by Mia Sosa
Mark waved him in. “Sure. Sit down.”
Ethan dropped into the chair. “So I know you were pissed during that call, and you had every right to be.”
“I feel a but coming on…”
“Well, I’m just checking in, because losing your cool like that isn’t like you. It’s more like me. The old me, I should say. Is something going on?”
Yes. No. Maybe so. Who the hell knew? He certainly didn’t. Ethan’s laser-eyed focus on his face made him loosen his tie. “I’m just stressed, Eth. It’ll pass.”
“You sure?”
“Yeah.”
“In that case, man, you know what to do. If you’re tense, get laid.”
He stared at Ethan. He’d already taken care of the getting laid part, and now he was tenser than ever. But he couldn’t tell Ethan this. Deflect, deflect, deflect. “I’d be less tense if I weren’t so worried about my team’s ability to handle the launch.”
Ethan grimaced and stood. “Mistakes were made. Not by me. You’ll see that soon enough. But in the meantime I’m on it. I’ve got your back, buddy.”
“That’s what I need to hear.”
Ethan angled his head and considered him. “You know…”
“Say it, Ethan.”
“I was just thinking about the Masters Tech Gala. You’re going, right?”
Sponsored by Visnet Technologies, the Masters of Technology Gala celebrated the region’s technology professionals and forward-thinking companies. His secretary had placed it on his calendar, and he’d promptly forgotten about it. Until now. “Of course I’m going. It’s part of the job description. You?”
Ethan shook his head and smiled. “No way. Not part of the job description anymore.”
“Lucky you.”
“Anyway, I was just thinking you could take a date to the gala. I don’t know, maybe call Sharon Castellano and invite her to join you.”
Mark kept his face blank. As soon as she and Ethan had returned from their abbreviated honeymoon, Gracie had contacted him, singing the praises of a former graduate school classmate. Sharon, according to Gracie, was whip smart, confident, and successful. But none of that changed the fact that he didn’t want to call her. Not after he and Karen had spent a night together. Too soon, he’d argued to himself. Eventually, he’d call Sharon, but not yet.
“It’ll give you a chance to see how she handles the networking and social demands of being with someone like you. Some people aren’t cut out for that shit.”
“I’m not going to test the woman, Ethan.”
“I didn’t say you had to test her, Mark. This is all about compatibility, is all I’m saying.”
“I’ll think about it.”
“Don’t think about it too long. The gala’s only a week away.”
“Got it, Mommy.”
Ethan gave him the finger. “You asked for my help. Don’t be an asshole when I give it to you.”
“Sorry, man. You’re right. You might not believe this right now, but I really do appreciate your help. ”
Ethan gave him a carefree smile. “Hey, it’s the least I could do. You dropped everything to attend our wedding. It meant a lot to us.”
“I’m glad I went. I had a great time.”
“All that was missing was a hot woman to keep you company.” Ethan lifted a brow and gave him a cheesy smile. “That would have made the trip even better, right?”
A hot woman had kept him company. And yes, her company made the trip even better. But his plan to have a one-night fling had backfired. He wanted to see her again. Which made the situation worse. Much worse.
Before he left, Ethan snuck in one last reminder. “Don’t forget my suggestion about inviting Sharon to the gala. You have to start somewhere.”
And that was the problem, of course. He couldn’t muster enough interest to pick up the phone and call the woman. Not when he couldn’t get Karen out of his head.
One night.
Right.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Exhausted from a four-hour medical school orientation, Karen came home, used the bathroom, and dove under the covers. Nothing—and she truly meant nothing—would get her out of the bed for the rest of the evening.
She considered the orientation a resounding success. For one thing, she’d been able to focus on the presentations, taking notes on the professors’ expectations of their students and the options for her spring clinical schedule. In less than six months, the medical school would unleash her and her classmates on an unsuspecting public; they’d have the opportunity to assist with taking patient histories and shadowing more experienced medical students and doctors. The orientation had covered the do’s and don’ts of interacting with patients.
For another thing, she hadn’t thought about Mark once—and given how often she’d thought about him the past week, that was a significant feat. But now she lay in bed and memories of her night with Mark returned in full force. She closed her eyes, and a vivid image of Mark staring up at her under the veil of his thick eyelashes came to her.
Her night with Mark had changed her in ways she’d never anticipated. Now she knew the sensation of being stretched to capacity. Now she knew a man could dig his fingers into her hips as she rode him and the bite of pain would make her tighten around him. Now she knew that she could make a man come hard simply by telling him how he made her feel. Moaning from the memories alone, she slid her hand under the comforter, trailed her fingers down her stomach, and imagined Mark’s soft lips marking her body as his.
Her cell phone rang, and she blindly reached for it. What a stupid move. Her hand accidentally tipped the phone off the nightstand, and the phone clattered to the floor. Stretching her torso over the edge of the mattress, she scooped it up. Though she tried to clear her voice of any signs of her arousal, her greeting still came out breathy. “Hello?”
“Karen.”
If she’d had her hand on her clit right then, Mark’s rough voice would have taken her over the edge. She blew out a slow breath. Keep your cool, chica. No fawning over a man allowed. “Mark, this is a surprise.”
“How have you been?”
He’d called to shoot the breeze? How odd. “I’m fine. You?”
“I’m fine, too.”
Except he didn’t sound fine. His voice held none of the playfulness she’d come to associate with him. Instead, she got the distinct impression he resented the need to contact her. “What’s up, Mark?”
“I have a favor to ask of you.”
Never in a million years would she have expected Mark to call and ask her for a favor. Not after they’d agreed to go their separate ways. Not after he’d left Puerto Rico without saying good-bye. She understood why he’d done it—or she thought she did, at least. What they’d done on the island was an interlude to be tucked away, never to be discussed again. Despite her acknowledgment of these facts, she couldn’t shut off her feelings at will. Even now, their tenuous relationship was in its raw phase—the phase in which simply seeing him would make her nervous and edgy. Anything he asked of her would be overshadowed by that fact. “What do you need?”
“I’m attending a gala next week, a sort of who’s who of the technology industry, and I need a date. I was hoping you’d join me. As my friend, of course. But I’d understand if you didn’t want to go. I just figured you might enjoy yourself, and it would make the evening bearable for me.”
For a moment, she wondered if she’d hallucinated the whole exchange. He wanted to take her to a black-tie affair? As friends? Yes, she envisioned them being in the same room together a few months from now. But being together one-on-one, next week, at an event where presumably they’d be expected to dance, too? If she had masochistic tendencies, sure that would be fine. But she didn’t. She swallowed in an unsuccessful attempt to moisten her dry throat. “I don’t—”
“I want to see you,” he said.
A flutter skipped across her belly at his words. Oh, she hadn’t seen that one coming. Her gaze darted around the
room in search of an object to focus on. Without an anchor for her thoughts, she wouldn’t be able to finish the conversation. She settled on the stethoscope her parents had given her as a graduation gift. “Is that the real reason you called?”
She held her breath as she waited for his answer. Seconds ticked by. Was he still there? “Mark?”
“I’m in a hotel room in Miami, thinking about you. I called because I had to. I—”
She held her breath as the silence stretched beyond a few seconds, not knowing what to expect. Her death grip on her cell phone cramped her fingers.
“I want to see you,” he added.
His confession emboldened her. If he could admit it, so could she. “I’d like to see you, too.”
“Okay, we’ve established that we want to see each other again.” The lightness in his voice had returned. “So what do we do about it?”
“Not sure.”
“Well, since we’re being so open with each other, I have another confession to make.”
She’d reached her quota for confessions in a single night. Any more and she’d be a wreck. Oh, who was she kidding? She was already a wreck. “Lay it on me, Lansing.”
“I wish I could reach through this phone and touch you.”
“And I have a confession.”
“Tell me.” His voice had lowered to a whisper.
“I wish you could reach through this phone and touch me, too.”
“Are you in bed?”
“I am.”
“So am I.”
Phone sex was virgin territory to her, but she very much wanted to change that. It would serve as a bridge between their last sexual encounter and their next one—because unless she was seriously misinterpreting this conversation, there would definitely be a next one. “Are you naked?”
He chuckled. “No, but I can fix that.”
“So can I. Ready. Set. Go.”
She dropped the phone on the mattress, threw her tank top over her head, and slipped off her panties. Gah. The stethoscope. She couldn’t look at it without thinking of her parents, so it definitely had to go. She ran to the other side of the room, grabbed the stethoscope, and placed it outside her bedroom door. So much better.
She dove under the sheets. Next, she moved to pick up the phone and stopped herself. Staring at the palms of her hands, she debated whether to pick up the phone with a tissue, until an idea came to her: speakerphone. Brilliant. She gingerly pulled a tissue from the box and depressed the speaker button. “Mark? You still there?”
“Yeah. I’m done, though.”
“What?” She winced at the panic in her voice. “Did you—”
“I’m kidding. Got everything you need. Candles? Soft lighting? Music?”
“Ha, ha. Bear in mind I could do this without you, Lansing. I’ve had lots of practice.”
His groan echoed in her room. “Now I’m really done.”
She laughed. Silence followed. And for once she welcomed it.
“Close your eyes, Karen. Focus on my voice.”
She complied without hesitation. “I’m listening.”
“I want you to use your imagination. If I were there, this is what I’d do to you. I’ll guide you. Is that okay?”
She rubbed her thighs together, the pressure between her legs already building. “Yes,” she managed to say.
“Good. If I were there, I’d use the tips of my fingers to caress your jawline. I’d kiss your jawline, too. Then I’d trail my index finger down the center of your neck. You with me?”
She mimicked his words, imagining her hands were his, each movement a featherlight touch against her heated skin.
“I’d move down to your breasts. I wouldn’t be able to stop myself from placing my big hands on your beautiful tits. I’d massage them. Would you like that?”
Karen placed her hands on her breasts and kneaded them. Her nipples tightened at the contact. “Yes. I’d love that, Mark.”
“Now imagine me sucking your nipples. They’d tighten into stiff peaks. You’d be so turned on that you’d reach for my cock. Would you stroke it for me, Karen?”
“Oh, God. Yes, I’d stroke it. It’s so thick. My fingers wouldn’t be able to close around it completely.”
“Ah, Karen,” he hissed. “My dick is so fucking hard right now just thinking about it.”
Her fingers froze on her chest as his words worked their way to her core. She squeezed her muscles, wanting to draw out her arousal, and they pulsed in response. She flexed her feet to release the tension from curling her toes into the mattress. “What now?”
“I’d ask you to spread your legs, and then I’d settle my upper body between them. I’d spend some time looking at you. You’d be wet, wouldn’t you, Karen?”
Oh, he knew how to torture her. “Yes, Mark. I’d be so wet for you. I’d be glistening. And I’d use my fingers to spread my lips, so you could see how wet you’ve made me.”
He moaned.
At this point she couldn’t stop herself from writhing against the mattress. She imagined his dark eyes watching her as she opened herself to him. “Are you touching yourself, too?”
“I am. My hand is wrapped around my cock. Right now I’m going slowly. I’ll pick up the pace soon.”
Her mouth fell open at the thought of him naked in his bed and stroking himself.
“Now back to you,” he continued. “Slide your hands down your stomach. Now give your hips a gentle squeeze. Your fingers are small compared to mine, but just imagine my fingers gripping your hips. Imagine the pads of my thumbs resting on your skin, pressing against your hips and kneading them. Still with me?”
If she were any more with him, she’d teleport herself to his hotel room. “Oh, yeah. I’m with you.”
“Place your fingers outside your pussy, baby. Massage your lips. Now open those folds. Feel the air touch that wet flesh. It’s wet, right?”
She tapped her clit and confirmed that she was soaked. “Yes, I’m wet.”
“Okay. Take some of that wetness and spread it around. Now that you’re ready, rub your clit. Slow circles only.”
She circled her clit with her fingers, but it wasn’t enough. “Can I go faster?”
“No. Slow. Tell me how it feels.”
“I feel so much heat between my legs. And my muscles are tense. My clit is throbbing. And if I squeeze, it throbs even harder.”
“Jesus. I’m picking up the pace, Karen.”
“I need to rub it faster.”
“Yes, rub yourself faster, harder. Make yourself feel good.”
She rubbed her clit in hard circles. Over and over. Again and again. Until her back arched off the bed. She rose on an elbow and looked down at herself. “I’m imagining your head between my legs, licking me, sucking me. I’m going to come soon.”
“So am I, baby. And I wish with every fiber of my being that I could finish you off.”
She closed her eyes and moaned. “I’m close, Mark.” A few circles more and her body tightened almost painfully as the orgasm hit her. “Oh, God. That’s it. That’s it. Yes. Yes.”
His moans grew louder as hers softened. “Karen, I’m coming too,” he said, his voice tight and gritty.
She emerged from the haze and listened to the sounds of his heavy breathing. He’d done it again. Made her forget everything but him and the feelings he’d managed to draw out of her. Sated, she turned on her side and stretched. “That was incredible.” She finished the declaration with a huge yawn.
“Indeed it was.”
“I’m so glad you called.”
“Which reminds me. Will you come to the gala with me?”
Oh, right. She’d forgotten the reason for his call. In her muddled state, she blurted out her question. “As your friend?”
The ensuing silence warned her she wouldn’t like his answer.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Karen’s question hit him like a sucker punch to the gut. It was a fair question, but he didn’t know how to respond to it.
/> He needed more time to come up with a coherent answer. “Give me a sec.” He sprang from the bed and toweled himself off. Deciding to go commando, he slipped into his jeans.
He picked up the phone again and paced the room. “I have a feeling this is a trick question. I’m screwed either way, right?”
She laughed. “No, I just want to know what you’re thinking. Just so there’s no confusion.”
“Karen, I assure you, there’s confusion.”
She snorted on the other end of the line, and he smiled. “I’ll give you ten points for honesty, Lansing. And I’ll put you out of your misery. Tell me about this tech gala.”
“It’s a black-tie affair. Lots of schmoozing. Decent food. Plenty of quality liquor to get us through the worst of it.”
“As you know, I’m not much of a drinker.”
“Dancing. There’ll be dancing. I might even be able to get the band to play a salsa song, so we can put our new moves to good use.”
She sighed. “I’d like to go with you. It’s just…it’s the kind of event that would make me nervous, and you know what happens when I’m nervous. You’ll have a babbling idiot for a date…”
The tension left his body, and he grinned. “We make a good team, remember? If you start babbling, I’ll cover for you.”
The sound of her clucking her tongue meant she was at least considering it, right? “I don’t know, Mark. Wouldn’t you prefer to go with someone who’ll make you look good?”
“I want to go with you. So before you stomp all over my heart, let’s discuss the basics. Do you have something to wear? It’s a black-tie affair.”
“I could borrow something from Mimi. She’s about my size, and I know she attends these kinds of events for work all the time.”
“Okay. What about your availability. It’s next Saturday at seven.”
“My social calendar is decidedly antisocial these days, so that’s not an issue.”
If he asked her about her social calendar, they’d get sidetracked. But eventually he’d ask her about her friends. So far she hadn’t mentioned any. “Okay. You have access to a dress. You’re available. And you’ll get to spend the evening with me.”