by SJ McCoy
She bit the inside of her lip. Why wouldn’t he make this easy? In any other circumstances, she’d be thrilled that such a rich, good-looking guy wanted her. But this wasn’t right. He wanted something from her—and wasn’t making any attempt to hide it. She wanted something from him, and she had to tell him about it before anything else happened. The last thing she wanted was for this to end up seeming like a trade-off. She’d done a lot of things she wasn’t proud of in her life, but she wasn’t about to start using sex to get what she wanted—and she sure as hell didn’t want him thinking that was her plan.
She straightened up and leaned away from him. “Don’t.”
He withdrew his hand, and his smile disappeared. For a second, she thought he was angry to be rejected, but his eyes were full of concern. “Forgive me. I thought …”
She shook her head. “You thought right. Come on. I’ll bet you’ve never met a woman who wasn’t attracted to you. I am. I’m not going to lie, but that’s not what this is about. It’s more important than that.”
He cocked his head to one side. “What is? Tell me.”
“Okay. You put an offer on a lot on Gascoigne Street last week.”
He frowned. “How do you know that?”
“Because I work for Harry Dressel, and I run the community center that currently occupies the lot you’re buying.”
It was Oscar’s turn to sit back. “I see.”
“No, I don’t think you do see. When we met in the elevator last week, you must have been going to see Harry to make the offer.”
“But you work on the seventeenth floor.”
She rolled her eyes. “I work on the eighteenth—for Harry. But you were already going to the eighteenth floor, and I didn’t want to say the same floor as you.”
He smirked. “Why not?”
“I don’t know. I was stupid. I didn’t want you to think I was following you or something.”
There went the cocky grin again. “That’s not stupid. It happens.”
“I’m sure it does. But the point is, when I got to work after he’d met with you, I found out that he’s selling the lot that he lets us use. The center is a lifeline for so many people in the neighborhood. I don’t know what they’re going to do without it.”
Oscar frowned. “So, what, you’re going to ask me not to buy it?”
She shook her head impatiently. “That was my first thought, but I know it’s not realistic. It’s Harry’s way to retire, and besides, if you don’t buy it, someone else will. I just … well, I’ve done my research on you. You seem like a good guy. I kind of want to throw myself on your mercy and ask if there’s anything you can do to help.”
“Like what?”
“Make a donation, to help us find a new place, or at least to rent space.”
He looked deep into her eyes, making her feel he could read the truth of her soul through them. “Why would I want to do that?”
“Maybe you won’t, but I had to try. I had to see if you care about a bunch of latchkey kids, single moms, retired folk, and vets. I have to do something, so they’ll still have a place to go. I figure people like you donate to charities for a tax write-off. I thought maybe you could donate it to the people you’re throwing out.”
He nodded slowly.
Had she blown it? She had no clue. His face wasn’t giving anything away. She waited, but it was driving her nuts.
The car pulled off the road into a driveway where a big electronic gate swung open. She hadn’t been paying attention to where they were going, but they were now in a very high-end neighborhood. The limo crunched up a gravel driveway and came to a stop in front of a beautiful, Mediterranean-style mansion.
She turned to Oscar, who still hadn’t spoken. “Do you want me to leave?”
“Leave? Hell no!” His cocky grin was back. “Why would you leave? We’re just getting started.”
Chapter Eight
Oscar poured them each a drink and handed Grace one. She took it with a curt nod, making him smile. She wasn’t like any other woman he’d ever brought here. There hadn’t been many of them; he preferred to keep his playmates away from his personal life. The ones he’d brought back here were women he’d bonded with in some way or another—some way that went beyond the physical. He wasn’t sure what kind of bond he and Grace had, but there was something about her. Did he want to fuck her? Absolutely. But there was something more than that.
She looked up at him from her seat on the sofa. There was something more than just the sexual going on between them but, right now, he was acutely aware of the fact that her lips were at the same height as his zipper again. Her long, dark hair hung loose around her shoulders, and it would be so easy to tangle his fingers in it as she took him in her mouth. No. He took a drink of the bourbon and got a grip. She’d come to him for help. That was the first thing they needed to deal with. He bit back a smile at the thought that maybe she’d want to reward him if he did. If he could please her, maybe she’d please him.
He sat down beside her and blew out a sigh. “Can I start by apologizing?”
She looked wary as if she thought he was setting her up somehow.
He reached out and took hold of her hand. “I’m not a bad guy, Grace. I may be a little misunderstood.” He shrugged. “Or not. I like to play, and I play hard.” He couldn’t resist letting his gaze travel over her body as he said that. “But that’s only because I work hard. I put all of myself into everything I do.”
She met his gaze and raised an eyebrow.
He chuckled. “Don’t look at me like that. I’m not feeding you lines. I want you to understand. I was caught off guard just the same way you were when I saw you again. You’ve had a chance to get used to the fact that the guy from the elevator is the same guy you need to talk to. I’m only just processing the fact that the hot chick I met in Dressel’s building is someone I also need to take seriously.”
She frowned at him. “You’re going to take me seriously?”
He nodded solemnly. “Very seriously.”
She looked suspicious. “In what way?”
He had to laugh. “I know what you’re thinking, and you’re right, but only partly right.”
“What am I thinking?”
“That I mean I’m going to take fucking you very seriously. That I’m going to be very thorough about it.”
She pursed her lips.
“That was what you thought, wasn’t it?”
She nodded reluctantly.
“But I’m also taking you seriously about the lot and the community center. Do you want to know why I’m opening a second nightclub?”
“It’s your business, and you’re successful, so you’re expanding.”
He shook his head sadly.
“What then?”
“I’m opening a second nightclub because I’m bored shitless. I need a new challenge, and nothing else has presented itself yet.”
“Wow.”
It wasn’t an impressed wow. In fact, she looked pretty disgusted, and he could understand why. “What?”
She shook her head. “It just seems crazy to me that you’re bored, so you can go ahead and open a new nightclub, and in the process take away the one place that dozens of people rely on.”
He nodded. “The world isn’t fair, is it?”
She let out a short bitter laugh. “I was going to say you can say that again, but you really can. It’s just words to you.”
“I know. I’ve never experienced what those people have. I never will. But that doesn’t make me an asshole.”
She held his gaze for a moment, then nodded. “No, I don’t suppose it does.”
“I’d like to help. You’re right, though. If I don’t buy that lot, someone else will.”
She downed the rest of her bourbon and got to her feet. “Thanks for your time, then.”
Oscar stood to join her. “Where are you going? I didn’t say I’m not going to help, did I?”
/> “No.” The anger disappeared from her face, and in its place, there was confusion.
Oscar stepped closer. He didn’t mean to; he couldn’t help it. There was some force that pulled him toward her. He brushed a strand of hair away from her face, drawing a gasp from her lips and sending shockwaves through his body. “What do you want me to do?”
She looked up into his eyes, her full, pink lips were parted, and her breath was coming low and shallow. As soon as he realized she’d misunderstood the question, he was desperate to know what her answer might be.
“I want you to do all kinds of things. I want to do all kinds of things to you.” She ran her tongue over her lips to moisten them, and the ache in his pants intensified. She drew in a deep breath. “What I don’t want to do is confuse matters. I’ve come to you for help. I don’t want to try to persuade you with sex.”
His lips quirked. “Why not? It’d no doubt work.”
She chuckled. “Or at least I could have fun trying, right?”
He nodded eagerly, but she shook her head. “No. I couldn’t live with myself if I screwed you into helping out.”
He nodded sadly. “Much as I’d love to argue with you, I can’t. It’d work. I’m not denying that, but it’d screw everything else up, too.”
“What else is there?”
He slid his arms around her waist and drew her to him. She didn’t resist, and he closed his eyes briefly as he ran his hands down her back and brought his hands to rest on her backside. She felt so damned good. “How about this.” He couldn’t help it; he kneaded her ass as he spoke. “There are two separate and unrelated issues here. First, you need assistance in figuring out how to rehouse your center, correct?”
She nodded, and he was pleased to see that her eyes were glazed with lust. She let out a long slow breath as he held her ass and pressed his hips against hers. He’d swear he could feel the heat between her legs, and his cock strained to get to it.
“So, we’ll set up a meeting. We’ll talk about it, figure out what we can do.”
Her eyes widened, but the surprise didn’t dispel the lust.
“And the second issue is that there’s something going on between the two of us. The guy and the girl who met in the elevator—they’ve got unfinished business, right?”
She nodded again. “They do.”
He lowered his head. She was shorter than he remembered, but she lifted her lips to meet his. He started out slowly, wanting to taste her and savor the softness, but something about her ignited him. He crushed her to his chest and claimed her mouth. Her arms came up around his shoulders as she kissed him back. Her kisses were as feisty as she was. Her fingers tangled in his hair and pulled his head back. She lowered her lips to his neck and nibbled hungrily. Damn. That was a move he used often, but he hadn’t been on the receiving end before. His knees started to buckle, and he walked her back to the couch where they sank down, and their lips found each other again.
She broke away after a few minutes and lifted her head. “I thought we weren’t going to do that.”
He smiled. “I don’t remember saying we weren’t.”
She sat up. “But … but … I don’t want you to help the center so that you can sleep with me, and I don’t want to sleep with you so that you’ll help the center.”
Oscar sat up beside her. “So, don’t.”
As he’d suspected, there was disappointment in her eyes. What he hadn’t expected was that it made him happy.
“Okay.” She visibly pulled herself together. “I won’t.”
“Good. I’m glad we got that straight. And now we both understand each other, you can sleep with me just because you want to.”
She met his gaze and held it for a long moment. He could see the struggle in her eyes. He held his breath wondering if she’d surrender or tell him to go screw himself. Eventually, she laughed. He loved the sound of it. It was genuine, real—something women rarely did around him.
He smiled. “Is that a yes?”
She nodded and put a hand on his shoulder drawing him in close. Finally. He’d met her a week ago, she’d invaded his every waking moment since—and most of his dreams, too. It’d been a long time since he’d had to wait this long to get into a woman’s panties. His eyelids lowered, and he leaned in to brush her lips with his. He brushed thin air and opened his eyes. She was smiling at him. “It’s a yes, but not on a first date.”
He sat up straight. Was she screwing with him? “This isn’t a date.”
“I know.”
~ ~ ~
Grace’s heart was hammering in her chest. What was she doing? He wanted to screw her; she wanted to screw him. Why was she doing this? She should just close her mouth and open her legs. It’d be so easy! All the fantasizing she’d done since she’d first set eyes on him could play out for real, right here on his sofa or in his bed, on the floor, or wherever. It didn’t matter. The point was, she could be stripping off his clothes right now, and he could be stripping off hers. Instead, she was saying no, or at least, yes, but not yet? She must have finally flipped.
She watched his face, wondering again if he was going to be angry.
He wasn’t. The corners of his lips turned up in that quirky little smile. He brought his hand up to his mouth and ran his thumb over his lips. She didn’t know if he was trying to hide his smile or drive her wild. He was succeeding at the latter.
“Are you saying we have to go on a date first?”
She pursed her lips. She didn’t really know what she’d meant, other than she wasn’t going to have sex with him right now. She shrugged. She knew men well enough to know that when you don’t answer them, they come up with what they think you might mean. She’d see what he came up with and decide if it suited her.
“Okay, so we go out on a date. Tomorrow night.”
She smiled. She hadn’t expected that.
He smiled back. “And since you aren’t going to sleep with me on a first date, then we go out again on Saturday night.”
“We can’t.”
His smile faded. “Why?”
“Because it’s Saturday night. You’re always at Six on Saturday night.”
“Yes, so you can come there.”
“That wouldn’t be a date.”
He narrowed his eyes and tried to hide a smile. “Okay, so Sunday. On Sunday, you’re mine.”
Her heart raced at the way he said it. Shivers ran down her spine, and her insides tingled in anticipation.
“Do you agree?”
She nodded slowly.
He held out his hand, and she shook it. They were sealing the deal, so why did it feel like she was sealing her fate?
He kept hold of her hand and drew her closer. She leaned in. Just because she wasn’t going to have sex with him, didn’t mean she couldn’t kiss him some more. He claimed her mouth and kissed her more deeply than he had before. Keeping hold of her hand, he placed it over his erection, and she moaned. He was so hard and hot—and so big. He closed his arms around her and pulled her up into his lap, so she was straddling him. His lips never left hers, and she moaned into his mouth as he thrust up. She rocked her hips, loving the feel of his hardness pressing into her heat. She wished she’d worn a skirt, but knew that if she had, her protests about not on a first date wouldn’t save her—from herself, let alone from Oscar.
After what felt like hours, his kissing slowed. Grace felt as though she was slowly returning to earth. She braced her hands on the sofa behind his head and pushed up, intending to sit back, but he tightened his arms around her and held her close, crushed to his chest. His kisses had slowed, but they were deepening, no less intense—if anything, more so. He was taking his time, exploring her mouth with his tongue while his hands explored her back and her ass. They too had slowed. Where before the passion between them had been fiery, this was something different. This was more … what? Intimate. She tensed at the realization. This wasn’t just physical anymore. He was getting to
know her, and it wasn’t one-sided. She was getting to know him.
He ran his hands up to her shoulders and did the last thing she’d expected. He lifted his head with a smile, and he hugged her. He held her close, rested his head on her shoulder and hugged her. She wanted to swipe at the ridiculous stinging behind her eyes, but she didn’t. She remained with her hands braced firmly against the sofa. She wanted to wait it out. It was crazy—the kind of emotional reaction a hug could elicit, but it was okay, she was immune to it. At least, she always had been. He continued to hold her like that until she started to relax. She could feel it, a kind of warmth that seeped through her. She couldn’t resist it. Slowly she lifted her hands from the back of the sofa and wrapped her arms around his neck. She leaned her head against his and sighed. She didn’t mean to; it was something that stirred deep within her and escaped her lips. Tears filled her eyes, but she had no idea why. She wasn’t sad or angry or even frustrated. He nuzzled his lips into her neck, and she smiled. No, she wasn’t any of those things; it was something crazier than that. She named it as she recognized it—she was happy.
“You’re an unusual lady, Grace.”
She chuckled. “I’m not sure I want to know what that means.”
He leaned his head back against the sofa and looked up into her eyes. “I’m not sure I can tell you. I will say that you do things to me.”
She rocked her hips and closed her eyes against the feel of his hard cock and the ripples of pleasure it sent coursing through her.
He pursed his lips. “Yes. That. But that’s what I was looking for. That’s what I wanted and expected.” He closed his arms around her again and hugged her. “This,” he murmured. “The way this makes me feel. This is what I didn’t expect. What I didn’t think a woman could do to me, or for me.”
She nuzzled into his neck. She wasn’t sure she liked what this feeling meant, but she did know she enjoyed it. “I sure as hell didn’t expect it.”
He looked up at her with a smile. “You feel it, too?”
She nodded. “I’d love to lie. I’d love to run a mile and deny it, but I can’t. You’re being honest with me. I owe you the same.”