by Julie Kenner
He thrust harder, lifting her hips to go even deeper. A flush spread over her body and she contracted around him, tighter and tighter as she clung to his neck. Her body quaked and shivered and she cried out as the force of her orgasm took her.
He thrust again, harder and deeper until his explosion came as he clutched her with one hand even as he steadied himself with the other. A fine layer of sweat covered him and his heart pounded in his ears. When he was sure of his footing, he clung to her, burying his head between her breasts and breathing deep as the world slowed back down to its normal speed.
“I’m sorry,” he said after a moment.
“Are you nuts?” she whispered as she stroked his hair. “What for? That was wonderful.”
“No bed.” He tilted his head back to look in her eyes. “I don’t think the kitchen sink’s even on Hugh Hefner’s list.”
She ran her fingers over his shoulders. “Maybe it should be.” She cocked her head to the side, her eyebrows furrowing.
“What?”
“Then again, maybe we should try the bed.” She licked her lips, her eyes dancing. “Maybe I need to do a little comparison shopping.”
“You think so?” he asked.
She nodded, her expression serious. “It would be the prudent thing to do.”
“Hmmm. Comparison shopping, you say?”
She nodded and he shifted her body, hooking his arm under her knees and carrying her toward the bedroom. “For you, sweetheart, anything,” he said. And he meant it. He made love to her over and over. Fast and hard, then slow and easy, like a sensual dance, until they were both too exhausted for any more and they fell asleep, the covers tangled around their legs, and David wasn’t sure where he ended and she began.
Jacey pocketed the key as she slipped into the garage, the band around her chest dissolving a little when she saw Lucy. She traced her finger along the curve of the hood, cherishing the illusion of normalcy the car provided.
Silly, really, since reality was peeking around all sides of the illusion. And reality was a world she really didn’t want to deal with right then. Because in the real world, she was pretty sure that she was falling for the wrong man.
She’d had to summon all her willpower to slip out of the warm circle of his arms, but she needed to get away. She needed distance, because David emitted signals that messed with her brain.
Sighing, she pulled her cell phone out of the pocket of David’s sweatpants. She’d checked her messages before coming downstairs and Tasha had said she could call any time before two in the morning. Typical Tasha hours.
“Well?” Tasha asked, the second she answered the phone.
Jacey grinned; the miracle of caller ID. “As far as I know, the cops haven’t caught the guy. But Finn recognized him from my description.” She brought Tasha up to speed.
“Wow,” Tasha said. “I’m just going to stay at Bob’s until this is all over. But that’s not what I was asking about.” She paused. “How was David?”
Jacey frowned. “How on earth did you know?”
“Oh, please.” Tasha said. “I saw the way you two look at each other. It had to happen.”
“It was great,” Jacey admitted. “He was great.”
Tasha released an exasperated groan. “Man, oh man. I never thought I’d see the day when I was living vicariously through you.”
“Me, neither,” Jacey admitted. She opened Lucy’s door and pushed the driver’s seat forward, then started rummaging around in the backseat for her box of tools. Her fingers closed around an ignition wrench before she leaned back with a sigh. “Oh, Tash. What am I going to do?” Her heart wanted to crawl back into bed with David. Her head thought that would be royally stupid.
“Do? Do David. Hell, I thought you already had.”
“Very funny. I’m serious.”
“I don’t see what the big deal is. You went for it. You enjoyed it. Good for you.”
“Good for me,” Jacey repeated, musing. “I don’t know.”
“Yes, good for you,” Tasha insisted. “You like the guy. Why torture yourself?”
Jacey latched onto Tasha’s reasoning, turning the possibilities over in her head. “Maybe…”
When they’d first met, she might have thought he was an asshole. But now she knew that, not for the first time, her impression of a man was diametrically opposed to the way the guy actually turned out to be. David wasn’t a jerk. He was sweet. Sweet and nice and sexy, and oh so hot in bed.
And while they were investigating the whole Al’s diamond thing, it wasn’t as if she was going to have much time to spend looking for more promising long-term commitment prospects. No, she was pretty much stuck with David. So maybe it made sense to make the most of it?
“No maybe about it,” Tasha said, her comment speaking directly to Jacey’s musings. “Enjoy yourself. You deserve a little fun.”
Jacey took a deep breath. “You know what? You’re absolutely right.”
“Good,” Tasha said. “Because I don’t really understand the downside of having a little fun with David.”
Jacey had to grin. “Believe me, there’s no downside to the actual fun portion of the equation.” She sighed, remembering his hands on her body. “No downside at all.”
“So you’re going to go crawl back in bed and jump him?”
Jacey laughed. “Maybe,” she said, before saying good-bye and clicking off. Maybe she would.
Then again, the man did need his rest. And she needed to think. She traced her fingertip over Lucy’s hood. Maybe she’d just tinker a little…
“Jacey?”
She jumped, her hand fluttering over her heart as she turned around to face David.
“I woke up and you were gone.” He moved to stand by her, his presence distracting. He wore only sweatpants—no shirt and, unless she missed her guess, no underwear, either. Ironic, since she was wearing exactly the same thing, except she’d grabbed one of his T-shirts off a pile at the foot of the bed.
She swallowed, resisting the urge to reach under the waistband and check her theory. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I just wanted to see Lucy.”
He stroked her cheek. “No, I’m sorry.” He took a deep breath, his chest rising, and she reached out, pressing her hand against the hard muscles, soaking in his warmth, her fingers twisting in his smattering of chest hair. Tonight, she’d claimed this man. For right then, anyway, he was hers and no one else’s.
She swallowed, realizing the implications. No matter how proprietary she felt toward David, sometime in the near future some other woman would have her hand pressed there, would feel the ripple of David’s hard muscles under her skin. She frowned, not liking that scenario one little bit.
His words registered and she looked up at him. “Sorry? Why on earth would you be sorry?” She pressed closer, wanting him to know how much he’d given her, how much she’d enjoyed giving right back.
“I promised you. Some promise. Didn’t take me long to lose control.”
“That’s okay. I didn’t manage to exert an overwhelming amount of restraint, either.”
He twisted a strand of her hair around his finger, his eyes dancing. “No, I’d have to say you showed no restraint at all.” He raised his eyebrows. “I like that in a woman.”
“Do you?” She licked her lips.
“I do,” he said. His face turned serious. “But I can keep a promise. If you want—”
“No.” She took a deep breath. “I know we’re looking for different things and I don’t have any illusions. I promise I won’t be some clingy female when it’s over, but in the meantime—while we’re trying to figure out this diamond thing—I want…”
“What?”
She took a deep breath, steeling her courage. “You.” She licked her lips. “In the meantime, I want you.”
“You’re sure?” He tilted her chin up, the expression in his eyes somehow both sad and happy.
She nodded, hoping she was doing the right thing for the moment, even if it wasn
’t the right thing for her heart.
“You’ve got me, babe. At least for now.” He cupped her cheek with the palm of his hand. “I’m sorry I’m not the man you’re looking for. But I can’t be something I’m not.”
“I know.” She shrugged. “It’s like you said. We want different things.”
“Exactly. It’s all about what we want.” His words were laced with an unfamiliar harshness and she cocked her head, trying to decipher the unspoken message.
“What do you mean?” she asked.
“Nothing. Just feeling sorry for myself.” He took a step, hooking his thumb over the waistband of the sweats. “I’ve been working so hard on this damn novel and now I need to set it aside.” He shook his head. “I want it, but every time I reach out for it, I end up closing my fingers around something else.”
“You’ll make it eventually. It’s a creative thing. It doesn’t work on a timetable.”
“You’d do good to take your own advice,” he said.
She swallowed. “I know. But I want more than just a career in art. I want—well, you know what I want. And since I can’t seem to have both, I had to decide which was more important to me.”
Surprisingly, he nodded. “Believe me, babe. I know all about priorities.”
“Can I read it?” she asked, then immediately regretted the words. She regretted them even more when she saw the way his face closed off to her. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have—”
“Yes.” He nodded, then, more strongly, “Yes, you can.” He smiled then, sincere and trusting. “I think I’d like that.”
“You’re sure?”
He nodded. “I’m sure.”
“Thank you.” She wanted to say more, to let him know that she understood how much he was offering her, but she couldn’t really find the words. “I don’t understand what’s getting in your way,” she said instead. “If this is what you really want, then why are you writing Al’s story?”
“I need the money. My ex-wife. The damn IRS.” He half snorted. “There’s more, but you get the drift. Everything’s conspiring to push me away from fiction and right smack into true crime.”
“I guess that’s a good reason,” she said. Certainly she couldn’t argue. After all, she’d traded in her paintbrushes for a spreadsheet.
“The upside is I’ll have enough money to go to Paris. The downside is I can’t go until I finish researching this book. Then I’ll hole up over there and work on writing it.”
“You’re going to throw all that money away on a place to sit and write?” she asked. She’d slap that money down on a house so fast it would make a realtor’s head spin.
“I’ll take day trips,” he said. “Weekend excursions. But, yeah. Absolutely.”
She frowned, not approving of the plan at all, but it wasn’t her plan to yay or nay. “Well, at least I’m helping,” she said, needing to change the subject and not think about David leaving the country, leaving her.“I do feel a little guilty that you’re looking for the diamonds and Reggie and all this stuff for me, but I’m not paying you.”
“Maybe I want payment in trade,” he teased, moving toward her.
Her pulse picked up its tempo. “Yeah? What could I possibly have to barter with?”
He slipped an arm around her waist, urging her closer. “I bet you can think of something,” he said.
“Maybe something like this?” she murmured. With her heart pounding in her chest, she raised herself on her tiptoes and closed her mouth over his. He tasted like midnight, full of depth and promise. David might not be her forever man, but she intended to cherish the time they did have.
A low moan rose in his throat and his tongue swept into her mouth, hot and demanding. He urged her closer, his erection under the soft material of his sweatpants poking between her thighs, leaving no doubt as to just how turned on he was.
He broke the kiss, his lips still dancing across her cheek. “Oh yeah,” he said. “I think that currency will work fine.”
“All debts, public and private,” she said.
“We’ll concentrate on the private ones.” He traced a path with his fingertip from her chin, between her breasts and down to her belly button. “You look pretty damn cute in my sweats,” he said, his hands sliding down under the elastic waistband. “I bet you’ll look even cuter out of them.”
She’d pulled the sweats on before she’d grabbed the garage key, but she hadn’t bothered with underwear and now the cool air caressed her rear, the sensation incredibly erotic.
“Take them all the way off,” he whispered.
She nodded, pulling her feet free of the confines of the clothes.
His fingers kneaded her flesh, cupping the curve of her butt. A slow burn started in her body, its flash-point under his fingertips, then spread out to the very ends of her fingers and toes. But most of that heat found her core and settled there, raw and needy.
“David,” she squeaked, a weak protest.
“What?”
“Someone might see.”
“The door’s shut.”
That dangerous hand snaked lower and she moaned, automatically shifting, spreading her legs for him. His fingers teased her, making her wet, his name barely a whisper on her lips.
“Do you like that?” His soft words tickled her ear.
She couldn’t speak, could only nod, her body prickly with the heat of desire. Her hips moved on their own, silently urging him not to stop.
He understood, of course, and his finger dipped lower, finding her core, now slick and wet with passion. He teased her, his fingers skimming her flesh and it was all she could do to murmur, “Please.”
“Please what?”
“More,” she said. “Please, David.” She sounded desperate even to her own ears, but his hand was stroking her, teasing and dancing, and, well, she was desperate. Her body quivered, no longer listening to her commands, but responding solely to David. She squirmed, trying to silently urge him on.
“Oh, no. Not so fast,” he said.
“Yes, fast,” she said. “Fast and hard and now.”
Fire burned in his eyes. “If that’s what you want, babe. Your wish is my command.”
He let his own sweats drop around his ankles, then stepped out of them and kicked them aside. In a bold movement, he twisted her around, bending her over Lucy’s hood. She felt the hard length of him press against her rear end, his velvety smooth heat stroking her skin.
She squirmed under his touch, spreading her legs for him, feeling wanton and wild, but not caring because she wanted this. Wanted him.
“This?” he asked, his fingers slipping inside her. She whispered yes and he stroked her heat, his fingers teasing and exploring, his touch already bringing her to the edge of an orgasm. She was still tender from earlier, but she didn’t care. She wanted him inside her right then.
“Deeper,” she said on a sigh. “Harder.”
One hand grasped her waist and with the other he spread her wide, then sank himself deep inside. She gasped, her body rocking back to meet him as he thrust, again and again. A blast of heat spread through her, wrapping her entire body in an electric warmth. Her release came immediately, strong waves washing over her, and she lifted her hips to meet his thrusts. The waves got closer and closer, the pressure building within until, finally, she felt him lose control inside her. With his final, deep thrust, she rode the crest of her own release, her body exploding into a million bits of color.
He collapsed beside her and she twisted to face him. He caressed her cheek, his breath coming as hard and fast as hers.
“Wow,” she said.
“No kidding.”
“I’m not sure Lucy’s ever seen anything like that before.”
His mouth twitched and he tilted his head just slightly to look toward Lucy’s hood. “Sorry about that, girl. Guess you’re no longer an innocent.”
Jacey snaked her arm around his neck, urging him close for another kiss. “That’s okay. We can corrupt her anytime.”
He stroked her hair, meeting her lips for a kiss, then rolling them both so that his back was pressed against Lucy and he was holding her close. After a second, his gaze dipped down and he frowned. “An ignition wrench?”
“What?” She turned, following his line of sight. “Oh. Right. I dropped it. Good thing I missed your toe.”
“You were working on the ignition?”
She shook her head. “No, I was just rummaging in my tools and got distracted. Actually, I was looking for the timing light. I think her timing’s a little off.”
He grasped her shoulders and pushed her gently back, just enough to look her in the eye. “You work on your car?”
“Mm-hmm. That was my job back when my mom was being such a flake. In high school. I told you, remember?”
He nodded.
“I thought working for a mechanic would be more fun than bagging groceries. And since Mom needed her car to cart us around, but couldn’t afford to get it fixed, it just made sense.”
“You’re a strange woman, Jacey Wilder.”
She bristled. “What? Because I like cars? You like cars.”
He laughed. “Calm down. I think it’s great you like cars. I’m just laughing because you didn’t have a clue whether or not you had a pipe wrench.”
“Oh.” Well, he had a point there. She rolled one shoulder. “We moved so much there wasn’t really any point in learning to fix that. Mom figured that was the landlord’s job.”
“So did you rebuild Lucy?”
She shook her head. “No, Lucy was in pretty good shape when I bought her. I just do upkeep.” She ran her finger along the roof. “I did have her repainted about a year ago. And a couple of months ago, I ran across some Recaro seats. So I took out the originals and replaced them with the new ones. Normally, I’d rather have the original stuff, but the upholstery had gotten pretty ratty and the slipcovers I’d made were ugly. I figure I’ll fix them up some day and put them back in.” She nodded through the window. “In the meantime, the new ones are pretty snazzy, huh?”
“Nice,” he said. “I’m impressed. Where do you do all of this? Your parking place looked too cramped.”
“No, Mr. Lowenstein would have a fit if I changed oil in his parking garage. I rent a neighbor’s detached garage. That’s where I keep spare parts and my paint supplies and stuff.” Her cheeks flushed. She’d told Tasha she’d thrown out all her art supplies, but the garage was still pretty well stocked.