“Don’t worry. I’d never want to cause you any undue stress on the job.”
“I hear a ‘but’ coming on.”
“No ‘buts. At least, for now.”
I growled into the phone as I pushed myself off my desk.
“You’re very lucky you’re not here right now.”
“I don’t know, that sort of sounds like I’m losing out in the end.”
This woman was going to be the death of me.
“I have work to do and a personal issue to fix,” I said as my cock throbbed against my pants. “I’ll talk to you soon.”
“Have a good day and stay safe, okay?”
The way she could switch from vixen to innocent in a heartbeat made me salivate for her.
“I will. You have a good day, too. Okay?”
“I will now that I’ve talked with you.”
“Goodbye for now, Jessica.”
“Goodbye for now, Lucas.”
TEN
Lucas
I got out of my car as Jessica emerged from her apartment. She looked absolutely incredible. Her blonde hair blew in the gentle breeze around us as her summer dress fluttered around her lovely legs. Her skin glistened with the light tan her body allowed, accenting the baby blue of her eyes. Her lips sparkled with a beautiful pink that matched the swirls of pink in her dress. Her dangling earrings drew my eyes up her long neck as she came to stand in front of me. She was a vision, and I couldn’t wait to enjoy my evening with her.
“You look stunning,” I said.
“You clean up pretty nice yourself,” she said as she flicked the collar of my suit jacket.
“I’m glad you like it.”
“So, where is this mystery place we’re headed?”
“Why don’t you let me escort you to your seat so you can find out?”
I offered her my arm and guided her around to her side of the car. I opened her door and she got in, then I closed it for her and jogged around to my side. She allowed me the touch of her hand while we drove in silence, her eyes flickering along the passing sidewalks and pedestrians of Charleston. I drove us all the way out to the water before I pulled into a restaurant all of the locals knew well.
“Diamond Buckets? How in the world did you get us into a place like this?”
“I have my secrets,” I said, grinning.
“The wait list for this place is, like, seven months.”
“Are you going to grill me about this all night? Or are you going to come and enjoy the food?”
“Can’t I do both?”
I smiled and shook my head as I got out of the car. I walked around and offered her my hand, helping her step out from the low-riding car. I would’ve put the top down for our ride, but I didn’t want the rough winds whipping her hair around so she couldn’t enjoy the pleasant ride out to the shoreline.
I laced her arm with mine and we started into the restaurant. The hostess recognized me instantly and led us out onto the balcony. It was a beautiful place that sat out over the ocean, and the salted breeze filled my nostrils with a relaxing scent. Sweet teas were automatically set in front of us along with an iced tray of oysters, and I reached for Jessica’s chair before sliding her around to my side.
“Wow. What muscles,” she said coyly.
“Here. I want you to try one of these.”
“I’ve never had an oyster before.”
“They’re good. But you don’t chew them. You swallow them whole.”
“Just open my throat and go?”
I held one to her lips as she grinned at me.
“Something tells me you’ll be a professional at this,” I said.
“I don’t know whether to be aroused or offended.”
“Always go with aroused. It’s much more fun that way.”
She parted those pink lips of hers and I inched the oyster into her mouth. She did exactly what I told her not to do once before I watched her swallow it down. She grimaced, then it faded into one of pleasant shock. I smiled at her as she reached for another one, then she ran her finger underneath it before holding it to my lips.
“It’s only fair,” she said.
“Trust me, sometimes I enjoy playing fair.”
It slipped down my throat effortlessly, and the two of us continued feeding one another until the oysters were finished. Her beautiful blonde hair accented the ease of her smile, and the way her blue eyes twinkled reminded me of the ocean water lapping against the legs of the balcony. The waitress came by and picked up our empty plates, then we promptly gave our orders.
“I’ll have the crab legs and a steamed lobster tail with a side of macaroni and cheese with honey butter biscuits,” I said.
“And I’m going to have the steamed shrimp bucket, but instead of the potatoes at the bottom, you can just leave those out and bring me some honey butter biscuits as well,” Jessica said.
“Anything else?” our waitress asked.
“Keep the sweet tea comin’,” I said, smiling.
“So, how goes work?” she asked.
“It goes. We keep running into hiccups with this mansion, and it keeps costing us more money than it’s almost worth. It’s making my brothers very upset.”
“How many do you have again?”
“Five others. Well, four. But our cousin grew up with us, so he’s basically a brother as well.”
“Does he help you guys with the mansions and stuff?”
“He’s actually positioned to take over my parent’s real estate business.”
“None of you guys want to take it over?” she asked.
“Neither of us have a passion for it. Everett just got his real estate license, but that’s to help us expand the business we’ve already built. Not take over my parent’s business.”
“How do they feel about that?”
“Without going into too much detail, they enjoy it. They practically adopted Drew, so he’s like a son to them. He’ll do well with that business. He’s a hell of a salesman.”
“Then it sounds like a good deal,” she said, smiling. “So, tell me more about these hiccups. What’s going on?”
“Things that are hard to see from the outside, or even from a walk-through. Parts of the foundation are a little crooked, so we’ve had to shell out money to fill it and fix it. Parts of the floors are rotted out with water damage, which means replacing those as well as the leaking pipes. Things like that.”
“It sounds like a nightmare. I don’t know how you guys find that kind of thing fun.”
“It’s worth it when the finished product come around. But some houses are more temperamental than others.”
“At least there’s nothing wrong with the hot tub,” she said, grinning.
The veins in my groin pulsed with her words.
“Exactly. At least there’s nothing wrong with that. So, what about your work? How’s the tavern?”
“Eh, it is what it is.”
“Not really a job you’re passionate about?”
“I mean, it’s a job, right? And in this climate, a lot of people can’t be too picky.”
“How long have you worked there?”
“Just shy of ten years.”
I narrowed my eyes and bit my tongue to keep from asking the question Mom always taught me never to ask a woman. But the second Jessica threw her head back in laughter, I knew she knew what I was thinking.
“Go ahead, you can ask.”
“How old are you?” I asked.
“Twenty-eight.”
“And you’ve worked at a place that serves alcohol for almost ten years.”
“Yes.”
“You know that’s not legal, right?”
“It isn’t, but I needed the job. My parents floated right in that sweet spot where I wasn’t eligible for government grants for school but they were dirt broke so they couldn't afford it. It doesn’t reflect well on the tavern now, but they’ve really cleaned up their act since I’ve been there.”
“So, did you go to school at all?” I asked
.
“I took classes at the local community college in between my shifts at work. I eventually got an associate degree to become a dental hygienist, but I never took the time to get the other necessary certifications in order to begin applying for jobs.”
“Why not?”
“I don’t know. Life got busy and the tavern came under new ownership. New advertising tactics meant new business, and better products meant more business. I started making a decent wage and my best friend started working there. I guess I just never got around to it.”
“Is it something you still want to do?”
“Not for the rest of my life, no. But for right now, it does what I need it to do. I got my bartending licensure so I pull in a little income that way at the tavern as well. It serves me fine for now. I was able to pay off the few loans I took out for my community college courses, and I just got those paid off a few months ago.”
“Congratulations. It sounds like you worked hard for that.”
“I did, and I’m proud of myself for doing so. Now, it’s a matter of setting a little bit of money back every night from my tips and stuff so I can go get those certifications. Those things aren’t cheap.”
“I can only imagine,” I said.
“So, did you grow up in this area?”
“Born and raised on the outskirts of Charleston. You said you’re from here, right?”
“Yes, but my family isn’t here anymore.”
“They aren’t?”
“No. A couple of years after I took the job with the tavern and enrolled into classes, my father got an amazing job prospect out in Oregon. They drained their savings account to fly out there a few times for interviews, and when they offered him the job it wasn’t something he could refuse.”
“So you’re here by yourself in Charleston while your family’s in Oregon?”
“Yep.”
“That sounds lonely.”
“It gets that way. It’s one of the reasons why Bianca—my best friend—and I decided to room together. Charleston’s expensive and neither of us have family in town.”
“She not from around here?”
“Nope. Her family’s all in Florida. They moved there after her dad retired from his accounting job.”
“Sounds like a job I’d want to retire from. I still don’t know how Flynn deals with the numbers,” I said.
“Flynn?”
“One of my brothers. Besides all of us making over houses and flipping them, we all have something we specialize in outside of the construction work. Flynn is our numbers guy.”
“What’s your specialty?” she asked.
“Design. I’m the one that lays out what we’re going to do, how we’re going to do it, and what it’s going to look like by the time we’re done.”
“So you’re the one that’s in control, basically.”
“Don’t tell Kane that. He might get upset.”
“Another brother?”
“The oldest.”
“Ah, the ‘oldest child’ syndrome. Bianca has that. I’m an only child, so I don’t know anything about that.”
“You know about ‘only child’ syndrome.”
“Uh huh. And what does that entail?”
“It means you’re a brat who needs guidance.”
“Oh, really? A brat who needs guidance? Does that mean you’re about to tell me that you can guide me in a way no other man can?”
I reached out and took her hand, stroking my thumb softly across the top of her skin.
“I’m about to tell you that you look beautiful tonight with the sun setting in your eyes, and that I have no issues taking the reins if that’s what you wish of me.”
Her eyes grew big and her stare grew innocent. She was by far the sexiest woman I’d ever laid my eyes on. Her hand gripped mine as we sat there, allowing the sweet southern air to waft over our bodies as we gazed into each other’s eyes. I could’ve died like that. Right there, encompassed by her hand and her perfume and her gaze.
“Can I tell you a secret?” Jessica asked.
“Anything,” I said.
“I sort of don’t want to be a dental hygienist anymore.”
“Oh really?” I asked as my curiosity piqued. “Then what is it you want to be, gorgeous?”
“I kind of want to open my own restaurant one day.”
“And what would this restaurant entail?”
“I love barbecue. I mean, fresh, fall off the bone, smoked out back barbecue. Shredded and diced and crispy and smooth. I make a lot of sauces myself whenever I get barbecue out.”
“So, you enjoy cooking.”
“I do. I don’t get to do it nearly as much as I wished because it’s utterly depressing cooking for two.”
“You don’t cook for your roommate?”
“She survives on Chinese takeout and pizza. As well as the appetizers from the tavern.”
“So, you want to open your own barbecue joint. Do you want a drive-thru place or a sit-down restaurant?”
“A restaurant, definitely. There aren’t many of them around the Charleston area. At least, none that I feel are up to par with what barbecue should be.”
“Those sound like fightin’ words,” I said, grinning.
“Don’t get me wrong, their barbecue is incredible. It’s just not true barbecue.”
“And what is ‘true barbecue,’ might I ask?”
“It’s not a sauce or a flavor. You can’t bottle it up or anything like that. It’s the state of the meat. It’s how you cook it. How you marinade it. How long you smoke it and how tender it is. That’s barbecue. Not something you dip chicken into or pour over your green beans.”
“You put barbecue sauce on your green beans?”
“Honey, I put barbecue sauce on everything. But that don’t make it barbecue.”
We shared a laugh and the more I learned about her, the more impressed I became. She was a vibrant, vivacious, funny, kind, intelligent woman with aspirations beyond her wildest dreams. She regaled me with how she would outfit her restaurant and all the things she would serve. It made my stomach growl just to listen to it. The moon slowly rose in the sky as the sun quickly set, and the twinkle of the Charleston skyline settled in her eyes as our food was set in front of us.
“There you go, guys. Anything else?” the waitress asked.
“More sweet tea,” we said in unison.
She ended up setting our own little pitcher on the table and Jessica’s giggle was incessant. And oh, how it lit up her features. Her smile grew wide and her cheeks grew red. The apples of their peaks glistened in the moonlight as we dug into our food. She had a hearty appetite to match that hearty restaurant dream of hers, and I was mesmerized by her. The petite little body she housed put away just as much food as I did.
“Maybe I could cook for you sometime,” I said.
“You cook?” she asked.
“Probably not as good as you, but I get by. My brothers love my chicken alfredo and my sausage and gravy biscuits.”
“Hmm, funny you should mention a breakfast item,” she said coyly.
“Why wouldn’t I cook a woman breakfast after a wonderful night out?”
“Sounds like a wonderful night in to me.”
My cock ached for her as her words flowed effortlessly from her lips.
“Are you teasing me, Miss Jessica?”
“Depends. What do you consider ‘teasing’?”
I felt something fall against my ankle before it started creeping up my leg. Slowly. Deftly. Dragging the leg of my pants up with it. I felt her warm toe graze against my skin as our eyes connected, and a darkness settled over her eyes. Strong, sensuous, and unafraid of what she wanted. Could this woman get any more perfect?
“I would consider that teasing, yes. And if you’re not careful, you might get burned by the fire.”
“Then bring on the heat, handsome.”
I noticed she ate a little quicker than usual after that. Her bare foot continued tracing patterns against
my skin as I tried to keep my cool. My cock ached. It grew against my pants and threatened to expose me to the people around us. Jessica’s eyes gazed out at the water as she slipped forkfulls of food between her lips, but all I could focus on was the way she licked them after every bite. The way her tongue thickened as she stuck it out. The way her lips curled around her fork and the way her toes kept tickling the bone of my ankle.
“Ma’am?”
“Yes?” our waitress asked.
“I’d like the check, please. And a couple of to-go boxes.”
“Make that only one. But I’d like a sweet tea to-go. This is some of the best I’ve had,” she said.
My eyes fell to her plate and I realized she had eaten all of that food.
I guess it would be my responsibility to help her work it off.
I watched her pull out her phone and her fingers flew across the screen. I hoped everything was okay. I paid for our dinner and packed the rest of my food away, feeling her foot slip away from me. I wanted to grab it and pull it back. I wanted to press it against my cock and grind into it. I wanted to massage it, working my way up her leg until I reached the beautiful heat of her pussy.
“Ready to go?”
Her voice ripped me from my trance as her teeth played against the clear straw of her drink.
“My place is just across town. I’d be honored to show you around.”
“My place is closer,” she said.
“I thought you and your roommate had a—”
But I watched her wiggle her phone in the air before she tossed me a playful wink. I shook my head and stood from my seat as I grabbed my food. Then, I reached my hand out for her. She gathered her things and slipped her purse over her shoulder, then sipped on her tea as she took my hand.
Our fingers threaded together as I led her out of the restaurant, my cock on full display for anyone who wished to look down. But I didn’t care if they knew. I didn’t care if they saw what this woman did to me. I guided her out to my car and helped her into it, then slammed myself into the seat and cranked it up.
“Lead the way, beautiful.”
And the second we pulled into the parking lot of her apartment complex, she flew over the seat, descended into my lap, and crashed her lips to mine.
ELEVEN
Wild and Free: A Second Chance Romance (The Wilder Brothers Book 1) Page 8