Romantic Promises (Alluring Promises Series, #2)

by Baker, Janice

  “Is this your car?” She asked, her mouth still hanging open.

  I love that. She’s impressed. Maybe she’ll definitely forget the policy now.

  “Yep. This is my girl,” I announced proud and slightly cocky. She’s a really nice car.

  “You asshole!” She spat at me. “You’ve been parking in my space at work!” Her hands were now on her hips and she was clearly pissed off.

  “Your space? Which one?” I asked as I tried to shove her bag into my trunk. I was thankful my duffel bag would stuff behind my seat or I might have to make Ms. Snotty pants hold my bag the whole ride home. The thought made me chuckle to myself.

  “The fourth parking space,” she snarled.

  I cocked my head to the side remembering which one. “The one without a name?” I couldn’t help but smirk that this whole time I had taken her space. I could just picture her pissed off in her car yelling. Too bad she didn’t know it had been me the whole time. She’d have been in my office a lot more.

  She rolled her eyes and huffed. “Yes, that one.”

  “Well, if it had a name on it, I wouldn’t have parked it there.” I smiled to her as I opened her door for her. She sat down and I realized then she was dressed in work clothes. Her skirt hitched up slightly, showing her fantastic thigh. Mmm. Damn, I loved being in between those thighs last night. I tried to focus back to our conversation. I was getting another rise out of her and loved the banter with her.

  I sat behind the wheel of my girl and put the key in the ignition as Vanessa started to explain defensively, “I’ve been waiting for a correct sign. I had to order a new one.”

  I turned my girl on and gave Vanessa a wink. “Well, when you finally get it posted, I’ll stop parking there.”

  She rolled her eyes and huffed. I smiled knowing I sort of got her back for the making me sit in back of the taxi with Evelyn.

  “Did you drive a blue SUV when you first came to the office when Perry told you about the position?” she seemed to huff the question out.

  “Guilty,” I wiggled my brows at my admission.

  Vanessa shook her head and I chuckled. I glanced over and noticed her slight smile too. I had this immediate urge to grab her hand and playfully squeeze it. I didn’t.

  I started driving and we were both lost in our thoughts. When I turned towards home instead of the office, Vanessa blurted out, “Where are you going? We need to get back to the office.”

  “Why? We just flew in. We’re off the rest of the day. Travel day.”

  She shook her head adamantly. “No, I don’t do that. I always go in right after my trip, if it’s before five.”

  I gave her a sweet smile. “Well consider this a fun day then. I’ve kidnapped you the rest of the day,” I teased her as I raised my brows.

  She glared at me as she said, “Umm, no. We need to get back to the office.”

  I shrugged as I looked back at the road. I wasn’t giving in on this one; like hell if I’m going back to the office if I don’t have to. “Well we’re not. There’s no reason to go back in. You don’t have any meetings planned.”

  “How do you know I don’t have any?” she snapped.

  I gave her a quick smile as I admitted, “I already checked.”

  “Why would you do that?”

  “Because I thought we would continue what we started back at the conference.”

  She lowered her voice as she told me, “It was one night, Matt. We discussed that.” She looked back out the window.

  “You didn’t give me a full night. I want the remaining four hours,” I told her as I threw her a taunting smile.

  Her head snapped back to look at me as I glanced at her. She sputtered, “I…you…this wasn’t a time stamped deal. It was one night of sex to get it out of our system.”

  Nonchalantly, I shrugged. “Well, I still don’t have you out of my system.” I watched her squirm on that one. I gave her my signature licking my lips move. She pulled her brows in, disgusted.

  “You can’t determine whether we continue or not.”

  “Why not? You did. You left in the middle of the night. I told you at the conference I wasn’t done and I meant it.”

  “I…you,” she stammered, but shut her mouth and looked out the window. I hadn’t planned on saying all that, but since we were headed home I figured I’d take a shot and see if it would work. Just like sales, throw it out there and see what bites. Fuck yeah, if she’s going to bite on this one. I got a chub just thinking about being with her again. I started thinking about what I could do.

  “Matt, we already discussed and agreed it was the one time,” she told me as she looked out the window thoughtfully.

  “Okay, that’s fine. I wasn’t trying anything,” I told her as casually as I could. Lie.

  She had this sideways glance, her eyes sparkled as if she were excited. “You were too,” she taunted me with a soft playful laugh.

  Please tell me she’s teasing me. It’s so subtle it was turning me on more. I gave her a questioning look with a small smile “How?” I asked.

  Vanessa’s eyes grew wide in disbelief and her jaw dropped open, yet she was still laughing along with me. “You were giving me those bedroom eyes and licking your lips!”

  I went ahead and did just that. I was dying to see what she would say about it.

  She gave a small roll of her eyes. “Don’t give me that. You are totally aware of how you seduce women,” she pointed out. Playful. I am fucking loving playful Vanessa. Where the hell has she been hiding?

  I chuckled. “What like this?” I ran my tongue along my lip and gave her my half smile.

  She snickered and shook her head. “You’re incorrigible.” I went a little further and raised my eyebrows slightly. Her jaw dropped and she hit my arm lightly. “It’s not doing anything for me and I already told you — No!” She pursed her lips, giving me a smart look, she added, “and I’m immune to your ways.”

  I nodded my head. Fine. I’d go a different route in order to get her into my bed. Man, I just need another full night with her. Maybe then I could get her out of my system.

  I chuckled. “Alright, fine.” I changed my tone to a more serious one. “What should we do tonight?”

  Her smile and playful manner left as she glanced thoughtfully out her window. “I actually have plans for tonight.”

  “You do?” I asked with a little more surprise than I had intended.

  “Yeah, with this guy Aubrey set me up with.” Fuck.

  Why did I feel jealous? And why did my heart feel like it was coming out of my throat? Why the hell am I so pissed off about all this? I had one night with her, hoping to get her out of my system, but now I feel like I just want more. I hate it when a plan backfires on me.

  Chapter 16

  Matt

  I opened my apartment door to head down to the gym, when I glanced across the hall.

  I gaped at Vanessa from the floor up. Starting with her red painted toenails in sexy black heels, showing her bare silky leg that peeked out from the slit of her floor length emerald green dress. The dress was gathered to one side emphasizing her amazing hour glass figure. Her full round breasts were propped up so that the cleavage of her dress showed the swell of her globes.

  I wanted to literally rub my cheek across her breasts and lay feather kisses on each one while cupping them and pulling down the material of her dress so I could take one of her rosy buds into my mouth and suck for all eternity. Fuck.

  “Matt?” I heard her gorgeous voice say from somewhere in my fantasy. Then I felt a smack to my back that brought me out of my mini fantasy as Clark shoved me further out the door.

  Vanessa was staring at me with a curious expression, I’m sure wondering why I was gaping at her tits. “Umm, Vanessa, wha…umm, are you headed out?”

  “Yes, actually I am. This is Thomas Larmont.” I glanced over to the guy that I hadn’t noticed before. He didn’t seem much older than I was, but he did wear a very expensive suit, completely the opposite of
my gym shorts and t-shirt. He held his hand out to me. I shook his hand glancing at his Rolex.

  “Umm, Matt. Matt Williams,” I quickly introduced myself. We all seemed to stand there in uncomfortable silence. I noticed Vanessa was starting to twirl her ring around her finger, so I knew she was nervous. I wanted to mess with her, but seeing her like that I really just wanted to wrap my arms around her. Our eyes met and she gave me a nervous smile and nodded her head quickly. I watched her gorgeous lips, moist and covered in the most alluring shade of red as she licked them quickly to speak.

  “Well, we should probably leave, Thomas.”

  “Of course. We wouldn’t want to be late to the symphony.” She returned a nervous smile and nodded briefly.

  He placed his hand on the small of her back as they started walking down the hall. I was having a hard time keeping my jealousy in check knowing that only hours ago I gave her kisses right where that fucker’s hands were now. My jaw was starting to hurt from clenching so damn hard.

  Clark and I followed them to the elevator and Thomas pushed the button, as we all stood around quietly waiting. When it finally arrived, we all gathered inside as Clark pushed the button. He glanced over at the couple behind us. “Lobby or Parking Garage?”

  Thomas responded, “Lobby, we have a limo waiting for us.” I watched Vanessa’s mouth turn into a small admiring smile hearing that news and her eyes lit up. My heart dropped, knowing that he was doing something that brought that smile and it wasn’t me who put that there.

  “Wow, a limo, huh? Those things are great for fucking,” Clark spit out in a way that only Clark could say with a straight face, staring straight ahead and not giving a shit who was around. I wanted to kick his ass and by the look on Vanessa’s horrified face, she did too. Clark continued to stand there as if he hadn’t said the most uncomfortable thing in the world.

  No one said a word.

  Finally, the elevator opened up to the lobby. We all waited patiently as Thomas gestured for Vanessa to step out first and he followed her. Clark and I stepped out and Clark turned to walk to the gym. I stood there staring after Vanessa and her date as they walked out the building’s glass doors over to the waiting black stretched limo. I watched the chauffeur open their door and Vanessa politely nodded her head to the chauffeur. She elegantly took her seat, her dress slit showing her amazing bare leg. I remembered laying kisses along that bare leg just last night.

  “Hey asshole, let’s hit the gym. You can pound out some of that frustration you got from seeing her with her date,” Clark yelled at me from down the hall.

  “I’m not frustrated,” I told him as I turned and started walking towards him.

  He shook his head, laughing. “Yeah, then what’s the reason you’re staring after her like a love sick puppy,” he taunted as he pulled out his key card and swiped it. The door unlocked and he pulled it open.

  “I’m not love sick,” I protested as I stepped inside, dropping my towel and placing my water bottle on the nearest treadmill.

  “Yeeahhh, right.” Clark’s sarcasm made me want to punch him. Instead I decided to take his advice and work out my frustration. Clark got on the treadmill next to me and started a light run.

  My pace quickened as I kept thinking about Vanessa. What was worse was I kept wondering what that Thomas guy was going to do to her amazing body. Anger flashed through me as I thought more about how he was probably touching her. My pace picked up until I was in a full sprint and my breathing began to come out in short puffs, barely pulling in oxygen.

  “Hey idiot, you’re gonna trip if you continue at that pace,” Clark yelled out as I did just that. I almost fell flat on my face. Instead I just scraped up my right knee on the damn tread. Clark started laughing as he continued to chastise me. “Told you!”

  Asshole. I stood up breathless and started to pace around the room, trying to figure out what my problem was. I’m with women all the fucking time. What did I care seeing Vanessa with another guy? I didn’t get that way with Kara when she got a boyfriend. And shit, I was with her a lot more than “one time” Vanessa.

  “So what’s with you and Vanessa?” Clark asked as I was still trying to catch my breath and think the situation through.

  “What do you mean?” I asked, knowing full well what he really meant.

  “Well, you’ve been hot for her, but you’re not making your usual move.”

  “My usual move?”

  “Yeah, you’d have either gone for the girl now and had her or you’d just move on. I haven’t seen you move on and you’re sure as hell not trying to go full force on her. What gives?”

  “You’ll think it’s stupid,” I told him as I pondered telling him how I really felt about her. Something I still wasn’t sure about how to put into words.

  “Try me.”

  I picked up some weights and started my bicep curls. It gave me something to do other than look at him. He’ll just think all this crap is stupid, which it probably is. I pulled my right arm into a bicep curl as I asked him, “Well, remember at the wedding? I brought Vanessa out to the dance floor and we slow danced?”

  Clark hopped off the treadmill as he prodded me, “And?”

  I pressed my lips together before I tried to explain it to him. “We almost kissed. She brushed her lips against my throat as if she were tasting me. Then when we finally kissed at the hotel it was,” I gritted my teeth as I tried to figure out the word. “Searing.”

  Clark looked up at me and gave me a stupid look. “Searing?”

  I shook my head, knowing he wouldn’t understand, but felt like I had to try to explain it to him. “Yeah, like it just solidified that I knew she’d have a fantastic mouth. Then we finally have sex…”

  “You fucked her?” Clark interrupted me. “When?”

  For some reason, I thought I already told him this, but maybe not. “Last night at the conference in Jersey. Anyway, I hoped that when I finally had sex with her she’d suck in bed or something.”

  Clark smirked and wiggled his brows. “And she didn’t?”

  I stopped my bicep curl and stared at him as I stressed how good she was. “Fuck. She was just amazing. Wild. Fun. I bet she’d even be more adventurous too. But then she left in the middle of the night when I was sleeping. I really wanted to wake up and have more of her. She just keeps giving me a little and I just want more every single time.” I pressed my lips together and shook my head trying to figure out what the fuck that woman is doing to me. “I just…I can’t get her out of my mind. She’s different than most of the girls I’m attracted to.”

  “She’s a bitch,” Clark spat as he pulled the weight up, staring at his bicep.

  “She’s not a bitch.” Then I chuckled remembering our fight at the office. “Okay, she does tend to have that bitch attitude.” I took a deep breath. “She just seems to have this vulnerable side, but then I see her at work and she’s confident there. I just can’t get her out of my head.”

  Clark walked over and picked up a different set of weights, starting a set of upright rows. He gave me a menacing smile as he taunted me, “You’re a wuss.”

  I threw him a glare. “I’m not a wuss.” I looked down and continued my set of bicep curls. “I’m just saying there’s just something about her that I felt when we danced together and almost kissed.”

  “You got all that from one dance and didn’t even kiss her?”

  “Yeah,” I said seriously, nodding my head.

  “You’re a fucking idiot. Don’t become one of those love sick fools, Matt. You’ll just get fucked over in the end like with Stephanie. At least get your dick sucked by her a couple times and move on. Get whatever it is out of your system and move the fuck on.”

  I nodded. He was sort of right, but I couldn’t help but feel like there was something about Vanessa that I wanted more of — something sweet mixed in with that side of confidence that she has at work. I wanted more. “She looked hot tonight, didn’t she?”

  “You mean with her rich date?”
Clark chided.

  “Shut up. I don’t give a shit who was taking her out. She looked good, didn’t she?” I asked as I remembered how fantastic she looked.

  “Yeah, actually, she did. She’s got nice tits.”

  ******

  After our workout, Clark and I headed to Allure to hang out and drink some beers.

  Izzy walked up and slammed another beer on the table in front of Clark. His eyes shot over to me before landing back at Izzy, surprised that she did that. Actually, his look was more of a “what the fuck” type of look.

  Izzy went ahead and responded to his facial expression. “Just…Ugh,” she groaned as she clutched her hands into fists. “Keep your dick in your pants for once!” She hissed at Clark.

  Clark and I both stared at each other for Izzy’s outburst. I don’t think I’ve ever seen Izzy raise her voice. I mean, shit, she caught Z getting kissed by his ex once and never raised her voice. Seeing her like this was really odd.

  “Mandy said she’s pissed she finally gave in to you. You’re not supposed to be intimate with the staff,” Izzy snapped at Clark with an angry glare.

  Clark smirked and gave a menacing chuckle. “Intimate? I wouldn’t call what we did intimate. I’ve got other terms for what we did.” He looked at me and raised his eyebrows, smiling proudly.

  Izzy let out an aggravated groan. “You’re so gross sometimes,” Izzy threw her hands up in the air and stormed off.

  Clark shrugged. “PMS. That shit sucks. I don’t go near Tina when she gets like that.” He took out his phone and checked. “Just one more week and I avoid Tina like the plague,” he said in a matter-of-fact manner.

  I threw him a disgusted look. “You have her cycle in your phone?”

  “Fuck yeah, I do. You gotta plan that shit out.” I shrugged. “What, you don’t believe me?” He asked.