by Mia Jones
Jessica bit her bottom lip as a worried frown puckered her eyebrows. After a long moment, she decided she could deal with a little embarrassment if it meant more animals would get what they needed. She relaxed a bit. Yes, the shelter. That is what was important. She needed to keep her mind on work and not what he felt like or how he made her feel. She swallowed and pressed her legs together to try to ease some of the ache he caused.
“How much money does your shelter need?”
She shook her head again. “I—”
“Jessica! You are so close to going over my knees right now. Stop pushing me. Now tell me how much.”
Her eyes widened at his threat, and a spear of heat raced through her at the thought. “Fifty thousand dollars.” She cringed at the amount and looked at the buttons on his dress shirt because she couldn’t look him in the eyes.
“That’s it?”
Her gaze flew to his. He had to be joking. “Yes.”
He grasped her arm and led her to a chair in front of his massive desk before he walked around to sit in his chair. He looked so intimidating sitting there. And for some reason, so totally hot. She watched as he took something from a desk drawer.
“Garrett, I rea—”
The look he gave her stopped her mid-word, and only when he was sure he had her silence, did he lower his gaze back down to his desk.
A minute later, he walked around the desk and sat on the edge in front of her before he handed her a paper. She watched him suspiciously before she looked down. She choked when she swallowed at the same time she gasped.
He walked to her side and lightly patted her back. “Sorry.” Amusement clear in his voice.
“Garrett, I can’t except this. It’s double what I even asked for.” Tears started to pool in her eyes as she stared at him.
Garrett leaned against the desk in front of her and pulled her up to stand in between his legs. “Don’t you dare cry.” His hands gripped her hips gently even though his words sounded harsh.
Jessica sniffed. “Garr—”
He tilted her head back, so she was able to see his face. “Jess. Listen to me. We had an organization in here last week. We also gave them one hundred thousand dollars.” He nodded when that got her full attention. “And do you want to know who they were?” He waited for her nod. “The Boy Scouts of America.”
“Why woul—”
“Because they want to build a newer camp ground for the boys.”
“But that’s a lot of money,” she said and tried to control her tears.
“Yes, it is. It’s for the land and to build a weather shelter.” He stayed silent a moment to let that information sink in. “So, you tell me. Are they more worthy than your animals? I know it’s a great organization. I remember wanting to join when I was a kid. But it’s boys camping and learning about the wild. I assume that with this money, you’ll be able to save some animal’s lives. Am I right?”
“Oh, God, Garrett. You have no idea what I can do with this.” Her eyes burned with emotion.
He pulled her into his arms. “Good. Now no more arguing about this, all right?”
She was silent and still for several moments before she nodded and sniffed.
“All right then. Now let’s talk about us.”
“Wait, what? I thought we decided I would not become a prostitute.”
Once again, his eyes went to the ceiling as if asking for help. “That was business, and this is our relationship... Yes, our relationship, Jess.” He talked over her interruption. “Let’s try this. I’ll kiss you, and if you can tell me it doesn’t affect you, I’ll leave you alone. Deal?”
She shook her head.
He growled. “Jess! I’m getting very tired of you disagreeing with me.”
“No. It’s just that’s not fair, Garrett. I’m affected just by looking at you, or God, your smell,” she said as her eyes slid shut. “You make me feel so shaky, so your experiment is not going to work.”
He snorted then chuckled. “You just answered my question.” He turned to pick up his phone. “Mrs. Arnett, please bring me Miss Mitchell’s things from the boardroom.” He hung up the phone and turned back to her and held her tightly. Within a minute, there was a knock at the door. “Come in.”
Jessica’s eyes grew huge as she tried to push away from him in embarrassment. “Garrett,” she hissed, but he continued to hold her between his legs, ignored her struggles, and looked over her head.
“Thank you, Mrs. Arnett.”
The older woman smiled at them as she placed a briefcase and purse on the table in front of the couch. “Will that be all?”
“Yes, thank you.” His gaze swung right back to Jessica, and he laughed at the dark blush on her face. “You look like you’re about to burst. What’s the problem?” He knew full well.
“God, Garrett. You kept me between your legs with your hands on me, in front of your secretary.” Her voice got higher and agitated.
“Yes, I did. And you both better get used to it, because it’s going to happen a lot.”
Jessica rolled her eyes. “Oh, for Pete’s sake. I thought we already said—”
“That you’re all hot for me.”
Jessica sputtered a laugh. “Yeah, right.”
Garrett’s face heated, and his eyelids lowered. “Do I need to prove it to you right now?”
Jessica froze, her eyes widened, and she automatically nodded before she caught herself and shook her head. Her hands tightened against his chest and bunched the fabric of his shirt. Every cell in her body told him yes, but her head still fought the attraction.
Garrett looked disappointed. “I’ll make it up to you later tonight.”
Jessica pulled back. “Wait. What’s tonight?”
“Our first real date.” He grinned when she growled.
“Garrett...”
“Jessica,” he mimicked. “I’ll be at your house at six to pick you up. And if you roll your eyes at me one more time, you’ll be over my knees.”
“You have a fascination with me over your knees. Why do you think that is?”
“Maybe because I want my hands on your ass?” he asked helpfully.
Jessica gasped and snorted then looked down at the check she held before looked back at him. “Thank you very much for the donation. I’ll be sure to put you at the top of our donor’s pyramid and send you a letter of thanks.”
“I want to tell you not to bother, but I won’t because I know you’ll ignore me.”
She laughed.
“Do you see how well I know you already?” His hands became caressing. “But I have another way you can thank me.”
“I’m not sleeping with you.” Her expression fell.
His studied her silently for a moment before he slowly nodded. “I totally agree. We are not sleeping together. All right?”
Jessica narrowed her eyes in suspicion and nodded. She didn’t like or trust the muted hunger that flashed across his eyes or the spark of humor.
Garrett stood suddenly and pulled her into a nice hug. “I’ll see you later, sweetheart.”
“Garrett, I don’t think that’s a good idea. Let’s take some time to think about this.”
Garrett stared down at her thoughtfully for a long moment before he urged her gently away from him, walked back around his desk, and sat down to look at some papers. “Okay. If that’s what you want. I’m done fighting you right now,” he said dismissively.
A spear of sadness caught her off guard. Why the sudden change? Hell, she had to remind herself this is what she asked for just a short time ago. She turned to pick up her things and walked to the door. She cleared her throat. “Thank you again, Garrett.”
He nodded his head without looking up from the papers. “No problem.”
Jessica opened the door and stepped through it then closed it behind her. She gave the secretary a small smile before she quickly moved down the hallway to the elevators. She stood in front of one and made a list of everything that needed to be done today. She had t
o think of something besides Garrett’s coldness or she’d start sobbing. She didn’t like the roller coaster of emotions she’d been on since she met him. Jessica’s grip on her briefcase tightened as she stepped on the elevator. She had to come to grips with the fact he was so far out of her league and it was better this way. A nice clean break.
She sat silently in her car and gazed out her windshield after snapping her seat belt. And maybe someday they would meet again. A deep inhale filled her lungs. Was that a good thing? Yes, because she really enjoyed being with him, but it was also bad because she knew he was undoubtedly classes above her. She would deal with that and her overzealous emotions then. Now she had work to do.
Chapter 5
“Joey, come in. The peanut butter’s on the counter,” Jessica said over her shoulder when she heard a knock early that evening. “Angie, listen to me. Stop. It doesn’t bother me. Melanie has never really liked me. I know that. We go out together with you... Do you really think we’d go out together without you? No, we wouldn’t.” She paused to listen to Angie. “But it doesn’t—” Jessica listened again as she looked out her living room sliding door window.
Jessica turned to smile at Joey, and her body jerked and froze. “Ah, Angie, I’ve got to go...yes.” She paused as her eyes stayed frozen on the man inside the door. “Yes...no, it’s nothing. I’ll call you tomorrow, okay?” She disconnected the call.
Garrett watched from across the small room. It would only take maybe five steps to get to her, but he was afraid to touch her right now. He wanted so badly to shake her. He took a deep breath, leaned against the wall by the door, and crossed his massive arms over his chest. “We’ve got a few problems, sweetheart.”
A tremor shook her at the tone of his voice. He talked so smoothly, but right now, it had a hard edge to it. “Hi” was all she could say. The shock of seeing him in her living room was beyond staggering.
Garrett inclined his head. “Hi yourself.”
“Wh...what are you doing here?”
“We had a date, remember?”
“But I thought...”
“I know what you thought, and I’m sorry. I know I hurt your feelings. I knew if we kept talking, we’d either keep arguing or I’d have you pinned against my desk. Can you guess which one I’d vote for?”
Jessica wrapped her arms around her waist. “Um yes...” She shook her head hastily. “I mean no...” Her gaze roamed down his body and took in his tight black T-shirt that molded to his chest, black leather jacket, and worn jeans and boots. In a suit, he was amazingly handsome. In casual clothes, he was devastating. His thick, dark hair, usually in perfect order, was a little messed up and gave him a more laid-back, devilish appearance.
Jessica looked down at her ratty jeans and big grey T-shirt with “Dear math, solve your own problems” spread across the front and pink socks for God’s sake. She knew her hair was free of the clip she’d put in her hair that morning and streamed in a tousled mess down her back.
He eyed her as she stood with her back against the slider doors as the early evening muted light came through. The soft light made her look like an angel the way it encompassed her tiny figure. A quick grin crossed his face at the thought of her as an angel. Probably not, he thought, angels don’t argue all the time and aren’t this feisty. His made his features soften more. “Do you understand why I pretended to brush you off this afternoon?”
Jessica tightened her arms and nodded. Her light blue, nervous eyes stayed fixed on his dark, intense ones.
“Now let’s get back to the problems we seem to have.”
“What problems?” She frowned at his arrogance.
“First and foremost, is the fact you left your door unlocked, and you didn’t check to make sure of who it was—”
“But—”
He quickly held up a hand. “But nothing.” He crossed his arms over his chest again. “Jess, were you one hundred percent sure of who was on the other side of the door?”
“But—”
“Jessica! There are no buts. It’s a yes or no.”
Her chin tilted up. “Well, no. But I don’t see how it’s any of your business.”
His eyes narrowed at her belligerent tone. “I’m making it my business.”
Jessica gritted her teeth and stomped her little foot in frustration. “You can’t—”
“I am.”
A growl rumbled up her throat but ceased when someone knocked at her door. They stared at each other. “Come in,” she yelled as she cocked an eyebrow at him in challenge. A shiver ran down her spine at the livid look he threw her before the door opened.
“Hi, Jessica.”
Garrett stepped out from behind the door to stand behind the younger man. Garrett could tell by the sound of the new man’s voice and his lanky build that he was very young.
“Hi, Joey. The peanut butter is on the counter.” When the boy turned, she cast a glare over the boy’s shoulder at Garrett but smiled when the boy turned back.
Garrett became irritated at the sweet smile she gave the boy. She had yet to look at Garrett like that. But then, most of the time they’d spent together had been arguing.
Joey stepped toward Jessica. “I can’t thank you enough, Jess. You have saved me once again.”
“It’s no bother, Joey. I’m always glad to help.”
Garrett gritted his teeth until his jaw hurt. It didn’t help that she wore tight jeans and a large grey T-shirt. She probably thought it hid her figure, but the shirt’s fabric outlined her breasts when she moved. Her hair was loose and in wild disarray down around her shoulders and looked sexy as hell. Even the pink socks turned him on. He’d bet money she had no idea how attractive she looked.
“How long are you home from college, Joey?”
“Just another week. Maybe I could get a pizza for us one night. As a thank you.”
Jessica softened. “That’s very sweet, Joey, but you don’t have to do that—”
“Besides, she’ll be busy.” Garrett growled behind the man.
Startled, the man spun around, dropping the jar of peanut butter. Jessica and Joey stood frozen as they watched the jar roll across the floor.
The young man took a protective step toward Jessica. “Jess, who the hell is that?” Joey’s voice hissed and was rigid with apprehension and protectiveness.
Jessica rolled her eyes before she threw a quick glare at Garrett. “Joey, please meet Mr. Batali. Garrett this is my neighbor’s son, Joey.” She sighed when both men stood silently and stared at each other.
Garrett took a step toward the young man with his hand out. “It’s nice to meet a friend of Jess’.” His tone was mildly authoritative but slightly amused. Inside, this ate at him. His teeth gritted in agitation. He didn’t like that this guy was young and handsome. With stylish blond hair and bright green eyes, and damn, he even had dimples. He was tall but still a few inches shorter than Garrett, and his younger body showed a lot of muscle definition. He wore his jeans tight and the arms ripped off the T-shirt, which showed everyone he knew he looked good and wanted to show it off.
Garrett couldn’t ever remember ever being called cute. He had always been big and dark in hair and eyes. His persona had always been rough and hard for most people to deal with him. Where the kid was young and light, Garrett was older and dark.
Joey straightened and tried to look taller. “It’s nice to meet you too, sir,” he said bravely with a slight edge of insolence before raising a hand to grasp Garrett’s.
Both men stood in Jessica’s little living room and continued to stare at each other for several moments.
Jessica looked from one to the other, perplexed. What the hell was wrong with them? They talked nicely to each other, but the facial features and the tone of their voices on both were cold. They acted like they disliked each other, but they had just met. It was a little cute on Joey, but on Garrett it looked downright scary. Jessica moved in between them only to have Garrett wrap an arm around her to anchor her to his side.
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“As I was saying, Jessica is going to be busy for a long while.” He grunted when Jess jabbed an elbow into his side. Garrett looked down at Jess and raised an eyebrow. “Isn’t that right, baby?”
Jessica would have laughed if not for the look on his face and the way his body tightened with, if she wasn’t mistaken, a tiny show of vulnerability. She stared up at him wide-eyed. “Yes,” she whispered. She tore her gaze from Garrett after he relaxed. “I’m sorry, Joey. Maybe when you come home for your next vacation, you, your mom, and I can go out for pizza?”
“Yeah, sure, Jess,” Joey said dejectedly as he bent to pick up the jar. He walked to the door that still stood open. “See you later, Jess.” He ignored Garrett, let himself out, and closed the door behind him.
She glanced up at Garrett and noticed a muscle in his jaw tick. “Why are you mad?”
His gaze slashed to hers. “How often does that boy come here?”
Jessica frowned, bewildered. “I don’t know. Maybe once or twice when he’s home from college. But he and his mom have only lived there a little over a year. Why?”
He tightened his arm to pull her in front of him. His other hand slid underneath her chin. “Because that boy wants in your panties badly.”
She jerked back. “What! God, Garrett, he’s just a kid.”
“He’s a young man, and I’m telling you, I know what it’s like to be his age. If I had a beautiful neighbor like you, I’d have been all over it.”
She wrinkled her nose. “He does not feel like that toward me. That’s gross. I’m like eight years older than him.”
“I’m a guy. I know exactly what was going through his head. You’re twenty-seven?”
She nodded.
“I’m thirty-six. I’m nine years older than you. Is that gross?”
“That old?” She laughed when he scowled and squeezed her. “No, for some reason, that doesn’t sound as weird. Maybe it’s because the man’s older? Or we’re just older?” She shrugged.