When he finally made it to Duke’s mansion, he didn’t bother ringing the doorbell. He just walked right in, right into an argument Duke was having with his estranged son, Trent, on the phone.
“I’m sorry you had to hear that,” Duke said after he hung up.
Caleb shrugged. “Fathers and sons argue.” He could recall some moments with his father, Isaac, when they’d gone head to head.
“Not like that,” Duke responded. “Trent is just so angry at me because he had a hard life. I don’t know how to reach him.” Caleb nodded. “He’s your son. You have to keep trying.”
Duke was deep in contemplation for several minutes. “So, why are you here? I wasn’t expecting you.”
“Perhaps this isn’t a good time to take you up on that offer,” Caleb said. “I was thinking about putting in my notice once this circuit is finished, but—”
“No buts,” Duke interrupted. “I meant what I said. When do you want to start?”
“Right after this circuit is finished, but I thought maybe during the day I could shadow some of the team and get a head start.”
“That sounds like a mighty fine idea. Let’s make it happen.”
As she sat and looked over the monthly figures for Walker Trucking in her twenty-fourth-floor office, Addison was wired. She hadn’t heard from Caleb all day, and she was beginning to wonder if the night they’d shared meant nothing to him. For her, it had been life-changing, but perhaps for him it had been just another roll in the hay. After all, it was obvious that Caleb was a robust man with a hearty sexual appetite.
After lunch, Addison was going over figures with another accountant when her assistant, Maggie, popped her head into the conference room where they were gathered. Maggie was much older than Addison, and Addison felt strange giving her orders considering Maggie probably had more work history in her pinkie finger than Addison had, but her father had insisted on it.
“What is it, Maggie?”
Maggie walked into the conference room and closed the door.
“Well.” Maggie glanced behind her. “There is a man here asking to see you. He didn’t have any appointment but was insistent that you would want to see him.”
Addison wasn’t expecting anyone and slid her chair over so she could glance through the conference room’s glass doors. There was Caleb, standing in the reception area.
Addison jolted and tried to keep at bay a big smile that was struggling to overtake her face. He was here, which meant she was more to him than a fling. But how did he know where she worked? Oh, right, she’d told him during dinner, and it wouldn’t have been hard for him to find Walker Trucking’s address online. She just wished he would have called. She wasn’t looking at all sexy in a simple black skirt suit.
“Excuse me for a moment,” Addison said, rising to her feet and smoothing down her skirt.
She walked toward Maggie, who whispered, “He didn’t seem like someone you’d associate with, so I wasn’t sure if I should show him in.”
“I’ll take it from here,” Addison responded softly and opened the conference room door.
Caleb noticed her the minute she exited and offered her his signature sexy smile. Addison’s heart hammered as she looked him up and down. He was wearing faded Wrangler jeans, a plaid shirt and a cowboy hat. He looked completely out of place amongst the modern décor of Walker Trucking’s offices, but she was excited to see him.
She smiled as she approached. “What are you doing here?”
“I thought I would surprise you for a late lunch.”
“I’m sorry. I can’t get away. I have a meeting in an hour.”
“Damn, I was hoping you could sneak away and spare a few minutes.”
“I could spare a few. Let’s walk to my office. Follow me.” As she led him down the corridor, she could see several workers staring at them. It was unusual for her to have guests let alone someone like Caleb.
“I have a better idea,” Caleb said, and before Addison knew what was happening, he was opening a door labeled “Utility Closet” and yanking her inside. It was dark except for a patch of light shining underneath the door.
“Caleb, what are you doing?” Addison whispered.
“I’m going to live out one of my fantasies.” He locked the door. “Now no one will disturb us.”
“Wait ...”
Caleb shoved her back against the door, grasped the sides of her face and kissed her long, hard and deep. He’d startled her, taking her breath away momentarily, but it didn’t take her long to recover. She wound her arms around his neck and pulled him closer.
“I want you right here,” he said, moving his mouth from her lips and down to her neck. “I want to make you come.”
Addison was at a loss; she’d never been spoken to this way before. No man had dared, considering who her father was, but Caleb didn’t seem to care. He was about to make love to her right here in the utility closet!
It was outrageous and completely exhilarating. Her head leaned back as Caleb began nipping her neck with love bites before going higher. She moaned when he reached her ear and his tongue flicked inside. While he teased it, one of his hands caressed the curve of her breasts while the other began removing her suit jacket. She didn’t hear it fall to the floor because Caleb was fondling her breasts over her silk shirt. Her nipples puckered at his touch.
“Oh, yes, babe,” Caleb said when he felt them turn to nubs. Addison hadn’t known her breasts were that sensitive. He had a way of coaxing a response out of her even now in such a heated inopportune moment.
And he wasn’t stopping there. He lowered his head and moved from her ear to her breasts. She gasped when he suckled her nipple right through her shirt.
“Dear God!”
“You like that,” he said, swirling his tongue over her covered nipples.
“Y-yes,” Addison eked out and grasped his head so he could stay right there. While his mouth had her moaning softly, Caleb’s hands were roaming down her hips to grasp her thighs.
“What else would you like?” He slipped his palms underneath her skirt and bunched up her shirt. Then she felt him caressing the inside of her thighs and reaching for her bikini panties. She held her breath.
“Tell me what you want,” he said, pushing aside the flimsy satin of her panties and sliding a finger inside of her.
“No.” She shook her head. She couldn’t ask for it, but she didn’t have to. His finger slid in and out, and Addison knew she was already slick. Caleb was tapping into a sexual need that she hadn’t known existed until he’d brought it out in her.
“Yes,” Caleb said, leaving her breasts and returning to her lips with an open-mouthed kiss. His tongue stroked hers softly while his fingers stroked her below with quick flicks.
Addison couldn’t think about anything but the sensations that Caleb was evoking. All thought to where she was flew out the window. She could only think of Caleb and this moment. He was going to have her crying out if he didn’t stop soon. He must have sensed that she was near because Caleb removed his fingers and took control. She heard the tear of foil and then Caleb grasped one of her thighs.
Caleb pushed aside Addison’s panties and surged inside her.
“Oh ... yes,” she began to moan, but he didn’t let her get out another word. In order for this to work and not draw attention to them, he needed her to be quiet. He covered her mouth with his while the lower half of his body began thrusting inside of her. God, yes! He slowed down the pace to make the moment last. He grasped ahold of her butt and began grinding against her.
Caleb knew he was wrong coming to Addison’s office like this, but he hadn’t been able to help himself. He hadn’t seen her last night because of the rodeo event, which was usually a late evening for him. His body had craved Addison, and he’d woken up this morning wanting more of his sweet angel. He’d told himself that he would just stop b
y and see her, maybe even take her out for lunch. Then she’d been standing there in the doorway of the conference room looking so sweet, so innocent and so damn sexy. He’d lost all rational thought.
He was corrupting her. Making love to her in the utility closet of her office was wrong, but it felt so right. She felt so good. He was caught up and wanted to pound into her, but instead he walked over to the wall farthest from the door and ordered, “Bounce on me, baby.”
“I don’t know how.”
He lifted her butt and rocked her several times against his hard erection. “You like that?” he asked.
She picked up the rhythm and began bouncing on him like he was an exercise ball. “Oh, yeah, babe. Like that? Give it to me!” he groaned softly.
And she did. Her body erupted first, and she whispered loudly, “Caleb!”
“Yes, babe, I know,” he said and climaxed right along with her. When the eruptions subsided, he lowered her to the floor and turned away to take care of the condom. Turning back around, he saw Addison leaning against the wall looking slightly dazed. Her hair that had once been nicely coiffed was slightly mussed, and her makeup ... well, her lips were swollen from his kisses.
“Are you okay?” he asked, pulling up his jeans.
“I-I’m okay,” she said, slightly out of breath. “I think.”
Caleb smiled. “You think?”
“I mean, I’m not sure what just happened.”
“Would you like a repeat?”
Addison shook her head. “No, I think making love with you once in the utility closet is quite enough.” She pulled down her skirt and began straightening her blouse. “What are you doing to me, Caleb Hart?” She walked away from him long enough to pick up her discarded suit jacket lying on the floor.
“I think I could ask you the same question.”
“Excuse me?”
“I didn’t come here with the intention of taking you in a closet.”
“Then how did we get here?”
Caleb shrugged. “Chemistry. Passion. It’s off the charts.”
“Has this happened to you before?”
“No, not to this degree,” Caleb replied honestly. He’d had good sex before, but this was different, and he wasn’t at all sure what to do about it. “Let’s just go with the moment until it burns out.”
“And what if it doesn’t?”
Addison’s question was valid. What if it didn’t? Caleb was in unchartered territory and offered his best guess. “We’re just two hot-blooded young people. It’ll fizzle, and when it’s over we’ll go our separate ways.”
“Because you’re not the commitment kind of guy?”
“That’s right. My lifestyle as a bull rider doesn’t permit it.” He knew this was a copout. It wasn’t his lifestyle. He’d seen other bull riders that were family men, but it just wasn’t right for him. He’d never seen himself as a married man. And despite how special Addison was, he wasn’t about to change anytime soon.
Addison nodded and began slipping on her jacket. Caleb could see the sadness in her eyes at his words, so he walked over and helped her finish putting the jacket on. “How about dinner later tonight at my uncle’s place?” he asked.
“Aren’t you getting on the road soon,” Addison inquired, “for another event?”
“Not just yet.”
“Then dinner sounds good.”
“I’ll pick you up at seven p.m.?”
“How about I meet you instead?”
He figured she probably didn’t want her father in her personal affairs. “You’re on. I’ll text you later with the address.”
Caleb walked over and unlocked the door. “I’ll go out first,” he said. “Wait five minutes and then come out after me.”
Addison waited, but left the closet nearly ten minutes later. She would be totally embarrassed if anyone had seen her come out after Caleb.
When she exited, no one was around, thankfully. She made it back to her office without anyone seeing her, not even Maggie, who was away from her desk. It gave Addison enough time to close the door and sink against it.
What had she just done? Had she really just had sex with Caleb in the utility closet of her father’s business? She must be losing her mind if he could make her behave so recklessly. Had he put some sort of spell on her? She had no idea sex could be so addictive.
And tonight, there was dinner at his uncle’s place? She was excited that she would get to meet a member of Caleb’s family because it told her he took her seriously. But her mind couldn’t help but wander to later, after dinner. Should she pack her overnight bag? Her stomach curled, and the place between her legs still tingled from where he’d fingered her in the closet and made her come without barely breaking a sweat.
Oh, yes, she was most definitely packing an overnight bag.
Chapter 9
“Where are you headed?” Addison’s father asked her several hours later in the foyer at home.
“Out.”
“That’s cryptic.”
“I meant it to be,” Addison replied and then took a deep breath and said, “I’m going out for the evening, Daddy. You shouldn’t expect me home.”
His brow rose. “Excuse me?”
Addison knew he would be stunned, but he’d asked for her honesty and that’s what she was trying to deliver. “You heard me correctly. I have plans for tonight.” She wasn’t going to elaborate anymore. Her father was a bright man. She didn’t need to paint him a picture.
“So you’re not going to heed my advice?” He folded his arms across his chest disapprovingly.
“I heard what you had to say,” Addison replied, “but ultimately, this is my decision.”
He pursed his lips. “Very well, Addison. Do as you wish.” He turned on his heel and without another word, stalked away.
Addison stared at his retreating figure. She hated to be at odds with her father, but he had to learn that he wasn’t going to run her life. “Have a good night,” she called out after him as she closed the front door behind her.
“I really appreciate you having Addison over,” Caleb said to Duke.
“A friend of yours is a friend of mine,” Duke replied.
Just then Caleb’s cousins Bree and Jada stepped into the living room. Jada was the fashionista of the two, in leather pants, a see-through silk sweater over a tank top and some pumps that looked like they cost more than several weeks’ salary. She was petite with a curvy build that fit her lifestyle as an anchor on a San Francisco morning show, and with her café au lait skin and perfect makeup, she was never without a date.
Meanwhile, Bree was dressed more simply in distressed jeans and a chiffon tunic and wore some weathered cowboy boots. She was an outdoor person, and her caramel skin was shiny bright from the natural air. Her hair was cut in a stylish bob, and she wore just a touch of gloss on her full lips. Bree was content with her career; Caleb couldn’t recall the last time he’d heard about a date.
“Caleb!” Jada rushed over to greet him with a warm hug. “It’s so good to see you.”
“We were thrilled when Daddy told us you were coming for dinner and bringing a guest.” Surprise was evident in Jada’s voice.
“Yeah, I thought you liked the single life like Daddy here.” Bree came around to kiss her father on the cheek and then sat on the edge of his chair. “What gives?”
“Does there have to be a reason for me to want to spend time with my favorite cousins, the prettiest girls in the world?”
“You charmer,” Bree said. “And good deflect, but I want to know who she is.”
Just then the doorbell rang, and Caleb was thankful for the reprieve. He was not anxious to be the subject of Bree’s inquisition. She could be one helluva ballbuster when she wanted to be.
Caleb walked to the foyer to open the front door, and there Addison stood before him loo
king as ravishing as the last time when he’d had her backed up against the wall of the utility closet and banged her within an inch of both their lives.
“Can I come in?” Addison broke into his lascivious memory.
“Of course, babe,” Caleb said with a sexy drawl. His eyes roamed over her shapely figure in the Chianti-colored leather-seamed dress. The leather was strategically placed vertically and stopped at the short hem right above her knee. Addison had a killer pair of legs, and the dress and matching pumps highlighted them.
As for Caleb, his outfit hadn’t changed much except he’d showered and changed into a fresh pair of denim jeans and replaced his usual plaid shirt with a deep-purple one.
He leaned down and swept his lips across Addison’s, and that’s when she whispered, “I-uh brought an overnight bag. I-I wasn’t sure ... I hope I wasn’t presumptuous.”
He loved her innocence. “Absolutely, I want you in bed tonight so I can ravish you all night long.”
Addison blushed and just then his cousins broke their moment as they entered the foyer.
Bree came forward first with her hand extended. “Hi, I’m Bree Hart, Caleb’s cousin, and this is my sister, Jada.” Bree motioned her over.
Addison shook Bree’s hand, but it was Jada who leaned over and gave her a quick hug. “Welcome,” Jada said. “C’mon in.” She grasped one of Addison’s arms and led her into the living room.
“Thank you,” Addison said as she glanced behind Caleb, who followed them.
Caleb knew she would feel more at ease for the evening having his cousins around, though he doubted she really knew what he had in store for her once his cousins were gone. She was going to get very little sleep tonight.
Addison hadn’t expected such a warm greeting or that she would be meeting so many members of Caleb’s family. It told her he respected her.
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