Billion Dollar Mistake by K.C. Crowne

Chapter 7

JOLENE

I’d had my armor on when I strolled into that bar. I’d also done more than a little psyching myself up beforehand. I was meeting Sawyer Williams, after all. The last thing I needed was to let my guard down and be taken away by his charms and good looks.

When I arrived, I’d felt damn good about myself and my ability to keep things in check. However, the moment I’d laid eyes on him, his stunning, chiseled profile backlit by the mellow, amber lighting of the bar, I knew I was in trouble.

Sitting there next to him, with half a glass of wine warming me up, his hand on mine, sure as hell wasn’t helping matters. I’d been wet from the moment I’d seen him. The sensation of his rough skin against my own was enough to make me feel like I needed to change my panties…or just get somewhere quiet with Sawyer and take them off.

I slipped my hand away from his. As much as I loved his touch, there was no way I’d be able to focus with any of that business going on. His eye contact wasn’t helping matters either, those deep green eyes burning holes into mine. I placed my hand on my lap and glanced away, clearing my throat as I gave myself a moment to recover.

It was so damn hard, though. It was like there was a magnetic pull drawing me closer to him. Part of me still wanted to be mad at the guy for the way he’d treated me back in high school. Not only that, but it seemed like he had no idea that he had treated me so poorly. And that frustrated me even more.

I took a sip of my wine to collect myself. Then he did something that I most definitely was not expecting – he placed his hand on mine again, then leaned in close, close enough that I could smell the intoxicating, leathery musk of his cologne.

“You know, I’m starting to regret not getting to know you better back in high school. I feel like I missed out on someone really special.”

I was officially soaked. I crossed my legs, squeezing my thighs together in a vain attempt to distract myself from how turned on I was.

I chuckled, taking my hand away from his once more. This time, he put his hand on his thigh. The sexual heat between us was almost too much to bear. I moved back a few inches, putting some space between us to give myself some breathing room.

I could only imagine how I’d feel, what I’d want, if I were to stay that close to him.

“You had your chance, Sawyer,” I said. “You had a damn good one, actually.”

He cocked his head to the side slightly, trying to figure out what I meant.

“I did? How do you mean?”

“We had a class together senior year. You remember that Intro to Psych class with Mr. McKenna? We were both in it-.”

He pursed his lips and thought it over. I got the impression it wasn’t ringing many bells for him.

“To be honest, I barely remember. I’d already gotten accepted to college at that point, ended up having to take a few electives that I didn’t technically need just so I could fill out my schedule. Pretty sure I cut it half the time.”

He was right about that. I wasn’t going to say anything, but I always looked forward to him coming to class – when he decided to show up.

“Well, maybe if you would’ve spent more time in class instead of skipping out, you could’ve gotten to know the brilliant and beautiful total nerd who sat in the front row.”

I hated how I was talking. Instead of putting up a tough front I was starting to moon over him just like I’d done all those years ago. It was more than a little scary to see how, despite all the time that had passed, the nerdy girl with the crush on Mr. Popular was still there, waiting to come out.

“Ah ha,” he said, wagging his finger as he reached for his drink. “There’s another reason why I don’t remember you. I never sat anywhere near the front row if I could help it. No idea why anyone would want to be so close to the teacher where they could see every little thing you do.”

“Well, that’s because when you’re close, the teacher’s most likely to call on you when your hand goes up.”

He chuckled. “Spoken like a true nerd.”

“If the braces fit,” I said with a smile.

His eyes flashed, as if he’d remembered something very important in that moment.

“Wait, I do remember you in that class. You’re the one who did the presentation on that serial killer who had the mansion with all the secret compartments.”

“H.H. Holmes,” I said, not missing a beat. “The proprietor of the infamous Chicago murder castle.”

“That’s right,” he said with a smile. “And you made that 3D diagram with the front cutaway so we could see all the torture rooms. I remember the vat of acid where you said he dissolved his victims – you got this crazy glint in your eye when you were talking about it.”

“Hey, the guy was messed up, but you still have to admire his ingenuity. Trap doors that led into torture rooms? Sick stuff, sure, but makes you wonder what a mind like that would’ve done if he wasn’t a psycho.”

“Very good point. I’m starting to remember more, like how you got in trouble with Mr. McKenna because the assignment wasn’t technically about serial killers.”

“Right,” I said with a laugh. “We were supposed to pick an abnormal psychological pathology of our choice. Most people went with depression or anxiety or along those lines. I went with sociopathy and gave a very in-depth example of the topic. When Mr. McKenna approached me after class, he said that, while I hadn’t exactly stuck to the parameters of the assignment, I’d been very thorough. He gave me a B, which I was totally devastated by at the time.”

“Devastated by a B?”

“I was very proud of my four-point-three GPA, thank you very much. It’s how I got a full ride to Colorado State.”

He glanced away, looking like he had something on his mind that he wanted to ask.

“You ever work a case like that? Some serial killer who’s got bodies under the floorboards?”

I shook my head. “Nothing so dramatic. The suicide that ended up being a murder was about the highlight of my forays into true crime. Serial killers are hard to come by these days, believe it or not. DNA testing is so good now that most wannabes are nabbed after one or two killings. And more than that, working in a small town like Whitepeak means that I don’t get anything too crazy. The murdering wife deal only fell onto my lap because the Denver PD called me in to consult.”

I grinned and leaned in.

“If I want the good cases, the really scandalous stuff, I need to start working with the State Coroner’s Office.”

“What’s stopping you? No doubt you’re brilliant enough to do it.”

I couldn’t help but blush at his compliment. The guy knew how to lay it on thick in just the right way. A voice in the back of my head caught my attention, one that reminded me Sawyer was a total player back in high school, that there wasn’t a girl in town able to resist his charm. What if that’s what he was doing to me – stroking my ego, buttering me up, making me feel like I was special?

I had to keep myself in check. As into Sawyer as I was, last thing I needed was to end up a notch on his bedpost. If anything was going to happen between us, I’d have to be in control every step of the way.

“Thanks. But it’s hard. Lots of brilliant people in Colorado are all gunning for the same job. I’ve got a pretty decent professional reputation, but it takes more than that to score a position like the one I want.”

“It takes more than being brilliant? Like what?”

“It’s government work. The higher up you get, the more it becomes about who you know, whose good side you’re on. Put me in a morgue with a body and I’ll have the cause of death in a few hours. Put me at a cocktail party and I’ll manage five minutes of small talk before wishing I was home in my pajamas.”

“Part and parcel of some careers,” Sawyer agreed. “I’m the CTO for my firm, the chief technology officer, and I still have to do tons of glad-handing and schmoozing. On top of that, it’s also my job to wrangle all the engineers who work there. And let me tell you, a pricklier bunch of folks you’ll never find.”

“God,” I said, shaking my head after setting down my now empty glass of wine. “I’ve been rambling about my life and work and haven’t even bothered to ask you about your job. That’s the downfall of spending most of your working hours in a basement morgue with dead bodies – you forget what it’s like to speak with actual people.”

He laughed. “Don’t worry – you’re totally fine. And I’m more than happy to tell you about my work.” A conflicted expression formed on his face then, as if something had occurred to him that he wasn’t sure whether to bring up or not.

“Something wrong?”

Sawyer shook his head, snapping himself out of it.

“Nah. Just had some, ah, recent developments happen at work that I need to sort out. Nothing terribly exciting.”

I wasn’t sure why, but the way he was speaking of those recent developments piqued my interest. However, I didn’t want to pry.

Sawyer nodded toward the bar. “But before I get into it, looks like we both could use a refill. How do you feel about another round?”

I tossed the subject back and forth in my mind. Getting one drink with a guy was nothing. I had a nice little buzz but was still present and clearheaded enough to politely excuse myself and end the date right then and there. After all, we’d agreed to a drink – my obligations had been satisfied.

Two drinks…that was something else. Two drinks signaled that I was quite possibly in it for the night, that I could end up getting a touch sloppy with Sawyer. It could mean that I was allowing myself to lower my inhibitions, that I would be fine with anything that happened.

The fact of the matter was that I would be. I’d had my guard up and my armor on, but the more Sawyer and I talked, the more I found myself falling for his charms just like I’d warned myself not to.

“OK,” I said. “I think I can do another.”

He flashed me a winsome smile before getting the bartender’s attention.

Once the drinks were in front of us, he went into it. He told me about the company, how his dad founded it when Sawyer was still a kid, how it started out as his dad managing a small team of five programmers in his garage and slowly turned, over time, into one of the biggest security software firms in the world.

“It was weird being a kid while all that was happening,” he said, looking away and shaking his head as if he were still trying to wrap his mind around it. “My dad used to work as a salesman. And he made a decent living. But once Praetorian got off the ground, everything happened so quickly. We moved from our ranch home to this huge place outside of town. My parents started driving BMWs, and suddenly we could take these awesome vacations. It was…different.”

It was so strange to hear about all of this. I’d always known Sawyer as some spoiled rich kid. To hear that there was a time in his life that he was anything else – it made me see him in a new light.

“Anyway, I graduated with a computer science degree and went off to Wharton to get my MBA. Once I started working with my old man, we took Praetorian to the next level. With me in charge of tech, Dad could focus entirely on expansion. And man, did we expand that place.”

“What’s the company worth?” I asked. I knew it was totally inappropriate to ask the question as soon as the words came out of my mouth, but damned if I wasn’t curious as hell.

He smiled and shook his head. I could see the pride on his face, pride in having built something so amazing.

“A lot. Like a lot, a lot.”

He didn’t need to be any clearer than that.

“But it’s not about money. It’s about being at the reins of a place you helped grow with your own hard work. And that’s why I can’t wait to be in charge when my dad retires.”

“So, he’s passing it onto you?”

He opened his mouth to speak but stopped before saying a word. A sigh came next, one that seemed to carry no shortage of frustration.

“Something like that. We’re in sort of a transitory phase right now – won’t bore you with the details.”

“Well, at least tell me a little of what it’s like to run, or help run, a massive company like that. It sure sounds a hell of a lot different than working in a morgue by myself listening to my 80’s music playlist on Spotify.”

“It’s fun. I love my work; love the excitement of the high stakes we deal with every day.” His face lit up and I could tell he meant his words.

From there he was off to the races, giving me the lowdown on his fast-paced life in Denver. I said nothing as he spoke, enjoying watching him get wrapped up in his enthusiasm for the job.

It was so strange to see him like that. The Sawyer I’d known had been some spoiled rich kid, one who cared more about partying and slacking off than working hard and making something of himself. As he spoke, I found myself wondering if he’d really and truly changed from the jerk he’d been back then.

More importantly, had he changed into someone I was comfortable letting into my life?

That wasn’t all. As he told me about his work, we flirted like crazy. I couldn’t believe how I was acting. He’d say something funny, and I’d laugh, letting my hand fall onto his knee. Then he’d tell me something else, leaning in close and speaking into my ear as if what he had to say was for me and me only.

“Listen,” he said when he reached a stopping point. “Hate to grind things to a halt, but I need to use the little boys room.”

That worked just fine for me. I was desperately in need of letting Joanne know what was going on.

“Sure. I’ll be here.”

He flashed me one more of those killer smiles before hopping out of his seat and heading around the bar. I might’ve let my eyes linger on his ass while he turned the corner.

The second he was gone I got right down to business. My fingers were a blur over my iPhone’s keyboard as I typed and typed, trying to find the best way to summarize the situation without being too long-winded about it. When I had a solid paragraph of info down, I fired the message off and waited for the reply.

Luckily, Joanne never made me wait long for responses to my texts – especially when they had to do with love life matters.

You’re with Sawyer Williams? Are you serious? Where is he right now?

I flicked my eyes up to make sure he wasn’t on his way back, then started typing.

He’s in the bathroom. But seriously, I’m losing my mind trying to figure out what to do.

Well, what do you want to do?

Honestly? I want to take him home with me.

The three dots appeared, this time lingering on the screen for long enough to let me know she was taking her time with this response.

You’re KIDDING. This is the same Sawyer Williams, right? The one who was a total prick to you back in high school? How much have you had to drink, exactly?

Not that much – like, two glasses of wine. And yeah, the same Sawyer. But he’s different; it’s so weird. Maybe I misjudged him back then? I mean…maybe he’s matured. It was almost twenty years ago, right?

Or maybe he’s just gotten really good at hiding the person he truly is.

I set the phone down for a second, thinking over Joanne’s words. Was she right? Was I letting myself be blinded by Sawyer’s good looks and insane level of charm? I glanced up in the direction of the men’s bathroom. He wasn’t back yet.

So, you think I should turn him down?

That’s your call. On the other hand, this is the first time in, like, forever, that you’re actually on a date where you’re having fun. Maybe you should just go with it!

I liked that answer. A smile formed on my lips as I considered my response.

Yeah, just go with it! Whatever happens, happens.

But make sure you keep your guard up. Have some fun, then maybe, if he’s lucky, you let him knock out the cobwebs from down there.

That got a loud, barking laugh out of me. I clamped my hand over my mouth, quickly glancing around to see if I’d made a spectacle out of myself.

It hasn’t been that long. But that’s what I’m going to do – see where the night takes me.

Right. And if it takes you into the bed of a handsome man, then so be it! You’re entitled to some fun every now and then.

I reacted to her text with the heart emoji, then set my phone down.

I was confident in my plan. I wouldn’t throw myselfat Sawyer, but if he managed to charm me into his bed, then, like Joanne said, so be it!

I smiled, having a feeling it was going to be a night to remember.