Born to Be Wild: Welcome to Paradise, Book 3 (2 page)

He’d never been able to resist the prim good-girl thing she’d had going on. Especially when he’d discovered she was oh so bad beneath the surface.

“Didn’t you two used to…” Owen tactfully trailed off.

Jake met his brother’s curious gray eyes. “Yep,” he confirmed in a hoarse voice.

He and Bree used to do a lot of things.
A lot
of things. Even now, he couldn’t figure out what had spurred her to seduce him that night after the big game against Huntsville. A wide receiver for the Paradise Panthers, Jake had been coming down from the victory high after the team crushed their neighboring town in a rivalry game for the ages. Bree was on the cheerleading squad, but their paths had never crossed until that night.

The night she demanded he deflower her in the back of his pickup truck.

Which he’d done without a single protest.

“So c’mon, fellows, let’s show Bree just how much you like her!” Mayor Price said into his mic.

Right off the bat, a tall, brown-haired man in the front of the crowd bid two hundred dollars.

Jake frowned. Cheap bastard.

“Three hundred,” someone else piped up.

“Four.”

“Four-fifty.”

The higher the bids climbed, the more annoyed he got. Up on the stage, Bree had started fidgeting with her hands. Her visible discomfort triggered something dark and protective inside him. Bree might have a secret wild streak running through her, but she’d always been shy, and Jake could only imagine the thoughts swirling through her pretty head right now. She was no doubt contemplating how to run off the stage without causing a scene.

“Five hundred and fifty,” a deep voice called out.

Jake glanced over, his shoulders stiffening when he noticed the bid had come from Dan Bradford, a guy he’d gone to high school with. Bradford had played linebacker for the team, and he was still as huge as ever—broad shoulders, barrel chest. The beer belly was new, though…

The flicker of unease in Bree’s blue eyes told Jake that she wasn’t thrilled with the newest addition to the bidding war.

In fact, if he recalled correctly, back then Bradford had constantly harassed Bree to hook up with him, even after she’d turned him down a hundred times.

Jake’s jaw tensed and it took a few seconds before he could pry it open. When he finally got his mouth to work, the words that flew out of it stunned both his twin and himself. “One thousand dollars,” he yelled.

Dead silence crashed over the room. His bid was the highest by far, but he didn’t regret it one damn bit. Screw it. One look at Bree’s silky black hair and big blue eyes, one glimpse at that body-hugging dress, and he knew that the only man she’d be having dinner with tonight was him.

On the stage, Bree’s eyes had widened with recognition. Her head shot in Jake’s direction, her beautiful features creasing with shock and wariness.

As their gazes locked, Jake felt a current of electricity run between them. A resulting jolt of anticipation shuddered through him. Oh yeah. It was still there. The connection. The heat.

“What are you doing?” Owen’s expression reflected a twinkle of amusement.

“My part for charity,” Jake answered without taking his eyes off Bree.

“One thousand dollars, going once, going twice…sold!” Mayor Price declared.

Disbelief now floated into Bree’s face, as if she couldn’t comprehend why Jake had bid on her. He might’ve asked himself the same question, but the second their eyes had met, he’d known the answer. He wanted Bree Lockhart back in his bed. And if he was being honest with himself, this wasn’t the first time he’d fantasized about being with her again. He hadn’t seen or spoken to her in twelve years, but that didn’t mean he hadn’t thought about her. In fact, his memories of Bree had gotten him through many tough nights, not to mention countless missions.

But there would be no more missions, and
that
memory only reminded him of the goal he’d set for tonight. The distraction he’d craved.

His gaze drifted back to the stage, in time to see Bree ducking behind the curtains.

Well, what better distraction than some wild sex with his former wild girl?

Jake Bishop had bid on her.

Bree resisted the urge to fan her cheeks, which were so hot she knew she must be blushing like crazy. When she’d heard Jake’s deep, husky voice out in the ballroom, she’d nearly keeled over with equal doses of shock and desire. What was he doing back in Paradise? Why the hell had he bid on a
date
with her?

And how on earth could she get out of it?

“Did I imagine it, or did I really hear Jake shelling out a thousand dollars for a date with you?”

Bree spun around and spotted Maddie Bishop approaching. She had to blink a couple of times to make sure it really
was
Maddie, but yes, the brunette in the pretty yellow shift and satin flats was indeed the tomboy Bree remembered from high school. Maddie looked so cute and feminine Bree had to wonder what else had changed since she’d last come home.

Not her attraction to Jake Bishop, apparently. The second she’d heard that man’s voice, the second their eyes locked, Bree had experienced the same aggravating sexual rush that Jake had always managed to evoke in her.

“You heard right,” she answered, running a hand through her hair in frustration.

Maddie wrinkled her brow. “I didn’t realize you and Jake knew each other.”

She was about to point out that Maddie didn’t know Jake either, until she remembered the brunette was now married to his twin brother. Technically, that meant Maddie had way more knowledge about Jake, who Bree hadn’t even spoken to in years.

“We did go to high school together,” Bree said with a shrug.

“Yeah, but I don’t remember you two hanging out much. Then again, I was a couple of years behind you, so I could be wrong.”

No, Maddie wasn’t wrong. Bree and Jake
hadn’t
hung out—in public, anyway. The three months they’d spent together had been a totally private affair. Fucking in his pickup, fucking at the lake, fucking in Jake’s bedroom after she snuck in through the window. Pretty much just fucking
everywhere
. She couldn’t bring herself to call it anything other than that vulgar F-bomb, no matter how mind-shattering the sex had been. Sadly, their relationship had been strictly physical, something Jake had made painfully clear the night before he’d skipped town.

God, she’d been such an idiot. Actually believing she and Jake had a future.

But what had she really been expecting when she’d seduced the town bad boy?

“No, you’re right. Jake and I weren’t close,” she lied. Swallowing, she glanced around the backstage area and caught sight of her mother, who stood in the wings like a statue, a frown carved into her mouth. Barbara Lockhart gave a brisk nod, a clear signal that she wanted a word with her daughter.

“Excuse me,” Bree said to Maddie. “My mom has summoned.”

Squaring her shoulders, she strode across the room, no question in her mind as to what her mom would say. And although Bree had just turned thirty last month, she couldn’t help but feel like a little girl who was about to be reprimanded by her mommy. That always happened when she was around her parents. Her entire life, she’d had to deal with their overly high expectations of her. Get good grades, go to law school, be successful. Marry a wealthy man.

That last requirement ranked number one on their priority list, and Jake Bishop had never stood a chance of making the cut. Her parents had been absolutely furious when they’d discovered her involvement with Jake all those years ago.

“Why did Henry Bishop’s son bid on a date with you?” Barbara demanded after she’d led Bree out of earshot.

“I don’t know,” she answered truthfully.

Her mother pursed her lips. “I’ll talk to your father about getting you out of this.”

Bree bristled. “Do I have to remind you that you and Daddy were the ones who talked me into this to begin with?”

Talked into? Try
forced
. Or maybe
bludgeoned
was a better description.
 

The last thing Bree had wanted to do on her first vacation in years was put herself up on the auction block, but when one of the bachelorettes dropped out at the last minute, her mother had begged her to step in. She’d hoped to spend the week working on her opening statement for the big case she had coming up, but Barbara had her methods when it came to getting her way. Methods that involved endless nagging and veiled threats. It had only taken two hours for Bree’s mother to wear her down, and in the end, she’d decided that a few hours of her time wouldn’t kill her, especially for a good cause.

Now, with the disturbing notion of being alone with Jake hanging over her head, she wished she’d stayed in Denver.

“I don’t want you spending time with that boy,” Barbara said coldly.

“He’s not a boy, Mom. He’s a thirty-year-old man.”

“He’s the boy that nearly destroyed my daughter’s future,” Barbara corrected, her blue eyes hardening to ice.

“Jake had nothing to do with everything that happened.” She sighed. “I’m the one who screwed up, not him.”

“Because he was a bad influence on you. Do I need to remind
you
that you nearly jeopardized your admission to Princeton because of him?”

Because Bree had been so damn smitten with her bad boy that she’d let her grades slide. And blown off the SATs. Yep, she remembered. Fortunately, her father had stepped in and fixed the situation, she’d taken the test, pulled her grades up, and Princeton had been in the cards after all.

“It was a long time ago, Mom. I haven’t seen Jake in years, and one dinner isn’t going to hurt anyone.”
 

Funny, how she’d been trying to come up with a way to get out of this dinner, yet the moment her mother took the same stance, Bree ended up switching sides. Her parents always managed to trigger her rebellious side.

“I’ll talk to your father,” Barbara said as if Bree hadn’t spoken.

“No,” she replied firmly. “Seriously, Mom, I don’t want to cause any trouble. I agreed to do this for charity, and I don’t want to cost the foundation Jake’s donation. Now if you’ll excuse me, I should go find my date.”

She left her mother and marched toward the side door that led out to the ballroom, wondering what the heck was wrong with her. Her mother, as irritating as she was, had a point. Jake
was
a bad influence on her. She’d nearly thrown away her entire future for the guy, caught up in silly fantasies that she and Jake Bishop might have a real shot. He’d quickly burst that bubble when he’d announced he was enlisting in the army right after graduation—and told her not to wait for him.

It had hurt, but in the end, she’d realized he’d been right to cut her loose. She wanted more from her life than hot sex. She wanted a career, a husband, a family. Jake, with his impulsive nature and adventurous streak, would never have fit into that kind of life. They’d had the sex thing down to a T, but stability? Definitely not Jake’s strong suit.

Stepping into the ballroom, she searched the crowd, needing to get this over with as soon as possible. So what if her body had been consumed with heat when she and Jake had made eye contact? She wasn’t a horny teenager anymore.
She
controlled her hormones now, not the other way around.

Sighing, she weaved through the throng of people, then came to a standstill when she caught sight of Jake by the refreshment table.

God, he looked good. Really, really good. A white dress shirt clung to his broad chest, black trousers encasing his long, trim legs. And his face—man, he’d grown even sexier with age. Ruggedly gorgeous features, gray eyes smoldering with seductive heat. The man oozed sex and masculinity. He always had, and probably always would.

When their eyes locked, that same surge of desire she’d experienced on stage made a reappearance. Steeling herself against his potent maleness, she strode over to the drink table and managed a faint smile. “Hey, Jake,” she said, keeping her tone light.

“Bree,” he said in that husky voice of his. His stormy silver eyes swept over her. “You look good.”

She swallowed. “So do you.” So good that her nipples were already hardening against the front of her lacy bra.

Damn it. Twelve freaking years later, and her libido still kicked up a notch in the presence of this man.

“It’s been a long time,” he added.

“Yeah,” she agreed. “How’s military life?”

Something indecipherable flashed across his chiseled face. “Same as always. How’s lawyer life?”

“It’s great,” she admitted. “I love my job.”

“I’m glad to hear it.”

Was he? Because as she recalled, he hadn’t seemed too concerned when he’d persuaded her to skip the SATs so they could spend the day in bed.

Your fault, not his
.

Fine, there was some truth to that. Jake hadn’t forced her to miss the test. She’d done that all by herself. So wrapped up in his sexual spell that she’d been willing to drop everything for just one more second with him.

God, back then she would’ve done anything for Jake Bishop. He was the guy who’d shown her how much fun life could be, that under the surface she was a good girl just waiting to be bad. And lord, she’d been bad. Not just in exploring her sexuality with Jake, but neglecting school, rebelling against her parents.