“I’m so glad I found you. Maddy, I have to see you.”
She cringed at the shortening of her name. Only Clifton would be gauche enough to use that abbreviation when he knew she hated it. If he hadn’t learnt that in ten years of marriage, there was no point reprimanding him. Why on earth would he contact her now? Their marriage was over.
“How did you find me, Clifton?” She knew her voice was cold, with no trace of welcome. Tough.
“I called your lawyer, but he wouldn’t give me your address.”
“Did you expect him to?”
“I remembered your mother lived on the Sunshine Coast. It was a simple matter to do a computer search through the telephone listings for the area to find you. There was only one M Paxton on the Coast.”
“Very resourceful of you, Clifton.”
The husky timbre of his voice dredged up memories of the past. Not recent ones, but those idyllic first years of their life together.
Madison shook her head and sent the memories packing. Instead, she remembered how he, and his mother, had belittled her, robbing her of all confidence toward the end.
“You still there, Maddy?”
The deep tones took on a whining edge. She grimaced. If you didn’t know him, his voice would suggest a man with a macho image, sexy, sure of himself. Oh yeah, he was that, but it was overlaid with a cockiness that grated on people. The old cliché about not judging a book by its cover jumped into her mind. Don’t judge Clifton by the blue-eyed, blonde good looks and self-assured manner, because when Clifton didn’t get his own way, he turned into a spoilt, whining little boy.
“What do you want, Clifton?”
“I have to talk to you.”
“So talk.” She wasn’t about to make this easy for him.
“No, I need to see you in person. I have to…”
His words trailed off and Madison could have sworn he wasn’t entirely sure of himself. She waited.
“Please, Madison. I have to see you.”
Good grief, after all this time he remembers to use my full name. “Why do you need to see me? We said all we needed to say twelve months ago.”
“I…I miss you. We made a mistake. I should never have listened to my mother.
“Come on, Clifton. A year down the track and you suddenly realize you miss me? Get real.”
“I’ve grown up since you left. I had to, otherwise I’d never be able to stand up to my mother and her machinations. I’ve told her I’ll choose my own wife, that it has nothing to do with her.”
“Watch out, Clifton, she’ll cut you off without a penny.” Madison knew she was being a bitch, but she couldn’t help herself. Petty? Yeah, all right, but, oh, boy, it sure felt good.
“I don’t need her money,” Clifton said. “I have control of my own trust fund now, plus I’m making a name for myself as an investigative journalist.”
“So you don’t need to ride on Daddy’s coat tails now?”
“Please don’t be like this, Maddy. I’m sorry for all the pain I caused you. Let me apologize in person. I have your address. I could be there in twenty minutes.”
“You’re up here on the Sunshine Coast?” Madison’s voice rose to a surprised squeak. She flicked a glance at the bedside clock. Jake would be here any minute. She had to get Clifton off the phone. What a way to spoil the mood.
“I’m not going home until I see you,” Clifton whined. “Please, Mad—”
Madison cut him off. “Okay, Clifton, I’ll see you, but not at my home and not tonight. I’ve already got plans.”
“Are you seeing another man?”
“None of your business. I’ll meet you tomorrow night. You can take me to dinner. Eight o’clock at the…” She dug around in her mind for the name of a local restaurant for a moment, before she remembered Clifton’s stingy ways. He might have money, but he’d never been one to spend it on his wife.
Her grin was slightly evil as she continued, “There’s a French restaurant in the main street of Caloundra. It’s called Napoleon’s. I know how much you like French food. I’ll meet you there at eight o’clock.”
“What’s the address?”
“Look it up in the phone book. Now I have to go. Bye, Clifton.”
She hung up before he could say another word. Her limbs, doing a good imitation of limp spaghetti, refused to support her weight. She plopped down on the side of the bed, her silk-clad legs splayed out in front of her. The hand she held up in front of her face shook in reaction to Clifton’s appearance back in her life.
“My God. Clifton. Why did I agree to see him?”
Despite the shortness of their acquaintance, she had a feeling she was well on the way to falling in love with Jake. Was that possible after only a few weeks? She shook her head. Maybe she did need to see Clifton, just this once. Perhaps she should treat this as a test, a gauge to see if all feelings for her ex-husband had disappeared.
A bubble of malicious delight emerged and took up residence in her heart. She grinned, mentally castigating herself for the juvenile emotions that sprang to life inside her. Let Clifton get an eyeful of the new Madison Paxton. Slim, sexy, a desirable woman.
Childish? Oh, yeah.
Revenge? “You better believe it,” she crowed. “Let him see the new me. I’ll knock his socks off. No more naive and dumpy housewife.”
And in the meantime, she was going to enjoy her night with Jake.
CHAPTER 13
“Happy Birthday, Jake.”
Jake sagged against the doorframe, the breath dragged from his lungs in a high-pitched whistle. He struggled to find his voice, not at all surprised when it came out a croaky squeak. Kind of like a kid who hadn’t hit puberty yet. “It’s not my birthday,” he managed.
“I’m sure you’ve heard the old saying ‘All your birthdays came at once.’ Well, this is it…and I’m your present.”
Madison, posed in the open doorway, crooked her finger and gestured to him. “Come inside, Jake,” she drawled in a voice that drove all the blood from his head to his cock. The testosterone in his body awoke with a vengeance, carnal desire flooding his system as she allowed the sheer wrap to slide from her shoulders and pool about her feet in a dark cloud.
He swallowed and stepped over the threshold. His gaze was trapped by the vision of pure sex that beckoned him on. “My God, you’re…”
“I’m what?” A slight smile played about her mouth.
“You’re beautiful,” he croaked. Great, Jake, is that all you can come up with? The confident, vibrant woman in front of him was an absolute stunner.
She moved backwards into the living room and he followed, like a puppy with its tongue hanging out. Lord, he’d died and gone to Heaven.
Blonde-streaked hair feathered around her face. A mysterious smile curved lips stained an erotic rose color. The tip of her tongue came into view, slid across her bottom lip and whipped up a fever inside him.
His gaze lowered to take in the perfect symmetry of her shoulders, naked but for the spaghetti-thin straps of a black lace bra. Well, some of it was lace. There was a band of lace along the top edge of the cups and the same fabric hugged her upper torso almost to her waist. The rest was… Damned if he knew what the material was, but it was sheer, her nipples visible, but shadowed, by the dusky fabric. A total turn-on.
Then there were the lacy panties. He caught a glimpse of Madison’s pale skin through the lacework. And oh, boy, his favorite. Garters. Attached to lace-top silk stockings. Impossibly high, shiny black shoes, the type his mates called fuck-me shoes, completed the outfit. Every man’s fantasy all rolled up in one delectable package called Madison Paxton.
Jake cleared his throat and tried to come up with an intelligent comment, but she’d rendered him speechless. Him, the scourge of the Family Law courts, the man whose rhetoric had never lost him a case, and he couldn’t think of one damn thing to say. The demands of his body overrode his normal reasoning processes.
She moved closer and whispered something in her
husky, sexy voice, but his heart thudded so loud he couldn’t take it in. His libido had gone crazy, the blood rushing through his veins. He didn’t need to guess where it was headed. South of his belt and straight to the rock-hard cock that nudged at the zip of his trousers.
He dragged in a shaky breath as Madison stepped right up to him and ran the tips of her fingers over his cheekbone. She traced the shape of his mouth before sliding her hands down the front of his shirt and around each pearl button. The scent of her perfume teased his mind, wrapped him in sensation and increased the sexual tension tightening the muscles of his gut.
Madison leaned forward and dropped a light kiss on his parted lips. Before he could take up her blatant offer, she slid two fingers between the buttons of his shirt and tugged him over to the couch. Turning him around, she exerted pressure. He sat, back upright, his knees together, hands at his sides, like a schoolboy who waited to be called into the headmaster’s office.
“Now don’t you move,” she whispered. “I’ll be right back.” She turned and glided out of the room, an exaggerated sway emphasizing her hips. Jake couldn’t take his eyes off her ass.
He heard her heels clattering down the hallway. For a moment, he thought to go after her to see what she was up to, but his body wouldn’t obey the simple command to get to his feet. His head was too full of the sight of Madison in that oh-so-sexy get-up. Besides, his cock was so rigid, he just might do himself an injury if he tried to move right at this minute. Instead, he sat there, trying to get his breathing under control at the same time he unglued his tongue from the roof of his mouth. Of course, it would help if he could get his mind to function properly.
The sound of her spiky heels alerted him she was on her way back. He looked up as Madison sashayed back into the room. He still sat like a stuffed dummy, in exactly the same position. His brain had ceased to operate, unable to process the simplest of orders. He gulped as she approached him, a cheeky grin on her face. When she spread her thighs to straddle his knees, her weight a welcome burden, he was sure his heart skipped a beat.
Her grey-green eyes twinkled with mischief as she leaned in close and circled his lips with the tip of her tongue. Her breasts brushed against his chest and without conscious volition, his hands curved around her ribcage, thumbs inching toward the enticing curves.
She sucked in her breath before capturing his lips in a deep kiss. Her tongue darted forward, twined with his before retreating, only to thrust again. This was no tentative exploration. This was seduction in the full sense of the word. Jake allowed her to set the pace—and was lost in a sensual haze.
Arms wrapped around her, he dragged her nearer and gave himself up to the taste of her, the advance and retreat of his tongue a poor imitation of what he really wanted to do to her—to fuck her until she cried out his name in ecstasy. His balls tightened, his cock grew harder, something he hadn’t thought was possible.
When she slid her hand between their bodies and started to work on his shirt buttons, his whole body trembled. The dance of her fingers across his naked chest caused a sensory overload. The blood in his veins felt like molten lava. His lungs labored for fresh air. If he didn’t get himself under control, he would disgrace himself, blowing his load before he even got to the ultimate goal. He broke off the kiss and threw his head back, gasping as she continued the exquisite torture.
When she gestured for him to drop his arms so she could slide his shirt from his shoulders, he complied, a shudder ripping through him as her hot lips replaced the tracing of her fingertips. A groan tore from his throat as she nibbled at his collarbone and laved the hypersensitive love bite with the tip of her tongue.
“You like your present, Jake?”
“Oh, yeah.” Great, Jake, very articulate. He shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts. A gesture in futility. What hold he maintained on sanity scattered when she rocked her hips, her cunt brushing against the throbbing erection just begging for release…in more ways than one, given how tight his trousers had become. His hips bucked, seeking her warmth, only to have her slide from his lap and reach down for his hand.
“Not yet, my fancy stud. I want to play first, as in foreplay. My type of foreplay.”
She grinned at him, her eyes shining, her cheeks stained with a flash of red. If he didn’t miss his guess, she was as turned on as he was. Her nipples, visible through the fabric of her bra were hard little points he just ached to wrap his mouth around. She dragged in a deep breath, pushing her breasts higher, and his libido went into overdrive. He could even smell the musky scent of her desire and he knew without doubt she wanted him. As he did her. Fucking hell, he was so hot he thought he’d burst into flames.
She backed him up, pushing him toward the bedroom. His eyes widened as he took in the candle-lit boudoir. Soft music filtered in from the living room. The scent of the gardenias floating in the bowls of water she’d placed about the room perfumed the air. A veritable assault on the senses. His cock certainly thought so. He squirmed, trying to adjust the fit of his trousers, but it was useless. He was just too bloody hard.
“Ah…Madison, do you know what you’re doing?” he said as she dragged him over to stand beside the bed.
In reply, she ran her hands along his collarbones and down over his chest. When she reached the light covering of dark hair on his pectoral muscles, she traced her finger around his flat nipple, grinning when it hardened. He might be built differently, but his reaction was just the same. Jake grinned. Viva la différence.
Leaning forward, she placed her open mouth over the same spot, dragging a deep groan from him as she teased and tempted. And as she feasted, her hands glided lower, following the path of dark hair that arrowed down his torso and disappeared beneath the waistband of his trousers. When the belt got in her way, she groaned as if frustrated that something so simple would deny her advances.
“Madison, wait.” Jake’s voice was a hoarse whisper as he tried to drag air into his lungs, only to have it stolen from him again when she lowered herself to her knees in front of him. In short order, she dealt with his belt, her head raised to watch him as she pulled it, inch by inch, from the belt loops of his trousers.
He couldn’t believe this was happening to him. He was being seduced by an innocent. Okay, so she’d been married before, but her sexual education had been dealt a serious blow by her ex-husband. Before his eyes, she had turned into a sex kitten, a siren, bent on play.
Was he about to fight it? No, sir, no way. His daddy didn’t raise no fool. This was every man’s dream, to be seduced by a beautiful woman. He was a great believer in dreams, particularly his.
From her position in front of him, Madison reached up as far as she could and laid her open palms on his heated skin. Curving her fingers and lightly scoring the flesh with blood-red fingernails, she dragged her hands down to the top of his trousers. She undid the snap of his pants and lowered the zip in one smooth motion, the sound loud in the scented bower. Her hands felt like the brush of silk as she skimmed his trousers down his thighs until they fell at his feet.
Embarrassment hit him. Why in God’s name had he worn these boxers? They’d been a joke present for his last birthday from one of the secretaries in the office back in Sydney. Everybody had enjoyed a good laugh at the time. Now it wasn’t so funny. What grown man wore black satin boxers with a white panel in the front with a picture of a fish and the words “Catch of the Day” over the most vulnerable part of his anatomy?
Suddenly it didn’t matter because Madison bent forward and dropped a quick kiss over the hard bulge hidden behind the asinine saying. His body bucked in reaction, the breath dragged from his lungs. Hell, if he wasn’t careful, he’d lose it right here, right now. He buried his fingers in Madison’s hair, giving it a tug to force her to look at him. And oh, yeah, she was looking. Just not at his face.
“Wanna go fishing, Jake? I can even bait my own hook.”
She crawled forward on her knees, backed him up until the edge of the bed caught him beh
ind his knees. There was nothing else to do but sit down. Using his knees to lever herself up off the floor, she posed in front of him. His hands came up to grasp her hips, but she moved out of reach.
“Take your shoes and socks off,” she whispered.
Jake complied, kicking his trousers away at the same time. His brain had ceased to function with any degree of normalcy. When he raised his head again, he almost forgot to breathe. He gulped, swallowing the lump in his throat. His harsh breathing threatened to explode his chest.
Madison had removed the lacy bra thing she’d had on. Her breasts were gloriously naked, the rosy nipples jutting out, just begging for his touch. He wanted to lean forward and taste. Drag her deep into the warmth of his mouth and suckle like a babe.
Hell, no, not like a baby. Like a man dying of thirst. His gut was tied in knots and as she ran her hands down over her breasts and lifted the weight of them as if in sacrifice, the tension inside him upped a notch.
Madison couldn’t believe she was doing this. Jake’s reactions were all she’d dreamed of.
One thing was certain, that book she’d taken from his car had been right. Set the scene and the rest was easy. Just reel him in. She smiled at the fishing analogy.
She kicked off first one shoe and then the other. Her hips swayed as she moved closer. So close she could feel the heat coming off his naked skin, inhale the scent of his aftershave, heightened by all that hidden fire. She lifted one silk-clad leg and propped it up on his knee, her hand on his shoulder for balance.
“Are you one of those men who prefer stockings and garters over panty hose, Jake?” She kept her voice low and breathy. “You want to take them off for me?” She wanted to burst out laughing as his eyes glazed over with anticipation.
It ceased to be a laughing matter as Jake circled her ankle with his large hand and ran it up over her knee. He lingered on the inside of her thigh. His fingers danced and skipped over the black silk, creating pinpricks of fire that swept through her blood. When he reached the lace band at the top, he paused before unclipping the first of the garters. His head dipped and he placed a heated kiss on the exposed flesh at the top of her thigh before he slid his hand around to the back and released the final clip.
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