The Essential Jagged Ivory (Jagged Ivory Boxed Set)

by Lashell Collins

  She felt herself blush just thinking about their oral escapade last night. She had been a shameless, brazen hussy, spreading her legs obscenely while he …

  The thought brought her up short, and she sat up suddenly, looking down at her attire and suddenly wondering how she got here. Was this Otis’ room? Had they slept together? She raised the covers and checked to see if she were still wearing her panties beneath his t-shirt. Thankfully, they were still there, but she couldn’t remember anything after sitting down to watch the movie. Had she fallen to sleep?

  She pulled back the covers and got up, wandering around the room and looking for clues. The space was every bit as beautifully decorated as the rest of the house, but it lacked a certain lived-in quality that a man’s personal bedroom would normally have. Plus it wasn’t really large enough to be called a master suite. Breathing a little easier, she made her way into the bathroom and answered nature’s call. Then she took advantage of the clean linens she found there and washed the sleep out of her eyes. She also spied a brand new, still-in-the-packaging toothbrush and some toothpaste in a small basket that sat on the vanity by the sink, so she availed herself of that too.

  Running a hand through her hair as she exited that bathroom, she decided to venture out in search of her host. The welcoming aroma of bacon and coffee assaulted her senses the moment she opened the door and stepped into the hallway, and her stomach began to growl. Following her nose, she came to the top of a staircase, and about halfway down she heard his voice. The sound of annoyance was hard to miss, and she stood there for a moment wondering what was wrong.

  “So it’s definitely totaled?” he asked, looking at his phone which was in speaker mode.

  “I’m afraid so. The frame is completely bent.”

  “Shit!”

  “If it makes it any better, I took the liberty of checking … and I’ve already found a buyer in Vegas who wants it for the parts. He’s offering you $100,000 for it.”

  “Alright,” Otis sighed, rolling his eyes. “Go ahead and set it up. And Lewis?”

  “Yeah?”

  “How soon can you get me another one?”

  “Well, I’ve got two Aventadors here on the lot, but they’re not in the Verde Ithica green? That’s what you want, right?”

  “Yes.”

  “Well, I also checked on that, just in case. I located one at a dealership in Miami Beach. I can have it shipped right away, and it shouldn’t take more than a week. But I’ll need payment beforehand.”

  “I’ll wire it first thing Monday.”

  “Okay.”

  “Thanks, man.”

  “No problem.”

  He hit the End Call button on his phone just as he looked up and saw the most beautiful pair of legs coming down the back steps, and he smiled.

  “Well, good morning, Feisty,” he grinned, slowly looking her over. “Don’t you look ravishing.”

  Brooke smiled at him as she started toward the table, but then stopped when she saw movement to her right. She turned to see a slightly plump woman in a gray maid’s uniform, completely ignoring them as she moved purposefully around the kitchen.

  “Lourdes, this is Brooke McKenna. Isn’t she beautiful?” Otis said by way of introduction.

  The woman turned around and smiled at her. “Good morning, Ms. McKenna.”

  “Hello,” Brooke offered nervously, suddenly very aware that she was only wearing Otis’ t-shirt and her panties. She turned and made her way to the kitchen table and hastily took a seat.

  “And you,” the woman said, turning to look at Otis admonishingly. “Be nice! Don’t embarrass the poor girl. You want her to come back, don’t you?”

  She winked at Brooke in a very motherly way, putting her instantly at ease, and Brooke smiled back at her.

  Otis laughed and took a bite of his bacon. “What would you like for breakfast, Feisty?”

  She shrugged her shoulders. “What are you having?”

  “I’m just having a veggie omelet with avocados,” he said, glancing down at his plate. “Some salsa on top. But Lourdes can make you whatever you want. She’s an amazing cook.”

  “Just some scrambled eggs and bacon please,” she shrugged again.

  “Lourdes, scrambled eggs and bacon for the lady, please,” he called out, never taking his eyes off Brooke.

  “Coming up!”

  “Otis … um, did you …” Her voice trailed off nervously and she glanced down at the table.

  “Did I what?”

  “Um … did you … put me to bed last night?” she asked, looking up at him.

  “Yes,” he smiled.

  Brooke nodded her head, anxiously twisting her fingers together.

  “You don’t remember?” he asked.

  “Well, um … the last thing I remember is watching the movie.”

  Otis’ smile grew. “Relax, Feisty. First of all, I would never take advantage of you, or any other woman that way. And secondly,” he said, leaning in and lowering his voice so he wouldn’t be overheard, “When I finally get inside you, I’ll want you wide awake for that.”

  He kissed her lips lightly and smiled at her. And Brooke felt every muscle in her female region clench deliciously. She licked her lips and turned away, nervously tucking a wayward curl behind her ear.

  “Um … that phone call,” she said quietly, changing the subject. “That was about your car?”

  “Yes, it was.”

  “I’m sorry that it’s totaled, Otis. I feel so bad about that.”

  “Don’t worry about it,” he smiled as Lourdes set a steaming plate in front of her, along with a glass of orange juice.

  “Would you like coffee, Ms. McKenna?” she asked.

  “No, thank you.”

  “You sure?” Otis asked. “We have a cappuccino machine? Or tea?”

  “No,” she giggled. “Juice is fine.”

  They ate their breakfast in a comfortable silence for a while. And when Otis finished, he pushed his plate away and took a sip of his coffee. “You ready for the night I’ve got planned?” he smiled.

  She looked at him with raised eyebrows as she swallowed a mouthful of eggs. “I don’t know. Am I? Should I be scared?”

  He chuckled at her and took another sip of his coffee.

  “Hey, you know, you’re going to have to take me home so that I can change,” she said, taking another bite of her eggs.

  Otis shook his head, still smiling at her. “Nope. I’ve taken care of all of that.”

  She narrowed her eyes at him. “What do you mean?”

  “Well, once you’ve finished your breakfast, you’ll find a few things waiting for you in the same guest room you woke up in,” he said.

  “What sort of things?”

  “Things to wear,” he replied as he stood up. “Now, if you will excuse me … I have a couple of details I need to check on for tonight. You take your time and enjoy your breakfast. Make yourself at home. Feel free to snoop if you want to,” he smiled. “I don’t have anything to hide. And if you need anything, just ask Lourdes. I’ll meet you back down here once you’re dressed, okay?”

  “Okay,” she said after a slight pause. He smiled at her and then leaned down and kissed her forehead. And then she watched as he grabbed his cellphone and disappeared up the back staircase. She had no clue what to make of any of this, but he seemed to be excited about the plans he was making for their evening. It was actually sort of sweet, but the not knowing was getting to her. And she suddenly wanted to talk it over with Shelly.

  Oh, my God. Shelly!

  Her sister had jokingly said that she wouldn’t wait up, but Brooke had left the house going to an afternoon wedding, and she hadn’t checked in since. Shelly was probably worried half to death. She took a last bite of her eggs and stood up.

  “All finished, Ms. McKenna?” Lourdes asked her.

  “Yes. It was delicious, thank you.”

  “You’re welcome!”

  Brooke left the kitchen and headed for the nearby bat
hroom. The one she had used last night to change. She had left all of her clothing in there, along with her purse and cellphone, and she really needed to call her sister. But when she stepped into the bathroom, all of her things were gone.

  “Lourdes?” she asked, rushing back out to the kitchen.

  “Yes, miss?”

  “Um, my things … they were in the bathroom?”

  “Oh, yes, ma’am. I washed all of your things and moved them to the guest room. You’ll find them hanging in the closet. Your purse is also there,” she stated.

  “Thank you,” she said once more, feeling slightly bewildered. She turned and started up the stairs, wondering with every step how many women Otis brought here. His housekeeper certainly seemed used to the routine.

  She traced her earlier steps and found her way back up to the guest room. It really was a beautiful room. The walls were painted a soft sea foam green to match the bedspread, and there were seashells and other beachy, nautical knick knacks scattered about. She rushed first to the closet and opened the double doors. It was something she hadn’t bothered to do when she looked around the room after waking up. Sure enough, her dress that she had worn to the wedding was out of the bag she had stored it in and was now hanging neatly in the closet. As was her freshly laundered bikini. The strappy silver heels sat neatly on the floor of the closet and her purse was on the shelf there.

  Picking it up, she opened it and pulled out her cellphone. Four missed calls and six texts from Shelly. She hit redial immediately and wandered into the bathroom.

  “Tell me you’re having the time of your life, and you’re not in a jail cell or stuck on the side of the road somewhere!”

  Her sister’s voice was panicked and Brooke smiled sheepishly.

  “I am so sorry, Shelly! I’m not in jail or stranded on the side of the road.”

  “Jesus, Brooke! I was so worried when I got up and you still weren’t home,” she said. “I know I told you to have a good time, but you could have at least called!”

  “I know; I’m sorry! I have no excuse,” Brooke said, as she looked around at the almost spa-like shower. She spied some shower gel and shampoo and conditioner sitting in the basket on the counter. The same basket she had gotten the toothbrush from earlier, and she opened them up to take a sniff as she talked.

  “Where are you?” Shelly asked.

  “I’m in Malibu, at Otis’ house. Shelly, you would not believe this place. It’s so not what I expected.”

  “Nice?”

  “Beyond nice. It’s beautiful. Right on the beach! The view of the ocean is incredible.”

  “You’re having a nice time then?”

  “Believe it or not, I am.”

  Shelly squealed. “I’m so happy! And did you … you know.”

  “No! Well …” Her voice trailed off, unsure how exactly to answer the question.

  “Well either you did or you didn’t,” Shelly joked when Brooke hesitated. “Brooke?”

  “Well, we … sort of did. I mean, not … actual … intercourse.”

  “Okay,” Shelly stated, clearly confused. “Yeah, I’m not sure what that means, Brooke.”

  “It means oral sex, Shelly. We had oral sex, okay?” she said, rolling her eyes at her sister over the phone.

  “Ah, right! And? How was it?”

  Brooke shook her head and sighed, reliving the memories.

  “Come on, how was it?” Shelly coaxed.

  “Amazing. It’s a skill he’s definitely mastered,” she said, remembering his words from last night.

  More squealing.

  “Okay, I have to know,” Shelly giggled. “Is he hung?”

  “Shelly!”

  “Oh, come on! I swear, for an exotic dancer you can be such a prude sometimes,” Shelly said loudly.

  “Not wanting to have long, meaningful conversations about male genitalia does not make me a prude,” Brooke countered. “Besides … I didn’t actually see him.”

  “What? You mean you didn’t return the favor?” Shelly said, sounding astounded. “Brooke!”

  “Shelly, I am not giving you a blow by blow of my sexual encounters, okay. Jeez!” She rolled her eyes again and took a deep breath. She knew that her sister meant well, but she simply didn’t understand. She couldn’t relate to Brooke’s self-imposed celibacy the past two years, or her reluctance to rush back into the dating pool. Shelly had never been hurt the way she had. She was still so trusting. So easily taken in. But Brooke knew who Otis Ivory was. And as much as she was beginning to like him, she couldn’t lose sight of the fact that he was a known womanizer. Hell, at this very moment, he was embroiled in a sex scandal that had his face plastered on tabloids and TVs across the nation. Probably across the world. How many women would knowingly get involved with a man like that? What did it say about her that she was even entertaining the idea?

  “Listen, Shell, I guess I’m going to hang out here for the day, and then we’re going out to dinner or something, so … I won’t be home ’til late, alright?”

  “Okay. I’m glad you’re finally giving him a chance, Brooke. I think he really likes you,” Shelly said.

  “I’ll see you later, Shell.”

  They hung up then, and Brooke put her phone away and stepped into the shower with the shower gel and shampoo from the basket. And she was halfway through washing her hair when she remembered that she hadn’t talked to Shelly about the whole clothes thing. And then it hit her that she didn’t even remember seeing anything new in the closet when she’d found her things. And as she was working the conditioner through her hair, she wondered not only where the clothes were coming from, but also when he’d had time to procure them. Surely he didn’t go out and pick them out himself. Maybe he had Lourdes do it?

  Unable to take the suspense any longer, she rushed through the rest of her shower. And when she stepped out, she grabbed the plush, fluffy terrycloth bathrobe hanging by the shower door and pulled it on. Wrapping a towel around her wet hair, she ventured out into the bedroom and spotted two boxes and a small bag sitting on the bed. When had these appeared? They certainly were not there when she woke up. Had they been sitting here when she’d come back into the room? She couldn’t remember. And she didn’t remember Lourdes leaving the kitchen while they were eating breakfast.

  One of the boxes was clearly of the shoe variety, and she opened it up and found a comfy-looking pair of Nike tennis shoes. White, with a white swoosh. Setting them aside, she opened the second box and smiled as she pulled out a pair of Guess jeans and a white, cotton, off-the-shoulder top. It was gorgeous. Soft and simple and elegant. And exactly her style! Something she would’ve easily chosen for herself, and Brooke wondered for the hundredth time what Otis had up his sleeve. This outfit was decidedly casual, and while it suited her just fine, it gave her more questions about his surprise than clues.

  She set the things aside and opened up the bag. Inside she found a white lace bra and panties, and a fresh pair of socks. And the most amazing thing about all of it, was that everything was in exactly her size, right down to the bra and shoes!

  She suddenly couldn’t wait to get dressed and see what exactly was on their agenda. Leaving her new clothes waiting on the bed, she rushed back to the bathroom and, on a hunch, began opening the drawers and cabinets, letting out a sigh of relief when she came across a hair dryer.

  It didn’t take her long to blow dry her long brown locks. Then she hurried back to the bedroom and dressed quickly, marveling at how well everything fit. The jeans hugged the curves of her butt and hips perfectly. She pulled on the top and the shoes, and then made her way back to the bathroom. She didn’t have any of her usual products with her, so she would have to make do with just the mascara and the tinted lip gloss she had in the small silver clutch purse she had carried to the wedding yesterday.

  “That’s as good as it’s going to get, girlfriend,” she said to her reflection in the mirror. Then she clicked off the light, and left the room.

  She made her way
to the back staircase again, and as she did, she could hear music. Piano music. And it sounded sweet and familiar as she descended the staircase. The kitchen was once again deserted, and she turned to walk through the family room, out to the where the piano stood in the long entryway.

  As she crossed the dining room she could see Otis seated at the piano, perfectly backlit by the sunlight streaming in through the wall of windows. He was dressed equally casual as she in a pair of jeans and a plain white t-shirt as he sat playing Mozart like a classically trained pianist. Sonata for Piano No. 3 in B-Flat Major. Brooke knew it well. And she was astounded at how well he played it.

  Quietly, she walked over to him and sat beside him at the piano bench, and he stopped and smiled at her.

  “Don’t stop on my account. That was beautiful,” she said.

  “Thank you,” he said humbly.

  “Yet another contradiction, Mr. Ivory. A rock star playing Mozart?” she asked.

  Otis laughed slightly. “That’s not all that strange. I think you’ll find that most musicians are lovers of all types of music. It’s just in the blood,” he said quietly, turning his attention back to the keys. He played a few more bars and then looked at her once more. “You like classical music?”

  She smiled at him, still trying to figure him out. “Most ballerinas do. It’s like … part of our language.”

  Otis smiled at her explanation. “So, I guess we finally have something in common, huh?”

  The small smile on Brooke’s face began to slowly spread. “I don’t know. Is that all we have in common?” she asked.

  “I think we can find a few more things if we try hard enough,” he smiled.

  “I think maybe there are already a few things if we think about it,” she replied.

  He stared at her for a moment, unable to lose the smile on his face. “So, I see I guessed right about the size,” he said, looking her over. “Everything fits alright?”

  “Yes. Thank you,” she answered timidly. “And they’re great; I love this top.”

  “Good,” he smiled. Then he took a deep breath and looked around. “Well, we have a little time to kill before we have to get ready, so …”

  “Ready for what?” she asked, sounding vaguely like a kid at Christmas. And he laughed.