The Chase, Volume 2

by Jessica Wood

  “No, of course I can’t fucking accept that! Are you serious?”

  I heard her sigh as if I was being unreasonable. “Look, Dean. Can I be honest with you?”

  “Well, that’d be a refreshing change. Sure, why don’t you tell me how you really feel.” I felt bitter and vengeful for the way she’d treated me.

  “Dean, I think deep down, you know we’re not right for each other. We want different things, and our personalities clash. I know we’ve been together for a long time, and in the beginning, we did love each other. But in the last year or so in college, I feel like we’ve drifted apart. I think we’re both changing and growing up, and ultimately we want different things. Look, I’m sorry that I’ve hurt you. I’m sorry that Gibson is your fraternity brother. But I’m not sorry that I feel in love with him.”

  “Do you seriously think this is making me feel better?”

  She sighed again. “Look, I’ve learned one thing through all this. Dean, sometimes the most important things in life will happen when you least expect it. So who knows, maybe someday you’ll meet the most important person in your life on some seemingly ordinary day without even knowing it. I mean, that’s what happened to me when I met Gibson. I wasn’t seeking him out or looking for another relationship. But it just happened.”

  Her words stung me more than I could bear. “Shut the fuck up, Katherine! Just shut the fuck up.”

  “Come on, Dean. We can still be friends.”

  “The hell we can! I don’t ever want to see you again, you fucking whore!”

  Before she could respond, I hung up on her and turned off my phone.

  A wrath of fury crashed through me as my hand gripped tightly around the phone, revealing the whiteness around my knuckles. I reached for the box that burned against my skin.

  I looked at the box and for the first time in my life, I saw myself for who I was: the biggest fucking fool in existence.

  Without another thought, I threw the box into the nearby wastebasket.

  As I walked back inside the airport, I made a vow to myself. I hadn’t just thrown away a ring inside of that box. No, I’d thrown away much more than that. Along with that box, I threw away the last four years of my life—the person I was, the hopes I had for the future, and all of the emotions that had brought me to this point.

  From now on, I wouldn’t let any woman fool me again. From now on, I wouldn’t believe in love. From now on, I would be a changed man.

  ***

  Present Day

  I must be the only person in the world who hated Thanksgiving. To everyone else, it was a time of love, reunions, and thankfulness. But for me, it was a time of darkness, betrayal, and regret.

  So I was not in the greatest mood on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving when Damian had convinced me to have dinner with him and Alexis. As I sat at the bar area of the restaurant waiting for them to arrive, my mind wandered to the one person that’d consumed my mind in the last month or so. Blair.

  I wasn’t sure how she’d gotten under my skin, but she had. But I couldn’t allow myself to accept the feelings that I’d seemed to have developed for her. I couldn’t allow myself to be vulnerable the way I had with the Blonde Bitch. I couldn’t allow myself to become a weak, blind fool again.

  “Hey, buddy!”

  I turned around to see Damian walking over with Alexis, who was carrying Isabella in her arms.

  “It’s been too long, man.” I gave Damian and Alexis a hug before we were ushered to our table.

  “So how are you?” Damian asked after we placed our orders with the waiter.

  I shrugged. “Eh. Nothing much to report.”

  Damian raised his eyebrow and snorted. “I know that look, and it ain’t nothing. What’s the problem? Girl trouble?”

  I forced a laugh. “You know I don’t do girl trouble.”

  “Are you sure, Dean?” Alexis looked at me with doubt in her eyes. Then she looked over at Damian and smiled. “Damian claims he didn’t have any girl trouble until he met me, and look at him now.” She leaned over and Damian kissed her.

  “God, you two are too much. Don’t ruin my appetite.”

  Damian chuckled. “Come on, dude. You’re thirty years old. I know that Katherine—”

  “Don’t call her by her name. She’s the Blonde Bitch to me.”

  “Language, Dean.” Alexis motioned to Isabella, who had a crayon in hand and making circles on what looked like a Frozen coloring book.

  “Oops. Sorry.”

  “Okay, I know the Blonde Witch really messed you up in college, especially when the other guy was Gibson. I still can’t believe they both did that to you. But dude, that was almost a decade ago. It’s really time to get over that.”

  “I enjoy being single.” I watched as Damian and Alexis looked at each other, and it was almost as if they were communicating to each other with their eyes.

  “So who’s the girl?” Damian finally asked. “You can tell us, man. We’ve been good friends for over ten years.”

  “She’s a client.”

  “Oh,” Damian and Alexis said together.

  “It’s not a big deal,” I said quickly. “I don’t even know if I’m really interested.”

  Damian laughed. “You’re definitely interested if you’re saying that.”

  I groaned. “Yeah. Maybe you’re right.”

  “So what’s the problem?” Alexis asked.

  “I don’t want to be interested in her.”

  “Why not?” Alexis looked confused.

  “Because I enjoy being single. It’s not complicated and you don’t have to worry about someone else’s actions and feelings.”

  Damian shook his head. “Dude, I know this is going to sound nuts—especially coming from an asshole like me.”

  “Damian!” Alexis berated her husband and glared at him as she gestured at Isabella.

  “Oh, right. Sorry, babe. But she’s only one. She doesn’t know what that means.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Come on, you promised. We need to get into the habit of not using those words now or we won’t be prepared.”

  “Yes, mom.” Damian playfully nudged her with his arm.

  I saw the hurt expression flash in her eyes. Apparently, Damian saw it too.

  “Hey,” his voice softer than before, “Sorry. I didn’t mean that. You’re right.” He reached over and squeezed her hand reassuringly. She met his gaze and the hurt and annoyance that were once on her face immediately melted away, like it was never there to begin with. In its place was a smile on her lips. As I watched Damian lean down and kiss her forehead, I found a part of me yearning for the closeness and love that they had for each other.

  As if hearing my thoughts, Damian turned to me. “Anyway, I know this may sound crazy coming from me, but I think you should go for it with this woman. Who cares if she’s your client. I haven’t seen you dwell on a single woman before until this one. Who knows? She may be the one.”

  I snorted and rolled my eyes. “That’s just crazy.”

  “Dean, seriously. You know I use to be like you. I know how you think. I want to tell you now that you’re wrong, just like I was wrong. You think love is a weakness, a burden that you have to carry. But you’re wrong.” He turned to look at Alexis and then at Isabella. “Love is strength. It’s possibly the strongest thing that could exist. It can shape you, change you, and guide you to be a better version of yourself. And being loved by those that love you…well, there’s nothing like it. It feels incredible.”

  I watched Damian look at the two loves of his life, and I saw something I’d never seen in him before Alexis came into his life. There was a gleam in his eyes that I’d never seen before. He seemed to be happier than I’d ever seen him.

  Do I want that?

  ***

  After my dinner with Damian and Alexis, I felt more confused than ever. I thought I knew what I wanted. I thought I knew what I wasn’t willing to give to any woman. I thought that after the Blonde Bitch had ripped out my
heart, I had nothing left to give to another woman.

  But when I watched Damian’s and Alexis’s interactions with each other, when I heard what they had to say, something had shifted inside me. I wasn’t sure what all this meant, but I knew that I had to see Blair in person to figure it out.

  I drove to her place and parked. I looked at my Rolex. It was 8:35 p.m. I wondered if she was even home as I knocked on the door.

  Anxiety churned in my stomach as I heard footsteps walking toward the door from inside.

  My breath caught when I saw her standing in front of the doorway in a simple white t-shirt and shorts. Her hair was up in a high pony tail and it looked like she had just returned home from an evening run. She looked gorgeous, and I had a feeling she didn’t even know it.

  “Dean? What are you doing here?”

  Her question took me by surprise, because it was the same question I had for myself. I didn’t know why I was there. I didn’t know why I needed to see her. All I knew was that I had to.

  “I…” Our eyes met and all I could think about was how amazing her eyes were. “I just wanted to see you.”

  My honesty must have caught her by surprise. “I thought I would never hear from you after you turned me away last week.”

  Behind her sarcastic teasing, I knew I had hurt her that night. She was opening up to me and I had rejected her. A pain I’d never felt before radiated through my chest as I realized that I had caused her pain.

  I closed the distance between us and walked up to the doorframe. I wrapped my arms around her waist and felt her body tense in my hands. I leaned in and whispered, “I’m not ready to let go of you.”

  “But…”

  I put a finger to her lips to quiet her. “Invite me in for some coffee.”

  Her chest heaved as she drew in a deep breath. I smiled at how her body responded to my suggestion.

  “But you rejected me…” she continued to resist. She walked backwards into the house, and I followed, closing the door behind me.

  “I was stupid for doing that.” I grabbed her and pulled her back into my arms. “But now you know how I felt every time you tried to reject me.” I smirked as I devoured her with my eyes.

  “But you deserved that,” she threw back, her eyes challenged me as she bit her lips.

  Catching her by surprise, I grabbed her hair at the nape of her neck and pulled her toward me. I licked and nibbled her earlobe. “Well, baby. Let me show you exactly what you deserve then.”

  She gasped as the heat of my words teased her ear and neck. As she arched her pelvis against the throbbing growth in my jeans, she moaned and ran her fingers down my back.

  I moved us to the living room and lowered her to the couch as my mouth explored hers. My hands moved under her shirt and immediately found her breasts. She cried out as my fingers flicked and twisted her nipples.

  “We really shouldn’t,” she begged again as she writhed underneath me. “It’s not a good idea for either of our careers.”

  “Maybe we can work something out?” I looked at her and wondered if she was really more important than my career. “Blair. I think there’s something here, something worth fighting for.”

  Her eyes glistened when she heard my words. “I…”

  “Shhh,” I insisted. “For tonight, let’s just be Dean and Blair. Let’s just be two strangers who met without any obligations or ties to one another. For just tonight, let’s forget I’m your client and you’re my lawyer.”

  I pulled off her t-shirt and bra, and took one of her breasts into my mouth. I heard her whimper as my tongue circled, sucked, and flicked her erect nipple. In responses, she quickly unbuttoned my shirt and jeans, and reached inside my boxers to pull out my rock-hard cock that was begging for its release. I threw my head back as her feather-like touch along my shaft seem to ignite a raw desire in me that I’d never felt before. I’d never wanted anyone as much as I wanted her at that very moment.

  “God, baby. I need to taste you now.” I reached for her shorts and with one swift yank, I pulled her shorts and panties down her legs. “Fuck!” I groaned as the sweet aroma of her scent hit my senses.

  “I need you now,” she began to beg as she grabbed my hands and guided them down her stomach toward her pussy.

  My eyes grew wild with desire the second my fingers reached her warm wetness. I couldn’t hold back any longer. I grabbed her legs and spread them apart as I bend down between them. “Some say I have a fucking sharp tongue. Why don’t we put it to good use?”

  She whimpered as her hips moved up toward me in agreement, desperate for me to taste her.

  Needing no encouragement, I started kissing up her leg toward her pussy. I felt her body tense up and move beneath my tighten grip as my five o’clock shadow brushed along the side of her inner thigh. When I reached my destination, I wasted no time and began to devour her pussy with my mouth and tongue. I smiled as I felt her sweet spot quiver in my mouth. Like putty in my hands, I thought to myself in triumph. As her pussy began to tighten violently against my tongue, I knew she was close to coming. I immediately stopped, emerging from her pussy with her juices all over my face.

  “I’m not ready to give you what you want. I’m not ready for you to come yet, baby.” My cock throbbed in agreement. “My cock wants you all for itself.”

  She gasped as her eyes landed on how large my erection had become for her. “He can have me all for himself,” she said breathlessly.

  I reached for a condom from my jeans and put it on. “Are you ready for me, baby?”

  “Yes!” To my surprise, she grabbed me and pulled me onto the couch. “I want to ride you until you groan out my name.”

  My breath caught at her words. “Is that a promise?”

  She nodded as her lips curled into a dangerous smile. She hopped on top of me and eased herself on top of me. “Baby, when I make a promise, you better believe it’ll happen.”

  I threw my head back as intense throes of pressure greeted me as she rode me like no woman had ever rode me before. Within minutes, I reached my climax and felt my body spasm uncontrollably. “Fuck yeah, Blair! I’m coming.”

  “Yes, come for me.” I felt her purposely tighten her pussy around me as she moved faster up and down my cock.

  “You better fucking come with me, baby.” I grabbed her hips to take control over the situation and began to thrust up deeper inside her pussy in time with the movement of her hips.

  Finally, I felt her convulse around me, encouraging me to pump into her even harder and faster until we both found our release.

  ***

  Half an hour later, I was still wide awake as I listened to Blair’s soft, deep breathing against my skin as her body was wrapped around mine. As I watched her peacefully sleep in my arms, I knew that she trusted me now. I knew that this was exactly what Trent wanted. I knew that this was when I had to make my decision about what to do next.

  I reached for my phone from the coffee table and sent Trent an email.

  To: Trent Parker

  From: Dean Chase

  Re: Opportunity

  Trent,

  We need to talk as soon as possible.

  Dean Chase, Esq.

  Associate

  William & Sutter LLP.

  To my surprise, Trent responded immediately.

  From: Trent Parker

  To: Dean Chase, Esq.

  Subject: Opportunity

  Dean,

  Great to hear from you so soon. I look forward to hearing about your progress. Stop by first thing in the morning.

  Trent

  Trent Parker

  Acting CEO

  San Francisco, CA

  When I put the phone down, I wrapped my arms around Blair and wondered if it was possible for me to live without her in my life.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Blair

  The distant sound of a door closing woke me up. As my eyes fluttered open, my body registered the sweet ache and soreness left behind from last night.
>
  “Dean?” I rubbed the sleep from my eyes as I got up from my bed.

  When I walked into the kitchen, my stomach growled as the smell of Belgian waffles, scrambled eggs, and bacon hit my senses.

  Instead of finding Dean, I found a note next to the breakfast he had made me.

  Blair, my Sleeping Beauty,

  Last night was incredible. I’m already craving for our next coffee break together. I hope it’s soon, and I hope it’s even stronger. ;)

  In the meantime, I thought you’d like some breakfast to give you some energy in preparation for our next meeting. Eat up so you’re ready for whatever I throw your way. Don’t underestimate me.

  I had to leave for an early meeting, but I’ll call you later.

  Hugs,

  Your Coffee Extraordinaire

  I beamed at the note and reread it several times as I slowly savored the delicious breakfast Dean had made for me. A part of me was afraid to believe that this could actually work between Dean and I, but there was something about him that I couldn’t resist. There was something about him that excited me, and I knew I wanted more of whatever I was feeling—no matter the cost.

  ***

  When I walk into the office, I felt a rare glee and excitement that I hadn’t felt in as long as I could remember. The air felt more crisp and fresh than I remembered. The sun seemed to shine brighter than I remembered. Everything seemed to be a bit rosier than I remembered.

  I grinned as I thought about Dean as I rode the elevator up to the floor of my office.

  “Mr. Parker is ready to see you,” I heard the receptionist say as the elevator door opened.

  “Thank you.”

  I froze when I heard his voice in the hallway. Why is Dean here? Why does he have a meeting with Trent? My heart raced as I thought of all the possible reasons he’d be here, and every possibility that came to mind was not a good one. Could it be possible that he set me up? Is he about to tell Trent something?

  Somehow I snapped out of my temporary paralysis and decided to follow Dean. I waited a minute to make sure he was already near Trent’s office before I proceeded out of the elevator and toward Trent’s office. I walked quickly past Trent’s office and snuck into the small conference room on the other side of his office. With the door closed behind me, I grabbed a glass cup and placed it against the wall of Trent’s office.