Читать книгу Meant To Be Yours - Susan Mallery, Susan Mallery - Страница 13

SEVEN MINUTES AND maybe twenty seconds later, they were in her small apartment. Renee managed to turn on the lamp by the door and kick off her shoes before Jasper reached for her. Their lips clung even as he tugged at the hem of her T-shirt. It was impossible to pull off her shirt while kissing, but they tried before finally breaking apart.

“Bedroom,” she said, thinking of the box of condoms she had in her dresser. A box she’d bought when she’d moved to town and never had the opportunity to open until now.

Movement out of the corner of her eye caught her attention. She turned and saw Jasper had pulled off his shirt, leaving his broad chest bare. He was muscled and male and she couldn’t help moving closer and pressing her mouth to his warm skin.

She’d barely had a chance to do more than register the slightly salty taste of him when he was unfastening her bra and reaching around to cup her breasts. The feel of his fingers against her hungry flesh was perfection. He caressed her curves before brushing against her tight, sensitive nipples. At the first stroke, her breath caught. At the second, she cried out as pleasure burned through to her center. She was already wet and swollen. In seconds she shifted to downright desperate.

“Bedroom,” she said weakly, still thinking of that condom and him inside of her and oh, please could they get on with it.

“You are focused on getting up there,” he said, his voice teasing.

She managed to open her eyes and look up at him—a challenging task considering how he was playing with her nipples, rubbing them between his thumb and fingers and then squeezing just tightly enough to make her groan.

“Unless you walk around with protection in your pocket which, I confess, will make me think less of you, we should head to the bedroom.”

“Well, damn. You’re right.”

Before she could say anything, he shifted, bending over and then scooping her up in his arms. She shrieked at the sudden loss of control and grabbed on to him.

Renee couldn’t remember the last time she’d been carried. She assumed she’d been maybe eight or nine. Yes, she was small, but she was mighty and she didn’t take kindly to being—

He lowered her onto her bed. Before she could complain that she did not enjoy being picked up like a sack of potatoes, he lowered his head and drew her left nipple deeply into his mouth. He flicked his tongue against the taut skin before sucking hard enough to make her writhe with need and delight. Heat poured through her. Wanting grew until she couldn’t think about anything else. Even as he shifted to her other breast, she was unfastening her jeans and pushing them off.

He drew back and watched her. “That much of a hurry?”

“It’s been decades.”

“You’re not old enough for it to have been decades.”

“It feels like decades.” She pointed to his jeans. “Take your clothes off.”

He grinned. “Yes, ma’am.”

He stood and quickly did as she requested. Renee gave herself a moment to study his naked body. The man looked good and was, ah, well proportioned.

“Condoms?” he asked.

She rolled over to get them out of the far nightstand drawer. When she shifted back, Jasper returned to the bed.

“How would you like this to go?” he asked.

“Fast.”

He chuckled. “What I meant was you’re kind of small and I’m a big guy. Until we figure out what works best, do you want to be on top?”

She had a brief image of impaling herself on his erection, sliding down until he filled her all the way.

“Done,” she said, tossing him the box. “Hurry.”

“You’re bossy.”

“Yes, I know. It’s part of my charm.”

He put on the condom, then motioned to his covered dick. “Whenever you’re ready.”

She supposed she should spend a minute thinking about the fact that she barely knew the man, yet here she was, naked and prepared to do the deed. While she’d never been particularly prudish during sex, she wasn’t exactly wild, either. Maybe it was because there was no emotional risk, or maybe she was simply that horny, or maybe it was Jasper himself. At this point, she genuinely didn’t care.

She straddled him and positioned herself over him, then closed her eyes as she slowly lowered herself. He was long and thick and filled every inch of her in the most delicious way possible. She shifted that last bit all the way in, then let her body remember what all this was about.

Jasper swore. She looked at him.

“What?”

“You.” He swore again. “You’re naked, sexy as hell, all-in with how it feels and I’m just supposed to lie here without losing it like some kid? I’m not sure I have that much willpower.”

Really? Really? She smiled. “So this is arousing?” She wiggled a little, then contracted her muscles.

He inhaled sharply. “That is not a game you’re going to win. Not if you want what I think you want.”

He had a point, but she couldn’t help teasing him with another squeeze. He groaned.

She laughed. “Okay, I’ll stop, for now. What if I do this?”

Without thinking, she slipped her fingers between her parted thighs and found her swollen clit. She’d only meant to tease him with a quick show of her touching herself, but the second she rubbed herself, her need climbed from desperate to unbearable. The combination of her touch and the fullness of him inside of her was too much to resist. She told herself she had to stop, that she couldn’t do that kind of thing in front of him, but the sensations building inside of her were powerful and amazing and...

“Don’t stop,” he said quickly. “Renee, don’t stop. Please.”

She looked at him and saw him intently studying her. His pupils were dilated, his body stiff. He moved his hands to her hips, guiding her up and down in the rhythm designed to take them both over the edge.

Still watching him watch her, she rubbed harder, faster, with each circle, she brushed against the base of his erection, she felt how hard he was, how ready.

“Tell me it’s not going to take long,” he breathed.

“It’s not.”

She was so close already. Her orgasm was just there, on the fringes. Still holding his gaze, she moved up and down faster and faster. She could feel her breasts bouncing, her face flushing, her release getting closer. Need built and built until she was overwhelmed and had no choice but to give in to her orgasm. She cried out, her body contracting around him, forcing him over the edge. His hands tightened on her hips, holding her still as he pushed in even farther, pressing against the very heart of her and groaning as he came.

Renee stayed where she was for a few seconds. Reality returned and she had to face the fact that she was naked, straddling a man she barely knew and his penis was still inside of her.

Just as her afterglow was about to crash and burn in a sea of humiliation, Jasper smiled at her. It was a very self-satisfied male smile that spoke of his own pleasure at everything that had happened.

“You’re not all that,” she said, shifting off him and standing. Her legs were a little shaky and she’d been stretched every which way, but she had to admit, she felt good. Better than good.

“I’m all that and so are you.”

He got up, as well. They cleaned up and went looking for their clothes. Once they were dressed, Renee braced herself for the speedy departure. It was what guys did, or so she’d been told. This was her first one-night stand. No regrets, she told herself. She wasn’t looking for anything but easy sex. She was a disaster at romantic relationships and knew the smartest decision was to avoid them completely. Jasper had given her everything she’d wanted.

“Got any beer?” he asked when he’d tugged on his T-shirt.

“I do.”

She moved toward the kitchen. As she passed him, he reached out and lightly stroked her arm. They paused to stare at each other. One corner of his mouth turned up in a boyish half smile that left her feeling oddly...floaty.

She grabbed a bottle for each of them and they went into the living room. So he was going to stay for a bit. That was unexpected, but nice. Really nice.

He settled on the sofa. She hesitated a second before sitting in the chair opposite. While snuggling next to him sounded appealing and something she could get into, she didn’t actually know him that well. The truth of the statement nearly made her laugh.

Sex?

Why, yes, thank you. Now what was your name again?

“Something funny?” he asked.

“Um, no. Just thinking about stuff.”

He studied her for a second. “You know I’m not the marrying kind, right?”

She’d nearly taken a sip of her beer. Grateful she hadn’t, so she wouldn’t choke to death, she set the bottle on the coffee table between them and stared at him. So much for feeling floaty.

“What are you talking about? The marrying kind? Why would you say that? Why would you think it? Who do you think I am? I don’t want to marry you. It was just sex. It was good sex but it wasn’t in the—” she held up both hands and made air quotes “‘now we have to get married’ category.”

She didn’t know if she should stand up for emphasis or just glare convincingly.

Jasper grimaced. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you. It’s just, you plan weddings for a living.”

“That is my job, not who I am. You write about people getting murdered. I don’t assume you’re planning to murder me. Not the marrying kind. No wondering you’re not in a relationship.”

“Hey, don’t judge.”

“That line deserves judgment.”

“Can I have a do-over?”

“Sexually or conversationally?”

An eyebrow rose, as his expression shifted to slightly predatory. “Give me a few minutes and you can have both.”

“You wish.” Although in truth, she thought it was a good idea, too.

“I kind of do.”

They smiled at each other. There was a moment of silence, but this time it was comfortable.

“How’d you end up here?” she asked. “You don’t strike me as a Happily Inc kind of guy.”

“My car broke down. I was living in LA and I had just driven to New York to visit my publisher and agent.”

“You drove from LA to New York and back? Why didn’t you fly?”

“I didn’t fly well back then. I still don’t like it, but I can do it.”

Why wouldn’t he fly well? Oh, right, she thought. While she didn’t know the details, she’d heard rumors about his time in the military and how he’d escaped without physical injury but still had suffered from significant PTSD.

“So you were stuck in town while they fixed your car?” she asked.

“I was. It was an old clunker and it took a while to get the parts shipped in. I stayed at one of the hotels.”

She picked up her beer and grinned. “Oh, please, please tell me you stayed at the Sweet Dreams Inn.”

“Why would you care about that?”

“I want to picture you hanging out in one of the themed rooms. The princess room or the Heidi room or the woodland creature room.”

“There’s a woodland creature room? Why?”

“It’s fun. I’d love it.”

He shuddered. “That must be a girl thing. For what it’s worth, I was in the pirate room.”

“I know that one. It’s nice.”

When she’d first taken the job in Happily Inc, she’d made it a point to visit all the local businesses that supported the wedding industry. She wanted to be able to offer recommendations because she knew what she was talking about. To that end, she’d toured all the rooms at the Sweet Dreams Inn, so she knew the pirate room was actually fairly masculine, with a huge sailing ship doubling as a bed.

“But still—no little woodland creatures to keep you company?” she asked, her tone wistful.

“I’m afraid not. Argh.”

She laughed. “Okay, I’ll accept the pirate room. So you were stuck in town and decided to stay?”

“I didn’t have a plan. I drove around to kill time. The people were friendly enough. I was here over a Monday night, so the clerk at the front desk suggested I head to The Boardroom for game night.”

“And you were hooked?”

“I was intrigued.” He shifted so he rested his bare feet on the coffee table. “I contacted a local real estate agent about places on the market. I knew I wouldn’t want to live in town, so I wasn’t expecting much. My house is the first place we saw. I looked at a half dozen more, realized I’d already found what I wanted and made an offer.”

“And here you are.”

His gaze locked with hers. “Here we both are.”

She felt the tension rising between them. It was nice. Sexy and insistent. Inside, heat began to build.

“So I’m not looking for a relationship,” she said. “I haven’t ever had good luck in the romance department.” Which was putting it mildly, she thought. Her love life had been a disaster, and while she wanted to say it was her mother’s fault, in truth there were other reasons.

“Giving up on your own happily-ever-after?” he asked.

“Pretty much.”

He lowered his legs and rested his feet on the floor, then put his beer on the table. “But a woman has needs.”

His tone was low, sexy and intriguing. Renee felt herself flushing. Stupid red hair, she thought with a sigh. “A woman does. As does a man.”

“Yes, that’s true.”

She kept her gaze on his, even though she desperately wanted to look away. “But, ah, I’ve never really done anything like this before.”

“Had a sex-only relationship?”

She winced. “Could we not call it that?”

His voice turned teasing. “But you do want me to be your booty call.”

In for a penny and all that. “Yes.”

He nodded slowly. “So you’d be using me for sex?”

“I could say the same thing about you.”

“I didn’t ask you to be my booty call. I don’t know.” He raised and lowered his shoulders. “I’ve never been anyone’s sex toy before.”

“You didn’t really just say that.”

He dropped his gaze to the floor. “I feel used.”

“Just stop it. No one believes that for a second.”

He looked at her again and grinned. “Sex without the promise of anything more,” he said. “I’m in.” His smile faded. “Having said that, I’d like to keep things exclusive. Otherwise it gets confusing. Unless you want to invite one of your friends to join us.”

“What?” she shrieked.

He stood and pulled her to her feet. “I’m kidding. I know them too well. Worse, I know the men in their lives. It would be weird. So just you and me, for as long as it’s good for us, then when it’s over, we walk away. No regrets, no bad breakup.”

It sounded so mature and modern, she thought. And was exactly what she wanted. And while she was fully aware that it could all end horribly, because her boy-girl things always did, at least she was starting from a position of clarity and honesty.

“Agreed,” she said firmly, raising herself on tiptoe so she could kiss him. “Now, if it’s been long enough, I think I should let you use me for sex. To keep things fair.”

“I like how you think.”

He pulled a condom out of his jeans pocket and tossed it onto the coffee table. “I grabbed that from your bedroom. I say that so you don’t think less of me.” He grinned. “Your sofa is very comfortable. Why don’t we start here and see where things go.”

RENEE HAD BEEN HEALED. Despite her lack of sleep and the generally achiness from unused muscles getting a workout, she felt happy and energized and just a little bit weightless. It was amazing what a night of great sex could do for a woman. And with a little luck and some schedule planning, it was exactly what she intended to experience again and again. Yup, she would be enjoying her booty call bonanza for as long as it lasted.

Jasper had left around two in the morning. Even though she technically could have slept in, she’d been awake by six, happy and practically humming with the glory of the day. After clearing up her work emails, she’d gone to the grocery store for ingredients for one of her favorite pasta salads. She’d fixed that, showered, done a little more paperwork, then just before noon she headed for Willow Gallery, where she would meet her girlfriends for lunch.

She had a large group of friends in town. Their schedules were complicated and everyone was busy, so the weekly lunch was a priority. They rotated locations and whoever hosted provided an entrée. Everyone else brought whatever they were in the mood for. Mostly the menu worked out but every now and then they ended up with three veggie plates. Still, Renee was far more interested in the conversation than the food. She enjoyed the chance to hang with other women. In the past, she’d worked hard to keep herself a safe distance from the people around her. But since moving to Happily Inc, she’d realized it was safe to connect and fit in. She could relax here and that felt good.

Willow Gallery, a beautiful venue close to the river, housed amazing art pieces. Happily Inc was home to several successful artists. Renee had moved to town in time to see her friend Natalie grow from struggling unknown to rising star. Natalie had been able to quit her office manager job to concentrate on her art full-time.

Renee pulled in next to two familiar cars. Pallas and Carol were both already inside, and if previous lunches were anything to go by, they would have brought their babies with them.

Just as difficult as accepting she would never have love in her life, was the realization that she would never have a traditional family. While children weren’t an impossible dream, if she wanted kids, she was going to have to go it alone, and being a single mom wasn’t an easy road. Renee had watched her own mother deal with being both parents while raising a child and it had been hard for her. On the flip side, Renee also knew what it was like to be left by a father and that was a pain that didn’t go away. So while she could have a child on her own, she didn’t want to go that route, and what with her finally accepting she was never going to trust her heart to a man again, she was stuck.

“I’m not going to think about that,” she said aloud as she got out of her car. She’d had great sex the night before, she was going to enjoy hanging with her friends and she would hold Devon and Ryan as much as she could until the other women wrestled the sweet infants from her arms.

She was still smiling as she walked into the gallery. Natalie already had Ryan, so Renee dropped her tote on the buffet table set up by a display of a massive blown glass garden filled with exquisite glass flowers.

“How’s my best girl?” she asked, gently taking the sleeping baby from Carol.

“I’m fine,” her friend said drily. “Thanks for asking.”

Renee grinned. “Good to know.” She gently rocked Devon, enjoying the weight of her and admiring her rosebud mouth and velvety soft skin.

“We need more babies around here,” Pallas said as she unpacked Renee’s insulated tote. “Pasta salad. At some point I need to get off carbs, but I’m not quite ready. What’s in this?”

“Cheese tortellini, bacon, tomatoes, diced cucumber, broccoli all tossed with an avocado ranch dressing and sprinkled with cheese.”

Pallas raised her eyebrows. “That’s a lot of work, young lady.”

Renee thought about her early start and good mood. “I was inspired. It’s a recipe my mom used to make, only she used regular ranch dressing.”

“Sounds delish. I brought brownies,” Pallas said with a sigh. “It’s the carb thing. I can’t help it.”

Silver and Bethany walked in together. Silver dumped her container on the table and headed for Natalie.

“Hi, everyone. Pass him over.”

Natalie reluctantly passed Ryan to Silver.

“I guess we really do need more babies,” Natalie admitted, pushing up her glasses.

“You first,” Silver, a pretty platinum blonde and the owner of a mobile bar called AlcoHaul, told her with a grin.

“Not me.” Natalie shook her head. “I want another year at least before I get pregnant. I’m working on my art and enjoying being married to Ronan. I’m more interested in aunt status right now.”

Renee looked at Bethany, expecting her friend to hurry over and claim Devon, but Bethany stayed by the buffet.

“Hi, everyone,” Bethany said with a wave. “The lunch looks great. I brought a veggie plate.”

Pallas made a face, then forced a smile. “It’s always good to have something healthy on the table.”

Renee lowered her voice and whispered, “Liar.”

Pallas took Devon from her. “I meant it. Sort of.”

Wynn arrived, a plate of brownies in her hand. “Sorry. I got on a call with a client and he was a talker. How is everyone?”

As she spoke, she set down the brownies and reached for Devon.

“Go hug your own baby,” Wynn said with a smile as she cooed at Devon. “Mine is way too old to rock.”

Renee felt an unexpected stab of guilt and worry rip through her. Jasper and Wynn had once been a couple. Sure, things had ended nearly a year ago, but still, they’d been involved. Wynn was her friend and did that make things awkward?

Renee told herself she would talk to Wynn after the lunch—there was no way she was going to discuss it in front of everyone. Not when it was new and she had no idea what having a man available for a booty call actually meant.

The still-sleeping babies were placed in their car seats and the friends filled their plates before sitting at the table that had been set up in the center of the gallery.

“How’s everyone?” Silver asked. “Bethany, weren’t you and Cade planning a trip to El Bahar next month?”

Bethany, the adopted daughter of the king of El Bahar, looked startled by the question. “Nothing is finalized. We’re still figuring it all out. Leaving the horses for that long is always difficult.”

“Don’t you have a manager and several people helping out in the stables?” Renee asked.

“We do, but it’s still complicated.”

Not exactly an answer that made sense, Renee thought. She looked at her friend and wondered if something was going on. Bethany didn’t seem like herself.

“I can’t find anything better than an appletini for the apple wedding,” Silver said. “I’ve tried a bunch of different cocktails and I’m not sure our bride is going to love any of them.”

Pallas looked around the table. “We have an upcoming apple wedding. The bride wants appletinis but the groom’s mother wants a different apple-based drink. So far they’ve been unable to agree on anything. We have one final tasting this week.”

“This whole thing is putting me off apples,” Silver grumbled. “And I like apples.”

“Give yourself an apple-free month and your love will be restored,” Carol told her.

Everyone laughed.

Conversation flowed easily. Renee remembered the first time Pallas had invited her to the girlfriends’ lunch. She’d been nervous and not sure she would get along with the women, but they’d welcomed her and now were an important part of her life. She knew that her friends would be there for her. She liked being a part of something—belonging. She hadn’t had that in a while. Certainly not in high school where the other girls had mostly avoided her. College had been a little better, until someone had figured out the truth about her mother.

Nothing she had to worry about now, she reminded herself. She was keeping Verity far, far away from Happily Inc.

“Great salad,” Wynn said, waving her fork at Renee. “There are just enough vegetables to make me feel righteous.”

Renee smiled and ignored the guilt. She would talk to Wynn later and get any issues resolved. It was the right thing to do.

But ninety minutes later, all Renee wanted to do was bolt. Instead, she forced herself to walk out with Wynn and ask if they could talk for a moment. Wynn looked surprised, but immediately agreed.

“Want to go grab coffee or can this be talked about in the parking lot?”

Renee glanced around. Everyone else had already left and the gallery was closed on Tuesdays, so customers would not be arriving.

“I just need a second,” she said, not sure how to begin. Or what to say. Or... “I had sex with Jasper.”

Wynn, a gorgeous woman with curly, dark hair, raised her eyebrows. “Interesting.”

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to blurt it out like that. It’s just you two used to, you know, be friends, and now you’re not and I wasn’t sure if you were still, um, thinking about him and if it was all right that I...”

“Had sex with him?” The corners of Wynn’s mouth twitched. “Aren’t you asking a little late? The deed is done.”

“I know, but it was unexpected, so I didn’t really have time to text you.”

Wynn grinned. “That would have been a really noteworthy text for sure.” Her expression turned serious. “Our relationship ended last year. We’re completely done and what he does with you is great with me.” The smile returned. “I mean that in a not awkward way.”

Relief erased the guilt. “You’re sure?”

“Very. Jasper and I weren’t right for each other. He’s a great guy, but not my great guy.”

“Oh, this isn’t serious,” Renee said quickly. “Neither of us is looking for that. This is very much a no-strings kind of thing.” No way she was going to mention the booty call aspect of things.

“That’s how it always starts.” Wynn tilted her head. “Just as an FYI, Jasper isn’t as broken as he thinks. You might want to be careful about that.”

Renee had no idea what she was talking about. “Meaning?”

“Most normal guys eventually reach a place where they want more. If you’re sure that’s not in the cards for you, great. But Jasper just might want to change the rules.”

“I can’t see that happening.”

“Maybe I’m wrong.” She smiled. “I’m glad you two found each other. It’s nice to be a part of something.”

“What about you?”

Wynn shook her head. “Yeah, I’m not really that girl. I try to be, but I’m not.”