All Tied Up

by Cathryn Fox

  Naturally everyone expected him to follow in his father’s footsteps and take over his handyman business. After his father had passed away during Brad’s high school years, and his mother had taken sick, Brad had done just that, needing the funds to support his two younger siblings and help take care of household finances. Sure he had to postpone medical school, but that didn’t mean he’d given up his dream, not at all. It just meant he had to work extra hours outside his regular job to get enough funds to pay for his prep course.

  Which had led him to Mason Creek.

  To Lindsay.

  He took a moment to study her. Rays of sunlight streamed through the windowpane and fell over her lush body. Her chestnut hair looked wild and uncontrolled, a little like her, he suspected. Dressed in tight-fitting jeans and a low-cut silky top, his body registered every delicious detail of the woman before him. Her natural feminine scent saturated the small bedroom. Brad inhaled, pulling it into his lungs and letting it arouse all his senses.

  When Pamina touched Lindsay’s arm, Lindsay turned to her. Brad’s body hummed and his blood pressure soared as he glimpsed Lindsay’s gorgeous, curvy backside.

  Damned if she wasn’t the most perfect woman he’d set eyes on.

  But even if Brad wanted more with Lindsay, he saw the way she looked at him, the same way every other woman had looked at him. He knew if they hooked up, she’d only be in it for the ride. Not that he had anything against the ride, mind you. He didn’t. Hell, he loved the ride. He was a healthy, red-blooded American male after all. But the truth was, he wanted more from a woman. After years of searching for that special someone, he’d given up hope in finding his perfect match. One who’d accepted him for who he really was, a small-town boy with brawn and brains. A woman who wanted him for more than just a quick roll in the sack and one who supported his dream to become a doctor.

  He leaned back against the doorjamb and watched Lindsay discuss her decorating ideas with Pamina. Her face lit with excitement, and her dark eyes were animated as she described the layout and furniture placement. Her energy and creative insight impressed him. In fact, he might have just met her, but there were already a lot of things about Lindsay that impressed him.

  And for some unfathomable reason, he suspected if he went for a quick heated ride with her, she’d turn his life upside down without even trying.

  3

  For days now, Lindsay had watched Brad while he tore down the wall, enjoying the sight of a hard man, hard at work. It didn’t take her long to figure out that in a lot of ways he wasn’t like the men she’d dated. Not only was he dedicated and driven, he worked from sunup until sundown and wasn’t afraid to get his hands dirty. He also took great care and pride in his work.

  Damn, she found that sexy.

  Sitting on the floor across from him, notepad in hand, she’d finished drawing out her designs and now waited patiently for her bondage equipment to arrive. No need to rush things, she mused. Not when she was perfectly happy entertaining herself by watching Brad work.

  She wouldn’t be able to paint or hang her mirrors until after Brad had completed his job, not with all the dust in the air. All her furniture had been ordered and her sexy BDSM props sat in a box nearby, waiting to be displayed. Lindsay planned on securing them behind glass doors in the melamine cubbyholes she’d purchased. The items were for viewing only, and should the lovers wish to purchase any of the goodies, they’d have to see Pamina, who now had her very own stockroom full. Thanks to Lindsay’s favorite store, Toys4Gals.

  So with nothing much to do in the interim, she wasted her morning away by watching one shirtless, one very tanned and very muscular man tear down a wall.

  Did life get any better than this?

  Hell yeah! She could be half-naked too. Or better yet, completely naked.

  Lust shot through her and warmed her blood as she pictured such a delightfully delicious thing. Brad’s hard body on top of hers—damn how she loved the weight of a man’s body pressing down on hers. His mouth claiming her, showering her hot, naked flesh with heated kisses. His silky tongue sliding downward, following a heated path to her stomach and lower, until he reached the moist apex between her legs. His wet tongue opening her swollen pink folds with the utmost expertise, so he could dip inside and taste her creamy essence. His thick fingers pushing deep inside her pussy, moving in and out, in and out, until she went up in flames beneath his perfect ministrations. Her body began thrumming with heat and desire. She swallowed a tortured moan.

  Lindsay brushed a bead of perspiration from her forehead and squeezed her thighs together as a shiver of need made her quake.

  She really should have sex with him. That might help ease the tremendous amount of sexual tension between them and get her focus back on her job.

  Christ, she knew when she agreed to hiring such a luscious bad boy it would drive her to distraction. And such a distraction had her wavering in her vow to steer clear of men.

  It didn’t take long for her convictions to soften around the edges. As she pondered the situation, her lascivious gaze swept over him again. She spent a moment reasoning with herself. Sure she’d sworn off men, but that didn’t mean she had to swear off sex too, right? Although one-night stands weren’t her thing, couldn’t she have hot, wild monkey sex with him just this once? Why complicate things with a relationship that was doomed to fail, judging by her track record, that is.

  Surely she could keep her emotions under wraps while she explored his mouth, his chest, his abdomen, and any other parts of that lethally honed body that her tongue had happened to stumble upon. She licked her suddenly dry lips and suppressed a heated whimper. And really, shouldn’t she try out the bondage equipment at least once before opening the lover’s room to guests. Lindsay rolled her eyes heavenward.

  Good Lord, talk about logical reasoning at its worst.

  Needing to keep her mind off sex before she jumped up, threw herself at him and begged him for some hot loving, she abandoned her thoughts and decided to engage him in conversation. They’d been making idle chitchat for days now but being the nosey…er…inquisitive woman that she was, she wanted to know more about the real Brad Caldwell. Who was he and what made him tick?

  She worked to keep her tone light. No need to let him know she’d been sitting there drooling over him all morning. Then again, the saliva pooling at the corners of her mouth was likely a dead giveaway.

  Lindsay wiped her mouth. “Need any help?”

  “Nope, I’m getting there,” he said. “And then you can start your painting.”

  She crinkled her nose, admiring the job. “It’s looking good so far.” When he tossed her a smile she asked, “So tell me, Brad. How did you become a handyman?”

  He dropped a piece of plaster onto the growing pile and angled his body to face her. “Family business. My father taught me everything I know. I had a hammer in my hand even before I could walk.”

  Hmmm, that must be how he got all those scrumptious muscles.

  He gave a soft chuckle. “Apparently bang bang were my first words,” he added, mimicking the actions of a hammer hitting a nail. “Or so my mother says.”

  She grinned, loving his playful tone and easy demeanor. As she pictured Brad as a toddler, lugging a hammer around everywhere he went, it occurred to her how easy he was to be with these last few days and how easy he was to talk to.

  Lindsay leaned back against the wall and glanced at his work. “The men I attract wouldn’t know a hard day’s work if it jumped up and bit them on their asses.”

  Brad laughed out loud, which, for some strange reason, pleased her immensely.

  Lindsay tossed her notepad aside, pulled her knees to her chest and hugged her legs. “I think it’s great that you’re a handyman.”

  He shot her a skeptical glance. “Really?”

  “Yeah, there is nothing wrong with hard labor. My father is a plumber. When I was a kid, I went with him on a few calls. Now that’s a labor-intensive job too.” She got quiet for a
moment as she thought about her father. She really needed to spend more time with him. “I think you two would really hit it off.” She lowered her voice to mimic her father’s deep, raspy tone. “As he would always say, ‘a hard day’s work never killed anyone and there is nothing wrong with a respectable blue-collar job’.” The sudden image of introducing Brad to her parents rushed through her mind. Whoa…where the heck had that thought come from?

  With the back of his hand, Brad brushed dust from his forehead. “Most women I attract don’t see my job that way.”

  She slanted her head and stretched out her legs. “Well I’m not most women.”

  He nodded, arched one brow and stared at her for a long moment. “I guess not.”

  Something about the way he was looking at her had her thinking of naked bodies, exploring hands and sexy bedroom noises. Lust settled deep between her legs and it was all she could do not to quiver.

  He turned the questions on to her and she was thankful for the reprieve. “How did you get into interior decoration?”

  Just then Abra came sauntering back into the room and eased himself onto her lap. Without conscious thought, she stroked his soft fur. “I always loved to decorate or, as my parents put it, destroy my bedroom and then put it back together at least once a week. Candace and Anna were my accomplices. When we finished my room, we’d do theirs. So it was only natural that the three of us would go into business together.”

  When Brad grinned, her insides turned to mush.

  With a nod of his head, he gestured toward her lap. “It looks like you made a new friend.”

  Rolling her shoulders, she continued to stroke Abra’s fur. “And to think I don’t even like cats, let alone want one cuddling up with me. Obviously Abra doesn’t care about what I want.” She shook her head and under her breath said, “Typical male.”

  Brad gave her an odd look. “You can always put him out of the room.”

  “Nah, he’s not really bothering me. He’s just looking for a little loving.”

  Something in Brad’s eyes softened. He cocked his head and gave her a warm smile. He dropped his tools and sat down next to her on the floor, the proximity creating an instant intimacy. For the second time Lindsay felt all gooey inside, like a warm chocolate-chip cookie straight out of the oven.

  “Well he sure seems to like you,” Brad said, his voice whispery soft. Abra, being the ornery cat that he was, turned away from him, and snuggled tighter into Lindsay’s lap.

  “Lucky me. It must be my charm,” she said easily, waving her hand through the air.

  Brad pitched his voice low, his eyes darkened. The air around them charged with sexual energy. “I guess you have that effect on all males, Lindsay. Feline or human.” His gaze brushed over her face, his blatant flirting and bold, uncensored words letting her know that he too felt a strong pull toward her.

  Oh boy!

  A burst of sexual awareness arced between them and set her loins on fire. She fought the urge to squirm—right onto his lap. The provocative mental image of straddling him sent heat spiraling onward and upward through her body. Liquid desire pooled between her thighs. She pulled in a fortifying breath and tried to remind herself why sex with him would be a bad thing. Dear God, this guy sure had a way of messing with her mind, and her resolve.

  As though attempting to lighten the mood, Brad brought the conversation back around to Candace and Anna. “Tell me more about your friends. It sounds like the three of you are pretty close.”

  She drew a breath, centering herself. “Yeah, like we always said since grade school, BFFAA.”

  “BFFAA?”

  “Best friends forever and always.”

  He shook his head and chuckled. “Ah, of course. How could I not have known that?”

  She shot him a smart-assed look and turned the conversation back to him. “If you’re from Hillside, why did you come all the way to Mason Creek for such a small job?”

  Face serious, Brad spent a long moment looking at her, as though assessing her, his blue eyes intense, his jaw clenched. Then, as quickly as it had disappeared, his easy demeanor returned. With a lighthearted tone, he said, “No job is too small.”

  Something told her that wasn’t entirely the truth. Was there more going on with Brad than he let on? Never one for subtleties, she was about to probe, but stopped herself when Anna and Candace poked their heads in.

  Lindsay jumped to her feet. “Hey, girls, come on in.” Lord, over the last few days, they’d all been so busy designing their own rooms they barely saw one another.

  “Hey, Lindsay. Hey, Brad.”

  Lindsay crossed the room and gave her friends a big hug. “How are you girls making out?” She narrowed her eyes and pressed her hand to Candace’s forehead. “Are you feeling okay? You look a bit flushed.”

  Candace shook her head. “Just hungry. Been working out…I mean, working hard.”

  Lindsay turned her attention to Anna and noticed that she had that old familiar dreamy look in her eyes. Good Lord, had she been dreaming of fairy tales, Prince Charming and happily-ever-after again? For a moment she wondered what they were up to in their rooms.

  “Anna, are you okay?”

  Anna blinked and said quickly, “We’re heading out to lunch and to run a few errands. Can you join us?”

  The way she’d redirected the conversation hadn’t gone unnoticed. Lindsay was about to press but the sound of a truck pulling into the driveway gained her attention. She rushed to the window to peer out. “It looks like I’ll have to take a rain check, ladies. That’s my equipment.”

  After she waved Candace and Anna away, warning them not to work too hard if they weren’t feeling well, Brad piped up. “Let me help you.”

  Lindsay looked over her shoulder and cast him a sideways glance. “What’s that?” When she caught his dark intense gaze, her entire body went up in flames. He had that look in his eyes again. One that spoke of hunger and longing, and did weird and wonderful things to her insides.

  He stood, brushed the dust from his jeans and stalked toward her, closing the distance between them. As he invaded her personal space, his heated glance slid over her body like a lover’s caress.

  For a moment silence stretched between them, then he repeated, “Let me help you.” His voice was like a low velvet seduction. When Lindsay heard the dark desire creeping into his tone, she swallowed.

  Hard.

  Heartbeat accelerated, she opened her eyes wide and regarded him. Her voice wobbled. “Okay” was all she managed to squeak out.

  He adjusted his body so it pressed against hers. A warm palm cupped her face. His smile was slow. Inviting.

  Wolfish.

  Sexual tension hung heavy in the air and curled around them. “Since you love to watch me while I’m hard at work, why don’t you let me carry in your equipment and really give you a show.” She saw the mischief in his eyes.

  Oh. Good. God.

  He looked like he was going to eat her alive.

  And heaven help her, she’d like nothing better.

  4

  Two hours later, after they had carried in all the furniture and put together a gigantic king-sized bed, Brad stood back and watched Lindsay straddle her brand-new padded bench. Long legs spread wide on either side of the elongated black piece of bondage equipment, a smile lighting up her gorgeous brown eyes. Bouncy chestnut curls fell over her shoulders and tumbled in silken waves as she twisted her head back and forth admiring all the new toys.

  Desire slammed through him as he took in the erotic vision before him. Of course, there was only one problem with the picture. Lindsay still had her clothes on, and her arms and legs weren’t bound.

  His cock grew hard thinking about it.

  Brad studied Lindsay a moment longer. There was no denying they both wanted each other. The sexual tension between them was palpable. The room had been buzzing with sexually charged electricity since the minute they’d met.

  He crossed his arms and leaned against the doorjamb, p
ondering her desire to create a lovers’ BDSM room.

  The more he thought of it, the more he realized Lindsay really didn’t seem the type to design such a fantasy-inspired theme room. Although he was only just getting to know her, he suspected she wasn’t the sort who’d want to be the dominant. Which left him with only one conclusion. She herself wanted to be dominated. He’d spent enough time with her to see the image she put to the world. Strong, bold, take-charge kind of girl, one who wouldn’t like to have her control stripped away.

  The way one would while playing bondage games.

  How interesting.

  He paused to speculate a moment longer. Although Lindsay at first appeared to be like every other woman he’d met, a woman who was only interested in fucking him, he was beginning to have his doubts. Maybe, just maybe there was more to her than met the eye. Over the past few days he started to suspect it, but his suspicions were confirmed earlier when she began to talk about her father and her admiration and respect for his job.

  The truth was, the two had totally hit it off and he liked everything about her, especially the way she cared for and supported her family and friends. Those qualities meant a great deal to him.

  He considered his sudden epiphany longer. Yeah, he was pretty damn certain she had more going on inside than she let on.

  Lindsay ran her hands along the bench. Her words pulled him from his musings. “This is perfect, just what I was hoping for.”

  His cock throbbed as he gazed at her curvy body. There was absolutely no doubt he wanted her between the sheets, but he also wondered if there could be more between them than just physical act of sex. Damned if he didn’t want to find out.