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"I hope I don't have to sit here listening to jazz for nothing," Sebastian grumbled.
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Mel sighed. "Would you rather leave? I can take a cab home."
"No."
"What kind of music do you like? Don't tell me country."
She smiled at the waiter who set their drinks down in front of them.
Sebastian shuddered. "Definitely not."
"Oh, Lord, you're into classical, huh? Have you got nothing but Beethoven and Mozart on your mp3 player?"
"Actually no. I like rock, punk, that sort of thing."
She nodded and sipped her drink. "How about the woman you're in love with? What does she like? Do you know?"
"Look, I never said I was in love with her exactly," he said defensively.
"Well, you said you were in a similar situation to mine,"
Mel reminded him.
"Yes, but really, mine is more—how do you Americans say it?—I have the hots for her."
"Oh, so you mean it's all about sex." Mel rolled her eyes.
She should have known. Men were all the same.
"No, not necessarily."
"You just said you have the hots for her and you aren't in love. What else is it?"
Sebastian shifted in the booth. "Sure it's about sex to an extent, but it could turn into more if she showed any interest.
That's what I mean."
"Well, shit, Sebastian, you're a great looking guy. Why don't you just ask her if she wants to have no-commitment sex with you and get it over with?"
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Hell, what woman in their right mind wouldn't have sex with him? She took another sip of her martini. That awesome body, drop-dead gorgeous face. She licked her lips and tasted the chocolate liqueur.
"Is it warm in here to you?" she blurted out.
"Um, yes, a bit."
"Hi, Mel."
They both looked up suddenly. There, standing at their booth, was Luther. She hadn't even seen him come into the club. The man of her dreams was dressed casually with his white shirt opened at the throat revealing a hint of his chest and the hair that grew there. He had a beautiful smile on his dark chocolate face.
"Luther, hello. May I introduce Sebastian Kincaid? Luther Winthrop."
"Hey, man," Luther said, holding out his hand. Sebastian shook it. "I didn't know you were coming tonight."
"Sebastian loves jazz, so I thought I'd bring him here," Mel lied with a huge smile.
Luther glanced at Sebastian. "Well, hey, that's cool. I came in with some friends." He gestured to a table several booths away. "Enjoy your night. Mel, I'll call you later in the week."
"Great. Enjoy yours, too." She frowned as soon as he walked away.
"What's wrong?"
"He didn't appear to be very jealous, did he?"
Sebastian glanced down at Luther's table. "Not particularly, no."
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"Maybe we should dance," Mel said, watching the couples on the dance floor swaying to the smooth song the band played.
"Dance?" He looked like she'd suggested he eat a bug.
Mel got up and grabbed his hand, giving him no chance to protest.
* * * *
Okay, Sebastian, you can do this.
If he didn't stand too close, maybe she wouldn't notice his cock jutting out at attention. Leave it to her to mention asking for no-commitment sex. Now all he could think about was fucking her on the bloody stupid table.
If Luther hadn't interrupted when he did, Sebastian might have suggested sex to Melody. Probably would have laughed in his face, too.
"Closer," Melody urged. "We're supposed to be a couple on a date, remember?"
She tugged on him and stepped several inches closer, putting her arms around his neck.
All right, dead puppies. Er, limbless corpses. Court briefs.
Damn, it didn't work. His erection pressed into her.
Her sultry brown eyes widened and her mouth formed an o. She stared at him.
"Just trying to make it look real for Luther?" he suggested lamely.
Screw it. In for a penny in for a pound, as it were.
He lowered his lips to hers, just a brush at first. Testing the waters. When she didn't slap him or pull away, he pressed 20
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his lips to hers in a longer kiss. She moved closer and opened her mouth. No way would he pass up such an invitation. His tongue plunged ahead.
Moving his hands from her waist down, he grabbed her ass and ground his pelvis into hers. She moaned low in her throat. Good Lord, if he didn't stop he would be taking her on the nearest table.
He nibbled her bottom lip and she pressed herself even closer, if that were possible.
"You two get a room," someone called. Laughter followed.
Melody broke away from him then, putting a wide gap between them, and laughed herself. Then she pulled his hand to lead him back to their booth, glancing over her shoulder.
"Do you think he saw us?"
Ding, ding, reality check, Sebastian. She couldn't care less about you.
"Yeah, I'm sure he saw us," he mumbled. He finished off his glass of wine in one large swallow.
What a chump. His cock's only entertainment for the night would be his own hand.
[Back to Table of Contents]
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CHAPTER 3
Mel told herself it didn't bother her it was almost eight-thirty on Monday and still no sign of Sebastian. He was always there an hour earlier.
It didn't help she'd spent all of Sunday thinking about him.
Why?
"You're in love with Luther," she reminded herself. She hit send on the email she'd been typing.
It was probably that kiss he'd planted on her at the club.
She hadn't expected him to go so far as to kiss her. Lord, the man could kiss.
She got up from her desk, went out into the hallway, and took the few steps to where Sebastian's secretary sat.
"Did he call in?" Mel felt foolish asking, as she'd already asked the same stupid question a half-hour ago.
Shelly shrugged. "Nope, haven't heard from him. Weird.
He's always here before I am."
What did she care? So his kiss was hot. Okay, hotter than hot. She wanted Luther. And besides, Sebastian was in love with someone else. Not to mention, Melody berated herself, she didn't date white guys.
Mel turned to go back to her office and stopped, frozen.
Sebastian walked down the hall in her direction, but he wasn't the normal Sebastian in the Armani suits. This Sebastian twin wore a tight fitting black T-shirt that showed off his bulging biceps. And ... jeans. Whoa. They looked like they had been custom-made to fit him. His light brown hair, 22
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normally so carefully combed in place, looked like he'd just gotten out of bed and run his fingers through it. Or someone had.
"Who is that?" Shelly whispered, sticking her head out from behind her computer to gape.
With him almost to them now, Melody noticed his sexy five o'clock shadow. She was certain her jaw dropped as far as Shelly's.
"Morning." He gave them a wink and went past them to his office.
Mel and Shelly stared at his ass.
Shelly cleared her throat. "Maybe ... maybe I should see if he wants me, um, to bring him some coffee or something."
Mel licked her lips. "I'll go see, Shelly."
"But..."
Mel didn't wait for Shelly to finish her protest. She walked to Sebastian's office, knocked once, and opened the door.
His back to her, he was bent over a filing cabinet going through files. Her gaze went once more
to his jean-encased ass.
Get a grip, Mel. You're his boss.
"What's up, Shell?" he asked without turning around.
"Not Shelly."
He straightened and turned around. She squelched her disappointment at the loss of his ass, but was soon rewarded with a sexy-as-sin grin.
"Oh, hey."
Say something. "You're late," she blurted out.
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He raised a dark brow. "Not really. I wasn't aware we had set start times."
"Well, I meant you're late for you."
"Right." He nodded, but offered no explanation. He went to his desk and picked up a large donut.
"You don't eat those. You have a bran muffin for breakfast every morning." Oh great, now it sounds like I'm stalking him. I know what he eats. Wait, why do I?
He shrugged. "I'm loosening up."
"Is that what this is about?"
"Hmm?" Sebastian took a bite and a big dollop of jelly plopped on to his desk. "Oh, damn. I'll go get a paper towel to clean that."
He disappeared through his office door, and she watched his every move. She sat down in the chair in front of his desk.
What was wrong with her? She was acting like a teenager with a crush on a rock star.
Okay, so Sebastian was a gorgeous god. She'd always known he was good-looking. All he did was put on a pair of jeans and a T-shirt. No reason to hyperventilate. Taking a deep breath, she tried not to look at the desk where he'd spilled the jelly.
The truth was she'd had a dream last night where he fucked her right on that damned desk. She woke up sweating and her pussy wet. It had been so vivid. Neither of them had even gotten completely naked. He'd pushed up her skirt, ripped her panties off, pulled down his Armani dress pants and pushed inside her. Remembering the dream and wanting 24
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him to take her on that very jelly-clad desk wet her pussy all over again.
What was taking him so damn long anyway?
Mel got up and walked out into the hall. Sebastian sat on the edge of Shelly's desk, his arms folded and showing off his biceps. He was laughing at something Shelly said. And Shelly had pulled her blouse down to show extra cleavage.
Gritting her teeth, Mel approached them. "What happened to the paper towel?"
Sebastian paused in a chuckle. "What?"
"A paper towel to clean up the jelly."
"Right," he said once again in that cool British accent. "I forgot. Hey, Shell, I need something to clean up jelly."
Shelly gave him a sunny smile and pulled out some anti-bacterial wipes. "These should do it. I can clean it up if you want."
"No, no, I have it. Can you check to see if that conference call is still on? Let me know, thanks."
He grabbed the wipes and went back to his office. Damn she felt foolish, but Mel followed him.
He smiled quizzically when she followed him in. "Was there something?"
"This is because I told you about loosening up Saturday night, isn't it?"
"Maybe you were right. I'm feeling pretty good, actually."
He smeared the jelly with the wipe and tossed it in the trash nearby.
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She didn't know what to say to that, and the truth was she liked the sight of him in the jeans too much to make a fuss over it.
"So, I was thinking," she said, trying to be casual, "we should go out again."
"Okay. When?"
"How about tonight?" Boy, did she sound desperate. Well, why not? He was a man; she was a woman. Neither one of them were actually in a relationship with the person they were in love with. What was wrong with a hot affair anyway?
"Sure, where do you want to go? Where will Luther see us?"
Crap. How was she going to explain this one? Tonight isn't about Luther; it's about us getting naked? Uh-huh.
"Let's go wherever the woman you want might see us. I owe you after Saturday."
Sebastian looked away toward the window and didn't say anything for a while. Finally he smiled. God, he had a beautiful smile.
"All right. She works at this little Italian place not far from your house. I'll pick you up at—"
Before he could give her a late time, she hurried to say,
"Six. Let's go at six."
"Six?" He frowned.
Yes, I want plenty of time to seduce you.
"Got something to do?" she asked innocently.
"No, six it is."
* * * *
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Sebastian had no idea which waitress working at Paolo's he would choose to point out to Melody. He knew she would ask.
"Good evening, Paolo," Sebastian greeted the owner as they walked into the dimly lit restaurant.
" Signor Kincaid!" The owner, a portly man in his seventies, embraced him. He eyed Melody. "Oh, you brought your girlfriend."
"Yeah," Sebastian said with a grin. "Nice table."
"The best," Paolo promised. "Such a pretty girl."
Melody laughed and followed after the owner as he headed into the main part of the restaurant.
After sitting down and ordering some red wine for the two of them, Sebastian buried himself in the menu, hoping Melody would forget to ask.
"Which waitress is the one you have the hots for?" she asked immediately.
He lowered his menu reluctantly and glanced around the restaurant. He knew the wait staff. He'd been coming to Paolo's for years.
"She doesn't appear to be working tonight." He raised his menu again.
"I have to say I'm a bit surprised, Sebastian. I wouldn't have thought you'd be that interested in a waitress. Not that there's anything wrong with being one. My family did all right, but they also wanted me to learn responsibility, so I put myself through both college and law school waiting tables. I guess I view you as—"
"A snob." He nodded. "Yes, I'm well aware of your opinions of me."
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Melody had the grace to look a bit chagrined. "Not a snob exactly."
"Stuffy, unable to loosen up. Doesn't that cover it?"
"Well."
Sebastian sighed. "Forget it."
"Hi, Mr. Kincaid," the waiter greeted them, bringing their glasses of wine to their table. "Are you ready to order?"
* * * *
Dinner had been very nice, but now he was driving her home. Melody tapped her fingers on the arm rest in his Lexus.
She'd actually been glad the waitress he wanted hadn't been there. Seeing the type of woman he was attracted to might have squashed any chance of sex with him.
Mel knew she wasn't unattractive, but she was curvy, no skinny-minnie. Most white guys she knew wanted women who were model thin, and that didn't describe her by any stretch.
She liked to think she was rounded in all the right places.
What a disappointment it would have been to confirm Sebastian was like the rest of those guys she'd known.
The problem now was what if he just dropped her at the curb with a yawn and a "See you tomorrow"? It wasn't like she could have said at dinner, "Hey, how about some hot sex when we're done?"
Imagining his face if she had said exactly that to him made her laugh.
He glanced at her quizzically. "What's so funny?"
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The car turned down her street, edging ever closer to her house.
"Just imagining your reaction to something," she said honestly.
"What?"
Oh, hell. She could either be coy and ask him in for coffee or throw coy out the window under the Lexus's tires.
He pulled in front of her house and turned to look at her.
"I wondered if you'd like to
come in and have hot sex with me."
Sebastian stared at her in silence for so long Mel decided she had made a huge mistake and should open the car door and crawl out.
He cleared his throat. "Um ... what?"
"Forget it." She reached for the door handle.
"No, wait." Sebastian's hand closed around her wrist. "Are you serious?"
Mel knew it was now or never. She could laugh it off as a joke and hope Sebastian laughed, too, and they could forget it ever happened. But the truth was she did not want to laugh it off.
"I'm completely serious, Sebastian. But I understand if you're not interested. It's no big deal." After all he worked for her firm. It was completely inappropriate and possibly unethical.
He made a little half-choking noise. "Oh, I'm interested."
Mel licked her lips, her pussy clenching in anticipation.
"Well, then, why don't you park the car and come on into the house?"
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* * * *
Sebastian clicked the automatic locks on the Lexus and tried to resist the urge to run to Melody's front door. She'd gone in ahead of him while he parked.
Approaching the door, it occurred to him rather belatedly he had no condoms with him. Lord, he prayed Melody did.
Of course he knew she was only using him because she couldn't have Luther. Sebastian knew he should say it wasn't a good idea and go home. Hell, it could ruin their relationship, and he might even have to leave the firm if things between them soured too much.
But he was also a guy, and he knew very well he was going into the house to have sex with Melody.
He tapped lightly on the partially open front door. "Hello?"
"Come in, Sebastian."
Maybe it was because his cock was hard and stabbing against his briefs, but to his ears, her tone sounded low and sultry and made his balls tighten. Swallowing heavily, he stepped into the house, then closed the door behind him.
"Lock it, will you? Want a beer?"
Her voice came from what he guessed was the direction of the kitchen. He was standing in a large cozy living room with dark hardwood floors and an oversized brown leather couch.