by Sarah Peis
I didn’t know how long the kiss lasted, but that was a kiss for the history books. As I said, rainbows and fireworks. Near orgasm. From a kiss. I was ruined for any future kisses. Life would never be the same again. I didn’t know a kiss could be so all-consuming.
Jameson sat me back on my feet, his hands holding me lightly by my waist. I was breathing hard, unable to meet his eyes.
“We should get going,” I said, breathless, my voice raspy.
Jameson stepped back and let me go. We got in the truck in silence where Dad was still snoring, dead to the world, and pulled back onto the road. If my lips weren’t still tingling, I would have thought the kiss never happened.
“You are not the worst thing that’s ever happened to me.” Jameson’s voice startled me, and I jumped in my seat.
“What?” I asked, confused.
“You said you are the worst thing that’s ever happened to me. It’s not true.”
Where should I start explaining to him how wrong he was? Let’s go with the money angle first. I counted it off with my fingers. “My dad owes you a lot of money that he’s unable to pay you back. I am a terrible receptionist. I managed to increase the debt instead of working it off. I make you angry, and your head looks like it’s going to explode every time you’re around me. You got sucked into an illegal poker game because of me. Take your pick.”
I looked at his profile, hoping I wouldn’t see his angry vein pulsing. God, he was gorgeous.
“You’re putting a lot of importance on yourself. All of what you just said sounds like your dad screwed up and you tried to fix it. And I came to Vegas by choice; nobody made me.”
He sounded almost happy. Why did he sound almost happy? I was one coffee machine away from ruining his life. “I’ll do everything I can to pay back what my dad owes you while staying out of your way. It will be like I’m not even there.”
“Well, see that’s just not going to work for me.”
Not going to work for him? NOT GOING TO WORK FOR HIM? At this stage, I wasn’t sure if we were still talking about me working for him or something completely different. I got that he thought he liked me. But for how long? Until the next girl came walking past, flashing her tits at him?
I liked him. A lot. And I had no fucking idea what to do with all his attention focused on me. I watched with big eyes as he took his hand off the steering wheel and reached over. He pulled my hand off my lap and placed it on his thigh, his own hand on top.
What the ever-loving fuck was going on? “Um, Jameson, what are you doing?”
He stroked my hand with his thumb and answered, “Holding your hand. What does it look like I’m doing?”
“Okay. Why are you holding my hand?”
“Because I want to.”
There was really nothing I had to say to that. I had just caused him to have possibly the worst day of his life, and his response was to hold my hand.
There was nothing I wanted more than to wrap myself around him at that moment, but I had to keep my shit together. As long as my dad owed him money, I was not going to go down that road. It was wrong.
I sighed deeply and tried to pull my hand back, but his fingers tightened, and he didn’t let go. I gave up and tried reasoning with him instead. “Look, Jameson, you are a great guy, but—”
“Hell no. You are not giving me that speech. I know that you are just as affected as I am. I can feel your pulse speed up every time I touch you, and you were as much into that kiss tonight as I was.”
I really couldn’t deny anything he’d just said since that had been my exact reaction. But I could try and get him to see what a stupid idea it would be if we went any further with this. “It’s just simple physical attraction. It will pass. Just give it a few days.”
He lifted my hand and kissed my knuckles. And damn, did my knuckles like that. Loved it, to be precise. “Jameson, what are you doing?” My voice had gone all soft and sappy.
“Showing you how wrong you are.” He pulled over at the side of the road again and turned the engine off. He undid his seat belt and shuffled closer on the big bench seat until he was as close as he could get. I was squeezed in tight between Jameson’s muscular body and the door. He didn’t give me time to freak out. Instead his lips touched mine gently and his arms engulfed me, making any escape impossible, but escape was the last thing on my mind at that moment. All I could think about was how good it felt to kiss him, and then my mind went blank.
My eyes stayed closed when he finally pulled back, and I whimpered at the loss.
“Willa, open your eyes.”
I shook my head. I wasn’t ready. And I wanted more.
His hand lightly stroked my cheek, and I leaned into his touch, savoring the moment.
“I told you there was more to it than physical attraction. Tell me again that I’m wrong.”
His smug tone made my eyes snap open, and I pushed on his chest to gain some distance. “This proves nothing.”
“We both know that’s not true.”
He got back behind the steering wheel and pulled out onto the empty road. Oh boy, it was going to be a long drive home
When he took my hand again, I knew I was in trouble because I didn’t even try to move it.
“Come on, honey, don’t be mad,” Dad pleaded. He had done the unthinkable and shown up at my apartment. In the two years that I had lived there, he had visited exactly three times. Twice for Christmas and once to hide from a loan shark.
“Don’t be mad? DON’T BE MAD? I had to drive to Vegas. And Greg was ready to make me his newest whore. I played poker for you.” The thought of Greg made me shiver. The thought of poker made me angry.
“Honey.”
“Don’t.” I put up my hand, refusing to let him inside. I wasn’t sure how much longer I could hold the tears at bay, but this time I absolutely had to. We couldn’t keep the endless cycle of destruction going. He screwed up, I came to bail him out, and he screwed up again.
“You went too far this time. You’re lucky Jameson was there because there was no way I could have dragged you out of there myself.”
“Jameson? Why was he there?”
Now that was a question I wanted the answer to as well. “Because I work for him and he offered to help?”
“Hang on a minute, you’re working for Jameson?”
“As if you didn’t know. How do you think your debt is being paid off?”
“I paid it off. Well, technically Des did.”
“You what? When?” I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.
Dad shifted from one foot to the other before answering, “Couple of weeks after the race, Des found out how much I owed. He paid Jameson.”
My head was spinning, and I was confused. Why would he insist I continue to work for him if there was no more debt to pay off?
“So you don’t owe him money anymore?”
“Not Jameson, no. I owe Des, but he doesn’t mind. Said I could pay him back whenever.”
“You’re telling me that Des just had a huge chunk of money lying around?”
Dad reached out a hand to pull me to him. I stepped back, not ready to forgive and forget. He flinched at my rejection but dropped his arms. “Do you remember when Des invested in that old factory a few years back? The one near Drover’s field?”
Of course I remembered. Everyone in town would. It was a huge scandal, the factory exploited its workers, then burned down under mysterious circumstances.
Des had inherited money from his late wife’s parents. He was the only one named in the will and blew it all on the factory. At least that’s what I thought. “What does that have to do with anything? Did he have money left?”
“He didn’t lose it all and opened a trust fund for you so you could go to school. He kept another account for rainy days.”
“Why didn’t you ever tell me about this? I’ve been working my ass off to make ends meet and make sure all your bills are paid. The extra money would have come in handy.”
Dad l
ooked embarrassed and refused to meet my eyes. Fuck it all to hell, I knew a guilty look when I saw one. “Dad, what happened to the money?”
“It was a safe bet,” Dad defended himself, and I knew there wouldn’t be a cent left.
“You used the money Des gave you for me and gambled it away.”
My hands were shaking, and my voice had gone up an octave or two. How could he? The last two years had been hell. I had no social life. Barely got any sleep. I worried about money every single day, and he had the means to make it all go away. But he didn’t. Instead, he lost it all.
“I can’t believe you.”
“Willa, baby girl, it was a sure thing. I didn’t think I could lose.”
“But you did,” I yelled at him, tears streaming down my face.
“Honey…,” Dad whispered. I didn’t hear what else he said as I stepped back and slammed the door in his face.
I sank to the floor and sat there, numb, tears still going strong. I knew Dad had a problem. He always liked to party and gamble. But only since Mom died did he stop caring about the people around him. Uncle Des would never see his money again. But he would have known that when he agreed to give it to his brother.
A ping on my phone ripped me out of my trance. I wiped my eyes with the backs of my hands and got up. My phone was on the kitchen counter, angrily blinking at me, alerting me of the message I’d heard come in.
I cursed when I picked it up, first seeing Jameson’s name on the screen and then the time. I remembered my shift at the garage, a job I didn’t really have to do anymore. Then I also remembered that Jameson made me work for him for free. For weeks I had been coming in, thinking I was working off Dad’s debt.
I clicked on the message and blinked hard at the tears forming in my eyes. The traitorous bastard had some nerve.
Jameson: Come and find me when you get in.
The sadness was quickly replaced with anger. And it was no longer directed at Dad but Jameson. I could handle anger, but sadness not so much. Mind made up too quickly for a good decision, I grabbed my keys, stuffed my phone in my back pocket and marched out of my apartment. Dad wasn’t there anymore, much to my relief, and I sprinted down the stairs.
I didn’t remember much of the short drive. Landon was talking to a customer when I pulled up outside the shop. He smiled at me and waved in greeting, but his expression dropped when he saw the look on my face. DEFCON 1 was about to happen. He said something to the customer and shook his hand before jogging over to me.
“Hey, Will, wait up.”
“Not now, Landon.”
“What’s wrong, honeycakes?”
“Where is Jameson?” I hissed.
Landon took a step back. “Whoa, what crawled up your ass and died?”
“If you can’t tell me where he is, then get out of my way.”
He immediately took another step back. Fine, if he wanted to be a little bitch chicken, so be it. I’d find Jameson myself. There weren’t many places he could be.
I stormed into the garage and looked around the bays. Mason waved at me with the wrench he was holding. “Willa, you have returned. Glad you brought my brother back in one piece too. Last time he went to Vegas, he came back with a black eye and a broken arm.”
He might end up like that after all. “Have you seen him?”
“Yeah, he’s helping Clay with the old transmission we got in yesterday. Thinks he might be able to put it in the mustang.”
Clay’s bay was just two cars over, and since I was pretty much running, I made it there within a few seconds. I heard steps behind me, and a look over my shoulder confirmed that both Landon and Mason were following me, albeit at a safe distance.
I spotted Jameson’s stupid sexy mop of hair bent over an engine. I shook my head to clear it and get back on track. Just had to remember the anger, not how good his ass looked in a pair of jeans.
“Jameson,” I said, my voice low and barely controlled. My whole body was vibrating in anger. His head snapped up, and he smiled at me in greeting. Stupid cute smile and stupid gorgeous eyes.
With my hands on my hips, my chest pushed out and standing tall, I started yelling at him. Definitely wasn’t making good decisions today. “You made me work for you even though Dad had already paid you back your money.” Straight to the point was always my philosophy. I was also worried I’d lose my momentum and chicken out if I didn’t say what I thought straight up.
Jameson wiped his hand on a dirty rag and faced me. “Willa, it’s not what you think.”
I huffed and puffed, and I wouldn’t be surprised if there was steam coming out of my ears. “How is it not what I think? How do you even know what I think?”
He took a step closer but stopped when he saw my angry, squished face. “I know how bad this looks, but I would never make you work for free.”
“How is it not making me work for free if I’m under the impression I’m working off my dad’s debt, when in reality I’m working without getting paid while you already got the money he owed you back?” I was yelling, and everyone was staring. There was no coming back from this one.
“Fuck, you didn’t,” Mason said.
Clay elbowed him. “Shut up, Mason. I don’t want to miss it when she punches him. It’s going to be epic.”
Jameson gave the finger to his brother and Clay. “Fuck off. Get back to work; I need to talk to Willa.”
“No way.”
“I’m staying.”
“We’re so watching this.”
The guys responded and didn’t move an inch.
I didn’t care either way. “Nothing to say for once?” I spat at him, too far gone to see his approach through the red filter that seemed to have settled on my vision.
“I’m not discussing this with you in front of the boys. This is about us, nobody else.”
“There is no us,” I yelled, waving my arms around wildly, looking for something to throw at him. I spotted a piece of rubber on the floor and went to pick it up. I made it one step before I was lifted up and found myself hanging upside down. “Let me go, you lying jerkface.”
“Not a chance,” he said, patting my butt.
The guys watched us with wide grins, making no move to help me. “Why are you just standing there? Help me.”
“You’re in good hands, honeycakes,” Landon said, and everyone scattered. Traitors.
If they thought they could just abandon me, they were sadly mistaken. There would be hell to pay as soon as I could get down from the far heights I was currently stuck on. I started pounding my hands across Jameson’s back but soon realized what a bad idea that was when I made contact with his firm ass.
So I thought, to hell with it, stopped hitting him, and instead planted my hands firmly on his delectable behind.
“I thought you were mad at me,” Jameson said, sounding entirely too amused.
“I am.” My hands were too busy touching him, and my brain wasn’t really functioning at the moment.
“Then why are you feeling me up?”
“You owe me.”
He chuckled, and the vibrations went straight between my legs.
We made it up the stairs leading to his apartment in record time. I wish I was upright so I could enjoy this momentous occasion of being allowed into Jameson’s inner sanctum. I pushed up to look around and nearly knocked myself out on the doorframe.
I caught a glimpse of a small but clean living room and a brand spanking new kitchen. Jameson pushed through a half-closed door at the end of the hall that seemed to be a bedroom. And judging by the clothes all over the floor, it was his bedroom.
I didn’t have much time to process my findings when I was flung onto the bed and Jameson landed on top of me. He caught himself on his arms, so he didn’t crush me. And since full-body contact with Jameson was like Christmas and Easter in one glorious moment, and even though I was still mad, I didn’t mind our new arrangement at all.
“Let’s talk,” he said, his mouth only inches from mine.
I blinked at him and tried my best not to move my head and close the space between us. The smirk on his face told me he knew exactly what he was doing, and he knew he was doing it well.
“You lied to me.”
“Technically, I didn’t mention a few things. I didn’t outright lie.”
I narrowed my eyes at him. “Same thing. You made me think Dad owed you a lot of money.”
He looked contrite and lowered his gaze, bringing his eyes in line with my boobs.
The silence between us grew but wasn’t uncomfortable. He continued to stare at my chest, and I continued to stare at his perfect hair. Girls would kill for hair like his, thick and shiny. I was dying to touch it, and if he didn’t move his head up soon, I wouldn’t be able to stop my hands from reaching out.
There was no touching, but his body tightened against mine and he said, “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you as soon as your dad came to see me. At first you were the perfect solution. I got a new receptionist and my money back at the same time. And then when you started working here….” He didn’t finish his sentence but lifted his head and looked at me with such reverence I forgot to breathe.
“Then what?” I asked, my voice hushed.
“Then I liked having you around. You are a whiz in the office. The guys love you. The customers rave about you.”
I never, not in a million years, thought Jameson would ever think I did a good job. “So this is really just a smart business decision.”
He nodded. “The best I’ve ever made.”
He was suspended above me for only a second before he closed the distance between us and softly placed a kiss on my mouth. His movements were slow, reverent, and I soaked up every touch, every caress. I was immobile, stunned. He traced light kisses along my jaw and neck, and I sighed at the sensations running through my body.
His lips met mine again, and he traced my lip with his tongue. It was too much, the sensations overpowering.
I didn’t pull back but instead our slow kiss turned into a frenzied meeting of tongue and lips. There was no way I’d be stopping now, not when the only thing I wanted in that moment was to get closer.
One of his hands made their way underneath my shirt, and I arched into his touch. He blazed a hot trail up my body, making me squirm.
