The Next Play: Part Three Read online

  “You came to me,” he husked, barely able to believe it was true.

  Walking a little further into the gym, she said, “I called Denny, and she told me that you’d left the office. So she gave me your address, and after I showed the doorman my ID, he said that he’d seen you headed in here. I couldn’t… I didn’t want to leave things like we did.”

  “You came to me,” he said again, each word hard with emotion and thick with awe as she continued to come toward him.

  With a little nod, she whispered, “Yeah.”

  The second she was close enough, he pulled her down onto the bench with him so that she was straddling his lap, pressed one hand against her lower back, and cupped the side of her face in his other one. His eyes were hot, his chest rising and falling like a bellows as he studied every nuance of her expression. “You want this,” he said low, the quiet words graveled and raw. “You want me. Us.”

  She blinked at him, and her beautiful mouth curled in a soft, breathtaking smile. “Jonah, of course I do.”

  Wrapping both arms around her, he held her close as he dropped his forehead against hers, too fucking wrecked to worry that he was getting his sweat smeared all over her. “Jesus, baby. I’ve been so fucking worried. It’s been making me sick ever since you walked away.”

  She ran her fingers through his damp hair. “Just because I might get upset and need some time, that doesn’t mean I don’t want this. That I’m just going to jump ship on us.”

  He made a hard, rumbling sound of relief in the back of his throat. “Thank God.”

  She took his face in her soft hands and tilted it up, making him look at her. “You’re worth more than that, Jonah. And I know that. I believe it, with every part of me.”

  “Oh, fuck,” he groaned, knowing damn well just how far over the edge she’d pushed him. His emotions had been through a motherfucking shredder that day, and now she was there, straddling his lap and looking at him like she—Christ, she was looking at him in a way that no other woman ever had before, as if she might actually be falling in love with him—and he was fucking undone.

  With a hard, visceral growl, he fisted one hand in the back of all those silky curls, holding her still as he crushed his greedy mouth against her soft, impossibly sweet one. His other hand went to her chest, curving around one of those perfect breasts, and he trapped her swollen nipple between his thumb and forefinger, working it with more pressure than he’d ever used on her before. She gasped into his mouth, her hips jerking forward, grinding her mound against his rigid dick, the thin gym shorts doing little to conceal how badly he wanted her.

  How badly he needed to fuck her tight little cunt, slamming himself deep again and again, until she was screaming and clawing at him, desperate to keep him inside her. To keep him with her. Always.

  His shaking hands grabbed her hips, jerking her against him even tighter, his pulse roaring in his ears, cock so fucking hard he didn’t know how long he could last before he came in his damn shorts. Driven and desperate, he pressed his open mouth against the tender skin at the side of her throat as he slipped one hand up under her dress and shoved it into the back of her panties, palming her sweet little ass. But the instant he moved his hand deeper between her legs, she jolted and quickly reached back, catching his wrist and stopping him with a whispered, “You can’t, remember?”

  He could tell she was wearing a tampon instead of a pad, which meant he’d be able to stroke her soft little pussy, playing with her sensitive clit without making too much of a mess. Not that he cared about getting messy with her, but he didn’t want her to be embarrassed with him. “The hell I can’t,” he growled, nipping at her delicate throat, her skin so soft it made him want to mark the hell out of her. “I want to touch you, sweetheart. I want to touch what’s mine.”

  “Jonah, seriously. You know I’m bleeding. Not a lot, but…enough.”

  He pulled his head back and looked her right in the eye. “Yeah? Guess what? I don’t give a shit.”

  “Well, I do,” she laughed, her face pinker than he’d ever seen it.

  “I want you, in any way I can have you,” he growled, nipping at her juicy lower lip with his teeth, his craving for her like a feral beast clawing at his insides, demanding he get as much of her as he could. “A little blood isn’t going to change that, Jace.”

  “It might not matter to you, but it matters to me.”

  “It shouldn’t. I’d be more than happy to let you bleed all over my hands and my dick.” He kept his heavy-lidded gaze locked tight with her wide one, hoping she could see just how much he meant it. “I’ve never said those words to another woman in my entire life, baby girl. But they’re true.”

  “Stop,” she breathed, pressing her soft fingertips to his mouth as a shy smile twitched at the edge of her lips. “Just…stop talking before you talk me into something that I refuse to be talked into.”

  Completely charmed by her, Jonah laughed low as he pulled her fingers away with his free hand, then shoved it back into her hair, holding her trapped for the raw, ravenous kiss that he gave her. No matter how deep or savagely he took her succulent mouth, he couldn’t get enough of it. She tasted like peaches, hot and sweet, and he wanted to devour her. Swallow her up like a wolf and fucking consume her.

  “I’ve told myself I can wait,” he muttered against her soft lips, “and I can, baby. I will, because it’s what you deserve. But it’s fucking hard,” he finished with a growl, palming her ass again so that he could grind her against the throbbing ache in his cock.

  “Literally,” she teased with a wry smile, clutching his slick shoulders, and there was a little hitch in her breath as his granite-hard shaft hit her clit at the perfect angle.

  “Yeah,” he laughed, rubbing his nose against hers, “but you’re worth it, Jocelyn. Whatever it takes to have you and be a part of your life, that’s what I’ll do.”

  This time, she was the one who kissed the hell out of him, and he’d never experienced anything that felt so goddamn right. She wasn’t shy when it came to what she wanted, and he loved all the diverse, fascinating sides of her. Knew that when he finally got her under him, naked and spread and juicy-as-fuck, she was going to be every bit as greedy as he was. She didn’t even seem to care that he was covered in sweat, which was fucking hot, since he planned on getting filthy and sweaty with her all the goddamn time.

  When he started to move the hand on her ass around to her front, she pulled her mouth from his. “Wait. Aren’t there security cameras in here?”

  He nipped her chin as he shoved his hand down the front of her panties. “Not in this part of the gym.”

  “You’re sure?” she moaned, her head falling back as he used the callused pad of his thumb to rub circles over her hard little clit.

  “Yeah, baby, I’m sure.” He nipped his way up the smooth side of her neck until he could lick the sensitive skin behind her ear, a husky laugh on his lips when he made her shiver and jerk against his thumb, her pleasure so much more important to him in that moment than his own. He whispered in her ear, telling her how beautiful she was, and how amazing she tasted between her legs. How he wanted to eat her out every day and night, licking her pretty little cunt until she was melting all over him. Until he was covered in her, inside and out.

  Before he knew it, she was reaching under the waistband of his shorts, her mouth finding his as she stroked his brutally thick, vein-ridged shaft from root to tip. She didn’t ease him into it, but went in with a hard, fast rhythm that had him on the verge in seconds, his body so tense he was like a burning, steaming stone.

  “Come for me,” she whispered against his lips, gripping him tight with her hand, her thumb swiping over the wet head, and though he’d wanted her to be first, he knew he was done.

  In that perfect, blistering moment, Jonah might have been the one with too much experience, but the shy little blonde had destroyed him.

  Utterly.

  Completely.

  And fucking forever.

 
; CHAPTER FOUR

  Rubbing her lips against Jonah’s corded throat, Jocelyn tasted the heat and salt of his skin as she flicked him with her tongue, while he growled low in his throat, his big cock pulsing in her grip as he came all over her hand, his thick release hot and slick against her skin.

  Her own pleasure rushed up at her hard and fast, and he pressed his rough palm against her sensitive flesh, kissing her like he meant to never stop as she gasped, shivering on his lap. Her hand was still gripping his heavy cock as he eased her down with soft, gentle strokes of his fingertips, the moment so intimate it brought tears to her eyes.

  But they were the happy kind, and with a quiet laugh, she lifted her head and looked at him as she slowly pulled her hand out of his shorts. “We’re kind of a mess right now, aren’t we?” she said, her lips twitching with a smile.

  “What you are is fucking gorgeous.” He brushed the fingertips of his free hand over her warm cheek in a tender caress. “I’m not sure I’ve ever seen you look hotter than you do right now.”

  She snickered softly. “I will never understand how a man’s mind works.”

  His blue eyes burned with pure, heady male possessiveness. “Yeah, well, you don’t need to worry about any other man but me. And my head, I’m afraid, is filled with all the filthy ways I intend to make you feel good.”

  “I feel good right now,” she told him, loving how gentle he was with her as he grabbed his towel and started cleaning her hands.

  “You’re gonna feel even better when I get you home and into your shower.”

  “You want to come over?” she asked, unable to stop smiling at him. She probably looked like a crushed-out teen, but there was no help for it. She was addicted to this amazing man, demons and all. And she was determined to fight for him, even if the things she had to fight against were her own fears and insecurities.

  “Fuck yeah, I want to come over.” He gave her a searching look. “As long as you’re okay with it.”

  “I am,” she said with a little nod.

  “Good.” He kept his dark gaze locked tight with hers as he tossed his towel aside, then settled his hands back on her hips. “We’ll talk more, about the texts and all that other shit from earlier, later tonight. But for now, I just want to get you home, get you cleaned up, and feed you.”

  “Okay. But no showers together until I’m, you know, done.”

  He shook his head as he smiled, then leaned forward and kissed her.

  “And we won’t be alone,” she said against his lips, loving how hotly his skin burned against her palms as she rubbed her hands over his broad, muscular shoulders. “The dinner plans with Rey’s parents got moved to another night, so we need to pick Davey up on our way over.”

  “Awesome. I’m looking forward to seeing the little guy.” He kissed her again, stroking his tongue against hers in a way that made her entire body flush with heat, and then set her back on her feet as he stood up. He asked where she’d parked, and then ran up to his apartment to grab a T-shirt and a clean change of clothes, while she hurried out to her car. She’d had to park in an unloading zone because the streets were packed, but luckily made it back before she got a ticket.

  They picked up Davey from Rey and Mitch’s, and her son was so happy to see Jonah that she had to sniff back a sharp burst of emotion. And it felt surreal as she introduced him to both Rey and Mitch. She’d warned Rey that he was gorgeous, but she could tell her bestie hadn’t been fully prepared for the mouthwatering, breathtakingly masculine beauty that was Jonah Cartwright. Especially when he was looking so rugged and ripped in his workout gear.

  And, yeah, her heart melted a little bit more when Jonah invited the couple, along with their daughter, Piper, to have dinner with them at his place the following Monday night.

  When they got back to her apartment, she grabbed a quick shower while Jonah hung out with Davey and ordered them Chinese takeaway from one of the best restaurants in town. She dressed in black yoga leggings and a slouchy green top that she hoped complemented her eyes, then put her wet hair in two braids.

  Jonah’s eyes got heavy when she came out to join them, the way he was looking at her making it clear that he liked the outfit and her hair. While Davey sprawled on the sofa, settling in to watch his favorite nature show, Jonah grabbed her hand and tugged her into the hallway with him. He curled one arm around her lower back, pulled her up tight against his tall, powerful body, and wrapped his other hand around one of her braids. And then, with a sin-drenched smile on his beautiful lips, he lowered his head and took her mouth in the slowest, hottest, most emotional kiss of her life.

  She didn’t know if she was feeling so much because of the culmination of everything that had happened since last Friday, or if it was simply the moment, the man, and the way he was touching her…kissing her…savoring her, that had her clutching at him like she needed him to keep her grounded in a world that was rapidly spinning out of control. But she didn’t waste time questioning it. She just embraced it, enjoying the hell out of it, and kissed him back with everything she had.

  With one last, lingering brush of his lips, he lifted his head, and she could hear how deeply the kiss had affected him as he said, “I could keep doing that all night, but I’d better grab my shower before we get caught by Davey.”

  Knowing she probably looked a little dazed, Jocelyn smoothed her hands over her shirt as she stepped back, bumping into the wall behind her like the goofy klutz that she was. “There are, um, clean towels under the sink, and make sure you turn the knob all the way to the right or you won’t get any hot water.”

  “I’m thinking a cold one will probably do me some good,” he drawled in a dry tone, making her laugh.

  She went to spend some time with Davey while he headed for the bathroom, the rattling of the pipes in the wall when he turned on the water making her smile. It seemed surreal that Jonah Cartwright was standing in her shower, at that very moment, and she laughed again when Davey asked her why she was smiling.

  “I’m just happy, baby,” she told him, pulling him tight to her for a hug, then tickling him until he laughed so hard his little cheeks turned pink.

  “Jonah,” she called out a little while later, “your phone is ringing!”

  She heard the bathroom door open, followed by his footsteps coming down the hall, and then he stepped into the kitchen, and Jocelyn felt every nerve-ending in her body sizzle with awareness. He looked so freaking edible in a pair of black sweatpants and a gray T-shirt, his wet hair brushed back from his handsome face, that she nearly dropped the bag of Chinese food that’d just been delivered.

  “It was my cousin Sean,” he said, after looking at his phone and then setting it back down on the table, where he’d left it while he showered. “I’ll shoot him a message after we eat and ask if he can FaceTime on Sunday. I’d like to introduce you and Davey to him.”

  “Are the two of you close?” she asked, pulling down some plates for the three of them.

  He started unpacking the cartons of delicious-smelling food as he answered her question. “Yeah. Sean and his brother, Paul, who’s a police detective, are the only Cartwrights I have anything to do with, and they’re really good guys. Sean’s a sportswriter, and he lived in San Francisco until earlier this year, but needed a change of scenery after a nasty divorce. So he moved down to San Diego, where the rest of his family lives.”

  “Ouch. That must have sucked to see him go through something like that, and then lose having him close by.”

  “I definitely miss the guy, but I plan on getting down there a lot to visit him.” He started dishing up the food for them, and after she came back from telling Davey to go and wash his hands, he asked, “Have you ever been to San Diego?”

  “No,” she replied, pouring them both glasses of iced tea, Davey’s milk already on the table, “but I’ve heard it’s beautiful.”

  “It is. We’ll have to take Davey down for a weekend soon. I bet he’d get a kick out of the zoo there, and we’d be able to han
g out with Sean and Natalie, his new girlfriend. I haven’t even met her in person yet.”

  “I’d love that,” she said, her hands on the back of her chair as they waited for Davey to finish up in the bathroom, the sound of his little voice as he sang his handwashing song making her smile. “But do you think we could drive down? Or do the airlines do any weekend specials? With Christmas coming up, I’ve got us on a pretty tight budget.”

  He frowned as he shot her a What the hell are you talking about? kind of look. “Christ, Jace, I don’t expect you to pay.”

  She gave him a soft, but exasperated smile. “Jonah, just because you have money doesn’t mean that I’m entitled to it or expect you to spend it on me. The zoo and pancakes over the weekend were a lovely treat, but Davey and I are not your financial responsibility. I’m not with you so that you can take care of us. I’m with you because you’re awesome and I love spending time with you. The fact that you have money doesn’t factor into it. That’s like the least important thing that I know about you.”

  He didn’t say anything right away. Just stood there by the table, staring at her like he couldn’t quite believe those words had just come out of her mouth. Like he didn’t know how to make them compute. Then he shook his head a little, pulled in a sharp breath, and made his way around the table until he could take her into his arms.

  “Okay,” he husked, as she tilted her head back so she could hold his gaze, “the first thing I need to tell you is that you’re fucking cute as hell when you get worked up about something.”

  She blinked up at him. “I am?”

  “Oh, yeah,” he murmured in a quiet, sexy rumble. “If we were alone right now, you would be like the make me want to lay you down on the table and eat out your sweet little cunt for dinner, forgetting about the damn food, kind of cute.”

  “Oh,” she breathed, feeling her cheeks turn pink.

  “And secondly, I fucking love that you feel that way. That you honestly don’t care if I’m loaded or not. It means more to me than you could ever know, baby. But the fact of the matter is that I do have more money than I could ever possibly need or spend, and that leads to the third thing, which is this: I know we’re new, but I also know that I’m going to do whatever it takes to keep you in my life. So that means that you and Davey are the two most important people in my world now, and as your man, it is my fucking privilege to take care of you.