Her bottom lip stuck out as she pouted. “You’re being unreasonable.” She flounced into the corner of his white couch. “I’ll bet your brother Jim doesn’t behave like such a brute.”
Cal saw red for a moment, and nearly bit Ginny’s head off for lying about her acceptance of him. The comparison between him and his brother stung big time. He loved Jim, but he had no place in Cal’s romantic relationships. Jim knew that very well and treated Cal just as he would like to be treated himself: as an adult.
He was weary of arguing. Things weren’t perfect, women weren’t perfect…hell, he wasn’t perfect either. Things in his space were calming, however, Ginny was a big problem. He’d just begun to think of her as his girlfriend, not just a brief flirtation. But he’d seen this Jim-phenomenon before. The women wanted fame and fortune, and, while Cal did alright for himself as a corporate attorney, he couldn’t match Jim’s success. Very few people could.
He didn’t know quite what to say to Ginny. She’d shown interest in the things that meant something to him, and now she was demanding that he change. Was he so unlovable as himself? Cal’s instincts screamed at him that there was a lot more to it.
“You hardly know Jim, Ginny. How can you call me brutish in comparison? You can’t know what he’s like.”
She brushed a bit of dog hair off her brown leather pants. “Well, I know what I’ve read about him. I was just telling Kiki, the night we met her, about his being in the news and still mourning his wife. A man like that-”
Cal held up his hand. “Wait. You told Jim’s date that he was still in mourning?”
“Well, isn’t he? He seems totally unapproachable from a woman’s perspective.”
His shoulders stiffened. How dare she sabotage Jim’s new relationship by implying that he was lost in his past. “No. He’s not. And, I have to say I really resent your interest in my brother. Are you trying to use me to get to him?”
Ginny frowned briefly, then masked it with a wide-eyed innocent expression. “I’d never do that. I love you for yourself, Cal!”
Cal thought about that for a moment. He didn’t believe her. “You should leave, Ginny. I think this is the end of the road for our relationship.”
She rose and approached him where he stood near the window. “Now, please, Cal. Don’t shut me out.” Ginny ran her hands up his tense arms and onto his shoulders. She stood on tiptoe to try to kiss his lips, but he gently pushed her away, disgusted. She protested weakly.
“Go, Ginny. Go and don’t come back.”
Ginny paused there, looking over his face, gazing into his eyes. He met her look with the sternest expression he had. He was through with her. She hadn’t been the first of Cal’s love interests who was trying to get to Jim. It seemed unlikely that she’d be the last.
Throwing her finely tailored leather jacket on roughly, Ginny gave him a vexed look, grabbed her purse and stalked from his house.
He gestured his Irish setter out of his chair and sat in the warm-seated recliner with a tired whump. The day outside was bright, sunny and cheerful. A perfect day for a picnic. But Cal’s mood was dark and stormy. He rubbed his face and thought about the morning as his dog lay down on his master’s bare feet.
The phone was on the table at his elbow. He picked it up and dialed.
* * *
Kiki was working on her lesson plan for the first week of school when her phone rang. The caller ID said “Unknown” but the number was a local one. She answered it, expecting to hear a political campaign telemarketer or the firemen’s fund donation agency.
“Hello?”
“Kiki, this is Cal Chesterfield. You remember me, right?”
They’d met twice: once at the Rosicrucian museum gala and once as Cal was dropping off something at Jim’s house. She certainly remembered him and became immediately suspicious. Was Jim now sending his brother to coax her into coming back to him. It would be so easy to give in; to express her love for Jim and try to make a happily ever after come about. But she couldn’t trust him not to throw money at every problem. And she couldn’t wrestle with Isabella’s memory.
“Sure I remember you, Cal. Listen, if this is about Jim and I—“
“It is and it isn’t.”
“Did he ask you to call me?”
“No. I got your number from Ernie.”
Ernie knew her number because she’d used her cell phone to ask him to come pick her up when she was living with Jim. “Ernie shouldn’t have given it out. Goodbye, Cal.”
“Wait! I called for a reason.”
Kiki sighed. “I don’t want to be rude, but I’ve broken up with Jim and I think that means Jim’s family, too.” She’d enjoyed meeting Cal and Jim’s parents. It gave her a sick feeling in her stomach when she thought about how kind and gracious the Chesterfield family was, how they’d welcomed her during her weeks living with Jim. She would have given so much to have a family like that. But they couldn’t have possibly suppressed comparisons between Kiki and Isabella. The thought made Kiki feel terribly inadequate, even embarrassed.
“Here’s the thing, Kiki. Ginny lied to you.”
“Ginny? What does Ginny have to do with anything?” The woman was a bad memory, even though Kiki had been alerted to the ghost of Jim’s wife from her. Maybe Ginny had done her a favor.
“She lied. She told you that Jim was still harboring strong feelings for Isabella. That’s just not true.”
A little ember sparked somewhere in Kiki’s chest. “What do you mean?”
He hesitated, thinking. “Ginny told me that she warned you about Jim’s inability to bury his feelings for his wife. Ginny doesn’t know Jim. He isn’t like that. He’s moved on.”
“Are you saying that he didn’t love his wife?”
“Hell, no. He loved her plenty. When she died, he took a long time to deal with it. But he did deal with it. He came to grips and was ready to begin his relationship with you.”
“He didn’t put you up to this?”
Cal sounded a little exasperated when he answered. “No. And he’d punch me in the chops if he knew I was calling. I knew he’d broken up with you, but I didn’t know why. I was calling because if Ginny caused the break-up, I wanted to make things right.”
“Well, thank you, Cal. Isabella’s memory is not the only reason we broke up, though. In fact, I’ve never discussed Isabella with him at all.”
“Oh. Is there anything I can do?”
“You’re kind to ask.” Maybe her voice sounded wistful; maybe she didn’t convey firm resolve. If so, it was probably because she was so in love with Jim that she couldn’t quite let go.
“I know him pretty well, Kiki. If he’s done something or said something, he’ll make it right if you give him a chance.”
“That’s the problem, Cal. He’s always making things right. He wants to use his money to do everything for me. He won’t let me fail.”
“Fail?”
She paused. “I don’t mean I want to fail, just that I want to take chances and learn from my mistakes, not have someone come along and clean up all my messes as though they never happened at all.”
“Okay. I get that. He does try to make things right. He does that with everyone, though, Kiki. He genuinely wants to share his good fortune and make everyone’s life better. He is generous with the people he loves.”
Loves! She wasn’t even going to go there. There was no point in battering her heart with what-ifs and wishes. “He bought me my job, Cal. That’s just over the top.”
“What job are you doing?”
“I’m a teacher at Wildwood Academy. He gave the school a new computer lab so they’d hire me.”
“Um, Kiki. Maybe you should turn on the news.”
A pang of panic shot through her. “Why? Is he hurt? Has he been in an accident?”
“Just turn it on. Channel 15. I’ll talk to you later.”
Eager to see what Cal was referring to, Kiki said good-bye and hurried downstairs to the TV in the main room of the shelt
er.
There was a soap opera on, but no one was there to watch it. Kiki quickly turned to channel 15. A male reporter was yammering.
So that was James Chesterfield, opening the door for Rocket Flare’s new hardware line.
It’s going to be available in stores starting at five o’clock tonight. Channel 15 wants to shout out a big thank-you to them for their generous donations to schools around California. Those new computer labs are going to be hugely popular.
Kiki felt her mouth opening and closing. No words were coming out, though. Her brain buzzed like a swarm of bees was between her ears. She had to sit down quickly.
Her breath hitched and she realized that tears were streaming down her face.
Too late! She wanted to scream. If only she’d had this information two weeks ago, even one week. But now things had gone too far. She’d killed their relationship dead.
But I still love him. Maybe it was stupid. Surely it was unrequited. But she owed him a resolution. She owed him an apology, and he deserved to hear that she’d had things wrong. Just a simple, “I’m sorry,” and that would be it. He didn’t have to know she was in love with him, just that she was, after all, a civil person.
Jim would be busy after his press conference.
Kiki rushed back up to her room and grabbed her cell phone.
* * *
Jim shook hands with a few lingering bloggers. Most reporters had left hours earlier, eager to meet their deadlines. There were always hangers-on. A buxom brunette in very high heels and a tight-fitting dress sauntered up to him as he was turning to leave.
“Mister Chesterfield, I’m Lorelei Wister, of Wister’s Tech Twister. You’ve probably heard of us.”
No, actually he hadn’t. “How can I help you, Ms. Wister?”
“I want to do a brief interview. Get a personal angle. Who’s the man behind the products? Where does he come from and what does he hope to achieve?”
He smiled slightly, exhausted and tired of dealing with people who wanted to pry more and more information out of him. It was a battle. “Can you call my press office, Ms. Wister? I’m sure an interview can be arranged. But not tonight.”
“Oh but, really, Jim, I think tonight would be perfect.”
“Well, I don’t. Please excuse me.”
He started to leave but she took him by the arm and began to walk out with him. Fortunately, there were only a few photographers left, and they seemed more interested in photographing the hardware than they were in him.
His Rolls was waiting at the curb and Ernie hurried out to open the door. Before Ernie could do his job, though, Ms. Wister tried one more time. She ran her hands over Jim’s lapels and leaned into him.
“I can make it worth your while, Jim. I really need the inside scoop and I’d do anything to get it.”
He’d bet she would, too. And with how many other guys? His time with Kiki was too recent. No one else would satisfy him. He had a briefly depressing moment thinking that he was ruined for other women. Despite their time apart, he was still in love with Kiki Mackenzie. “No thanks, Ms. Wister.”
She pouted, but didn’t try to cling when he nodded to Ernie and the man opened the door.
A soft voice greeted him. “She looks very disappointed.”
Jim did a double-take, but recovered quickly. “Kiki.”
“Hi, Jim.”
He slid into the seat next to her. “I’m surprised to see you here.”
“I hope so. I intended it to be a surprise.”
She looked ravishing. Her hair hung in a perfect chestnut sheet, glossy and thick, over her shoulders. She wore one of her designer dresses—he’d seen it more than a few times, but she knew it was a favorite of his, he’d told her so. Her strappy sandals were on her feet, unstrapped at the ankles.
He hadn’t realized his perusal of her was so obvious until she said, “I couldn’t get them fastened. I thought maybe you’d do them for me?”
A laugh escaped him, spontaneous and full. He couldn’t remember the last time he laughed so genuinely. It had been a while. Since Kiki left him. “Give me your foot, sweetheart.”
She turned in the big seat and offered her foot. He was surprised again—she was full of surprises tonight—she wore no panties. He’d never known her to do that. He was immediately hard and his hands fumbled with the buckle on her shoe.
“There’s something I want to say to you, Jim. Don’t interrupt me, okay?”
“I’d like to tell you something, too, but ladies first.” He was curious, but cautious. Maybe she was going to tell him to leave her the hell alone or she’d send the cops after him for stalking. Her appearance and demeanor suggested something a lot more pleasant. His pulse was racing, throbbing in his throat.
“I got a call from Cal today.”
“Cal? What could he possibly—“
She held her hand up and offered her other foot. “You’re not supposed to interrupt.”
“Right. Sorry.” His attention was on what she was saying, but he was hard-pressed not to use his hands to grab her and kiss the stuffing out of her. Instead, he worked the buckle.
“Anyway, I heard from Cal. He wanted to talk to me about Isabella.”
Jim’s head popped up. There were shadows from the streetlights moving rhythmically over her face: shadow, light, shadow, light, like a strobe. He couldn’t make out her expression.
“You and I haven’t talked about her, Jim, but we should. I was told that you were still harboring a deep love for her, one that you’d never get over.”
He opened his mouth, remembered his agreement to keep silent, and shut it again. Who the hell had let that little tidbit out to stink like bad meat?
“Cal didn’t tell me that. His girlfriend Ginny did. So, I’ve been thinking all this time that you could never really want me because you were really wanting Isabella. I could never be good enough.”
Jim shook his head, kicking himself for not telling her about Isabella long ago. They should have discussed his feelings and his recovery from her death. It was his fault that Kiki had gotten the wrong idea. He finished with the buckle but kept her foot prisoner.
“I should have just asked you, Jim. I owe you an apology for that. And for one other thing: I was wrong about the donation to Wildwood. I heard the report from your press conference about your donations to lots of schools. Why didn’t you tell me?”
He moved his hand up her smooth leg to her thigh; the skirt of her dress slid silkily over his knuckles as he caressed her warm skin. “I only just found out. I tried to tell you, but you wouldn’t return my calls. And then I had this product release event so I couldn’t just find you and force you to listen.”
She hung her head and squirmed in the leather seat. “I’ve been stupid.”
“No.” He touched her other leg and captured both of her thighs. “You’ve been cautious. You’ve been angry at me. I could have made matters better. I thought you hated my money so much that you weren’t going to see past it. I tried, but I should have tried harder.”
“Forgive me?”
“Only if you’ll let me kiss you.”
She smiled. “I think that can be arranged.” Sliding over in the seat, she put her hands on Jim’s face. Her palms were warm on his cheeks, her lips parted slightly and glossy. He wrapped his hands in her hair and brought her closer.
Their kiss was incendiary. All the pent up emotion Jim felt was loosed on her mouth, her tongue. He took her small buoy and made it his life raft. When he heard her groan of pleasure, he took her lower lip in his teeth and gave it a nip before releasing her.
“I think I deserve a spanking.”
“No punishment for you, Kiki. If I spank you, it’ll be to tell you how sexy you are, how much you mean to me. It will be because I love you, Kitten Kimberly Ann Mackenzie.”
He watched tears form in her eyes and one escaped to be caught by his thumb.
“God, Jim. I love you, too. I love you so much!”
Jim cupped her breasts
gently, then with some pressure. He wriggled the top of her dress down until they popped free. When he suckled, she gasped and held him tight against her. He could feel her hair brush the seat behind her as she threw back her head.
His cock was raging.
She pushed him away, and for a moment he thought she was rejecting him. Pain shot through him like an arrow. But it wasn’t a rejection. She crawled up in his lap, straddling his legs. Her hands went to his fly and within moments she’d released his throbbing prick.
He pushed the skirt of her dress up to her waist and tucked it into the dress’ belt then gave her a resounding smack on her bottom. She hissed, then kissed him passionately.
Once again he spanked her as she fitted him into her wet, tight sheath. He slid deep, squeezing her warm ass cheeks. Another few smacks and she whimpered, her hips starting to rock him in, out, deep, shallow.
She picked up speed as did his spanks. Her pussy was so wet, her bottom so hot and getting hotter with each of his slaps. He took one of her nipples in his mouth and sucked and nipped, until she was sobbing and panting.
More smacks on her bottom and he could tell she was ready to come. The agony of holding back, waiting for her to get satisfaction was almost over. He could feel his balls tightening, his cock bouncing off the back of her quim.
She began to keen and he gave her one more mighty swat, then pressed her hips down, filling her to capacity, as she squeezed around his dick like a glove. His release came a moment later, and it surged over him hard, leaving him panting against her breast.
Her voice shook as she whispered in his ear. “I love your spankings, Jim. And I love you.”
“No more misunderstandings between us, Kiki. Or I’ll spank you so hard…”
“Promises, promises. Ow!”
He gave her one more blistering spank. There were always more where that came from.
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