I'll Be Seeing You (9 page)

"Love you too, Mom," I say back.

"I guess I shouldn't have said anything. Sorry, Matthew. I just know how she wants grandchildren," he laughs.

"DAD! Okay, that's it. I'm not telling you anything else about her," I say, laughing, and I’m shocked at his mention of grandchildren. "Besides, you have Maddie for the baby department."

"WHAT? Maddie’s pregnant?" I hear him yell. Then I hear my mother’s heels on the tiles again and a struggle as she tries to grab his phone.

“Give me that phone, Leland!”

"Lillian, now stop that." I hear him yell at her affectionately.

'Maddie, are you pregnant?' I hear my mother shouting in the background on her own cell phone.

My phone indicates an incoming call … it's Maddie. I ignore it.

"Dad, I'm going to go. I'll see you in a few weeks. Tell mom that Jessie’s coming too. I know he misses her. I'll let you know when I'll be there. Love you."

"Love you too, son," he says before he hangs up. My phone is still ringing, and it's still Maddie.

Since I won’t answer her call, she decides to text. I can't help the moan that escapes me.

What the hell Matthew ~ Maddie

Well, you should have taken the pill, Maddie ~ Matthew

I am going to call Joy to tell her about the time you got caught in the locker room ~ Maddie

DON'T YOU DARE~ Matthew

I am and I'm calling her right now. ~ Maddie

Shit. I dial her number.

"Yes, Matthew?" My sister responds in her fake sweetie voice she gives only to me.

"Don't you call her, Maddie. I mean it. We aren't exactly 'solid', if you know what I mean," I say, recalling my pissing match with Brian. "And now she has this guy at work after her, too."

"Oh, really? She likes you, Brother, so you don't have anything to worry about."

"I know, but until she knows how I feel about her, I don't need any outside interference," I counter.

"She already knows," Maddie announces. "She heard you say 'she's mine'."

"And how do you know that, Nosetta?" I laugh, totally embarrassed that Joy would have heard me say that.

"Well, we have a grapevine now, you know. You see, Joy told Laura, she told Brian, who then told me, and now I'm telling you," she giggles. "Nothing is sacred anymore." I think I’m totally humiliated that she overheard that discussion.

"Perfect," I exhale into the phone.

"So, what did you say to Mom to make her call me asking me if I was pregnant?" Maddie's voice raises an octave with each word she speaks.

"It's a long story."

"I have time." I can practically hear her tapping her foot on the ground, waiting for my explanation.

"I told them I was bringing Joy to the Ball, and they asked me about grandchildren, and I told them that's your department. And that's how you got pregnant."

"You're bringing Joy to the Ball?" she squeals. I can hear her incessant hand clapping over the phone.

"Yes. Now, I need to get back to work, so be a good girl, Maddie. Love you." Before she can say anything else, and start another conversation, I hang up the phone.

I return my emails and phone calls before heading home. Opening the door, my house has never seemed so quiet and lonely. I've always liked this house, but lately I've noticed how empty it is.

Sighing, I put the dinner Rebecca left for me into the oven and run upstairs to change before heading down to the gym to run my usual eight miles. I crank up the speed, hoping to help my brain shut up about Joy. She’s the only thing on my mind these days. It used to be my research, but since I’ve kissed her, I crave more.

After my workout, I take a quick shower, slip into a pair of sweat pants and take my dinner into my office. I eat at my desk while going over the research. Although I have saved everything to a thumb drive already, I save it again to take to New York with me. I know they want a full presentation, so I begin to review my PowerPoint slides. Sending the file to my IT department, I ask them to set it up on my computer to present to the Board.

Joy creeps into my brain again and I look at my watch, remembering I need to call her.

"Hello," her sultry voice answers.

"Hello, Joy."

"Hi, Matthew. How are you? How was your day?" she breathes into the phone.

"Productive. A lot happened today. How about you?"

"Same. I got another book to translate. It's a rather steamy romance story. They’re trying something new at Radiant, and they want a male and female counterpart audio translation," she explains.

I can only guess who the male is going to be in this scenario. He had mouthed 'Game on'' to me before leaving the restaurant, so he knew about this project when he said that.

"Well, that sounds intriguing. What's the story about?" I ask wanting to know what kind of steamy shit, he is going to be saying to my girl.

"It's about an industrialist who has an alternate personality, and he enslaves women, using them as sex slaves until he’s finished with them. That's the gist of it. It's on the bestseller list right now. A sequel is being written as we speak, so we need to get the first one done as soon as possible,” she explains. I can hear the trepidation in her voice as if she’s uncertain she wants to tell me about it.

While she’s telling me about her project, I check the book out on Google. When the web page comes up, all I see are naked women and a man in a suit standing over them.

"Let me guess, Scott is the male voice in the story?" It's so quiet I can hear the grass grow.

"And let me take another guess, you have to do it at your apartment because all of your equipment is there?"

"Matthew," she finally speaks, "You’re still coming tomorrow, right?"

You bet your sweet ass I'm coming and if I have my way, you will be, too.

"I don't know … what are you cooking?" I tease.

"Nothing fancy, just my mother's homemade chili recipe."

I love chili.

"I'll come if you make cornbread with it, the kind that has honey in it. I like my cornbread sweet," I tease again.

"I can't believe I have to bribe you with food to get you to come to my place.”

"Not really, I just want some sweet cornbread and thought that was a good way to get it. I'd still come even if you were serving water with salt and pepper," I say, laughing. "That sounds gross, doesn't it?"

"Yeah, it does," she giggles. "Is six o’clock, okay? Not that there’s a set dinnertime or anything, just thought we could hang out and eat when we feel like it."

"Six it is," I agree.

"Um, Joy, Scott won't have a key to your apartment, will he?" I ask, sounding ridiculous even to me. I smack my palm to my forehead at this juvenile sounding question.

"No, he won’t have a key. I promise." I’m sure she’s laughing at me.

"Okay. Coffee tomorrow?" I ask.

"Um, I can't. I have my first meeting regarding this project," she explains.

Of course you do. I bet that fucker set this up, too.

"How many morning meetings do you have until this is ironed out?" I ask, already knowing the answer.

"All this week."

Bastard.

"Okay, I’ll see you tomorrow. Goodnight, beautiful," I say, flirting with her.

"Look forward to it, Doctor. Sleep well," she echoes with a voice I want to hear in the dark.

~.~

At six o’clock sharp, I am pressing the buzzer to Joy's apartment. I’m nothing but punctual.

"Yes?" she speaks through the intercom.

"Is this Joy Johnson's apartment?" I ask, in a raspy voice.

"No, I'm sorry you must have the wrong apartment, but you sound so sexy you can come up anyway," she giggles before the buzzer sounds and releases the steel trap door that could keep a tank out.

She opens the door before I even knock and the sight of her nearly takes my breath. She’s dressed in a tight lightweight blue sweater; the color I like on her best and a short jean skirt that hits her mid-thigh. Her outfit is finished with a pair of black knee-high boots. I lick my lips in anticipation of unzipping those for her.

“You look … really good.” I growl inwardly. My hands lift to her waist and I pull her to me.

Lowering my face into the curve of her neck, I gently kiss the soft skin behind her ear then graze my lips along the length of her jaw, purposely avoiding her lips. Her natural essence is all woman. I breathe her in deeply as I take in her sweet scent. Her pulse quickens and she takes a stuttering breath. I can feel her heart pound against my chest.

Cupping her face in the palms of my hands, I lift it to meet mine. Running my nose against hers, I inhale her sweet breath. I love the sounds she makes when her breathing becomes shallow, especially when I run my tongue along her bottom lip, gently tugging it with my teeth. I’m seducing her mouth and she’s letting me.

Was that a whimper I heard?

When I look at her through my own, lust-filled eyes, hers are closed and her lips are slightly parted.

She wants me.

Licking my lips, I touch her lips with my thumb and my jaw drops when she kisses it, pulling the tip between her lips. Watching that beautiful mouth pucker against my finger is sexy as hell and this is all her. She’s honest, pure, and natural. And I love every bit of it.

Angling my lips over hers, it’s my turn to whimper when her delicate tongue strokes along the seam of my mouth. I can't take it anymore. My arms fly around her and I kiss her … hard. She meets me all the way, kissing me with all the passion and desire I feel for her.

"Joy," I breathe, breaking the kiss, my breathing labored. Looking down at her, her fingertips are lightly touching her lips and she's smiling.

"Whoa!" I say into her ear. This girl can kiss.

I’m not trying to hide the fact that I desire her and press my hardness tightly against her. There’s no doubt in my mind that she can feel my heartbeat pound against her.

"Would you like a beer or something to drink?" she asks, changing the subject and head toward the kitchen. I love to watch her move around her house with ease. She’s so comfortable here that you can't tell she that she even has an impairment.

"Sure, a beer sounds good," I reply still watching her. I feel a cold dampness against my palm as Conrad nudges my hand.

"Oh, hey, big fella. I've been ignoring you, haven't I?" I squat down to give him some love, too.

"Your mistress said that if I want her, you are part of the package." I talk to him while rubbing down his chest. His nose shoots into the air allowing me to have access to his neck. "Just like your momma — she likes her neck loved on too," I say quietly.

Joy hands me a beer and heads back to the kitchen to stir the pot that’s on the stove. Taking a long draw of my beer, I follow her and put the bottle down on the breakfast bar. Stepping up behind her, I move her hair off her neck, and place small, intimate kisses over her ear. Her head falls back against my chest, allowing me better access to her.

"Matthew," she murmurs.

Turning her in my arms, I enfold her hair around my hand, gently tugging on it, forcing her face up to mine. Looking at her kissable mouth, I feel her hands smooth around my waist then snake up my back where her hands hook over my shoulders. She pulls herself up higher and I know she wants another kiss. Considering she’s never been with anyone before, this girl's got the moves going on

My desire for her is all consuming. I need this woman.

Lifting her up onto the counter, I part her legs, stepping between them

"Is this all right?" I ask, kissing along her neck.

"More than all right," she whispers, running her fingers through my hair, fisting it, which is the hottest thing ever.

"Are you seducing me, Matthew?" she whispers, pulling my face close, barely touching my lips with hers.

"I was going to ask you the same thing, Ms. Johnson, but, if I don't stop now, there's no telling what I will do to you." Barely able to contain myself as it is, my senses skyrocket when her fingers weave through my hair again, her nails massaging my scalp.

Oh. Fucking. Hell.

Knowing I won’t be able to stop, I place my hands on her hips pulling her toward me. My fingers itch as they roam over her waist, moving upward until they reach the sides of her breasts. I pause when she faintly gasps. She tells me not to, so with utmost expediency to earn a Boy Scout badge, I lift her sweater off.

I’m now staring at the most perfect pair of breasts known to man. Her natural cleavage is stunningly beautiful and the blue lace is perfect against her porcelain skin. Now I’m most curious to know what her panties look like.

Cupping her breasts, my mouth purses with the need to suckle them. With difficulty, I resist putting my mouth on her and circle the pads of my thumbs around and across her nipples instead and feel them harden under the lace. I need to see them … to taste them.

“May I take this off?” I ask, skimming my tongue across the full rise of her breast. When she nods, I reach behind her and unhook the clasp, kissing her neck and shoulder in the process. Pulling the delicate straps down and off her arms, I step back taking in the perfection before me.