Con Man: Complete Series Box Set: A Bad Boy Romance (45 page)

“That’s a yes?” His arm tightened around my waist.

“Yes.”

* * *

T
he next morning
, I woke up in Edward’s upstairs master suite.

I was alone in the king-sized bed and for one panicked moment, I froze. Then I heard the shower running and the tension drained away.

Smiling that giddy smile that tried so often to overtake me, I stretched and turned my head, following the sound of splashing water until I saw the closed door. We definitely weren’t taking things slow, but everything felt so comfortable, so right.

We liked the same foods, laughed at the same television shows, loved the same bad science fiction, and had the same ideas of what constituted a perfect day. Though, as the sunlight streamed into his inner sanctum, I realized there was one giant divide between us. I shifted uneasily.

He was rich. Not just hard-working, the right kind of career rich, but family legacy money rich. I may not have known who his family was, but there was no doubt about it. The master suite not only had a fireplace, it had a family crest engraved above it.

The sound of water cut off and I sat up, looking around nervously for something to put on. I didn’t quite manage to come up with anything before the bathroom door opened and Edward appeared in the opening, smiling at me.

“You’re awake. Good morning, gorgeous.”

“Hmmm. I was lazing about for a few more minutes.” I glanced down and watched as a bead of water slid down his chest.

“Laze away.” He smiled at me. “In fact, Paul’s going to run me in to the office. I’ll have breakfast sent up and by the time you’ve eaten, he’ll be back. When you’re ready, he’ll drive you to work.”

Ah yes, work. Slaving away for a menial wage while desperately hoping that my talent would one day be recognized. The perfect thing to remind me of how different our lives were.

He leaned down to kiss me as someone knocked on the door. His lips brushed against mine and then he called for whoever it was to enter. A moment later, a maid brought in a silver breakfast tray. She gave him a polite nod, but didn’t even look at me as she left the tray on the dresser. He thanked her and followed her out, pausing to blow me a kiss at the door.

Poached eggs with salmon, fresh bread lightly toasted, and a French press of heavenly strong coffee all tempted me from the foot of the bed, but first I reached for my phone.

“Okay. This is killing me…I still can’t get him to tell me his last name.” I eyed the crest, something elegant and Old World looking and shook my head. “He says he’s not Batman, but that’s all I can get out of him.”

“Are you calling me from his bed?”

Of course that would be her first question. “Yes. He’s left me here with a luxury breakfast that was delivered by a maid. When I’m done, a car will take me to work.”

“Think you can get some coffee filters while you have access to a chauffeur? We’re out. Have you ever tried the bodega’s coffee? I think it may actually be muddy water they warm up and throw sugar in.”

“You bought their coffee?”

“It was cheaper than the filters. So do you have a plan to figure out what he’s hiding?”

“I do,” I said, pouring fragrant coffee into a delicate China cup. “I’m going to call in late with some excuse and then tell the driver I’m supposed to meet Edward at his office. Boom, I find out what this family business is and why he’s hiding his last name.”

“Just the fact that he won’t tell you his last name should be a red flag,” Kendra said.

I sighed. “Yes, and then I think of the romantic dates, the great conversations, and the oh-so-sweet sex. Really, what’s in a name?”

“Seriously, Juliet? You do remember how that whole ‘what’s in a name’ thing worked for her and her boy?”

I scowled at the phone.

She continued, “Well, text me if your office surprise doesn’t work. Then bring him to Tony’s so I can meet him. Someone better assess if he’s a knight in shining armor or a thinly veiled psycho-killer.”

“Ah, Tony’s Pizza,” I said. “Always the perfect Plan B.”

Paul was dozing in the front seat of the town car when the maid opened the front door for me twenty minutes later. She coughed loudly and he jolted awake and jumped out to open the car door. I smiled, wondering how much sleep the poor guy had gotten in the past few days. Edward and I had to have been running him ragged.

“Where to, Ms. Gabriella?”

“Edward told me to meet him at his office.” I tried to sound breezy and casual. Whether or not he believed me, Paul nodded and started the car.

We headed straight into Manhattan. Paul had fierce driving skills. He could give any New York cabbie a run for his money. He navigated snarled lanes of traffic, using his Bluetooth to send messages on his cellphone.

By the time we made it to the curb outside a giant building, I was both terrified and impressed. Then I saw where we were and all of the blood drained from my face. It had to be a mistake.

“The Bouvier Building?” I asked faintly.

Before Paul could answer, the door opened and Edward leaned in.

“Going my way?” His smile said he wasn’t mad that I’d just showed up at his job unannounced. Paul must have sent him a message.

I swallowed and fought to keep from looking at the building behind him. “No fair…” I managed a weak smile. “I was just on my way to surprise you.”

“Well, it’s a little early for lunch, but I know a great place up the Hudson River that serves life-saving Bloody Marys. What do you say?”

Before I could answer, he got in the car and I had to swallow my frown. Paul screeched away from the curb before I even got to ask which gargantuan office building housed Edward’s mysterious family business. I hoped it wasn’t the same one where I’d met Flynn.

It was time for Plan B. Thinking quickly, I grinned up at him. “I’d say a Bloody Mary sounds delicious, but I already have a date.”

“I thought you said you were surprising me.” He sounded puzzled but not suspicious.

“Surprise!” I said weakly. “We’re having lunch with my roommate, Kendra. Tony’s Pizza, Paul.”

Before Edward could respond, I gave Paul the address and he swerved across two lanes to make the turn. I smiled brightly at Edward as I discreetly texted Kendra the words ‘Plan B’.

We rode in silence for a few minutes before Edward started asking about my childhood in Tennessee. His honest inquiries softened me up and by the time we reached Tony’s Pizza, I had almost forgotten what had me so concerned.

Kendra, however, hadn’t. She was waiting outside and strode up to Edward as soon as he got out of the car, a familiar expression on her face. She was in full-on mama bear mode, ready to protect me from anyone who might hurt me.

“Hello. I’m Gabriella’s roommate, Kendra. Kendra Facet.” She stuck out her hand.

He took it with a smile. “Nice to meet you, I’m Edward.”

“Sorry, Edward,” she said. “I didn’t catch your last name.”

“Don’t worry.” He smiled. “Just Edward is fine.”

Kendra gave me a dire glance over his shoulder before speaking to him again. “You know, you look very familiar to me.”

“That’s not surprising. We met at the big Bouvier party. The night I met Gabriella.”

He slipped an arm around my waist and kissed my temple.

“Come on, my darlings,” I said. Time to move from straight interrogation to polite lunch conversation. “Pizza’s on me.”

I
never thought eating
a slice of pizza at Tony’s could be awkward. It was home base for after-debauchery food and I had seen everything from a drunken cello performance to a bout of mistaken identity happen in that small sliver of a restaurant.

Nothing had left a bad taste in my mouth until lunch with Kendra and Edward.

He was secretive, deftly fielding questions to avoid having to answer, and she was understandably suspicious. Kendra was sure they had met before the party and she kept squinting at him as if recognition was just a hard stare away. Edward looked terribly out of place in the pizza-by-the-slice place and spent an almost rude amount of time dabbing the grease off his plain cheese, yet another glaring example of how far apart our worlds were.

Together, they made me so nervous I tried to pitch them some script material and chattered away about the foibles of subway-riders non-stop.

Needless to say, halfway through that, Edward told me he had to get back to work, which meant I had to pretend that I needed to go too. He kissed me awkwardly in front of Kendra and told me the next few days were full of meetings. I told him I had a sit-down with a producer interested in a pilot script and then had to make up a television show on the spot. I titled it
Slice of Life
and was pretty sure he realized I’d lied.

When he walked out the door, I was certain I’d never see him again, and the thought hurt me more than I’d thought possible.

* * *

“
H
e still hasn’t called
?” Kendra asked me three days later.

“Shh, I have two more pages to finish for a deadline.”

“Gabs, I can see that you’re writing a complaint about cereal.” She pulled my laptop away from me. “I didn’t mean to kill your whole relationship, I just wanted to make sure he was being honest with you.”

I wanted to snap at her that it was all her fault for making me doubt him, but had to bite my tongue because I knew she’d just been looking out for me. I knew there was something he wasn’t telling me about his family and, while I was hoping it was just that he seriously disliked them, his omissions were a little bothersome.

Sighing, I looked up at her. “He wasn’t being honest with me. But…” I shrugged. “We haven’t been dating long enough for me to know his address much less his life story.”

Although I did
sleep
with him…
at
his home. I slept with the guy. But I didn’t know his last name
.

It was enough to leave me with a funny feeling in my gut and I knew Kendra hadn’t been entirely off-base. I had to set aside my frustration with her. I knew that.

I gave her a wan smile.

“Maybe it’s for the best, it was moving way too fast.” If I said it enough, I’d believe it, right? Besides, she was my friend and friendship came first.

“No, you were right,” she said, her face bleak. “It wasn’t moving too fast, it was moving exactly how you wanted it to. And I screwed it up.”

“I think all three of us did.” I went back to staring at my laptop. “If he’d just told me who he is…if I hadn’t stressed so much…”

“If
I
hadn’t stressed
you
so much,” Kendra added sourly.

I grinned at her. “Yeah, that. If he’s just going to let it go because he can’t understand why I wanted to know more about him...” I shrugged. “What can I do?”

“Still.” She bent down behind me and hugged me. “I’m sorry, Gabs.”

I was hoping her apology would turn into another invite out for free drinks and catered snacks since I could really use some alcohol, but my phone rang.

My heart flipped when I saw the name on the caller ID.

I sucked in a breath and showed it to Kendra.

Her eyes widened and a big smile lit up her face.

I took one more breath as it rang again and then, calmly, I answered. “Well, if it’s not the elusive Mr. E. Hello.”

“Hello, gorgeous.”

Edward’s voice sent a shiver down my spine. Damn. I had it bad.

“I know this is last minute, but do you have plans this weekend? I got a lot done at work the past few days in the hopes I could take you out of the city.”

I locked myself in the bathroom so I could have some privacy and used the time to pretend to check the calendar on my phone. Not that I needed to check it—what would I put on it? Work? Period due? Work?

I quickly calculated all of the assignments my boss had given me before I answered, “I have a couple of deadlines to finish before Friday, but I think I can work it out. What did you have in mind?”

“I know a quaint little lodge in the Catskills. How do you feel about hiking?”

“Sore,” I said. “My legs already feel sore. I’m more a city sidewalks girl and I don’t remember the last time I climbed a hill.”

He laughed. “Well, luckily our room has a hot tub on the deck.”

I didn’t even hesitate. “Count me in.”

We hung up shortly after that and I sighed, clutching the phone to my chest and not even bothering to pretend I wasn’t relieved.

* * *

L
ate Friday afternoon
, Edward picked me up in a silver BMW and I tried not to let my jaw drop. I don’t know why it surprised me. It would’ve been crazy to make Paul drive all that way, drop us off and drive back to the city.

And having him there would be awkward
, I thought, still eying his gorgeous car.

“You’re driving? What will Paul say? Is he heartbroken?” I teased.

Edward winked at me. “I wanted you all to myself this weekend. Paul will get over it.”

He stowed my bag and we climbed in, the nerves already chattering inside me. We had a long drive and my head was already churning. I had the worst habit of blurting things out at the worst possible time. Things like…
so, why won’t you tell me who you are?
I wasn’t sure I could avoid it for the hours we’d be trapped in the car.

It came as a relief when he broached the subject first.

“I want to apologize for my reluctance to talk about my family.” He glanced at me. “And for not giving you my last name. My family name is, ah, recognizable and I just want to know that you’re with me, not my name.”

Relief washed over me. That made sense. He was rich, which would already make him wary of the reasons why someone would want to be with him.

A well-known family name had to make it worse.

“Bad experiences?” I asked, hearing something in his voice.

He hesitated and then nodded. “One or two. I’m…” He blew out a slow, careful breath. “I try not to let it color my life, but I told myself I was going to make sure somebody cared about me the next time. I hope you understand.”

My heart ached and I found myself smiling. “I do. And thank you.”

“Why are you thanking me?”

I leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. “Because you trusted me enough to tell me. I love that you felt comfortable enough to tell me that.”

He caught my hand and lifted it to his lips, pressing a kiss to the back of it. When he pressed it to his thigh before putting his hand back on the wheel, I let myself breathe out a sigh of satisfaction.

“I do understand,” I said again. “But, just so you know…” When he flicked a look at me, I winked. “I want you to know that I’m with you, not your name, no matter what it is.” I squeezed his thigh and felt his muscles tighten. “And now we can relax.”

“No,” he said, pulling the car into a wooded turn out. “Not yet.”

The car was still shuddering from the speed with which he’d thrown it into park when he pulled me over the center console and sideways onto his lap. I bumped my head against his window, but didn’t care as he caught me in a searing kiss. His lips were hard and insistent against mine. Almost immediately, I was glad I’d dismissed Kendra’s advice and worn a dress because Edward’s hand quickly found the hem and slid underneath.

His mouth ate at mine, his tongue thrusting deep into my mouth as his palm slid up my thigh, pushing my skirt up. He cupped my hip and I felt the heat of his arousal burning against my skin. My own desire started to rise inside me and I whimpered hungrily, catching his tongue and sucking on it.

He shuddered and shifted me until I was straddling him, his fingers tracing me through my panties. “You’re already wet for me. Did you miss me?”

“Yes.” My eyelids fluttered as he rubbed slow teasing circles around my clitoris, working with the material to create a delicious friction that had me moaning and writhing against his hand. He chuckled as he moved his hand up to my stomach and then slipped it down into my panties. Two fingers spread my folds apart as his middle finger slid inside.

“Fuck,” I whimpered. Wanting more, I put my knee up on the console, trying to open myself more completely.

A second finger thrust deep and I cried out. His mouth sucked on the place where my shoulder and neck met, teeth scraping over the soft skin as he worked his fingers in and out with a relentless rhythm, not stopping until I shuddered and came against his hand.

I was still trembling when he turned me so that I was leaning forward over the steering wheel, one leg on either side of his lap. I lifted up on shaky knees as he reached beneath me and unzipped his pants. I was glad we’d covered the condom thing before because there was no pause as he grasped my hips and pulled me down onto him.

He swore as he filled me, his arms wrapping around my waist to hold me in place.

“So tight,” he said, his voice muffled as he pressed his face against my back. “I’ve been wanting you so badly. I don’t know how long I can last.”

“Don’t then,” I said. My body was still tingling from my orgasm and the feel of him throbbing inside me was enough to start the pressure building again. I moved one hand under my dress. It wasn’t going to take much to get me off again.

“Are you sure?”

I nodded.

He gripped my hips and lifted me enough so he could move. My head brushed the ceiling and I leaned forward more as my fingers made their way to the place where our bodies joined.

There was so little room to move. He didn’t
thrust
within me—it was more like a hard, deep grinding that had me shuddering, shaking deep inside, pleasure jolting through me hard and fast as I manipulated my clit.

His cock pulsed and throbbed and I heard him mutter my name. I stroked myself harder, faster. His cock jerked and I arched, my climax slamming into me just as he started to come.

I slumped forward, my body quaking with its release.

His arms tightened around my waist as he pulled me back against him. I rested my head on his shoulder, enjoying the feel of him holding me, of our bodies still intimately joined.

He kissed my cheek. “Now we can relax.”

* * *

M
y breath was taken away as
soon as I opened my eyes the next morning. We’d arrived rumpled sometime after sunset and I’d been so tired, I’d collapsed not long after a light dinner.

Now, with Edward kneeling next to the bed with a mimosa and a devilish smile, it was hard to take everything in. Through the window behind him, I could see the river valley and tumbling green hills stretched out endlessly. The view alone was staggering, but I was here with him.