Nautier and Wilder (18 page)

SIX

E
lena had been right. As soon as she and Jed had walked into the conference room where
the business association was meeting, every set of female eyes had zeroed in on Jed.

Of course they would, since many of the men in attendance were overweight, middle-aged,
balding, or married. The pickings for single women were slim to none, so bring in
a hot young guy like Jed and any available woman—hell, even the unavailable ones—started
salivating.

She’d like to think she wouldn’t have pounced on him like the current pack of circling
wolves. She was focused on her business, not trying to find a man. She ran into good-looking
available men all the time and her pulse didn’t jump in the least.

Until she’d met Jed.

Poor guy. He was surrounded, though seemed to be holding his own, drink in hand, engaged
in conversation with no less than six women. Every one of said women were doing the
hair flipping, lip licking and lash batting like tomorrow was Armageddon and tonight
was their last chance to get laid.

And these were solid, upstanding, levelheaded businesswomen, many of whom were her
friends. She didn’t understand how the presence of hot testosterone could reduce them
to fourteen-year-olds.

Then again, as she watched Jed slide one hand into his pocket and affect a casual
stance, then laugh at something one of them said, maybe she did understand it. There
was something about him that captured her like no man ever had before. Part of her
wanted to storm into the middle of the pack and plant her mark on him, to declare
him off-limits to the rest of the sex-starved she-wolves before any of them got their
claws into him.

Wow.
Get fucked recently, Elena
?

No, and that was obviously her problem.

“Who’s the guy?”

She looked up to see Todd Bishop next to her. “Jed Templeton. Just moved into town.”

“Boyfriend?”

She laughed. “No. He installed a new security alarm in my shop so I offered to bring
him with me to the meeting tonight and introduce him around. He’s trying to get his
new business off the ground, and with the recent string of burglaries in the area,
I figured he could meet some of the owners.”

“Huh,” was all that Todd said, no doubt irritated to be usurped as resident cock of
the block. One of the few decent-looking single men in the association, Todd was usually
popular, but he was a manwhore, and rumor had it he’d slept with quite a few of the
available women in the group. He’d tried a few times to get Elena to go out with him.
She’d always declined.

He was good-looking—tall, with dark brown hair and a great build. The problem was,
he knew it and made no bones about the fact that he enjoyed the single life, which
normally wouldn’t bother her, but she hated his attitude toward women. He owned several
car dealerships in the area and he had the whole slick salesman mantra down a little
too well for her liking.

“We have a good alarm system already,” was all Todd said.

“That’s what I thought, too, until my shop got hit last night.”

Todd raised a brow. “You did? That’s too bad. Did they take a lot?”

“A few pieces of jewelry. Made a mess of the shop.”

He picked up her hand. “I’m so sorry, Elena. I should introduce you to our security
team. They’re the best around.”

“That’s nice of you, Todd, but as I told you, Jed installed a new system today, so
I’m up and running again.”

His gaze narrowed. “But you’re not dating him, right? Because there’s this weekend
trip to Orlando I’d love to take you on.”

Ugh. How many times was she going to have to tell him no before it sank into his thick,
Neanderthal head?

“Actually, she’s dating me.”

Shocked, Elena could only stare as Jed moved around Todd and put his arm around her
waist. He put his hand out. “Jed Templeton. And you are?”

Todd didn’t look at all happy, but shook Jed’s hand. “Todd Bishop.”

“Of Bishop Motors? I’ve seen your dealerships all over the place.”

That puffed Todd’s chest out. “Yes, that’s me.”

Really, it was Todd’s father who owned all the dealerships and had all the money.
Todd was just good at spending it and putting his perfect hair and football player
body and God only knew how many thousands of dollars in orthodontia to get those perfect
teeth in front of the camera to do the commercials she saw on television every day.

“Business must be great for you,” Jed said, affecting a casual, couldn’t-give-a-shit
stance.

Todd nodded. “We do all right. So you have an alarm company?”

“Alarm and security services.” Jed pulled out his card. “If there’s anything we can
do for you, just let me know.”

“We have a good security team of our own. Been in business for over fifty years and
haven’t lost a car yet.”

“That’s great.” Jed pulled Elena closer to him.

Todd got the message. “Well, I think I’ll see what kind of food they have on hand.
Elena, I’ll talk to you later.”

“Bye, Todd.”

“Nice guy,” Jed said after he left.

“He’s a dick.”

Jed laughed. “Someone you’ve dated?”

She cast him a horrified look. “Bite your tongue. I have standards.”

“Good to know.”

“How about you? Make any dates with your new female fan club?”

“They’re all very nice.”

“Uh-huh. You didn’t answer my question.”

He led her over to the table where the food was being served. “I’m starving. How about
you?”

She tilted her head back and studied his face. “Avoidance and poker face. Now you
have me worried. You have to be careful with those women, you know.”

“So you’re jealous. I like that.”

“I’m not jealous. Should I be, given that you and I are apparently dating?”

He laughed at her reminder of his declaration to Todd. “Nope. I’m all yours, totally
devoted.”

She rolled her eyes. “I give up. You’re on your own.”

He took a plate and handed it to her, then got one for himself and leaned in to whisper
against her ear. “I’m here with you. I want to be with you, not them.”

She felt ridiculous for the spot of jealousy. “I really hate you right now.”

He slipped an arm around her middle and tugged her against him. “No, you don’t. You
think I’m charming.”

“I think you’re a pain in the ass and I regret bringing you here.”

He laughed, the low rumble vibrating through her body. “I’ll make sure I’m appropriately
grateful the entire night.”

She shook her head, filled her plate and did her best to ignore him, which was difficult
considering the death stares she received from all the women who she was certain would
gladly change places with her.

The speaker during dinner was from the local police, a last-minute fill-in for the
president of their local chamber of commerce, who asked them to talk about the burglaries
in their area. The detective from the burglary division spoke to them about being
vigilant and aware of any usual activity or people hanging around their establishments,
as well as making sure their security systems were up to date.

Elena leaned over to Jed. “This will be a great opportunity for you.”

Jed smiled at her.

After the presentation, Elena took Jed around and introduced him to as many of the
local business owners as she could. There were several that appeared interested in
upgrading their systems, so they took his card. By the end of the night, Elena was
certain he had at least two or three new sales. She beamed, glad she was able to help
him out. He was even taking calls on their way out, so it seemed his new business
was already starting to take hold.

“I hope you get a lot of business out of this,” she said as they left the hotel.

He seemed distracted, looking outside to the parking lot. “Yeah, it should be great.”

Odd that Jed didn’t seem nearly as excited as she was for him.

“Jed. You do want new business, right?”

That snapped his attention back to her. “What? Oh, sure I do. Thanks for bringing
me along. This really helps a lot. You ready to go?”

He didn’t sound excited. They headed outside to the parking lot. She rolled her eyes
and dug into her purse for her keys. Men were so hard to figure out.

His fingers were on hers and she hadn’t even realized he was behind her.

“Mind if I drive?”

She tilted her head back. “Is this a male thing? You can’t stand to let a woman drive
you?”

“No, it’s an ‘I want to get my hands on your engine’ thing.”

She turned around and cocked a brow. “Is that a euphemism for sex?”

“Well, it wasn’t, but now that you mention it . . .”

She laughed and dropped the keys in his hand. “One scratch and you pay for it, and
this baby’s a classic.”

“Don’t I know it.”

He started up the Chevelle, and Elena watched as he closed his eyes.

“What are you doing?”

“Shhh. . . . I’m listening to her purr.”

“Stop that or I’ll get jealous.”

His lips curved and he put the car in gear and drove off, giving the car just enough
gas to make the ride a thrill. As she suspected, he didn’t take her right home, instead
drove north, taking them for a ride parallel to the shore. The night was cool, but
the windows were down, the car was rocking and she was with a man who knew exactly
what to do when he manhandled all the horsepower of the Chevelle. He let her loose
and pressed on the gas and they went flying.

For the first time in as long as she could remember, Elena sat back and let someone
else do the driving. She enjoyed every minute of the wind in her hair, the salty smack
of ocean breeze on her face and the beauty of a man’s chiseled features in the driver’s
seat.

He pulled in front of an empty stretch of beach and parked, leaving the radio tuned
in to the oldies station.

She took off her seat belt and half turned to face him. “This is very sixties, park
and make out.”

He turned and put his arm over the seat. “Really? I thought you’d never ask.”

She laughed. “Yeah, except for the bucket seats.”

He cast his gaze behind him. “These bucket seats are plenty big enough.”

“Are you serious?”

“You never made out in the car?”

“No.”

“What a shame. This is a great make-out car.”

She rolled her eyes. “Wouldn’t it be more comfortable to go to my place?”

“Where’s your sense of adventure, Elena?”

“My mother lives the life of adventure. I’m more into being normal.”

“You mentioned your mother before. What’s up with her?”

“She’s a leftover hippie from the sixties who never grew up.”

He nodded, and reached for a strand of her hair that had fallen over her shoulder.
“I see. And you’re the staid, grounded polar opposite of your mother.”

“Exactly.”

He leaned over and swept his hand behind her head, cupping the nape of her neck. “I’m
going to kiss you now. In your car, right here on the beach.”

His breath swept across her cheek, and her lips parted. He pressed his mouth to hers—a
soft, gentle kiss that made her breath catch, made her want more. She reached for
him, pulling at his shirt to draw him closer, wanting to feel his warmth, his body
against hers.

He dragged her across the seat to his side of the car. Suddenly she was straddling
his lap, and the kiss had deepened.

This was so not her. She did not make out with men in the front seat of a Chevelle.
On the beach, no less. No, she was boring and predictable. Men brought her home and
they had a glass of wine and conversation, and then they kissed and moved into the
bedroom, where they had . . .

Boring, predictable sex, whereas Jed was rocking her ever-loving world right now.
His fingers dove into her hair, removing the barrette she’d put into her hair to hold
it back. He rested his hand on her neck while he kissed her, and she could feel her
pulse pounding against his fingers. All she could think about was his mouth and his
tongue and how amazingly talented he was at deep, soulful kisses. She laid her hands
on his shoulders, and wow, he was just solid muscle everywhere.

He swept his hands down her back and she shivered. He lifted his lips from hers and
the goose bumps intensified at the blatant desire reflected in the dark blue of his
eyes.

“Cold?” he asked.

She shook her head. “No, but do you really think we should be doing this here?”

There went that smile again. Cocky, self-assured. “Where do you think we should be
doing this?”

“My apartment.”

He swept his thumb across her bottom lip. “You like to play it safe.”

“And you’re just a little dangerous.”

He moved his hands down the sides of her rib cage and let them rest on her hips. “So
if you’ve never made out in your car, you’ve probably never had sex in it, either.”

The thought of it, the images it evoked, were more than her already fried brain could
handle. “No.”

He squeezed the flesh of her hips, and she bit back a moan. When he started to raise
her dress, her panties went damp, and her body undulated against him. A total involuntary
response to being on top of a very hot—and very hard—male.

His lips quirked. He lifted against her, his erection pressing against her sex. “I
could make you come without even undressing you, Elena. You’d be perfectly safe.”

Her lips parted and she let out a soft gasp. How long had it been since she’d had
an orgasm? A while, and too damn long for one that hadn’t been self-induced. “I don’t
think that would be a good idea.”

“You don’t like sex?” His fingers played along the hem of her dress, sliding an inch
or so underneath.

She swallowed, her throat gone dry. “I like sex just fine.”

He kept his focus on her face as his fingers continued to dance upward, along the
front of her thigh, then inward. “Fine? Oh, sex needs to be more than fine. It needs
to be great. Awesome. The best damn thing you’ve ever had.”

His thumb teased the edge of her panties, sliding so near her pussy she thought she
was going to die. Her muscles were so tense her legs trembled.