It was like my mouth and my brain weren’t connected anymore. More than once today, I said things to Liza I never said to a woman. Not even Natalie. Thinking about Natalie while Liza was still lying beneath me was wrong, and I pushed her out of my head. What I had with Natalie seemed like a lifetime ago and was nothing but an apparition. There was no comparing the two women or the two situations.
Sitting up, I adjusted my pants as Liza did the same with her clothing. She snuck a look at me as she fixed herself before settling back against the seat. I turned to her and opened my mouth to say something, to get myself out of the hole I was digging myself into, but the car stopped at the curb and I closed it again.
It was then I remembered I ordered Monroe to bring us to my apartment. I didn’t bring women to my apartment, I brought them to the hotel, but before we got out of control and ended up fucking in the back of the car, again, I thought my place was closer. Everything suddenly felt out of control and despite my best efforts not to shut down on Liza, I felt my emotions shuttering. I didn’t get close to people, I couldn’t. Last time… I didn’t want to think about last time.
“We’re here,” I said gruffly, flicking the door open with my wrist and hopping out.
I didn’t mean to act like an asshole but I also couldn’t seem to stop from acting like one either.
Liza hesitated a minute, sensing my mood swing, and I wouldn’t have blamed her if she refused to get out of the car. She was trying to hide the hurt and confusion I was causing her but over the last two days, she either opened up to me more or I was getting adept at reading her moods because the emotions were evident on her face. Running a hand through my hair, I turned away from the car for a moment, the cold November air slicing through my thin dress shirt.
Shit, I was royally fucking this up. Once again, I wondered why I was trying so hard. I could cut her off now, let her go and be done with the whole thing before I alienated her even further. Before we both got hurt. Why couldn’t I just let her go?
I turned around, holding out my hand for her to take, so I could try to make up for being abrupt and dismissive. For a minute, I didn’t think she was going to accept, and when she finally did, I breathed a sigh of relief. I didn’t like the implications of what all of this meant and an oppressive feeling gathered in my chest. How could I take back what I said to her on the sidewalk outside the restaurant? Not because I didn’t mean it but because I wasn’t ready for all of this. Not after Natalie…
Shaking my head, I started to move, and Liza’s heels clicked on the sidewalk as we walked towards the door to my building, hand in hand. She clutched her coat tightly to her chest with the other hand, protectively, and didn’t say a word to me or look at my face the whole time.
“Liza,” I said as we approached the doorman, stopping so we were out of his earshot.
She shook her head, pulling her hand from mine and gathering her coat closer, though it wasn’t very cold next to the building. “I get it. You don’t have to say anything else,” she said.
Somehow, she knew I was having second thoughts about what I said to her before. How was this woman I just met able to read me so well when I tried every effort to shut her out?
“Good afternoon, Mr. Radcliffe,” the doorman said as we approached, pulling the door open and waving Liza inside before me.
“Hello, George,” I said as I followed behind her, my mind racing.
I wanted to stop her, grab her from behind and push her against the wall, locking my mouth to hers, but I knew after detaching from her the way I had she wouldn’t receive that behavior too well. But I needed to touch her, to feel the same connection we shared in the car, and this morning at her apartment. To let myself know I wasn’t making this up. I needed to know this wasn’t like last time, no matter how little time I knew her. I needed to know she wasn’t Natalie.
Stabbing the button for the elevator, I stepped back and Liza stood beside me. She looked up at me and gave me a weak smile that made the feeling in my chest even more oppressive. The question I should have been asking wasn’t why I didn’t let her go, but why she was sticking around after I continually seduced her and then shut down.
We entered the elevator in silence and I stood next to her, not letting her get too far away from me. I needed to feel her heat and smell her scent to remind me I hadn’t fucked up beyond repair. Though she wasn’t looking at me, I could tell she was just as aware of my presence as I was of hers. Her chest rose and fell quicker, the pulse at her neck fluttering faster, and she clenched and unclenched her fists in a way that let me know she was trying not to touch me too. What was this attraction we had to each other? Why was it so damn strong and why, after only two days, could I not get enough of her?
“Liza,” I said again as I turned toward her. This time, the tone of my voice wasn’t consolatory but full of desire.
We stood face to face for a minute, panting as we stared into each other’s eyes, before we suddenly pounced on one another. I wondered if it would always be like this or if our passion would cool eventually, while we tore at each other’s clothing to expose more skin and touch the skin we could find. Our mouths bruised and our hands grasped, and we didn’t even notice the door to the elevator opened as we lost ourselves in the commotion of the kiss.
“Well, some things never change,” said a voice I never thought I’d hear again. My blood ran cold and the lust I was swamped with moments earlier was doused, like a bucket of ice had been poured over my head.
Why the fuck was Natalie in my building?
Jackson pulled away from me when he heard the woman’s voice. I was confused at first, disoriented and lust drunk, and I didn’t realize what was happening.
“What the fuck are you doing here?” Jackson barked at the woman.
I couldn’t see her because Jackson’s body was in front of mine. The tension rolling off of him was palpable and he was standing in a defensive pose—hands balled into fists, legs wide, and his shoulders hunched. Who was the woman and why was she getting such a reaction out of him? My hackles instantly went up.
“Is that any way to talk to your wife?” the woman asked, followed by a cackle.
His wife?
Jackson made a sound that was as close to an animal growl as I ever heard a human being make before lunging from the elevator. I followed behind him, quickly because the doors started to close on me, and stood by his side. Stifling a gasp, I finally got a good look at the woman who claimed she was his wife. The dark hair, the olive-toned skin, the thin frame—it was Natalie Livingston, the woman Nicolette and I looked up the night before. The woman who, until now, I thought was Jackson’s ex-fiancée.
Natalie stepped back as Jackson moved towards her, holding up a hand in front of her as if to push him back. “I had to see if the mystery woman from the tabloids really existed. Looks like she’s no mystery any longer. When were you going to let me know?”
She rested her hands on her stomach before hastily moving them to her hips, and glared at him.
“We haven’t been together in a long time, Natalie. I don’t owe you anything.” Jackson grabbed my hand and pulled me to step around Natalie.
I followed, unable to speak or protest, or even ask what was going on. Shock and bewilderment left me unable to do much else. Was she really his wife? If so, why didn’t that information come up when Nicolette and I looked her up?
“Really?” she said, like it wasn’t true. “That doesn’t change the fact that we’re still married.”
Every time the words came out of her mouth, my stomach turned.
“The hell we are!” Jackson roared, turning on her again.
At this point, we had approached the only door on the floor, stopping in front of it, but Natalie was still following us.
“We had an agreement, Jax,” Natalie said, something akin to desperation in her eyes.
I wondered what she had to look desperate about.
Jackson balled his fists again, and I could tell he was barely restra
ining his anger. Suddenly, he transformed in front of me, into a raging bull. He took a step forward, his legs so long that one step closed the space between where he and Natalie stood.
“I want you out of my building. You are never to set foot in here again. You’ll be hearing from my lawyer,” he growled at Natalie through clenched teeth.
She smirked, but some of the confidence and ire in her gaze that was present before wavered. A flicker of anxiety crossed her face before she flipped her hair and turned towards the elevator. When she turned back to look at us, she appeared in complete control again.
“Your lawyer couldn’t get you out of it last time, and he won’t be able to get you out of it now. This little game you’re playing won’t work and when your friend here finds out who you really are, she won’t blame me one bit for protecting my own interests.” With the last word, Natalie turned and stepped into the elevator.
As the doors closed on her smug smile, Jackson snarled again before jamming a key into the locked door we stood before. He pushed it open and stomped into the apartment with me trailing behind. There was little time to admire the high ceilings and the wondrous view from the large picture windows because Jackson was in full meltdown mode once we were fully inside. Ignoring me, he plodded down a long hall and disappeared into a room, slamming the door behind him. I stood there, in the middle of the elevated foyer, staring straight ahead into the living room and towards the large windows. My mind was racing and I wasn’t sure if I should follow him or leave. Deciding against the former, I walked forward into the living room and stopped in front of the windows. The view from up here was fabulous—I could practically see all of Uptown and across the park.
“That was quite the shitshow,” Jackson said suddenly.
I jumped. Somehow, he had snuck up on me, again. Nodding, I turned around. He was standing directly behind me, his shirt sleeves rolled up to the elbow and his arms crossed over his chest. Slightly disheveled and making a sheepish face, I had to wrap my arms around my middle to keep from running to him to comfort him. The last thing he needed right now was a woman he barely knew clinging to him. I wasn’t even sure if I should want to comfort him, or if I should be irritated by the whole charade in the hallway.
I was leaning towards comfort.
Despite everything that happened with the two of us in the last forty-eight hours, Jackson wasn’t my boyfriend and I had no claim to him. Therefore, I had no right to be irritated or jealous about a woman he used to be engaged to, or was possibly still married to. This was all the more reason why I shouldn’t be jumping into something like this too quickly—I didn’t know him or anything about his past.
“I’m sorry you had to be involved in that,” he added, stepping closer.
He was so close I had to tilt my head back to see his face. His nearness was making it hard to think and since I still wasn’t sure what to say, I shrugged.
“I left a message for my lawyer,” he said, but by the way he was looking at me, I could tell his mind was already on something else.
“This isn’t really any of my—” I started to say, but he grabbed me around the waist, lifting me flush against the front of him, and traveled back until my spine connected with the window.
I gasped at the contact with a shiver of lust but the sound was cut off when his mouth slanted over mine. Memories of the confrontation in the hall began to slip away as I focused solely on Jackson’s mouth against mine. How he could take me from worrying about his ex to spinning out of control in less than sixty seconds, I would never understand. I kissed him back with fervor, plunging my hands into his hair and wrapping my legs around his hips.
With one hand, he held me up against the window, his arm propping up my ass, and with the other, he scrambled to undo his pants. We were in hyperdrive again, just like in the back of his car, and a natural disaster couldn’t stop us. With every breath, I breathed him; with every pant, I fell more into a frenzy of hunger and lost myself further into Jackson. It was madness but nothing made more sense than this moment or any of the moments I spent with him.
Jackson hiked up my sweater over my breasts, freeing one from the bra cup and taking my taut nipple in his mouth. I moaned, pressing my chest out and more into the hot, wet grip of his mouth. I was under a spell, and even the prospect he could still be married to the shrew of a woman we saw in the hall earlier didn’t damper the heat coursing through me.
Closing my eyes against the sensation, because it was so intense, I could feel it all the way to my core, I pressed my center against the bulge in his underwear, the friction of the seam of my pants against my clit making me writhe. Though we were together less than thirty minutes ago, I was ready for another round, my body no longer my own but existing solely for the purpose of Jackson bringing it pleasure.
The shrill sound of Jackson’s cell phone ringing broke the spell and we stopped abruptly, and he drew away from me with a silent curse. He eased me to the floor with a sigh that sounded like regret and I was left wanting for more. Adjusting his pants around the erection that strained against his boxer briefs where it peeked from his open fly, he yanked the phone from his pocket. I stood there, in a lust drunk haze, and watched, wrapping my arms around my middle to ward off the sudden chill I felt in his absence.
“What?!” he barked into the phone as he ran a hand over his face before turning away from me.
I winced at the tone of his voice, at the frustration I heard, because it mimicked the way I felt at the moment. If the phone hadn’t rung, he would be swiftly fucking me against the window. At the thought of it, I pressed my thighs together against the flood of warmth I felt there.
“Dammit, Frank, I told you I wasn’t going to put up with her shi—” Jackson screamed into the phone, but must have been cut off by Frank on the other end.
He shook his head, pulling the phone away and tilting his head back to the ceiling with his eyes closed, in an obvious move of irritation. “I don’t care what her lawyer said. None of that matters. All that matters is…” He paused and looked at me, blowing a breath out before pivoting away again. “The only thing that matters is that the prenup is void now. I don’t have to give her a cent more than I already did, and she has to sign the fucking papers.”
I didn’t know what the look meant, but an apology flashed in his eyes before he turned away from me again. When he did it, I thought it was because we didn’t get to finish what we started due to the interruption of the phone call. However, from that one look, I had a bad feeling there was so much more he was hiding from me.
Sometimes, you can tell a lie so big, even you’re disappointed in your own actions. That was what I did when I called my lawyer from the privacy of my office earlier. I lied again. This time, it was bigger than the previous one. This time, it was a lie that would affect Liza’s whole life and likely make her wish she had never met me. But I kept telling myself I had no choice, that if I wanted to even have a smidgen of a chance to really be with Liza, to make amends for all of the shitty things I did in this life and be a better man, then I had to lie a little more to get out of the shit situation I created for myself. I knew it was a crock of bullshit, all of it, and if Liza found out, she wouldn’t forgive me for it. Now I just had to make sure she never did. At least, not before I was ready for her to.
“I’ll call you later with the details, Frank. Keep me posted on the other side,” I said cryptically to my lawyer. I couldn’t give anything away because Liza was staring at me, and I knew she would be able to decipher anything else I said.
Liza was a smart woman and because of that, I had to be careful this time, that my lie didn’t blow up in my face. Sighing again, I disconnected the call, tossing my phone onto the couch. I was ready to pick up where we left off, but when I swung back around to Liza, she had a look on her face that said she wanted to know what that was all about.
“That was my lawyer,” I muttered, hoping that would satisfy her.
Her brows knit together and I could tell she want
ed to ask a follow-up question. Just as quickly as the look passed over her face, it disappeared and she smiled, sauntering towards me. In an unusual move, she wrapped her arms around my waist and rested her head against my chest. When she pulled back and looked up at me, I wanted to devour her but before I could make a move, she released me.
“I think I should go,” she said, absentmindedly adjusting her sweater. “You have a lot to deal with right now and I have to be up early for work tomorrow.”
I wanted to demand she stay because I hadn’t had my fill of her yet and my cock refused to even return to its natural state unless she wasn’t present, but I bit back the retort. My life crapped on hers enough for one day, and it was probably a good idea to let her leave before I said something I’d regret.
“I’ll have Monroe drive you home,” I said, reaching for her hand.
She paused for a minute, almost as if she changed her mind, but then I heard her sigh quietly and follow me to the door. We stood there for a beat, staring at each other. I wanted to kiss her, because if I was being honest, every moment I was with her, I wanted to kiss her, but I didn’t know if I would be able to stop myself once I started, and I had already I told her she could leave.
“Goodbye, Jackson,” Liza said, and it felt like she was saying it for good.
“Liza…” I started, but she shook her head.
“It’s all right, Jackson. We’ll talk later,” she said, resting her hand on my forearm.
The most innocent contact and yet it ignited the desire I was trying so hard to rein in. Throwing caution to the wind, I bent and pressed my mouth to hers. The kiss started off chaste, but as was always the case between Liza and me, it developed into so much more. Her teeth nipped my bottom lip and I growled, pressing my tongue between her lips. She wound her arms around my neck and I flattened her back against the door, my body covering hers. I was supposed to be letting her go, but the only thing I wanted to do was scoop her up and carry her to my bed.
One Night Page 16