It was hard not to gloat. She made for one sexy opponent that I wanted to turn into an asset. Damn, she was full of pretty mocha assets.
“You want to talk about offense? You tried to seduce me in front of a crowd to get your jollies off, not stopping to think about me in any capacity. You’ve touched me in borderline inappropriate areas, and the way you keep coming at me is toeing the definition of harassment. You’re relentless because, if rumors are correct, you’ve had every available woman in this town before. I get it. I’m a fresh fish in a pond full of senior citizens to you, but I’m a journalist, Mr. Jacobs. I’ve watched history repeat itself too many times before, and I refuse to be another history lesson.” Her soft curves were stiff with tension, tension I was confident I could conquer.
“Someone burned you, darlin’, but it wasn’t me. If you need a punchin’ bag, though, I’ll take the beating.” I studied her, holding my emotions at bay, as though I were in the field. Meeting her gaze, I assured her, “I can handle you, Shae.”
She gaped at me for a long minute. Dropping her arms, she expelled a soft breath. “What do you want from me, Mr. Jacobs?”
Finally! I’d cracked that tough outer shell of hers. “I’m not your dad, your employer or your superior, so call me Bear.”
She nodded once. “Fine. What do you want from me, Bear?”
“I want you to stop makin’ assumptions. You don’t know me any better than I know you, but I wanna change that. Most city folks are for equal opportunity. Give me that, darlin’, and I swear you won’t regret it.”
Her expression was unreadable. Usually if I caught a glimpse of my enemy’s face, I knew the kind of person I was dealin’ with and could better predict their moves; it took the wild off the table. Shae was different. All my training didn’t make a lick of difference with her. She was unpredictable, and damn did she get my blood pumpin’ and my dick risin’.
“I don’t mix professional with personal, Bear; so as long as you’re my story assignment, nothing is going to happen between us.”
Jackpot. I bit back a smirk. The pressure in my chest subsided for the first time since returning from Afghanistan. “And after?”
She stepped towards me, her arm brushing mine. It was a tactical move if I’d ever seen one. “I’m a journalist, Bear. I put myself out there for no one without proof.” She started back into the swarm of bodies.
I turned to watch her retreat. “Proof of what, Shae?”
She stopped, glancin’ back at me over her shoulder. “What fun would it be if I gave you all the answers?” She disappeared, her wide hips swayin’ seductively, her ass teasin’ me with each step.
She is full of fuckin’ surprises.
My cock throbbed. An entire month without any release didn’t come close to the need constrainin’ my boys right now. I didn’t know much about Shae Roberts, but I knew I’d do what it took to have her.
Chapter Seven
One Month Later...
Shae
Walking away from Bear that day went against every instinct I had, but what experience didn’t teach me, my mother did.
“Don’t let dem’s talk you’s into sin. Dey’s talk and talk till dey’s get what dey want. Den dey’s leaves you’s. Don’t let no man leaves you’s like dey did me. You’s smart, you’s pretty, and you’s word more, Shaely.”
Experience told me the story was always better than the sex, and, that my mother was right. Bear had been all talk that day. The only thing he’d demonstrated was that he was a smooth talker with an agenda. In the weeks following, he’d proven he was more than an ex-military man on a mission.
He was funny. He said he loved to see me smiling, laughing and letting loose with him. He was smart, witty, and willing to debate me on any topic. He didn’t hold back on anything, which led to a lot of late nights daydreaming about how that would translate between the sheets with him.
We’d been on eleven dates, two of them were double dates with Gator and Mary Ann. He’d surprised me with flowers, lunch and cappuccinos regularly from the moment he learned what I liked. Ever the strategic planner, he geared his questions on our first date to uncover as much about my palate as possible.
As the days passed, I’d held out, waiting for his interest to wane.
But it didn’t. If anything, it only intensified, and my desire for him mimicked that pattern.
Most men would have given up by date three when I continued to give him my cheek when he attempted to kiss me.
But Bear didn’t.
I’d reached the point of no return now. He wanted me, he’d proven as much, and I wanted him. I’d burned through an eight pack of batteries in the past month because, let’s face it, a vibrator will never be the same; it’s merely the best second for a desperate woman. As much as I’d been trying to keep Bear, his charm, wit and good looks, at bay, my body had been battling for the opposite.
Sorry, Mama. Everyone has their breaking point, and Bear had carried me a little closer to mine with each act of kindness and intent.
“Honey, when are you going to put the poor boy out of his misery?” Mary Ann pressed a fist against each side of her dress at her waist. She’d opened a credit card and kidnapped me for a day of shopping in Atlanta a few days after the party. She bought herself a whole new wardrobe that blended well with mine. Between the clothes and her whirlwind romance with Gator, she was a completely different woman.
“You speak as though he’s the only one who’s suffering. Women have needs too.” I grabbed my cappuccino off my desk and took a small sip.
Deciding not to hover any longer, Mary Ann sat in the wood chair across from my desk. Bear had been in to see me so often that it was a permanent staple in my office. “I don’t know how you’ve done it. Gator was at my house the same night after the barbeque and hasn’t left since, not that his momma misses him. The woman sent me a thank you basket a week later telling me to keep him as long as I’d like.”
A smile tugged at the edges of my lips. “I’m happy it worked out for you, but you warned me well about Bear.”
She scrunched her nose. “Maybe too well.”
I rolled my eyes, shaking my head lightly. “Don’t worry. We’ll be taken care of soon enough.”
She leaned into my desk, practically salivating for what would surely turn into gossip. Mary Ann couldn’t keep a secret to save her life. She definitely chose the right career, but there was no such thing as ‘off the record’ with her.
“How soon is soon enough?” she pressed.
I stared at her across the desk. “Soon.”
She squealed, whipping back into the chair, a huge grin lifting her cheeks. “Ooh! You know I want details, honey, right?”
That came as no surprise. “You always want details.”
She stuck her nose up in the air, going haughty for a moment. “The details make the story.”
“No, sweetie, the words make the story. Journalism is about facts and statements, giving everyone enough information to form their own opinions, but not so much that they’re swayed. And you don’t need details for that.”
She laughed. “I didn’t say I needed them; I said I wanted them, Miss All-About-The-Facts.”
“Alright. Point made.” I stood and gathered my belongings. I swallowed the last of my cappuccino before tossing the empty paper cup into the trashcan beside my desk. “I’m way past my forty this week after all the drama with the county trying to rezone Bear Valley, and this town doesn’t even pay enough for forty hours worth of reporting.”
Mary Ann rose, moving into the hall beyond my office door. Her kitten heels clacked along the scuffed parquet floors. – We were still working on the heels bit. – “I’ll cover any events that pop up this weekend. You just work on making that ‘soon enough’ happen.”
I looked her square in the eye, neutralizing my expression beforehand. “I will neither confirm or deny your insinuation.”
“Dammit!” She snapped her fingers. “Henry was never good at reading
between the lines.”
Closing my office door behind me, I came to a halt in front of her. “What did you expect? According to you, he was a senile old man who once wrote an article claiming aliens had given the cattle mad cow disease.”
A grin split her face. “I can’t get anything past you. As your boss, I love seeing it in your work, but as your friend, I sometimes hate you for it.”
“This coming from a woman who wore a painted strawberry shirt when I met her.” I chuckled. “Sweetie, you are far better off with my stonewalling techniques than without them. I brought you to the fabulous you are today, so give me some space and let me work up to that same fabulous in Bear and mine’s relationship.”
She stared at me for a long few seconds before nodding her head in agreement. “Alright, honey. I guess I can do that. Good luck this weekend. I hope you make the most of it, if you know what I mean.”
I shook my head in dismay, striding past her. “You kill me, woman!”
“You love me!” she shouted back.
I stopped and looked back at her. “Have a good weekend, Mary Ann.”
A sparkle appeared in her eyes. “Oh, I know I will. Gator’s supposed to borrow Sheriff Bill’s handcuffs.” She wagged her brows.
I knew my eyes widened. “I’m not touching that one.” I spun and walked out the door, Mary Ann’s laughter carrying towards me in the distance.
Since I’d joined the newspaper, sales had picked up; nearly eighty-percent of the town now purchased a copy each week. Unfortunately, I was still getting paid close to peanuts, but I didn’t mind. I was happy. I had enough for all of my bills, enough to purchase the occasional cappuccino, and enough to purchase the sexy lingerie I planned to wear for Bear tonight. He thought he was coming to pick me up for a late dinner date, but I had something else in mind.
I checked the time on my phone. It was nearly seven already. Heels clicking on the pavement, I made a beeline for my car. I had a sexy ex-Marine to surprise.
Chapter Eight
Shae
My heart took off at the knock on the front door. I glanced at the mirror, ensuring everything was in place before I jerked the white silk robe on over it. What little flesh I covered was swaddled in white lace, white lace that provided a barrier but didn’t exactly conceal. Boy shorts, a bra that barely covered my nipples, - let alone conceal them, - a garter on my left thigh and patent nude peep toe heels was all that I wore beneath the robe.
I expelled a breath, willing my heart to calm down. I’d never done anything like this before, and, apparently, nerves were inherent. I knew Bear would calm them though; I just hoped he didn’t make me mad. Lord knew he could rile me up easier than any one I’d ever met before.
Standing behind the door, I opened it, allowing him to enter without seeing me at first.
“Sha-” His call for me came to an abrupt halt mid annunciation as he caught sight of me. He shoved the door shut and locked it; all while his focus was on me.
I bit my bottom lip, taking him in. His hair was in careless disarray, curling ever so slightly at the ends. Jeans hung low enough on his hips to be suggestive. A black t-shirt clung to his form, showcasing his gorgeous muscled physique. His eyes darkened, choosing a brown hue tonight. He’d shaved earlier, letting me see the dint in his chin.
“Hello, sexy.” His gaze roved over me once again. “You better have something suitable on underneath that or dinner’s cancelled.”
Struggling to keep a straight face, I replied, “I hope you ate then.”
He licked his lips. “You’re all the sustenance I need.”
My smile broke through. “Smooth talking won’t get you anywhere.”
“It got me to tonight, didn’t it?” He quirked a brow. He watched my every breath, my every move.
I shook my head negatively. “No. Being more than a smooth talker got you here.”
“Ain’t I lucky.” The words sounded like an afterthought. His attention was on my hands, moving slowly to untie the knot at my waist.
“Is that a fact?” I asked, checking to see if he still had his wits about him.
“Any man who’s had you is.”
“Had?” I swallowed hard, clinging to my wavering confidence as he whipped out a pocketknife.
He met my gaze, holding me in place with merely a look. Closing the distance between us, he grabbed the sash and with one fluid swipe, he sliced it apart, allowing the robe to fall open. “I’ll buy ya a new one.”
He released me, gaping down at my abundant curves. He trailed his fingers over my exposed flesh.
Heat raced through me, gathering at my apex. Tingles trailed behind his fingertips, whipping my heart each time. Faster and faster, harder and harder, my heart beat; my nipples pebbled as I watched him study me like a test was coming on my every dip and swerve.
He yanked his shirt off and tossed it to the floor. With a single tug on the waistline of my panties, he closed our distance and captured my lips.
Chills raced down my spine. His lips were unforgiving. He owned my mouth; he was in total control as he tasted and teased my lips and tongue. The heat of his body surrounded me as he yanked the robe off of me.
My pussy pulsated as he nipped my bottom lip. “You didn’t answer my question.” I was close to panting, and knew I needed to maximize on the moment of reprieve.
Methodically, he trailed his hands down my back. His palms curled around my rear asset. With a quick jerk, his erection pressed against my lower stomach through his jeans. “I don’t share, and I don’t plan to be as stupid as they were. You’re mine, darlin’. Every sweet inch of you is gonna be mine forever.”
I contained the delight fluttering through me to play hardball. “I never agreed to that.”
He beamed, flashing his dimples. “You will, darlin’.”
I stared straight into him. “Not if the story is better than the sex.”
Taking a step back, he whipped out his knife again. One cut later, my bra fell open in the front. Two cuts after that, my white lace panties were on the floor. He closed the knife and shoved it back into his pocket.
I gasped as he pulled me to him, closing his mouth over a single pert peak the moment I was within his grasp. My knees nearly melted as he flicked his tongue across my needy flesh. I arched into him, fearlessly pressing all my imperfections against him. I was what felt like a hundred dress sizes away from a two, but the way Bear held me, his muscles flexing assuredly against my softness, made me feel like one for the first time in my life.
Releasing my breast with a plop, he dove for the other, sending fresh pleasure blazing through my core. Liquid desire coated my center; need furled tight in my lower stomach, driving down my patience. I dug my nails into his lightly tanned flesh.
A soft cry fell from my lips as his fingers pressed between my lower lips, seemingly from nowhere. Was I so far gone that I didn’t notice his movements?
He worked both ends, driving my desire into the desperate zone. It’d been so long, too long. Somehow he knew that.
Breathing was a last minute remembrance as I shifted deeper into him, silently pleading for more. I nearly sang a ‘hallelujah’ when he let go of me to strip. In under a minute he was naked with a condom rolled over his impressive member.
Sweet cherry pie, the man was all beautiful muscle. He had deep valleys and grooves all over his body that I couldn’t wait to taste and tease.
Our gazes met. We both stood, panting, naked and exposed, all pretenses and barriers gone, for what felt like an eternity. Suddenly, he dove for me. He backed me up until my ass hit the console table against the entry wall.
With one motion, he curled his hands around my thighs and hefted me onto the edge of the piece of furniture. “Hold on, darlin’.”
Wrapping my arms around his neck, I shoved my fingers through the short curls of hair near his nape. My nipples felt hard as diamonds as they brushed against his chest. I draped my legs around him, ready for all he had. “Prove me wrong, soldier.”
> In one breath, he drove into me and claimed my lips, effectively causing and catching my cry. Pleasure shot through me, feathering and seeming to reach every inch of me.
He didn’t play games. Bear set a fast and furious pace, pummeling my body into a swift submission.
Before long, my heels and nails were digging into him and my hips were stretching to meet every whip of his flesh to mine. One hand was pressed firmly to my back, the other held my hip, supporting me as he carried us both to the peak of pleasure.
It became too much; I was forced to abandon his lips in order to breathe. I felt his wet mouth touch the side of my neck. He nipped and kissed a path above my collarbone, never losing his rhythm.
“Oh, Bear. Oh, God.” I bit my bottom lip hard. I was his prisoner. I had very little control; I’d given in. I gave my pleasure over to him.
Pressure built in my womb; my breasts swelled and my nipples pinched ever firmer as he continued his beautiful torturous assault. It all happened so slow, and yet so fast. One second my body was pleading, and the next it was singing.
Pleasure burst through me as I seized around him. Wave after wave of blissful sensations crashed through me, blurring my vision, dulling my hearing while sharpening my cries. Heat strangled my core as his cock touched every delicate inner fold; he doubled his efforts, until he suddenly halted, burying his face in my neck as he shouted my name.
“Oh, fuck, Shae. Fuck, darlin’.” His voice was mangled, muffled against my flesh, and yet the raw tone of it sent fresh pleasure rolling through me. He lazily thrust a few more times before stopping altogether.
For several minutes, he held me in place, unmoving, and I was content to remain as I was in his arms, rear asset pressed into the sharp edge of the wooden table. I was surprised the feminine design of the furniture piece allowed it to hold me.
Red Hot and BOOM! A Sizzling Hot Collection of Stories from the Red Hot Authors Page 60
