Chastity nodded. “Even though there’s probably no one else I care about more, I’ve been jealous of you since we were kids. At times, I hated myself for feeling so petty, but I couldn’t help it.”
Dallas’s eyes widened, the look of utter disbelief forming her lips into an “O”, a range of emotions flickering in her liquid brown eyes. “Jealous of me? But why?”
“Do you really have to ask? You’re gorgeous, confident and men drool when they see you. Whenever the two of us would go out, I felt like the invisible woman.”
“Oh, hon, I never realized you felt that way. To me, you’ve always been the beautiful one.”
Chastity rolled her eyes. “Yeah, right.”
“Your kind of beauty comes from within. I always knew you could be stunning if you allowed yourself to be, and now you’ve proved me right. If the truth be told, I’ve always been jealous of you.”
Now it was Chastity’s turn to be surprised. “Me? You’re pulling my leg, right?”
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The Reinvention of Chastity
“I’m serious. There are so many qualities in you that I envy. You’re smart, caring and people like you for the person you are. I don’t have a lot of female friends because they always see me as competition. And the men…well, when they’re not acting like a bunch of brainless idiots, they treat me like I’m some kind of dumb bimbo.”
“I had no idea.”
“The grass isn’t always greener, babe. You know what I had to do to gain my independence from my family. It wasn’t very pretty. It was a gritty life, and when you have only your looks to rely on, it can kill your soul.”
“Thanks for sharing that with me.”
Dallas flashed a set of perfect white teeth. “No biggie. Look, I didn’t mean to get on your case about the Sebastian thing. It’s entirely up to you whether you want to pursue this plan or not. What matters is your happiness.”
Chastity was just about to give her friend a big hug when the phone rang, interrupting their moment of revelation. “Hmm, I wonder who that is,” she mused, reaching out for the phone. “Hello?” Only the faint sound of breathing met her ear. “Hello?” she answered again, hoping it wasn’t some sick pervert on the other end. She silently cursed herself for not checking her caller ID.
“Chastity,” a deep, familiar voice filtered through the receiver. No. It couldn’t be. Could it?
“Sebastian?” He’d never called her home before.
“You sound surprised. Surely you didn’t think you could leave things that way between us and expect me not to seek you out.”
“I didn’t really give it that mu-much thought,” she stammered, wishing her heart weren’t beating so erratically.
“Liar.” His throaty accusation cut through her thin façade.
“Look, what happened in the restroom today was a mistake. I’m sor—
”
“If you tell me you’re sorry, I’m going kiss you senseless the next time we see each other, which I hope will be tonight.”
“Tonight?” she croaked, throat suddenly dry. “I can’t.”
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Eve Vaughn
“Why not? This is something you started, remember? Chastity, you have no idea what you did to me today. Do you know what it’s like to walk around with a hard-on all day? I had to cancel the rest of my appointments because of you.”
“I fail to see how that’s my problem, Sebastian.” She inwardly congratulated herself for managing to keep her voice level, while her body trembled all over with nerves.
“It is your problem, because I’m going to make sure you finish what you started, lady.”
“Throwing down the gauntlet?”
“You’d better believe it. I’ve been thinking about that tight pussy all day, wondering what it would feel like wrapped around my dick.”
“Sebastian—”
“You’ve thought about it, haven’t you?”
Chastity had, but would be damned if she admitted it. “I’d rather not have this conversation right now.”
He chuckled. “That’s fine. There’ll be other times, preferably in person. So tell me, what’s going on between you and Jeremy?”
“As if I’d tell you. What’s this all about anyway? Were you stood up tonight and decided to give me a call?”
“If I were seeing someone at the moment, I certainly wouldn’t be on the phone playing cat and mouse with you, now would I? Damn. I must be out of my mind to even bother.”
Hearing him say that was the red flag waving in front of a bull. Was he implying she wasn’t worth the trouble? “Oh, trust me, I’m very much worth the bother,” she retorted.
There was a pause on the other end of the line. “Prove it then. Let me take you out tonight.”
“To dinner?”
“Of course.”
“A little candlelight and romance? Maybe even some dancing?”
“If you’d like.”
“Cut the bullshit, Sebastian. We both know what you want, and it isn’t romance. You want to fuck me. I already told you before that I don’t 64
The Reinvention of Chastity
want any of that mushy stuff from you. Come to my place tonight at nine, and bring the condoms…lots of them.”
A long silence followed her bold declaration. Holy crap. Did she just say that? Hardly believing her own audaciousness, she bit her lip and waited anxiously for his reply. As the quiet stretched, she began to lose her confidence. “Sebastian?” she asked tentatively, hoping he didn’t hear the squeak in her voice.
“Yes. I’m still here.”
“Well?”
“Is this what you really want, Chastity? I don’t want you to do this and later say I coerced you. Hell, I really shouldn’t get involved with one of my employees in the first place, but damn if I can walk away.”
“Oh, stop being a lawyer for a minute. You’re a man and I’m a woman, two consenting adults who want each other. The question is, do
you
want to do this? I could just as easily make plans with someone else.”
“With whom?” he growled.
Chastity covered her mouth to stifle the laugh threatening to bubble to the surface. His jealousy was so cute. “Just a friend. Will you come or not?”
“I’ll be there. This isn’t some trick, is it?”
Chastity didn’t realize she’d been holding her breath until she exhaled. “Of course not. You have my address right?”
“I only got your phone number from the emergency contact list. Go ahead and give me your address.” After giving him the information, she wondered if this was the right thing to do. Everything just seemed so surreal. “Okay, I’ll be there at nine. I’ll see you then.” Sebastian hung up before she could respond.
Chastity didn’t know how long she sat immobile on the couch with the phone against her ear and mouth wide open with shock, but it couldn’t have been very long with Dallas sitting next to her.
“Oh, my God! I can’t believe you just said that to him.” Her friend laughed.
She finally replaced the phone on the hook. “I can’t either.”
65
Eve Vaughn
“I guess this means you’re going ahead with the plan.”
“I reckon it does.” There was no turning back now.
* * *
Sebastian pulled into the drugstore on the way to Chastity’s. His hands shook. Shit! He hadn’t been this nervous about sex since his first time with Mindy Peterson, a cute redhead he’d pursued his entire sophomore year in high school. Unfortunately, the actual event didn’t live up the hype, and it wasn’t until his senior year that he had sex again.
Something told him though, that he wouldn’t be disappointed with Chastity.
What had happened during lunch still had his body reeling. The scent, taste and feel of her sent his hormones in a tailspin. She’d left his cock so damn hard he could barely walk afterwards. Her lush body pressed enticingly against his was enough to make his balls throb with need.
He perused the condom section, wondering what kind he should purchase. Would she prefer the kind that heated up or ribbed for her pleasure? Or would his usual brand do?
Jesus H. Christ. Get a hold of
yourself. You’ve made love to dozens of beautiful women.
This was Chastity Bryant for Pete’s sake.
The woman had him twisted in knots.
“Damn,” he muttered to himself, finally deciding to get the usual brand.
“Very nice,” a husky feminine voice said next to him.
He turned his head to see an attractive brunette with big green eyes smiling at him. Wearing a tube top and a micro-mini that barely covered her crotch, she was just a little too obvious for his taste. Sebastian gave the
lady
a brief smile, He made a move to walk by her, but she ran a finger down the side of his arm.
“Can I help you?” he asked, stealing a quick glance at his watch. He really needed to get back on the road if he wanted to get to Chastity’s on time. He wanted to give her as little opportunity as possible to change her mind.
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The Reinvention of Chastity
“You’re not going to use all those tonight, are you?”
He lifted a brow. Was this broad kidding? Something definitely wasn’t on the up and up. “If things go as planned, I will.” Sebastian tried to pass her again, but she blocked his way.
“That’s too bad, because I can show you things that your date tonight couldn’t imagine.”
This woman was obviously a prostitute. Why him? Disgust washed through him. “No thank you. I’m fine.”
“You don’t know what you’re missing, baby.”
“I said I was fine, thank you,” he said more firmly.
“I can take you to heaven, baby,” she persisted, boldly reaching out to trail her finger down the front of his pants.
Sebastian backed up. “Hookers are not my thing. Now if you don’t mind, I’d like to get by, please.”
“A girl’s gotta earn a living, but no one turns down Lola. Are you gay or something?”
He could have very well said something mean, but decided that if pretending he was gay would get this pariah off his back, then he’d do it.
“Uh, yeah, that’s it. I’m gay.”
To his astonishment, instead of walking away, she grinned, revealing a slight overbite. “Why didn’t you say so, baby. I got what you need.”
Lifting her skirt, the brunette showed off a large bulge in her panties.
Sebastian wanted to hurl. Great. Out of all the drugstores he could have stopped at along the way, he had to choose the one with a transvestite trolling the aisles, looking for action. He pushed past the she-male, dropping the box of condoms. To hell with them, he’d go somewhere else.
Sebastian only hoped that with all he’d been through on this weird day, that Chastity would make it all better.
67
Eve Vaughn
Chastity paced her living room floor, creating a trail in her plush cream carpet. Monty’s head followed her movements across the room as if he were watching a tennis match. She still couldn’t believe she’d issued an invitation for Sebastian to come over. Did she have the guts to go through with this?
Wrapping her arms around her body to still the shivers, she wondered if wearing this ridiculously see-through nightgown was a good idea. Nick and Kevin had talked her into buying a couple of sexy night things. The lilac gossamer nightgown she currently sported had looked sexy in the store, but on her body, it seemed indecent. She felt downright naked.
Dallas had bullied her into wearing it for Sebastian’s arrival. Chastity looked over at the standing full-length mirror on her living room floor, allowing her arms to fall to her sides. She twisted and turned, examining her body. Hanging by two spaghetti straps, the gown nearly touched the floor and hugged her voluptuous curves. The slits on the sides allowed her to move freely.
Her hair rested in a dark cloud around her shoulders and her make-up was freshly repaired. She had to admit that she did feel pretty, but what would Sebastian think? Self-consciously, she touched her rounded belly knowing she’d never be model slim, but right now it didn’t seem to matter.
The insistent buzz of the doorbell announced Sebastian’s arrival.
“Come on, girl, you can do this,” she whispered. Taking a quick look through her peephole before answering, she opened the door with a smile on her face. “Sebastian, you’re right on time.” Her heart banged against her breast nearly making it impossible to breathe, when he entered her house.
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The Reinvention of Chastity
She was so used to seeing him in suits and ties, that his casual appearance almost made her swoon. He wore a black crew-neck shirt that looked great against his olive skin and showed off his sinewy arms to perfection. Tufts of black hair peeked out of his shirt, enhancing his masculinity.
His blue jeans were so indecently tight that she could see the outline of his cock. Sparks of merriment danced in his green eyes. “Have you had your fill, or would you like for me to turn around so you can check out my ass too?”
Chastity’s face grew hot. How long had she been staring at the bulge in his pants? She gulped, remembering how thick his cock had felt when she’d wrapped her fingers around it. Embarrassed at being caught out, she tried to channel the confidence she’d felt earlier. “You don’t have to turn around. I’ve seen that ass walk by my desk on several occasions.”
“And did you like what you saw?”
“Oh, yeah”
Sebastian grinned. “Good. Because I like what I’m seeing now. You look very sexy.”
“Thanks. You don’t look too shabby yourself. Those jeans should be outlawed.”
He chuckled, handing her a bottle of wine. “This is for you.”
She took it with nerveless fingers. “I appreciate this, but you didn’t have to bring me anything.”
“I know I didn’t have to, but I was raised to bring a gift to the hostess whenever I’m invited to someone’s house for the first time.”
“That’s awful sweet of you, Sebastian, but we both know what you came here for,” she said with bravado.
“Maybe so, but that wouldn’t excuse a lack of manners. Now, just say thank you.”
“Thank you.”
“Actually, my motive wasn’t completely altruistic. I’m hoping you’ll share a glass with me.”
By now his gaze was slowly devouring her body, sliding up and down her curves. She grew warm under his perusal. Biting her lower lip, 69
Eve Vaughn
Chastity pressed her thighs tightly together to temper the surging heat within.