Damn, Nicole was hot.
Kent could tell she was attracted to him. It had been apparent by the way she’d stood there staring at his chest yesterday, he thought with a chuckle.
He didn’t know much about her. Just that she was sweet and kinda quiet. He hadn’t seen her with any guys since he’d met her, and wondered about that for a minute.
He knew he’d upset Nicole one night at the bar. It was after Bree had told him that she was seeing Colin and didn’t want to see him anymore. Kent had been drinking and was trying to prove to Bree that he didn’t care about her and Colin, and he’d hit on Nicole in front of her. He’d apologized and Nicole seemed to understand that he’d meant it.
He wondered if she was as sweet as she seemed. If so, she was probably the last thing he needed right now.
He needed someone who was the opposite of sweet.
The opposite of good.
The opposite of anything that was going to make him feel things.
He just needed to get laid.
He stepped out of the shower and toweled off with his plush full body towel, then hung it to dry, as he went naked to the mirror to shave for the day.
As he walked from the bathroom into his bedroom to get dressed for the day, he though, “Yeah, it’s good to have my house back.”
While he drove into town listening to his favorite Country station, Kent decided to give Rich a call to see if he wanted to hit up the bar that evening.
He had only just gotten to know Rich, he’d met him and Colin at the beginning of the summer, and although he didn’t think Colin was good enough for Bree, he couldn’t help but like both of the guys.
He and Rich had been hanging out quite a bit, and it was nice to have someone to chill with. Too bad, Rich had to head back up to school soon.
He pulled up to the newspaper office and went inside. He’d been putting out applications recently to newspapers in big cities, but the newspaper business was on such a downward slide, no one was hiring.
Kent brushed off the disappointment and pulled out the charm when he rounded the corner and encountered the Editor in Chief’s secretary.
“Morning, Marla,” Kent started with his most charming smile. “You’re looking lovely as always. Is the boss in?”
Marla turned a jaundiced eye on him and drawled in her best Clint Eastwood impression, or maybe that was just her voice after fifty years of smoking a pack a day.
“Don’t think that smile is going to get you anywhere with me, young man. The boss will see you when he’s ready, and not a second sooner.”
“Yes, Ma’am,” Kent replied, keeping the smile in place as he walked to his cubicle.
He hoped that all of the crap he’d put up with since being hired on here would eventually pay off.
Chuck, the Editor in Chief, had been reluctant to hire someone right out of college with no experience, but Kent had managed to get the job anyway.
Chuck and Marla had both been working at the paper since the dawn of time, and Kent had convinced Chuck that he could bring them up to speed with this century, and help them keep the doors of the paper open.
He’d been working his ass off to keep his promise, but it seemed like the two of them had fought him every step of the way.
He’d got the paper online, set them up with Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and every other account he could think of to keep the small paper relevant.
There were a couple interns from high school and the local community college, as well as a photographer, but that was it for staff.
Kent sat at his desk and checked the notes left for him from the night before, turning on the police blotter as he settled in.
A buzz on his phone notified him of a message, and he smiled when he saw that Rich was “game on” to meet at the bar for some beer and food.
He hoped a night out would take his mind off work, and Bree, and get him back in the game.
Chapter Four
The bar was pretty full that night and Nicole had a full station. She had never considered waitressing before she’d moved here, but she really was having a fantastic time.
She laughed at something an older couple said as she refilled their sweet tea, then turned to go to the kitchen to check on her orders, when she noticed Kent and Rich standing at the hostess station talking to Roni, who seemed to be ignoring Rich altogether.
Nicole’s heart jumped in her chest at the sight of Kent. He had on jeans and a t-shirt, nothing fancy, but the way the t-shirt hugged his muscular body, had her belly tightening. And a glance at his biceps bulging from beneath his sleeve, almost made her walk straight into Kara.
“Distracted much?” Kara asked with a smirk and a raised eyebrow.
“Hmmm?” Nicole replied absently.
Kara laughed and made a production of looking over at Kent and then back at Nicole.
“Stop it,” Nicole whispered, when she saw how obvious Kara was being.
“Oh, please,” Kara said with a laugh as she grabbed Nicole’s arm and pulled her into the kitchen. “It’s as plain as the dreamy look in your eyes, that you have a thing for Kent.”
“It is?” Nicole asked, suddenly worried that it was obvious to everyone, including Kent.
“Duh,” Kara said, stopping in front of the prep table and looking to see if any of the plates were for her customers. “Don’t worry, I doubt it’s obvious to everyone, but I’ve been watching you since you started working here. I know that
