It won’t lead anywhere good. We’ve hired several new people lately across a few departments so I can’t even guess at what she does here.

  Back in my office, I send a message down to HR to find out. I’m not willing to give Rachel up before we’ve even gone out. I can’t get her out of my mind. Unless this could cause a major problem, I intend to give it a shot.

  After I make a few calls, I check my email. HR’s gotten back to me about Rachel. It’s her first day here. And she’s in a department that I don’t need to have much contact with at all. That’s a good thing. Still not ideal that she works here at all, since that means I’m technically her boss.

  I own Avoca, so I’m everyone’s boss.

  But I didn’t hire Rachel, and she doesn’t report to me in any way. We wouldn’t have any contact on a day-to-day basis, if at all. It’s still sketchy, but it could work.

  I suppose now we’ll have something to talk about tonight over dinner. This greatly changes my plans for after dinner though. A one-off dinner date is a lot more innocuous than sex with a brand-new employee.

  Really, I should cancel.

  “You ready?”

  Automatically I peer around my monitor to see who’s coming into my office without so much as knocking. But of course I recognize his voice before I see him. Only Matt would ignore my closed door.

  “Yeah.” I stand up and stretch, grabbing my suit jacket on my way over to him. It’s not the best time for our weekly coffee meeting, but we’ve only ever had to skip it a couple of times in the years since he and I started up this tradition. And that was during mega-crisis time for both of us.

  We head down to our usual place, which happens to be the coffee shop where I met Rachel yesterday. Rachel. What the hell am I going to do about her?

  After Matt and I get coffee, we settle into the table that’s furthest from the front. Taking a long swallow of my drink, I stare at the table I was at yesterday. The one where Rachel joined me. I don’t believe in fate or anything like that. I do believe in taking chances where there might be big rewards.

  However I won’t do anything to jeopardize the company I built up from nothing. Certainly not by risking any kind of inappropriate behavior. I don’t tolerate that kind of crap from employees, so I’m not doing it myself.

  Damn this situation.

  “Hello.” Matt’s waving his hand in front of my face and I didn’t even notice. I’ve got to focus. I enjoy our weekly get-togethers a lot. My best friend and I end up hashing out better business strategies between us than any of my advisors ever come up with for me.

  “Yeah.” I drink some more coffee. It does nothing to focus my distracte
d mind.

  “What’s up with you? You’re the one that wanted to do some hardcore brainstorming today. Did you leave your brain back at the office?”

  In a way, I did. Back with Rachel. I frown at Matt, debating whether I should unload my dilemma on him and get his take on it. What the hell. Anything to get my mind back where it should be.

  I tell him briefly about meeting Rachel. Matt leans back in his chair and regards me thoughtfully. “Of all things, I never thought you’d be telling me something like that.”

  “Yeah, it’s pretty weird that she showed up today.”

  “Sure. But I mean the part about you. Jay Stevens, getting distracted by a woman. First time that’s ever happened.”

  I gaze at him suspiciously. “Yeah, so?”

  Matt shakes his head. “So, nothing. It’s just not like you. That’s all. Especially the part about not knowing what to do.”

  I huff out an impatient breath. I’m not at all in the mood for him mocking me right now. “Yeah? You think it’s so clear cut? In this day and age of sexual harassment suits and hostile workplaces and all? If it’s so easy, then what would you do, smart ass?”

  Matt laughs. “I’m aware of all that. I’m honestly shocked that you’d even consider still going out with her. That you’d even waste a moment considering the idea of putting something else ahead of Avoca. Or someone. It’s so very unlike you, Jay. You’ve never put anything ahead of the job before.”

  “Yeah, well. Maybe you don’t know me as well as you think.”

  Of course that’s not true. Matt and I have been close friends since we were kids. No-one knows me better than him, and sometimes I think he knows me better than I know myself.

  He laughs again. “Yeah, right. Whatever you say. And as for what I’d do. I wouldn’t go out with her.”

  Matt’s reply leaves me slightly deflated. I’m leaning towards going for it with Rachel. Or I was up until now. Matt’s smart, as smart as I am. I take his opinion seriously on any number of things, and especially when we differ. Arguing things out with him is a big part of what’s helped me make one hell of a lot of money before the age of thirty. I’ve never dismissed anything Matt said to me outright without a heated discussion first. And he’s the exact same way with me.