Plain Jane and the Bad Boy (Plain Jane Series)

by Tmonique Stephens

  “I understand.” Another kiss, another stroke of his tongue into her mouth, then he lay her on the king-size mattress. She untied the belt and parted the robe, first a little shy, she hesitated. With his gaze locked on hers, he slipped a hand beneath the edge of the robe to brush her waist with the gentlest touch. Her breath hitched and she arched at the sensation of his rough palm caressing her skin.

  On a moan, her eyes slid closed as his hand skimmed down to her hip and thigh. Cool air fanned her exposed body. Right now, he was seeing her, naked and vulnerable, with all her flaws exposed. There were the stretch marks, though most of them had faded. The appendectomy scar, which had mostly faded too. It should be easy enough to keep him from seeing her back. All she had to do was keep the robe on.

  The rest of her thoughts vanished when his mouth closed around her nipple. He cupped her breast, squeezed, and sucked her nipple deep into his hot mouth. She cried out softly and bit her lip to keep the scream contained.

  He released her nipple and returned to her mouth. “You want to scream but can’t.” He rolled her nipple between his knuckles and dragged his tongue across her jaw and down her throat to her other nipple. “Damn, you taste good, and I haven’t gotten to the honeypot yet.”

  The back of his hand skimmed down the center of her body to the strip of hair between her legs. A week ago, it had been a jungle. She took a hacksaw to it and trimmed it down to a landing strip…for him. His palm caressed the delicate skin of her upper thigh, when she wanted his hand a bit higher and centered right over the heart of her.

  Liam kissed his way down her body. Her thighs spread, accommodating the width of his shoulders as he settled between them. “I don’t really like—”

  His tongue darted out, parted her slick flesh and licked. A half-moan, half-cry ripped from her mouth and her hips shot off the bed. She writhed and clutched the sheets as all of her waited for more. And more he gave.

  “You were saying?” He chuckled against her flesh. Another lick and he circled her clit, then sucked on it. Her hips bucked and he followed, his mouth glued to her.

  “Liam.”

  “You are so damn sweet. I can eat you forever.”

  Her mind slipped away as he draped her legs over his shoulders and nibbled on her clit. A high-pitched whine came from deep inside. Her entire body trembled as an orgasm barreled toward her.

  Not yet! Not yet! She tensed.

  He slurped and, Oh! She came apart, unraveled while he continued to lap her up. Just his tongue, nothing else.

  Liam climbed back up her body and sat back on his haunches, watching her pant back to sanity. Sabrina sat up slowly. He looked so pleased with himself she couldn’t help grin with him. “What was that about not liking it?”

  She blushed. “My opinion has changed. Rather, you’ve changed my opinion.”

  A large bulge strained his jeans. She reached for his buckle. This time, he didn’t stop her when she slid the belt free. Or when she unbuttoned and unzipped his pants. He took over from there, shifting his body to the edge of the bed to rip his shirt over his head, take his boots off, and shove his pants down and off his legs. From his wallet, he pulled out a condom.

  She got her first complete look at all of him and lost her breath. He was beautiful, sculpted muscles, tight skin, thick cock…and scars crisscrossing his thighs.

  “What happened?”

  He climbed on the bed beside her and didn’t flinch when she touched the longest one. “Shrapnel. Roadside IED. Killed two of my friends.”

  Her heart ached. “The guys in the picture on your dresser?”

  His jaw clenched and he ripped open the foil packet. “I don’t want to talk about that now.” He rolled the latex over his length and scooped her up.

  Sabrina yelped as he slid under her. She landed on top of him, and pushed up, her legs naturally spread and dropped to his sides. Perched on top of his body, with his hard cock wedged between her thighs, she stared at him.

  “Take off your robe,” he ordered.

  She shook her head.

  “Still shy?”

  No, but the last thing she wanted was his pity. He had scars. He’d understand. Except…he’d earned his scars in a battle for his country, and hers…she’d laid there and taken it.

  “A little bit shy.” Her eyes welled.

  “Hey, it’s okay.” He brought her down to him and kissed the sadness away. “We don’t have to—”

  He moaned as she rode the length of his cock. She slid back to sit on his thighs and grabbed his cock, stroked it, loved the feel of it in her hand. She stood it up, raised her hips and pressed it to her opening. Their gazes locked until his dipped to where their bodies joined. She wanted him to watch her impale herself, watch her take him into her body, while she watched his mouth fall open and his eyes glaze over.

  She went slow, had to because he was big, and it had been close to a year since she’d done this. He stretched her, filled her so much her toes curled. She rose up and rocked on his dick, taking him deeper. She hissed through pleasure so sharp, she came again.

  “Fuck, baby, you’re coming again.” He gripped her hips and drove into her.

  “Liam. Don’t stop,” she begged.

  “Not going to, baby. Not. Going. To.” He punctuated each word with a flex of his hips.

  She held on. Her fingers curled into his chest and she rode him through the best orgasm of her life. Boneless, she flopped onto his chest and he kept going. His breathing unsteady, he gripped a chunk of her hair and pulled her to him. His kiss was hard, bruising, and she loved it.

  “Sorry,” he growled into her open mouth.

  “No sorry. Just give me more. I want more.”

  He flipped her onto her back and pounded into her body. He cupped her ass and gripped her tight, and she cried out the pleasure rippling through her. He latched onto a nipple and sucked. She kept up with him, bucking, scratching, going wild as his cock slid in and out, driving deep and ending on a grind. His mouth on her nipple, torturing the tight bud.

  “Come for me again, baby. One more time.”

  She clutched his head to keep him at her breast, wrapped her entire body around him and fell apart for the third time. Liam buried his head in her shoulder, his arms like steel around her body. He shuddered and his entire body hardened. Deep inside her, he throbbed. It seemed to go on forever. Then he relaxed before rolling off her.

  “That was…”

  “Incredible.” She finished for him.

  He climbed out of bed and took care of the condom in the bathroom. By the time he returned, she had the robe belted and was sitting up prepared to see him to the front door.

  Liam climbed back into bed and pulled her into his arms. He said nothing about the robe and spooned her. She never liked this position, preferring to escape to her side of the bed and pretending she was somewhere, anywhere else.

  Tucked against him, his chest to her back, her ass in his lap, his arm her pillow while the other arm wrapped around her waist…she could get used to it.

  “You all right?” he whispered sleepily in her ear and pressed a kiss to her neck.

  “I’m perfect.” For the first time in forever, it wasn’t a lie.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  The first strains of crying snapped Liam awake. Next to him, Sabrina stirred. She pushed her hair off her face and rolled onto her back. She was naked and groggy. She should be since they made love repeatedly into the wee hours of the morning. And he remembered every second of it.

  He was careful with her and let her take the lead each time. Letting her control the pace of their sex, something he didn’t usually do. She blew his mind. Hell, she did that the moment they met in the front yard. Every protective instinct he had, she dragged out of him. He couldn’t blame it on her being an abused woman. No, it wasn’t that. It was her, everything about her drew him in, and made him want to stay.

  Before she fully woke, Liam rolled out of bed and dragged on his jeans. Vivi gave another halfhearte
d cry, more like letting her mother know, “Hey, I’m awake, get over here!”

  He found her standing in her crib looking at the door expectantly. A big grin broke out on her face at the sight of him. Her little hands reached for him and he swung her up into his arms. She was a solid handful, wiggling in his arms. Someone got a good night’s sleep. He carried the baby to Sabrina, who was sitting up in bed.

  “Thanks for getting her.”

  “I figured you could use a few more seconds.”

  “I still have to get her bottle.” Sabrina smiled sweetly at him and, like a dog in heat, he followed her to the kitchen. She passed Vivi to him to retrieve a bottle from the refrigerator. Thirty seconds in the microwave and she handed him the bottle. “Think you can handle feeding her?”

  He smirked. “Bottle goes in the mouth, right?” Vivi whined and didn’t need the witty banter. She latched onto the bottle and helped him bring it to her mouth. “Never let it be said I kept a lady waiting.”

  He kicked a chair back from the dining table and sat. He’d never bottle-fed a kid before. Shit, never had the urge or reason to. Had to say, he liked it. Made him feel like he conquered an army, especially with Sabrina sitting across from him with a soft look in her eyes. It wasn’t hard to envision them like this five years from now, him holding a baby in his arms, Sabrina in the same spot, and Vivi coloring in a book next to her mother. Another five years and now they have three kids and he has a dad bod. Thirty years down the road, he and Sabrina are babysitting their grandchildren.

  None of it scared him, which scared the shit out of him.

  Vivi pushed the bottle away and they both looked at each other as if to say, “What’s next?” He’d reached the end of his baby feeding abilities. Sabrina rescued them. She lifted Vivi from his arms, cleaned her up with a wet paper towel and burped her. All done in under two minutes.

  He glanced at the wall clock next to the cabinet. Eight twenty on a Saturday morning. He rose and pulled Sabrina into his arms. “Get cleaned up. I’m taking you to breakfast. Vivi can tag along, though she had the bad manners to eat before us.” Vivi got a peck on the forehead while Mom got some tongue and her ass squeezed.

  “Okay,” she said all breathy the way he liked. “It’s gonna take about an hour.”

  The hesitancy in her voice made him think she expected him to get angry. “It’s all good. I’m gonna head home, catch a shower, then be back for you guys.”

  She gave him another sweet smile and nodded. Damn, that smile did something to him, caused an ache in his chest. One more kiss for the road and he headed back across the street. He found his phone dead on the kitchen counter and dropped in onto the charger before heading into the shower. By the time he dressed, it had ten percent power. He noticed he’d missed a bunch of calls. No voicemails, so they couldn’t have been important. One call came from Finlay.

  Liam was tempted to return the call but didn’t. Anything Finlay had to say could wait. He picked his ladies up in his truck and took them to his favorite diner, the one Finlay always brought him to all those years ago when they were a family.

  He walked into the joint holding Vivi with Sabrina in front of him. Madge was at the register handing change to a customer when she saw them. The owner of the establishment hadn’t changed much. A few more wrinkles, crow’s feet, frown lines, plus she was stooped over and seemed to have shrunk an inch. The jet-black hair in a tight top bun hadn’t changed at all and neither had her piercing gaze that traveled over Sabrina. Sizing up the customer, Madge called it. She said she could look at a person and know if they were a good tipper or a cheap bastard. If they had come for good food or to rob the place. Whatever she gleamed from Sabrina didn’t raise a flag and she moved onto Liam. That’s when she broke into a gap-toothed smile and rushed over.

  “Is that you, you son of a bitch!” She nudged Sabrina out of the way to hug him and Vivi. “By God, it’s been too long. You got back from the Army, came by once, and never showed your ass over here again.” She patted his back and ushered him to a booth.

  “Sit. Sit.” She eyed Vivi and Sabrina with glee, then tickled Vivi under her chin. “When did you get married and have this angel?”

  Awkward. Though it shouldn’t be. “I’m not married, Madge.”

  “All right. I know you young people don’t wait to get married anymore. It’s no big deal today. When did you have the baby? You should’ve told me. I would’ve sent something to the shower or birth.”

  Awkward again. He glanced at Sabrina, who had a shell-shocked glaze to her face. “She’s not—”

  “Dada.” Vivi interrupted.

  Madge clapped. “Oh, she is just too cute.” A group of people entered the diner. “Got to get back to work. Order anything. It’s on the house.” She rushed away while Vivi chanted Dada.

  “She’s an old family friend. Actually, I think Madge and my father hooked up a couple times. I have a distinct memory of her coming out of his bedroom early one morning.”

  Sabrina laughed. “So, the waitress screwing your father has earned you a perpetual free meal?”

  “The owner.” He corrected. “And that’s not why I brought you here. The food’s great and I haven’t seen Madge in a while.” Plus, he wanted to show her off. Stupid, right?

  A different waitress brought a highchair for Vivi and two menus. “What do you recommend?” Sabrina asked.

  “Blueberry pancakes with maple bacon.” He didn’t hesitate to say.

  Sabrina scanned her menu and tapped her finger on an item. “I’m more of an omelet girl.”

  “Noted for future reference.”

  She looked up from her menu. “Sorry about Vivi and that Dada…thing,” she murmured.

  “It’s okay.” It hadn’t bothered him the first time she did it, and it bothered him even less now.

  “She obviously doesn’t know what she’s doing and Dada is usually the first word a baby learns.”

  Liam reached across the table and took her hand. “If I had a problem with it, I wouldn’t be sitting here with you and her.” The truth is, he fucking adored it. “Tell me about her father. What’s he locked up for? And how long?”

  Her face dropped, literally. Luckily, the waitress returned for their order, which gave her sixty seconds to recover. The douche had done a number on her. He was so damn fortunate prison kept him safe from Liam’s wrath.

  She waited until the waitress walked away. “Um.” She played with the salt and pepper shakers. “I don’t like talking about him. He’s locked up for twenty years. By the time he gets out, Vivi will be an adult. I never have to see him again. I never have to worry about him turning his anger on her.” She white-knuckled the salt shaker.

  “Was he sent to prison for hitting you?” That was the last thing he wanted to know.

  “No. He was a thief. That’s what they got him for.”

  The waitress returned with a carafe of coffee and two mugs, then went back for their plates of food. The second everything was splayed out, Vivi started reaching. Sabrina whipped out a jar of peaches and started feeding her.

  “I can do that so you can eat.” Liam offered.

  “She’s not really hungry. Seeing us eat, makes her want to eat. A couple of spoons and she’ll be over it.”

  Sure enough, three spoons later, Vivi was focused on the traffic outside the window. Liam let Sabrina dig into her western omelet, then asked, “Do you take Vivi to see him?”

  Her fork dropped onto her plate. “No,” said vehemently. “I will never, ever bring my daughter to a prison to visit that man,” she hissed. “He knocks me up, then got pissed when I was sick and fat. He was out on bail partying when I had her and couldn’t be bothered for a week. As far as I’m concerned, she doesn’t have a father. Any more questions?”

  Nope. Not a one.

  Three sharp whistles snapped his head up. Finlay and entourage shuffled down the aisle. “Funny meeting you here,” he said, with Snoop and another patch member backing him up.

  Leaning h
eavily on a cane, Finlay studied Sabrina and Vivi, for a change, his usually bloodshot eyes clear. “This yaer family?”

  Was that hurt he heard in his father’s voice? “Yeah, this is my girlfriend, Sabrina, and her daughter, Vivi.” It wasn’t an introduction. Finlay tipped his head to Sabrina and grinned at Vivi. “You up and about, I see.” In other words, shouldn’t your old ass be in bed, in a hospital, not roaming the streets.

  “A man’s got to eat, and Madge makes the best meatloaf in town.”

  Meatloaf? It was ten in the morning. Hey, to each his own and all that bullshit. Except Finlay looked gray around the gills. Shit, he looked gray all over.

  “Plus, fresh air is good for mae soul.” Finlay cleared his throat, which turned into a hacking cough.

  Everyone reached for him, including Sabrina, which just made Liam love her more. She took over, getting him into a booth and getting him to drink her glass of water, while Vivi cried at the sudden commotion around her.

  “I’m fine. I’m fine.”

  No, he wasn’t, but no one had the balls to tell him.

  “Don’t you die in my restaurant and haunt the damn place for eternity. I have enough bad luck,” Madge said.

  “I ain’t dying in this shitehole,” he grumbled.

  “You’ve been eating outta this shithole for fifty years.” Madge stomped away grumbling, “He’s too much of a jackass to die.”

  Finlay shooed everyone away when things quieted down. Sabrina returned to Vivi, while Snoop and the other guy gave them some space and sat in the booth next to theirs.

  “I been calling yae.”

  “Been busy with my lady.”

  Finlay grunted and scratched at his gray stubble, and said low. “Got a proposal for yae.”

  “Not interested.” He did not just waste my time with some illegal shit.