Beautiful Innocence (14 page)

“You’ll be back by eleven, right?”

“Baby, I’ll be back by nine.” He kisses me quickly like it’s troubling him to leave me. He turns and walks out the front door, but not before yelling out to Sam to keep his eyes open.

Sam pounces on me within two-seconds of Josh’s leaving. “Sam, I know you’ve been worried and I feel like a crap friend, and I promise to tell you everything, but not right now. It’s getting busy and I just want to work and keep my mind off of things.”

“Okay,” he stammers, but still pulls me into his chest, and I hug him. He seems to need it. Normally, I’d wrap my arms around him and snuggle into his protective, but friendly embrace, but those hidden cameras and knowing Jason can see has me pulling back.

The next few hours fly by. Each time I go to the bar Sam anticipates a brief talk, asking me questions. The only answer I give him is the reason I ran and the reason I came back, which holds him off asking anymore.

Josh is so punctual it makes me laugh when I see him walk in and scan the place for me. He gives me a curt nod, watching me approach a table of women for their order. There are three ladies, all very pretty and all staring at Josh’s back as he’s talking to Sam at the bar. I know I should be asking what they want to drink, but I get sidetracked listening to them rave about Josh and how much fun he is in bed. One even goes as far as to add several very descriptive adjectives about just how good he is.

They suddenly look up like they have no idea I am standing here waiting on them. “Oh, sorry didn’t see you standing there. Three margarita’s, two salt and one no salt.” I turn to walk away, but stop when she shouts, “Oh, and make sure Sammy uses Cuervo, not that well shit.”

“Hey, Sam,” I rattle off their orders, trying not to pay attention to Josh since I can sense his eyes on me. The last thing I want to do right now is look at him and picture him with those girls.

Sam places the drinks on my tray, and out of the corner of my eye, I see Josh get up and come around to where I’m standing. I refuse to turn around, so he stands behind me and I feel his hand rest on my hip. “You going to say hi to me?”

“Hi.” I know I sound defeated and feel really immature at this point, but my lack of experience is making me think twice about what I have to offer him. There’s no way in hell I can ever let him do that magic thing with his tongue like tramp number two talked about.

“What’s wrong?”

“Thanks, Sam.” I grab my tray and force myself to pivot in his direction. “It’s nothing.” My eyes drift behind him and to the table of his ex-lovers. He peeks over his shoulder and follows my eyes.

“Ava, those girls are old news.”

“It’s okay, really. I’m being stupid and jealous.” I go to walk away but he steps in front of me again. We both stare over to the table as one of them says too loudly, “I guess he found a new toy to play with.” I flinch, thinking of throwing her drink on her rather than serving it to her.

He rests his hand on my shoulder, but closes his eyes like he’s trying to rein in his temper. When he opens them his blue eyes land on me. “Go hand out those drinks and meet me on the dance floor.”

“Josh, I’m working.”

“I don’t give a shit. Just do it.” He smacks my ass as I walk away.

“Be careful honey,” the cheap looking brunette says. “He’s gonna leave a sweet thing like you in the dust with his lies. That boy is going to break your heart. He’s a dead end, trust us.” All three share a knowing glance and the two others nod, agreeing with her warning.

Even though I want to run and bury myself under a big old blanket, I put on a brave face. “Thanks for the tip, but I think I’ll take my chances. After all, like you said earlier, he has a real good mouth and he knows just how to use it. I found out this morning when I woke up in his bed.” I lower my head, smiling as I walk away, proud of myself, even if it makes me sound like a slut. I don’t even wait or turn to see their expressions, but from the grin on Josh’s face, I can tell I accomplished that small mission of putting them in their places.

“You should see their faces.” He pulls me to him, wrapping his strong arms around my waist as I rest my head on his shoulder. He lifts my chin with his finger and places a small kiss on my lips. “One dance.”

The jukebox is playing something slow but kind of sexy as he takes my hands and pulls them down to his waist. Okay then, I guess we’re dancing. And I love him for it, because those girls walk out spitting fire half way through the song. Still in his arms as the songs ends, I look up from resting my cheek on his chest. “What happened with Sam?”

Josh grabs my pulled back hair and drapes it over my one shoulder, running his fingers through it. “He’s cool with it, Ava. I told him the deal and he knows to back off and keep it friends only.”

I bite down and chew on the corner of my lip, listening to him, and then go back to resting my cheek on his very fine, very masculine chest. He dips his head to my ear. “Babe, I hate when you do that.”

Confused, I look up into his eyes. “What did I do?”

His eyebrows rise and he frowns. “If you have a question running around inside that beautiful head of yours, I expect you to ask it, not wonder about it.”

“Well, you told Sam the deal, and I don’t even know what the deal is.”

He smiles ever so softly. “How about I show you after you get off work.” He presses one more sweet kiss to my lips and then heads back to the bar.

I smile brightly, as I watch his retreating form, excited about his promise. He can really pull off jeans and a simple shirt like no one else can. And I love that dirty, old, beat up baseball cap he wears backwards, with his black curls sticking out.

“You ready to go?” Josh comes up from behind me some time later. His hands move down on my backside discreetly.

I throw a quick smile at Sam. He smiles back, but I can tell it’s fake. “I just need to run upstairs and get an outfit for tomorrow.”

He takes my hand in his and drops his head, but glances at me sideways. “I grabbed everything you had earlier tonight. It’s all in my truck.”

“What?”

He shrugs. “Ava, it took one small trash bag to hold everything you own. It’s not a big deal.”

“So that’s it. I’m just moving in with you—permanently?”

He stops and halts us once we’re outside of earshot of anyone else. “That’s the only thing I can offer you right now. I want you safe, and this is the only way I can keep an eye on you.”

Josh helps me up into his truck, leaving me more confused than ever. Does he really want me there? Does he not want me there? Am I just some stupid pet project that he’s taking advantage of? How does he really feel about me? How do I even feel about him? I sigh inwardly, looking out the passenger window. And what did he mean about all he can offer me? I like him. I definitely like him. Maybe too much.

JOSH

She is sending out some major vibes of insecurity as she stares out the window, refusing to acknowledge me. Maybe she’s questioning my intentions. Who knows? I want to say I have a clue about how I really feel about her, but I’m not sure if what I feel is desire, love, need, lust, or maybe a little bit of everything mixed into one. I do know she makes me feel something, which is better than nothing. I’ve told myself a thousand times that I’ll never settle down. Shit, ask anyone around and they’ll tell you the same thing. But, Ava…damn she makes me think twice. Holding her in my arms, spinning her around is not my style, but there I was out on that dance floor. I don’t dance. I never dance, but now that’s twice she’s made me not give a shit. Love never comes my way, but then again no one like Ava has come into my life before.

Once I throw my baby into park, I jump down and go over and hoist Ava down by her waist. She has on a sweet little yellow dress that has taken my breath away since I stepped into the bar. She goes to the bed of my truck and starts to climb on the bumper to grab her bag, but I yank her back down and fetch it myself.

“I can carry it myself.” She starts to argue, but I just smile.

“I know you can.”

She follows me inside, and even though I want to throw her down on the bed and show her that she means more to me than she might think, I stop myself. I toss her belongings in the guest room and then come back out and reach inside the fridge and grab two beers and hand her one. She takes it, but places it down on the table. “How about a bath? You look beat. It’ll make you feel better.”

Her face breaks out into a very relieved smile. “That sounds perfect and just what I need. I haven’t had a bath in forever. Do you mind if I squirt some of your shampoo to make some bubbles?”

“No, I don’t mind, babe. But I was thinking of joining you if you’d like the company?”

Her forehead gets these cute little wrinkles as she contemplates my offer, and I find myself wanting to kiss every one of them. “Oh, um…” She glances everywhere else but at me.

“Hey,” I call out as I step closer. “I’m right here.”

She lifts her chin. “Can I be honest with you?”

“Of course.” I stuff my hand into my pocket and take a pull on my beer, trying to give her a minute before ripping off that damn ‘come and get it’ dress.

“Well, first they’re the cameras, and then there’s this whole I’m- really-kind-of-new-at-this-getting-naked-with-you-thing, and I’m not sure how comfortable I’ll be with you in there with me.”

“All right.” Fuck this. I can’t believe how insecure she is still, and the only thing I can think of is making her understand how beautiful she is to me. I sweep her off her feet and carry into my bathroom. I place her down and then start the water in the tub and squeeze a crap load of shampoo in there to create the mood. I strip down to nothing and sink into my oversized tub that I’m quietly thanking the builder for. I slowly scan her body that she tries to continually hide under all the clothing she wears. Only that dress is doing the opposite of what she thinks it does. It might be loose, but I know the way her body looks underneath. I keep my eyes trained on hers as she very patiently starts to undo the zipper. I’m dying inside waiting on her, but I don’t say anything. I want her to feel comfortable with me.

I’m deep in the water with my eyes closed, hoping it will get her moving faster when she sits down on the floor. Her arm comes behind my neck as she pulls me into a slight hug, which confuses me. She’s still dressed and not inside yet. She tugs my head to the side, gently kissing my mouth, before biting down on my bottom lip and then pulls away. When she stands I can’t take my focus off of her. There’s a question in her eyes as she steps in with her dress still on. A growl of hunger for her bubbles out of me as she smiles down at me. She bends over and grips the sides of the tub with both hands and kneels in front. We both laugh softly as the water steeps over the sides of the tub, but I don’t give a shit. I’ll deal with it later. Because I can see something in her eyes that I haven’t seen before, and I want it.

“Bear with me,” she whispers.

I look up to see her head drop back as my hands come around and push the small of her back toward me. I run my tongue from one side of shoulder to the other, deliberately taking my time to drive her crazy. Her hands grip onto my hair as I work my way up and cup her covered breasts and knead them until I finally hear the small noise I am listening for. I come back and lift her soaking wet dress slightly, exposing a sweet pair of white lacy panties as she rises to her feet. I kiss her through the material and run my fingers around until they’re inside and my hands are gripping her ass under the material. I look up, but she’s gone in her own little world, moaning my name.

“Guess you want to take a bath with me now, huh?”

Her hand flies down and I can tell I got her. She nods. “A girl can change her mind.” She looks at me admiringly as I begin to peel her wet panties down her leg, but leave her dress on. For some reason, I can’t take it off. She looks sexy as hell in that dress as it clings to her.

“They were right.”

“Who was right?”

She grabs both of my hands and pulls them around her waist. I kiss her stomach.

“Those girls at the bar. You really do have a magical mouth.”

I flat out laugh, yanking her to me. “Baby, you haven’t seen anything yet. That was just an appetizer of what my mouth can do. You’re about to get all five courses.”

I burrow myself into her neck, kissing her soft skin, grazing my thumb over her mouth until she parts her lips and then I slip my tongue inside. She comes up for air a few minutes later. Her lips are swollen and it looks so damn good on her.

“This is nice,” she says, smiling as she slides her leg over my waist and half sits, half lies on top of me. My hand runs down the both sides of her, allowing myself to feel the curves of her body a few times over her dress, and skim lower until I cup her bare ass.

Her kiss intensifies as her hand comes down and runs through my hair. She pulls away and tips her head back, allowing me access to her throat. I lick my way back up to her mouth and claim it again as I pull her under the water with me. Not once do we break apart, as we’re both submerged, water trickling in our mouths as we continue to taste one another. I sit up a second later, taking her with me, her hair dripping wet. She wraps her legs around my waist as I shift us until we fall back under the water again.

We’re both panting as I pull her up, both in need of each other. I can’t even believe how I’m feeling right now. I don’t think I’ll ever get enough of her. That innocent look in her blue eyes sparkles as she smiles and laughs at the mess we’re making. Maybe I’m a fool, seeing and feeling something she isn’t, but right now it doesn’t matter. She’s in my arms where I want her.

I peck her lips and exhale, trying to calm my breathing before I stand up and hold out my hand to her. She’s sitting there, her dress clinging to her, her hair sticking to her body, her blue eyes so trusting. Fucking perfect. She places her hand in mine as I run my eyes up and down her body slowly, so I commit each curve, each freckle, each look to my memory. I sink back down to my knees. I’m so turned on that I can barely think. This is the most intense need I’ve ever felt for a woman.