Play Me (24 page)

I grinned even bigger.
“Me too,” I said. “These are my mom’s
recipes, actually.”

“Really?”
Marilyn’s eyes widened. “Was she a chef?”

“Not a
professional one, but she was the best one I ever knew. I took her
basics, gave them my own update—fresher ingredients, playful
pairings, some secret ingredients—and there you go.”

“Well, it looks
like you have a hit.” Marilyn clapped me on the back. “I
knew hiring you was a good idea.”

I caught Dakota’s
gaze from across the room, biting back a laugh when she rolled her
eyes.

“Great work,
everyone,” Marilyn said to the kitchen. “This is going to
be the start of a new Grassfed. Congratulations!”

Everyone applauded and
I felt a swell of pride, not just for my kitchen staff, who had
worked their asses off to make tonight the success it was becoming,
but also for my mother, whose brilliant recipes were getting another
chance to bring happiness to a whole city of people.

But my happiness dimmed
in knowing that not only would she never be able to experience this,
but my dad, the last real connection I had to her, would be blind to
it as well. I had been so caught up in preparing for the week, I
hadn’t even told him it was happening.

“Looks like
Marilyn is finally coming around.” Dakota came over, wiping her
hands on her apron. “I wasn’t sure she’d let you do
your own menu, let alone come in here and congratulate you in front
of the entire staff.”

“One step closer
to opening up my own place,” I told her, and she gave me a
grin.

“Pretty big
moment, huh?”

“Yeah, it’s
alright,” I teased.

“Yeah, no sweat,”
she teased back, but kept grinning at me.

“What?” She
was starting to make me a little nervous. “What did you do?”

“Nothing,”
she said innocently.

“Dakota—”
I warned.

She held up her hands.
“I swear.
I
didn’t do anything.” Somehow
that didn’t make me feel better at all.

Suddenly one of the
servers came into the kitchen.

“Chef.” She
too had a suspicious smile on her face. “Some of the customers
want to compliment the chef.”

It wasn’t unusual
for guests to ask to speak to the chef, but honestly it hadn’t
happened much since I took over from Patricia. But apparently tonight
was the night when anything was possible.

“Okay.” I
gestured to another cook to take over my prep and headed towards the
door.

“Wait.”
Dakota grabbed my arm and gave me a once-over. She sighed. “Why
do you always have to wear such ratty shirts?”

“Why do you
care?” I asked, the nervousness coming back. “What’s
going on?”

But she didn’t
answer, instead reached up to smooth down my hair. I swatted her hand
away.

“Dakota, what are
you not telling me?”

Instead of responding,
she spun me around and pushed me out the doors into the restaurant.

The server hadn’t
told me which table wanted to speak to me, but then I saw her and all
my questions flew out the window.

Ella stood as I
approached and I nearly had a heart attack.

Red. Red from head to
toe. Red lipstick, red shoes and a red dress. And holy shit, what a
dress. It hugged every luscious curve, stopping just above the knee,
giving me a nice view of her gorgeous legs. Her dark hair was loose,
her perfect lips curved in a smile.

“Hi,” she
said as I reached her table.

I didn’t know
what to do. I wanted to grab her, mess up that lipstick, tangle her
hair, and admire the dress as it lay crumpled up on my bedroom floor,
but we were in a very public place, and lots of people were staring
at us. Including Ella’s dinner date.

I did a double take.

“Dad?”

He stood, his napkin
twisted in his hand.

“Jake.” He
looked nervous.

“I called him,”
Ella explained.

“I’m glad
she did,” my dad said, gesturing towards the table. “Your
food was delicious.” The surface was covered with empty plates.
“It reminded me of—”

“Mom,” I
finished for him. “They’re her recipes.”

“But yours too,”
He gave me a smile. “I can tell.”

“I wanted to do
something that she would be proud of.”

“She would be.”
My dad had tears in his eyes. “And I’m proud of you too.”

I was suddenly
overwhelmed with emotion, and grateful that Ella had brought my dad
here tonight. It was an amazing gift.

“Thanks, Dad,”
I told him, feeling closer to him then I had in years.

“I’m sorry
I haven’t been very supportive,” he said gruffly.

“It’s
okay.” And it was.

One of the servers came
by and whispered in my ear. “Dakota says you should take your
break now.”

I looked up and saw
Dakota and half of the kitchen staff peering out through the kitchen
window. I shot them a look and they scattered, except for Dakota who
gave me a thumbs up.

“I’m
guessing she had something to do with this?” I asked Ella, who
looked a little sheepish.

“She got me your
dad’s number.”

“Thank you,”
I told her, leaning in to kiss her on the cheek. “You look
amazing.”

“Thank you.”
She blushed and my heart did a little flip flop. God, how I loved it
when she blushed.

“And thank you
for the soup,” she told me. “It really helped.”

I swelled with
pleasure. I loved everything about her. I loved her. Wait. What? The
realization hit me like a punch in the gut. Holy shit. I loved her. I
loved Ella. Completely. Utterly. But before I could do anything about
it, she gestured for me to take a seat.

“I’m going
to let you guys catch up.”

“You’re not
going to stay?” I asked, surprised, and still reeling from my
realization.

She shook her head.
“You two probably have a lot to talk about.” Leaning over
she dropped a kiss on my forehead. “I’ll be waiting for
you when you get off,” she murmured.

My heart went soft and
my cock got rock hard as I watched her walk out of the restaurant,
turning heads as she went. Back off, world. This one is all mine.

Ella

It was the one night I
didn’t mind waiting. Okay, that was a lie. I was jumping out of
my skin waiting for Jake’s feet outside my door, but I
understood why I was waiting. He needed time with his dad, with his
staff, even with himself, to take in everything that had happened
that night. Tonight had been an important moment in his life. And
sometimes it took time to process that. So I could wait.

But it was barely after
one a.m., just after closing, when the door to my apartment flew
open, and there was Jake, breathless and gorgeous.

I rose from the piano
as he slammed the door behind him. I was still wearing the red dress.
He didn’t say a word as he strode across the room, his eyes
blazing, and took me in his arms.

His mouth was hot and
desperate against mine, and he kissed me as if I was a well of water
and he was dying of thirst. His hands were everywhere, sliding
through my hair, clutching my ass, cupping my breasts. My lips parted
for him, my tongue seeking his, a moan escaping me when they finally
tangled together. I was dizzy with desire.

We broke apart, both
gasping for breath.

“You damn near
killed me with that dress,” Jake growled, his hands holding my
hips tight against his. I could feel him, that hard, wonderful
length, straining against his jeans.

Even though I was
wearing heels, I still had to lift myself on my toes to whisper in
his ear.

“And you haven’t
even seen what I’m wearing underneath,” I purred and
nipped at his earlobe.

“Fuck . . . ”
he groaned, then captured my mouth with his.

While his tongue
tangled with mine, his hand moved up my back to the zipper of the
dress. But I only allowed him to ease down halfway before I pulled
back. I had a plan.

“First things
first,” I told him, as I steered him to the piano. “Sit,”
I ordered, directing him to the bench.

He did, the hard line
of his cock evident through his well-worn jeans. He arched an eyebrow
at me, and leaned back against the closed piano.

“I missed you,”
I confessed to him.

Jake’s face
softened. “I missed you too, baby.”

Even though I had stood
in front of him, completely naked, in that moment, I felt utterly
exposed. I knew what I wanted. Was I brave enough to ask for it?

“No one ever had
faith in me,” I told him. “Not the way that you did. And
no one has ever seen me the way you do. Mark—” I
swallowed. “Mark always told me that our problems were because
of me. That I didn’t enjoy sex because there was something
wrong with me.”

Jake frowned and I saw
his fists clench. “That jerk,” he muttered.

I reached out and
pushed back a strand of hair that had fallen onto his forehead. “But
I know now that he was wrong. About everything. And that’s
because of you.”

“I just helped
you see what was already there.” Jake took my hand and linked
his fingers with mine. “I’m sorry I was a jerk.”

I smiled at him. “I’m
sorry I didn’t listen.” I took a deep breath. “I
don’t know what this is, but I’m not ready for it to
end.”

“Good.”
Jake smiled. “Me neither.” Then his smile went wicked.
“Though I am ready to see what you’ve got on underneath
that sexy red dress.”

“Oh you are?”
I teased, just slightly lifting the hem, giving him a peek of the top
of my stockings.

“You have no idea
how ready.”

Smiling, I reached back
and slid the zipper all the way down. Then I let the red fabric fall
from my shoulders and flutter down to the floor, leaving me in
nothing but lingerie and heels.

“Holy shit,”
Jake let out a whistle as he took in my black stockings, black
garters, black lace thong, and black satin corset. It cinched my
waist, exaggerating the slope of my hips and giving my breasts some
impressive cleavage.

“I was right,”
Jake murmured. “You are going to kill me with sex. And I don’t
care at all.”

His eyes were sweeping
up and down my body, his gaze so hot I could feel my skin burning.

“You wanna
touch?” I ran a hand along the side of my breast, letting my
hair sweep back over my shoulder.

“Not touch.”
Jake stood and came towards me. “Worship.”

Kneeling in front of
me, I could feel his breath on the top of my thighs as he slowly
unhooked my garters and drew each stocking down my leg. I placed a
hand on his shoulder to step out of my shoes while he removed my
stockings.

“Ah-ah-ah,”
Jake chided. “The shoes stay on.”

He slid his hands up
the sides of my legs, the sensation so light that it tickled in the
most delicious way. His fingers curled up over my ass and found the
waistband of my thong.

“Beautiful,”
he murmured. “But they have to go.”

They had barely reached
the floor before I felt his tongue on me, sweeping against my clit as
his hands clutched my ass.

I moaned, my fingers
reaching down and curling in his hair. Shockwaves of pleasure
radiated through me as he licked inside me, his mouth doing exactly
what he had promised: worshipping me. My toes curled in my shoes as
his hot mouth brought me to the edge, and just as I teetered there,
he slid his finger inside me.

“Oh god.” I
bit my lip as he stroked me, sensations curling in my belly. He
touched me in a way that no one had before him and I was becoming
accustomed to this endless pleasure. Greedy for it. I pulled him
closer and could feel him smile against my clit. His tongue went deep
inside me, his hand cupping my ass, as his fingers and mouth drove me
over the edge. Stars exploded behind my eyes.

My orgasm hit hard, and
I threw back my head as ecstasy rippled through my body, Jake’s
name caught in my throat. Beneath me, my legs gave way and I
collapsed, quickly captured in Jake’s arms, his mouth hard
against mine. I tasted myself on his tongue and the intimacy of it
made me shudder.

Jake pulled me to my
feet, drawing my body against his, his tongue tangled with mine.
Breaking away, he looked back over his shoulder at my piano.

“Have I ever told
you about my fantasy about fucking you on top of a piano?”

I arched an eyebrow at
him. “Who do you think you are, Christian Gray? What’s
next? The red room of pain?”

He laughed and gave my
naked ass a swat.

“Baby, you have
no idea what’s next.” Lifting me into his arms, he
carried me to my bed, laying me across the sheets. “Now, as
much I love this get-up,” he said, gesturing towards my corset,
“it’s time for it to go.”

I gave him a wink and
rolled over onto my stomach, showing him the silk laces on the back.

He groaned. “Death
by sex and black lingerie.” He gave the slippery bow a tug and
I felt the entire thing loosen. It didn’t take long for the
entire thing to be discarded on my bedroom floor, Jake’s hand
smoothing down my bare back to my ass.

I peered up at him,
through the curtain of hair that had fallen into my eyes.

“I think you’re
overdressed,” I told him, pushing back until I was on my knees,
my red heels still on. I ran my hands up his chest, feeling the heat
of his skin through the thin cotton of his shirt.

“How attached are
you to this shirt?” I asked, finding a small hole up towards
the neck.

“Not attached at
all.” His eyes were still staring at my naked body, kneeling in
front of him.

“Good.” I
grinned and, slipping my fingers through the torn hole, gave it a
strong yank. The shirt ripped straight down the middle, revealing
Jake’s gorgeous, tattooed chest. “I’ve been wanting
to do that for a while now,” I murmured, pressing my lips
against his neck before dropping kisses downward.