Layers Deep Read Online Free PDF Page B

I’d blown it.
    I fidgeted on
the sofa, so she continued.
    “If it’s any
consolation, whoever got the job can’t possibly deserve it more
than you do. It’s weird they’d want a bunch of rookies applying
anyways, but I wouldn’t have minded learning a few things from the
Cross brothers, if you know what I mean.” Her brows moved up and
down suggestively. Any opportunity to feast our eyes on a hot man
like Cross was like an all-you-can-eat buffet, serving nothing but
sweets and deliciously filling carbs.
    Laura, like
me, was so focused on her career she had practically no chance for
a personal life. Talking about going out to a night club was just
that – talking. We’d never do it. We were either working or
sleeping it off. We barely had time to cook or shop for bare
necessities. Being on the bottom of the totem pole meant we picked
up shifts no one else wanted, and worked in the most dangerous
locations with the cruelest of civilization. She was the only one
besides me at headquarters who held a black belt in more than one
discipline, and to keep the titles, we trained a few times a week,
giving special lessons at local karate clubs.
    “You deserved
it just as much as I did.”
    “But it was a
bit more important to you, on a personal level, wasn’t it?”
    “Yes,” I
admitted.
    “Allie,
whatever ghosts from the past are haunting your present, you need
to either forget them or bury them in the past.”
    Bury was
exactly what I had in mind. The moment Wright’s body was buried, I
could finally live in peace.
    “I saw Tristan
Cross on Friday night,” I blurted.
    “Seriously?”
    “He came to
Mike’s and had a few shots with me, and then drove me home.”
    “And?”
    “That’s
it.”
    “You mean the
hottest, richest, and sexiest bachelor in New York drove you home,
and that’s it? Not to mention the man responsible for the hiring
decision on the most sought-after job. You got the job, didn’t you?
Oh no! You did him! Was it the fuck me and it’s yours kind
of interview?”
    I felt heat
rush to my cheeks. She wasn’t too far off because that’s exactly
what I wanted to do to Tristan Cross, and the only thing that had
stopped me on Friday night was too much tequila. Cross didn’t
strike me as the kind who took advantage of intoxicated women. And
I knew he wanted it too. He had to. That twinkle in his eyes
couldn’t be mistaken for anything other than I want you, and I
want it now . My gauge had been off the charts that night.
    “You think I’d
stoop that low?” Actually, I would, but Laura didn’t have to know
it.
    “There's
nothing wrong with using what God gave you to your advantage. Women
have a difficult enough life as it is.”
    And that was
the answer to most of Laura’s worries. In my stripping days—yes,
that’s how I’d paid my way through college—she’d said the exact
same thing: flaunt what you have to get what you want.
    “He didn’t
really say it, but yes, I thought he wanted me for the job.”
    “And what
stopped him?”
    “Paperwork; I
hadn’t applied. I needed to visit my mother before I did, and now
if the job is filled, it’s pointless. Everything is ruined.” I
lowered my head between my knees.
    “Maybe he’d
change his mind if you at least told him you’re interested. Don’t
let this opportunity pass. I bet if he found you once, he’ll find
you again.” Then she added, “And if you do screw him, make sure you
do it well and let me know all the details.”
    Yeah, like
that was going to happen. As much as my friend liked to gush about
her erotic adventures and what’d she’d done with her new conquest
of the month à la quickie style before or after work, I
wasn’t too keen on hearing the details. At times it surprised me
she didn’t leave little check marks on her four-poster bed. Laura
said she had no time for a relationship and didn’t really like a
buzzing vibrator, so a quickie was her only option.
    And those were
the times I was thankful we’d