Tempting the One (Meadowview Heat 4; The Meadowview 4)

by Rochelle French

  He cleared his throat. “Not trying to dictate your life to you, Chessie, but I don’t want to see you get hurt. I know this is just a teenaged girl, but you never know what someone might do when you confront them. She might react badly. Strike out.”

  “She won’t, Theo. People want to know they belong to something, and at this point in her life, whether she wants to or not, the girl belongs to Meadowview. We take care of our own. She’s probably just misunderstood. Trying to figure out where she belongs.”

  ‘I just don’t want to see you get hurt,” he said.

  For a long moment, Chessie simply sat there, looking at him intently, her gaze examining his face. “I don’t get hurt easily. Not anymore.”

  He wondered what the hell that cryptic message meant, and wanted to ask her about it, but the waitress came over with pizza, Remy stood and excused himself, and the ebb and flow of energy in the Goldpan returned to normal. There would always be time to ask later.

  Because apparently he was stuck with Chessie for the next six weeks. And it would be a fantastically fun six weeks…if she agreed to his idea, that is.

  Arriving home after dinner at the Goldpan Pub, Chessie helped Theo to the couch, promising she’d talk to him later—and knowing full well what topic he had on his mind—then quickly ran around the house, making sure doors were locked and lights off, getting ready to head to bed. She couldn’t stop yawning, though.

  Dinner had ended up rather eventful—eating a meal out on the town with Theo Courant was a bit like sitting at the popular kids’ lunch table in high school. Everyone wanted to swing by to say hi. From Jenna Swinton, the owner of the bakery, to Mrs. Gregson, the town librarian—anyone who had any kind of connection to Theo came over to their table to greet him. And they all stayed to chat.

  At least Remy Toussaint had taken off. Yes, she’d call him if the teenagers harmed her property again, but she hated involving anyone in her problems. Maybe she could buy the neighboring family a box of cupcakes from Swinton’s Bakery. Or a gift certificate for a Super Stack of pancakes from Delilah’s Diner. Some sort of a Welcome to Meadowview present. She’d been so focused on the nation-wide contract that she’d never gone over and properly introduced herself. Once, when she’d been trimming the lavender plants in the front yard, the mother and one of the younger kids had come along, headed down the lane to town, and Chessie had taken a few moments to introducer herself.

  It wasn’t enough, though.

  Pie, she thought suddenly. She’d bake them a blackberry pie.

  But when?

  “Chessie!”

  Oh, god. Theo’s bellow radiated sound throughout the entire house. And it wasn’t like she had a small house. The man had a set of lungs on him.

  She made her way back to the living room, then stopped short in the doorway, and gaped. Theo was sprawled out on her couch, and like earlier in the day…

  Yup, the man wanted her to agree to his Friends With Benefits suggestion. Quite badly, in fact. That was obvious.

  She finally got her jaw to work again and asked, a little breathlessly, “What are you doing?”

  He waggled his hips. “Come on closer.”

  She swallowed, and gripped the doorjamb. “I’m fine here. Do you…uh…need something?”

  “An answer. Unless you’ve forgotten the question.”

  She hadn’t forgotten. Not at all. No way, nuh uh, no how. Theo’s proposition—six weeks of sex—had most definitely not left her mind.

  “Could we maybe discuss this tomorrow?” she prevaricated.

  “Does it look like I can wait until tomorrow?” Theo asked, waggling his hips again.

  Nope.

  “You know you want it,” he added. “You want me. I can see it in our eyes. You’re just about salivating.”

  “Am not.”

  “Are too.”

  She swallowed. He was right.

  Oh, good grief.

  She couldn’t believe she was considering sex with Theo Courant. Ever since they were children, all Theo had done was annoy her. Well, mostly. She and Sadie and Lia had all been at the mercy of their pesky older brothers, who seemed to believe that their mission in life was to annoy their little sisters. And their little sisters’ friends.

  Chessie’s own brother, Jack, hadn’t been so bad, and neither had Lia’s brother, Ethan, but Theo had teased her incessantly. He’d also made her laugh, and she knew was loyal to a fault, but good god, sometimes his ego could be downright insufferable.

  Besides his ego, the way he tossed money around like it meant nothing drove Chessie nuts. Like Arthur, he came from money, and like Arthur, he had an ego the size of his bank account.

  But wow, the man did have a fine body. She pressed her hand against her belly, imbibing in the rush of sexual arousal that shot through her core.

  Theo was right—she wanted it so bad she was beyond aching. Sex with Theo would be an easy thrill, and there wasn’t a chance of emotional entanglement. Unencumbered sex, just the way she liked it.

  Besides, it wasn’t like anyone would get ticked off at her if she slept with Theo. Her best friends were both sleeping with his best friends. She didn’t need to worry about what her friends might think if she slept with Sadie’s brother.

  All good arguments in favor of sleeping with Theo. On the con side, there was the fact that she found him majorly annoying. But he seemed so desperate, and achingly uncomfortable, and somehow that got to her.

  Besides, she really, really needed to get laid.

  “You’d better make this good,” she said, as she sauntered over to the couch.

  “Oh, thank god, you’re gonna do it,” he all but groaned. “Thank you, thank you, thank you. Seriously, thank you.”

  She perched next to him, close enough to touch, but didn’t yet reach out. How was she supposed to initiate sex with an invalid? Sex with Theo?

  “Six weeks,” she said.

  “Six weeks,” he agreed. “Once the casts come off and I move back to San Francisco, we’re done. Finished. Over and out.”

  “Promise?”

  He gave a gentle laugh. “I haven’t had to reassure a woman I didn’t want to be in a relationship with her before, but yeah. You mean a lot to me, Chessie, even though I love bugging the shit out of you, but you’re my friend. Neither of us wants more from this. Six weeks and we’re done. I promise.”

  He tipped his head upward, as if to kiss her, and she pulled back.

  “What, you’re gonna sleep with me but not kiss me?” he asked, a frown marring his forehead.

  “Exactly.”

  “Chessie. What kind of bullshit is that?”

  “It’s not bullshit. Kissing is intimate. Sex is… perfunctory.”

  He snorted. “If that’s what you think, then you’ve been doing it all wrong.”

  “No,” she said, struggling to express something she wasn’t even sure she understood herself. “We’d agreed to a non-relationship here, right? No hearts, no love, no emotional entanglements. Just sex.”

  “Yeah. Just sex. But sex isn’t…what was it you called it? Perfunctory? Hell, Chessie, sex is supposed to be amazing. It’s supposed be great. Supposed to make you tingle and think your frontal lobe will never function again. Your whole body is supposed to get involved, not just your vajayjay and boobies.”

  She couldn’t help it—she giggled. “Did you just call my private parts a vajayjay and boobies?”

  “Stop distracting me. Lips and mouths and tongues are part of the whole experience.”

  “I never said oral sex would be off the table.”

  Theo blew out a long, slow breath as if trying to steady himself before speaking again, this time the words coming out slow and measured. “I want to kiss you. I want to feel the full experience of sensuality with you, not just sexuality.”

  She stared at him, at the deep frown line in his forehead, at the way the corners of his mouth slanted down instead of up, at the flicker of tension in his jaw, she realized he was serious. “Hu
h. I didn’t expect to hear that from you, of all people.”

  A line formed at the corner of his mouth. “What does that mean?”

  “It means, I apologize. I didn’t mean to offend you. I just—” She broke off and bit her lip.

  She just…what? Something was stirring in the back of her mind but she couldn’t put her finger on it. But kissing Theo…it wouldn’t be right. “I just can’t kiss you. I can do everything but kiss you on the lips. Can you work with me here?”

  For a long moment, Theo simply stared up at her, as if taking in her measure. His gaze flicked back and forth, over her face, until he finally settled and held her gaze with his. The corner of his mouth rose up, and suddenly the seriousness of the moment evaporated and he was grinning. Good. Her familiar Theo Courant, the egotistical playboy was back.

  She heaved a sigh of relief. Things had become all too serious for her.

  “Yeah,” he said. “I can agree to no kissing. So long as you promise blow jobs are still on the menu.”

  “I promise.”

  “Then I think it’s high time you pulled these damned board shorts off me,” he said.

  She laughed. Gripping the waistband, she tugged down as Theo shifted his hips until the shorts were completely off. Then she looked at his crotch and gasped. What had been hidden by his shorts both shocked and amazed her.

  “Ohmigod—I knew you waxed your chest, but what the heck did you do to your poor crotch? You’re bald!” she all but shouted. His erection and bare pubic area faced her, the area looking…odd. And a little intriguing.

  He chuckled. “I keep my package freshly shaved. Makes my dick look bigger.”

  “You don’t need to do that—you’re big enough.”

  “The babes dig big dicks. Gotta give ’em what they want.”

  Chessie shook her head. “Do you ever go out with women who have depth, or character, maybe even some brains? Women who want to get to know you, rather than the size of your unit?”

  “Women don’t want to get to know me.” Theo eased his eyes closed.

  “You’re picking the wrong women, then. I should try to hook you up with one of my friends. Someone who might give a rat’s ass about who you really are.”

  His eyes flashed open. “Are we seriously having this conversation? You’re about to sleep with me for six weeks and you’re already picking out your replacement?”

  She gave a low, throaty laugh. “No one can replace me,” she joked. “Haven’t you heard? I’m one of a kind.”

  Theo caught her gaze then. Held it. His eyes containing an inscrutable expression. For a long moment, time hung still, and the room grew silent, punctuated only by the sound of harsh breath. It took a few seconds for her to realize that was the sound of her breath.

  “You’re right, Chessie,” he said slowly. “You are one of a kind. And you’re irreplaceable.”

  With how serious he’d made that statement, she couldn’t figure out if he was mocking her or…or what? Was he serious? She wasn’t sure she wanted to ask.

  The solemnity of the moment was broken when Theo flashed his signature quick grin and raised his hips, nudging her thigh with his. “So…we gonna do this?” he asked.

  Fine. If he didn’t want to go into depth over what he’d just said, fine by her. She leaned forward and placed her hands on either side of his head, just above his shoulders. “Want me?” she teased.

  He closed his eyes, sucked in a deep breath. “Badly, Chessie.”

  “Are you sure?” she asked, crawling onto the couch and straddling him, making sure they barely touched—allowing just the briefest of sensations. He tried to grab her waist to press her down, but the clubs of plaster kept him from getting a grip and he gasped—maybe in pain, maybe in frustration.

  “Are you hurting?” she asked quickly. She couldn’t do this if he was in pain, no matter how bad they both wanted it.

  “I swear to god, if we don’t do this now, when these casts come off, there’ll be hell to pay,” he growled out.

  Guess that answered her question.

  She didn’t waste time—she stripped. Found a condom. Sheathed him first with the latex, and then with her. At first things were a little clumsy and a bit off-center, but seconds later, Chessie forgot about teasing Theo, forgot he was covered in casts, forgot even her name: all she knew was the luxurious sensation of…sex.

  She groaned, rocked forward so her weight was on her hands. Theo’s hips moved as he sought a rhythm with her. But then he froze and his face twisted.

  “Did I do something wrong?” she asked, worried.

  His eyes were squeezed shut. “Yes. No. God, Chessie, don’t stop. I just…I can’t move much. My ankle…” His eyes opened, burning with passion. “Please,” he croaked. “I can handle the pain. Please, just move for us both.”

  She complied with his request. Far be it for her to determine the level of a man’s pain. Or the level of his sexual frustration. She moved…undulated…set the the pace.

  And when Theo’s eyes drifted shut and his cocky smile came back to his face, she knew she’d hit the mark.

  Her breath came fast, choppy, as she intensified her movements. Heat spread throughout her, causing sweat to bead on her brow, between her breasts. Her thighs quivered, barely able to hold her weight as the quivers that had initiated in her thighs spread throughout until her entire body shook. She cried out, and within seconds, Theo joined her on that plateau.

  She slowed, and then came to a stop to hover over Theo. Although she’d stopped moving, her lungs ached for air. She sucked precious oxygen deep into her chest until her heartbeat slowed and the tremors that had been quaking throughout her body diminished, then ceased.

  She forced her eyes open and met the brilliant blue of his. Theo smiled, wide, his dimples like etched canyons.

  Chessie opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. Her mind, still airy from her orgasm, refused to form a thought. She should say something, but there were no words.

  She laughed, a soft and breathless sound.

  Sex with Theo hadn’t simply been good—it had flat-out rendered her speechless.

  * * *

  Satisfaction warmed Theo. That had been one hell of an outstanding session, even with the stabs of pain from his ankle and wrists. The pain meds had been good, just not perfect.

  He let out a quick chuckle. He never would have thought that sex with casts could end up so frigging amazing. Of course, he never would have imagined that Chessie Gibson, of all people, would have given him such a ride.

  “Wow,” he said. “That was really good. Amazingly good.”

  “Thanks,” she said absently, pulling her skirt back down to swish around her ankles. She adjusted her top, and he observed how the material of her top clung to her boobs. Faint flickers of light from the dying fire caressed her frame. Lust rippled through him once more.

  She finally stopped messing with her clothes and turned to look at him. “Better now?”

  He nodded. Much better, now that Chessie had done him a solid. And good god, how awesome it had been. The way her body had moved, the soft pants her breath made, and her scent, a pleasing combination of lavender and rain, had all brought him wondrously close to nirvana. Hyperbole, sure, but some moments deserved overemphasis.

  She’d surprised him, had that Chessie Gibson. Surprised him in a most sensual and erotic way.

  “You’re really something, you know. Sexy. Gorgeous. There’s something almost ethereal about how you have sex,” he said.

  Chessie’s expression changed. The look of hesitancy that crossed her face perplexed him for a moment. Was she feeling unsure about their sex-fest? Nah, he thought. Chessie never felt unsure about anything. The woman was a paragon of self-confidence.

  “Need anything?” she asked. “I’m headed to the kitchen to…uh…tidy up before helping you up to bed.”

  But he didn’t want her to go. Not yet.

  He started. Where had that thought come from?

  “No,
stay for a while. Talk to me. I’m lonely.”

  She gave a short, disbelieving laugh. “You had sex all of two minutes ago, and already you’re lonely?” Her long auburn curls swung about her shoulders, making him wish he had use of his hands. It would be interesting to see how her hair felt between his fingers.

  “All we did was gasp and moan. We didn’t have a conversation. I want more time than a five-minute fuck.”

  Chessie’s gaze drifted off into a corner. “Maybe don’t use that word.”

  “What do you want me to call it—a screw?”

  Her mouth tightened. “Never mind. Call it whatever you want.”

  Unease twisted around inside his stomach. He’d hit a nerve, somehow, but couldn’t quite figure out what it was he’d said. Or was she regretting their agreement?

  “Chessie,” he said soberly, “if you’ve changed your mind about the whole six week thing, it’s fine. I would understand if you want to back out.”

  She swung her gaze up to meet his and gave him the ghost of a smile. “No way. Men always think they’re the ones with the sex drive, but that’s totally discounting women and their own needs and desires. I’m just as biologically driven to desire sex as you are. And that was good sex. A little fast, rather awkward, and really odd, but good. I’m not turning away six weeks of unencumbered sex. So drop the idea, got it?”

  He chuckled. “Message received. Do we get to try for Round Two tonight, though?”

  She shook her head but smiled her broad smile. “I’m exhausted. But I love morning sex. Pencil me in?”

  “Yeah, sure. But I also love middle-of-the-night sex. Sleep in the same bed with me?”

  She burst out laughing. “Do you snore? Are you a bed hog?” When he shook his head, she added, “Fine. I’ll spend the night next to you. I miss my bed, anyway. It’s a king—we’ll have room for me, you, and your various casts. But I really should get some stuff taken care of before we end up in bed for the night.”

  “You sure you have to leave right now?” he asked. He couldn’t figure out why, but he still didn’t want Chessie to leave him so soon.

  She tipped her head but didn’t exactly say no.