by Jaci Burton
But then she melted against him, and he knew she was all in.
He was thankful for that because he’d wanted to kiss her for months now, and if she’d backed off again, he was going to be really disappointed.
Her lips were soft, and she tasted intoxicating, like wine and cinnamon. She was damn delicious, and he wanted more.
Kissing Josie was perfect, as if her mouth had been made for him. Her body fit perfectly against his, like they didn’t have to adjust to each other. Instead, her curves slid right into his angles, and as he leaned against the island, she naturally slid into his body in a way that made him feel like this was meant to be.
He wasn’t much of a meant-to-be kind of guy, except right now Josie’s breasts were mashed up against him and her hip bones were kind of doing an undulating thing as they were kissing, and frankly, he was having a really hard time not grabbing a handful of her delicious ass cheeks to draw her closer, but he was trying his best to keep his hands to himself and make this all about the kiss.
She had a great mouth and she tasted really good, but if she kept moving against him like that, his dick was going to get hard.
Okay, he was already hard. Difficult not to be when a hot woman made moaning noises and writhed all over you. And when she tangled her fingers in his hair and gave his hair a hard tug, his erection went from oh yeah to oh fuck yeah, and he needed to take a step back.
He gave her a gentle push to break the electrifying contact, and she licked her lips. He tracked the movement of her tongue, his mind traveling in some very dirty directions about where he’d like to see her tongue go next.
“You stopped,” she said.
“Yeah. I thought maybe you’d like to clear your head and think about things. About where you wanted this to go.”
Her lips curved. “I was thinking maybe this could go to your bedroom next. Provided that’s what you want.”
He sucked in a breath and leaned his elbows on the island, trying not to hyperventilate. “You know damn well I want you, Josie. I want you to be sure about it.”
“I appreciate you giving me time to think about it, Zach, but I’m a grown-ass woman, and I would very much like to get naked with you.”
That was all he needed to hear. He pushed off the island and took her hand. “Okay. Let’s go.”
Except the next thing he heard was this horrible yakking sound coming from the living room.
He turned to see Wilson barfing up a hunk of … something on the floor.
“Oh. Yuck,” Josie said, moving away from him and rushing to Wilson. “Come on, baby, let’s go outside.”
She disappeared through the doors, shooting Zach a regretful look.
He grabbed paper towels and cleaned up the mess on the living room floor, never more grateful to have wood floors and not carpet. Once that was done, he stepped outside. Josie was walking the property with Wilson, who was sniffing the area.
“He okay?”
She nodded. “No more vomiting. It might have been the food, or a combination of that and the anxiety and newness of moving in with you.”
“So you’re saying I cause anxiety?”
She laughed. “No. But it often happens with animals when they have a lot of new life changes to deal with. And anyway, Wilson seems fine. Do you need me to clean up the area where he barfed?”
Zach frowned. “I already cleaned it up, and why would you need to do that?”
“You’d be surprised how squeamish some people are about things like that.”
“Yeah? I’m not one of those people.”
“I’m glad to hear you have a strong stomach.”
“Stronger than you think.” Zach watched Wilson go over to his water bowl and take a couple of laps. Then he went back into the living room, hopped onto the sofa, curled up into a ball, and went back to sleep. Zach was glad his dog wasn’t sick.
His dog. Huh. He had a dog, someone to care for. That was going to take some getting used to.
Josie came over to him and pressed her palm into his stomach. “Listen, I’m going to go.”
“Why? Because my dog threw up?”
She gave him a look.
“Okay, I’ll give you that. It’s a buzz killer, and I should probably give him some time with me.”
She smiled at him. “Exactly. Go cuddle Wilson. We’ll try this again some other time.”
He wasn’t going to press the issue because obviously the mood had been broken. And he needed to make sure Wilson was okay.
This must be what it was like to have kids. If a dog was this much of a distraction, he sure as hell wouldn’t be ready for kids any time soon.
He walked Josie out to her car. She turned to face him. The wind had picked up, and Zach could tell the direction had switched to the north. The edges of Josie’s sweater tried to make an escape, flapping behind her.
She shivered. He grasped the edges of her sweater and tugged her against him, then briefly brushed his lips across hers.
“Get in your car and get warm.”
“I don’t know,” she said, tilting her head back as she moved in closer. “I’m pretty warm right here.”
“Yeah and the closer you get? The harder I get. And that’s a problem.”
She looked down to where his erection bulged against the zipper of his jeans. Then she lifted her gaze to his, and her lips curved.
“That is a problem. You should do something about that.”
He laughed. “Thanks. I’ll do my best.”
She gave him a hot look and he groaned, opening her car door so she could get inside. And away from him, because she was too damn tempting.
“Good night, Josie.”
“Night, Zach.”
He waited while she drove away, hoping the stiff north wind would deflate his erection.
No such luck.
With a disgusted sigh, he turned and walked into the house. Wilson lay on the couch, looking morose. He sat next to him and rubbed his back.
“Rough first day, huh, buddy?”
The dog’s tail thumped up and down.
“You’re gonna be fine. We’re both gonna be fine.”
Zach picked up the remote and put on tonight’s football game.
Chapter 11
* * *
JOSIE PACED BACK and forth in front of her classroom. When she turned to face them, she was happy to see that all of them were paying attention.
They should. The Things They Carried was a great book, and she hoped each of her students took something important away from it.
“As you’re reading, I want you all to think about why the narrator describes the weight of the objects each soldier carries. A weapon, a radio, a grenade. Why is their weight so important to each of them? Two-page essay on the reasoning behind the descriptions of weight. That’s your assignment for this week, due Friday.
“Really delve into the story, the reasoning behind it. What is the narrator trying to convey?”
The bell rang, so she took a step back so her students could hustle out.
Since this was the last class before lunch, she knew how important it was to maximize their free time.
For her, too. She gathered up her things and made her way into the teachers’ lounge.
Jane waved her over to the table she was sharing with Chelsea, so after she grabbed her lunch container from the refrigerator, Josie made her way over to them and slid into an empty chair.
“How’s your day going?” she asked them.
“Good,” Jane said. “I’m hungry and no longer sick, so things are looking up.”
Josie smiled. “That’s definitely pregnancy progress.”
“I thought so,” Jane said.
“I’m hungry, too,” Chelsea said. “All the time. Also, the kids in third period are on my last nerve. But I don’t think that’s pregnancy related.”
“It isn’t, “Jane said “That’s your calculus class, and those kids are always a pain in the butt.”
Chelsea sighed and pic
ked up her sandwich. “True.”
“Why are calculus kids a pain?”
After she swallowed, Chelsea said, “They’re so smart. It’s hard to challenge them. They get bored easily, finish the work fast, and then they start annoying me.”
Josie dipped her fork into her chicken salad, then paused. “So keep challenging them. Hit them with something even harder to give their brains a workout.”
“The curriculum only offers them so much,” Chelsea said.
Josie gave her a look.
“Okay fine. I could start printing out some worksheets I saw online. College-level coursework like advanced calculus and linear algebra. Not for credit, of course, but just to keep them busy.”
“And challenged,” Josie said.
“Like a math Olympics,” Jane said with a grin.
Chelsea popped a grape into her mouth and smiled. After she swallowed, she said, “Yes. Anything to keep them from getting bored. And to keep me sane.”
“That would work,” Josie said. “I have the same issue with some of my AP English students. They’ve read all the material, they work ahead on their projects, and sometimes it’s hard to challenge them with our core curriculum. So you have to think outside the box. I’ll give mine outside projects, or I’ll let them assist in grading papers from my freshman classes, and we’ll talk about what works and what doesn’t in terms of what another student has done. They often have a fresh perspective on a student’s work that I haven’t thought of. I love that my kids make me think.”
“That’s because they’re all smarter than we are,” Chelsea said. “Which I’m equal parts grateful for and terrified of.”
“We want upcoming generations to be smarter,” Jane said. “We want all our kids to be smarter. They’re our future leaders. We don’t want dumb future leaders, do we?”
Josie laughed. “No, we definitely don’t. So let’s keep challenging these kids.”
“I hope my kid is smart,” Chelsea said. “Then again, what if she figures out my laptop password by the time she’s five?”
Jane laughed. “She’ll do that anyway. They all do.”
Josie nodded. “This is true.”
Chelsea laid her head in her hands. “I’m doomed. Doomed, I tell you. And she’ll probably have better shoes than I do.”
“No doubt,” Jane said.
Chelsea lifted her head. “I hate you both.”
Josie laughed. Eating lunch with these two was always so much fun.
After they ate, Jane and Chelsea went back to their classrooms. Josie stayed in the lounge to check her phone. She had a text from Jillian who said she had something to tell her.
Now Josie was intrigued. She sent Jillian a reply.
What’s the news?
Jillian texted back. You’ll have to wait till Wednesday.
Josie scrunched her nose, tapped her nails on her phone, then sent another text.
You’re tormenting me.
Jillian replied with a laughing emoji and, I know.
She made a few notes in her teacher planner, determined not to go back to her classroom until it was time.
When she saw Zach come in, she tried her best to ignore him. He smiled at her and she smiled back, but then he made his way to a table where the other history teachers were eating.
She knew it was best they not be seen fraternizing, but it was difficult to keep her distance from him. Especially today, when he looked so fine in his jeans and black button-down shirt. The sleeves were rolled up to expose his forearms. He had very nice forearms, but she couldn’t help but stare at his mouth, remembering how soft his lips were when they had been pressed against hers.
She felt a sudden rush of heat and looked around to see if anyone had noticed her looking at him. Of course, they hadn’t. Everyone was absorbed in their own conversations.
Except Zach took that moment to glance her way and give her a knowing smile.
No one else had seen her ogling him. But Zach had.
Bastard.
How dare he be so good-looking and so hot? And how dare he distract her so much? She knew better than to let a guy get into her head like this.
With a disgusted sigh, she cleaned up the remains of her lunch and left the lunchroom, determined to focus on schoolwork and not Zach for the remainder of the day.
She set up her plan for the next class with five minutes to spare. Her phone buzzed, so she took a quick glance at the message. It was from Zach.
I saw you watching me. What was on your mind?
There was that swell of heat again. From a text.
She had it so bad. And she needed to get it under control. She typed a return text back to him.
I was deep in thought about a test I’m giving this period. Sorry if you thought it was about you.
She sent the text and smirked.
He replied right away.
Lying will give you warts.
She blurted out a laugh.
“What’s so funny, Ms. Barnes?”
She looked up to find Keith, one of her students, had come in. She shoved her phone into her purse and shut her desk drawer.
“Oh. Just a text from one of my friends. Go ahead and take your seat, Keith.”
She gave tests in two of her classes, giving her time to catch up on planning and paperwork, which meant the afternoon breezed by. Instead of going home after school, she headed to the library. She had books in her car that needed to be returned within the next couple of days anyway, so she figured she’d kill two birds with one stone. She could return the books and at the same time see whether she could wrangle some info out of Jillian. Because there was no way she was waiting until Wednesday.
After returning the books, she wandered toward the back of the library. Jillian was in her office with someone having a discussion, her glasses perched on top of her head. The employee was gesticulating wildly with his hands and looked upset, while Jillian, as always, kept her demeanor calm, nodding and talking softly.
It was one of the things that Josie liked best about her friend. Jillian had a zen-like quality about her. Nothing rattled her.
The door opened, and the employee stood there. “I will win this, Jillian.”
“I’m sure you will, Greg.”
Uh-oh. That didn’t sound good.
After the employee left the office, Josie walked in.
“Is everything okay, Jillian?”
“Oh, hey,” Jillian said, smiling. “Everything’s fine. Just doing a new-employee six-month evaluation.”
“Is this a bad time?”
“Actually, no.”
“It looked like your employee was upset.”
Jillian waved her hand. “Greg is never upset. Except with the Keurig in the breakroom. It keeps going on the fritz and he has to continually reset it, and he’s made it his personal mission to make the damn thing work.”
Josie blinked. “He was complaining about the coffeemaker?”
“Yup.”
Josie shook her head. “So it had nothing to do with his evaluation? Not that it’s any of my business.”
“Nothing at all to do with that. He’s a great employee. He’s just at war with the Keurig, and I have to constantly hear about it.”
“The things you have to deal with.”
“Tell me about it. And I thought being head librarian would be all about the books.”
Josie laughed.
“So, are you here for more books?” Jillian asked.
“Aren’t I always here for more books?”
“Yes. It’s one of the reasons we’re best friends.”
This was true. “I’m also here so you can spill your deep, dark secret.”
Jillian gave her an innocent stare. “What deep, dark secret?”
Josie shot Jillian a look. “Don’t make me hurt you.”
“You think I won’t make you wait until Wednesday?”
“You think I won’t camp out here in your office until you tell me?” Josie crossed her arms and pla
nted an “I’m dead serious and I’m not budging” look on her face.
Jillian sighed. “And you would, too.”
“You know it.”
“Fine. You drive a very hard bargain, though this would be a way more fun story to tell with wine.”
Now Josie was even more intrigued. “Ohhh, it’s a wine kind of story.”
“It is.”
She considered for a minute that Jillian was stalling. Then again, it was wine. Jillian would never joke about that. “I can wait for wine.”
“You sure?”
“Absolutely. I’ll go home and change, feed Tumbles, and meet you for drinks after you get off work, if you’re free tonight.”
“I am free tonight. It’s a date.”
“Awesome.”
They made plans to meet at six o’clock at the No Hope At All bar, which gave Josie plenty of time to feed Tumbles and play with him for a while, plus do some of her prep work for tomorrow’s classes before she had to change and leave to meet Jillian.
The bar was already full when she got there. She remembered Bash offered half-priced beers and a burger special on Monday nights.
She caught sight of Bash as she waited for her table. He looked slammed, but he waved and she waved back. She didn’t see Bash and Chelsea’s dog, Lou, at the bar, so Lou must be home cuddling with Chelsea tonight.
Josie managed to wrangle a small table in the corner and ordered two glasses of pinot grigio since Jillian had texted that she was on her way just as Josie had left her house. By the time the server delivered the wine to the table, Jillian was walking in.
“My timing is perfect,” Jillian said, sliding her purse onto the vacant chair.
“It is. How did the rest of your day go?”
“Busy, but good. Children’s story hour is all set for Saturday, inventory is going well, and I’ve started working on the budget for next year. So I’m actually a little ahead of schedule instead of scrambling to catch up.”
Josie took a sip of the wine. It was excellent. “That’s a good thing. Nothing worse than feeling like you’re lost and falling ever behind.”
“Isn’t that the truth?” Jillian took a drink of the wine. “Oh, this is good, and a perfect way to start off the week.”