Read Online All's Fair in Lust & War by Amber Page - Free Book Online Page A

smile on her lips.
    “Well, you might get your chance.”
    “Chance to what?”
    “Talk to Pence.” Her lips twisted, the smile turning into an unconscious snarl. “His agency is pitching to Eden, too.”
    Mark sat up straighter, surprised.
    “How long have you known?”
    “Oh...” Becky said, looking up at the clock. “About fifteen hours or so. He emailed last night.”
    Suddenly her earlier behavior made a lot more sense. Wishing he could save her from her obvious pain, he pulled her close and kissed the top of her head.
    “We’ll beat him, you know,” he said. “Together. That jerk doesn’t stand a chance against us.”
    She murmured her assent, but when he looked at her he could tell her brain was busily working on another problem. Pulling her shirt over her head, she paced over to the whiteboard on the wall.
    “We’ve been going about this all wrong,” she said. “Women aren’t going to buy our yogurt just because we recognize their awesomeness. That doesn’t do anything for them. They’re going to buy it if it solves a problem for them. So if the problem is insecurity, we need to position ourselves as a solution.”
    He watched as she scratched silently on the board with a red marker. Her butt jiggled ever so slightly with the movement, and he found himself wanting to feel the weight of it in his palms again.
    She turned to look at him, triumph lighting her eyes.
    “I’ve got it. Check this out. It could be something like, ‘Working mom guilt weighing you down? Take an Eden moment and believe.’”
    Mark’s brain kicked into gear. “Maybe. Or what about, ‘Eden. Your shortcut to a more perfect you.’”
    Becky wrote it down.
    “Good thought. But what about...?”
    And they were off and running.
    * * *
    The next time Mark looked up, the sun was setting.
    “Wow. We’ve been at this all day,” he said. “You hungry?”
    Her stomach growled loudly in response. Laughing, she said, “I guess so!”
    “How about I take you out somewhere? My treat.”
    “I don’t think so,” she said, crossing her arms over her chest. “I’ve got laundry and stuff to do tonight.”
    “Oh, come on. Laundry on a Saturday night? You’re not fifty. I’ll take you back to my place for dessert,” he said, winking suggestively.
    She smiled sadly. “Mark, what happened before...it can’t happen again. The situation’s too complicated. Besides, I don’t date people—”
    “You don’t date people you work with. I know. You keep saying that. But who said anything about dating?”
    She flushed. “I don’t do what we did this afternoon with coworkers either.”
    “We were enjoying each other. There’s nothing wrong with that.”
    “You say that now. But if we keep it up before long there will be feelings, then hurt feelings, and eventually heartbreak. I don’t do heartbreak,” she answered.
    Mark felt himself getting frustrated. “You don’t do heartbreak. I don’t do relationships. So we should be well matched.”
    “I don’t think so...” she said, looking everywhere except at him.
    Mark gently turned her to face him.
    “Listen to me. This situation is complicated. We don’t need to add sexual frustration to the mix. After all, we didn’t get anywhere today until after we let that go. Right?”
    She gave a slight nod.
    “And you have to agree the sex is amazing. Probably some of the best I’ve ever had.”
    She looked up sharply. “Really?” she said.
    “Really.”
    “I thought it was just... I mean you’ve been with so many... And I...um...haven’t...”
    “Becky?”
    “What?”
    “You’re amazing. Period.”
    She smiled, her cheeks flushing pink. “Thank you.”
    “You’re welcome. So let’s just agree to enjoy each other until this—whatever this is—is over and decided. Then we’ll go our separate ways. No harm, no foul.”
    She looked at him. “Do you really think it can be that easy?”
    “I know it can,” he said. “I won’t let it be any other way.”
    She