Caleb dipped his roller into the paint. “Our Aunt called your mom who said you’d better turn up to help, or else.”
“Oh, right.” Andre sighed.
Vinny D’Angelo chuckled. “No matter how old you get, it’s a stupid man who doesn’t listen to his Momma.” If Vinny’s name wasn’t a big enough clue, his tanned skin, and dark hair clearly gave away his Italian heritage.
Aunt Deb walked past them with a stack of documents. “Truer words were never spoken… you missed a spot, Alex.”
Alex groaned and rolled over the spot he’d missed. “When exactly are we getting fed?”
As if she’d heard him, Tisha came out of the kitchen with a large platter of burgers, which she placed on the bar.
“I put the pizzas in the oven 15 minutes ago. They should be done soon,” she said as she walked back into the kitchen.
“Thanks, Tish,” I called and turned back to all of them. “Thanks for the help, guys. I really appreciate it.”
“It’s cool,” Andre said as he, Caleb, Alex and Josh put down their rollers and paintbrushes and went to wash their hands.
Vinny, however, hadn’t heard a word I’d said. He was staring slack-jawed in the direction Tisha had just walked away. “Who is that?” he asked me with wide eyes.
“That’s, Tisha, my sous-chef.” I noted the glint in his eyes.
“How have I never seen her before?” The question seem rhetorical, but I answered anyway.
“Tish, isn’t really a social butterfly,” I explained. “She’s a great girl, Vinny,” I said, making sure he heard the unspoken warning in my tone. Don’t fuck with her, or there will be problems.
Vinny didn’t have quite the same reputation as Josh, but from the stories Caleb had told me, I knew that he definitely was something of a ladies man.
He held his paint covered hands up in a surrender motion as Tisha walked back out with two large pizzas.
After she placed the pizzas on the counter, she looked up and noticed him staring at her. “What?” she asked brusquely.
“I’ve never seen eyes that colour before,” Vinny said. “You’re beautiful.”
“You’re creepy,” she smarted back. Contrary to being discouraged, he smiled at her even wider.
“I’m Vincent D’Angelo, but my friends call me Vinny.”
Tisha stared at him for a moment, as if trying to assess if he was serious or not. “Hi, Vincent. My name is Not Interested.”
“That’s an unusual name. What is it? Greek? I know a great Greek place if you want to get dinner sometime.”
She turned on her heel and walked away, leaving Vinny looking after her like a besotted puppy.
“What? Was it something I said?” he called out after her. “Fine! We can get Italian if you don’t want Greek food.”
He looked at me for answers, and I shrugged. “Sorry. Can’t help you there. Good luck if you decide to go after her. You’ll definitely need it.”
Vinny sighed in a weirdly content manner before strolling to the restroom as the others came back from having cleaned up, and immediately started attacking the food.
Moans of pleasure sounded as they all bit into their burgers.
I was about to go over and join them when the door to the restaurant opened and Karina, Addie’s friend, walked in. “Hey, Karina. I think Addie’s in the office with Aunt Deb.”
“Thanks, but it’s actually you I came to see.”
“Okay?” I said cautiously.
She handed me a piece of paper. “I’d like to apply for the position of waitress.”
“Fuck no,” I replied immediately.
Her jaw dropped. “Well that was rude! Why the hell not?”
“Karina, you forget that I’ve known you since you were twelve. I have no intention of letting my little sister’s insane, wild friend work here.” I shook my head in horror at the thought.
“But I’m a great waitress! And I hate having to drive to a restaurant in Smithsville every day. Oh c’mon, Jake! How about you hire me on a trial basis? If you’re not happy with my performance after a month, then fire me.”
“Nope,” I said firmly.
“Kari! What are you doing here?” Addie asked as she and Aunt Deb came out of the office.
Oh fantastic.
“Well, I was here to apply for the waitress position.” Annoyed hazel eyes glared at me. “But the boss man here said no.”
Aunt Deb gasped and smacked me with a rolled up contract. “Why did you say no?”
“Because it’s Karina,” I protested, and Caleb and Mikhail snickered, earning them glares from both Addie and Karina.
“Jacob Jameson, that is not a good enough reason,” Aunt Deb scolded, putting an arm around Karina. “Let me see that, honey.” She took her resume from her. “She has excellent references, Jake.”
I rolled my eyes, knowing exactly what was going to happen, and sure enough Aunt Deb glared at me as she ordered; “Hire her… immediately.”
“Fine, but you’re on trial for a month. I mean it Karina. You slack or turn up late, and you’re gone.”
She squealed happily, and hugged Aunt Deb, Addie and me.
“I’ll be the best waitress here at… what is the name of this place anyways?”
“He has no idea what to call it,” Addie said. “Which is a problem, because the printers need to know what names to put on the menus by Wednesday at the latest.”
“One problem at a time,” I grumbled walking towards the burgers.
CHAPTER 32
Annika
“You can keep the robe on if it makes you feel more comfortable,” the photographer said as she adjusted the lighting.
“Yes, I think I will.”
For the hundredth time that day I cursed Adelaide Jameson and the gift she’d given me.
Hah. Gift. More like a nightmare.
She also hadn’t been bluffing when she said she would drive me to the shoot to make sure I actually went, though as she’d been busy helping Jake at the restaurant, she had tried to appoint Mitchell as my babysitter, and I had not-so-respectfully declined. The only thing worse than parading around in my underwear, would be parading around in my underwear in front of an audience.
“Okay let’s start off with some simple poses. Just do whatever feels natural.”
I sat stiffly at the edge of the bed. “This is what feels natural.”
“Um. That’s okay,” Hailey, the photographer, said reassuringly. Hailey was a beautiful woman. Her bright red hair had been styled into victory rolls and pinned at the crown of her head, and she was dressed like a pinup model.
“Sometimes it takes some women more time than others to get into it. There’s no rush.”
I nodded tersely.
“Can I get you something to drink?”
“Wine?” I asked hopefully.
She laughed. “I meant a tea or coffee, but wine is an understandable choice.”
I rubbed my hands on my thighs, as she snapped a few pictures. “You have gorgeous skin,” she said, checking the picture display on the camera.
“Thank you?”
“Okay, let’s change it up slightly.”
Hailey made me lie flat on the bed, and looked puzzled as I adopted a sleeping soldier like pose.
“Okay… perhaps this time let’s try looking less umm-”
“Less like a corpse?” I suggested, and Hailey burst out laughing.
She switched off the bright lights and sat next to me on the bed. “Annika, let me ask you, why are you here?”
“I was given a non-refundable gift certificate?”
Hailey snorted. “I don’t buy that. You’re a grown woman, with the ability to say ‘no, thanks’ if you don’t want to do something. A part of you must have at least been curious about the shoot in order to have turned up here today.”
“I suppose?” I agreed reluctantly.
“Let’s try something,” Hailey suggested. “Close your eyes for me and think about the last time you felt sca
red about doing something, but pushed through that fear, and also think about the last time you felt really proud of yourself.”
I closed my eyes and thought back through my memories. I remembered the fear I’d felt when I thought about moving from the only home I’d ever known in London, and how that differed from the pride I’d felt when taking over the bakery had been a success.
“You got something?”
I nodded. “Yes.”
Hailey stood up again and switched on the lights. “Great. I want you to hold on to that feeling. Okay?”
“Okay.”
“Take off the robe,” she ordered, as I got up and allowed the silk robe to fall, she started snapping pictures. “Tell me about what you do?”
“I run a bakery,” I said unsurely.
“No. You run the sexiest damn bakery in the world.” Hailey made a pouty kissy face and I cracked up laughing. “Say it!”
I tried to get the words out through the giggles, but couldn’t. I fell back on the bed as the laughter got the better of me.
The ridiculousness of the situation tickled me further as Hailey put on stripper music, pulled me off the bed and told me to “Shake it, baby” as she kept taking pictures.
Hailey had me completely at ease, as she instructed me to make over-the-top faces, and talked me through exaggerated poses.
“How exactly are these going to look good?” I asked during one particular awkward pose as she sprinkled rose petals over me.
Hailey tutted and positioned my arms over my head. “Trust me.”
* * * * *
“You ready to see the pictures?”
I tied the silk robe around me and nodded. “As ready as I’ll ever be.”
My jaw dropped when I saw images on screen. “That’s me?”
The woman on screen looked like me, but not at the same time. She oozed confidence. The laughter behind her eyes made them sparkle, her smile shone through the pictures effortlessly, and she looked comfortable in her skin.
The purple lingerie clung to her curves like a second skin, pushed up her assets, and complimented her skin tone.
“Hell yeah that’s you,” Hailey said.
“I can’t believe that’s me,” I murmured to myself.
“Well, believe it. That is all you. I’ve not retouched them at all.”
“I look… good,” I scanned all the pictures.
“You look great,” Hailey added. “It’s amazing what can happen when we let go a little, isn’t it?”
I nodded, still slightly stunned.
“That’s your body. Every mark, every scar, every bump, it tells the story of you, and you are pretty freaking awesome. Never forget that. You unleashed you inner vixen today, and she is fabulous.”
It was as simple as that. I was just me, and that was okay. I gave Hailey a hug and thanked her. I made a mental note to give Adelaide Jameson a big hug the next time I saw her too.
As the rush of confidence coursed through me, I knew that Hailey was right.
I had definitely unleashed my inner vixen, and I knew exactly where she wanted to go.
* * * * *
I knocked on the door to the small office before stepping inside.
“Niki! Hey. Not that I’m complaining but what are you doing here? I thought you said you were busy today,” Jake said looking up from some papers he had been signing.
I closed the door behind me and locked it, walking over to him without saying a word.
“Babe, what are you doing?”
I opened the trench coat I’d borrowed from Hailey’s studio and let it fall revealing the lingerie underneath.
The look of Jake’s face was near comical. His jaw dropped and he seemed to have forgotten how to speak.
Pushing him back from the desk, I straddled him in his office chair.
“What-”
I cut him off by kissing him, and for the first time since we’d started dating, I took control of the kiss. I tangled my tongue with his, before pulling away and biting on his bottom lip.
“I learnt something today.” I gyrated my hips over the noticeable bulge under his jeans.
“Oh God,” he groaned. “What did you learn?” I raked my nails across his scalp, and the groans from him made me grin.
“I learnt that I’m all kinds of awesome.”
“Yes. Yes, you are.” His breath hitched as I got to my knees and pulled down his zipper. “Oh, wow.”
Gently pulling his cock I sucked the tip into my mouth, one hand worked his thick shaft as the other played with his heavy balls. I tugged on them lightly, and he groaned louder.
“Oh shit, Niki. That feels so fucking good.”
I doubled my efforts and sucked harder. Jake’s head fell back and the knuckles on his hand turned white from how hard he was gripping the chair.
“Babe, if you don’t stop, I’m going to cum in your mouth.”
Ignoring his warning, I ran my tongue along the slit of his cock, tasting his salty essence that spilled into my waiting mouth.
Jake sank a hand into my hair, holding me to him as his cock continued to spasm in my mouth.
When his body went lax in the chair, I licked him clean and pulled my mouth off his cock.
He opened bleary eyes as I perched myself on his desk.
“That was… fucking wow,” he said breathlessly, leaning forward and running his hands over my thighs.
“Glad you enjoyed it.” I smirked.
“I more than enjoyed it. Do I get to return the favour?” he asked gruffly watching my hands travel across the satin panties as I rubbed my clit.
I nodded, and I hands immediately went to the back of my knees, pulling me to the edge of the desk. “Thank fuck,” he muttered and he pulled the panties down my legs.
“God, you smell good,” Jake murmured before his tongue found my overheated slit. I gripped his head as he ate me like a man eating his last meal.
Within minutes he had me on the edge of my orgasm. Desperate noises escaped me as he finally sucked my clit into his mouth and made me see stars.
He stood up and spread my legs open wider across his desk, before thrusting into me in one swift motion. “I love you, baby.”
I lifted my hips to meet his thrusts. “I love you, too.”
Our bodies slapped together harder than ever before, both of us rushing towards our climax. Jake’s thrust were no longer careful, but raw and hard. He bent over me, and covered my lips with his.
He pressed kisses to my chest, and my hands undid the front clasp of the bra. As soon as my breasts were free, Jake moved his attentions lower, and sucked hard on a nipple. Feeling his teeth graze over the sensitive nubs, sent me over the edge.
My pussy squeezed around his cock. Jake cursed as he came inside me.
Trying to catch his breath he fell back onto his chair, taking me with him.
I rested my head on his shoulder, as his hand stroked up and down my back.
He pressed a sweet kiss to my forehead. “Best surprise visit ever.”
I murmured in agreement. “I think I’m going to like surprising you at work.”
Jake laughed loudly. “I don’t think I’m going to survive your surprises. My heartbeat still hasn’t returned to normal, but I don’t care. I’ll die a happy man.”
CHAPTER 33
Opening Day
Jacob
I switched on the plug that that lit up the name of the restaurant over the door.
JAMESON’S
Aunt Debbie and Uncle Jeremy beamed with pride, and the rest of my family grinned.
“What an original name,” Addie said sarcastically, before she moved quickly to dodge being swatted by the menu Aunt Deb was holding.
“Peanut,” Uncle Jeremy said warningly, and Addie rolled her eyes behind her glasses.
She wandered over to me and threw her arms around me. “I’m just kidding. I’m proud of you, Jakie,” she said in a soft tone I’d rarely heard from her.
I squeezed my baby sister. “
Thanks, Princess.”
“Jameson group hug!” Josh yelled before wrapping his arms around both me and Addie. “C’mon you guys, get in here!”
When everyone turned and walked into the restaurant, Josh yelled, “You guys suck.”
Addie who was stuck between us, squirmed. “Get off me, Josh, or you’ll end up with an elbow in the gut again.”
Josh sniffed and let her go. “Not feeling the love, Princess.”
“That’s because there is none,” she shot back and they walked back into the restaurant bickering.
Niki, who had been standing on the side-lines, wrapped her arms around me. “I’m proud of you, baby.”
“I couldn’t have done it without you.” I tilted her back to kiss her, then looked over at the empty parking spaces.
Niki grabbed my chin, forcing me to look at her. “People will turn up.”
“Wish I was as confident about that as you are.”
She tiptoed to press a kiss to my jaw. “Have faith. Today is going to be amazing.”
Niki’s blind faith in my plans continued to amaze me. I figured I must have done something right in a past life to have ended up with such an incredible woman.
She massaged the muscles at the nape of my neck. “You’re so tense.”
“You know what could help with that?” I waggled my eyebrows and wondered if we had time for another quickie in my office, when a truck pulling to a stop on the main road caught my attention.
My jaw dropped when Marco stepped out of the vehicle and waved the driver off.
Niki looked between me and my mentor. “Who is that?”
“Marco,” I said quietly.
She gasped happily. “You see. I’m not the only one who believes in you.”
Marco approached us slowly. His gaze fell to mine and Niki’s entwined hands, and he grinned from ear to ear.
“Marco, it’s good to see you. I wasn’t sure if you would show up or not.” He shook my hand firmly before pulling me into a hug.
“As if this is something I would miss.” He gestured to the restaurant. “My protégé found his wings. I am proud of you, Jacob.” I nodded my thanks.
Falling Sweetly: Starling Falls II Page 26