He extended a hand to her. “I’m Mark, and you are?”
“Oh, I know,” she whispered dreamily, before seeming to get a grip. “I—um, I’m Lydia. Nice to meet you.”
“Lydia’s my boss,” Crystal said. “I believe she’s met a colleague of yours, Jacob.”
Mark looked at Lydia curiously. “Jacob’s my right-hand man.” Shooting Crystal a pointed look, he admitted, “He’s doing a lot of my travel now as I’ve found—well, something that’s keeping me home more.”
“Tell him I said hello,” Lydia said brightly before a mortified expression crossed her face.
“I’ll do that.” Mark smiled easily, then turned to Crystal. “I need to get back to my office. I’ll see you at my house tonight around six?” It was phrased as a question for Lydia’s benefit, but Crystal knew it was anything but. He didn’t expect a repeat of last night—nor would he tolerate it.
“Okay,” she accepted. “See you soon.”
When he was gone, Lydia shut the door behind him and held her hand up. Crystal slapped it in a high five, and they both did some juvenile dance moves. “I swear, don’t take this the wrong way, but sweet Jesus, that voice, those bedroom eyes—he’s Mr. Big come to freaking life at Danvers.”
“Calm down, girl,” Crystal said soothingly before a giggle escaped. “I had no idea you were such a pervert. This is a whole other side of you, and I’m kind of digging it.”
“Well, honey, you were a bit repressed when we started working together, and I was kind of screwed up over losing Brett, so I didn’t bother to rock the boat. But now you’ve gone from sitting on the shore to swimming with the sharks, and I’m finding that I’m thrilled to live vicariously through you. Heck, I’m even acknowledging my lust for Jacob. Maybe this year we’ll both shake off the past and do something that makes us happy. Or at the least, have a lot of meaningless sex along the way.”
Impulsively, Crystal stepped forward and gave the other woman a quick hug. “I like your plan. And if Jacob has even a tiny bit of intelligence, he’ll be knocking down your door to take a walk on the wild side with you.”
Lydia looked thrilled by her comment. “I’m going to do my best to make that happen. And I don’t think you have to worry about that with Mark. The man couldn’t take his eyes off you, and he didn’t give a damn if I noticed it or not.”
“It’s just sex, though.” Crystal felt compelled to clarify things. “He’s interested because I’m like the most inexperienced woman he’s even known.”
Lydia looked at her as if she was crazy before shaking her head. “I can’t predict the future, but all I have to say is if I had the attention of a man like Mark, for whatever reason, I wouldn’t squander it. Go forth my child, have sex—the dirty kind—and live in the moment. People come into our lives for a variety of reasons, and if we’re smart, we take advantage of what they have to offer. Sometimes all we can do is grab on with both hands and enjoy the ride.”
The words struck a chord inside Crystal as she acknowledged to herself that she was constantly trying to fit Mark into some neat category that she could label. Lydia was right; what she had with Mark might not last forever, but that didn’t mean that they couldn’t be good for each other. He’d said several times that she was different for him, and that was certainly true for her. What was wrong with just enjoying the company of a man she desired without expecting fancy words or heartfelt declarations? Happily ever after hadn’t worked out so well before. She’d just do the very opposite of her marriage with Bill and base her nonrelationship with Mark on sex. If nothing else, it would drive her mother insane.
Chapter Fourteen
Crystal drove straight to Mark’s house after work. Before she could knock on the door, it was flung open by a beaming Denny. “Hey—hey, Crystal. Come on in.”
Unable to resist, she smiled back. Something about Denny’s demeanor was infectious. He was a good-looking guy, but that wasn’t his appeal to her. It was the fact that he always seemed so happy. Maybe if she spent more time with him, it would rub off on her. “Good to see you again,” she replied as he shut the door behind her. Then she saw a sight that had her gawking in shock. Mark was standing at the kitchen island in well-worn jeans and a T-shirt, chopping vegetables as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
“Close your mouth, girl.” Denny smirked as he walked to a barstool and plopped down.