The Closer You Come

by Gena Showalter

  His shudder rattled the entire bed.

  "Don't kiss me," she whispered, "and I'll make you wish you had." She took her hand away--and he cursed. Too bad for you, Jase. I'm learning from the best.

  "Ultimatums, angel?"

  "Consider it negative and positive reinforcement." Or desperation. "Like you gave me."

  His narrowed gaze watched her as she placed her fingers at her lips, opened wide and sucked deep, tasting what he'd given her. A low moan reverberated from him. He yanked out her fingers and replaced them with his tongue. A hot, wet thrust she met with one of her own.

  As fierce as the make-out session had been before...this was...was... Oh! Nothing compared. He devoured her mouth. She fed him passion. Breath intermingled. Bodies undulated. He wasted no more time, tunneling a finger deep inside her. She arched into the inward glide, needing to be filled. Have been empty for so long.

  "So tight, angel," he praised. He worked in a second finger.

  She clung to his shoulders. As he scissored the digits, she felt stretched, the sensation a little uncomfortable, and yet it only made her desperate for more. "Jase," she gasped.

  He pressed in, pulled out then pressed in again, teasing her, forcing her hips to follow his motions, allowing him to go a little deeper with each plunge.

  "Can you take another?"

  For him? "Yes."

  He worked in a third finger. Her back bowed as her body accepted him. A sheen of perspiration formed over her skin, burning her from head to toe. The most delicious burn.

  "So wet," he practically purred. "So perfect."

  "Jase...it's good. I'm so close."

  Out went his fingers, and she moaned in protest. He sat back on his heels, placing her legs outside his thighs, forcing her wide open for him. He stared at the soaked crotch of her panties before shaking his head, as if he'd made a life-altering decision.

  "Hope these aren't a favorite pair," he said and, without waiting for her response, ripped her panties away, leaving her bare, utterly vulnerable.

  He freed his erection from his jeans and, using her wetness on his hand, stroked himself up and down, an easy glide.

  "Touch yourself," he commanded. "Let me watch you, see what you like."

  She had never before pleasured herself in front of a man, but this was Jase. Sex made flesh. Her fingers walked a path to the apex of her thighs, and his hot gaze remained riveted on their every move. She showed him what she preferred, how hard and how fast, perhaps harder and faster than he would have guessed, all while he stroked his erection.

  "I'm ready for you," she panted. "Please, get in me."

  "Don't stop, angel. Don't you dare stop."

  "But I'm going to...don't want to...not without..." Oh!

  Pleasure had been building steadily inside her, pulling her as taut as a bow, and seeing this feast of male aggression and carnality experience the same sensations at last pushed her over the edge. She cried out his name, her back arching. And then-- Yes, yes! Her eyelids popped open. He'd put his face between her legs, was licking her up as she came and came and came, the rapture never ending, her entire body convulsing with satisfaction as he lapped and lapped.

  He groaned deeply with his own satisfaction and spilled all over the bed.

  Panting, she said, "You didn't...we didn't..."

  When his shudders ceased, he straightened his spine. His hair was disheveled. His lips were red and swollen. Underneath his scars and tattoos had to be a thousand scratch marks.

  He wouldn't look at her. He'd purposely come outside her, hadn't he?

  "Why did you do that?" she asked quietly.

  He fell to his back. "I just...I..." He ran a hand down his face.

  Jase, at a loss for words. That was new. And somehow, it doubled her hurt.

  She swung her legs to the side of the bed, standing to shaky legs. Motions clipped, she swiped up her clothes and dressed. She slipped her feet into her sandals, saying, "I've got to go."

  A muscle jumped in his jaw. "Don't leave. Stay."

  "Why?" They hadn't had sex and clearly wouldn't. What was it, exactly, that he hoped to do with her? Confuse her to the point of insanity?

  Too late.

  "You're upset," he said. "I don't like to see you upset."

  So...it had nothing to do with his feelings for her--him wanting her nearby--and everything to do with guilt. Tears welled in her eyes.

  "Good night, Jase." She marched from the room, head high.

  *

  JASE FOLLOWED BROOK LYNN to her car, though he never said a word, and she never acknowledged his presence.

  When she disappeared down the road, he returned to his bedroom and paced like a caged animal. He'd handled things poorly. Could he really be blamed, though? He hadn't been thinking clearly. He'd had her in his bed, naked, open and willing, tasting like melted strawberry ice cream, flushing so beautifully. The sounds she'd made...purrs of pleasure his ears would forever crave. She'd gone wild for him, and he'd been desperate to make sure she continued to enjoy it.

  And she had. She'd begged him for a kiss, begged him for more, and he thought he would have killed to give her everything. Problem was, when it had come time to do the actual deed, he'd remembered her gift, her offer of one time only. If he'd taken her then, that would have been it for them, the end. He wouldn't get to take her tomorrow...or the next day...or the next.

  Once wasn't going to be enough. He realized that now. He wanted her countless times in countless ways. Underneath him. On top of him. Beside him. On her hands and knees. Her mouth on him, his length down her throat. His mouth on her, making her go wild again and again and again.

  More than that, he wanted to do everything on her fun list. The two of them, together. When she "danced for a hot guy," it would be him. No one else.

  But after the way she'd stormed off, he wasn't sure she'd agree to that.

  He switched off the music and heard a knock at his door. "What?"

  "Everything okay in there?" West asked.

  "Yeah," he croaked. "Fine." Might never be fine again.

  "Glad to hear it. But next time, if you don't want us to know you're giving your employee a little strange, tell her not to scream your name."

  Smart-ass. Jase threw a pillow at the door.

  "I'll pretend that was a hug."

  "Oh, goody. Is it hug time?" Beck asked, joining the Torture Jase game.

  "Go away before I remove what's left of your balls with pliers," Jase told them.

  The boys' laughter started off strong but faded as they ambled away.

  Jase fell on his bed and peered up at the ceiling. He had to protect himself from future hurt.

  But...he didn't want to protect himself from her.

  He needed more of Brook Lynn, not less. I can't let her go. Not just yet.

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  BROOK LYNN HAD the next day free--though she would be on call--her first break in forever. To be honest, she wasn't sure what to do with herself. Also, it was odd, knowing she wouldn't be doing any non-wife wifing unless Jase had one of those casserole emergencies he'd mentioned. Odd...and freaking awesome. But mostly awesome. And okay, a little awful. She'd spent last night squirming in bed, remembering the way he'd touched her, desperate for everything she'd been denied.

  In an effort to distract herself, she spent the morning with Jessie Kay and Kenna, trying on bridesmaid dresses and finally checking another item off her fun list: drinking whiskey straight from a bottle.

  "You look different today," Kenna said as Brook Lynn moved to the dais to show off the latest gown--a floor-length lavender beauty fit for a fairy queen.

  Heat pooled in Brook Lynn's cheeks. The only thing different about her was the brief taste of satisfaction she'd experienced in Jase's arms.

  Jessie Kay emerged from the dressing room in a short red halter dress, smirking over at Brook Lynn and singing, "I know what youuuu diiiiidd. I know. I know. I really, really know."

  "You lie!" Brook Lynn said. "Yo
u know nothing."

  Kenna pointed to the whiskey. "You take another swig right this second, Miss Dillon, and then you tell me why you blush every few minutes, why you keep sighing while staring off at nothing and why you've got a bruise the size of my butt on your neck."

  The hickey! Crap!

  Both Jessie Kay and Kenna burst into laughter as she slapped a hand over her neck. Clearly they knew what was "different" about her, but had decided to tease her.

  "I'll drink, but I'll never tell you devious slags anything." Eyes narrowed, she bent down and grabbed the whiskey bottle at her feet then chugged. Oh, the burn! But with the third swallow, she actually began to like it. Her skin flushed, and a drugging numbness filled her limbs. "So get this," she heard herself say. "Jase and I made out."

  It was as if she'd just let the air out of a balloon.

  "Made out?" Jessie Kay gave her a thumbs-down. "I thought you'd sealed the deal."

  "Hardly." She faced herself in the mirror, irritated by the sudden, defeated slump in her shoulders. "He refused."

  Why had Jase denied her? Had he simply changed his mind? Men were allowed to do that, same as women--though it should be illegal for guys. Or had he not enjoyed what they were doing?

  No. Definitely not that one. He'd come. Hard. Like, propel-a-rocket-grenade hard.

  Men! She would never understand them.

  Kenna gave her rear a smack. "Don't look so pitiful. So what if he didn't give it to you last night. There's always tomorrow, right?"

  Always tomorrow.

  The words played in a loop in Brook Lynn's mind. She'd only promised him a night of sex. A single night. Had he, perhaps, hoped for a second go-round? Because not actually sleeping with her left their legal and binding contract in play.

  Her jaw dropped. Was that why he'd stopped? There was a good chance...yes, she thought, and someone might as well have tapped her vein and injected her with happiness. I'm still in the game!

  She took another two...six swigs of whiskey before putting the bottle back on the floor and picking up her phone. Texting Jase to ask for confirmation seemed like such a good idea right now. The best! Absolutely nothing could go wrong.

  But as her fingers flew over the keyboard, Do you want more from me or not? wasn't what she typed.

  Guess what? U missed out, Jase Hollister. U could have had ALL this.

  She waved to encompass her entire body. Wait. He couldn't see her. Should she send a video, too? Nah.

  It's a treasure, & I don't go around giving it away 4 free. But U blew it, she added. Blew. It. So. Hard.

  Perfect. Don't even need to proofread. Send.

  Another thought hit her. She began typing again.

  Guess what else? I still owe U a nite & UR gonna get it whether U want it or not. I'M LEGALLY BOUND, REMEMBER?? So the next time we R 2gether I'm going 2 start by running my fingers down UR chest, all the way 2 UR zipper...

  Send.

  His reply came within seconds.

  And then?

  She yelped with surprise...then nearly melted into a puddle with pleasure. He really did want more!

  "What are you doing?" Kenna demanded.

  Brook Lynn ignored her, typing, I will lean in soooo close...

  Send.

  Another lightning-fast response came in.

  AND THEN? Tell me, angel. I have 2 know.

  Oh, I'll tell you all right.

  "Seriously," Jessie Kay said. "What are you doing? You're panting."

  Brook Lynn ignored her, too. She typed

  And then I will whisper "I have a headache. Maybe we can try again tomorrow."

  Send.

  Her phone rang a few moments later. Startled, she dropped the thing on the floor and peered down at it as if it had just begun leaking poison. Was that Jase?

  With a grin, Jessie Kay swiped up the phone and handed it to her. "Answer, or I will."

  Brook Lynn tentatively placed the phone to her ear. "Hello?"

  "Cruel, honey. Cruel." Jase's husky voice filtered through the implants and drifted into her head, making her shiver. "I might not survive that severe of a punishment."

  She tried for a tough tone. "Well, I'm hard-core. And you should have considered the consequences before you kicked me out."

  "Kicked you out?" He sounded as if he'd just choked on his own tongue. "You blazed out the door after I asked you to stay."

  The girls crowded around her, whispering, "What'd he say?" and "Put him on speaker. I want to hear this."

  She batted them away, got dizzy, tripped over her own feet and ended up in a puddle of silk scarves. "Jase, I need you to stop trying to place the blame on my delicate flower shoulders and come find me. This is a 911 sexergency. You have made me more frustrated than a zombie at a salad bar. Fix it!"

  Behind her, Jessie Kay and Kenna burst into laughter.

  "You been drinking, honey?" he asked.

  "Only this much." She pinched the fingers of her free hand to indicate a little.

  "Doing your fun list, then?"

  "I am. And guess what? It's fun!" She pushed to her feet to twirl around the room...and then had to sit back down and stick her head between her legs before she passed out or threw up. "Or it was. Now it's not."

  The phone was swiped out of her hand.

  "Hey," she protested.

  "Jase," Kenna said. "This is Kenna Starr, and I just want to assure you..." She went silent. "Yes, we are...No, no, of course not...Well, that's a little extreme." Her eyes widened and swung to Brook Lynn. "I would never let anything...Okay, all right."

  Curiosity poured through Brook Lynn. "What's he saying?"

  "You are...Wow," Kenna said to him, disregarding her. "I'm going to have to refuse your oh, so generous offer...What! That's blackmail!" A pause. "But I promised and...well, she does seem to like you...Fine! You win. I'm going to hang up before I change my mind."

  "What was that about?" Jessie Kay demanded.

  "Yeah," Brook Lynn said. "Tell me before things get ugly."

  Kenna placed a hand over her mouth as a chuckle escaped. "I'm supposed to take you home, ensuring you do not speak to any man between the ages of sixteen and fifty. Sixty, if they look like they work out. I'm also supposed to refuse to help you with any more items on your fun list--and so are you," she said to Jessie Kay. "Jase has called dibs, and he's willing to go to extraordinary lengths to make sure he gets what he considers his. Even creating a mess at Dane's office that causes him to have to work late nights for the next six weeks!"

  "Dibs," Brook Lynn echoed. He wanted to help her? Had insisted on it, even scaring away the competition?

  And he wanted her to avoid other men?

  Was it her birthday?

  "Give me that phone," Brook Lynn said. "I need to ask him where exactly we stand, where we're going with this and where he wants to end up." Simple questions.

  "No way," Kenna said. "He'll do what he threatened and come here."

  "Even better!"

  "No!"

  "Give me!" she demanded, lunging for her friend.

  Kenna threw the flip to Jessie Kay, who dropped it and kicked it across the store. Brook Lynn crawled to her sister and grabbed her phone.

  "Why don't you play a little hard to get?" Jessie Kay gasped out.

  "Why should I? I gambled, and I won. Now I want my prize. I deserve it."

  Kenna raced over and swatted Brook Lynn's wrist until she dropped the other phone. "Did you know she would turn into a needy hobag after a few drinks?" she demanded of Jessie Kay.

  "No!" Jessie Kay tried to back away, saying, "It's as much a surprise to me as it is to you."

  Brook Lynn grabbed hold of her sister's ankle and yanked. The girl flailed and fell, landing with a hard thud, the hem of her dress ending up bunched at her waist, revealing lacy blue panties.

  Kenna tried to help Jessie Kay stand, but Brook Lynn dove on her. "I'm not needy--I'm curious. Now gimme!"

  "Have we decided on a color, ladies?" The prim voice of the sa
leswoman echoed. "Or a design?"

  The three of them froze.

  "Um...still mulling things over, ma'am," Kenna said.

  "I'd like to see that little light blue number over there," Jessie Kay said, pointing.

  The saleswoman walked away, grumbling under her breath. Kenna helped Jessie Kay and Brook Lynn stand.

  Steady on my feet--almost.

  "Why don't we call it a day?" Kenna said.

  While she and her sister changed into their regular clothes--after Jessie Kay ruled out the blue dress she'd made the saleswoman fetch for her--Kenna gathered the fallen phones. As her friend drove her home, Brook Lynn began to lose her buzz...but not her sense of happy.

  Jase wants me!

  It would be smooth sailing from here. No doubt about it.

  *

  JASE NEARLY POUNCED on Brook Lynn when she showed up for work Monday morning. Spending the weekend away from her had been torture. His mind had been locked on her, unable to think of anything or anyone else. He'd wondered what she was doing and who she was doing it with. He'd wanted to know if she missed him. If she'd thought about him at all...craved him, unable to sleep, the desire in her little body too much to bear.

  Her texts had been a gift from above...or a means of torment from far, far below. He wasn't sure yet. He somehow found the strength to go out back and get to work on his own chores without hounding her with a million questions.

  Have to let her do her thing during office hours.

  What seemed an eternity later, she carried a glass of ice water out to him. A blush stained her cheeks. Remembering what she'd texted to him?

  "Thank you." His mouth went dry and he drained the contents--if it wasn't the Oklahoma heat, it could only be the woman standing in front of him. "I'm still waiting to hear today's affirmations."

  At first, she didn't respond. Finally, though, she cleared her throat and said, "I am at one with my duality."

  Funny girl. A jab at his hot-and-cold treatment of her?

  "So we're going to act like Friday night didn't happen and the texts Saturday stemmed only from the alcohol," he said. "Got it."

  Silence.

  Such tense silence.

  But it was a blessing. One word of encouragement, and he would have picked her up and carried her straight to bed. Now that he had firsthand knowledge of the curves hidden by her clothes, the softness of her skin and the sweetness of her taste, being with her wasn't a want--it was a need.

  I'm going to start by running my fingers down your chest, all the way to your zipper...