by Leah Brooke
“All these women are staring at you. God, you’re gorgeous.”
She wanted him.
Badly.
“I was just thinking the same thing about you. My hand’s just itching to slide up that dress and feel that soft, bare ass, and the thought of bending you over one of these tables, pulling the plug out, and fucking that tight ass has my cock so hard, I don’t know how I’m going to be able to sit down.”
Trembling everywhere, Jasmine smiled up at him. “Good. I think you should have to pay for making me suffer tonight. Hell, I’m so aroused, I can’t even think.”
Mac laughed softly and gathered her close. “I’ll make it up to you later.”
Her smile fell when she caught sight of Tom, her steps faltering at his sharp gaze, and the frown of disapproval as his gaze lowered to the arm Mac wrapped around her waist.
Mac tightened his hold, and waved off the maître d’ approaching from the right, his body tensing against hers. “You were right. She must be fresh out of high school.”
Sliding her gaze to the right, she got her first look at Tom’s fiancée and inwardly winced.
The other woman looked to be about the same age as her daughters.
“She’s beautiful, isn’t she? I’ll bet she doesn’t have a stretch mark or wrinkle anywhere.”
Glancing at her, Mac smiled. “I’ll bet she doesn’t have a plug up her ass, and I’ll bet that her thighs aren’t drenched with her juices the way yours are. I’d also be willing to bet that in less than five minutes, you’re going to start to see why a woman that age wouldn’t interest me at all.”
Amused, Jasmine slid a glance at him but didn’t get a chance to answer, forcing a smile as they approached the table and Tom got to his feet.
He smiled politely, but his eyes glittered with hostility as he offered his hand to Mac. “So, I finally get to meet the man that seems to have enthralled my girls.” Shaking Mac’s hand, he slid a meaningful glance at Jasmine. “Apparently all of my girls.”
Knowing Mac’s temper, Jasmine stiffened, blinking at the cold smile directed at Tom.
Mac’s hand slid over her back, gently caressing, silently urging her to relax. “I certainly hope so. They all mean a great deal to me.”
Mac helped her into her seat, his eyes gleaming with mischief and love as they held hers. “The girls are as fond of me as I am of them, but it’s the love of the woman that I’m interested in. It’s taken me months to finally convince her how much I love her.”
Straightening, Mac ignored Tom and held out his hand to the giggling blonde across from Jasmine. “Hello. I’m Mac.”
The young, blonde woman giggled again and held out her hand, placing it in Mac’s. “Hi. I’m Courtney. So, you’re the man marrying Jasmine. I guess we’ll be related…well, somehow. Tom and I are getting married.” Lifting her other hand, she wiggled her fingers, flashing a diamond ring.
Mac smiled and glanced at it. “So I see. Congratulations.”
With her eyes dancing with excitement, Courtney began to talk about her wedding plans, going into nauseating detail about dresses, bridesmaids, and flowers.
Mac appeared to listen, but within a minute or two, his eyes began to glaze over, amusing Jasmine immensely. Holding Jasmine’s hand, he ran his finger up and down hers, pausing to circle her ring and occasionally answering the questions Courtney plied him with.
Jasmine found it hard to concentrate on Courtney and Mac’s conversation, her attention divided between Tom’s speculative, hostile looks, Mac’s slow caress on her fingers and back, and the plug she couldn’t stop clenching on.
Everything felt decidedly unreal.
Courtney smiled, batting her lashes at Mac in a way that set Jasmine’s teeth on edge. “It’s so nice to finally meet you. I understand that Jasmine’s been all alone since the divorce. Three years without a man! Can you believe it?”
Smiling, he stared down at Jasmine with eyes that glittered, tightening his arm around her. “She hasn’t been alone, but it took some time to get her to give me a chance. She’s been hurt so she’s very choosy, and very cautious.” Looking into her eyes, he held her hand to his lips and kissed her ring, his own eyes filled with love and desire. “It makes me appreciate her even more.”
The possessive hand he ran down her back was a source of strength to her as well as a loving gesture, and she leaned into him without hesitation.
Smiling, she cuddled close, only to lift her head again when he tensed, turning toward him in curiosity.
Her smile fell when she saw the warning glare in his eyes, a glare directed at her ex-husband. Curious, she slid her gaze to Tom, blinking when she found him staring at her, a look of interest in his eyes she hadn’t seen in years.
Mac tightened his arm around her, the smile he directed at Tom ice cold. Leaning toward him, Mac kept his voice low, but Jasmine heard him. “Back off or you’ll be picking your teeth up off the floor.”
Wondering what the hell she’d missed, she glanced at Courtney, who seemed oblivious as she looked over the menu, so she obviously hadn’t heard him. Meeting Tom’s gaze again, she frowned at him, trying to imagine what kind of game he was playing and what he’d done to provoke Mac.
Tom smiled, a smile that used to make her weak in the knees but that now made her stomach twist. The hard glint of anger in his eyes surprised her, but just as she opened her mouth to ask him what the hell his problem was, he sneered. “So how’s the nursing? Still spending your days bandaging boo-boos and emptying bedpans?”
The anger from Mac was a palpable thing, emanating from him in waves that filled her with unease, and no small twinge of panic. Mac wouldn’t put up with any of Tom’s games—or insults—and had a protective instinct a mile wide.
Mac’s need to protect her meant more to her than anything Tom could say, and, used to her ex-husband’s insults, she found herself amused instead of offended.
Patting Mac’s arm, she shared a smile with him, silently pleading with him to let her handle it. At his imperceptible nod, she turned to Tom, who narrowed his eyes and appeared a little unsettled, and even angrier. Delighted that Tom’s insults no longer had the power to hurt her, she grinned, sharing another look with Mac. “Oh, I do a little more than that, but yes, I’m still nursing.”
Mac laughed softly as the concern in his eyes changed to amusement, leaning close to nuzzle her jaw, whispering against her ear, “You’re right. He really doesn’t know anything about you at all.”
Straightening, he looked at his menu, dismissing Tom with a look of disgust. “Would you like the filet mignon, Jazz?”
Tom set his menu aside and gave Jasmine an intimate smile, while his eyes glittered with fury. “Jasmine doesn’t like red meat, do you, darling?”
Darling?
Jasmine frowned, irritated at Tom’s antagonism. She slid a glance at Courtney, who appeared to study her menu and, except for tightening her grip on the menu and thinning her lips, didn’t seem to notice the tension in the air at all.
Mac, on the other hand, didn’t miss a thing and didn’t try to pretend he did. Patting her hand, he smiled at Tom, his eyes glittering with warning. “Are you sure we’re talking about the same person? Jazz loves a good steak, especially after a hard day at work. Protein’s good for keeping her energy up. So do you want the steak, babe, or did you see something else?”
Turning her hand in his, Jasmine smiled up at Mac, her nipples tingling when his gaze lowered to her neckline. Everyone else seemed to fade away as his eyes met hers again, the intimacy of the moment so rich, she leaned closer, lifting her face to his. Not wanting to break the intimacy, she kept her voice low. “Steak sounds good.”
Mac inclined his head, his eyes full of promise. “Good. You’re going to need that energy for later.”
Courtney giggled again, leaning toward Tom, who seemed a little impatient with her. “Wow! You two can’t seem to get enough of each other. Tommy and I are like that.” She looked up into Tom’s face, her smile falling.
Sitting straighter, she frowned and looked back down at her menu. “At least we were until tonight.”
Tom’s lips thinned. Staring down at his menu, he didn’t even spare his fiancée a glance. “Courtney, have you decided what you’re going to have?”
Courtney’s cell phone rang. “I’ll have whatever Jasmine’s having. Excuse me a minute.” Ignoring Tom’s glare, she got up from the table and rushed toward the ladies’ room, already talking on her phone.
Tom waited until Courtney left and turned to Jasmine. “You two do seem awfully…amorous. Are you putting on some sort of act because Courtney and I are engaged?”
Laughing softly, Jasmine leaned against Mac. “Not at all. It’s just so nice to be with an attentive man.” Jasmine smiled at Tom’s red face. “Tom has a very short attention span.”
Mac leaned toward her, his eyes hooded and dark. “I don’t.” Sitting back in his seat, he lifted his gaze to Tom’s. “I’m not about to give you any reason to leave, and I’m sure as hell not going to let anyone take you away.”
Tom frowned, his gaze narrowing on hers. “You didn’t seem like you cared one way or the other if I paid attention to you, as long as the girls were around. Now that they’re both away at school, I think we should spend some time together.”
Jasmine’s jaw dropped.
Tom hadn’t used that tone with her since they’d dated. Before she could get over her shock enough to speak, Tom reached for her hand.
Mac stiffened. “I wouldn’t touch her if I were you.” Even though he’d spoken in a low, soft voice, the jagged iciness couldn’t be mistaken.
Jasmine pulled her hand back, fisting them both on her lap as Tom sat back and folded his arms across his chest, looking entirely too pleased with himself.
He directed a smile, filled with scorn, in Mac’s direction. “It’s important for Jasmine and I to get along for the girls’ sake. It’s really none of your business, Mac.”
Sliding his gaze to Jasmine’s, he smiled again, a genuine smile, filled with appreciation as his eyes sharpened on her face. “You seem different, Jasmine—more like your old self.”
Leaning forward, he sent Mac a dismissive glance. “Because of our daughters, we’ll always be connected, Jasmine. I think it’s important for us to spend time together, you know, for the sake of the girls.”
Jasmine eyed Tom warily, not trusting Tom’s mood. “What the hell are you doing, Tom? Since when are you interested in putting on a front for the girls?”
“I’m not interested in putting on a front. I want it to be real, Jasmine. We owe it to the girls to have parents who are friends.”
Tom set the menu aside and folded his hands in front of him. “You’ve changed. So have I. I’m not the same man I was three years ago.”
Mac adopted a look of cool politeness, but Jasmine felt the tension in the hand he moved over her back. His steely gaze, steady on Tom, glittered with icy intent. “I don’t mind that you want to talk to Jazz about the girls, but you go past that, and I’m going to have to hurt you.”
Tom grinned. “You sound worried.”
Mac shook his head, smiling coldly. “About the affair you want to have with her? No. Jasmine doesn’t play games and doesn’t lie, and she sure as hell doesn’t want anything you have to offer. I just don’t want her to have to deal with the insults you throw at her in an effort to feel better about yourself.”
With a wicked grin, he ran a hand down her back and drew her closer. “She’s way out of your league, and you know it.”
The waitress arrived, putting an end to the conversation, but Mac and Tom remained cold and abrupt.
After they’d ordered, Mac led her to the dance floor, his hand hot at her back. “Hopefully, I got the message across.”
Relieved to be away from the tension at the table, Jasmine smiled as Mac gathered her against his chest, thrilling at the feel of the plug moving inside her and the slide of material over her skin. “This feels good.”
Mac bent low, the touch of his warm lips on her ear making her shiver. “Yes, it does. Alone at last. I wanted to get to know your ex-husband for your daughters’ sake and to let him know I won’t tolerate him harassing you, but I didn’t think I’d have to spend the evening warning him off of you.”
Turning her in his arms, he led her into a slow dance, one as seductive as his lovemaking. Holding her close with a hand at her back, he bent to nuzzle her ear, his other hand moving slowly up and down her hip.
“It appears Tom’s realized what he lost. He seems to be getting a little bored with his new fiancée already. He’s the type of man who always wants what he can’t have. It’s a shame. She’s a nice girl, but they don’t seem to have anything in common. She’s too young to be interested in a lot of things he would be interested in, and too naïve and inexperienced to hold his interest for long.”
Smiling, she cuddled against him. “You’re just saying that to make me feel better. She’s young and beautiful. She does seem nice. Young, but nice. I’d hate to see her have to deal with his affairs. Who knows? Maybe he won’t cheat on her. He likes them young.”
Without missing a step, he guided her to the far side of the dance floor, using his body to shield hers from sight of the others.
His eyes darkened as he slid a hand between them and into her plunging neckline, narrowing seconds before she felt the backs of his fingers brush over her pebbled nipple. “I want a woman in my bed. A sexy, beautiful woman who has the softest heart of any woman I’ve ever met. One who cares about others more than she cares about herself. I want a woman who can turn me inside out with just a look from her beautiful brown eyes.”
Jasmine sighed, leaning into his touch, her knees trembling at the rush of heat to her clit. “No one ever talked to me like that before. I just hope I can be what you need.” She moved against him, loving the look of hunger in his eyes and the sharp intake of breath each time she moved against him.
“You already are.” Squeezing her nipple between two fingers, he nuzzled at her temple. “I’ll bet you’re soaking wet, aren’t you?” Pressing his cock against her belly, he groaned. “Just thinking about what I’m going to do to you when we get home is driving me crazy. As soon as we get in the car, I’m going to slide my hand up your dress and you’re going to spread those thighs for me and let me see how wet you are. Then, I’m going to make you come and make you even wetter.”
Jasmine moaned at the rush of tingling heat to her slit, the sensation as strong as if he’d actually touched her. She slumped against him, gripping his shoulders, biting her lip to hold back her cries as his swaying moved the plug inside her. Another gush of moisture escaped to dampen her thighs even more, the plug shifting as though Mac gripped the base and moved it himself.
Jasmine lifted her head from his chest and pressed a hand to it, smiling when he tensed and sucked in another breath.
“I can’t believe how it feels to have the plug inside me.” Smiling at his groan, Jasmine rubbed against him, biting back a moan at the feel of it shifting inside her again. “God, I’m horny.”
Trembling with need, she pressed herself against the hard bulge at her belly, biting back a laugh when his hand tightened at her back. Careful to speak just loud enough for him to hear her over the music, she smiled up at him, her breath catching when he slid his fingers over her nipple again.
“It feels so strange to be shaved. I can even feel the air on my slit. I never felt anything like that before, and with no panties, it makes me feel so…naked.”
She barely resisted laughing out loud when his eyes narrowed in suspicion, thrilling at the way they darkened as a growl rumbled in his chest. “I loved the way it felt when you touched me there before, but now that I’m shaved, it’s even better.” Rubbing against him again, she arched her breast more fully against his palm, her smile widening at the look of surprise in his eyes. She loved the rush of feminine power, loved how the tension in his body increased with every word she spoke.
“I love having yo
ur hands on me.” She loved the way she excited him. It went to her head like fine wine.
Mac smiled, a flash of white in the semidarkness. “Enjoying yourself, are you? You’re a tease. I’ll have to get even with you later.”
His smile fell, his body stiffening against hers. Removing his hand from inside her dress, he smoothed her bodice back into place before turning to look over his shoulder.
“Not a chance.” Turning to the side, he settled a hot hand at her waist, the firm pressure guiding her through the crowd. His deep voice cut through the music. “We’re going back to the table. The food should be here soon.”
Wondering whom he spoke to, Jasmine bent forward to look past Mac and into Tom’s scowling face. “Is something wrong?”
Tom gathered a frowning Courtney against him. “Apparently, your boyfriend is nervous about you dancing with me.”
Mac laughed as he led her back to the table. “I’m not nervous at all—just very possessive.”
Pausing at the table, Mac gathered Jasmine against him and stared down at her as if she was the only woman in the room. “I don’t want another man’s hands on what’s mine.”
* * * *
Sitting in the passenger seat, Jasmine smiled, feeling better than she’d felt in a long time. Happy, aroused, and very much in love, she couldn’t remember feeling so good about herself.
And it was all due to Mac.
Leaning her head back against the headrest, she turned toward him, once again struck by his masculine good looks.
Admiring his rugged profile, she reached out to touch his arm. “Thank you.”
Mac glanced at her as he pulled out of the parking lot, his eyes unreadable. “What are you thanking me for?” He slid a hand up her dress and tapped her inner thigh in a silent demand for her to spread her legs.
Jasmine sucked in a breath, lifting into his touch, gripping the seat on either side of her hips when he pushed her dress up and she felt the cold leather on her bottom. “For making me feel so good tonight. Mac, that’s cold. I can’t believe Tom thought you were jealous. Oh, God, that feels good.” She spread her thighs wider, breathing through gritted teeth as the pleasure built.