5 Nights (Sinful Delights Romance - Boxed Set)

by Michelle Hughes

  They both fell asleep again, and he woke her later, demanding all her body would give and then more. When he knew he had to leave the bed, it was with a sense of regret. His mind had been on pleasing her, and doing so had pushed all his other worries to the backburner. He knew that sooner rather than later he had to face reality though, and he wasn't a man that hid from the truth.

  "Grab a shower, sweet girl, and I'll go ask Louise to get breakfast started." Giving her a tender smile and a chaste kiss on her lips, he slid out of bed, found his shorts and left her alone in the room.

  12 Light of Day

  Making her way into his bathroom, there was no doubt about how sore she was. Her muscles ached in ways they'd never known before and she giggled. Thinking she now knew what it meant to be truly sexually satisfied. Standing under the warm spray of the shower, she didn't laugh at the stinging sensation between her thighs. The man was insatiable, she thought with a grin as she washed off. If she was able to walk today, it was going to be a miracle.

  Stepping out of the shower, she realized she didn't have any regrets about what had happened last night. While Chase might have been insatiable, he was also a very generous lover, and there was no denying how much pleasure he'd given her. The ache between her thighs was definitely a small price to pay.

  Walking back into his room, she didn't want to slide on her dress again and meet Louise. Without thinking twice, she went through his drawers and found a t-shirt and a pair of shorts that were entirely too big, but she rolled them down at the waist until she was assured they wouldn't fall off. She looked like a child playing in adult clothes, she decided, and laughed at her appearance in the full-sized mirror on his door.

  No help for it. She shrugged and walked downstairs to find Chase, still barefoot. She was shocked as she noticed the time on the elegant clock hanging on the wall. It was already after twelve in the afternoon. Had they really been enjoying each other that long? Making her way to the kitchen, she smiled, seeing Louise, and tried to hide a blush.

  "Well, hello there young lady." Louise smiled warmly. "I'm almost done here if you want to join Chase in the dining room." She pointed to the room behind her.

  "Thank you, Louise, and good morning," she said, hurrying off to the other room, knowing it wasn't morning at all. Chase was talking on his cell phone, and she could tell the conversation wasn't a pleasant one. Sitting down at the imposing dining room table, she kept quiet while he continued his conversation.

  He gave her a slight smile as he spoke with Carolyn, not wanting her to think he was upset with her. He wished he could go back to their fantasy land back in the bedroom. "Sorry," he mouthed as he listened to Carolyn. Louise had contacted his friend early this morning and she was helping to make funeral preparations.

  Jessie shook her head to indicate he shouldn't be sorry, and smiled as Louise came in with a coffee tray. She poured them both a cup and asked quietly what she took. Jessie kept her tone low as she whispered, “Cream and sugar.”

  Chase hung up with a loud sigh, putting the phone down on the table. "Morning." He forced a wink and a smile he didn't feel at the moment, but he wanted her to be comfortable.

  "Afternoon," she whispered with a sad smile, knowing exactly what he was doing. "Are you okay?"

  He nodded curtly, knowing he wasn't fooling her. "Carolyn was just giving me all the details for my father's funeral. Thank you Louise." He gave a half smile as she put his cup before him.

  "I'll be back in with your breakfast." Louise nodded and walked back to the kitchen.

  "I know how hard this is for you, Chase. If you need some time alone, I'll understand." She had enjoyed the most beautiful experience of her life last night, but she didn't want to feel like she was imposing on him during his time of grief.

  He didn't want her to deal with the grief he was feeling, and nodded. "I probably could use a little time to myself Jessie, but let's eat our breakfast first, okay?" He didn't want her to leave, but it really wasn't right to ask her to stay again.

  She was more than a little disappointed, but understood. Forcing a smile, she nodded. They ate their breakfast in relative silence before she stood to excuse herself. "Call me later if you feel up to it." She managed a fake smile. She didn’t want him to think she was upset about his decision.

  "I wish we had met at a better time," he said, smiling apologetically. He walked her to the car, though he didn't want to let her leave. But she'd already done so much for him.

  Reigning in her emotions at his words, she gave another brave smile. His kiss on her cheek seemed like a forever goodbye, and it was breaking her heart. She managed to slide into her car and drive off before the waterworks started.

  Pulling off on the side of the road after she'd driven a few blocks, she allowed the tears to fall. Carolyn had warned her that he wasn't in the right frame of mind for a relationship. She herself knew how she'd reacted after her own mother passed away. None of that make the aching hurt less.

  When she felt composed enough to drive, she headed back to her apartment. She wasn't that woman who could just casually sleep with a man. Granted, she hadn't known Chase very long, but already she felt things for him that surpassed anything she'd felt for Greg.

  But she understood what he was going through. Jessie walked through her front door and tossed down her purse. She realized that while he probably did like her and felt attracted to her, he had needed to be comforted and she'd been available. The thought didn't sit well in her mind.

  Pulling out her phone, she checked her messages, attempting to find something that would take her mind off the emotions that kept building. Seeing Amanda's text, her heart nearly stopped.

  "I need you to call me. Where are you? Damn it, this is important." Reading Amanda's words, her own misery receded and she dialed her friend’s number. Amanda finally answered after the fifth ring.

  "Are you okay?” Jessie asked anxiously.

  "No I'm not. I've been trying to call you all night. Please come over to my place." Amanda spoke the words in a rush.

  Grabbing her purse again, Jessie talked as she made her way back to the car. "You're starting to scare me here. What's going on?"

  "Just get here, and I'll explain." Amanda cried.

  "I'm driving now. Do I need to call someone?" Jessie had no idea what was going on, and she floored the accelerator. Thankfully, Amanda only lived a few miles away, and she could get to her condo quickly.

  "No!" Amanda screamed.

  Hearing the panic in her friend’s voice, Jessie’s own hands trembled. Amanda was completely freaked out and not acting like herself. "I'm almost there now."

  Getting silence on the other end, Jessie was close to panicking herself. After pulling up in front of the building, she took off running toward the elevator. Tapping her foot impatiently, she mentally urged the thing to come faster. Standing in front of her friend's door a couple minutes later, she knocked soundly.

  Amanda pulled her into her arms and whimpered. "I don't know what to do." Tears fell down her cheeks.

  Jessie forced herself out of the death grip Amanda had around her neck, and gasped as she saw the bruise on her cheek. "What happened?" Her eyes widened even more as she noted the ripped clothing her friend wore.

  "He wouldn't stop." She paced the room, wincing with every step.

  "Who wouldn't stop? You need a doctor!" She could see the pain Amanda was in, and her mind was completely overwhelmed. Who would hurt her, and why hadn't she called an ambulance?

  "Derrick, the stupid prick lawyer," she said, sobbing.” I can't go to the hospital. Everyone will know what he did."

  "He hurt you." Judging from the bruise alone, the prick needed to be in jail. "You can't let him get away with this!" Jessie walked over to the phone and picked it up, determined that if her friend wouldn't report him, she definitely would.

  Moving fast, Amanda grabbed the phone out of her friend's hand and slammed it down. "No, Jessie, my dad will find out. It was my stupidity. I shouldn't have
let him tie me up."

  Jessie’s mouth fell open as the implications of what Amanda was saying hit home. "He beat you?" The bruise on her face was bad enough, but obviously it had gone even further.

  "I just don't want to be alone. Could you please just sit with me? I'm afraid he'll come back." Forcing her legs to move her back to the couch, she sat down, her face skewed with agony.

  "If you won't let me call the police, at least let me call Carolyn." It wasn't the solution she wanted, but maybe she would be able to talk some sense into Amanda.

  Amanda’s defeated nod was all the encouragement she needed, and she picked up the phone again. After giving Carolyn a brief description of what was happening and asking her to come over, she rejoined her friend on the couch.

  "How badly are you hurt?" Jessie asked If the injuries were serious, she was calling an ambulance, whether Amanda liked it or not.

  With a grimace, Amanda lifted her shirt, showing off the red whelps across her abdomen, thighs, and breasts.

  Jessie covered her mouth in horror. She couldn't believe someone could do something like this. The wounds didn't seem life-threatening, but she could imagine how painful they were. "Oh my God, what kind of monster would do that?" Her own eyes filled with tears, and she hugged her friend gingerly, mindful of her pain.

  "He seemed like such a nice guy, but he went crazy the minute he tied me to the bed." Sobbing, she recounted to Jessie how he'd taken a cane he claimed he'd just bought, and while telling her what a dirty whore she was, he’d beaten her body without remorse.

  Jessie was disgusted, and felt bile rising up in her throat. The doorbell rang, and watching her friend tense in fear, she wished the man was here so she could tie up his ass and torture him. "I'm sure it's just Carolyn." Forcing a smile to her face, she walked over and looked through the peephole before letting her in.

  Amanda told the story again, and Carolyn was just as angry as Jessie had been. She continued to encourage her to call the police, and not let the man get away with what he'd done. Frustrated that Amanda wouldn't budge, she got Jessie to help her change her clothes and settle her in bed. Giving her a pain pill from her own stash, they sat with her for the rest of the afternoon.

  Amanda finally agreed to go stay at Carolyn's house for a few days until they were sure the jerk-off lawyer wouldn't come around again. His name would be blacklisted at the club, and Carolyn said she'd give his name to every group she knew in the area to make sure the man never abused anyone like this again.

  Jessie drove back to her own apartment as they headed to Carolyn's, feeling nauseated at the thought of someone hurting her friend that badly. She hadn't mentioned it to either of them, but she couldn't stop the thought that none of this would have happened if they hadn't got mixed up in Carolyn's crazy lifestyle.

  The next morning she received flowers from Chase, but she tossed them in the trash can. She knew he was probably just thanking her for sleeping with him, so it made her feel a little dirty, not to mention she wasn't in the best frame of mind to think about the things he enjoyed at the moment.

  Another day went by and her self-confidence was in the toilet. On the one hand, she was glad Chase hadn't called because she wasn't sure she'd ever feel safe around people like him again. On the other hand, it drove home the fact that he'd only been using her for comfort. Neither thought said much about him. The only positive news was that Amanda had finally broken down and called the police.

  The prick of a lawyer was charged with assault and Amanda moved in with Carolyn until his court date. She needed to get out of this place, Jessie told Sebastian as he curled up in her lap. A good long break away from everything here might help her get her head on straight again. Working like crazy hadn't stopped the thoughts pounding through her mind, so maybe a change of scenery would. It had been a week, but felt like months since Amanda's attack.

  Making the decision, she called work, explaining she'd be out of town for a week. Jessie told them she wouldn't be available if something came up that required her being there in person.

  She called Amanda and let her know she was taking a trip down to Florida. Amanda had asked if she wanted company, but she told her she needed some time to regroup. She gave her the hotel information, but asked her to keep it to herself. She had no doubt the company would drive her crazy with technical help questions if she didn't, even though this was her first vacation since she had started working there. Working vacation, she reminded herself, but still, it was a chance to get away.

  After packing up her car and Sebastian, she set out. Soon enough, the greenery turned into white sandy beaches and palm trees. She rolled down the windows and inhaled the salty air. Finally pulling up to her hotel, she checked in at the front desk, and then unloaded her bags. The beach was calling her name, but she wanted to get all her things arranged first. Half an hour later, Sebastian was curled up sleeping, and she finally made it down to the sugary sand and took a deep breath.

  Tossing out her beach towel, she sat down and pulled out a book. Getting lost in the pages of someone else's romance for a few hours, she found relief. That relief was short lived when she realized she'd forgotten sunscreen. She knew she'd be suffering the effects of her forgetfulness the rest of the night. At least the characters in her books had their acts together, she thought. Chuckling wryly she packed up and bypassed the hotel in favor of the local drugstore.

  Picking up a bottle of ibuprofen and aloe-vera, she decided to walk around before heading back to the room. May was already tourist season, and everywhere she looked there were couples or college kids enjoying their surroundings. A couple of whistles from younger men who'd enjoyed a little too much alcohol didn't faze her. Ignoring them, she stopped in at several shops and picked up a few little items to remind her of the trip, and a few new toys for her pet. She was enjoying acting like a tourist.

  For the rest of the week, she refused to let her mind settle on Chase. She did her work at night, and kept herself busy during the day shopping, or just enjoying the beach. She didn't forget sunscreen again, since the first two days of her trip were almost miserable because of her forgetfulness. The only time she couldn't escape him was in her dreams, and in those, he was the most beautiful lover a woman could imagine. She awoke several nights with tears in her eyes.

  Checking out of her hotel after packing up, she felt the vacation had definitely been something she needed. Even though she missed him, there was a part of her that knew she could handle going back to the city again. She even managed to smile as the long road stretched out before her and she listened to some of her favorite songs on the radio. Then that song came on the radio. It reminded her so much of Chase, that she almost had to stop the car. The song discussed a woman who was always failing in love, and it really hit home. A few deep breaths later, she relaxed again, continuing to drive.

  13 No Wrath like a Lover

  Chase was beyond frustrated after a week of trying to contact Jessie and being thwarted at every turn. He had called to ask her out the day after his father’s funeral, even if it seemed a little wrong to do something like that. Reaching her voice mail time and time again, he finally badgered Carolyn to find out where she'd gone. He felt a little like a stalker as he discovered she'd went on vacation.

  The thoughts going through his mind had not been pleasant. He imagined her on the beach with some new lover, and he almost gave into the temptation to drive down and drag her back home. Some part of him had already decided she was his. Forcing himself not to act like the alpha male he was, he decided to wait until she returned before demanding she tell him to his face she wasn't interested.

  Carolyn had called to inform him she'd be returning today and he was on edge as he picked up the phone again for the fifth time to call her. He knew he was being irrational, but he felt almost used and discarded and it hurt his ego. When she picked up the phone, it took everything he had not to tell her just how aggravated he was. "Hello, Jessie." He spoke the words calmly, and wished he felt that way.


  Hearing his voice on the other end of the line made her heart race until she remembered he was the reason she'd left in the first place. "Hello, Chase. How are you?" She didn't want him to know how hard it had been to forget his face, and could only assume he was calling out of courtesy.

  "Did you enjoy your trip?" He asked, ignoring her question. He wanted to demand to know if she was sleeping with someone else, but doubted that conversation would come out any way but possessive-sounding on his end.

  "Um, yeah, I enjoyed the break." How did he even know she'd been gone, she wondered? Then considered Carolyn must have talked to Amanda. "How are things going with you?" This conversation needed to end. It almost sounded like he cared, and she couldn't let herself believe that.

  "I'm okay but I didn't call to talk about me. Would you like to have dinner tonight?" He wanted to see her face. He wasn't a saint by any means, but after learning what her friend had gone through at the hands of a brute, he was really worried she was putting him in the same category.

  "I don't think that's such a good idea, Chase." She wanted to say yes, but dinner with him would only end in two ways, and both would hurt eventually. She couldn't imagine just having a polite conversation with him, and if they ended up in bed, she knew it wouldn't mean the same thing to him as it did to her. A week wasn't long enough to forget how Amanda's experience with a man in the lifestyle had ended up.

  "And why not, Jessie girl? Did you not enjoy our nights together?" If she wasn't going to meet him, then he at least wanted to hear the truth from her lips.

  Flushing, she felt her heart race even more. "I think you know I did, Chase, but we just seem to want different things." She wasn't going to say he'd just been using her to not deal with his pain, even though it really felt that way. He'd been dealing with a tough situation, and maybe if the roles were reversed she'd have done the same. She doubted it, though. Sex obviously meant a lot more to her.