His gaze burned into me and a flame sprung to life deep within my body. “You wouldn’t have been truly happy here, without at least seeing what’s out there. You were too wild to settle down in a small town like this.”
He lifted my chin and looked even more deeply into my eyes. “I didn’t realize how much I was missing out on, not till right this minute.”
A shiver shot through me, causing me to tremble atop my dangerously high, spiky heels. “I’m sure you’ll be ready to leave after two years,” I said. “You’ll be ready to run and never look back.”
He held my gaze firmly. “Not if I find the right person here.”
“Did you really miss this place?”
“I didn’t know how much I missed it till I came back. Absence really does make the heart grow fonder, I guess. I walk down the street, and everyone knows my name. I have lots of friends and family here, and something about that feels good. I have a nice home and a business to run. Maybe I could make a real home here in Blue Ridge.”
“We would love to have you back,” I said, having trouble catching my breath.
“I’ve missed all of you so much.”
“I missed you too,” I admitted and hoped he saw just how much in my eyes.
“I know I hurt you when I left.”
“That was so long ago.”
“I know, but I’m truly sorry. I’m going to pay you back first, then all the others.”
I lifted my hand and gently brushed his hair from his face before cupping his face. I stood on my toes and kissed him softly, just a brush of skin against skin, but his hands tightened around me and I knew he wanted more, just like me.
“Wow. Maybe you’re finally growing up,” I said, then leaned my head into his shoulder as we finished the dance. Being in his arms felt so natural, so damn right, like I was where I was supposed to be.
Chapter 10
A few days passed. I wasn’t sure what to do with Charlie. So Tammy agreed to meet me for a drink so we could discuss him.
When I walked inside the bar, I saw Charlie sitting on a stool at the bar. Smiling, he lifted his beer in a salute. I couldn’t help but grin back at him.
Glancing down at my low-cut top, one of the regulars said, “Nice tits.”
“Listen,” I said. “If you’re going to be a pig, then at least get it right. I have fantastic breasts!”
“Wanna grab my cock?”
I felt around my purse. “Oh, shoot. I didn’t bring any tweezers.”
He laughed.
“Stop it!” Charlie told him firmly. “Harass her anymore and I’ll throw your drunk ass out of here. Got it? Now apologize to the nice woman.”
“I’m sorry, Jaime,” the drunk said.
“Apology accepted.”
Eddie, the bartender, smiled. “Love your comebacks, girl.”
“Thanks,” I replied.
Charlie turned to face me. “Imagine running into you here.”
I hadn’t talked to him since the event, not for lack of trying on his part. It scared me, what he did to me, and every night I dreamt about our life together and it scared me even more.
“It’s the only drinking hole around,” I muttered.
“I have one big question on my mind. Why haven’t you returned any of my calls?”
I looked away.
“You got scared about what you were feeling. I know you way too well, girl. You can’t hide anything from me. It’s why I didn’t stop by. I thought it was better to give you some space.”
“It’s just…everything is taking me by surprise.”
“I know. I completely get it. Can I buy you a drink? I’ll put it on my tab,” he said hopeful.
I nibbled my lip, then nodded and took the bar stool beside him. “Sure. I’ll take a Bud Light.”
He turned toward the bartender. “You heard the pretty lady. One Bud Light, please.”
“Thank you, Charlie,” I said.
“The pleasure’s all mine.”
My phone dinged and I checked the text message. “Oh no! I was meeting Tammy here, but she just canceled.”
Figured.
And now I was stuck here with Charlie in a half-empty bar. Great, just great.
“I can keep you company,” he suggested with a wink.
“You planned this, didn’t you?” I joked playfully. “Are you and Tammy in cahoots?”
“Cahoots?” he said with a chuckle. “Why ma’am, that’s mighty contrary of ya to go ‘sumin’ things ‘bout folks,” he teased in a Southern drawl.
“Did you promise her, like, 10,000 bucks to cancel?”
“You’re funny,” he replied. But it wasn’t very convincing, and I smacked his arm until he laughed and held up his hands in defense. “I didn’t, swear it.”
I settled back with a huff and didn’t say anything.
He smiled. “I know you haven’t accepted my wedding proposal yet, but I’m not going to give up. I’ve already won Max’s heart, and I’ll win yours too.”
“Max? So you two grew up to be swingers, eh?” asked Eddie the bartender as he set my beer down on the bar.
“Max is a pit bull, Eddie,” I corrected. “He’s my newest addition to the family, just a puppy.”
“The family?” Charlie asked, confused.
“I take it you have told ol’ Charlie here about the other three fur balls,” Eddie said.
Charlie looked at me and set his beer down slowly. “You have four dogs?”
I nodded enthusiastically and brought up pics on my cell for him to see. “Yep, and I think…” I started, then paused and bit my lip.
“You think what?”
“We’d all love to move into your lovely home, if you’ll have us,” I finally said.
The expression on his face was priceless.
“Hmm. Are they all as little as Max?” he asked.
“Uh-uh,” I said, blushing and shaking my head. “I’ve got a German shepherd, a golden retriever, and a yellow lab too.”
“So you come with a little baggage,” he joked.
“A little baggage?” Eddie interjected. “Pal, this one comes with a whole damn zoo!”
“That’s not a problem. I can handle four dogs, I think.”
“Just a warning. Max loves to chew shoes, and Oreo loves to shed all over the place.”
He tapped his fingers on his leg, face growing serious before it broke out in a bright grin. “My marriage proposal still stands. Maybe I’ll balance it out with four cats.”
Eddie peered at me. “Hold up. Are you talking a wedding proposal?”
I grinned. “Yeah, our Charlie here proposed to me.”
Eddie scowled at Charlie and crossed his arms over his chest. “Really? I don’t see a ring on that finger of yours. Hell, a girl as special as you should have at least two carats on her hand. What’s the deal with that?”
I frowned. “He proposed without one. It was horrible.”
Charlie sipped his drink, glaring at me over the bottle. “I didn’t know if you’d say yes,” he finally said. “What was I supposed to do? Spend all that money and then have it be tossed back in my face?”
“Is any guy ever really sure of that?”
“I guess not, but—”
“Yet, they always come prepared, with lots of bling.”
“She’s right, buddy,” Eddie said, shaking his head as if Charlie had shamed his entire gender. “I didn’t even realize you kids were dating.”
“We’re not,” I said sternly. “Apparently, Charlie wants to skip that part and just get hitched.”
“Wow. I thought it’d be the other way around,” Eddie said suspiciously staring at him.
“What do you mean, Eddie?” I asked.
“Most guys are happy to take the milk without buyin’ the cow,” Eddie said in his own charming way.
“Not this one. He’s totally the opposite. He’s literally been begging me to marry him, before we even date! Before he even gets the milk! Haven’t you, honey?”
&nb
sp; “What can I say?” Charlie said with a shrug. “I never forgot her.”
“Nobody can ever forget their one true love,” I said, happy to play along. “I’ve been thinking, sweetie…”
“Uh-oh. A guy should never like the sound of that,” Eddie chimed in as he wiped down a dirty glass.
“Thinking about what?” Charlie asked, taking the bait.
“Now I’ve been thinking, sweetie. What should we name our kids?”
He choked on his mouthful of beer and I cracked up laughing. “Kids? Aren’t four dogs enough?”
I laughed. “C’mon. Dogs. A house. Kids. A white picket fence. A minivan. It’s all part of the stereotypical American dream.”
“And I want that ‘white picket fence’ dream.”
“Let’s clarify that, shall we? You want the entire package minus the kids, minivan, and growing old together.”
“Are you taking on the old ball and chain or what?” Eddie asked me.
I smirked.
Charlie set down his beer and looked at me. “You know, you’ve never given me an actual answer.”
“Yeah, I know. I’m still considering that super-romantic proposal you gave me right before I clocked in at work.”
He pondered, then picked up his beer and softly clanged his bottle against mine. “Listen, everyone has a price. What’s yours?”
It was time to up the ante. I met his gaze straight on. “How about…one million dollars?”
His jaw dropped. “Seriously? Half my inheritance? Are you trying to make me atone for my sins?”
I shrugged a shoulder casually and took a gulp of beer. “That’s my price.”
He shook his head in astonishment. “You drive a hard bargain, missy. I’ll think about it, maybe sleep on it for a week or two.”
I held my hand to my ear. “I’m sorry. What did you say? I can’t hear you over the price of my freedom because I’ll be shackled to you. And that better be a damn good payout!”
He sipped his beer. “I’ll truly give it some thought.”
I laughed. “Think about it? Who else is ever going to jump into this crazy scheme of yours? And, by the way, the clock is ticking. We’re already in the first week of November. Tick tock, Charlie.”
He shook his head once again. “Eddie, gimme a shot of Jack, would ya?”
Eddie poured him a shot and he downed it in one single gulp.
I touched his arm. “Listen, Charlie, marriage is huge. We’ll have to shack up for two years and you’re basically keeping me hostage. We’ll naturally bicker about the chores, money, and you leaving the toilet seat up. If I’m gonna have to deal with that for twenty-four long months, I deserve to be fairly compensated. Fifty percent of the misery equals fifty percent of the profits.”
“Oh, you’ll be well-compensated. I’m very well endowed.” He leaned closer and winked, glancing down at his groin.
I followed his gaze without meaning to and coughed to clear my throat and buy myself some time to find the words I needed. “That brings us to a very important point. No sex allowed.”
He sat there wearing a shocked expression. “Huh? For two whole years? But I’m so madly attracted to you, and—”
“Don’t make me take you down to the pet shelter and have Lisa neuter you. If I can do it, so can you.”
His gaze narrowed. “So let me get this straight. You want a million dollars, no sex, and you want me neutered too?”
“No, I don’t want you clipped. Just the first two things you mentioned.”
He leaned against the low back of the barstool. “A cool million and no sex?”
I nodded and he groaned.
“Think about it.”
He leaned closer and whispered into my ear. “Fine. You drive a hard bargain.”
I smiled as he gave in.
“I’ll give you the million. It’s all yours, but you can’t leave me dying in a desert. A man needs water. I’ll die. I’ll fucking die, just…wither away. You can’t expect me to live with the most beautiful woman on the planet and never touch you. Is this your way of punishing me for all my bad-boy ways?”
“Don’t be so dramatic. It’s just best for us to stay friends, without getting emotionally involved. You have to admit, you get hit on more than a whack-a-mole at a fair.”
He slammed back another shot. “Now you’re comparing me to a carnival game?”
“You know what I mean! I can’t handle you flirting with women and sleeping with them practically in my face. The last thing I want is for either of us to end up with hurt feelings.” Or me for that matter because I knew in the end I’d be the one walking away with a broken heart.
“But you’ll have a million bucks!”
I sighed. “Listen, money isn’t everything.”
“True, but it’ll sure help out my life immensely. And yours too.”
“I don’t want us to lose our friendship over a fake marriage,” I said quietly. “No amount of dead presidents is worth that, Charlie. You do understand that, right?”
He shook his head and turned back around to stare at our reflections in the mirror behind the bar. “I appreciate you’re doing me a huge favor by marrying me,” he said slowly, “but you can’t take sex off the table. You have no idea what you’ll be missing out on…and it’s actually great on the table, by the way.”
I titled my beer bottle back and forth before scooting around on my stool to face him fully. “Hmm. I’ll tell ya what. Try and convince me over the next week or two to convince me to put sex back on the table.”
He smacked his open palm on the bar with a grin. “Challenge accepted.”
“Well, in that case, what’s first on the agenda?”
“To show you that this connection between us simply can’t be ignored.”
“I’m not denying that there’s something brewing between us. I’m just saying we both need to not act on it, for the sake of our marriage.”
“Not having sex to save a marriage? That one would have Freud on Prozac,” Charlie joked.
“No, you’re looking at it wrong. We’re not having sex to save a friendship,” I corrected him. “I want us to walk away from this without wanting to kill each other.”
He slammed the shot glass down on the bar as Eddie refilled it. “So we’ll make the marriage work by not sleeping together?” he said with narrowed eyes as if he was trying hard to understand my crazy logic.
My grin widened. “You got it.”
“I doubt that’ll work, so I guess I’d better get to work. If I can prove to you that you can’t say no, you’ll never be able to say no for two whole years.”
“Is that a friendly wager I hear?”
“It is. I bet you can’t resist me.”
“And I bet I can…and for two more years to boot.” Bullshit. I knew it and he knew it from the glint in his eyes, but damned if I was going to say that out loud.
“Fine. If…no, when you give in and fuck me, then we’ll fuck hard for the next two years.”
“Wow. I guess the next week or two is a very critical time for our future marriage. It will determine whether or not we’ll end up in bed together or in separate rooms, leaving you to wander the Sahara with your dry little cactus hanging out.”
Gosh, did I want to give in already, but I gripped my beer bottle tighter and refused to fall for the bait.
“There’s nothin’ little about it, baby,” Charlie said with a wink. He gazed into my eyes and pushed a strand of hair behind my ears. “You’ll find that out soon enough. You can count on it.”
In that instant, I pictured my lips smashing into his, my mouth trailing over his body, my hands gliding down his powerful chest and unfastening his belt, then pulling his shirt from his waistband. I had never experienced sexual tension of such magnitude, such a blizzard of emotions and sensations, like I never thought possible flooded my veins and the fire burned even hotter deep within me.
“So sure of yourself,” I said. “I hope you enjoy living in a desert for two years. It�
��s gonna be one helluva dry spell.”
“Dry spell, my ass. I want you in my bed, and I’m not gonna stop trying till you’re there, where you belong, tangled up in my sheets.”
“That is yet to be determined.”
He laughed. “It’s adorable that you think you can win. I already know who I’m going home with tonight.”
“Still convinced, huh?” I said, then playfully stuck out my tongue. “Don’t be so sure. The night’s not over.” I wanted to use it, most definitely, in the vilest of ways, but I wasn’t about to lose out on our bet by telling him that.
“Put that tongue away unless you plan to use it,” he said.
I smiled. “Maybe I just enjoy teasing you.”
He shifted on his barstool, running his fingers down the frosty side of the bottle as he eyed me closely. “Two can play at that game, lover.”
“Oh, but I’m not your lover yet, hotshot,” I fired back. My eyes drifted to his hand on his beer, staring at the way his fingers moved against the glass, the same way they’d inched up my body after our fencing match. My back stiffened, and I cleared my throat, forcing my eyes away. “I’m sure there’re other things we need to go over to make sure this fake marriage of ours seems…real.”
“Like having morning sex anytime we want it,” he said and shifted again, turning his whole body to face me.
I laughed. “Always the dreamer, aren’t you?”
He chuckled.
I bit my lip at the sight of his tight muscles rippling beneath his shirt. Why must he wear such tight clothes around me? I wondered, peering over at him. “I, uh… I assume you’ll want us to live together.”
He smirked and shrugged. “Might be a good idea. It’d be a little strange if we don’t. So you and your four dogs are welcome in my home.”
“You sure you can handle all of us? I mean, we’ll be trampling through your house, making an awful mess of the place. Oh, and did I tell you that I recently took up a new hobby?”
“Practicing to join a nudist colony?” he said, not bothering to hide the hope in his voice.
“Nice try, mister. No, I wanna become the drummer. I’ve been practicing on my very, very loud set.”
“Hmm. Well, I love drums,” he said. His lips twitched, and he leaned closer. “I’m sure you’re getting better at banging every day, and I bet you’ve got lots of rhythm.” His hand slipped from the bar and landed on my thigh. “In fact, I’m sure you’re pretty good at it by now.”
Begging for Bad Boys Page 130