Stand By Your Man: (Three Bad Boy Romance Novellas)

by Peter Presley

  “I’m Dave.” A redheaded guy holds out his hand. “You Jackson Smith?”

  I shake it. “Yeah, I’m Jackson.”

  “Good, welcome to the site. We’re working in teams. You’re with three other guys and me. You’ve done this before?”

  He glares at me as if he knows I haven’t worked construction in a long time. “Yeah, years ago. Good thing I’m still young enough.”

  “So we got us a comedian, huh?”

  I guess the redhead isn’t impressed. Before I can say anything else, in walks one of the hottest women I’ve seen in a long time - blonde hair, pretty face, big tits, nice ass - I love a girl who’s got meat on her bones.

  “Forget it.” Dave notices. “That’s the boss’s daughter.”

  I ignore him and stare at the woman. And do you know what she does? She stares at me right back. There’s a smile on that fine mouth before she turns her head and heads into the office to see her rich old man who came in today.

  She’ll make up her own mind, Red.

  Twenty-Three

  Cameron

  “Hi, Daddy!” My father is talking to a group of executives. I’m sure he didn’t expect me to show up here, but I just wanted to visit my dad, you know? He works so much I barely see him anymore.

  “Cameron!” My dad leaves the men and gives me a hug. “Darling, you look beautiful! I’m surprised to see you here!”

  Daddy is excited to see me, but he also has that uneasy look on his face when something happens with me that he doesn’t expect. I kiss him on the cheek. “I just came to see if you’re free for lunch. I never see you anymore.”

  My dad smiles. I’m sure he’ll say he’s too busy, even though he’s the boss and he calls the shots. “Okay.”

  He said “okay.” I can’t believe it!

  “Let me take care of a few things, and I’ll take you to Antoinette. How’s that?”

  “Oh daddy, you don’t have to take me someplace fancy. I just wanted to have lunch with you, that’s all.”

  “Nothing but the best for my favorite daughter.” He kisses me on the forehead.

  “Dad, I’m your only daughter.”

  He laughs. “Yes, I know. Give me a second, okay?”

  While my dad is talking to his executive people, my mind returns to the hot guy I saw on my way in here. Muscles, nice eyes, thick light brown hair. I’m 24. I wonder how old he is. I’m sure he’s around my age.

  I sneak back over to the doorway and see if I can catch a peek of the hot stud, but he’s gone. My dad would ban me from this place if he knew I was looking at one of the construction guys. I’m not joking about that. But let me tell you, this guy is cute.

  Dad took me to Antoinette. Gave the waitress a $50 tip, which was way over 20 percent. But that’s my dad. He’s always taken care of people in that way.

  Now I’m ready to head home, but there he is, the guy I saw on my way in here. He’s busy banging something, but I wish it were me, if you know what I mean. His ass is so tight in those jeans. He’s got his shirt off. So I see lots of muscles. I want a closer look. I do. But that means I’ll be really obvious, right?

  I don’t care. I’m doing it.

  Twenty-Four

  Jackson

  “Hey, here she comes,” says one of the guys on my team. “Man, she’s hot.”

  “You crazy?” says another one. “Get back to work. She may be spying on us.”

  I don’t stop what I’m doing, but it’s become obvious that she’s staring at me. Fuck, I don’t know if she wants me or what’s going on. Now she’s right up against the fence, and she’s smiling.

  “Hello, ma’am,” I say.

  “Please don’t call me ma’am,” she smiles. “Do I look like a ma’am?”

  I smile back. “Uh, I guess not.”

  “Of course not. What’s your name?”

  “Jackson.”

  She sticks her hand through the fence. “I’m Cameron.”

  I look at my hands. They’re all covered with dust.

  “I like dirt.” She says, letting me know she’s okay with my grubby hands. Then she winks. Man, this chick is really putting it on strong. I walk over to her and shake her hand, dust and all.

  “You enjoy your day, okay?”

  “I sure will, Cameron.”

  I watch her walk away. But then there’s a tap on my back. I turn around. It’s Red.

  “You want to keep your job?” he says.

  “Yeah.”

  “Then stay away from the boss’s daughter.”

  Twenty-Five

  Cameron

  I’m walking back to my car, seemingly composed, but if you could experience how fast my heart is beating now, you’d know how nervous I am. I can’t believe I did what I just did! What came over me? I never walk up to a guy and be all in your face like that.

  I don’t know. I guess I just felt like it. I’ll tell you one thing, Jackson has the hots for me, that’s obvious. I could tell by the look on his face that he wants me. Do you know what my dad would do if he found out I like one of the help? Well, I hate to think it, but he’d probably have the guy fired all because he dared to talk to the boss’s daughter. I can’t let that happen to him. So I guess I better lay off. It’s not like I’ll be returning to the construction site soon, anyway. I was just here to have lunch with my dad. I’m sure I won’t be back again for months.

  But what a hottie! He seems quiet, but confident. I could be drawn to someone like him, for real. But, I can’t explain it. There’s danger in those eyes, and something tells me I need to stay away. Even if dad were to approve of someone like him, what would I be getting myself into? It sure was fun to step out of the box, though.

  I’m in my car now, and I’m dying to look back at the fence to see if he’s staring at me, but I won’t. I better just drive off.

  Twenty-Six

  Jackson

  Work went exactly the way I had expected it. Lifting heavy shit. Getting shit all over me. But what I didn’t expect was the owner’s daughter, Cameron, walking up to me and talking to me the way she did.

  Hey? She’s not the only chick who has done that. The ladies think I’m, as they say, “hot,” so some of them will talk to me before I talk to them. But they’re usually a certain kind of woman, you know? They’re the kind that doesn’t have to worry about their reputations because their reputations are already for shit.

  But this girl? This Cameron? This daughter of the rich guy? She was dressed all fancy in her designer clothes. What the hell was she doing talking to a construction worker?

  I’ll tell you what? I like it. I like it a lot. Red thinks he can tell me what to do, barking at me not to speak to Cameron, but I do what I want to do, and that doesn’t stop because I’m working in some square job. I’ll find out more about this Cameron. Do some digging. The least I can do is find out how to get close to her and ask her out. She can decide if she doesn’t want to get with me or not, but I have nothing to lose.

  Hey? If I get fired from this job, I’ll get another one.

  So this is Liquid, huh? If there was any doubt that Colton has gone all yuppie on me, this seals it. Fish tanks built into the walls, too? Damn! It takes two hours to get here from Milwaukee. I’ve got an important question to ask Colton. I could do it over the phone, but I wanted to see him and his bar in person, too.

  “Jackson?”

  I turn around, and there’s Colton.

  “Hey, man! Good to see you!” he says. He’s dressed in jeans again, but he’s wearing a shirt I’m sure he paid mad money for. We hug. “How’s Milwaukee?”

  “Same as always. No complaints I guess. Just thought I’d stop by, but I’ve got a question for you too. Trying to see if you can help me.”

  “Sure! Come on back to my office, man. Abby is here. She’ll be happy to see you.”

  I need to talk to Colton, but I don’t want his old lady hearing what I have to say. I mean, if he’s on to a new life now, I’m sure she doesn’t want him talking a
bout stuff he used to do back in the day. “Look Colton, maybe we should just talk here?”

  Before Colton can say anything, out comes his hot girlfriend. She doesn’t look like Cameron, but she’s hot all the same. Long red hair, nice legs. I can see why Colton gave it all up for that.

  “Jackson!” says Abby, with a big smile. “It’s so nice to see you again. How do you like the bar? I don’t think you’ve ever been here. Can we get you a drink?”

  “Ah . . . yeah, the bar is cool, Abby.”

  “Babe,” Colton interrupts. “ You don’t mind if Jackson and I talk for a little bit, do you?”

  “Of course, not. What would you like to drink, Jackson?”

  “A Bud would be great! Thanks, Abby.”

  As soon as she leaves, I look Colton in the face. “Dude, I need a number. That tech guy. I need an address.”

  “You mean Naveen? Who you trying to follow?”

  “It’s nothing bad. There’s this girl. I want to know where she lives.”

  “And what are you going to do when you find out?”

  ”Like I said, it’s nothing bad. I want to hook up, that’s all.”

  Colton puts his hand on my shoulder. “I get it, Jackson. Sorry for giving you the third degree about it.” He grins at me and searches through his phone. “Okay, here’s his number.” He gives me the number, and I record the number in my phone.

  “Thanks, Colton.”

  “What’s this girl look like, anyway?”

  “Blonde, nice tits, nice ass.”

  “Oh, okay! No wonder you want to do recon on her.”

  “You don’t know the whole story, dude.”

  Abby brings the beers. I think she can tell me and Colton want to be alone. I like her, but I’m glad she walked off.

  Colton takes a swig of his beer. “So, tell me the whole story.”

  “Well, I got a construction job in Milwaukee.”

  “Oh? Good for you. I’m glad to hear that.”

  “Yeah. Whatever. Anyway, the owner’s daughter came right up to me while I was working. She was all in my business, looking me up and down and asking for my name.”

  “She likes those muscles, huh?” Colton winks.

  I laugh. “Shut up, asshole! You know what I mean. She’s the boss’s daughter, but she was all interested in me.”

  “Her rich daddy okay with that?”

  “No! Some carrot top I work with warned me to leave her alone.”

  “I see you’re not taking his advice.”

  “No, I’m not. I get fired; I get myself another job. No big deal. I’m looking for new gigs anyway.”

  “What do you mean you’re looking for gigs? Calm down for once, Jackson. Give your new job a chance.”

  “Colton, I didn’t come here for a lecture.”

  He nods his head. “Okay. Keep me up to date on this blonde beauty, though. Fair enough?”

  “Yeah, I will.”

  I had a nice visit with Colton, but back in Milwaukee I contacted Naveen right away. Sure enough, he did some digging for me. I told you I’ve got connections. I can get information when I need it. Hell, if Five-O knew as much shit as I’ve found out about stuff, they’d lock me up again, for sure.

  I have Cameron’s address and her number, but I won’t call her. I don’t want to freak her out. She’ll wonder how I got her number, and that’ll blow my chances.

  Tomorrow is Saturday. I’ll stakeout near her condo to see if she ever leaves it. If she does, depending on where she’s going, I’ll show up there too. I’ll make sure she sees me, and then she can decide if she wants to give me a repeat performance. If not, I’ll drop it. I may do some sneaky shit, but I’m not a stalker. If she doesn’t want me, she won’t see me again.

  Twenty-Seven

  Cameron

  It’s been a week since I’ve last been to the gym. God, I’ve been such a lazy ass. To top it all off, my trainer isn’t even in today. Guess I’ll just have to work out on my own. My parents, and a lot of the people I know, have gyms in their homes. The personal trainers come to them. But I hate that. I hate not leaving the house. I need to get out, you know? I’d rather go a gym than exercise at home.

  One more set on this sit up bench, and then I’ll move on to arms . . . Oh my God! Is that who I think it is? Shit! He looks even hotter than he did at the construction site. Look at those muscles! What the hell is he doing here? I’ve never seen him in this gym before. Okay, this has got to be fate, right?

  “Jackson?” I yell.

  He turns around to look at me. ”Cameron! Hey, it’s good to see you.”

  I get off the bench and approach him. “I’ve never seen you in this gym before. Have you always been a member here?”

  “Uh . . . no . . . I’m just testing it out is all. You like it here?”

  “Well, I like it a lot better now that you’re here.” Oh my Lord, here I go again, blatantly flirting.

  Jackson smiles. “I feel the same way. You . . . you free for dinner tonight?”

  I have butterflies in my stomach. What would my dad do if he knew I went to dinner with one of the construction workers? I can only imagine how angry he would be. The hell with it . . . he need not know every detail about my life.

  “Sure! What time?”

  Jackson’s face seems to relax. Maybe he figured I’d say no and now he’s happy I said yes. “I’ll pick you up at seven. How’s that? You like Italian?”

  “I love Italian food?”

  “Great! I’ll take you to Louie’s.”

  “Cool! Umm . . . let me give you my address.”

  I pull out my phone, and he brings out his. I’m giving this guy my address. Maybe I shouldn’t, but what the hell. I’m an adult. I can do what I want. Jackson seems nice enough. Besides, he’s taking me to Louie’s, a nice Italian restaurant in the city. That means he’s got way more class than I ever imagined for someone like him. I want to get to know this guy.

  “All right, beautiful. I’m done working out. So I’ll pick you up tonight, cool?”

  “Cool!”

  Twenty-Eight

  Jackson

  My plan is going the way I want. In fact, Cameron didn’t seem to hesitate at all.

  She lives on the rich side of town, which is no surprise. My apartment is in a nice area, too, but not as nice as where she lives. But with the cash I’ve made in my life, I’ve got a sick car to pick her up in, and I’m taking her to Louie’s. My car is even better than Colton’s. At least, I think so. He drives a Jag, but I drive a Ferrari. We both know girls like being taken to fancy restaurants in fine cars. I’m wearing a suit, and I haven’t been in a suit since that wedding I attended two years ago, but I gotta dress the part. If I want a girl like Cameron, I have to be ready.

  I’m in my car and I should be at her place in about 20 minutes. Maybe you assume all I’m thinking about is getting Cameron into the sack, but to be honest, that’s not on my mind. I’m just honored to have a girl like her wanting to date a worker like me. I won’t tell her what I did before the construction job. I’d lose her before I even get to know her.

  Twenty-Nine

  Cameron

  “Who is this guy?”

  I’m on the phone with my friend Elaine. I’m so excited to hook-up with someone this hot that I had to call her. Elaine is a rich girl too, but she’s my best friend and she would never spill my secrets to my father. That’s why I like talking to her.

  “I told you,” I say. “He works for my dad.”

  “A construction guy?”

  “Yes, and I know what you will say. But my dad need not know everything about me.”

  “Is this guy really as hot as you say he is?”

  “Yes, oh my God! Muscles to die for. Great eyes. He’s so hot I approached him. You know I don’t do stuff like that.”

  “So now he wants to take you to that Italian place?”

  “Yep.”

  “What are you wearing?”

  “The sexiest black dress I own. I got
it in Milan. It fits me like a glove. You should see how my tits look in it.”

  “Oh, okay. So you’re just looking for a booty call, right?”

  “So what if I am? I haven’t had a good fuck in months. It’s not like I’m gonna date the guy. My dad would kill me.”

  “You told me your dad can’t decide for you.”

  “You know what I mean. What my dad doesn’t know won’t hurt him.”

  “I want all the sordid details of your nasty night, okay?”

  “Oh, don’t worry. I’ll fill you in. You should see the smile on my face right now.”

  “Mr. Fisher’s little girl is such a slut.”

  ”I am not a slut. I just know what I want that’s all. I deserve a good roll in the sack.”

  “I know you’re not. But maybe you should be. I’m sick of hearing you complain about guys. By the way, I hope your construction worker isn’t like Jim. He was an asshole.”

  “You mean, the guy with the Porsche? His name was Josh.”

  “Jim, Josh, whatever. All I know is that he was a jerk.”

  “Jackson is nothing like Josh.”

  “How would you know? You haven’t even gone out with him yet.”

  “Thanks for the vote of confidence, Elaine. Anyway, I’ve got to go. He’s picking me up soon.”

  “Don’t spare me any details. I want all the dirt.”

  “Yes, I’ll tell you the dirt. Goodbye.”

  Jackson will be here any minute. I walk up to my bedroom mirror and give myself one last look. This black dress really does look good on me. Black hides everything that you want to hide and makes you look thinner. It’s always been a good color for me. And I can’t believe how awesome my tits look in it. I just hope Jackson can keep his eyes on my face if you know what I mean?