Like Jazz (29 page)

“And?” she asked breathlessly, her eyes fighting to stay open as she melted into my touch, lowering herself to give me better access. Her fingers restarted their movement. There hadn’t been an “and,” yet with her hand where it was, I knew what she wanted to hear. Obliging her in this small way was one of my favorite pastimes.

“I need you inside me.” I was instantly filled by skillful fingers that made it extremely difficult for me to concentrate on my own duties. I brought our mouths together again as we both worked diligently to give the other what she needed.

Sarah broke away. “Harder. Take me harder, Cazz.” I was nearly regretting our positions because I couldn’t quite get the force I wanted, but it was difficult to be too upset given the incredible things she was doing to me. As I responded to the command, she, too, ratcheted up the pressure until we were both groaning and grinding together.

“You’re making it…I can’t…concentrate,” I said.

“I’m…so close.”

“Um-hmm.” Suddenly my body clenched in the telltale signs of my impending climax, just as Sarah jerked against my hand. We both shuddered and fell onto the bed together, me on my back and Sarah on her stomach, partially lying on top of me.

“My God, you’re incredible,” she said, still working to catch her breath.

“I can’t keep up with you.”

“You just did.” She gave me a wink, then rested her face in the crook of my neck.

“You’re so beautiful.” I kissed her head and pulled her closer.

“You’re so biased.”

“Just because I’m biased doesn’t mean it’s not true.” I scooted down next to her, gently stroking her cheek, conveying my sincerity with my eyes.

“Well, I’m perfectly content to have that be your delusion, instead of, say, you seeing little green men or being told by God that you’re the Second Coming.”

“I may be delusional, but I’m quite sure the second coming I just experienced is altogether different than the one you’re referring to.”

She grew wide-eyed and smacked me on the shoulder. “You’re horrible!”

“I am. In fact, I’m surprised you’re not going to chaperone me this evening, given my propensity for bad behavior.”

Sarah gathered me into her arms and kissed me. “You know full well you hold your own at those events, though I’m sorry I won’t get to see how hot you look in that new dress of yours.”

I was thinking she could see me in that dress if she invited me to stay over tonight, but kept it to myself. She’d already told me she wasn’t sure how late she’d be out, and with my long night at the Foundation fund-raiser, it made perfect sense that this would be one of the nights we’d spend apart, she at her house and me at my apartment.

It was an ongoing internal struggle to not show disappointment when it came to wanting more of her time, especially time she spent working. I couldn’t allow her to misinterpret that disappointment as my being upset or unhappy about time she dedicated to the Foundation. I also didn’t want to scare her off. It wasn’t hard to miss the fact that the few times I’d told Sarah I loved her, she hadn’t reciprocated. I hadn’t asked her how she felt, hadn’t wanted to put her on the spot. I’d simply told her what I was feeling. But I often found myself clamping down on those words, avoiding their utterance, so Sarah wouldn’t run from what was developing between us.

She’d already changed by agreeing to see me on a relatively consistent basis and by allowing herself to open up to me to the extent she had. I wasn’t exactly content to move forward at her pace, but understood I needed to be patient if we were going to have any chance at a future together.

And I’d do anything for a future with Sarah.

“As for your propensity for bad behavior,” Sarah said as she gently bit my lower lip, tugging it slightly before releasing me, “maybe you could enlighten me with further examples.”

“Aren’t you hungry?”

“Not for food,” Sarah said with a glimmer in her eye.

Like I said, I wasn’t a morning person, but somehow I was coping.

*

After my vivid memory flashed through my mind, I responded to Caitlin. “It’s true that the cat is off trying to woo the CEO of Pipeline Technologies,” with whatever means necessary, I thought unflatteringly, with a pang of jealousy. Although Sarah had unassailable integrity when it came to the Foundation and would never purposefully scope out a personal
distraction
while entertaining a potential donor, she’d met her former fiancé at a Foundation fund-raiser. It wasn’t out of the realm of possibility—hell, it might even be probable—that while working, without any intention on her part, she could meet someone else who intrigued her as much as her fiancé once had. She spent a significant amount of time at fancy country clubs, dining at fine restaurants, and entertaining at various cultural events. In these travels, she was bound to stumble upon one eligible bachelor after another, many of whom could offer her any number of things I’d never be able to: wealth, celebrity, connections.

Though I knew she was working tonight, I still experienced an occasional proprietorial flare-up, however inappropriate, when thinking about the company she kept. I certainly had no claim to stake. After all, Sarah and I never talked about any kind of future together and never broached the subject of monogamy. We spent much of our non-working time together and communicated well enough. But certain aspects of my job required secrecy, and, likewise, I assumed Sarah didn’t tell me everything. I was happy to get whatever time with her I could, and my acceptance onto the Foundation’s board freed her up more nights because I could stand in for her at functions like these, allowing her to concurrently court prospective donors instead of taking extra nights to do so.

“So you’re stuck with me,” I said to Caitlin.

She delivered a mock sigh. “I’ll suffer through.”

“Excuse me a second,” I told her before gently grabbing the arm of a middle-aged man passing by with his female companion. “Mr. Crawford.”

The man turned to me with a practiced semi-smile.

“I wanted to introduce myself.” I held out my hand. “Cassidy Warner.”

His face relaxed as recognition dawned, and he shook my hand. “Ah, Miss Warner, I thought that might be you. It’s so good to finally meet you. I’m sorry I wasn’t able to attend the last board meeting in person. I’m very pleased you’ve decided to join us.”

“Please, call me Cassidy.”

“And you must call me Alan.” He nodded to the attractive redhead on his arm. “This is my wife, Marianne. Marianne, this is Cassidy Warner, our newest board member.”

His wife extended her hand and I took it, both of us exchanging pleasantries. I turned to Caitlin, prompting her to move forward. “And this is Caitlin Winters, one of our—”

“Hello, darling,” Marianne kissed Caitlin on the cheek. “We know very well who this is,” she said with amusement as her husband gave Caitlin the same greeting. Marianne delivered a mock warning to me with her index finger. “Be careful with that one.”

Caitlin touched her fingers to her own chest and offered a feigned “
moi?
” gesture.

“Seems you have something of a reputation,” I said to Caitlin, pretending I didn’t know she was a shark amid chummy waters.

She smiled. “I’m happy to let you find out for yourself whether it’s deserved.”

“She likes to keep all the pretty, unattached women to herself,” Alan said teasingly while pulling Marianne a little closer.

Caitlin scowled, which I wasn’t sure related to his statement or to his keeping her away from his wife.

“Without Sarah in attendance, I appreciate you stepping up to play hostess. I’ve been noticing you for the past hour and you seem pretty comfortable with this rather unofficial aspect of your board duties,” Alan said.

“Thank you. I’m certainly not as adept at it as Sarah, and definitely not as charming, but I’m trying.”

“Well, we’ve been fortunate to have her with us since she was a teenager. She’s grown up in this environment and has had lots more practice.”

“The Foundation’s just as fortunate to have one of our nation’s most notable philanthropists on our board,” I said, indicating Alan with an upturned palm. “You and your wife are an inspiration for children’s hospital foundations around the world, and it’s an honor to meet you both. I’m very much looking forward to working together.”

“Ah, and you’ve done your homework, too.” Alan grinned. “I’m impressed.”

Marianne threaded her arm through his elbow and smiled at Caitlin and me. “Before my husband’s head swells to the size of Sacramento, we’re going to continue to mingle. So nice to meet you, Cassidy. Great to see you again as always, Caitlin.”

I turned back to Caitlin after the Crawfords were out of earshot. Her normally flirtatious smile had dissolved into a slight frown.

“Don’t they know you’re together?” Caitlin asked.

“Who?”

“You and Sarah.”

The question confused and surprised me. I pondered it a few moments, unsure how to answer. Caitlin had been one of the first people Sarah told that we were seeing each other, but I was pretty sure Sarah had merely wanted to keep Caitlin’s hands off me rather than make some sort of declaration that we were a couple. Of course, no woman, spoken for or single, gay or straight, was off limits in Caitlin’s mind, but she held a certain respect for Sarah. Despite her unrelenting flirtation, she would probably never take her overtures with me to another level.

“Well, first of all, it’s not at all relevant to my duties as a board member. And second, I’m not sure we’re quite at that level,” I said honestly.

“You’re not sure you and I are quite at the level of talking about you and Sarah, or you’re not sure you and Sarah are together?”

“The latter.” Then I thought about it a little more. “Both, I guess, because she and I don’t even have those conversations. But I’d be thrilled if you were right.”

“Trust me, honey. I’ve never seen her regard anyone as possessively as she does you. You are definitely off the market, which I personally find greatly annoying.” Caitlin arched an eyebrow before grinning widely.

Before I could respond, Caitlin’s eyes flicked past my shoulder to the ballroom doors and widened. When I saw what had captured her attention, the wolf whistle she let fly could have just as easily come from me. I was in wholehearted agreement.

“Holy good God,” I think I said aloud, without meaning to.

Sarah entered the room, commanding the attention of nearly everyone in the immediate vicinity. She wore a stunning number that balanced elegance and sophistication with dazzling sensuality. It was a black, one-shoulder satin dress pulled in over her right hip, its fabric cinched up to highlight her curves, the cinch affixed with a rhinestone brooch matching the one on her shoulder. A thigh-high slit cut toward the brooch exposed the toned, sun-kissed leg beneath, and her wavy auburn hair fell loose behind her shoulders. But what put her outfit over the top, almost literally, were the five-inch heels that made her tower over nearly everyone in the room.

Everyone except her date.

Sarah was linking elbows with an incredibly attractive man in his mid-thirties. He was impeccably dressed in a black tuxedo. Instead of a bow tie, he wore a dark-gray patterned tie with matching vest and handkerchief. Classy. He had thick dark hair that seemed made for a woman to run her fingers through. His blue eyes were a few shades darker than Sarah’s, and he was tall, at least six-five. He was gorgeous. And seeing him walk in with Sarah disrupted my heartbeat. She wasn’t supposed to be here tonight, yet here she was with a black-haired version of Captain friggin’ America.

But damn it all, when my eyes refocused on Sarah seconds later, I couldn’t help but smile. No wonder she’d decided to show up. Would any man or woman be able to deny her if she asked whether he or she might consider contributing to the Foundation’s latest efforts? It seemed doubtful that Mr. tall, dark, and handsome would be able to. They were both beaming with delight—the picture-perfect couple that may as well have just been joined in holy matrimony and turned to walk down the aisle as husband and wife.

“I thought she wasn’t coming tonight,” Caitlin said.

I blinked several times before pulling my gaze from the pretty couple. “Guess she got an offer she couldn’t refuse.” I regretted the comment instantly. I had a job to do, which didn’t include speculating about Sarah’s unexpected arrival. After gulping, rather than sipping, my beverage, I affected a serenity I wasn’t feeling and returned to the safer ground of Foundation business. “That is, I’m sure whatever brought her here must mean good news.” By practicing with Caitlin, maybe I could believe it myself.

At that moment, a man in a gray suit walked up to me. “Pardon me. It’s Miss Warner, isn’t it?”

I nodded, noting his
MANAGER
lapel pin. “Is there a problem?”

The man seemed hesitant to respond, as if he didn’t know precisely what to say. “Not exactly, ma’am, but I was told to contact you in case any, uh, issues arose with the guest accommodations.” It took me several seconds to understand he was referring to the block of rooms the Foundation had booked for out-of-town guests wishing to stay overnight. “Would you follow me, please?” he asked.

“Sure,” I said, with more confidence than I felt. What did I know about it? And how could I fix anything better than this gentleman could?

“Right this way.” He offered Caitlin an apology. “I’m sorry to interrupt, ma’am.”

I shrugged to Caitlin and handed her my glass. “See you soon,” I told her, and followed the manager.

As we walked toward the elevators, the man introduced himself as Henry Beldon and issued more apologies for hijacking my evening. During our ride up to the 53rd floor, the second from the top, he vaguely explained he was in an unusual situation and needed to sort things out with a Foundation representative. He said he typically dealt with Miss Perkins on such matters, but she had informed him to contact me in her absence. Having noticed her, I thought briefly about telling him he could take the matter up with her, but silenced myself. After all, I’d offered to be here and expected to take the reins from Sarah tonight, and it shouldn’t matter that she’d changed her plans. Only if it turned out I couldn’t handle the situation would I have Henry contact her.