"Christ, no." Like he'd tell Walsh. Like he'd tell anyone his "trouble" with Willow. How would he explain it without the entire scenario sounding sleazy?

I bribed my ex to go on pretend dates with me and I'm not pretending. I want her. I need her...

One freaking date and he was in too deep. She was driving him nuts.

He remembered Sheridan's speech, how she told him the way he was treating Willow was exactly what she needed.

Not so sure about that right now...

"So nothing bothering you?" Walsh peered at him, his bushy brows drawn together, checking Nick out like he was a puzzle he couldn't quite solve.

"Leave him alone, Walsh." Jared appeared out of nowhere, an easy smile on his face. "Maybe he's just having an off day. We're all allowed to have them on occasion, right?"

"Right, right." Walsh nodded, looking from Nick to Jared and back to Nick again. "We need you on your toes, Hamilton. The season's down to the wire and the last thing I want to see is you spiraling out of control over some girl or whatever else has got you twisted into knots."

Nick frowned. How the h.e.l.l did Walsh figure he had girl problems?

Jared remained silent until Walsh walked away, then gave Nick the side eye. "What the h.e.l.l is your problem anyway? I know you're all wound up over Willow, but it's putting a serious damper on your mood. You're stalking around here like an agitated bear, growling at everyone who gets in your way. And if you're not growling, you look like a sad sack who just found out your best girl just stomped all over your pitiful heart."

His friend was cutting way too close to the truth. "Am I really that obvious?" Nick scrubbed his face with his hand. Women. They would be the absolute death of him.

"I knew it had something to do with a certain dark-haired pretty lady with a penchant for sarcasm." Jared laughed when he caught sight of Nick's murderous glare. "Am I right or what?"

"d.a.m.n it, I don't want to talk about her." The locker room was emptying out but the guys still loved nothing more than to listen in on other people's conversations. He didn't want anyone to hear what went down between him and Willow. Not only was it n.o.body's business, but h.e.l.l. He'd already said enough to his best friend about what happened. And he definitely didn't want to relive the embarra.s.sing and f.u.c.ked-up scenario yet again.

He still couldn't believe how aroused Willow became when he treated her like c.r.a.p. Giving her a taste of her own medicine seemed to do it for her. Which was weird.

And sorta hot.

"When do you plan on seeing her next?" Jared asked, his face a perfect mask of innocence.

Which was utter c.r.a.p, considering his friend knew the dirty details regarding his and Willow's dates. "Tomorrow night."

"You finally going to get her naked or what? I bet that'll ease your grouchiness. d.a.m.n, the both of you now need to get laid." Jared c.o.c.ked a brow.

"Shut the f.u.c.k up." Nick started for the door but Jared grabbed him before he could leave.

"Listen, I know you like Willow, and I get it. She's hot, she's smart, and she acts like she doesn't give a s.h.i.t half the time. I know a lot of men like that sort of thing. But if this is how you're going to act the entire time you're going on these dates with her? Dude, you need to break it off and quick. She's not good for you." The look on Jared's face practically dared him to argue.

And his best friend's opinion about the situation with Willow was way different than Sheridan's.

"You're just saying that because you don't like her. You've never liked her." d.a.m.n, was she f.u.c.king with his head so much she made him behave like a completely different person? If so, that sucked. He'd always stayed true to himself. When he went back home-wasn't often but he tried as best as he could-all of his old friends and the people he'd known growing up said the same thing.

He'd hardly changed, was still the same friendly, charming good ol' boy Nick Hamilton.

One date with Willow Cavanaugh and he'd become a sad jacka.s.s? Why the h.e.l.l did everyone think he was so cheerful and happy and charming with the exception of Willow? She infuriated him. She was the only one who brought out the jacka.s.s in him.

d.a.m.n it, he wanted to dazzle and impress her. Make her fall for him all over again, and instead she brought out Nick the Caveman-the one who should bang his head against the cave wall for being such a complete a.s.shole.

She challenged the h.e.l.l out of him. Would it be wrong to admit he sort of liked it? In a sick, twisted way?

Yeah. Weird. f.u.c.ked up. Crazy. All of the above.

"Hey, she was the one who didn't like me when Sheridan and I first got married. She's still wary of me and you know what? I can't blame her." Jared shook his head. "So I understand where she's coming from. What I don't understand is after pining for her for months, you get one date in and now you're acting like someone came along and killed your new pet puppy."

Nick glanced around. The locker room was almost empty, only a few guys still in there, and he took a deep breath. Decided to tell his friend what was really going on. "Fine. You nailed it on the head. So did Walsh. I'm frustrated as h.e.l.l and I don't know how to deal with it. Deal with her. It's like she wants the fight."

Jared nodded, his expression easing. "Now we're talking. So she's frustrating the h.e.l.l out of you; why am I not surprised? Let me ask you this-I'm guessing you always get what you want when it comes to women, correct?"

"Absolutely."

"And for once in your life, you've actually met up with a challenge."

"Willow is by far the most challenging person I've ever dealt with," Nick agreed wholeheartedly-though he was the one who walked away last time. He had no one to blame but himself for that one.

"Have you ever thought maybe it's because you're chasing too hard?"

Nick frowned. "Come again?"

"Hey, we don't have to chase, you know what I mean? They usually come to us."

"Uh..."

"Just agree with me," Jared urged.

"All right." Where the h.e.l.l was he going with this?

"She knows you want her, right?" Jared asked.

"Yeah, she knows." She beyond knew. He'd made his intentions more than clear. h.e.l.l, he'd stated them outright...

And now Jared was telling him he probably made a crucial mistake. Great.

"Now she has the upper hand. You gave it to her on a silver platter. She knows no matter what, you're going to keep on chasing. Am I right?"

"I..." h.e.l.l. He hated to admit it, but yes. He wanted to chase her. Wanted to keep on chasing her until he wore the woman out and she caved in because she had nowhere else to go.

Now that he thought about it, he realized that was all sorts of f.u.c.ked up.

"You need to stop chasing. Let her come to you," Jared suggested. His advice was pretty much the complete opposite of his wife's.

Talk about confusing.

Nick snorted. "You know, I did throw down a bit of a challenge last night, and it seemed to work."

"Oh, yeah?" Jared asked expectantly.

"Yeah, I had to get all mean on her before she turned me into a complete p.u.s.s.y," Nick muttered, scrubbing his palm along his jaw.

"Perfect. See? You need to switch it up. Make her work for it, my friend. Make her work for you. If this woman is really worth it, she'll come chasing after you no matter what." Jared said this with absolute authority.

Nick wished he felt as confident as Jared sounded. "What if she doesn't come chasing me?"

"Then she wasn't worth it, was she?"

Well, didn't Jared make it sound so easy? "Easier said than done," Nick said. That was his biggest fear, that they'd come to realize neither of them was worth it to the other. What they shared could end up as a whole lot of nothing. "I'd have to be a dead man to stop chasing her, Jared."

Jared laughed and Nick sent him a withering stare, shutting him up.

"I mean it. But you know, I can definitely make her think I've stopped chasing her for a little while and see if she lowers her guard."

"Now you're talking," Jared said with a nod.

Nick frowned. What if this stupid plan didn't work? d.a.m.n it, he really wanted to land Willow in his bed. Over and over again. Just to prove to her that they were good together. But could she stand being in a real relationship with him? What he did for a living was rough on relationships. He was always gone.

Always. And she'd hate that. Resent it. Resent him.

The last thing he wanted was for Willow to hate him.

Again.

Chapter Seven.

"It's so wonderful to meet you, Mr. Whitmore," Willow greeted warmly the moment he stepped into Sweet Treats, his daughter at his side.

Great. She knew Amanda would recognize her from school. Not that they'd shared the same friends, what with their age difference, but Carmel High School wasn't that big. Amanda would know who she was. Plus, everyone knew Willow's father...

"Aren't you Willow Cavanaugh?" Amanda asked in a high-pitched voice, her gaze narrowed.

Willow offered her a bland smile. "I am."

"What are you doing working a cheesy little set-up like this when your father represents half of the Monterey Bay?" Amanda sneered.

"Mandy, please," Phil Whitmore chastised before turning to Willow. "And it's a lovely little set-up you have here, Miss Cavanaugh."

"Thank you. Won't you please sit down?" She escorted them to her desk, her blood boiling in her veins at what Amanda said. G.o.d, she'd already faced this sort of problem before but on a much smaller scale. She was an idiot to forget the fact that Phillip Whitmore and Walter Cavanaugh definitely moved in the same social circles.

They'd all wonder what the heck Willow was doing, trying to grow her own business when in their eyes, she didn't need to.

Once they were settled in their seats, Phil launched into a detailed explanation, talking so quickly his daughter couldn't get a word in. Weird, considering in these types of situations normally it was the mother who helped organize a bridal shower. At the very least, the maid of honor and the bridesmaids were the ones she met up with to discuss bachelorette party details.

But the bride and her father planning a Vegas bachelorette party together? That was a first.

"The main reason we're having such a large party for Mandy is because she's launching a new business," Phil said excitedly. "And we are inviting every female we know in the Monterey and Carmel area to come for the weekend. We'll host a fabulous party, offer them swag bags and hopefully, have completed a lot of orders by Sunday afternoon."

Mandy rolled her eyes and smoothed her bright blond hair back from her face, her gigantic diamond ring catching the light and nearly blinding Willow. "So cheesy," she murmured.

Phil glared at his daughter. "We'll see what you're saying when the business truly starts gaining speed after your party."

"May I ask what sort of product you're selling?" Willow tapped away at her iPad, taking copious notes. This wasn't so much a celebration of Amanda's impending marriage. More like an executive business decision-a party they could write off as an expense.

Funny how Amanda was giving her nothing but grief when she was doing the very thing she'd ha.s.sled Willow over-starting a business on her own.

"Hair extensions," Amanda said with a heavy sigh.

Willow paused her fingers above the keyboard, flicking her gaze up to watch the Whitmores carefully. "Extensions?"

Phil nodded. "They're the latest craze, you know."

"More like the latest craze three years ago," Amanda retorted, her voice rising. Okay...clearly there was some tension between them.

"As if you understand the current market. Your personal experience is with expensive extensions that cost what the average person makes in a year and they only last three months." Phil waved his hand, shooting a smile in Willow's direction. "We're trying to sell quality extensions that any woman can afford."

Willow hated to even think it, but she had to agree with Amanda. There were so many other inexpensive hair extensions out there, why would they want to launch yet another one? They'd most likely get lost in the gigantic sea of brands already available on the market. "Sounds wonderful," she said with a fake smile. She needed to steer them back to the matter at hand, not let them continue arguing. "So you're serious when you say five hundred people will be in attendance?"

"I certainly hope so," he boomed, looking affronted. "The guest list has been cultivated, and invitations will be sent out soon. I wanted to confirm your partic.i.p.ation first, though. I'd like you to create a signature drink for Mandy's new business venture."

"All right. What were you thinking?" s.h.i.t. They'd probably want to name it something stupid, too.

"Something similar to the cotton candy c.o.c.ktail you serve currently but with a little more edge. I was thinking of calling it..." Phil grinned. "Hair on the dog. Or maybe...hair on the head. You know, a play on words and all that?"

"Daddy, that sucks so bad, I can't believe you said it." Amanda rolled her eyes again, which helped them launch into another argument.

Willow waited patiently, checking her email real quick on her iPad, letting them hammer out the angry details amongst themselves. Maybe she'd been too quick to agree to do this party. The potential for future clientele was enormous but at what price? She could already tell Phil Whitmore might be a bit of a handful. Not to mention his b.i.t.c.hy, confrontational daughter.

At least her own dad didn't push this hard and take over her business. She got tired of his constant, let me give you money, make sure you're making the right decisions speeches, but at least he didn't push himself on her.

"May I ask you a question, Mr. Whitmore?" Willow asked once they'd stopped squabbling.

"By all means." He beamed at her, looking quite pleased with himself.

"How exactly did you find out about my business?" She offered him a serene smile, her curiosity growing with every increasingly uncomfortable moment as he squirmed in his seat.

"Um..." His voice trailed off. "Saw you on the Internet."

"Give me a break." More eye rolling from Amanda. They'd fall right out of her head if she didn't watch it. "Your dad talked to my dad. Thought it would be fun to keep us both entertained with our businesses and all, right Daddy?"

Willow immediately saw red. No way would she allow herself to be compared to this dumb girl and her playing pretend with a business she didn't even believe in. Sweet Treats was nothing like whatever the h.e.l.l they were calling Mandy's hair extensions business.

"That isn't how it happened at all," Phil whispered harshly. "You need to learn when to keep your mouth shut."

"No really, I appreciate Mandy's honesty." Willow set the iPad on her desk and clasped her hands together. "Nice to know my father thinks it's so cute that I'm playing with my business like a game of Monopoly."