Anyone But Nick (Anyone But... #3) - Penelope Bloom Page 0,38

his twenties and two women were goofing around on the swing sets, spinning each other until the chains were wound tight and letting go.

I called Miranda’s cell phone. It occurred to me that this was the first time I’d actually called her. She’d listed her number on her résumé but had never officially given it to me.

“This is Miranda Collins.” She sounded so businesslike and professional. She also didn’t sound like she was trapped in a crushed car or in the process of being abducted, or any of the other hundred things my idiotic brain had decided to wander to. If I was smart, I would simply hang up and let her write it off as a spam caller. I’d already gotten the information I needed.

“It’s Nick,” I said.

Pause.

“Oh, wow. Hey,” she said.

“Who is that?” a man’s voice asked from the background.

My throat tightened, and I felt my fingers clench around the phone. “Was that the driver?” I asked. Remind me to fire the nosy bastard.

“Uh, no,” she said. “Just—hey, would it be okay if I catch up with you when I get there?”

What the hell? I took a deep, calming breath. I needed to remember what I’d said. If I wanted to believe I cared about Miranda and not just about sleeping with her, then I needed to also remember to keep out of her personal life. Getting romantically involved with her, or even implying I wanted to, would tarnish everything she’d worked for and everything she cared about. She’d think she got the job only because I liked her, and what kind of asshole would I be to put my dick before her dream? “Sure,” I said. “Later is fine.”

“Thanks. Bye,” she said, then disconnected.

I hung my head and blew out a shuddering sigh. Damn it. This was going to be harder than I thought, and I already expected it to be hard. I guessed I just needed to think of this as the new challenge. I’d thought winning Miranda over was the Mount Everest for so long, but the real Everest was setting aside my feelings for her best interests.

I decided to head to the outdoor pool in hopes of relaxing some of my stress away. The view really was beautiful. A hill behind the pool sloped away to give breathtaking views of mountains that went so far back I couldn’t tell where the clouds started and the mountains ended. I ordered a plate of french fries from the little restaurant attached to the pool and kicked off my shoes to lounge and admire the view.

“Beautiful, isn’t it?” a familiar voice asked.

Cade sat down in the chair beside me and grabbed a fry, popping it into his mouth. “Did you know there are two helipads here? Pretty badass. Although I wouldn’t have had to crash your party via helicopter if you’d booked me a room like a normal, loving brother might have.”

I groaned. “Please tell me you’re just visiting.”

“What? This is a company retreat, right? I’m part of the company.”

“It’s a Bark Bites retreat.”

“And you invited people from the corporate office as well as the chain locations. I’m a corporate employee. Deal with it, bitch.”

I chuckled. “Will you at least try to avoid sowing mayhem and carnage while you’re here?”

“I will do what I always do. I’ll be myself as aggressively as possible.”

I couldn’t stop from grinning a little. To be honest, I would’ve been worried if he’d said anything else. “Then maybe just aggressively be yourself out of my way, whenever possible. And if you see Miranda around, just—” I shook my head. “No. Forget I said that.”

“Oh my.” Cade sat up straighter. Somehow, he’d taken his shirt off without me noticing. He also produced a bottle of sunscreen and was liberally applying it to his chest and abs. He winked at me as he ran a finger down his stomach and made a sizzling noise.

“You’re such an idiot,” I said.

“And even an idiot can see through your little game, Nicholas.”

“Don’t call me that.”

“Saint Nick, it’s clear as day. You want to play hide the hot dog with Miranda. If you bottle something like that up, it’s going to explode on you. It’s like blue balls for your brain. Like . . .” He paused, obviously thinking very deeply. “It’s like balls brain.”

“Balls brain . . . wouldn’t blue brain make more sense?”

“See?” He punched my shoulder. “That’s why you’re the smart one. So, anyway. You’re going to give yourself brain balls if you keep holding