“Marly, I’m so sorry. I didn’t see anyone tail me here. I didn’t take the limo because I didn’t want to attract attention, and they still got me.”
She tried to get control over her breathing, but it was difficult. The shock of having her privacy invaded, having people screaming at them through the windows—it rattled her. She shook with adrenaline and her palms poured sweat. She blinked rapidly, which made everything seem as though it were occurring under a strobe light.
“Those pictures…Jack, I don’t have to tell you that they’re not going to be flattering.”
He closed his eyes and slumped against the wall. “No, they won’t. Jesus, I had my hands up your—and I was, um, visibly turned on. I’ll have to alert Martinez and Lyons, get them prepared. And we’ll have to figure out how to spin this. I’ll need to get you some security….”
She gulped for more air. “Surely not? Those reporters can’t come into our place of business, can they?”
“Honey, you can ask them to leave, but that is a city sidewalk out there and you have a glass door. They can film and harass every employee and client who comes in here.” He thought for a moment. “I’ll have somebody get butcher paper over here so you can cover the door.”
She stared at him hopelessly, still trying to regulate her breathing. “This is what your mother was talking about.”
He nodded soberly.
“How long are they going to camp out there in front of the door?”
He didn’t answer, just twisted his mouth.
“They can’t stay there all night!”
“Oh, yes they can.”
“But—how are we going to get out of here?” She looked wildly in the direction of the back door, but he shook his head.
“Trust me, they’ve already got people staked out there, too.”
“Jack! We can’t sleep here—the couches are in the front room near the door. And the only other comfortable option is my partner Peggy’s massage table.”
He put a hand on her shoulder. “We won’t have to sleep here, but we’re stuck for a little while. I’m sorry. I really am.” Inside his trouser pocket, his cell phone began to ring. Jack pulled it out and answered it. “Yeah, Martinez. We’ve got a regular shit-storm outside. Reporters are hurling themselves against the windows like the zombies in Shawn of the Dead.”
Under any other circumstances, Marly might have laughed at that. Not now.
He winced. “Yeah, I know. We’re locked inside the building but it’s not exactly comfortable. You think I should give ’em a statement?
“No? Okay. Martinez, you know what? I don’t need to hear that right now. What I need is a security detail to get us out of here.” He listened for a moment, then flushed with embarrassment. “Yeah, no,” he muttered. “I sent Jimmy and Rocket to the store for a bottle of champagne.” Jack held the phone away from his ear. “Look, it’s done now. They’ll probably arrive any minute. Fine. Goodbye.”
Marly took the end of his tie and slipped it through her fingers. “You ditched Frick and Frack for me?”
Jack moistened his lips, staring down at her. He cupped her chin. “Uh-huh.”
“Because you knew they bothered me?”
He nodded. “And I just wanted a little bit of alone time with you.”
“That was sweet, Jack, but you could have been putting yourself in danger. Don’t ever do that again.”
“What I’m afraid of is that I put you in danger. I had no idea anybody was on to us.”
She didn’t remind him that he’d kissed her publicly on at least two occasions, and anyone who’d seen them could have passed on the word.
“Me in danger? I’m just a hairdresser. That’s silly. But this is a mess.” She tugged on his tie. “They’re going to say you have poor judgment, and that I’m some low-class slut—”
“Sh.” He put a finger over her lips. “I won’t let them say that. And I’ve never had better judgment than the day I—fixated on you.”
“Fixated. That’s an odd word choice.”
“Marly, sweetheart. You got upset when I mentioned love at first sight. You want me to say, ‘the day I fell in love with you’?”
There he goes again. He’s got to be the most stubborn, misguided guy in the state—which is just what the media would say if they had a clue about any of this.
“You didn’t fall in love with me, you fell in love with a picture.”
Jack put a finger over her lips and tugged gently on her braid. “Hey, we’re not going off on that tangent again. You’re more comfortable with the word fixated, because it’s easier to criticize and disbelieve. You can’t argue with love, really. It’s mysterious and unexplainable and one person cannot tell another person that he or she doesn’t feel it.”
She stuck out her chin. “Can, too.”
Jack settled the argument with a deep, sensual takeover of her mouth. He spanned her waist with his hands, caressed her breasts lightly with his fingertips, and managed to wipe her mind blank of anything but him and his scent—Gray Flannel and aftershave and just Jack.
“So let me show you just how fixated I am on you…” Before she knew it he’d lifted her up and set her on Peggy’s massage table, rucking up her skirt to her knees.
She tore her mouth from his. “Jack, we can’t! There’s a pack of wolves howling out there, and Frick and Frack will show up any moment and—”
His mouth descended over hers again and he ate the end of her sentence. Her body lit like a human torch and she gave in to desire. He stroked the back of her neck, nibbled at her ears and circled her nipples with his thumbs. He stood inside her spread thighs, shoved his hands up under her cotton shirt, commandeered her breasts and reduced her to a whimpering puddle of need. He suckled them, licked them, nipped them with his teeth.
Without even being conscious of it, she reached forward between his legs, found his erection and squeezed.
Jack cursed softly as she unzipped his fly, pushed layers of fabric away from his cock and caressed it in her palm. She shrugged off his hands on her shoulders, slid off the massage table, knelt and took him into her mouth.
Jack reeled and had to steady himself as she rolled her tongue down the length of him, sliding over the soft skin easily. She closed her lips around him and sucked.
It seemed there was only so much Jack could take. Gasping, he pulled her up by the shoulders and practically threw her back on the massage table with her skirt around her waist. Pulling her panties to the side, he hauled her to the edge of the bed and plunged into her again and again.
She came almost at once, excited by the sheer need he seemed to have for her and the sight of him out of control. He might be trapped in a suit and tie all day, but he was not quite civilized underneath.
Jack was overwhelming in a hundred different ways and made her forget everything but him. She forgot about the media shit-storm raging outside, and her worries about how this would affect her career, and the salon, about what her parents would think….
All she could focus on was him filling her, over and over like a well-oiled piston, the look of intensity in his eyes, of primal connection, shattering her control.
She arched against him helplessly as he stroked her breasts and toyed with her nipples. Eight inches of Jack streaked across her clitoris and she dissolved into bliss yet again.
He gripped her bottom, digging his fingers almost painfully into her flesh, and impaled her one last time, his own back arching. He ground his pelvis into hers and spilled into her with a groan—just as his cell phone began shrieking again.
He slumped over her, pressing his cheek to hers, and she felt their hearts pounding in sync.
The cell phone stopped and then started ringing again.
“You’d better answer it,” she whispered into his ear. “It’s not like they don’t know where you are.” She handed him a towel from the pillow next to her, and he pulled out with a sigh.
But he leaned forward and kissed her deeply, possessively and tho
roughly. “You’re not breaking up with me,” he said. “You got that?”
She stared at him, at his loose tie and rumpled hair and crushed shirt. His blue eyes burned into hers and she still lay open to him, in the most vulnerable position. Her heart turned over.
And then Jack Hammersmith, governor of the state, said the most peculiar thing. “I need you, Marly. You’re it for me. Perfect in every way.” Stunned, she didn’t know what to say.
Finally, with pants zipped and shirt tucked back in, he answered the phone in clipped, efficient sentences. Marly sat up and straightened her own clothes, still wobbly from his touch. When he hung up, he said to her, “They’re on their way to pick us up, but there’s no way we’re getting past the phalanx of cameras out there without them taking more shots. You’re either going to want to smile and stand proud, or use something to cover your face.”
“Yeah…I can make a space helmet out of one of the stationary blow-dryers.”
Jack’s lips twitched. “Add some aluminum foil antennae, maybe? Paint your face green.”
“And tell ’em I’ve been taken by their leader, over and over again?”
He cracked up. “See, you’re perfect.”
“I’m not,” she insisted. “I’m a Democrat. You’re a Republican.”
“You show me the other side,” he said, leaning against the wall. “Next argument.”
“I’m blue collar. You’re blue blood.”
Jack snorted. “Blue blood? Hardly. My ancestors came to this country without two cents to rub together. You’ll have to do better than that, honey.”
“I drive around in a Mitsubishi. You travel by limo and private jet.”
“Tell you what, Jimmy and Rocket will love being squashed in the back of a compact.” He grinned. “You give me your keys, and I’ll give you Mike and Alan. Or better yet, you can just travel around with me.”
“And what would I do while you’re running the state?”
“Paint,” he said promptly. “Draw. Design things.”
That shut her up.
“You could do that for four years…and afterward do anything you want.”
His phone rang again. Jack sighed and flipped it open. “Yeah. Okay. Thanks. We’ll go out the back door.” He flipped it closed.
“Frick and Frack, as you call them, are out back. The limo and more security will be here in about two minutes. You need to decide where you want to go—they’re suggesting you don’t go back to your apartment, though, since the media has dug up your address.”
“Oh, God.” She put her hands to her face.
“You want to come back to Tallahassee with me?”
“How would I get to work in the morning?”
Jack put a hand on her shoulder. “I don’t advise you to go back to After Hours for a couple of days. It’ll be rough.”
“It’s my job! I’m fully booked. I can’t just let down my clients like that.”
“Again, Marly, I’m sorry. But this is a little bigger than trims and highlights.”
Was his tone just a little patronizing? She couldn’t be sure—she was too upset to catch subtleties at the moment.
“So what do you want to do?”
“Take me to Alejandro’s. He’s not there, but I know where he keeps a spare key.”
“Who’s Alejandro?” Jack’s voice tightened.
“My husband.”
“Your what?!”
“Kidding, dude. Alejandro is my business partner and friend. You’ve met him. I’ve known him since I was ten.”
“No.”
“Excuse me?”
“It is a very bad idea for you to go to a man’s house to stay. If a reporter figures it out, then the shit will really hit the fan. Think about the headlines—Governor Two-Timed By Miss Snippy.”
Marly cringed. “Oh, God.”
“Look, I know you don’t like it, but you’re coming back to Tallahassee with me.”
“Yeah, great. I’ll take tea with your mom.”
“We’ll sit down with Lyons, my aide, and Martinez, my campaign manager, and figure out a strategy. We’ll draft a statement for the press.” Jack’s cell phone rang again and he took her by the elbow. “They’re outside by now. Do you want to throw a towel over your head?”
It was certainly tempting to just hide…but the reporters already had the awful shots of her and Jack groping each other. Her next appearance needed to be a little more dignified. “No,” Marly told him.
“Then hold your head high and smile like you’re the queen of England, honey.” Jack took a deep breath, asked her if she was ready, and opened the door to chaos.
THE HEADLINES next day were ugly. While Jack stayed closeted with his advisors, Marly stared at the huge black-and-white photograph of them, splashed across the Miami Herald, the Sun Sentinel and the Tallahassee Democrat. Ms. Turlington had helpfully supplied her with several papers and a tray of coffee, along with a bonus disapproving sniff.
In the photos, Marly looked like some voracious vampire vixen, her mouth open, her eyes demonic and her shirt half off.
Jack, oh poor Jack, sported visible wood and his tongue emerged from his mouth toward her. His hair stuck up in a stupid swoop and his eyes were half-closed. He looked like a horny half-wit who wasn’t fit to run a hotdog stand, much less the state.
Marly shuddered. The photographs couldn’t be worse if imps of Satan had doctored them with a computer program. And as for the headlines…
Jack Cheats On Carol!
Governor ‘Gets Some’ In The Gables!
Campaigning…Hard?
A call to Alejandro’s place had resulted in no answer—the Fabulous Four had probably been rough on him last night. Marly left a message, warning him about the situation outside After Hours and telling him to call her cell phone.
She turned the papers face down and dialed Peggy’s cell phone next.
“Peg?”
“Quite the glamour shot, cutie pie.”
“So you’ve seen it. They followed Jack to the salon last night and he didn’t notice until all hell broke loose.”
“Well, these photographers put the ‘rats’ in ‘paparazzi,’ didn’t they? And now Shirlie has all the information she ever wanted about the governor’s measurements.”
Marly groaned. “I should have broken up with him a week ago. This was a foregone conclusion. Look, I don’t really want to talk about it. I just wanted to warn you guys if you hadn’t seen it, and let you know that After Hours is probably still surrounded by news crews. They’ll try to pump you for information. Just be a doll and tell them ‘no comment’ until we figure out what to do. Jack is sending over a couple of retired cops to help with any traffic problems you might have.”
“Okay. Does Alejandro know?”
“I left a message, but I doubt he’s awake yet. He tried to drive the Fab Four home, but they wanted to go to South Beach instead. And if they all ended up at the Living Room or Bed, he’s wishing he had a replacement head right now.”
“God. Troy just got home last night. I’m going to drag him to the spa with me. He’s got more experience handling media than I do, and he’ll keep me from getting trampled. I take it you’re not coming in today?”
“No. I’m holing up in Tallahassee. Get Shirlie to cancel my appointments, reschedule them for next week if possible.”
“Okay, hon. If you need a place to stay when you come back to town, let me know.”
“Thanks, Peg. You’re a good friend.”
“And next time you decide to have a little fun at After Hours, pull the curtains closed!”
Marly sighed. “Yeah.”
“Hang in there and look on the bright side—any other photos they have of you guys can’t be worse, right?”
Marly laughed weakly and flipped her phone closed. She curled into a ball on Jack’s big mahogany bed, shut her eyes and wished she could block out the world. But the world didn’t want to be ignored and insisted on shooting images into her brain.
&
nbsp; Like, for example, her parents’ shocked faces. They’d be humiliated that their daughter was all over the papers, especially since she’d been caught in such a compromising position, looking like a slut on a stick.
She had to call them, but she didn’t know what to say. What if her mother answered the phone? Or would it be worse if Dad did? He’d always been so proud of her…until today, when she’d brought him nothing but shame.
Suddenly she sat up, hand to her mouth. What if the media was on their doorstep, too? Investigative reporters were ruthless, and on a story like this they’d leave no stone unturned to dig up more information on her.
Quickly she punched in her parents’ number. They had no experience dealing with the media. Her dad would be polite and try to answer their questions, and Ma would make a pot of coffee and some cinnamon buns for the vultures, secretly enjoying the show.
Their number was busy. Oh, God. Were they even now telling the CBS affiliate how hard it had been to potty train her? Sharing her thumb-sucking adventures with NBC? Showing CNN and ABC her prom pictures? And what if the reporters were subtly ridiculing Dad and Ma? They needed help.
Marly began to hyperventilate. She ran to the door and out of Jack’s room, down the hall to the huge curving staircase. She hadn’t showered yet, and still wore the oversize T-shirt and boxers he’d given her to sleep in. She finger-combed her hair on the way down the stairs and followed the sound of voices.
“Jack!” she called. She arrived at a big set of double doors, wrenched them open and barged in.
Six pairs of eyes under raised brows turned her way. Jack was in the room, but so were his mother, his father—whom she recognized from photographs—two sour-looking men and a woman in a baby-blue suit and pearls.
Mortified, Marly backed out again, leaving nothing but her head craning around the door. “Jack, I can’t reach my parents, and I think reporters may have them under siege!”
He came to the door. “They don’t know anything about us, do they?”
She shook her head.
“Then don’t worry too much about it. I’ll send someone over there.”
Marly took a deep breath. “Jack, I’m sorry but that’s not acceptable. I need to go home—they deserve an explanation from me.”
After Hours Bundle Page 34