by Rye Hart
“I – I'm sorry. I should probably get back to the party,” I said, pushing away from the wall.
Jude reached out and took my hand, and the electricity in that touch was palpable. I gasped, not sure what was happening at first, my head spinning and awash in sensation. But, then he shook my hand and gave me a small smile.
“It's nice to finally meet you, Ember,” he said and sounded sincere. “I hope we can come together as a family.”
“Me too,” I managed to choke out.
He dropped my hand, but neither one of us moved for a second. It was then that I realized how close he was standing to me. His cologne surrounded me, and I inhaled the scent of him – sharp, clean and musky. If it were possible to wrap myself in that scent and fuck it, I would have because it was so damn intoxicating. Jude Calloway was everything the magazines had made him out to be, and more. So much more.
“There you are, sugar,” my mom's voice rang out, shrill and slurred.
I cringed as she wrapped her arms around Jude's waist, her body melting against his as she pulled him into her. I could have been wrong, but he seemed a little mortified by her condition. I mouthed, “She's your problem now,” to Jude and made my way to the dance floor with Talia.
“That seemed to go well,” Talia said, sidling up to me.
“Yeah, I think he's the nicest husband she's had so far,” I said.
“Even nicer than number three?” Talia asked, cackling as I rolled my eyes.
“God, yes. But that's a low bar to clear since number three was a complete and utter asshole,” I said.
I shuddered thinking back on mom's third husband – Ralph Stanley was his name. Seemed like a nice enough guy. At first, anyway. He was a bit dowdy, especially for someone like my mother, but closer to her in age, which was a plus in my book.
For a while, I actually thought it might work out between them. That thought quickly died on the vine when he grabbed my ass at Thanksgiving. My first Thanksgiving break from college, and he'd had a little too much to drink. Tried to claim I looked like my mom and that it had been a mistake, but neither of us was buying it.
They'd been married long enough anyway, so my mom kissed his ass goodbye and moved on to number four within a few months. I wasn't sure if Jude knew how many others had come before him but judging by the way he looked at my mom, I don't think he cared. About anything.
To me, he didn't have that look in his eye a man gets when he's in love. Then again, what did I know? Not like a man had ever looked at me like that either. Maybe Jude just hid his emotions well. Maybe he wasn't an overly-demonstrative person, preferring to keep his public and private personas different. Maybe, behind closed doors, he was mushy and sentimental. Hell, I had no idea.
I turned back toward Talia on the dance floor, ignoring my mom and her new hubby in the corner, and found myself face-to-face with Nathanial. The music switched from an upbeat dance song to a slower, romantic song. Talia rolled her eyes, groaning dramatically, and headed for the tables. I was about to follow her when Nathanial put a gentle hand on my arm and stopped me.
“Dance with me?” he said.
I'd never met the man before, but I knew a little bit about him. He had a sweet smile and a sense of genuineness about him. He also wasn't too tough on the eyes in his tux, with his rugged good looks, shaggy reddish-brown hair and hazel eyes, with just the tiniest hint of green mixed in with gold.
“Sure,” I said, taking his hand. “I'm Ember, by the way.”
“I know who you are,” he laughed, putting a hand on my waist as he led me to the dance floor. “I'm Nathanial.”
“And I know who you are too,” I said.
“Oh really?” He cocked an eyebrow.
“Yep. I've done my research on Jude and his merry band of business partners-slash-besties,” I teased. I batted my eyelashes up at him, giving him a coy grin. “You're the youngest of the group by a couple years but graduated at the top of your class alongside Jude. Some call you a genius.”
“Do you believe everything you read on the Internet?” he asked.
He laughed as he twirled me around the dance floor. Apparently Nathanial knew how to dance, and he led very well.
“Only the good stuff,” I said.
My hands rested along his shoulders, and I ran my fingernails across the back of his neck. He shuddered, his eyes flickering as his grin grew wider. Leaning in closer, and standing up tall on my tip-toes, I whispered in his ear.
“Maybe you should set the record straight then, Mr. Roberts?” I said, my tone seductive. “Maybe, somewhere a little more – private?”
“I'd love to,” he said, his voice coming out as a deep purr. Then his eyes opened and that smile was gone. “I mean, I would, if you weren't my best friend's stepdaughter and all.”
I pouted. “Ahh, so I'm off-limits, huh?”
“Afraid so,” he said, twirling me around. “But doesn't mean we can't have a little innocent fun on the dance floor.”
“I am having a good time,” I said, inching myself closer to his body, although the disappointment washed through me.
“Good. A pretty girl like you should always have a good time,” he said.
Chapter Two
Jude
“How was the honeymoon?” Ember asked, looking up from the couch in the formal living room. “Wait, never mind, I don't want to know what you guys did. I'll never be able to get the image out of my head.”
“The Maldives are amazing this time of year, dear,” Lydia said, cooing happily as she glided past me and into the room with her daughter.
“It was nice,” I said.
The Maldives wouldn't have been my choice, but Lydia had insisted on it. She came back to Chicago tanned and relaxed, flopping down on the sofa next to Ember, who smiled at me. Her feet were curled up underneath her, and she looked rather cozy on my sofa.
“Thanks for letting me crash at your place,” I said.
“Of course,” I replied. “We're family now. My home is now your home.”
Still, I stood in the doorway awkwardly, not sure where to sit in my own home. Lydia's penthouse downtown was on the market since I had this home in Forest Glen, and a condo downtown as it was. Our family only needed so many homes in Chicago.
Family. Heh. Saying that still felt incredibly weird. Especially since this “family” came with a grown-up daughter who could easily pass for my girlfriend, given the relatively minor age difference between us.
She went to school at Agnes Bouvier University, a private all-female college on the outskirts of Chicago. It was a premier liberal arts and science college that had an impressive history. When Lydia first mentioned she had a daughter at ABU, I assumed she was a quiet, bookish type. The typical nerdy girl. Instead, she was – well – Ember. Nothing quiet, bookish, or nerdy about her.
Ember's auburn hair cascaded around her shoulders like liquid fire. It looked hot to the touch, trailing along the pale coolness of her skin. A line of freckles dotted her nose and cheeks, giving her an impish look. While her face appeared young, her body was all woman beneath her sundress. The sweetheart neckline accentuated the full mounds of her breasts, giving a glimpse of heaven without showing too much.
Everything about her was stunning. She was a goddess. The type of women I'd have walked over hot coals to be with.
She was also my stepdaughter – and I was a married man now. I shouldn't be having such thoughts about another woman now, let alone my new wife's daughter.
“Jude?” Lydia said, her head cocked to the side as she grinned up at me. “Are you going to stand there all day? Have a seat. It's your own home for God sake!”
I blinked a few times and gave my head a small shake, forcing myself to come back to reality.
“I'm tired,” I said. “I think I'm going to rest for a bit.”
Lydia nodded, turning back to her daughter. Ember met my eyes and I held her gaze for a long moment. There was a stirring in my pants, and I felt guilty for the involuntary reactio
n.
Cursing myself, I hurried up the stairs, taking them two at a time. Do not think about your stepdaughter, Jude. Especially not her lovely, alabaster skin and... fuck, me.
A cold shower. That's what I needed. A nice, cold shower to take my mind off the redhead downstairs. Thankfully, she'd only be here for the summer. I just had to get through a few months of her walking around in her low-cut dresses, and it would be smooth sailing after that.
Another thought hit me though – hard. A thought that left me reeling with guilt. Lydia, while beautiful and charming, was not the woman I thought she was. Ever since the wedding, she'd been distant, almost uninterested in anything but shopping and traveling. The honeymoon wasn't a typical honeymoon – not one Ember would have been embarrassed to hear about, at least.
I stepped into the master shower, the one large enough to fit two or three other people and turned the water on. I shivered as cold water washed over my skin, and I scrubbed off all my impure thoughts about Ember, and all my doubts about my new wife. My wife. Wow. The last few months had been a blur, and I wasn't even sure how I got to the point of having a wife and a stepdaughter. But, there we were.
The cold water was helping. My erection was slowly going away and I breathed a sigh of relief. I feared though, that there'd be many, many more cold showers in my future.
The bedroom door opened and closed suddenly, startling me. Turning off the water, I grabbed a towel and peeked out. Lydia was digging through her suitcases, since she hadn't unpacked a thing from the honeymoon yet – and technically most of her things were still at the penthouse. She caught me staring and turned away quickly.
“I'm looking for my bikini,” she said. “Ember and I are going to take a dip in the pool, if you'd like to join us?”
Ember in a bikini? Though incredibly tempting, I knew that wouldn't go over well for any of us.
“No, I think I'm going to get rest,” I said, clearing my throat. “Then, I need to get some work done.”
“You sure? I really want you two to bond,” she said, pulling out her swimsuit, scowling down at it. “I really need to get a new one.”
“You just bought that one for the Maldives,” I said. “It's beautiful.”
She shot me an exasperated look before slipping into the walk-in closet to change.
“Oh, and don't worry,” I called after her. “I'll get to know Ember better. Just not today. We've got a whole summer to bond.”
“Sure, okay,” she said.
“Are you upset with me?
Lydia stepped out of the closet wearing her gold and white bikini, showing off her petite figure, and I felt an approving stirring in my groin. It was hard to believe she was fifteen years older than me sometimes. Especially with a figure like that. She caught me staring and smiled.
“No, not mad. Just disappointed,” she said. “I was really hoping we could hang out, Jude.”
I sighed. It was way too early to get into an argument, especially over something that was genuinely my fault. I was married to Ember's mom and I'd need to find a way to make this work. For better or worse, right? Well, they said nothing in my vows about super-hot stepdaughters, which was intriguing and yet incredibly problematic.
“Alright, I'll be down,” I said. “Let me put on some clothes.”
“Do you have to?” Lydia teased.
“Well, unless you want your daughter to see me in all my glory...”
I let my voice trail off, a smile ticking at my lips.
“I know Ember well enough to know she'd appreciate it,” Lydia said with a wink.
She left the bedroom, closing the door behind her. With a sigh, I stepped out into the bedroom and dropped the towel.
An afternoon in the pool with my wife and incredibly hot stepdaughter. What could go wrong?
Chapter Three
Ember
Jude's backyard was spacious, surrounded by large hedges and trees, giving the illusion you were far away from the city of Chicago. It was peaceful and serene, and during their honeymoon when I had the place to myself, I spent many hours out there. Sometimes swimming, sometimes just basking in the glow of the sun. My mother and I had lived in a penthouse downtown, which had its own set of perks – like being close to everything. This, however, was nice. Almost like a vacation in and of itself.
I was lounging in a red and white polka dot bikini, one of those vintage types with the high waist and a little bow on the front. With the sun beating down on me, I stretched my legs out, feeling like an old Hollywood starlet.
It was nice being free from school for the summer, even if I did have to spend it with my mom and her husband. It still baffled me how someone like her could land one of the most eligible bachelors in all of Chicago in just under three months’ time.
Not that I was looking. My schoolwork always came first. Boys second. Marriage, a distant third. If that. Unlike my mother, I planned to only get married once, if I could help it. I took the idea of holy matrimony seriously and was not going to rush into anything.
Because let's face it, I saw how it often worked out for her. Sure, she had money, but she lacked any sort of affection for the men she married. I thought, perhaps, that might change with Jude since he was different than the others, But, so far, I'd seen nothing to make me think she actually loved the man, only that she loved the lifestyle his bank account would afford her.
She loved his money, and that was it. It made me feel bad for the guy. With the older men my mom married, most of them knew what they were getting into. Jude though, seemed like the type of guy who wouldn't settle for a trophy wife. Didn't seem like the kind of guy who wanted to marry a pretty woman in exchange for giving her the life of luxury in return.
When the patio door opened, I lowered my sunglasses, surprised to see Jude standing there. He didn't look entirely pleased to be there. His face hardened into a mask and he looked reluctant to step out. Our eyes met from across the pool, and I saw the struggle on his face. He was trying so hard not to look at me, but he couldn't seem pull his eyes away either. It was like a magnet pulled our eyes together, forcing us to stare at one another.
My gaze moved over his body, which he concealed in both a shirt and a pair of shorts – not exactly regular pool attire. I wanted him to peel off that shirt, to showcase those abs the media often spoke about. Sure, I'd seen photos of him shirtless – when the paparazzi snapped pictures of him on some exotic beach somewhere. But, standing there in front of me, he seemed humbled, reluctant to flaunt himself.
“Join me, dear,” mom said from the shallow end of the pool.
She leaned back against the side of the pool, her arms spread and her legs floating. She had a cocktail sitting beside her and looked utterly blissed out. Enjoying the high life. Jude glanced at his wife, then back at me.
“Jesus Christ,” I mumbled. “If you want me to leave, just say so.”
“No, I don't want you to leave,” Jude said.
“Don't be silly, Ember,” mom scolded me. “This is family bonding time. I'm not sure why Jude's acting so strange.”
Color rushed in my cheeks as I noticed the hardness in his shorts. It might be awkward enough if he was staring at my mom as he got hard. But no, his eyes were firmly on me. As if he realized that I noticed he was hard, he abruptly turned away, facing the mini bar. His hands trembled as he made a drink. Not much, just the tiniest of trembles. But, I caught it all the same.
“Jet lag,” Jude said.
“What, dear?” mom asked without looking over at her husband.
“I'm feeling out of sorts from the jet lag,” he said.
“Ahh, I told you to sleep on the plane,” she said, her voice condescending, reminding me of how she usually spoke to me. “Maybe next time you'll listen.”
I cocked an eyebrow, waiting for a response from Jude. His body tensed, and when he turned to look at my mother, his brows knitted a thin, straight line and his face tight with irritation. Annoyance oozed from his expression, but, he didn't say a word.
>
“Really, mom? Is that any way to talk to your new husband?” I said.
Not that I think Jude needed me to defend him, but her condescending tone even irked me
“You've been married less than two weeks,” I continued. “And you're already treating him like dirt. New personal record, I see.”
My mom looked back at me, slack-jawed, anger flashing in her eyes. I stared back, face utterly blank.
“Ember, stay out of this,” mom said. “This doesn't concern you.”
I rolled my eyes and leaned back against the lounge chair, sighing deeply. Like I said, I was sure Jude could handle himself.
Jude finally spoke, and when he did, his tone was low. Cold. “I don't need you to be my mother, Lydia.”
“I wasn't acting like your mother – Jesus Christ, you're going to gang up on me now, is that it?”
My mom melodramatically exited the pool, huffing and grumbling to herself as she climbed the nearby steps. She flung the towel around her waist and muttered loud enough for us to hear.
“I don't need this shit,” she said. “I'm going out.”
“Tell Marlon I said hello,” I called back.
If mom's eyes could kill, I'd have died on the spot. Instead, I smirked at her. I knew all too well where she was headed. Not much had changed over the years. Whenever her current hubby pissed her off, she ran back into the arms of the man she really loved but would never marry. Well, I should say, he'd never marry her because he saw her for the succubus she really was.
Mom slammed the patio door as she entered the house, leaving me alone with Jude. I laid back down on the lounge chair when I remembered that I'd forgotten to put on my sunblock. Dammit. Being pale meant you burnt easily, and I should know better. Given the situation, I was still trying to get used to things around there and learn to navigate the awkward waters.
I sat back up and reached for the bottle of SPF 50, pouring some into my hands and lathering it on my arms, then my shoulders and chest.