Engagement Rate (The Callaghan Green Series Book 1) Page 17

  Her hand went to my leg and started drifting up and down my thigh. "Thank you for telling me. If she mentions it, I won't have to try and not act surprised. But honestly, Jackson, it's not your fault."

  "We should go up to our room," I said, as her hand went higher, feeling my cock through my trousers. "Max might deliberately come through here, saying he's forgotten something."

  "He makes a habit of trying to cockblock you?" she said, not moving her hand. "He stayed away while we were in the hot tub."

  "That would've been too obvious, even for him," I said, slipping my hand up her dress like I had in the restaurant. Immediately she spread her legs slightly, allowing me access. "But he'll be thinking of revenge as I had you in his room. You're wet." I pushed two fingers past her underwear and inside her. She bucked against me and I felt my dick get even harder.

  "I feel like a teenager," she said, moving her hips. She moaned when I moved my hand away. "Jackson!"

  "Upstairs," I said, demanding. "I can rush it down here or have you how I want you on the bed." She stood up, her dress now exposing her sodden underwear. "Go wait for me on the bed while I lock up."

  "And if I say no?"

  I didn't respond, just folding my arms instead and giving her a grin, I knew was cocky.

  Five minutes later, downstairs was secure and relatively tidy and my girl was lying naked on my bed, her hand exactly where mine was going to be. "You couldn't wait?" I said, pulling off my shirt. I felt her eyes on my chest, the only light in the room that of the moon.

  "You look good enough to eat," she said, continuing to touch herself. I stripped off my trousers and let her look.

  "I would've thought you were full after dinner and all that wine?" I stood at the end of the bed, my hand rubbing my dick lightly, her eyes glued to the movement. She shifted, coming onto her hands and knees and towards me, looking at my cock. She reached for me, but I stopped her. "Turn around," I said. "Stay in that position but face the headboard."

  "I want to suck you off." She spoke quietly, as if someone else might over here. Had the house been full, as it would be in a couple of weeks, quietness would have been necessary. Tonight, not so, but I didn't think she was used to dirty words coming from her mouth.

  "And I want to be inside your pussy," I said, my hand holding onto her tit. "I'll let you play with your clit while I fuck you."

  I entered her hard, making her gasp. Her back pressed against my chest and she lifted her head, turning so I could kiss her and then it changed. The hard fuck I'd planned became slow and tender and we moved onto our sides. I angled her hips so I could stay deep, still managing to kiss her and held her close, one hand massaging her clit. Her hand stayed on my leg, her eyes looking at mine. I nipped her neck and felt her orgasm start, her pussy tightening and then I came deep inside her.

  We stayed tangled up in each other, my cock softening inside her and come leaking out onto the sheets, but neither of moved or said anything. I hadn't experienced this before, whatever it was. I liked sex hard and rough and sometimes tender and slow, but it had never changed during its course. Today she'd been beautiful; kind and interested with my friends, accepting and caring of Max's need to intrude on our weekend and she'd clicked with Amelie, who was never the easiest person to gel quickly with. They'd been no sulking about Kirsty or office gossip, just an acceptance, and understanding.

  "Can we stay like this forever?" she said, pressing further into me. "I don't want to move."

  "We don't have to. In fact, we can stay until Monday morning if you want," I said, my hand combed through her hair, feeling its softness.

  Vanessa turned onto her back so she could look at me and I immediately missed being inside her. She raised her hand and stroked my beard. "I love this," she said. "I'd never even kissed anyone with a beard before you."

  I laughed, leaning up on one shoulder so I could look at her. "Can I pretend you'd never kissed anyone before?"

  "I'm not sure I had." Her thumb circled around my lips. I bit it gently, keeping hold as she used it to pull my face to hers for a kiss. I didn't analyze her comment, filing it away for something to think about another time. "I have work to do tomorrow night and I need my laptop. I'm sorry, but..."

  "It's fine," I said. "I have work to do too. I just wish we had more time together."

  "This week will be better than last," she said. "I've no plans tomorrow evening after I've finished some proposals. Monday's clear too and I can tell you about the rest of the week but I'm now worrying that I'm going to suffocate you and sound needy."

  Kissing her seemed the best answer, not a kiss that would lead to sex as I realized at that moment there was more than one kind; this one led to closeness. "I have a client thing Thursday. Let's make the most of this week then, as we know we'll be bombed out by work at some point."

  She pulled herself out of bed, the wetness around the tops of her thighs catching the moonlight. "Bathroom," she said. "Back in a moment. You can have the wet patch."

  By the time she returned I'd changed the bottom sheet, deciding that neither of us needed that. Vanessa curled up into me and I drifted off to sleep to the scent of her hair and softness of her skin next to mine.

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  Chapter Fifteen

  Vanessa

  "So, you're staying till Tuesday?" Sophie's tone asked a different question, one I chose not to acknowledge.

  "Probably," I replied, folding a pencil skirt I knew was prone to creasing. "Unless work becomes horrific tomorrow night."

  "That's three consecutive nights." Sophie sat on the edge of my bed and inspected my underwear, looking concerned. "We need to book a shopping date."

  I ignored the implication that she disapproved of my bras and the lack of matching bottoms. "What's the matter with three consecutive nights?"

  "You've known him less than two weeks."

  "You knew Craig – or was it, Cade – all of two hours before spending the best part of last Easter weekend with him!" I reminded her. I still had the scars in my brain from having to listen to them for one night.

  "I think it was Craig. That's different. I'm me. It's what I do in between husbands. You are Little Miss Steadfast and Deep. Pre-Richard the Dick you would never have stayed more than one night with a man without a contract."

  "You make it sound like I use gigolos."

  "I suggested to my PT that he could have a very successful career from being a male escort," she said thoughtfully. "However, we've gone from you having a fit of independence and a minor meltdown on Friday, to you spending two more nights together. What's your game plan, Van?"

  "I really like him, and liking him is easy, Soph. I want to get to know him more and the sex is incredible..."

  "To be fair, sex with the world's smallest penis would be incredible after living with Richard the dick for six years. He texted me an apology, by the way," Sophie said, making a very fair point.

  "Was it sincere?"

  "Seemed so. Back to sex. I entirely approve, of course. You should stay with him and embrace the fact that he's a bearded, tattooed god who's intelligent and fucks you into next week. I'm worried if it goes wrong though, pet," she said, folding the underwear and putting it into my case. "And it might, given the fact that you're wearing under your clothes is enough to scare a horny, virginal seventeen-year-old youth and put him off sex for life."

  "It's not that bad," I said, defending my old faithful t-shirt bra and seamless panties. The rest were pretty decent. "I will take a trip to Victoria's Secret tomorrow. If I can squeeze it in."

  "Good plan. Text him photos of what you buy. Back to my worries," she said, now lying back on the bed.

  I stopped packing; I was nearly done anyhow. "I know it could go wrong. If it does, I deal with it. If it does, it's taught me what a real orgasm feels like and it's upped my standards. You don't need to worry."

  "Good," she says, sitting upright. "It's not like you're jumping from one relationship into the next, because god forbid you ev
er have a little breakup sex. Maybe that's what I do."

  "What? Break up sex? I suppose you could argue you break up frequently, so the booty calls you have after are technically break up sex..." I add my straighteners to my case.

  Sophie scowled. "Nothing wrong with a booty call. What you're doing is not a booty call. A romantic trip to the country; expensive meal; meeting friends and family. This might not be the quick fling that was recommended some months ago."

  "I had that quick fling with my vibrator instead," I said, closing the case. "You think it's too soon?"

  "No," Sophie stood up. "I don't. I just know you like to keep things ordered and at your own pace. I'm hoping that his pace stops you overanalyzing and thinking about work all the livelong time. I'm going to find my Jimmy Choos and then I'm meeting David for a wine tasting session."

  "The apartment will certainly be free tonight if you want to carry on your David tasting session here," I told her. "Please don't text me a report when he's gone. I don't need to know a grade for his cunnilingus skills, fingering achievements or ability to find the g-spot. Nor do I need sneaky pictures when he's asleep because I'm pretty sure that's illegal anyway."

  She shot me a wicked grin, then gave me a peck on the cheek. "Call me if you need rescuing. Or equally, if Jackson wears out your unfit vagina and you need me to cover for you."

  "I won't."

  I woke Monday morning to the beeping of an unfamiliar alarm and for a moment felt confused as to where I was. Pressing my head into the pillow the body next to me stirred, stopped the noise and threw an arm over me, pulling me into him and then I remembered. I was at Jackson's and that was why my body felt well used.

  "Coffee?" he groaned but didn't move.

  "Do I need to make it?" He had warned me he wasn't a morning person unless he didn't have to rush to get up.

  An unintelligible noise replied. I laughed and nuzzled into his chest. He was warm and hard and felt good beneath my hands. "What time is it?" I whispered. I wanted him to say it was still very early morning and we had hours before either of us had to hit the office or the gym, which was what both of us had planned.

  "Six-thirty," he said. "Just after. Far too fucking early." He gripped onto me tighter, his hand moving over my ass, his cock hard. The boy had some quick recovery time.

  I'd got my work done early Sunday afternoon, both of us milling about Jackson's house, answering emails, drafting documents, brewing coffee. It felt different than it had with Richard: it was easy. We didn't walk into each other or take up the other's space, there was no underlying tension that I wasn't giving him my undivided attention. Then we'd cooked, discussing work and Amelie and he'd spoken to Max and Claire before we stretched out on the sofa and watched Netflix.

  And chilled.

  The sex was relaxing and long. I didn't know where it began and where it ended or how many times I came but I ached now. But not enough to stop me. "Too early for what?" I ran my fingers up his cock. "Be a shame to waste this."

  Jackson looked at me with barely open eyes, his hand moving to cup my breast and he squeezed a nipple. He rolled onto his back and moved me over him, encouraging me to shift up so he could take my nipple in his mouth, sucking and nibbling, moving from one to the other. His fingers played with my clit, spreading my wetness around my folds. Then he gained energy and I let him turn me on to my back.

  "You ready?"

  "Yes," I managed to mutter, barely getting the word out before he was inside me, pounding deep and rhythmically. My body was conditioned to come quickly by now, the initial pinch when he entered me adding to the pleasure and when I came it was almost violent.

  Jackson lowered himself, kissing me and pressing down on my wrists as he followed. Then his weight lapsed onto me and he buried his head in the crook of my neck.

  I closed my eyes, wishing Monday away so we could stay in our own cocoon, his big, heavy body on mine like a sexy security blanket, beard brushing my cheek. I knew full well what was happening to me and although my mind was screaming for me to hide, everything else was telling me to embrace the feelings I was starting to have. My hands ran over his broad back, feeling the steely muscle.

  "Coffee?" he muttered. "Protein shake? Eggs?"

  "Coffee. Fasted cardio this morning. I'll come help." Neither of us moved. I flicked my tongue over the skin on his shoulder, tasting him. "I don't want to go to work. Staying over was a bad idea."

  His laugh was muffled by my neck and the pillow. "I could offer to keep you barefoot and pregnant and chained to the cooker, but I think you'd be bored."

  "I don't know. It would depend if you were chained with me. And how much room for maneuver the chains had," I said, avoiding the image my ovaries were sending up to my brain. That I could keep locked away.

  He kissed me and then my nipples and he pushed himself up. "You're beautiful. Even before coffee." He took my hand and pulled me up too.

  We said very little as we drank coffee and he demolished steak and eggs. Getting ready was almost synchronized, we managed not to bump into each other or get in the other's way as if we had been doing it for years and as we walked in the direction of Borough Market to our gyms we held hands, kissing when we parted ways.

  It felt right.

  The rest of the day wasn't so right. I spent the morning in the office with Alice, finalizing some of the details for the retirement ball. The caterers we wanted were unable to work that evening, which left our second choice who had a chef who was notoriously difficult to deal with. I had two new clients in for meetings, one was the MD of a new company and he was new to the role. He ended the meeting by asking me out on a date which I declined as politely as I could without having to say I didn't date the people I worked for, because that would have been too much of a lie.

  Seph called just before lunch, following my non-date's signature on the agreement and exit. His ego was far too robust to be fractured by my refusal and he had Alice batting her lashes at him almost as soon as he had one foot out of my office.

  "How's your morning, marketing extraordinaire?" Seph said as I answered, his voice sounding a little too much like Jackson's.

  "Tedious. Difficult chefs. Lechy clients," I said, shifting some printouts on my desk. My office was minimal, nothing like Jackson's which oozed history. Maybe we need to rebrand ourselves – only that would have to wait until the whole Richard situation was resolved.

  "You should be used to dealing with lechy clients, given how Jackson is mooning over you," he said. He was fishing for detail, I could tell.

  "How was your weekend?" I asked, completely ignoring the hook.

  Seph laughed. "I spent it with my twin, watching bands and eating street food like we were students again. I was the best I've had in ages. It's good she's back." He sounded so genuine and young, the affection in his voice palpable. Jackson had told me how he worried over Seph; although he wasn't the youngest, he was the baby. Brilliantly clever, beyond Max's genius and overly sensitive. His ex-girlfriend hadn't been right for him, but she had given him the stability he needed.

  "It sounds good," I said. "You're going to ask about mine now, aren't you?"

  "I don't need to," he said. "Jackson is in a fucking good mood and has been since early this morning. Keep him that happy and I'll fulfill all future legal obligations you ever have."

  I giggled. Halfway through giggling, I managed to stop myself, realizing I sounded like a teenager with a crush. "Don't make promises you might not be able to keep. To what do I owe the honor of your call?" It was more than just a fishing expedition, I knew.

  "I've spoken with Mr. Cole's solicitors this morning. I've dealt with them before actually and they're reasonable to work with. Mr. Cole has instructed them to resolve the matter as quickly as possible so we've arranged for the company and apartment to be valued as soon as possible, within the next few days. Mr. Cole has expressed an interest in buying you out of the apartment and has offered an amount that I think would be reasonable given your contribution to
the deposit and the rise in the value of the property," Seph said, pausing.

  "Are you sure Mr. Cole is the younger Mr. Cole and not his father? I'm surprised how reasonable this sounds," I said, my heart pounding like a drum.

  Seph half laughed. "There's a request that in return for his cooperation, as according to his lawyer he would like to resolve your differences and look at couple's counseling, you drop the charges against him and retract your request for a restraining order."

  "Does Jackson know?" The words were out of my mouth before I had thought about them. He didn't need to know and I didn't need his opinion unless it was as my lawyer.

  "Yes. He won't let me have complete ownership of this case, but he agreed with me. We wait for the valuations, agree on the price on the apartment and then drop the charges. The charges won't go anywhere fast anyway and you can apply for a restraining order again if he starts acting like a dick," Seph said. "I'll be slow with his solicitors for the next couple of days while we wait for the valuations. All you need to do is carry on with our step into the twenty-first century and the small matter of the pater's retirement ball."

  "Thank you, Seph," I said, winding in my neck with my thoughts on Jackson and needing to go this alone. "That sounds like the right thing to do."

  "Drinks after work?" he said. "The Old School Yard is the place to be to get over the pain of Monday. Might make Tuesday more painful though."

  "Maybe," I said. I was staying at Jackson's again tonight as it was the only evening bar Thursday we both had free.

  "Make it a definitely instead of maybe and bring Jackson. Max and Amelie are meeting us there too," Seph said. "You know her dad passed away this morning?"

  "Jackson texted me. It's horrible, but at least he didn't suffer long. I just hope Amelie's okay," I said, hearing Alice talking to my next client in the waiting area.

  "She'll have a lot of support. I'll let you go. Hopefully, see you after work – bring some of your team. It'd be nice to meet some new faces," Seph said and I could hear voices in the background, one of which sounded like Kirsty.