by Marie Carnay
Harlow clucked. “That’s too bad. I guess I’ll have to say no, then.”
“What do you mean?”
“Oh, nothing you’d be interested in.” She turned off her phone and slipped it back into her purse. “I’ve got lots of meetings this afternoon, so if you’re just going to sit here and pout all day, I’m leaving.”
Harlow stood up, but Maddie reached out and grabbed her by the arm. “What aren’t you telling me?”
“Are you willing to put your big girl panties on and be a grown-up?”
“That’s what got me into this mess, remember? Lace undies and a very grown-up date.”
Harlow raised an eyebrow and waited.
Maddie exhaled and slumped back onto the couch. She would never get Harlow to spill without admitting defeat. “Fine. Just tell me.”
“They both emailed me thanking me for finding the, and I quote, ‘woman of a lifetime.’”
Maddie swallowed. “They said that?”
“Mitch did. Clark called you better than the Cubs winning the World Series, but I went with the one that had more charm.”
Maddie smiled. “I think they’re both charming.”
“I know. That’s why you need to go out with them again.” Maddie started to protest, but Harlow held out a hand. “Separately.”
“One at a time?”
“Mm-hmm.”
Maddie glanced down at the coffee table. “Is that what they want?”
“Yes. Both have emailed asking for a second date, on their own.” Harlow bent down and perched on the edge of the coffee table. She took Maddie’s hands and squeezed. “They like you, Maddie. Very much. And you like them. Don’t throw away what could be the future because I made a mistake.”
Maddie squeezed Harlow’s hands back. “I’m sorry I took out my embarrassment on you. I’m not really mad, you know.”
Harlow smiled. “Thanks, but I mean it. I feel terrible that I messed that up. I still don’t know how I did it. But I don’t like my screw-ups to ruin everything for you. Go out with each of them. Get to know them.”
“You don’t think it’ll be weird?”
“Who cares if it is? This is your life, not anyone else’s.”
Maddie chewed on her lip. Harlow was right. It didn’t matter what anyone else thought. Plenty of people dated more than one person at once. She didn’t need to run away from Mitch and Clark because of one night. “Okay, I’ll do it.”
“You’ll go out with both of them?”
“Yes.”
“Great! I’ll set everything up.” Harlow grinned and wrapped Maddie up in a quick hug before standing up and heading toward the door.
“But Harlow?”
Her best friend turned back. “Yes?”
“Don’t screw this one up.”
Harlow bent down and picked up a piece of chocolate from the floor. “Just for that, I’m telling them you like footie pajamas.”
“You wouldn’t!”
Harlow called out from over her shoulder as she tugged the apartment door open. “Try me!”
Chapter 7
MITCH
His fingers swiped over his phone’s keyboard as he shot off another text to Clark. Maddie would be arriving at the museum any minute and he needed this settled.
So we agree? Bowling is off the table.
The answer came back immediately.
Agreed.
Mitch nodded in satisfaction and shoved his phone in his pocket.
It had been three days since their date with Maddie, and he couldn’t get the woman out of his head. Every five minutes, he caught himself daydreaming about the sexy little noises that escaped her lips when she came. Or the way her fingers fluttered across his skin with every wave of her climax.
But it wasn’t just the limo ride that had him tied up in knots. She was gorgeous, open-minded, and liked bowling. Hell, he hadn’t known a woman who liked to bowl since he was a kid.
It didn’t make for productive days in the office when his deadlines loomed closer and a massive deal was brewing for the firm. He needed to be talking to other firms and figuring out his next steps.
If he accepted another firm’s offer, he’d be holed up in his office for weeks preparing, watching the sun rise and set from the thirtieth floor of their building downtown, unable to woo and court Maddie like he should.
His lack of time was the main reason he’d contacted Harlow in the first place. A lawyer in a big firm didn’t have time for traditional dates and all the hours that went along with them, but it didn’t mean he didn’t want those things for Maddie.
She deserved fancy dinners and desserts and evenings out on the town. Not a text or a rushed phone call to say he missed her.
He glanced up at the enormous painting taking up an entire wall in the exhibit. From across the room, it looked like a perfect day at the park circa two hundred years ago. Up close, all the little dots and brush strokes separated into blobs of color that made no sense.
Mitch focused on a little trio of splotches in the corner. Far away, they made the crown of a little flower in the grass, up close, just a trio of white and yellow and pale green. It wasn’t unlike the three of them—him, Maddie, and Clark. On their own, they were just spots of color, together…
He shook his head.
Clark would never go for something so crazy. The man went to court every day, not a bar or a nightclub. Being a litigator took balls and winning a case took ego. If either one were called into question…
Mitch shouldn’t even consider it. What would his partners say? He might not be in the courtroom every day, but firms didn’t like their lawyers to make waves. If he were to do the unthinkable, there would be repercussions.
He scrubbed his face with his hand. No matter how tempting, he couldn’t ask Clark or Maddie to even consider it. No. She had to choose.
“Is something wrong? You look like someone died.”
Mitch dropped his hand to find Maddie standing next to him, her brow pinched in concern. “You’re here.”
She nodded. “I’m sorry I’m a few minutes late; the train was slow tonight.” She reached for him, giving his arm a squeeze before pulling back. “Do you need to go?”
Mitch shook his head. He needed to get it together and shove all of the impossible thoughts out of his head. Maddie stood in front of him, waiting, and he needed to make the most of it.
With a smile, he leaned down to kiss her cheek. “Right here is exactly where I need to be.”
“We can reschedule if you need to. It’s all right.”
“No. You’re here and I’m here and I’m ready to make the most of it. So tell me, what exhibit hall do you want to see first?”
Maddie pulled out a map from her purse and pointed at a spot on the first floor. “The miniature houses. Did you know some of them took decades to build?”
“I had no idea.”
She nodded. “They’re spectacular. Come, the exhibit is this way.”
Mitch let her lead them through the gallery, passing everything from impressionist masterpieces to Mayan and Incan art, to an entire hallway full of arms and armor. Every ten steps they would pause, Maddie’s whole face lighting up as she pointed at one of her favorite pieces and explained what she loved about it.
“I thought you were an interior designer. Why the fascination with art?”
Maddie smiled as they headed down the marble stairs. “I majored in art in college. I had all these big plans. First sculpting, then abstract oils, then jewelry. I even experimented with stained glass.”
“Sounds like an amazing four years.”
Her smile turned electric. “It was, but finding a job as an artist is virtually impossible. Unless you secure tenure at a university and use it as a vehicle to get your name and art out there, it’s a long road with too much noodle soup and crappy radiator heat for me.”
They hit the landing and Maddie pointed to another set of rooms. “Interior design lets me use my art skills and get paid for it. It’s a
good compromise, but sometimes I wish I could have been an artist.”
Mitch laughed. “I know what you mean. When I started law school I thought I wanted to be a public defender.”
“What happened?”
“I interned.”
Maddie pointed toward a room full of glass cases and little houses. “Not good?”
“Horrible. Morale was rock bottom, no one lasted in the place longer than a year or two, and the pay wouldn’t have covered a studio in the worst part of town. I had too much debt to even consider it.”
Maddie stopped in front of the first house, an intricate little Tudor with rooms full of furniture no bigger than Mitch’s thumb. He couldn’t imagine spending the hours upon hours it would take to craft such a wonder.
“So you chose money over doing good?”
He winced. “When you put it like that, I sound like a scoundrel.”
She opened her mouth to apologize, but he waved her off. “The answer is no, not entirely. Yes, I live better than I would have as a public defender. But I do good work too. It’s not all about money.”
“It’s not?”
Mitch shook his head. “No. I created a pro bono partnership with the public defender office as a senior associate. Now we have a dedicated position in the office. Associates in our office rotate through six months at a time. Everyone has to take a turn or they won’t be promoted.”
“Wow. And your firm pays their salaries?”
Mitch nodded. “We help staff the office with fresh, eager attorneys who aren’t worn down by the system, and in turn our associates get experience they never would trapped behind a desk for their first five years of practice. It’s a win-win. I hope it stays.”
He didn’t know what would happen to the partnership if the firm turned into an M&A-only shop. They wouldn’t need lawyers with litigation skills, and if he jumped ship…
Maddie smiled and he put his concerns behind him. “You’re a better man than I gave you credit for, Mr. Hill.”
He leaned in with a smile. “Does that mean I see you all the way inside your apartment this time? Or will you still run away from me when the car pulls up to the curb?”
“Keep impressing me and you might even get an after-date drink.”
Mitch grinned. “Is that a promise?”
“One I sincerely hope to keep.”
Chapter 8
MADDIE
Mitch Hill was so much more than she’d bargained for. When he’d told her about his tax practice and how he spent his days helping rich people become richer, she’d tuned him out and checked the boring lawyer box.
But once she got him talking about all of his work for free—the public defender’s office and his pro bono adoption cases to name a few—the man practically launched over the catch category and straight into perfect.
The good looks and the impeccable manners didn’t hurt, either. Not only had he wanted her to pick the spot for the date, when she suggested the Art Institute, he loved it and said he couldn’t wait.
He meant it. Every time she stopped to explain what she loved about a sculpture or a painting, he listened, eyes taking in the intricacies of the piece before drifting back to her face. Every so often, she caught him staring at her like she was the priceless work of art. It made her blush.
The car slowed as they arrived once again at her apartment, but this time she promised to stay true to her word. Mitch’s performance at the museum earned him way more than a drink at her place. She smiled as he pushed open the car door.
“Thanks.”
“My pleasure.”
They both clambered out into the cool night air and Maddie shivered.
“Cold?”
She nodded and Mitch slid closer, wrapping her up in a sideways embrace. “Good thing I run like a heater, then.” He hugged her to him, driving off the chill as they ducked inside her building.
All at once nerves got the better of her. She hit the elevator button with a shaky finger. “If you need to call it a night or you’ve got somewhere to be… I understand.”
Mitch raised an eyebrow. “Are you trying to get rid of me?”
“No.”
The elevator doors opened and they stepped inside. “Good, because if memory serves, there’s a drink waiting upstairs with my name on it.”
Maddie licked her lips. Don’t be a chicken. Say what you’re thinking. She hit the button to her floor. “You think you impressed me enough for a drink?”
Mitch stepped closer, his huge body boxing her into the corner of the elevator. “I think I earned a hell of a lot more than a drink, to be honest.”
“That’s a bit arrogant, isn’t it?”
His hands landed on either side of her head and his jacket sleeves brushed her cheeks. “When it’s deserved, it’s called confidence, not arrogance.”
Maddie’s tongue stuck to the roof of her mouth as she tried to speak. “Is… that the lawyer in you talking?”
He leaned closer, his lips a breath away, steely eyes trained on hers. “No. It’s the man.”
The elevator doors opened onto her floor and Mitch stepped back. “After you.”
Oh my God. Maddie slipped beneath his arm and concentrated on walking without a wobble down the hall. I’m drunk on endorphins. She stopped in front of her apartment, fumbling with the keys. They landed in a jangle at her feet and she bent to pick them up, but Mitch got there first.
One hand wrapped around the keys while the other found the back of her bare leg, fingers trailing up her calf, over the dip of her knee, and around the soft skin of her thigh as he stood.
She shivered. “Thank you.”
His hand stayed, swirling over the swell of her ass as she managed to find the key and stick it in the lock. “You’re welcome.”
The door to the apartment swung open and Maddie barely made it past the threshold. Mitch’s hands found her hips, his lips landed on her neck, and the keys clattered to the floor.
“What about that drink?”
“I’ve got something else in mind. But believe me, it’s just as intoxicating.” Mitch kicked the door shut with his foot and shrugged his jacket off. It landed on the floor along with Maddie’s as he pushed it off her shoulders.
Oh, my. They were doing this. Really doing this. Somehow Maddie had convinced herself over the course of the date and the car ride home that it really would be just a drink. That inviting a man like Mitch up to her apartment didn’t mean anything more than what she’d offered.
But that had been the nerves. One kiss of his lips on her neck, one stroke of his palm across her bare skin, and Maddie’s nerves evaporated. She didn’t want him to sit on her sofa and sip a glass of wine. She wanted him naked and hard and coming inside her.
She tugged on his shirt, fumbling with the buttons. “You have on way too many clothes.”
“I’m more concerned with yours.” Mitch reached for the tie of her wrap dress and tugged it free before stepping back to marvel. “Jesus, Maddie, you’re so fucking beautiful.”
“That’s the best you can do? I’d have thought a lawyer would have a richer vocabulary.”
She teased him with a smile and a shake of her boobs, shimmying them back and forth as he groaned.
“Leave the fancy words to Clark. He’s the litigator. I just write wills and interpret tax code. Believe me, there’s nothing in a single one of them that can describe all this.”
His hands landed on her waist, hot and heavy as he leaned in to kiss her lips. There wasn’t a hint of hesitation or uncertainty in his kiss. No, he kissed her like she was the one thing he wanted. The one woman he’d needed, but never had.
Maddie moaned as Mitch pulled her body against his, the thick shaft of his cock already dangerously hard against her belly. She stroked him through his pants, running her fingers up and down as he kissed her.
His stubble scraped her lips and cheeks, his fingers dug into her hips, and Maddie couldn’t wait any longer.
“I need you, Mitch. Please,” sh
e mumbled against his mouth, each word cut off by a press of his lips or a swipe of his tongue.
“Then you’ll get me.” He tugged on the straps of her bra, yanking each off her shoulders and freeing her breasts. They bounced in the air, her nipples pebbling more from arousal than the cold.
“These are perfect. So fucking perfect.” Mitch palmed her breasts, rippling the soft flesh as he massaged and stroked her nipples. Every swipe sent a tremor through Maddie, and she squirmed against the wall.
Never had a man given her so much, so fast. She was primed, on the edge of release without a touch to her clit, begging and whimpering as he pinched and rolled her nipples between his fingers.
He bent to take one in his mouth. Maddie arched off the wall, hands scrabbling to find his zipper and free the cock she wanted to touch and taste and savor. But Mitch grabbed her hands, fingers tight around her wrists as he pinned them above her head. She hung there, suspended and taut, as he continued to lap and suck her tits.
“Let me go! I want to touch you.”
Mitch hummed, mouth full of breast as he trailed his free hand down her belly. His fingers slipped beneath the fabric of her panties and Maddie cried out as he found her clit.
“Come for me and I’ll let you go.” He stood up, tightening his grip on her wrists as he stroked her clit again. “Not a moment before.”
With his eyes wide open and locked on hers, Mitch teased her, drawing her orgasm out with expert circles. Up and over, side to side, he soaked his hand in her desire. Smearing the slick heat over her swollen folds, he smiled before diving back in to stroke her clit.
Maddie cried out, the first waves of her orgasm crashing into her. She strained against his hold, arching her back and shoving her breasts against his chest as she came. All through her release, he watched her, focused on her eyes and lips and cheeks.
At last the tide receded and she sucked in a breath.
“You’re stunning when you come, Maddie. I’ll never forget that look on your face. Pure bliss.”
