Down by Contact - A Seattle Lumberjacks Romance

by Jami Davenport

  Zach rolled onto his side, taking her with him, his partially-hard cock still inside her. She lay on top of him. Her cheek pressed against his chest, wet from his sweat. She filled her nostrils with the sweet scent of sex, so uniquely theirs. It mingled with the scented vanilla candles burning about the room.

  Somewhere inside her, he’d permanently branded his name on her heart.

  CHAPTER 20

  Naked Bootleg

  They must have fallen asleep because Kelsie woke to the sound of rain hitting the windows of the old house. Zach stirred next to her. His crooked smile warmed her heart. She reached out to him, kissed his warm mouth, and smiled back.

  Drunk with hazy feelings she couldn’t decipher, she needed to explain her earlier behavior.

  “Zach, I’m sorry I overreacted. It had nothing to do with you.”

  “You said that.” He nibbled on her collarbone.

  “I know. I need to explain more.”

  “Okay.”

  “Zach, this thing between us isn’t just about sex.”

  “Really? What’s it about?” His tone was playful, hers was serious.

  “You. I love being with you because of who you are.” She needed him to understand that the former selfish girl wasn’t using sex to manipulate him or draw him into her web. “Maybe in my younger years I might have used my body to get what I wanted, like winning pageants, but this isn’t like that.”

  He pushed her off his body and sat up against the headboard. The frown on his face cut a trench down both sides of his jaw. “You used your body? Did you sleep with the judges?” He looked like a husband who’d just discovered his church-going wife moonlighted as a stripper.

  Kelsie sat up and gathered the sheets around her. “I’m not proud of what I did, Zach.” She couldn’t bear to look him in the eyes. Maybe she’d been too honest this early in their relationship.

  “You slept with the judges?” He repeated and scrubbed his hands over his face. When he looked up again, their gazes clashed. Confusion warred with denial on his ruggedly handsome face.

  “I did what I thought I had to do.” She searched his eyes for understanding, desperately needing someone in her life to forgive her and help heal some of the overwhelming guilt nesting inside her like squirrels running amok in the attic.

  “But you didn’t really sleep with the judges?”

  Kelsie stared at her hands, tried to find the words to explain her actions. “There was a lot of pressure on me to win by my family.”

  “But you slept with the judges?” His brain seemed to be stuck on that one horrible fact from her past. His expression closed off, shutting her out.

  “Zach, I had to win.” She tried to touch him, but he jerked away, as if she might soil him.

  “I have to win, too, but I have my boundaries, my ethics.” He combed a hand through his long hair.

  “I had to win to survive at home.”

  He shook his head. “I don’t understand.”

  “You think my childhood was wonderful because we had money, don’t you?”

  He nodded.

  “Well, let me tell you. It was hell. Pure hell.” Kelsie needed to make him understand. She didn’t want him to think the worst of her.

  “I can’t imagine it was worse than mine.”

  “Not worse, but it wasn’t good either.”

  “Tell me why it wasn’t good. What did the poor little rich girl ever have to worry about?”

  Kelsie took a deep breath and dredged up a past she’d attempted to bury in her backyard of bad memories and mistakes. “As far back as I can remember, my mother paraded me on stage before judges, made up like an unnatural doll and looking way older than I should have. The consummate beauty pageant mother, she didn’t allow me to play with other kids—I might get dirty—or to ever appear out of costume down to the heavy makeup which transformed my face into the face of a hooker. My life was constant practice, countless hours of dance lessons, baton-twirling lessons, and beauty makeovers. My weekends were beauty pageant after beauty pageant.”

  “What about your father? Where was he in all this?” Zach still held his body away from her, but his accusing gaze softened slightly.

  “My father stayed out of it, obviously grateful we weren’t in his hair. Besides, he had his own high expectations. Carringtons do not get bad grades. Carringtons always present themselves with class and dignity. Carringtons aren’t allowed to have human failings. The first pageant I remember losing was at the ripe old age of five years. My mother locked me in my room without dinner, access to a bathroom, or water for twelve hours.”

  “No bathroom?” Zach frowned, not looking quite so judgmental anymore.

  Kelsie stumbled on before she lost her nerve. She’d never told this to anyone. “When I turned thirteen, Mom declared me too flat and made an appointment for breast implants. Terrified, I ran to my father. It was the first and only time he put his foot down when it came to me. My parents almost divorced over what I secretly called Operation Big Boobs. Instead my mother resorted to buying push up bras, custom-made. So, yes, I guess I was programmed from diapers to win at all costs, no matter the price.”

  “So you slept with the judges?”

  “Once. Not an old guy. A younger one from a washed-up boy band.”

  Zach shook his head and rubbed his eyes, as if he couldn’t quite figure out what to do with this information. When he glanced up, he looked so sweet and so confused that Kelsie couldn’t help herself. She ran a finger along his jaw line, over his pursed lips. He pulled away, got dressed, and left her alone with her turbulent thoughts and a bucket full of regrets.

  * * * * *

  Zach stared out the window at the rain falling on the bay beyond. His thoughts scrambled with conflicting realities or at least his reality as he’d known it.

  When he’d woken in bed with Kelsie after an amazing night of sex, he’d been afraid to open his eyes, to find out it’d all been a dream, an erotic figment of his usually boring imagination. Yet her soft body was sprawled on top of his harder one melding their sweat-slicked skin together. Soul-deep satisfaction had settled in his bones. No man could imagine this, especially a practical man who rarely left reality behind.

  He’d left it behind last night. Not only left it behind but jettisoned it right out of his comfortable galaxy into uncharted territory. He’d always known that one night with Kelsie, the girl of his fantasies, would ruin him for any other woman, and now he was sure it damn well had.

  Then she’d dropped the bombshell. She’d traded her body for a Miss Whatever sash. She’d prostituted herself to get what she wanted. How the hell did he know she wasn’t doing that now? Did it even fucking matter since they were both using each other in this crazy-assed marriage of theirs? A stupid idea from the beginning, it seemed even more ridiculous in the morning light. Especially considering how tarnished his princess was.

  Funny thing was, knowing what he knew, he’d still make the same decision. He wanted her, no matter the price, no matter how temporary, no matter how damaged he’d be at the end of the relationship. He’d make a deal with the devil to keep her for as long as possible. Perhaps, he already had.

  Kelsie ran a delicate hand along the bump in his right collarbone, and he stiffened. He’d been so deep in thought he hadn’t heard her approach. “What happened?”

  “Broke it in college.” Her hair brushed against his shoulder, and he breathed in the heady scent of her shampoo and expensive perfume blending with the smell of sex and sweat.

  “Have you broken a lot of bones over the years?”

  “A few.” Some playing football, some caused by an abusive father, but Kelsie didn’t need to know about Zach’s upbringing.

  She planted a kiss on the bump and laid her cheek against his shoulder. “You’re so invincible.”

  “Hardly. I wish it were true.” He was a pansy everywhere but the football field and especially when it came to her.

  She lifted up and gazed into his eyes, her brows f
urrowed in the cutest way. He was so screwed. “Zach?”

  “Yeah?” He stroked her hair, marveling at how the strands slipped through his fingers.

  “I saw the memorial to your brother in the yard.” She stared into his eyes, as if plumbing for his deepest secrets.

  He grunted in response, not wanting to pile his personal pain on top of her painful admission.

  “I’m sorry, Zach. You were with me at the country club the day he died. I didn’t know. I really didn’t know.”

  “I don’t want to talk about it. Not now.” Not ever.

  She looked crushed, as if he’d just told her an eagle had swooped down and carted off Scranton. “Sorry. I know some things are best left alone.”

  “This is one of those things. Okay?” He softened his voice, knowing he’d sounded too harsh.

  “Okay.” She wrapped her arms around him, laid her head against his chest and closed her eyes. Her small hands clutched his back. Actually, it felt good to be needed like this. He shut his eyes, put his arms around her, and tried to live in the moment, not the past.

  When it came to Kelsie, he’d been the one to trail after her like a puppy begging for a pat on the head. She’d tossed a few crumbs his way during their high school years just to keep him on the line, to use him when the need arose, to carry her books or stroke her ego or make her latest boyfriend jealous. He’d been nothing to her but a means to an end. Just like that pageant judge.

  Zach shuddered. What made him believe things had changed one little bit when it came to him and her? Except one big thing had changed. This time he held the cards and the money, and she held nothing.

  Except his fragile heart.

  * * * * *

  That afternoon they left and as soon as the float plane landed on Lake Union, Zach dropped Kelsie off at home and headed to HQ to watch game film. It was after midnight when Zach dragged his tired body into the bedroom he would share with Kelsie.

  Trying to concentrate on film had been next to impossible. His concentration broke several times as his mind drifted to Kelsie’s face and the look in her eyes when he drove her over the edge during sex. Nothing could stand in the way of his quest to win a ring. Nothing. Not even his dream girl wife and fantasy-come-true in bed.

  Zach stripped off his clothes and hesitated beside their bed. Kelsie’s arms were wrapped around his pillow. Her little dog snored at the foot of their bed. This was his life now. With a sigh, he crawled into bed next to her. Immediately, she wrapped her arms and legs around him and clung to him. Zach held her tight, his resolve evaporating like steam from a whirlpool tub.

  “Where were you?” The worry in her sleepy voice caused a twinge of guilt.

  “Working.” He rose up on one elbow, fear rolled through him. “Are you okay? Is something wrong? Have you seen that guy?”

  “No. Not at all. Not since that night you proposed. It’s as if he’s disappeared into the mist.”

  “Let’s hope he stays that way.” He’d done all he could, installed a state-of-the-art security system, and paid a company to make a pass by their house every hour. Maybe the jerk found an easier victim.

  Kelsie bit her lower lip, her gaze slipping to the window and back to him. “I was just lonely. It was so late, and I hadn’t heard from you.”

  “Sorry, I’m not used to updating someone else on my plans. I was watching game film. It was damn hard though.” He ran his hand up and down her spine.

  “Because of me?” She lifted her head.

  “Yeah. The sex between us is fucking fantastic. I’m a man. How can I not be distracted?” He sat up and pulled away from her, unable to think clearly when she rubbed her body against him like that. “I’ve been thinking. We’re halfway through the season. I can’t afford to lose focus. Maybe I should sleep in a separate bedroom for the rest of the season.”

  He rolled to a sitting position and swung his feet to the floor.

  Kelsie grabbed his arm with amazing strength and surprising desperation. “No, that is so not going to happen, buster.”

  A warm feeling settled in his gut. She wanted him here with her. Zach couldn’t deny her. Once the season was over, she’d leave him, and he’d never know the feel of her silky skin sliding across his rougher skin. Or hear her whimper when he touched just the right spot. Or see her brilliant smile when he made her laugh.

  He hated his weakness for her, hated that she only had to say a few words, and he panted at her feet, lovesick fool that he was.

  Love?

  Yeah, dumbshit, love. He’d loved her from the minute he’d laid eyes on her in ninth grade, and despite what she’d done to him, he still loved her. No one would dispute his stupidity or his insanity. Especially considering how cruel she’d been to him, yet he kept coming back for more.

  But right now, the object of his high school obsession wanted more nights with him and he couldn’t deny her. He might be a strong guy, but he sure as hell wasn’t that strong.

  Fumbling for a condom and putting it on, he rolled back onto the bed and pulled her into his arms. She came willingly, placing one of her longer-than-heaven legs across his body to straddle him. She might be a she-devil in disguise, but he’d gladly burn in damnation for the rest of his life for one more moment with her.

  After flipping on the bedside lamp, Kelsie placed her palms on his chest, pushed him back down on the bed and leveraged her hips over his large dick. “I want to see you.” Her throaty whisper sent a shiver running along his thighs.

  He closed his eyes and waited for flesh to meld with pleasure. She lowered herself onto him, sheathing him inside her like an expensive glove made just for him.

  Him, and no one else.

  When she’d taken him inside fully, he opened his eyes and met her starkly blue ones. Something lingered behind her attempts at bravado, something he couldn’t put a finger on. Could it be regret that she’d sold her soul to this particular devil? Or was something else putting those wrinkles above her pretty brow. He didn’t want to be the one who made her unhappy. He wanted to make her happy, find a way to keep her in his life, regardless of the circumstances.

  Not a good situation for a man who prided himself on not needing anyone. The sooner he faced facts and admitted he meant nothing to her but a means to an end, the sooner he could accept this false marriage as nothing but a farce and quit trying to read more into it.

  Using her arms for support, she lifted herself up and then lowered herself back down, one excruciating inch at a time. And there were a lot of inches, if he did say so himself. She threw back her head, her blond hair a tangle of tawny curls. Then she lowered her head with a feral growl of female satisfaction as she fully seated herself on top of him. Her hair danced across his chest in silken waves, and he groaned the groan of a dying man. What a helluva way to die.

  Over and over again.

  If he could, he’d convict her of homicide and lock her up in this bedroom to serve out her sentence.

  A few more times she tortured him with sensual slowness. Unable to take it anymore, he grabbed two handfuls of her incredible ass and drove her home. A wild woman smile dominated her beautiful face. He raised her up and drove her back down. She added her own power to their combined thrusts. She lifted him to ecstasy and took the trip with him, as his orgasm came in wave after incredible wave.

  Definitely murder in the first degree.

  She collapsed on top of him and soon fell asleep. Zach stared at the ceiling, his mind whirling with how he’d keep himself focused on his goal of winning a Super Bowl.

  Somehow that goal seemed to pale in comparison to the woman cuddled against his chest.

  He loved her.

  Now what the hell was he going to do about that?

  CHAPTER 21

  Running the Option

  Tyler’s high-rise condo was so silent you could hear the tension crackling through the room like rain on high-tension electrical wires. Kelsie wrung her hands and racked her brain for something witty and ice-breaking to say. N
othing came to mind. She glanced at her girlfriends. Rachel raised one eyebrow while Lavender just shrugged.

  Tyler sat on one side of the table, his handsome face as hard as granite. Zach sat on the other. His chin jutted out at that stubborn angle Kelsie recognized meant trouble to anyone crossing him. Derek sat at the head of the table, looking every bit like a man being led to the gallows. Tyler’s cat, Coug, jumped onto Ty’s lap and purred so loud he could have been heard on the street several stories below. Ty stroked the cat and acted as if the rest of the room didn’t exist.

  Standing behind Zach, Kelsie took a chance and stepped close enough to rub his knotted shoulders. He didn’t move or react. In fact, his shoulders tightened all the more.

  Careful not to disturb the cat on his lap, Tyler propped his booted feet on an empty chair. He pasted a surly grin on his face. Zach glared right back, not budging an inch.

  “You need a cat, Murphy.” Tyler finally broke the silence.

  “A cat? Her little rat dog is bad enough.”

  Kelsie glanced around at the mention of said rat dog. She should’ve left him home but he hated being alone. As soon as she’d put him down on the floor, Tyler’s evil cat started stalked him until Scranton cowered under the couch and refused to come out. Meanwhile, the cat appeared insufferably pleased with his furry little self.

  “Yeah, a cat.” Tyler turned to Lavender. “Hey, Vin, find a grouchy tomcat for Murphy next time you volunteer at the animal shelter.”

  “I don’t want a cat. I hate cats.”

  For some reason Lavender and Tyler found that statement hilariously funny.

  “I know just the cat.” Lavender winked at Tyler.