“Okay. Mom had doctor appointments the last couple of days, and she’s got another set next week. She’s trying to take it easy so she can be at her best at the fundraiser.” He heard her breath hiss out. “I hate that it’s come to this.”
He looked down at her. Her gaze was focused on the water. “What? That’s she’s so sick?”
“That, and that she needs the fundraiser in order to meet her bills. I can’t stay here and care for her, not if I want a job that pays well enough. But she’s going to need someone to be around making sure she’s okay. That’s going to cost money.”
“We look after family, Rosa.”
“Yeah, but she shouldn’t need help. Her family left her money, but she spent a good chunk of it on her causes and apparently my college education. She should have saved some for herself.”
“None of us knows what our futures hold.”
She turned her head and glared at him. Her sunglasses didn’t do much to block the weight of it. “My mom shouldn’t have to rely on Denning or anyone else to provide for her.”
Hearing the same words she’d tossed at him when he’d been at Lottie’s, he realized this was an argument he had no hope of winning and turned back to the lake. “Have you gotten any bites on jobs?”
“A few.”
“Where?”
“Philadelphia, DC, Atlanta. I’m still waiting to hear back from a couple out west.”
“Chicago?”
“Maybe. Why?”
He fiddled with the reel to avoid doing something stupid with his hands. Like pull her closer. “They’re all big cities. Have you ever considered staying in a smaller town?”
She snorted. “Denning was more than enough for me. Everyone knowing my business, knowing that my mom could barely afford to care for me? No, thank you. I like the anonymity of the big city. I’m going to make something of myself.”
Frowning, he turned to her. “What are you talking about? You’ve already made something of yourself.” Her mouth opened, but nothing came out. Even with her sunglasses blocking half her face, he understood it was shock he read on it. Realizing she needed to hear this, he continued on. “You not only went off to college, but you’ve got a masters in engineering. I had to take a couple courses for a program I was in through the business school at my college and, damn, Rosa. Those are fucking hard classes.”
She smirked. “Physics kick your ass?”
“Hell, yeah.” He got the basic concepts, and the math wasn’t tortuous, but his brain never seemed to make those final connections that would allow him to exceed. Luckily, he wasn’t routinely quizzed on physics concepts during board meetings.
“What’s going on with you? Lori said your cousins were stirring up shit.”
He lifted a shoulder. “The usual. I still have to make a decision about FSC.”
“Tell them to go fuck themselves.”
Laughter burst out. “Yeah, that’d go over real well with them.”
“Ian, what you’re doing is a good thing. I did some snooping online and while there are definitely cranks and trolls, there are people who are so supportive of what you’re doing. You’re reminding people that there’s good in the world and something worth fighting for. Like Rose says, we win by saving what we love.”
“Rose? Are you talking about yourself in the third person?”
“Man, you need to watch movies more.”
He reached out and cupped her jaw so that her lips were inches from his. “Saving what we love, huh?” Maybe it wasn’t fishing he needed to distract himself.
“Yeah. Novel concept, right?”
Unable to resist the temptation any longer, he bent his head so his lips pressed against hers. The humid air bore down on them, adding to the friction of their bodies meeting. Rosa let out a sigh. He took the opportunity to test the waters and let his tongue slip between her lips.
She sucked on it.
God damn.
He leaned into her and she began to lie down. He went to steady himself with his free hand, but it caught on the fishing reel and he lost his balance. They fell onto the dock, their noses and foreheads knocking against each other. He was just glad she hadn’t bitten his tongue off.
“You okay?”
“Yeah. Not even bruised.” She lifted her sunglasses and stared at him. “I’m leaving at the end of the summer no matter what. But, I want to spend the rest of the afternoon with you. Can I?”
She wasn’t a teenager any more, and he wasn’t the ass he had been. “Yes. My place okay?”
A grin bloomed across her face. “Absolutely. I’m not about to try and have sex in my mom’s house when she’s home.”
He hadn’t thought he’d be able to laugh when he’d left for the lake, but she’d gotten him to do it. Twice. Rosa Donnelly was definitely a woman to admire.
5
Excerpt from Stroman Industries’ customer newsletter:
Over the course of time since I chose to make a stand for speaking out for what I see as a cancer in our greater community of the United States, I’ve received a number of responses from our customers, both privately and in public through social media. Much of it has been encouraging. Which I greatly appreciate. I’ve also heard from a number of people who think I need to be quiet. The thing is, I can’t. I’m trying to be the best leader of Stroman Industries that I can be, and that means living up to the values instilled in me, personally, as well as in the company by my grandfather and father. I know I’ve lost this company some business, but at the end of the day, I have to be able to hold my head up. If you choose to continue to do business with us, I thank you. If you choose to no longer purchase products from us, I understand. I hope you’ll come back one day and find the exceptional service we pride ourselves on still waiting for you.
Rosa couldn’t believe she was doing this. She could turn off at any point, and she knew Ian wouldn’t say anything. Instead, she followed his SUV into a small development on the west side of town. He pulled into the two-car garage and she parked in the driveway behind him. He got out of his SUV and stood next to it. She sat in her car, hands on the wheel, still debating the wisdom of this.
Her body was shouting at her to just do it, while her mind was enumerating all of the reasons why she shouldn’t. One, this was Ian. Two, she did not need the gossip if anyone saw her car outside his house for any longer than a quick visit. Three, Ian. Ian who had once turned her down, but now seemed as into her as she was still into him. “Argh.” She bent and hit the steering wheel with her forehead.
A tap sounded on the window next to her.
She turned her head so her cheek rested on the wheel. Ian stood there, hands on slim hips. She read his lips through the window. “You okay?”
Decision time.
She unlocked the door and pushed it open.
“We can have lunch and you can go home after, Rosa.”
“I know.”
“You can go home.”
“I know.”
“No need to get snappy with me.”
She climbed out of the car and remembered to grab her purse at the last minute. Denning was a pretty safe place to live, but anyone who left their purse out in plain sight in a car deserved to have it get stolen.
“We should have just done it at the lake. Damn any possible witnesses.”
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw his lips twist as she passed him and went into the garage. “I’d prefer not to have a record for public indecency. I’ve got enough on my plate as it is.”
“Why would one of the mighty Stromans be accused? You could blame it all on the dumbass Donnelly who’s with you.”
Strong fingers wrapped around her wrist and pulled her to a stop. “Do not talk down about yourself, Rosa. You are not a dumbass. There is no way you could have done all that you have if you truly believed that.”
She closed her eyes. “It’s being here. I’ve never felt like I’m good enough.”
His used his other hand to brush hair away from her tem
ple. “You have some issues you need to work through.”
She snorted, which caught her by surprise. “Like that was ever in doubt?”
“Come on. We’ll have a beer, and you can decide what you want to do.”
He led her in through the garage and closed the door with a switch. The interior of his house was bare-bones bachelor. His kitchen was open to the family room, and there was a couch and some barstools in front of a big screen TV that took up almost the entire wall it was mounted to.
“Jesus, Ian.”
He went into the kitchen. “Yeah. That’s what my mom said when I had it delivered. She lectured me about routine eye exams to make sure I wasn’t killing my vision.”
When he came back into the family room, he held out a bottle of beer to her. “It’s a screw top.”
She looked at the label. It was one of those not-so-microbrews she’d seen often enough on campus. Opening the bottle, she took a long drag. The cool burst of yeasty alcohol was exactly what she needed.
“Did you get lunch?”
“I had a bowl of the soup I made my mom.”
“You hungry?”
“A little.”
“I’ve got the makings for ham and cheese sandwiches.”
She smiled. Simple, but the fact that he was offering to make her something had warmth spreading through her. “Thanks. That would be great.”
He went back into the kitchen, and she dragged one of the barstools over to the breakfast bar. Watching him slap together lunchmeat, cheese slices, and bread was soothing.
“Mayo or mustard?”
“Both.”
“A woman after my own heart.” He turned back to the fridge and pulled out squeeze bottles.
Watching his body twist and bend had that burgeoning sense of peace fleeing. Hot want replaced it. She cleared her throat. “Oh, fancy mustard.”
“Yeah. I got it a few years ago as part of a corporate gift basket and I’ve been hooked ever since.”
As they ate, they talked about what he’d been doing with the company since taking over. She watched as his face lit up when he talked about plans and goals he had. Her fingers itched with a desire to trace the planes of his face. Would he have a similar look of joy or would his features darken during sex? God, when did she get so freaking horny? “Having the contract with FSC cancelled would really cut into those plans, wouldn’t it?”
“Yeah. But like I said, if I’m not true to the ideals of the company, am I really being the best leader possible? Even if being true to those ideals loses us business, we have to be able to hold our heads up in the morning.”
With that simple statement, she realized she had to take this opportunity. Ian Stroman was a good man. Probably one of the best she’d ever meet. She didn’t want to regret not grabbing onto him with both hands.
She set what was left of her sandwich down and walked around the breakfast bar. He stood, leaning against the counter as he watched her come to him. She reached up and placed her hands on his shoulders, pulling him down closer to her.
Their lips met in the middle and his hands moved to her hips. When she finished kissing him, both of their chest bellowed as their lungs worked harder to draw in air. He managed to string together words, however. “What was that for?”
“You’re a good man, Ian Stroman.”
He narrowed his eyes at her. “Are you making fun of me?”
She shook her head. “Where’s the bedroom?”
His fingers tightened on her for a moment, but then he twirled her around and guided her out of the kitchen up to his bedroom. Thank God, he at least had a full bed set unlike her last lover who’d slept only on a mattress in a shared house.
He went into the bathroom and came back with a few condom packets which he tossed onto the nightstand.
“Thanks.”
Instead of replying with words, he came over and touched her. She’d worn knockabout clothes today, not expecting to do more than hit up the library and run some other errands. The T-shirt had certainly seen better days, and had a few holes, but she loved the characters from her favorite TV show. It wasn’t like she had a reputation, at least a good one, to uphold in Denning.
Ian traced the neckline of her shirt and she shivered at the contact. There was intent behind it. That he meant to see everything she had hidden beneath. She could strip her body bare, but as long as she kept her soul safely hidden, everything would be fine.
“This doesn’t mean I’m planning on staying or anything. This could be just for today if you don’t satisfy me.”
His lips spread into a grin. “Is that a challenge?”
“Satisfying me? Yes. Convincing me to stay? Hell, no.”
“Got it. You can’t hold back on me. Tell me what you like.”
“Fair.”
He bent down and pressed a kiss to the curve of her neck where it met her collarbone. Chaste. And, yet…not. She cupped the back of his head in her palm and held him there. He pressed more kisses down to the edge of her cleavage and she felt other parts of her body reacting to what was barely first base as if it were third.
Ian slipped his hands under the bottom of her shirt and rested them above the waistband of her cargo shorts. As he did so, she felt his tongue trace patterns on her, moving closer and closer to where she felt her bra cupping her breast. She moaned.
“More?”
“Yes.”
“Take off your shirt.”
She pushed him back a half step and drew her shirt up over her head. Before she could reach behind and unhook her bra, he was there. There was something about being caged by the arms of the right man that never failed to turn her on.
Letting him draw her bra down her arms, she stroked her hands down his chest. “Your turn. I want to see you naked.”
He stripped off his shirt and took off his shorts. He hadn’t taken off his running shoes when he’d come in the house, so he got a bit tangled as he tried to kick them off. She started laughing.
“Slow down, Ian. We’ve got all afternoon.”
His smile was sheepish, but he stood in front of her, arms stretched out. He hadn’t removed his dark grey boxer briefs. The stretchy cotton outlined his erection, and it had her mouth watering. What would he look like with the elastic band cupped under his balls? Determined to find out, she slipped under his hands reaching for her and dropped to her knees.
“Jesus, Rosa.”
“Anything I need to be worried about?”
“Not according to my last physical. Which was a month ago. And the last time I slept with someone was last year.”
“Give me a condom anyway.”
He didn’t argue, just reached over and grabbed a packet from the stand. She’d prefer to taste him skin to skin, but the one thing she didn’t mess with was her health. Who knew what could be lurking? And she wasn’t ready to demand his detailed doctor’s report at the moment.
She did as she’d imagined and revealed his cock, placing the band below his balls so they were framed by cotton. His hands lay loose at his sides, though she could see the pulse of his heartbeat in the veins that lined his cock. Not pretty. Cocks were never pretty, but they could be beautiful in their own way, and his certainly was.
Wrapping her hand around the base she squeezed. He grunted, but didn’t do or say anything else. Moving her hand up and down the shaft, she noted every place he seemed most sensitive—the space between the base of his cock and balls, the spot where one vein was particularly prominent, the one side of the head of his cock. Finally, she rolled the latex down the length of him. He reached to help her up, but she eluded his grip once again and took him into her mouth.
He groaned. “Rosa.”
She sucked hard on him, and he groaned again. When his hips began to pump against her mouth, she pulled away.
“You are evil.”
“No. I just want you to fuck me hard.”
This time, he got hold of her arms and pulled her up. “I will.”
He got her shorts
undone and pushed them down with her panties. She slid her sandals off her feet and stepped out of everything. He lifted her and tossed her onto the bed.
Laughing, she rolled around on the bed for a bit before propping herself up on her elbows and letting her legs fall open. Joy fizzed through her veins. When was the last time she’d had fun during sex? “What are you waiting for?”
She shouldn’t feel pride at him standing there, hair mussed, cock at attention, and a sense of relaxed muscles, but she did.
“You.” He crawled onto the bed and between her legs. His mouth met hers and dominated. She didn’t back down, but she bit his lip when she felt one hand at her pussy. Two fingers slipped easily inside her and pumped for a moment, mimicking his tongue in her mouth. Then, it was his cock filling her. She fell back on the bed and clutched him to her.
The fullness satiated a hunger in her she didn’t want to examine too closely. His body blanketing hers was everything her uninformed teenage dreams about him had promised and more.
He started slow, eyes on her, observing. With every stroke of his cock, she felt another layer of her armor being stripped away. The intensity built until she sobbed.
When he lifted up and slipped his arms under her knees so her legs were propped up on his arms, she reached over her head to grab at the covers, almost pulling them over her face. He pounded into her.
She wanted to close her eyes, but the moment her eyelids drooped, he paused mid-thrust.
“No. Eyes open. On me.”
Unable to disobey, she kept her gaze on his. The intimacy of the connection was too much and though he held completely still, she felt her orgasm begin. He must have felt it too, as a shudder racked his body. He began moving again, at an even more furious rate. He moved one hand so his fingers caressed her clit.
“Come for me.”
And she did.
Three hours later, Rosa pulled into the driveway behind her mom’s car. Automatically, she turned off the car, but didn’t get out. After having sex again, Ian had asked her to stay, but she used the excuse of checking on Mom to leave.
Rogue Hearts (The Rogue Series Book 4) Page 18
