Beguile her: Laws of Seduction Book 2 (11 page)

Once everyone stops teasing me I actually end up having a good time. Some more people come including Dylan and Sam’s sister Suzanne, who I have’nt seen for a while. She wants to hear all about James, but luckily, has not heard about the monkey sex. Davis also comes, but although he is friendly, we don’t have much of a chance to talk. He seems to be having a great time joking around with Brad and some of the other guys. 

I find myself wishing for James. He had a client dinner tonight, but he had said he would stop by afterwards. Checking my phone to see what time it is, I see that I have a missed message from him. I step away so that I can listen to the message. 

When I come back, Sam asks, “Was that James?”

I give her a mock pout. “Yea, he is stuck in his client dinner and won’t be able to make it.”

“Ahh, that’s too bad. Come on, you can hang out with me and Dylan. And…” she starts slyly. “I’ve noticed a couple of guys over there at the bar checking you out…” She finishes leadingly.

Sam laughs at my horrified expression and holds up her hands as if in surrender. “I’m joking. Jeesh, I swear you’ve lost your sense of humor… with all that monkey sex.”

Well,
 
at least James will not be subjected to my friend’s twisted sense of humor.

With the thought of work the next morning hanging over my head, I make a move to leave. This is met with so much resistance from Nick that I agree to stay for one more Margarita. After Sam leaves with Dylan, I decide it is definitely time for me to go too. I wish the remaining party goers good-bye and head out to look for a cab. 

“Lainey,” I hear someone calling my name behind me.

I turn, wobbling a little in my mile-high shoes, to see Davis. “Oh, hi Davis. Are you going too?”

Davis takes my elbow to steady me. “Yea, I have a pretty early shoot in the morning. Let’s share a cab. I would feel better getting you home safely in your condition.”

I step back
 
to get a good look at him. “What do you mean in my condition?” Then it dawns on me. “Do you think I’m drunk?” 

He must have heard the incredulity in my voice because he raises his hands up in a defensive gesture. “Whoa, I didn’t mean anything by it. You were slamming down those Margaritas pretty fast.”

Okay, he did have a point. “I might be the slightest bit tipsy.” I concede. “But I am fully capable of getting myself home. Thank you very much.”

Davis gives me his most charming smile, “Please, Lainey. I would feel like a complete jerk letting you leave on your own.”

I consider him for a moment before narrowing my eyes and waving my hand between the two of us. “Okay, but there will be no snogging or whatever you Aussies call it.”

Davis bursts out laughing. When he finally has himself under control, he shakes his head at me. “That dress may do incredible things to your ass, but I think I can manage to keep my hands off of it.”

Satisfied that we are on the same page, I step into the cab he has managed to flag down. I slide across the seat, and he gets in beside me. Davis gives my address to the cabbie, who takes off as if the bats of hell were after him. Ugh, it was going to be one of those cab rides, I think, as the margaritas and Champaign slosh around in my stomach.

“Pash,” Davis says out of the blue.

“What?” I ask in confusion.

“The Aussie expression for snogging is pashing.”

“Huh… So…you might say… for example… how many girls have you pashed?” I smile up at him coquettishly.

Davis gives me a sidelong glance. “Are you flirting with me?”

“No… absolutely not.” I attempt to keep a straight face, but can’t hold back my giggles. The look on Davis’s face makes me laugh even harder. I point at him with my index finger, “You should see your face. You look like you just ate a sour pickle.”

Davis shakes his head back and forth. “You are a
 
goof when you are drunk… I mean tipsy.” He hurries to correct himself.

Arriving at my place, Davis steps out the cab and holds the door open. As I slide back across the seat and step out onto the pavement, I miss the curb. I lose my footing, and when Davis tries to catch me, his hand lands on my ass. I laugh up at him. “I guess you couldn’t keep your hands off of my ass after all.”

He gives my ass a light squeeze and winks at me. “It is one fantastic ass.”

Once again steady on my feet, we walk to my door. “Thanks for bringing me home."

“Yea, no problem, and see no pashing or snogging involved.”

Once inside I give a tiny wave to Davis, who turns and jogs back to the taxi. I fumble my keys out of the door and they fall to the ground. Well, fuckedy fuck fuck. I contemplate the keys wondering how I am going to bend down that low with my impaired balance, skin tight dress and mile high stilettos. Maybe I could hook them with my stiletto heel. I am just about to give this a try when I hear a tap at the door. I look up and see a jacketless and tieless James standing on the other side of the glass. Problem solved. James can pick up the keys. I make a move to pull open the door when I get a good look at his face, and I hesitate. The furious look on James’s face makes me pause and weigh my options. I can A) open the door to James, who is glaring at me in a most unpleasant way, or I can B) go up to my apartment leaving him outside. Plan B would entail somehow retrieving my keys, and now I had a spectator. Taking my courage in both hands, I opt for plan A and pull open the door. 

James rakes his eyes up and down me before stepping over the threshold. My eyes grow wide, and I back up as he stalks toward me. I have to stop when my back hits the wall next to the mailboxes. “What. were. you. doing. with. him?”

I’m guessing he means Davis. I gulp. “He brought me home.” Who knew my voice could squeak like that?

“His hands were all over you.”

I cringe inwardly. He must have seen the ass incident. It had been funny at the time. James suddenly reaches out and grabs my ass pulling me up against him. Taken by surprise, I lean back so that only our groins are touching. His blue eyes bore into mine with a burning intensity.  “This. is. mine.”

Possessive much? God, I am turned on, and I missed him. I twine my arms around his head and pull him down feathering kisses along his hardened jaw. He has the most perfect jaw, and he smells so good. When I reach his mouth, he slides his mouth over mine. He kisses me as if our lives depend on it. I gasp for breath as he pulls back to growl down at me. “I would love to fuck you up against this wall, but we need to go upstairs.”

He turns me toward the stairs. “My keys.” I turn back pointing to where they lie on the floor. James bends down and scoops them up before following behind me. At my apartment he unlocks the door before ushering me through and closing and locking the door behind him. Taking my hand, he pulls me toward the bedroom. 

“Goddamit, Lainey, what are you doing to me?” He eyes me up and down. “That fucking dress. If am not in you within the next two seconds, I am going to fucking explode.”

A lightning bolt of desire shoots through me at his words. I turn around so that he can unzip my dress. I close my eyes with pleasure when his fingers touch the bare skin of my back. He helps me push the dress down over my hips, and I am left standing in a flesh colored thong and the gold stilettos. I hear the sound of the zipper on his dress pants, and my body goes on high alert wondering what he will do next. “Turn around.”

I turn around to see James holding his hard cock in his hand. He moves his hand up and down and watches me under half lidded eyes. “Does it turn you on to know that every man that sees you wants to fuck you?”

“No, just you.” I answer honestly.

“Good. Because I will be the only one that you will be fucking from now on. Take off the thong, but leave the shoes on and sit down on the edge of the bed.”

I do as he says. James pushes me back so that I am lying back with my legs hanging over the side of the bed. “Put your hands over your head and keep them there.”

Once again I do as he says. He runs his hands down my body, pinching and stroking, and I cannot hold back my groans of pleasure. I grip the pillow behind me to keep my arms from reaching for him and pulling him over me. I feel the tip of his cock prodding my entrance. His hands keep a firm grip on my hips, and he rocks the very tip of his cock back and forth into me. I long for him to thrust fully inside of me, but he continues to deny me. “Is this what you want?”

“Yes. Please.” I am gasping in need.

“Tell me what you want.”

“I want your cock inside me. I want you to fuck me fast… and hard.”

“Your wish is my command.” With that he slams into me, and I cry out in pleasure, pain. He pounds into me fast and hard exactly as I had requested. My legs circle his back my stilettos knocking into him. “Does he make you feel like this?”

“No, only you.” I manage to gasp out.

“Damn right. This fucking tight little body is mine.” Then my mind goes blank as I feel a rush of ecstasy overtake me. James doesn’t stop. He thrusts into me over and over again until he lets out a shout and I find myself coming again. 

James rolls over onto the bed. “Jesus… this is completely fucking out of control.”

He does not sound happy, and I am confused. “James, what’s the matter?”

He turns his head to look at me and says more gently. “Nothing baby. Everything’s fine.”

Everything does not seem fine. “What are you doing here anyway? Not that I am not glad to see you.” I rush to assure him.

“Lainey… baby, don’t you ever check your messages?”

“Um…” I don’t know how to respond to that.

“How much did you drink tonight?”

I can feel my defenses coming up. “Why? Do I seem drunk to you?” Jeesh, no one thinks I can handle my liquor.“No… never mind. I was just curious.” Standing up, James straightens his clothes. 

I watch him, confused. “Aren’t you staying?”

“No, I need to go. This was a mistake.”

Mistake? What was a mistake his fucking me or our relationship? His abrupt behavior confuses me. “James what is happening here?”

“Listen Lainey, I’m sorry for running off like this. It’s late, and you need to get some rest. We can talk tomorrow.” With those parting words, he bends down and kisses me chastely on the cheek before heading out the door. I am left sitting in stunned silence.

After getting ready for bed, I grab my phone and listen to James’s messages.

“Lainey, it doesn’t look like I will be able to make it tonight. My meeting is running over. Let me know when you get home.”
That was the message I had listened to earlier, but there are two more.

“
Lainey, it’s getting late. Let me know when you are home so I don’t worry.”

“Babe, where are you? I’m coming over. We need to talk.”

We need to talk? Was he breaking up with me? Everything seemed fine last night, well I guess that was two nights ago now. Flopping back on the bed, I groan when I see the time on the clock. My mind replays our night out on Wednesday. James had taken me to the Gotham Bar and Grill like he had promised me the night he had rescued me from Bleu Ciel. I remember how we had talked about everything from political views to favorite movies. We had remarkably similar views. I cannot remember ever feeling such an affinity with someone else. The argument we had about playing tennis with his ex in the Hamptons had been the only glitch the entire evening. I had even been tempted to tell him my deepest, darkest secret, but the time hadn’t seemed right. Later, in his bed, I had continued to feel that sense of affinity. James had made passionate love to me seeming to sense exactly what I need to bring me the greatest pleasure. The memory of his firm, but gentle hands calms me down enough so that I can finally fall asleep.

CHAPTER 11

The sound of cutlery hitting plates and the rumble of voices in the background was like the surf breaking on the beach. The service at the Waldorf Astoria is impeccable. A waiter unobtrusively serves us some of the best food in New York City, but I barely taste it. I wonder that no one notices my forced laughs and smiles. I seem to have mastered the art of laughing at all the right moments even though my attention is elsewhere. Resolutely, I keep my eyes trained on Mills, who is telling some anecdote. My mind wanders to the events of last night. James’s behavior from the night before has me worried. Instead of things working themselves out today, they seem to have gotten worse. I didn’t hear from him this morning, and he arrived at the restaurant after me. 

Only four of us were representing Houghton Mills today. Mills and I sat across the table from James and Elizabeth. Rothschild was at one end of the table and Lydia Banks sat at the other. What
 
concerns me is that James will not look at me, and I am starting to worry that something is really wrong. I try to console myself that he is only doing what I asked and keeping our relationship private. My mind refuses to cooperate. It keeps reminding me of the previous two times when things had seemed to be going well, and how he had suddenly, and for no apparent reason, dropped me.

This cannot be happening again. Am I really so pathetic that I let him treat me this way over and over again? I am trying my best to withhold judgement when Elizabeth stands up to go to the ladies’ room. Escape. I
 
make my excuses as well and join her. With half an ear I listen to Elizabeth’s chatter as we make our way to the back where the restrooms are located. My ears
 
pick up on the name James, and I refocus my attention on her.  Did she just say that James was at her place last night? The whole world seems to stop for a moment before starting again in slow motion. Pinning my eyes to Elizabeth’s lips, I half hear and half read her lips. “…if it weren’t for working at the same firm, we would have come out as a couple long ago. I am sure it isn’t a secret around the office anyway. I mean look at how much time we spend together. It’s rather obvious to everyone. Don’t you think?”