Race to Redemption (3 page)

Chapter Four

The coffee shop was open 24 hours, like much of New York City. It was well-lit, clean, and mostly empty. Trey brought two huge steaming mugs to the table and set one in front of Chloe.

“So why the coffee shop?” Chloe said, dumping cream in her mug and stirring.

“I need to clear my head,” he said.

She sighed. “I guess I shouldn’t have been so provocative. I didn’t think it would be a problem.”

“It shouldn’t have been. I can dance with a woman without things turning physical.”

“Are you sorry there’s a mutual attraction between us? Because I know I’m not as sexy as those other girls at the club.”

“Don’t ever say that,” he growled. He closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths. “I’m sorry. No, I’m not sorry I’m attracted to you and you are every bit as sexy as those other girls, and a hundred times classier.”

“Classy. Right. Small town is just so elegant and sophisticated.”

“At least you weren’t falling out of your dress,” he shot back.

“Yeah, maybe I should get a sexier dress.”

“No.”

“Why not? I’m dressed like a saint compared to those girls.”

“I don’t want to give those perverts in the bar any more reason to be chasing you, and I don’t want other men staring at you with that ‘I’d fuck her’ look in their eyes.”

Her coffee cup paused just before her lips and her eye brows arched.

He dropped his shades on the table and ran both hands through his hair. “I’m sorry, that must sound scary possessive or something.”

“Well, you did sound a little like my father with the whole ‘no sexy clothing’ thing.”

“Great, because that’s what I need right now.” He inhaled deep and let it out with a whoosh. “Okay, maybe I should start at the beginning and try to explain myself. I’ve slept with my fair share of women, it comes with the territory of my job.”

“Just like getting into a packed club and lying about your name?”

“My middle name is Michael. Does that make it any better?”

“A little bit. Please, go on.”

“Okay, when I saw you on the curb I thought you were sexy but I didn’t set out to seduce you. I’m tired of one night stands with women who don’t give a shit about me so I was planning just to go to the club, have a few beers, do a little dancing and head back alone. Then I saw you and thought ‘what the hell, why not be a gentleman for a change and show a girl a good time that doesn’t involve a bed’. And I’m not trying to drag you into some sort of creepy guilt-ride relationship by telling you all this.”

“I’m not getting any creepy pervert vibes from you so stop worrying.”

His smile was grateful. “You’re not like other girls, and it’s probably because you are from a small town. I got seduced by you, without you trying, and against my better judgement.”

“I’m flattered. Mike, I wasn’t lying, I was very attracted to you and sex was looking like a great way to end a great night. But you are just about the sweetest, most respectful man I’ve ever met, even coming from a small town, so if you’re not interested in a one night stand what choice to I have but to respect that. Of course I’d like to get to know you better.”

“You’re not just saying that to get me into bed?”

“Just? No. But I’m holding out hope.”

He returned her smile. “If you’re done your coffee we could head back to the hotel and get to know each other better.”

“Is it okay to be physically attracted to each other now?”

He nodded.

“Then I think I’d like that very much.”

* * * *

They slipped unnoticed through the crowded lobby, holding hands. He took them up to the seventeenth floor but paused outside the room. “Are you sure about this?”

She untangled her fingers from his and touched his face. “I’m sure.”

His room was identical to hers, except for the prints on the wall. Her room had streetscapes of some European city—all cobblestone roads and brick-faced buildings at odd angles. His had some lovely rustic forest images that looked painted instead of photographed, though of course they were prints, not paintings. She was examining the one beside the bathroom door when he said, “I guess I can’t offer you a coffee.”

She laughed. “No, I’ve exceeded my daily caffeine intake already.”

“I have decaf.”

“What’s the point in that? No, I’m good.”

He took her in his arms and smiled down at her. “So, you don’t like decaf coffee.”

“I don’t like non-fat yogurt or reduced salt potato chips either. If I’m going to indulge I like to go all out.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” he said, a mischievous twinkle in his eyes.

“What about you?” she asked as she ran her hands down his chest. “Do you have any vices?”

“Oh, I’m just your regular, run-of-the-mill, bad boy: dangerous, mysterious…”

“Oooh, I’m so impressed,” she smirked.

He kissed her and she melted in his arms. When he pulled back she said, “I could get used to that.”

“Good.” In one smooth swift motion he scooped her up and carried her over to the bed while she giggled.

“How romantic,” she said, stretching out on the bed.

“You look like a pin-up girl.” He sat down next to her and caressed her face before leaning down and kissing her. She wrapped her arms around his neck moving the kiss towards passionate but he slipped free.

“What’s wrong?”

There was no impatience or irritation in her voice and after all his hesitating and stalling he certainly deserved both. He smiled at her, his heart softening a little more for this small town woman who was so unlike any of the women who had thrown themselves at him in the last two years. “Nothing’s wrong, Chloe. I just want to take my time getting to know every inch of you.”

His caress moved from her face to the slender curve of her neck and along the low v-collar of her dress. His other hand brushed along her leg, up to the hem of her skirt and down again. She closed her eyes and visibly relaxed.

“How do I get you out of this?” he asked, tugging on the sleeve of her dress.

“The zipper’s on the back,” she murmured.

“Then roll over.”

She obliged with a sigh, tucking her hands under her cheek. He moved with her and straddled her legs, relieving the awkward twist in his back.

The zipper slid smoothly revealing a tanned ‘v’ of skin interrupted by a stripe of navy. “How far down does this tan go?”

“I’m sure you’ll find out.”

As his hands and lips explored every inch of her back in a slow, sensual, intimate massage Chloe hovered in that strange, mind-drifting place between wakefulness and sleep.

I’m crazy to even be here letting this man who is little more than a stranger run his hands over me with complete freedom and familiarity. But he’s not what I expected at all. He should have been brash and pushy and confident. But then again, nothing has been what I expected. I knew there’d be a line at the club but I never imagined getting whisked past it.

I knew there were creeps and perverts here and that they’d flock to places like the night club but I didn’t think they’d be interested in boring, plain, Chloe Bye. And Mike, or whoever he is, says I seduced him! He thinks I’m classy, and sexy even though I’m nothing compared to the women he says he’s been with.

“I can’t get over how strong your back feels,” he murmured. “You must hit the gym every day.”

She scoffed. “Who has time for the gym?”

“You’re kidding, right?”

“Not at all.”

“Then you must be a super human because a body like this takes hard work.”

“Of course. My father is a potato farmer. Farming is hard work, even with tractors.”

He nibbled at her ear and lifted the waves of brown hair streaked with coppery blonde out of the way to nibble the back of her neck sending ‘danger’ signals down her spine. She moaned and he grinned as he brushed his bared teeth lightly over the back of her neck again.

She shivered and said, “That is the strangest sensation. I want to run away before you rip my throat out but at the same time my knees are going weak and I swear I’m more turned on.”

“Good, I’ll keep that in mind. Now, if you’ll roll over I’ll continue my exploring.”

“I don’t think I can take much more of this,” she said as she sat up. “You’re going to relax me straight to sleep.”

He slid her dress off her shoulders revealing navy lace. “Trust me, the relaxing part is over.” He kissed her with enough force and passion to knock every thought of sleep clear out of her head.

Chapter Five

Seth had been done his pie for ages but the idea of sitting locked in his hotel room listening to Brant bitch and moan all night didn’t appeal to him. After the pie he’d sidled up to the bar for a quick beer and some flirting time with the ladies who were perched there like delicately painted butterflies.

Not one of his advances panned out, but he didn’t get slapped, no ones’ boyfriend gave him a black eye, and he hadn’t gone broke buying drinks. He would have liked a quick detour to some hot little number’s hotel room before turning in but he wasn’t hurting so he called the night a win.

When it was late enough that he figured Chloe had gotten some pain meds into Brant and put him to bed he went up, intending to sneak in unnoticed.

Brant was still sitting up, staring at the television which was playing some entertainment news show that Brant hated, his pain meds sitting on the end table. He glanced up at Seth then back at the TV. “You were down there a long time. Did you eat the whole damn pie?”

“No, I just hung out, had a little fun. Don’t tell me you’ve been staring at that screen the whole time.”

“What the hell else am I supposed to do? The remote is across the room so I’ve been stuck with this garbage. Grab me a glass of water so I can take these stupid meds.”

Seth rolled his eyes and went to fetch one of the sealed glasses from the bathroom shelf, not bothering to ask why the remote was not only across the room but on the floor under the chair with the battery knocked clear out. “Why didn’t you get Chloe to help you?” he called.

“Because she stayed down in the restaurant with you, remember?”

“No, she didn’t,” Seth called back. “She came up to check on you hours ago.”

“No one came up to check on me,” Brant said, his voice suddenly sounding too calm. “I haven’t seen Chloe since dinner.”

Seth stood in the bathroom doorway, staring at his brother. They’d all grown up in the country where the weather seemed to change on a dime and Seth knew that when the wind died down too suddenly heavy rains were less than five minutes away. Brant’s temper was like that, but this time Seth was too afraid of what might have happened to Chloe between the restaurant and her room to care if Brant threw a fit. He swallowed hard. “Neither have I.”

“She’d better be next door sleeping.”

Seth pulled out the spare key card to Chloe’s room and went out into the hallway. A moment later he was back, his face pale. “She’s not there.”

“Shit. Where in the name of hell did she go? She has heat laps tomorrow morning and if we don’t get a good starting position we’ll be SOL in the big race.”

Seth snapped at Brant. “She’s not going to fuck up your all-important career on purpose so stop thinking about yourself for a change. I just hope she doesn’t get into trouble out there, she has zero experience in a city this size.”

“Let’s call security, or the cops. We have to find her!” Brant was struggling to get out of bed.

“No. You have to take your pain meds and go to sleep. I’ll go down and see if she went to the pool or the shops. Then I’ll try her cellphone because neither of us thought of that yet. And if I still haven’t found her I’ll go to security. All right?”

“Seth, she could be dead by now and you want to wait another hour?”

“Now you’re worried that she’s dead? A moment ago you were worried your career was over. Take your meds and go to sleep. Chloe is an adult and we have no reason to believe this is foul play.”

“Except that Trey Williams tried to kill me today. What if he’s kidnapped her to blackmail me out of the race?”

“You have a broken foot; you’re already out of the race. I don’t think Trey Williams has any interest in your sister.”

* * * *

With his kisses forcing any thought of sleep, or even relaxation, from her mind she crashed back against the pillows. He left her breathing hard as he pulled her dress down over her hips, carelessly taking her underwear with it. He trailed his hand up the length of her body as he returned for another kiss. His fingers tangled in her hair and he held her close as he kissed her hard.

He nibbled down her neck and along her shoulder and then took her breast in his mouth. Her back arched in response and she gasped. The change from soft to passionate was so sudden it had left her reeling and each new kiss and nibble only threw her further off balance and deeper into the heat and passion of the moment.

From her breast he moved to the flat of her stomach, trailing kisses that were again gentle and then he paused altogether. She fought to catch her breath or find her voice or at least collect her thoughts. Maybe she was trying to do too much too soon, or maybe he was trying to keep her off balance, either way she lost it all when he nibbled on her hip bone. The nibble turned to a light sucking until she was making soft, animal noises in the back of her throat.

He chuckled softly and she managed to gasp out, “Not nice,” before he started trailing kisses down the inside of her thigh, down to the crook of her knee. She could feel the bare skin of his chest against her leg and realized he must have undressed while she was struggling to get herself together. He switched to the other leg and kissed his way back up with tantalizing, aggravating slowness. He paused and then nuzzled her between her legs. She could feel his hot breath and the start of stubble and her breath caught in her throat.

“Maybe,” he whispered. “I want to. I would love to taste you.”

She whimpered.

He flicked the very tip of his tongue against her once. “Another time perhaps.”

She would have screamed in frustration and thrown a pillow, or even a lamp, at him for being a cruel, heartless, tease, but he took one breast in his calloused hand and the other in his mouth and the scream turned to a gasp in her throat as frustration became passion. She gripped fistfuls of his hair and held him close as her back arched again.

Her legs were already spread and he repositioned himself, reluctantly releasing her breast. She started to protest but he cut her off with a kiss and entered her. Her mouth opened in surprise and delight and he slipped the tip of his tongue between her lips, deepening the kiss and devouring her mouth as he began to thrust slowly. Her whole body trembled as he moved inside her. She wrapped herself around him, digging fingers into his shoulders and locking her ankles behind his back.

His self-control slipped the leash and he started thrusting harder and faster. Her gasping and moaning fueled his passion and he took pleasure in the way her body writhed beneath him.

A small sound of helplessness bubbled out of her and grew with urgency with each thrust until it became an ‘oh’ of pleasure and then a cry as she climaxed. She pressed herself against him as he moved in and out of her at a pace that had her head spinning as wave after wave of pleasure grabbed her and swept her along.

He watched her beautiful freckled face contort into a silent scream of absolute passion and fell in love with her all over again. Here in their most intimate moment she gave him honesty and she committed every bit of her energy and emotion to the moment. It was refreshing to have a lover who held nothing back and felt no need to hide the depth of their passion or, worse still, fake a passion they didn’t feel.

For all the burning intensity of her climax she came down quickly, her features relaxing completely. His own release came quickly but it was no less intense than hers and soon they were lying in a tired, contented, sweaty heap.

“You’re beautiful,” he whispered.

“And you’re amazing,” she replied and held him close as he drifted off to sleep.

* * * *

Chloe lay awake in the darkness staring at the kaleidoscope lights of the city on the hotel room ceiling. Mike, or whatever his real name was, was asleep beside her, the sheets tangled about his muscular legs. She sighed and rolled out of bed. In the dark it was impossible to locate her underwear amid the scattering of clothes and deep shadows but she managed to find her dress, shoes and purse and dress without waking him.

She grabbed the pad by the phone, scribbled a short note, and slipped out into the hallway. Her room was three floors down but she was intercepted by Seth the moment she stepped out of the elevator. He looked just as startled as she did but his surprise changed to anger in a heartbeat and he growled, “Where have you been?”

“I made a friend in the lobby,” she said, which was almost the truth. “We were having coffee and I lost track of the time. I need to get some sleep before tomorrow.”

She yanked her arm free of his grasp and stormed off towards her room. Seth jogged after her. “So you do remember how important tomorrow is?”

“Of course I remember,” she snapped.

“Because Brant was convinced you were out to kill his career. And I was scared half to death that you’d gotten kidnapped or mugged.”

“I’m all grown up, Seth, I just wanted to see a little more of New York that my hotel room and the race track.”

“You could have told us where you were going, Chloe.” His voice softened. “I was really worried.”

She smiled. “I’m sorry, Seth. I knew Brant wouldn’t let me go so I didn’t say anything. I should have called you once I was in the cab. It won’t happen again, not here, not at any race. I promise. Now, good night, Seth.”

He could tell by the way her eyes softened that she really hadn’t meant to worry him, and she was right about Brant. “Good-night, Chloe.”

She closed the door in his face, putting the chain lock in place so he couldn’t come in and check on her or lecture her again. Her hands were shaking as she set her purse on the dresser. She took a few deep breaths and dropped onto the bed. “So,” she said to the empty room. “This is New York City.”

* * * *

The next morning Seth, Brant, and Chloe had breakfast in the boys’ room though Chloe felt too nervous to eat anything. Brant glared over his plate at her until he could stay quiet any longer. “Where the hell were you last night?”

“Didn’t Seth fill you in?” She poked at her eggs then reached for her coffee instead.

“Yeah, and now I want to hear it from you.”

“Are you trying to catch me in a lie? I met someone in the lobby and we got to talking. We had coffee and I lost track of time. I’m sorry. I didn’t go any further than the coffee shop on the corner. I got enough sleep. I didn’t have any liquor. And I’m here, bright and early, to listen to you bitch at me before I go off and save your career. And you’re welcome by the way.”

“I’ll thank you after you pull this off. If you pull this off.”

“I could just sit here and let your career end.”

Brant turned to Seth. “Tell me again why I agreed to this?”

Seth frowned. “I don’t like it either, but you can’t drive until your foot heals and if you don’t drive this race you won’t have enough money to race again and you’ll be stuck farming potatoes for the rest of your life. So Chloe is going to be you to save your career.”

“I know, I know. I still don’t like it. I’m not going to like it, ever.”

“You don’t have to like it, but you’d better get used to the fact that you’re going to owe me big time for this.”

“Only if you win.”

“Watch me.”