Just to be Left Alone (19 page)

“I
don’t want to let it ruin our night, but Jason called again. He acted all
injured and then started ranting. He hung up on me. And before you ask, yes, I
left a message for Montrose about it,” I sighed. “He makes me realize how
blessed I am to have a great guy like you.”

I
gave him a quick kiss before running over to the passenger side of the truck.
He stopped me as he got out of the drivers side.

“If
you’re going to be driving the truck for a couple of days, you might as well
start getting used to it now.”

He
smiled as he tossed the keys to me over the front bumper. Catching them, I
smiled as I walked back over to the driver’s side. He grabbed me as soon as I
got there and kissed my lips before trailing his lips over my chin and down my
throat column. I sighed as he slid his moist tongue over the sensitive spot at
my collar bone. I could have melted right there in the parking lot. I shut my
eyes, but saw something in my peripheral vision that made me look again.

“What?”
Conrad asked as he moved to look around.

“I
could have sworn I saw someone over there just now,” I said as I pointed at the
side of the building.

Conrad
looked around and shook his head before putting the keys in my hand.

“I
don’t see anyone, but my kisses can make a girl hallucinate.”

He
ducked past my playful swing as he headed for the passenger side.
 
I shook my head as I scanned the parking lot
again. No one was there so I slid behind the wheel.

Conrad’s
hand was on my thigh as I drove to the sandwich shop on the way to the cabin.
There was a car behind me at every turn, but I was distracted by Conrad’s hand
rubbing a warm path up and down the inside of my thigh. With this traffic, I
had to keep focused to keep from running off the road.

We
made it to our destination without any close calls and my stomach was
definitely growling. Grabbing the keys and my bag, I ran into the cozy shop as
Conrad went to pull me into his arms. I laughed when he caught up to me as the
hostess showed up. She didn’t know why we were laughing so hard, but she
couldn’t miss Conrad patting my rear end as we were seated. I was blushing as I
told her what I wanted.

Knowing
I wanted a little something from someone sitting close to me was enough to make
me swallow my tongue. I decided to return the favor and just as he was placing
his order, I raked my fingernails up the inside of his thigh and he sputtered
before clamping his legs together around my hand. I just couldn’t quit smiling
as the waitress took the menus and walked away quickly.

“You
dirty little girl. You haven’t even bought me dinner and you’re already feeling
me up.”

His
fingers locked around my wrist as he flexed his thigh muscles. I could feel
them contracting under my palm and imagined them around my body in the same
manner. I had a permanent blush and he had a permanent hard on. I stared so
deeply into his eyes that I didn’t even look at the waitress when she came back
with our iced teas. I did hear her chuckle as she quickly walked away again.
Apparently, we were letting everyone know exactly how we felt about each other.
I didn’t care.
 

I
dared to push my hand higher until my wrist was against his erection. His
breath caught. I smiled at the thought of me affecting him this way. The lock
he had on my hand gentled as he opened his legs just enough to place my open
palm fully on his erection. I never took my eyes from his.

“You
started this in the truck,” I said slowly.

He
cleared his throat before whispering, “If I could I would finish it right here,
right now, in front of all these people. The cops would be called and your mug
shot would show ketchup on your face and lettuce in your hair.”

I
lifted my palm and gently smacked him on the knee as I reached for my iced tea.
I suddenly needed something cool for the heat coming from my body. How could this
man affect me so? If this was how Chastity feels with her guys, then that would
explain why she’s so open about sex. I wasn’t a virgin, but I also hadn’t been
around the block.

Conrad
asked, “Are you thinking dirty thoughts?”

“Yes,
but not about you.”

He
acted hurt for all of a second before pulling me close as our food arrived.

“Just
for that, I think you should pay for dinner and take me home without even a
kiss goodnight.”

“You’d
actually make me leave like that?”

I
trailed my open mouth across his cheek bone and kept whispering, “You’d leave
me with no kiss or feeling of warmth as I drove all the way home by myself?”

By
the time I got to his mouth, it trembled. I placed an open mouth kiss on his
bottom lip and ever so slowly slipped back into place as the waitress quietly
placed our food in front of us. He blinked a couple of times, adjusted his
pants and didn’t say a word as he picked up his spoon to eat his soup.

I
smiled to myself at the small torture I could inflict on this strong man. Now,
that was female power. I covertly glanced at him while I ate my food.

After
we quietly ate, I grabbed the bill, paid it and with the keys in my hand I
headed back out into the parking lot. Conrad was stone faced as I drove back to
his place and I started to wonder if I had gone too far and offended him in
some way. I was a mess of nerves by the time I put the truck into park outside
his front door. The time ticked by as he unbuckled and reached for the console.
I thought he was going to get out any items he needed so I unbuckled to get
out. Before I knew what had happened the console was flipped up and I was
dragged across the seat. I was lying across his lap with one of his legs on
each side of me and had no idea how I had gotten there, staring right into his
eyes. I just blinked.

Then
I saw it, the little quirk in his cheek as he tried not to smile. I drew a
breath and reached up to him, but was held tight against his body as his mouth
started to ravage mine in an almost brutal kiss. He was tight against me with
nowhere to go and I had nothing to do but enjoy the moment. Kissing him just as
he was kissing me, I felt bruised but exhilarated as it kept going on and on. I
don’t even think I was breathing, just feeling.

He
placed my hands on his thighs, but never broke the contact of our mouths. He
was a starving man who fed off what I could give him. Tongues dueled and
fingers clenched until, finally, he let go of my mouth to take a deep breath.

“That’s
what you get for pulling the tigers tail a little too much, young lady.”

He
wasn’t smiling, but I knew he wasn’t mad.

“You
think you should leave me like this after all I’ve done for you?”

I
didn’t know whether he was joking or serious, but to say no would physically
hurt me. Thankfully he took the chance away from me as he gently pushed me back
to an upright position.

“Now
when you joke with me you need to know I have limits. I’m a red blooded man
with needs. I love touching and kissing you, but if we’re going to take this
slow, you’ll have to be a little more sensitive to my pains.”

Swallowing,
I nodded my head and tried to think of something appropriate to say, but he
smiled that boyish grin and gave me a quick kiss as he jumped out of the truck.
What? He was playing with me again. I jumped out of the truck, almost
forgetting my bag and went after him. By the time I got in the kitchen, he was
up against the counter, laughing at me.

“Sometimes
I don’t know how to take some of the things you say. Are you messing with me or
pretending to be Jason?”

I
tossed my bag on the table and slumped against the counter opposite him. His
face fell. He stopped laughing.

“Look,
I’m sorry about that. I thought you should get a taste of your own medicine
when it came to lighting my internal flame. What makes you so mad that you
would compare me to him?”

I
felt tension leaving my body.

“No,
I’m the one who’s sorry. That was uncalled for and you’re nothing like him. I
just saw you flip personalities like he did with me and it triggered something
in me. Please don’t hold this against me. You had me so high and then it felt
like you were slamming me down. I should’ve known that wasn’t your intention.”

I
hung my head in shame. I felt his hand on my chin as he nudged me to look at
him.

“What
ever he’s done to you, remember that I will never be like him. I’m sorry that I
did that and only meant it as a fun lesson, but got a little too caught up in
what I was feeling to handle it correctly. I wanted so badly to make you mine
that the mean little fly monster got the best of me. If you want, I’ll totally
back off from touching you, just let me know.”

I
knew by the look in his eyes that he meant that and I appreciated his small
sacrifice, but it wasn’t needed.

“I
understand where the line is drawn and will be more careful in the future, but
please don’t stop touching me or kissing me. I have come to crave these things
and don’t want to have to go cold turkey when I’m feeling things I’ve never
felt before. Can we meet half way?” I asked as I rubbed his wrist with my
thumb.

“There
is a lot of middle ground we can cover without crossing that line. I’ll be
willing to put myself through pain and cold showers if you can do the same.”

I
kissed the palm of his hand and saw the spark in his eye.

“See,
that wasn’t so bad. We just had our first disagreement and it was over getting
each other horny. Some couples should have it so good,” he smiled at me before
setting me away from his body with a frown. “Now you need to stay this far away
from me before I either jump you again or have to stop our conversation to take
that cold shower I mentioned. Would you like to watch a movie or go back to
your lonely place to sleep in an empty, cold bed?”

“You
make it sound so appealing, but yes, I need to get home. I’d love to stay here
and try to get you to jump me, but I don’t think I’d make it to work tomorrow
if I did.”

“You’re
half right on that, so I’ll let you go now while you’re not touching me. You
enjoy that cold, empty bed and think of me.”

“I’ll
think of you as I strip off and warm up that cold empty bed. Remember, I do
have someone waiting there for me.”

He
grabbed me to him and gave me a hard, sound kiss on my closed mouth.

“You’re
lucky I know it’s a cat or I’d make you stay here. Now with that picture of you
naked in bed, how am I supposed to get any sleep?” He groaned with a smile.

“You
have a bed waiting for you plus a cold shower to boot. I’ll call you when I get
to my place so you don’t worry about your precious truck.”

Grabbing
up my bag I headed for the door.

“The
truck can rot. I just want the chick driving it. I’m not going to sleep a wink
tonight, you fiend,” I heard him call after me as I made it out the door and
back into the truck.

I
sang to myself all the way home and was pretty content as I reached for the
phone to call Conrad.

“Hey,
babe. We both made it home and I’m about to be ambushed by my lonely roommate,”
I said as Bella meowed loudly as she bounded off the bed toward me.

“I
hear her and you better make sure she’s fed before she takes a chunk out of
you. Now get your things taken care of and get some sleep. I’ll call you
tomorrow between breaks. Good night, sweetheart.”

I
said the same ending to him and smiled the rest of the night. Bella wasn’t the
only one happy with her cream.

Chapter Eleven

Wednesday
morning I had to remind myself to get into the truck instead of the Jeep. I
inhaled as soon as I got in and hoped I would carry his scent on me the rest of
the day.

The
mechanic called after a couple of hours and had good news. It seemed that the
corrosion was contained mostly to the hoses and clamps alone with no further
damage to the body. Thankfully, the rain had washed away anything that would
have damaged it further.

He
had the parts ordered and should have them by the close of business. With a
little hope, I could pick the Jeep up tomorrow on my way home. I was glad to
get the news, even though I had a ride for the next couple of days.

I
looked at the weather on my computer and it showed sunny days for the rest of
the week, so Conrad would be fine on the bike that long. I left him a message
about my news and told him to just call me back when he had a free moment. I
knew he had to work on two pieces today plus run the place by himself with his
boss off for a mini vacation.

The
repairs at work were going well and we would open up on time with the way
things were progressing. The day went by swiftly and the only hitch was when
Jason called again to see if my vehicle was ready yet.

“Hey,
honey. I only have a second, but I wanted to see if you were picking up the Jeep
today.”

“No,
I got it covered. Thanks for calling.”

I
went to hang up, but I heard him yell out and mistakenly put it back to my ear.

“Yes?”

“You
don’t have to go so quickly, can’t I talk to you for a second?” He whined.

“We’re
both pretty busy, so I’ll let you go. Thanks for calling.”

I
hung up with him still trying to talk to me. Just the part of him calling me
honey had my teeth on edge. Putting it out of my mind, I got back to work.

At
five fifteen I was headed home to get some laundry done. An hour into laundry I
decided to check in with Chaz.

“Chaz,
how are things with Parker? Have you gotten him to actually spend the night
yet?” I inquired.

“No.
How did you know I was battling with that?” She sounded kind of perturbed.

“I
haven’t heard any tales of all night sex, so I figured something was up.”