Bad Girl Lessons (4 page)

Evie didn’t answer immediately, since the waitress picked that moment to return with their drinks. When she’d walked away, Evie asked, “What does all this mean, Jackson? Are we dating, are we a couple, or are we just friends with benefits?”

He shrugged. Answering questions about how he truly felt about Evie was not something he had any intention of doing. At least not for a while. “We’re a couple...definitely a couple. While we’re together, I won’t be with anyone else. If you decide you want someone else, just say the word. I don’t know where this is going, Evie. But I like where we’re at right now. Don’t you?”

She nodded. “So, I guess we just take it as it comes then.”

He leaned in closer, “Evie, you’ve only ever been with one other man besides me, and he apparently wasn’t that much of one. I want you to enjoy this, to experiment and figure out what you like. The rest of it will work itself out.”

Evie shrugged, “I just worry. Two days ago I was engaged to Trevor and now I’m here with you. What will people think of me?”

“You’re a bad girl, remember? You don’t care what people think about you,” he said mildly. A grin split his face as he added, “And if you’re getting cold feet, just think about how much it will piss your mother off when she finds out you were having lunch with me.”

Sputtering the sweet tea she’d just sipped, Evie’s eyes watered from coughing. “Oh, that does not help at all. She hates you!”

“Bad girl,” he reminded her. “Dating men your mother hates is a requirement.”

They continued their lunch in the same vein, talking about nothing. Jackson teased her unmercifully and she found herself enjoying his company much as she had before permanently altering the nature of their relationship. It was a dangerous thing. Liking him too much would only lead to heartache. After they finished their meals, Jackson returned her to her office at the museum.

“I’ll pick you up tonight at seven. I’ll call you at six thirty with instructions,” he said with a wink.

“Instructions for what?” He didn’t answer, just smiled wolfishly and then drove away. Evie gritted her teeth and went inside the building. She hated surprises like that.

“O-M-G! Why the hell didn’t you tell me you were doing Jackson Cope?”

Evie grimaced at the sound of her best friend’s voice. Cass Blakely was loud and obnoxious, and other than Evie’s weight and Jackson Cope, the only thing she and her mother had ever fought about. Margaret had considered Cass to be white trash and crass. Cass considered herself to be the same things, only she took pride in it. “Because I wasn’t doing him, as you so eloquently put it, the last time I saw you.”

Cass settled herself onto the small couch in Evie’s office, propping her stiletto clad feet on the small coffee table. “He’s hung like a bull, isn’t he? I’ve always been dying to know.”

Evie frowned, “You mean you and he have never...?”

Cass laughed, “Not for lack of trying on my part. Hell, I can’t count the number of times I’ve thrown myself at him. He’s always turned me down gently and sweetly as possible...so damn nice I leave the bar wondering who rejected who. Guess I know why now... Seems our resident stud has a thing for curvy brunettes.”

Evie shrugged, “I wouldn’t say that. I sort of threw myself at him.”

Cass rolled her eyes and tossed her flaming red hair over her shoulder, “Find me a woman in town who hasn’t thrown herself at Jackson Cope! Trust me, girlfriend, that man can afford to be picky... If you’re lucky enough to find yourself in his bed, it’s because he wants you there. Now, dish! I want all the details.”

Evie blushed furiously, “I am not discussing the details of my sex life with you!”

Cass laughed, “It must be really good then! Just tell me his cock is huge!”

Evie didn’t have to answer. Her expressions had always made her an open book. Cass’s squeal of delight was deafening in the small room. “For the love of God! I’ll tell you whatever you want to know! Just don’t make that noise again!”

For the next hour, Evie was interrogated about even the most minute detail of her sex life. Rehashing every delicious, scintillating moment of her encounters with Jackson did more than embarrass her. By the time, Cass left the office and headed for home, Evie was wet and aching, thinking of just how wonderful it had felt to have Jackson’s cock sliding into her. Glancing at the clock on her desk, she noted that it was nearly four. If she left the office, she’d have time to run to the mall and pick up a few things.

Exiting the museum, she stepped out into the small parking lot and approached her car. Her steps faltered as she neared it and saw Trevor getting out of his well polished Volvo. He looked tidy and perfectly pressed in his khakis and polo shirt. His hair was perfectly groomed, but there was tension in his face and dark circles beneath his eyes. “Evie, we need to talk.”

“I have nothing to say to you, Trevor. You left me at the altar. Literally. If that isn’t a clear indication that our relationship wasn’t working, I don’t know what is,” Evie said briskly as she walked past him. She was unprepared when his hand gripped her elbow and yanked her back. His grip on her arm was hard and bruising.

“Don’t walk away from me when I am talking to you! Dammit, Evie! It isn’t like that!”

“You’re hurting me,” she said, her voice coming out between clenched teeth.

He glanced down, seeming surprised by the fact that he had put his hands on her. He let go so abruptly that she stumbled, her hip connecting painfully with the side mirror of her car.

“Evangeline,” he said, and his tone had become placating. Whenever Trevor had been annoyed with her and felt the need to bring her around to his way of thinking, he’d used that same patronizing tone. “What happened was unfortunate, but it was never my intent to not go through with the wedding.”

“So you accidentally ran off with my cousin whom you’ve been fucking?”

He gaped at her, having never heard her speak that way. “I understand that you’re angry,” he finally managed. “That’s fine. Be as mad at me as you want to be for as long as you need to be. When you’re ready, we’ll get married. Quietly, this time. No big wedding.”

“I’m not going to marry you, Trevor.”

He smiled, “Of course, you will. Let’s face it, Evie. I screwed up, yes, but you don’t have that many other options.”

Only two days earlier that statement would have had her sobbing in the bathroom. But not anymore. Not only did she now realize that it was possible for other men to be attracted to her, she also fully understood what had been missing from her relationship with Trevor. She’d never wanted him. Not really. She’d settled for him because she thought she couldn’t do any better. “No, Trevor. My options are wide open, and even if they weren’t, I still would have you back.”

“The thing with Lisa was just a fling...a drunken mistake, Evie. It will never happen again.”

“I really don’t care. That’s why I am surprisingly okay with what you did, Trevor. When I realized that the only thing I felt when you didn’t show up was embarrassment...not heartbreak, not even anger, just a little wounded pride, I realized that you’d actually done me a huge favor. So go fuck Lisa... Fuck any woman you want to. But it won’t be me. Ever again.”

Trevor’s expression twisted, transforming into something dark and ugly. “You’ll come crawling and beg me to take you back.”

“Really? Cause it seems to me that you’re the one chasing after me at the moment. Frankly, I have better things to do with my time.”

Evie moved towards the car door, but as she unlocked and pulled it open, Trevor’s hand slammed against the upper part of the door, forcing it closed again and throwing her once more off balance. He was standing behind her, pinning her to the car. A frisson of fear went through her. Trevor had always been arrogant and he’d been childish when things hadn’t gone his way. She’d never been afraid of him before, however.

“You’re going to move in with me. We’re going to go back to things the way they were before and when things have settled down again, we’ll get married,” he said.

Fear motivated her to placate him. “Trevor, I need time to think about all this. Two days ago you left me for another woman.”

It was apparently the right approach to take with him. He backed off and said, “You’re right. I’ve hurt you and I need to be more patient. I’ll call you tomorrow and we’ll talk about it.”

“All right,” she said, and opened the door. He made no move to stop her that time, but her hands trembled as she fitted the key into the ignition. Her heart was pounding in her chest as she drove away. She didn’t go home immediately, but headed directly to the police station. When she left it twenty minutes later, she was bitterly disappointed and more than a little shocked at how ineffective the laws were. He hadn’t threatened her, and the small bruises on her arm would only garner the smallest, most trivial assault charges for which he would probably get a fine and nothing else. Disgusted, Evie drove to her new apartment and once safely inside, locked all the doors behind her.

It was just after six when Jackson called. A hot shower and a glass of wine had gone a long way towards easing Evie’s nerves. She should have been unpacking and arranging the furniture that the movers had dropped off, but she simply didn’t have the heart for it. Seeing Jackson’s name on her phone brought a smile to her lips.

“Get the denim skirt you wore to the picnic. Put it on with a pair of high heels. The sexiest bra you own and a white tank top. No panties.”

Evie shivered as he delivered his instructions coolly. “And where will I be going?”

“You’re going to walk into Tiny’s Bar and you’re going to pick me up... In front of everyone. You are going to throw yourself at me, and when we walk out of that bar tonight, everyone will know what we’re going to be doing.”

It was her most secret fantasy. She’d never told anyone that, not even Cass. Evie had dreamed of walking into the local bar and playing the sex bomb. Could she go through with it? Did she have a choice?

“Seven,” he said, “Not a minute later.”

Chapter Four

Slightly less than an hour later, Evie was sitting in the parking lot of Tiny’s Bar wondering why the hell she hadn’t protested Jackson’s autocratic demands. She knew the answer, of course. She wanted him bad enough to put up with just about anything, including his arrogance and his crappy taste in night life. Of course, the options were limited. Even though it was a dive by most people’s standards, other than Jackson’s marina which was only open on the weekends, it was the only nightspot in town. Giving her appearance one final check in the rearview mirror, Evie climbed out of her car, feeling very self conscious given the length of her skirt and the lack of panties.

She’d never been to Tiny’s before, she realized. The doorman did a double take when he saw her, but waved her in anyway. It wasn’t like he really needed to see her ID in a town where everyone knew everyone else’s name, age, date of birth and shoe size. Stepping into the dim interior, Evie surveyed her surroundings nervously. Neon beer lights seemed to cover every available wall space that wasn’t covered by fake boobs and autographed dollar bills. Several men were playing darts and a few couples were on the small dance floor. Scanning the patrons that were seated at the bar, she noted that Jackson was not amongst them. She headed in that direction regardless, as she needed the fortification of a little Irish courage.

“A shot of Jack Daniel’s, please,” she said to the bartender.

Other than a raised eyebrow, he didn’t outwardly respond. “You wanna pay now or start a tab?”

Evie withdrew a bill from her purse and placed it on the bar. “Another shot,” she said, as she picked up the first glass. She took a deep breath and then downed the liquid. Somehow, she didn’t cough, though it burned like the devil going down. The second one went down easier, and a languid warmth spread through her, settling the jangled nerves. She didn’t think it was her imagination that everyone in the place was staring at her. The weight of their gazes was tangible. Turning her back to the bartender, Evie scanned the crowd again and noted the pool tables in the far corner. Jackson was leaning over the table to take a shot, but his eyes were on her.

Evie smiled and leaned back on her elbows. The pose thrust her breasts forward, and she could feel the denim of her skirt inching up her legs to expose even more of her thighs. The five inch heels of her impulse buy, black, Jessica Simpson stilettos made her feet ache, but even the brief glance in the mirror before she’d left the house had told her that they made her legs look amazing. As Jackson’s gaze traveled over her body, she knew that he thought so too. She could feel his appreciation. With a smile, she rose to her full height and crossed the bar to the pool tables.

“Hello, stranger,” she said, stroking her hand along the scarred wood of the table’s rails.

“Hello, yourself,” he replied, smoothly. “Slumming?”

She smiled, turning her attention toward Jackson’s opponent. Reed Harrison was a prominent attorney in town, but from a working class background. He smiled at her and offered her a wink. She laughed and looked back at Jackson, “So who’s winning?”

Evie stepped closer to Jackson and closed her hand around the cue he held. Idly she stroked her fingers up and down the polished wood, “It looks pretty complicated. Maybe you could give me a lesson?”