Just His Taste

by Candice Gilmer

  “Nothing important,” she said, forcing a smile. “I do need to be going, though. I have some things I forgot about.”

  Jason raised his eyebrow.

  “It’s work,” she said, not quite meeting his gaze.

  “What do you have to do this time of night?” Jason asked.

  “Paperwork,” she replied. “A lot of it.”

  He nodded, not believing her. “I see.”

  “I’m sorry,” she said, her voice softer. “But it’s something that I have to do.”

  “Okay.”

  “I mean, I’ve got a lot of it to work on. A new, uh, client. Gotta go over everything so I can find him his Happily Ever After.”

  “Sure,” he said, taking a big sip of his drink.

  “It is—it’s really important that I give this file my full attention. I have to get to work on him tomorrow.” She almost downed her whole drink.

  “Do you need a ride home?”

  She shook her head. “I’m fine.” She emptied the glass and stood up.

  “Let me take you back to your car, then.”

  She shook her head again, and that was when he noticed that her hand was trembling. “No, I got this. Really.”

  This isn’t right. His instincts Klaxon blared in his head. She was obviously shaken up. And likely intoxicated. Cop Jason kicked in, and he knew he couldn’t just let her walk back to the bed and breakfast. It wasn’t far, but he couldn’t do it.

  Jason stood, and as Ava tried to slide around the table—to escape—he stepped right in front of her, stopping her.

  “You aren’t all right,” he said.

  She met his gaze this time. “Fine. Take me back to the bed and breakfast.”

  “Let’s go.” He led her out the door. He put his hand on the small of her back.

  She jerked from his touch. And blushed. “Sorry. I don’t like people touching my back.”

  “Why is that?”

  “Just a thing.”

  He nodded. Not that he understood, but Ava already seemed tense. No reason to push.

  They made it to the van, and he held the door open for her.

  She hesitated at the van’s door. “You know, I really could walk. It’s not that far.”

  “It’s fine,” Jason said as she climbed in. He closed the door and walked around to his side.

  The smells from the barbecue greeted him as he got in, and his stomach rumbled.

  “Do you get to go home and eat the extras?” she asked as he started the vehicle.

  “Yep.” He put the car in gear and started back toward the bed and breakfast.

  She didn’t say anything at first, except he noticed that she fidgeted, her right hand moving near the door. He wished the van had auto locks because he wondered if she was going to try and jump out of the car.

  He made himself focus on the drive. Very few streetlights illuminated the road, and the darkness pressed in on the van, making the dim light inside seem even darker. A flash of red caught his eye, but when he glanced toward her, he didn’t see anything.

  “What?”

  “Thought I saw something,” Jason said.

  “Oh.”

  Silence.

  The trees curved over the road, effectively framing them in the quiet. Not even another car on the road. He couldn’t even make out the lights from the bed and breakfast ahead, the full foliage of the trees blocking everything.

  Jason slowed the van to a crawl as he looked for the entrance to the place.

  “Ever find yourself stuck in a position that you wished you weren’t in?” Ava finally said as he eased into the parking lot.

  Jason brought the vehicle to a stop near the drive. A few cars littered the lot, most parked near the building’s entrance. He’d planned on taking her all the way to her car, but he couldn’t let her go yet.

  His gut roiled and it wasn’t from hunger. “What’s going on, Ava?”

  She sighed. “I can’t tell you.”

  “Why not?”

  “You wouldn’t believe me if I did.”

  “I was a cop for quite a few years.”

  “I think that very reason is why you wouldn’t believe what is going on.”

  “You might be surprised.”

  “Oh, I have the winning hand there.” Her coy voice and smile didn’t hide the worry in her eyes. Even in the dim van, he could see it.

  Very, very clearly.

  Something had rattled her badly.

  He put his hand on her arm. “Ava. Please. Tell me what’s going on.”

  Her fingers laced through his. “I can’t. But let me say this, because this I want you to believe. It’s the truth, and it’s important that you hear me.”

  “Okay.”

  “You are an amazing man. Confident, sexy, intelligent. A hell of a cook. And I want nothing more than the very best for you. I really, really do.”

  “But…”

  She put her hand on his cheek, her thumb stroking the little bit of stubble that had come in over the day. “But that’s not going to be with me. I’m sorry.”

  “Why not?” He covered her hand with his, pressing it against his cheek, loving how her skin felt against his. The words were so bold, but they were also completely true. The feelings he’d had all day as he looked for her at the wedding, they all boiled over in him.

  Primal.

  And true.

  She opened her mouth to reply, and stopped. Shook her head, like she couldn’t decide what she wanted to do.

  Jason, however, knew what he wanted to do. Overwhelming and strong as the need was, he didn’t hesitate.

  He pulled Ava across the open space between the captain’s chairs of the van, wrapping his arms around her neck.

  Ava fell into his embrace, and in a flash their lips pressed together.

  Hard.

  Wet.

  Powerful.

  Lips, tongues. Heads rocked from side to side. A kind of energy he’d never experienced before hit him hard, coursing through his entire body. He could practically feel his veins charge with this incredible surge.

  Like all the worlds had come together.

  She pressed her hands against his chest and cut off their kiss. “Uh…Jason…oh.” Her cheeks flushed, her eyes dilated and became darker than they’d been all night as she scooted back.

  Evidently, she felt it too.

  “Whoa,” he whispered.

  “Yeah. I-I gotta go.” Ava popped the door lock and nearly fell out, trying to get away.

  The stark yellow-white light blinded Jason for a second as he opened his own door and darted around the van to catch her.

  Fortunately—or unfortunately for her—she’d stumbled and was pushing herself off the ground as he got to her.

  He helped her up, but didn’t let go of her as she rose.

  “Thank you,” she said, dusting herself off.

  “Ava.”

  She met his gaze. “I—”

  He cut her off with another kiss. This one, he pressed her against the side of the van, and she melted into him. Her hips rubbed against his.

  Their lips danced. Hell, they went to war. Jason hadn’t ever been so overwhelmed by any woman.

  Ever.

  He’d take her against this van if she’d let him.

  He ran his hand down her side, and as he cupped her rear, her leg rose, wrapped around his hip. He very much wished she were still wearing the dress from earlier.

  Ava pulled away and tipped her head to the side. Jason took the invitation to taste her throat.

  She groaned. Her hips ground into his.

  Holy hell.

  His turn to make noises.

  One of her hands went into his hair, the other down to cup his ass.

  “Oh Jupiter,” sh
e whispered.

  He paused.

  Yep, a mention of a planet gave him pause, even in this uber-hot moment.

  He glanced at her. “Uh, excuse me?”

  She blinked, and it brought her back to reality. Her face flushed again. “What?”

  “I’m a science nerd too, but I’ve never heard anyone moan for Jupiter before.”

  Her eyes went crazy wide. “Oh wow. I’m…I…uh…”

  “Are you an astrologer or something? Does Jupiter have some influence over super-awesome, hot make-out sessions?”

  “Not exactly. I, well, I worship the ancient gods and goddesses. The Roman ones. Jupiter is the leader, up on Olympus.”

  “I thought that was Zeus,” Jason said.

  “Jupiter is his Roman name.”

  “Ahh. Well then, ‘Oh Jupiter’ is right.”

  She smiled, a pretty one this time.

  He ran his finger down her nose, and she glanced down, impishly, like a fairy in a kid’s movie. “I think your prediction may be wrong.”

  She shook her head. “No. I’m right. I’m always right.”

  “I would be willing to challenge that.” He leaned in closer to kiss her, but she pushed away.

  “Listen, I—I have to go. I really do.” And she slipped away, twisting out of his grip.

  Jason let her go, but he didn’t want to. “Where’s your car? I’ll walk you.”

  “Over there,” she said, gesturing to the cluster of cars near the entrance.

  He reached over to take her hand, but she increased her pace, almost speed walking toward the cars.

  Past the cars.

  To the—holy hell, this woman was going to kill him—the sexy motorcycle on the end.

  “This is me,” Ava said, climbing on the bike like a pro. Her legs stretched over the chassis, and Jason got hard all over again.

  Chick. Bike. Legs.

  Check, check and check.

  “Really?” Jason walked around the street bike and about choked when he saw the BMW logo on the side. “Wow.”

  She hit the kickstand, hand on the grip, and started it. It rumbled and revved as she put on her helmet.

  “I have to go,” she said.

  “I want to see—”

  She took off, dirt spraying as she tore out of the parking lot.

  “Son of a bitch,” Jason muttered. He realized as she pulled away that not only did the bike not have a tag on it, but he didn’t even know her last name.

  Fuck.

  Chapter Eight

  Ava tore through the city streets before bursting out of the city onto an old country road. And from there, she took off, driving as fast as she could. Faster.

  Even faster.

  She hit one hundred miles an hour without batting an eye.

  The revving engine underneath her didn’t soothe the desperate sexual desire that Jason had built in only minutes, but it helped. Though she doubted even Cupid could squelch this kind of want.

  Nothing this strong had ever happened to her. She’d talked to charges before. She’d talked to a charge’s love interest to feel them out. And many times those interactions had involved having a drink with them, really speaking to them and getting to know them.

  Never had she been so tempted to let go—to not do her job—like this.

  This was not the typical case. Something had to be wrong. This had to be a mistake. There had to be a reason she’d responded so strongly to him. Was he using some kind of pheromone spray or something?

  Regardless, what in the stars was she going to do now?

  She felt a connection to her charge. One that no Fairy Godmother should ever feel.

  She had to admit it, because if she didn’t, she’d never be able to deal with it. And the worst thing any Fairy Godmother could feel was a connection to her charge—well, other than sisterly compassion.

  And there was nothing sisterly about the emotions she felt for Jason Gregorian. Not to mention the ones he obviously had for her—his aura had about gone berserk with all the twirls of desire pulsing through him when she’d climbed on the motorcycle.

  It might have been more, but she’d made herself shut off that power because she didn’t want to see it.

  It was easier to deal with it if the attraction was one-sided.

  Ava watched the road, slipping around the curves, leaning into its turns. Feeling every bump and jar, she forced herself to focus. At these speeds, she had to be careful. She didn’t want to end up in a healers’ ward.

  Not at the beginning of this. Not now.

  The wind blew against her, and the motorcycle flew faster than she’d ever traveled with her wings, and centered her like nothing else. Motorcycles had become an obsession of hers since their creation. Nothing both thrilled her and brought her more peace than slipping on one and flying down the road.

  She cranked up the speed even more. Here, she would find her answer.

  She always found her answer on a bike.

  Today would be no different.

  The country road turned cave-like as the trees grew tall and thick on each side, branches curving overhead, shielding the sky.

  “Speed” by Montgomery Gentry came to mind. While Ava usually remained more of a rocker girl—even before rock and roll came around—that song seemed appropriate.

  She needed to get some space between her and her charge.

  And fast.

  Because she had to clear her he—

  Everything suddenly went both superfast and ultraslow. Ava felt more than saw the little sandbar on the road.

  The bike twisted, the rear flinging itself out from under her.

  Go, go, go! Ava heard clearly in her head.

  She pushed up on the seat, her wings burst from her back, tearing apart her tank top. Momentum pulled her down—she struggled, striking hard with the wings.

  Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Ava shot into the air. Her wings pumped hard, sending her shooting into the sky.

  Rather, straight into one of the trees.

  Even with her helmet on, she slammed hard into its thick branch.

  The last thing she thought as she fell?

  Shit.

  I am fucked.

  Chapter Nine

  Cupid had witnessed the entire episode between Ava and her charge at the bed and breakfast.

  As Ava took off on her motorcycle, Cupid pulled up the file on her charge, Jason Gregorian.

  He studied the file carefully and noticed that the single blank line on the Potential HEA section had filled in.

  Files normally did not change unless something drastic had been set into motion in the process of a Fairy Godmother assignment. And this one had changed significantly.

  This was not good. Not good at all.

  “Ava, my darling, you may not understand this. But it’s for your own good.” Cupid ran his hand over the file and changed the information. One of the minor liberties a god held over a fairy. Gods could change the files, if it was necessary. Though very rarely did gods bother with fairy business. It usually was something that they never paid any attention to.

  This time, though, Cupid felt very justified.

  It took a few moments for the letters and the notes in the file to adjust, but they did.

  Cupid then glanced at Ava’s charge, who stood there in the parking lot, staring after her like a lost puppy.

  “Hmm, this may take some work.” He circled his hand in the air and saw where the woman Tessa, the other potential HEA, was. Invoking one of the gifts of being the God of Love, Cupid twisted her thoughts. With a few deft adjustments, the woman stood and headed out the door, back toward the bed and breakfast.

  “Now, to keep him here.” Cupid floated around. Mortals could not merely appear in locations like gods, so he needed to stall
the charge until she arrived.

  Cupid flew around him and his van. “Perfect.” He fired an arrow—double-tipped with his special magic to make someone fall in love—through the back tire on the driver’s side.

  He conjured a chair to watch the coming events unfold.

  Oh how he loved manipulating mortals. He didn’t do it as much as he used to. The fairies had rules, and whether Cupid liked it or not, he had limits on what he could do.

  Rules could be twisted as needed, however.

  Especially in a situation like this.

  Minutes later, the fun began. When the charge touched his tire, Cupid’s magic hit him. The mortal’s aura lit up like fireworks as Cupid’s potion came to life in his system.

  And, right on cue, the woman Tessa pulled into the parking lot.

  She got out and walked toward Jason.

  Jason looked at her.

  Blinked twice as the magic hit him hard. Then his aura lit on fire for her.

  From Cupid’s vantage point, he could see all the swirls of desire and need and want that suddenly rushed through the man. Desires and thoughts he probably didn’t realize he could have for someone.

  Good.

  Good.

  It will keep the man confused.

  Now, though, for her.

  She approached, and said a few words, asking him if he was all right. The man stumbled, falling against the van. She came to his side, touching his arm, and the man winced.

  Hmmm. Maybe Cupid had upped the dosage too much.

  And Tessa looked rather irritated at Jason.

  Perhaps she needed some assistance too. Cupid pulled an arrow, ready to hit her as well, but she touched the tire, right on the cut. Immediately, her aura lit up, not quite as strongly as his did, but it ignited enough to know that she had been infected with his potion as well.

  Well, that makes it easy.

  Cupid smiled and went back to the Fairy Realm to comfort Ava.

  Chapter Ten

  Bright lights were everywhere. Was a semi bearing down on her?

  Ava glanced around and realized she wasn’t in the middle of the country road. It took a second, but she figured out she was back in the Fairy Realm. As she tried to move, pain shot through her left shoulder.