Bad Boys In Black Tie

by Erin McCarthy; Morgan Leigh Lori Foster

  She brushed her teeth quickly, but didn’t bother to do anything with her hair. He’d already seen that she looked like the Bride of Frankenstein when she’d answered the door. She was too anxious to care that she had bedhead and looked a mess. She wanted to know the real reason why Fletcher was there at such an ungodly hour.

  With her heavy terry robe on, the belt securely fastened around her waist, she started down the stairs again.

  She could hear him puttering around down there, and oddly, she didn’t feel a bit of angst that he’d come on in, making himself at home in her kitchen. She hadn’t paid any mind to the bag in his hand when she’d opened the door; his body was too distracting to notice anything else, except that tool belt. She loved a man who worked with his hands, and she’d just bet that hard, sweaty work came naturally to him. He had broad shoulders, hard pecs that she imagined tapered to washboard abs and into his slim hips. His biceps stretched the sleeves of his T-shirts. Not like a bodybuilder, but more like a toned athlete. His hair was a dark blond, like fresh wheat, and she itched to run her fingers through it. Maybe when he came down off her roof, she thought, grinning to herself. Staring at his butt when he’d walked away from her car last night had been a veritable feast for her eyes. She knew wondering what he looked like naked would pale to actually seeing him. She had a pretty vivid imagination, but Tess equated it to viewing the sculpture of David fully clothed. It just wouldn’t be the same.

  Her attraction was building like an unstoppable force, and she didn’t even try. That should make those alarm bells go off again, but just like last night, they remained silent.

  Her last boyfriend had cheated on her, and she’d had an inkling beforehand; her instincts were more attuned to trouble than she was. She wished she hadn’t had to go through all that drama, but it gave her confidence that this time, she was interested in a man who could be trusted.

  The delicious aroma of coffee and biscuits wafted up as she paused on the stairs, listening as he hummed a song she’d sung last night. Tess covered her mouth to hide the giggle that she very nearly couldn’t suppress. She was pleased that she’d made an impression on him, just as he had on her. Too bad he couldn’t carry a tune in a bucket, she mused.

  Then the smile faded and her breath caught, as she recalled the exact impression he’d made on her the night before. She’d kissed him in the parking lot, and she’d carried those incredibly erotic feelings he evoked with her into slumber.

  She’d had truly decadent fantasies in the night; he was the man who’d brought her ecstasy in her sleep. No wonder she’d awakened time and again, hot and breathless, despite her scant attire. In her dreams, Fletcher’s lovemaking was hungry, primal, and voracious. Tess hoped that in the near future, he’d take her to those heights of pleasure for real.

  She looked down at herself and hunched her shoulders; there was no mistaking that her nipples were hard, visibly aroused even through the layers of clothing. She rounded the corner and glanced at the mirror as she passed it. There was no help for her flushed skin, either. She’d chalk up her appearance to her mad dash to cover herself. No use scaring him off, looking like a complete tramp, she thought. But she’d have no excuse for the moan that threatened to escape her lips as she came up short at the entrance to the kitchen. Fletcher was there, one hip cocked as he leaned over the table, one palm flat on the surface as he sipped his coffee, staring down at the lyrics she’d tried unsuccessfully to concentrate on last night. His image had kept fogging her mind and she couldn’t put two words together, let alone put them into verse, and she’d finally given up at four A.M. to go to bed. Which was why seven A.M. was way too early for anyone to expect her to be polite.

  She bit down hard on her lip, keeping silent as she leaned against the doorway, watching him pick up the paper, his expression perplexed as if he were trying to figure out a deeper meaning than the one she’d written.

  His head jerked up when he spotted her out of the corner of his eye, and the lust was there, but so was the disappointment. “Aw, honey. I liked your first outfit better,” he said, casting her a sad, pathetic look.

  “I’m sure you did.” Pushing away from the door, she reached for the cup he offered before settling back against the frame. “But I usually save that for the mailman. I like to give him a little thrill a couple times a week, ya know?”

  “Cute,” he said, but tipped his head, his voice filled with warning. “Do be careful, though, Tess. Justice is a small town, but occasionally we have our share of drifters pass through.”

  Her mouth tipped up in a grin, and her belly warmed with his concern, but she was a big girl—a city girl at that. She could take care of herself. “Most drifters don’t beat down your door if they want something, Fletch. And if I hadn’t unlocked the door, you wouldn’t have gotten in. I made sure both of them and all the windows were secure when I took up residence.” She shrugged. “A condition of my life in the city.”

  “Right. Sorry. I know you’re an adult, but if any other man had seen what I just did, he wouldn’t have been able to control his lust.”

  “You controlled yours,” she pointed out.

  His deep growl and the way his eyes raked over her made her shiver in delight. “Barely. If you hadn’t slammed that door in my face, I might not have. And you didn’t relock it before you made your escape,” he countered.

  “Maybe subconsciously, I didn’t want to lock you out.”

  He groaned, taking a deep breath. “It’s a good thing I’m an honorable man, Tess. Words like that could get you into trouble.” His brow raised in warning.

  “If I didn’t trust you, I’d be locked in my bedroom, on my cell, waiting for the sheriff to get here and haul you off to your own cell—in jail. Trespassing is against the law. And though you wouldn’t be breaking in, I’m pretty sure entering without permission would be considered illegal.”

  “Good girl,” he said, his face conveying his admiration for her confidence and common sense.

  His smile nearly knocked her to her knees, though. She was no shrinking violet, despite her mortification at being caught nearly naked answering her door. She was glad he wasn’t the type who saw women as weak, needing a man for protection. She appreciated his warning, but she didn’t need it. Now ... other needs, she thought wryly. That was a whole different story.

  Tess was enjoying their banter. The kitchen was cozy, heating up as they went back and forth, bringing the conversation around to the passion they both felt, but only subtly spoke of. Sidestepping their desire would get old quick, but she was glad he could contain his lust until she was comfortable with him. She only hoped she could control her own!

  She gave him her full attention as he put her papers and his coffee cup on the table, and in that slow, sexy gait strolled across the room to take her own cup from her, setting it on the counter beside her.

  How he was able to get her under his spell so easily, she didn’t know. Maybe she did need his warnings, because when he stepped close, looking down at her, his chest brushing hers, she knew she’d do anything he wanted.

  “Kiss me again, Tess,” he said in that low, gravelly voice. She felt the rumble in his chest, sending tingling sensations to her taut, aching nipples, and as she looked up into those deep green eyes, she did exactly as he asked, one hand sliding up into his hair, the other gripping that tool belt as she rose on her tiptoes to reach his lips, desperate to feel them touch hers again.

  He dipped his head and met her halfway, his mouth crashing down on hers and swallowing her sigh, avidly coaxing her to open wider for him. He took complete possession of the kiss, and she let him, delighting in the taste of the coffee on his tongue as it darted into her mouth and tangled with hers. What a delicious way to get her caffeine fix!

  He changed the angle of the kiss, but she was able to take a quick, excited breath before his lips fused with hers again. He pushed her hand away from his tool belt, unbuckled it, and dropped it to the floor with a thud.

  Pulling her flush
against the hard angles of his body, his hands went to her rib cage and he lifted her, pressing his arousal tightly to her cleft. She heard him shudder through his own breathing as she squirmed between the door’s frame and his. Her robe opened and her fingers dug into his shoulders, getting as close as she could, one leg sliding along the rough denim of his jeans, the friction so sensual she moaned into his mouth.

  Every inch of her flesh was stimulated, and as his lips left hers to lick and suckle at the column of her throat, she couldn’t stand the feelings anymore. She cried out, and her entire body tensed. His answering groan and the insistent rocking of his hips brought her orgasm on like a freight train barreling into her, and she shuddered, her head gnashing against the wood as she ground herself down on his powerful erection.

  “Be still, darlin’,” he said, his voice strained and harsh. “Tess, honey, you’re gonna make me—”

  But she didn’t listen. Her passion had a grip on her and she wrapped her feet around his calves, the pulsing throb of his arousal prolonging her pleasure.

  A joyful laugh of sweet satisfaction resounded through the room, but his groan was louder and longer as he buried his face in her neck. Sliding his hands down to her buttocks, he pulled her hard against him, and she felt the unmistakable signal of his approaching climax.

  Her hips rolled, her thighs flexed, and she deliberately dragged him over the edge with her. Fletcher shuddered in her arms, his breath rushing fast, then stopped altogether as he let himself go.

  The slim doorframe dug into the length of her spine; she knew their early morning coupling might leave a bruise along her back, but he sighed her name, his hot, wet lips gliding over her throat to the upper curve of her breast as he savored his release, and Tess had never felt more alive than she did in that moment. What a rush! She closed her eyes, and he held her weight as she slumped between him and the doorframe, spent and sated. For the moment. Where the hell were those alarms bells in her head?

  “Wowza. Good morning to you, too, Fletcher,” she whispered. Wrapping her arms around his head, she kissed the top of it, combing her fingers through his thick hair as he caught his breath.

  Four

  Fletcher trailed his kisses back up to Tess’s lips. He couldn’t get enough of the taste of her! Maybe the idea of warm honey filled his head when he thought of her, or looked at her, but he’d swear that even with the hint of minty toothpaste on her tongue, he could taste the sweet essence of the natural confection.

  He lowered her, her belly riding along the now-wet spot on his jeans, and aftershocks of pleasure still flowed through him. Her plump breasts were sensitive as they grazed down his chest, and her own body wracked with the same sensations.

  Damn, but he didn’t mean for this to happen!

  She looked up at him expectantly, but he was too stunned to offer an explanation, or even an apology.

  “Oh no, you regret it already, don’t you?” she said, disappointment etched all over her face.

  As much as he hated himself at the moment—he’d let himself down as well as the people of this town who counted on him to make sound, rational decisions—Fletcher hated the look on her face even more. He shook his head, turning away from the temptation.

  Raking his fingers through his hair only reminded him of how her fingers felt when she did it. He covered his face, then propped his hands on his hips, dropping his chin to his chest. Get a grip! he warned himself. There wasn’t any divine intervention to get him out of this down there on the floor. Better face the music.

  He brought his gaze up to meet hers. She stood there, her robe still hanging open, just as he’d left her, teeth sunk into her lip. The glint of a belly piercing drew his focus south; he hadn’t paid any attention to it, but it was a damn sight better than looking at her face, her hopes sinking deeper with every second he avoided the issue.

  “The only regret I have is that it was too fast.”

  She sighed in relief, and he wanted to take her in his arms, assure her that he wanted her again, and again, but he didn’t dare. She was flushed and he’d left marks on her pale skin.

  She glanced down at his jeans, and the mess he’d made with his stupid lust. She caught his eye again, and put up a finger, going to the door off the kitchen.

  She came back with a pair of dark sweatpants in her hand. “These are huge on me, but they’re clean. I usually wear them on cold nights, but it’s been too hot. I only just unpacked them yesterday to put them in storage until winter, but you can borrow them while I wash your clothes.”

  “Tess, you really don’t have to do that—I’ll be fine.” Fletcher picked up on what she said. She was staying? Until winter? That was months away. The puzzle was more complicated than he first assumed.

  “You’ll be uncomfortable, and it’ll give us a chance to talk while they wash. I need to explain some things to you.”

  It was the opening he’d been hoping for. He’d come to help her with the roof—Coop said she had buckets all over the place when it rained—but he really wanted to know what she planned to do. It was an opportunity he couldn’t refuse. He still wouldn’t tell her who he was. Not yet. But at least he’d know where she stood, and where he fit in, as the mayor, and as a lover.

  Taking the clothes from her, he went into the same room to change, and Fletcher shook his head, his mouth turning up in a grin as he saw her close her robe again and tie a double knot in the sash this time. “That’s kind of like closing the barn door after the horses have already left, darlin’.”

  “Well, I didn’t expect that to happen, and I’m not sorry for it, either, but I won’t flaunt myself in front of you. I’m no tease.”

  Fletcher changed into the sweats that fit him perfectly, wondering if they’d belonged to a previous lover. The thought made his gut tighten. He didn’t want to know about other men in her life. But he didn’t delude himself into thinking she hadn’t had any. She was the hottest thing to hit Justice in years.

  Jane was the last one. Okay, Fletcher thought. The memory of his ex-wife put his lust in an icy-cold lake. Problem solved.

  She came up behind him and took his clothes, throwing them in the washer as he crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against the dryer, watching her. Coop was right. Jane and Tess were two very different women. His ex wouldn’t have cared if Fletcher was uncomfortable or not. But Tess didn’t even give a thought to saving him the embarrassment of walking out of here with a stain on his jeans. And she didn’t even know why the prospect might bother him. He felt like a horny teenager, but the outcome didn’t bother him at all. And no way would Jane have engaged in a quickie before her hair was brushed, and she was dressed, and had had her breakfast. He tamped down the bitterness he felt for the woman who’d wronged him and focused on the one who’d pleasured him. He liked a woman who was spontaneous, and Fletcher liked Tess more and more by the minute. He tucked her long hair behind her ear. “Any other time, I’d say feel free to be comfortable in your own home, but you’re right. Walking around without the robe on wouldn’t be wise, given our lack of control. And we should talk. Me first.”

  “Let’s sit down, then. I want some more coffee, and I think I smell biscuits.”

  He grinned. Yup, this was the woman for him, he thought, as he watched her sit down and dig into the food he’d picked up at the diner on his way over. She was a tiny thing, five-foot-five maybe, and willowy thin, but not from lack of appetite. She ate two biscuits before leaning back, one hand over her belly and the ring in her navel, now obstructed by the robe. Gawd, he wanted another look at it!

  She drank the rest of her coffee, setting the cup on the heavy oak table in front of her, and licked her lips. “Okay, you’ve fed me, and I’ve had at least a minimum of caffeine. What do you want to talk about?”

  “All right, I believe in straight shooting. What do you want from me, Tess?”

  She tipped her head. “From you? I thought I made myself clear last night when I told you I liked you. I couldn’t have been more obv
ious. Not to mention what just happened against that wall,” she replied, pointing across the room.

  Fletcher’s jaw clenched. Damn, he’d almost blown it! He meant to ask what she wanted from the mayor, but he’d been distracted, watching her settle back in the chair, shadows darkening the kitchen as the storm clouds he’d warned of began to block out the sun.

  “Point taken. And I like you, too, darlin’.” His eyes slid to the washer, now on the spin cycle. “Obviously.”

  She very nearly purred as she sat up, folding her hands on the surface of the table. “What you really want to know is, does wanting you have anything to do with your mayor, since you work for him, right?”

  Damn, he hated being put on the spot. And he didn’t like knowing that his assumptions last night had stuck with her. “Tess—”

  “No, it’s okay. I understand. But I’ll explain what I meant last night, and then you’ll know that the only interest I have in you is on a personal level.”

  “I don’t think you’ll use me, Tess. I won’t let you. But I’m sorry that this is between us.”

  “Please, Fletcher?” she said, covering his hand.

  There was that connection again, that gut-twisting feeling that he couldn’t shake. He was pretty sure she wouldn’t screw with him like Jane had. But if he wasn’t careful, when she learned his secret, he could hurt her enough to drive her away. He’d gone to bed with her kiss on his lips, and erotic dreams of her made him awaken, hot and hard. No, he didn’t want to scare her off.

  Since he’d won the election, sex was merely a relief of the tension, a mutual session of give-and-take. It didn’t mean anything but the physical satiation he and his partner derived from it. His job had become his mistress. But with Tess, it was more. She made his blood surge hot, and his cock hardened like a rock whenever he thought of her. Hell, they hadn’t even undressed, and already, they’d both come. From a kiss, no less! He had a constant hard-on, even after that explosive climax. But that wasn’t what kept his butt in the seat. It was his desire to discover her secrets and, eventually, come clean with his own.