To her dismay, Alex turned and followed her, reaching the back door and opening it before she had a chance. Ashleigh dared to look up into those glimmering green eyes and saw something sparkle there. With Alex, it was difficult to read him, but his smile was pure seduction and Ashleigh knew it was time to put some distance between them.
“When will you be finished installing the alarm and how much is it going to cost me?” Letting him hear the frustration in her voice wasn’t difficult. Too bad she was more frustrated with herself than him.
“I’ve got two guys working on it now, so it shouldn’t be much longer. And Xavier already paid.” Alex stated, closing the door behind them and then turning that mischievous gleam on her once again.
Maybe she should try that whole drinking herself stupid thing again. It had been years since the last time. At least then if she was going to do something stupid – like say, go all gaga for this guy – she wouldn’t remember it.
Two of the movers walked into the kitchen carrying her breakfast table, and thankfully interrupting the intimate situation that she suddenly found herself in. Being alone with Alex was not smart. No matter how much her body seemed to like the idea.
“How about dinner?” Alex asked, but Ashleigh pretended not to hear him. She’d perfected the art of pretending anytime he was around.
“What?” She turned to face him as though she needed him to clarify his statement. That was a mistake.
The man was so damn hot, Ashleigh’s internal thermostat notched up a degree or two just from looking at him.
Not only was he a massive chunk of eye candy, a man Ashleigh had compared nearly every man she’d ever met to, he was also tall. At five feet eight, she was on the tall side herself, and his size was one of the things she’d always been drawn to.
At least a head taller than her, Ashleigh liked that he made her feel small in comparison. In order to make eye contact, especially when he insisted on crowding her like he was now, she had to look up. Most of the time, although she was mesmerized by his eyes, they were the last thing she was looking at though.
No, she found herself eyeing his broad chest, or his thick, ropey arms, or... well, the rest of him was off limits where her eyes were concerned.
When Alex cleared his throat, Ashleigh realized she’d been doing just that. Ogling him. Again.
“I’ll be glad to go and pick something up for us if you’d prefer.”
Assuming he was again talking about dinner, Ashleigh contemplated the repercussions of having dinner with this man. Knowing her, and the fact that her body had already begun to ache for him, dinner could likely lead to something more. Much more. And quite frankly, her limited experience didn’t fare well for her when it came to taking on Alex McDermott.
No, dinner wasn’t a good idea. But then neither was him being in her house at all.
Not wanting to be rude, her grandfather had raised her better than that, Ashleigh came up with a compromise.
“Why don’t I order pizza? I’m sure your installers are hungry, as well as the movers.” At least if she ordered pizza, she wouldn’t risk being left alone with him.
“Pizza works.” Alex smirked, then turned and walked out of the kitchen.
Thankfully he didn’t look back, or he would have caught her sneaking a peek at another one of his exceptionally impressive features.
Chapter Four
*** ~~ *** ~~ *** ~~ ***
One week later, settled and having spent more than a few hours a day writing, Ashleigh opted to take a break, which had come by way of an invitation from Samantha McCoy, Logan’s new wife.
Instead of coming up with a multitude of excuses, which was her MO, Ashleigh easily accepted, hoping that the outing would help to get her mind off of the two things she’d been overwhelmed with throughout the week – being stalled on the book she was writing and thinking erotic thoughts about Alex McDermott.
It was a no win situation. If she could stop thinking about Alex, the first would likely work itself out. However, if she kept thinking about Alex, the first would likely work itself out.
Since her brain hurt from trying to do either, Ashleigh had sworn off thoughts of Alex for the night. Which was why she was standing in the living room of Logan and Sam’s immaculate home, trying to feel like she belonged.
After an hour of engaging in conversations with a slew of people, Ashleigh was still feeling a little awkward.
Between Logan and Sam trying to introduce her to everyone, including Sierra Sellers, an interior designer from Nashville, Ashleigh’s mind was racing, trying to put names with faces. She’d even had a brief conversation with Luke, Logan’s sexy as hell twin brother, but he didn’t seem to be in much of a good mood, so she’d given him some space.
At times, it was awkward trying to talk to adults about children’s books, especially those who weren’t parents themselves. As much as they wanted to feign interest, Ashleigh knew better.
When living a life of isolation, it was easy to find ways to entertain yourself and Ashleigh had come up with a few tricks of her own. Watching people was one of those things that both amused her and provided good material for future work.
The McCoy house was offering her a plethora of information that could be spun into some really intriguing books. Suffice it to say, these people were unquestionably entertaining. Of course, there was the most fascinating of them all, and though she had sworn him off for the night, avoiding him required some creativity on her part. The man was relentless.
Up to this point, she’d succeeded in avoiding conversation with him, but his interest was apparent, and a little flattering if she were completely honest. Although it was a day late and a dollar short as far as she was concerned. Had he remembered what happened so long ago, Ashleigh was pretty sure he wouldn’t be looking at her like he was undressing her with his eyes. Instead, she hoped he’d be blushing bright red with embarrassment.
Doubtful, but she had a vivid imagination.
A commotion sounded from the front hall causing Ashleigh to turn, just in time to see Sierra nearly running out the door, Logan’s twin and a sexy blond man following after her. No one seemed concerned with the drama, and Ashleigh wasn’t about to get in the middle of it.
When Sam’s voice drifted from the foyer, Ashleigh made out the words: Luke, frustrating, and gone and done it again.
“Hey.” The familiar voice interrupted her eavesdropping. Swallowing hard, Ashleigh summoned up the nerve to turn around.
“Hi.” One syllable. That’s all she had to come up with. So how was it possible for it to come out choppy and a little unsure?
It was odd the effect Alex had on her. Here she was in a room filled with extremely good looking men, all successful, confident, but Alex was the only one who could make her heart pound. From his sexy, unkempt hair, to those dark, dark, emerald green eyes, to that powerful body, Alex stole her breath.
Even in comparison to Luke and Logan McCoy, identical twins who were by far the biggest men Ashleigh had ever come into contact with, Alex was just as intimidating.
Maybe even more so.
Admittedly, Ashleigh wasn’t a shrinking violet. Easily above average in height, she was thin, but not terribly so. She hadn’t been blessed with the luscious curves that Sam or Sierra possessed, but she could fill out a bikini quite nicely, thank you very much. Her arms were long, her legs even longer and to top it all off, she had big feet. They were nice feet, but big nonetheless.
“Walk with me.”
Alex broke through her thoughts, and Ashleigh managed to fight off the embarrassment. She had spent the better part of her teenage years being shy and easily embarrassed – something she worked exceptionally hard to overcome. In turn, she had become incredibly outspoken, often too much so. So when Alex took her hand, linking his powerful fingers with hers, she took that moment to prove it. “What are you doing?”
Wow. Way to ruin a moment.
“I’m holding your hand. It’s this little gesture that afford
s me the opportunity to touch you when otherwise you would run for the hills.”
Well, ok then.
The feel of his fingers beneath hers was making her dizzy, so she let him lead her through the back door, onto the patio overlooking a stunning pool. The water glowed with alternating colors while a sound system played something jazzy from overhead. The weather couldn’t have been better for so early in the year, the air cool, yet not cold. All combined, it was nice.
With Alex holding her hand, Ashleigh feared he would realize her palms were starting to sweat because his hand was hot enough to melt her insides and not because she was nervous. Ok, maybe a little nervous.
When they stopped at the edge of the pool, Alex sat on the stone ledge surrounding the hot tub, easily pulling Ashleigh down beside him.
“How’s the book coming?”
Instinct had her tensing, immediately wondering which book he was referring to. There was no possible way he knew she was Ashton Leigh...
Going on that assumption, she answered, “I’m up to my eyeballs in fairy dust.”
Alex’s chuckle reverberated through her, rebounding off each and every molecule and making her insides dance with pleasure. Even his laugh turned her on.
“Fairy dust, huh? Does this one end with the princess taming the prince?”
“Well, of course not.” Ashleigh said, trying to sound stern. “Don’t you know there’s no way to tame a prince? Unless of course you turn him into a frog, which I haven’t done. So, no, my prince is actually a horse, who, as it turns out, is best friends with a barn owl.”
Alex’s shocked stare made Ashleigh laugh. “What? Do you have a fear of farm animals?”
“Not that I know of.” Alex recovered easily. “That stuff really excites you?”
Ashleigh wasn’t going to tell him that she managed to publish the children’s books because her agent was a hard ass, and since the books were popular, she was hard pressed not to keep going. But the others she wrote… well, those were what she spent most of her time on.
“I enjoy what I do.” She said honestly. “I work for myself … mostly. And I get to meet so many incredible people along the way.”
Alex seemed to contemplate her statement for a moment. “So, what do you do in your spare time? Or do you have any?”
Grateful for the change of subject, Ashleigh glanced out over the pool, watching the glowing water ripple gently in the crisp evening breeze. Sitting here with Alex was nice. She couldn’t say relaxing because she was too overheated to relax, but his presence did afford her a sliver of comfort.
“I have spare time. On occasion.” Whenever she took a break which wasn’t all that often, she thought. “I like to run on those days when I can get away for a bit. Or, I check off one of the items on my I haven’t done this yet list.”
Alex cleared his throat, causing Ashleigh to look at him. The heat in those emerald eyes was palpable.
“What types of things?” Alex’s voice sounded strained, and the way his eyes darted down to her lips had Ashleigh’s stomach tightening.
“Horseback riding is one of them. I’ve never done it, so I figure it’s something I should at least try. Skiing. Possibly riding a four wheeler. Those types of things.” She wouldn’t mention the other items on her list that were for her eyes only, like skinny dipping, or having sex in a public place. Or having sex period.
Ashleigh fought the urge to fidget. She often wondered whether her secret list would have more interesting things on it if she had, in fact, ever had sex. Hell, she came up with some astronomical scenes, some she hardly believed would ever happen. At times, she could almost picture herself in those scenes. Not that she would share that with Alex.
Nor would she tell him that she was Ashton Leigh. No reason to give him the wrong impression. Those were fantasies she came up with, and not necessarily her own. But if he knew, would he think they were?
That was the same question she asked herself about anyone who knew her. If she was outed, would her friends and family be disappointed in her? Would they be concerned about her warped mind? Not that she thought it was warped, nor did her readers apparently.
“You’ve never been skiing?”
Grateful he was keeping the conversation on simpler topics, Ashleigh responded, “Nope.”
Her list was long. So many exciting things she wanted to do. Along with the exhilaration of trying something for the first time, Ashleigh sometimes needed to get out of her own head for a little while. Having new things to conquer gave her that brief reprieve. Since she didn’t have enough time to do them all at once, she would just write them down for the future. “What about you? Are you a skier?”
“Not much, no. I’ve been a couple of times, but can’t say I’m good at it.”
“See, that’s the part that doesn’t matter. As long as you’ve tried it once, you can say you’ve done it. Then you know whether you liked it or not, regardless of how good you are.”
Ashleigh took a chance and looked at Alex. He looked lost in thought, and, not for the first time, she wanted to get inside his brain and rummage around. She was pretty sure she’d find some fascinating things there.
Chapter Five
*** ~~ *** ~~ *** ~~ ***
Alex was having a hard time concentrating on the words Ashleigh was stringing together. Between the intoxicatingly sweet scent of her hair, and those luscious pink lips, his brain wasn’t functioning because it was suffering from blood loss.
Although his dick wasn’t having any issues paying attention.
That was the problem with being around Ashleigh. Or thinking about her. Or dreaming about her. He was rendered completely useless because his body was on overload. From the sweet scent of her glossy, brown hair, to the gleam in her whiskey brown eyes, to those more than perfect lips, Alex couldn’t get enough of her. He wanted to run his tongue over the seam of her lips just to find out if she tasted as sweet as she smelled.
He might just get punched for that one.
“I’ve never been horseback riding either.” He offered, hoping they were still on the same topic. “Never has been my thing, I guess.”
“Not a cowboy, Alex?” She teased.
He liked when she teased him. A lot.
Since she usually had her guard up when he was around, being with Ashleigh when she was relaxed and talkative was a first for him.
He’d come upon her in the living room, not expecting her to be there, and he’d been like a moth drawn to a flame.
At the moment in time when he saw her standing there, looking ridiculously hot in a pair of tight, faded jeans and cowboy boots – or were they cowgirl boots? Hell, it didn’t’ matter. She was fucking hot – he hadn’t been able to turn away from her.
When he had taken her hand, her long, slender fingers linking with his, he’d made a point to walk outside, rather than to find the first available room so he could feel those soft hands on other parts of his body.
Not that she would have gone for any of that. Not Ashleigh. She wasn’t the playful type. Or at least not when he was around.
He was suddenly interested in changing all of that.
“What are you doing tomorrow?” He asked, standing suddenly from the restless hunger that surged through him.
“Tomorrow?” She asked, sounding surprised.
“Yes. Saturday. What are you doing on Saturday?” He repeated, taking her hand and pulling her to her feet.
“N-nothing.” She stammered. “Well, that’s not entirely true. I sort of need to unpack a few things, and I had planned to go running in the morning.”
“What about tomorrow afternoon?” Since Ashleigh wasn’t deflecting his question, or flat out pretending she didn’t hear him which was usual for her, Alex was going to keep pushing.
“Other than trying to get in some writing, I don’t have any plans.”
“Go out with me.” Alex didn’t phrase it as a question because he wasn’t going to offer her an out.
“Where?”
Alex chuckled – mainly because he was overjoyed that she didn’t flat out tell him no. “It’ll be a surprise.”
Ashleigh kept her eyes locked with his as she seemed to contemplate his invitation. He silently willed her to say yes while praying she wouldn’t say no. This was the most conversation they’d shared in all of the time he had known her, and quite frankly, Alex didn’t want it to end, but he had somewhere he needed to be. He didn’t want to leave her without at least making plans to see her again.
A few seconds turned into an interminably long minute before she finally smiled, and the sweetest word he had ever heard emerged from her lips. “Ok.”
If he wasn’t damn near forty years old and scared he’d freak her out, Alex would’ve fist pumped the air in celebration. Instead, he let his eyes graze her lips. The temptation to kiss her was overwhelming. So much so that Alex couldn’t resist.
With a small measure of hesitance, he leaned down toward her, waiting to see if she would back up or worse, push him away. When she didn’t, he leaned a little closer. “Kiss me, Ashleigh.” He whispered the words and waited patiently to see what her next move would be.
When Ashleigh leaned in, meeting him halfway and pressing her warm, soft lips against his, the world erupted in fireworks and song – although he was pretty sure that was all in his head. He pulled her closer, pressing his body against hers as their lips met briefly. Since he’d already acknowledged patience wasn’t his strong suit, Alex took it one step further.
Using one hand to hold her close, he used the other to cup her chin, tilting her head slightly so he could better the angle and slip his tongue into her mouth. She didn’t immediately react, but once Alex dipped his tongue just a little farther, her lips parted and he took advantage, kissing her with everything he was.
In turn, Ashleigh blew his mind as she kissed him back, her hands going around him, pulling him even closer as she pressed against his erection, making him moan. Fucking hell.
For all the time Alex had fantasized about this moment, he’d never dreamed it would be like this. The woman was sweeter than nectar and so damn soft. With her body crushed up against his, their hips aligned damn near perfectly, as though they had been made to fit together.
Seduction (Club Destiny) Page 3