The Arrangement

  Copyright © 2015 Thayer King

  All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Chapter One

  Masculine laughter floated from the direction of the kitchen. Hearing the voice of Ted Flynn, the husband of her best friend, was no surprise. But the other male…Asher Hollister.… She’d know that laugh anywhere though she hadn’t seen him since the annual Flynn New Year’s Eve party six months ago. Asher’s laughter was rich and husky and rolled over the listener like a sensual fog. Ariadne stiffened and froze in the process of entering the beach house, the sliding glass door open only a few inches. What the hell was he doing here? She whipped around to glare at her best friend Erika Flynn. Crossing her arms over her chest, she said, “You promised me he wasn’t coming this year.”

  Erika winced. “Ted invited him, but he turned down the invitation. He must have changed his mind.”

  Ariadne sighed. She wondered if she could sneak up to her room, pack her bags and leave without him noticing. This was supposed to be a much needed vacation for her. The last thing she needed was to have to deal with the animosity that existed between her and Asher. She’d intended to stay for two weeks. She doubted the two of them would last that long before weapons were drawn.

  That they would cross swords was inevitable with only the four of them inhabiting the house. She avoided him when possible, but that was difficult since they often traveled in the same circles. Sometimes she felt like she lived in a soap opera town inhabited by a limited number of citizens. But the funny thing was that Asher seemed capable of getting along with everyone with the exception of her. Everybody loved him. Especially women. For some unknown reason, he had been an ass to her since high school.

  “Might as well get it over with,” Erika said, laying a comforting hand on her arm.

  Ariadne glanced down at herself. The two of them had been lying around on the beach while Ted went out to grab dinner. The purple one piece she wore was dry. Only a small amount of sand clung to her legs and ankles.

  She opened the door the rest of the way and the two of them skirted the dining table and entered the den. It was a large open area separated from the kitchen by a curved bar. Ted leaned against the kitchen counter, bags of takeout behind him. His long legs were stretched out in front of him. His shaved head and goatee gave him a tough guy look though he was one of the nicest guys she’d ever met. Asher sat on a barstool facing him. The two men had been friends since elementary school. The same could be said for her and Erika. Prior to Erika marrying Ted two years ago, her run-ins with Asher had been minimal. After the marriage of their best friends, she really had to work to avoid the odious man. Whether he was avoiding her or not, she wasn’t certain. He seemed to relish their encounters. It was just another reason to hate him. She liked her life on a calm even keel. Some might calling it boring, but she’d choose ennui over calamity any given day.

  Asher grinned at the sight of them. His lips tipped up on the left first before spreading to the other side. It was a slow, calculated move. His pale green eyes lit up in wicked delight. Ariadne’s eyes narrowed in suspicion. She just knew he was thinking of some cruel taunt as his gaze flicked over her from top to bottom. “Well, if it isn’t my sweet belle and Miss Prim and Proper.” She didn’t have to guess which one she was.

  Erika rushed forward and received a warm hug and a kiss on the cheek. “Ash, it’s good to see you.”

  Ariadne hugged her beach bag to her chest. “Ash,” she said with a nod. It was as much of an acknowledgement as he was going to get out of her.

  “Ari,” he murmured, knowing she’d never given him permission to use that abbreviation of her name. Only friends and family called her Ari. He was neither. “You look supremely overdressed for the occasion.”

  Her swimsuit was conservative. It was true. It had a modest scoop neck and rose up high to cover her back. There was even a ruffle skirt that hid the tops of her rounded thighs. Erika had commented that it would have been better suited to a five year old. That was different. Erika was a friend. She was allowed to criticize her wardrobe. Bristling, she replied, “I shopped for a string bikini but the stores sold out to your cadre of busty girlfriends.”

  He arched a dark brow before bursting out in laughter. “Well, you do have the impressive upper endowments I so adore.”

  That was another habit of his that she hated. Her insults never seemed to hit their mark. He always laughed it off. It didn’t help that he had the sexiest laugh known to man. The man was infuriating. Ariadne growled. “You-”

  “Come on, guys,” Ted interrupted. “Don’t get started. Erika and I don’t want to spend two weeks listening to you bicker. Ash, you promised to be on your best behavior.”

  “What?” He lifted his arms and shrugged. “That was a compliment.”

  Erika tugged on Ariadne’s elbow. “Let’s go get washed up for dinner.” She shot Ted a significant glance.

  Suppressing the urge to get in a parting shot, Ariadne turned and strode up the stairs. At the door to her room, she grabbed Erika’s wrist as a horrible thought took root. There were five bedrooms and four bathrooms. Erika and Ted had chosen a bedroom on the other side of the house. “Tell me, he’s not rooming next to me. If I have to listen to him and some bimbo going at it all night-”

  “Ted told him it would be okay if he brought a guest, but he didn’t have anyone with him downstairs. Maybe he came alone.”

  She grunted. “Like that makes any difference. He’ll be at a bar before nightfall picking up some unfortunate woman with poor judgment.”

  “I wish the two of you could get along,” Erika said with sad brown eyes.

  “I’d be fine with calling a truce. He always strikes first.”

  “Because you always rise to the bait.”

  “You think if I kept my mouth shut that he’d stop? You’re wrong. Trust me, I know from personal experience. But I will try to put up with him.”

  “Thanks.” Erika gave her a quick hug before heading for her room, her long blond ponytail swaying against her spine.

  Ariadne entered her room, pausing for a second to admire the view of the beach. The pale yellow walls and large windows made it a cheerful space. She really could use the cheering up. It had been a rough year. First the ugly break up with Daniel, his subsequent engagement to her cousin, and now this. Two weeks in forced close proximity with Asher, her nemesis since high school, would make the situation with Daniel seem like a dream.

  She stripped out of her bathing suit in the bathroom and brushed out her hair. The curls she’d worked so hard to achieve with her curling iron this morning were long gone and her black locks just brushed her shoulders. She bound it in a ponytail before covering it with a shower cap and climbing in the shower. The sand between her toes was going from itchy to painful.

  She washed off quickly and wrapped up in a towel. She stored her shower cap on the towel rack. Since they’d arrived in Nags Head only this morning, she had only unpacked her bathing suit and her toiletries.

  Her suitcase sat on the braided rug beside the bed. The floor was hardwood like all the floors in the house with the exception of the bathrooms. She lifted the case onto the bed and unzipped it. There was a brief knock at her door before it was flung open and Asher entered.

  Ariadne shrieked and clutched her towel more securely. “What the hell? You’re supposed to wait until I say enter.”

  “Like you would have given me permission to enter?”

  “Certainly not now! I’m not dressed.”

  He gave her a slow head to
toe. When he spoke his voice was huskier than usual. “It’s nothing I haven’t seen before.”

  “You haven’t seen me before,” she insisted.

  He shrugged and closed the door behind him. “Look, I came to say that I was going to be on my best behavior.” He ran a broad hand through his thick dark brown hair. It was straight and longer than she’d ever seen it. It flopped down over his forehead, covered his ears and brushed the collar of his linen shirt. “We came here to relax. Neither one of us needs any shit this summer. So what do you say we call a cease fire?”

  She nodded. “If you can control yourself,” she said stiffly, “there won’t be an issue.”

  He grinned. “Copacetic. I’ll leave you to get dressed.”

  She stopped him when his hand was on the doorknob. “By the way, what room did you choose?”

  “We’re neighbors,” he tossed over his shoulder.

  “Um, did you come alone?”

  He turned and leaned against the door. “Are you going somewhere with this?” His eyes held a speculative gleam.

  “Get that look off your face. I just wanted to know if this was going to be a repeat of three years ago.” When he only quirked a brow, she elaborated. “I was kept up all night by you and your friend having sex and then arguing into the wee hours of the morning.”

  He winced and then stiffened. “You heard that?”

  “Who didn’t? I don’t know what you did to her. She sounded like she wanted to castrate you by the end of it.”

  Asher ran a hand through his hair again. “Yeah, well…I’m alone this time. And I intend to stay that way.”

  Her brows rose in surprise, but he left before she could comment.

  ***

  Asher pressed the flat of his palm to his aching cock and stifled a groan. Ariadne did this to him every damn time. That she hated him didn’t seem to affect the rigidity of his dick. Hell, fighting with her was the only thing that kept him from grabbing her and slamming his mouth onto those full pouty lips of hers.

  He thought back to that fight three years ago and winced anew. He’d slipped up and groaned Ari’s name at the worst possible moment. He was lucky to survive that night with his balls attached. Belinda had left him the next day and refused to answer any of his phone calls. Asher sighed. It was for the best. She’d been pushing him for more and he simply didn’t have any more to offer her.

  Once he got his errant cock under control, or as much control as he could expect with Ariadne in such close proximity clothed in only a towel, he galloped downstairs. Ted waited for him in the kitchen. “Well?”

  “She’s willing to give it a go.”

  “You really think you can play nice for two weeks?”

  It had become an ingrained self-defense mechanism to antagonize Ariadne, but he could drop it for a short time. “No problem.”

  Ted’s black brows rose. “Really? You couldn’t manage it for a few hours on New Year’s Eve.”

  “Ted, give me some credit, will you? I told you I came for peace and I meant it.”

  “Yeah, but I swear, for the two of you the fighting is like foreplay. One of these days-”

  He cut his friend off before he could go there. He was well aware of Ariadne’s low opinion of him. There was nothing remotely romantic about it. As for the two of them ever hooking up, it was never going to happen. “Trust me, the last thing that woman wants is to fuck me.”

  “She might if you ever turned any of that legendary charm of yours her way.”

  Asher snorted, but he didn’t bother arguing with his friend. Ariadne was the one woman who was immune to his charm. “Need some help setting the table?”

  ***

  Dinner was Chinese food. Tomorrow they would head out to purchase groceries. Ariadne sat across from Asher. Other than the occasional laughter, he did nothing to provoke her. He was civil and she tried to return the favor. To a certain extent, she supposed she had reason to be thankful for his presence. He made her forget her problems and kept her from being the third wheel to Ted and Erika’s twosome.

  Erika kept stealing food off Ted’s plate. And he kept taking sips of her soda. Ariadne thought it was cute the way they shared. It was amazing how affectionate they still were considering the fact that they’d been dating since Erika was nineteen. Ted and Asher were a couple of years older and were friends with Erika’s older brother Chad.

  Ariadne and Erika were both high school English teachers. They discussed their favorite students—some of whom had graduated this year. Ted was a police detective and had any number of funny stories to tell about the people he encountered. Ariadne knew that Erika worried about him and she noticed that he only shared the lighter tales. His job had to be filled with tense and scary moments, but he never talked about it.

  Ted had just finished telling them a story about having to question residents of a neighborhood about a string a robberies. One of the residents, a ninety year old man, had seen nothing wrong with conducting an interview with the police entirely nude. Everyone’s eyes naturally turned to Asher as their laughter died down. He arched an eyebrow and shrugged. “When I work, I work. When I play, I play. I don’t mix the two.” He loaded his fork with Lo mein and shoved it in his mouth.

  Ariadne wondered how much work he actually did. After all, he was employed by his father.

  “Well, speaking of play, are you seeing anyone special?” Erika asked.

  “Nope,” he said with a rakish grin. “But I’m always on the lookout. Got someone in mind?”

  “Don’t,” Ted interrupted before Erika could suggest anyone. “Trust me it never turns out well.”

  Asher laughed that husky, sexy laugh of his. “He’s right.”

  Ariadne shook her head. She didn’t care to know the details of Asher’s dating life, but she knew him well enough to never be foolhardy enough to set him up with a friend. Whenever she’d ever met any of his exes, they always seemed to fall into one of two categories. Either they hated him and wouldn’t hesitate to run him down with a car or they still loved him and would do just about anything to get him back.

  “And what about you? Weren’t you dating someone when I last saw you?” It was a moment before she realized that Asher was talking to her.

  “Oh, he’s busy planning-” Erika began.

  Ariadne quickly cut her off. “He couldn’t come.” She sent Erika a significant glance. She didn’t want Asher of all people to know that she’d been dumped. Again. Her record with relationships was less than stellar. Somehow, she’d thought this time would be different. And indeed it had been. This one had crashed and burned in such a spectacular fashion she was likely to never forget it.

  Asher arched an eyebrow, but he didn’t say anything for which she was relieved.

  They sat in silence, avoiding eye contact for several awkward moments. Ted and Erika, kissing and giggling, had retired to their bedroom, leaving the two of them to find their own entertainment. Finally Asher sighed and settled back into the sofa cushions. “We’re going to have to get used to being alone. It’s bound to happen again. You can’t go running out of the room every time you think you might be alone with me.”

  Tensing on her end of the sofa though an entire couch cushion separated them, she glared at him. “Is that supposed to be some sort of veiled reference?”

  He smiled. “Not this time. Truce, remember?”

  She nodded, but thought it best that she call it a night. She could read until she got sleepy. It would be better than sitting in painful silence with Asher.

  “So what was it Erika was saying about your boyfriend? He’s the guy you were with at New Year’s right?”

  “I don’t want to talk about Daniel.”

  “Another one bites the dust, huh?” He sounded sympathetic but he couldn’t hide his satisfied smirk.

  “Why do you take such joy in my misery?”

  He leaned forward, placing his elbows
on his knees. “That’s not true.”

  “You’re smiling.”

  He slid his hand over his mouth and she could hear the rasp of his five o’clock shadow. “I don’t want you miserable, but I could have told you that wasn’t going to last.”

  Her brows rose. “Oh, really? Why not?”

  “He was a stuck up bore. You were never going to do anything spontaneous or have any fun with him.”

  “Oh, yeah? That’s how much you know. He surprised me greatly by dumping me for my cousin.”

  “I’m sorry. He was a fool. How long ago was this?”

  “March.” Though she had never been close to her cousin Janice, to find out that she had been screwing her boyfriend behind her back had been a shock. “And to make matters worse, I’ve heard through the family grapevine that they’re going to announce their engagement at the family reunion next month.” It was a family event she wouldn’t be able to avoid no matter how much she might want to. And she didn’t know why she was telling him all this. He was the last person who would sympathize with her over an unfaithful lover. Hell, he’d probably cheated on his girlfriends and committed worse. She must have had too much wine after dinner or she’d baked her brain on the beach today to be confiding in him.

  Asher winced. “That sucks. Are you going to go?”

  “I’ll never hear the end of it if I don’t go. I need to get used to the idea of them as a couple. It’s better that it happen sooner rather than later.”

  “Fuck, if it were me, it’d be never.”

  “I can’t avoid my family forever. And who are you kidding? You’d walk in there with another girl on your arm and pretend like none of it had ever happened.”

  He laughed. “You’re probably right.”

  She wished she had the nerve to do something like that. But not only did she not know any single men who’d be willing to go to a family reunion, she didn’t know anything about picking up men. She’d simply have to suffer through this year’s reunion. And maybe next year’s depending on when Daniel and Janice decided to get married. She suppressed a sigh. She wouldn’t worry about that now. By then, she might be dating again.