By halftime they were up by fifteen points. After a quick refill, he slid back into his seat and checked his phone again. Still nothing. It was almost nine now. He supposed he would have heard something by now if she didn’t make it home. Which only irritated him more...
“Bro,” Steve cut into his thoughts. “You’ve checked your cell phone a million times since we sat down. Is everything okay?”
Jamie sighed, ran a hand through his hair in frustration, then said, “Cora.”
“When did that become a thing again?”
“Honestly,” he responded. “I don’t have a clue. Things have been building up for the last couple weeks, but...it’s not really about that.”
He proceeded to tell him about the man in her office last night.
Steve winced and asked, “Just some random drunk? She must have been terrified. Why wouldn’t she call you or text you at least to let you know? That’s kind of shitty.”
“Last night things got more complicated between us,” he said. “She wasn’t keen on jumping into anything, so I think she might be avoiding me.”
“Complicated?” he asked, wiggling his eyebrows.
Rolling his eyes, Jamie said, “Really complicated.”
“Casual dating, man,” Steve replied. “After my divorce, I totally swore off love. Never been happier.”
“She’s hard to resist,” Jamie admitted.
Steve rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably and said, “I’m sure it’ll all work out, buddy. Now can we forget that I asked you about this and focus on the game?”
Jamie laughed and said, “As you were.”
As the buzzer sounded for the third quarter, Jamie stopped checking his cell phone. Clearly she would have texted if she was going to. Tomorrow, he decided, he’d talk to her about all of this. Rather than trying to figure out what was going on in her head, he’d just ask.
When he finally managed to push her out of his mind, he enjoyed the rest of the game. The Bruins were in top condition and the Schooners looked like crap. The best part of these seats is that they were so close to the opposing team’s bench that he could hear the coach yelling at them in between plays. It wasn’t even what the guy was saying that was so funny. It was how unbelievably pissed off he seemed.
It got to the point that he and Steve stopped watching the game and focused on the coach. At one point, someone was taking some heat for a foul. Jamie saw the player’s mouth moving, but wasn’t able to hear what he was saying.
Suddenly, the coach cut him off and said, “Because he’s a better fucking player than you are. Now sit down. I’m not gonna be your goddamned babysitter tonight, Hobbs!”
Jamie almost shot cola out of his nose when the player slumped down on the bench to pout. He quickly swallowed the sip he took and said, “Please god, Steve. Tell me you heard that!”
He looked over to Steve, who was silently laughing as he rubbed his eyes. Eventually he said, “What a nutjob. And he wonders why they play like shit. They’re probably angling to get traded!”
By the time the game was over, the Bruins ended up winning by thirty-six points. Their moods jovial, they made the long hike back to the car, then sat in traffic for half an hour waiting to get out of the parking lot.
When Jamie finally made it home, it felt like he’d been awake for days. Then again, most of his day had been spent staring at a computer screen. Moving from strictly campaign management back into the actual technical work would definitely be a transition. His eyelids were heavy as he stripped out of his clothes and slid into bed. There were things he needed to do, but they could wait until tomorrow. Now? Sleep.
By noon the next day, he had already hit the gym, purchased a conference table, and had the consultation with the vet’s office. He was planning to spend the rest of the afternoon working on new marketing materials for them. Everything they had was developed by the previous owner of the business. The new owner was looking to distance themselves from that as they’d discovered a lot of overcharging in the patient files.
They were on the right track with a name change and re-branding. He’d completely agreed with their rationale. No one wanted to be known as the vet that ripped people off. They’d done all the heavy lifting with the name change itself, but they had no idea where to begin with the re-branding process.
That, of course, was where he came in.
When he finally looked away from his monitor again with a tired sense of accomplishment, he realized that the rest of the day had flown by. He picked up his phone and saw that he had missed two phone calls from his mother.
He rubbed his neck guiltily, as he hadn’t called her in over two weeks.
He took a moment to save his work, then dialed. He braced himself for what he was sure would be a session of guilt and prying.
When Molly answered on the third ring, she said, “He lives!”
“Yeah, yeah, Mom. I’m alive. Sorry I haven’t called. I’ve been pretty busy getting things ready for the office and trying to drum up business.”
There was a moment of silence on the line before Molly said, “And I also hear you’re spending a little bit of time with Cora.”
Jamie narrowed his eyes, cursing whoever had relayed the information and said, “Kinda difficult to avoid her since Patti rented me an office three doors down from hers.”
“I heard about that crazy man in her office the other night. I’m glad you were there, baby.”
He let out a sigh and said, “Yeah. Me too. It was really strange. She doesn’t know the guy, but he seems to know her. I can’t really picture her ruining anyone’s life, but he’s pretty convinced.”
“Just...be careful, please,” she responded.
“I always am, Mom,” he said.
There was a long pause and then his mother said, “I’ll let you get back to work. Whenever you two figure out what the hell you’re doing, you bring her out to see me.”
“Sure thing, Mom. Love you.”
“Love you too, baby. Bye-bye.”
Jamie disconnected and shook his head. The woman was freaking uncanny when it came to her children. He’d never been able to keep a secret from her.
His junior year of high school, he snuck Alicia Winters into his bedroom. The next evening his father had tossed a box of condoms on his bed and said, “Your mom. Don’t ask me why. She just gets a wild hair sometimes. You know how to use these, right?”
He still felt awkward thinking about it. His mother had known. His mother always knew.
Jamie shook his head and powered down his computer. Grabbing the gym bag he brought with him, he locked up his office. Once outside, he dialed Cora.
After the third ring, she picked up and said, “Hey.”
“Wow. I kind of expected you to send me to voicemail,” Jamie said, no longer sure what to say.
Cora was silent for a minute and then asked, “Can we talk in person? Are you still in the office?”
“Yeah,” he said. “I’ll come to—”
The door to her office opened abruptly, and she stepped out, a look of guilt and trepidation written all over her face.
Chapter Nine
When Cora saw the look on uncertainty on Jamie’s face, it only compounded her guilt. He approached her but remained silent, waiting for her to speak.
“I’m sorry,” she said, dropping her phone to her side. “I should have called or texted. I kinda freaked out after the other night.”
He nodded, but still didn’t say anything. She couldn’t blame him.
“I...I like you. A lot. I’m a little scared. It’s no excuse for avoiding you, not considering your feelings...uh, there it is. I’m sorry.”
“If you need time, or if you want to take a step back, or to not do whatever we’re doing at all, just tell me. If you had just asked for space, then that would have been fine,” he said, frustration written on his face. “I was worried about you, though. With the guy...”
“Crap,” she said, wincing. “I didn’t think. I’m sorry.�
��
“Clearly it all worked out okay,” he said, waving her off.
“I overthink things. I always have. It’s a nasty habit.”
A smirk on his face, he said, “I’ve noticed.”
She took another step toward him, reached up and brushed her fingers over the creases between his eyes until they smoothed out, then said, “The other night, things changed between us. I don’t regret that. I’m sorry that my freak-out made you feel that way.”
“It’s okay. You’ve gotta tell me what’s going on in there, though, sweetheart,” Jamie said as he tapped the side of her head. “That was one of the best things about us. The ridiculous level of honesty. I don’t want that to change.”
“I’ll talk to you. I promise,” she said. “So where do we go from here?”
Jamie rubbed the tips of his fingers along her cheek and then said, “I don’t know. You tell me.”
“My place,” she asked.
Jamie laughed and said, “I thought we were talking about it in more of a meta sense.”
“We were,” she agreed, smiling for the first time since she’d stepped into the hallway. “I want you. That hasn’t changed.”
Cora felt considerably better when she saw the uncertainty leave his face. She could feel the tension leave her own body as she closed the small distance between them.
Cora reached up on tiptoe, wrapped her arms around his neck and brushed her mouth against his. When his arms pulled her tightly against him, she sighed against his mouth and deepened the kiss.
Eventually, when he backed away, he tucked a strand of loose hair behind her ear and asked, “Are you ready to leave or did you have more work to do?”
“Nothing that won’t hold. Though I did want to make a stop at the store really quickly. Get something that doesn’t smell quite so fruity,” Cora said, flushing.
“Did that not enhance the experience for you?” Jamie teased.
Cora smirked and said, “I think we did just fine, fruit-flavored condom notwithstanding,” as she turned back toward her office to get her bag.
Jamie reached out to touch her arm. When she turned to face him, he said, “You wrecked me.”
“Yeah,” Cora quietly said. “That about sums it up for me too.”
When Jamie dropped the hand that rested on her shoulder, she said, “Be right back. I’m going to grab my purse.”
Cora moved toward her office, her heart pounding. When she re-entered the lobby, Celia asked, “Well?”
Unable to keep the stupid grin from her face, she said, “I’m going to get going for the evening.”
“Things went well, I take it,” Celia responded.
Cora nodded and said, “Don’t forget to call security to walk you down to your car. Tom said that the guy hasn’t been back, but it still gives me the creeps. And lock the door after me, please?”
“Will do, boss. Enjoy your evening!”
“You know I hate when you call me that, Cecelia Anne,” Cora said with a smug grin as she walked toward the door.
The last thing she heard before she closed the door was, “Dammit. Don’t call me that, Cora!”
“Night,” she called out.
Jamie looked up from where he was leaned against the wall, texting and asked, “You ready?”
* * * *
Cora slid out of bed and stretched. Jamie lay facedown, sprawled out across two-thirds of the bed, snoring quietly. She gave him a long thorough look, appreciating the lean muscles of his back and the incredibly sexy bedhead he had going on.
It made her want to crawl back into bed. She could think of plenty of interesting ways to wake him up. Even though she desperately wanted to press her lips against the rough stubble on his jaw, she just let out a wistful sigh and moved toward the bathroom. It was time to start the day.
One cup of coffee later, she rolled out her yoga mat in her living room. As she slid effortlessly from pose to pose, she could feel the stress leaving her body. She continued working through her routine until she felt completely loose. When she finally opened her eyes, she jumped a little in surprise. Jamie stood there, coffee cup in hand, wearing nothing but boxers and a smile.
Putting a hand over her heart, she said, “I didn’t realize you were there. You scared me.”
Jamie set the cup of coffee he held onto the dining room table and said, “Tell me you’re done with that.”
“I’m done with that,” Cora said, wiping a towel over her brow and wresting the ponytail holder out of her hair. As she shook her hair free, she let out a sigh of relief.
“That was,” Jamie said as he walked toward her, “twenty minutes of pure torture, watching that, baby. I had no idea you were that flexible.”
Jamie stood in front of her now, so close that her breasts brushed against his chest. She said, “I didn’t even realize you were watching.”
His hand moved up to slide the strap of her tank top off her shoulder. As he lowered his mouth to her skin, he said, “I couldn’t help it. That was so fucking sexy.”
Cora tilted her head to the side as his teeth grazed her shoulder. Goose bumps raised on her arms when he cupped her breast through the cotton tank and began to rub his thumb lightly over her nipple. The light touches of his fingers and the barest hint of teeth were driving her absolutely crazy.
“Jamie,” she moaned, when she felt the nip of his teeth against her neck.
He lifted his mouth from her shoulder and tugged her tank top over her head without ceremony. When the cool air swept over her, a fresh wave of goose bumps rose on her skin. She took a final step forward, so that they were pressed together, and pulled his mouth down to hers.
As one kiss melded into another, she let her hands roam the muscles of his back and chest, her nails dragging across his skin. When she finally slipped the waistband of his boxers down and began to stroke him, he said, “Fuck, I love the feel of your hands on my cock.”
Cora slowed the speed of her hand and began to kiss her way down his chest, stopping along the way to run her lips and tongue along the ridges of his stomach. As she settled on to her knees, she asked, “But what about the feel of my mouth on your cock?”
She continued to stroke with one hand as she leaned in to swirl her tongue around the tip of his erection. Licking along the length of it, she flicked her tongue against the sensitive spot just below the head, before she took him fully into her mouth.
One of the hands that had been hanging loosely at his side immediately slid into her hair, gripping it tightly. Cora whimpered around his cock as she felt a flood of arousal between her thighs. She hadn’t thought she’d enjoy the slight edge of pain, but the fact that she was dripping with arousal, said otherwise.
Jamie began to rock his hips, thrusting into her mouth. When his hand tightened in her hair, she moaned around him and pressed her thighs together, hoping to alleviate some the throbbing ache.
When she shifted again, and whimpered around his thick cock, Jamie asked, “Is sucking my cock turning you on, Cora? Why don’t you play with that pretty pussy for me? Slide those shorts down if you can.”
Cora only hesitated a moment before she moved her hands to slide her shorts down. Once they were at her knees, she wiggled slightly so she wasn’t trapped in them.
“That’s it,” Jamie groaned. “Spread your thighs, sweetheart. I want to see. Show me how wet you are.”
Needy, Cora dipped her hand between her thighs and held it up. It glistened with her cream.
“Fuck, baby. You’re soaked. Rub your clit for me. I wanna see you fall apart.”
Cora moved one hand back up to stroke along his length and slid the other between her thighs. Pressing two fingers inside her aching cunt, she began to rock against her hand as he fucked her mouth. She ground herself against her palm, desperate for any sort of friction on her aching clit.
She wanted to see him lose control. She wanted him feeling as wild and needy as she was. Cora knew just how to make that happen. Moving her hand from around his length,
she relaxed her jaw, taking him even deeper into her mouth.
When he nudged the back of her throat, Jamie ground out, “Sweet fucking Christ. Just like that.”
As the beginnings of release started, she whimpered around his cock. She shifted her hand and now rubbed tight circles around her throbbing clit. The ache only intensified.
Almost lightheaded, she reached underneath, lightly massaging his balls. When he gritted out, “Oh, fuck. Like that,” and gave her hair another rough tug, she cried out around his cock, release barreling through her like a freight train.
Seconds later he said, “Oh Christ, baby. I’m gonna come,” as he erupted in her mouth.
Cora felt the hot liquid hit the back of her throat and continued to swallow until the grip on her hair had loosened slightly. Her body throbbed with release in time with his, but it wasn’t nearly enough. Something about this man made her all but insatiable.
As he pulled back from her mouth and released her hair, Jamie said, “Jesus.” He watched her, a somewhat stunned look on his face, as he tried to catch his breath.
As he opened his mouth to speak Cora stood, then very deliberately licked her fingers clean, gave him a slow smile and said, “Morning.”
She leaned down and began to gather her clothing and yoga mat. As she straightened again, he jerked her up against him and said, “I hope you don’t think I’m done with you yet.”
Cora squealed, dropping the clothes and mat as he picked her up and threw her over his shoulder. She squirmed against him until he gave her ass a light slap. Unable to stop herself, she gave a little whimper and then bit down on her lip.
“Nope,” he said. “You’re mine now. Hope you don’t have any early patients, because this may take a while.”
Her breathing heavy, she continued to squirm against him as he walked her into the bedroom. There was something utterly delicious about this new side to Jamie. In all the time that they’d been together before, he had always been gentle with her, controlled. She had always enjoyed herself, but never so much as the times that his careful control slipped a few notches. There was something to be said for rough, needy hands.
When You Were Mine [Second Chances 2] (Siren Publishing Classic) Page 8
