This has got to be the worst date ever. Calisa Harper stabbed at her overdone pasta, twirling it around her spoon. For a minute, she felt guilty even thinking that. Joshua Clayborn was one of the most eligible bachelors in the Detroit area, with his dark skin, firm body, and long money. There were hordes of women waiting in the wings to get to him, but he’d picked her. Still, having dinner with him was akin to watching golf or, better yet, sticking a thousand needles in her eye. One word—no, make that three: boring as hell.
She glanced at her phone, torn between opening up her current game of Candy Crush and browsing through her e-mails. This couldn’t be the life.
“Why are you so quiet?” Joshua asked, his dark eyes on her, assessing her.
Eyeing the door, she shrugged. “You seemed like you weren’t done talking.” She smiled at him. “About your house, your car, your job,” she muttered under her breath, not even caring if he heard her.
He reached across the table, picked up her hand in his. Rolling her eyes, she forced herself to at least pay attention to the man. It wasn’t every day she was treated to dinner by a hot millionaire. Hot was the only thing good about Mr. Clayborn, though. What was the use of having a good face but all the charm of dry paint? At least with paint, she could choose her own color.
“Calisa, you’re so beautiful,” he said.
She could agree with that, she thought with smile. Her black, low-cut, form-fitting dress left just enough for the imagination, stopping at the knee. Long layers fell down her back like ocean waves. Topping off her look with a pair of five-inch, red-bottomed pumps, she knew she looked good.
“Thank you, Josh. You look good, too.”
“What do you want to do tonight?”
“Red.” Her eyes widened, mortified that she’d actually said that out loud. Scrambling to cover up her mistake, she tried to think of anything red. Red rover, red robin, red… “Redeem my points at the casino,” she lied, shifting in her seat.
He seemed to accept her answer because he ticked off the casinos in town and mentioned his preference. Nodding, she agreed to go to the MGM Grand. Maybe I can lose him on the floor?
The sound of boisterous laughter sounded in the restaurant, and her attention shifted to the bar. Her body stiffened at the sight of a group of men in business suits and the harem of women surrounding them. One in particular stood out, with his smooth golden skin, short wavy hair, and dimpled smile. He chose that moment to look up, locking eyes with her across the room and tipping his glass in her direction.
Knowing he would be in the city and actually seeing him were two different things, since the Detroit-Windsor area boasted a population of 5.7 million. Jared Williams was hard to miss, though. He had a way that drew her to him. Cool, calm, and collected with an irresistible swagger. No wonder she wanted to do him. It seemed as if that was all she ever wanted to do. Only they had strict rules; rules she tried to never break.
Joshua went on and on about his contacts and his contracts in the city and she… watched as “Red” charmed all the women around him. She gulped down the rest of her wine, bothered that the sight of him getting so much female attention made her stomach burn. It was a feeling she’d been getting used to, especially over the past year.
Jared and Cali had known each other for a long time. After all, he was her best friend’s twin brother. Sydney had been more like a sister to her from the moment they laid eyes on each other. Red came with the package, except that the underlying attraction between them prevented her from ever viewing him as a “brother.” About five years ago, they’d acted on that desire and entered into a no-strings type of relationship. They had fun, then they had sex, then they went home.
When Cali saw one woman slip her card to Red slyly, she stood up abruptly, bumping into the table. “I’m sorry,” she said, interrupting Joshua mid-sentence. She rubbed her sore knee. “I have to use the restroom.” She dropped her napkin on the table, grabbed her clutch, and limped off toward the ladies’ washroom.
Closing it behind her, she leaned back against the bathroom door. She did a quick glance under the stall doors to see if she was alone. Once she was satisfied that no one could hear her, she groaned out loud and let out a string of curses. Exhaling, she turned to the mirror and pulled out her compact.
She heard the click of the door latch behind her, but continued to touch up her make-up.
“How’s your date?”
Whirling around, she nearly toppled over when she lost her footing. Shocked, she rushed to the door and swung it open, peeking outside. She closed the door and turned to face a smirking Red. “What the hell are you doing?” she hissed. “This is the ladies’ room.”
He shrugged, his hazel eyes raking over her body. “I was just checking on you. You bolted from your table so fast, I thought something was wrong.”
“How is it that, of all the places in the city, we end up at the same restaurant?”
“Coincidence,” he told her. “Holiday party. The firm likes to go all out.”
“Really? Red, it’s not even December yet.”
“They did it early this year,” he explained, brushing a piece of hair behind her ear. “They’re calling it a harvest party.”
“Why didn’t you tell me you were coming here?” She forced a frown onto her face even as her insides were melting at the smell of his cologne.
“Didn’t think I had to. But since you’re here, you could always join me.” He traced the vee on her dress, sending shivers up her spine. “Why don’t you get rid of the stiff and come up to my room?”
Tempted as she was, she wasn’t going out like that. “No,” she breathed, suddenly feeling very… hot. “I have a date.”
Slowly, he edged closer to her. She retreated until the hard doorknob dug into her back. Reaching behind her, he flipped the lock on the door, the click echoing in the empty bathroom. Sucking in a deep breath, she waited, anticipating his next move.
His fingers flitted across the hem of her dress and he inched it up a bit. Kneeling down, he slipped his hands under her dress and slowly pulled down her underwear. She held her breath, wondered what he would do next.
“Step out of them,” he ordered in a low, deep voice.
Bracing her hands on his shoulders, she stepped out of her lace panties. With a smirk, he stood up, tucked the thin material into the inside pocket of his suit jacket, and pulled out a tiny key card. He placed it in her hand and closed her fingers around it. “Room 1179,” he murmured, his lips a mere inch away from hers. Closing her eyes, she took in the smell of cognac on his breath and leaned closer.
His soft laugh brought her mind back to their location and she opened her eyes. She opened her mouth to speak, but he placed a finger over her lips.
“Shh. Try not to think about what I’m going to do to you, while you’re on your date.” Swinging open the door, he walked out, whistling.
She hated him—in the best way.
* * *
Jared Williams flung his hotel room door open, surprised when Cali burst through it straight into his arms. He kicked the door closed as she kissed him deeply and passionately. As they backed up toward the bed, touching and kissing along the way, she undid his tie and slid it off. She flung it over her head and went to work unbuttoning his shirt. Grunting when the backs of his knees hit the frame of the bed, he felt for the hook to her dress. It had a line of tiny buttons going up the back, and he struggled to undo them with his big fingers. To hell with it. Frustrated, he gripped the end of it and pulled, sending buttons flying into the air.
“Fuck, Red,” she grumbled, shoving him back. “You ruined my dress.”
“Sorry,” he said, but he wasn’t. Wrapping an arm around her waist, he yanked her back to him.
Her head fell back as he nipped at her neck, pushing her dress down to the floor. Pausing, he stepped back to appreciate her. She was standing before him in a black push-up bra and a sexy-ass pair of do-me pumps—and nothing else. She was perfect. Her brown skin seemed to glow in the dim light and he hardened at the sight of her.
She tugged on the waistband of his pants and unzipped them, freeing his straining erection. “Step out of them,” she said, with a wink and a smile.
Doing as he was told, he kicked the pants behind her and pulled her into another wet kiss. They fell back on the bed, her on top. She straddled his lap and eased herself down onto him. He closed his eyes, gritting his teeth. He wanted to make this last. They stayed like that a moment, staring at each other. Soon, she was moving those hips, grinding into him in a way that often made him forget his name. She was truly the best he’d ever had and he couldn’t get enough of her. He wanted to possess her, claim her in a way he never had before, and make sure she knew that she’d never find another man that would mean as much to her as he did. Gripping her hips, he flipped her onto her back and pushed himself into her harder, enjoying her yelp of surprise.
He looked down at her, taking in her long, dark hair fanned out on the pillow, her lips between her teeth and her eyes on his, and slammed into her again. They moved, each of them matching the other, settling into a rhythm that seemed innate—like it was meant to be. She wrapped her arms around him and whispered, “Don’t stop.”
Hooking his arms under her knees, he thrust into her—deeper, harder each time until he felt her constricting around him. Knowing she was close, he slipped a finger between their bodies and pressed down on her clit. Her body stiffened, and she screamed out his name as her orgasm shook through her. Soon, he was right with her.
Arms and legs tangled together, they lay there panting, trying to catch their breaths. Lifting his head, he ran a finger across her cheek, smiling at the light sheen of sweat across her brow. Her hair, once flowing down her back, was wet with perspiration.
Being with her was the highlight of any day. The need to touch her, feel her against him had him making up excuses to end up where she was. Yet, ending up at the same hotel that night had been a happy coincidence. And he took full advantage of it. He brushed his lips over her shoulder and rolled off of her, onto his back.
She turned to him, propping herself up on her elbow. “You are so naughty,” she whispered with a giggle. “You know I couldn’t concentrate the rest of the night, right? Imagine Joshua’s surprise when I ended our date before he had the chance to bore me with more details of his life.”
He chuckled, turning to face her. Seeing her with another man had irritated him more than he ever thought it would. And the knowledge that she’d ended her date to be with him made him want to puff out his chest with pride. He slid a hand over her hip and squeezed her thigh. “Mission accomplished, then.”
Red pulled her into the crook of his arms and kissed her brow. Moments like these were hard to come by with Cali. She was determined not to be his girl. But it was all he could think about. He wasn’t sure when it had snuck up on him, but he wanted Cali to be more than his no-strings booty call. Hell, she was already one of his closest friends.
“Why don’t you stay the night?” he asked softly. He already knew the answer, but he couldn’t stop himself from asking.
“I can’t.” She brushed her lips against his chest. “I have an early meeting.”
Although he wasn’t surprised, it still stung. There was something irresistible about Calisa Harper and he wanted to take advantage of their time together. He wanted this night to stay. But she always put up the walls, always found a reason to pull back.
Leaning in, she kissed him and then scooted to the edge of the bed. She picked up her dress and held it up to him. “You are so going to reimburse me for this dress.” He watched as she pulled it up and stuck her arms into the sleeves.
“I wish I could say I was sorry and mean it,” he admitted.
“Ha-ha.” She put on his shirt and buttoned it up. “I’m taking this home.”
“Guess you can add it to your collection, huh?”
Over the course of their… relationship, Cali had managed to stockpile many of his clothes, always making up an excuse why he couldn’t have something back. He supposed it was par for the course.
“You don’t have to leave, you know,” he told her. It was the same thing, different day. No matter how much fun they had with each other, she’d always leave him wanting more.
“You know the rules. No sleepovers.” She walked over to him and kissed him again, holding his chin with her hand. “I’ll call you later!” she shouted as she flung open the door and walked out of the room.