Page 66 of The Bargain

“Shut up.”

My friend shut up and couldn’t speak for nearly an hour because I was too busy telling him all the things that I loved about Byron from the very first time I’d met him until just a few days ago. I told him about Byron’s family and his financial situation of supporting his disabled brother and mother all on his own. At the same time, I finished my plate, and we both picked at the charcuterie board Carol had also pulled together.

I finally stopped talking. My stomach was full and my heart didn’t feel as if it were still carrying around a dozen knives jabbed into it.

“So, let me get this straight. On a whim, you convinced him to risk this delicate balancing act that’s his life. Meanwhile, you couldn’t be bothered to take the steps to protect him from losing everything because…why?”

I winced at Pierce’s words, but I couldn’t argue with him. “At first, my reasoning was that if I did it too quickly, and we discovered we weren’t a good fit, I’d never get him back as my assistant. We might be horrible as a couple, but I knew we were great work partners. And then later…I might have gotten caught up in all the fun we were having. I didn’t want to rush losing him. For almost two months, I was getting to see him during the day and a few evenings a week. Everything fell apart so fast and unexpectedly.”

Pierce reached across the counter and smacked me on the side of the head. “You were greedy and selfish.”

“And I ruined his life. I’m not surprised he doesn’t want to see me. Who would want to date a selfish asshole?”

Pierce groaned and smacked me again, which earned a glare. “You were selfish, but you’re not normally selfish. I’m sure Byron knows that.”

“I need to fix this. To help him. Even if he doesn’t want to see me, I’ve got to make this right by him. And not by offering him money. He’s proud and doesn’t want to be taken care of. He needs a job.”

Pierce rolled his eyes. “God, I hope you don’t win him back. He’s a catch, and I plan to steal him from you.”

“Fuck you! He won’t have you.”

My dear, sweet friend flashed me a wicked grin. “Wanna bet?”

A boulder sank into my stomach, and I worried about losing everything I’d just eaten. Who the fuck was I kidding? Pierce was tall, dark, and fucking sexy. He could be smooth and charming when he set his mind to it. Why wouldn’t Byron fall for him? And Pierce probablywouldfall in love with Byron.

Didn’t I want Byron to be happy? Wasn’t that the important thing in all this? Of course, I was being selfish.

“Holy fuck, Cor! I was kidding. I’m not going to steal your man away.” He slapped his hand on the marble counter, jolting me from my bleak thoughts. “I might be a dick, but I like to believe that I’m not that bad. At least, not to my friends.” He straightened, a dubious frown on his face, as if he were having serious doubts about my sanity. I didn’t blame him.Iwas beginning to have doubts about my sanity.

“Let me check in with my head of HR tomorrow to see if we have any openings.” Pierce pulled his phone out of his back pocket and started typing himself a reminder. “I mean, I could always create a position, but if Byron is half as smart as you claim he is, he’d smell a charity job a mile away.”

“Definitely.”

“I’ve also sent a message to Rome asking him to check with his HR people. Maybe they’ve got something there.” Pierce tucked his phone away. “Even with this shadow over him, he’s a smart guy and has to have a killer résumé. I know he’s going toland on his feet. Once you’ve both had time to cool off and get stable, I’m sure you’ll be able to try dating again. It’ll probably be even better because you don’t have to worry about being discovered.”

I grunted, but it felt like my hope was sliding away with each passing day. The important thing was helping Byron feel like he was in control and safe. That would only happen when he had a job that gave him a sense of pride and self-worth. My fuckup had stolen all that away.

As I glanced at my friend, I briefly considered bringing up the topic of Sawyer’s little brother being in town, but I dropped the idea almost as quickly as it had formed. Right now, Pierce was in a good mood and feeling helpful. Mentioning Simon, or even Sawyer for that matter, would destroy all our goodwill and camaraderie. To be honest, I was exhausted. I didn’t have it in me to tackle that subject.

Sawyer had died well more than a decade ago, but the topic was marked permanently off-limits with Pierce. As far as I knew, he and Sawyer had only ever been friends. They’d never dated. Hell, I’d thought Sawyer was the one straight one of our group. Yet, Sawyer’s death had hit Pierce like someone had ripped out part of his soul. All our attempts to get him to open up and talk about it had been met with shouts, fists, and slammed doors. We’d learned to back off before we lost him as a friend.

I’d thought enough time had passed since Sawyer’s death that Pierce wouldn’t care about Simon moving to town, but he’d proved me wrong.

For now, it was something we couldn’t worry about. My brain was full of Byron.

23

BYRON GRAHAM

“I brought pizza and beer!”Kaylan exclaimed as soon as I opened the door.

It may have been the first time I’d smiled in a week.

My former coworker held up a six-pack of a local brew and what looked to be a large pizza that smelled fucking divine.

“What the hell are you doing here?” I asked as I stepped back to let him in into my apartment. It was Monday—a full week since my inglorious firing—and he should’ve been in the office right now dealing with the phones, reports, and whatever the chairman needed him for.

“The chairman felt sorry for me and gave me a three-day weekend after the shit storm that was last week.”

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