Dick (Bad Boys #1) Page 8

  “How about Peaches? Was I the only guy to call you Peaches?” My dick begins to stiffen at the question because it was a name I called her when we were alone.

  “Never.” She swallows and her throat bobs. Her face flushes, confirming my own intimate memories of us. Our time together was only ours. She knew things about me I never told anyone else.

  I nod my head, suddenly glad I was the only guy to call her Peaches; even though it was a nickname I made up for her. On some level I’m asking if there was ever anyone else like me in her life, and her answer of ‘never’ hits me hard. I’m at a loss for words now.

  “How about you? Dare I ask how you developed the name Dick from Dixon?” She giggles.

  “I’m not sure if my answer is zoo appropriate either.” I smirk devilishly.

  “Ah! The famous dimples emerge,” she cackles.

  “What does that mean?” I ask innocently.

  “Like you didn’t know all the girls swooned over that smile when you flashed your dimples.” Her gaze lingers for a moment on my face, and dammit I love her attention. Peaches, I whisper in my mind.

  “I remembered your eyes. I’m sure the boys in high school went crazy for you,” I respond. I take a breath, needing to dispel the heat growing inside me. The heat that wants to envelop her in my arms and fuck her senseless.

  “I wore baggy clothes and thick-framed glasses. I was the epitome of nerd. There were no guys running after me,” she responds, and I can feel the shame in her tone.

  “Eden, you were a sexy, nerdy girl, if I remember correctly.”

  “Sexy, nerdy girl? Really?” She looks half relieved and half shocked.

  “If I remember correctly. I think I laid a nice one on you that last day of school,” I say, watching the kids running up ahead, but when I turn to look at her I realize that the pink on her cheeks is now crawling down her neck. Shit! I’ve embarrassed her. “Sorry, where are my manners?” I instantly apologize, reminding myself I shouldn’t be flirting with Jaden’s teacher, who is really Natalie or Peaches, the girl next door who I shared my loneliest hours and secrets with.

  “No, it’s fine.” She waves me off. She seems sad again. My heart twists.

  We make our way over to the zebras, then the lions. Macy gets scared of the lions, so we zip past them to the seals. The kids seem content at the seals, so it gives us some time to take a seat on the bench.

  “I won’t ask how you ended up with asshat,” I say lightly.

  She rolls her eyes. “That’s a long story.”

  “How about you and your ex-wife?” she asks.

  “Not a story for the zoo.” I wink. She eyes me knowingly, and I wonder what that’s about. No one really knows the true story. I buried it so deep the media never got their hands on it.

  “And Socialite?” she asks. It’s like we are trying to fit fourteen years of our life into five minutes. It isn’t possible, and I want more time with her. Time I know I shouldn’t want since she’s married.

  “Too much time in Bed Stuy on a computer. I didn’t even finish college when it took off,” I answer.

  She smiles warmly and places her hand on my thigh. “Dixon Crawford. My goodness, I never thought I would see you again.”

  Her touch is intimate and does things to my insides, especially my dick. I gaze at her and tuck a loose hair behind her ear. It’s an intimate gesture, I know, but I just want to feel right now. I want to take her in and remember her.

  Suddenly a flash takes out my eyesight. It’s a perfect shot. Eden is staring up at me with a look of longing, maybe sadness. Who knows how the media will portray it. She shoots up quickly.

  “Give me that fucking camera,” I hiss to the damn guy that took the shot. I apparently can’t even enjoy a quiet day at the zoo.

  “Sorry, man, I work for the paper. No can do,” the slimy reporter says, holding the camera to his chest with two hands. Then he takes off.

  “Eden, please keep an eye on the kids,” I say, looking at her, as I get ready to take off after him. For fucking real? Eden nods and I take off running, catching up to him in a heartbeat. Stupid idiot. I grab the camera and smash it to the ground just as another guy, probably his friend, takes another shot. This is all I need now, bad media attention with everything that’s going on with Washington. The guy holds his hands up, surrendering, as if I intended to beat him.

  I take a card out of my pocket. “Don’t be an asshole. I’m not going to hurt you. I just don’t need you exposing my friend. Here’s my card. Come by my office and I will give you money to buy a new camera. I swear, if you follow me again, I will get a restraining order and I will not offer a camera.” The scrawny reporter takes the card. I get it’s his job, and I get he can sell the photos for a good buck, I just don’t want it to be at my expense or Eden’s.

  I jog back to Eden and the kids. Her face is pale. “Are you okay?” I ask, extending a hand onto her shoulder. She nods her head and her eyes begin to well. “What is it? You can tell me.”

  “Blythe saw the note you left on my night table. He thinks there’s something going on between us. He was very upset. He warned me …” She cringes. As tears begin to fall from her eyes, she laughs. I don’t understand what’s funny.

  “He doesn’t even look my way. He has all these whores on the side, and yet he’s angry about nothing. I’m just worried if a picture like that appears in the paper …” She pauses, and I can read her mind: Asshat will flip the fuck out.

  “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have left that note. I clearly wasn’t thinking. You had just told me you were alone most of your life. and I didn’t want you to feel that way.” My brows draw in as the tears spill down her cheeks.

  Without thinking, I grasp her in a hug and she buries her face in my chest, fuck it feels good. I know we still need to be careful about who sees us, but right now she needs me and that’s all that matters.

  “Did he hurt you?” I’m cringing because if he lifted a finger to her, I will want to destroy him.

  She pulls away and swipes her fingers at her eyes and straightens out her blouse. “I’m sorry, the reporter just scared me. Blythe warned me, and I know that looked bad. He picked his hand up to smack me, but never struck. He’s never hit me. He just doesn’t acknowledge me, except for when he needs a date for a gala dinner and other events that put him in the spotlight. It’s important for him to keep up appearances. He likes the image of family man. He hides his true nature,” she explains, and I wonder exactly what that means.

  “Why do you stay with him, then?” I know it’s none of my business, but this conversation has left the acquaintance category ages ago.

  “For Grant.” She shrugs as if it’s obvious. “I don’t want to rip his family apart. I know what that feels like.”

  Her words hit me like a ton of bricks. I know what it’s like not wanting to make the mistakes your parents made, but she’s missing a very important point in all this.

  “Eden, I don’t want to sound harsh. Trust me, I get not wanting to repeat the mistakes of others. It’s how I live my life.”

  She opens her mouth to say something so I pause. “You’re a great father, Dick.”

  “Thanks,” I grin. “Eden, asshat ignores you. He doesn’t treat you like a man should treat a woman. That is a bad example for Grant. I can see you’re a great mother. I’m assuming asshat doesn’t give Grant the time of day. You’re only twenty-eight years old. You should leave him and make a life with someone that will respect you and be a real father to your kid.”

  As the last words leave my mouth, I see the vacant look on Eden’s face. I realize she may be thinking that I’m insinuating that I’m that guy. That’s not what I meant. She catches my apprehension and she pulls her gaze away from me, clearly embarrassed. I somehow need to fix this.

  “I’m not a good guy, Eden. I have a reputation. It’s all true,” I begin to explain.

  She laughs, but I can tell it’s forced. “I know. From what I heard there’s a reason people call you Di
ck.” She punches my shoulder playfully as a stray tear falls down her cheek. I suddenly feel like an asshat and not a dick, and I don’t like it one bit.

  Holy hell. This day just keeps getting worse. Doesn’t he realize that I worry about the fact that Blythe isn’t a good example for my son? I worry … I wanted to believe that Blythe was going through a phase and it would pass. Like maybe he needed to get those extra women out of his system and finally settle down. He was a nice guy when we met. He treated me well. He cared. He saved me. I owed him.

  Dick interrupts my self-deprecation attack.

  “Hey, why don’t you bring Grant over to us today? We owe you a meal, and Ma is one hell of a cook,” he offers. He’s clearly trying to lighten the mood. Grant heard the offer and glances our way. I wish he hadn’t, because we shouldn’t be spending time like this together. Dick is a player, and I have one too many problems on my plate.

  “Mommy, pleeeease can we go? Please.” Grant sticks out his bottom lip and looks up to me with pleading blue eyes. Of course I can’t say no to my boy.

  “Sure, thanks.” I look up at Dick and accept his invitation. A smooth grin forms along his lips revealing his dimples. Gah! Damn those dimples.

  “Yay,” all three kids cheer together.

  “You want to follow me home? I think these kiddos had enough for today. I don’t know about you, but I’m famished.”

  “Yeah! Sounds great,” I reply with a soft smile, avoiding eye contact. The moment our eyes do connect a warm flush runs over my body, and right now, I need to avoid the feeling.

  Grant takes hold of my hand and we make our way back to the cars. The sun is setting along a pink and orange sky. It’s beautiful. I let out a sigh and brace myself. Not having to cook dinner tonight does sound appealing, even though I know better than to be spending more time with Dick. Despite my attempts to curb my feelings, happiness erupts in my chest like a piñata bursting with candies. I exhale another long breath as the memory of my face pressed up against his taut chest turns my body feverish. My wits kick in, reminding me to cool down this attraction. Nothing good can come of it. I only wish the logical side of me would win.

  Separating at the cars, I follow him back to his apartment. On the drive back, Dick’s, words, sounding eerily familiar to Jenna’s advice, float through my mind. Deep down I know they’re both right. I’ve fared well in the looks department, but being a single mom with a child means that another man is not interested in raising a stranger’s child. I may have been accused of being a hopeless romantic in the past, but life has turned me into a realist.

  Dick isn’t emotionally available, but damn if I would want him to be that guy. He’s a good father, despite everyone’s perception of him. There’s clearly another side to him he chooses to keep private. As I pull into the driveway of his apartment, I glance in the rearview mirror to see how I look and give myself a pep talk. Okay, Eden, don’t let your raging hormones get the best of you. This is still Dick. He’s a dick. He’s a dick, I begin to chant in my head, knowing how royally screwed I am.

  I park behind Eden instead of heading into the parking garage. Jaden is awake but Macy fell asleep. I carefully lift her in my arms as Eden walks our way, holding Grant’s hand.

  “I hope you guys are hungry. I’m guessing we have a serious meal waiting for us.” I smile to both of them.

  “I’m starving,” Grant answers, looking up to me.

  “Great, let’s head on up.” I hold the door open and let them in. Thankfully, I had time to call Ma from the car and tell her we were having guests. Besides Ge, there aren’t too many people who see the inside of my home. I keep my personal life private since the rest is always in the media.

  We head up the elevator and I notice Eden fidgeting, like maybe she’s nervous.

  “Do you remember Ms. Spencer? Man she was an awful teacher,” I ask, recalling our middle school teacher.

  Eden’s eyes light up. “Yeah, she never taught a lesson the entire year. She basically gave work out of the textbook. That’s why I believed you were having a hard time.” She narrows her eyes at me playfully.

  I grin sheepishly. “What can I say? I saw a pretty girl and went with it. I guess not much has changed in that regard.” I run my hand over the stubble on my chin, maybe feeling a little ashamed of my ways.

  “I wasn’t much of anything back then,” she murmurs.

  Macy chooses that moment to lift her head and stares at me sleepily. “Hey, cuddle bug, we’re home. Ma made dinner.” I place her down on her feet, and she holds my leg.

  “I think you’re very wrong, Eden. You were beautiful back then too. You were just hiding behind those big glasses and baggy clothes,” I reassure her. Damn, just admitted that I think she’s beautiful. It’s the truth. I can’t take it back now. I don’t want to.

  She bites her lower lip. I urge my dick to settle the fuck down. I would love to lean in and suck that lip, taste how sweet she is.

  “Those glasses were awful, weren’t they?” she asks with a giggle, so timid and playful.

  “Definitely. You have the most beautiful eyes I’ve ever seen. It’s a shame to cover them at all.” The compliments fly out of me. What am I doing?

  “I wear contacts now.” She leans back on her heel and rocks a bit. “You’re eyes are pretty awesome too. I can never figure out what color they are,” she answers, glancing at my eyes quickly before turning away and looking down at Grant.

  “I know they change like five times a day. It’s like they can’t decide if they are dark blue, light blue, green, jade …”

  She smirks. I would have thought she’d have tougher skin, married to a man like Blythe and living with constant media attention, but she doesn’t. She’s more like a delicate flower. Knowing that turns me on more. It shouldn’t. I know. Most women in my life are tough go-getters. They know what they want. I never was too interested in keeping them around long enough. They clearly wanted my name or money. We arrive at the top floor, and Ma has the door open and is waiting in the hall. The kids run down the hall and fly into her arms.

  “Wow, you’re really lucky to have her,” Eden comments.

  I walk past Ma and give her cheek a peck this time.

  “Ma, you remember Eden.”

  “Of course, dear. Come on in.” She motions for us all to enter. When everyone is inside and walking away from the door, Ma turns her head and cocks a brow at me. I inwardly chuckle. I don’t bring women home. I don’t bring women with children home.

  “She’s Jaden’s teacher,” I whisper.

  “Uh huh,” Ma answers knowingly.

  “Grant is on a play date with Jaden,” I confirm.

  “You keep believing that. I see something else, and you know I am always right.” She stands her ground, patting my shoulder. I know better than to argue.

  Ma and I follow Eden and the kids toward the kitchen. The kids hop on their chairs and Ma brings out some burger sliders and fries for the kids, who jump on it instantly.

  “I made some chicken Marsala. Should I put some on a plate for you two?” she asks, looking between Eden and me.

  “That would be great. Thank you.” Eden smiles, taking a seat beside Grant.

  “Thanks, Ma, I’m starved.” I accentuate so she knows to give me a double helping.

  When I first brought her to work here, she was nervous. She dreamed about becoming a chef, but life happened and she became a housekeeper, working hard to pay the bills on her Brownstone townhouse in Bed Stuy. Phil worked as a janitor in the local school and together they made a modest living. Ma loved the kitchen. It was always her relaxing place. Once I made the deal on Socialite, I sent her straight to culinary school, where she learned from the most prominent chefs in New York City. It made her incredibly happy and kept my stomach more than satisfied, even though I always enjoyed her cooking.

  “Aren’t you going to sit with us?” I ask as she makes her way out of the kitchen.

  “Nah, I’m tired. Rosa is around. She will clean up.�
�� She pauses and smiles warmly at the children enjoying the food. She isn’t getting any younger. That’s why I added more house staff to help her out. I hate watching her age.

  A minute later Rosa enters the kitchen. She’s about twenty-two years old. Slim with a dark mahogany mane running down her back. I’m not blind. She is beautiful. She did make advancements toward me when she first started working here. I set her straight. If she wanted to work for me, then she had to work. I don’t sleep with my employees. It’s a strict rule I abide by. I also don’t sleep with my children’s teacher, which is a rule I’m wondering if I’ll be able to keep.

  “Hello, sir.” Rosa smiles then turns to wash down the countertops and stove.

  I notice Eden stiffen. She eyes me warily. She must be thinking I keep Rosa around for more than the house cleaning and laundry.

  “Did you boys have fun at the zoo?” I ask.

  “It was so much fun, Daddy, can we go back soon?” Jaden asks with a pleading voice.

  “Sure, bud,” I answer. My phone buzzes on the table. The name Ella comes up on the screen and I cringe. Eden’s eyes drop to my phone and her face pales. It’s not what you think, Eden, but I can’t explain it either.

  I notice Eden whispering in Grant’s ear. She’s telling him to hurry and eat so they can leave. I don’t mean to eavesdrop but I did. I can’t take it back now.

  “You don’t need to leave. The kids can watch a movie and relax for a bit,” I suggest.

  Eden eyes Rosa carefully and then looks back to my phone. “We’ve taken up enough of your time. I’m sure the kids need to sleep and you probably want time for yourself.”

  Ouch! That stung. I know it shouldn’t. I’m the one responsible for my reputation.

  I lean forward and whisper, “Eden, she’s just my maid. I do not sleep with my employees at work or at home. In fact, I don’t bring women back to my apartment at all. This text message it isn’t what you think either.” I hope my words are reassuring to her, even though I’m not sure why she would care what I do in my spare time. The thing is, she clearly cares.