Give Up On Me (4 page)

M
att started
the evening in sour mood because it turned out Margaret’s schedule was fuller than his brother’s. In fact, he hadn’t laid eyes on his grandmother or gotten through to her on the phone before her party. She’d spent the entire time in Madrid. Her absence from Boston meant he couldn’t talk to her about Janae, but it didn’t stop him from convincing Janae to be his date.

From the first moment he laid eyes on her in that gown that hugged every curve and the slit that revealed one long sexy leg, he had trouble focusing on anything else. While he leaned against a wall, swirling the contents of his champagne glass, he watched her chatting with one of the guests. The older man with olive skin spoke thickly-accented English. Matt imagined Janae had trouble understanding him, but she listened as if enraptured.

Matt forced his gaze away from the love of his life to scan the room. His brother argued with another man Matt recognized as one of the junior execs in a company they had partnered with on a small venture outside the hotel business. He wasn’t surprised at his brother’s attitude. Negotiations when it came to wooing people was Matt’s job. If Margaret wanted a sharp edge, she called on Kyler.

He shifted focus again and let his gaze wander over the small crowd of important people, small meaning fifty guests from around the world. The food, as Kyler promised was excellent, but all Matt wanted to do was escape from the party and spend time alone with Janae. Maybe he would anyway.

He drained his glass and pushed off the wall. A waiter sailed by, and Matt left his empty glass on the tray the man carried. As if luck was on his side, the chamber orchestra struck up a tune that was perfect for holding Janae in his arms and swaying with her a little.

“
Mi scusi. Posso interrompere
?” Matt said in Italian. Janae blinked at him in wonder, and her conversational partner reluctantly released her to Matt’s care. He swept his beauty into his embrace and drew her close enough to feel the heat of her sexy body.

“Matt,” she chided. “Nobody’s dancing.”

“Somebody is.”

“Where?” She glanced around, and he tugged her closer. Her big brown eyes widened when she felt his hard-on. “Now I can’t pull away. You’re hard.”

He chuckled. “That sounds like an accusation. How can I not get excited when you’re showing off that much cleavage?”

“It’s the dress not me.”

“Lies,” he shot back. “I’ve tasted those breasts. They’re cantaloupes.”

She snorted. “Now you’re exaggerating. Stop looking down my dress.”

“You put the girls on display for me, I take that as a gift. Are you saying you don’t want me to look at you?”

When she blushed, his heart almost stopped. She was so damn beautiful she made him ache for her night and day. Of course he had an erection when she looked like that. Matt leaned down to try to nibble at her neck. With her hair pinned up, her throat invited him to cover it with kisses. He needed to taste her soft cocoa skin once more.

Janae ducked away. “Oh no you don’t. Your family doesn’t even want me here, judging by that dirty look they gave me when we walked in. I’m not giving them a reason to hate me.”

He squeezed her hand gently as he held it in his palm, capturing her attention when she looked away. “You’re my fiancée. There’s nothing wrong with me kissing you.”

“No, but not in the middle of the floor, and you weren’t just leaning in for a quick peck. Admit it.”

“The fifth.”

“You bum.” She laughed, and he grinned at her.

“Let’s find somewhere we can be alone so I can get a real kiss.”

“You got a kiss when you picked me up. In fact, I wasn’t sure if you were going to let me out of the apartment. You also kissed me in the car before we left, and when we got here.”

“Well, if it was so good you had to count…”

“Or so bad I couldn’t forget.”

“Janae.”

“Aw, you know I love you, baby, and your kisses.” She dismissed where they were a minute and reached up to stroke his cheek. Pleasure suffused his body from the spot of contact and all the way down to his groin. Her eyes sparkled brighter than the diamond necklace at her throat. “You hate when I tease you about giving me pleasure.”

“Because it’s important to me to make you feel good. If I suspect I’m not doing a good job, I’ll try harder.”

“But that’s not a bad thing because it gets me a few extra orgasms.”

He dropped his voice to a low octave. “All you have to do is ask.”

Goose bumps lined her slender arms, and he raised an eyebrow. Janae pursed her lips.

“You think you got me.”

“Didn’t I?”

“Okay, you did,” she admitted. Her lashes lowered over her eyes. He didn’t know much about makeup except what looked good on a woman in his opinion. Tonight, Janae had added a silver-colored eye shadow to her lids and some type of product that made tiny flecks of glitter appear on her skin. She smelled of jasmine, and it was driving him nuts.

“So, are you afraid to go with me?”

“No.”

“Then?”

“All right.”

Neither of them searched for his grandmother or his brother as they left the hotel’s ballroom. Matt could phone the front desk and arrange for an empty room without a problem, but he didn’t actually want to abandon the party. Give him a bed, and he wouldn’t climb from between Janae’s legs until morning.

“Where are we going?” she asked as they strolled along the hall. A few guests from other events passed them as they walked, and Matt nodded a greeting to all.

“Just wait and see,” he said.

He led her to a small room with double doors leading out to a patio. Across the way, he could catch glimpses of the pool through the slats of the fence, but where he took Janae was a private section, not open to the average guest.

A sliding glass door led to a hot tub outside, but Matt ignored it. He didn’t turn up the lights but instead whipped her into his arms in the dark. Janae’s gasp and the bump of her breasts against his chest ignited his desire. He stoked the flames by running a hand down her back and curving it over her ass.

“Janae,” he murmured before he claimed her lips. She tasted like candy, and he deepened the kiss. A gentle push of his tongue into her mouth, and she opened up, allowing him full access. Matt squeezed her ass and dragged her so tight to him he imagined she had to go up on tiptoes. He devoured her mouth until he lost his breath and had to step back to get control.

Janae ran fingertips over his chest. The heels of her palms impacted with his nipples, stiffening them. The movement only reminded him of the enjoyment he could have doing the same with her nipples.

“Let me see them,” he whispered.

“It’s dark.” Her voice came out breathless and a little excited.

“Then let me feel them with nothing between us.”

He sensed rather than saw her take a step back. At first he thought she would chicken out, but he heard a zipper lower. His mouth watered. The next instant Janae’s breasts were in his hands, and he thumbed her nipples. She hadn’t removed the dress entirely but unzipped it enough to slide the dress down her shoulders a little. That allowed him to get a handful those amazing globes.

Matt tugged her closer and squeezed one breast. He kneaded it in his palm and leaned down to take the nipple into his mouth. Janae cried out, but he didn’t let her off the hook. He licked the stiff peak until she shivered, and then he sucked it between his lips.

His baby squirmed, moaning. She almost got away from him, but he captured her and drew her close. Pinning her to his side with one arm around her waist, he sought the hem of her dress with the other hand.

“What are you doing, Matt?” She panted. “Don’t you dare go up there.”

He had never been good at listening when it came to touching her. What stood in front of him was too much temptation, and his logical mind saw no reason to resist. Finding the edge of the dress at the slit, he jerked it upward. The band of her panties met his searching fingers. Bingo, there was the treasure he craved.

“No, Matt, don’t do it,” she moaned.

He stilled his hand. “Are you sure, honey?”

He felt her head move as if she looked up at him. “You’re stopping?”

“You told me no.”

She grabbed his hand and shoved it into her panties. He chuckled. “You’re a bad girl, Janae.”

“Punish me.” Her words were almost a plea. He knew what his woman needed. She longed to come. Her nipples were so sensitive, all he had to do was begin to play with them, and she passed the point of no return.

Matt dipped a finger inside her pussy, and she almost shouted with pleasure.

“Shh, honey, not too loud. Enjoy it, but this is between us.”

“W-we should stop,” she whispered and then moaned.

Matt sank another finger inside her. Too his delight, his beauty spasmed hard. He never imagined she would come so soon. Whenever he teased her little clit, it took time, and he waited patiently for her to reach her peak. Then he realized what made this time different. The danger of possibly being caught had jacked her desire up a thousand times. The tiniest of movement into her wetness, and she exploded.

Janae hung onto him, shaking. “I can’t believe…. I can’t believe…”

Another tremor ran through her, and he wiggled his fingers until she panted her way through the orgasm. When she began to calm down, he withdrew his fingers. At last, she managed to speak.

“I can’t believe I just did that. I never meant to come.”

“You’re apologizing?”

“Well, it’s kind of, I don’t know, common to run off and have sex at a party.”

“Common, huh? So everyone’s doing it?” He knew what she meant, but he was playing dumb because he heard the embarrassment in her tone.

“Never mind. We should clean up and get back.” She started to turn away, but her hand brushed the front of his pants, and she froze. “Oh, crap, it’s not fair to leave you like this, baby. Do you want me to go down on you?”

At that perfect moment with Janae speaking not in a whisper but in a normal tone, the lights came on. They both looked over toward the entrance to find Margaret and Kyler filling the doorway. Janae let out a small shriek, and her hands came up to cover her naked breasts. Matt had no illusion that his family had heard Janae’s offer, especially punctuated by the tent in his pants.

J
anae stood
before the bathroom mirror patting her face with a wet paper towel. She had never been so embarrassed in her whole life, and she had to freakin’ go back out there and look in that sourpuss woman’s face again. A part of her wanted to hide out in the bathroom until the party was over, but she had more spine than that. Really, she had nothing to be ashamed of.

“You tell yourself that,” she said to her reflection, “but it doesn’t stop the instant replay in your head or you wanting to throw up.”

Squaring her shoulders, she tossed the wadded towel in the trash and opened the door. The first person she ran into was Matt. He leaned against the wall opposite the bathroom and straightened when he spotted her. Worry creases between his eyebrows drove her fears away in an instant. Damn, this man was special.

“You okay?” he said.

She flicked her gaze down to his pants. The hard-on was gone, and she smiled. “Yeah, I’m fine. That was so embarrassing.”

He drew her into his arms, but he didn’t hold on long. “I know it bothered you, but don’t think about it. You didn’t do anything wrong, honey.”

“You weren’t embarrassed?”

He shrugged. “Why should I be? I want you as my wife. It’s not like I snuck off with some prostitute.”

“Not if you don’t want me to snip the giblets you won’t.”

He winced.

“I guess we have to go talk to her.” She frowned as they started down the hall. “I don’t believe in trying to impress people, but I did hope she would come around. Damn, I screwed up.”

“I’m the one that dragged you off against your will. I’ve told Margaret that. I admit it was rude to do it at her party, but what’s done is done.”

“You dragged me off?” She snorted. “I was the one who was offering to give you a blowjob when they walked in.”

His eyes glazed over. “Yeah, bad timing.”

She punched his arm.

“I meant for them.”

Janae burst out laughing. “You have no shame.”

Matt skimmed fingers over her nape and drew his hand back quickly. He was having trouble not touching her. When he sighed, she knew she was right. He would be pent up the rest of the night if they couldn’t finish what they started.

“The frightened little doe look is gone,” he said. “That’s better.”

“Excuse me?”

“I don’t ever want you to be afraid, Janae.”

“You’re sweet. I’m not afraid. Just nervous.”

When they entered the ballroom, the party was still in full swing. For some reason she had expected the music to stop dramatically with a scratched sound—which was ridiculous given there were live musicians. She had also figured Margaret or Kyler would go back and tell the other guests. Then everybody would stand around watching them as they entered the room.

None of this happened. Both Matt’s grandmother and his brother chatted with other people, ignoring them as if they didn’t exist. Janae found herself standing around, waiting for it all to end.

At some point, Kyler nodded to Matt, and the two of them moved next to Margaret. Janae stayed where she was, across the room, and sipped a glass of white wine. A waiter appeared at Kyler’s side and handed him a spoon. He used it to tap his glass, and the entire room settled down.

“My brother and I would like to thank everyone for coming. We appreciate you sharing in our celebration of Margaret’s life. In two days, she’ll turn seventy years young. She’s still the most beautiful grandmother and the most wise one a man could ask for.”

Janae waited for someone to gag. She dared not do it herself. Instead, a cheer rose among the guests.” After Kyler’s speech came Matt’s. She watched him and listened to his words. Matt chose to say only what he felt was true. Every sentiment was positive and complimentary, but there was no kissing of Margaret’s ass. This was another reason she loved him. He was always real.

At last the party broke up, and Janae sighed with relief. She found a corner and a chair and sat down to rub her feet. The partiers drifted out of the ballroom, and soon Janae, Matt, his grandmother, and his brother, plus some random cleaning staff were the only ones left.

“Guess it’s now or never,” she said as she stood.

Matt, who had been talking to his brother, walked over to her and took her hand. Together, they approached Margaret. Janae decided to skip straight to the chase rather than hang her head in shame.

“Margaret, I wanted to apologize for what happened earlier. This wasn’t the time or place for Matt and me to—”

The old woman’s thin top lip curled, and her nose wrinkled as if she smelled something. Her blue eyes, which were darker than both Kyler and Matt’s, narrowed at Janae. The wrinkles and cords that made up her neck wobbled, making her look like a turkey. Despite the fact that she hadn’t aged well—Kyler was a good liar—she gave off an air of superiority.

“What happened earlier, Matthew, was an example of why your brother drew up a very careful guest list. The only people who should have been allowed to attend are those who are well-bred and not only have a strong financial and social standing, but they are also careful of maintaining their good reputations.”

Trying to be nice flew out the window. “Are you trying to say I wasn’t brought up right, because that’s a slight against my dad, and I won’t let anyone badmouth him, old lady. If you have something to say to me, don’t talk to Matt as if I’m not here.”

The woman bristled with offense, almost quivering. Ticked off, Janae decided to offend her even further.

“Now, if you’re too afraid of me, then you can say that, too. I’ll try not to take it personally and put it down to how
you
were raised.”

“How dare you!” The sun-spotted, wrinkled hand flew to her chest.

Half a dozen new insults surfaced in Janae’s head. Maybe she was raised some type of way because she had spent quite a lot of time around her dad and the men he worked with. Those guys’ mouths could be as filthy as the street. Janae didn’t speak like she didn’t have a proper education, but she could do it in a heartbeat.

“You filthy—” Margaret began, but Matt interrupted.

“Margaret, I suggest you don’t cross the line.”

Her eyes widened. “You would dare to defy me for this
person
, Matthew?”

He stood calm and collected. “There’s not much I wouldn’t do for Janae, so I’m asking you politely not to insult her.”

“Insult?” Margaret’s complexion turned a mottled mix of red. “
I
have been insulted here. This
woman
has come to my party with the express intention of debasing the entire thing. I should think you would be furious, Matthew, as you and your brother worked very hard to make this a glorious day for me. As far as I’m concerned, my seventieth birthday has been ruined beyond repair.”

“Dramatic much?” Janae said. “For your information, I came to this convoluted-excuse-of-an-event-to-kiss-your-ass against my better judgment. I should have known. What I didn’t do was show up to piss you off. You don’t warrant that much devotion from my life.”

Now Margaret looked like she might faint. Kyler moved in closer to her and wrapped a strong arm about her shoulders. “Matt,” he snapped at his brother.

“Don’t bother.” Janae spun on her heel. “I’m leaving, and you don’t have to worry about seeing my face again.”

She started walking off, her head held high. Matt might want her and his family to get along, but it wasn’t happening. If the old lady croaked before her next birthday, Janae didn’t care.

“So you’re breaking it off with Matt?” Kyler called after her.

She stopped and pivoted on her heel. All three of them stood there together. They belonged with each other, rolling in money, looking like they lived on a plane of existence she couldn’t obtain.

Matt had probably never known a day of worry about where his next meal was coming from in his entire life. For that matter, Margaret probably hadn’t either. Her husband had refurbished an old run down hotel, which was later declared a historical landmark.

Visitors from all over the country came to stay there, and that’s where the family’s fortunes grew. When her husband passed, he deeded the company to Margaret, who learned the business in and out from her husband. Janae thought it was funny how similar her background was to Margaret’s. Both Janae’s dad and Margaret’s husband worked with their hands in bringing new life to old buildings, but Margaret thought she was a superior human being because of her money, while Janae kept struggling.

Never mind about Margaret or her husband, or even Janae’s dad. None of them had anything to do with how she felt about Matt.

“Like hell I will,” she said to Kyler. “I’m not giving Matt up for you or anyone else.”

“You see, Matt?” his brother said. “She is clinging because she wants our money.”

“She’s clinging to me because she loves me.” Matt grinned, staring at Janae. “Good night, Margaret and Kyler.”

“Matthew,” Margaret shouted after him as he caught up with Janae. “You’re not leaving with her? Do you hear me? What about my party?”

“Look around you, Margaret. The party is over. You might command my time when it comes to work, but my personal life is mine.” He turned Janae around, and they headed out the door.

In the hall, she looked over at him. “You know she’s going to get you for this tomorrow. Can you handle it?”

He grinned. “What do you expect her to do?”

“Breathe fire on you and burn off your eyebrows.”

“Honey, are you calling my grandmother a dragon?”

“Are you insulted?”

“No, she was wrong about you. She didn’t give you a chance.” He stopped walking. “Now that I think about it, I don’t believe I stood up for you enough.”

When he would have gone back to the ballroom, she grabbed his arm. “Whoa, slow down there, cowboy. You were fine. I love that you don’t fly off the handle and act like some overbearing animal that has to defend my honor.”

“You mixed caveman with knight there.”

She laughed. “Whatever. You know what I mean. I can take care of myself. I don’t spend my time getting into people’s faces just because they act stupid. I just continue to do what I want to do. You do that, too, and it’s one of the things I love about you.”

“One? What else?” he coaxed.

“I’m not telling you.”

“Why?”

“Because you’ll get a big head.”

“Indulge me.”

“Nope.”

At his car, he unlocked the door, and Janae slid inside. Matt drove a Benz, and the first time she climbed into it, she was amazed at the night and day difference between her economy number and his vehicle. For the heated seats alone, she’d trade her apartment.

She sat back and closed her eyes. Matt slid behind the wheel and started the car. The engine roared to life, but he paused before shifting into drive. “Are you sure you’re okay, honey? I can’t stand the thought of her hurting your feelings. You’re not beneath us in any way. We’re all just human beings. If anything, you’re the most perfect woman I’ve ever met.”

Her heart thumped harder, and she laced her fingers with his. “I’m not perfect, but it gives me the warm and fuzzies just hearing you think that about me. Thank you for loving me, Matt.”

“It’s not a favor.”

“Still. You’re so sweet. Truthfully, I feel like you’re perfect, even though I know you’re not. Maybe I should say you’re perfect for me.”

“I agree.”

“Don’t be too modest.”

He wiggled his eyebrows and then leaned over to kiss her lips. “Beautiful, you’re coming to my house tonight, right?”

“I have an early meeting.”

“I can drive you to work.”

“I can’t go in what I’m wearing.”

“You could, but I don’t want the men ogling you.”

She laughed. “I’m giving you a hard time. I have extra clothes at your place. You know I’m not missing a chance to come over. Next thing you’ll tell me you have to be in Europe for two weeks.”

“I’ll give you notice before that and make sure to love your body sufficiently to hold you over until I get back.”

She snorted. “You mean hold
you
over.”

He shifted gears and pulled out of the parking lot. “Honey, a lifetime isn’t enough of you to hold me over.”