A Gentleman's Agreement (12 page)

He tilted his chin. “Get
on the bed.”

Like all aspects of his
life, he was a leader. Why did she believe it would be any different in the
bedroom? Doing as he’d requested, she settled on top of the mattress. Blake
eyed her body with admiration, then slowly inched her panties from her body.

As he’d stated, he took
his time exploring every inch of her—kissing, nibbling, licking, biting,
blowing. Finally, his gentle kisses traveled along her inner thigh until he
reached her heated core. A soft moan escaped as his enthusiastic tongue movement
threatened her consciousness. Multi-million dollar deals weren’t the only thing
he could work with his mouth.

He took his time
savoring her essence, exploring in and around her. This hadn’t been her first
time experiencing oral sex; however, Blake showed her how it was supposed to be
done. She fought off the urge to explode, but when he pulled her clit between
his lips, it did her in.

Bolts of orgasmic
pleasure burned through her as she yielded to a powerful orgasm. Her muscles
twitched with every jolt that soared through her body. The breath she so
desperately wanted to take seized in her chest. She closed her eyes to keep the
room stable.

By the time she opened her
eyes, Blake had undressed. Inquisitive eyes trailed down his impressive chest,
then followed the thin line of black hairs to the one thing that made him all man.

Great glory
.

Oh, yeah. The rumors were
true. At least the ones about his size. Her gaze never left his as he sheathed
himself, then blanketed her body with his. She was about to find out if the
others about his performance were, too.

Blake lowered his mouth
to hers. His unhurried kiss awakened ravenous desire inside her. He captured
the cries expelled the second he entered her, stretching her to accommodate all
of him.

“Do you know how many times
I’ve imagined this moment in my head?” Blake whispered in her ear, his tone
thick. “The first time I ever saw you, I wanted you, Eunice.”

If he only knew how
much his words aroused her. “Is it everything you imagined it would be?”

“More. Much more.” He
glided in and out of her with meticulous strokes. His head dipped to her
breasts. With the tip of his tongue, he teased her taut nipple before sucking
it between his lips. Kissing a line back to her mouth, he dragged his tongue
across her bottom lip.

“I don’t think I’ll
ever be able to get enough of you,” she said.

“Good. Because you’re
mine now. And I don’t plan on letting you go,” he said, capturing her mouth in
another heady kiss.

Feeling the familiar sensation
of an impending orgasm, her body quivered. Blake’s strokes grew clumsy and his
breathing unsteady. A beat later, he half-grunted, half-growled. The feel of
his release throbbing inside of her sent her over the edge. It was the first
time she’d ever come simultaneously with her partner.

Blake pulled her to
him, her back resting against his warm, moist chest. She would never get enough
of being wrapped in his protective arms.

He planted a gentle
kiss to her shoulder. “Are you okay?”

“Never better.”

They lay in silence,
the sounds of the howling wind filtering into the bedroom. The gleam of the
moon bounced off the lake water and caused a dancing pattern on the ceiling.

“Blake?”

“Umm-hmm,” he hummed,
nestling her closer.

“What happened at the
lake?”

When Blake’s body tensed,
she rotated in his arms to face him. She didn’t say anything, simply watched
him watch her. Was he assessing whether or not she was worthy of knowing?

“When I was ten, I
begged my grandfather to take me out on the boat to go fishing.” He paused. “He
did. The man loved fishing as much as I did. I caught something huge. I
couldn’t pull it in by myself. My grandfather—Pop-Pop—was helping me reel in the
line when he grabbed his chest. A second later, he fell overboard.”

Eunice rested a hand on
his cheek. “Oh, Blake.”

“I’m a great swimmer. Even
at ten I was great, but I—” His voice cracked with emotion. “I couldn’t save
him. I tried. God knows I tried. I busted up my knee trying to climb back into
the boat to go for help. It was too late.”

Eunice kissed the tip
of his nose, then his lips for comfort.

“The medical examiner
said he had a massive heart attack and that he died before he even hit the
water. But I still— I feel responsible. If it wasn’t for me, we would have
never been on the lake. I’ve hated that lake ever since.”

“I’m sorry I made you
relive that.”

He kissed her palm. “I
needed to tell you.”

Eunice caressed his
cheek. “I’ve never seen this side of you, Blake Farrington. Open. Vulnerable. It’s
very attractive.”

“Don’t get used to it. You
have to be a pit bull in this line of work. If not, you get eaten. People have
to fear you.”

“I think you’ve
accomplished that in the office. Everyone fears you. Accept me, of course.”

“Oh, you don’t fear me,
huh?” He jostled her playfully. “Speaking of the office… You and Trevor?
Anything I should know about?”

How did she know that
was coming? “Trevor is everything I want in a man. He’s loyal, a good listener,
a great friend.” She popped the tip of his nose with her finger. “But he’s in a
relationship. His
partner
is lovely.”

Blake lifted himself on
his elbow. “Trevor is gay?”

“Yes. And you would
know that if you were more in touch with your employees.”

“What are you talking
about? I am in touch.”

She mimicked Blake,
propping herself on her elbow. “Really?” She gave him a peck, simply because
she couldn’t resist. “What is your new assistant’s name? You know, the third
one in two months.”

“Janice.”

Eunice laughed. “No. Janice
is what you call her. Her name is Rose.”

Lines of confusion
formed on his forehead. “Rose? Where the hell did I get Janice?”

“Janice was two
assistants ago. The one who called you an overbearing control freak and stormed
out of the building.”

“Oh, yeah. I really
liked her, too. She made great coffee. Damn. Guess I owe
Rose
an
apology. But not right now,” he said, guiding her onto her back. “Right now I
want to make love to you.” He kissed the tip of her nose. “Then I want to make
love to you again.” He kissed her lips. “Then I want to fall asleep with you
tightly clutched in my arms and dream about making love to you.”

Eunice squealed when he nibbled on
her neck. “Sounds like a great use of your time.”

Eunice felt as if all
eyes were on them the second she and Blake strolled hand-in-hand into the
kitchen. In all actuality, no one had given them a second glance until Casey
ran up to her and wrapped her tiny arms around Eunice’s waist.

“Aunt Eunice,” she said,
“is your bum-bum okay?”

“Casey!” Ian scolded.

Eunice knelt to Casey’s
level. “Yes, sweetie, my bum-bum is okay.” With a furrowed brow, she asked,
“Why?”

“When I was playing in
my room, I heard you crying.”

Eunice’s eyes widened,
her mouth went dry, and her pulse kicked up a notch.

“Casey loves to get up
in the middle of the night and sneak to the third floor playroom. Next to your
bedroom,” Ian said, choking back a laugh.

“Daddy said Uncle Blake
probably spanked you for not going to bed when you were told to.”

All eyes fixed on
Blake, who spewed orange juice across the room.

Casey rested her little
hand on Eunice’s shoulder. “Don’t be embarrassed, Aunt Eunice. I cry when I get
a spanking, too.” She draped her arms around Eunice’s neck. “I love you.”

Eunice felt her cheeks
heat up. If she could have clicked her heels together and disappeared, she
would have. To say she was mortified would have been the understatement of the
century. Blake, on the other hand, seemed to be finding humor in the situation.
Had she not been the center of attention, Eunice possibly would have found it
funny, too.

Everyone at the table
was laughing when Blake’s mother strolled in.

 “What’s so funny?” Mrs.
Farrington asked.

Oh, God, no
.

Luckily, the question
was averted by Mr. Farrington’s entrance. “Boy, it’s cold as a mosquito’s peter
out there.” He blew into his cupped hands.

“Pop, what are you
doing out there?” Blake asked, taking the heat off of Eunice.

“Chopping firewood,
son,” he said, removing his red and black lumberjack coat.

“
Firewood
? Pop...isn’t
the fireplace gas? What are you going to do with firewood?”

“Gas prices are soaring
higher than a bald eagle. Been thinking about converting the fireplace. Take it
back old school.”

Blake’s mother shook
her head. “See what you have to look forward to?” she whispered to Eunice, then
moved to Blake and rested her narrow hand on his back. “You look tired, son.
Did you sleep okay?”

The room rumbled with
laughter.

“Did we miss a joke?” Mr.
Farrington asked, pulling his hands to his waist.

“Construction joke Ian
was telling,” Blake said, unknowingly saving Eunice from spontaneously
combusting.

Aunt Belle appeared in
the doorway. “I was married to a construction worker once. He died. Slipped off
a high beam and fell into a batch of cement.”

Mr. Farrington’s lips
parted, but he reconsidered whatever he was about to say. Instead, he tossed
his hands in the air and left the room, pulling Mrs. Farrington with him.

Eunice knew Aunt
Belle’s dementia was all an act but couldn’t help but wonder if the woman had
actually been married to all of those men. If so, bad luck definitely followed
her and the men she’d wedded.

“Daddy, may I have some
more juice?” Casey asked.

“Yeah, sweetie,” Ian
said, filling her glass.

Eunice smiled at Casey.
She was so well-behaved. Her parents had done a fantastic job with her. Eunice
couldn’t wait until she had one or two of her own. Definitely not the posse
Blake had alluded to. Why was she even thinking about kids? She and Blake
hadn’t been a couple a hot minute.

“Daddy, why didn’t
Mommy come to Grammy and Papa’s with us?”

There was an instant shift
in Ian’s demeanor. Clearly, Blake had witnessed it, too, because just as Ian
had stepped in for him a few days ago, Blake reciprocated.

Blake scooped his niece
into his arms. “My little Casey Bear, do you want Uncle Blake to give you one
of his famous pony rides?”

You would have thought
Blake offered the child a trunk full of candy by the way she reacted.

“Yes! Uncle Blake, you give
the best pony rides ever.”

“Well, let’s go,” he
said, leading the child out the room.

Eunice glanced to Ian,
a solemn expression hampering his features. A beat later, he left the room.
Tucker and Vivian followed.

“Secrets, secrets,
secrets,” Aunt Belle said and left the room, too.

Eunice got a feeling
everything wasn’t as it should be in the Ian’s household. When Mrs. Farrington
reentered the room to clean, Eunice shooed the woman away. Mrs. Farrington had played
gracious host since she’d arrived; the least she could do was handle cleanup. Finally
coaxing the woman out of the room, Eunice went to work.

In the silence, her
night with Blake played in her head. Waking in his arms had assured her she
hadn’t dreamt the entire thing.

“Do you need some help
in here?”

Tossing a glance over
her shoulder, she smiled. Blake ambled toward her like a sexy titan. “I thought
you were giving Casey a pony ride.”

“Note to self, don’t
bounce a child who’s just eaten her weight in French toast. Plus, my knee’s
bothering me,” he said, wrapping his arms around her and burying his face in
the crook of her neck. “You made me work overtime.”

“Shh,” she hissed,
swatting at him. “Your parents might hear you.” Or worse, and eavesdropping
Aunt Belle. The delicate kisses he placed on her neck caused her skin to
prickle. “Behave yourself.”

“Too late.” He ground
his hardness against her butt cheeks.

She gasped, then
rotated to face him. “Blake! You put that thing away right now before your
mother—or worse, Casey—comes in here. Try explaining your pant tent to an
eight-year-old.”

“I know exactly where I
want to put it.” He captured her hand and pulled her toward the laundry room.
Inside, he pressed her against the front-load washer.

“I have dishes—”

“The dishes aren’t
going anywhere.”

His mouth smashed
against hers—hard. It was the most delicious pain she felt since… well, since
the last time he pressed his lips against hers. “Blake we can’t— Not h— What if
someone walks in? What about your knee?”

He ignored her
question, sliding his hand slid down the front of her sweatpants, then inside
her panties. She moaned against his mouth as his fingers teased her. Maybe he
was right. The dishes weren’t going anywhere.

***

Blake stared wide-eyed
at Ian when the words passed his brother’s lips.
Damn
. Judging by the
astonished faces inside the room, everyone was just as stunned by Ian’s
confession as he had been.

“I knew something was
wrong,” Their mother said. “
Separated
?” She pressed a hand into her
chest. “Separated?” Her voice increased an octave when she repeated the word,
as if trying to convince herself it was what Ian had actually said. “Separated?”
The third time was barely audible.

“We think it’s best,” Ian
said, finally revealing to the family why his wife hadn’t spent the holiday
with them.

Blake had a hint
something was going on, but separating from his wife? This was big.

“It really is for the
best,” Ian reemphasized.

Blake was confused to
say the least, because though Ian and Gabby had their moments—like any married
couple, he imagined—he knew without a doubt Ian loved his wife. “Bro, surely the
best thing can’t be to split up your family?”

Ian studied his hands. “Everything
is not always what it seems.”

Ian definitely didn’t
have to convince him.

“Farringtons don’t walk
out on their family, son,” his father said, who—up until this point—had
remained silent.

“Exactly, Daddy
Farrington,” Vivian chimed in, then eyed Tucker. “Farringtons don’t walk out on
their family. Including their church family.”

Blake massaged the back
of his neck.
Now what
?

“Drop it, Viv,” Tucker
said.

Ignoring Tucker as she commonly
did, Vivian continued, “Tucker has decided to leave the pulpit.”

Blake jolted from the
news.
Tucker leaving the church? What the hell was going on around here?

“Leaving the church? Tucker,
is this true?” their mother asked.

Tucker nodded.

Their mother’s eyes
settled on Blake, as if she were expecting him to be next in line to confess. And
a couple of days ago, he would have been. But there was no need to tell her
that his and Eunice’s relationship had all been a sham, because turns out…it
wasn’t.

When the doorbell rang,
Blake released a sigh of relief. “That’s probably the car here to take us to
the airport,” Blake said, pushing away from the dinner table. “I’ll have him
come back later.” Now wasn’t the time to leave. His family was in crisis.

Aunt Belle entered the room.
“Blake, there’s some skinny little thing here to see you.”

Blake stilled. “
To
see me
?” Something told him things were about to go from bad to worst.

“Surprise,” Sasha said,
grinning bright enough to guide a 747 onto the landing strip.

He choked on his own saliva.
Finding his breath, he said, “
Sasha
. Wh— What are you doing here?”

“You didn’t think I’d miss
the opportunity to spend time with our family, did you?” She moved to him and placed
a kiss on his lips before he could register to pull away.

Tucker cleared his
throat. And just as luck would have it, he looked past Sasha to see Eunice
standing in the doorway.
Shit
. The look in her eyes ripped at his gut.

“Eunice?” Sasha’s face
twisted into a tight ball. “What the hell is she doing here, Blake?”

Ignoring Sasha’s words,
Blake steadied his gaze on Eunice as she moved further into the room.

In an easy tone, Eunice
said, “Blake, what’s going on?”

Sasha folded her arms
across her chest. “Yeah, Blake. What’s going on? Your
girlfriend
would
like to know, too.”

Eunice looked from
Sasha to him. “Girlfriend?”

Blake had no trouble interpreting
the expression on Eunice’s face. Clearly, she thought he’d lied about his and
Sasha’s relationship status. Eunice backed out of the room and moved down the
hall.

“I knew something was going
on with you two. All the time— Eunice this, Eunice that.”

Blake brushed past
Sasha and sprinted down the hall after Eunice. “Eunice, wait.”

Eunice spun on her
heels, tears glistening in her eyes. “Last night—” Her expression turned somber.
“Was last night a lie?”

Firmly, he said, “Did
anything about last night feel like a lie to you?”

She didn’t respond,
simply stared at him. He would have taken her into his arms right then and
kissed her breathless if he didn’t think she would have bitten his tongue off.

“Go ahead,” he
challenged, “call last night a lie.”

Sasha’s voice rumbled
through the hall. “What happened
last
night
?”

Neither one acknowledge
Sasha’s presence.

“Okay. Y’all want to ignore
me?”

“Watch out, Blake!
Duck!” His father called out from behind them. “She’s insane.”

Blake wasn’t sure what
was happening behind him, but he shielded Eunice from whatever it could be. A
vase exploded into tiny shards when it hit the stone floor near them.
This
woman is crazy
. When he glanced over his shoulder, Sasha was busy digging
inside her oversized handbag.

Aunt Bell scurried in
the opposite direction from all the action. “She’s got a gun.”

Eunice’s eyes grew wide
as a saucer. “Gun?” She whimpered, then buried her head into his chest.

Blake could feel his
heart pounding in his throat. Amongst the chaos that ensued, the only thing his
brain processed was
protect Eunice
. He shoved her toward the stairs.
“Run.”

Tucker and Ian rushed a
deranged Sasha, but not before her arm leveled on Blake. She pulled the trigger
and a crackling sound echoed off the walls. A second later, Blake wailed in pain
and dropped to his knees. The high voltage rushing through him caused his body
to spasm, then go limp.

What he’d felt had to
be akin to being struck by lightning or being dropped into an aquarium filled
with angry electric eels. “
Ahh
,” he cried out in pain, thrashing on the
floor like a fish out of water.

Sasha barked a harsh
laugh. “That’ll teach you to mess with me, sucker. Get off me. You’re next, you
dirty tramp.”

“Blake?” Eunice’s warm
hand slid down his face as she cradled him in her arms. “Can you hear me?
Please, Blake. Say something.”

“Dial 9-1-1,” his
mother yelled, her voice drawing nearer.

Blake blinked rapidly,
trying to focus. Eunice’s face slowly came into view. Her tears splattered
across his cheek. “I— I don’t need an ambulance. I’m okay,” he said.
Damn
.
He’d have never purchased Sasha a taser gun if he knew one day she’d use it on
him.

Even with the commotion
around him, his concern was Eunice. The entire ordeal had to be traumatic for her,
but she seemed more concerned with his wellbeing than anything else. “I’m
sorry,” he said, wiping her tears. “I never—”

“I’m just glad you’re
okay. Don’t ever scare me like that again,” she said, a quiver in her voice.

“I won’t.”

“You better get her out
of here before I kill her,” his mother said.

Ian dragged a kicking
and screaming Sasha toward the front door.

“I hate you, Blake
Farrington. I hope that inch worm in your pants shrivel up and fall off.

“Now hold on one damn
minute. All the Farrington men are hung like donkeys.”

“Solemn. Don’t you dare
drop your pants in here,” his mother said.

The front door slammed
so hard, the pictures on the wall rattled.