“I could mess everything up with Jasper.”
“You’ve been hesitant to marry him. Something keeps holding you back. Maybe this is it. Maybe both of you need something else. Someone else to join you.”
Annie hated when Manda pulled out the logic and smacked her with it. Plus, there was another thing she was worried about. “Or maybe Jasper will figure out he messed up when he let Dave go.”
“Ah, so that’s it. You’re worried you’re not really the one.”
Annie was starting to hate this conversation. It mentally threw her back into that therapist’s chair from a few years ago, dissecting every choice she ever made.
She felt a buzzing in her pocket and slipped her phone out. His name was splashed across the screen. She hit Ignore.
“That was Dave.” There was no need to hide it. She figured she’d gone this far and might as well share everything with Manda.
“Has he been calling?”
“Yes, and I’ve been ignoring him, which is a terrible way to treat a client, I know.” That probably explained why she’d been all but burying him in a deluge of listings. She’d sent him information on nearly every condo and house for sale within five miles of his target buying areas.
“You haven’t scared him off, so you’re fine.” Manda stared Annie down. “But back to my point.”
“Which was?”
“If you’re holding back on Jasper—even on Dave—because you’re worried you’re Jasper’s second choice, then you have a bigger issue. There’s no way you guys can survive with that doubt hanging over your relationship.” She shrugged. “Besides, it’s ridiculous because you’re amazing and everyone, including Jasper, knows that. You’re the only one who doesn’t seem to realize it.”
Annie was about to say something when she heard the knock.
Aaron poked his head in. He wore a fierce scowl as his gaze traveled from Manda to land on Annie. “Ladies.”
“Boss.” Manda gave a curt nod.
Aaron and Manda stared at each other for a few slow seconds. Tension choked the room. Even the clock on the edge of Manda’s desk seemed to stop ticking. Then Aaron slipped back into the hallway and closed the door behind him.
Even for those two, the run-in was weird, super-charged. Clearly something had happened.
“What was that about?” Annie asked Manda as soon as they were alone again.
“Nothing.”
Worst. Liar. Ever. “Not nothing.”
“I went to a club last night.” Manda cleared her throat. “The private kind. Guess who was there?”
That was a thing for Manda. She liked to go and watch. She also had an unspoken thing for the boss.
Annie hesitated. “What was Aaron doing there?”
“Having a drink, but…”
“Oh, my God. Continue.”
“It’s invitation only and I got one in the mail. Totally anonymous.” Manda shook her head. “That’s not the point.”
Annie wasn’t so sure. The mysterious invitation? Luring her there? She half wondered if Aaron had finally woken up to the attraction between them.
“Aaron saw me. He got furious and tried to drag me out. It was a big, dramatic thing. We both got kicked out. Literally escorted to the door.”
A laugh bubbled up inside Annie. She put a hand over her mouth to trap it inside, but that didn’t work. It took her another few seconds to get her body and mind back under control. “That’s incredible.”
“He drove me home in silence.” Manda fidgeted in her chair. “Things are super tense between us now.”
More like claustrophobic. “Gee, I wonder why?”
“But back to you.” The seat creaked as Manda leaned forward again. “Jasper, you, and Dave. Think about it. If nothing else, bringing it up will show you if you’re really Jasper’s second choice. And you get to test out this attraction to Dave at the same time.”
“How exactly do I bring up this conversation? Hey, honey, I met your old boyfriend and think it would be fun if you two double-teamed me. He’ll have a stroke.” The words settled in her head and a new image hit her. Back to Jasper…but this time they weren’t alone. “Hell, I might have one.”
“Or, he’ll agree.”
Annie closed her eyes for a second before opening them again. “Shit, this is confusing.”
“If it sounds great to you, be open to it,” Manda said. “Think about what you want and what you want for your relationship.”
She sounded so rational. Annie felt anything but. “Easy for you to say.”
Chapter 15
Jasper sat in the restaurant and watched Annie pour her tea. Her mood had been off last night. It had taken hours for the tension to leave her shoulders even with the bubble bath. She seemed better, brighter, today, but he still didn’t know what had her so jumpy yesterday. He wanted to take her to bed, to exhaust her and find out.
He slid a hand across the table and covered hers. “Are you sure you need to go back to work today?”
“Even if I didn’t, you do.” She turned her hand over and slipped her fingers through his. “That project isn’t going to build itself.”
Business was the last thing on his mind right now. “No, there’s a whole team of guys on site to handle that. I need time with you.”
She smiled at him. “That’s pretty hot.”
The restaurant was packed, every table full. The noise kicked up until the talk and dinging of glasses and silverware blended into the background as white noise.
He barely saw or heard any of it. His sole focus was her. The pink cheeks. The hair tucked behind her ear. “You’ve been distracted.”
She shrugged. “Work is hopping.”
“In a way, that’s good to hear.” When she frowned at him, he pushed ahead, giving voice to the fear that kicked in his gut and kept him up last night. “I’ve been worried the proposal scared you.”
“It didn’t.” She squeezed his fingers. “Nothing about you scares me.”
That sounded like a good thing, but the ring he’d splurged on still sat in his underwear drawer. “Yet I still don’t have an answer.”
“You’re giving me time, remember?”
What the hell for? “I am not a patient man.”
“You actually are.” She slipped her foot up the side of his leg. Tunneled up his pants until she hit skin. “And a sexy one.” She turned his hand over and traced the tip of her finger over his palm. “That woman in yellow is going to give herself neck strain if she keeps leaning back to stare at you.”
His gaze bounced to the woman two tables down then back to Annie. “She likes my tats.”
“Who doesn’t?”
He looked at the word written in block letters on the inside of his wrist—FEARLESS. An ode to his stifling upbringing, complete with daily lectures from his father. A man who believed the world had turned wild and the answer was to follow an impossibly strict doctrine he had created himself.
Jasper had been fearless when he left. He was fearless in his love for her. “The tats turn you on?”
She skimmed her fingers up his forearm, outlining the lines and edges of the artwork on his sleeve. “Everything about you turns me on.”
“We should explore that.”
She winked and sat back in her chair. She shot him a heated look as she picked up her cup of tea. “Tonight.”
“Here.” He said, watching those pretty eyes grow wide. “Now.”
Her hand visibly shook as she lowered the cup to the table. “You are a naughty boy.”
“And a very serious one.”
She glanced around. Her gaze swept over the crowded dining room and the people hovered around the long bar. Then it landed on him again. “I’m listening.”
Damn, he loved that about her. She didn’t back down. Sex fueled her. It did not scare her.
And he wasn’t just talking a good game. This was going to happen. “Go to the bathroom. It’s a single room.”
“Are you—”
“G
oing to press you up against the wall and strip your clothes off?” He nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”
She gave a second look. “There are a lot of people in here.”
The lightness had left her voice. There was a rough edge to the tone. A sexual rasp. He could almost see the excitement course through her.
“Which means we might be exposed.” And he knew she loved that part of the game. The voices just outside the door.
“If you want that, we should get on this table.”
He pushed his chair back. Let it screech on the hardwood floor. “If that’s a challenge, I accept.”
“Jasper.” She moved her tea to the side and leaned in with her elbows on the table.
He matched her stance on the other side. The move put their faces close together. “Go to the bathroom, Annie. Slip those panties off and wait for me.”
“This is dangerous.”
But she wasn’t saying no. He picked up on that immediately. He also saw that telltale flash of fire in her eyes when he said “panties,” which ratcheted up his excitement. “No, stalling is dangerous.”
“You’re saying…maybe you should spell it out.”
He put his hands on the table and gave it a small shake. “You have two seconds to get in there before I strip those panties off right here. One…”
She visibly swallowed. “Fine.”
“Oh, baby. It’s going to be more than fine.”
Chapter 16
Annie’s legs barely carried her, but somehow she made it past the crowds of people at the bar. Normally the liveliness of this place, one of her favorite restaurants, made her smile. Now it wound her up, made her heart thump faster.
She reached the far side of the room and glanced over her shoulder. Jasper sat there, talking to a waitress. It looked like he was ordering.
As if she’d be able to eat after this.
She got to the bathroom and pushed the door open. The light flicked on and she scanned the small space. Not for sex. No, there wasn’t a whole lot of space for that.
She stepped up to the long trough-like sink, reached for the paper towels to wipe it all down, when the door opened behind her. Jasper slipped inside and shut them in. The lock clicked as she stood there, holding the towels and not moving. His presence overwhelmed the small room.
Seeing him hypnotized her. He was so sure and sexy, so in charge and clear about what he wanted. All that focus leveled at her. His need whipped through the room and smashed into her. She gasped from the force of it.
“They’re going to give our table away.” The comment sounded ridiculous.
He didn’t even flinch. “I took care of it.”
She wasn’t sure she wanted to know how.
“Annie.” He held out his hand. “Give me your panties.”
Her heart did a little flip. From anyone else the word would make her teeth grind together, but when he said it, her body melted. She blamed that soft hint of a Southern accent.
She tried to think of something smart to say but his determined expression jolted her into action. She wiggled her hips as she tugged her thin black skirt up. Hooking her thumbs on the elastic, she pulled her bikini underwear down, grateful she’d gone with the lacy black ones this morning.
Swishing her hips from side to side, she made a show of peeling them off. Let them drop to her ankles before balancing on one leg, then the other, and stripping them off. She thought about shoving them in her purse but his palm hadn’t moved, so she handed them over. Knew she wouldn’t see them again until laundry day…if then.
“There.” She shifted, letting her skirt begin to drop back down again.
“Stop.” In two steps he was on her.
He wrapped his arms around her waist and her feet left the floor. The room spun and the mirror, the surroundings, blurred around her.
Her back hit the wall. His mouth covered hers as she curled her legs around his thighs. Dug her ankles into his ass. Groaned into his mouth.
While their mouths traveled, she tugged at his shirt, trying to unbutton it to touch the bare skin beneath. Heat swept through her, snapping her muscles to life and igniting a fire in every cell.
“Do it.” She said the order against his lips.
“Soon.” His hand slid down from the back of her thighs, brushing over her sensitive skin. When it landed on her, when his fingers dipped lower and one slipped inside her, she pressed her back harder against the wall. She braced her body for the impact.
The bathroom door handle rattled and the sounds of two people talking right outside floated under the door. Through it all, Jasper kept kissing her. His mouth captured hers in a demanding kiss. There was nothing half-assed about this. He took over and it overwhelmed her.
Her body tingled and she tried to open her legs wider, to give him more access. Lifting her hips, she reached to drag him inside her.
That’s when she noticed he still had his pants on. Frantic now, her fingers went to his belt. She didn’t even try to be quiet as she ripped it open and cupped her hand over his growing bulge.
“Yes, baby.” He rested his forehead against hers. “Squeeze harder. I’m not going to break.”
Her breathing grew louder as the voices outside faded. At any moment, anyone could come in. Anyone could hear them.
That made the whole thing hotter.
When her fingers fumbled over the top of his pants, he balanced her back against the wall and reached around to help her. He yanked the zipper down in one tug, leaving the top of his briefs exposed. “I want to feel your hands on me.”
His harsh whisper echoed through her. She slipped her hand inside the elastic band of the briefs and covered him, letting her fingers travel down and over him, right to his base then up again. She pumped in time with the hammering heartbeat in her ears and steady flick of his finger over her.
Her thighs tightened around him and she angled her hips, bringing her body tight against his.
Harder now, he rubbed his bulge into her palm, against her lower half.
Heavy breaths escaped her. Footsteps thudded outside and stopped at the door. She could hear the soft knock, see that handle move as someone tried to open it.
“Jasper.” Her whisper barely made a sound.
He must have understood the message because he knocked her hands aside and used his own. With his fingers on his base, he pushed forward, easing inside her. She was wet from the touching and the excitement but the friction still jolted through her.
Her shoulders slammed against the wall as he started to thrust. Her ankles locked around him and she brought him in even closer. Heat pulsed off him and the muscles in his neck strained as he pressed forward, then retreated.
Over and over, faster and faster, he pumped. She could hear the sound of rushing water from the bathroom next door. Smell freshly cut flowers sitting in the vase on the side of the sink. Feel his need as it enveloped her.
When her fingers clutched his arm, he moved again. A hand slipped down between them. With the sheer precision she’d come to love, he touched her. He licked his fingertip then pressed it against her, circling over her clit, making her body jump and shift.
He was inside her, around her. The scent of his soap mixed with her bath gel. One hand braced against the wall as he pressed deep inside her. His tight grip had every muscle in his arm tightening.
He leaned harder against her, pressed his mouth to her ear. “I’m going to come.”
“Do it.” She craved the sensation. The entire restaurant could rush through the door and she didn’t care.
That finger slipped over her again and her body tensed. Energy pulsed through her as the tightening inside her let go. In the next second, the orgasm pounded her. Her breath caught and her chest heaved from the force of it.
He was there with her. His thrusts slowed as his body shuddered. Drained, his lower half stopped moving. He fell heavy against her, bracing his body against hers and the wall, trapping her there in a wonderful cocoon of heat.
Slowl
y the sounds of the restaurant floated back to her. There was another thud of the door as someone outside tried to open it. The lock held but her body didn’t. She’d gone boneless, letting her body merge into his.
She tucked her face into the curve of his neck and inhaled his familiar scent. Loved the race of his pulse against her lips. Ran her hands over his shoulders, enjoying the firm curve of his muscles.
“Now I’m hungry,” he said.
For some reason that struck her as hysterical. She laughed and kept going. When she finally threw her head back and balanced it against the wall she saw him staring at her.
“You’re so unbelievably beautiful.”
That sobered her up because he sounded so serious. “We’re going to have to go somewhere else to eat.”
“Oh, hell no.” He frowned as he pulled out of her.
A gentle ache started inside her a second later. A mix of satisfaction and loss. She wanted to keep touching him, but they were in public.
Stepping back, some of his weight eased off her. Her legs slid down his sides, nice and slow. She knew she couldn’t depend on them to hold her, so she held on to him for balance.
Without a word, he reached over and tugged a tissue out of the nearby box and held it up to her. “You might need this.”
She held out her hand. “And the underwear.”
“Not going to happen, babe.” He zipped up, then leaned in and treated her to another smoking hot kiss. This one lingered and danced over her mouth. “I keep the panties. And hurry up, because I really am hungry.”
Chapter 17
The goodwill and excitement from the restaurant this afternoon had clearly worn off. It was nine hours later, and they’d both eaten dinner at their desks. Jasper was through the door ten minutes before Annie, just enough time to brush his teeth and freshen up for her arrival. But as soon as Annie crossed the threshold, her mood seemed to change, as if she were suddenly panicky.
That confirmed it. There was something she wasn’t telling him. And Jasper hated that.
The Experiment Page 7
