“Also, I don’t accept your resignation. You’re still employed here. Take a week to sort yourself out. You start next Monday.”
Tuck couldn’t even respond. His throat was choked up. He had quit, knowing Bill couldn’t afford to pay him. Now… Things were different now. Maybe it wasn’t such a huge stretch after all. Tuck would discuss the job with Bill and Jodi later, though. Another day. He was too exhausted tonight.
“Can you handle things here, Dad?”
“Of course. I’m not that old yet, young lady. Go. Have fun. I’ll manage without both of you until Monday.”
“Monday? Dad, I was just talking about tonight.”
“Well, I’m talking about a week. You need it. Take it before I change my mind. I already checked with everyone. Stan, Liz, and Jacob all said they could work extra shifts this week. We’ll manage.”
“You’re down three people,” Jodi pointed out.
“Eh. Worse things have happened. Go.” Bill pointed at the door.
Jodi shoved Tuck’s hard body that direction. “Let’s get out of here before he decides he needs us to start making drinks.”
Tuck held Bill’s gaze for another moment. “Thank you. For everything.”
Bill nodded. “Any time.”
Jodi dragged Tuck through the back entrance. “You drove here, right?”
“Yep.” He led her to his car, dropped her bag in the back seat, and opened the front door for her. “I think you’re going to need more than what you packed in there if I get to keep you a week.”
She giggled. “Not much. We can stop back by here when I need something.” She winked at him, wiggling her eyebrows.
Every muscle in Tuck’s body released its tension as he pulled out of the parking lot with Jodi’s hand clasped in his. Nothing had ever felt more right. The tightness in his chest eased with every mile. He was suddenly free of so much stress all in one day.
Granted, he hadn’t wanted his mother to die, but it was best for her. She wouldn’t have wanted to live like that day after day. Her passing calmed him on her behalf. He hoped in some way she’d heard him speaking to her yesterday and felt like she could leave. That he would be okay. She was right. He would be.
The fact that he didn’t have to see Katia ever again lifted a huge weight off his shoulders. Faking that ridiculous marriage for three months had been more challenging than he’d anticipated. It had grown even more taxing after he’d met Jodi and realized she meant more to him every day he spent with her.
There was no denying the fact that he was suddenly in far better shape financially. Now that he didn’t have to pay monthly bills to the nursing home, he could work like any regular human without constant fear of running out of money. He hadn’t considered remaining at Bridgman’s Bar after catching the drug dealer, but maybe he would.
At the next stop light, he let out a long breath and turned to face Jodi. She was smiling at him. “You look peaceful.”
“I feel peaceful. Finally.”
“You had a lot on your plate.”
“Yes. I can’t believe how much life can change in twenty-four hours. Is it insensitive of me that I feel more relieved than sad for my mother?”
Jodi squeezed his hand. “No. Not at all. I experienced the same thing when my mother finally died. Breast cancer had totally consumed her. By the end, it felt like all we did was tiptoe around holding vigil over her. She hadn’t wanted it to drag out like that. We hated that our hands were tied. When she finally let go, all I felt was relief.”
Someone honked behind Tuck, so he jerked his gaze back to front. The light was green. He started moving again. “That’s exactly how I feel. Thank you.” There was no way he could have articulated how he felt as eloquently as Jodi.
When they arrived at his hotel and he let them into the room, nerves struck him. Absurd nerves. He was a grown man. He’d had sex with plenty of women in his lifetime. Never once had he ever worried about it before.
But, none of them were Jodi. She mattered more to him than anyone ever had. This wasn’t some random hookup or a girl he was dating. This was a woman he intended to spend his life with. He wanted this to be perfect for her. When he was done making love to her, he wanted her to be certain beyond a shadow of a doubt that he was it for her. He wanted to see the most blissful expression on her face, one he would remember for the rest of his life.
Tuck dropped her bag next to the bed and turned around to face her. He couldn’t help but smile. She looked so damn cute coming toward him with a wicked grin on her face, her head cocked to one side, her curls falling over her shoulders, her hands tucked in her back pockets. Stalking him.
He wanted to freeze this moment as he searched her face. Even though she was wearing nothing but jeans and a T-shirt, looking at her made his cock hard. When she got close enough, he pinched the edge of her loose-fitting black T-shirt with the royal blue bar logo in the corner—the same one she was wearing the day he met her. “What happened to the tank tops?” he teased.
She shrugged nonchalantly. “Now that we’ve caught the dealer, I didn’t figure I needed to lure him in anymore. Funny how in the end the dealer was actually a woman. Someone I know. Someone who was not the least bit interested in what shirt I was wearing.”
He chuckled. “So, you decided to go back to your old ways?”
She flattened her hands on his chest and grinned. “Actually, I’m conducting an experiment.”
“What experiment is that?” He was close to chuckling. This was going to be good.
“We can’t really know if business picked up because I gave everyone cleavage to look at or if it was because we hired a famous sexy bouncer. I figured if I eliminated one factor, we’d know.”
He laughed now, sliding his hands around to her ass so he could slip his fingers between hers in her pockets. “By that theory then, if business goes back to usual, I’ll be fired, and we’ll have to get a pole for the dance floor and move you to a new position.”
She giggled. “We don’t have a dance floor.”
“Yet,” he joked. He was only half joking. It wasn’t a bad idea. The dance floor. Not the pole.
“How long would you let me prance around wearing nothing but a thong?”
He narrowed his gaze and growled at her playfully. “We’ll never know.”
“Why’s that?” She giggled again.
“Because business is going to continue to go up. I’m a celebrity. Haven’t you heard?” He leaned in and took her lips before she could respond, kissing her with the same passion as he had an hour ago in her apartment.
She melted against him as she pulled her fingers out of her pockets and smoothed her hands around to his ass. “Mmm,” she hummed when he finally let her breathe. “I’ve always wanted to have sex with a celebrity.”
“Now’s your chance.” He kissed a path to her ear next, enjoying the way she shivered when he hit the sweet spot right behind her lobe. He slid his hands up under her shirt, flattening his palms on her smooth warm skin for the first time. His heart raced. She was his. Finally.
Unable to wait another second to see more of her, he whisked the shirt over her head and dropped it on the floor. He was shocked to find her wearing a sexy black bra. One that was barely existent. More lace than anything else. “Jesus, Jodi.” He was breathless as he leaned back a few inches to let his gaze wander over her chest. “I thought I knew all your bras,” he whispered as he traced a finger along the upper swell of her breasts. “Since you’ve been wearing those damn tank tops that covered almost nothing, I’ve seen hot pink, green, navy, even plain white. I’ve never seen this one.”
She licked her lips. “My goal in those tank tops was to tease with a bit of cleavage, nothing more.”
He chuckled. “I’m glad. I might have had a heart attack if I’d known this bra existed.”
“I put it on this morning. We had a date,” she murmured, her breath coming faster when he leaned down to drag his tongue along the edge of lace. She sucked in a sharp bre
ath and rose onto her toes when he reached under the lace and flicked her nipple.
His hands went to her back so he could unfasten the sexy garment. “I want to see this again. Later.”
“Okay,” she murmured as she let him draw the lace down her arms and then dropped it on top of her shirt. She grabbed the hem of his shirt and pulled it over his head too.
Finally, he was able to stare at her fantastic breasts. They were everything he imagined. Full and high and swollen. Her nipples were a dusky rose color, the tips tight buds. He cupped them both and then flicked his thumbs over her nipples.
A shocked little whimper left her lips, making him smile. As he bent to take one into his mouth, he slid his hands to her jeans, popped the button and lowered the zipper. She was moaning against him as he pulled her jeans over her hips.
Somehow, she managed to kick her shoes off for him. She also swatted his hands out of the way and extricated herself from the denim.
“Anxious?” he teased.
“Yes.” She went after his jeans next. “Help me. Please, Tuck.” Her voice was desperate. He loved it. He removed the rest of his clothes for her and then grabbed her waist and lifted her onto the bed.
His breath caught at the sight of her in nothing but a black lace thong that matched the bra. Her tanned skin was flawless. Her face was flushed, and she was licking her lips.
Tuck reached for the edges of her thong and hauled it over her hips and off her body. “Also sexy. Later you can wear them again.” Right now he wanted her naked. He wanted to ravage her. Every inch of her. He wanted her to scream so loud the people in the next room would be startled.
Her gaze roamed up and down his naked body too, a smile forming as she perched on her elbows, holding her chest up. “You don’t have as many tattoos as I imagined,” she noted.
“Is that a problem?” he joked.
“Nope. Just surprised.”
“I got them on both biceps. Never really got into the idea of having a needle on my chest or back.”
She dropped all the way onto her back and reached for him as he climbed onto the bed and crawled toward her. “Please…”
“Already begging? I haven’t even started.”
“Foreplay is so overrated.” She squirmed as she wrapped her hand around his cock and stroked it from tip to base.
“Baby, you better get comfortable because I’m not skipping the foreplay.”
She groaned, the sound making his cock harder. He clasped her hand and then removed it. “You can’t touch me like that yet.” His voice wasn’t his own. It was deeper. He was going to come too fast if he didn’t rein in his lust.
He nudged her legs apart so he could situate one of his knees between hers as he dropped onto a hip at her side. Again, he let his gaze roam up and down her body, enjoying the warmth of her pussy against his thigh as her arousal coated him. He dragged the tip of one finger around her nipple until she arched upward. “Tuck…”
“Let me explore, baby…”
“Later.”
He shook his head when her hand came to his, trying to drag it down her body. Her eyes went wide with shock when he grabbed her wrist and pulled her arm over her head. He lifted his hip for a moment to locate the other hand and bring it to meet its mate. Setting one wrist on top of the other, he gripped them both in one hand and resumed circling her nipple with a finger. “Patience.”
She squirmed, a moan of frustration escaping. “I’m not sure I have any.”
“Find it, baby. I’m just getting started.”
Her breath came in quick pants, her chest rising and falling, her nipples hard points. He pinched one lightly, making her moan louder.
She wrapped her outer leg around his thighs, trying to get closer. “So greedy.”
“Yes,” she admitted.
Her heat rubbed against his thigh, luring him until he eased his knee back and slid his hand between her legs. At first, he simply cupped her heat.
She whimpered again.
Finally, he stroked a finger slowly through her folds.
“Oh, God,” she cried out.
Why had he ever been worried about being able to please her? The chemistry between them was off the charts.
She lifted her hips into his touch and moaned louder when he flicked her clit. Her pussy was completely shaved bare. So smooth. She’d done that for him. This morning. In anticipation of this moment that came six hours later than originally planned.
It was worth it. He loved knowing she’d worn sexy black lace under her regular clothes. For him. And that she’d also shaved.
He circled her clit over and over until she sucked in sharp breaths and tugged her arms, trying to free herself. He shook his head. “Uh uh. Let me play. The first time you come with me, I want to watch.”
Her gaze landed on his, but he didn’t think she was seeing much. Nevertheless, he held it as he tormented her clit some more. When he slid his thumb down to her entrance and eased it inside, she gasped. “Tuck,” she whimpered.
He removed his thumb and thrust his middle finger in as deep as he could. Damn, she was tight. He added a second finger and scissored the two of them until her head tipped back and her mouth fell open. That’s when he pressed his thumb against her clit.
She sucked in several quick breaths, a little uh sounding each time, and then her entire body stiffened as she came. Her pussy gripped his fingers as he continued to thrust rapidly in and out of her, rubbing her clit at the same time. He could feel the pulses of her orgasm against his entire hand. But the best part was that she cried out and then moaned through the entire thing.
When her body began to soften and relax, he eased up on his pressure, leaning in as she came back to herself to kiss her gently. “And that’s why I’m never sleeping in the same apartment as your dad,” he teased.
She looked at him with a confused expression. “What? Why?”
He smiled. “Because you’re loud.”
She rolled her eyes. “I am not.”
He laughed as he nudged her legs farther apart and rose to kneel between them. He separated her hands and held them with both of his above her head, threading their fingers together. “Baby, you screamed.”
“I. Did. Not.”
He lifted a brow, still laughing. “I can film you if you want next time.”
Her face paled. “Don’t you dare.”
Kissing her nose and then the corner of her mouth, he continued, “Admit it.”
“You’re teasing me. I don’t make noises when I come.”
His laughter increased. She was so fun to tease. “Sure. Okay. We’ll go with that.” He kissed a path down her neck and suckled first one and then the other breast. His cock was so hard from watching her come that this was not going to last. He also needed to grab a condom.
As he rose up to his knees, he said, “Be right back.”
She shook her head. “Don’t.”
“I’m just going to get a condom.”
She smiled at him. “Yeah. Don’t. I’m on the pill. I want you to be completely bare with me.”
He met her gaze. “I’ve never had sex without a condom,” he told her, as much for himself as her. He was absorbing her words.
“I haven’t either. But this is us. You and me. The real deal. Don’t put a barrier between us.”
He nodded slowly. “You’re sure?”
“Positive.”
His cock jumped, twitching against her heat as he rubbed the tip through her folds. “I love you, Jodi.” He held her gaze again, never wanting to look away.
“I love you too, Tuck.”
Finally, he lined himself up at her entrance, and slowly eased into her. He had to grit his teeth. She was so damn tight, and everything he’d heard about how much more sensitive it would feel to go bare was true.
“I’m gonna come before I’m all the way in,” he warned her, gripping her hands tighter.
“It’s okay,” she whispered. “We’ll do it again in a few minutes.”
&n
bsp; His eyes slid shut when he couldn’t hold them open again. He was lost in a world that was all Jodi. Her warmth. Her soft body. Her hips lifting up to meet his thrusts. The little sighs that came from her mouth.
All too soon, his balls tightened, and he couldn’t hold back another second. He thrust deep one last time and filled her with his orgasm. The pulses of his cock seemed harder than he’d ever remembered. And why wouldn’t they? He loved this woman.
Chapter 29
“Tell me about this one,” Jodi murmured in her deep sexy voice as she traced a tattoo on his biceps.
Tuck was lying on his back, still trying to catch his breath after round two. Jodi had straddled him and tormented him with her extremely slow movements until he couldn’t stand it a second longer. Then, he’d grabbed her hips to rapidly thrust up into her.
Jodi was completely at ease with her body, and he loved the way she was draped over him, one hip at his side, her top leg stretched over his, her knee nestled between his thighs. She had her head propped up on her palm. Her hair was a mess of curls he couldn’t stop touching.
And he didn’t. He continually stroked the back of her head. He glanced down at the tattoo she was outlining. “That’s a SEAL tattoo.” He lifted his opposite hand to point to the parts. “Trident, eagle, piston, and anchor.”
“It’s so intricate.”
He smiled at her and then lifted his head to kiss her again. He needed to kiss her every few seconds. Drawn like a magnet.
She leaned closer and gave him what he wanted, cupping his face and kissing him passionately. “You let me control the second time.” Her cheeks were flushed. “I was starting to think you’d never let me touch you.” She ran her fingers up and down his chest as she spoke, distracting him.
“Baby, you can touch me whenever you want. The only reason I held your hands that first time was so I wouldn’t come prematurely from your touch. Plus…” he lifted his head and kissed her again, “you liked it.”
She flushed deeper. “I did.” She bit her lip. “You know, this morning, when I was pacing around my apartment thinking about how you probably weren’t coming back, ever, I wondered if I had turned you off when I was so forward on Saturday.”
Hot SEAL, Cold Feet Page 14
