NaughtyBoys Galley (4 page)

Jamie was a mischievous kid; he got into trouble at least once a week. The day I wasn’t pulling my hair when I babysat him was as rare as two-dollar bill.

He grabbed my arm. “Did you get hurt?”

“No. Just wet. And look at you.”

Jamie eyed me critically then unbuttoned his denim shirt.

“What are you doing?” I asked.

He yanked his shirt off and draped it over me. “You’re wearing a white blouse. I don’t want them to see you like this.”

They? See me like this
? I examined myself. My silk blouse had stuck to my skin and the crepe pants molded to the shape of my underwear I was wearing.
Yeah. Big deal.
I wasn’t a wet T-shirt model or anything. Who was going to ogle an overweight thirty-something gal?

“Are you all right?” called someone from the bank. Greg, Jamie’s partner shielded his eyes from the sun. “Do you need help?”

Jamie cut in front of me, covering me from their view. “We’re fine. I’m handling this.”

I rolled my eyes. Jamie was overreacting. Clutching his shirt on me as jacket, I started wading my way toward the edge.

“Wait!”

“Yes?” I asked.

He grabbed me and lifted me in his arms. “Jamie, what the hell. You’ll throw out your back. Put me down.” He didn’t comply until we reached the bank. He put me on my feet and steered me toward his truck. He didn’t say a word: I took it as he was angry. His face showed that he was deeply irritated. Good lord, I must have embarrassed him in front of his partner and employees.

“I’m sorry,” I said. “I wasn’t paying attention where I was going and the rat… Just like that. It won’t happen again. It’s not like I’m planning to go near a pond anytime soon.”

Jamie handed me a towel. Apparently, he stowed a duffel bag of clean clothes in his truck. “You think I was angry because you fell into a pond?”

“Yes. Why else?”

“I’m annoyed because you treated me like a child.”

“Sorry, it was just kind of a reflex—”

“Look at me, Simone. I’m a foot taller than you. I’m bigger and I’m stronger. I’m not the little kid you remember.”

“I get it. You’re a big man now.”

Jamie looked frustrated. He stepped closer and practically pinned me between his truck and that solid, well-muscled body of his. “I’m not joking around. Notice me already. I’m a guy. A healthy, red-blooded guy who’s attracted to a grown woman.”

I blinked.
What the hell does he mean by that?

He lowered his head. I thought he was going to kiss my cheek. Instead, he kissed my neck. I jumped instantaneously, trying to push him off, but he wouldn’t budge. In that split second, I was panicking, and I noticed he was aroused.

Well, how could I not notice since his groin was pressing against mine? And what made it worse was that my body responded to his kiss like a sexually deprived succubus. I was feeling hot despite being drenched to my skin with the muddy water. My heartbeat went wild. My pulse raced, and my face burned hot.

James Lauren Cody was trouble.

Trouble with the capital T.

Chapter Three

Since that revelation, working in the Codys’ house was filled with drama. I noticed Jamie’s flirtation. And he flirted a lot. From casually bumping my hand when we dined together to blatantly seducing me disguised as showing me how to julienne vegetables to his liking. I knew how to cut a bell pepper. I’d been doing it since grade school.

Jamie scooped himself behind me, placing his hand on mine and the other on the knife, guiding me to make neat, small cuts. He talked close to my ear with a low, whispering purr that made my pulse run faster than a rabbit on a greyhound track.

I liked my employment and the safe haven they provided, and I pretended I was oblivious to his advances. And the more I played dumb, the more frustrated Jamie seemed become. I hoped he’d eventually give up and chase another skirt.

He proved me wrong.

Jamie wasn’t only invading my personal space in real life, he also haunted my dreams. For a while, I dismissed this problem in a Freudian way, thinking that I was sexually repressed and these carnal desires were in my subconscious and when someone expressed interest in me, it acted as a catalyst that manifested it into dreams.

To be honest, I didn’t mind.

Whatever happened in my dreams, stayed in my dreams.

But when one morning I abruptly woke because I dreamed I ended up with Jamie, Luke, and Nate in the same bed doing things that would make every god and saint from every religion shake their heads in shame, I knew I had a problem.

This was not good.

Before the divorce, I could go to my therapist and vent to my heart’s content. I didn’t have real friends, but a therapist would hear all my stupid problems as long as I could pay for her expensive appointment. But now I didn’t have health insurance; Sam had cut me off, so the only thing left to do was to ignore it.

What was the worst thing that could happen when I’d already hit rock bottom anyway?

Well, I started to sink
under
the rock.

In the past week, my orderly new life unraveled little by little into chaos. Besides warding off the stemming attention from Jamie, everything around me seemed to be broken. The air conditioner in my room randomly stopped working. At times, it became so hot at night, I had to seek refuge in the living room or kitchen. Which meant I had to play nice with whoever was in the house at the time, be that Luke, Nate, or Jamie, and I couldn’t relax as if I were in my own room. One night, I fell asleep on the sofa and woke past midnight to find Luke curled up next to me, spooning, semi-snoring.

The shower in my bathroom made strange noises for days before it belched and dried up completely. I didn’t want to use other bathrooms in the house to shower, so I had to ask Jamie to fix it. After all, he was the handyman.

I knew inviting him into my sanctuary was a bad idea, considering he wasn’t showing any sign of relenting yet. I had no other choice. Asking Luke would be weird, as he didn’t seem comfortable with handy works. Asking Nate would be plain weird. He was the computer guy. What did he know about plumbing?

After dinner, I asked Jamie if he could take a look at my wonky shower. Luke didn’t have the nightshift, and Nate was free too, so I thought with his two brothers at home, Jamie wouldn’t dare do anything funny. Besides, I’d just leave him alone while he was working on it.

Jamie said okay. He’d do it after he made a few phone calls.

I served the brothers dessert—red velvet cupcakes with cream cheese frosting—then cleaned the dishes. Luke and Nate retired to the living room, watching TV. Jamie did his business thing in his room. I joined Luke and Nate after I finished my chores. We watched a rerun of “Family Guy.” Halfway into the show, Luke was called into the office. His deputy said the Anderson farm reported missing cows.

Jamie then returned with his toolbox and went to fix my shower. Nate got paged by a client soon after and had to go to his room to take a call. When Jamie called me saying he needed a hand, I halfheartedly followed him into my apartment.

The bathroom was a mess. Jamie had taken down the showerhead and even popped off several tiles to expose the plumbing pipes.

“What seems to be the problem?” I asked.

“Whoever installed this pipe is an idiot.”

“Aren’t you the one who renovated this place?”

“Yeah, but someone else did the plumbing, and he did a bad job. Lucky, he isn’t with us anymore.”

“Ah.” I knew nothing about house repair, especially fixing the plumbing. I’d always assumed all the plumbers I’d hired over the years were all-knowing experts.

“Here.” Jamie motioned me to help him. “I need you to hold this wrench in place while I put the showerhead back. I don’t have enough hands to do it all at once.”

“Okay.” I shimmied closer to Jamie and did what he asked.

“You ready?” he asked.

“I think so. Uhm, ready for what?”

“I need to reattach the showerhead.”

“Okay.”

Jamie fiddled with it, and suddenly, a burst of water sprayed all over us. I squealed and dropped the wrench. It fell and hit Jamie’s shoe. As I panicked whether I’d hurt him, Jamie was able to stop the flow of water.

But the damage had already been done, and both of us were wet. Jamie had it worse; he was soaking.

We looked at each other and laughed.

“I’m sorry. I’ll get a towel.”

“No.” Jamie stopped me. “I’m fine. I’ll just take my shirt off. No biggie.” He nonchalantly pulled his polo shirt off and dumped it in the sink.

All of a sudden, I became aware of his semi-nakedness. He had a very nice body. Healthy with defined muscles and sun-kissed skin. I could also smell his scent. Male scent. Musky. Man in heat.

It occurred to me that this was a scenario in a cheesy porn flick. A guy fixing a girl’s plumbing problem (non-sexually), and it ended up with the guy fixing the girl’s plumbing (sexually).

Gah. What the hell am I thinking?
My brain commanded me to get out of the bathroom. My ovaries wanted to ogle this piece of eye candy a little longer.

I roused myself. “I need to get changed. I’m also wet—my shirt that is. My shirt is wet.” I laughed lamely.

“Why? You don’t have to. You’re beautiful as you are, even if you were dressed in a burlap sack.”

I didn’t want to believe him when he told me I was beautiful.

Jamie pushed a lock of stray hair out of my face and tucked it behind my ear. He stared at me with full intensity. Slowly, my face burned. My body burned. My heart thundered, and I found myself fully aroused.

What had gotten into me?

Against my will, my body reacted wantonly.

This had never happened before… well… least, not lately. Okay, the past few months. My libido had gone on vacation since I caught Sam cheated on me. But now, being stared at by this hot, young hunk, a fire of arousal engulfed my whole being.

Instinctively, I stepped back and inched toward the door.

Jamie put his arm next to me, blocking the exit. “No more games,” he said, his voice husky. “I want you. I’ve wanted you since like… forever. You don’t know this but you’ve always be the perfect girl for me. You. Only you. Always.”

With that, he closed the distance between us and lowered his head, kissing me.

I knew I should push him away and stop this foolishness before it got out of hand. I don’t know what I was thinking. I couldn’t think. The moment he pressed his lips onto mine, my mind was wiped blank.

His lips were warm, and his kiss was so passionate, and it had been a long time since somebody had kissed me that way. My common sense vanished, and my basic instincts took over.

If I were asleep all these years, then I was awakened now.

Like Sleeping Beauty opening her eyes after the prince kissed her and freed her from the dark witch’s curse, Jamie’s kiss liberated me from the chain Sam put around me.

That moment my sex drive resurrected.

Jamie grabbed my shoulders and pushed me against the shower wall.

He deepened his kiss and forced my mouth open with his tongue. He went all French. Jamie melted my frozen brain.

“Jamie…”

He silenced my peep with more hot kisses that stole my breath. I sagged in his arms. My knees weakened. I trembled when he parted his lips.

“I want you.” Jamie brushed his lips over mine as he spoke. “And I won’t take no for an answer.”

With that, the last defense in my common sense crumbled to pieces. I kissed him back.

He kissed me hungrily and unbuttoned my blouse, yanking it off. He paused when he saw my black bra. His eyes widened, and his breath stalled in his throat. He took a hard inhalation through his teeth.

“You’re so beautiful.” His voice was an octave lower than usual, a ghost of a whisper. “So fucking beautiful. You’re all I wanted all these years.”

I felt him slide a finger under the strap of my bra and pull it off. His eyes feasted on my naked chest, and the intensity of his gaze seared my skin. He caressed me, lovingly and gently. He seemed to be enjoying every second he undressed me.

He cupped my breasts and squeezed them as he licked the side of my jaw, my neck, and the shell of my ear.

The sensations made my body shiver. I couldn’t take being kissed there.

Sensing my weakness, Jamie deliberately sucked my earlobe. A morsel of pleasure exploded. I jerked and lost my balance. He caught me and pinned me against the wall. Jamie stared at me again. I looked away as he cut his gaze to my breasts. I don’t know why I was embarrassed. It wasn’t like I’d let myself go all these years; I’d taken good care of myself. Maybe because Jamie was only the second man who’d ever undressed me, fervent awkwardness enveloped me.

Jamie noticed it. “What’s the matter? You have nothing to be shy about. You’re perfect. Everything about you is perfect.”

He slipped his hands under my buttocks and casually lifted me as if I weighed nothing.

I squealed and quickly held onto his shoulders. I’m no pixie; I’m a full-figured woman, and I’d never dreamed a man would lift me in a romantic context. Jamie was stronger than he looked. “Jamie,” I protested, “put me down.”

He only laughed wickedly.

“I’m not a kid anymore, Simone. I want you to see me as a man.” He buried his face in my cleavage and inhaled a deep breath. His expression was that of a man who was deeply intoxicated with lust.

“You’ve made your point. Now put me down,” I said.

Jamie ignored me. He sucked my breast hard enough to leave a mark on my skin. He licked me and treated me like I was newly acquired property. I thought it kind of romantic in a perverse sort of way. I grabbed his head and threaded my fingers in his hair. I closed my eyes as a fiery sensation lashed at the base of my spine. He was wicked. The way he played with my sensitive bud, the way his tongue caressed and flicked, his teeth grazed, and his mouth enveloped my flesh would melt any frigid women and leave them craving more. Jamie released my nipple and sucked the other.

I gasped.

A new blast of pleasure burst from every nerve ending.

I arched my back, and my head hit the tiles. My pussy grew wetter with every suck, and before long, he had me crying from the overload of pleasure.