Heart Robber (Lifestyle by Design Book 2)

by Miranda P. Charles

  He felt his heart leap at the mention of Jessa's name and leaned back on his chair. He considered Will's question before answering. "I guess not. When I was a teenager, any girl would have done. This is different."

  "It has to be Jessa," Will said in a factual tone.

  "Well, yes. She's the one who arouses me so it would have to be her."

  Will leaned forward and looked intently at him. "You do know you could be in love with her."

  "What? No, no, no. No way. No. No. This is a purely physical thing. It's intense but it's still just lust. I expect it to die down in a couple of months or so," he blurted out with more conviction that he felt.

  He fidgeted in his seat as Will stared at him in a funny way. He was grateful when Will didn't laugh and went back to the original topic. "So you want to know when I get horny like a teenager? I get fucking horny every time I think of Clarise. Since I think about her a lot then I'm horny a lot, too. And I get hard just by looking at her. I've never been that eager with anyone else."

  "So how do you deal with it?"

  "Being busy at work is great. The more work I have coming out of my ears, the better. Keeps me distracted. And knowing I'll be with her at the end of the day helps a lot."

  His eyebrows shot up. "Do you guys live together already?"

  "Almost," Will grinned. "It's either we sleep at her place or mine so it's like we're living together."

  "That was quick. You've only known each other for, what, a couple of months?"

  Will shrugged. "We just hate being away from each other. We only sleep apart when I have to travel somewhere."

  He nodded distractedly.

  "Rob, don't tell me you haven't thought that working your ass off or having sex as often as you can would help with your problem."

  "Yeah, sure. I've thought of those things."

  "So, what other kind of solutions were you looking for?"

  "I don't know." He frowned and pursed his lips as a thought occurred to him. "I just never had to deal with this before. Maybe if I could let off steam with a variety of women, I wouldn't find it a problem but … like I said to you before, I don't seem to want to get off with anyone else at this point."

  "I told you, Rob. It could be love."

  He shook his head stubbornly. "You know I'm not into the love shit, Will. Not built for it, don't want it. It means commitment and I don't want to be committed to anyone where every single important decision I make in my life has to involve that person. Imagine having that chain around your neck for a lifetime. No, thanks."

  Rob thought about how his father had that chain around him in the form of his stepmother. When his dad remarried when he was twelve after his mum died a couple of years earlier, their whole life was run by what his stepmother wanted - where they lived, what they did, the kind of career his dad had to have. His dad deferred to his wife's every whim, saying to his sons he was committed to making his relationship with their stepmother work. He couldn't understand that, especially when his dad sold his humble but profitable smash repair business. Cars were his dad's passion and he loved being a mechanic. So when his dad gave that up to become a glorified clerk at his stepmother's father's law firm in London, that was when he knew committed relationships weren't for him if it meant being robbed of the freedom to do the things he loved.

  "So you don't mind that your time with Jess is short?" Will prodded. "That in a few months she'll be out of your life and you'll be out of hers?"

  He felt a pinch in his chest at the thought but didn't want to analyse why. "Sure I'll be disappointed in a way. Who wouldn't be when something good reaches its end? But people get over relationships all the time. And for me it's a choice between having my freedom and not having it. I choose freedom. And right now with Jessa, I choose to have an exclusive relationship with her but only for a specific period."

  Will let out a huge sigh. "Okay, then. Maybe I'm wrong and you're right. Maybe love isn't in the equation for you. But whether it's lust or love, the solution is the same in my opinion. Go and have sex with her as often as you can, and during the times you can't, distract yourself with work and build your empire. Simple. Works for me. Any other problem?"

  "No."

  Rob realised Will was right. He was being too rigid with his no-sleeping-overnight-with-a-woman-on-a-weekday rule. He'd need to give this lust all opportunity to burn out before the four-month limit is over. That meant sleeping with Jessa as often as he could, even during weekday mornings. He just hoped she was as in lust with him as he was with her. But then what about his routine?

  "Have you stopped going to the gym in the mornings?" he asked Will.

  "Yes. I go during my lunch break now."

  "Right."

  "Hey, Rob," Will said in a serious tone, "take it easy on Jess, okay? If it's only going to be a four-month fling with you guys, don't do stupid things that might make her think you're falling for her."

  "Like what?" he asked, puzzled.

  "Like go all romantic on her just so she would agree to have sex with you more often."

  "I don't do romantic, Will. I do seduction. There's a difference. And she's very clear on my intentions."

  ~~~~~~~

  A huge smile appeared on Jessa's face as she checked the caller ID on her phone. It was only Monday afternoon and she'd been missing him a lot already.

  "Hi, Rob."

  "Hi, babe. How are you going?"

  "Good, thanks. You?

  "Good. Busy. I can't talk long as I have a conference call in a few minutes but I was wondering if you want to go out for dinner tonight?"

  Tonight? She didn't think she'd see him again so soon. "Sorry, Rob, but I can't tonight. I'm working. I'm going to this restaurant in Balmain and meet the owner and his staff."

  "You call that work?" Rob scoffed.

  She laughed. "Well, yes. It is work. I have to fully concentrate on the experience and make notes, you know."

  "Can I go with you?"

  The idea of having dinner with Rob appealed to her but she knew he couldn't go. She wouldn't be able to focus on her tasks. "No, sorry," she replied regretfully.

  "What time do you finish?"

  "I'm not sure. I'm also going into their kitchen and watch them deal with the dinner crowd," she said animatedly.

  "You sound really excited about that."

  "Yes. I love cooking so I enjoy watching those chefs do their thing. I'm free tomorrow night though," she added, her tone hopeful.

  "Great. Tomorrow night then. I'll pick you up from work."

  "Okay."

  "I gotta go, Jess. I'll see you tomorrow."

  "Bye, Rob."

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  TWO MONTHS LATER …

  "What do you mean you're going with her to the speed dating thing tomorrow night?" Rob growled over the phone.

  "I didn't say we're going with her, I said we're taking her," Jessa patiently repeated what she'd said earlier.

  "What's the difference?"

  "We're not going on the speed date, only Faye. It's been a couple of months since she broke up with Steve and she's ready to have some fun again. We'll just escort her to the venue and wait until she goes in so she doesn't stand there waiting by her lonesome. Then we'll be at the restaurant downstairs while we wait for her to finish."

  "Oh, okay. Wouldn't you guys cramp her style by being there? What if she meets someone she wants to hook up with and you guys are there to ruin the night?"

  "That's not how it works," she giggled. "The organisers collect their cards after the end of the night and see if who they selected also selected them. If there's a match, or matches, they'll get an email the next day. Then it's up to the speed daters to arrange a date with their matches."

  "Of course, you know how it works," Rob grumbled. "So what night are you replacing tomorrow night with? That's my night, you know," he complained.

  She smiled. For the last two months, she and Rob had gotten into a dating pattern. Every Saturday night, Rob stayed over at h
er place and she cooked him dinner. Every Tuesday and Thursday nights, she stayed over at his place. Sometimes they ordered home delivery, sometimes they ate out. If it wasn't a tiring day at work, she cooked.

  "We don't need to replace it if you wouldn't mind joining us for dinner."

  Rob was hesitant. "Join you on your girlie's night? I'm not sure about that."

  "Will'll probably be there again."

  "Again? Will had joined you before on your girlie's night?"

  "Only that one time when I went on a speed date. Apparently he wanted to make sure Clarise didn't get picked up by all those single men milling around the area."

  There was a moment's pause then Rob announced, "If Will's there then I'm there, too."

  "Okay, great. See you tomorrow then, baby."

  "See you, my little witch."

  She grinned as she hung up the phone. She loved it when Rob got possessive. And it thrilled her every time he called her 'my little witch'. It was the word 'my' that held the magic. Well, she did belong to him. Her heart and her body were undeniably his now.

  Every week, her hope grew that somehow their relationship would be more than what they originally agreed to. The last nine weeks had been bliss. Rob may not be the romantic type - he hadn't sent her flowers or anything like that - but when they were together, he was always tender and attentive and obviously so hot for her he couldn't get enough. He'd even started demanding more time with her.

  The ache she had in her heart from knowing their time together was limited had almost disappeared. She'd been much too happy with him. Things were perfect between them. Surely, he felt that, too?

  Knowing there was still two months to go before he had to go back to Melbourne made her feel confident about their future together. They had already grown so close. In a few more weeks, she was certain Rob would eventually realise he shouldn't give up on what they had together. She was sure they could work it out even if they lived in different states. He had a growing business here in Sydney and she had family in Melbourne. That was a start.

  The bus didn't look like crashing, after all. That was great because she didn't want to leave this bus. Ever.

  ~~~~~~~

  "Looks like you're all going out tonight." Ray commented to Jessa, Clarise and Victor. They were dressed up and looked ready to party.

  "Yes, Jess and I are escorting Faye to a speed dating event and then having dinner with our men," Clarise confirmed. "But Victor's not coming with us. He has a special night ahead of him."

  "Yes, it's Evan's brother's birthday and I'm invited. It's the first time I'm meeting his family." Victor's nervous excitement was palpable.

  But Ray wasn't listening to Victor. His mind was still processing the first half of what Clarise said. "You're escorting Faye to a speed dating event? Why? What about her boyfriend?"

  "Oh, they broke up two months ago."

  "Oh." Ray's heartbeat accelerated as possibilities ran in his head. "Well, let me know how she goes," he said as he waved goodbye to them.

  "You interested as well, Ray?" Victor asked with a cheeky grin.

  "Ah, no," he blushed. "I just … I would just want to know if she had fun and, ah, that's all," he stammered. "Anyway, you guys have fun." And he hurried away.

  His three staff members stared at his retreating back with mouths wide open.

  "I wanted to know if he was interested in going on a speed date himself. But it looks like someone still has a crush on our Faye after all this time," Victor said in amazement.

  "Yeah," the women agreed.

  "What do you think? Shall we mention something to Faye?" Jessa asked tentatively.

  "I don't know," Clarise responded. "Faye already turned him down before. That was more than a year ago now, wasn't it? Just around the time she met Steve? Besides, right now, all she wants is to have fun. She'd be nowhere near ready to go on serious dates."

  "Hmm. I think we should keep our mouths shut at this point then. He's our boss and she's our friend. It could get messy."

  "Yeah, you're right, Jess. Mouths shut about this."

  ~~~~~~~

  The three women positioned themselves near the venue entrance as they waited for the doors to open.

  "Hmm. There are a few good-lookers tonight," Faye murmured as she glanced around.

  A group of three men who stood near them whispered to each other and approached.

  "Hi," the men said in unison. They were all cute. What made them even cuter was they all had dimples and copper hair and toothpaste commercial smiles.

  "Hi," they said back.

  "Let me guess," Faye said with a gorgeous smile of her own. "Brothers? Or at least, cousins?"

  They all laughed.

  "No," the guy in black said as he stepped closer to Faye. "We're just friends who happen to have dimples and the same hair colour."

  "Well, you could pass for brothers," Clarise commented.

  "Lots of people make that mistake," the guy in blue replied as he widened his smile for Clarise.

  "We actually met at work. Our officemates call us the triplets," the guy in green, who'd been staring at Jessa, said. "I'm Julian, by the way." He extended his hand to Jessa with a deep-dimpled smile.

  "I'm Jessa," she replied, taking his hand.

  "What do you know, we're both J's! How about —"

  "Hi, this must be the speed dating group," a familiar voice cut in from behind Jessa.

  She looked up at the owner of that beloved voice. He had a smile on his face but his eyes held a warning glint as they bore on her.

  "I'm Rob." He held out his hand to her.

  She raised an eyebrow and decided to play. Taking his hand, she responded, "I'm Jessa."

  "Jessa." Her name rolled off his tongue like a caress as he raised her hand to his lips. "That's a beautiful name, although not as beautiful as you."

  "Hey, look here," Julian interjected. "We were —"

  "Oh, we're about to start," Faye cried out as the doors behind them opened.

  "Have fun, Faye," Jessa said as she gave her a little wave.

  "Wait, you're not going in?" Julian asked her.

  "Nah. I think I'll grab this one right here," she answered as she put her arm around Rob's waist. "I'm partial to cheesy men."

  Rob chuckled and pulled her closer for a kiss on the lips. "Boyfriend," he uttered to an open-mouthed Julian.

  "See you guys later," Faye called to them as she walked towards the room.

  "You're not going in either?" the guy in blue asked Clarise.

  "No," Rob answered for her with a friendly smile. "She also has a boyfriend who'll kick my ass if I don't keep you away from her."

  Clarise gave Rob a questioning look as she waved goodbye to Faye and the triplets.

  Rob pulled out his phone, searched for something and gave it to Clarise. It was a text from Will. It read:

  'Hey. There in 15 mins. Do me a favour and keep prowling singles away from my girl. Thanks.'

  Clarise's smile was smug and content as she gave Rob his phone back. It was the same expression Jessa had on her face when Rob put an arm around her shoulder and steered her to the restaurant.

  ~~~~~~~

  "Mmmm. It's still early." Jessa wrapped her legs and arms tighter around Rob to keep him from getting out of bed. She wanted to feel him against her for a little longer.

  Rob laughed softly in her ear as he shifted to his side, taking her with him. "I'm driving to Parramatta to meet my new client's marketing team. I want to avoid the peak hour traffic." He stroked her naked back and buttocks and it made her arch her body closer to him. "Damn, you're tempting even after I just had you. Please stop or I'll be very late," he pleaded hoarsely.

  She pouted and reluctantly untwined herself from him. He gave her a deep, toe-curling kiss before rolling off and heading for the bathroom. Fifteen minutes later, Rob was getting dressed as she watched from the bed.

  "Where will you be having drinks tonight?" she asked casually.

  For the two mon
ths they'd been together, she had not gone out with Rob on a Friday night. He was usually with clients, prospects and influential business contacts for after-work drinks, sometimes extending to dinner. She would have loved to accompany him and get to know some of his business associates but he'd never invited her.

  "I'll be around Circular Quay tonight. What about you?"

  "We're having dinner with Faye. It'll be interesting to see how many matches she has from last night."

  "That's right. The speed date," Rob murmured distractedly as he put on his tie.

  "I bet one of her matches will be Kevin."

  "Who's Kevin?"

  "One of the triplets, remember? The one in black."

  "Oh, one of those dimpled idiots," Rob muttered as he sat down close to her on the edge of the bed to put on his socks and shoes.

  She snickered as she remembered the staring duel Rob and Julian had when they bumped into the triplets outside the restaurant.

  "What's so funny?" Rob glared but the slight upwards tug on his lips betrayed him.

  "Nothing."

  He leaned down on her, his face inches away. "No speed dates or any other dates for you, my little witch. Not while I'm in this city." He gave her a quick kiss and stood up. "I'll see you tomorrow, babe."

  She followed Rob with her eyes as he left the bedroom. Her heart thudded with painful beats as she replayed the words in her head. 'Not while I'm in this city.'

  What happens when you're no longer here?

  You know the answer to that, Jessa, she answered her own question. The arrangement hasn't changed.

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  Jessa couldn't remember the last time she had been so listless at work. She was glad when Clarise poked her head in her office to inform her that she and Victor were ready to call it a day and meet Faye for dinner.

  She didn't get much done that day and knew next week would be doubly busy. She was grateful for it. At least that would be a welcome distraction from the nagging worry digging at her heart.