Damsel in Danger (Danger Incorporated Book 1) (23 page)

“It wasn’t the wallpaper that was the pain in the ass—it was the chair rail that was the real work. Now I know what they meant when they said ‘Measure twice and cut once’. They weren’t kidding.”

Jason took a long drink from a frosty water bottle and then lounged against a dining table leg while mopping his brow with a bandana.

“It’s going to look even better when I get the floors refinished. I’m having them do all of the downstairs. I’ll have to wait on the upstairs for now. Too expensive.”

Jason pointed to a spot in the corner of the room near the entry to the kitchen. “You should have them look at that area over there. It makes a noise when I walk on it. Maybe they can fix it or replace those boards.”

Brinley frowned and stood, walking to the corner where he’d pointed. “Here? I’ve never heard anything.”

Jason hopped to his feet and joined her, pressing on a board with his tennis shoe. “Right here. Can you hear it?”

Brinley strained to hear what he was talking about, even kneeling down to get closer to the floor. “Jason, I can’t hear anything.”

“It’s there. Just listen.”

He walked over the boards and then back.

“Okay, I can hear a little something, but geez, you’d have to be Huck to hear it. Do you have some sort of wolf hearing?”

Jason shrugged, the muscles in his back bunching under his t-shirt and making it hard to breathe. Watching him work and sweat all day had done naughty things to her libido.

“You develop the senses you need in the dark. Listening was important.”

Crap. He had that serious, intense expression back. She should have known it had to do with when he was in captivity. Wanting him happy and playful again, she changed the subject, hoping it wasn’t too late.

“I’ll point it out to them but the house is old. I may have to live with it.” She threw her arms around his neck and smiled up at him. “I couldn’t have done this without you. Dinner is on me tonight.”

“I needed to take a day off from this case and decompress.” Jason patted her bottom and grabbed another water bottle from the dining table. “We’re spinning our wheels and it’s starting to piss me off.”

Brinley wiped her hands on a towel and then stepped back to survey their work from a distance. “This looks really amazing and I’m grateful that you decided to spend your day off helping me.”

The dining room looked better than she had originally envisioned. The brown and gold striped wallpaper on the bottom half of the wall went perfectly with the cream color she’d painted last week. It was the perfect backdrop for the dark oak dining table and chairs that had once been her grandmother’s. Add in the cafe au lait colored drapes and the room was almost perfection.

“I can be handy around the house every now and then.” Jason’s eyes were twinkling with mirth, his earlier mood quickly forgotten. “And as for dinner, I have that handled too. We’re having a picnic under the stars.”

Brinley’s brows shot up. “A picnic? You had time to sneak out today and prepare food when I wasn’t looking? You are talented.”

“When have you ever seen me cook?” Jason snorted. “Before I met you I lived on take out, cereal, and frozen waffles—that is if I couldn’t scrounge a meal at my mom and dad’s. No, I ordered our dinner this morning before we got started. It should be here in about an hour which leaves us plenty of time to shower up.”

Now that was a tantalizing thought. Brinley was all about being squeaky clean when Jason was the one scrubbing her back.

“Do you think there will be enough hot water for both of us?” Brinley looked up at him from beneath her lashes. For the most part she sucked at flirting but clearly Jason got the message. His lips twitched, trying to suppress what she assumed was laughter.

“Running out would be a problem. Maybe we should shower together to make sure.” He actually had the nerve to waggle his eyebrows and give her a wolfish smile. “Last one in the shower has to do the dishes after dinner.”

Of course she was going to lose. Jason sprinted off while she quickly locked the door and turned off the lights. Logan would be staying there again tonight but right now he was visiting a friend in Springwood and wouldn’t be back until around nine.

Which meant that she and Jason would be alone for awhile.

By the time she reached the bathroom after giving Huck a cuddle, Jason was already under the steamy spray singing a Bruce Springsteen song at the top of his lungs. And doing a darn good job of it. She shed her clothes as quickly as possible and slipped into the shower behind him, wrapping her arms around his waist and pressing her face to his muscled back.

She let her hands trail down his ridged abdomen before encircling his already hard cock with her greedy fingers.

“Shit,” he hissed. “That feels good. But don’t think you’re going to get out of doing the dishes, young lady.”

Tightening her grip, she began to move her hands up and down while nipping at the damp flesh of his back. His cock swelled even larger under her ministrations and he had to place a hand on the tiled wall to brace himself. “Are you sure?”

She heard him suck in a breath and then a groan. “Honey, I’m not even sure of my own damn name when you do that. After the other night you should remember that payback is a bitch.”

Brinley remembered the evening well. Jason had kept her on the edge of orgasm with his fingers and tongue for what seemed like hours before letting her go over. What had followed had been the most intense pleasure of her life but she wasn’t sure she could take that every single time they made love. She was far too needy to be able to wait that long.

“No teasing tonight.” Brinley wriggled from his back to his front so they were face to face. “I can’t wait that long.”

Jason’s rough hands massaged her bottom as the warm spray ran over their bodies, amping up her arousal. “I thought you enjoyed the other night. I know I did.”

Her fingers glided up his arms to his wide shoulders. “I did. Very much. But I need you now. Any complaints about that?”

He chuckled and leaned down to kiss her neck, nuzzling at a sensitive spot behind her ear until she was sighing and grinding against his large frame. His cock was trapped between their bodies, a rod of steel pressed into the softness of her belly.

“Not a one. The truth is I don’t think I can wait either. I can’t keep my hands off of you.”

Thank heaven for that. It felt like those magic fingers were everywhere at once. Pinching and caressing her nipples and then sliding through her already drenched slit, circling her swollen clit. Waves of heat swept over her flesh like a wildfire through the prairie.

Her hips bucked underneath his hands as she climbed ever closer to the top. In the humid confines of the shower it felt like they were the only two people in the world, insulated from all the worries and problems weighing on her shoulders. Here in this place she could forget all of that and just be a woman with her man.

Pressing her back to the cool tile, Jason lifted her effortlessly in his arms. Her feet no longer touched the ground but she trusted him implicitly to keep her from harm. His head dipped and he captured a nipple in his mouth, sucking it in deep and then scraping the sides lightly with his teeth until she was trembling in his arms.

Her nails dug into the muscles of his back, her breathing short and labored. “Now, Jason. Please now.”

He didn’t make her wait, lining up his cock and plunging deep with the first thrust. Brinley cried out at the beauty of being so sublimely filled as she wrapped her legs around his waist. Her forehead resting on his, the room started to spin and arrows of pleasure headed straight to her clit as he began to move. Each stroke rubbed her g-spot even as the cascade of water sluiced over her overheated flesh. The double sensations quickly sent her straight to the top and she whispered hot words of encouragement in his ear.

Feeling his fingers tighten on her hips, he thrust harder and faster, pinning her to the wall until she couldn’t breathe, could barely catch her breath. She was on fire from the inside out and would happily turn to ash in his strong arms.

When her climax hit the world seemed to shatter into thousands of pieces. Light and color danced behind her lids as Jason thrust one last time before growling his own release. Her whole body tightened painfully but the pleasure washing over her was too good. Too intense.

She watched fascinated as Jason came down to earth with her, his features relaxing into a smile of satisfaction. He looked sated, his eyes heavy-lidded but still taking in every detail of her shattered appearance – her messy hair, swollen lips, and love bites on her skin that would surely turn into bruises. The damn alpha male knew what havoc he’d created and would probably strut around if she let him.

Who was she kidding? She wanted to strut too. The sex had been that brilliantly good.

She clung to him as he lowered her onto the tile, her legs still shaking from her shattering orgasm. Cuddling her close and whispering silly romantic words, he held her until her breathing returned to normal. But it was her heart that still ached painfully.

She was in love with Jason.

It wasn’t simply lust or friendship but something much deeper and infinitely more wonderful if he felt the same. He clearly cared for her but was it enough? Could it grow into something that would last? She wanted a lifetime with him.

She was willing to go out on a limb and find out. She’d heard the saying that faint heart never won fair lady. Well, hell, it was probably the same in reverse. If she wanted something – someone – she had to stand up and go for it. She’d been playing it safe for too long.

He was worth it.

‡

J
ason laid back
on the blanket and pillowed his head on his hands, his stomach pleasantly full. After their hot sex in the shower, they’d reluctantly dressed and set up their picnic in the backyard. He’d ordered from the local diner and they’d delivered tasty fried chicken, potato salad, rolls, and two large slices of chocolate cake. Brinley had opened a bottle of wine to go along with the meal and he was feeling a little sleepy and mellow. Other than the case being stuck, today had been a good day.

Brinley rolled over and pillowed her head on his shoulder, throwing an arm over his middle. “You’re quiet. Is everything okay?”

“Too much good food and wine. Not to mention the great sex before,” Jason chuckled, letting his fingers play in her long, silky hair. “I think I need a nap. I’m not as young as I used to be.”

Jason’s fortieth birthday had come and gone a few months ago while Brinley had just passed her thirtieth. It was another obstacle, although not insurmountable. He had friends who had married women that were several years younger and so far those couples were completely happy.

Whoa.

Where had that thought come from?

He wasn’t going to marry Brinley…or anyone. He had too many scars, mostly internal, to ever tie someone to him for a lifetime. He had nightmares and he couldn’t even get a decent night’s sleep. Hardly husband or father material.

“You’re not old. Age is just a number. It’s all in how you feel.”

Then I feel about seventy.

“I think I’m out of shape. Working on the dining room kicked my ass today. I admire the fact that you’ve done so much on your own.”

“I don’t mind. But I’d like to have as much done as possible before school starts. I won’t have any time then. I’ve been lucky that Logan likes home improvement. He’s helped a lot.”

Jason rolled onto his side so he could see her face. “That reminds me. Logan mentioned that your ex Greg has been coming by uninvited and bothering you. Do I need to have a talk with him?”

Brinley rolled her eyes. “I’d hardly call him my ex. We barely dated and we never kissed. He’s more of an acquaintance that never made it to the next step. Honestly, he’s kind of a jerk.”

Jason had never met this Greg but he didn’t like him one bit. And that didn’t have anything to do with being jealous or anything. He simply sounded like a real piece of work.

“Maybe he and I should have a chat. I can let him know how things are.”

Brinley ran her finger up his arm, sending tingles to parts in a southerly direction. Suddenly he wasn’t all that tired anymore.

“And how are things? What would you tell him?”

She was looking up at him expectantly, and he knew what she wanted him to say. He wasn’t a stupid man, although the nuances of relationships were sometimes beyond his understanding. But he’d have to be an idiot not to feel the growing bond between the two of them. She was becoming ever more important to him with each new day and it appeared she felt the same.

He had to put a stop to it now. He’d been wimping out, putting off the discussion but the time to act was here. He couldn’t let her go on thinking there was a future between them. He had a shitload of work to do before he’d be ready to be someone’s husband or father.

“I’d tell him to wait for an invitation, and I’d make sure he heard the words. I can be very persuasive when I want to be.”

“I’ve already told him all that. I don’t think he cares much about what’s polite.”

“I can make an impression that he won’t forget.”

Jason sat up and stretched. The very thought of this Greg guy putting his hands on Brinley made Jason want to punch the ex right in the jaw. He was possessive of her and that was a mistake. Eventually she’d date someone else and he’d have to deal with it.

And he had no clue how he was going to do that.

“If he comes by again I’ll just tell him that I’m seeing someone.”

The moment was here. Now.

“Look…Brinley…I think we should talk about what’s going on between us and where you think this is going. I don’t want there to be any misunderstandings. I want to be clear about things.”

She went stiff next to him and he winced at the harshness of his words, if not the tone. A part of him wanted to backtrack and tell her he’d misspoke and that everything was okay. A bigger part of him knew that it was because he felt so much for her that he couldn’t allow her to settle for less than she deserved.