Exposed (Erotic Romance Novella)

by Q. Malone

  “Well, thank you. Should I grab you a beer and call for food?”

  “Yeah sure.” Just what he needed—lowered inhibitions while he worked in her bedroom with her nearly naked. She's your brother’s ex.

  For the next hour they worked on the unit. After several false starts, he figured out what was wrong. But in that time, they covered all the safe topics: work and mutual friends. Then she finally said, “Your mom must be thrilled about Matt getting married.”

  “I think she has mixed feelings about the whole thing. She’s excited, but then she’s pretty pissed at him.”

  “Why? He’s a grown man, and he’s actually committing for once in his life.”

  “True. We’re all surprised by that, but Mom loved you and hated the way that ended. I think she felt cut off from you forever.”

  Megan smiled sadly. “Aw, that’s sweet. I really liked her too. And your dad. But it’s not like I can very well call them to say hi without being the crazy ex still hung-up on their son.”

  She had a point. His folks would love to hear from her, but Matt would have a fit. And she’d never move on from his brother if she kept in touch with his parents. “I guess you lost more than just Matt.”

  “Not too much.” She grinned at him. “I still have you, right?”

  Yeah, until she found out what he’d been fantasizing about doing to her. “Of course.” If only he could have directed her conversation pieces.

  “So what about your love life? You know the shambles mine is in. Why are you still single?”

  Because I’m in love with you. “Wow, what happened to all the safe topics?”

  She shrugged. “Boring, I guess. So why are you still single? What happened to the brunette from last year—what was her name again? Cara? Clarisa?”

  Thanks to the heat in the room, Jase was already sweating; he didn’t need twenty questions. “Never seem to find the right girl, I guess. Timing, those kinds of things. And her name was Karen. She didn’t like that I work a lot of night shifts.”

  Megan chuckled. “Ah, I remember her name now. I wasn’t a fan of hers. I was worried that I’d be stuck talking to her at every family gathering from now until the end of time if you ended up married to her. “

  “What was it with you two, anyway? She never seemed to like you much either.”

  Megan snorted. “Stupid girl competition maybe. I wasn’t a fan of hers, because I didn’t get the impression that she was going to take care of you in the long run. She seemed a bit selfish to me. Like last year when she surprised you for your birthday even though you told her you were on call, then she had a fit when you got called in. As if the emergency could wait.” She rolled her eyes. “I wanted to smack her. “

  Jase laughed. “Yeah, she wasn’t exactly one to think about other people.”

  “I still have no idea what you saw in her.”

  “You mean besides her great rack?”

  “Ugh. Pig.” She tossed a pillow at his head. “I swear; men are all the same.”

  Jase’s blood simmered. He didn’t want her painting him with the same brush as Matt. “No. We’re not. Matt and I are different.” How much did she really know about Matt’s infidelities while they were together?

  Megan blinked rapidly. “No. That’s not what I meant at all. I was just…” Her voice trailed.

  Shit. Talk about awkward. Jase cleared his throat. “How are you holding up with everything?”

  She frowned. “Fine. Why?” Then her eyes went wide, as if she understood the source of his questioning. “You mean this morning? Yeah, I was surprised, but I’m fine, okay? I moved on a long time ago.”

  Jase fit the front grate of the unit back on, praying he had it right. “So you’re over him.”

  “Yes. Exactly.”

  He nodded “Right. So how come you haven’t dated anyone since my brother?”

  Megan’s jaw dropped open. “I date.”

  “Oh yeah? When’s the last time you went out with someone? I’ve only seen one or two guys come sniffing around, and they never seem to make a reappearance.”

  Megan blew her bangs out of her face. “What was that you just said about finding the right person?” She shrugged and added, “I got it wrong so many times. Even when I knew something was off with the relationship, I stuck with it. I don’t really trust my instincts too much these days.”

  “There’s nothing wrong with your instincts.”

  “Yeah, well. There was plenty wrong with them when I said I’d go out with your brother. He seemed fun and charismatic, and once he said that you weren’t available, you were pretty much off the roster so—” Abruptly, she stopped talking, and her face went beet red.

  Wait. Off what roster? “He said I was seeing someone?”

  She nodded.

  Jase wasn’t surprised by Matt’s blatant lie. The two of them had always competed over women.

  “When I figured out you were single, I was already dating Matt.” She covered her face with both hands. “Any chance you’ll forget you heard that?”

  “That I was once on Megan Rhodes roster of men? Nope.” He grinned. “I’m flattered.”

  “Yeah well. Everything’s different now, I guess.”

  Yeah. Different. He sighed. She may no longer be Matt’s girl, but she still wasn’t an option. Forcing levity into his voice, he said, “How about you help me remount this thing, and we get you cooled off a little.”

  She exhaled as she clasped her hands and nodded nervously. “Sounds like a plan.”

  “Okay, I see you already have the step stool set up. All I need you to do is stand there and provide secondary support. I'll do the heavy lifting to get it back into place.”

  “Yeah, okay.”

  Except not okay. The moment he stood behind her, he realized what he'd done—put Megan right in front of him, her delectable ass level with his crotch. Fanfuckingtastic. Jase gritted his teeth and tried to focus on the heavy AC unit, not her blueberry shampoo or the way her hair tickled his nose. And he certainly couldn't think about telling her to brace her hands on the wall as he took her from behind. Shit. Yeah, he had to leave.

  Carefully, he slid the unit into place with Megan’s help. He made sure it was plugged in then turned it on to verify he'd actually fixed it. Jase cleared his throat. “See, good as new. You should be able to get some sleep tonight.”

  Her only response was a low moan as the cool airs started coming out of the vent.

  “Megs, you okay?”

  “Yeah, I'm just so happy to have cool air in here again.”

  He meant to move away. He really did. He meant to step back and far across the room. Instead, his hands went to her waist.

  Megan sucked in a shuddering breath and turned in his arms. “Jase?”

  He was all kinds of an asshole. She wasn’t over Matt. But he wanted her. And he wasn’t going to let his brother stand in his way.

  ***

  Megan’s heart galloped as Jase’s gaze drifted to her mouth. He had to stop doing that, or she would seriously jump his bones. But his gaze stayed on her lips and didn’t stray.

  He brought one hand up to cup her face and she inhaled sharply. Did he feel the same magnetic pull she did? This was bad. Like seriously bad. This was Matt's brother. He even looked like Matt a little, except better. Where Matt was filled out, Jase was sculpted.

  Megan didn't kiss him. But she didn’t move either. Instead, she stood, paralyzed. The first questing brush of his lips against hers had butterflies fluttering low in her womb. Oh God. Jase had sex appeal in spades. But there was something so caring about the way he held her face. She felt like this was where she belonged. He was nothing like Matt.

  She parted her lips, and his tongue dipped in and stroked hers. On a moan, she wrapped her arms around his neck, and he pulled her flush against him, the thick length of his erection hard and rigid against her belly. Her knees wobbled as she sank into the kiss. He tasted like mint and beer and Jase. Something earthy and spicy and intoxicating.r />
  With one hand, he anchored her lower body to his. With the other, he caressed her back, then settled his fingers at the nape of her neck and massaged while his lips devoured hers.

  He angled his head and deepened the kiss, leaving her breathless, lacking the ability to think. All she could do was hold on to the ride. His tongue stroked hers and licked at the inside of her mouth. And he sucked on her tongue, drawing her into him as if there was no way he'd ever get enough.

  Impatient, she rolled her hips against him. She needed to be closer. Preferably without the rest of their clothes on. It had been so long since she’d felt like this. Excited and needy. But Jase took his sweet time. Like everything else he did, he was thorough and efficient, and he didn’t rush. In complete control, everything about the way he held her was meant to coerce, not to direct. Jase kissed as if he had nothing else in the world to do. Megan’s skin sizzled. With every slide of his tongue over hers, he ratcheted her temperature up, and her skin grew tighter, like she was going to burst.

  When he broke contact and trailed hot kisses along her jaw line, he was still unrushed while Megan felt like climbing out of her skin and into his. She more than craved his touch, she needed it.

  “Jase. I need—”

  “Shh. I know.”

  He dragged his lips back to hers and moist heat pooled between her thighs. She wanted him. Had always wanted him. If she could ju—

  Loud beeping pierced her consciousness. He slid his tongue over hers once more before pulling away. “Sounds like someone needs you for something. “

  Dragging open heavy eyelids, she blinked up at him. “What?”

  “Your laptop is beeping.”

  Her brain kicked into high gear. Those alarms meant that the X2 site was down. She’d have to get on the phone with her team immediately. “Yeah, it’s work. I think a site is probably down. I uh, have to take care of it.” Her hands shook as Jase’s hands shifted to her waist.

  From outside, she heard a male voice calling. “Jase, c’mon man, open up. I see your car in the driveway. I forgot my key and need to crash.”

  Matt. Jase dropped his hands from her waist immediately. Fantastic. Tonight had gone from sexy and wrought with potential to disaster, in the span of a kiss.

  “You okay?” His voice was concerned, but he had his usual inscrutable mask on.

  Legs unsteady, she asked, “What the hell did we just do?”

  “It’s called a kiss. I needed to know what it was like to kiss you. And it was well worth going to hell and back for.”

  Chapter 3

  As far as Megan was concerned, the morning after was always awkward. This particular morning after was only made more awkward because the guy she’d just kissed now stood in her living room, helping his brother move his things out. The same brother who’d seen her naked. She had to start making her life way less complicated.

  Megan stared at Matt as he searched their old bedroom. He scowled. “You don’t have anything left in here, I promise. If I find anything you left behind, I’ll take it to Jase’s, and you can get it from there.”

  Matt smirked at her as he deliberately went for her top drawer—where she kept her underwear and toys. She quickly slammed it. “Time to get out.” How could she ever have dated this shmuck? Goes to show, never trust the asshole with a charming smile, swagger, and good game.

  Megan’s memory reel immediately flashed to the night before and the way Jase had slid his tongue over hers. They way he’d molded their bodies together. Heat suffused her face. Thinking about Jase and his lips was not going to solve any problems. Especially not with him standing in her living room and carting Matt’s things out. She dragged her attention back to Matt.

  With his blond hair and navy blue eyes, she’d thought him mysterious and sexy. Unfortunately, she’d learned that there was a reason for the mystery. He liked keeping her on the edge of her seat. Always keeping her feeling unsettled about their relationship.

  He smirked at her again. “Megan, honey, it’s not like I don’t know what’s in there. Hell I bought you half of what’s in there.”

  Megan placed closed fists on her hips. “Are we done here?”

  He chuckled. “Yeah, we’re done.”

  She led the way to her living room. Megan’s cheeks flamed when she laid eyes on Jase. Relax, dummy. It’s not like he knows what you were just thinking about.

  Except his eyes darkened when he saw her, and his gaze immediately landed on her lips. Self-consciously she licked them. Jase made a strangled sound in his throat before clearing it.

  Megan grabbed one of the smallest boxes and handed it to Jase. In the process, their fingers brushed. Electricity charged through her body, and her breathing stopped. She didn’t dare look up at him.

  His index finger brushed hers again, and she immediately let go of the box, shoving her hands into her back pockets. When she dragged her gaze up to meet his, a smile tugged slowly at his lips. She narrowed her eyes. He was deliberately driving her nuts.

  Matt came from the back bedroom with the last of the boxes. “Hey, Jase, I need your help with the—” He halted and looked from Jase to Megan and back again. “Everything okay in here?”

  “Of course.” Megan replied almost too quickly. Certainly too loudly. Her face grew even hotter, this time the full blush going up to her ears. She suddenly understood how ostriches felt. Right now, in this moment, she could use a pile of sand.

  Jase cleared his throat and turned his attention to Matt. “You done checking everything out?” He turned his attention back to her and asked, “Hey, Meg, you okay? You look really flushed.”

  Shoot me now. Just what she needed. For Jase to go into doctor mode and want to take care of her. Perfect. He thought she was a disaster. Shit, for all intents and purposes he was right. She had to get her shit together. Like right now.

  Matt chuckled. “Oh, she’s fine little brother. She’s just mad because I pointed out that I knew what she keeps tucked away in her top drawer. Honestly, Megan, it’s just trashy underwear and some vibrators. You need to embrace your sexuality, not hide from it.”

  She’d kill him. She would really kill him. Megan did a quick scan of the living room for a weapon or something heavy enough to cave his scull in. He had to die in some painful way that couldn’t be traced back to her, because prison jumpsuits looked good on no one, and they probably wouldn’t let her keep her Manolos in the pokey. “You know, I’m not sure why I never saw how much of an asshole you were till just now.”

  Matt scoffed.

  Jase cleared his throat and turned his attention back to his brother. “Let’s go”

  “Sure. I just wanted to make sure Megan wasn’t saving any souvenirs.”

  Jase gave her an apologetic smile as he hitched up the box.

  “If I find anything, Jase, I’ll bring it by your place, so you can transfer to Matt.” Megan said.

  “Sure thing, Megan.”

  Matt carried one of the boxes out to his car, and Jase came closer, the box he carried acting as a buffer between them. “Are you sure you’re okay? I would have just gotten a key and done this for you so you didn’t have to deal with it. I know he’s my brother, but he can be a prick.”

  She shuffled her feet and hooked her arms behind her back. “Thank you, I appreciate that, but I needed to do this. Close the chapter once and for all. Oh, and you can tell him your grandmother’s ring is in the box marked ‘personal’.”

  He shrugged. “I’m sorry. Again.”

  “Again, not your fault.” Megan winced as she remembered looping her arms around his neck and kissing him last night. She winced as she cleared her throat. “About last night…”

  Jase met her gaze directly. “Yeah, I’m sorry about that. I didn’t mean to come on so strong.”

  “You didn’t. I was just surprised and it’s complicated. We just—”

  “Look, I get it. Why don’t you just give me a call when you want to talk about it?”

  Matt came back into the l
iving room. He looked at Jase, then at Megan, then back at Jase. “Am I interrupting something?”

  ***

  “Honestly, dude, do you have to be such an asshole?” Jase shoved one of the last boxes onto Matt's truck.

  Matt rolled his eyes. “I wasn’t being an asshole. I was just giving her a little grief. Megan knows I’m mostly joking.”

  That was the problem with his brother—Matt thought his charm would forever give him a free pass. “Joking or not, you embarrassed her. What do you care what she keeps in her top drawer, anyway?”

  Matt shrugged. “I don’t. I just care that she’s embarrassed by it.”

  In that moment, Jase knew if they weren’t brothers, they’d never have been friends. Megan didn't deserve Matt on a nice day, let alone when he was feeling surly. Choosing to ignore his brother, Jase glanced back in the open doorway.

  Megan was still braced in the archway between the dining and living room, wearing her too-hot cutoff shorts and deep frown lines. Her earlier flush had left her, and she now looked too gaunt with her dark red hair contrasting her too-pale skin. Her usually vibrant green eyes looked dull and exhausted. Not that he spent a lot of time studying her.

  Liar. Who the hell was he kidding? He'd spent entirely too much time studying her.

  Of course, the one woman he’d been really interested in over the last two years, and she still wasn’t over his brother. Bro code dictated that he needed to leave her the fuck alone. And he had. He hadn’t gone near her. But last night had been a physical test of his will power. Hell, she’d been so warm and sexy. Just thinking about the way her lips felt under his had kept him awake and hard for hours last night. Add to that the constant image of her skirt flying over her back revealing long, lithe legs and a peach of an ass, he hadn’t slept a wink last night.

  He’d tried to come up with all kinds of reasons to come back. But then common sense had prevailed. Just remember, she’s your brother’s ex.

  Jase’s brain tried to rationalize the reasons he should stay away from Megan. She’s probably done with the Collins family all together. Though that couldn’t be true, given the way she’d tried to mold herself to him last night.