by Aimee Carson
Eyes dark, she lowered her shirt as she stepped close enough to bring the scent of lavender back. Her passion, her strength and her beauty—both inside and out—tightened its grip around his spine.
“And unless you plan on touching me again, Suit,” she said in a low voice, “stop looking at me like you don’t know whether to make love to me or scold me like a rebellious kid.”
His heart pounded as if attempting to free its way from his chest, and a little of his resolve cracked, providing just enough room for the climbing pressure to gain a foothold. And the man who took what he wanted without thought of the consequences—the wild rebel he’d been suppressing for years—escaped in a rush.
With an explicit curse, Blake hooked his hand behind the hellion on heels’ neck and pulled, her body colliding with his, his mouth landing hard on her lips.
* * *
With a sigh, Jax melted against Blake’s unyielding chest, returning the rough, raw kiss with all the fire and longing that had been building for weeks. After an incredible night with Blake, followed by many a restless sleep, it was a relief to be back in his arms. Not just because of the need to be free to touch him again or the need to feel the relatively new, and blissfully wonderful, experience of full-on sex again. The most profound relief came from Blake finally knowing the true extent of her past.
And wanting her anyway.
No I-can’t-escape-your-presence-fast-enough expression like Jack. No horrified gleam in his eyes that communicated she’d launched beyond cute-crazy and straight into scary-crazy. Instead, Blake’s mouth was taking hers in a blatant sign of possession, as if acknowledging it all and verifying he didn’t care. His lips slanted across hers hungrily, his tongue impatient against hers. It was an act of control. A stamp of ownership.
Who knew a little domination would be such a turn-on?
Lips controlling hers, his movement tinged with an angry desperation, Blake shrugged out of his coat, his jacket hitting the floor as he gave his tie an impatient jerk. “Lock the door,” he ordered against her mouth.
In the time it took Jax to comply, Blake had his shirt and shoes off. Eyes on his gloriously heart-stopping erection beneath his pants, her throat suddenly dry, she crossed back to his desk.
Gaze dark with need, he hooked his finger in her waistband and yanked her closer, unsnapping her shorts and pushing the cutoffs to the floor. “I have to be back at the office by three.”
With an overwhelming sense of freedom, she peeled off her shirt, baring her abdomen in all its horrific glory, and tossed Aretha aside. “I have plans for cocktails and a lecture on subversive protesting technique with your mother at four.”
With a frown, he took her lips in another mind-melting, do-as-I-say, openmouthed kiss that communicated that, this time, he was calling all the shots.
This was the bossy side she could never get enough of....
He pulled back, his eyes made of steel. “No subversive protests.”
“Okay,” she said, shucking her panties with a shimmy of her hips, stepping out of the lace and kicking it aside. “I’ll just humor her and pretend to take notes.”
He cupped her breasts together and brought his mouth down, impatiently consuming her nipples with his mouth, teeth and tongue. Darts of desire skimmed along her veins, and she arched helplessly against him.
Need made her mind spin as she skimmed her hands across the well-defined muscles in his arms and his deliciously cut chest. She unfastened his pants, pushing them and his briefs to the floor. “As far as Nikki is concerned—” she was already panting in anticipation when she made the mistake of dropping her gaze, and the next thing she knew she was staring at his erection “—we have about an hour.”
Which, with the way her body was throbbing, felt wholly inadequate.
He gripped her hips and hauled her against his hot, naked and very aroused shaft, and her body nearly belted out a tune. “How do you figure that?” he said.
“’Cuz that’s how long she said she’d wait before coming to look for my dead body,” she said as she tipped her right toe against her left heel, ready to slip off a boot.
“Wait,” he ordered, and panic paralyzed her.
Her heart racing, fear sluiced through Jax even as her veins hummed with pleasure at his hard length, ramping up her pulse to astronomical rates. Fear that he’d suddenly come to his senses and remember she wasn’t the kind of woman he wanted in his life. Worried the reminder of her actions today had thoroughly doused his desire. Terrified that the visible evidence of her turbulent mind-set of long ago was too much for him to deal with.
And God help her, she was desperate to have him take her body.
Gaze burning into hers, voice gruff, he said, “I’m going to make love to you while you wear nothing but those cowboy boots.”
Relief swamped her, and she exhaled in a rush. “Jeez, Blake,” she said, twining her arms around his neck, “I thought you were going to say you just remembered you had an appointment and needed to leave.”
His voice harsh, he said, “Absolutely not.”
And the searing kiss that followed sent her senses skyrocketing
He trailed hot kisses across her cheek and down her neck, scraping his teeth across her pulse as he gripped her butt and hauled her up onto his desk. The cool wood couldn’t overcome the heat between her legs, and she shifted impatiently as Blake retrieved his wallet from the desk, pulling out a condom.
“Right now...” Eyes burning, he sheathed himself in latex. “There’s nothing I need more than you.”
The words were the sweetest she’d ever heard. “Does this mean I can permanently disregard the no-kissing clause?” she said, feigning innocence.
He tugged on her knees, positioning her thighs for his body. “I’m burning the damn contract,” he muttered darkly, and then he took her with a commanding thrust.
NINE
“So what did my big brother have to say to you in his office earlier today?” Nikki said as she spooned glazed vegetables onto her plate. Blake sat at the head of the dining room table, and Nikki shot him a surreptitious look. “Did he give you his lecture on consequences, like he did me?” Nikki said drily. “Or did he simply tell you that you were ruining your life?”
Across the table from Nikki, Jax shifted in her seat, uncomfortable with Nikki’s tone and topic of conversation. Somehow she didn’t think Blake’s “I’m going to make love to you while you wear nothing but those cowboy boots” was an appropriate response. Though God knew Jax had loved every second of being so thoroughly dominated, the life-changing moment completely minus the kid gloves he’d used their first night together.
A truly liberating experience.
But now was not the time to dwell on the delightful memories, especially with Nikki spoiling for a fight while Blake and Abigail sat at either end of the big dining-room table. Because everyone was waiting for her answer, all eyes currently assessing Jax, Nikki’s expectant, Abigail’s unconcerned and Blake’s...
Well, Blake, damn him. He had the audacity to look amused.
All Jax wanted was to get through her dinner in relative peace.
“Don’t start holding back now, Jax,” Blake said smoothly. The light in his eyes left her with an overwhelming urge to stick her tongue out at him. “I’d love to hear your version.”
She shot him a look she hoped went unnoticed by his family. “Shall I mention the thumbscrews?” she said, her tone falsely light.
Blake’s eyes crinkled in the corners. “By all means. And don’t forget the rack, either.”
The rack brought to mind Blake pinning her to his desk....
Jax forced herself to focus.
“Let me guess,” Nikki went on as if to save Jax the trouble. “He dusted off the old you’re-going-to-regret-this-later phrase and then gave you a condescendin
g pat on the head with an authoritative air.”
Jax’s heart sank a little lower, and she wondered why Nikki seemed intent on the conversation now. She’d had all afternoon to discuss the meeting with Jax. In truth, there was only one conclusion: while raking her brother over the coals, Nikki preferred an audience.
Probably in an attempt to give Blake’s never-let-’em-see-you-ruffled style a real workout.
At first she’d viewed Blake solely from Nikki’s point of view, feeling defensive on the kindred spirit’s behalf. But, despite her growing affection for the fun-loving brunette, Jax was fast learning that Nikki never missed an opportunity to goad her brother.
And Jax suspected Nikki provoked Blake just to see him raise that cool, authoritarian head in response.
The relationship ruts these two had dug appeared too deep to ever allow escape to a better way.
“So how did the conversation go?” Nikki said.
Jax bit the corner of her lip, looking to soothe the waters. “After a little bit of a debate—” a debate involving who was the one who got to be on top the next time they made love on his desk “—we...” Jax cleared her throat. “We reached an agreement.”
No need to clarify that their accord involved whose bed they’d make love in tonight. And the sense of freedom to enjoy the man’s sexy company, without worrying about her past, was heavenly.
“I’m surprised. My brother doesn’t usually reach agreements,” Nikki said with an edge of resentment. “Mostly he just dispenses judgment and hands out sentences.”
There was a slight pause, as if Nikki knew she’d gone too far.
“Nikki, regardless of how you feel about me—” Blake’s tone was carefully even “—Jax is a guest in our home. And she deserves a tranquil dinnertime atmosphere.”
A frown appeared on Nikki’s face as she shot Jax an apologetic look. “I’m sorry you got dragged into our dysfunctional relationship.”
Blake’s mother finally entered into the conversation. “Ridiculous, Nikki,” Abigail said, gleefully untroubled by the tension. “The dysfunctional family is just part and parcel of the American dream. You know, like baseball, apple pie and polarizing politics.” The lines bracketing her eyes shifted with triumph. “And, Jax, I forgot to tell you earlier. I contacted my friend Franklin about our funding problem.”
At the words our problem, a phrase that made her feel less alone, Jax’s heart melted a touch. The natural way the family was including her was growing harder to resist. Even the siblings squabbling felt surprisingly...homey.
Jax fought the urge to melt into complete mush as she looked around the table at Blake, his sister and the endearingly eccentric Abigail.
“We might not have accomplished everything I’d wanted with the protest,” Blake’s mother said as she patted Jax’s hand, and Jax steeled herself against the surge of heartwarming emotion. “But we are not a one-trick-pony show. I am woman, hear me roar, and all that jazz,” she said as she carelessly waved her fork in the air. “I have several more ideas up my sleeves.”
“Yeah,” Nikki agreed, her face reflecting her excitement. “I think Mom’s idea to find a celebrity endorsement is inspired.”
Jax fought the emotional tightening of her throat as she studied the faces of the two women who’d so eagerly embraced her cause, all in the name of helping her out. Just like family was supposed to do.
Don’t you dare get too attached, Jax.
This wasn’t her family, and there was no sense in setting herself up for disappointment. But it was nice to once, just once, feel as if she belonged to a unit outside of the club.
With great effort, Jax finally tuned back into Abigail’s speech.
“...because sex sells,” Abigail was saying, and Jax studiously ignored the heated look that Blake sent her.
It was painfully obvious he was thinking about their round of lovemaking today. Jax sent him a shut-up stare. Where was the coolly controlled man when she needed him? The one that calmly set her back after her kiss. The one who’d eaten lunch with them without betraying a hint of attraction? Apparently Blake was beginning to live life a little more on the edge.
And who was ruining the tranquil dinnertime atmosphere now?
“So my friend Franklin is going to use his contacts in the local music industry,” Abigail droned on, and Jax struggled to catch up with the topic. “To see if he can land that sexy Bulldog as a spokesman for the club.”
Blake finally turned his disturbing gaze to his mother in confusion. “Bulldog?”
“He’s the local hip-hop artist that hit the big time.” Abigail shook her head at her son, as if he was derelict in his duties for not being familiar with the hometown rap star. “He’s just back from a fabulously successful world tour. And,” Abigail continued, her grin growing bigger, “he has a body that just screams sex.”
Jax got the impression that Blake was striving to ignore his mother’s comment, but his reluctance to participate was brought up short when his mother turned to Blake.
“What say you, Blake?” Abigail said.
“I have no idea who the man is, nor am I familiar with his body to die for.” A furrow appeared between his brows as he sent his mother a small frown. “And I’m hoping my knowledge of the man’s physique continues to be of the nonexistent kind,” he added drily. His forehead crinkled in concern. “If he is that well-known, surely he won’t have time to take on a club for teens.”
“Are you doubting my skills?” Abigail said.
Blake was obviously fighting back a smile as he answered. “I think the man doesn’t stand a chance against the powerful female force in this room.”
But there was no chastising tone, only acceptance. And a tint of pride.
Nikki pretended to choke on her iced tea. “Did you just pay us a compliment?”
“Blake’s being remarkably good-humored tonight,” Abigail said. She narrowed her eyes at her only son. “Come to think of it, you look more relaxed than you have in ages, despite the trial that could ruin your career if you fail.”
Without missing a beat, Blake lifted a brow. “Thanks for the encouraging words,” he said with a wry twist of his lips.
“I’m only trying to be realistic,” Abigail said airily. And then a line of curiosity formed between her eyebrows. “Which is usually your job. Yet you seem unusually optimistic.” She set her fork down, the lines in her forehead growing deeper. “Why is that?”
Jax felt the inquiry all the way to her curling toes, and silently prayed for tranquility.
Blake shifted in his seat. “The Menendez case goes to jury this week.”
“That’s not the point,” Abigail said. She looked unconcerned about the case. “I don’t think it’s the end of the trial that has you looking so relaxed.”
There was a pause that felt like forever as every blood cell in Jax’s face felt as if it expanded twofold.
Nikki lightly thumped her hand on the table. “I knew it,” she said, her eyes bright with mischief as she addressed her brother. “You hooked up with that uptight defense attorney, didn’t you? The one who’s helping you with Jax’s case.” While Jax blinked back a surge of ridiculous jealousy, Nikki turned to her mother. “I think Blake’s dry spell has finally come to an end. And thank God, too,” she said, lifting a brow at her brother. “Maybe getting started on those two and half children with the perfect lawyer will get you off my case about my lack of a summer internship. I might just send the lady a thank-you note.”
Blake was clearly avoiding Jax’s gaze. And the wave of heat that had already crept up her neck now spread across her face. Jax dropped her eyes to her plate of food, pushing her fork through her mashed potatoes as nonchalantly as she could.
Nikki was too busy poking fun at her brother to notice. But, as their mother’s gaze shifted from her son to Jax, the comprehens
ion in Abigail’s expression was impossible to miss. Jax’s heart sank at the perceptive look. Because now his curious mother would probably be showing up more frequently than usual. Bringing more baked goods with her, too.
Jax forced back the sigh as she slumped in her seat. Being under Abigail’s sharply amused, watchful eye as she and Blake worked their way through this tentative relationship made things uncomfortable enough.
Suffering through it with an endless succession of weird pastries was asking too much.
* * *
One week and several delicious nights later, the pop of the champagne bottle was loud. His mom let out a celebratory woo-hoo that was even louder. But Blake wasn’t sure if his mother’s excitement was more of a reflection of his momentous day and the guilty verdict he’d won in the trial, or in anticipation of partaking of the pricey bubbly.
He was fairly certain it was in equal measure of both.
But after two years of dedicating his life to the case, Blake couldn’t pin down exactly how he felt. Wrestling with the churning emotions, Blake gripped his glass as his mother filled his champagne flute, followed by Jax’s, Nikki’s and then her own.
His mother lifted her glass. “A toast to my son’s accomplishments.”
Jax was looking especially beautiful in her Carrie Underwood T-shirt and jeans that did heart-stopping things to her figure. She murmured a “Hear! Hear!” while Nikki shot him a teasing look.
“Your résumé is getting pretty impressive, big brother,” Nikki said.
And it had the potential to get even more impressive, although he hadn’t shared that bit of news with his family yet. But if he didn’t tell them soon, they’d hear it from someone else.
Inhaling a deep breath, Blake took the plunge. “I was offered the promotion to chief of my division today.”
There was a moment of stunned silence, and then his mother set the bottle and her glass down before enveloping him in a huge hug.
“That’s fantastic, Blake,” she said. She pulled back to look up at him, her expression, for once, serious. Her eyes almost...weepy. “Your father would have been so proud.”
