Billion Dollar Mistake by K.C. Crowne

Chapter 8

SAWYER

With a sigh, I slipped my phone back into my pocket. I’d taken the opportunity to check my email once I finished in the bathroom and was greeted with a message from Dad’s lawyers letting me know the contract had been delivered to my legal team.

I had no doubt it’d be all on the up-and-up – Dad was most definitely not the kind of guy to sneak something in via legalese. However, it was a reminder that this was all really happening, that if I wanted to be the new CEO of Praetorian, I’d need to get moving.

I craned my neck a bit from where I was leaning, getting a glimpse of Jolene seated at the bar. She looked amazing, so good, so sexy, that it was hard to focus on the task at hand. More than that, I wanted something else other than to talk her into going along with my insane plan – I wanted her in bed.

The mere thought of having her naked underneath me, that gorgeous body on full display, her mouth slightly open as she invited a kiss – and more – was enough to make me hard where I stood. I ran my hand through my hair, giving myself a moment to compose.

When I was ready, I pushed off the wall and headed in Jolene’s direction.

She smiled as I approached, taking her phone off the bar, and placing it in her purse.

“I have a question for you,” I said as she took a sip of her wine. “But it might be a little…out of pocket.”

She cocked her head to the side, clearly intrigued. “What’s that?”

“OK, so when you were hanging out with your group of, ah…” I trailed off, trying to think of a polite way to put it.

“Nerds,” she said, taking the word right from my mouth. “You can say it – I won’t be offended. I mean, we were total nerds.”

That got a laugh out of me. “Alright, when you were hanging out with your group of total nerds —”

She raised a finger. “You may call them simply nerds. I’m allowed to call them total nerds because they’re my people.”

Another laugh. I was almost finding it hard to believe how much fun I was having with Jolene. In fact, it made me even more annoyed with my high school self for not giving her more of a chance.

“OK, so you and your nerds. I’ve heard, ah, rumors about your type, the sort of stuff they got up to after science club or whatever. Is it…is it true?”

Her eyebrows rose in mild surprise.

“Wait, don’t tell me you’re asking what I think you’re asking.”

“I’m asking. Tell me the rumors about insane nerd orgies were true.”

Jolene regarded me with a cockeyed expression for a moment before breaking out into wild laughter. When she was done, she wiped her eyes and shook her head.

“I think you guys watched too many movies. No, the nerds were not total horn balls. Well, they were in the sense that all teenagers are little hormonal freaks, but I doubt more than anyone else was. We did date one another, if that’s what you’re asking.”

“A little disappointing, but the truth is what it is, right?”

She pursed her lips, glancing down for a moment.

“Believe it or not, I didn’t do much dating back then.”

“Really? You didn’t do much dating?”

“Any dating, really. I think some of the guys in our little scene did like me like that, but I was too wrapped up in school and my world of serial killer books and GPA-chasing to be interested in that sort of stuff. Plus, those guys were more like brothers to me than anything else.”

“OK, so you didn’t date in high school. Then you made up for it in college, right?”

“Nope. College was for, well, college. I studied and busted my butt so I could get whatever scholarship I could. I was riding all on student loans, and I didn’t want to graduate with hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt. And before you ask, no – I didn’t do much dating in med school either. Zero time for that kind of stuff.”

I was beginning to grow extremely curious about the love life of one Jolene McCallister. I wasn’t the prying sort, but I couldn’t help but notice how odd it was that one of the, if not the, most beautiful women I’d ever laid eyes on was mysteriously without much experience in the dating realm.

“OK, so what about after med school? You came back here, established yourself in your hometown, and…”

She sighed and looked away, shaking her head.

“And I didn’t date much then, either.”

“So, how many serious boyfriends have you had in your life?”

“That depends. What counts as serious?”

“Something that’s exclusive, extended. More than three months, let’s say.”

Her mouth formed into a flat line. “Three months? Never happened. Never once.”

“That’s incredible. I’m half thinking that you’re screwing with me.”

“Believe me, my dating life is enough of a joke on its own that I don’t need to go out of my way to screw with people about it.”

I was taken aback. “How? You’re stunning! You must have guys beating down the door to the morgue to get a shot at you. I mean, I figured I had to be one of a long line of dudes who’d dropped by your work to see if I could have a date with Dr. McCallister.”

“You mean Dr. Death. It’s nice of you to say, but the few normal men that there are in this town aren’t exactly hot on dating the creepy morgue lady. On top of that, I don’t really have much time for dating. I work all the time, and if I’m not performing autopsies, I’m giving expert witness testimony. If I’m not doing that, I’m giving guest lectures at Colorado Med. Whitepeak is a sleepy town, but my life since med school has been anything but.” She sighed. “And…”

She said the word as if there were something essential to add, something she knew she should but didn’t want to.

“And what?”

“And I’m not the easiest person to date in the world. Technically, I’ve dated guys before. But none of them lasted more than a few weeks. Things might start out alright at first, but once it really sinks in that I spend my days surrounded by death…it turns them off. Pathology isn’t just some nine-to-five that I leave at the office – it’s a way of life for me. I read books on the subject; and constantly think about cases that I can’t quite figure out. It’s everything to me. Like, the case with the woman who murdered her husband.”

“What about it?”

“I’d been dating this guy at the time. Well, we’d been on three dates. He was this very nice, very normal dude who worked in finance, did day trading at home, and played softball on the weekends with his friends. Super nice guy, the sort of guy you’d think a woman like me would be lucky to find that was somehow still single.”

She was getting passionate again – I liked that.

“Go on.”

“Anyway, I was working this case and it stuck with me. I couldn’t stop thinking about it. They’d brought me the body thinking I’d check it out, sign off on the suicide, and that’d be the end of it. But I couldn’t get it out of my head. Finally, one night when I was supposed to go see a movie with this guy, it hit me. I drove to the office, pulled out the body, and gave it another look. Sure enough, I found the signs of murder.”

She smiled, shaking her head as if she were living the satisfaction of it all over again.

“I was feeling so good about myself. That is, until I got a text from this guy letting me know he was at the theater, and that if I was at work, don’t bother to come.”

“Ouch. Sounds sensitive.”

“Maybe. But then again, it wasn’t like he was totally out of line. I’d had to reschedule the other dates twice because of work stuff. Three strikes you’re out, you know?”

“You ask me, he missed out.”

She smiled. “Nice of you to say. Or maybe he dodged a bullet. Either way, I don’t exactly have much of a dating history. What about you?”

I chuckled. “Well, same story – not much dating history.”

Jolene grinned. “But I’m going to guess that it’s for far different reasons than me.”

“Is that right?”

She leaned in; her full, kissable lips curled into a smirk. “That’s right. I know your reputation, Sawyer – at least, I know what it was back in high school. And something tells me that this leopard most definitely did not change his spots.”

“That’s what you see me as? A leopard?” I grinned, leaning in toward her.

“Hey, you should take that as a compliment – much better than a dog, in my opinion.”

I laughed. “Very true. And I must admit…I like it that you’re able to call me out. Most people are afraid of what I might think of them, go out of their way to get me to like them.”

“Do I need to do that?” she asked. “Or do you like me just the way I am?” She raised her eyebrows and pulled her shoulders back, opening her body to me. It was surreal as hell to see a woman like Jolene, the gawky girl with the braces I’d known back in high school, working her seductive magic so well.

Damned if it wasn’t working. My cock was solid as steel, aching to be buried inside of her.

“Got a question,” I said, staying close to her. “I’m in the mood for another drink. But I’m thinking I’d prefer a nightcap. How do you feel about coming over to my place?”

“All the way in Denver? I’ve got an early morning. How about we go to mine?”

“Perfect.”

I couldn’t resist her any longer. I moved forward, closing the last few inches between my lips and hers, kissing her quickly but deeply, her mouth opening to invite my tongue. She tasted sweet, like a rich red wine and something else that I couldn’t quite put my finger on.

After several long, lovely seconds, she pulled her mouth away. With her eyes still locked onto mine she slipped her phone from her purse. Her glance moved onto the screen just long enough to send a message.

“That’s my address.” Then she reached again into her purse and removed a twenty. “And that’s for my drinks.”

“You’re out of your mind if you think I’m going to let you pay.”

She chuckled, reached forward, and tucked the money into my shirt pocket.

“Then buy yourself something nice. Take care of the check and come on over.”

With that, she slid out of her seat and rose, turning and starting toward the door after taking her purse off the back of her chair. My eyes were laser focused on her perfect ass. Jolene glanced back with a sly look, flashing me a playful smile before stepping out.

I was taken aback. How the hell was this the same girl who’d evidently been too scared to talk to me in high school? How had someone like her, who’d never had a serious boyfriend, become so sharp in seduction skills?

Maybe it was that crackle of energy between us, that magnetism that I’d been aware of since she’d sat down next to me. Perhaps we both brought something out of one another that we didn’t know had been there.

Either way, all I wanted was to be alone with her. I paid the tab, leaving the twenty Jolene had slipped into my pocket for the tip. Once that was done, I hurried to my Porsche and got behind the wheel, putting her address into Google Maps and starting the drive.

It wasn’t long before I was in the Mission District – her neighborhood. I was more than a little surprised to see that she lived there. Mission wasn’t a bad part of town by any means, but it sure as hell wasn’t nice. The run-down ranch homes with beat up cars out front, unkept lawns and half the streetlights out…it wasn’t exactly the most inviting neighborhood in town.

It was strange how Jolene, a doctor, lived in this area. There were plenty of nice neighborhoods in Whitepeak – why was she in one like this?

I finally arrived at her place, which was a small ranch home on a corner. Her house was easily the nicest among all the others, the lawn nicely mowed, the yard landscaped, with colorful flowers lining both sides of the cement path leading up to the tiny porch. Her car, a two-decade old sedan that had seen better days, was parked in the driveway. I pulled in behind it, realizing instantly how much my Porsche stuck out like a sore thumb.

I hopped out and locked the car, turning my attention to the house. One of the windows was illuminated, Jolene already inside. She passed by the window, her perfect figure backlit against the soft, orange light within. The merest hint of her body was enough to make me forget all about the run-down area around me and beeline toward the door.

I knocked, my heart racing with excitement at the idea of seeing her again, even after only being apart for fifteen minutes or so.

The door opened and there she was, dressed in the same clothes as before but with the top few buttons of her blouse opened, hinting at her gorgeous breasts and the black bra she wore underneath. It was sexy and cute all at the same time, watching Jolene put her best seduction face on.

“Good to see you,” she said, leaning against the door frame. “Want to come —”

She didn’t get a chance to finish. Her hand slipped and her eyes went wide as she tumbled to the right. Without thinking, I zipped in and slipped my arm around her waist, preventing her from hitting the floor.

Her eyes still wide, she regarded me in stunned silence.

“You alright?” I asked as I gazed down into her eyes.

Her chest rose and fell with deep, panicked breaths, her breasts straining against her blouse.

“That…yeah, I think I’m fine.”

I helped her to stand up straight, Jolene quickly running her hands over her blouse as she tried to compose herself.

“That didn’t go as expected,” she said, allowing herself a small smile. “Can you tell I don’t do this seductive thing very often?”

I chuckled. “Hey, you were doing great at the bar. You’re allowed a misstep here and there.”

She stepped around me, her eyes lingering on my car for a moment before shutting the front door and locking it. Jolene didn’t say anything, but I had a good idea that she was thinking about how silly my sports car looked in a neighborhood where the average vehicle was dinged-up or covered in rust.

Once the door was closed, I looked around. The house was small, the living room leading to a tiny kitchen with a small dining nook, a single hallway to the left likely leading to a bedroom or two. I wasn’t about to say anything, but it struck me once again how strange it was that a woman who made a good salary lived like this.

Why she did, I could only guess, but it did give me the idea that her humble lifestyle might make her more receptive to my offer. No doubt she’d make good use of the “alimony” payment that would be part of the deal.

“Sorry the place is a little…underwhelming,” she said. “Don’t have many guests over.”

Although the house was small, it had been decorated with care, similar to the outside. Shelves filled with books ‒ no doubt true crime and mystery ‒ were against the walls and topped with healthy plants. A big oriental rug covered the living room floor, the couch and loveseat before the TV cozy and appealing.

New wave music played on the small Sonos stereo on one of the bookshelves.

“New Order?” I asked, sticking my thumb out toward the stereo, a smile on my face.

Her eyes flashed with excitement. “You know it! Are you into them?”

“Sure am – better than Joy Division, if you ask me.”

The smile stayed on her face, as if she hadn’t expected me to share the same tastes as her.

“OK, so, I’m kind of rusty at this stuff, like I said. Next step is I offer you a drink, right?”

I laughed. “That’s definitely an option.”

She gave me a thumbs-up before hurrying off to the kitchen. Over the small bar that separated the kitchen from the living room, I watched her take out a bottle of wine and a couple of glasses.

“Red OK?”

“Red’s fine.”

“So, I had a really bad date the other day,” she said as she popped open the bottle and poured the wine. “One for the books.”

“That right?”

She let out a grunt of annoyance over the glug-glug-glug of wine being poured.

“This guy showed up and tried to work me with margaritas right off the bat. And then, after that, he tried to order for me. Can you believe that? Some guy seriously went out with me and was like, why yes, the lady will have the blah-blah-blah.”

“Some guys think that shows they’re in charge, you know. Like they’re the cool sort who can take the lead.”

“That’s what my sister said.” Jolene stepped over with the glasses of wine in her hands. “Still unbelievable that a guy would pull that. And then he got pissy when I told him I wasn’t into that kind of thing.” She gestured for me to sit down on the couch with her. I did, and she passed me one of the glasses of wine. “Sorry, here I am complaining about a date while on a date – another faux pas.”

I wasn’t bothered in the slightest. In fact, I liked how comfortable she was telling me about something like that. It made me feel connected to her, closer to her. Though it was strange as hell that I wanted to feel closer to her. My typical style was keeping my women at a comfortable distance. No sense in getting feelings mixed in with fun.

She passed one of the glasses of wine over to me and our hands grazed. It was a simple, quick touch, not one that lingered.

Despite how brief it was, the touch and the moment were charged with a sexual energy that was enough to make me go half hard right then and there. Screw the wine – I had to seriously fight back the urge to toss my glass aside and pounce on her like a wild animal.

I swallowed hard, pushing down the incredible lust for Jolene that was pounding through me.

“Don’t even worry about it,” I said once I’d worked through my lust filled moment. “I’m having a good time listening to you talk. You’ve got an engaging way about you – anyone ever told you that before?”

She cocked her head to the side, as if I couldn’t have said anything more confusing if I’d tried.

“You serious? I mean, that’s nice of you to say. But I wouldn’t have thought spending half my life in the basement of a coroner’s office would’ve lent itself to charming social skills.”

“Well, it does. And speaking of which, I’m thinking of something we ought to toast to.”

“What’s that?”

I smiled. “Making new friends.”

She scrunched up her face as if she wanted to make sure whether she really wanted to toast to that.

“You alright?” I asked. There was something about the look on her face in response to my words that got my curiosity going.

“It’s nothing,” she said. “I’ll drink to that.”

Jolene held her wine glass up and I tapped mine against hers.

“Cheers,” I said.

“Cheers.”

I sipped my wine and she sipped hers. It was deep and rich, coating my tongue and going down smooth.

I couldn’t help but smirk.

“What’s so funny?” she asked.

“Oh, just that I was out to lunch with the old man, and he insists on always getting the best bottle of red the place has to offer.”

“Is that right? And how does my humble bottle of nine-dollar wine compare to such opulence?”

“You know what? Not sure if I could tell the difference if my life depended on it.”

“So, your dad likes the finer things?”

“He does. But it’s not like he’s a snob about it. He grew up in a family that had to work hard to make ends meet. And now, it’s like he’s taking extra pleasure in trying all the things he missed out on.”

I caught myself after I spoke, surprised at how open I was being about my family. What the hell was going on with me that I felt so comfortable talking about those sorts of things with her?

“That’s kind of sweet, really,” she said with a smile. “I’ve never been big on money, personally. I mean, you need it to live and to have some fun every once in a while. But you can tell by my place that earning tons of cash wasn’t the reason I went to med school.”

I looked around, noting how cheery the place was despite its humbleness.

“I could’ve done cardiac or plastic surgery if I really wanted to make some money. But I knew what I wanted, and I went for it.”

“Another admirable trait to add to all the rest.”

She chuckled. “Such a charmer, I swear.” I laughed along with her, Jolene’s hand falling onto my leg as we did.

Just like the hand-touching before, the slight grazing of her against me was enough to drive me wild. I sipped some wine to take my mind off how turned on I was.

Jolene scrunched her face up once again, a thought occurring to her as she lifted her hand. I found myself worrying she might’ve realized she’d gone too far, gotten too close, and that her next words might be her politely ending the night and sending me on my way.

“What’s up?” I asked.

“OK,” she said with a nod that suggested she’d decided that whatever was on her mind, she was just going to say it. “This is…not going to be the smoothest thing in the world to say. And it’s going to fly in the face of what you said about me being super socially savvy…”

“Yes?” I asked, dying of curiosity by this point.

“But…” she clapped her hands down on her legs, then flicked her eyes up to mine. “Sawyer, I want you really, really freaking bad. But my nerves are kind of getting the better of me and there’s no way I’m going to be able to make a move. I don’t know if you were thinking things might go in thatdirection. But if you’re interested, you’re going to have to make the first move.”

I didn’t know what to say to that. If I’d been drinking wine in that moment, I would’ve spit it out.

“You…ah, you want me to move things in that direction?” I asked.

She gave a quick, crisp nod in response.

“That’s exactly what I want. But if you’re not down for it, I’d totally understand. In fact, I’d also understand if the way I’m asking for it like this is kind of a turn off.”

I was tired of resisting what I wanted – what I then knew we both wanted. I moved over to her and took her face into my hands. She gazed back at me with those gorgeous eyes, her lips damp with wine parted slightly.

And then I kissed her.