The Naked Truth (The Honeybrook Hamdens Book 1) (7 page)

“Yeah, of course I do.” She considered, then said, “I mean, it was scary at first. You don’t know anybody and you move to a strange place? That’s bound to be terrifying. But I liked it well enough. My job was good. For a while.”

“What exactly happened there?”

“I don’t…”

Chase raised his eyebrows. “Don’t you? I mean, have you even talked to anyone about it since it happened? Whatever it was?”

She looked him up and down, weighing her options. Then, at last, “There’s not really much to tell. My boss stole my design book and passed my sketches off as his own. To, like, this big important person. Who was also his brother.”

“Why didn’t you call him out?”

“You think someone would believe a stranger over their own brother?” She sighed. “It was stupid of me to show him my stuff, that’s all.”

“Why did you?”

“I…”
Because I’ve always been an idiot when it comes to men.
“I don’t know.”

“So, what did you do when you found out he’d stolen from you?”

“Nothing,” she lied, but it was no use. Chase wasn’t buying it, not even for a second.

“I find it hard to believe that Julie Hamden let someone take something from her and get away with it.”

“I, well, it’s a little embarrassing.” Now she really
was
blushing, red and hot. “I Xeroxed a few…unflattering truths about him and posted them around the office.”

“Such as?”

“He has a collection of Barbie dolls.”

“No,” Chase said.

“It wouldn’t be so bad if he didn’t take them so seriously. They all have names.”

“Does he
play
with them?”

“Are you kidding? He’d have to take them out of the box for that.” She snorted a laugh, then covered her mouth. “Anyway, it wasn’t kind of me. I’m not proud of it. I’m also not proud of what I did to his desk.” She glanced away, then added. “Or what I left in his car.”

“Well, I think it’s great. You
should
stand up for yourself. You were always good at that.”

Julie let the silence stretch between them for a moment, then she said, “Yes, well, I’m learning my lesson. He’s setting me up to fail with this fashion show and then he’ll have his revenge.”

“You’re going to be great at the fashion show.”

She guffawed. “How could you know that?”

“Because I know.” He answered simply, and she took another big bite of her burger and chewed as she looked anywhere but at him.

It’s not too late to go back…

“What about you?” she asked. “What about the bar? And working with Luke? Do you like it?”

“I do,” Chase said. “I really do. I feel like I belong there. It’s nice, you know? To have a place of my own.”

“I’m happy for you,” she said.

“Thanks. I’m happy for you, too.” Something thick hung in the air between them and Julie tried to breathe deep, to rid herself of the feeling that somehow she’d signed on for something she couldn’t handle.

Desperately, she scrambled for a new subject.

“I wonder if that old pond has dried up,” she said.

“The one where we used to swim?”

She nodded.

“There’s only one way to find out.” Abandoning his food, Chase stood, and then held out a hand for her. She looked up at it, knowing that this, somehow, was an important decision. A turning point. If she took his hand, there wasn’t any going back. Not anymore.

So when she slid her palm against his, she closed her eyes and braced herself as he led her deeper into the forest.

J
ulie jumped
and Chase laughed as he stoked the fire.

They were out in the woods just outside the cemetery, and it seemed like every little noise had her skin crawling tonight. Or maybe she was just on edge. It had been a couple of weeks since Luke went off to boot camp, and with Amy already safely stowed away at college it had left Julie alone. With Chase.

It’d been his idea to come out here and hang out, and hers to bring the flask, If only to calm her nerves.

So far, that was so not working.

“Pass me the tequila,” she said, trying ignore the eerily loud hoot of a barn owl in the distance.

“Only if you say ‘please.’”

“What if I say ‘now?’”

He took a swig and smiled at her. “I’ll give you this, it isn’t swill.”

“Nah, only the best for my underage days. When I have to buy it myself, it’ll be much less impressive.” She smiled at him and an awkward pause hung in the air between them.

“So,” she mustered, trying to gage if it was just her who felt the spark of electricity in the air between them, “Next week is the big week.”

“Yep. New apartment. New job,” he said.

“You gonna miss me?”

“Every day.” His dark eyes grew serious and she glanced at the fire before taking another drag from the flask.

She was feeling a little more than tipsy now. Her head swam and it felt like the whole world was focused on her senses, like everything was soft and warm and all for her.

“You know, I’ve never been drunk,” she said.

“You mean before tonight?” He raised his dark, sexy eyebrows and she tried not to stare at his pouty, kissable lips.

“I’m not drunk.”

“Are too.”

“Am not.”

“It’s okay. I’m drunk too.” He held his hand out for the flask. “But you’ve had enough. Give it over.”

“What if I say ‘no?’”

“Then I’ll have to take it from you.”

She grinned and he got up from his log and crossed the small space toward her. He took the flask in one hand, but she held on tight, trying to pull back…and failing.

“Got it,” he said, and then she noticed exactly how close he was. Only inches from her.

Close enough to…

She didn’t know what she was doing until she’d already done it.

And once her lips met his? There was no turning back.

It was there. Big and beautiful and just like she remembered it, right down to the rope dangling from a nearby branch. The seat they’d used back then to swing into the little pond had splintered here and there, and on the top of the seat moss had started to form, but there was no denying that it was the same one her grandfather had built when her mother had first gotten pregnant with Luke.

“Did Luke ever tell you about the rope swing?” Julie took a step toward the tree and touched the thick, intertwined cords.

“No, but your grandmother did once. She said it was just like the one she had when she was a girl.”

Julie nodded. “It was how my grandparents met.”

“She didn’t tell me that part.”

It had always been her favorite story that Gran told, and she remembered every sentence like the old lady was still reciting it to her before bed every night. “It was a hot summer day in 1952 and my grandmother was home from college to visit her parents and sisters. She’d met up with a few of her friends to go swimming, so they all wore their bathing suits to go down to the local pond.”

“Sounds very wholesome,” Chase said.

“Yeah, it starts out that way. As it happened, though, my grandfather was already down there fishing with his brother and he didn’t want to give up a good fishing day just because my grandmother and her friends wanted to swim.”

“Who can blame him? If the fish are biting—“

Julie rolled her eyes. “Well, he didn’t stand a chance. My grandmother climbed on the rope that hung from a nearby tree and jumped straight into the water. She scared all the fish away, and when she came back up, she splashed my grandfather and told him to stop being a fuddy duddy and realize that he was surrounded by beautiful girls.”

“So what did he do?”

Julie took the rope in her hand and swung it back and forth. “My grandmother always had a sort of talent. When she spoke, my grandfather listened. He stripped down to his boxers, climbed on the rope, and swung in there after her. From then on, they were inseparable.”

“And he never went fishing again?” Chase asked.

“Not if Gran wanted to swim instead.”

“That’s a good story.”

Julie smiled. “I always liked it.”

“I
do
know a better one, though.”

Julie raised her eyebrows. “That so?”

“It is. Mine is about a girl who never had the courage to get on the rope swing, and then when she was a woman, she came back to the spot, stripped down to her underwear, and conquered her fears.” Chase pulled his shirt from over head. “Then, her brave and charming date dove in after her to make sure she didn’t drown.”

“I wasn’t scared, I just didn’t want to fall and belly flop.”

“And that’s different from being scared because?”

“It is, okay?” She turned to find him stripping off his pants, and when he straightened she did her best not the stare at the contours of his rippling, bare chest and powerful, muscled thighs.

“What if I go with you?” he asked.

“What difference would that make?”

“I’ll help you. I’ll teach you how to do it.”

“But…”

“Jules. Come on.”

She swallowed hard, glanced at the murky water and then back at him. Then, even though she didn’t for the life of her know why, she gave him a tiny little nod. “One jump, then I’m headed back home to get in warm, dry clothes and call it a night.”

“You’ve got it.”

She reached for the hem of her shirt, and then said, “Fine. Turn around.”

“Why? I’m going to see your underwear if we’re jumping in together.”

“Well, I…Fine. It’s fine.” She pulled her clothes off quickly and did her best not to make eye contact while she went. When finally she was left in nothing more than her white cotton bra and matching panties, she looked him straight in the eye and said, “I mean it. One jump and I’m headed home.”

Chase nodded, a sly smile still tilting his too-full lips “Whatever you say, champ.”

“So…what do I do?”

He crossed the space between them, grabbed the rope in one hand, then held it until the seat dangled just above her knees. “Step on.”

“But what if--?”

“I’ve got it. Step on. You’re safe.”

She lifted her foot, then, noticing it was shaking, hopped onto the seat and gripped the rope as hard as she could.

“Who is going to hold it for you?” she asked.

“Nobody. I’m a pro, though. Now, make sure your feet are close to the rope and be careful of splinters, okay?”

She adjusted slightly, then closed her eyes and waited. It didn’t take long. In an instant, she felt the weight of his body swinging them over the lake, and she inhaled deeply as the seat let out a weary
creak
and his other foot landed beside her.

“Not so hard,” he whispered, and the heat of his breath against her skin sent shivers up her arms. “Now, we’re going to swing three times, then jump. I’m holding the rope with one hand, but with the other—“

Warm, rough skin slid gently along her waist, and her nipples tightened into stiff peaks beneath the fabric of her bra.

“I’ll guide you,” he finished, and she offered him a shaky nod, too worried about how breathy her voice might sound if she dared to speak.

“Okay,” he said. “One.”

He gripped her tighter and rocked her hip gently along with his. As he moved, his crotch brushed against her ass and she felt the thick evidence of his need there. Waiting for her.

“Two,” he said, and was it her imagination, or was his voice the slightest bit huskier than it had been before?

“Thr—“ Before he could finish, the board snapped beneath their feet and she was hurtling into the water, shocked and breathless as the icy water enveloped her skin.

When she finally got her bearings again, it took her a moment to realize she was laughing—really laughing. Like she didn’t have a care in the world. And as she paddled toward shore, she heard Chase joining in with her, his throaty chuckle echoing her lighter, more tinkling laugh.

“Good try,” she said, when she finally found her breath again.

“More like good fail, I think you mean.” He pushed himself onto the shore, then held his hand out for her. She took it without thinking, and then the electricity of his touch slowed her and when she met his gaze, she knew he could feel it too.

* * *

F
or a long moment
, he stared at her, and the eye contact was somehow more intimate than anything they’d done together before. Then, slowly, he lifted her from the water and onto the little patch of grass beside him, careful to avert his eyes when he realized her thin white underwear had become completely see-through.

It wasn’t soon enough, though. The outline of her erect pink nipple just beneath the surface of the fabric had already been burned into his mind, and he would have had to be completely blind not to wonder what lay beneath her tiny white panties.

Her blond hair had darkened from the water, and now she lay there looking like a mermaid who’d washed ashore just for him.

“I…we should probably get dressed,” he said, hating himself a little more with every word.

“Yeah, probably.” Her response was shaky, and it was all he could do not to turn and look at her again. If he did, though, he knew what would happen. Knew it would be too much not to cup her chin and pull her lips toward him. To help her peel away her damp clothes until she was naked and all his.

“I’ll just stay here while you…” He couldn’t bring himself to finish, but he hear her standing already, moving to the place where they’d both abandoned their clothes. For a moment there was nothing but silence, and then—

“Chase?”

“Yeah?” he asked.

“Do you ever wonder…I mean, I know we never…but do you ever wonder if we should have…You know what, forget it.”

“All the time,” he answered.

“Me too.” It was little more than a whisper, but he heard it all the same, and the words shot straight to his heart.

“Jules—“ He glanced up at her and his heart stopped. There, in the middle of the woods, she stood totally and completely naked. Her perfect handful-sized breasts were dotted with droplets of water and her long, damp hair just brushed against the tops of her cherry tips.

“I’m sorry.” He hurried to say, but then she was walking toward him, holding out her hand.

“Don’t be. I…Chase…”

He rested his palm against hers and allowed her to lead him to his feet. In the back of his mind, he was all too aware of the pulsing need surging to his cock, making him ache, but his focus still remained on her. On her face, on the conflict and hunger in her eyes.

“I want you,” she said. “I don’t want to want you, but I…I can’t seem to help it. Maybe if we just give in…”

“No, Jules. This isn’t one night or one time. If I have you now, I’m not letting you go. Do you understand?”

She surveyed him for a long moment, then, once she’d let out a shaky nod, he enveloped her lips with his own and pulled her toward him until her breasts were pressed against the hard muscles of his chest, until his thick need was nestled between the juncture of her thighs.

Slowly, he guided her backward until she bumped against a tree, and then he was pulling away his boxers, readying himself for the moment he’d longed for for as long as he could remember.

“Stay here,” he let out a husky command, then crossed to his pants and pulled a condom from his wallet. Making quick work of rolling it over his shaft, he walked toward her again, then stopped.

“You’re sure this is what you want?” he asked.

“I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life.”

“Good.” He held her hips, then traced a line from her stomach to her ribs until finally the pads of his fingers brushed the underside of her breasts. Goosebumps rose along her skin, following his every move, and for some reason that only seemed to make his cock ache for her that much more.

Slowly, he bent down and took one of her nipples in his mouth, circling the tip gently and then sucking long and hard as she arched into him.

“Oh Chase, don’t tease me. I’ve waited so long,” she said.

He took the other nipple between thumb and forefinger and pinched gently before rolling it along with his tongue.

“I need you. Please,” she begged.

He slid a hand lower, between her thighs, and into her waiting heat.

“Jesus.” She hadn’t been lying. She was wetter, tighter, than any woman he’d ever been with before. And if she felt this good against his fingers…

He gripped his cock in one hand, then cupped her chin with the other.

“What?” She asked.

“I just want to see your face.”