I sighed, defeated once again, and nodded my approval.
“Fine. Help yourself to leftovers in the fridge. They’re probably still warm.” I turned to Watson, a smug smile on his face. “Make yourself at home.”
This should be interesting.
~*~*~*~
I avoided the boys all evening. Shutting myself in my room, I locked the door and cozied in under my comforter, watching Lifetime movies. Once I heard the soft murmurs from across the hall fade to silence, I went downstairs to grab some water.
The ice machine made a loud rumbling sound as I filled my glass. And as I turned back toward the stairs, I collided with Watson, splashing water over both of us.
“Dammit!”
“I’m sorry. I just came down for some water,” he chuckled.
I grabbed the towel from the oven handle and dabbed at the frigid water on my shirt. “No, that’s okay. No harm . . .” My voice abruptly halted when I looked up. He’d removed his shirt and was standing two feet in front of me.
I took a sharp inhale and held it, unable to refrain from letting my eyes wander over his chest. Absolutely beautiful. A slight V-shape was cut off by his baggy jeans, and a small patch of sandy blond hair trailed down from his navel. Above that was the definition of his abdominal muscles and a small mole under his right nipple. His chest was bare—not a single strand of hair on it—and the water on his chest glistened from the overhead light above the oven.
“May I?” He smirked, holding his hand out to me.
“No you may not!”
“No, Ms. Cole. I meant: May I use the towel?”
I shook my head, smiling embarrassedly. “Sorry, I assumed you were… I mean, I thought you… never mind.” I laughed again, handing him the towel.
After he dried himself, I took his shirt from the counter and threw it in the dryer. “You can grab another shirt from Jake’s closet. This one will be dry in twenty minutes.” I smiled and retrieved my new glass of water from the counter. As I turned toward the stairwell again, I stopped and swung around. I intended to say goodnight, but a question came out instead.
“So, valedictorian, eh? Your mother must be very proud.”
He shrugged. “I didn’t do it for her. But I’m sure she’ll take the credit,” he said with a wink. He sat on the stool at the island, gesturing to the stool beside him. “Would you care to sit with me while I wait?”
I didn’t know if it was the thought of sitting with him or the cold water pressing against my torso, but I shivered. “Would it be rude of me if I said no?”
He shook his head. “I don’t think so. But I’d take offense anyway.” He smiled. “Come, sit down.”
I hesitated briefly, but eventually walked back toward him and sat down, scooting my stool a little farther away from him.
“You look more relaxed tonight. The last time I saw you at the coffee shop, you looked a little out of your element.”
I cringed, thinking about my outfit. Then I cringed again, thinking about how he made me feel and the words he whispered into my ear before he left. Shaking my head, I’d hoped he’d interpret my flushed cheeks as my embarrassment and change the subject.
“You know, they say women who wear a lot of makeup are trying to disguise who they really are, and that they’re ashamed of who they are underneath it all.”
“Is that what you think?” I asked, dumbfounded.
“I assume nothing, that’s why I’m asking,” he shot back. “But I’m happy to hear you care what I think.”
“No! I mean, I’m just… I didn’t know how to… I’ve been going through a…”
“I get it.” He put his hands up, acknowledging my discomfort with the subject. “You look better tonight. Much more natural. All the girls at my school are the same. Commercial. Artificial. There are a few that stand out as different, but for the most part their immaturity baffles me.” He rubbed his hand over his jaw and met my eyes. “And then there are women like you. It doesn’t matter what you do, you’ll always stand out as being unique.”
“You don’t even know me.”
“Oh yes I do. I’ve been watching you for three years, Ms. Cole.”
Shit. Three years? Where have I been? Is that how long he and Jake have been friends? I cleared my throat. “I know what you’re trying to do, Watson.” Clever boy. “And it’s not going to work. So just go and bag your college girl so that you can leave me alone. I’m too old for you—”
He laughed. “College girl?”
“Yeah.” I waved my hand in the air and stood to walk back upstairs. “Jake told me, you’re after some college girl. That’s perfect for you—”
“I don’t know any college girls.” He shook his head, laughing to himself. “But if Jake was referring to the conversation I think he was, what I’d said was that I was going after an older woman.”
Oh, god.
“See, Ms. Cole?” he began, standing and taking a step closer to me. “Your body responds to me. I can see it.” My nipples hardened against my cold, wet shirt, but I couldn’t rip my gaze from his bedroom eyes. My will is slipping. “I know what I want, and I go after it,” he whispered. His finger grazed over my nipple, making the space between my thighs burn like a goddamned forest fire. It halted me where I stood, and I couldn’t make a move in any direction.
“And all I want right now is you,” he added, letting his lips brush against mine. He leaned in toward my shoulder and I moved my neck, giving him access. “You smell delicious,” he whispered.
“You certainly don’t act eighteen,” I said, feeling his warm lips on my neck. His tongue slipped out, and the steamy warmth from his breath shot downward from my shoulder, burning its way to my hips.
“I had to grow up faster than the other kids around me,” he said, his tongue invading the small divot between my collarbones. His fingers were now teasing at my nipple and I was getting swept away in the moment. Although he didn’t act innocent, I knew he was. There was a part of him he was dying to give me, and I was becoming eager to take it.
I’d wanted to ask him what he meant by that statement, but my mind was clouded with a billion things swarming around in my head, and the only thing that decided to exit was more small talk. “What’s the matter with your Jeep?” I asked, my hands finding their way to him.
“Nothing,” he said, his lips leaving my shoulder. His teeth now lightly scraped their way to my earlobe. “It was a cheap excuse to come see you tonight.”
My fingers trailed the hair under his navel, and I allowed my hand to dip below the waist of his jeans.
He gasped as I rubbed the bulge over his boxers. “Jesus,” he choked out, pulling me backward. We hit the slender table in my entry as he found the flat surface of the wall, crushing his chest against mine. And it felt damn good.
He threw my arms over my head and yanked my shirt upward. Within a second, his mouth was on my nipple and his fingers were making a path to my panties. I kept my arms over my head, enjoying this man’s need for me.
“Virgin, my ass,” I whispered.
He smiled against my nipple and then continued sucking. His hand dipped underneath my panties and he buried one finger deep inside me. I gasped and let a hushed groan escape. He brought his face to mine, staring at my lips. “Just because I’m a virgin doesn’t mean I haven’t tasted a woman before.” He brought the finger into his mouth, sucking and savoring my flavor.
I almost came apart right there.
“And you’re by far the sweetest—”
“Mom? You down there?” I heard Jake yell from the steps, interrupting Watson’s whisper.
“Shit!” I rasped when I heard Jake’s voice.
Oh, shit! What am I doing? This is so wrong!
“Yeah,” I called out, my voice cracking. I pulled down my shirt, and Watson stared at me intently. He was bent over, resting his hands on his knees to catch his breath. My hands swept over my mouth as I closed my eyes, ashamed. “I’m so sorry,” I whispered. “I, we… This shouldn’t
have happened.”
“You’re right,” he whispered and took a sharp inhale. After standing up straight, and a deep swallow, he added, “Next time we’ll make sure Jake isn’t home.”
I shook my head, “No!” I shouted.
“Mom?” Jake called again.
My heart began to race again, and I knew I had to keep Jake upstairs or he would be suspicious. I raced to the stairwell and jogged up a few steps before running into my son.
“Hey, honey. Sorry!” I laughed. “Silly me, I dropped a glass of water. I was just cleaning it up. I’m going to go to bed now.” I smiled nervously as I pushed past him and walked up the steps.
“Was Watson down there? I fell asleep when he was rehearsing his speech. But, he’s not in my room.”
“Yes, he was…helping me.”
“Hey,” Watson said, turning the corner of the steps. He was wearing his shirt again, carrying a glass of water. I avoided eye contact with both of them and walked to my room. “’Night, boys!” I called just before slamming my door.
Sliding down to the floor, I covered my face. Stupid, stupid, stupid!
Chapter Ten
It had been a week since I’d seen Watson. I’d decided to steer clear of men for a while until I got my shit together. I hadn’t been to the club, and I hadn’t spoken to Mona, either. I stayed cooped up in my house, concentrating on work and doing whatever I needed in order to keep my mind far from Watson.
“Hey, Darcy,” I said, answering my phone.
“Hello, Chris. I was just calling to finalize some plans for the graduation ceremony on Saturday.”
“Yeah, what’s up?”
“Well I’ll be there early—around three o’clock—setting up the backdrop and flowers around the gymnasium. I was wondering if you could get there a little early to help me out. You could bring the brochures, too. You got all the awards information I sent you, right?”
“Yep, I’m looking at the design right now.” On my computer, I was just plugging in the names of the students, double checking the spellings of each when she’d called. “It shouldn’t be a problem getting there early. I’ll just have to make sure that Jake has a ride.”
“Sounds good. I’ll see you tomorrow night at the PTA meeting and we can finalize our plans then,” said Darcy.
“Thanks for calling. Talk to you tomorrow.”
After typing the names of three hundred students, I got to the Awards section. Valedictorian was the first one. I double checked the name a few times, not realizing what I was seeing. Joel Watson.
Watson isn’t even his first name.
Joel.
Joel.
I hit save and copied the file onto a flash drive, getting it ready to take to the print center.
“Hey, Mom! I’m home!” I heard Jake holler from the entry. His voice boomed through the house, startling me, and I clumsily slapped my mug onto its side, breaking the porcelain. The steaming coffee drained out of the cup straight onto my keyboard.
“Dammit! No!” I picked up my coffee mug and swiftly grabbed a hand towel from the laundry basket.
Jake walked in as I was sopping up the coffee from my desk. “Hey, what happened?”
Wiping the tear from my eye, I shouted, “I broke my mug. My favorite mug!”
“Ma, it’s okay.”
“No! It’s not,” I said, putting angry pressure on my keyboard, dabbing and wiping.
“Mom. Stop.”
“This was your first drawing! You were four! You were so damn proud of this drawing, and I don’t know where the original artwork is. I wanted to keep this memory here forever…”
“Mom?”
I lifted my head, trying to keep my chin from quivering, and wiped my nose.
“Oh. Hi,” I muttered, seeing a stunning young blond standing next to my son.
“Mom, this is Jenn.”
I nodded, a smile spreading across my face. “Jenn.” And she was vibrant. Her hair curtained her face as she kept her head down. Tentative, she stood slightly behind Jake, keeping his hand firm in her grasp. “Hello, Ms. Cole. It’s nice to finally meet you,” she said nervously, reaching her hand out toward me.
“Oh, honey. My hands are all sticky from my coffee. Hang on!”
I ran to the bathroom and washed my hands. Quickly, I dried them and turned back toward my son and his girlfriend in the hall. “I’m so sorry. Hello, Jenn. It’s wonderful to finally meet you, too.” I smiled warmly and extended my hand. “Have you two eaten yet? I was about to order some pizza,” I said enthusiastically, shaking her hand.
“Sounds great,” they said in unison, then giggled.
They’re perfect.
~*~*~*~
“So, Ma. I was hoping to take Jenn out tomorrow. It’s the last day of school, and we wanted to celebrate,” he said, then stuffed half a piece of pizza in his mouth.
“That sounds nice. What’s your plan?”
“Nuffin majo.” His voice was muffled with a full mouth.
Jenn giggled. “Allow me, baby.” She winked and Jake wiped his mouth with a napkin, laughing. “We wanted to go to a movie, maybe dinner?” she stated in a questioning tone.
I nodded. Jake swallowed and picked up his glass. “And,” he began and took a large swig, “I was hoping I could sleep over at her house.”
I choked out my soda, not knowing how to respond.
“But not if you’re in any way uncomfortable with it,” Jenn added.
“What about your parents? Are they okay with that arrangement?” I asked.
“Yes. I mean, they know Jake, and they love him to death. They know he’s… special to me.” She shrugged, tugging the hair back behind her ear and looking bashful at her confession.
My little boy is all grown up. I think I’m gonna cry. Shit. Too late. I’m crying.
“Mom. Don’t cry. Please.”
I nodded and brought my plate to the sink so they couldn’t see my eyes water. “It’s fine. Go ahead. But please call if you drink too much or need a ride. I’m always here, honey. Always.”
He smiled and walked toward me. “Love you, Ma,” he whispered and kissed my cheek.
I sniffed. “Go. Go have fun. I’ll be upstairs if you need me.”
“It was nice meeting you, Ms. Cole.”
“Please, call me Christine,” I said, extending my hand again to shake hers. “It was nice to meet you too, Jenn.”
I turned to walk to my room, and Jake jogged up to me. “Oh, Mom. I was gonna tell you: Watson said he could come over tomorrow and take a look at your computer. I texted him when you were ordering the pizza. He’s kind of a whiz with that kind of stuff.”
“Oh. Well, that’s great. Thanks.” I smiled awkwardly, and my stomach screeched at the thought of seeing Watson for the first time in over a week.
Chapter Eleven
After picking up the graduation brochures from the printers at lunchtime, I headed straight home. I had no idea when Watson was supposed to arrive, but school got out around three o’clock, so I knew I had some time.
I was gonna catch hell from Darcy over missing the PTA meeting, but I really didn’t care. I needed something more in my life, and I was convinced that Watson had the answer. I called Darcy, secretly thanking Jesus that her voicemail picked up, and left her a message pretending I was sick.
I hopped in the shower and shaved every inch of my body. After drying off, I ran to my closet to pick out something to wear. Casual. Gotta keep it casual.
After picking out a set of matching bra and panties, I chose a pair of comfortable jeans and a white chenille button-down sweater. I dried my hair and gathered it on the top of my head, just after applying some lip gloss and mascara.
~*~*~*~
A quarter past five, the doorbell rang. I jumped up from the couch and fumbled with the remote control to turn off the TV. “Coming,” I yelped, continuing to fondle the remote control like I was giving it a handjob. “Stupid…red…button. Turn off!” After finally succeeding, I ran to the door.
Watson gave me his signature quirky smile and held up a tool box. “Yes, ma’am. I’m here to look at a computer.”
I returned a smile and opened the door wider. “Upstairs. Thank you so much for helping me out. I need this fixed by Monday or I’ll have to buy a new one.”
“Well, let’s take a peek, shall we?”
I followed him to my office and watched as his hands moved swiftly, unscrewing the casing of my keyboard. He removed several small parts, examining them and putting them back in their place.
“While you’re here, I have a few other things around the house that you could help me out with,” I joked.
“Like, swapping out the bulb in the kitchen that’s been burnt out since February? Or grabbing the ladder so you can clean the ceiling fan in the living room? Perhaps help you bake a batch of your gluten-frees?”
Holy shit. He has been paying attention. “Well, since you’re here and I don’t have to pay you, I might as well put you to work, right?” I winked.
He laughed, replacing the casing of my keyboard. “Well, Ms. Cole. You’re out of luck. You’re going to need a new keyboard.”
“Just the keyboard? I didn’t ruin my entire computer?”
“Nah. You’re fine.” He stood, wiping his hands together. “But you might want to vacuum out the dust in your hard drive. That might be a problem later on. You should do that a little more often.”
I nodded. “Thanks.”
He followed me to the front door, and I tried to think of something to stall him from leaving.
“Wait.” Oh, sweet Jesus. What am I doing? Let the boy go home. I shook my head. “Never mind.”
He turned toward the door again and I reached around him to grab the knob. His breath caught and he flinched as my hand grazed the zipper on his jeans. Embarrassed that I’d gotten too close, I stood straight and looked to the floor. After clearing his throat, he began, “I…” My eyes searched his expectantly, waiting for him to ask if he could stay. Or that he’d changed his mind and had time to help me with the light in the kitchen. Or to kiss me. Anything. I just wanted more of him. Don’t leave.
“I forgot my tools in your study,” he spouted awkwardly and ran up the steps to my office. Shit. Do I follow him?
Forbidden Fruit Vol 2 Page 46
