Sweet As Sin

by Ana Jolene

  “It’s good, right?” Hutch said around a mouthful of ice cream.

  Maison licked her lips. “Delicious.”

  They polished off their ice cream in minutes. And then, just because she felt like it, she allowed herself to sit in the car and take in the scenery.

  “You got something on your face.”

  Maison swiped at her chin.

  “It’s still there.” Hutch leaned over. He was so close she could see the gold in his warm eyes. “There,” he said as he brushed her cheek softly. “It’s gone now.”

  But it wasn’t. The spark between them had always been there; Maison just didn’t allow herself to see it until now. And this close, it was impossible to ignore.

  She realized with a start that she wanted him to kiss her. She wanted him to take her away from this world and show her what pleasure felt like. She’d denied herself for so long that all she wanted now was just another taste. Another kiss.

  Hutch slowly removed the sunglasses from her face and leaned in further. “You’re beautiful, you know that?” he whispered. “No. You’re more than that. You’re extraordinary.” She certainly felt like it in that moment. Especially with the way he was staring at her. “Can I kiss you now?”

  The words set her on fire and she could only manage to nod before Hutch’s mouth descended on hers. This time, she was ready for it and she fell wholeheartedly into the kiss. God, she missed this. Missed him. Nothing was better than being in Hutch Happa-Hewitt’s arms. He made the world simply disappear and made it feel like she was the only girl in the world.

  On a groan, she pulled him closer, until the both of them were straining towards each other. She liked how he felt against her, all hard and warm and it all made her want to torture him more. “Let’s go to the back seat.”

  Hutch broke away. “What?”

  “I want to go to the back seat,” she said again.

  “Okay.” She loved that he wasn’t balking at her boldness. It was bad enough already that she’d basically ordered him to do as she pleased.

  As she slid into the back seat, Hutch jumped on her, making her giggle. “Hutch!” she exclaimed, right before he took her mouth.

  As tongues clashed, Maison felt herself start to burn. Her body grew hot and she pulled at her top, trying to loosen it. “Dammit.”

  Hutch pulled back, but only enough to undo the top buttons of her blouse. He cursed when her bra was revealed. Although she had big boobs, they weren’t perky and that made her self-conscious.

  “Hey, what are you doing?” Hutch gently removed her hands. “You’re covering exactly where I want to be.”

  “No. My boobs are ugly.”

  “I’ll be the judge of that,” he murmured before his mouth captured a nipple.

  “Oh my God,” she gasped as pleasure sang through her body.

  Hutch chuckled. “I see you have a thing for sexy lingerie.” His finger passed over the lace detail on her bra. “But what are you wearing below?”

  Scooting back, Hutch’s hands grazed her thighs. With the tight skirt she had on, she couldn’t spread her legs wide enough, but it was just enough for Hutch to see a glimpse of her silky panties. “Fuck me,” he breathed. “Do you wear lingerie every day at work?”

  “Not the same one, obviously. But yes, I do wear lingerie underneath all my clothing.”

  Hutch cursed again before rising up to kiss her. “I’m looking forward to seeing them every day then.”

  Maison felt herself go molten as he continued to kiss her. When his hand found its way between her legs again, she gasped. “Do you like that?” he asked, gaze burning as he stared down at her.

  Maison nodded. God, what the hell was she doing?

  Hutch applied more pressure and she bit her bottom lip in response. More pleasure shot through her body. More. She needed more. She started to grind her lower body against his palm, feeling the pulsing pleasure surge through her. The moan she let out was desperate.

  “I’ll make it better,” Hutch growled before claiming her mouth again. All the while, he worked her below, moving his hand in circles until she was squirming against him. “Look at that blush.”

  Her eyes flew open to find Hutch so close that she could see her reflection in his beautiful dark eyes.

  Wow.

  Her orgasm blindsided her and she cried out, gasping. Hutch moved quicker, drawing her orgasm out as he sucked on her nipples. Holy shit! Her eyes had definitely rolled back on that one! It’d been so long since she’d come that hard and that had only been his hand. How much more would it be with Hutch’s hard cock pounding into her over and over again?

  Hutch pulled back, lounging on the opposite side of the car as he caught his breath. “Fuck, that was hot.” A wicked smile curled his lips. “You’ve made me so hard, I could probably drill through rock.”

  At the words, Maison’s gaze dropped to his crotch. “Do you want me to . . .” She pointed at the loaded gun in his pants.

  Hutch chuckled, reaching over to kiss her again. “If I ever get those lips wrapped around my cock, I’d be a goner. You’ll have to hide my body here and drive my car back.”

  She laughed. “Stop it, it probably won’t take long,” she said as she reached for his zipper.

  “Careful, you’ll deflate my ego with comments like that.”

  Ignoring his teasing, she wrapped a hand around his girth and reveled in his strangled groan. She couldn’t quite get her fingers to meet around him but she’d managed. “It’s just like licking ice cream,” she purred as she licked a path up his length.

  Hutch’s gaze intensified. “God, woman, you’re really going to kill me.”

  Maison licked at the pre-come at the tip before swallowing him whole again. This time, she didn’t gag and kept up a pace she knew that would drive Hutch over the edge.

  His cock seemed to pulse in her hand and she leaned over to tongue the thick vein before she jacked him off in short, tight motions. “Shit.” Hutch’s belly clenched and his thighs firmed up. “Shit, I’m coming!” Maison wrapped her mouth around him, continuing to milk him through his orgasm. “Wow,” he breathed. “That was fucking amazing.” The kiss he gave her next made her needy all over again. “Sorry,” he said when he saw the desire swirling in her eyes. “But we need to get back.”

  “Oh, right.” She’d almost forgotten! She’d gotten so caught up in her passion and desire that she’d neglected all her other duties. This was so unlike her!

  Kissing her one last time, Hutch helped her back into the front seat and they drove back to the office in comfortable silence. Throughout the ride, Hutch’s hand stayed wrapped around hers and Maison caught herself smiling in the side mirror. God, what a day she’d had so far and she had a feeling things would only get crazier from here.

  But she was glad she’d taken this leap of faith with him. She hadn’t realized what she was missing until this moment.

  When they returned, they each went back to their own desks. Maison pulled up the files she needed to prepare for the meeting and glanced over her screen. There, her gaze collided with Hutch’s.

  She hadn’t realized it before but he’d been staring at her the whole time and his heated gaze left no question to what he was thinking about. Dammit, she thought as her cheeks flushed bright red. How the hell did she think she was going to get anything done now?

  TWENTY

  To make up for her tardiness the day before, Maison came to work a half hour early to get a head start on her work. Despite her efforts, it seemed that no matter how many hours she spent here, it wouldn’t be enough time to go through the pile of work that had accumulated on her desk. Her to-do list in her planner was a mile long and she knew she would no doubt have to stick around while everyone else went home to catch up.

  Despite all that, she was still in a good mood and didn’t regret any of what happened yesterday. She still couldn’t believe they’d done all that stuff outside and in Hutch’s car! It was a position she never thought she would be in, but s
he shouldn’t have underestimated him. Hutch was the only one who was able to bring her out of her shell.

  Maison knew the moment he arrived because she could feel his hot gaze on her. She didn’t dare lift her head up to greet him or she’d completely lose track of what she was doing. But she was quickly discovering that it was impossible to ignore him. She would always be aware of him.

  When she looked up, he was already at his desk, a coffee cup in hand, sporting the biggest smile she’d ever seen. A hot flash went through her. She realized then that Hutch Happa-Hewitt was an expert at eye flirting. Although he was doing nothing by sitting there, his gaze expressed everything that was on his mind. “Good morning, Snowflake.”

  A bolt of lust shot through her. Dammit, all he had to do was smile at her and she melted into a pile of goo for him! “Good morning,” she returned, hoping she didn’t sound as breathless as she felt.

  “You’re here early. How long have you been here?”

  “Only since seven thirty.”

  “Ouch.” Hutch winced before waggling his brows at her. “Does that mean a break is in order?”

  “No.” She had a lot to catch up on. “No breaks today.”

  She tried not to notice how good his lips looked when he pouted like that. “Fine, I’ll let you work,” he said as he turned back to his computer. Disappointment flitted through her as she realized he was giving up. Wait, did that mean she wanted him to bother her?

  Her phone rang suddenly and Maison moved to answer it. “Hey, boss.”

  For the second time in a row, Matthew sounded pleasant as he greeted her. “Maison, can you come in for a second? I have some questions to ask.”

  “Sure.” Quickly locking her computer, she headed into Matthew’s office. “What do you need help with?” she asked once inside.

  Matthew offered her a brief smile. “Why don’t you sit down?”

  “Uh. Okay. Is something wrong, sir?”

  “No, there’s nothing wrong. I just want you to tell me about Hutch.” Hutch? Wait, why was he asking about—Oh God! Had he somehow found out what they’d done yesterday?

  As panic riddled her body, he asked, “Has he been doing a good job?”

  Maison forced herself to swallow past the lump in her throat. “Yes, he’s doing well. He’s been working hard and he’s very efficient.” Yes. Very efficient in taking my clothes off!

  “Really?” Matthew’s brow quirked. “You’re not lying to me just to save his hide, are you?”

  “No, sir. Not at all.” Hutch really was a great worker, and despite the fact that she knew this job wasn’t what he wanted for himself, he was getting on really well.

  “Good. I was hoping a job like this would put him on a better path. From what I’ve seen, he seems to be getting better.”

  She’d noticed that too. For a while, everyone worried that Hutch was suffering from PTSD, but now that she knew the reason behind his actions, she could understand him a lot better.

  Not many people would understand his desire to return. Most would think he’d already sacrificed so much, but Hutch wasn’t bred to work at Gleam Enterprises like his father. She wasn’t foolish enough to think that this would sustain him for long. As scary as it was to accept it, Hutch was bred for war and combat. One day he would eventually grow restless and want to move on. Did that mean he’d move on from her too?

  “Keep looking out for my boy,” Matthew said to her. “He’s suffered a lot, but he’s strong. I just wished he opened up to me more.”

  “Well, he’s only just starting to open up to me.”

  “Good. At least he has someone to talk to.” His voice had softened. “Sometimes I wish I were more nurturing like Camilla.” Maison gasped at the mention of his now deceased wife. “She would know how to get him to talk to her. But I can see that you’ve had better luck at getting him to trust you.” Matthew leaned back, a small smile playing over his lips. “You two make a good couple.”

  Wait. What? Maison felt her face flare with embarrassment. “But, sir, we’re not—”

  “It’s all right. No need to be shy. If you like him, I don’t see what’s the matter with—”

  “But I don’t like him,” she blurted quickly.

  “You don’t?” Shit! Why had she said that? She knew she did. Hell, she was pretty sure she was half in love with the guy already, so why the hell was she sitting here denying it?

  Her heart was starting to pound and she really wished she’d kept her mouth shut. God, why the hell was she panicking again?

  Maison just never expected herself to be one of those people who mixed business and pleasure. So far she’d done a great job of keeping the two separate, but Hutch had walked into her life and was making her reconsider herself. She just had no idea how to handle it all.

  Taking a deep breath, she released it. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what I’m saying.” She sighed again. “I’m just . . . confused.”

  Matthew’s smile grew. Over the years they’d become a really good duo. Not only was Matthew a great boss to her, but he was also a wonderful friend. She realized too late that she wasn’t talking to her boss at the moment, but a concerned friend instead. “It’s okay,” he whispered. “I know how it feels. Love is . . . confusing at times. But it’ll get better.”

  Love? Maison shook her head. She could admit that she felt lust for Hutch but not love. No, she wasn’t sure if she should allow herself to get too attached like that, especially with someone like Hutch. Maison swallowed past the lump in her throat. “Is there anything else you’d like to talk about?”

  “No, that’s all.”

  “Okay, I’ll go now.” She rose and headed for the door, pausing only when Matthew called out for her.

  “He’s actually not a bad guy,” he said to her surprise. No, she didn’t believe Hutch to be a bad guy at all. But if that was true, then why was she still so torn?

  When the door opened and Maison stepped out, Hutch wondered what his father had been talking to her about. While most would assume it was about work, her pinched expression made him wonder if something else was the topic of their discussion. Had they been talking about him? The way she avoided him as she made her way back to her desk made him believe they’d been. What had his father said to her? Did he warn her off him? Did he tell her to save herself the trouble of dealing with a bad boy like him?

  Or was he asking her about his behavior as it pertained to work? About his progress or whether or not he was helping her out or simply making a bigger mess of things?

  Dammit, he wanted to know. He wanted to know what she thought of him!

  When his buddy Boyce, the security guard, walked past him, Hutch grinned behind his desk. The mail courier was with him, the same one who seemed to be harboring feelings for Maison, and with him, he carried a bouquet of red roses.

  Normally when another man walked up to his girl with flowers, he’d throttle the guy, but Hutch stayed rooted in his seat. He wasn’t surprised to see the mailman’s eyes light up. Maison, however, frowned upon seeing him. “What’s all this?”

  “This is for you.” He placed the bouquet of red roses on her desk for her. Maison’s eyes grew wide.

  “For me? Oh my God.” She glanced around as the other people in the office stared at her. A blush was creeping up her neck and cheeks, the beautiful shade making her look lovely and alive. After signing the form, the mailman left, leaving her alone with the roses.

  He watched as Maison plucked the card from the bouquet and read it. A brilliant smile spread across her face as her hand came up to her mouth.

  On the note, he’d written:

  Hey, Snowflake,

  Wanna go on a date?

  He’d signed it with a simple H, knowing that his first initial wasn’t very popular. So she’d know exactly who was sending it to her.

  Once again, her blush deepened. When her gaze lifted and collided with his, her smile was broad and unrestrained.

  He knew romancing Maison Lane was a gamble. She w
as a strong, independent woman whose sights were set on her career, but he was hoping that he could somehow worm his way into her life.

  Setting the card aside, Maison turned back to her computer. “Wait, what?” Hutch muttered. That was it? She wasn’t going to say anything to him?

  But then, a moment later, an email popped into his inbox. His heart started a fast thrumming when he saw that there was nothing in the subject line.

  Only one word was in the body of the email:

  Yes.

  Hutch felt himself grin. When he looked back over at her, it was to find her already staring at him. She’d plucked a rose from the bouquet and was holding it up to her nose. A shy, sinful smile curled her lips.

  Damn, she was beautiful, so beautiful she made his chest hurt.

  There was no way anyone looking at her couldn’t tell who the flowers had come from now with the way she was looking at him.

  Trying not to show how much she was getting to him, he shot her a wink and turned back to his computer. There was no way he could focus on work though.

  As he stared at the blank screen, Hutch thought about where he wanted to take Maison next.

  Maison had to admit, the roses were a really sweet gesture. She never expected this from Hutch. But now she was feeling even more conflicted. How could she go from deciding against him in one moment and then falling head over heels in love with him in another? She was going to give herself whiplash with her constant indecision!

  No one had ever sent her flowers before. No one. So when she’d read the note, a wash of excitement had flushed through her. She wanted to cross the distance between them and crush her mouth to his, but with everyone already looking at her, she settled for teasing him with an email instead.

  Despite the excitement of the day, she still had a lot of work to do and she appreciated that Hutch wasn’t nagging her so she could do it all. Finishing one project, she decided to print it out. However, an error popped up as she tried to. Apparently, someone had forgotten to add more paper. Ugh. What a pain! Now she’d have to go to the other side of the offices to get a replacement.