by Jayne Frost
“Oh … yeah. Sorry.”
When I picked up my phone, the four words on the screen from Tori made the trip almost bearable. Almost.
I love you too.
Chapter 19
Chase
I dropped a case of Shiner Bock onto the bar, then reached into my pocket for the box cutter.
“Top me off?”
My hand froze as I looked into Laurel’s piercing blue eyes. Shifting my gaze to Calista, sitting at a table a few feet away with her arms crossed over her chest, my apprehension waned a bit.
“Depends on what you’re drinking,” I said.
She rolled her eyes. “Just club soda, warden.”
I sprayed a shot of seltzer into her glass. “I ain’t your warden, darlin’.”
Casting off my sarcasm, Laurel brightened at the playful term of endearment. “But Logan says you’re everyone’s keeper.” Sliding her gaze to the side, she muttered, “Even if you are farming it out in my case.”
The fuck?
Placing my palms flat on the bar, I waited patiently for her to look back at me. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Calista?” Lauren tinkled the ice in her glass, barely containing the sneer curling her lip. “Your hired gun.”
Smirking, I pulled a bottle of beer from the vat. “Sober companion is the proper term.”
Considering the sour look twisting Laurel’s mouth, “companion” was a stretch.
“I was thinking more like pit bull,” she spat. “She’s certainly got the face for it.”
My anger roared to life as I leaned across the bar. “Listen, princess. I don’t care whether you like Calista or not, she’s trying to help your ass. Show some respect.”
Eyes round, Laurel’s mouth fell open and then her gaze dropped to my fingers, balled into a fist around the bar towel.
“Geez, I didn’t mean anything.” Lifting her glass, she took a drink. “Get a grip.”
Regret settled over me despite the lingering irritation. Laurel was damaged. To what extent I wasn’t sure. The private investigator Logan had hired to find Laurel uncovered numerous hospital visits for everything from broken ribs to a dislocated shoulder. Whether it was a boyfriend, a pimp, or the strip club owner she worked for, someone had abused her.
Dropping my forearms onto the bar, I lowered my head to catch Laurel’s eyes. “Has Calista shared any of her story?”
She shook her head.
I grabbed a ticket from one of the cocktail waitresses and then pulled out a couple of shot glasses. “Ask her, she’ll fill in the details. But I’ll give you the highlights. Addicted before she was old enough to drive. Two kids by the time she was eighteen. And one hell of a nasty drug habit.”
Filling a shaker with vodka and lemon juice, I smiled. “Don’t let the business clothes fool you. And I wouldn’t let her hear you call her a pit bull. Calista’s actually pretty graceful. Made a lot of money as a dancer.”
Letting that nugget sink in, I poured the Lemon Drops into the shot glasses and then finished loading the tray with bottled beer.
“You mean a stripper, right?” Laurel asked after the waitress picked up the order.
“Yep.”
“But, I thought …” Suspicion threaded her tone. “She works for you.”
I barked out a laugh. “I own two bars and three restaurants. A few buildings. But no strip clubs. Calista is VP of Human Resources for the Phoenix Group.”
Laurel’s cheeks flamed as she stared into her drink. “Must be nice.”
I bit my tongue. Laurel still didn’t get it. Nothing about Calista’s life was nice. Or easy. Calista fought tooth and nail to get clean, stay clean, and piece her life back together. And now she was trying to pay it forward. Because I asked her to.
Shaking my head, I strode to the cash register to run the night’s receipts, keeping one eye on Laurel in the mirror. She looked around, her gaze flitting over all the women and lingering on the groups of unattached guys interspersed throughout the crowd. Clearly, Laurel was on the prowl, which I guess was better than the alternative. Setting her sights on a guy who took a seat a couple of stools down, Laurel adjusted her top, allowing the swell of her breast to spill from her V-neck T-shirt.
I twisted to take a closer look at Prince Charming. Clean-cut. Longhorn T-shirt and faded denim. No tats.
Laurel scooted down one seat, smiling at the kid, and I chuckled to myself. Sex on the brain twenty-four seven, just like her brother.
Not that I had any room to talk. Flashes of Taryn and the look on her face when I was buried between her thighs kept me semi-aroused all fucking day yesterday. Hell, I had to forcibly contain myself from jerking off like some hormone-riddled teenager.
I finally gave in when I was in the shower this morning, visions of Taryn on her knees, working me over with that pretty mouth spurring me on. But my spank session was more about ego than anything else. I had to let off a little steam or I’d blow the second Taryn was under me. And she would be under me. Tonight, sometime after eight fifty-five.
I motioned for Calista to come over. “I thought we agreed that the kid would steer clear of the bar?”
“She’s not a prisoner, Chase. I took her to a meeting, and she mentioned that she wanted to hear a little music. She told me that.” When I couldn’t muster more than a blank expression, Calista sighed. “If she wanted to get wasted, she wouldn’t have told me. And that’s why I’m sitting here. No, it’s not ideal.” She scratched her arm absently. “For her or for me. But she was going to go tonight, regardless. Believe that.”
I covered Calista’s hand with mine. “You know I appreciate this, Cal.”
She smiled. “You can appreciate the hell out of me on my birthday. I’ll make you a list.
After Calista returned to her post with a fresh club soda, Seth tapped me on the shoulder.
“Everything’s in the back of your car, just like you asked.” He handed over my keys. “I threw in some dessert. It wasn’t on the list.” His brow arched. “Unless you’ve got something else in mind for dessert.”
I did, but there was no way I was going to let my asshat bouncer in on the plan.
“Thanks.”
Sifting through a bowl full of peanuts on the bar, Seth grabbed a handful from the bottom. “So, who’s the chick? Is she smoking hot?” He tossed the nuts into his mouth. “Sharing is caring, my brother. Tell me all about it.”
I caught Seth’s arm when he went rooting through the bowl for a second time. “Other people have to eat those. Stop digging around. I have no idea where those fingers have been.”
Clueless as ever, Seth leaned a hip against the cooler. “Whoever this chick is, does she have a sister? Because anyone who’s got you this worked up—”
“I’m not worked up,” I growled. “And I’m not running a dating service. There’s a bar full of women here.”
But none of them were Taryn. And the fact that I was crawling out of my skin because I hadn’t seen her? Yeah, that wasn’t sitting well with me.
Grabbing a bar towel, I went to work scrubbing some imaginary stain. “Sorry, it’s not you,” I grumbled, lifting my chin to Laurel, making goo-goo eyes at Joe College. “Can you keep an eye on that for me.”
One corner of Seth’s mouth quirked up as his attention shifted to Laurel. “I didn’t know you had a thing for Logan’s sister. You want me to go break that up so you can take her upstairs?” Tilting his head, his smile grew. “She is really hot. I wouldn’t mind—”
Before I knew it, I had Seth backed into a corner, my finger an inch from his nose. “Laurel is family. And she’s a fucking baby. So, if you have any thoughts about tapping that, think again. After I got through with you, Logan would work you over so good you’d be taking your meals through a straw.”
Bridgette slid between us, her fingers coiling around my arm. “You boys fighting over me again?”
Strain infused her bubbly tone as her gaze volleyed between Seth and me. The bouncer outweighed me by
a good thirty pounds, all muscle, but you’d never know it by the way his hands flew up in surrender. “Jesus, Chase. I was only messing around.”
Tearing my murderous gaze from his face, I looked down at Bridgette. “I have plans. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Muttering a hasty goodbye to Laurel, I sized up her new friend, who seemed harmless enough.
On my way out, I pulled Seth aside. “I’m going to let that shit back there slide this one time. But I swear to you, man, Logan ever sees you look crossways at li’l sis, he’ll kill you.”
Seth’s hearty laugh faded when he saw the serious set of my jaw. Anyone but Logan and the threat would be idle, and Seth knew it.
Bits of random conversation from the crowds meandering down the sidewalk filtered through my open car window as I waited at the light a block from Taryn’s building. But I couldn’t hear anything beyond the whir in my head.
Taryn’s last text promised a call when she got home. That was an hour ago.
She’s blowing you off.
The thought lingered as I eased to a stop at the hidden gate in back of her building. My fingers hovered over the keypad. Only five people had the code so the blip would definitely show up on the security print out.
Punching in the code, I threw up a smile for the camera in the corner, trained on my car window. And then I drove through the gate.
Chapter 20
Taryn
Exhausted, I battled with my rolling suitcase as I stepped off the elevator. “Work with me, here,” I muttered.
Head bowed, I trudged along, feeling around inside my purse for my keys. For such a tiny bag, everything got lost.
“About time you got here.”
My heart stalled when I spotted Chase sitting in front of my door. Climbing to his feet, he strolled toward me. And then his hands sunk into my hair and his mouth covered mine, tongue diving between my lips with wild abandon.
Sliding his hand to my nape, he touched his forehead to mine. “Missed this mouth.” He nipped my lip to prove the point.
Still dazed from his kiss, I ran my hands over his broad chest to his shoulders. Cursing the hormones, or the pheromones, or whatever it was that made me want to hold onto Chase so tight that he’d never leave, I smiled. “I missed you too.”
“You okay?”
The gentle tone and concern clouding his gaze made me squirm. “I’m fine. Just tired. What are you doing here?”
The pads of his calloused fingertips dug into the tension knots on my neck. “Waiting for you.” He pressed another kiss to my lips, gentle this time. “You said you’d call when you got in. Your plane landed over an hour ago.”
“Yeah, I had to stop by the office.”
A heavenly scent wafted up, and I blinked at Chase as I tried to place the aroma. Wrestling from his hold, I pushed him aside, searching. He chuckled low in his throat as I rushed blindly toward the three large bags with the familiar turquoise script propped against the wall next to my door.
“Franklin’s?” I gushed, nearly falling to my knees in worship. “You brought me barbecue … from Franklin’s?”
Somehow Chase managed to grab the handles on the bags before I ripped them open. “I take it you’re a fan?”
A fan? Franklin’s was hands-down the best barbecue joint in the city. Lines formed around the little shack at sunrise on most days. And when the food was gone, the owner placed a homemade sign in the window that simply read “Out.” That usually happened before noon.
“How did you manage to get Franklin’s Barbecue at this time of night?”
I scrambled to get the key into the lock, missing the target when Chase’s lips brushed my neck. “I told you.” His free hand slid to the juncture of my thighs. “I’m a resourceful guy.”
The heel of his palm slid against the layer of satin lining my skirt. The maneuver was bold, possessive … and totally hot. I thought about protesting. A brief notion that floated away as he applied more pressure.
“Open the door,” he growled into my ear. “I’m starving.”
Chase’s voice, raw with need, sent a quiver down my spine. If he was acting, it was an Academy Award winning performance. In the early years with Beckett, I felt wanted, cherished. But later I was more like his anchor. A familiar port in the storm that was his life. As much as I hated to admit it, I’d read the accounts in the tabloids from the other women who described a wild man that I’d never known. With me, Beckett was gentle, and I thought it was my fault, that I didn’t evoke that response.
But this—the way my stomach flooded with desire—it was all new.
Arm wrapped possessively around my waist, Chase followed me inside. The bags hit the floor with a thud, and containers rolled in every direction. And then I was off the ground, pinned to the wall, his hips holding me in place.
His mouth claimed mine, and his hands were everywhere. “So fucking sweet.”
The slit on my skirt gave way with a loud rip as he wedged himself between my legs. Fingering the lace on the top of my thigh-high stocking, he hissed. “Fuck. Didn’t expect these.”
“Wait … the food!” I protested when Chase scooped me into his arms. “I thought you were starving.”
He brushed a kiss to my lips as he carried me up the stairs. “I am.”
After setting me on my feet in the bathroom, he turned on the faucet and went about finding my favorite bubble bath.
“What are you doing?”
He wiped his hands on his jeans. “Making sure you’re good and relaxed.”
His lips ghosted mine as he fumbled with the seed pearl buttons on my blouse. Next came my skirt, and then I was standing in front of him in only my stockings, matching bra and panty set, and fuck me heels high enough to make a stripper blush.
Dropping to his knees, he kissed the swath of skin on my thigh, directly above the lace on my stocking. “Is there someone in LA I need to worry about, or are these for me?”
“N-no … they’re for me,” I stammered. “I mean, they match the outfit, and I like them.”
“Baby, I’m not complaining. In fact, I think you should wear them every day.” Eyeing the lace once again, he bit his lip. “Yeah … every day.”
He removed one shoe and then the other before making quick work of my bra. Lacing our fingers, he pulled me toward the tub and, pressing his lips to mine, he eased me onto the side. When he removed the two chopsticks holding my loose bun in place, my hair tumbled down my back.
“Interesting use of utensils,” he mused.
I grabbed the sticks from his hand. “They’re not to eat with. They’re for decoration. I got them in China when—”
Silencing my rambling with a soft kiss, he knelt in front of me and then dragged my stockings down my legs.
Fuck me. I had no idea removing my clothes could be this hot.
He popped to his feet, taking me along with him. “Up you go.”
Hooking his fingers into the side of my panties, he shoved them down in one swift move. He fisted the back of my hair as he scored his teeth along my jaw, to my neck, and finally my breast.
“Oh … God …”
Fireworks danced behind my lids as he nudged my legs open and sank two fingers into my slick heat.
“Baby, you better get into the tub or it’s you and me against the sink.”
“Come in with me.”
His lips curved into a smile. “Bathtub sex isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.” I blinked up at him, because I had no idea. “Get into the tub, Taryn.”
When I still didn’t move, he swatted my ass. Hard. “Ouch!”
Rubbing the tender spot, he pressed another kiss to my lips. “Get in the tub.”
I placed one foot in the sudsy water. “Fine … but only because I want to.”
Easing into the fragrant bubbles, I groaned as the water slid between my legs, meeting the bundle of nerves dying for attention.
Chase was gone for less than two minutes, and when he returned he pressed a goblet of wine into my hand.
“Found this in your fridge.”
“Oh, God … Thank you.”
After downing half the glass, I sank low enough that only the peaks of my breasts were visible. My nipples tightened as Chase dragged a soft sponge from my shoulders to the tips of my toes.
Kneading the ball of my foot with nimble fingers, he asked, “How’s that feel?”
I mumbled something unintelligible as he worked his way up to my calves, and farther up to my inner thighs.
“I want to make you come, baby.”
My lids fluttered open, and my mouth curved into a drowsy smile. “I thought bathtub sex wasn’t any good.”
He tipped forward, stealing the gasp that escaped when he eased a finger inside my channel. “This isn’t sex.”
His tongue slipped into my mouth as he added another digit, circling my clit with his thumb.
“Ahhh …” My head fell back, my toes curling as the pleasure rolled through me. “Oh … God … I’m coming …”
When I floated back to earth from the unexpected orgasm, he was smiling down at me. “I love the way you do that.”
“What?”
“Let me know exactly what’s going on inside your head.”
My cheeks flamed. “I do?”
A quick kiss, and he pushed to his feet. “You do. Now, stay put. I’ll be back for you in a few minutes.”
Boneless, I managed a nod, and my lids fluttered closed.
“Ugh … It was just getting good,” I complained moments later when Chase’s hand coiled around my arm to help me to my feet.
He laughed as he wrapped me in a fluffy towel. “I thought you were hungry?”
Franklin’s!
His arm banded around my waist. “Easy. The floors are slippery.”
Despite a mild protest, he swept me off my feet and carried me to my bed. The smell of jasmine from my favorite Yankee candles warred with the faint scent of mesquite that had my full attention. That is, until Chase stripped off his jeans.
