The Book Boyfriend Series Box Set

by Carly Phillips

  “I’m thinking he’s becoming a lot more than that,” he pointed out quietly. “This is the happiest I’ve seen you since . . . dare I say, since Mitch.”

  No, no, no, no no. She chanted the words in her head, but her traitorous heart was saying, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes.

  Richard squeezed her hand. “I know you love your job. I know you want to be successful, and you will be. You’ve got a headhunter pursuing you for a reputable real estate firm in Atlanta, and that wouldn’t be happening if you’d been sitting on your pretty little ass doing nothing.”

  She still hadn’t made a firm decision about the job offer in Atlanta and had put off thinking about it until she’d fulfilled the terms of her bet with Wes. Which was incredibly stupid, considering what the move could mean to her future. And her career.

  “But,” Richard went on, “don’t be so quick to walk away from something, or someone, that could mean more to you than a job.”

  Natalie’s head began to throb, and she pressed her fingertips to her temples. “Wes isn’t that someone,” she said, hating the way her heart squeezed at those words. “I know he’ll always be a part of my life because he’s my brother’s best friend, but this thing between us right now? We both know it’s temporary.” And she wasn’t going to walk away from a solid job offer for a man who wouldn’t, and couldn’t, give her the commitment she needed.

  Richard sighed and let it go. “We need to finish up lunch so we can head over to the Chamber of Commerce for the networking session. It starts in about half an hour.”

  She nodded, thankful that Richard was dropping the subject of Wes. But her emotions were already in turmoil, and the fact that Wes could affect her so profoundly in a mere ten days wasn’t a good sign. This thing between them was supposed to be a fun, no-strings-attached fling, but somewhere along the way she realized she’d gone and done something incredibly foolish. Something she couldn’t take back, no matter how hard she tried.

  She’d always had feelings for Wes, but now she’d fallen hard for a man who would never love her back, and there was no doubt in her mind that by the time their fourteen days were over and they went their separate ways, she was going to end up with another broken heart.

  Except this time, she had a feeling it wouldn’t be so easy to repair.

  * * *

  “I can’t believe you’re bailing on me,” Wes said, talking to Max on his cell phone as he walked down the street toward the Joy District Restaurant and Bar, where the afternoon Chamber of Commerce networking session was being held.

  “You know how much I hate those things,” Max grumbled as an excuse.

  “And you think I don’t?” Business mixers were probably Wes’s least favorite thing to do—right up there with eating Brussels sprouts and taking out the trash—but since he always managed to drum up useful contacts and increase his client base, he considered them a necessary evil.

  The events were boring, he was forced to make small talk with other business associates, and inevitably he’d get hit on by some woman looking for a prime piece of real estate—wink, wink. The latter he admitted to taking advantage of a time or two, but since his bet with Natalie, he hadn’t given any other woman a second thought. Quite the novelty for him, but he wasn’t complaining considering the past ten days had been nothing short of entertaining, enjoyable, and satisfying, more than just physically.

  “You told me that Natalie was going to be there,” Max said, cutting into his thoughts. “I’m sure you can think of something ridiculous to make her do that’ll ruffle her feathers.”

  Wes smirked. Max was, of course, referring to the bet and the many outrageous things he’d already asked Natalie to do. Like getting on the Centennial Wheel, and a few other straightforward requests, like making his dinner, doing his wash, and cleaning his house, which had been particularly fun for him since he’d requested that she wear the French maid outfit again, which she hadn’t kept on for long.

  The poker game had been the highlight, though nobody knew what came after he’d called it quits, and they never would. He wasn’t one to kiss and tell, and he’d never exploit his affair with Natalie that way. And yeah, he didn’t want to have to deal with Connor blowing a gasket if he ever discovered that Wes had been sleeping with his sister for nearly two weeks—never mind that Natalie was a grown woman and she’d been the one to suggest the fling.

  Wes understood it was a Bro Code kind of thing—thou shall not mess around with your best friend’s sister because it could potentially ruin the friendship—but what Connor didn’t know wouldn’t hurt him, or their business or personal relationship. As long as it stayed that way, they were fine.

  He hung up the phone with Max and continued toward the Joy District, his mind playing over the highlights of the past ten days with Natalie. Who knew that a lost wager could lead to so many delightful possibilities? Like daring Natalie to perform some of the more outrageous sex acts in the Kama Sutra, which had led to a lot of laughing, swearing, and eventually, moans of pleasure when they discovered a few new positions that culminated into some intense orgasms.

  And this past weekend, he’d made her wash his car with nothing but a white T-shirt on top, sans bra, that Wes made sure got nice and wet so he could enjoy the outline of those gorgeous breasts and tight nipples pressing against the clinging fabric. Not to mention the way those full mounds had bounced as she scrubbed the hood of his Audi or how her short shorts had ridden up and revealed her smooth ass cheeks when she bent over to dip the sponge into the soapy water. Yeah, total fantasy material.

  True to her promise, everything he’d asked for, every challenge or dare he’d issued, Natalie had performed without complaint. He loved that she was so adventurous. So fearless. So willing to be bold and brazen with him.

  He headed into the restaurant and rode the elevator up to the roof deck, where the networking mixer was being held in an outdoor setting overlooking the city. The gathering was already in full swing, with drinks and appetizers being served and business professionals mingling.

  The prerequisite sticky name tag was affixed to his shirt, and he picked up a beer from the bar. As Wes made his way through the function, he kept an eye out for Natalie while stopping along the way to say hello to colleagues and acquaintances. He shook hands, passed out business cards, and had conversations with people in his industry. A solid half hour passed of schmoozing and making new contacts before he heard familiar feminine laughter that made his pulse jolt in awareness. Everything else around him faded away as he turned his head toward the sound he’d come to adore.

  He smiled when he saw Natalie, looking sweet but incredibly sexy in a fitted beige skirt that was tight enough to ensure that she was wearing one of her g-strings beneath, and a mint-colored silk blouse that looked prim and proper. Except now Wes had intimate knowledge of what she wore beneath her business attire—enticing, tempting, dick-teasing lingerie.

  She laughed again, the tone soft and intimate and flirtatious, and since it wasn’t directed at Wes like it normally was, he glanced at who she was with. Two guys he didn’t recognize and Richard, whom she was standing way too close to and was now smiling up at as he said something to her.

  An unexpected wave of jealousy swept though Wes and settled into a tight knot in his gut, followed by a surge of possessiveness. Without questioning this unexplainable need he suddenly had to stake his claim, he excused himself from his current conversation and walked over to Natalie’s group, just as she hooked her arm through Richard’s and made a comment that had the two men standing across from her chuckling.

  She’s mine. She’s all fucking mine, he wanted to roar like a goddamn Neanderthal. Instead, he somehow, someway, maintained his composure, though the tight frown that had furrowed between his brows remained. It was his only way to get his message across to these clowns that Natalie wasn’t up for grabs . . . at least for another four days, an inner voice in his brain reminded him.

  Fuck you, conscience . . . for pointing out how little tim
e he had left with Natalie. But for that short duration that she still belonged to him, he realized he didn’t want to share her with another guy. Not her smiles. Not her laughter. Not her flirtatious banter.

  Richard saw him approaching first, and the corner of the man’s mouth quirked with amusement. Wes didn’t know what was so fucking funny, and the other man’s levity only provoked his inner alpha male. Richard lightly jabbed Natalie in the side as she was talking in an animated fashion to the other men. Once he had her attention, Richard nodded in Wes’s direction and said something he couldn’t hear.

  Natalie turned her head just as he arrived, her eyes widening in genuine surprise. “Wes!” She let go of Richard’s arm. “I wasn’t sure you were going to make it.”

  She’d asked him earlier in a text if he’d planned on coming to the event, and he hadn’t given her a definitive answer because he’d had a meeting with a client right before this get-together and wasn’t sure how long it would last.

  “I’m here now,” he said, his voice tight as he encompassed all three guys in a quick glance. “Afternoon, gentlemen.”

  “Hey, Wes,” Richard said with an engaging smile that only irritated Wes more because of how friendly it was. “It’s good to see you again.”

  “Same here,” Wes lied, and made sure that his vise-like handshake sent a loud and clear message to the other man to keep his goddamn hands off Natalie.

  Natalie gave him a concerned look, as if she was trying to figure out why he was being so abrupt, but she didn’t call him on it. Instead, she gestured to the two guys standing across from her. “Let me introduce you to Dale and Jake, who are relatively new reps at First American Title.”

  Both men immediately whipped out business cards, and because Wes didn’t want to look like a complete jackass, he accepted both contacts and gave them the same assertive handshake as he’d given Richard.

  “Anything you need or we can help you with, don’t hesitate to call either one of us or drop us an email,” Dale said amicably.

  In the realty business, title companies were an important part of the selling process. Wes had reps he already worked with, but it never hurt to have a few other contacts in his back pocket. Except at the moment, he wasn’t feeling very chatty or cordial. He gave them a brief thank you and glanced back at Natalie, who had a what the hell is wrong with you? expression on her face.

  “Can I have a moment alone with you, sweetheart?” Wes asked, making sure to put the emphasis on the pet name.

  “Of course, honey,” she parried right back as she batted her lashes impudently at him. “Excuse us, please,” she said to the three other guys.

  With a possessive hand holding Natalie’s arm, he guided her out of the event. There was no private place to have a conversation, and as soon as he saw the EXIT sign over the door leading to the stairwell, he headed there. He doubted anyone would be taking a climb up to the rooftop when there was an elevator available.

  As soon as the door closed behind them, he backed Natalie up against the concrete-block wall and flattened his hands on either side of her shoulders to make sure she couldn’t go anywhere, not without going through him first.

  Annoyance flashed in her eyes. She opened her mouth to say something, most likely a smartass remark, but Wes took her face in his hands, tipped her head back, and cut her off with a hot, hard, dominant kiss.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Natalie moaned as Wes’s mouth claimed hers hungrily, greedily. His tongue pushed past her lips, and she didn’t hesitate to invite him in deeper. Her fingers fisted in his dress shirt, not to push him away but to keep him close, to make sure he could feel that she was kissing him back with as much passion as she felt coursing through him.

  Passion . . . and possession.

  The two emotions were not mutually exclusive, and she couldn’t deny that a part of her reveled in this aggressive side to Wes, mainly because of what had driven him to put his stamp of ownership on her. His kiss was laced with the hot taste of jealousy, and it thrilled her to know that she could have that kind of effect on him, a man who’d always had such a cavalier attitude toward women.

  Judging by his abrupt, less-than-friendly behavior back at the event, cavalier was the last word she’d use to describe his feelings. Yet she was also smart enough to know that this covetous kiss didn’t change anything between them. It didn’t negate the fact that this affair between them had an end date, and it wasn’t a promise of a future. She’d be a fool to believe that was even a possibility with him.

  When he finally lifted his mouth from hers, he was breathing hard and she could feel the tension vibrating off his body.

  She exhaled to calm her racing heart, then reached up to grab his wrists and pulled his hands away from her face. “What the hell, Wes?” she demanded, her tone exasperated.

  His jaw clenched tight with displeasure, and he jammed his hands on his hips. “Those guys were flirting with you.”

  “They were being friendly,” she said reasonably.

  “Same fucking thing,” he growled irritably.

  She rolled her eyes at him.

  “Don’t fucking mock me.”

  She intentionally smirked, just to see his eyes flare with frustration. “I can’t help it. You’re acting like a jackass.”

  He huffed out a breath, and damn if she didn’t think he looked kinda adorable. “Yeah, well, I don’t appreciate Richard being so friendly with you.”

  She had to swallow back a burst of laughter. “Are you serious right now, Sinclair?”

  “The guy provokes me without saying a word, and I know he’s doing it deliberately.” He jammed his fingers through his hair and started to pace in the small area.

  “He’s not provoking you,” she said, then realized that was a lie. “Okay, maybe he is. A little. But it’s not because he’s in some kind of turf war with you over me.”

  He scoffed at her. “You obviously don’t know men and how they think.”

  She snickered to herself. “I know how Richard thinks, and it’s not about getting me naked but rather seeing you naked.”

  Abruptly, he stopped pacing, and for a moment he looked dumbfounded by her comment, then his face scrunched up in confusion. “What?”

  As fun as it was to see Wes suffer, he was about to learn the truth about her good friend. “Richard is gay, Wes. He likes guys, not girls. In fact, he thinks you’re kinda hot and that you have a nice ass.”

  Wes’s eyes grew huge as realization dawned. “I do not need to know that he stares at my ass.”

  She grinned and moved away from the concrete wall. “He’s just pushing your buttons because you’re being all territorial and trying to stake your claim like a He-Man. I’m surprised you didn’t whip out your penis for a dick-measuring contest back there, though I’m sure Richard would have enjoyed that.”

  Gaze narrowed, he stalked toward her. “I’ll show you staking my claim.”

  Before she realized what he intended, he hefted her over his shoulder, caveman style. Then he was jogging down the flight of stairs, jarring her body with every step he took.

  She gasped in shock, unable to believe he’d do something so outrageous. “Wes! Stop!”

  Of course, he didn’t listen, just kept spiraling his way down to the ground floor, carrying her as if he was used to hauling around an extra hundred and forty pounds over his shoulder. Since he didn’t seem inclined to let her go, and they were getting closer to the exit, she threatened him with the one thing all guys weren’t willing to give up.

  “If you don’t put me down right now, before we step out onto the street, your dick isn’t going to get anywhere near my pussy tonight!” She winced at just how high-pitched her voice had gotten and hoped to God no one but Wes had heard her potty mouth.

  Another effortless jog down a flight of stairs. “Baby, you know just how persuasive my dick can be.” He placed a hand on the back of her thigh and slid it beneath the hem of her skirt, right toward her panties. “Sweet little whisper
s and this pussy is all mine.”

  She laughed at his arrogance. “So, now you’re the pussy whisperer?”

  “Hmmm. We’ll have to test the theory when I have you naked and my mouth is between your legs.”

  The erotic mental image that popped into her mind made her squirm on his shoulder. “Not gonna happen unless you put me down.”

  He gave a long-suffering sigh but finally bent over and let her heels touch the ground again just as they reached the door leading to the outside world, then let her have a second to find her balance. When her head stopped spinning, she tugged her skirt back down her thighs and gave him a mock glare that told him he’d be lucky if he got anywhere near her girly bits for that stunt.

  “Oh, don’t go getting all prissy on me, Minx.” Sexy humor darkened his gorgeous blue eyes. “Because I’m so whispering to your pussy tonight.”

  Truthfully, she couldn’t wait to hear what he had to say.

  * * *

  Wes finished uploading his newest listing for a luxury penthouse located at Legacy at Millennium Park, the asking price a cool ten million, then leaned back in his leather chair with a satisfied smile. He’d made a sale on a home in Lincoln Park earlier that morning, and a few hours ago the sellers of the penthouse he’d just posted had signed the agreement to use Premier Realty to broker the property. All in all, not terribly bad for a day’s work.

  He glanced at his wristwatch, noting the time. Five fifteen in the afternoon, and he was suddenly aware of the fact that he hadn’t heard from Natalie all day, not by phone, text, or email. After last night’s marathon of hot make-up sex for his barbaric attitude at the networking event—and testing his newfound pussy whispering skills, where he’d discovered that Natalie’s naughty kitty cat loved when he talked dirty to it—he’d slipped out of her place at almost midnight, leaving her satisfied, beautifully disheveled, and smiling from the multiple orgasms her pussy had enjoyed. His dick had been equally happy and pleased with the evening’s outcome.