Phoenix Rising (7 page)

“Come for me, Jessa,” Connor urged softly. “Let it go.”

A wave of tension strung Jessa tight. Connor used one hand to keep her from snapping her legs closed as her body climbed steadily toward orgasm. Her scent changed, becoming heavier and more erotic. Connor inhaled deeply and forced his body not to react. The urge to climb on top of her and sink his throbbing shaft to the hilt was maddening.

Jessa screamed when she peaked. A tortured wail that shattered Connor’s composure and left him trembling as a massive gush of cream drenched his hand.

Connor groaned when he saw the results of her ejaculation in his palm. Jessa blinked slowly, staring into his face. It took several moments for her to realize what he was looking at. A red stain spread across her cheeks when she did.

“I’m so sorry,” she whispered hoarsely. “It’s never happened…”

Her words trailed off when Connor lifted his hand to his mouth and licked his palm clean of her sweetness. Her essence was satin perfection on his tongue.

Hazel eyes opened wide and her mouth snapped shut on whatever she might’ve been going to say.

“Don’t ever apologize.” He told her quietly.

Chapter Seven

He told her not to apologize. Could she die of embarrassment instead?

Jessa was a train wreck the following morning. Her muscles were languid and her body felt light. But her mind was on overdrive. The most earth-shattering climax of her entire life and she was too guilt ridden and embarrassed to enjoy the aftermath.

She’d allowed herself to be splayed open like some medieval barmaid. Did that qualify as losing control?

What had happened to her? She’d been a modest housewife for nineteen years. So Will had left her for another woman. Did that really give her license to completely lose her mind? She’d just been finger fucked to orgasm by a near stranger who also happened to be her new boss.

The bedside clock clicked on and the sounds of a local morning show filled the room. Jessa resisted the urge to throw the damn thing across the room. She sat up and swung her legs over the edge of the bed.

It was nine a.m. Her brunch group met at the country club in an hour. Jessa’s first instinct was not to go. But maybe that was just what she needed to kick herself back into reality. Jessa Kincaid wasn’t this other person. She was a sedate woman who’d been married to the same man for nineteen years. She spent her time playing Bunko and planning charity events for the local food pantry for Pete’s sake.

* * *

Connor remained in the shower long after the hot water ran out. The cool rivulets streaming over his tight muscles did nothing to soothe the beast. But it was a welcome distraction nonetheless.

He should have fucked her and gotten it over with.

Instead, he hadn’t done anything to relieve this infatuation. No, he’d brought her to a mind-numbing peak and had left himself hanging onto his sanity by a thread. To say nothing about the state of his self-control.

Connor still couldn’t understand why. He didn’t believe in some kind of cosmic suitability. Or that there was one perfect match for everybody out there. He believed in pure, physical needs. Bestial coupling because hormones demanded nothing less was more his style. So an explanation for these unfathomable protective urgings would’ve been welcome.

* * *

“It’s been
ages
since we’ve seen you, Jessa darling!” Kitty gushed.

Jessa leaned forward and exchanged pecks on the cheek with the unofficial head of their little group while puzzling over the sudden realization that while they always pretended to touch, they never did. It was as if they secretly shunned all physical contact.

The outdoor terrace of the Lake Forest Country Club was the definition of Midwest cosmopolitan style. Wrought iron tables and chairs were scattered beneath carved arbors stained a rich cherry color and draped with vines and sheer panels of pastel polyester. The scent of bougainvillea and lavender was almost overpowering. Magnolia trees clustered thickly around the edge of the flagstone patio to create the illusion of privacy.

Clean cut waiters dressed in khakis and matching polo shirts moved quietly among the guests serving light fare and faux cocktail drinks. Jessa had always found them handsome in the past. But one look at their smooth, tame good looks and she longed for Connor’s brutal masculinity.

Once they’d all taken their unofficial assigned seats at the glass-topped table, the usual talk commenced. Jessa hated the prattle. She’d always hated it. It inevitably began the same way.

“Terrence got his UCLA acceptance letter in the mail yesterday,” Kitty said loftily. “He’s a shoe in for first string on their soccer team.”

Georgia put a hand to her breast. “That’s spectacular! Chelsea received her Vassar letter last week. Isn’t it wonderful that the fall is all taken care of even before graduation?”

“Speaking of graduation,” Courtney broke in. “You’ll never hear who had his speech chosen for commencement.”

It went on and on. It always did. Sometimes it seemed as if every conversation with the women who were supposed to be her best friends was a commentary on Jessa’s failings as a wife. Will wanted this. He wanted the affirmation one could only get from a successful child. This was what Ginny could give him. This was what Jessa could not.

The chatter became background noise. Jessa’s rebellious streak resurfaced. The ambient air temperature seemed to rise ten degrees, and a reckless urge to thumb her nose at all of their damned ideals swept away Jessa’s sense of propriety.

“So,” Kitty flipped her bleached blonde hair over one narrow shoulder and widened her pale blue eyes. “What have you been up to, Jessa? The girls and I heard about Will’s extended vacation.”

How could she have thought to regain her sanity by hanging out with these women? Jessa suddenly couldn’t imagine a worse way to spend the morning. Kitty was a domineering two-faced bitch. Flame-haired Georgia, with her green eyes, perfect complexion, pristine wardrobe, and prim manners, probably couldn’t tell if the thoughts in her head belonged to her or to Kitty. Courtney had never left her college pep squad days behind. She was dressed to the nines in Ralph Lauren tennis clothes and a Rolex watch. Her violet eyes contrasted the long midnight hair pulled back into a neat ponytail. Last was clunky Anne with her drab brown hair and eyes. Though her tanned complexion was healthy and attractive, she had a habit of wearing oversized clothes to hide her full figure.

Jessa had always liked Anne best of all. If asked, she’d have said it was because of the brunette’s sharp wit and quirky nature. But Anne was also the only one in their select group who shared Jessa’s fuller figure. It was always hard to stand next to Courtney or Georgia and not feel big and awkward. Worse still was trying to feel confident around Kitty.

“Have you been drowning your sorrows in Ben and Jerry’s again, Jessa?” Kitty asked while making a blatant assessment of Jessa’s figure. “You know you have to be careful with that stuff.”

“It’d be better just to inject collagen directly into your hips,” Courtney agreed.

“Well, it hardly makes most of us feel better to swallow it down and then puke it back up like
some
people do.” Anne coolly observed.

Jessa shot Anne a grateful smile. Kitty could always be depended upon to offer dieting advice of negligible value. “Actually, I haven’t felt all that bad about this separation.” Jessa admitted.

“Is he screwing around again?” Anne asked sympathetically.

“Always.”

Georgia pressed a hand to her mouth to cover a giggle of embarrassment. “I’ve always enjoyed the peace and quiet that comes with Dean’s extracurricular activities.”

“Me too,” Courtney seconded. “I sleep better alone, anyway.”

“Speaking of
sleeping
,” Anne said, gesturing to a waiter passing by. “Did you hear Carmen Weinstein got caught by her husband with one of the pool boys?”

Courtney squeaked excitedly, “Seriously?”

“That is so tacky,” Georgia decided. “At least have an affair with a doctor or a lawyer or someone with a respectable job. How on earth would some lowlife be able to show you a good time?”

That was an easy answer after meeting Connor. He’d make you so hot you would beg him to put his cock wherever he wanted to.

Jessa’s eyes slid over the slender build of their waiter. She’d seen him before. He had curly dark hair and bright blue eyes, a dimple in his left cheek and a nice set of abdominal muscles. He’d been good looking before. So why did he seem so…boyish now?

Probably because compared to Connor he wasn’t man enough to have pubic hair.

The girls were still gossiping in hushed tones about the torrid affair between one of their casual acquaintances and the club pool boy. But Jessa wasn’t the only one preoccupied.

Kitty hadn’t made a single comment. Her pale blue eyes were locked on Jessa. The expression on her face could’ve frozen water. Jessa began to perspire beneath the whirring fans. She could only imagine what Kitty and the others would say if they knew she’d taken a job in a seedy downtown bar called
Phoenix Rising
. To say nothing of the things Jessa had been doing with the bar’s owner. Her stock would drop so low the Club would cancel her membership before her fees came due.

“So what have you been doing with all this unexpected free time, Jessa?” Kitty asked in a deceptively mild tone.

Georgia admired her immaculate manicure. “You’ve missed brunch twice.”

“And you didn’t make the Rotary meeting last night either.” Courtney pointed out.

Jessa’s annoyance was quickly spiraling out of control. These were her friends. Or they were supposed to be her friends. Maybe this was what was wrong with her life. Shouldn’t they accept her no matter what she’d decided to do about her marriage or her career choice?

“Actually, I missed the Rotary meeting because I was working.”

“You got a job?” Courtney acted as though Jessa had just told them she’d been diagnosed with cancer.

Anne looked genuinely interested, “Really, where?”

“At a bar downtown,” Jessa announced with relish.

“A bar?” Kitty wanted clarification.

Georgia blinked several times. “You can’t be serious.”

“Oh, I am.”

There was absolute silence.

Anne finally found her voice. “What kind of place is it?”

Jessa shrugged and a smile twitched at the corners of her mouth. How would you describe Connor’s bar to people like this? Compared to their little club it was a cesspool. It was dirty and raw. And the people were real. Not a single pasteboard cut out sat at the bar and ordered a drink from Alex or took a seat at one of the tables and gave Jessa’s ass an appreciative glance before ordering a round of beers.

“It’s a real bar,” Jessa finally answered.

“Wow, when do you work?”

“Nights, mostly. But I’ve got to go in soon because we open up around noon.”

“People start drinking at noon?” Georgia was horrified by what she considered a massive breach in protocol.

“If they work nights at the factory, it’s the perfect time to start drinking,” Jessa reasoned.

“Maybe we could come visit some night,” Anne ventured eagerly. “That would be kind of fun. Like a ladies’ night out.”

Kitty finally found her voice. “So where is this bar, Jessa?”

Jessa lifted her eyes and met Kitty’s icy stare. “It’s right in the middle of downtown. A place called
Phoenix Rising
.”

“Maybe we’ll pay you a visit some night, Jessa Kincaid.”

Jessa couldn’t even muster a smile. “I’m sure you’d have a great time.”

* * *

Where the hell was she?

It was half past noon and Jessa hadn’t shown up for work. Alex didn’t seem disturbed in the least. But why would he be? To him she was just another waitress, just another potential piece of ass. Connor hadn’t managed to reduce her to that yet.

“She’ll be here, Connor,” Alex murmured from across the room. “It wouldn’t be like her to quit without a word.”

But some barely acknowledged sliver of fear needled Connor. What if she’d decided not to come back because of him? What if she were repulsed by what they’d shared on the bar the night before?

He should’ve fucked her. Then it wouldn’t have mattered if she came back or not.

But he was kidding himself if he thought it was that simple. One fuck wouldn’t have been enough. One fuck, one night, one lifetime wouldn’t have been enough. And he barely knew the woman.

“Hey! I’m sorry I’m late. I had a morning thing with some old friends that took longer than it should have.”

She popped in the front door before Connor could prepare himself. Whirling around, he gave her a cold stare. “You’re a half-hour late.”

“Yeah, I know. I’m really sorry.” She turned to Alex. “I’ll do whatever you need me to do to get ready for tonight. I didn’t mean to leave you in the lurch.”

“No problem, love.” Alex waved off her apology and tossed her a clean towel to tuck into her apron.

Connor was left standing in the middle of the room with a stormy expression on his face and a broiling hot pit of anger in his chest. Alex shot him a quelling gaze from behind the bar, but it did nothing to squash his temper.

“I don’t tolerate lateness.” His deep voice reverberated around the room like cannon fire. Connor wondered if she could hear the tension lacing his guttural tones. But he had no clue whether or not she could read him like he could her.

Jessa frowned. “I’m sorry, Connor. What else do you want me to say?”

He took a few steps closer to her. “Say it won’t happen again.”

“I can’t promise that. I don’t make a habit of being late. But there’s a lot of really bad traffic between here and my house.”

Connor suddenly realized he had no clue how far she had to drive to get to his bar. She’d filled out a form the day before, but he hadn’t taken the time to read it over. He’d been too busy planning Jessa’s seduction to find out the rest of the details about her.

“Maybe you should leave for work earlier.”

His anger had started to recede. But hers was just getting stoked. Connor could see it in the darkening of her eyes. The muscles in her jaw clenched and her delicate nose flared as her heart rate increased. Connor could even smell the difference, a hint of danger in her sweetness.

“I’m sorry, Connor. Maybe I should just quit and find something closer to home. Would that suit you better?”

“No.”

Alex abruptly left the bar area to check a mysterious something in the storage room.

“Is this the real reason why your last waitress walked out on you? You acted nice at first and put her at ease before you turned around and made her feet like a cheap slut on a time clock?”

If her expression was anything to go by, he wasn’t the only one suffering shock at her words. It had never occurred to Connor how she might view his sudden change from solicitous to irritable. She had no way of knowing how close he was to losing his mind about the deepening nature of feelings he wasn’t ready to admit he had.

She rubbed a hand down her face. “Look, I’m sorry.”

Connor closed the distance between them. “No, don’t be.”