“You know,” Josiah drawled. “It’s rude to ignore someone’s phone calls and messages when they’re just trying to make sure you’re okay.”
Laney rolled her eyes. “Well, as you can see, I’m perfectly fine.”
Josiah nodded. “Well, I’d sure like to talk about that little note you left for me this morning.”
“Sorry,” she said shortly. “I’m not really here to chit-chat.”
“Well, if you don’t mind me asking, why are you here, alone, on a Saturday night, if you don’t feel like socializing?”
“If you must know, I’m celebrating.” She paused. “I found out this afternoon I saved up enough money to buy half of The Ginger Paddle from my cousin. So, I’m going to officially be half owner of a sushi bar.” As annoyed as she was, Laney couldn’t help but grin at how wonderful it felt to get to say that out loud.
Josiah’s smile was wide, and genuine. “Lannea, that’s wonderful! Amazing news! You have to let me buy you a drink to celebrate.”
“I’m pretty sure you already did,” Laney deadpanned, the waitress’s insistence beginning to make more sense now.
“So I did,” Josiah agreed cheerfully. “So what? It’s not against the law to buy a pretty lady a drink every now and again. And even if it was, I am the law,” he reminded her with a wink.
“Josiah, you don’t have to call me pretty, or buy me drinks, or worry about me anymore. We’re done, over, finished. Our arrangement was a mistake.”
Josiah was not one to give up easily. He leaned towards her and took her hand in his. “But,” he insisted, “you are pretty. I wanted to buy you a drink, and I was worried about you. And, sweetheart, say what you want, but I for one am certain that the only mistake about our arrangement was my agreeing to let you keep it platonic.”
Laney yanked her hand away, seeing red. If this weren’t Corbin’s Bend, and he wasn’t a cop, she would surely dumped her drink right on top of his arrogant little head and slap him across the face. She might do it anyway.
She raised her hand, and her drink with it, but stopped herself before she did anything too stupid. She was sorely tempted, but she wasn’t actually foolish enough to do it. Not here, anyway, on a night where half the town seemed to be in attendance. Brent would have her ass yanked up in front of the disciplinary board for sure. And with no husband, or boyfriend to speak of, she could only imagine who her spanker would end up being. The thought was enough to still her hand, but not her mouth. Never that.
“I’m sorry that your fragile male ego can’t seem to handle being told no, but you were the one who wanted to keep it platonic. Don’t play coy with me. I know exactly what was going on. I was practice for you, a place holder, if you will. And I’ve got news for you,” she continued, pointing her finger in his face. “I don’t need anyone to help me manage my life. Contrary to popular opinion, I’m actually managing just fine.”
Josiah raised his brow at that last part, but he let it go. “I don’t know what to tell you, sweetheart, other than somewhere along the way our wires got crossed, because you were most definitely the one who wanted to keep it platonic. Now, I agreed only to give myself more time to eventually wear you down, but, honey, I wanted you so bad I couldn’t see straight.”
Laney gaped at him, going over their short lived arrangement in her head, and for the life of her she couldn’t remember exactly who had propositioned who and why. But surely he had to be pulling her leg. If there was one thing she remembered clearly, it was the horrendously bad impression she had made on their first encounter.
Josiah smirked at her as if he knew exactly what was going on in her head, and he probably did. She held up her hand and set her empty glass on the counter.
“I can’t do this right now,” she said, backing away. “I just can’t.”
Her head pounding with unwanted thoughts, she turned and stalked out the door. She wasn’t quite fast enough to miss Josiah’s parting words.
“That seems to be a reoccurring theme of yours today. There seems to be an awful lot of things you can’t do. Or maybe, the real truth is that you’re just scared. Funny, I never figured you for a chicken!”
Laney stopped dead in her tracks. Had he really just called her a chicken in front of the entire town?
She could feel his eyes on her retreating back. She turned, and walked straight toward him, a woman on a mission. The crowd parted to make a path for her, undoubtedly hoping for a dramatic scene. She stopped inches away from him.
“Tell me,” she began, jabbing her finger into his chest, accusingly, “that you did not seriously call me a chicken.”
Josiah shrugged. “I call ‘em like I see ‘em, and you, darling, are running scared. The question is, what are you scared of?” His eyes twinkled as he closed the gap between them. “All signs point to me.”
“You?” Laney scoffed. “You think I’m scared of you?” She rolled her eyes. “Please, I am not scared of you, of all people. You’re probably the least scary man I have ever met.”
“Oh yeah?” Josiah cocked his head at her. “Prove it.”
His heart was pounding. He could feel about 100 eyes boring into him, as he and Laney went head to head in a pure battle of will and wit. They were nose to nose, so close he could practically taste the vodka on her breath when he called her out, daring her to prove that she wasn’t scared of him. He had no idea why he had done that, or what it even meant, but it had seemed like the only thing to say in the moment.
Lannea’s eyes got huge, and her face determined. For a minute, he was sure she was about to smack him, or throw a drink on him, but she didn’t. She stood there silently, staring at him with this strange look on her face. It was intense, and oddly arousing. The heat in her eyes was almost too much to handle. His mouth went dry, and he gulped for air. Her hand came up, and he braced himself for the slap he was sure was coming. His eyes closed on instinct.
Nothing happened. Confused, he opened an eye and peeked out. Her hand came up slowly, and caressed his face. Her other hand grabbed the back of his neck, and the next thing he knew, her lips were on his in a passionate kiss. He heard a cheer come up from the crowd, and he pumped his fist in the air, with his lips still locked on hers. He grabbed her ass, and squeezed, claiming ownership. Her body reacted to his claim, and she pressed up against him until he fell against the bar. The crowd went wild.
“Get a room!” someone shouted.
Breathless, Lannea pulled away, her face still inches from his own. “Want to?” Her voice was sultry and inviting.
“Yes, please.” His desire was evident in his voice, as well as a few other places.
“Let’s go.” She grabbed his hand, and pulled him from the bar, amid the hoots and hollers of the other patrons.
They barely made it into his house before their hands were all over each other. They were a jumbled mess of limbs and Laney could barely tell where she ended and Josiah began. Her hands raked through his short locks as her mouth explored his. He tasted as good as he smelled. They somehow stumbled up the stairs, all the while tangled in a passionate embrace.
Once they made it to the bedroom, Josiah quickly stripped his clothes and reached for her shirt, tugging it upwards over her head. She grabbed it back and pulled it down, tugging it back into place.
“Nuh-uh, cowboy, That’s not how this is going to go.” She shook her finger at him, and stripped down to her bra and panties.
Josiah’s mouth widened in surprise and Laney laughed at the shocked look on his face. She shoved him down onto the bed and climbed on top of him to straddle him.
She drank him in then, her first full look at him fully undressed. She liked what she saw. He was all lean, toned muscle from his calves, to his rock hard six pack abs to his biceps that bulged in all the right places. She reached beneath her and gripped his bulging cock. He moaned loudly and she was pleased to see that he was fully aroused.
“You’re ready for me now, aren’t you, cowboy?” She wiggled her eyebrows seductively and g
ave his erection a slight squeeze.
He nodded excitedly. Poor boy, you would think he was a virgin or something from how close he looked to blowing his load.
“Well, that’s just too bad for you, because I’m going to make you wait for a bit while I have my fun.” She batted her eyelashes at him now, really going for it. The more she got into it, the more fun she was having. “You do want me to have some fun, right?”
Breathless nods from her bed partner forced her to choke back a giggle.
She slowly slid off of him and rid herself of her bra and panties, tossing them to the floor. “Let’s see, what kind of fun shall I have?” Laney looked around. It had been a long time since she’d had sex, but training kicked in. “Do you have any condoms?” He blinked at her, as though surprised, but nodded and pointed at his side table. Score.
Sort of. It was an unopened box of three…three? He bought a box of only three condoms? The man had so much to learn. After ripping it open, she quickly had the rubber out and rolled it down his shaft, enjoying the shudder that went through him when she did. Leaning down so that her mouth was just inches above his throbbing member, she flicked her tongue across the tip, eyes on his face, watching in delight as he gasped for air.
“Hmmm, you like that do you? Let’s see.” She took the tip of his cock inside her mouth and watched as he shivered. Her tongue covered the tip in slow circles while she gripped his shaft, working him up and down as she sucked. Her hand moved lower to grip his balls, lightly tugging on the soft skin as she took him deeper and deeper into her throat.
She watched his face, carefully and when she saw that he couldn’t take it much longer, she slowly released him from her mouth, and slid up his legs until she was perfectly positioned to take him inside her. “Do you want to fuck me now,” she asked him breathlessly, surprised at how aroused the intense expression of desire on his face was making her. Without waiting for a reply, she guided the head of his thick cock to her pussy and began to slide down his shaft, taking him in, inch by inch.
Josiah groaned, and his hands moved to grip her hips. “Slowly,” he panted.
Laney cocked an eyebrow and took one of his hands, moving his fingers to her clit. “Slowly,” she repeated, as she began to grind herself against him. She wasn’t usually the type of girl who enjoyed being on top, but the glazed look of raw lust in his eyes, combined with the increasing pressure of his fingertips on her swollen, throbbing nub and his girth filling her from the inside, were strangely intoxicating.
“You like that?” he whispered, as he stroked her with more fervor.
She moaned and closed her eyes, riding him harder and faster as she felt the familiar pressure begin to build.
With a sudden shout, he arched his back and drove even more deeply into her, and as she felt his cock throb with his release, she, too, fell over the edge, her muscles clutching at him as she shuddered with the force of her climax.
Chapter 11
Well, I think we can both agree that scared of you is one thing I am not.” They were laying on Josiah’s bed, still naked and sweaty in a tangle of limbs and sheets after their intoxicating romp.
Josiah leaned up on one elbow, and peered at her in disbelief. “Really? Of all the things you could say right now, that’s the one you choose to go with?”
“What?” Lannea shrugged, seemingly unaffected. “I had a point to make, and I think we both know I made it.”
Josiah sat up fully and stared at her in alarm. “That’s what this was about to you? Making a point? Proving something? I’m sorry, what are you saying, do you often jump into bed with someone just to prove a point?” Josiah looked angry, and almost hurt, but Laney knew that that couldn’t be right. Men weren’t that sensitive.
“Well, no, but no one has ever called me a chicken before either,” she snapped. “Now I will know what to do if that ever happens again. Not,” she continued emphatically, “that it will, because as I just showed you, a chicken I am not.”
Josiah’s only response was a low growl. Without a word, he scooped her up, and upended her across his lap as she shrieked and laughed.
“Josiah! What are you doing? Quit it! Stop it right now!” Her shouts were cut off by a sharp spank on her bare backside that was hard enough to take her breath away.
She shrieked in surprise as he continued spanking. A fresh onslaught of unexpected swats covered her thighs and naked bottom.
“Jos-IAH! Stop! I’m not in the mood for spanking! I wasn’t ready!”
Her loud protest gave him pause, but only for a moment. “You proved your point, apparently. Now I am proving mine.” His voice contained not one hint of amusement, and Laney’s eyes grew wide as she came to the realization that he was truly intent on spanking her. A real spanking, and not a fun one as she had originally thought.
She could tell her cries of protest would fall on deaf ears, but she voiced them anyway. When that didn’t work, and Josiah calmly continued raining punishing blows onto her tender skin, she switched tactics.
“Okay! Okay! I give! What’s your point? What are you trying to prove?”
He stopped then, and pinched a handful of her aching butt as he spoke. “I don’t have one. To use somebody’s body to prove a point would be rude, and hurtful. I would never do that to anyone, but especially not someone I cared about, and wanted to make a future with.”
Laney’s mouth opened, and then closed as she processed his response. She could go with her instinct and sarcastically point out that he had done exactly that, and made his point with the statement that he didn’t have a point to make, but the retort stuck in her throat at the weight of his second admission.
“I…you…what?” she sputtered, struggling to make a coherent thought while still prone in the spanking position. Josiah seemed to sense her struggle, and helped her into a sitting position on his lap.
“I care about you, Lannea, a great deal, and I want to make a life with you.”
“You hardly know me!” Arguing was her go-to, her comfort level, and it had always served her well. But, even as the words spilled from her mouth, she knew they were just a cover up for her true feelings. It was true that they hadn’t known each other very long, and she knew that was the factor at the root of her fear, but she also knew she harbored similar feelings. Sometimes she felt as if she had known Josiah for a lifetime, and she had to bring herself back down to earth and remind herself that it had only been a few weeks.
From the look in Josiah’s eyes, he saw her words for exactly what they were, and he knew exactly where they came from. He tenderly brushed her hair back from her eyes, and tucked it behind her ear. “Lannea, I know it hasn’t been very long, but from the moment I met you, I’ve felt like you were the one I have been waiting for all my life. I love your wit, and your feistiness, and your impulsiveness. I adore your creative mind, and the love you have for your job, and your customers, and everyone around you. Not to mention, you are without a doubt, the most beautiful woman I have ever laid eyes on.”
The joy of the moment was overwhelming as Josiah poured forward with every sweet thing she had ever wished someone would say to her. Tears welled up in her eyes unshed as he continued. “I wanted more time with you, and I wanted it so desperately that I was willing to go along with your crazy edict that we keep it platonic. But I can’t go on like that anymore, and you can’t either. I want to keep seeing you, I want to be with you, and I want to be the one who takes your naughty little self in hand with a good hard bare bottom spanking when it’s needed. There, I’ve said everything there is to say, and laid it all on the line, so to speak. Now, you need to decide what it is you really want, and be completely and totally honest with yourself, and with me.” He wiped a stray tear from its path down her cheek. “So, what’s it going to be?”
“What do you mean, you’re not sure?” Terri was looking at her as if she had grown a second head.
“I mean, I told him yes, and so technically we’re in a relationship, but I think I may have jus
t been caught up in the moment, and reacted in haste because it felt good at the time.” Laney picked at her salad, not looking her friend in the eye.
“So let me get this straight,” Julie cut in. “This gorgeous, amazing, dominant man comes into town and shows an interest in no one but you, literally from day one, and wants to give you everything you have ever wanted, and you’re not sure? Girl, what is wrong with you?”
“He’s not that dominant,” Laney grumbled, annoyed that her friends didn’t understand, and seemed to be siding with Josiah. “He’s got this weird innocence, and he’s actually kind of naïve. It’s really hard to explain. You have to see it.”
“What? Oh my goodness— stop the presses. You mean, he’s like, a real man with faults and idiosyncrasies, and he doesn’t fit perfectly into the bullshit image of the perfect HoH that you’ve spent years perfecting in your head? Well, fuck, I guess you should focus on that, and not the fact that he’s head over heels crazy about you and ready and willing to give you everything you ever wanted.”
Laney glowered at Terri. “Not everything,” she mumbled under her breath.
Terri rolled her eyes. “Hey, Julie, you know what I think?”
“Hmm, what’s that?”
“I think Josiah was right. Our little Laney is nothing but a big ol’ chicken shit.”
Julie’s eye’s widened in shock, but it only took her a minute to nod her agreement and throw her own two cents in. “Laney,” she began, her eyes softening as she spoke. “I think you are a little scared.”
Laney glared at her but remained silent as her friend went on.
“I also think it’s justified and completely natural. In a matter of weeks you went from single sushi chef sharing a home with her cousin and cousin’s husband, to business partner in a successful restaurant and taken in hand girlfriend to the hot new cop on the block. I mean, sure, nothing’s settled yet, but it looks like a new title, a new relationship, and with it possibly a new home is staring you in the face, and it’s everything you have ever wanted, but with it comes a great deal of responsibility. And we all know that responsibility terrifies you. But, c’mon, these are your dreams. You can’t run from them because you’re afraid you’re going to mess it up.”
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