by Virna DePaul
Staring at her, something stirred in his chest. As if she sensed him watching, she glanced over. As their eyes connected across the room, something in Cole’s jeans stirred too, something that hadn’t stirred in a good long time. Just like that, he felt a tug low in his belly, and red-hot need surged through him. His cock twitched and came to life, throbbing in a way that made him catch his breath.
It was a good kind of breathlessness, like the exhilarating rush he experienced while surfing, riding his cruiser, or having fabulous sex. It hadn’t taken a redhead or blonde or the promise of sex in an airplane to remind him of those things, only a lovely, unassuming brunette watching him over her drink with those big, light eyes of hers.
As his body worked overtime, so did his mind—from two different points of view. One urged him not to delay—stop wasting time and go to her, you dick.
But another part of his brain cautioned him—stop being ridiculous, you’re just tired. She didn’t seem the type of woman a guy casually picked up in a bar unless he wanted more from her than one night in bed.
And he didn’t have more to give any woman right now.
Certainly not anytime soon.
Probably not ever.
He had to focus on taking care of his mom’s things. Selling the houses. Expanding his business. And maybe finding out what the fuck was going on with Eric.
That was enough for anyone to handle at the moment.
Deliberately, he turned away and signaled the bartender. He’d have one more drink. Then he’d get the hell out of there.
Chapter Two
“It will be a good investment,” Jill Jones told Liz Monroe, her friend and partner in her daycare business. “Five tablets the older kids can use for learning and the occasional game. What do you think?”
She could get a great deal on the tablets if they acted on the idea this week. It’d be good for advertising, too—daycare was extremely competitive in this part of town, and they needed every edge they could get. They were getting more and more attention for offering services above and beyond the other nearby centers, including offering flexible hours and staying open on the weekend when needed.
If a few more children enrolled, they could use the extra tuition to install more cameras and a better security system. The house she lived in was in a good neighborhood, but there had been a rash of break-ins lately and it was always best to be prepared. One step at a time toward giving her kids the best care and the attention they deserved.
“Sounds great,” Liz said, lazily sliding her fingertip over the rim of her glass. “I know the kids would love the tablets. We can deduct the cost at the end of the year, along with the wireless internet.”
“So it’s a good investment all the way around. But if even one parent is against using the technology as a learning device and reward system, we can’t offer it to the other kids. It just wouldn’t be fair.” Jill signed her credit card bill. “You ready to go?”
“Not just yet.”
Jill cocked her head. “You want another drink?”
“Nope. But if I was ten years younger, I’d order me a Tall, Dark, Tattooed and Sexy. And I’d start with Mr. TDTS sitting at the bar right now.”
Jill laughed but didn’t bother looking at the man again. She’d already taken a quick look, and he definitely wasn’t her type. Jill preferred a more clean-cut man. “Is TDTS really that much younger than you? Maybe he likes his women well-seasoned.” She put her wallet back in her purse.
Jill had met Liz Moreno in college. They’d both enrolled late in life. Liz had been forty and Jill had been twenty-one at the time. Before starting classes, Jill had worked odd jobs so she could help her mother care for her father, who’d waged a long battle against early-onset Alzheimer’s. Her father had died five years ago, and she and her mother had both known the end was near. What Jill hadn’t been prepared for was her mother dying a few months later from a heart attack. Jill had thrown herself into her studies, putting friends and fun on the back burner, graduating magna cum laude with a Bachelor’s degree in Education. Liz had returned to college after her daughter graduated high school. They’d hit it off, become friends, and started the daycare together six months ago.
“Some men do, honey, but in this case, I’d say the guy likes the looks of you. Oh shoot, he just turned away to order another drink.”
Jill glanced over again for another look. Mr. TDTS gave new definition to the word “big.” He was more like a one-man NFL team. Dark hair, black T-shirt with short sleeves that showed off big, muscular well-defined arms covered with colorful tattoos. His jeans were well worn, and damn, did he wear them well.
Abruptly, he turned, and they eyed each other again. Something in his eyes this time—whatever he was thinking—made a flurry of electric shocks run through her body. Heat coiled low in her belly. She glanced down and away, struggling to keep her expression cool and composed. She couldn’t help it and looked again.
He was still staring!
Then came his smile—slow. A shade shy of cocky. And bordering on conflicted.
Suddenly, she was so overcome by desire she couldn’t think straight, and that whole lust-at-first-sight thing wasn’t something that had happened to her in…well, never. But here was this man, zeroing in on her when it appeared he didn’t even want to. She wasn’t sure what to do about that.
His expression dimmed, and he swiveled back around on his seat to face the bartender. She kept looking. Checking him out. Considering both him and her own reaction.
His face sported a day’s worth of dark stubble. He definitely didn’t blend in with the crowd. Not my type, she thought once again. So what was it about him that made her do a double-take? Was it the way he sat there alone, thinking…brooding…
Didn’t matter. Whatever type he was, one thing was clear—her body responded to it. With those chest muscles rippling underneath his cotton T-shirt, he radiated masculine power.
She imagined herself standing right up and strolling over there, like the many confident actresses she’s watched in movies. Hell, like Liz herself. She’d watched her friend approach a guy in a bar a time or two. Just go on over there and tell him what you want, take no prisoners.
Whoa…the beer she’d had must be playing with her head. A guy like that, someone who belonged on the cover of a hot and steamy romance novel, wouldn’t want someone like her—plain Jane Jill Jones, who ran a daycare for a living.
Even so, the longer they’d held each other’s gazes, the more she’d imagined him taking her into a hidden corner of the bar, his hard mouth moving over hers, her fingers stroking the tattoos defining his biceps, her hand sliding down over what must surely be rock hard abs and—
Jill closed her eyes for a long second, hoping the intense need between her legs would subside. She didn’t understand it. Sure, it had been a while since she’d been with a man, and she’d never been with one who looked dangerous as this one did, but—
“Jill?”
At the sound of Liz’s voice, Jill jerked and turned back to her friend. She’d practically forgotten she was there. “I’m sorry…what did you say?”
Liz laughed. “It’s okay. I wouldn’t be thinking coherently if he’d been looking at me like that, either.”
Jill shrugged off the comment.
Liz raised her eyebrow. “Anyhow, I was just saying that I need to take off. Don’t forget I’ll be in late, and Monica will be there for a couple of hours to help out.”
“I won’t. But I think I’m going to take off, too.” Jill’s voice came out sounding too perky, even to her own ears. Maybe because she could still feel a certain man’s eyes on her—had he turned back in her direction?—and she felt halfway ready to orgasm. That would make any woman sound perkier.
“Aw, you don’t want to leave yet, Tinkerbelle.” The proximity of the male voice startled her.
She turned towards the man who’d spoken, a guy in an expensive suit wearing a cocky smile that communicated he always got his way. He seemed
like an up-and-coming young executive, attractive but overdone. His hair was short, spiky, and crispy with styling product. His friend was almost an exact replica. They’d been standing near Jill and Liz, playing darts for the past half hour, occasionally throwing a comment their way. Despite the fact the clean-cut men were more Jill’s type than the man at the bar, they’d given her a bad feeling. So far, Jill and Liz had managed to ignore them.
Put off by his slurred words and lopsided smile, she turned away, but by now, he’d had a few drinks and was obviously feeling bold.
“Hey, beautiful, I’m talking to you.”
Jill bristled, but before she could respond, Liz said, “Sorry, but the lady’s not interested.”
Jill had her back mostly to the guy, but she caught sight of him out of the corner of her eye, sidling up to their table.
“Aw, come on. My friend bet me I couldn’t get you to kiss me.”
“That was a safe bet on his part,” Jill said, unease skittering up her spine.
The man smirked, put a twenty-dollar bill down on the table in front of her, and said, “After we kiss, it’s yours to keep.”
Appalled, Jill and Liz exchanged glances, then Jill fully faced the man. “I’d appreciate it if you took your money and left. Nothing here is for sale.”
The man, taking this as a challenge, stepped even closer. Jill could smell the whiskey on his breath. “Come on. Just one little kiss—”
“She said ‘no’ more than once, but I could use twenty bucks,” a deep male voice spoke from her other side. “Come here, and I’ll kiss you.”
Jill swiveled around. The tall, tattooed man from the bar had joined them. His focus was on Whiskey Breath. Despite his joking words, he looked beyond annoyed even before Whiskey Breath snapped, “Fuck off.”
Dear God, the man must truly be drunk. Anyone could see that Mr. TDTS could wipe the floor with the drunk exec with one flick of his finger. But something in the big man’s eyes, strangely enough, made Jill feel calmer. Safe.
“Well, now you’ve gone and hurt my feelings,” her rescuer drawled. His eyes—a warm chocolate brown with golden flecks—briefly met Jill’s before returning to his prey. That was the only way Jill could think to describe it. He was a predator who’d managed to hold himself in check thus far, but with his coiled muscles and that dark look in his eyes, he was more than ready to pounce.
Jill mentally urged the man who’d been bothering her to turn around and walk away. If he didn’t, she had no doubt he’d be buying himself a world of trouble.
Almost as if she were seeing things unfold in slow motion, Jill watched as Whiskey Breath stepped around her chair and threw a punch at Mr. TDTS, who easily grabbed the other man’s fist in mid-air. In two seconds, Whiskey Breath was face down kissing the table, arm pinned behind his back.
Mr. TDTS looked first at Jill, then at Liz. “I’m sorry about all this, ladies. Some people just don’t know how to act in public.”
The drunk guy’s friend was already headed out the door. Mr. TDTS fished the guy’s keys out of his pocket. “You’re going to call a cab. The keys will be at the bar when you sober up.” He dragged the other man out the front door while several people around them clapped and cheered.
Jill stared after them and eventually snapped shut her gaping mouth. Mr. TDTS looked like trouble but acted like Prince Charming. I like it, she thought, imagining him taking her into his arms, spinning her around, and pinning her to the table. Her heartbeat sped up a bit and adrenaline rushed through her, sending a strange sensation through her body, similar to a buzz but something else entirely.
“Wow!” Liz gazed after the men with stars in her eyes. “Can’t wait to see what happens when he comes back in.”
If Liz could only see the X-rated images running through Jill’s mind…
Having that beautiful man throw her over his shoulder and take her some place private so she could properly thank him for his assistance wouldn’t even begin to describe her gratitude.
“Didn’t you say you had to leave?” Jill teased in order to throw Liz off the scent. Her breathing was accelerated, and she could feel a deep blush warming her cheeks. Thank goodness the lights were low.
“Did I?” Liz laughed. “Okay, fine, I’m leaving. You be good. And by good, I mean get to know that man better, because I’m sure he’ll be very good.” Then her face grew serious. “But be careful. Maybe I should stay.”
Jill shook her head. “Go. I’ll be fine. I’m not going to do anything stupid, I promise.”
Liz sighed. “Too bad safe and stupid are rarely the same thing.” She gave Jill a hug. “Call me so I know you got home okay. And so you can fill me in.” She winked.
“There isn’t going to be anything to fill you in on. I’m going to say thank you to the man for helping us, then head home.”
“Safe. But not fun.” Liz blew Jill a kiss and headed off.
Soon after Liz walked out the door, Mr. TDTS strode back into the bar and headed straight to her, making her pounding heartbeat race even faster. He stopped a couple feet from her table. Even though she stood, she had to tilt her head back to look at him.
“Are you all right?” he asked, his eyes sweeping over her. He really was checking on her, not checking her out, but all the blood in her body zinged right to her already aching core.
“Thank you,” she told him. “You were…amazing.”
He shrugged. “Glad I could help. That joker was drunk. I doubt he’d have the nerve to do any of that while sober.”
“Yeah, he was pretty wasted,” she agreed. “You usually don’t see that here.”
He glanced around at the (now) tame bar, nodded, and turned to her. “I’m Cole.” He held out his hand.
“Jill.” Good, she remembered her own name. That was a start. She slipped her hand into his, reveling in the dry toughness of his skin, and shook perhaps a moment too long.
He hesitated briefly. “Your friend left. Do you need to get going, or can I buy you a drink?”
Now it was Jill who hesitated. It wasn’t likely they had anything in common. But the thought of going home alone suddenly seemed terribly depressing. Why not stay a little while and enjoy his company? When would she ever get another chance to flirt with a tall, sexy man who was obviously kind and charming, too?
Cole grinned, and she suspected her conflicted feelings were written all over her face.
Oh, what the hell, she thought. She was feeling off-kilter because of what had happened with Whiskey Breath, and her nerves sizzled with attraction for the man standing in front of her. Might as well enjoy it as long as she could.
“I’d love another drink. Thanks.”
* * *
Cole pulled out Jill’s chair, then took his own seat, motioning to a waitress for their drinks. As they waited, he asked, “Are you sure you’re okay?” She seemed to be, and she’d handled herself fine when that drunken ass had bothered her. Even so, when the man hadn’t immediately backed off, a familiar sense of protectiveness had gripped Cole. He hated to see guys acting like dicks, especially to women. He had done everything in his power to keep from ripping the guy in half.
“Fine. Thanks to you, he didn’t touch me.” Jill smiled. Natural. Pretty. The drinks arrived and Jill asked, “So you seemed comfortable confronting that jerk. Are you a cop or something?”
It was a perfectly reasonable question, but Cole didn’t like talking about himself. Talk of his job would eventually turn to other things, maybe even his mom, and that was the last thing he wanted. He took a swig off his beer. “Something. What about you?”
“I run a daycare,” she said.
He raised an eyebrow. Daycare. It fit with her girl-next-door looks, and yet it didn’t. As he’d noticed before, there seemed to be more to her than met the eye, something he’d confirmed when she’d gone toe-to-toe with the guy who’d bothered her. Her words had been calm and clear, yet the tilt of her chin had been defiant, and an unmistakable fire had burned in her eyes. All he’d bee
n able to think about was seeing that fire directed at him in a way that was all about pleasure. A way that would make her voice shake with need.
Damn, what had they been talking about?
Daycare. Kids.
He couldn’t imagine working with kids all day. They didn’t exactly scare him, but they seemed like a lot of work. And maybe they did scare him on some level, at least when it came to the idea of having his own. What if he couldn’t handle the responsibility? What if it made him feel tied down? His interests and profession didn’t exactly broadcast Soccer Dad. And Lord knew his own birth father wasn’t a ringing endorsement for parental commitment and proficiency either. The fact Cole didn’t even know the man’s name was proof enough.
“So you work with kids all day. That’s brave.” He almost winced at how lame he sounded, but Jill didn’t seem to care.
She giggled. “Yeah, it can get a little scary sometimes. Are you from LA?”
“Born and raised. What about you?”
“Same.”
He nodded, taking in all her pretty features and smooth skin. Then he realized he’d been silently staring at her, and she was blushing. Catching sight of the dartboard over her shoulder, he cleared his throat. “You ever throw a dart?”
“Once or twice.” Her mouth quirked, as if she was keeping a secret. Then, she got up and strutted over to the dartboard with a confidence that made Cole instinctively realize she’d not only thrown a dart before, but she was probably damned good at the game.
Like he’d suspected, she wasn’t all sweet and sugar, but a little spice, too.
God, he wanted to take a big, long bite out of her.
Cole pushed back his chair, walked to the dartboard, and plucked the darts out one by one. He handed the three with red flags to her, keeping the blue ones for himself. “Ladies first.”
As she took the darts, their fingers touched, and his mind went straight to imagining all the things his fingers could do to her. And what she could do to him—after she recovered from the series of mind-blowing multiple orgasms he’d give her, that is.