“I have missed you the day long, Max,” she told him.
“I am to be sent back to Gaul,” he said, his lips brushing hers.
“I will go with you,” the lady Cordelia said.
“It is not Rome,” he replied.
“We will make it our own little Rome,” she responded.
“My villa is not large, and it has not the amenities of this one,” he warned her.
“We will enlarge it and add what we need, Max. I don’t want to be without you any longer. And I am going to sell Quinn. Many of my friends have admired him. I should realize a nice profit from the sale, and I will use it to make our new home perfect.”
“I think you will regret your decision, Cordelia, but I am not unhappy to have you come. It is lonely in northern Gaul, and cold,” he warned her.
“And your whores smell,” she teased him. “Now you will not have to avail yourself of those savage females, Max, for you will have me to fuck whenever you want to, my darling!”
“I am of a mind to fuck you now, wife, for your speech excites me,” he told her, pulling her into his arms, one hand kneading her breast. “Yes, I very much want to fuck you right now!” he said, yanking his garment off.
She felt his cock—thick, hard, long—against her belly, and she was so eager for him. And then Ashley heard the ping of the Channel’s warning bell. “Damn!” she swore as she felt her fantasy sliding away, and she awoke in her bed alone. Wednesday. It was Wednesday, and she had two long days and another long night ahead of her before Ryan got home. She rolled over, and slipped back into sleep for a few more hours.
He hadn’t gotten back to her yesterday after she had called him about his sisters, but she expected he would eventually. The five harpies were his problem. Yesterday’s little incident had made it certain in her mind that she wasn’t going to like them at all. She and her brother had never been like that with each other. They had gladly shared everything they had between them. If one had a success, the other cheered that success. Oh, yes, she and Ben had had their disagreements, but neither of them would have ever deliberately tried to hurt the other. She didn’t understand how his sisters could be that way. It wasn’t as if their father hadn’t remembered them when he died. Two hundred and fifty thousand dollars each was a damned nice inheritance. And it had been Ryan who had seen that they got that money. Money he had made for their father.
Lacy Nothings was being inundated with new merchandise when Ashley got down to the shop. Jerry, their UPS man, was lugging it all in from his truck and piling it on the counters and floor.
He grinned as he handed her the clipboard to sign. “Looks like Christmas is coming,” he said. “Do you think that teddy I ordered for my girlfriend is in one of those boxes? It sure looked sexy in the catalog, Ms. Kimbrough. And thanks for getting it in her size. Not many shops carry sexy stuff above a twelve.”
“I’ll go through the shipment today and see,” Ashley promised him, signing, and then handing him back his clipboard. “It should be in this shipment or the next. We’ll have it in time for her birthday next month, I promise. And it’s Mrs. Mulcahy now. I got married August twenty-fifth.”
“I thought I heard some gossip around the village about that,” Jerry admitted. He had been the UPS man in Egret Pointe for almost fifteen years now. He knew everyone and just about everything that happened in the town.
“What’s the gossip on Emily Devlin?” Nina asked boldly.
“I just delivered some baby things over there on Friday,” Jerry said. “Essie says she won’t get a nanny cause she likes being a mom. She’s hurrying to finish her latest book,” Jerry informed them. “You can tell she’s real Egret Pointe, like you are, Mrs. Mulcahy. She’s got that good work ethic. Well, gotta go. Truck is pretty full today.”
“That man knows everything that’s to know,” Nina said with a chuckle.
Before Ashley might answer, her cell rang, and, pulling it from the pocket of her slacks, she flipped it open. “This is Ashley,” she said.
“Hey, wife,” she heard Ryan’s voice. “I got your message yesterday. Sorry I couldn’t get back to you. I had to take care of the problem personally, Ash. You aren’t upset, are you? I really apologize for the harpies.”
Ashley moved from the shop floor into her office as he was talking. Now she sat down at her desk. “Yes, I was upset,” she said. “But I got over it. What the hell is the matter with those women, Ryan? A private investigator? What do they think you married, anyway? I don’t know whether to laugh or get mad.”
“Well, first off, they’re sure the marriage isn’t legal. And they’re sure you’re nothing more than a gold digger out for my money, and I’m too dumb to realize it,” he said. “Flattering, huh? But what do I know? I only took a nice little restoration shop and morphed it into a multimillion-dollar business.”
“How did they find me?” Ashley wanted to know.
“Kathleen is married to a cop. Well, actually he isn’t a beat cop anymore. He’s up there in the police hierarchy. He used some contacts of his to track you down, at my sister’s urging. Kevin is actually a decent guy. Not too bright, but decent.”
“That is a serious violation of my privacy and my rights,” Ashley said angrily.
“Look, I spent all day yesterday visiting each of my sisters personally. And I went downtown to One Police Plaza and spoke with Kevin. I had him call Judge Palmer, and we got him to fax a copy of our marriage license to Kevin. I told my brother-in-law that I would be visiting all my sisters with the copy, and he was to talk with the other brothers-in-law, and tell them that if their wives tried any more nonsense, our next step would be legal.”
“And?” Ashley said.
“Kevin took care of the guys, and I took care of my sisters. They aren’t happy about the fact that I’m married, but they’re stuck with it,” Ryan said. “Ash, I apologize. I never thought they would go crazy-crazy. I didn’t realize how out of touch with reality the thought of getting their hands on all that money would make them.” He sounded very embarrassed, and for a moment she felt sorry for him.
“Right now I’m not certain I want to meet them,” she told him candidly.
“I don’t blame you,” he responded.
“But I’ll do the October thing for your mom’s sake. Not a whole weekend, like I was planning, though, Ryan. If your sisters were counting on grabbing your money that much, then they aren’t going to have calmed down in a month. They might never calm down over this, and while that’s their problem, I don’t want to have to put up with it. I’m good to a point,” Ashley told him.
“I understand,” he said.
“We’ll invite them for the day, and make it easy for them by hiring a stretch limo to bring them out and take them home,” Ashley said.
“Let’s do it Saturday, so we have the rest of that long weekend just for us,” he suggested. “Now, don’t let this go to your head, but I missed you last night.” His voice was warmer than it had been previously.
She smiled. “Yeah, me too,” Ashley admitted. “Do you have to stay away until Thursday night?”
“Yeah, I have to, baby. I lost a whole day yesterday running uptown, downtown, and into suburbia dealing with the harpies. And then I had to stop and tell Frankie what went down, and go see Ma, and tell her everything was all right. I didn’t get to my office until late afternoon. That’s why I didn’t call you. I worked until almost one this morning, and then I just crashed where I was. I haven’t even gone back to my apartment yet to change my clothing. I’ll do that later, as I have clients coming in from Europe. I just wanted to make sure you were all right.”
“I’m fine, Ryan. I’m tough, and I don’t collapse too easily,” Ashley told him. “Anything special you’d like for dinner tomorrow night? And incidentally, what time do you think you’ll be home?”
“Steak,” he said with male predictability. “I’ll try to get there by eight.”
“I’ll see you then,” she said.
“Say hel
lo to the girls for me,” he teased her, and then he asked mischievously, “Are you blushing, Ash?”
“Bite me!” she shot back, and she heard his laughter as she flipped her cell shut. She was blushing. She didn’t need a mirror to feel the warmth flooding her cheeks. And her nipples were tingling with the thought of his mouth on them. Damn! What was the matter with her? She had always enjoyed good sex, but now her mind was consumed with it, despite her evening on the Channel. The fantasy wasn’t enough. She wanted reality. She wanted her sexy husband, a man she hadn’t even known three months ago. Tonight she would try the B fantasy. Maybe being dominated by Rurik would ease her.
“Oh, no!” she heard Nina’s voice exclaim.
Ashley got up and went back out into the shop. “What’s the matter?”
“Elegance sent the wrong size for Jerry’s girlfriend’s gift. They sent a six instead of a sixteen,” Nina said irritably. “And you know how long it always takes to get an order from them, Ashley. Her birthday is early in October.”
“You know what to do,” Ashley said. “Call. Get tough, but remind them we have two new shops opening this autumn, and I can’t do business with a firm that’s unreliable,” she said. “Listen, can you handle the shop alone for a while?”
“Are you all right?” Nina asked, her voice concerned.
“I just need to take a ride,” Ashley told her.
“You miss him, huh?” Nina cocked an eyebrow.
Ashley sighed. “Yeah. Who would have thunk it?”
“Are you falling in love with him? Wouldn’t that be nice,” Nina remarked.
“I don’t know. Maybe. If he loved me back, but he’s as wrapped up in his business as I am in mine,” Ashley said.
“You’re not so wrapped up now,” Nina noted.
“But he is,” Ashley said.
Nina watched the younger woman as she left the shop and climbed into her Solstice. The car’s top was down today. It pulled out of the back parking lot with a small roar. Nina knew exactly where Ashley would go. She’d drive up to the Egret Pointe Overlook, park, and sit looking at the bay until she had sorted out whatever it was she needed to sort out in her head. Nina picked up the phone and dialed Elegance.
The sky above her was crystal blue as Ashley drove out of the village and up the coast road. The sun was bright, the air clean. She could feel autumn coming, and it was her favorite season of the year. She pulled into the overlook and parked, her bumper just an inch from the stone wall. There was one nice-sized sailboat crossing the bay below, but with Labor Day over and done there wouldn’t be too many boats out on the weekday water until next summer. The weekends would be busy for a while, but then it would be empty but for migrating whales and the seals.
Nina’s question had really touched a nerve. Was she falling in love with Ryan? And if she was, how was she going to keep it from him? Because of course she would have to keep it from him. They had married for practical reasons. Yet their marriage might last. He said he wanted it to last. And the sex was beyond great. It was true that they had a great deal in common with each other. And the sex was incredible, she thought again. But there was no cause for her to go falling in love with her husband and messing things up. She wasn’t going to push him to the wall, like his older sisters did. She was going to be a good friend, wife, and lover. And if it ended maybe they could remain friends.
So why was she thinking about babies? She had always assumed she would have kids when she got married. But this wasn’t that kind of marriage. Yet she had been thinking about babies ever since that first night. A plump, roly-poly infant with dark curls and big brown eyes. A boy. He wanted a boy. She could almost hear a baby giggle. “What the hell is the matter with me?” Ashley asked herself out loud. Above her a gull squawked noisily. It had to be her biological clock, she decided. She was going to be thirty-four in December, and that clock was ticking louder with each passing day. She needed chocolate. Chocolate always calmed her when she found herself filled with irrational thoughts like this. With a deep sigh she turned the car’s engine on and, backing out of the overlook, headed to the village. It was a workday, not a holiday.
“Have a nice think?” Nina asked as she reentered the shop.
“Did you reach Elegance?” Ashley inquired in return, ignoring Nina’s question.
“They were not pleasant about it,” Nina said. “At first they accused me of poor handwriting on the order, until I reminded them that this order was phoned in, so if the handwriting was bad it was their own, not mine. Then they said they were already in the throes of making and shipping stuff for Christmas, and they didn’t have time to make a single item. So I reminded them that Lacy Nothings has been a client for five years, and that we will have two new shops open by Thanksgiving. If they expect to see their merchandise in those shops they will get that teddy in a size sixteen to us ASAP.”
“And they agreed,” Ashley said.
“They said they will try,” Nina replied, and then stepped back to wait for the explosion that was certain to follow.
“Call them back. Tell them if that teddy isn’t here by Friday that Lacy Nothings will be canceling our current orders and returning the merchandise currently in our possession. And before they make any decision to irritate me further, they might want to check to see how much business we do with them annually. Now I need to redo the front windows,” Ashley said. “I think we should do a back-to-school theme.”
“With underwear?” Nina giggled.
“Why not?” Ashley said with a grin. “I’ll go the mall, and get some school supplies at Wal-Mart.” And she was out the door again.
By late afternoon the two front windows of the shop were done, and both women had to admit it was a successful venture. Some of their most modest yet outrageously sexy garments were displayed among black-and-white composition books, bright yellow Number Two pencils, rulers, colorful folders, crayons, protractors, and big pink erasers. Each window had an antique circa-1940s school bag and tin lunch box, next to which was a bright red polished apple. In one window was an old-fashioned blackboard pointer. In the other was an antique paddle once used by teachers to punish recalcitrant students.
“Too suggestive?” Ashley asked her assistant.
“No, it’s daring,” Nina said. “And I’ll bet we get asked if they’re for sale more times than not. Where did you get the paddle?”
“I borrowed it from the Egret Pointe Museum’s Little Red Schoolhouse,” Ashley said with a laugh. “It pays to be the last descendant of a town founder.”
Nina laughed. “Hey, I’m all for nepotism,” she said. “Well, if you don’t need me to lock up, I’m off. I want to eat early tonight. I’ve programmed a new fantasy for myself having to do with a guy who looks like Cesar Romero.”
“Dirty girl!” Ashley chuckled. “Have fun!” She waved Nina off. She remained in her office for another two hours, catching up with the paperwork. Then, locking up, she headed for her car. She didn’t bother going to the bank. She kept the shop’s proceeds with her when she went home. When she had first opened someone had broken in during the night, but as her register was empty they had gotten nothing. She had put in a security system, reinforced the doors, and never been robbed again. Even Egret Pointe, perfect as it was, had its modicum of crime.
Wednesday was one of the Byrneses’ days off, but Mrs. B. had left Ashley a small chicken pot pie that only needed heating up. She poured herself a glass of iced tea and carried her meal out into the kitchen garden to eat at a small round table that was set up there in the warm weather. She ate slowly, shooing away the wasps that always seemed to appear at an outdoor meal in late summer. She had had a call today from the contractor working on the two new stores. They would be ready for viewing next week. She would have to spend a few days in the city interviewing prospective employees for that shop, and then she would have to go into suburbia to interview for the mall store. It was going to be a busy few months. She wanted both stores open by mid-October. She would have to make a
reservation at a hotel—and then it dawned on her that her husband had an apartment. Why couldn’t she stay there?
Finished with her supper, Ashley returned to the kitchen and put her plate and glass into the dishwasher. Spying a covered plate of Mrs. B.’s rich, gooey brownies, she took it with her upstairs. The house was quiet. Stripping off her clothing, Ashley stepped into her shower for a leisurely wash. She had just gotten out and wrapped a towel around herself when her bedside phone rang. Picking it up, she heard Ryan’s voice.
“What are you wearing?” he asked provocatively.
“A towel. I just got out of the shower. Why?” she asked.
“Unwrap it and get naked,” he replied.
“Hold on,” Ashley said, laughing. “I’m putting you on speaker. Okay. The towel is gone, Ryan. Now what?”
“I want you to begin to fondle the girls, baby. Close your eyes and cup them in your palms. Now begin to tease those sexy nipples of yours. Do you know how badly I want to suck on those pretties? I want you to think about me doing that, Ashley. Think about my hot mouth closing over your nipples one at a time, drawing on them, my tongue lapping at them, nibbling them, until you want to scream. Pull the nipples out, baby, and pinch them. Doesn’t that feel good?”
Jesus Jenny, he was starting to excite her with his words! “Ummm,” she murmured. “I’d rather it were you, Ryan,” she told him.
“I want you to lie down on the bed now,” he said. “You know what I’m doing? I’m unzipping my pants and pulling my cock out. I’m already getting hard just thinking about those delicious tits of yours. Press them together, Ashley, and think about my cock sliding back and forth between them.”
Ashley lay back on her bed and contemplated his words. She was surprised to find herself getting hot. “Your big boy likes playing with the girls, doesn’t he?” she purred at her husband. “Ohh, he’s getting so hard, and he’s being very naughty. He’s kissing my nipples.” She had never had phone sex before, and she decided it was fun.
Sudden Pleasures Page 17
