by Serena Grey
Wild Sexy Thing
Wild Sexy Series #1
Serena Grey
Sweet Acacia Press LLC
This book is a work of fiction. All names, characters, locations, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination and have been used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, locales, or events is entirely coincidental.
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WILD SEXY THING
Copyright © 2018 by Serena Grey
All rights reserved
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Sweet Acacia Press LLC
To my readers, always.
Contents
Wild Sexy Thing
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
About Serena Grey
Books by Serena Grey
Wild Sexy Thing
First in a new novella series by Serena Grey
With him, I was no longer myself.
I was something wild,
with no inhibitions.
Daphne Bird has spent the past few years staying away from relationships, and she has never been with a man who she can't forget completely as soon as he's out the door.
Until Jason Wild.
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He comes into her life just when she swears off meaningless hookups.
He is her new roommate's brother.
He is the sexiest thing she’s ever seen.
He is the first man she can't get out of her mind.
* * *
And maybe just the first one who will not walk away.
Chapter One
“Daphne, how about this one?”
I looked up from where I was curled up on the couch. Amy had struck a pose and was waiting for my opinion on the third dress she’d tried on in less than thirty minutes. I had been trying to reread my copy of North and South, but my roommate was determined to keep coming between me and John Thornton.
She did look good though. Her blonde hair fell around her face in messy curls, and the short blue dress was perfect for her tiny frame. I nodded approvingly. “It’s sexy, and I like the color—and the bare shoulder.” I gave her a thumbs-up. “He won’t be able to take his eyes off you.”
“What if it’s too…out there? I don’t want to look like I’m trying too hard.”
She looked genuinely worried, and it was a cute look on her. Everything was a cute look on her, actually. She was just effortlessly cute and charming.
“What? Of course not.” I closed my book, saying a silent goodbye to Mr. Thornton, at least until Amy made a decision. “You look great, perfect for a first date.”
“It’s kinda not really the first date. We already went out for drinks once, but I went straight over to the bar from a shoot and didn’t get a chance to dress up, sooo…it doesn’t count as a date.” She sighed. “I’m rambling so much I’m incoherent.”
“So what? You like him! You’re a little nervous. It’s a good thing—exciting, really—and you look great. He’s going to be staring at you all night if he has any taste.”
“Aww.” She smiled. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” I said graciously. I liked Amy. I’d lived on my own for a while, but when my lease expired, I had decided to find a new place closer to work. I hadn’t really been looking for a roommate, but somehow, I’d fallen in love with the spacious two-bedroom apartment and the well-managed building. Now, I was glad I’d taken it, because Amy was growing on me too.
“I’m going to put on some makeup,” she said. “You’re right, I really like him…that’s why I’m so nervous. Sometimes I wish I could be like you—calm, collected, unbothered about men, dating…the whole thing.”
I shrugged. “I’m not unbothered. I’ve been attracted to loads of people, I just don’t get emotional about my need to have sex with someone I find attractive.”
“See what I mean? Unbothered. It’s so cool.” She sighed. “I’d better go do my makeup.”
She returned to her room and I picked up my book, though I hesitated to open it again. Yes, I was unbothered about relationships. I’d never gotten nervous over a guy. I liked sex, and I’d never been hesitant to pursue it with a guy I found attractive. I just never dressed it up in all the emotional ribbons people liked to tie themselves up with.
It had been enough—until recently. Now, I was on a break from guys, sex, the whole shebang. It was my way of taking a step back to evaluate myself and determine how I wanted to manage relationships going forward.
The sound of birds chirping filled the house—Amy’s quirky doorbell. So, he was here. I was mildly interested in meeting the guy who had filled Amy’s stomach with enough butterflies to make her a nervous wreck. I wasn’t into real-life love, but I had a thing for love stories and happy endings in romance novels and other people’s lives, just not in mine. It was the strangest thing.
I got up from the couch and headed to the door. “He’s here!” I yelled in the direction of Amy’s room before looking through the peephole.
Okay. Through the distorted lens view, I could see that he was crazy gorgeous. No wonder Amy couldn’t pick a dress.
I opened the door and had to stop for a moment to catch my breath.
Wow!
First, he was tall—sexy tall—and his broad shoulders made his sweater look like an advertisement for sex. Then there was his wide, perfectly muscled chest and long legs in perfectly fitting jeans.
His face was the final straw, high cheekbones, stormy grey-green eyes, and the most sensuous lips I’d ever seen, topped by thick black hair that was cut short at the back but deliciously wavy in front.
I suddenly found myself wondering how I looked. I was wearing lounge pants and a tank top, my shoulder-length brown hair was in a simple ponytail, and I wasn’t wearing any makeup. I sighed. I was going to make the most unsexy first impression on the hottest guy I’d ever seen.
I sucked in a breath and composed myself. I was practically salivating over my roommate’s date, which was probably right up there at the top of the list of shitty violations of the roommate agreement. Feeling guilty, I gave him a friendly smile. “You must be Colin,” I said, stepping back to let him into the apartment. “Amy will just be a minute.”
“Hello.” His voice was cool and deep, and it warmed me somehow. When his lips curved in a very tiny smile, my stomach twisted. He held my gaze as he stepped into the living room, and I wanted to drown in his eyes. I heard Amy come into the room and reluctantly dragged my eyes from his.
“He’s cute,” I said, still smiling, still feeling strange about the way the sight of him had thrown me off balance and wanting to make up for it by being the perfect, friendly roommate. After they’d gone out, I could try to unpack the way he’d knocked me off my feet.
Amy gave me a strange look then rolled her eyes. “That’s not Colin, that’s my brother,” she said, wrinkling her nose in his direction like she couldn’t imagine why anyone would call him cute. “Hi, Jason. What can I do for you?”
“Your brother?” Surprise, relief, and resistance churned in a strange mixture inside my stomach. I was disconcerted and sure it was obvious on my face, but him—he just looked amused.
“Her brother.” That deep, ridiculously sexy voice again. I felt it sizzle over my skin and I pulled in a deep breath. “Jason Wild. You must be Daphne.”
“I…” I tried to remember my own name. “Yes, I’m Daphne.”
“Nice to finally meet you.” He smiled slowly. “It’s great that we’ve already established the fact that you think I’m cute.”
“She’s my roomma
te,” Amy said, wagging a finger at him. “Don’t even think about it.”
“Think about what?” His eyes didn’t leave my face, and whatever Amy was accusing him of thinking, I was now thinking about it too—in astonishingly vivid, erotic detail.
“It’s nice to meet you too, Jason,” I said, my voice a little too thick. He stretched out a hand and when I hesitated, he quirked an eyebrow, making me almost forget how to breathe. Mesmerized, I gave him my hand, and my whole body tingled as he curled his smooth fingers around mine.
Amy’s voice interrupted the moment. “Okayyyyy, stop pawing my roommate and tell me why you’re here, and don’t tell me it’s your apartment because I will kick your ass.”
He turned to his sister, breaking our gaze and leaving me with a sense of loss that intensified when he dropped my hand. I made for the couch and the safety of my book, so thrown by the force of attraction I’d felt in just those few minutes of meeting him that I needed space and time to recover.
Jason Wild.
Handsome, sexy, perfect.
I couldn’t wait for him to leave.
“I miss my little sister,” I heard him say, a teasing note in his voice. “Can’t I come over just to check on you?”
“No!” Amy exclaimed. “And I’m not a little anything.”
He laughed, and I chuckled because, well, at five feet and two inches, she barely reached his chest.
“I came to pick up some of the stuff I left in the storage closet when I moved out, and now you have to tell me who this Colin is. Also, I have to meet him and warn him to treat you like a queen or else.”
“Argghh!” She was laughing. “Don’t even dare.”
They kept squabbling while I tried to focus on the words in my book. Suddenly John Thornton didn’t seem so compelling anymore. My skin prickled, and without looking up, I knew it was because Jason was looking at me. I lifted my face and met his gaze. He smiled. My skin heated and I dragged my eyes away.
It was a new experience, being so acutely aware of someone that I could barely function. I heard him laughing as he teased Amy, heard his steps as he walked past her into the hall that led to our bedrooms and the storage closet at the end.
“I didn’t know he was coming by today. He said he’d come around once he was back in town, but…” Amy gave me an apologetic look. “I hope you don’t mind.”
“No…” I shook my head. “It was just a little awkward when I thought he was your date.”
She laughed. “Not awkward, just funny. Colin is way cuter though.”
“That is unlikely,” Jason said, walking back into the living room holding a box. I agreed silently, watching his muscles stretch as he put it down by the door before coming back to sit on the edge of the couch.
His body was relaxed, his arm draped along the back of the couch with his fingers just a few inches from my face. He had nice, long fingers and neatly clipped nails. Good-looking men with well-manicured hands always turned me on, and he was no exception.
“So, you work in publishing?”
It took me a moment to go from lusting after his fingers to hearing what he was saying to me.
“That’s what I told you,” Amy sing-songed.
He ignored her, keeping those stormy gray eyes on me. It hadn’t even been an hour since we met, and I already thought his eyes were the most beautiful I’d ever seen.
“I do,” I nodded.
His eyes went to my book then returned to my face. “Must be interesting.”
“Pretty much.” I shrugged.
“And you like it here?”
“In the city? Or in the apartment?”
He shrugged, and I was temporarily mesmerized by the lazy movement of his broad shoulders. “Both.”
I exhaled. “I do.”
“Good,” he said. “Nice to know you’re not thinking of leaving any time soon.”
“She’s not interested, Jason,” Amy said before I could ask what he meant. “And I know why you’re making small talk—you’re trying to stall until Colin comes so you can scare him off.”
“Who’s Colin again?” He gave her a teasing grin and she stamped her foot. “Seriously Amy, why don’t you want me to meet him? As your older brother, I’m practically your parent, and it’s only natural that you introduce me to your date so he knows to have you home before midnight.”
She gave him a poisonous glare just as the doorbell rang again, then she stalked to the door and opened it a fraction.
“Hi,” I heard her say in a breathless voice.
“Hi.” The male voice on the other side of the door sounded impressed. “You look wonderful.”
“Thanks,” Amy replied.
Jason gave me an amused glance, a small smile playing on his lips. God! He was so hot.
Amy turned around. The guy, Colin, was just visible over her shoulder, still standing at the threshold. “Colin, that’s my brother, Jason, and my roommate, Daphne. Jason, Daphne, meet Colin. We’re going now, good night.”
She shut the door, leaving me and Jason alone in the apartment.
He laughed. “She’s always been much smarter than me.”
Left with any other person, I would have been amused too, but not him. With him, I already felt like I was being sucked into a vortex of physical attraction, and being alone in an apartment with him wasn’t helping. It was not helping at all.
“She is pretty smart,” I said lightly, the nonchalance in my voice hiding all the lustful reactions my body was having to him.
Our eyes met again and in those few seconds, I found myself rethinking my decision to stay away from guys for a while. The whole self-imposed celibacy deal made absolutely no sense when this gorgeous man was sitting less than three feet away from me.
I wondered if he had a girlfriend.
I tore my eyes away from his face. He was my roommate’s brother. A one-night stand, a fling—anything like that was bound to get uncomfortable in the long run. Was I so desperate for an orgasm that I’d be willing to risk my growing friendship with Amy?
I glanced toward the box he’d placed by the door. “So…you got your stuff,” I said, pointedly referring to the original reason why he’d come to the apartment.
He frowned, as if he’d totally forgotten about it. “Yeah, it’s just some books and sports stuff.” He got up, his lithe body suddenly towering over me. He took a step toward the door then stopped and turned back to me. “I want to see you again.”
My belly flipped, and my lips parted involuntarily as I pulled in a small breath. His directness was such an unexpected turn-on. “You might get to see me a lot,” I said, deliberately ignoring his meaning. “I’m living with your sister.”
His gray eyes darkened. “You know that’s not what I meant.”
I swallowed. He hadn’t even propositioned me, not directly, but it felt like he had. I felt like if we’d met at a bar a year ago, we’d be fucking in the nearest convenient location right now.
But this was now, and I was no longer that girl, and he was my roommate’s brother.
I shrugged. “What did you mean?”
He didn’t reply. Instead, he studied me, his eyes darkening with what appeared to be arousal. I felt a tightening in my nipples, a sweet tingle between my legs. God! He hadn’t even done more than look at me.
After a long moment, he shrugged, a small regretful smile creeping into the corner of his sensuous lips. “Never mind,” he said softly. “You’re right. You’re Amy’s roommate, so we probably will see more of each other.”
He walked back to his box and picked it up, then I got up and followed him to the door. Once outside, he turned around.
“It was really nice to meet you, Daphne,” he said, a small smile playing on his lips.
I returned his smile. “Same here.”
I closed the door and took a deep breath. I’d never been so drawn to anyone before, had never felt that kind of physical attraction. I didn’t know what to think about it, but I knew for sure who would be feat
uring in my fantasies later that night.
Chapter Two
“So…what did you think of him?” Amy asked. She was sitting cross-legged in front of the couch eating Chinese take-out with a pair of chopsticks while the ending credits from an episode of Downton Abbey rolled on the TV screen.
I remembered the role Jason had played in my nighttime fantasies since our meeting, and blood rushed to my face. I twisted my noodles with my fork. “He was cool. I wish I hadn’t announced that I thought he was cute, but hey, he’s your brother.”
“Ugh, not Jason!” She wrinkled her nose. “I meant Colin.”
My face heated but she didn’t seem to notice. “Of course.” I laughed weakly. “I have no idea why I thought you meant Jason.”
She laughed. “Well, everyone has been telling him how cute he is since high school. You know how hard it is to be little sister to the cutest guy in school?” She smiled. “Okay, it wasn’t hard all the time. It was nice to have popular girls fawning over me because they liked him.” She shrugged. “Anyway, I meant Colin.”
“You know, I didn’t get much of a look at him with the way you rushed out, but he seemed nice.”
“Yeah…” She smiled dreamily. “I really like him, and his accent is sooo sexy…and he makes me feel like he’s really listening to me, you know, not wondering how soon he can get me into bed. I have a good feeling about him.”
“Bet you’re wondering how soon you can get him into bed though,” I teased.
“Well…” She giggled. “Now that you mention it, yes, I am.”