Operation: Endgame (10 page)

Chris narrowed his eyes at Jake, all semblance of their basketball game gone. “She’s not one of your college playthings. I don’t care who you are. You break her heart, I will never forgive you. She deserves better than that. Promise me you’ll keep your hands off her.”

At those words a visual rolled through Jake’s imagination which was hard to ignore, but this was Cassie. He couldn’t do anything like that with her because it would hurt all of them. Their friendship was worth more than that. Jake gritted his teeth, but nodded. “I promise.”

Her blue eyes were sparkling as she looked up at him and realized he was watching her. She obviously had no idea of the licentious thoughts which had been going through his mind. “Hey, no daydreaming on the job, or we’ll never get this finished. You have a job to do, buddy…get to hanging those ornaments.” She gestured to the box sitting at his side.

“Yes, ma’am.” Jake saluted her and started hanging the glass balls, Santas, and snowmen, listening to her hum off-key to the Christmas music. Shaking his mental brain, he tried to refocus himself. He wasn’t here to daydream about things that couldn’t be. He needed to keep his eye on the issues at hand…rebuilding his friendship with Cassie and making sure she stayed safe from her stalker.

As he worked, he thought about the jerk making Cassie’s life a living hell. He was worried about what this guy planned to do next. Regardless, he was going to do everything in his power to make sure the guy was caught and Cassie was prepared to defend herself. Tomorrow, he would see about getting her a handgun. He knew her grandfather’s shotguns were still here, but he’d feel better if she had something closer at hand if the need for such a thing arose. He also wanted to get her out to the shooting range for some target practice. Hopefully, by the end of this week, he’d be rid of this troublesome cast and could also work with her on some self-defense moves. He knew she’d taken a class, but felt some refreshing was probably in order.

They worked in silence for a while, and finally, Cassie stepped back to cast an appraising eye upon the tree. “I think we’re just about done. Let me grab the star for the top and a chair.”

As she climbed the chair and reached to place the star at the top, Jake groaned internally. Her luscious ass was front and center and looking absolutely delectable. Luckily, it didn’t take long to get the star up, but unfortunately, that wasn’t the only thing getting up. He needed to get his libido under control and soon. A cold shower may just be the order for the afternoon.

“Are you ready to see the unveiling?” Cassie turned to him and asked with a gentle smile on her face. Cassie hopped down off the chair and went over to flip all the lights off in the room. She plugged in the Christmas lights and their soft glow illuminated the room. As the dulcet sounds of Silver Bells played through the stereo system, she turned to Jake and gave him a hug. “Thank you for making me decorate. I already feel better about everything. I’m so glad you’re here, Jake.”

Jake was careful to keep his lower body away from hers as they hugged. The presence of his erection might just curb those feelings of friendly affection she was having towards him. He needed some space. This was just too cozy and comfortable for his mental well-being. He needed to get some perspective again and that could only be done with some physical separation between them for a bit.

Jake abruptly pulled back. “Cass, I need to head over to mom’s house for a bit. Will you be okay for an hour or so?”

At her puzzled nod, “Sure,” he grabbed his keys off the counter and took off out of the house.

That was odd, Cassie mused. She felt like things had been going better between the two of them, but he left like she had scalded him. If Cassie didn’t know any better, she would have thought he could read her mind and the sexual fantasies she’d been having as she watched his muscles flex and strain as they moved around the Christmas tree. She hated he was on crutches, but it did her female heart good to watch his biceps flex every time he took a step or shifted. There had been lots of those movements as they decorated the tree and Cassie had watched every single one of them through the veil of her eyelashes.

She knew she should stop fantasizing about him, but their combustible passion through that single night had kept her warm for the many lonely nights since. He was her friend and had made it clear many times over the years that was all he wanted, so she tried to keep that thought foremost in her mind. It had been that way ever since they met.

When he moved in next door, they were all years away from hormones, but even then, she’d felt the unmistakable draw to him. It was innocent, but even as a boy he’d been cute with his charming smile and her little girl self hadn’t been immune to it. She’d observed him through her bedroom window as he watched the unpacking of the moving truck. He’d seemed so sad and alone. She wanted to reach out to him, but then she didn’t see him again until he fell out of the tree at the park three days later when Chris and she were playing war games. From that moment on, all three of them had been inseparable friends.

As they grew up, her infatuation with him grew too. She’d made a fool of herself many times throughout their teenage years….enough to make her cringe even now. Unfortunately for her, he’d never considered her as anything besides a friend.

Ten Years Ago

She had suffered through watching him date and have relationships all through their high school years. She dated too, trying to get over the fact he could never be hers. Her senior year, she’d been dating William Gunter. Will was a jock like her. They dated for a couple of months…two jocks, they had a lot in common and he asked her to the prom. One week before the prom, Cassie was so excited. She had her dress. They had plans to attend with a whole group of friends, but then Abby Greenhill got in the way. Abby was a cheerleader with all that entailed. She was petite. She was cute. She was feminine. She was everything Cassie was not and Will dropped Cassie the minute Abby looked his way. All of a sudden, Cassie’s prom and her senior year were ruined.

Jake was twenty at the time and attending Texas Tech. He swooped in and saved the day by offering to take her to the prom. Suddenly, Cassie knew this was fate. She gathered up her battered ego and decided this would be so much better. She was taking a college guy, who just happened to be the guy of her dreams, to her senior prom. This was her chance to show him she was not just the tomboy he’d always hung around and done guy things with. She could be feminine and attractive. This was her chance to show that to Jake and maybe prove something to herself too. The prom was going to turn their relationship into what she’d always dreamed it would be. It would just take a little ingenuity on her part to get him right where she wanted him…in her bed where he could take her virginity.

She planned every moment for her night of seduction. Cassie had worn a black sheath gown that emphasized her lean height and her flaming red hair that she’d worn up with tendrils cascading down her bare back. An extremely expensive push-up corset she wore under the dress assured every single feminine inch she had was shown off to its maximum potential. From the darkening of Jake’s eyes when he first laid eyes on her, every single penny she spent on the outfit was worth it.

They went to dinner with Chris and his girlfriend. Every minute, the butterflies in her stomach let her know what she had planned for the end of the night, but she never let on. They were all best friends so there was a relaxed atmosphere between the four of them. They attended the prom and danced the night away. Finally Chris slipped away with his date, as Cassie knew they would. This was where her bit of subterfuge came into play. Jake and Cassie danced for another thirty minutes. Frustratingly, Jake maintained his distance from her the entire night, but she knew she hadn’t imagined his reaction when he first saw her. He just needed a little push and she was ready to give it to him.

She looked at him and twisted his watch around so she could look at it. “Do you think we’ve given Chris and Gwen enough time?” She looked at him, like he should know what she was talking about.

Jake looked at her puzzled. “What? Enough time for what?”

Cassie gave an exasperated look she had practiced for hours in her bathroom mirror. “Chris forgot to tell you didn’t he? I should’ve known he’d forget. He was so excited for tonight.” She shook her head like this was just typical of Chris. “We got a hotel room for tonight so we could have some fun and relax after the prom…just us friends. We don’t get to see you as much since you’re the big time college student, so we thought it’d be fun to hang out especially since we don’t have a curfew for tonight.” That was a lie, but Cassie figured losing her virginity was worth the wrath of her Grandfather and the grounding that would come.

Cassie mentally crossed her fingers hoping Jake was buying all this bullshit. He seemed to be. “We’re already checked in. We’re just supposed to meet Gwen and Chris over there after they had about thirty minutes of private time. They’ve had that long haven’t they?”

Jake chuckled. “Yeah, they’ve probably had long enough. Let’s go. I’m starving. We can order some pizza and maybe catch the end of the game.”

When they arrived at the hotel room, it was empty. Not surprising to Cassie, but she didn’t let on. She had checked into the room earlier in the afternoon and set the room up so it would suit her purpose. She’d wrinkled the bed so it looked like Chris and Gwen had been there and left the lights low so there was an appropriate ambience.

Cassie looked over at Jake and said, “I bet they went to go grab some pizza.” She gestured at the bed. “Get comfortable. I’ll be right back out. I need to head to the restroom.” At Jake’s nod, she went into the bathroom where she had earlier stashed her bags under the sink so she could prepare for her seduction.

Finally she was ready. Her stomach fluttered with butterflies at what she was about to do, but she couldn’t ignore fate. She knew Jake wanted her. All she wore was the black corset that supported her impressive cleavage all night, a tiny black thong, and matching garters. She left on her high heels and walked out of the bathroom. While she was gone, Jake turned on the Rangers baseball game that went into extra innings that night. He didn’t even bother to look up when she entered the room. He was safely ensconced in male sports heaven, but she didn’t let that deter her. She went to the end of the bed and stepped in front of the TV.

At Jake’s first glance, his jaw dropped open and his eyes widened in shock. “Cassie?!? What the hell?”

Not exactly the initial reaction she’d been hoping for, but she continued on her quest. She crawled onto the bed where he sat and crawled up his body on her hands and knees.

She was relieved to see his eyes once again darken and once again, he said her name questioningly, “Cassie?” but this time it was much more gravelly-sounding, like he had swallowed rocks.

She knew this was her chance. She laid her body across his and felt the unmistakable feel of his long, thick erection pressing into her belly. The evidence of his arousal gave her courage. She pressed her lips to his and his arms automatically came up around her. He groaned into her mouth and she felt him sink into the kiss. His passion curled her toes and sent sparks traveling throughout her entire body. The kiss was deep. It was passionate. It was everything she hoped it would be. He flipped her over onto her back continuing to ravage her lips.

‘
Finally,’ she screamed within her head as she reached down to start working the button and zipper of his black tuxedo pants. That one move threw ice water onto Jake’s passion and he grabbed her hands and held them above her head. She lifted her eyes to his in question. His eyes were flaring with lust and passion, and she licked her swollen lips. He watched the movement and groaned as he lowered his forehead to hers. “Cassie. God, we can’t do this. I can’t do this.” His voice sounded guttural, he looked up at her once again with regret in his eyes.

“
Wha…What?” she stammered.

“
We can’t do this. I won’t do this with you.” He looked at her directly. He quickly got off her, rubbing his hand through his hair, and wouldn’t look at her again. “Go get dressed. I’ll take you home.” He said quietly.

Cassie’s humiliation was complete as his rejection hit her. She rushed into the bathroom to put back on her dress and tried desperately to control her tears. She would not let him see her cry.

That had been the only other time there had ever been any hints at romance in their relationship besides their encounter in May, but that had never stopped him from playing as the main figure in her many romantic fantasies over the years.

She had several relationships, some of them even serious, but Jake continued to be her main infatuation. Obviously, this was a one-sided thing though and she would never throw herself at him again.

Jake arrived back at Cassie’s house several hours later like nothing was amiss. She assumed she must have read something more into the situation than was actually there. When he arrived, she’d been sitting next to the fire, enjoying the glow from her Christmas tree, and reading the latest Kristan Higgins book. She felt the need for something lighthearted and fun and contemporary romance always delivered. As a result, she was feeling lighter and more optimistic when Jake walked in carrying barbecue and beer.