by York, Marie
NOW
Part Two in
The Tryst Series
By Marie York
COPYRIGHT
All rights reserved.
Printed in the United States of America.
No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any form or by any means electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval systems, without prior written permission of the author except where permitted by law.
Published by
Marie York
Copyright May 2015
Cover Photo by alenkasm
Cover Design by Cover Up Designs
The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious.
Any similarity to real persons, living or dead is coincidental and not intended by the author.
Chapter 1
I hated to fly, but considering my best friend, Dee, was getting married to her hottie fiancé, Cole, I pushed the fear aside and boarded a plane for Grand Rapids, Michigan. It had been two years since she moved to Lansing, Michigan and only my second time going to see her.
Thankful for technology, we were able to still have our Sunday movie nights, but it just wasn’t the same. I couldn’t wait to be in the same state with her again.
The flight attendant and pilot offered me a smile as I stepped onto the plane. I took a minute to evaluate the pilot. He had a wedding ring on and didn’t look depressed or stressed out. That was a good sign and gave me a little peace of mind as I took my seat.
My palms clammed up as soon as I snapped my seatbelt into place. I tugged on the excess material, making it as tight as possible, fully aware that if the plane went down, the seatbelt would do nothing to help.
A guy stopped at my row and nodded to the seat beside me. I was already strapped in, but unbuckled to let him through. As soon as he was situated, I yanked my seatbelt back on.
Fear clogged my throat and I tried to swallow the lump, but it only made it bigger. It was only an hour and a half flight—I ran on the treadmill longer than that. It was three episodes of Sex and the City, not even close to a marathon.
The plane started to move and I gripped my seat. I focused on the flight attendant who was giving a rundown of safety procedures. She looked calm. If she wasn’t worried then I shouldn’t be worried, but I had no control over it. When she held the oxygen mask to her face and slid it on with a smile, I thought she was a freaking lunatic and looked away.
I closed my eyes and tried to think of something less scary. Puppies and rainbows and…sex. Nope that wasn’t helping because it only made me realize I had stumbled into a dry spell and it’d been ages since I had an orgasm.
There was no way this plane was going down. Not while I was in the middle of my biggest dry spell ever. I took a deep breath and pushed myself into the softness of the chair. I was fine for about three minutes then the speed increased and the plane shot up and I nearly had a heart attack.
“Would you mind?” I asked the guy beside me pointing to his hand. He was pretty attractive even if I wasn’t a fan of the man bun, but his hand was big and strong looking, and I just needed something to squeeze to keep my mind off my heart that was currently thrashing against my chest.
He was all too quick to accept my offer, but I didn’t care, I slid my small hand into his and held on for dear life. The horny sex-depraved girl inside of me hoped there would be some sort of instant spark when our skin made contact like there always is in the movies. We’d go in the bathroom and spend the rest of the flight joining the mile high club. Unfortunately, I felt nothing.
“I take it you don’t fly much,” he said, but all I could manage was a curt shake of the head. “You get used to it. I was never a fan, but now I’m on a plane more than in a car. It’s really not that bad. Besides, flying is safer.”
“Yes, but at least in a car I’m on the ground and not dangling thirty-thousand feet in the air,” I said finally able to get words past the bulging lump in my throat.
He laughed and rubbed at the light brown stubble on his chin. “So where you heading to?” he asked and I had a feeling he was trying to distract me for which I was eternally grateful.
“Same as you, I assume. Michigan.”
“What’s in Michigan?”
“My best friend. She’s getting married and I’m the maid of honor.”
We leveled out and the seatbelt light blinked off. I released my grip from the poor guy’s hand and relaxed into my seat.
“Can I get you a drink?”
“A glass of white wine would be fabulous,” I said to the blonde flight attendant.
“Absolutely and you, sir?”
“I’ll have what she’s having.”
Once the flight attendant poured our drinks she moved to the next row and I continued the conversation.
“What about you? Business or pleasure?” I took a sip of wine, letting the coolness soothe my throat and my nerves.
“I wish I could say pleasure, but sadly business.”
“What do you do?”
“I’m in advertising.”
“Really. My degree is in marketing, but trying to find a job is almost impossible. Most places want two years experience, but how am I supposed to get experience if I can’t get a job.”
The plane bounced a little and I downed the rest of my wine in one sip.
“You look like you need this more than me,” my seatmate said and handed me his still full cup.
He didn’t have to ask me twice. I happily took it off his hands.
“How long ago did you graduate?” he asked, and I instantly felt like the biggest failure on the planet.
“Two years ago. I had an internship that I thought could turn into something, but after a summer of getting people their coffee and making copies, it went nowhere.”
Our conversation stayed on the current job market, and before I knew it, we had safely landed. My heart had stopped pounding out of control twenty minutes into the flight, and I had completely forgotten about the fear clawing up my throat.
“Thank you…I’m sorry I didn’t get your name.”
“Max.”
“I’m Lyla,” I said with a smile.
“Well, Lyla, it has been an absolute pleasure.”
We got off the flight and went our separate ways. I scanned the crowds of people looking for Dee’s beautiful black hair or for Cole’s thick-framed glasses. My heart skipped a beat when my eyes landed on the last person I’d ever thought I’d see again.
I almost pinched myself to make sure I wasn’t dreaming about Jaxon Reed like I had so many times since our night together. Maybe that second glass of wine wasn’t a good idea.
Unable to believe my eyes, I blinked. When I opened them, expecting him to be gone, his hot intense gaze found mine and I was staring back at my one and only one night stand.
Chapter 2
It had been two very long years since I’d seen that beautiful face, and whether it was time or longing, he somehow looked even better. Delicious visions of our night together assaulted my mind. His lips burning hot, violent trails up my neck. His strong hand on my stomach, pushing me into the mattress while he brought me to the edge. The way we stared into each other’s eyes as he drove us both over that edge.
His eyes were just as dark as I remembered, but his features were more chiseled and defined. The gorgeous hair I yanked on when he gave me the best orgasm of my life looked like it had been just recently trimmed. I wanted so desperately to run my hands through the soft strands again.
And that orgasm. That mind-numbing, body tingling, out of this world orgasm
that I had never experienced before, and not again since, was the reason for my current dry spell. It was like getting a taste of the most delicious food and being told you would never taste it again. The cravings were insatiable. The desire to seek it out was always there.
Heat shot to my core just thinking about that night. Now with him mere feet away—the being I’d been craving for so long—it took all I had not to run up to him, grab him by his gorgeous face and push him up against the nearest wall.
He started making his way toward me and my heart raced like it was anticipating take-off again. Everything around me blurred except for the man that I couldn’t take my eyes off of. Max appeared in front of me with a sheepish smile and blocked my view.
“When you get back from Michigan give me a call,” he said and handed me his business card.
I went to talk, but my vocal chords were still frozen in shock by the man getting closer. I took the card and smiled.
I was about to say I would call when Jaxon’s strong hand snaked around my waist, sending a scorching surge of heat straight to my core. He pulled me tight against his hard body and every delicious memory exploded in my mind, turning me into a ravenous beast that craved more.
“Baby, I’ve missed you so much,” he said, his lips so dangerously close I could almost taste them, and then I did. He crushed his mouth to mine, spreading the ripples of heat through my entire body.
My duffle fell from my arm to the floor as I lost myself to the unyielding passion.
His tongue swiped at my crease. The pure pleasure overrode any confusion and I parted my lips, needing the slick feel of his tongue against mine. I met him thrust for thrust, absorbing every toe-curling caress. It wasn’t enough. It never was when it came to Jaxon Reed, my sexual fantasy come to life.
I lost my fingers in his hair and yanked on the soft strands just as I wanted to do only seconds before. A moan sounded in his throat and he quickly pulled away, leaving me desperate for more and suddenly aware that we were very much in public.
“Jax,” Jaxon said, holding his hand out to Max.
Poor Max looked like he was going to piss himself. On the plane he looked like a big strong guy, but now standing here his height and width was completely overpowered by Jaxon’s.
“Max,” he managed and held his hand out. He pointed to the card in my hand. “We’re in the same line of business. Thought, I’d give her my card.”
“How kind.” Jaxon rested his arm on my shoulder and I tried to ignore the shudder that simple movement caused. “Well, Max, it was nice meeting you, but if you’ll excuse us, we have a lot of catching up to do.”
“Of course. You’re a lucky guy,” Max said before disappearing into the crowd.
Finally finding my bearings I pulled away from Jaxon’s hold and spun to face him. “What was that for?” I demanded without sounding breathy and pathetic.
“To get that dude to fuck off.”
“You used tongue,” I blurted out, remembering every slick caress—wanting to pull his mouth back to mine and run my hands along his body, rediscovering each and every one of his hard ridges.
“From what I remember that’s the way you like it.”
My pussy clenched at the memory of how much I did like it. How every stroke had me desperate for more. How it felt as he dragged that sensual mouth across my thigh and back to my clit, sending waves of ecstasy through my entire body.
“Besides, I had to make it believable. You’re welcome.”
“Maybe I liked that guy.” I didn’t and I was glad Jaxon got him to take off, but still… what if I did? He had no right to just come in and totally pussy block me like that.
“You didn’t.”
My hands planted on my hips and I narrowed my eyes. “And how would you know?”
“Because you were too busy staring at me.”
I bit my lip, trying to hide the sheer embarrassment. I was totally staring at him like a dog in heat, but I was afraid he would vanish. He walked out of my life once and never looked back. I was scared if I looked away he would do it again.
“Where’s Dee or Cole?” I asked, changing the subject. “They told me they were going to pick me up.”
“They had a few last minute errands to run, so I volunteered.”
“That was very generous of you.”
“They’ve been busy. I figured it was one less thing they had to worry about.”
His words hit me like a swift punch to the gut. I was hoping his reason was fueled a little more by his personal desire to see me. I guess our tryst was more memorable to me than it was to him.
“Here, let me get that for you.” He reached for my duffle bag resting on my shoulder, and I immediately took him up on his offer. For a carryon it weighed a ton. I handed it off and for the briefest of seconds our fingers touched, turning my already ignited desire into a blazing inferno.
I swallowed down my urges and ignored my heated skin.
I had so many questions. Starting with where the hell had he been for the last two years. After our night together, I panicked and left, but when I finally realized I wanted more, I wanted him, he was gone. He took off without even a goodbye, instead leaving me with the keys to his apartment which was rent free for a month.
A part of me hoped he’d be back. So many restless nights spent thinking about what I would do if he’d ever showed up on the doorstep. The thoughts usually turned X-rated pretty quickly.
Even his best friend, Cole, had no idea where he was. Or if he did, he never told me. Not that I asked him. I just brought Jaxon up every few months to Dee to see if she had heard anything.
I think about the phone call I made after finding his note to me, and the heart-shattering feeling when it only rang once before I was told the number was disconnected.
“Is this everything?” he asked, bringing me out of the past and back to the present.
“No, I checked a bag too.”
“Woman,” he muttered before walking toward baggage claim.
I laughed as I kept pace with him.
His dark eyebrows turned inward. “What’s so damn funny?”
“That was the Jaxon I remember.”
“What the hell is that supposed to mean?”
“You with your one word responses. Seriously, all through senior seminar I didn’t think you knew how to form sentences.” I don’t know why I bring up the past, but it’s common ground and for me they’re pleasant memories.
“Never had much to say. Besides you’d never shut up.”
“Excuse you,” I said, coming to a stop and giving him an evil glare when he turned to me.
“What? It’s true.” He started walking again then glanced over his shoulder, pinning me in place with an intense stare. “And it’s not like I said it was a bad thing.” He stopped again and flashed me that panty-dropping smile before coming back to me. His chest touched mine just enough to feel the hardness—sense the heat radiating off of him. He dipped his head and whispered against my ear, “Might even say I’ve missed it.” His breath skated across my skin, turning my nipples into tight peaks.
He stepped back and winked, then did what he did best. He walked away, leaving me wet and alone.
Chapter 3
The warm late spring air was made even more perfect by the light breeze. I followed Jaxon out of the airport and quickly checked my hair and makeup in my compact before catching up to him. His black t-shirt stretched tight across his biceps as he lifted my suitcase over a curb.
“What do you have in here?” he asked as he put my luggage back down on the pavement.
“Just the necessities.”
“Cinder blocks?”
“More like shoes, and clothes, bags and makeup. A blow dryer, a curling iron, a straightening iron…”
“What the hell do you need all that for?”
“I don’t exactly wake up like this,” I said, swiping a hand in the air at my face. “It takes time.” As soon as the words were out of my mouth, I remembered my mad
dash to the airport. How I threw my hair into a sloppy ponytail and only had time to dab on a little lip-gloss. Exactly why only three seconds earlier I was checking my face to make sure I didn’t look like a total train wreck. It wasn’t Brittany Spears circa 2007, but it wasn’t too pretty either.
“And you did all of that today?” he asked with a questioning eye and damn him for not so subtly pointing out that I looked like crap.
“Well, I didn’t exactly have time this morning. So no.”
He picked my suitcase up with ease as if it didn’t weigh just under the fifty pound airline minimum. “Then you don’t need any of this shit.”
My eyes locked with his and my lips parted, wanting to say something but all I could focus on was the vision of his strained muscles as he held me up against his apartment door and devoured me with his lips.
As if he knew my mind was tormenting me with our one night stand on replay, he closed the gap between us and ran a finger down the length of my jaw. “You’re beautiful just the way you are.”
He pulled his hand away, and I sucked in a jagged breath. I was completely consumed by this man and his ability to say all the right things at just the perfect moment.
Not one to linger, Jaxon moved away from me and toward a car just as manly as he was. The black paint shined under the midday sun and I knew it was a classic, I just wasn’t sure the make or model.
Jaxon popped the trunk and tossed my bags in before unlocking the passenger door. He held the door open, and I paused inches away from the warmth of his hard chest.
“Rental cars are getting fancy these days,” I said, running my hand along the door frame.
He laughed. “It’s not a rental.”
“Trying to overcompensate for something else?” I asked and glanced down at his crotch then back to him.
“Why don’t you tell me? Or do you need a reminder?”
Oh my God yes. He could remind me all day and all night if he wanted to.
His finger brushed my chin then gave it a slight push. “Didn’t want you to embarrass yourself by drooling.”
“What? I’m not.” I needed to change the subject and I needed to change it fast. “You drove here?” I asked.
