by Sienna Ciles
“Jax is waiting for me outside. Goodbye, Chad.” I turned and walked briskly away.
“Hey! Hey, come back here! You, you can't just leave!”
His argument faded away as I pushed on the front door of the restaurant. Once outside, I saw Jax waiting for me in a slick silver Maserati. A surge of emotion pulsed through me just at the sight of him. Part of it was sheer elation, but part of it was also guilt at what I had done. Still, as soon as he saw me, he beamed a huge smile filled with genuine warmth.
I moved quickly over to the car, unable to suppress my own smile.
“Come on, get in,” he said as he opened the door for me.
I climbed into the passenger side. When he got in, our eyes locked and we just gazed at each other for a few moments.
“Jax, I'm so sorry,” I began, but he held up a hand to cut me off.
“No, I'm sorry,” he said. “I should have been honest with you from the beginning. I just . . . I just wanted us to get to know each other without the baggage that comes with my name . . . But that's no excuse. I should have—”
I leaned across and planted my lips on his, kissing him with a sudden and intense enthusiasm. He pressed his mouth back to mine passionately, and for a few fiery moments, the rest of the world didn’t exist. When we disengaged, we were both breathing heavily.
“You don't need to say anything else,” I said, my forehead still touching his. “I misjudged you, and I was wrong. Let's leave it at that.”
He nodded. “Thank you, Lanie,” he said. “That means a lot to me. It really does. I guess you need to tell me about this evidence you've discovered.”
I took out my phone and opened the photos I had taken of the emails on Chad's phone. He read through them, and his face paled with shock—but at the same time, his eyes brightened with a deep, raging fury.
“That son of a bitch,” he growled. “He set us up! And . . . and my aunt Cara, she was involved in this too! I can hardly believe it. And to think I was about to sign a third of my company away to her! Wow. Just wow.”
“What are you going to do?” I asked.
“First, we need to take these photos to the cops. What these guys did to Pete—slipping some sort of drug into his drink and then getting him to race his car while under the influence of those drugs—that's attempted murder. And while they may not have been the ones to do the deed, if we can prove that Chad and my aunt were involved, they'll be charged as co-conspirators. This is huge, Lanie, crazy huge. It's . . . it's unbelievable. I could see that snake Chad being behind this, but my Aunt Cara . . .” His voice trailed off as a tortured look came into his eyes.
“Well, Jax, I mean no offense, but she's not exactly the nicest person in the world.”
He nodded sadly. “I know. You're right. And when my family was going through tough financial times—which was most of my childhood—she didn't lift a finger to help, even with all her billions. Actually, now that I think about it, I guess I'm really not shocked. In fact, I'm not surprised at all.”
“I'm sorry, Jax,” I offered, taking his hand and squeezing it gently in mine.
“Don't be sorry, Lanie. As tragic as all of this is, it would have been much worse if I had signed those papers tonight. So much worse. You saved me, and you saved my company too. As much as I hate to say this, I’m glad you went out with the dirt bag because you were mad at me. I don't know . . . I don't know how to thank you.”
“Don't worry about that right now. I’m sure we’ll find a way to work something out,” I said with a smile. “Come on, let's go tell the police about what we've uncovered. You might want to call your lawyer too.”
“Indeed,” he said. “I’ll call him on the way.”
* * * * *
“Well, that's that then,” Jax said two hours later as we walked out of the police station. “The case has been opened, and they're going to swoop on my aunt and Chad tomorrow. They won't even know what hit 'em.”
“I'm just glad we found out before you made a huge mistake,” I said.
“I am too, Lanie, I am too. Thank you so much. You really saved my ass.”
“I don’t know how much thanks I deserve. I was just in the right place at the right time.”
“Why don't we go out for a drink to celebrate? I mean, you're already dressed up, and you look stunning, it would be a shame not to go out. I know a great little jazz bar we could go to . . . maybe have a few cocktails to celebrate?”
“That sounds like a perfect way to wind down after all of this madness,” I replied with a cheery smile. “I’m in.”
“Excellent. Come on, let’s go!”
* * * * *
It was midnight when we walked out of the jazz club, and both of us were definitely a little tipsy.
“You're not going to drive now are you?” I asked, feeling a little worried.
“Are you kidding? No. Especially not after what happened with Pete. Even though he did get set up, even without the drug being slipped into his drink, he shouldn't have gotten behind the wheel after as many drinks as he’d had. I'll just leave my car here and get a cab to take us home.”
He blushed suddenly as he realized what he had just suggested.
“That is, uh, if you want to come back home with me,” he continued.
I took a step toward him, snaked my arm around his neck and kissed him slowly and passionately.
“Does that answer your question?” I asked when I pulled my mouth from his.
He grinned. “Yes, ma’am, it does.” He hailed the next cab that approached and opened the back door for me. “Your chariot, m’lady.”
We climbed into the cab and acted like a couple of teenagers in the back seat. We couldn't keep our hands off each other, and we were soon making out with enough heat and intensity to steam up the windows of the cab.
We pulled up to the gates of Jax's mansion, and the cab driver coughed loudly to let us know that we had arrived. We paused our make-out session long enough to pay the driver and get out. But as soon as Jax had pressed the button on his remote to open the gate, we started again, stumbling along, kissing madly, and pawing at each other as we made our way up the long driveway until we arrived on the front porch of the massive home.
I glanced over the expansive grounds as he tugged me toward the door. The grounds were impeccably kept and the rolling lawns glowed silver in the light of the full moon. He said some phrase that didn’t make sense and then turned to me.
“Come on, I want to show you something,” he said, leading me through the mansion's huge front doors which swung open as we stepped to them. “Oh, that's voice recognition security,” he explained as he saw me studying the way the doors had opened like that.
We walked through the huge entrance area and kept walking until we reached an elevator at the back.
“This goes up to the roof,” he said. “The views are amazing. But you'll see that for yourself soon enough.”
We stepped into the cozy elevator and as we went up, we kissed with even more fiery, intense hunger. Jax's strong, masculine hands roamed all over my body, gripping my ass, caressing my thighs, and squeezing my breasts with a fierce and primal hunger. Delightful heat flushed through my body as arousal took over, and a savage hunger overcame me.
The signal from the elevator saying we’d arrived forced his mouth from mine. He smiled as he pulled away and led me out onto the rooftop. I was awed by the sight that greeted me—the lights of the city stretching to the end of the horizon below us, and above, the clear, starry sky with a bright full moon.
There was an entire rooftop living space complete with a sofa that had a double sized chaise at one end that could easily serve as a bed for sleeping under the stars. He walked me over to it, kissing me eagerly on my neck, nibbling at my ears as he did, and sliding his hand down my front, over my belly, down toward the meeting of my thighs, where an intense, hot wetness was growing and spreading.
I reached back, slipping my hand around to feel the throbbing hardness swelling in
his pants.
I wanted him, needed him, and I could feel that same desire mirrored in the way he kissed me, in the ferocity of his powerful hands exploring my body.
“Take it off,” I purred into his ear. “This dress needs to come off. Now.”
He unzipped the back and slid the straps slowly down over my shoulders then let it fall to the floor. I stepped out of the dress and stood before him in the moonlight in only my bra, panties, and high heels. He unbuttoned his shirt, and discarded it before pulling his T-shirt over his head and throwing it aside as well. With swiftness, he unfastened his belt and pants so that they dropped around his ankles. I don’t know how he managed to get out of his socks and shoes, but they were gone in no time and his pants lay with them in a pile.
My gaze danced over the smooth skin covering his bulging muscles. He looked like a marble sculpture that had been chiseled to perfection under the glow of the moonlight. I traced a finger over his sharply defined abs and admired the thick, clearly defined muscle of his arms.
He slipped his hands behind my back and unfastened my bra. As it fell, he glided his hands up to cup my breasts, massaging and squeezing my stiffening nipples with an eagerness that verged on painful but was, of course, immensely pleasurable.
He started kissing me, his mouth and tongue sliding down my body, tracing a slick trail down between my breasts, over my belly, and downward as his capable hands skated down my sides, catching the lace on the top of my panties and taking them down as they went.
I stepped out of them and opened my legs to give his eager tongue access to my hot, wet center as he buried his face between my thighs. He gripped my ass tightly with his left hand while in his right he held my left breast, continuing to work the nipple hard, twisting and squeezing it and sending ripples of delight charging through me.
His tongue, meanwhile, was doing the real magic. He probed gently into my center, the firm tip of that capable tongue pressing with delight against my engorged sweet spot. Gently, he sucked on it while lapping at it with tender, persistent pressure. With each skilled motion, he sent pulse after pulse of pleasure through me. I slipped my fingers through his hair and gripped a handful of it tightly, pulling him into me as he continued to stimulate my most tender spot with a strong, steady rhythm that caused my knees to almost buckle beneath me.
Instinctively, I began to drive my hips into his face, bucking and grinding against the unrelenting motion of his tongue, sensing the first stirrings of an orgasm rushing through my system. I moaned with pleasure as the force of the building orgasm grew in splendid magnitude, ready to be unleashed.
“That's . . . oh my god, yes. That feels so good, Jax, so . . . amazingly . . . good,” I gasped, grinding against him with pleasure.
The orgasm tore through me with the force of floodwater breaking through a dam. Sheer bliss ripped through every inch of my being with a glorious force, and I threw my head back and cried out, my knees weakened beneath me. His arm wrapped around me, steadying me.
I pulled his head up so that his face was level with mine, and as I shivered with the still-coursing pleasure of the orgasm, I kissed him deeply. Still steadied by his embrace, I slid my hands down and slipped his boxer briefs out of the way and reached for his immensely hard manhood. My fingers encircled its generous girth, and as I gripped it, I felt him shudder under my touch.
“I want you . . . I need you inside of me, Jax,” I whispered into his ear. “Now.”
He laid me down on the chaise and positioned himself over top of me, parting my legs as he did. I held onto his hard cock while he moved and guided his throbbing hardness to its target. A jolt of pleasure vibrated through me as he pushed into me and I gasped with pleasure as inch after inch of that glorious beast filled me.
He started thrusting, slowly at first, kissing me feverishly as he did.
“Harder,” I purred against his lips. “Harder . . . faster.”
He complied, thrusting harder and faster, driving himself deeper into me, again and again, sending currents of pleasure tearing through me. He gasped and grunted, and shudders rippled through his powerful muscles beneath my touch as he started to thrust with an almost animal-like ferocity.
As he drove himself into me again and again and again, the force of yet another orgasm brewed, and it was coming on fast. He was gasping and gripping my wrists as he pushed himself zealously into me. Moments later, my second orgasm was unleashed. I cried out as it flooded through me. The sound of his voice joined mine. He thrusted forward, driving himself as deep as he could into me and groaned with the force of his own orgasm.
He fell to rest on his elbows over me, breathing hard. He rolled over next to me, pulling me close, wrapping me in his arms as we stared up into the starry sky. And it was beautiful . . . just beautiful.
CHAPTER 20
Jax
Lanie and I made love a few more times throughout the night, and even with these disturbances to my sleep, I woke up feeling refreshed. It was a wonderful feeling to open my eyes and have her next to me. Just watching her sleeping so contently, wearing a subtle smile on that beautiful face of hers, was heavenly.
I didn't want to wake her, so I crept out of bed and had a shower. I tiptoed back into the room, doing my best to let her sleep, but then my phone started ringing, which woke her.
“Morning, beautiful,” I said to her as she slowly opened her eyes and smiled at me.
“Mmm, good morning, handsome,” she replied.
“Sorry about the phone. I gotta answer that,” I said, and picked up my phone. It looked like it was the hospital calling. “Hello?” I answered.
“Hi, Mr. Cooper, this is Dr. Lee. Sorry to call so early, but you gave strict instructions to let you know when there was a change in Peter’s condition.”
My heart lunged to my throat. “Yes, I did,” I confirmed.
“Well, I just wanted to inform you that Peter awoke from his coma a couple of hours ago. My apologies for not calling then, but I wanted to run a few tests so I would have some answers for the questions I was certain you’d have—and I’m happy to say things are looking good. Brain function seems normal, and there doesn’t appear to be any signs of anything that might cause lasting damage.”
A surge of joy ripped through me at this news. “Dr. Lee, thank you! Thank you for calling, and thank you for everything you and your staff have done for him. I am heading that way to see him now!”
“I’m sure he’ll be happy to see you, Mr. Cooper.”
I jumped into bed and hugged Lanie tightly. She laughed and smiled and hugged me back.
“Pete's okay! He's okay! He woke up, and he's okay!”
“That's wonderful news,” she said, and I could see that she really was as happy as I was. “Wonderful, amazing news! Let me just get up and have a quick shower, and then we can head on over to the hospital.”
* * * * *
I walked into the hospital room feeling nervous, even though the doctor had said that Pete would be all right. I was still half-expecting there to be some sort of damage, some lasting effects. Maybe I was afraid to get my hopes up and be too optimistic and then be devastated if something were still wrong.
Pete, however, was sitting up in his bed and looking good. His face was still a little swollen, and the bruising looked pretty bad—there were purple and yellow splotches all over his face—and of course, his arm was in a cast, but he was smiling.
“Jax! Hey buddy, you're looking good!”
I hurried over to him, but didn't hug him—I wasn't sure about the state of pain he was in, and didn't want to hurt him further, obviously.
“Man, it's so good to see you up. It really is,” I said.
“The doctor told me I was out for a few days,” he said, shaking his head. “I can't get my head around it. It seems like just a few moments ago I was outside the bar, getting into my car . . . and that's the last thing I remember. But it really feels as if it happened like, literally, a few seconds ago. Not days ago.”
L
anie walked into the room behind me, and Pete looked up at her.
“Pete, this is Lanie, my girlfriend. Lanie, this is Pete.”
He chuckled. “Wow, a lot happened in a few days, huh?” he remarked with a grin. “Lanie, it's great to meet you. I would stand up like a gentleman and shake your hand, but . . .”
She chuckled and walked over to the bed and shook his hand. “You just stay right there,” she said. “I’ll forgive the not getting up . . . this time.”
“Oh, she has a sense of humor,” Pete chuckled. “I like it. Does she have a sister?”
I laughed. “Yeah. The last thing you need to worry about is that. You might be feeling better, but you still need to rest and recover.”
“I know, I know,” said Pete.
I looked at Lanie, silently asking her whether she thought now was the time to tell Pete the truth about what had happened. She nodded.
“Pete, do you remember a guy at the bar who bought you a beer? Kinda short, very stocky, long black hair and a goatee?” We’d learned what the Samuel guy looked like because he was an ex-con, and the cops had a file on him.
He nodded. “Yeah, I remember him. I think he said his name was Ricardo or something. He . . . he wanted to race me. He had a souped-up Mustang.”
“Ricardo wasn't his real name. His real name is Samuel Estevez, and he's a former gang member with a long list of prior offenses. He was hired by Chad Burton and my Aunt Cara.”
“Chad Burton, that jerk from Burton, Inc. . . . and your Aunt Cara? But, I don’t understand. Why would they hire him to buy me drinks?” he asked just before the realization dawned over his face.
I sighed and shook my head. “To severely damage our company's reputation—a strategy that worked. Investor confidence plummeted after the press splashed stories about your drunk driving crash all over the internet. Then my aunt's plan was to swoop in, buy a third of the company, and slowly muscle me out and bring in Burton to take over. They hired Estevez to slip a drug into your drink and get you to race him. The idea was to force you into a wreck to make it seem like you were irresponsible, which he succeeded in doing. But we got them, Pete, don't you worry. We got them. And they’ve all been arrested. We're going to have a long court battle ahead, but we've got the evidence we need to put them behind bars where they should be. I know my aunt is going to hire the best lawyers . . . but justice will prevail.”