Hunks, Hammers, and Happily Ever Afters

by Cari Quinn

  "Didn’t mean to interrupt anything."

  I pulled my robe tighter still and forced myself to breathe. "It was time for me to get out anyway."

  "Hot date?" he asked with a tiny, curious smile.

  "Girl’s Night," I replied with a smile.

  He slowly nodded, his grin deepening as he took a few steps backward. "Then I won't keep you. Have fun."

  If he had any idea! "I will."

  "And stay out of trouble!"

  Ducking back inside, I shut the door before he saw me standing there, wishing I’d invited him in.

  ~*~

  Two hours later I stepped through Jimmy Z’s shiny black double doors, smiling to the burly bouncer who greeted me by name. Located just down the road from the Houston Galleria, Jimmy Z’s catered to an eclectic, but mostly upscale, clientele which was reflected in the tasteful chrome and black decor. I took the long way downstairs to where the girls were waiting, barely giving the booths full of snuggling couples a glance as I checked out some of the evening’s offerings. Men weren’t the only ones hunting tonight. My earlier tub adventures and Wade’s visit had left me hungry for more. And if I couldn’t have him, then I’d just have to make do.

  At our table (positioned strategically beside a set of stairs that led to the dance floor), the girls were already digging into appetizers and admiring the evening’s early, yet so far slim, offerings. They both stopped eating long enough to hug me while we admired each others outfits. Carlotta looked great, as usual, dressed in a multi-colored watered silk skirt and red halter-top that showed off her natural tan and curly blonde hair to perfection.

  "Lanie, is that new?" Smiling, I motioned to leopard print dress with turquoise trim that hugged her lush curves and swirled around her knees. Only Lanie would or could pull of leopard print. And with her chocolate brown hair, framing deep blue-green eyes, she pulled it off well. No one would ever guess that up until a few hours ago she’d probably been elbow deep in grease and engines.

  "Just a little something I dug out of my closet." Her deep coral colored lips curved into a Cheshire cat grin as she crossed her legs.

  "She went shopping," Carlotta and I chimed in unison.

  I waved at a Brian, our regular waiter as he went breezing by and hollered out my order for a Woo Woo—peach Schnapps, vodka and cranberry juice—then settled on the vacant stool.

  "Looks like she’s not the only one who went shopping," Carlotta observed with a grin.

  "I bought this two weeks ago, thank you very much!" I’d spotted the funky yellow, orange and royal blue paisley outfit on a Sunday afternoon shopping expedition and hadn’t been able to leave it behind. They went perfect with my strappy orange sandals.

  I snitched a chicken eggroll off the platter in the middle of the small table, dipped it some of Jimmy’s homemade salsa duck sauce, and bit in with a sigh of appreciation as the spicy, tangy flavor filled my mouth. Jimmy Z’s made the best eggrolls in all of Houston.

  "So how was your day?" Carlotta asked while she scoped out the bar.

  "I’ll be so glad when this job is over!" I accepted my drink with a pained smile for Brian and handed him my credit card to run a tab. He was...hot, but then most of the waitstaff at Jimmy’s were. A crisp white t-shirt hugged his well-defined pecs and sharply creased black pants accented the rest of his assets.

  "You ladies ready for something more substantial?" He pointed to our platter of appetizers, then suggestively wiggled an eyebrow at Carlotta who giggled.

  "I’m fine." With a soft sigh, I turned and scoped on the half full dance floor and tables surrounding it. I didn’t mind being single; sometimes it did have a downside but the good far outweighed the bad.

  I didn’t have to share my bed for more than a night if I didn’t want to (and usually I didn’t).

  I could come and go as I pleased.

  I didn’t have to answer to anyone about how I spent my money.

  I didn’t have to cook if I didn’t feel like it.

  I could ogle men to my heart’s desire without someone getting jealous.

  And if I got tired of a man, I just dumped him (no nasty divorces and splitting of assets to deal with).

  I polished off the last of my eggroll and turned to Carlotta. "Did you finish up that wiring job today?"

  She pursed her lips and nodded, a "it was a shitty day" expression on her face.

  "That bad, huh?"

  "Have I told you how much I hate my new boss?" she continued with a curl of her lip.

  "Noooo," I drawled, grinning.

  "That asshole wants me to wire his nephew’s office Monday for phones and internet. God forbid I fuck that up." Carlotta’s new boss was all we’d heard about for the last two months. He was, in her words, a control freak, who constantly felt the need to double check her work and censure her for the slightest infractions, imagined or real. Never mind that she was the best field technician the company had, and had been there twice as long as him. Other than the fact she’d applied for his job (and been passed over for him—an outsider), none of us had been able to figure out what his beef was with her, so we’d decided he was just A Chauvinistic Pig.

  "I swear to God, he wants me to quit!"

  "Well, maybe you should," Lanie threw in. "You’re too damned good to put up with that shit."

  "Hell no! Why should I quit because he’s got issues? He can just get the fuck over it." With a scowl, Carlotta slipped off her barstool.

  I gave her an understanding smile, then watched as she turned and headed downstairs toward the dance floor. Carlotta could wire damn near anything—from a small office phone system to a computer network for a multi-story office building.

  "I don’t blame her a bit, you know," I sighed, scooping up a quesadilla filled with cheese, cilantro and bits of pork. "She shouldn’t have to quit because some asshole’s determined to make her life miserable."

  "Yeah, but you know how hard-headed she is. I wouldn’t be surprised if she did stuff just to piss him off." Lanie thoughtfully sipped her dirty martini, focused on something—or someone—over my shoulder, while I polished off what amounted to my dinner.

  "What?"

  She grinned and nodded to a spot behind me, pure female lust making her blue eyes sparkle. "Check him out."

  With a grin of my own, I checked. Lanie might like ‘em young, but she had really good taste in men. Not six feet away stood a tall slender young thang with dark, curly hair and even darker eyes. He quirked an eyebrow at us and we waved and laughed.

  "Back soon!" Lanie cheerfully announced as she circled around me and headed straight for him.

  By the time I’d nursed my way through half of my second drink and let the girls drag my tired body onto the dance floor, the bar was packed. And the three of us were dancing to some house techno with any man brave enough to get close. After fifteen minutes Lanie had ditched Freddie, the sexy brunette with the baby face, and rejoined me, announcing he was only twenty-one. Even for a hottie like him she wouldn’t break her ten year rule.

  House techno segued into something sexy for showing off and I did, despite the fact Lanie and Carlotta had now deserted me, claiming they were ready for a break.

  Shyness had never been a problem for me and I was a good dancer. While Gwen Stefani sang, I danced, letting the sensuous rhythm of the sexy song rolled through me. Before I knew it, I found myself pulled up on one of the podiums positioned at the end of the dance floor, grooving with a hot blonde in a psychedelic pink mini-dress.

  We danced with each other as much for the crowd as ourselves. With a grin, she grabbed my hips and we ground against each other. We both laughed at the hoots and appreciative whistles from the group of men below us. I returned her smile and spun around, wiggling my hips and inviting her closer. My bones turned fluid as the vodka, heat and admiring cheers of the crowd worked their magic.

  I shimmied down the length of her body, tilting my head back as I came in contact with her heavy breasts then paused in a crouch at her feet, ga
thered up my skirt and pulled it up to the tops of my thighs as I slowly wiggled my way back up. We danced belly to back, me with my skirt pulled up as high as I dared and her with her incredibly soft hands stroking my bare thighs. Hands that raised goosebumps on my skin and ventured dangerously close to my panties more than once, causing the silky material to rub my crotch, exciting me even more.

  Then I saw him. The bottom fell out of my stomach and ice cold shock, horror, dread even, washed through me, replacing the heat brought on by our little show.

  What the hell was Wade doing in a place like this?

  Lucky for me, the song ended and the DJ spun a faster groove. But before I could stop her, my erstwhile dance partner spun me around and kissed me full on the lips, giving my ass a squeeze in the process. I had no choice but to hang on to her to keep from falling off the mini-stage.

  "Thanks for the dance," she mouthed. "Maybe later...we can do it again." She spun on her heels and accepted a hand down from our group of admirers.

  I turned for a quick peek over my shoulder. Wade still stood at the top of the stairs, a level above the dance floor. On shaky legs, I headed his way.

  With clammy hands I climbed the stairs, forcing a bright smile on my face, but nerves, adrenaline and the heat of too many bodies was too much. As I neared the top, Wade grabbed my wrist, a frown of concern on his face.

  "Air," I gasped, my head swimming.

  He led me through the thick crowd and up to the main level, cruising through the two muscled-up goons who guarded the entrance to the VIP Lounge.

  Interesting, but my head was swimming too much to even contemplate how he’d managed what Lanie, with her arsenal of wiles, hadn’t been able to. I gratefully sank down on a gaudy crushed red velvet couch that Wade led me to in some VIP hidey-hole. Then watched as he closed the opaque screen that made up the door, muting the music in the process.

  God my whole crew is gonna know I’d kissed a woman in a bar. My stomach rolled over and the two Woo-Woo’s I’d drunk threatened to come back up.

  Sure, I’d heard all the rumors about how I was a ball-busting dyke. Being insulted—and worse—was the price I paid for working in a man’s world; I could take the heat, and I was more than willing to pay it. At least blue-collar men were honest in their bias, instead of shielding it behind glass ceilings and polite smiles. But that didn’t mean I wanted them finding out I’d been dirty dancing with a woman in the hottest bar in Houston—and enjoyed it.

  I forced my eyes open, fully aware of his firm grip on my wrist, the crisp starch of his shirt against my bare arm and the woodsy scent of his cologne tickling my nose. "What are you doing here?"

  His deep green eyes widened slightly then narrowed. "I’m here with friends. Do you need to let your girlfriend know where you went?"

  "She’s not my girlfriend. God, Wade—" I just stared at him, my stomach lurching as he gave me a slow once over. "Please..."

  "Hey, it’s okay if she is. To each his...her own." He gave me a conspiratorial wink that made me want to slap him. "I won't say anything."

  "It was just a ... show," I said with a wave of my hand. "For the guys. Just for fun."

  "Could’a fooled me, honey."

  "Fool you or not, what I do in my off-time is no one’s business okay? So just...don’t." Refusing to give in to the nausea that threatened, I struggled out of the too-soft cushions.

  "Especially your crew’s." Wade’s pointed observation stung.

  "Yeah, especially them." I gently tugged my arm free. "I’m going back downstairs before my friends wonder where I went. Please...please keep this just between us."

  Outside of our little private hidey-hole I debated going back inside and seducing him into silence. I could do it. I knew I could do it. Hell, I wanted to do it.

  No way had I forgotten Wade was the stuff of fantasies—specifically mine—but as a member of my crew, he was also forbidden fruit.

  Luscious, tempting, forbidden fruit. I gave a quick smile to the two men standing at the rail, then pivoted around and stepped back inside the room.

  Ready or not, I was about to get my man.

  CHAPTER TWO

  Wade eyed me, a wary expression on his face, as I slid the door closed.

  "Did you decide not to let me live?" he asked, his lips quirking into a wry smile.

  "Did you mean it when you said you wouldn’t tell anyone?" With a slow roll of my hips, I closed the short distance between us and gave him a predatory once over. Sharply creased khakis hugged his thighs and outlined his erection. More than once this week—hell today—I’d walked the strip shopping center we were building just to watch him hang sheetrock. The tool belt that rode low in his hips, the jeans that hugged his ass, the sweaty, sleeveless t-shirt, those thick arms raised above his head.

  "I’m not the blackmailing kind, if that’s what you’re afraid of."

  I lifted my skirt, spread my legs and straddled his lap, biting the inside of my lip to keep from laughing at the look of surprise that appeared on his face.

  "You don’t have to do this." He leaned back.

  The eyes focused on my breasts said otherwise, as did the hard-on pressed against my already damp panties. I rubbed against him, and then exhaled sharply, my thighs tightening at the friction against my sensitive clit.

  "I’m not worried about blackmail." I pushed my blouse up over my head to reveal a white demi-bra that barely covered the tops of my nipples.

  A loud burst of laughter from outside briefly penetrated the thick cloud of need that surrounded us. "You do realize that, at any given moment, someone could walk in here." Wade’s voice was thick and his focus was on my chest.

  In lieu of a reply, I unhooked the bra and let it slide down my shoulders. Dropping it on the couch beside him, I leaned in, wrapped my arms around his neck and buried my face in the collar of his shirt. And Wade didn’t resist. Warm strong hands skimmed across my back and gave my shoulders a firm squeeze as I nuzzled his neck. "Jesus, Alex!"

  "It’s Lexi," I whispered, nipping at his earlobe.

  "Lexi—" he gasped, "suits you."

  I eased upright to a sitting position and cupped my breasts, squeezing the puckered tips hard enough to feel deep in my belly. "I like to watch you work." Licking my lips, I forced myself to focus on my hands. Just like earlier in the bathtub, this one wasn’t about speed. I rolled my nipples between my fingers and forced myself to keep talking. "Earlier, when you came by my house..."

  "Yeah." His fingers slid up my thighs and under my skirt. As much as we were both enjoying the show, I wanted him to touch me. I wanted his fingers inside me, for starters.

  "—And I was all...wet."

  His fingers slipped inside my panties.

  "I’d just finished masturbating." My hips started a sinuous roll as Wade spread my swollen pussy lips. I glanced up at him from under my lashes and gave my nipples a painfully slow tug as anticipation curled outward from my belly and seeped from my skin like the musky sweet smell of sex that filled the room. From outside the door, the music and laughter of another world faded away at the first light caress of his finger on my clit.

  "I was thinking about you."

  "What were you thinking about?"

  "This." I pulled up my skirt and watched as he slipped two fingers inside me, stretching me. Flexing and stroking, fucking me as I closed my eyes and forced myself to breath. The need to climax gathered forced, doubling on itself and picking up speed even as Wade kept a slow steady pace, his fingers sliding in and out of my pussy. Until it was beyond even my control, and my heavy breathing turned to low moaning. My nails cut into the palms of my hands, and furious with need, I grasped a nipple between fingers and gave it a hard squeeze as I came with a sharp long shout. I watched my hips buck against his fingers as the sound of loud raucous laughter and "Get it, honey!" reached my ears. Apparently we had an audience nearby and the thought that someone had heard me, and knew what we’d done, only made it that much sweeter.

  After easing
off his lap, I reached for my blouse and pulled it on. "There’s more where that came from. You just have to come and get it."

  On shaky legs, I closed the door behind me and headed back downstairs. I pushed my way through a group of college students toward our table, my purse and another drink. I forced myself to smile for the benefit of Lanie’s latest pick-up (despite the fact he screamed gigolo), while I drained the last of my watered-down drink and motioned to Brian to bring me another.

  Carlotta’s hand on my arm caught my attention. "You okay?"

  With a sigh, I leaned over and yelled in her ear, "One of my guys is here." At her puzzled frown, I continued. "From my crew!"

  "Oh...My...God, you are shitting me?" she mouthed, wide eyed.

  I slowly shook my head, and then started to giggle. By the time I filled in her on what I’d done, we were both in stitches.

  "He is hot." With a lift of her chin, she motioned behind me, then put on her best limpid-eyed expression and eased back in her seat, lips pursed. Mata Hari had nothing on Carlotta when it came to getting her man.

  Before I could turn to investigate, an arm slid around my shoulder and the come hither expression on Carlotta’s face morphed into shock as she realized the hottie she’d been ogling was the same hottie who’d just gotten me off upstairs.

  Wade.

  "Hi!" The deep rumble of his voice as he introduced himself to her, tickled my stomach...and other more sensitive parts of my anatomy. He pressed his lips to my ear and said, "Thanks for the boner, for leaving me high and dry like that. You owe me."

  As casually as possible, I reached for my little purse, and more lipstick, before uncrossing my legs and slipping off the bar stood. I pressed myself against the length of him and smiled. "We can always finish what we started someplace else."

  ~*~

  I wanted to drag Wade to bed as soon as we hit my front door, but he apparently had other ideas. Thoroughly puzzled, I followed him through to the living room then stood behind the couch and watched while he fiddled with my stereo across the far wall.