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Rose
JACKSON HAD STAYED the night but had left early, needing to go change before work.
My body was deliciously sore in all the right places. God, he was big and could move that sexy body in ways that practically defied gravity. I blushed remembering the way we’d gone at it like rabbits all night. Falling asleep, moving into each other, then one of us would wake up and we’d start touching, start kissing, and we’d be hot and panting, moving into each other again and again.
And it was never enough. I hadn’t had sex like that ever. All night long. My need his and his mine. Moving in sync, in rhythm, both of us on the exact same page.
We’d even had morning sex, something I’d never done before, always worried about morning breath or needing to go pee. Always killing the mood.
But Jackson had caged me in, lazily pushing into me as he’d held his big body up off me the entire time, showing off, causing his muscles to bulge and flex as he worked them, worked me. Grinning like he knew how much he turned me on.
Gripping the edge of the counter, I couldn’t hide my grin or the heat coursing through me.
Was I ever going to get enough of him?
If this madness was anything to judge by, I didn’t think so. I wanted him constantly. Didn’t matter that I could barely walk this morning, that I was raw and achy between my legs, if he came home and said let’s go, I’d go.
I should go work out, keep to my routine. But my fluttering, feathery belly told the real story. This had nothing to do with keeping to a routine; I just wanted to see him. Be with him.
Even though he’d be with clients and I shouldn’t interrupt him, I just wanted to watch him. Sigh and ooh and aah as he moved, walked, talked.
God, that man could recite a science manual to me and I was pretty sure I’d get off on it, panting and trembling by the end of page one.
Giggling, feeling giddy and silly, I turned on some music on my Pandora app. I started making breakfast, bopping and dancing around my kitchen. An egg-white omelet with ham and asparagus. That sounded good. And since he’d worked some major calories off me, I was making myself a slice of buttered toast.
He loved my curves.
He loved them!
Worshiped them throughout the night, his kisses so real and passionate, and I couldn’t stop laughing, beating those eggs and chopping my veggies as I twirled around the kitchen barefoot and carefree.
I loved dancing.
Moving my body. Feeling the sweat slide down my back as I gyrated my hips. I’d always loved the movement of it, the freedom of losing myself in a really good song.
It was why I’d been a cheerleader in high school, not only to score cool points but because music had always infected my soul. And it was about time I got back into finding the things I loved again.
Jackson had done that for me.
And I loved him for it.
Even if this didn’t last, this Stella was learning to get her groove back.
I was just in the middle of a super catchy chorus when my phone rang, cutting off the music instantly. Humming happily, I swiped the Talk button just as I slid the eggs into the hot pan.
“Yellow?” I chirped.
“ Kit-Kat?” Kyle’s stunned voice had me instantly giggling. Not even my evil ex could kill my happy buzz.
“What do you need, Kyle? I’m sort of busy.” Not really. But he didn’t need to know that.
“Umm... yeah, okay, I can tell. Look, I’m busy with depositions today and Sheila has a doctor’s appointment at eight.”
“You need someone to drop Adam off at school? Yeah, no problem. I’ll be there.”
“He doesn’t actually have school today, some teacher conference thing going on.”
Could this day get any better? Best sex and I got to hang with my pumpkin for a couple of hours.
“Bring him. Pack his favorite books and a pair of swim shorts. We’ll chill by the pool. It’ll be fun.” It was late March, and the weather was actually starting to get nice enough for swimming.
“’Kay,” he said, pausing for a bit.
I got the sense he wanted to say something else. “That it?”
He sighed. “Yeah. Yeah, that’s it.”
My brow twitched, wondering why he was acting so weird. “Okay then—”
“Wait, I forgot. You coming to the party?”
I rolled my eyes. “Come on, Kyle, don’t be an idiot. I’d never miss Adam’s party, even if renting a petting zoo is easily the stupidest thing you’ve ever done for him. You know he’s allergic to goats.”
Yeah, I was still a little salty about that one.
“I know that. Which is why they’re not part of the package,” he said it as if expecting praise.
I sniffed, refusing to applaud him for it. “Fine. And just for the record, it’s called good parenting and not something worthy of a pat on the head.”
He chuffed.
Okay, so maybe a little more bitchy than warranted, but whatever. Kyle was actually starting to kill my buzz, something I’d have thought impossible just a few seconds ago.
I flipped the omelet, having almost forgotten I was cooking. Shuffling over to the cabinet, I pulled down a plate before sliding my steaming egg puff onto it.
My stomach rumbled in appreciation.
“Anything else?” I needed to end this conversation stat. I had to eat and then go get ready to take a gorgeous little guy out on a pool date.
He cleared his throat, and I sensed his nervousness. Considering I could literally count the number of times in my life that I’d ever seen him nervous, I ground my front teeth, fighting the urge to growl.
“How many people are you bringing?”
My eyes narrowed as a thread of irritation wormed through my belly. “Why? And don’t tell me you’re on a budget because we both know you’re loaded.”
Again, low blow, but I wasn’t feeling charitable either. Kyle had kicked me to the curb with only a suitcase full of clothes and access to the joint account, which had had a whopping five thousand in it.
I’m sure he’d thought he was doing me some sort of favor, but once you rented an apartment with two months’ rent up front and paid for a suddenly squealing set of brakes... Well, you tapped that 5K out fast.
He coughed and again I was sensing nerves. I really didn’t understand why we were even still on the phone at this point. Kyle’s conversations tended to last the few seconds it took to tell me what was what.
“Can you please just spit it out, I’m growing old here.”
“Sheila mentioned you were bringing a guy,” he blurted.
“Ah.” My lips thinned. “Now we get to the real purpose behind the call. I wondered why Sheila wasn’t the one running interference since that’s all she’s good for anymore.”
“Look—” he started, but I held up a fist, shutting him down.
Not like he could see, but...
“Jackson is a friend. So yes, I’m probably bringing him. I’m bringing Daniel too, once I ask him. Not that it’s any of your damn business. Anything else?”
I wasn’t giving him a damn thing; I knew he was curious, wondering if Jackson might be as gay as my best friend. Well, let him guess all he wanted. Kyle had no say in my life. Not anymore.
Blowing out a heavy breath, he growled. “No, I guess not.”
“Good. Then I’ll see you Wednesday.”
I didn’t give him a chance to respond. I ended the call, wanting to throw the phone to the ground. But since I couldn’t afford to pay seven hundred for a replacement, I set it down gently instead. I gave it the evil eye, growled, stomped my foot, and then blew out a deep breath, determined not to let Kyle get to me even another second.
Spinning on my heel, I ran for the front door, unlocked it, and left it just slightly ajar. If Sheila arrived while I was changing, then at least Adam could slip inside and not be forced to wait for me. Kyle’s was only about fifteen minutes away from my apartment; it’s partly why I’d rented this place. Also the price, but mainly the proximity to my boy in case I had to get to him quickly.
Jogging to my bedroom, I was immediately overwhelmed with the scent of Jackson, that good soapy, spicy cologne smell. My sheets were still rumpled and my stomach heated as I remembered all the things he’d done to me.
Grabbing hold of my beating chest, I smiled, already forgetting about Kyle, choosing instead to cling to a happier memory. Humming, I decided that just for today I wasn’t making the bed.
It’d been a few years since I’d gone swimming. I wasn’t usually comfortable wearing swimsuits, but I was feeling confident.
He’d called me sexy.
The sexiest man I’d ever known had called me sexy. Sighing like a freaking girl, I pulled open my underwear drawer and pulled out two bathing suits. One, black and plain. It was a full swimsuit and wasn’t exactly the prettiest thing I’d ever owned.
The other one had been an impulse buy last month. Still black, but it was a bikini cut. The bottom had tummy control, which was always a must with me. But the top had been the real reason for my buying it. It was a halter style, coming midway down my stomach and with a super sexy, super cute peekaboo cutout at my breasts.
Biting my lip, I flicked my eyes up, looking at my face in the mirror. Flushed, cheeks rosy, eyes almost glassy. Hair wild but framing my face, and I felt... pretty.
Stomach twisting with a nest of razor-tipped butterfly wings, I made my choice. I grabbed a gauzy white wraparound, because there was never going to come a day where I was actually comfortable enough to traipse around the pool with my big ass out on full display.
“Yeah, but he says you’ve got a great one,” I whispered then laughed, because somehow it always came back to Jackson.
Shucking off my granny sweats and shirt, I slipped into the bikini. It was the silliest thing, but just wearing that, even in the privacy of my bathroom, owning my curves that way... It was a heady feeling, empowering in a way that hiding behind the tent I’d called clothes had never been.
Jackson had kissed every square inch of me, worshiping my body all night, telling me how gorgeous I was. As if needing me to hear it, know it, and accept it.
And maybe, just maybe, I was starting to believe it.
I’d read in a magazine somewhere once that Christina Hendricks was a size fourteen. She was easily one of the sexiest women in Hollywood. Maybe her body wasn’t for every man, but I was willing to bet there were a lot more that did than didn’t go for curves like that.
Brushing my hands over my hips, I realized that at some point after months of working out and eating right, I had become that kind of size fourteen. I beamed. There was no way I’d ever be a size six again. High school was years behind me, and Adam had forever altered these hips, but my goal had always been to get to an eight at least. When I thought about losing these curves though, the ones that’d had Jackson panting and groaning as he’d push deep inside me... I wasn’t so sure I was as keen for it anymore.
Watching that man shatter in my arms was easily one of the sexiest things in the world. Who needed porn when they got to get up close and personal with perfection?
Still humming, I pulled my hair up into a loose, sexy bun. I wasn’t going to swim, since I needed to tan and darken up my pasty winter skin, so I grabbed a large pair of gold hoops and slipped them on.
I almost didn’t recognize the woman staring back at me in the mirror. She looked happy. Beautiful.
And it wasn’t because a man as fine as Jackson had told me that I was, but because I felt it in his touch, saw it reflected back at me. It’d been a long time since any man had looked at me the way he had.
“Okay, let’s do this thing, Thorne,” I said in the way of a pep talk.
Turning, I headed back toward the kitchen, and that’s when I spied Jackson’s wallet lying open by the couch. “Uh-oh.” I scooped it up, having every intention of calling him and letting him know he’d left it when I spotted his driver’s license and grinned, running my fingers over his handsome face. “Always with the man bun.”
He looked bored, his sexy face staring straight ahead, but there was a soft curve to his lips, a hint of the mischievous guy who lived behind the pretty mask.
It felt a little wrong to go riffling through anyone’s personal property, so even though I really, really wanted to, I didn’t. I snapped the wallet shut, grabbed my phone, and called him.
The little dweeb had gotten my number off the member registry. Not that it bothered me. I loved the fact that he’d been as crazy to see me as I’d been to see him.
After three rings it went to voice mail. He was probably with a client.
“Hey, caveman,” I chirped. “You left your wallet at my house last night. Figured you might need it. Adam’s coming over and we’re headed to the pool later. So if I don’t see you soon, I’ll take it down there with me. Cute driver’s license picture by the way. Somehow I see your lips and I just want to bite them. Hard.” I couldn’t help but adding that last, chuckling before ending the call.
I was such a goner.
Setting the wallet away from me, I once again turned on Pandora, squealing the second Train’s “Hey, Soul Sister” crooned back at me. I freaking loved that song.
I grabbed an orange before pulling my juicer out of the cabinet. And as I juiced, I danced, singing at the top of my lungs as I waited for the love of my life to come home.
~*~
Jackson
I’D FORGOTTEN MY WALLET.
I was between clients and hungry as hell. I’d not had a chance to get a thing to eat earlier since I’d stayed at Rose’s as long as I could. When I went to the bar to grab a power shake, I realized it was gone.
A check of my desk let me know I’d never brought it in with me. After telling Daniel I had to go home and grab it, I went to my apartment. It wasn’t there. Which meant it was at her place.
My stomach flipped at the thought of getting to see that sexy ass again so soon. As soon as I grabbed my phone to call her and see if she’d found it, I saw I had a call.
I clicked Play and the second I heard her sultry voice, my heart beat like a bongo in my chest. She sounded happy. And then she told me she wanted to bite me, and well... My dick said, “Hello.”
Chuckling as I drove back to her place, I wished I could stay longer than the few minutes I had left to me. As it was, I’d just barely have enough time to get back before my next client arrived.
Racing up the stairs two at a time, I hoofed it, not nearly as excited to get to my wallet as I was to see her and kiss her pretty mouth again.
The second I got to her door and lifted my hand to knock, I noticed it was already ajar and there was loud, happy music blaring. But then when I heard her singing at the top of her lungs, I couldn’t seem to help myself.
I walked in.
“Rose?” I called out to her, not wanting to scare her, but my heart was pounding.
And then I found her in her kitchen. Barefoot. Wearing the sexiest damn bikini I’d ever seen on any woman. Her back was to me, and she was dancing.
Not just shaking her ass, but really moving to the music. Rolling her hips, dropping to the ground as she sang into a wooden spoon before sexily gyrating those hips back up. Her gorgeous ass mesmerized me.
The dangling black tie at her back swayed back and forth, loose, curly hairs undulating across her neck and cheeks. Her eyes were closed, and her face glowed with a smile.
And I couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t move. All I could do was lean against the wall and watch her. Drink her in.
My God, she was beautiful.
Five foot seven inches of curvy perfection, dancing like a prowling cheetah across her kitchen. My body was tight and wound like a drum, dick pressing hard against my shorts as I breathed like an Olympian sprinter.
She kicked out one long, sexy leg, spun on her heel, and then screamed as she finally caught sight of me.
“Sheeeeeyat!” She jumped, doing some weird parody of a karate chop before clutching at her chest and giving me the evil eye.
Laughing with my full body, I raced over to her, wrapped an arm around her perfect hourglass waist, and twirled us around.
“Put me down, you bastard,” she hissed without any heat behind it, slapping pitifully at my chest. “I hate you. God, I think you gave me a mini heart attack. Stole ten years off my life, caveman.”
She might hate me, but she’d called me caveman. My chest swelled with pride before I dropped a kiss to the tip of her adorable button nose. “Aw, c’mon, cupcake. You know that’s impossible. You love me. And fuck me, but can you move your body. I wanna watch you dance like that all the time.”
Eyeing me evilly even as her chin trembled with suppressed laughter, she rolled her eyes. “You could have at least knocked.”
I grabbed her ass and gave it a good squeeze before settling against the counter, refusing to let her go for even a second. I knuckled her soft, bright red cheek.
“I did. Even called your name. Apparently white girls can jump.”
She slapped my chest hard and I rumbled approval, wanting those small hands all over me. Didn’t matter how many times I had her, it wasn’t enough. I was always ravenous and hungry for more.
“Dammit, Jackson.” She chuckled before laying her head on my chest and pressing a light kiss to my chest. “You’re such a jerk. Your wallet’s over there, by the way.” She pointed to our left with her wooden spoon.
I shrugged. “Yeah, I saw it. Rather hold you instead. Looking sexy today, cupcake. Mm,” I said, giving her ass another good pinch.
She twitched. “Will you stop that. You’re gonna bruise me if you keep that up.”
I pursed my lips. “Wouldn’t want that, now would we? Maybe I’ll just have to kiss it better tonight.”
Rose sighed, eyes blazing instantly and causing my cock to get even harder as she wiggled against me, and I groaned.
“Stop that, or I’m gonna have to throw you over my shoulder and take you back to that room and have my wicked, wicked way with your fine ass.”
She moaned, nipping at the side of my neck, breaking me out in a heated wash of goose bumps. My Rosie was a biter. Not that I was complaining, I loved her teeth on me.
Talking about bruises, I was now sporting two really good ones on my chest. I hadn’t had hickeys since high school. Had it been anyone else, I’d have been grumping, but with Rose, they were badges of pride.
“Believe me when I say I really, really wish we could, but Adam’s gonna show up any minute now.”
Stealing those lips, I kissed her softly, wanting to do so much more but knowing that if I went down that road, client be damned, there was no way I’d be able to walk away from her.
I sighed deeply, poking her ass one last time with my painfully hard dick. “If I had the time, I’d do you like an animal. But I gotta get back to the gym too. Haven’t even had a chance to eat this morning; been busy as hell.”
“Oh, well, why didn’t you say so?” She grinned. “I happen to be an excellent cook.”
I frowned, wanting so badly to eat more of her food. She was right, she was a fantastic cook. “I don’t know if I have time to—”
Planting a kiss on me and stealing my breath in the process, she wiggled off me before skipping over to the fridge. “Don’t need to cook this. I made this the other night. It’s just a sandwich.”
And then she was humming along to the music playing on her phone, pulling bread, lettuce, half a cut-up tomato, and an aluminum-wrapped platter out of the fridge.
Her movements were brisk. Efficient. Ripping off a piece of lettuce. Slicing the tomato into a thin sliver. I wasn’t much a fan of tomatoes usually, but there was no way in hell I was gonna stop her.
Then she lifted the aluminum and my stomach growled like a gathering of grizzlies at the sight of a cold, perfectly browned half of a roasted chicken.
Moving over to her, I planted my hands on her waist before leaning over and sniffing.
“Smells good.”
She shrugged a smooth ivory shoulder. “Tuscan baked chicken. Not a big deal, really.”
Hungry for much more than just food, I couldn’t resist dropping a kiss on her sexy shoulder, laving my tongue over the smooth skin.
She twitched, clutched the counter, and moaned. “Knife in my hand,” she gasped.
And I chuckled, wanting to ground my erection into her ass again but knowing I probably shouldn’t. Adjusting my erection, I forced myself to take a step back and held up my hands.
“Your fault you’re so damn sexy. It’s making me mighty jealous thinking about anyone else getting to see you like this. Who’d you dress up for anyway?” I teased, unable to resist plucking at the delicate black string tie.
She shivered, tossing me a flirty look. “Again, I say you’re crazy. But if you must know”—she swiftly sawed a chunk of chicken breast off the bone—“you. Now, mayo or mustard?”
I moaned, squeezing my eyes shut as I again adjusted my painful bulge, but it wouldn’t help. Nothing could except having her at this point. And the little minx had the nerve to laugh.
“I think you really do hate me. And just mustard.”
Her laughter shivered hot and delicious over my skin, making me feel weak and alive all at the same time. I watched her as she pulled open the door, pulled out a bottle of mustard, and smoothed it over the bread.
“Just Mustard for Just Jackson.” Her eyes danced.
I groaned at her terrible pun and wondered whether I’d ever hear the end of that godawful nickname.
“Turnabout’s fair play.” She winked. “It’s only fair after the torments you unleashed on me last night.”
I bit my bottom lip, recalling exactly what we’d done last night, hungry for more of it.
Chuckling, she quickly assembled my sandwich, grabbed a baggie, slid it inside, and handed it to me. “There, caveman, food.”
Yanking her forward by the wrist, I slammed my mouth over hers, stealing her words. Her lips. Grinding my arousal against her delicious warmth. Trying like hell to steal this woman’s heart the way she was already stealing mine.
Her breathy moans filled my head, made me dizzy and needy, greedy for all of her. Sliding my hands down her waist until I could palm both cheeks, I squeezed, growling deep in my throat. “Love your ass. So big I can’t even hold it all. God, I was never such an ass man before you, Rosie.”
She purred.
“Mommy?”
“Sh—” I snapped, heart hammering in my chest at the same moment Rose jumped away from me as if scalded.
We stared at each other for half a second, gasping for air. Me confused, her looking startled but flushed. And then she was smiling. Big and bright.
“Pumpkin. Hey. Hi.”
Yeah, like that hadn’t sounded guilty as hell. Suddenly I couldn’t stop laughing because this wasn’t exactly the way I’d planned things to go this morning, me wearing a raging hard-on as I’d just pawed my girl like a rutting beast in front of her kid.
Adam looked at us both like we’d lost our minds before muttering under his breath about grown-ups being so weird and turning on his heel, book bag slung over his skinny shoulder.
“Oh my god.” Rose slapped a hand over her furiously blushing face. “Was that as awkward for you as it was for me?”
Gesturing toward my deflating cock, I shrugged. “What do you think? Think we scarred him for life?”
Shaking her head, she held the baggie out to me, still not looking at me. “Take your lunch and go.”
Fighting a stupid grin, I took the sandwich and dropped a hard kiss to the crown of her head. I inhaled the tang of lemons and whispered, “We’ll pick this back up tonight, woman.”
She nodded, hugging me tight and making me growl because I knew I was gonna be sporting painful wood all day.
“Eight?” she asked.
I nodded. “Yeah, double shift again.”
“Okay. Oh hey!” she cried just as I turned to go.
“Yeah?” I looked back at her, heart going so damn soft in my chest at the sight of her flushed, pretty cheeks and banging bod.
This woman had become my addiction.
She cleared her throat, “Wednesday is Adam’s birthday. I was wondering if you’d like to um... go with—”
“Love to.”
My heart trembled when I was rewarded with one of her million-watt smiles.
“Okay, good.”
“Yeah. Good.”