Dog Days of Summer (23 page)

“
Nothing I would like more than to be with my family,” Gunnar said. He looked at Jeremiah when he said it. Jeremiah smiled and nodded at him. He squeezed Joci’s shoulders.

“
You good with that?”

Joci nodded. Tears were sliding down her cheeks again. Geez, she was emotional today.

“Yes, that sounds like a fabulous way to spend the day.”

* * * * *

The following day, Jeremiah asked Joci to have lunch with him at the shop. He wanted to go over some things for the staff party they were having the weekend after next. Jeremiah had a party for the staff
every August. They would go out to a nice restaurant and dress up and have a nice evening. There would be another staff ride in the fall, to see the colors in the trees.

Joci had been working on the plans with Jeremiah for the party for the past few weeks. She had also worked hard on the video from the Veteran
’s Ride. She wanted to show them all at the staff party before the DVDs were all made.

Joci walked into Rolling Thunder, and Janice greeted her with a huge smile.

“Hi, Joci. How are you?”

Joci smiled right back at her.
“I’m great, Janice. How are you doing?”

They spoke for a few minutes, and Joci walked upstairs to the offices to see Jeremiah. His office door was open and she walked in to find him reading something. Joci walked over and kissed the top of his head.

He looked up at her and smiled while pulling her down on his lap. Joci giggled and wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed his lips. Mmmm, she loved kissing him.

They were kissing when a gravelly voice from the doorway said,
“Well, well, well. What do we have here?”

Jeremiah hissed out,
“Fuck.”

Joci turned to see a woman who looked like an older version of LuAnn. Oh. My. God. Bleached blonde hair. Tattoos everywhere. A ton of jewelry. Over-tanned skin. Dark eye make-up. She looked like someone had dragged her behind a bike.

Jeremiah stood holding on to Joci. “Barbara, what brings you here?”

Barbara? This was Barbara? She looked like LuAnn
’s mother, well, grandmother.

“
Aren’t you going to introduce me to your plaything of the day?” Barbara smirked.

Jeremiah took a deep calming breath.
“Barbara, first of all, she’s not my ‘plaything of the day’. This is Jocelyn James. She’s my girlfriend, and I won’t allow you to disrespect her.”

Fuck, why did she have to show up?
Jeremiah hadn’t really thought she would come around again after her blow-up with JT last year. He had laid into her pretty good. But then again, he figured she would just ignore it and try again. No doubt she wanted money.

“
Joci, this is Barbara, JT and Ryder’s mother.”

Joci cleared her throat.
“It’s nice to meet you, Barbara.”

Barbara s
neered. “Sure.”

“
I need to speak with you, Dog … privately.” She looked at Joci as she said that.

“
Tough. If you have anything to speak with me about, you’ll say it in front of Joci,” Jeremiah said with a tight jaw.

Barbara sauntered in and flopped onto the chair across the room like she owned the place.
“Suit yourself.”

Jeremiah and Joci sat in chairs opposite Barbara. Joci looked at Jeremiah, trying to gauge his mood.

“Go ahead, Barbara. Spit it out. We’re on our lunch break here.”

“
Yes, I saw what you were eating.”

Barbara was snide and bitchy. Hmmm, maybe she was jealous. Whatever. Joci didn
’t care. She still couldn’t believe that she looked like LuAnn. Or that LuAnn looked like her. At any rate, this was clearly the type of woman Jeremiah liked. Joci’s ugly doubts started crawling back into her mind.

“
I need money, Dog. I’ve kind of fallen on hard times.”

Jeremiah huffed out a breath.
Figured as much. Boy, she was a useless bitch.

“
Tough. JT told you last year, and I’m telling you this year, no. If you need money, get a fucking job like everyone else.”

“
I bet your little ‘girlfriend’ gets all the money she needs from you.”

Joci opened her mouth to say something. She was sick of being disrespected already. Barbara
’s little “air quotes” as she said girlfriend was the last straw. Before Joci could say anything, Jeremiah jumped up and pointed to the door.

“
Get the fuck out. For your fucking information, Joci works. She always has worked for a living. Something you wouldn’t know anything about. I told you I wasn’t going to let you disrespect her, and you’ve done it again. Get the fuck out.”

Barbara smirked as she got out of her chair. She walked to the door and looked over at Joci.
“As soon as you pump out a kid, you’ll be out on your ass.”

With that, she walked out. Jeremiah picked up the phone and barked at someone on the other end.
“Barbara’s on her way down. Make sure she doesn’t grab anything, and make sure she walks straight out the door.”

He hung up and walked over to hug Joci.
“I’m sorry you had to endure that. She’s a crass bitch. Always has been.”

Joci was kind of numb. She didn
’t say anything. She just stood there with her eyes closed.

“
Hey, you know that isn’t true. I do want us to have a baby. But, I want us to be married first. Barbara got pregnant by accident. I love my boys, but she’s not the person I would have chosen to be their mother.”

Joci really didn
’t think anything of that comment. She knew Barbara was just pissed and trying to hurt them. But she couldn’t get over the fact that LuAnn looked so much like her.

“
Hey. Hey, Joci, look at me.”

Joci looked up at Jeremiah. The tears welled up in her eyes. Dammit, she didn
’t want to cry.

“
No, baby, no. Don’t let that bitch make you cry. Honey, it’s not true.”

Joci composed herself and swallowed.
“It’s not her comment as much as it is how she looks. LuAnn looks just like her. Clearly you like that kind of look. I don’t look anything like them.”

“I’ve already told you, honey. When I hooked up with Barbara twenty-seven years ago, I just wanted to get laid. I know that’s crude, but that’s what it was. She looked like someone who wouldn’t want anything more than that. I told you, no commitments, just fucking. LuAnn started dressing like Barbara after she met her the first time. I don’t know if she thinks that’s a great look or what. What I like is this beautiful woman standing right here in front of me, with sandy brown hair and eyes like a stormy sky. I think you’re the most beautiful woman in the world.”

Joci wiped her eyes and looked at Jeremiah.
“I’m sorry.” She was smiling at him now.

Jeremiah kissed the top of her head and hugged her close again. After a few moments, he pulled back from her.
“Are you okay?”

Joci nodded.
“I’m good. Are you okay?”

Jeremiah nodded and smiled.
“The best part about Barbara coming around is that it’s usually only once a year. We won’t have to see her for another year now.”

Joci giggled at that comment.

“Okay, come on. I was just reading the menu the restaurant emailed over today. Let’s get this ironed out and go out and grab some lunch.”

They finished up the plans for the
staff party. The menu was set, the DJ was selected, and the gifts were taken care of. Jeremiah gave each employee a bonus each year, based on his or her performance and the shop’s numbers. This year, the bonuses were very, very nice. He had also put a little extra in the checks for Deacon, Gunnar, JT, and Ryder’s checks for all of the additional work they had done on the Veteran’s Ride.

Joci and Jeremiah decided to head on over to Doxby
’s for lunch. They ordered their meals, and while they waited, Jeremiah took a deep breath.

“
Joci, don’t make any plans this weekend. I just want to spend the weekend alone with you. Just the two of us. Maybe we’ll tell everyone were going somewhere so they don’t come over.”

Joci looked at Jeremiah and cocked her head to the side.

“Okay. That sounds really fantastic.”

“
We work so much during the summer. Since before the Veteran’s Ride, it’s been non-stop. We do the rides every Wednesday. We had the staff ride a few weeks ago. We’ve been working on family stuff, moving you, had our weekend with my buddies, taking care of our businesses. Let’s just tuck in at home and hide.”

Joci smiled. That sounded fabulous. She turned her full dimpled smile on to Jeremiah and said,
“I would love that.”

“
Great. I was worried you wouldn’t want to. Let’s take Friday off, too. Three days, just us.”

Joci laughed.
“You can see how hard it was to talk me into it. I’m looking forward to not having to share you with anyone for a few days.”

They finished lunch, and Joci rode home with a smile on her face. Three whole days alone with Jeremiah. It sounded too good to be true.

Friday morning came. Jeremiah and Joci were lying in bed, enjoying a cup of coffee, when Jeremiah looked over at Joci and said, “Today, no clothes. Just you and me naked all day, okay.”

Joci laughed.
“Really? What if someone comes over?”

“
No one’s coming over. The boys think we flew out this morning for a weekend getaway, and everyone else is busy with their own lives. It’s just us, alone here, all weekend.” He leaned over and touched his lips to hers.

Joci hummed as he kissed her. His lips felt so good against hers. When he pulled away, she looked into his eyes and said,
“Okay. No clothes.”

Jeremiah smirked.
“Okay, now stay right here. I’ll be back in a few minutes.” He slid out of bed and walked out to the kitchen.

Joci watched him until she couldn
’t see him any longer. Great view—his ass was perfect. She reached over for her coffee cup and took a sip, leaned back into the headboard, and closed her eyes. She could hear dishes being brought out of the cupboard, silverware, the microwave, more clanging. What on earth was he doing?

Just as Joci finished her coffee, Jeremiah walked back into the room holding a tray piled with dishes and pastries, cheeses, butter, the coffee pot, and silverware.

“Breakfast in bed.” He winked at her, and her tummy flipped. After all these months, he could still do that to her.

He slid in beside her and set the tray between them. They refilled their coffee cups and started eating. He had her favorite cream cheese Danish from the little bakery around the corner along with cubed cheeses and sliced strawberries.

“When did you find the time to pick this up?” she said around a bite of food.

“
On my way home last night. I left work a little early so I could shop. Wait ‘til you see what I got us for dinner tonight.” He waggled his eyebrows.

“
Wow, Jeremiah. You’re going to spoil me rotten. Then I’m going to be awful to live with.”

“
I doubt that, babe. I want to spoil you.”

Joci finished her Danish and noticed that Jeremiah wasn
’t eating anything. She frowned at him, her eyebrows dropping down. “What’s wrong? Aren’t you hungry?”

He turned slightly to face her, his eyes hungry.
“When you’re finished eating, I’ll eat. Off of you.”

Joci froze as what he said registered. Then a smile grew across her face, so big it nearly flattened him.
“Really?”

Jeremiah picked the tray off the bed and set it on the nightstand beside him. He grabbed a plate with a cut-up Danish on it and set it down next to Joci.
“Roll over onto your tummy.”

Joci rolled over, resting on her elbows.
“Down, all the way. Lie flat on the bed, hands above your head.”

She moved the pillow and did as he asked. Jeremiah began placing little pieces of the cut-up Danish down the center of her back, on her butt cheeks, down the seam of her butt, tucking a few at the juncture of her thighs. He moved to straddle her legs and began kissing her shoulders. He kissed the back of her neck, licking and nipping. He moved down and snagged a piece of Danish and ate it while he continued pressing kisses down her back. He kissed and nibbled all the way down to her ass, nipping and biting as he did. The lower he got, the more aggressive his kissing became.

Joci hummed at the feeling. His tongue was amazing, his lips even better.

He started eating the Danish from the seam of her butt, licking and dipping his tongue in as far as he could go. A sigh escaped Joci
’s lips as he continued this sweet assault on her body. She was so wet and aroused from his sensual meal.

After he had eaten the last bite from deep between her thighs, he lifted slightly and with a voice husky with desire, he said,
“Roll over baby. I’m still hungry.”

Joci rolled over and the look in his beautiful green eyes was a sight to behold. He began placing sliced strawberries across her chest, on her nipples, between her breasts, down the center of her tummy. As he got lower, his nostrils flared as he looked at her,
“So fucking beautiful.”

He placed two slices of strawberry over her clit and took a whole strawberry and gently placed it between the lips of her pussy. He leaned forward and kissed her lips, gently. He licked across her bottom lip and pulled it into his mouth and sucked on it. Joci slid her hands into his hair and held his head.

“Jeremiah. Holy shit, this is…it’s great but, I need you.”

“
You have me, Joci. Always.” He kissed her neck, across the top of her chest, eating his strawberries and licking and nipping at her skin as he went. When he got to her nipples, he placed his mouth over her breast and sucked the strawberry and her nipple into his mouth. Sucking and pulling and teasing her until she began squirming.

“
Don’t knock my breakfast off, Joci.”

She blew out a breath and tried calming herself.

He did the same to her other breast as she moaned. He smiled against her skin as he continued to kiss and eat his way down her tummy. Finally, he made it to her clit. He ate the strawberry slices off her clit and sucked it into his mouth. He was still straddling her, so she couldn’t open her legs and let him in. He sucked her clit into his mouth and flicked his tongue over it, sending delicious sensations through her body. Her skin became clammy and her breathing heavy as he pulled away and slid down her legs. He pulled her knees up and gently spread her legs open to him.

“
Now this...this is a sight to behold.” Before she could say anything, he dipped down and sucked the strawberry from her opening. As he chewed, he slid two fingers into her channel and smiled up at her. “Joci, you’re so wet, baby. I think you like feeding me breakfast.”

“
Jeremiah. Please.” He chuckled as he swiped his tongue down the seam of her pussy and began moving his fingers. Joci whimpered as her orgasm flamed across her skin, pooling low and causing her to throb. Jeremiah sucked her clit into his mouth and Joci exploded.

He pulled his fingers out and thrust his tongue inside to taste her. He continued to lap at her until her orgasm subsided. He crawled back up her body as he said,
“That was the best breakfast I’ve ever had. Now, dessert.”

He swiftly plunged into her and began riding her hard. Joci slammed her hands into his hair and wrapped her legs around his waist and rode with him. Too soon, Jeremiah thrust hard into her and Joci cried out his name as he released himself into her. He held himself inside of her for long moments, letting his heart slow.
“Jesus. What you do to me is mind-blowing.”