A Dare Between Enemies

Chapter 4

"Darryl owns what?!"

Naomi was tempted to cover her ears at the sharpness in Jazzy's voice. Even Miles winced at its brusqueness.

"I'm sorry," Jazzy scoffed with a questioning look, "but did you just say that Darryl owns the very firm that we are now working for?"

Naomi set down her barely eaten sandwich wrap in front of her on the break room table. She looked to Miles to rescue her from the impending interrogation she was sure to get, but the hardened look of his face told her that he wanted answers, too.

"Co-owns," she corrected as she glanced between her two best friends who wore threatening looks.

Miles threw down his tuna salad as a scowl twisted his lips. "I always knew Darryl was a weasel," he said distastefully, "I just didn't think he was a conniving weasel."

"I agree," Jazzy said as she nibbled on her baby carrot, "I'm surprised you still took the job after you found out he caught you in his trap. If I were in your shoes, the moment I saw Darryl, I would have told him exactly where he could shove his mixer."

"Trust me," Naomi mumbled, feeling the anger building again, "I wanted to. I must have imagined a hundred different ways to cause him bodily harm in just the first five minutes of our meeting." Her blood boiled as she thought back to the moment she saw him stroll into the conference room, wearing that arrogant smile of his. He had caught her off guard and if there was any thing she should be around Darryl, it was certainly not that.

"So, what now?" Miles asked with a irritated brow. "Darryl's back in New York for good?"

"It seems that way."

Jazzy gasped incredulously. "After he swore that he wouldn't come back?" Jazzy paused mid-bite as her eyes widened. "You don't think he found out about Dare and decided to move back, do you?"

Her words gave Naomi a cold shudder up her spine. The thought had never occurred to her that Darryl could have found out about the son he never met and was now seeking her out in order to get closer to him.

"I don't think so," Naomi said thoughtfully, "Darryl's the type to go after what he wants. He wouldn't beat around the bush if he knew about Dare."

"Then what could he possibly be here for?" Miles growled.

His question stirred up the memories of the conversation she had earlier with Darryl. He had claimed that he moved back for her, that he had made a mistake in leaving, and now wanted to resume their relationship where they'd left off. The fact that he thought he could creep back into her life so easily after six years boiled her blood.

But she did remember how easy it was for him to elicit that deep, sensual burn between her legs and had her heart hammering in her chest when he touched her. The way his fingers felt in her hair and on the delicate, overheated skin of her temple had her in shallow breaths and on edge--waiting for more, but she had to force herself to remember that there would never be more between her and Darryl. It would be a cold day in hell before she allowed Darryl to get close to her again.

"Naomi?" Jazzy called to her with a mouthful of celery, drawing back her attention, "Did you get a chance to ask him why he's back?"

Naomi scoffed. "If I told you guys, you wouldn't believe it. I know I certainly didn't buy it when we talked over coffee after the meeting." She watched as the two leaned in closer, disregarding her statement. She laughed as she shook her head.

"Oh, c'mon, Nay," Jazzy urged, though in her ears it sounded like whining. "When you got back from that meeting this morning and barely said a word about it, I knew something was up." She turned to Miles who'd gone back to eating his sandwich.