Dirty Stranger (The Dirty Suburbs Book 3)

by Cassie-Ann L. Miller

“Yeah, yeah. I’m sure that’s all it is,” he says facetiously.

  I groan. “And, okay, I have a personal interest in the girl, too. Are you happy now? Are you gonna stop giving me a hard time?”

  He roars with laughter. I can tell that he’s pleased by my admission.

  “This really isn’t a big deal,” I add, “the project only requires a five hundred thousand dollar investment.” Right then, a curvaceous blonde walks by, working extra hard to catch my eye with her enormous rack.

  The Universe is testing me. Too bad the only woman I want has got cinnamon hair and freckled skin.

  My brother signals his agreement. “No shame in it, brother but how am I supposed to convince the shareholders –”

  “I don’t need the consortium to back me on this, Griffin. We both know that.”

  “You would put up your own money?”

  “Sure as shit I’d put up my own money. I can afford it. Not every guy my age has a few hundred million just sitting in the bank. I might as well spend it on the girl I want.”

  My brother pauses. “You’re that serious about her, huh?”

  I nod at my reflection in the mirror running along the opposite wall. “I’m that serious about her.”

  “Hmm…Can’t argue with that,” he mumbles.

  He’s quiet again. I really debate the next words out of my mouth but I know that Griffin would be glad I asked. “Any news on Ryan?”

  He groans. “Mom tracked him down in Las Cabos. He got arrested for public misconduct. She’s on her way down there to bail him out right now.”

  Why am I not surprised? That asshole will never grow up. He’ll never take responsibility for his shit-storm life. And our mother will never stop rushing off to his rescue. “She needs to stop coddling him,” I mutter under my breath.

  Griffin senses my shift in mood and quickly changes the topic. Too bad this subject is just as touchy for me. “Anything new concerning our father?”

  “Not since we last spoke,” I say. “He’s still trying to buy up all the property he can get his hands on and knock it down to put up his precious fucking condos.”

  “What a shit he is,” Griffin grumbles. Harvey Marquette is the opposite of Griffin and I. While our business focuses on saving small businesses and keeping people employed, our father would knock down a hospital or an elementary school – hell, he’d bulldoze a graveyard to build his luxury condos. I can’t stand the man.

  I recognize this as the best time to end our conversation. Both of our sore spots have been poked. “Look, I should get going. Give Vanessa a kiss from her Uncle Reuben, will you?”

  “Sure thing,” my brother says. “We’ll be in touch.”

  “Yeah.”

  That’s how we end the call.

  Chapter 18

  Isla

  I shake out my hands to get rid of the nerves but my stomach is still twisted in knots.

  Reuben Barre is naked in the other room.

  And I have to go in there.

  And touch him.

  And somehow keep my panties on.

  Okay, get yourself together, Isla. You've given hundreds of massages before. This is no different. And besides, this man is your business partner. So what if you slept with him a few times before? You have to keep it professional now.

  End of pep talk.

  I don't know why I didn't see this coming. Reuben has made it clear that he takes a hands-on approach to his businesses. He specializes in business operations, after all. He doesn't mind getting in on the ground level and getting his hands dirty. The day I met him, he was working the damn espresso machine at Herbivore, for crying out loud. I know that he takes his job of understanding a business's functioning very seriously.

  So now that he owns a major stake in my yoga studio, of course he wants the full Prasanna experience. He's attended all of my regular yoga classes but that isn't enough for him. He wants first-hand exposure to my massage services as well.

  At first, he tried to convince me to let him perform massages on my clients but hell no! I don't want him touching my clients. That's a lawsuit waiting to happen.

  So, he flipped the script on me. Now, he wants to be the one lying naked on the massage table. And (aside from the fact that my panties may melt off) I can't find any reasonable objection to his request to receive a massage from me.

  What have I gotten myself into?

  There's a tap at the door. Blakely pokes her head into my office where I'm pacing from wall to wall.

  "Everything okay, Isla?" she asks in a soft voice. "Reuben’s been waiting on the massage table for like 20 minutes."

  Oh god, I'm about to hyperventilate.

  I shake out my hands again. "I'll be there in a few minutes."

  My sister stares at me hard before glancing over her shoulder, into the hallway. She steps inside, closing the door quietly behind her. She gives me a knowing stare. "Isla, can you please just admit to yourself that you like the guy?” She folds her arms across her chest. “Denying your feelings is clogging the hell out of your sacral chakra."

  I scowl at her. "My chakras are just fine, Blakely!” My stomach is still raw with nerves. "Now will you please tell the client that I'll be there shortly?"

  She doesn't look convinced. But being as sweet as she is, she gives me a small shrug and an exasperated sigh. "If you say so, Isla." She disappears out the door.

  I pull in a deep breath, whispering affirmation after affirmation to myself.

  Peace and tranquility envelop my soul.

  I conquer my insecurities with calm self-assurance.

  My thoughts are clear. My body is at ease.

  Nothing's working. My palms are still clammy and my knees still feel weak. The fact of the matter is, I don't trust myself to be alone with a naked Reuben Barre.

  Oh god. My chakras are anything but fine.

  Chapter 19

  Reuben

  I generally don't like to be kept waiting but the anticipation for Isla to walk into this room and put her hands on me is slowly killing me.

  Just as I'm about to lose my mind once and for all, the door swings open. She steps into the dimly-lit space, wearing a set of boxy-looking scrubs with the yoga studio logo embroidered over the left breast. Definitely not what she was wearing in the steamy fantasy playing on loop in my mind.

  I make a mental note - we'll have to change these uniforms.

  "Sorry I kept you waiting," she says as she approaches the table where I'm lying naked except for the sheet covering my lower body.

  "Well, you do know how to build anticipation. That's for sure," I say in a low voice. "I'm sure you're worth the wait."

  My words seem to ratchet up the tension that is already buzzing around us. Isla swallows visibly, her nervousness evident on her face. I hate that the idea of touching me makes her nervous. I want her heady with the same excitement that I feel but she insists on shoving her desires aside and keeping this professional.

  There's nothing professional about the tingles I feel in my cock at the mere thought of her hands on my body.

  She turns to the table behind her, squirting a few drops of oil into her palm before facing me again. "Do you have any problem spots I should be focusing on?" She rubs her hands together.

  Yeah, the rock-hard limb between my legs.

  "Nothing in particular," I say instead. "Just give me the full Isla Hamilton experience." On her sharp intake of air, I place my face through the hole in the table, hiding my smirk.

  An instant later, a little bolt of electricity licks my skin where her fingertips touch me. I know she feels it too because she flinches and her breath hitches at the contact.

  Holy hell, there's fire between us!

  Neither of us say anything, choosing instead to let the smoldering desire suffuse the air. Isla’s soft hands roll the tense muscles of my neck and shoulders until I feel like liquid under her fingers.

  Soft, mystical acoustics fill the air around me, calming me from the inside out. With each p
assing minute, I feel more helpless, completely at her mercy. My breathing slows down...my pulse relaxes...I feel peace...Gradually, that maddening conversation with my brother from earlier today begins to fade away.

  It's clear to me that this thing between me and this woman isn't just sexual. Our connection pierces through all my dimensions, unveiling aspects of myself that I didn't even know were there. God, listen to me. I'm starting to sound like a fucking hippie. Isla’s rubbing off on me. In the best possible way.

  "Roll over, please." Her voice comes out as a soft breath.

  I do as I'm told. I watch as her eyes settle on my steely erection, masked poorly by the thin sheet. But I'm not ashamed. I want her to see what she does to me. I want her to caress my cock with her hands, stroke it with her tongue, climb on top of me and let it stretch her tight walls of heat.

  I want to fuck her. Nice and slow.

  Her gaze rises slowly to mine and our eyes lock for a moment. There's so much wanting in her eyes. It's killing me. I push the sheets aside and stand. A man can only take so much. Her stare drops to my chest, my abs, my cock. She bites her pretty lips. And I feel like a man.

  I cup my hand around her jaw, lifting her face so that she's looking at me. Her pulse throbs against my fingers. "Are your panties wet, Isla?" My voice pours out in a growl.

  She gasps. Or actually, she moans, taking a single step back. Her chest rises and falls rapidly as she struggles to breathe.

  “Why are you trying to resist me?” My hands brace her hips and I press her into the wall. The undeniable bulge of my erection presses against her belly. ”You want me as much as I want you and I’m sure it’s against some sacred law of yoga to deny your base urges.”

  Her head falls to the wall behind her and she moans my name. It's the prettiest sound I've ever heard. I can't resist the graceful column of her neck. I kiss her there, softly, my tongue darting out to taste the salty sweetness of her flesh.

  "We shouldn't do this," she pants.

  I can think of a dozen reasons that might hold her back. We're business partners now. We have limited time since there's a yoga class starting in 15 minutes. We're in her place of business, for chrissakes and I can hear her customers walking by on the other side of this wall.

  Fuck all those reasons.

  "I don't care what we should or shouldn't do, Cinnamon," I growl against her ear. "I just care what you want. What do you want right now, Isla?”

  I've never been so invested in pleasing a woman, sexually, physically, emotionally. I want to see Isla Hamilton satisfied and I want to be the reason for it.

  Words seem to spill out of her mouth faster than she can control them. “I wish I didn’t want you so much.”

  I graze my teeth along her sensitive throat, tasting her again. She mewls approvingly. "Let go of those doubts. I'll take care of you, Isla. You know that."

  I know it's a lot to ask of her. Especially since she's been hurt. The man she married failed miserably at respecting the vows he made to her. But I will be different. I will build her up instead of tearing her down. I will be her soft place. I'll be her armor against the world. She just has to give me a chance.

  "No, I don't know that." Her voice cracks with vulnerability. "I don't even know you. Why should I make room in my life for you?"

  "Because..." I slip my hands into the elastic of her pants and under the lace of her panties. My finger circles the throbbing pebble of her clit and she keens against my hand. She's so fucking wet. "Because I make you feel like this."

  She moans as pleasure rockets through her. I rub her in a hard, punishing tempo, enjoying it as she grows more and more frustrated for release. She's so damn sexy as she squirms against the wall, thrusting her pelvis against my thigh. I kiss her to silence her escalating cries. The taste of her lips has me dizzy with lust.

  "Are you going to fuck right here?" She whispers. I hear the desperation in her tone.

  I nod into the curve of her neck. "Yes, Cinnamon, I'm going to fuck you right here."

  She whimpers. "Do it. Please."

  My pants are hanging on the hook near her head. I slip my hand into the pocket and take a condom from my wallet. She presses her lips to my jaw and my chin and my collarbone as I sheathe myself.

  "I want that pretty pussy in my face." I pull those ugly scrub pants down her legs as she whips off her shirt and drops it to the floor. I help her step out of her underwear and now I'm kneeling in front of her, face-to-face with that cute, little red bush that's hiding my new favorite toy in the world. I place her foot on my shoulder and kiss from her ankle to her knee. I drop her leg over my back, kissing the inside of her trembling thigh. She hisses when my tongue slides over her bush, in search of her clit.

  "Reuben..." she says in a restrained moan. I hear footsteps on the other side of the door, the jovial laughs of women on their way to the next yoga class. Isla slaps her hand to her mouth, biting into her flesh to keep from crying out.

  Meanwhile, I feast on her pussy. She tastes like the sweetest dessert. Her muted whimpers give me a sugar rush. When I dip two fingers into her and suck hard on her little nub, her silky walls close in one me.

  She's coming.

  Her cry rises above the low ambient music playing in the background. For just that moment, she looses control. She lets go of the reins. She submits to the pleasure I send charging through her veins. I rise to my feet to hold her, to wrap her in my arms as the sensations subside.

  I flip her around so that she's facing the wall and I use my knee to spread her legs apart. I put my hand over hers and drag her fingers through her wetness, caressing her tender clit. She writhes in pleasure. Grabbing my cock, I angle it at her entrance and grit my teeth as I push inside. God, she's tight.

  Now, I'm fucking her in long, deep strokes. She hisses sharply, leaning her forehead to the wall for support. Her hair tumbles over her shoulder, exposing the back of her graceful neck to me. I press wet kisses to the bony knots on her spine and her pussy spasms deliciously, clenching violently around my steely column. With her free hand, she reaches back and grasps my neck, pulling my head forward and stealing a kiss. Our tongues twirl around each other, stirring the desire boiling in my veins. When I feel like the kiss is about to unravel me, I turn away and grip her waist tight, pulling her back on my cock over and over again. "Oh god, oh god," she whispers hoarsely as our bodies slap together.

  I continue to guide her fingers in circles on her clit but now the pressure is becoming overwhelming. She's chanting my name over and over like one of her yoga mantras, getting louder with each stroke. She no longer seems concerned that somebody might here her on the other side of the thin wall. I move her hand from her pussy and press it to her lips to silence her. Instead, she moans deep, accepting her wet fingers into her mouth.

  And that's when she breaks.

  Her body trembles, her back arching as endless contractions ripple through her pussy. She claws at the wall with her short fingernails, gasping and panting. And now, I'm coming too. I wrap my arms around her waist and my body goes stiff as pleasure circulates uncontrolled throughout my being.

  She falls limp against my chest, still struggling for air. Her fingers wrap around my wrists and her head burrows against my heart. And I've never felt more purposeful than I do in this moment.

  I'm the one she's clinging to, I'm the one propping her up.

  Chapter 20

  Isla

  "So let me get this straight – you boned your hot business partner in the massage room five minutes before teaching your bikram yoga class?"

  I lean against the counter and nod into my goblet, shame tinting my cheeks as red as my wine. "Something like that." I can't bring my eyes to Faith's but I hear the amusement in her voice.

  She and Sammie laugh riotously. "That's fucking hot!" she says tossing me an irreverent wink.

  Gracie looks away from the corn chowder she's stirring at the stove and glares at them over her shoulder. "Language!" she hisses, tipping her head sugge
stively in the direction of Sebastian's high chair.

  The baby sits there oblivious, happily poking away at the screen of the smartphone in his hand.

  "Sorry." Faith mouths the word through her giggles as she slides a spoonful of mashed banana past the baby's lips.

  Daniel was supposed to take Sebastian tonight but he had a client emergency which forced him to work late so instead of going out for drinks like we'd planned to, we're spending a quiet evening at Gracie's. She doesn’t seem too happy about it. She’s been tight-lipped about what caused their relationship to crumble but I suspect that his tendency to prioritize work over family is one of the major reasons for their separation.