Rock Me All Night (9 page)

Since her hair was naturally curly, she never blew it dry, so it was still damp. Her room was a little chilly but she ignored the cold and Jack, went into her closet and found a pair of jeans and a thick sweater.

She dressed and reentered the bedroom, glimpsing the cover of the book he was reading. It was one of the erotic novels she'd left there.

“Have you read this book?” he asked.

“Yes.”

“Have you ever done anything like this?”

The storyline of the book was a dominant/submissive one where the woman was totally mastered by her lover. She was at his mercy, living only for his pleasure. And though Lauren liked to read those kinds of books sometimes, she didn't think she could be like that in real life.

“No.”

“Too bad. I'd love to have you live for my pleasure.”

“Would you be responsible for mine?”

“Of course.”

“Somehow I'm not surprised by that. You're very old-fashioned when it comes to women.”

“Hell, it's not other women who bring out those tendencies in me. It's you. And I'm damned possessive, too.”

“You are?” she asked.

He nodded and pushed to his feet, tossing the book on the bed. “I was jealous of the thought of any other man treating you that way.”

She shivered at the intensity in his eyes. “That's just pretend.”

“Logically I know it, but you have to see how that would appeal to any man. To own a woman, body and soul. To have you take food from my hand, pleasure from my hand, serve only me. It's a heady thought, Lauren.”

A part of her wanted that but she knew that it was a fantasy as much as finding that fairy-tale prince. It was a sexual fantasy where she didn't have to worry about body shape or image. Didn't have to worry about pleasing him, because in those books pleasure was always guaranteed.

“Don't worry, I'm not going to attempt to turn you into my sexual slave,” he said, slipping his shoes on. “Are you free for lunch today?”

“I think so.”

“Good. I'll drive you to work and pick you up at one?”

She nodded. They walked through the house and Lauren was very aware that he'd changed the subject. He held her jacket out for her and she put it on. His hands rested on her shoulders for a minute.

She turned in his embrace, lifting her hands up to cage his face. “If it was just for fun…only in the bedroom…I wouldn't mind being your sex slave.”

“G
ood morning, Detroit! You're listening to WCPD, the station that keeps the hits coming even when you're freezing your stuff off. This is Ray King and the lovely Lauren B., saying move your tush out of bed and get on your feet.”

Lauren took another sip of her tea and listened to Ray riff. He really liked to talk and she enjoyed the energy he brought to the show. She glanced over to the producer's booth and saw Didi shaking her head. Lauren had the feeling that Didi had a hard time keeping Ray in line.

Rodney sent her a message on the computer screen telling her to break in and send them to
commercial. Didi had left the booth. “Now that you're out of bed, you'll want to stay tuned for today's top news and more information on our Mile of Men. Ladies, today we're taking your calls on what makes a man Mr. Right versus Mr. Wrong.”

She hit the commercial button and took off her headphones. Ray did the same.

“Did you see her face?”

“Yes. I think she's going to chew you out.”

“Yeah, that one likes to think she can keep me in line,” he said. The door opened behind him. “But it's like I'm always telling her—babe, you gotta give a man room to move.”

“How many times am I going to have to ask you not to call me babe?” Didi asked.

“You gotta warn me when she sneaks up on me like that,” Ray said to Lauren.

“Can you cover the calls while we have a chat outside?” Didi asked.

“Sure.”

They left and Lauren heard them arguing back and forth before the door closed. She glanced at Rodney. He shrugged.

She put her headphones back on and cued her mike to the producer's booth. “It's just us for a while. Can you set it up so I get one right, one wrong? I don't want this to turn into a male-bashing session.”

“Me either,” Rodney said. “Why don't you start it
off? We've got three calls in the queue. You're back in five.”

She nodded, listened to the commercial ending and then hit the button to put her on-air. “Finding that perfect mate can be hard in the twenty-first century, and no one knows that better than I do.

“My late-night listeners have been helping find that elusive animal, Mr. Right, and over the last few weeks they've given me all sorts of insight. And the one thing I've found to be true is that Mr. Perfect for one woman won't be the right guy for another one. So let's take your calls and see what makes up your personal wish list.”

Ray eased back into the booth and put on his headphones just as the first caller started to talk. She glanced at him and he gave her the thumbs-up.

The caller, Janice, was looking for a man who would be a partner to her and help raise her three kids. She'd been married twice before. “I'm not sure why I keep dating. I seem to always be attracted to the wrong guys.”

“I hear you, Janice. I think we keep dating because we know that there is such a thing as a good match. Some sort of nice ever after more than happily ever after,” Lauren said.

“Maybe you're going for flash instead of substance,” Ray said.

“What?”

“Do you date men because of how they act or how they look?” Ray asked.

“Well, it starts out with looks….”

“Start out with something else,” Ray said.

“How can I?” Janice asked.

“The next time you see a guy you like, change things up. Instead of jumping right into the relationship, take it slow,” Ray said.

“Becoming friends first helps in the long run,” Lauren added.

“That makes sense. I'm going to give it a try.”

“Great. Let us know how it works out,” Lauren said. Ray smiled over at her and talked them into another commercial break.

Lauren felt a connection to her mother for the first time. She'd never really understood her mom's need to get people on television to talk out their problems. This morning, though, she was starting to see the benefits to that and it made her feel really good.

They took calls for the remainder of the morning. Ty was waiting in the hallway when they left the booth. “Good show. We've been getting calls all morning. Lauren and Ray, you guys are a hit.”

“I guess asking to be switched back to midnight is going to be—”

“A no. Sorry Lauren. I need you here.”

“Hey, babe, is it me?” Ray asked.

“No, it's the hour. I'm not really a morning person.”

“Hell, who is?” Ray asked.

“I am,” Didi said from behind him, making Ray jump.

“
Madon',
babe, you gave me a heart attack.”

“I'm going to give you more than that if you don't stop calling me babe.”

Ty laughed and stepped between them. “The promotions department needs to see you all upstairs for a new photo for the billboards. Lauren, you have a guest in your office. You've got fifteen minutes.”

Rodney, Didi and Ray left, but Ty stayed behind. “Who's my guest?”

“Jack.”

“Oh.”

“I want to warn you about my brother.”

Lauren closed her eyes. “Please don't. I know he's not the long-haul kind of guy.”

Ty sighed and patted her arm. Lauren assumed he meant the gesture to be comforting. “Don't worry about me.”

“I'm worried about both of you. Be careful,” Ty said as they got on the elevator.

The doors opened on the floor where her office was. She got off, aware that Ty stayed on. Jack was seated in her guest chair, skimming through a copy of her mother's latest book.

She hesitated in the doorway, knowing that despite Ty's warnings and her own instincts, it was too late. She was already too involved with a man who might not be Mr. Right. But dammit, he sure as hell seemed as though he was.

 

Jack heard Lauren behind him and didn't turn around. He'd listened to her show this morning, very aware that he could be one of the men those women had called in about. For Mr. Wrong. Part of the problem was that women today analyzed things too much.

It pissed him off because he wanted to really sit back and enjoy his time together with Lauren. But he couldn't. Not now. Not when she'd added this new element to their relationship.

“Hey, honey, what's up?” she asked. She shut her door and dropped onto his lap. “Did you hear our show?”

“Yes. What an odd job you have,” he said.

“You have no idea. I thought Ray and his producer were going to come to blows. What'd you think?”

He was trying not to. He didn't want to wonder if Lauren had been talking about him today. “It was fun.”

“I'm glad you enjoyed it. Why are you here?” she asked.

He cuddled her close, holding her lightly though his gut said to never let her go. But the things he'd always wanted to keep he never could. He flexed his fingers and tried to ignore the fact that Lauren represented many of those “things” he'd always longed for.

“I can't make lunch today,” he said. A meeting had come up at work and he couldn't get out of it. The fact that he'd thought about postponing so he could still keep his commitment to Lauren worried him. No
woman had ever competed with business before in his eyes.

Was this why his dad's relationships hadn't ever worked out? Because he'd always chosen business over companionship?

“You could have called,” she said.

He couldn't read her. Had no idea where they really stood on this. He sucked at relationships with women and wasn't sure why Lauren was so important to him now.

But the last time he'd bungled this relationship thing, he'd hurt her. And he wasn't taking any chances this time. “No, I wanted to make sure there was no misunderstanding.”

She punched him lightly on the arm. “Don't say it like I overreacted to a call you made. Last time you didn't call.”

He turned his face into her hair so she couldn't see his grin. God, she pleased him on so many levels. It frightened him to think of how deeply he was starting to care for her. “I know. I'm making up for it.”

“Yeah?” she asked. There was doubt in her eyes. She'd been hurt by the past, too. He felt like a fool coming here. But when she looked up at him with those wide, honest eyes…

“Yeah,” he said. She looked up at him and he caressed the smooth column of her neck. She shivered under his touch and shifted closer to him.

Lust he could understand and justify, but this need
for Lauren went way beyond that. He lowered his head, brushing his lips against her neck. She smelled like flowers and baby shampoo. Nothing seductive in that. But try telling that to his body.

His skin felt too tight and his blood flowed heavier in his veins. She cupped his face in her cold hands and leaned up to kiss him. It was a sweet kiss, but underneath was the passion that flowed so easily between them.

Lauren pulled back and got off his lap. “I have about ten minutes to get back up to promotions for a photo shoot. Is that it?”

“Yeah. I'm leaving my car with you,” he said, getting to his feet as well. He tossed his car keys to her.

“Wow, you trust me with your car?” she asked in that sassy way of hers that made him want to put her on her desk and show her who was boss.

“Yes, smart-ass, I am. It's the Porsche.” He wasn't sure why. Cars, business—those had always been more important than women. But not Lauren. He refused to analyze it. Knew he'd make a muck of things if he let them get too heavy.

“Why?” she asked, tossing the keys in the air and catching them.

“Because otherwise you won't have a ride home. Can you pick me up later?”

She tilted her head and watched him. He schooled his features to remain bland. But he really wanted to
say the hell with everything—his business, hers—and just toss her over his shoulder and take her away.

Her parting words as they'd left her small home early in the morning had played havoc with his concentration all day. He wanted to get them alone and naked so he could explore her limits and if she'd been serious when she said she'd be his slave in the bedroom.

“What are you thinking about? Your pupils are dilated and your skin is flushed.”

“Nothing,” he said. Damn, even his voice was deeper.

She skimmed her gaze down his body, arching both eyebrows when she noticed the hard-on tenting the front of his pants. “Doesn't look like nothing to me.”

“Listen, minx, we both have work to do, so stop trying to tease me or you'll find out just what that gets you.”

She licked her lips and came toward him with a slow, measured stride that made her hips sway with each step. “Maybe I like playing with fire.”

He should have known better than to tease her. When had Lauren ever reacted the way he'd expected her to?

“One more step and you can say goodbye to your photo shoot.”

She didn't hesitate but kept on walking straight toward him, her eyes on his crotch and a smile on her face that said she was more than ready for whatever consequences her actions brought.

 

Lauren hadn't meant to start anything sexual here of all places. They were at her work. But she'd always followed the rules before and it had gotten her nowhere. This time she was following her heart.

And it cried out for Jack. She sensed that he was off balance after last night, which she had to admit was so much more than incredible sex. Last night had changed things between them more than she suspected either of them had been ready for.

“Only one step, eh?” she asked. This was what they needed. Mindless sex and flirting. Heartbreak couldn't come of either of those things.

“That's it. Pretend I drew a line right there.” He gestured to a spot right in front of her that ran the length of her small office. “And if you cross it…”

“If I cross it…” she said, inching toward that invisible line.

He straightened from where he stood in the doorway, tossed his coat over her guest chair and moved closer to her. “Then the very slippery grasp I have on my control is going to slide away.”

“Promise?” she asked. In his eyes she saw the same kind of excitement and desire that burned in her veins.

“Oh, yes. I promise. I'll turn into a raging sex machine.”

She started laughing. “I'm going to a judge's ruling on that one. Raging sex machine—that violates all rules of fair play.”

“So what's the penalty?” he asked, edging closer to that imaginary line.

She crossed her arms and pretended to think it over. For some reason, being silly with Jack seemed okay. She knew that he respected her and that if she did something totally flirtatious, it was all right with him.

“It's going to be a step one, I'm afraid. I can't allow you to skate on saying something that…”

“Sexy?” he asked, arching one eyebrow at her.

She shook her head, inching closer to him.

“Provocative?” he suggested. Barely any space remained between the two of them. She felt the brush of his breath across her cheek each time he spoke.

The scent of coffee and peppermint wrapped around her. She held one hand up to keep him from coming any closer and to remind him that she was totally in charge.

“You're grasping at straws,” she said in her sternest voice.

He canted his body toward her until the tips of her fingers were brushing his cotton button-down shirt. Heat emanated through the cloth. She rubbed her fingers, which were always cold, against him. Slipped her index finger between the buttons and touched his smooth chest. He took a deep breath and his muscles flexed under her touch. She loosened the two buttons on top and bottom of her finger and pushed the shirt open a bit.

“I know. But it's bringing me closer to what I want,” he said, his voice a low, husky growl.

“What do you want?” she asked. Teasing aside, she really wanted to know, because he played his own desires like cards held close to his chest. Leaning down, she traced his bared flesh with her tongue. The light dusting of hair on his chest teased her tongue.