“I should leave if I’m distracting you. I don’t want to be responsible for a dearth of bad jokes.”
“No, look at you . . . My God. Stay.”
I laughed. “Well, I guess I could give you a minute or two.”
“I don’t know if I should be more offended that you believe I’d only last that long”—he returned to my neck and then back to my lips—“or that you’d be okay with leaving.”
I slid my fingertips over the warm, taut skin along his abs and beneath the waistband of his jeans. The tension in the room heightened, our banter forgotten. His zipper slid down smoothly, and I reached inside to stroke his rigid length. He inhaled with a hiss, his mouth at my throat and his hands trailing down my spine.
“I’m not leaving,” I whispered. I’d never taken control like this, and his sharp intake of breath pushed me forward. “Just in case you were wondering.”
“Thank God,” he murmured into my neck, before I slid down his body to take him in my mouth.
Jake’s excitement, his obvious pleasure, sent a bolt of arousal through me. The way his groans rumbled from him in a frantic burst drove me so wild, I didn’t want to stop. This wasn’t the first time I’d done this, but it was the first time I’d enjoyed it. When I finished, his heavy breathing filled the room, and I slowly pulled away, embarrassed by how much that had turned me on. Something in the combination of his reaction and knowing that I was giving him that feeling, that I had the power to drive him to a place where he lost control, filled me with an odd burst of confidence. The sensible woman in my head reminded me I had given a blow job and not discovered the secret to world peace, but I ignored her. This felt great.
Jake opened his arms and pulled me to lay next to him, his hooded gaze scanning my face, sweeping his long fingers along my neck. “You’re amazing.”
“I might have read a few how-to articles in magazines,” I joked.
He chuckled. “That was amazing, yes, but more than that . . . tonight . . . you being here . . . greeting me like this . . . all of it.”
“Yeah?” I moved to my side as well, facing him, our bodies aligned, chests pressed together.
“You’re so . . . unexpected.” His index finger traced the top of my ear and down my jawline, and his expression was intense, like he was fighting with himself.
I glanced away from his stare, examining the stubble on his chin. His eyes bored into me, and I couldn’t always handle it.
“It’s not something I do. I need you to know that,” he added.
I smiled, one eyebrow cocked. “You seemed to enjoy your first time.”
He chuckled, his intense stare relenting. “No, there’ve been lots of women for that . . . Gladys, Mabel, Gertrude, Estelle . . .” He wrapped his arm around me, splaying his fingers across my back as I feigned offense.
“How do I rank?”
“Second only to Gladys,” he returned, laughing at my indignant expression. “She didn’t have any teeth!” We both let our giggles fade into smiles, staring into each other’s eyes again.
“I’m serious, though. I don’t know if you believe me. That sounds like something all guys say, but it’s true.” With a brush of his fingertips down my cheek, he added, “I think you’re special. So even though this is just—”
“A few days.” I finished his phrase.
“A few days,” he repeated, “I don’t want you to think you’re a notch in my bedpost or something.”
“I believe you.” Despite all my experience telling me not to.
He kissed me, unhurried, and arousal pooled in my belly. “How was the bath?”
“I knew the jets could do a number on me, but I took a chance and waited for you.” I stroked the nape of his neck, drawing circles on his skin.
“Mm, waited for me to take a bath with you or to do a number on you?”
“Both?” I rested my head against his chest.
His hand slipped down the back of my hair, combing through my tresses. “Whatever you want.”
“Honestly, this is nice, right here.” I had no intention of telling him why I longed for this sense of protection and being surrounded. Jake was everything I needed in a distraction. “How was the groom’s last night as a bachelor?”
“Revealing,” he said. “Thomas told us all about why he loves her, the rich tapestry that is Madison, more and more after each drink.”
“That’s not so shocking, is it?”
“I guess it shouldn’t be. Thomas usually keeps his cards to his chest, but he was just . . . out there, open. Drunk off his ass, but still, madly in love with his twenty-one-year-old bride.”
“That’s sweet,” I murmured.
“Made me wonder if I’ll ever feel that way about someone.” Jake’s voice turned a little sad, and I bit my lip to stop myself from pressing further. His voice had a tinge of something different, something between bitterness and sadness.
I deflected, trying to put his change in tone out of my mind. “What time do you have to do wedding stuff tomorrow?”
“Meeting at nine to get a straight-razor shave at a barbershop, then we start up at ten thirty with three hours of photos.”
“Wait, three hours? That’s ridiculous, like diagnosably unhinged bridezilla behavior.”
“Tell me about it. Then a ceremony at the church and the reception in a ballroom downstairs. The rehearsal tonight was chaos, so we’ll see.”
“Sounds like you’ll have a busy day.”
“I’m honestly more interested in my busy night.” Jake’s palms slid down my body, then inched back up my ribs, pushing the shirt over my head.
“Plans?” My words caught in my throat as he pressed his lips to one of my nipples, rolling his tongue in languid circles.
“Big plans,” he murmured against my breastbone, the vibrations leaving my next breath a shaky inhale.
“I like plans.” I sighed, my head falling back against the pillow as his hands caressed and stroked, telling me all the things he wanted to do.
* * *
Hours later, his body heat enveloped me. I didn’t move a muscle, and I wasn’t sure I could. “Hey, Jake?” I wanted to tell him I wasn’t ready for our few days together to end, that the last week was unlike anything I’d experienced in my life, and I was afraid I’d never be this content again. But that also meant risking my career and everything I’d worked so hard to reclaim. It means risking more than that.
“Mm?” His sleep-heavy warm breaths puffed over the top of my ear.
I wanted to tell him we could screw the rules and see where this led, but that would mean trusting him and giving him the power to hurt me, or to control me, and I’d sworn I’d never do that again. I was already putting myself in a precarious situation if anyone from work found out.
But he’s not Davis.
And no one has to know.
“Nothing.”
He kissed my neck, his body relaxing against me, and my eyes drooped. I fell asleep with his hard, warm chest against my back.
* * *
I had every intention of slipping out of bed and taking an Uber home after a quick pleasure-induced catnap. But when I woke again, the room was filled with a dim light, and I was alone in the bed. My eyes snapped open as I tried to get my bearings in an unfamiliar environment.
The bathroom door swung open, and Jake emerged, scrubbing at his hair with a towel. “Did I wake you?”
“You didn’t.” I rubbed at my eyes and sat up against the headboard, pulling the sheet up to cover my breasts. “What time is it? I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to stay over.”
“About eight forty-five—I have to meet Thomas and get to the barbershop soon.” Jake grabbed a pair of jeans from his nearby suitcase and pulled them up and over his thighs. When he settled on the bed next to me, his hair was in all different directions, and there were a few drops of wate
r on his shoulders I wanted to kiss away. “Good morning,” he said with a smile, leaning in to plant a soft peck on my lips. “I’m glad you stayed. I wish we had more time for a proper good morning, but you looked so peaceful sleeping, I didn’t want to wake you.”
I swept a hand over his tousled locks. Jake closed his eyes briefly as my fingernails grazed his scalp. A barely audible sigh slipped from his mouth, and my lips turned up as I took in his long eyelashes and the firm set of his jaw. I imagined waking up like this every morning with those soft, sexy moments together. I’d slept like a rock without the usual middle-of-the-night startles or bouts of insomnia.
Stop it. It’s a few days.
“I’ll get out of here so you can go,” I said after a moment, letting my hands fall and breaking the kiss. “It will only take me a few minutes to get ready.”
“Stay,” Jake said, not pulling back. His blue eyes were still focused on my mouth.
“I shouldn’t.” I made a move to stand, but I was still covered in only the sheet.
“Up to you, but you could sleep longer or take that bath we never got around to. No need for you to rush on my account. We didn’t exactly get a lot of rest last night.” Jake grinned before glancing over my shoulder at the bedside clock. “Shit, I have to go.” He reluctantly rose, pulled a T-shirt from his suitcase, and grabbed his watch and wallet from the dresser.
I followed the lines of his back and shoulders as he pulled on shoes and glanced at the clock again. “I have wedding stuff all day. But I’ll talk to you later?”
I nodded, and he pressed his mouth to mine again, his tongue sweeping my bottom lip. He tasted like toothpaste, which I found oddly comforting and familiar.
“It will be pretty amazing knowing you’re here, naked in my room,” he said with a wink before he stepped into the hallway.
It was kind of amazing. Every time I woke up with him, I couldn’t help but wonder if I was waking up to myself a little more. I leaned my head back against the headboard with a sigh and held in my smile, trying to rein in my reactions to this man who seemed a little more irresistible with every interaction. It’s just sex. It’s just sex. It’s just— Before the door clicked shut, I heard a husky alto voice call out from nearby. “Good morning, Jacob.”
My head snapped back up at the use of his full name. I pulled the sheet around me and tiptoed closer to the door. I felt utterly ridiculous spying on the conversation, but I listened anyway.
The woman’s voice came through the door, so they must have been standing close. “Quite the coincidence that we’re neighbors,” she said. This time it sounded like a purr. Something a lot like jealousy rose in me.
“You know I prefer Jake, and I’m sure it isn’t. Good morning, Gretchen.” Jake’s voice, even muffled through the door, sounded formal and stiff. I’d never heard his words so clipped or his consonants so tightly articulated.
My muscles tensed, and goose bumps formed on my arms. Who is Gretchen?
“I’ve always called you Jacob. You know I detest nicknames.”
“Well, I no longer have to care what you detest.”
There was a pause before she spoke again. “Have fun with your overnight guest?”
“That’s not really your business, Gretch.”
“Well, I am your wife, so I’d say it’s my business.”
Twenty
I let someone in for the first time in three years and he’s cheating on his wife? A flush rose up my neck, and shame settled as a heavy lump in my belly. I hadn’t realized I’d taken a couple steps away from the door, my arms crossed over my stomach. No, no, no. I looked around the room as if someone would materialize to absolve my guilt or justify my rage. How did I read this so wrong?
The woman’s voice continued. “The walls are thin, and whoever you picked up was quite . . . vocal, so it’s not like you need to tell me.”
I cringed, trying to recall the number of times I’d cried out, unable to control my voice or my body. How mortifying for me. How agonizing for her. Oh, God.
“Do you already have someone on the side?”
Jake’s voice rumbled. “We’re separated, so if I am seeing someone, she’s not on the side, she’d be at the center.” He continued, his voice lower. “On the side is what you and Charlie did.”
“You’re going to throw that in my face here? At least Charles made time for me. Does your girlfriend know you’d rather pore over spreadsheets than get between the sheets? That nothing comes ahead of work?”
“Please, keep your voice down.”
I pictured him running a hand through his hair the way I’d seen him do the night of the party at Flip’s house. I also wondered if him continuing to dismiss the work conflict between us was him putting me ahead of work. Though, maybe being with a workaholic would take the pressure off me to balance everything. Who cares? He’s married!
“Did you come out here just to yell at me? Is there something you want, Gretchen?”
Another beat of silence passed before she spoke again. Her voice had softened. “No, Jacob, wait. I’m sorry. That was out of line. You know how I get when I’m stressed. I can’t stand Thomas’s barely legal bride, and I’m worried he’s making a huge mistake.”
“She’s not that young, and he loves her.”
“Love isn’t always enough.” Her voice further softened, and I wondered if they’d walked down the hall.
The edge faded from Jake’s tone by a fraction. “Maybe with the right person, it is.”
I imagined her wincing at his words. When she spoke again, her voice had returned to a louder, more clipped tone.
“You promised you’d keep up appearances around my family. Please do.”
“I already promised I would. I need to go, Gretch. Your brother and the guys are waiting.” Jake’s voice faded as the sentence continued, and I realized he must have been walking away.
Gretchen’s voice was still clear and loud. “Try not to sleep with anyone else on the way to the lobby, will you? My parents are staying in this hotel, too.”
I held my breath, an unrealistic fear taking over my body that she would rush the door and confront me in person, but she remained silent, and then I heard the beep from the room next door.
Walking back across the room and looking for my phone, I released the breath. What the hell? What was I doing standing naked in a room where the scent of sex still hung in the air twenty feet from his wife? I needed advice and dialed Felicia’s number.
Felicia picked up after three rings. “You never call me this early in the morning. What’s going on?”
Remembering Gretchen’s comments about the thin walls, I lowered my voice and slipped into the bathroom. “I need your help.”
“Sure . . . kids are in a Netflix trance. I have a few minutes. Why are you whispering? Are you okay?”
“His wife is in the room next door. She heard us, and now I need to get out of here.”
“Slow down. Back up . . . He’s married?” I pictured Felicia’s knit brow as she tried to make sense of my hurried, hissed speech.
“I just overheard . . . I think he’s separated, but he never said anything about it, and she’s right next door. She heard us. What if she sees me?”
“Just walk out. Unless . . .” She paused, and I heard the smile in her voice. “You’re not, like, tied to a bed or something, are you?”
“No, of course not!”
“Just checking—don’t act like you haven’t been doing a lot of things outside the norm lately!”
“Fel, this is serious. What do I do?”
I leaned against the bathroom counter and caught my reflection. I looked properly sexed up—hair in tangles and my eyes sleepy from the late-night exertions. My late-night exertions with someone else’s husband.
Felicia continued. “I don’t know. What exactly did you hear?”
I reco
unted the parts I could remember, prickles of embarrassment winding up my body. “It was so bitter.”
“Certainly sounds like two people in a bad marriage.”
I nodded, trying to come up with a plan.
“You’ll be fine, Nay. Take a shower, get dressed, and just walk out.”
Felicia’s reassurance set my nerves slightly at ease. Though, I still pictured this faceless woman cornering me in the lobby and yelling at me for sleeping with her husband while hundreds of strangers looked on.
“Please tell me the sex was at least good, though? If he ends up being a cheating jackass, I want you to have gotten a few good orgasms out of it. I spent the last hour watching a cartoon pig solve mysteries by learning to spell . . . I need adult details.”
I glanced at my reflection again. My chin was a little red from his stubble. I flexed my hand—the outer part of my palm hurt from when I’d smacked it into the wooden bedside table when Jake had done something with his tongue that set me on fire. “I’m not giving you a play-by-play while your kids watch cartoons ten feet away. But yes, it was good.” Great. Amazing. Holy hell.
Felicia sighed. “I like this new version of you, Turner. The confident and sex-crazed version.”
I rolled my eyes, though I kind of liked this version, too. I wondered what would happen in two days when this experiment ended. It was hard to imagine starting over again and trying to flirt with another bartender. “Okay, thanks for talking me down, Fel.”
“Go home and take a nap since you were up all night with Mr. Consultant-the-Wonder-Cock.”
“Jesus, Fel. Aren’t your kids right there?”
“You don’t seem to understand what I mean when I say they’re in a Netflix trance. The house could burn down around them and they wouldn’t notice.”
Following Felicia’s pep talk, I took a quick shower and snuck out of the room, closing the door softly, before almost sprinting to the elevators.
Walk of shame after sleeping with a married man. Seems a fitting addition to the list. Check.
How to Fail at Flirting Page 11