Morning After (A Reynolds Security Novel) (16 page)

"I think it might be too much." She twisted back and forth trying to see herself in the mirror.

"Where are you going? Did you finally agree to let the doc take you out?"

"No." Zoe glanced over Erica's shoulder at Ethan and then looked back at Erica, "Adam is taking me to dinner."

"Adam?" Erica knew her face showed her shock but she just couldn't mask it. 

"He came into the shop today. He asked and I accepted." Zoe shrugged as if it was no big deal but Erica knew it was. 

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Zoe glanced at Ethan again and Erica finally took the hint. She glanced over at Ethan and smiled.

“Excuse us for a minute.” She took Zoe’s arm and half drug her to the bedroom. “What are you doing?” She hissed.

“I only agreed to dinner with him.” Zoe defended.

“And you think you can’t be hurt over one dinner?”

“Erica, I love you and I really appreciate that you are looking out for me. But I never got any closure. I’ll have dinner, I’ll get my closure, and then I can stop glorifying what we had in my mind and move on.”

“Are you sure about this?”

“Completely sure.”

“Okay.” Erica sighed sounding defeated.

Ethan was curious about the story behind Zoe and Adam, but he didn’t ask. He had a feeling that Erica wouldn’t break Zoe’s confidence and he didn’t want to put her in an awkward position. So instead he helped her make dinner and clean up, and loved every second of the domesticity. As he sat on the sofa with her curled against his side watching TV, he realized that this was just about perfect. Erica yawned and turned sleepy eyes towards him.
 

“I am tired, do you want to stay or would you rather be able to sleep in?”

“I think we both know I want to stay.” He smirked and she grinned.

“Don’t look at me like that.”

“Like what?”

“Like you’re already taking my clothes off.
I am not a sure thing you know.” She stood and put her hands on her hips. She was trying to look stern but he could see the playfulness in her expression.

“You’re not?”

“Nope.”

“I bet you are. As a matter of fact I am willing to bet a week’s worth of coffee that that I can make you putty in my hands.”

“Oh, really?” She crossed her arms over her chest looking haughty. “So if you can turn me to mush…”

“Then you buy my coffee all next week.” Erica smirked at that. She had been trying to buy his coffee for a
while, he just stuck the money in the tip jar instead.

“But if I can resist you…”

“Then you can fix it anyway you want it and I will drink it.” She grinned and he knew he had her.

“You’re on. I am going to go put on my pajamas. You are not invited. You can’t use circumstance to get me out of my clothes. That would be cheating.”

“All right.” He laughed. She dashed off to the bedroom while he waited he checked all the windows. He was pleased to find them all locked up tight. Then he set the alarm and turned out the lights. When he turned back toward the bedroom, Erica was in the doorway. She was wearing pepto-bismol pink flannel pajamas with gray kittens all over them. He couldn’t help it, he laughed out loud.

“Those are very sexy
pj’s.”

“These are my favorite winter pajamas, they keep me warm.” She said saucily.

“But sweetheart you have me to keep you warm now. You can take the pajamas off.” He grinned but she just laughed and turned back to the bedroom. He followed her and helped her turn down the bed. Another domestic task that he found he liked. He stripped down to nothing and grinned when he caught her eyeing him appreciatively.

“See something you like?” He smirked and her cheeks flushed. When she ran her tongue along her lower lip before dragging her gaze back to his eyes he groaned. He reached out and grabbed her pulling her onto the bed with him. He pulled her under him so that his face was looming above hers.

“Damn woman,” he rasped, “one look from you and I feel like a randy teenager again.” She traced her finger along his jaw line.

“You make me feel like a teenager too.” She whispered. “Alive and carefree and…” She hesitated, she almost said ‘in love’ but she caught herself. “
happy.” She finished instead. He looked into her eyes for several heartbeats.

“You make me happy too.” His voice was rough with emotion and she looked into his eyes wondering if he was feeling the same thing she was. Suddenly she heard the front door and subsequently the alarm being reset. She latched on to the excuse for a distraction.

“Oh that’s Zoe. I’ll be right back.” She slid out from under him and rushed out the door.

Zoe was standing in the kitchen pouring a glass of wine.

“Is this the strongest thing we have?”

“Um… there is some Patron in the freezer.”

“Perfect.” She retrieved the bottle and poured a shot.

“What happened?” Erica asked approaching her friend. Zoe took the shot and smiled.

“I got my closure.” She grabbed another shot glass and poured a shot for Erica and another for herself. Erica took the shot and waited, she knew Zoe would explain.

“He took me to La Vin.
In a car that cost more than the operating budget at the shelter for a year.” Erica saw the tears glitter in her friend’s eyes. “He was a little uptight at first, he even ordered my food for me. But then… then I saw a glimpse of the man I once knew.” She took another shot. “Then… he propositioned me like I was some call girl.”

“He did what?” Erica gasped.

“He offered me a million dollars. A
million
dollars! To spend a week with him.”  She refilled both shot glasses Erica took the shot wincing at the burn and wondering what on earth to say.

“Want me to kick his ass?” Erica spun at the sound of Ethan’s voice. She had actually forgotten he was there. Zoe didn’t seem surprised so Erica guessed he must have been standing there the whole time. Zoe gave a halfhearted laugh at the offer.

“Thought you guys all stuck together.”

“Not a chance. It sounds like he really needs to have his ass kicked.” Ethan’s arms were crossed over his bare chest. He looked incredibly imposing and extremely pissed. Erica’s knees went weak at the sight.

“Thanks for the offer Ethan but to tell you the truth I am not really all that pissed at him. Like I said I got closure.” Zoe met Erica’s eyes again. “The worst part is… for one second I actually considered it. I mean… a million dollars.” She huffed out a laugh even as tears pooled in her eyes. “All I could think was that could keep the shelter open, that I could make all those upgrades we so badly need. That much money could do so much.” Her voice cracked and she cursed as she wiped at her tears.

“We’re not going to let the shelter close Zoe. You won’t let me donate but you are going to let me help you with fundraising.” Erica said fiercely. Zoe reached out and pulled her into a hug.

“If those are the sexiest pajamas you have, our next shopping trip needs to be to Victoria’s Secret.” Zoe whispered right in her ear Erica couldn’t help it she laughed at that. She pulled back so they were face to face.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’ll be fine. Go get some ah… sleep.” She giggled.

Ethan watched Erica walk back to the bed room much more subdued than when she’d left it. He wasn’t kidding. If Adam had been there in that moment he definitely would have kicked his ass. Erica climbed back on the bed and Ethan slid in beside her and immediately pulled her into his arms. Her bed was significantly smaller than his so they had to be close anyway but he knew she needed the contact.

After a few minutes Erica pulled back slightly. “I thought you were supposed to be trying to seduce me?”

“Seems like you needed this more.”

“You don’t want to…”

“Erica, I always want you, but I still want to be here with you even if we’re not going to make love.”

“I thought most guys said ‘have sex’.”

“Most of the time that’s what it is, but that’s not what we’re doing.” His words made her stomach lurch and flutter. “I will be whatever you need.”

“I need you Ethan.” She whispered running her fingertips over his lower lip. “I need you to make love to me right now.” He grinned and tightened his grip on her.

“I think that can be arranged.”

Chapter 16

“I thought you said I get to pick.”

“I never said you got to pick.”

“I think it was implied.”

“No it wasn’t, this is the car you are going to drive. It’s the safest I’ve got.
Completely reinforced. If I had a tank you’d drive that.”

“This is a tank!” Erica laughed as she slowly walked around the black Range Rover. “It’s so big I won’t even know how to park it.”

“It has power steering and a backup camera. It won’t be hard to park.”

“Ethan,” she sighed.

“Erica, this is the car you are driving or I will personally chauffeur you everywhere.” He crossed his arms over his chest, she knew he was clenching his teeth by the way the muscles along his jaw bulged. He wasn’t going to give in on this she could tell.

“Just because you’re sexy when you’re all bossy doesn’t mean you’re always going to get your way, buddy.” She put out her hand and he smiled and gave her the keys.

After they settled the matter of the vehicle she was going to be driving he took her into the building and showed her the onsite gym. Being Sunday the place was pretty deserted.

“Wow, you have a boxing ring?”

“Everyone that works here has to know some level of hand to hand combat.”

“Everyone?”

“Well not the administrative staff.” He chuckled. “All of the security staff, they get certified and varying levels of competency and then they are assigned jobs based on their certification level.”

“That’s quite a system.”

“It works.” He shrugged. “You ready to get started?”

“Ready as I am going to get.”

Ethan showed her a lot of basic self-defense moves and suggested that she add some strength training too. He suggested she come over after work each day and work with him. She agreed and they quickly fell into a routine. She came over after she closed and he met her in the lobby. They would go through the workout routine and then go up to his office to shower, often together. Afterwards they would have dinner and spend the night at one or the other’s house. By Friday she had spent every night with him for a week. Surprisingly she wasn’t tired of it. She liked spending the time with him. Longed to see him, found herself texting him throughout the day. She had it bad and she knew it. She just didn’t know what to do about it.

On Friday afternoon he texted that he was caught up in something and wouldn’t make it over for coffee. So she didn’t expect him to be waiting in the lobby either but he was, though still in his suit. He looked a little agitated and it put her on edge.

“Everything okay?” she asked as she approached.

“It’s fine, just kind of a crazy day.” Crazy day was an understatement. So many things had gone wrong throughout the day he had lost count. They’d had billing problems and computer problems, schedule problems. It had been one fire to put out after another. He’d even checked the calendar to see if it was a full moon. It wasn’t.

“If you’re busy we can just skip it today,” She offered.

“No, at this point I think I need the workout. I just need to change, why don’t you come up with me?” Once the elevator doors closed he reached out and pulled her against him. “I forgot.”

“What?”

“This.” He kissed her soundly. She smiled against his mouth but then the elevator jerked to a stop and went dark. Ethan jerked his head up but his grip on her tightened. She could hear the sounds of the building suddenly shutting down and falling silent. Then noise began to pick up again and emergency lighting came on in the elevator casting an eerie red glow over them. 

Not releasing her Ethan pulled his phone from his pocket and hit a number in his contact list.

“Dennis, sit rep?” Erica recognized the military jargon from TV but she couldn’t remember him ever using it before.

“ETA?” he asked coolly. He was quiet for a moment listening to the person on the other end. He didn’t look happy. “I am in the God damn elevator. You call me back as soon as you have an ETA.” Ethan sighed as he dropped the phone back in his pocket.

“The power is out in the whole building. They think part of the block too. It’s too soon to know the cause. The backup generator has kicked in but that is for the emergency lighting and the computer systems. The elevators are a huge power draw and not a priority so they aren’t on back up. Looks like we’re stuck here until they get the power back on. Unfortunately, I don’t know when that will be yet.”

“Okay.” Ethan finally released her and ran his fingers through his hair. She could see he was agitated, she just wasn’t sure why. She could think of a lot worse things than being trapped alone in an elevator with him. He pulled his phone out again and began to pace as much as the small space would allow, which ended up being mostly shifting from foot to foot. She sat down in the far corner of the elevator trying to stay out of the way. He made another phone call, this time to Jace. It went much the same as the previous call. 

As she watched he seemed to become more agitated. It was as if he had forgotten she was there. He tugged off his tie and undid the top buttons on his collar. Suddenly she remembered what he’d said about being claustrophobic. Being trapped in an elevator had to be supremely uncomfortable for him. She searched her memory for what she knew about PTSD and claustrophobia. It was surprisingly little. She had taken an entry level psychology class in college but that was more overview than treatment. The best plan she could come up with was distraction. She stood an approached him.

“Are you hot? It’s getting kind of warm in here. You should take off your jacket.”  He was still agitated but he let her push his jacket off his shoulders. “Do you remember that old Aerosmith song ‘Love in an elevator’?” She started unbuttoning his shirt. “Have you ever made love in an elevator?” He shook his head as she opened the last button. She leaned in and kissed the center of his chest.

“Erica, I don’t think…” She drew one of his flat nipples into her mouth and he sucked in a breath. “I can’t.”

“Yes you can.” She whispered. “Close your eyes, forget about the elevator. Just feel me. Let me make you feel as good as you always make me feel.” She circled her tongue around his other nipple; he sighed and did as she asked. He closed his eyes and leaned back, bracing his shoulders against the wall.

Ethan concentrated on the feel of Erica’s hands. They slid across his abdomen and up his chest then over his shoulders. Her touch was like a balm, he didn’t feel quite so much like the walls were closing in. His heart rate began to slow. He felt her unbutton his slacks, but he made no move to stop her this time.

As soon as her hand slipped inside his boxer briefs he forgot about his discomfort. All the blood in his body rushed to meet her hand. He heard her sexy laugh and smiled.

“I think he likes me.”

“He definitely likes you.” He felt her wet tongue slide over the head and gasped again. With his eyes closed he hadn’t seen it coming. His hips
bucked toward her involuntarily seeking more. He heard the laugh again and had to fist his hands to keep from grabbing her. He clenched his eyes closed and pressed back hard against the wall. Her tongue ran from base to tip, circling the head then back down again. She teased the sensitive underside with little flicks of her tongue and he groaned. He was dying, all he wanted was to have that sweet heat surround him and she was teasing him. Just when he thought he couldn’t take any more she put him out of his misery. She sank her mouth over him until he could feel the back of her throat and then she swallowed. His knees nearly buckled from the pleasure.

“God,” he gasped, fighting the urge to come in her mouth. “Erica, I want to be inside you.” She finally released him and rose to her feet. He grasped her work out shorts and yanked them off her. He glanced
around, there was no way he was going to lay her down on the dirty floor.  He sank down to the floor and smiled up at her.

“Sit on my lap.” She straddled him lowering herself slowly so he could position himself. He pulled her down and surged up. She gasped as the sensation fired along her nerves to the tips of her fingers.

He helped her at first raising and lowering her until she realized she could do it herself and took over. She set a pace to push them both over the edge. He raised her shirt and sucked a nipple into his mouth and sucked hard. The sensation intensified but when he put his thumb right over that sensitive bundle of nerves and pressed it with every stroke she came apart with a shuddering cry taking him with her.

She leaned against his neck trying to catch her breath. He smelled good, she breathed deep trying to memorize the scent, trying to soak it in, make it part of her.  His arms were wrapped tightly around her body they were still intimately joined and she was reluctant to separate them. His cell phone rang and she giggled and attempted to move off of him but he tightened his grip.

“Don’t you dare move, not ever.” She sighed and settled back against him while he answered the phone. “Reynolds. Hey Jace... yeah… all right thanks.” He hung up the phone and set it back on the floor. “Jace says power should be back on in ten.”

“Good thing it didn’t come on ten minutes ago,” she laughed, “That would’ve been interesting video surveillance.”

“I guarantee no one would see it. Although, I might be tempted to keep it. It’s not often the hottest sexual experience of your life is caught on tape.

“The hottest?”

“You know; you were there.”

“Yes I was
, it was pretty hot.” She sat up enough to look into his eyes. “You feel better?” He frowned, looking into her eyes.

“That was just for me?”

“No,” she laughed. “I enjoyed it immensely.”  He was still frowning. “Hey,” she kissed him gently. “You needed a distraction and I needed to fulfill another fantasy.” He looked somewhat mollified.

“We better get moving before the cameras really do come back on.” Just as she reached for her shorts they heard the whirring and clicking that signified the return of power. Erica squeaked as she pulled her clothes on as quickly as possible and Ethan laughed as he buttoned his shirt. The elevator began to move and Erica quickly looked around for evidence of what they had done. With a start she realized there was no evidence because they had forgotten the condom, again! To be fair she didn’t have a condom and she didn’t know if he did. She made a mental note to make an appointment with her Doctor. She enjoyed the spontaneity too much to think that this wouldn’t happen again. She needed to go on birth control.

The elevator descended to the lobby before the doors opened as was the programmed protocol. Ethan glanced over at her.

“Should we brave the elevator again?”

“I’m game if you are.” She flashed him a sexy secret smile that had him stirring again. He pushed the button and the doors slid closed again.