MacNamarasLady Read Free Page A

Lucas
were swaying to another slow tune. Sure enough, Candy smiled and waved her
fingers at them. “Isn’t this a great song?”
    “Wonderful,” he answered.
    “I’m glad you asked Missy to dance.” He
couldn’t help but smile at Candy’s enthusiasm. She wasn’t fooling anyone. He
knew she’d love to have him and Missy become a couple. Wasn’t going to happen.
Not in the permanent way that she wanted. But that didn’t mean he and Missy
couldn’t have another kind of relationship. A very adult and sexual one.
    “Maybe I asked him ,” Missy
countered, her tone tart.
    Candy
laughed as Lucas spun her away. “Either way. I’m just glad you’re having fun.”
    T.S. decided he wouldn’t mind having some
fun, especially if it involved him and Missy and no clothing. Maybe she’d be
agreeable to the idea. A man could only hope. He took Missy into his arms and
began to move. One of her hands sat on his shoulder, while the other was held
in his hand. Her chest brushed against his as he twirled her in a circle before
settling down to sway to the music.
    Missy didn’t know whether to stamp her foot
in frustration or walk away from T.S. She did neither. No way did she want to
cause a scene at her best friend’s wedding reception, not when Candy looked so
darn happy.
    When she’d told Candy she should have an
affair with Lucas she’d never dreamed they end up married. But they looked so
right together. Lucas held Candy as if she was the most precious thing in his
world. Missy ignored the twinge of envy that coursed through her.
    There was plenty of time for her to find a
man when she was ready. She had a ten-step plan and she was on about step five.
She’d gotten her education, left home for good, gotten a job, her own apartment
and a car. Her next step was to work up the corporate ladder a bit farther, get
her salary where she wanted it to be. That might take a while longer than she’d
anticipated. With the economy being what it was she’d been lucky not to lose
her job as so many others had. Publishing wasn’t exactly a stable business and,
with the cutbacks, editing jobs were in short supply.
    She’d thought about looking for a job
elsewhere, of leaving Chicago permanently, but in the end, she hadn’t been able
to do it. She loved her job and Candy was the best friend she’d ever had.
    T.S. put a hand on the small of her back
and clasped her fingers with his other one, pulling her back to the problem at
hand. And he was a very big problem.
    As their bodies slowly moved to the low,
bluesy tune she felt herself wanting to snuggle closer to him and that just
wouldn’t do. He wasn’t part of her plan.
    Like everything else in her life, Missy
knew exactly what she wanted in a man. He’d be in business, maybe a lawyer or a
banker. He’d make a good salary, own his own home and be established in his career.
He’d be cultured and like classical music, the arts and theatre. He’d drink
fine wines and appreciate gourmet food. In short, he’d be the male version of
her.
    T.S. MacNamara did not fit that definition
by any stretch of her imagination. The man worked in construction and drank
domestic beer from the bottle. Not that she was a snob. Not really. She liked
him fine. After all, he was Lucas’ friend.
    He was also very easy on the eyes. One
thing all that construction work had done for him was build one hell of a body.
She let her hand slide down from his shoulder to rest on his biceps. It was
huge. She’d seen them plenty while he was working on the downstairs addition to
Lucas and Candy’s home. She’d intentionally dropped by to visit Candy several
times when she’d known he’d be there.
    And there was nothing wrong with looking.
Admiring the way his butt filled out a tight pair of jeans or how the well-worn
material lovingly cupped his male attributes. But long-term, she wanted a man
she had more in common with. Better chance of having a marriage that lasted.
    Right now she was doing her best to