by A. C. Arthur
“In this world you don’t run across true friends often,” Lydia had told him one year when he’d complained about attending this event. “Julianne has a good heart so I excuse the fact that all of Leonard’s money has her mind filled with fluff.”
Jerald smiled as he looked across the room to see Julianne tossing her head back, frosted blonde hair hanging limply past the her shoulders, while her tucked and plucked face attempted what she probably thought was a smile. Her laugh was loud, like a broken horn and the people standing close to her frowned, then tried not to show how irritated by the sound they really were.
It was the same old scene, Jerald thought taking another sip from his glass. He looked at his watch—one hour and fifteen minutes to go. Two hours, that was the respectable amount of time to stay at the party. He, Jackson and Jason had come to that conclusion years ago.
Speaking of which, Jerald came to his feet as Jason and his lovely wife, Celise, approached. They were a breathtaking couple, Jerald admitted to himself. Over the last two and a half years that they’d been together he’d watched them both carefully, seeing how they grew deeper in love with each other every day. In addition, as Jason’s Carrington Resorts and Celise’s Chances restaurants both began to grow in locations and popularity, Jerald had seen his brother and sister-in-law, not only at family dinners but also on the cover of magazines and doing television interviews. They were an up and coming power couple and looked every inch the part.
Jason wore a dark suit, single breasted and fit to his tall, toned frame. His shirt was also black, his tie a bold and bright pink which precisely matched the color of Celise’s fitted gown with the slit up her right leg. Her long, dark hair which she always wore bone straight was pulled to hang seductively over her right shoulder, her smile bright and genuine as she came closer to hug Jerald.
“Hey there. It’s good to see you out and about,” she said as she pulled away from the embrace.
Jerald didn’t ruffle at the reply because his family was always talking about him working too much and/or staying to himself too much. Being the person they’d always known him to be didn’t seem to score him any brownie points these days.
“You look stunning,” he replied instead, kissing her cheek before moving to shake his brother’s hand.
“What do you think if you keep your hair almost bald I wouldn’t see the grays beginning to sneak in,” Jason, who was the youngest of the Carrington brothers, said rubbing a hand over Jerald’s head before pulling his brother into a hug.
Jerald only shrugged. “Aging’s a part of life,” he told them and finished off his drink.
Timely as ever a member of the staff was walking by with a tray full of champagne. Jerald snagged a flute and put his empty glass on the tray before Jason and Celise were served.
“Right, your birthday’s coming up in a couple of months,” Celise said from where she stood beside her husband. “The big thirty-five. We should do something grand to celebrate.”
Jason nodded. “She’s right. You can come on down to Monterey and we’ll throw you a huge birthday bash at the hotel.”
“Oh yes!” Celise squealed. “I just hired a fabulous pastry chef. He makes the most divine desserts and candy is his specialty. What about a candy sculpture of you to mark the centerpiece of the party?”
“What about nothing,” Jerald replied with a frown. “I’ll celebrate the same way I have all the years before.”
“And how’s that? A microwave meal and the remote control while you sit in your room and watch television? Great celebration, big brother.” Jason said with a frown.
Jerald only nodded. “It works for me.”
“Well not for me,” Celise added. “I’m going to speak with your mother about this.”
“Wow, aren’t we a bit old for you to go running to my mother just because I won’t do what you want?” he asked with a slight chuckle, even though a part of him was extremely serious.
“Who plans to go running to me and about what?” Lydia asked coming up behind Jerald placing a hand on his shoulder.
Great, he thought, the gang’s all here. Resigning himself to the inevitable Jerald leaned in to kiss his mother’s cheek, while Jeffrey Carrington also joined his family. His father kissed Celise and shook Jason’s hand before extending his arm to Jerald, who shook his hand dutifully.
“Good to see you, dad,” he said thinking that maybe he’d have someone on his side.
Jeffrey had always been the one to stop the barrage of questions and recommendations when they were being hammered towards Jerald. Later he’d clap his middle son on the shoulder and tell him that the Carrington men had to stick together. It had made Jerald feel as if he had someone on his side. Not that he didn’t think his family loved and cared about him, it was just that their love and caring could be a bit overwhelming from time to time.
“I was just saying that we should give Jerald a huge birthday party in Monterey this year,” Celise jumped right in.
Lydia’s smile spread all too fast. “That’s a marvelous idea. We could all come down. Jackson and Tara will be all settled by then so they’ll come too. We could invite everyone.”
“Not everyone,” Jason said lifting his brows as he glanced at Jerald. “Just a couple hundred guests. Nothing too splashy. Right, big brother?”
Jason was getting a kick out of this Jerald knew and he wanted to punch him for it. But he didn’t and he didn’t bother to argue anymore. His father had only nodded as Lydia and Celise continued to talk so Jerald knew he wouldn’t be getting any help from him either. These husbands were apparently so besotted with their wives that they would go along with whatever the women said. Pity, Jerald thought with a shake of his head.
Then he stopped.
The chatter of his mother and sister-in-law grew to a dull murmur, the stem of the champagne flute he was holding grew slick between his fingers as his gaze zeroed in on the two people that had just entered the party.
Hailey.
She looked like sex walking in a dress that hugged every curve of her body, flaring out at the bottom to swirl in a puddle of silk on the floor. Diamonds sparkled at her ears and the thick bracelet on her wrist. A gift from Mendoza no doubt.
He grit his teeth, hand clenching that glass so hard it was a wonder it didn’t break. Jerald excused himself and was walked away from the group of Carringtons before any of them could stop him.
What was he doing?
She’d made it perfectly clear that she did not want to see him again. During the week since then, Jerald had checked with The Corporation, confirming that Hailey Jefferson was not in their employ. Over the past couple of days he’d had a chance to digest the fact that he’d slept with a woman he’d met on the beach. She hadn’t been vetted through The Corporation, tested for any diseases and her background run through a government level check. And yet, the moment he’d had another chance, he’d slept with her again.
But there was one thing Jerald prided himself on—even though he was seriously beginning to doubt his abilities where this woman was concerned—he did not beg. Hailey had said she did not want to see him again. She hadn’t texted or called him in seven days. He took that seriously and had left her alone.
And now she was here.
On his turf, Jerald thought as he stood just a few feet away from her now. She was smiling and greeting everyone who came up to Mendoza. It was no shock that the billionaire knew a lot of the people here. He was in the fashion industry, even though the company specialized in lower end department store garments. The new accessories line he’d launched a couple months ago, however, had been the feature of all the Fashion Weeks and his name had been quietly circulating. Unfortunately, that was probably too little, too late, to save his company.
Jerald wanted to approach her. No, he actually wanted to take her by the hand and lead her upstairs to one of the rooms. From the side her breasts and ass made a tempting silhouette. When she leaned in close to hug a woman who insisted, Jerald saw all the
bronzed skin of her back and his mouth watered. His dick hardened and he knew.
He would have her again.
Mendoza was in deep conversation with two gentlemen when Jerald moved up to stand behind Hailey. He leaned in slightly to whisper, “Come with me.”
She startled, he could tell by the quick stiffening of her shoulders. But she did not turn around. She knew it was him.
The air around him hummed with sexual tension. Jerald could feel it like a warm breeze over his skin. He’d already walked away from her but he knew she would follow him. His heart had begun a steady rapid rhythm his hands clenching at his sides.
What was he doing? The question resonated in his mind again and again. She said she didn’t want to see him and yet he’d gone to her and beckoned her. Would she really come? He didn’t doubt it although a part of him said he should have. He wasn’t paying her, she had no reason to come to him. No reason to want him the way he found himself wanting her. But, she did.
When Jerald stopped in one of the farthest corners of the room, near the windows overlooking the city, he turned his back from that gorgeous view, only to feel his body continue to heat as his gaze once again rested on her.
She looked far better than the lighted tips of the L.A. skyscape. With her hair pulled back tightly into a bun that sat at an alluring angle to the side of her head she looked regal and sophisticated. That dress, the deep jewel-tone color and the simple, yet strikingly enticing design, had him gulping before he could speak.
“What are you doing here?” he asked her.
She clenched the beaded purse she was holding in front of her with both hands.
“Working, I presume,” was her response.
“I thought you only needed to translate for his business meetings.”
“I did too,” she replied. “That’s what our deal was. Today, however, he gave me all this and told me to be ready. So here I am.”
“At his beck and call,” Jerald replied sarcastically.
Hailey shook her head. “On his payroll.”
He took a step closer to her as if those words had lit the flame inside of him. “I have much more money than he does. He’s about to lose everything.”
One elegantly arched brow lifted in question. “Are you offering me a job?”
Jerald did not reply. He was asking her for something. He knew that as surely as he knew his name. Only he had no idea what.
“Hello there.”
Jerald frowned at the sound of his mother’s voice. Hailey, to her credit, turned immediately, smile already in place.
“Hello,” she said, extending her hand the way she had been doing with those that had come up to greet Mendoza. “I’m Hailey Jefferson.”
Lydia smiled as well, taking the younger woman’s hand. “I’m Lydia Carrington, Jerald’s mother. You’re delightfully pretty, Ms. Jefferson.”
Jerald slipped a hand into his pocket adjusting the bulging erection that pressed painfully against the zipper of his slacks. He looked at Hailey as his dick throbbed again. Even her blush was sexy as hell.
“Thank you,” she said to Lydia.
“I hope my son is being a gentleman,” Lydia continued.
“I suspect he’s being his usual self,” Hailey replied lightly.
Lydia chuckled. “Are you new in town, Hailey? I haven’t seen you at this party before.”
And Lydia would have seen a woman like Hailey around town, Jerald thought. She would not quickly be forgotten, not with her fresh and unmarred look. The naturally tanned tone of her skin and those high cheekbones that gave her face an exotic flare. There was more than Jerald could not forget about this woman, more than was running rampantly through his mind at this very moment.
“No ma’am, I’m from Virginia. I’m just here for the summer,” Hailey told her.
Lydia nodded. “Oh really? Vacation then?”
“I wish,” Hailey chuckled. “I’m working here this summer and heading back east in the fall for my final year in college.”
“A college student,” Lydia continued with a glimpse over to her son. “How old are you, my dear?”
Jerald was uncomfortable. Not at his mother’s friendly interrogation of Hailey because he’d been lucky all his life not to have had her questioning any female he’d spent time with. But he wanted to touch Hailey, to kiss her and feel the weight of her breasts—her unbound breasts by the sight of her puckered nipples pressing tastily through the material of her dress—in the palm of his hands.
The fact that his mother was standing right there while he lusted after this woman was what made him extremely uncomfortable and he silently wished for something to happen to change the situation.
“I’m twenty-five and I’m working my way through school. I will finish in the next year.”
This time Hailey’s voice had a slight edge, as if she were trying to convince not only his mother, but herself of this fact.
She cleared her throat then. “Ah, I should get back. If you’ll excuse me. It was very nice to meet you Mrs. Carrington.”
All of that was spoken in a matter of seconds and then she was walking away, the plump globes of her ass moving sinuously in that damned gown.
“A little young for you, don’t you think?” Lydia said when she was alone with her son.
“It’s not what you think,” Jerald said tightly.
“Right,” was his mother’s reply. “But she is gorgeous.”
Yes, he thought, she is.
“I’ll be right back,” Jerald said without waiting for another of his mother’s replies.
He was moving quickly, pushing past people trying to get to Hailey before she could meet up with Mendoza again. He grabbed her arm just before she turned a corner.
“What are you doing?”
“We’re not finished,” he told her, continuing to move until they were out of the room and near the bank of elevators.
He slapped his palm against the button and turned back to her.
“Jerald,” she said with a sigh. “I already told you—”
“And yet you came,” he said stepping closer to her, so close her nipples rubbed alluringly against his chest. “When I called, you came. Your nipples are so hard right now I can feel them,” he continued, taking a quick swallow. “Dammit Hailey, I can remember how they taste. I remember how you smell, how your pussy feels clenching around my dick. Tell me you don’t remember that. Tell me you don’t want to feel it again. Do it. I dare you.”
The door to the elevator opened and she continued to stare at him. Her breathing had increased, he could see the rapid pulse beat in her neck. She kept her mouth shut, her hands fisted at her sides and he knew she was trying. She was reaching for the strength to deny him. He could have told her that attempt was futile.
Jerald pulled her into the elevator and pressed the button to hurry and close the door. Once it was closed he was on her, pressing her against the wall of the compartment, crashing his lips down over hers immediately.
She kissed him back. Just like that. No resistance and no argument. He groaned with the knowledge, grinding his hips against her so that she could feel his arousal.
“I don’t know why,” she whispered when he pulled his mouth away and kissed along her jaw. He loved the taste of her skin right there. “I can’t figure it out.”
Jerald shook his head.
“Me either,” he was saying, his hands gripping her ass.
Hailey pushed an arm between their bodies, cupping his dick in her palm, squeezing, then rubbing before squeezing again.
Jerald sucked in a breath feeling as if he might come right at this very moment.
“I want to be inside you,” he told her. “I want to fuck you right here, right now.”
To solidify his comment Jerald reached over to the control panel, pressing a button that immediately stopped the elevator.
Hailey gasped, letting her head fall back against the wall. “No,” she told him. “I can’t. Not here. He’ll know I’m gone.”
She was talking but Jerald was already pulling on the material of her dress, pushing it upward until his hands scrapped along the bare skin of her thigh.
“I don’t care,” he told her, taking her mouth again.
His tongue delved deep, tangling with hers as she tilted her head to the side. She sucked his tongue into her mouth and Jerald cupped the V of her juncture, hating the wisp of lace that was acting like a barrier between him and ecstasy.
“Jerald,” she sighed when the sexy as hell kiss was over. “Please.”
“I am baby,” he replied. “I am.”
His fingers moved the lace aside and he pressed quickly into her, two fingers going deep into her already wet center. He watched as she bit her bottom lip and began to pump against his hand.
“Stop,” she whispered, her eyes closed. “Please stop.”
It was the barest of whispers and for a second Jerald continued to pump inside of her loving the heat and warmth surrounding his fingers, the dampness he wanted to lick free.
“Jerald,” she continued on a ragged breath. “I want you to stop!”
It was loud and clear this time, accompanied by her pushing at his shoulders with as much strength as she could muster with his hand buried in her pussy. Jerald immediately paused. He looked into her eyes, saw them slowly opening, trying to focus on him.
“I can’t do this here. Not now,” she said more steadily.
Jerald thought with a start about where they were, whether they were supposed to be here together or not and how out of control this desire for her had really become. He’d never wanted to fuck in an elevator before. Had never followed a female into a bathroom and damn sure had never threatened one over a text message.
What the hell was going on with him?
He pulled out of her, taking a quick step back simultaneously. Another step back and he felt like there was a safe distance between them.
“I’m sorry,” he said, dragging a hand down his face.
The hand that had just been touching her. The scent of her arousal on his fingers had him gulping, his pulse still beating rapidly in his ears and his dick still throbbing. He dropped both hands to his side.