Marie Harte: Enjoying the Show

The satisfaction on his face made her shiver. Would he look like that while making love? And why can’t I stop thinking about him naked and in bed?

“Tell you what. I’ll meet you at Kincaid’s on the corner of 8th Street, tomorrow night at six. And don’t be late.”

While she stared at him with her mouth open, her thoughts a muddle of confusion, desire and surprise, he unlocked and opened the door, and gently pulled her out into the hallway.

“Like I said, Hailey. Don’t be late, or I’ll make that police report. Have I mentioned my cousin’s on the force?” He closed the door with a sly grin, and Hailey could only stare in puzzlement.

She’d been caught by the man she ogled every Friday night. Caught and blackmailed into dinner. And she had a vague sense of happiness over the situation.

It was only as she left the complex for the nearest liquor store, where she should have been heading in the first place, that she realized she hadn’t come off as a frigid bitch for once. And she’d spoken clearly and firmly to a man who should have scared the hell out of her, but for some reason didn’t anymore. As if in a dream, she drove to the store, purchased a few bottles of wine and one of brandy, and returned to Faith’s, curious as to Sydney’s take on the matter.

The minute he shut the door in Hailey Jennison’s face, Gage Warren sagged back against it, silently groaning.

For months he’d been dying to meet her, and then she’d moved out of the damned building. By chance, he’d been working on a job a few doors down from her new place when he’d seen her and her redheaded friend entering an older home on The Hill. An inquiry online had shown him she’d purchased the quaint home herself, no other names on the listing but hers.

He’d known she wasn’t married, and after a few carefully placed questions around the complex, he’d learned she wasn’t currently dating either.

“I just forced the woman to dinner,” he said stupidly, realizing what he’d done. “Hot damn.”

He grinned widely and shucked the rest of his clothing, heading for the shower with an urge to suddenly rid himself of the day’s grime. The hard-on he’d been sporting since touching Hailey had only grown, and with some discomfort, he realized he could still smell her on his skin.

She wore some kind of perfume, nothing floral, but a sensual scent that made him think of sultry nights and slick sheets. He groaned and stepped into the shower, turning the water on cold, his dick still throbbing as he envisioned Hailey from top to bottom.

The first time he’d seen her, he’d fallen in instant lust. She had a centerfold’s body—large breasts, a trim waist, long, long legs and a firm, round ass. And her face…high cheekbones, almond-shaped amber eyes and lush lips he’d imagined time and time again wrapped around his cock.

He groaned and began soaping his body, his arousal almost painful. How was it he’d finally found a woman who interested him, and he’d had to force her into a date? The thought might have been depressing had he not caught her watching him. He smiled, aware she’d been one of his admirers from day one. Hell, that’s why he’d strutted around his apartment while being ogled by a bunch of women in the first place.

It didn’t hurt his ego that most of the women across the way were attractive. The redhead he’d seen enter Hailey’s house that day had been interesting, but not nearly as much as Hailey. A woman who looked that good should have been married, or at least attached to someone. But, from all accounts, Hailey shot down any guy stupid enough to ask her out. For that reason, he’d bided his time, encouraged she’d at least liked the look of him.

But after several months of still no contact, he decided to take matters into his own hands. Confronting her had been difficult, his surprising fear of rejection making him wonder just how the woman had gotten to him so hard, so fast. He didn’t really know much more about her than that she didn’t date, and that she was hot as hell. But something he’d seen tonight in her eyes, a shaky wariness, made him think twice, forced him to slow down when all he’d wanted was to shove her up against the wall and fuck her brains out.

He groaned at the image and finally allowed himself some relief. Grabbing his painfully hard shaft, he began pumping. His large fist clenched tight, and he found his rhythm, easily envisioning Hailey’s hand, then her mouth, wrapped around his cock. Her tongue would slide smoothly across the head, licking at the come gathering at his tip.

She’d suck him deep, stroking, unrelenting with those cherry-red lips as she played him with her seductive tongue.

And she’d be naked, her breasts round and soft and white. Her nipples would be stiff, arousal flushing them pink as she fingered herself, as hungry for his cock as she was for climax. He panted heavily, his hand quickening as he envisioned her crying out, her orgasm intense as she sucked him harder, deeper into her mouth, then fondled his sack with her soft hands…

“Shit,” he rasped and shot hard, his orgasm intense. He closed his eyes as he came, ropy jets of come marking the blue tile. Damn, but if she was half as good as his fantasies, he’d never take another woman in his life.

As he rinsed off and toweled dry, he wondered just what it would take to penetrate the icy wall surrounding Hailey. She had a thing for his body, that he knew. But what the hell did he need to do to get her to open up to him?

He grimaced. He knew he was good in the sack. There he could persuade Hailey to give him a chance. But how to get her there? His poor rapport with the opposite sex not withstanding, he knew he came across as the rough type, less than a gentleman for sure.

But hell, he wasn’t like the twins, his older brothers. Both of them could pass for Romeo, held doors for women, and knew every which way to compliment them. He, however, did his best work with his body. His mouth had a tendency to screw up even the easiest of relationships.

Frowning, he threw on a pair of shorts and grabbed a frozen dinner from the freezer.

After nuking it nearly inedible, he wolfed down the cardboard-tasting meatloaf and gritty potatoes and decided to make it an early night. He’d worked his ass off today, nearly finishing the trim work inside their latest project. Derrick would have a hell of a time criticizing the work he’d accomplished.

Smiling at the thought of finally muting his outspoken brother and business partner, he lay back in bed and folded his hands behind his head. Studying the ceiling, he idly noted a few cracks needing repair around the light fixture as again his thoughts lit on Hailey.

Sighing, he decided to seek help from the sources closest to him, and prayed they’d help him reach the flesh and blood goddess who’d finally fallen right where he wanted her.

“So, I still don’t understand,” Sydney said, swallowing another mouthful of Zinfandel. Sydney, God bless her, liked to indulge. Wine, chocolates, men. It was a wonder the woman didn’t weigh four-hundred pounds and have six kids. But she possessed great genes and had a head when it came to the opposite sex. Unlike Hailey.

“He blackmailed me to go to dinner with him. What’s to understand?”

“Why you didn’t offer to take him to dinner as an apology. He had to blackmail you into it? Honey, something is definitely wrong with you if you need to be forced to date that man.”

Hailey blushed. “I’m not good at men. You know that.”

“You’re not good at believing in yourself,” Sydney began, making Hailey sigh. Not this again. “Your mother didn’t do you justice. Too many men and not enough time for her daughter. Trust me, I’ve been there.” Anger glittered in Sydney’s green eyes. “But that’s another story. Don’t think you can distract me from a date with Mr. Tool.”