Bachelorette for Sale (14 page)

Sensations flooded her body. His hands wrapped around her waist and he lifted her onto his lap, totally exposing just how aroused he was. She’d been fantasizing about him all day, caught up in a crazy maze of lust and longing. Knowing the feeling was mutual sent a warm pool of liquid straight to her core, and she tried to remember why this was not a good idea.

Both were single, sane adults who knew what they wanted. Why the self-denial? It wasn’t like sex was fattening. His mouth slipped down the side of her neck in little love bites.

Screw being good. Bad tastes so much better
.

Since last night, Jason had thought about nothing else but the feel of Cherry’s soft lips moving under his. Now that he had her where he wanted her, he wasn’t letting her go until he’d tasted every inch of her creamy flesh. Felt her wrapped tight around him, spent and exhausted. A man could only take so many cold showers.

He’d planned on letting her call the shots, determine how far things went. Getting to know all the ins and outs of this woman would be worth the wait. But he wasn’t known for his patience. Seeing tears slip down her cheeks sent him straight into the zone every man dreads. Kissing her had seemed like the only option, and was his undoing. He shifted, letting her feel his hardness straining against his jeans as she straddled him.

The left side of her mouth and her brow lifted. A soft purr escaped her throat as she nibbled her way along his jawline to his neck. There was nothing more erotic than a turned-on woman. Softly he sank his teeth into her earlobe before nipping her just hard enough to make her purrs turn to a moan.

Jason pulled his shirt over his head, tossing it to the far end of the couch. Soft palms splayed across his chest. Sweet, wet kisses trailed along his collarbone, and his hips shifted. Cherry ground her hot core against him, making them both moan. Jason slid his hands down to her ass, pulling her as close as he could get with them both still mostly dressed. He needed to do something about that and would have, when Cherry sat up, arched her back, and thrust her lovely breasts right in his face.

His vision flashed. Air trapped inside his lungs had to be forced out. The woman had the kind of curves every man dreamed of. Sliding the form-fitting black tee up, he was rewarded with the sight of Cherry’s pale, creamy skin and black lace. He placed soft kisses where flesh and lace met, followed by small nips. She smelled of flowers again. Something tropical and rich. A heady mixture. When the temptation could no longer be ignored he took her sweet bud in his mouth, fabric and all.

Little whimpers of pleasure, along with Cherry’s hands wrapping around the back of his head, urged him on. All the while her hips rotated as she ground against him. Jason wasn’t sure how much longer he could last without feeling all of her against him, without being able to run his hands over every creamy inch of flesh. Tasting all of her.

Damn it, this wasn’t how he had planned the evening. He meant to take it slow, to show her he wasn’t like the guys who came before him. Literally.

He released her nipple, pulled back. “Babe, maybe we should—”

She placed her finger across his mouth, silencing him.

“Has anyone ever told you, you talk too much?” She kissed the breath right out of him, leaving him panting and harder than he’d ever been in his life. “Now, where were we? Oh, yes—” She guided his head to her other breast.

Far be it for him to argue with a woman in need.

Any guilt he might have over taking advantage of Cherry during a vulnerable moment was shoved aside. He unhooked her bra, letting it drop to the floor. She reached up to cover herself and he tugged her hands down.

“Beautiful. You’re absolutely gorgeous and should never cover yourself. As a matter of fact, if you’d like to run around here naked all the time, I’d be fine with that.”

Her laughter sounded like music. “Ha, I knew it. You’re like all the others. The only thing you think of is sex.”

He sank his hands in her hair and guided her head closer. “Can you blame me? I’ve got a half-naked goddess sitting on my lap, what else am I supposed to think of? Paint chips? Not happening.”

Jason ran his hands down her back, filling his palms with her ass while his mouth devoured hers. It was time to take this show to a spot where they had more room to explore and wouldn’t chance falling off the edge. “Wrap your legs around my waist.”

The front door slammed shut.

“Yo, Cupid, you around?” Dave’s voice rang out.

“Shit,” Cherry muttered as she jumped from Jason’s arms and scrambled off the couch, clutching her shirt and bra to her chest.

Jason leaped over the back of the sofa to head off his friend before it was too late.

“Hey, Jase. Brody and I were wondering . . . oh, hi, Cherry. Guess I should have knocked. Sorry. Anyway, don’t suppose you guys want to join Brody and me for a beer down at Paddy’s, do you?” He didn’t look sorry. Nope, not one bit, with that shit-eating grin plastered on his face, hands stuffed in his pockets like he hadn’t just walked in on them.

Jason stepped to the right, blocking Dave’s view of Cherry as she hid behind the couch. “Maybe some other time, bro.”

“Yeah, okay. Catch you guys another time.” He left whistling some stupid tune that sounded like “Another One Bites the Dust.”

“I don’t think so.” Jason turned back to Cherry, who had managed to get fully dressed. Man, karma had it in for him. “Sorry about that, it’s an old habit. He’s used to having free run of my place.”

She walked around to meet him, gave him a quick kiss, and stepped back. “No, don’t apologize. At least it was a friend.” She smiled playfully, stepping farther away. “It’s getting late. I should go and put Tucker to bed. He gets cranky if his routine is messed up.” She backed toward the door, calling the dog over. Before Jason could take two steps, the two of them were gone and he was left standing with a serious need for an ice bath.

S
unday morning Cherry had woken up not knowing whether to curse Dave for his interruption (and saving her from the walk of shame) or thank her lucky stars. Either way, work plus a family commitment (dinner with the entire Torres clan, where she attempted to redirect Mama Katia’s attention away from the subject of her and Tawny’s social lives) kept her from seeing Jason.

By Tuesday night she’d already put in a full week’s worth of work and wanted nothing more than to go home, curl up on the couch, and snuggle with Jason (among other things).

Except Jason too was slammed with work, so Tucker would have to do for now. She pulled up their last text exchange, sent earlier that day.

Jason:
I want to see you, but my boss is a hard-ass.

Cherry:
Maybe you should try bribery?

Jason:
We could sneak away when she’s not looking?

Cherry:
Where to? Some place no one can find us, like a desert oasis?

Jason:
Nah, Dave would find us there. I’ll figure it out and let you know.

Cherry:
Can’t wait.

Reading the message, she realized she didn’t want to wait or go home to an empty house. She left the office and stopped at the first fast-food joint she passed before she headed to the rec center. Armed with bags of burgers and fries and a tray of drinks, she kicked the front door of the center as hard as she could. A couple of minutes later, Dave opened the door and graced her with a smile that could revive the dead.

“Hey there, gorgeous.” He reached out, took a bag and the tray. “I really hope these are for us. The slave driver keeps harping about deadlines and promises. Maybe you could distract him while the rest of us slip out the back?” Dave gave her a silly, playful wiggle of his eyebrows.

“Fubar, get back to work and let the lady in.” Jason shouldered his way past Dave to stand before her. “Hi, what brings you by?”

Cherry held up the bag of fries. “I come bearing gifts.” She peeked around his big frame to see what they were working on, but the guys were in a different room. “How goes it?”

Jason took the bag and slipped a casual arm across Cherry’s shoulders. It was too casual, the kind of gesture reserved for friends (the sex dead zone). A category she’d have liked to stay out of. In fact, seeing him fired off her brain with an image of her pinned against the wall with Jason’s mouth on her skin and the feel of his hard muscles under her palms. She stepped away before he noticed the blush heating her face.

“Why the long day, is there a problem?” Great, that was the last thing she needed right now, another problem on her plate. At this rate they’d never hook up, much less talk about it.

“Nope, just making sure I have Saturday off.” The smoldering look Jason gave her just about melted her panties off.

They turned the corner into one of the classrooms and Cherry blinked to focus her eyes and thoughts. “Wow, this room looks better than before the hurricane.”

The three men chowing down on the burgers she’d brought thanked her.

“Hey, boss man, we’re going to take our dinner break al fresco. See you in fifteen.” Dave winked at her as he snagged the bag from Jason and followed the other two workers out the door.

Cherry turned in a circle, admiring the work they’d completed so far. Everything was coming along nicely, and it looked like they would make their deadline to open for the summer session.

Jason caught her by the waist and pulled her up against him. “I might have to give Fubar a raise.” He lowered his head and brushed a kiss across her lips before working his way along her chin and down her throat.

Oh gawd, the man had skills. “He wasn’t very subtle.”

“Babe, he saw you half-naked the other night. The cat is out of the bag.”

She groaned, and not just from the work his hands were doing on certain parts of her anatomy. “Please, don’t remind me. I’ve been mortified for days. Can we talk about that?”

A door closed, followed by the scuffle step of work boots. Jason gave her a last quick kiss and released her. “Time’s up. Saturday you’re mine.”

Between work and committee meetings, it was Saturday before she knew it. Thursday Cherry had made another quick stop by the center to drop off food. She’d arrived in time to watch Jason glisten with sweat while he worked. It was enough to make her want to invite him home to finish what they’d started at his place. If she wanted him passed out on top of her, that is. She wouldn’t have been surprised if he canceled their date so he could sleep all day. When her phone pinged early, she had little flutters inside at seeing Jason’s name. The text read:
Be ready in 30. Leave the pumps at home and bring sunscreen.

April in New England wasn’t exactly sunbathing weather, even if it was warmer than normal. She’d asked Tucker what he thought was up, and her faithful companion let out a loud snore. The dog was a great listener but lacked in the advice department.

Jason arrived in exactly thirty minutes, took one look at her outfit, and declared it satisfactory for their outing.

Cherry gave her dog a quick ear scratch and promised him Auntie Tawny would be over shortly to take him to the park, and then they were in Jason’s truck, headed for parts unknown.

“Are you going to tell me where we’re off to yet?”

“Nope, it’s a surprise.”

She watched the scenery, trying to figure out their destination, but in reality she didn’t care. It was nice just to get out of town. Providence wasn’t a major city like Boston, but neither was it small-town America. It had its fair share of people, cars, and concrete. They passed open fields, some horses and cows.

“I think we’ve passed that same cow three times now. Maybe we should name her Betty Lou if we’re going to stalk her?” She couldn’t help teasing him. The air around her just felt light and fun.

He smiled. “Relax and trust me.”

Strangely enough, she did. “Okay, all I’m saying is don’t be shocked when you’re served with a restraining order to stay away from Betty Lou Heifer. I’m pretty sure she got your license plate number this time around.”

“Good thing one of my best friends is a lawyer. Tell me something.” He paused long enough to change lanes. “Why did you leave the other night?”

“You mean Saturday after your best friend saw me naked and rolling around on the floor with you?”

“Technically, you were only half-naked, and we hadn’t gotten to the rolling around part.”

“I was embarrassed and”—she shifted in her seat so she could face him—“Jason, the tabloids painted me as some kind of money-grubbing slut. That’s not me, and I was afraid of what you thought.”

“I thought you were as hot for me as I was for you. Then you left me high and dry and I wasn’t sure what to think.”

Would she ever get it right? “I was, I am. There are just a lot of factors to take into consideration.”

“Like what?”

“Your company, the fact you technically work for me, my past . . .”

“We’re almost there.” He nodded to a sign off to her right.

Focused on the conversation and the man driving, Cherry didn’t notice they’d turned off the highway until the smell of salt hit her nose. The road looped down by a small waterfront beach, really no more than a walking path and a marina. “Where are we?”

“Jamestown. You’ve never been here before?”

“No. It’s darling.” All of the buildings and homes near the water were of Colonial age or huge seaside cottages. A wave of disappointment swept through her as Jason kept driving through town and out. She’d wanted to go explore all the little shops and walk along the water’s edge. Cherry turned to look at Jason. “We’re not stopping?”

“Not yet.”

The man was a tease. He was lost and didn’t want to admit it, Cherry was sure of it.

A few more minutes and the road forked to the left with a sign for Fort Wetherill. Jason drove down the gravel drive, bypassing the turn for the picnic area and the main parking lot. A couple hundred feet later he turned into a small, empty parking lot overlooking two bays.

She slipped out of the truck and stood, mesmerized. “Oh, wow.”

She didn’t know which one to explore first. Letting her feet decide, she took the boat launch to the bay on the right. Overhead, wispy white clouds skittered across the sky. To one side of her sat an abandoned beach, begging her to walk its shore. Tempting her at the mouth of the bay were giant rocks, where the waves crashed, spraying the air, perfect for escaping to and watching the world sail by. Jason stood quietly by her side, following her lead.

“Feel like climbing some rocks?”

“A woman after my heart. Come on.” He reached down, took her hand, and led her to a well-hidden path. “Path” might have been too generous a word. The trail led up, at times coming precariously close to the edge of the cliff, and at other times heading away from the drop-off and through the trees.

“Any sign of Billy Goat Gruff yet?” She managed to hopscotch her way through a steep and rocky section, giving herself a pat on the back for not landing on her rump. “I’m pretty sure we’re on his trail.”

Lines of sweat rolled down her back and both cheeks by the time they reached the bottom of the rock base. Jason went first, never letting go of her hand as he guided her up to the top. Cherry stood twenty feet above as the water rushed toward the rocks, only to crash and break into a thousand tiny pieces and then meld back together into a calm pool. The waves repeated the pattern over and over, nature giving them no choice in the matter. In a way, the water represented her life for the past year. Moving toward what she thought was her destination, rushing blindly along until she crashed and burned, broken beyond repair. She’d needed to give herself time to heal, to become whole again, like the battered whitecaps below.

A hand touched her back, pulling her attention to the man at her side. “You okay? You look like you’re ready to jump.” Jason’s voice sent her blood surging while calming her nerves at the same time.

She stepped closer, slipping her arms around him, snuggling against his side. “This is beautiful. I think I could stay here forever. Forget about the world, soak up the rays, and let the wind kiss my skin. Smell the salt air and enjoy the tranquility.”

He kissed the top of her head, returning the hug, and they stood there for a moment doing all of the things she’d said before his head came down and she turned hers up to meet him. Nature set the rhythm for the kiss, leaving them both winded at the end.

“Come on, I have a surprise for you in here.” He held out the backpack he’d been wearing and led her to a flat spot facing the open ocean.

Cherry sat down next to him and watched in awe as Jason pulled out bottled water, sliced cheese, crackers, grapes, and brownies. As he set out the food, Cherry had a flashback to her dream after their first date. Dear Lord, had she confessed to him? Probably, as he had a strange effect on her to where she had no trouble spilling her secrets to him.

“I figured you could use a day away from the crazy schedules and people to chill and have some fun. Hope this is okay with you.”

It was exactly what she’d needed and wanted but hadn’t allowed herself to take—time for her and for them. There were many reasons why she shouldn’t be here. Obviously lack of chemistry wasn’t one of them. If she hadn’t been hot for him, she wouldn’t have locked lips with him on not one, not two, but three different occasions. So why not tell him now? They hadn’t gone too far (half-naked was not too far) yet. They could still bring this thing brewing between them to a halt before either made a mistake.

The words didn’t come. Her lips stayed zipped. Maybe it wasn’t a mistake to let Jason in, said a small voice in her head. She looked around at the setting, the effort, and the man behind it all. Such a simple date, time away from the madhouse, yet he’d thought enough of her to plan it. Maybe he really was Prince Charming hiding behind that mask.

She took his offer of cheese and crackers. “This is gorgeous. The sign said this is for scuba divers. Do you dive?” Yes, she was stalling.

“I learned a few years back with the guys on a trip to Mexico. Diving New England is not quite the same thing—colder, cloudier. If we wanted to we could go year-round. Both of these spots are great. You walk in and then when you hit the mouth of the bays, the floor drops off about sixty feet. Around the bend here is an old sunken VW Bug. It’s a cool world down there. You never know what you’re going to find, and it’s a good place to escape to.”

She snagged a few grapes, passing some to Jason before popping one in her mouth. “You ever see any sharks?”

“Not here, which doesn’t mean they aren’t there. It’s one of the reasons why you never dive alone. We saw a few nurse sharks in the reefs off Cancún. We left them sleeping and they left us alone.”

A shudder ran through her at the thought of coming face-to-face with a shark, she didn’t care what kind or size. If it had been her, she was pretty sure she would have run on water to get back to shore. Her gram never should have let her watch
Jaws
.

He tossed a pebble and casually said, “Enough about diving. Let’s finish that conversation we started in the truck. What does my business have to do with you leaving the other night?”

“It’s going to sound stupid, but you do a lot of work for that pastor. What are the members of his church going to say if word gets around that you’re dating me? You saw how your neighbor acted the other night and what happened.” She stole a grape and popped it in her mouth simply so she wouldn’t have to look at him at that moment.

“I don’t care what they think. This is between you and me, not my customers.”

Couldn’t he see the bigger picture? “Jason, while I’d like that to be the case and it would be if I had never gone on the show, you heard Ford. He’s looking for a story. Can your business afford to lose customers? It’s not about the truth. It’s about perception.” She let out a long sigh. “I’m trying to reverse the damage, but hooking up with the guy I gave the contract to looks fishy. Like maybe we had something going on before, or I gave it to you because I liked you.” The accusation had already been made.