Out of Control (Losing Control Series Book 2) (2 page)

Chapter 3

Gia

We gave Jo, Brittany, Vince, and Marcus a ride on the cart back to the gate. They were deciding whether to take the shuttle back to the motorhome or party at Vince’s. Ethan and I headed to his place.

My butterflies were fluttering as I thought about what might happen when we got there. I didn’t even know what I wanted to happen. My mind was in a different place than it had been before Ethan found out how many licks it took to get to the center of a Gia pop. I was more relaxed, more open to him. That scared me a little, but it was a nice feeling and one I wasn’t used to.

“Are you hungry?” Ethan asked as he opened the door to his place.

“Yes, actually. And thirsty, too. Can I grab a bottle of water?” I asked him as I unzipped my boots. “Ahhh,” I sighed when I pulled them off.

“I got it,” he said. He grabbed two out of the fridge and then watched me.

He smiled. “Ya know, you’d be just as sexy in comfortable shoes as you are in heels.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” I said as I took my water from him and gave him a quick kiss. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. Now what do you want to eat?”

“Do you have any pizza?” I asked, knowing his fridge was full of healthy stuff, so I was pretty sure he didn’t.

“Sure. I keep some in the freezer for when the guys come over. But is that what you really want? I could make you something better.”

“Something better, or something healthier?” I teased him. “Because there really isn’t anything better than pizza. Unless, of course, the pizza you have is made of tofu or something. It isn’t, is it?” I was hoping it wasn’t.

“No, it’s not made of tofu. It’s totally greasy and bad for you.” He was smiling and I loved it.

“Perfect!” I smiled back and watched him take the pizza out of the freezer. He was an amazing guy. I wondered why he was single. I was just about to ask him when his phone rang.

“It’s one of my staff. We usually go over some things at the end of the night. I’m sorry. It’ll only take five or ten minutes,” he said apologetically.

“Absolutely,” I said. “Do you mind if I jump in your shower?”

“Absolutely not,” he said smiling. “Go for it.”

As I got undressed, I could feel Ethan’s hands, just like he had undressed me the last time I’d showered here. He was so sensual and sexy about it and I just wanted him to fuck my brains out. I was surprised he was still interested in me after all that.

I stepped into the shower. It felt so warm and relaxing. I stuck my head under the sprayer and stood there, letting it wash over me. I took Ethan’s shampoo and scrubbed my hair. I had put so many products in it that morning that it felt almost crunchy. Then I lathered the rest of my body. When I reached between my legs I hesitated, like I didn’t want to wash away whatever Ethan may have left there. I knew that was silly—I’d have the memory forever—so after a slight pause, I lathered and rinsed.

***

Ethan

My phone rang, it was Rose. She wanted to go over the numbers for the night, I assumed. I told Gia I’d only be a bit and she asked if she could shower.

“Go for it.”In my mind all I could see was her in all her beauty standing in front of me, water running down her perfect body, fire in her eyes, wanting me to take her to the edge. That was the best shower I’d ever had.
Oh, I almost forgot about Rose.

“Rose, hi—sorry about that, you caught me in the middle of something.” I was glad she couldn’t see me blushing.

“Oh, sorry, Ethan. This won’t take long,” she said. “The tills were outstanding tonight, very few overages and shortages. The girls were all upbeat and seemed happy with their tips. Shelley was in a mood, though. Asked if I’d seen you. You may want to touch base with her and make sure she’s all right.” I knew what that was about already. “Anyway, record breaking numbers, just as we’d expected. I’ll have the paperwork for you tomorrow evening and we can go over the whole weekend.”

“Thank you, Rose. Go to bed now, we have all week to go over the numbers.” She was always in a rush to get things done, so efficient. “You’re still the number one woman in my life,” I told her, and suddenly Gia popped into my head.

“Someday I hope to be number two, honey,” Rose said, like she was reading my mind or something. She’d never said that before, but I knew her and Don had always hoped I’d find someone. They were such a big part of my life, closer than any of my real family.

“I know, maybe someday,” I said. “Good night, Rose.” I hung up.

I checked the pizza, grabbed a couple more waters, and then I heard a knock at the door. I opened it and Shelley was standing there, drunk as a skunk.

“Hey, lover,” she slurred, “can I come in?” She stumbled over the threshold, pushing past me.

“Now’s not a good time, Shelley. I’m still on my date.” It felt so good to say that, knowing that Gia was here with me, and not just for sex.

She looked surprised. “Oh, well, isn’t that nice!” She pushed her hands against my chest. She looked pretty upset.

“Do you have a t-shirt I could wear?” I heard Gia ask and looked toward the bathroom. There she was with a towel wrapped around her and she stopped when she saw us. Her smile turned to confusion.

Shelley was crying now. “What does
she
have that I don’t? What makes
her
so dateable?” she screamed at me, but she glared at Gia.

I would’ve loved to give Shelley a list of everything that Gia had that she didn’t, but she didn’t have that kind of patience or time. I didn’t want Gia to witness any more of this.

“Gia, in the second drawer,” I told her carefully so she’d know everything was all right.

I turned to Shelley. “I’m sorry about you and Bob. You’re obviously upset and drunk. You need to go back to your place and get some sleep. We can talk when you’re sober, if you want to.” I knew she’d take me up on that offer, unfortunately. I’d have to decide what to do about this later. She was one of my best bartenders, I hated to lose her over something that was partially my fault, but she was crossing the line.

I called Gwen to come and get her. Gia headed back to the bathroom and Shelley never took her eyes off her. “Stop looking at her—she has nothing to do with this,” I told her.

I walked Shelley out to wait for Gwen. “Shelley, you need to stop this—now. You and I have been over since last summer, you know that. I’ve met someone and I want to try to build something real with her. You need to back off.” Gwen pulled up and Shelley stumbled to her car.

That could be a problem
, I thought as they drove off.

I walked back in and locked the door. The pizza was done, so I sliced it and headed to the bathroom.

I knocked on the door softly so I didn’t startle her. “Gia.”

When she opened it and I saw her, she took my breath away. There was Hotness, in my t-shirt. It said, “The Lock” across her breasts, and it hung down about mid-thigh. Her hair was damp, her freshly scrubbed face was glowing, and her bare feet were looking sexy as hell. I wondered if she was wearing panties, because I could tell she didn’t have a bra on.

“I’m so sorry about that, Gia. If you want me to, I’ll tell you about it while we eat. By the way, you look a million times better in that shirt than I ever have.” She gave me a sexy smile and I could tell she wasn’t too concerned about Shelley.

I pulled her to me and ran my fingers through her hair as I kissed her softly. She smelled like my soap, and as I let my fingers come around to her neck, she felt warm and soft. I was turned on, big-time. I pulled back. I had to have those eyes.

Her stomach growled and it caught me off guard. “Sorry,” she said. “Maybe we should eat.”

Laughing, I took her hand and led her to the kitchen. She grabbed a slice of pizza and hopped up onto the counter where I had set her when I was making her breakfast. I caught a glimpse of her panties as my t-shirt lifted slightly. She took a big bite. “Mmmm.”

Yeah, that’s exactly what I was thinking, but not about the pizza.
“Greasy enough for ya?” I asked as I grabbed a slice and hopped up on the counter across from her.

“Oh, yeah,” she said, swinging her bare, sexy legs.

She tipped her head back and held the slice above her mouth. The cheese dangled from the corner of the slice, and as she lowered it down into her mouth, I fidgeted. She chewed slowly with her eyes closed, savoring it. Her lips parted, allowing her tongue to lick the sauce from them. Pizza had just become my favorite food.
I could do this every meal, every day and never tire of it.

“Tell me about Shelley,” Gia said as we were finishing our last pieces.

“Okay. She’s worked here for five years. We hooked up one morning after we’d pulled an all-nighter trying to get the cash registers programmed and ready for opening weekend. We were both lonely. We’d been spending a lot of time together working and we got along great, giving each other a hard time—flirting, I guess I’d say. It just happened, and then it happened again, and pretty soon she was calling once a week or so asking if she could come over. I’d say yes or no, depending on what I was doing. She’d go back to the city at the end of the season and we’d talk maybe two or three times during the winter. Then she’d come back the next summer.” I paused and took a drink of my water, hoping she’d be satisfied with that, but I could tell she was waiting for more, so I continued.

“While we were working together, before we’d slept together, I told her that I didn’t have time for a relationship but it would be nice to have company every once in a while. She said she felt the same way and there was an understanding between us. There were a few times during those summers that she mentioned ‘going out’ somewhere. I told her that I didn’t ‘date’ because I didn’t have the time to do it right and I didn’t want the drama of it all while I was trying to get this place running like it does now. Then last year, I found out she had a boyfriend back in the city and that she was cheating on him with me. I don’t believe in that and didn’t want any part of it, so I told her not to call me anymore.”

“That must be Bob?”

“Yes. When I went to get drinks at the VIP area, Shelley was working. She suggested maybe she could come over later and that her and Bob broke up. She must’ve felt hurt when I said I was on a ‘date,’ and then she showed up here drunk, as you saw.” I finished my water.

“Friends with benefits, but she obviously wanted more,” Gia said.

“I guess so.” I’d always wanted someone I could really talk to, and at that moment Gia felt like that someone. She even seemed to have empathy for Shelley, as I did, but Gia didn’t even know her, and from what she’d seen, I was surprised by it.

“Thanks for the pizza,” Gia said, lightening the mood a little. “What’s for dessert?” She winked at me.

“Tofu brownies.” I winked back.
I’ll never tire of flirting with her.

She hopped off the counter, turned off the light, took my hands, and led me to my bed.
What’s she up to?
I remembered how things turned out the last time. I was nervously wondering but I didn’t say anything.

She reached for my shirt and lifted it up. I put my arms up and leaned toward her. She slowly pulled it off and dropped it on the floor. I really liked how nice and easy she was moving. She was so much different than the last time we were here.

***

Gia

I looked at his bare chest and abs and took a deep breath. Then I unbuttoned and unzipped his pants and pushed them down, exposing his amazing body in boxer briefs. I wondered if he wore underwear, now I knew. I’d never seen a body like his. It was so perfectly athletic and defined.

I wanted to give him something he wanted. So I pulled back the covers, crawled into his bed and patted the sheet beside me. He crawled in and I pulled the fresh smelling comforter up around us and then I nuzzled into him, putting my head on his chest. He put his arms around me and I told him something that surprised even me.

“I’m broken inside—I can’t have a baby.” I held as still as could be. I didn’t want to look at his face. There was silence. He was completely still, also. I could feel his heart beating against my face.

“Lex, that’s my ex-husband, wanted a family more than anything in the world. Over the years we tried everything we could to have a baby. I got pregnant three times but miscarried all of them. It was too much for Lex. He couldn’t bear living a life without children, and since I had already lost three of them, he didn’t want me to lose anymore. We stopped having sex. We talked about adoption and surrogacy and all the other options but it was too late. We had grown apart, and every time Lex looked at me, I knew he was disappointed.” I felt the tears run down my face onto Ethan’s chest.

Ethan pulled me up to the pillow so we were facing each other. He wiped the tears from my eyes. “I’m so sorry, Gia. That must’ve been very hard for you to go through. I can’t imagine how it felt for you and how lonely you must’ve been. Your husband obviously put his wants and needs above yours and that was unfair to you. Please don’t feel like you’re broken inside because you weren’t able to fill a void in someone else’s life. Maybe it was he who wasn’t meant to have your children because he can’t love unconditionally.” Then he slowly kissed my eyes and my face where the tears had run down. He held me close and I felt some of the pain leave my body as I exhaled. There was something so gentle about the way he talked to me and touched me—it made me relax into him.