“Yes,” I said.
He lifted his head. “Yes, what?”
“Yes, I feel the same.”
“And…” he prompted.
“And, yes, I’ll marry you…with one condition.”
He smiled and brought his lips to mine. “All right, let’s have it. What’s your condition?”
“Don’t you dare buy me an engagement ring; it’s a big waste of money. Plain wedding band only.”
He shook his head and smiled. “People will think I’m cheap.”
“That’s just the point. Why spend all that money just to impress other people? I don’t need it and I don’t want it.”
He frowned a little. “Now you’re sounding kind of militant. This isn’t really the tone of the conversation I’d expect to have after I just accepted your marriage proposal.”
I laughed and agreed. “You’re right. How’s this? I love you beyond reason and I would be happy – no, make that ecstatic – to be your wife.”
“That’s better.” He kissed me again and that went on for a while before he rolled us both to our sides.
“Just one more thing,” he said.
“What’s that?” I asked, snuggling in and kissing his shoulder.
“I was just wondering…what would it take for you to lose the IUD?”
I smiled against his shoulder. “I’m not going to lose the IUD; it’s in there pretty good.”
“No,” he said, pulling back and forcing me to look at him. “I mean on purpose. What do you have to do to get it removed?”
“Oh. Are you saying you want us to get pregnant right away?”
“Yes.” His response was prompt and not unexpected.
“Don’t you think it would be better if we were married before we did that?”
“I’ll marry you today. Now that I finally have you, I don’t want to waste any more time.”
“I’m starting to think you only love me for my uterus,” I said and he laughed with me.
“Not at all,” he said. “We both want children and we’re not getting any younger. I’d just really like to get started right away.”
I agreed with that. I didn’t want to still be raising young children when I was in my fifties. “Okay, agreed. But I still want to be married first. Very small wedding. Very small,” I repeated for emphasis.
“Don’t want to waste the money?” he asked, grinning at me.
“Exactly,” I laughed. Then it occurred to me that I was being rather bossy and selfish about the whole thing. “I’m sorry, Jack. I shouldn’t be so bossy. What kind of wedding do you want?”
“The kind that makes you my wife,” he said, pulling me in tighter against him.
My heart squeezed. “God, I love you so much.”
“And I love you. Now, about that IUD…”
I pulled back and looked at him. “You have a one-track mind.”
“Two tracks, actually.” He smirked at me and kissed my forehead. “So, does a doctor have to take it out?”
“Yes.”
“Okay. I’ll make an appointment for you first thing Monday morning.”
“Jack!” I laughed and pushed his shoulder. “I can make my own appointment.”
“Okay, I trust you. But try to get in as soon as possible, and I’ll make the arrangements so we can be married by next weekend.”
Everything was moving so fast. I probably should have been alarmed, but I really wasn’t. It seemed perfectly natural and I found myself a little disappointed that it would be a full week before we were officially husband and wife.
“Sounds like a plan,” I said with a yawn.
“Let’s take a nap,” he suggested abruptly, pulling away from me and reaching to bring the blankets up over us.
“Sounds like a plan,” I repeated and rolled over to my side. He fitted himself against my back, pulling me in closer with an arm around my waist. I didn’t think I would ever get tired of that feeling of him against me, holding me while I fell off to sleep.
I closed my eyes and smiled. “Jack?”
“Yeah?”
“I’m not having four children.”
His arm around my waist tightened. “Hmmm. We’ll see.”
I could hear the smile in his voice and my own smile widened as I drifted off, thoughts of weddings and babies filling my head.
***
I eased into consciousness, aware of a hand on my breast. A warm, hard body pressed to my back. An insistent erection pushing between my upper thighs, demanding attention. A deep, sleep-roughened voice rumbling against my ear. “Let me in.”
I shivered at the feelings of desire awakening all over my body and adjusted my position, cocking my upper leg slightly. I reached behind me, circled my fingers around him and guided him inside.
I squeezed around him and released, rolling my hips and using my internal muscles to milk him for several strokes while he stayed immobile against my back. “Oh, God,” he moaned. “I love fucking you.” And then he was off – whispering the words I loved to hear into my ear, gliding in and out slowly while his fingers busied themselves between my legs.
We went on like that for a while and I could feel my orgasm hovering, frustratingly close, but just out of reach. I moved his hand gently from between my legs, up to my breast, then replaced the hand between my legs with my own. Without a word of question, he slid his other arm underneath me until he had me flush against his chest, his lips at my ear. Both of his hands were on my breasts, tugging and rolling the nipples, the sensations he was creating pooling and centering at my core. I moaned loudly and increased the speed of my self-stimulation.
“Jesus fucking Christ,” he groaned against my ear. “That is so hot - you’re killing me here.” He applied more pressure to my nipples, squeezing and twisting and I came hard, jerking against him and releasing another deep moan.
“Fuck!” In a flash, he had me on my stomach, and went to his knees, grasping my hips and pulling them up with him. I lay there trembling, with my ass in the air, unable to think, let alone move, while the aftershocks of my orgasm pulsed around him. He didn’t seem to mind my lack of participation and stilled briefly, one hand tight on my hip and the other rubbing up and down over my ass.
“So beautiful,” he whispered. He eased out slowly then slammed back in, setting a furious pace. If I hadn’t been lying there half dead, I might have laughed at the sound of my ass slapping against his stomach. He suddenly buried himself deep, his hands clamping hard on my hips and groaning low in his throat as his orgasm shuddered through him.
He settled back on his heels, taking me with him, gliding his hands soothingly over my lower back until his breathing calmed. He pulled out carefully and slid up over my back, kissing his way up my spine, while I lay there like a blob, completely inert.
He rested his weight on his forearms and kissed my shoulder. “I will never get enough of you,” he murmured.
I mumbled out an incoherent response against the pillow, too pooped to form proper words.
He laughed lightly and rolled off of me and settled onto his back. “Come here, baby,” he said, reaching out and moving my hair off of my face.
I grunted in his direction but used my legs and hips to propel myself over the few inches to his side, never lifting my head or stomach from the bed. He slid his arm under me and pulled me in. I plastered myself to his side, feeling beautifully exhausted.
“I love you,” he said and kissed the top of my head.
“Love you more,” I mumbled.
“Let me know when you’re ready to go again.”
I raised my head slowly and gave him a look. “You have got to be kidding me,” I said.
“Yeah, I am,” he said, then burst out laughing. “But the look on your face was hilarious.”
I gave him a half-hearted slap to the chest. “What time is it?”
“About seven-thirty.”
“Already? Wow, we slept a long time. Are you hungry?” I asked foolishly.
“Starving. Do
you want to go take a quick shower, then I can put those burgers on the grill?”
I eased myself away from him and sat up. “Yeah. That sounds good. Maybe the shower will wake me up a little.”
Jack sprang from the bed and I still sat there, watching and envying his energy. He grabbed my hand and tugged. “Come on. And I’ll tell you right now - I’m not making any promises this time.”
“Oh, God,” I groaned as he pulled me out of the bed. “Please tell me you’re kidding again.”
“Am I?” he asked. Then he laughed and dragged me into the bathroom.
Then we took a shower (and I was a little disappointed to find that he had been kidding), ate some burgers, and spent the rest of the evening cuddled up on the couch and watching television.
Chapter 30
By the time Monday morning rolled around, we were both finding it hard to say goodbye. We had showered and dressed and were ready to go – me to work, and Jack to head off to the airport for his meeting in Chicago.
Sunday had been a beautiful day filled with deliciously satisfying lovemaking, sweet conversations and lots of cuddling and laughter. It was a perfect weekend and I was feeling sad, not only because it had to end, but because I wouldn’t see Jack again until Tuesday morning.
Jack was worried about having to go at all, but the meeting was important for the company and we both agreed it wouldn’t be a good idea for him to miss it. To make himself feel a little more secure about leaving me alone, he was going to follow me to the office and make sure I was safely inside before driving off to the airport. Then I had to promise him that I would stay in at lunch and go directly to my parents’ house after work - and call the police if I saw the silver BMW anywhere near me.
“Well,” Jack sighed, pulling away from our embrace. “I guess we’d better get going.”
“Yeah, I guess so,” I said, pulling him back in.
He smiled and kissed me again, then squeezed me to him tightly and held me with his lips against my hair. “God, I didn’t think this would be so hard.” He loosened his hold and rubbed my back. “Okay, on the count of three, we step away and walk to our cars. Agreed?”
I smiled at how silly we were being, but he was right: This was hard. “Okay,” I said. “Agreed.”
Our arms tightened around each other as he counted off. “One…two…three.” We broke apart and I whimpered and heard him sigh as we turned and walked out the door. He opened my car door and held it while I got in. Then he leaned in and kissed me goodbye. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“That seems so far away,” I said with a pout.
He smiled at the pout. “I know. Love you, Ange.”
“Love you, Jack.”
He was still smiling when he closed my door and then he followed me to work, driving off only after I was inside the building and waved at him.
I moved dejectedly to my office, thinking it was going to be a long day if I didn’t snap out of the doldrums and try to think happy thoughts. The accounting department was quiet as I walked through – I didn’t see Marla anywhere, and with Frank and Heather both gone it seemed a little like a ghost town.
I unlocked my office door and went inside, deciding if I was going to be stuck with doing the payroll again this week, I was going to work my ass off to get it all done today. Then I wouldn’t have to deal with it for the rest of the week when Jack would be back.
I made a pot of coffee, texted my mom to tell her I wanted to come over after work and I’d explain when I got there, and then got started. I applied myself to the task diligently, stopping only to call my gynecologist and schedule an appointment.
I made quick work of the emails and phone calls that tried to interrupt me, and lingered over the texts, some naughty, some sweet, that Jack was sending my way. I hoped he was paying as much attention to his meeting as he was to me.
I worked straight through lunch, eating a leftover hamburger at my desk. By 5:00, I saw I only had a couple of more hours left until the job was finished so, since I didn’t have Jack to go home to, I decided to stay and get it over with. I texted my mom again to let her know I wouldn’t be there until later, then carried on. At 7:30 I was yawning and relieved to finally be done. If it hadn’t been for Jack’s messages brightening up the day, I might have died from sheer boredom long before noon.
After closing up my office, I walked through the empty building in search of the security guard. I wasn’t really sure what he did all night, but I found him in the break room, drinking coffee and watching a portable television, and he agreed to walk me to my car.
I looked around the empty parking lot, the only other car belonging to the guard, and didn’t see anything unusual. I relaxed and got into my car, locking the doors before waving my thanks to the guard.
My phone beeped and I found another text from Jack. I assumed his meeting was over and he was probably in his hotel room, because the texts were getting increasingly sinful. This one was downright filthy. His creativity with the dirty word made me laugh and turned me on at the same time. I shot back an equally filthy text, imagining his face when he got it, and laughed out loud as I started my car and drove off.
Making a quick detour to my house to grab some clothes, I took a minute in the driveway to read Jack’s response. That one almost made me blush. Almost.
I ran up to the house wondering if I would be able to manage phone sex later without my parents overhearing. I laughed again, my head filled with thoughts of Jack and feeling happier than I had ever been. I unlocked my door and hurried inside.
I never even saw that first punch coming.
Chapter 31 – Jack
“Hey, Finn. What’s up?” Jack held his phone to his ear while he unlocked his car, still smiling about the last text he had received from Angie. That girl was showing a surprising, and very hot, talent for dirty texting.
“I’ve got a picture for you. Can you look at it now?”
“Yeah, sure. I’m just getting in my car.”
“You’re getting in your car? I thought you were in Chicago,” Finn said.
“I was. I changed my flight so I could come home tonight. I was worried about Angie. She’s spending the night with her parents, but I’m leaving the airport right now to go get her.”
“Aw, young love,” said Finn sarcastically.
“Yep. Now hang up and send me the picture. I’ll call you back as soon as I get it. I’m in a hurry to get out of here.”
“Yeah, I’ll bet you are.”
“Send the picture, Finn.” Jack hung up on him and waited. The picture came through about ten seconds later and he opened it up. It was taken from a distance, but it was relatively clear. He didn’t really recognize the man getting out of the silver BMW until he enlarged the picture and focused on the face.
“Jesus Christ,” he whispered. He looked quite different than he had the last time Jack had seen him, but he still recognized the face.
Steve.
He dialed Finn’s number, put his car in gear and drove off, more anxious than ever to get back to Angie.
Chapter 32
The force of the punch to my upper right cheek sent me reeling in the dark into a closet door. My purse flew across the room and my hand automatically came up to my cheek, where the pain was shooting through the side of my face. It was a pain worse than anything I had ever felt in my life.
“Where’s my goddamn money?”
I don’t know how I managed to keep my wits about me through the pain and the shock of hearing Steve’s voice, but I made a quick turn and bolted the few steps to the still open front door.
More pain to the back of my head as he grabbed me by the hair and pulled me back in. Kicking the door shut, he fisted his hand tightly in my hair, right up to my scalp, and turned me around. My hand closed around his wrist, trying to get him to release the pressure on my head.
He got his face to within inches of mine. “I am not fucking around, Angie. Where’s my goddamn money?”
The stink pourin
g off of him was revolting and I was fighting nausea as I desperately tried to ignore the pain and keep my head on straight. But all I could think was that I would not lie down and be his victim again. So I did the only thing I could. I brought my knee up forcefully and nailed him square in the balls.
He released my hair as he cursed and bent forward, instinctively grabbing his injured balls and giving me the perfect opening. Dumb move, asshole. I grabbed the sides of his head and brought the same knee up again and aimed for his nose. I missed, but knocked him under the chin so hard I swear I heard his teeth rattle. He went down as I quickly turned away and made another attempt at getting to the door.
His hand snaked out and yanked my ankle, bringing me face first onto the floor. Faster than I would have thought he could move in his condition, he was sitting on my lower back and managed to get both of my arms painfully pinned behind me, cursing at me the whole time.
That feeling of total powerlessness swept over me and when it did, it wiped away my fear. The pain in my face seemed remote and unimportant and I was filled with loathing. A loathing so intense, I knew, at that moment, I could take a life and never regret it.
I bucked and tried to twist myself around, screaming at him. “Get off of me, you asshole!” He surprised me by suddenly letting go of my arms and rising to his knees and I made a fast move to crawl out from under him. He stopped my progress by grabbing the waistband of my slacks and I felt something pierce the skin of my left hip.
I cried out at the pain, momentarily stunned and he rolled me over to my back and sat down hard on my stomach, knocking the breath out of me. I saw the knife glinting in his left hand a split second before the next punch slammed into my left cheek.
My face was on fire and I was suddenly very afraid for my life.
“I am not going to ask you again,” he said, as he brought the tip of the knife up under my chin. He pricked the skin there lightly and I knew he had drawn blood. “Where is my goddamn money?
The money had been safely deposited in GLC’s bank account the same day I withdrew it. But there was no way I was telling Steve that and putting Jack’s life in danger. I would rather die myself. My first stupid thought was to play stupid.
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