They were still standing in the doorway from the building that led into the distribution area when, from this distance, Marilyn noticed a man in the back, who was hauling up pony kegs on a ramp and loading them into the truck. Some were full kegs that the man lifted up, like nothing, and placed inside the truck for future delivery. As she watched the man, she took note of his stark white hat and absentmindedly wondered how his hat could stay so clean in an environment like this.
Tyler nudged them forward toward the delivery truck where the man was just walking towards the ramp to come out of the truck, and spoke up, “And this is my new business partner, Blake Bryant. He is the man behind every scene.”
At the sound of that name, Marilyn couldn’t help but snap her head up, her brain wondering if it was the Blake she wanted to know. As she glanced upward, into the hard-as-rock male, with the stark white hat, she realized two things: one, she would never be able to masturbate the same again and two, she would never, ever, feel like her normal self again.
At that moment, Stark White Hat looked down from the loading platform and right into Marilyn’s eyes. Oh, that is how he gets those wonderful arms. At first he looked so serious she wasn’t sure if he would even recognize her, but then he smiled at her and those eyes hiding behind that smile proved to her that he did not forget her.
He sauntered down the ramp and prompted Tyler, “And what do we have here?” all the while eyeing Marilyn like she was a piece of filet mignon for a hungry tiger.
He stalked toward her and she was pretty sure she couldn’t breathe. She could feel the tension in the air. She understood that at this moment in time, she was his prey and she couldn’t do anything but stand there and watch him come for her. How is this even possible, she questioned herself. Ohmigosh, that is exactly where he got those amazing arms. He continued to stalk her, walking up so close to her, her breasts were grazing his chest (!) and she had to point her chin up higher to look into his face. She held her breath and waited.
“Who is this angel?” Blake looked at Tyler, demanding an answer. He knew he heard her name at the salon that day, but he couldn’t remember.
“It’s just my ex-girlfriend, Marilyn Jacobs. Not a big deal Blake.”
Although Marilyn could not look over at Tyler, she could hear it in his voice that he did not approve of the attention she was getting from Blake. She heard a muffled cough from Amber, which she interpreted as, Marilyn, holy shit!
“Marilyn.” Blake made her name sound like honey dripping from his lips, “I like it. In my mind, you are Angel, but Marilyn definitely fits you. Out of all the breweries in all the towns and of all the world, she walks into mine? It’s my pleasure to see you again.” Oh, he was good. Nothing like a pickup line out of a movie made in 1942 to get her heart racing, she thought.
He lifted her right hand with his left hand, oh no he isn’t she thought, brought it up to his lips and kissed her knuckles. His lips were soft, his kiss was slow and for however long it was that they stood there so close together, she finally realized she hadn’t said anything! He must think she was mute. Oh, dear God.
“I wasn’t sure if you would recognize me.” Her voice sounded husky even to her own ears.
“How could I forget you?” She realized he was still holding her hand, she tried yanking it away but his grip was firm, “Is the feeling not mutual?”
Marilyn could feel the dampness inside her panties, oh it’s mutual, and quickly realized that was not what he meant.
“Yes,” she sputtered, “It is nice to see you again.” Even though thoughts of the first time she saw him entered her mind and brought a layer of redness onto her cheeks.
Blake took his time slowly looking Marilyn up and down and with a gleam in his eyes, he smiled, “Nice shoes.”
Oh thank God for Amber, he likes my shoes, she thought. She smiled at him.
Before Marilyn could say anything, Tyler interrupted, “How in the hell do you two know each other?”
“Oh Tyler, are you jealous? I am not jealous, but I am dying to know too. Please, do tell,” Amber said. “Marilyn how could you?” she gestured wildly with her hands at Blake, “And not say anything to me?”
She stepped away from this sun-bronzed Greek God and finally managed to get her thoughts under control. Blake let go of her hand. Finally. Except now that her hand was free, she realized how much she liked it being entwined with his.
“Okay, Blake and I met at Rumors one day. Nothing more,” she pointedly looked at Amber. “We met, said hi and now here we are, meeting again.”
Next to her, he chuckled. “From the look on her face, she is surprised that she ran into me again. Isn’t that right, Angel?”
“You cannot call her Angel. You two don’t even know each other. Right, Mar? Tell him not to call you that.” It was clear Tyler did not enjoy this episode any more than he did Blake calling her Angel.
“Tyler, it’s not a big deal. Nothing really.” Was she still blushing? Her face felt feverish. Blake was clearly a man of confidence, he did not seem fazed at all about Tyler’s attitude toward his attention to Marilyn. Maybe he did have a military background. After all, aren’t soldiers supposed to be all confidence when fighting for their country? She cleared her throat, “Why don’t you finish showing us around, Tyler? And Blake can get back to work.”
Blake could see Tyler did not like the attention he was giving Marilyn but he did not care. If they were truly exes, as Tyler pointed out, then no one was going to stand in his way of getting to know this sweet angel. God, she was beautiful. How could he have never run into her before? When he saw her at Rumors, he wanted to ask her out and then when she humbled him with her comments he couldn’t think fast enough to say anything and he thought he’d blown his chance. He hadn’t been able to stop thinking about her and now, like a true gift from Heaven, here she was again.
Despite Tyler’s attitude, he wasn’t letting her walk away this time. Tyler would just have to accept the fact. Of course, he was overthinking things at this point because he wasn’t sure what Marilyn thought of the whole situation but if the look in her eyes when she watched him kiss her fingers was any indication, he was confident she would go out with him.
“I am so sorry. Where are my manners? I’m Blake Bryant, I own this place. I am happy to have Tyler as my new partner. Who are you?” Blake stared at Amber with his hand out, offering her a handshake.
Amber did not hide her amusement, “I’m Amber Prescott, one of Marilyn’s BFF's. It is such a pleasure to meet you for myself. Apparently, Mar here, likes to keep good things a secret, huh, Mar?” Amber looked at her accusingly while she shook Blake’s hand.
“Amber, we’ve met one time, there aren’t really any secrets to hide, or for that matter, anything to tell. You’ll have to excuse my friend, she can be a little forward.”
Amber smiled, “Nonsense. Tyler, why don’t you show me where to find a drink in this place while Marilyn and Blake catch up? You can explain to me the different beers you serve so I can decide which one I should order first. Let’s go.” Amber practically pushed Tyler out of the distribution area toward the front of the building.
Being left alone, Marilyn started to get a little nervous. Her heart was beating so fast she was sure Blake could hear it. She could feel Blake standing behind her. He was so close, she could feel the heat coming off his body, his breath in her hair. She slowly turned around, into him. “Well, maybe I should go with them so you can get back to work.”
“Not a chance. I am not letting you out of my sight. In fact, I am not letting you leave here until I kiss you.” His gaze was on her lips. She nervously bit down on the bottom one. “That’s all the invitation I needed.”
And in that split second, his lips were on hers. Soft at first, but then his tongue came out, prying itself in between her lips and she surrendered. She accepted his tongue and kissed him back with all of the want that had been in her body since she met him. Her hands went up around his neck and she could feel his sliding a
long her ribs down to her hips. His grip was firm as they kissed and nibbled at each other like long lost soul mates. She could feel his erection pressed up against her lower stomach making the inside of her belly quiver with desperate need. She didn’t know how long they stood there, all she knew was that she had to have more. She groaned deep in her throat as he pulled away.
“Baby, we have to stop or I will take you right here and right now.” Blake wanted her so bad it actually surprised him. He knew he hadn’t had sex in a few months but it’s not like that hasn’t happened before. In the past he could deal with it, but being in such close proximity to this woman, he wasn’t sure what had gotten into him. At work of all places! He was a professional! What did this woman do to him?
“Oh my gosh. I cannot believe I let this happen. I don’t even know you. I don’t kiss strangers. Ever.” Marilyn was mortified. She couldn’t believe she let him do that to her. Okay, she could believe that but she couldn’t believe that she would have let him fuck her, right here, inside the brewery, on their first official meet and greet. Had he started to do that, she knew with ever fiber in her being, she would have let him.
Blake chuckled, “I am not a stranger – we’ve met twice now.” He said, holding up two fingers as if she needed to see a visual. “And I’ve kissed you twice now. So I would say we are a little more than strangers. In fact, I only kiss women whom I’m involved with, so at this point, I’d say we are involved. Look at me, Marilyn Jacobs, angel sent to me,” he lifted her chin, “I have to see more of you, how would I go about doing that? Whatever this is, I want more of it. Tell me you do, too.”
Marilyn was taken aback by his bluntness. She never really met a man that told her exactly what he wanted, let alone what he wanted ten minutes after meeting her. She was a little gun shy, quite frankly, about getting involved with him because she just didn’t know enough about him yet to know what kind of personality he had or how he treated women. Hell, did he have a girlfriend? Her gut told her he didn’t but that was the whole point – she didn’t know him at all.
“Listen, -“
He cut her off, “I hear a 'but.' Please, no 'but’s.'”
“It is sort of a ‘but.’ I do think there is definite chemistry between us. But how do I know I’m not just another girl for another day for you? I don’t. I think we should get to know each other a little bit, don’t you?” She continued, “I know nothing about you except that you own a brewery and that you’re an excellent kisser-”
He cut her off again, “and that I get my hair cut at Rumors.”
She laughed, “Yes, and that you get your hair cut at Rumors. But still, I don’t do this.” She gestured at the two of them with her hand, “It just isn’t me. So, here’s my proposition, if you are really interested, don’t ask Tyler about me, come find me...I will be lusting after literature.” With that, she gave him a peck on the cheek and turned on her heel and walked off.
Chapter Five
Blake really needed to get back to work. He had this load to finish, which, once delivered, would gross a hefty profit for the company. He took his hat off and ran a hand through his hair. What had gotten into him? Well he knew what his problem was and it wasn’t a what but a who. That little vixen, Marilyn, is what had gotten to him. He was acting on impulse and not taking the time to think things through. He knew from past experience that acting on impulse could get him into trouble. That is exactly what he did the minute he saw that angel. He went over there all caveman-like, and did what his body wanted to do – not what his mind thought he should do. Okay, he conceded, his mind did want to do the things to Marilyn that his body wanted to do but he had sense enough (usually) to think rationally and not act on those things.
But, oh, how he enjoyed taking her by surprise and kissing her. He enjoyed seeing the surprised twinkle in her eyes the minute he kissed her knuckles. He would bet money no man had ever done that to her. Nor did he think any man would have kissed her the way he did, the first time they officially met. He couldn’t figure her out yet, but he was definitely up for the task. One minute, she was laying it out for him, telling him how gorgeous he was, the next she was telling him that this wasn’t how she acted. She was a mass of contradictions so far and he intended to untangle every single one of them.
He fell for her challenge. Already thinking to himself, where would she be lusting after literature? He understood why she said not to ask Tyler about her because that would be too easy for him. Truthfully, he didn’t want to ask Tyler about her – he knew how tainted personal experiences could be for someone, especially when you had to relate them to someone else. There was always room for error. And if there was anything he took away from being in the Army for eight years was that you did what you could to minimize any room for error. No, he wanted to find out about Miss Marilyn Jacobs, aka Angel, all by himself. Okay, lusting after literature obviously meant she liked reading, right? Maybe she worked at the library. Maybe she was a librarian. Ha! That thought almost brought him to his knees. That sweet angel dressed as a librarian while he did certain things to her body that would no doubt make her scream, practically had him drooling on his kegs.
As he continued to load the barrels into the truck, he kept thinking about what she said. Once he got home, he was going to do an internet search on her and see what it brought up. Hopefully, there would be something there that he could learn about her. As it was now, she was probably happy with herself that she got the best of him after he pulled the kissing stunt on her. Maybe once this was finished, he would go and see if she was still here or if she high-tailed it out of here like she did the last time he saw her. That thought made him chuckle.
Chapter Six
Marilyn definitely needed a drink. She might need something stronger than craft brew, she thought. She made her way through the back of the brewery and into the front where she spotted Amber and Tyler in a deep discussion. As she came closer to them, she heard Amber telling him to 'just let it go.'
"Let what go?" Marilyn asked as she approached their table. Tyler looked up at her, he didn't look mad as far as she could tell, just disappointed, she supposed. After what she just experienced, she can't say she really cared what Tyler was thinking.
"Oh, you know. Same ole, same ole. Right, Tyler?" Amber patted him on the shoulder.
"Yeah, right. Hey Mar, do you actually like Blake? Just give it to me straight. I can handle it," he stared at her like his life depended on the answer.
"Yes. I do. I don't know him all that well, but I like what I've seen so far," a blush crept onto Marilyn's face as she recalled his hands on her body while his tongue was wrestling with hers.
Amber winked at her, and mouthed, "You go girl."
"Can I ask why? Why does it matter? And is a waitress going to come over here and take my order or do I have to get a drink myself?"
Tyler gestured for the nearest waitress to come and take Marilyn's order. "I always had it in my mind that you were mine, even after we broke up. But seeing the way you looked tonight with Blake, it made me realize that you can date anyone you want. Even him. And that you've never looked at me that way. Bottom line is, you have my blessing. He is a decent guy. As much as I hate to admit this, Amber helped me see reason where you're concerned." At that moment, the waitress came to their table, saving Marilyn from having to respond.
"Do you guys need a refill?" Tyler shook his head no but Amber agreed. "What will it be for you, Hon?" she asked Marilyn. "Right now, we have a summer brew to kick off the season or if you'd like, I can tell you about some of our regular brews we carry all year round."
"No, that's fine. I will take the summer ale. That sounds great. Just check on us frequently please," Marilyn smiled at the woman.
"Tyler, I love this place already. The atmosphere is great. Don't you, Amber?" She didn't wait for a reply, "I have a feeling that this will be a great investment for you."
"You know, I have that same feeling. I need to get back to work now. If you ladies are here after a
while I will swing back over here." Tyler hugged Marilyn and headed toward the back.
The night wore on and the ladies had a pretty good time. They 'tested' every brew the bar was serving. Marilyn never once noticed Blake checking on them every so often.
They appeared to be able to hold their own, even after they drank, by his calculations, four beers each. It was getting close to midnight when he saw Amber and Marilyn getting into a cab. That made him feel good. He would not have allowed Marilyn to drive, although he didn't really think she was dumb enough to do that. Blake and Tyler managed a friendly avoidance tactic from each other all night.
Blake held nothing against him from their previous conversation with Marilyn, but at the same time he didn't have much to say to him either. He wasn't sure what Tyler's stance was toward him at the moment. But Tyler didn't say much all night and when he did, it was in a business-like manner. Blake couldn't wait for the night to be over so he could get back to his condo to find out more about Marilyn.
He had the truck all loaded and ready for the driver tomorrow. In most cases, they had one shipment every Sunday and they hired a driver to deliver the beer. That way, all the beer would be available to the retail stores to stock on Monday morning. If he didn’t finish loading the shipment the night before, Blake would come in on Sunday, finish the truck and meet with the driver, which wasn't always the same person. Then, he generally had the day off. A fine time to hunt down this little angel of mystery, he thought. He was prepared to go to the library because he knew they'd be open tomorrow, as well as one of those brand name bookstores that was located a few miles away inside one of those outdoor shopping malls. He was really hoping he would be able to type her name into the Internet search and something, anything, would pop up about her, which would make his investigating that much easier. He had half a mind to go into his office and do it now. Oh, what tomorrow will bring, he thought.
Gun Shy Page 4
