“We’ll be eating out a lot,” he said when we sat down. “I can’t cook like you do.”
“Let’s pick up some stuff. I’d love to cook for you at your house.” Jagger was the only person who ate my cooking willingly. I was cursed with a love of cooking and stuck in a sea of picky eaters. And cooking for him, in his kitchen, made it mine in a way. I wanted that. To leave my mark, like scraping my fingernails down his chest.
His dark eyes glittered in the sunlight. “I’d like that.” No one ever did anything for Jagger.
Everyone around us was in sweaters and sweatshirts, but this was a heatwave for me. And I planned on taking advantage of it. I shrugged out of my sweater. My arms didn’t usually get to be free in the wild; I thought they made me look big unless I covered them. But Jagger had seen me naked many times, and he had no complaints. Being around him gave me confidence I didn’t know I had. Jagger made me feel beautiful. Even more than that, desirable.
“I’ve missed looking at you,” he said. “We see each other every day, but it’s different in person.”
“I was thinking the same thing at the airport. When I saw you standing there it took my breath away like it was the first time.” The waiter came and of course I ordered sangria. It was five o’clock somewhere, and I was on vacation. “What do you have planned for the weekend?”
Jagger ran his teeth over his bottom lip. It was still swollen from my welcome at the airport. We’d kissed for so long I was still breathing his oxygen. “You’ll see.”
Tease. “I want to see all the places you’ve told me about,” I said. He made them sound magical. And the photos he showed me were even better, giving me a chance to see everything through his eye. I moaned when the first sip of sangria hit my lips. It blew the stuff I’d had at home out of the water. “This is perfection.”
“Welcome to Miami. You sure you want to cook? Wait ‘til you take your first bite of your lunch.”
I’d get some inspiration, and see what I could come up with. “Come clean. Were you only eating my cooking to be polite? There’s got to be a reason Kari brings takeout every time she comes over.”
“You’re an amazing cook. But I want you to relax.” Jagger stared at the ocean. We were on an open deck, with the waves lapping the shore below us, salt water air tickling our skin. Something was off. Usually, when we were together, his eyes were on me. It made me uncomfortable at first, and then I’d come to crave that feeling, being the center of his universe. Shit. I hoped he didn’t regret inviting me.
“What’s wrong?”
He startled like he’d forgotten he had company. After a deep breath, his smile returned. “I’ve had a lot of free time on my hands this month.”
“But you’ve been taking pictures.” Each of Jagger’s photos was like a song. I loved the way his face lit up when he talked about his photography.
And it did. He leaned forward, back from wherever he’d just drifted off to. “Yeah. I got some great stuff yesterday. I’ll show you when we get to my house.”
“Can’t wait to see it. But something’s bothering you.”
He opened his mouth but didn’t speak right away, searching for the right words. “I’d been tired of escorting for a long time. Now that I’m not doing it, I’m having a hard time figuring out who I’m supposed to be. I know it was just a job, but it was a big part of who I am.”
“It’s never just a job.” I picked up the garnish on the side of my glass and put it in my mouth. Jagger’s hungry gaze followed the motion. “I felt like a bull in a china shop when I worked in retail. I needed to express myself in a certain way and I couldn’t do it when I was there. Once I started actually doing interior design, so many parts of my life opened up.”
“Exactly.” That was the most animated I’d seen him in a while. Possibly since he left my house at the beginning of the month. He took another deep breath. “Good. You understand. For the last eight years, I’ve done what everyone else wants. I never asked for what I needed, because it wasn’t about me.”
“But now it is,” I said softly. Someone hurt Jagger somewhere along the line because he’d shut completely down. This wasn’t normal guy inability to speak a woman’s language, this was something so raw that it had broken him once, and I was pretty sure he thought it could break him again. Maybe the next time he wouldn’t recover. “Tell me what you want, Jagger. I want to make you feel the way you make me feel.”
“I miss the sex.”
Really? That was the big reveal? “I think we can take care of that this weekend.”
“It’s not the same thing. When I’m with you, there’s a more than just a connection of our bodies.” Jagger stopped and nodded at the waiter when the food came. But he seemed frustrated like he thought I was laughing at him. I understood what he meant, to a point. Sex with him was insane. “You take me to a place I didn’t know existed. But the rest of it was this raw, physical, almost selfish need to get off. Don’t worry, you more than get me off. I can see it on your face, but what I’m trying to say is it’s two different things.”
I swallowed my food and thought about what he said. Jagger was right, my lunch was out of this world. I’d ordered Mahi Mahi on a bed or rice with vegetables, but it had been cooked and seasoned to perfection. Maybe I didn’t want to cook. No, I did. For completely different reasons. “So it’s something purely physical instead of caring about what the other person needs, is that what you mean?”
“Yeah.” He pushed his food around on his plate. “It’s not what we have.”
“We can try it.” My mouth went dry when our gazes locked. There was something different there than I’d ever seen before. Primal, but it was more than that. Jagger was scared. “Maybe it doesn’t have to be two separate things. Maybe if you put them both together, it will be even better.”
Now it was purely primal. “You’re willing to play around a little bit?”
“I want to make you happy.” My heart thundered in my chest. “And yeah, I’m willing to experiment. I haven’t had the chance to do any of that.” Rich and I had sex so infrequently at the end there was no need to mix things up. Any other guy between him and Jagger was a one shot deal. For a reason.
“I know. We need to figure out what you like.” His tone changed. I recognized it from the first night we met, when I brought him into my bedroom and he somehow convinced me to get myself off in front of him. At the time, it had been a giant leap. Just thinking about it gave me some ideas. “This isn’t all about me, Leah. If you want to try something, this is the time. Raven’s not here, and your job is a thousand miles away. In fact, give me your phone.” He held his hand out.
“What?”
“Did you bring your laptop?” He grinned, his hand still out. I nodded. “I’m confiscating them. No sneaking off to work while you’re here.”
“I’ll agree to the laptop, but I keep the phone.” This scared me more than the sex. “No work. But just in case something comes up with my family.”
“One of the reasons I wanted you to come to me was I wanted you to get away from everything. Yeah, you moved from Boston to DC when you got divorced. But when was the last time you just let go?”
He was right. I’d been working so hard, making up for lost time in the last few years, I barely took time to relax. Time slowed down when I was with Jagger, to something lush and luxurious. Forbidden. There were so many reasons I’d fallen for him. “Only when I’m with you.”
Jagger reached across the table and touched my hand. I laced my fingers in his and squeezed them. “I’m so glad you came.”
“Me too.” I’d forgotten to breathe. “So, tell me what a typical client was like. What she wanted. And what you liked about it.”
I could barely get the last sentence out. I’d asked him this before, but never let him finish. I braced myself for the details.
Jagger relaxed. Now we were truly on his turf. “There wasn’t one type. Everyone needed something different. There were plenty of women like you, who wanted
a date without the bullshit. And honestly, they bored me, until I met you. I didn’t get many of them because I’m not exactly the guy who gets chosen for a black tie event. The other guys get a lot more of that stuff, and that was fine with me. The longer I did it, the more I needed something different, too. Barry set me up with the clients who asked for certain things.”
I took a long sip of my sangria. “Like what?”
“Some of them liked to be dominated, but a few liked to top me. It was all a game. Because they were my clients, they were always in control. But it was a game I liked, never knowing what to expect. I could play the role. Be someone else for a little while. Others liked it rough and wanted to push their limits. They hired me, so there was no reason to hold back.” He paused, gauging my reaction. I wondered if he could tell I wasn’t breathing. “Tell me what you’re thinking.”
The last time I let Jagger tell me a little of this before I shut the whole thing down, he’d said that people hired him to fulfill what they’d been refused by their husbands or were too afraid to ask for. And I made him stop because that was the category I fell into. It wasn’t the only thing I’d been refused, by a long shot. There was a reason why we’d been brought to each other. Jagger filled in all the cracks where I’d been broken and made the scars disappear. I wanted to do the same for him.
I licked the wine from my lips. “I don’t want to hold back anymore.”
“I never thought you were.”
We’d never talked about sex. Never had to. Our bodies were drawn to each other in a way that didn’t need to be questioned. “I don’t want you to play a role. I want to be with you.”
He sighed. “You always are.”
Then why am I not enough? I knew this feeling all too well. Okay, this was going badly. That wasn’t what he meant. Neither of us could put words to what we really wanted to say. It took a lot for him to tell me what he wanted. I knew it because I couldn’t do the same for him.
“That’s not what I meant. You joked that I was a control freak. But I hired you, so the ball’s been in my court the whole time. That’s not fair. We’re together now. And that means I want to know every part of you, not just when it comes to sex. The good, the dark, and you know what? Maybe there are some things that you’re afraid to ask for, too.”
His shoulders relaxed, and he exhaled as if he’d been holding his breath. “You get it.”
The waiter came with the bill, and Jagger paid it. Now wasn’t the time to argue about that.
“I do. By now you should know I don’t half-ass anything.” I giggled, I had to lighten the moment. For a couple minutes, we’d sucked the sun out of the sky. “I put my whole ass into it.”
“And you will be, all weekend long.” He grinned. “Something tells me I’ll lose my mind when I do this stuff with you.”
I put my hand against his chest when we stood to leave the restaurant. “Let’s play.”
Chapter Ten
Leah
Jagger slammed me against the wall as soon as we got into his apartment. All the air went out of my lungs. The wall was cool against my cheek, a stark contrast from the heat the rolled off his body. His hips held me in place, and his breath was ragged against my neck. “This is all I’ve been able to think about doing since I saw you step on the escalator at the airport,” he said.
I turned my head as much as I could. His eyes were on fire. It flowed through my veins and found its center between my thighs. My pussy pulsed faster than my heartbeat. Our lips caught in a messy kiss, connecting anywhere we could. His stubble scraped against my cheek. It was the little things like that I missed about actually being with him. We couldn’t do that on the computer. I reached back, tangling my fingers in his hair. Jagger moaned against my lips, and his sunglasses crashed onto the floor. Shit, I hoped those weren’t expensive.
If they were, he didn’t care.
It was so hot. “You said it wouldn’t be a quickie.”
I shivered as he drew his finger underneath my tank top, lifting it, exposing my bra on one side. Total torture. I wanted him to rip my clothes off and take me against his front door, so anyone walking by could hear us. Instead, he traced the line of my bra slowly, curving with the lace. I started to catch my breath but gasped when he grabbed my tit hard and pulled my hair at the same time. “I’d make this last forever if I could.”
I’d have no complaints. His lips fell to my neck, my pulsed raced to meet his kisses. Nothing else existed but him. My knees buckled, but he had me pinned with his leg between my thighs. I tried to grasp the wall, but it was useless. He was the only thing saving me from freefall.
Jagger ground his hips against mine. The rhythm was similar to the last time we were together, a hypnotic roll. His erection circled against my ass. His tempo changed, rocking back and forth slowly like he was fucking me.
I pulled him away from my neck by his hair. “That reminds me—“ all my thoughts were fragments “—I’ve been listening to music at work. You’re right, it makes me more creative.”
He stilled. “Then I’ll put on some music.”
Much to my surprise, I didn’t fall when he walked away from me. I turned around, taking my first look at his home. It was bright and airy, with a breathtaking view of the ocean. If it wasn’t for Jagger coming toward me, unbuttoning his shirt, I wouldn’t have been able to take my eyes off of it. I didn’t get much of a look at the furniture, I wanted to keep up with him in the silent strip tease we’d started. I pulled my tank over my head. He’d already shown interest in my bra. I gave the man what he wanted.
“This isn’t what I expected,” I said as I pulled his belt out of the loops. I did it fast, and it snapped against my bare belly. Something changed in Jagger’s eyes when I rubbed the point of impact to lessen the pain.
“Give me that.” He held his hand out and I handed over the belt. “What didn’t you expect?”
“The music.” It was soft and acoustic, and a little bluesy. But I couldn’t take my eyes off the strip of leather. “Don’t use that on me.”
“I like to keep you on your toes.” Jagger tossed the belt on the couch behind him, and it disappeared in a sea of black leather. He ran his hands up my sides, but frowned when I flinched. “I meant the music. It makes me think of you, but I see you everywhere. Relax, Leah. There’s a lot of things I could do with the belt you might like. Don’t count it out yet.”
“We’ll see about that.” Sometime soon we were going to have to set some boundaries. But with Jagger sliding my bra straps down my arms, I didn’t exactly feel like negotiating. I reached back to unhook it, and it fell to the floor between us. Jagger’s hands were firmly on my shoulders as he claimed my mouth in a kiss, sliding his tongue along my lips and easing inside. I loved the way he kissed me so much. I let myself get lost in it—the swirl of the storm moments before everything became unrecognizable. I didn’t notice he had me up against the wall again.
Jagger stepped out of his pants, kicking them aside, and looked at me when I laughed. “What?”
“There’s no graceful way to do this standing up.” I shimmied out of my jeans, dragging my lacy panties down with them. They’d been chosen especially for the occasion, but why delay the inevitable. Every part of me was watering at the sight of his cock. We’d basically had a month of foreplay, and if it lasted much longer I’d be begging him to fuck me. Everything I had on was log jammed at my ankles. “I need help getting my boots off.”
He sunk to his knees, unzipped my boots and got rid of my jeans. I’d been wrong—there was a graceful way to do it. I braced myself against the wall as he pulled my leg out, removing one layer at a time. I’d barely put my foot down when he rose to his feet, taking me with him. I cried out, not expecting to be picked up. I wrapped myself around him, kissing the spot on his neck where his pulse throbbed furiously. His head fell back with a groan.
“I’m on the pill now,” I whispered. “Please just fuck me.”
That came out smoother than I expected.
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br /> Jagger positioned himself to slide inside me. I thought he’d grab my leg again, but he kept his hand between us and skimmed down to my clit. It was amazing to have nothing between us, to be able to feel every thrust, and at this angle, it was even better. He pinned me against the wall, impaling me with every stroke. His forehead rested against mine, our breath became one, but all I could see was stars.
I was going insane, the music fading in and out of my consciousness, electricity pulsing through my body every time he circled my clit. I clamped down on his cock, desperate for some measure of control, but I had none. I had surrendered myself completely to Jagger. My head fell against his shoulder as my orgasm racked my body. A trickle of blood ran slowly down his spine. I scratched the hell out of his shoulders and didn’t even realize it.
His rhythm slowed, and his shaft swelled. Jagger came hard inside me. I’d forgotten that feeling, and how complete it made me feel. He lowered me to the floor, parting my legs. They fell open—I didn’t want to deny him anything. He pushed them even wider and lowered his head. I trembled each time his tongue made contact, but he didn’t stop until he’d licked me clean.
I pulled his hair so his gaze met mine. Jagger was insatiable, meeting my mouth in a kiss. I loved the way he tasted, salty and forbidden. We kissed until the flavor was just a memory.
Jagger pulled me into his lap and put his arms around me. He kissed the top of my head. “I haven’t given you the tour yet.”
“So far this is my favorite room in the house.” I laughed, snuggling against him. I gave myself a chance to take it all in. The artwork hanging on the walls was warm and bright, like a hot Miami night. A large painting of a naked woman hung behind the couch. She was abstract and stylized, her curves exaggerated. I motioned to it. “That’s stunning.”
Wrapped Around My Finger Page 6
