One Reckless Night (2 page)

Bayleigh arched a dark brow in their direction. “What are you going to do different?”

“I don’t know, but I will when the time comes,” Deidre responded.

Giselle shook her head. “This sounds like trouble and I want no part of it.”

“You know you’re curious. It’s in your nature,” Bayleigh murmured.

Giselle scowled. “I’m only curious when it comes to academic or work related studies.”

“Tell it to someone who will believe you,” Bayleigh replied, around a laugh.

Maylea shook her head before raising her hand to capture their waitress’s attention.

Bayleigh’s eyes widened when Lea ordered a round of sake. The waitress reappeared with the drinks.

Before she could ask Lea what they were for, Deidre beat her to it.

“I know it’s Friday, but why are we having sake?”

Maylea smiled as she reached for her glass. “Consider this a toast to the new us. A way to

commence saying yes to doing at least one thing out of the ordinary.”

Bayleigh smiled and reached for her sake. After a moment of hesitation Deidre picked up

her glass. Giselle was the only hold out.

“This is insane. I can’t do this. One of us has to be rational.”

“We aren’t asking you to break any laws, Giselle,” Deidre muttered.

Bayleigh nodded. “We just want to prove that nice girls can have fun too”

Bayleigh watched as Giselle’s worried gaze traveled from Maylea to Deidre. A moment later

she groaned in defeat, reached for her glass of sake, and raised it.

“Okay, I’m in,” she muttered. “But is this backfires you all will find out just how much of a

mean girl I can be.”

Deidre laughed. “I’ll take my chances.”

After a clink of glasses they drank and sealed the agreement.

Dane Holden lay in his bed, pretending to be asleep, wondering if he just made the biggest

mistake of his life. Instead of spending the evening working on the project for the company he

worked for, he had sex with Bayleigh Bishop. He’d love to say he was too intoxicated to know

better, but they had only shared a single bottle of wine. One they didn’t even finish. Dane was sober

enough to know that sleeping with a co-worker was a bad idea. She was also his best friend, which

made this situation even worse.

Inhaling quietly, he caught a whiff her soft scent. It was a fragrance unique to her, an aroma

that teased him every time she was near. A loud thump followed by a soft curse brought him out of

his internal musings, and he stifled a chuckle. He’d known Bayleigh for five years and never heard

her curse before now. Still, she was moving stealthily around the room in complete darkness.

Assuming she was looking for her clothes, it bothered him that she felt she had to leave under cloak

of darkness.

He was also troubled by the reality of his life not going the way he planned. Right after his

thirtieth birthday, he’d felt ready to settle down. Yet, at thirty-five, he still didn’t have the wife and

children he’d planned for. Until tonight he was happy to have this project as a distraction.

Due to the time constraints, he invited Bayleigh over to work on the project. He ordered

takeout and everything had been fine. How they ended up in bed together was beyond him. One

minute they were talking about her research results. The next he was kissing her. The kiss wasn’t one

he expected from Bayleigh. It was no secret that she was quiet and reserved. Yet, her kiss had been

anything but.

It was hot with no hint of shyness. There wasn’t any other way he could put it other than to

say the sex had been extraordinary. He hadn’t expected her to be so responsive. She was the only

woman he never had to ask what she liked. Her body told him.

Dane swallowed a groan. Had he really had sex with Bayleigh? It wasn’t that he’d never

thought about her in a sexual way. She was a beautiful woman and he would never deny that he was

attracted to her. Bayleigh never seemed interested, so he kept his thoughts private. After tonight, he

no longer had that option.

What he hadn’t known about was the body she had been hiding underneath her clothes.

Bayleigh was stacked and had curves that she somehow managed to keep well hidden. His body

reacted to just the thoughts of her body. His desire was quelled when it dawned on him that he just

took a step across a line he had no business even going near. He didn’t want to ruin his friendship

with Bayleigh, but the way she moved around in the darkness, he felt like he had.

There was another hard thump and Bayleigh stifled a cry of pain. He opened his eyes. It was

difficult to pretend he was asleep while she fumbled around in the dark. Besides, he needed to face

what they had done head on. Taking a deep breath, he reached over and turned the lamp on. The

bright glare made him regret the action, until he looked up. A bare and shapely rear end was in his

face.

* * * *

Bayleigh Williams let out a startled cry then straightened and turned around, clutching her

shirt and pants to her bare body. This was up there with the recurring dream she had where she

showed up to work naked. The biggest difference being she was awake and not dreaming. However,

with the expression on Dane’s face, she would rather be at work naked.

“You frightened me,” she whispered.

The irony of her low tone hit her when she finished speaking.

He was awake now, so there was no need to sneak.

Bayleigh groaned inwardly. So much for being gone by the time he woke up. She wasn’t

ready to deal with what they’d done. The agreement she made with her friends two weeks ago in

Zenkichi’s came to mind and she winced. Unfortunately, she’d just done an
excellent
job of fulfilling

her end of the agreement.

Embarrassment raced through her when she thought about how many times she and Dane

had done it. The thought of how vocal she’d been made her feel faint. Her throat still felt scratchy

from screaming with pleasure. His touch was
phenomenal
. No matter what position they were in, the

pleasure he brought her was out of this world. Her gaze traveled to the bed and she gasped at the

sight before her. The bed was in complete disarray. She blinked at the amount of condom wrappers

littering the nightstand. There were even more floor.

Had they done it that many times?

Regardless, it had been the best sex she ever had. Yes, her experience with men was limited

but she was certain Dane had caught her up. Too bad it would never happen again. It couldn’t.

“Are you leaving?” he asked.

She gave a jerky nod. “Yes.”

His expression was full of concern as he studied her. “But it’s late.”

“I know, that’s why I’m leaving.”

Closing her eyes briefly she struggled to collect herself. Staring at him wasn’t helping. How

had she not noticed how attractive he was before now? When she opened her eyes, he still lay there,

tempting her to crawl back into bed with him. But she couldn’t. She’d already acted in a way that she

normally wouldn’t and it might have caused her a wonderful friendship with the best male friend she

had. Her stomach clenched at the thought. Yet, as her eyes traveled over his muscular body, she

thought about giving that friendship up if it meant she could crawl back into bed with him.

Her eyes widened at the thought. It was time for her to go.

Bayleigh looked up and found his dark green eyes on her. Averting her gaze she focused on

his tousled dark brown hair. Hair she could vividly remember running her hands through. If she

didn’t leave soon, she was going to get herself into trouble again.

“I need to get dressed,” she murmured. She moved backward toward the bathroom, hoping

she didn’t bump into anything. There was no way she was turning around. His eyes never left hers,

and she wished she knew what he was thinking. After entering the bathroom, she shut the door and

locked it, then flipped on the light. A strangled sound tried to force its way up from her throat at her

reflection in the mirror.

Her hair looked like a bird’s nest. The prior day’s make-up smudged around her eyes. Her

reflection was frightening, and the fact that Dane hadn’t laughed at the sight she made surprised her.

Bayleigh checked the bathroom for a window, but was disappointed when she didn’t find

one. If there had been one, she would have done her best to squeeze through it.

She turned the water on and cleaned her face the best she could. There was no hope for her

hair. It needed a heavy-duty brush and comb. Instead, she took off the hairband holding onto a few

strands and pulled her hair back. She’d been unable to find her bra and panties, the culprits for her

getting caught red-handed trying to sneak out. At this moment she didn’t care. All she wanted to do

was go home.

After stepping into her pants she pulled her shirt over her head. In her haste to get

undressed her clothes were no longer in the best condition. Her reflection in the mirror made her

want to cry. Horrible didn’t begin to describe how she looked. Well, her wish was going to come

true. She would definitely be noticed walking around looking like a savage.
Remain calm, Bayleigh
.

Remain calm
.

She jumped when she heard movement in the other room. Taking a deep breath she closed

her eyes. Maybe this was a dream. There’s no way she would sleep with Dane in real life. That’s it.

This was a horrible dream.

A shriek escaped her when a knock sounded on the door. Her eyes flew open and the

frightening reflection still stared back at her.

“Are you okay in there, Bayleigh?”

Shaking her head at the image in the mirror, she bit her lip to keep from crying.

“Bayleigh?”

As she took another deep breath, shame rushed through her.

What have I done?

She jumped again and looked in the direction of the door when Dane knocked with more

force.

“Bayleigh!”

“I’ll be right out Dane.”

She could no longer hide from the inevitable. He didn’t respond, but she knew he heard her.

Bayleigh opened the door and came face-to-face with his spectacular chest. A chest she recalled

gripping along with his broad shoulders as he glided in and out of her earlier. She shuddered. Those

were not the thoughts she should be having right now. What she needed to do was make her escape,

and quick. Her gaze dropped and she gasped. Dane hadn’t put on much at all. The pants he found

were so low on his hips, an inch lower, and he might as well not have them on. Then again, where

had his body come from? She’d known he used the weight room at work but,
oh
my.

Lord have mercy she was in trouble. Bayleigh raised her gaze and looked over his shoulder.

If she looked at him again, she may push him back on the bed. The way she had last night.

“Bayleigh, look at me,” he requested in a pleading tone.

She shook her head, feeling like a five-year-old. “I can’t.”

Dane took a step back. Bayleigh released a shaky breath.

“Have you seen my shoes?”

He was quiet for several moments before he sighed. “No, but I believe they’re in the living

room. However, I did find your bra and panties. They’re on the edge of the bed.”

She flinched. Dane reached out to touch her but she shook her head. His hand lowered.

“Thank you,” she whispered and attempted to step around him. Unfortunately, he blocked

her path.

“We need to talk about this, Bayleigh.”

Finally, she looked at him and regretted it the instant she did.

“No, we don’t. I just want to leave. Pretend like this never happened.”

A pained look appeared on his face at her confession. He ran a hand through his already

ruffled hair. The stubble on his cheeks made him look even more rugged.

“We have to talk about this, Bayleigh.”

“Can we talk later?” she pleaded.

He shook his head. “This can’t wait.”

Bayleigh tamped down her irritation. “Dane, now isn’t the time for you to become

dictatorial. We made a major mistake.”

Her voice cracked on the last word. A look of disappointment crossed his face.

“Was it?”

She stared at him with shock. “Of course it was. We’re friends, co-workers. We aren’t

supposed to sleep together.”

“But was it a mistake?”

Her mouth gaped open and the ability to respond escaped her. Had Dane lost his mind? He

didn’t seem to be upset about the fact that they had sex. They were friends. Friends didn’t sleep

together. Even with her lack of experience, she knew that.

“Dane, I need some time to think about this. We both do. I don’t want to say anything to

make this worse than it already is.”

Dane stared at her. For a moment she was nervous. Her experience with him told her he was

going to disagree. Yet, when he opened his mouth, the word that came out shocked her.

“Okay.”

She sighed, but her relief was short lived.

“We’ll have dinner tonight at Sotto Voce’s.” Closing her eyes, she prayed for serenity.

“Bayleigh?”

She shook her head. “That’s too soon. I need more time to figure this out.”

Dane smiled. “We’ll figure this out together.”

Bayleigh groaned. Maybe if she hadn’t slept with her friend she could be proud she stepped