Bachelor's Bait (7 page)

When she stood before him, he reached for the hem of her short skirt and slowly lifted the silky fabric until it cleared her hips. “Sit back down.”

Sophie reclaimed her seat on the edge of the desk. Marc reached beneath her knees and slowly spread her legs apart.

“Christ. A thong,” he whispered.

Even bound, Sophie was far from an inactive participant in their play. She stretched out her legs and wrapped her ankles around his hips in an effort to draw him nearer. “I’m starting to feel like a
Playboy
model, the way you keep posing me.”

He allowed her to pull him closer. She had on a different pair of strappy heels. He briefly wondered how many pairs of sexy shoes he’d find in her closet. Then he pictured himself using the shoe straps to bind her spread-eagle to his bed. “What can I say? You’re inspiring all sorts of kinky thoughts in my head.”

“Like what?” Her question fell out on a breathless sigh.

“There are a million things I want to do with you. Tie you to my bed. Blindfold you. Gag you. Use dildos, butt plugs, nipple clamps on you. I’ll take you from behind, upside down, sideways. I want to fuck you in a pool, a car, on a mountainside, at a football game.”

She laughed. “I hate football.”

“We wouldn’t be watching the game. So what do you think? Feel like spending a few weeks—or months—exploring your naughty side with me?”

“I think I lied. You might be out of
my
league. I’m afraid the kinkiest I’ve ever gotten is sex in the alley behind Books and Brew and a little bit of anal play. Not at the same time,” she quickly added.

Marc’s smile grew. She was too perfect—funny, honest, straightforward. “Take some time to think about it. You can give me what I want later.”

“Are you always so sure of yourself?”

Marc winked. “Let’s just say I’m very good at reading people.”

Her face betrayed exactly how much she wanted to knock him down a peg for being so cocky. He also knew she wouldn’t because despite her desire to one-up him for his arrogance, deep down inside, Sophie was dying to be a bad girl.

“This is one case you’re going to lose,” she said, her trembling voice in direct opposition to the strong words.

“We’ll see.” He knelt before her, loving the sound of her quick, excited intake of breath.

“Marc…” she started.

“Shh. I’m gathering evidence.”

She lifted one leg, her ankle coming around his shoulder, touching him in a way that let him know she was completely into this game. “What?”

“I’m looking for proof that everything I said turns you on so much, there’s no way you’ll say no to my offer of nonstop kinky sex.”

She opened her mouth to reply, but he quickly cut off any clever retort by running his finger along the thin—and soaking wet—string of her thong.

“Aha,” he said softly. He glanced up and captured her gaze. “You’re not as innocent as you claim.”

She closed her eyes when he moved the thin strip of material to one side, leaving her pussy open to his questing fingers. “Do you always talk this much?”

He chuckled. “Curse of a lawyer. Most of us are way too fond of the sound of our own voices.”

“Marc?”

“Yeah?”

“Shut up.” She wrapped her other ankle around his shoulder and nudged him closer, telling him without words exactly what kind of lip action she was interested in.

“My pleasure,” he said—then pressed his lips to her pussy.

Sophie reacted like a sprinter to the starter pistol, her hips jerking when he opened his mouth and sucked deeply on her clit.

“Oh my God.” Sophie’s head flew back as he used his teeth, lips and tongue to drive her arousal higher. She obviously hadn’t been kidding about her dry spell. She was primed and ready to roll. He suspected it wouldn’t take much to drive her to climax. Ordinarily he liked to drag out the foreplay, build the anticipation, but their time was already running out. As it was, he was facing a long, painful afternoon, working with the mother of all erections.

Marc increased the suction on her clit and Sophie gasped.

“So freaking good.”

He added his fingers to the play, sliding one, then two inside her pussy. Sophie’s hips thrust forward, seeking more, silently prodding him to go deeper and faster.

He complied, placing his lips back on her clit and sucking hard.

Sophie fell apart, her body trembling as her orgasm took over. Her legs tightened, trapping his head. He smiled at her strength and figured there were worse places to be ensnared than between Sophie’s thighs.

When she began to calm down, he lightly lifted her legs from his shoulders and stood. Reaching around her, he unbound her hands.

Sophie moved like lightning, catching him off guard.

She had his belt unbuckled and his pants undone and around his ankles before he could gather his wits enough to respond. She claimed the spot he’d just vacated, kneeling before him.

His hands flew to her hair. “Soph, wait. There’s no time.”

She didn’t respond. Instead she ran her tongue along his hard cock from root to tip.

Fuck it. His client could wait.

His fingers tightened in her long tresses as she took the head of his dick inside her hot mouth.

Jesus. She didn’t hold anything back, didn’t act coy, didn’t hesitate. She took him deeper before sucking, her cheeks hollowing around his flesh. The action sent shards of electricity through him and his balls grew heavy. It was going too fast, but he’d be damned if he’d slow things down. Sophie was sucking on his cock like it was a lollipop, humming, licking, teasing with her teeth.

When she wrapped her hand around the base of his cock, squeezing so tightly he saw stars, he knew it was pointless to resist.

“God, Soph. I can’t stop. If you don’t want—”

She increased her speed and suction and Marc lost it. Hot spurts of come flew from the tip of his dick and Sophie drank down every last drop.

“Mother of God.” Marc dropped to his knees in front of her, grasping her head and pulling her close for another kiss. No force of nature could have kept him away from her at that moment.

Sophie, as always, returned the embrace…with interest. She was passionate, sexy and fucking hot as hell.

Marc was suddenly starting to suspect he’d met the woman of his dreams, fresh from the society pages.

Fate was laughing its ass off right now.

Chapter Four

“Hey, grumpy ass. What gives?”

Sophie scowled at Stephanie as she placed dirty glasses on the bar. “Nothing.”

Stephanie poured a beer from the tap, looking as annoyed as Sophie felt. “Don’t say ‘nothing’. You’ve been walking around here like a bitch from hell for well over two weeks. I’m PMSing and in no mood to watch you slamming drinks around for another night.”

Sophie wanted to be angry, but Steph’s assessment was spot-on. She’d been a bear for weeks. She sank onto one of the barstools and sighed. “I fucked up.”

Jayne, who’d been setting up a new window display of books, came over and took the stool next to her. Eavesdropping was the number one form of entertainment on slow days at the store. “Fucked up how?”

“With Marc.”

“Marc Garrett?” Stephanie asked.

Sophie nodded. She hadn’t said much to her friends about the attorney who’d been twisting her in knots for weeks. For one, there wasn’t much
to
say. She hadn’t laid eyes on the man since their little tête-à-tête in his office nearly three weeks earlier.

“Wait a second. I need to do something.” Stephanie grabbed her phone and began texting.

“What?” Sophie asked.

“I’m telling Jordan to get her ass down here. We’ve all been worried about you, but we didn’t know what was bugging you. Sounds like we’re about to get the goods.”

Sophie tried to be annoyed but she couldn’t summon the emotion. Obviously it had done no good, telling herself to forget Marc. Maybe it was time to call in the recruits and ask for help. She glanced around the bar. Apart from a couple of young guys chilling out with beers at a table near the front and a woman perusing the magazines in the corner of the bookstore, there was no one else in the place to bother them.

Jordan appeared at the bottom of the stairs in record time. “Thank God you’re finally talking. I’ve been worried sick about you.”

Sophie smirked, unable to resist teasing her friend. “If you’ve had time to think about
me
, then clearly Gabe and Casey suck in the sack. Maybe you need to reconsider this threesome setup.”

Jordan flushed. “Don’t worry about my guys. They do just fine in bed.”

Stephanie laughed. “God. That deal is going to take some getting used to. When our Jordan decides to jump back into the dating scene, she fucking dives in headfirst.”

Jordan bit her lip and asked the same question she had almost daily since she, Casey and Gabriel had entered a ménage affair. “You guys are sure this is okay? I mean—”

“It’s fine!” Jayne, Stephanie and Sophie repeated in unison.

Jayne grasped Jordan’s hand. “You’re still happy, right?”

Jordan nodded.

“Then that’s all that matters.” Jayne’s philosophy on life. No matter what the world threw at them, Jayne’s main concern was always that they walk the path that would lead them to happiness.

It was a good idea…in theory. In reality, Sophie was struggling to figure out what might make her happy. In her career, her family issues and her relationships, she never seemed able to grasp that elusive happiness. It was frustrating as hell.

“Well, we’re not here to talk about me, are we? What’s going on, Soph? You’re always so upbeat and energetic. It’s not like you to be down for so long.”

Stephanie placed a Heineken in front of her. “She said she fucked up with Marc Garrett.”

“The attorney?” Jordan asked.

Sophie was grateful for the liquid courage. She took a long drink of the ice-cold beer. “Yeah. We were hanging out quite a bit a few weeks ago and I sort of thought things were heading in a good direction, but now I’m thinking I threw us off course.”

“Is there a reason why you’re speaking in generalizations? I thought you hated the guy. You called him an asshole…repeatedly. Stop screwing around and give us specific details.” Stephanie poured herself half a beer from the tap.

Sophie groaned. Stephanie was the queen of no-nonsense. “I lied about the asshole part. Truth is I really like him. A lot.”

Jayne pulled a bowl of peanuts closer and began cracking the shell on one. “Did I miss something? You two have never even gone out on a date, have you?”

Sophie picked at the label on her beer. “No. No dates. I mean, we talked when he came by here that one night. We sat next to each other at Patricia Butt–Bitch’s party and had a good time. Then we sort of made out in the coat closet at the Crawford Inn.”

“I knew it!” Jordan piped in. “I knew something had happened that night, but I couldn’t figure out what.”

“He cornered me.”

“Good kisser?” Stephanie asked.

“An amazing kisser. My car battery died that night, so Marc drove me home.”

Stephanie leaned closer and rubbed her hands together. “Something tells me we’re getting to the good part.”

Sophie shook her head. “Sorry to disappoint you, but he just gave me a foot massage and left that night. It was actually a few days later, in his office, when things got hot and heavy.”

Stephanie put down the beer she’d just lifted. “
How
hot and how heavy? Spare no expense in the description.”

Sophie laughed. She loved her friends. They always listened, never judged. She’d been an idiot to try to deal with her anxiety alone these past few weeks. “We made out.”

Stephanie made a sound like a buzzer. “Errr! Lame answer. Try again.”

Sophie rolled her eyes. “Fine. He went down on me and I gave him a blowjob. Detailed enough for you?”

“Better. So that was what? Two, three weeks ago?” Stephanie asked.

Now they were getting to the heart of the matter. “Almost three. And yeah. Since then…nothing.”

Jayne, the most compassionate of the group, reached over and took Sophie’s hand. “What happened?”

Sophie shrugged. “I have no idea. I’ve called him a few times but whenever I suggest we get together, he always has an excuse why he can’t.”

Jordan frowned. “What sort of excuses?”

“Apparently he’s defending a man who’s been accused of murder. The trial’s going on a lot longer than he’d anticipated. Then last weekend he had to make a quick trip back home to DC for some family emergency, and he’s also working to find a loophole that may buy the community center more time to raise the funds needed for repairs.”

Jordan’s face cleared. “Those sound like pretty good reasons to me. He’s just been busy.”

“I know, Jordan. They’re all valid, even noble reasons.” Sophie tried to tell herself she was being a petty, selfish bitch, but she couldn’t shake the idea that karma was teaching her a lesson. How many times in the past had she played the “I’m too busy” card as a way to avoid an interested suitor? Hell, she was a master at the game. “Do you think I made a mistake with the blowjob? We’d only known each other a week or so. I’m afraid maybe I came off as slutty.”

Stephanie slapped her hand against the bar. “Holy shit. Really, Soph? That’s what you think went wrong? I thought you said he went down on you too.”

“He did.”

“Fine. Then if you’re a slut, so is he. Goddamn double standards piss me off. I highly doubt that’s why he’s not calling you, but if it is, then you’re better off without the judgmental prick.”

Sophie felt her face flushing despite the fact she should be used to Stephanie’s brutal honesty. Plus, hearing her friend’s assertions made her realize how stupid her concern was. “I actually don’t really think that’s why he’s avoiding me.”

Jordan grinned. “If he’s a straight guy, I’m one hundred percent sure that’s not the problem. I don’t know any man who dumps a girl for giving him a blowjob.”

They all laughed but Sophie was forced to admit she’d been building mountains out of molehills, spending the last few weeks grasping at any excuse simply to avoid admitting the truth.

“I think it all boils down to the fact he’s just not interested in me. I should’ve seen it when he volunteered to be auctioned off.”

Jayne squeezed her hand gently. “Then it’s his loss.”

She nodded, wishing there weren’t tears forming in her eyes. “Yeah. Problem is, I really liked him. I thought we clicked. It’s stupid to let this get me down. We never even went out on a date. It’s just…” Her words faded away.

Stephanie was first to break the silence. “I knew Jared was the guy for me the first night we met. It took me awhile to admit it, but I get what you’re saying. You can tell when you connect with someone pretty early in the game.”

Jordan stepped closer and put her hand on Sophie’s shoulder. “I understand that feeling too. While Gabe and I have been friends forever, Casey and I are just at the beginning of our relationship. Even so, I feel like I’ve known him for years.”

Sophie smiled and swiped away the tears. They really did understand. “So what do I do now?”

Jayne released her hand and stood up. “You take it a day at a time. Luckily the next few days are going to be too busy for you to be sad. It’s T-minus seven days and counting on this big bachelor auction and we’ve got a gazillion things to do between now and then to get this place ready.”

Jayne was right. Sophie had been working on a to-do list earlier this morning. After listing twenty time-consuming tasks that needed to happen to make the auction a success, she’d stopped adding to the list. In her current down-in-the-dumps state of mind, it had all seemed too daunting and overwhelming. Now it was the answer to a prayer. Keeping busy was just the trick to setting aside her sadness over Marc’s disinterest.

“Good plan. I’ll start with the stage setup. My cousin is letting me borrow a makeshift one he uses for his garage band. It has spotlights and everything. He’s also loaning me sound equipment. He sent me specs and it should all fit in here fine. We’ll just have to clear out the tables on that side of the bar.” Sophie pointed to her right.

The original plan had always been to hold the auction at Books and Brew. Sophie had thought it would be good PR for the store and the initial intent was for a more intimate event. However, now that the charity had changed and the need to make lots of money for the center was hanging over Sophie’s head, she regretted offering up the smaller space. Unfortunately there wasn’t time to find a larger venue, given the short timeframe.

Her friends—God bless them—had agreed they’d clear out as much space as needed, vowing they’d make the auction a success.

“Is this the cousin who lives in Seattle?” Jayne asked.

Sophie nodded. “Yep. I’m taking a little road trip tomorrow. Borrowing Casey’s truck to pick up all the stuff. I’ll be gone most of the day. Actually, between now and the auction, I’m not sure how much help I’ll be around the bar.”

Stephanie threw her a quick wave of the hand. “We can cover for you. We’re closing the day before and of the auction anyway to set stuff up. If the cleanup looks too daunting, we’ll close the day after too, so don’t worry about it. We’re good to go on this.”

Jordan agreed. “Yep. No problem. I’ve been meaning to tell you how great I think it is that you’re working so hard to save the community center. I love that place. It would be hard to picture this city without it.”

“I think you’re brave to stand up to your dad,” Jayne chimed in.

“Brave nothing,” Stephanie said with a big grin. “Our social butterfly is turning into queen of the ball-busters. I have to admit I prefer this new you.”

“Yeah right. Well, don’t be too impressed. Inside, I’m a nervous wreck. What if we don’t make enough money?”

Jordan glanced over when one of the two male customers waved for their attention. “You will. Gabe was talking about it last night. He said if anyone could do it, you could.” Jordan walked over to grab the men’s empty glasses and nodded when they asked for another round.

Sophie took a deep breath and smiled.

Positive thinking. That was all she needed. A little positive thinking.

The auction would be a success.

They’d raise the needed money for the center.

She’d show her father that personal is always better than business.

And she’d forget all about Marc Garrett.

Hopefully.

* * * * *

The night of the auction arrived far too quickly for Sophie. Marc had called exactly twice since the last time they’d seen each other, both times to check in about the progress on the fundraiser. His tone had been casual and friendly, but he’d made no mention of seeing her. Instead, he’d talked about how busy he was with the trial and how sorry he was he couldn’t help more as she planned the event. It was like listening to herself whenever a guy failed to get the hint that she wasn’t interested.

Fuck him
was becoming her standard line. Anytime she felt depressed about his rejection, she just took a deep breath and said, “Fuck him.”

“Who are we fucking?” Jordan asked.

Sophie grinned. “No one. Unfortunately.”

“Speak for yourself.” Jordan was the current poster child for sexually-active-and-loving-every-second-of-it women everywhere. It made Sophie want to scratch her drowsy, I-was-up-all-night-screwing-two-hot-guys eyes out.

“Bitch.”