Somebody Like You: A Small Town Single Mom Romance (The Heartbreak Brothers Book 4) Carrie Elks (free reads .TXT) 📖

she did. And he loved it, too. The way she responded to him every time he touched her. The way her breath quickened as he sucked her nipple into his mouth.

The way she touched him like she really cared.

Whoa! Where did that thought come from?

“I guess I should go,” he said, raking his fingers through his hair. “You have your presentation to work on.”

“When will you be back from Boston?” she asked him.

“I’m not sure. Early next week, I hope. Don’t worry, I won’t cancel on you twice.”

“Is it important? Your meeting?”

He shrugged. “Just routine stuff.” Lies, all lies. But he didn’t want her sympathy. Not when he could have her body.

“Okay, then. Be safe.”

“I will. And you, too.” He took a step back. “Good luck tomorrow.”

“Thanks.” Cam lifted a hand in goodbye.

He was almost at the gate when she called out. “Hey!”

He turned to look at her. Her eyes were bright, her head tipped to the side. “Yeah?” he asked. Damn he really didn’t want to leave her right now. She looked too good for that.

“Good luck in Boston.”

He grinned. “Thanks.”

Yeah, he’d take that. Because he had a feeling he was going to need it.

Chapter Twenty

“Hey, Mia!” Becca called out. Mia had fifteen minutes until her meeting was due to begin, and the four walls of her office had felt like they were closing in on her. She’d decided to walk through the distillery and loosen her muscles. It was better than sitting and getting panicky.

“I’m glad I caught you.” Becca ran over, her breath coming in pants. “God, I’m so out of shape. If my brothers could see me wheezing like this, they’d laugh their heads off.”

Mia smiled, glad for the distraction from her presentation. “Are you okay? Do you need an inhaler or something?”

Becca laughed. “I just need to do something other than work. Like run. Anyway, the state of my lungs isn’t why I wanted to talk to you. Do you have any plans on Sunday?”

“Nothing apart from church.” And moping around because she couldn’t see Cam this weekend.

“Great. Then you and your boys can come to my birthday party. It’s on Sunday afternoon at my brother’s house. I’ll message you the details.”

“Which brother?”

“Gray. He has the best party house. His ground floor is practically all open plan. I’m so glad you can come. Everybody will be there.” Her face dropped. “Well everybody except Cam. Can you believe he had to go back to Boston on my birthday weekend? It’s the first time in about twenty years he’s not playing on a Sunday, and then this happens.”

Mia gave her a sympathetic smile. “I’m sorry. That sucks.”

“Yeah, well he’d better bring me back a nice present from Boston. That’s all I’m saying.”

For a second, Mia thought about messaging Cam to remind him about Becca’s birthday gift. But that wasn’t her job, was it? It was confusing, because this morning he sent her a long video message wishing her good luck on her presentation, the way any boyfriend would.

But he’s not your boyfriend. No, he wasn’t.

Even if her heart told her it would be so good.

She wouldn’t send him a message about Becca. Instead she’d concentrate on this presentation and then spend some time with the boys this weekend. They’d enjoy it at Gray’s house – he was one of their favorite singers, after all.

“Well I’ll be bringing a gift,” Mia promised her. “Is there anything else I should bring?”

“Just yourself.” Becca hugged her. “I’m so glad you can come. The others will be, too.”

“Mia?” A voice echoed across the large distilling room. Mia turned to see Nathan standing at the door. His usual attire of pants and a polo shirt had been replaced by a striking grey suit and navy tie. “We’re ready for you now.”

“Is it the big board meeting?” Becca asked. “Oh, good luck.”

“Thanks.” Mia smiled at her. “I’ll see you on Sunday.”

“Let’s turn to advertising,” Mia said, facing the board again. It consisted of eight people – Eliana and Nathan, plus Eliana’s son Daniel, whose face was on the television screen hanging from the ceiling, having dialed in from Scotland. Then there was Eliana’s stepson, Lawrence and her stepdaughter Nina, both of whom had inherited shares in the company when their father died. As well as the chief financial officer, the head of production, the director of logistics, and another dial in, this time G. Scott Carter’s sales director, who was currently in Japan.

“I have a mock up of some billboard ads we’re planning to run, along with a two minute long form advertisement that will run in movie theaters. We’ll edit it for television and streaming services. The aim is to build the brand around a personality, the way Aviation Gin was built around Ryan Reynolds, and Longbranch Bourbon was built around Matthew McConaughey.”

“Don’t they own the companies?” Daniel asked, his voice crackling over the speakers.

“Ryan Reynolds recently sold Aviation Gin, and Matthew McConaughey worked in collaboration with Longbranch. I’d propose we do the same with the person we choose to head up the advertising. You’ll see in your packs that I’ve created a shortlist of potential celebrity endorsements, all of whom have indicated interest through their management companies.”

“Samuel Forest,” Nathan murmured. “He’s a good choice. Didn’t he win the Masters last year?”

Mia nodded. “He’s the number one golfer in the US right now. He’s successful, rich, and living the dream. That’s the kind of person our target customers admire. Who they want to be.”

“I like Sarah Rosewood,” Daniel said. “Having a woman head the campaign feels fresh and new.”

“A woman’s been running this damn distillery for the past ten years,” Eliana reminded him. “Nothing fresh about that.”

Mia bit down a smile at their family banter. “Sarah is a bold choice,” she told them. “There’s a whole demographic we haven’t managed to tap yet, and she could help us. Make whiskey as cool as gin. Something people want to be seen drinking. She’d add an edge