Questing Heart: Fighting Heart Erotic Bad Boy Romance Series Book 2 (5 page)

The day before Ashley arrived in Yorkshire things had been so very different. Cody had realised Joanna Laws was keen on him and he knew it within a day of arriving in Yorkshire. They’d spoken by phone and swapped emails before the trip and he just knew she was going to be sexy just from her telephone voice. Her voice was soft but forceful and there was humour and play thrown into the mix. She was a businesswoman who saw Cody as a sound investment for her agency and her time. When someone showed belief in Cody’s writing – the thing he had put his whole time and self into – Cody couldn’t help but automatically like them. He liked her before he even met her, and then when he saw her he struggled to stop his eyes revealing the awe he felt. Throughout the trip they had talked business about a three book publishing deal and anthology of short stories with a major publisher. Joanna had the contacts and she said Cody had the talent. From this point on Cody began to pick up subtle and sweet vibes, yet still thought some of it was just in his head. Ashley’s inability to move on from the jerk of the year – Brandon Lynes - had left Cody hurt and confused. For all the texts she had sent him Cody reckoned if Ashley was still with Brandon by now then she was destined to never leave him. The idea that Ashley’s potential and beauty ruined and abused by such an idiot burned him up. Whenever he thought about it Cody winced. So now he was in Yorkshire he put it away deep inside and decided only to look at what was before him. And what he saw was good. Joanna Laws was hot, but not in the glossy magazine, bikini and thong type of way. No. This woman was classy. Cody liked the attention he got from her, revelling in the warmth of her gaze. It felt good and mostly took his mind off Ashley. Those feel good vibes had been simmering all week, and on the night before Ashley arrived in town they boiled over...

They were on the rural leg of the Yorkshire festival. Joanna had said this part was mostly for a social media campaign to build Cody’s profile after winning the new writer award. They arrived at a small country pub in the afternoon. There were multi-coloured festival banners everywhere and some press people around, but to Cody it looked more like a political hustings than a reading venue. He took a drink with Joanna while they waited for his turn to read. So far she’d paid for all the food and drinks on their tour along with all their accommodation. As they supped their drinks in the country pub, with the day heading towards evening, Joanna shared her plans for the rest of their day. She wore another of her chic expensive suits, her immaculately combed brown hair cascading down past her shoulders. There were hints of her years in the fine lines on her brow, but aside from the suit and those fine lines, Joanna could have been aged anywhere between twenty-two and thirty-six. Cody enjoyed that unknown. As he looked at her Cody wondered what it would feel like to go to bed with an older woman. What that would be like? When she looked at him – glossy eyes smiling, her lashes fluttering as she laughed – he went into a spin. Joanna Laws was far too easy company to be ignored.

“I know this little crowd will love you, Cody. The smart literary guy from the big city, come to inspire them with your prose full of passion and desire.”

“You think? I thought these guys would much rather drink an ale and eat a pie in peace round here.”

“Not these people. Think of this pub as a stage set. The publishers have bussed in a lot of people and the literature fans, the real book fans, have driven in themselves. It may look very parochial but all these people matter. And as my hottest property, I think you will go down very well.”

“Hot property? Moi?”

“Absolutely, Cody. I’m staking a lot on you. But it’s your passion which will sell your work the most. Tell me… do you still love that girl?”

“What?” Cody looked up from his drink.

“The girl in the book. It’s obvious your feelings were very strong for this girl. It must have been some affair…”

Joanna was being personal but somehow Cody didn’t mind. In fact, it felt good to discuss it.

“Love?! I’m not sure it ever even got that far. I liked the girl a lot. I saw her potential and I wanted to help her. But she just couldn’t help herself, she sold herself short for a bad guy with a very big rep.” Cody didn’t mention his name in case there were consequences.

Joanna Laws eyes glimmered. “So it didn’t work out between you.”

“I guess not.”

“Shame,” said Joanna. But the way she said it had undertones. Cody picked them up and felt a heat stirring within.

They talked about his book some more and then Joanna said, “I’ve decided that we shouldn’t go back to York tonight. We’ll stay out here. This is a lovely place, don’t you think?”

She made a flourishing gesture of the rustic pub. It was a nice place, and Cody didn’t have to pay. He didn’t object.

“Sure… sure, that’s fine,” he said. She left Cody at the table with a smile and went to arrange their stay. It wasn’t until after Cody’s reading that the arrangements became much clearer.

***

“Outstanding performance, yet again,” she said as Cody climbed down from the stage to a burst of applause. Joanna put a tankard of ale in his hand and led him to a quiet table at the side of the bar. The Q & As were all done. Cody had shaken hands with the readers and signed a few festival brochures. Work was finished for the evening.

“Now, it’s time for my little star to relax,” said Joanna.

They drank ale and then ate a special pub dinner of steak and kidney pie. At half past nine when dinner had long finished, Joanna’s face changed with intent. She leaned forward across the table. Her hair fell by her face. “It’s time we retired for the night. You’ve got a busy schedule tomorrow.”

“You’re sure you don’t want another drink, Joanna?” Cody asked.

“Of course I do. But let’s share a drink upstairs before we go to sleep. If we stay down here we’ll end up drinking all night.”

“Sure…” said Cody. His eyes widened at the possibilities and his throat got a tight with excitement. Surely, this wasn’t going to happen… was it? They stood up and he let Joanna lead the way. His heart was pounding.

“This is our room,” she said. “I hope you don’t mind us sharing, but my business budget can only stretch
so
far…” she laughed, and gratefully Cody heard the nerves in her voice. She was taking a risk, and they both knew it. Cody reassured her immediately.

“No, that’s fine. I can take the sofa. A lady deserves a good bed to sleep in.”

“A lady,” said Joanna, grinning. “That’s me is it? We can work out the sleeping arrangements after we have a drink,” she said. Relaxed again Joanna took control. She was demure and confident and approached Cody with a feminine swagger as she poured a drink from the bottle she brought up from the bar.

Joanna sat down close by Cody. For the first time, she was intimately close. Her hip pressed firmly against Cody as they chatted. He felt it press more firmly over time. Her presence was intimate and suggestive. Cody’s heart was racing faster and he smiled at her over the noise of his feelings.

“Cody…” she said, breaking the silence, “I think you are going to be a star and you’re going to be a star because I am going to make you one. I really believe in you.”

“That’s brilliant to hear, Joanna.”

“But there’s something else… something
personal
…”

“Yeah?”

“A question. Do you find me attractive, Cody?”

Cody turned towards Joanna and she turned to face him, her hair falling to one side of her angled face. An image of Ashley flicked through Cody’s mind, but he remembered his rule put it aside. Ashley didn’t want him – she had made that clear.

“Joanna, you are a beautiful lady.”

“Perfect. That’s all I wanted to hear you say,” The woman laid down her glass of wine, the leather sofa creaked as she moved across, leaning over him. Her blouse was open at the top and Cody glimpsed the alluring mounds of her cleavage for the first time. Her skirt creased up her thighs as she moved over Cody’s legs, and when her lips found his, Cody didn’t fight. His arms gently slid around her back and their lips touched. There was heat in their connection. They kissed hungry and passionately.

“
I
want to be your muse, Cody... How can I become your muse?” she said breathily. “Shall we?”

She pointed to the bed and pulled Cody by his hand. Her eyes saw the swelling in his jeans and she smiled coquettishly. There was no hiding Cody’s desire or excitement. But still something was bugging him, calling him through the heat of lust. As they moved to the big soft bed, Joanna started to shed her clothes. Her blouse fell away to reveal a fine slender body with full breasts supported in a lacy bra. She unzipped her skirt and wriggled it to the floor. Cody ravaged her full hips and smooth looking thighs with his eyes. She wore maroon lace underwear. She looked fantastic, packaged to perfection. In his lust-filled gaze, Joanna shifted her body to tempt him further.

“Joanna…” said Cody, unable to gather his thoughts as his eyes roamed her body.

“So then, I think we’ve fixed the sleeping arrangements,” she said, turning to Cody by the bed. She pulled him in close and now he saw more definition in her face, evidence of her ten years age difference. There was beauty within it all. They kissed softly, then ravenously, and she slid down onto the bed, gently tugging Cody to lie on top of her. His worries about their business relationship and future appeared and subsided as Cody got lost in lust and sensation. As yet he hadn’t asked her anything about herself, and it bothered him mildly within the lust and the intoxicating taste of her. Who was this sexy, classy woman? She was his agent yes, and he was about to make love to her, and he didn’t know where it was leading, or where it would end… He thought of Ashley’s texts. Then he thought of Ashley, who he knew so well inside a week it felt like he’d known her his whole life.

Her tongue filled his mouth and danced with his. Her hand cupped his face. Her left hand. Cody’s eyes caught hold of the pale line of skin around her ring finger, the finger where marriage rings are worn. The skin there was slightly sunken and paler than the rest. Ten seconds later Cody broke the kiss.

“Joanna, you are so beautiful… “

“I want you, Cody…I want you inside me…”

“But not yet, Joanna… I don’t want this to spoil things between us. Not now…”

The woman was close up filling his vision with her beauty and his senses with her scent and softness. Cody could so easily have kissed her… Her kisses, her eyes were wonderful and yet… She read his gaze and withdrew.

“You still love her, don’t you Cody?”

“Love… is a strong word…”

Joanna gently rolled away and laid back. Instantly he missed the weight of her body and the feel of her soft warm skin. “You are a dish, Cody. And I will do my best to help you all the way. When you’ve finished pining for that girl, we’ll see what we can do about us. Cody, you really know how to frustrate a girl… but, you may as well sleep in this bed though. We can’t have you looking frightful for the literati tomorrow, can we?”

Cody feared his lust would get the better of him, but he didn’t want to spurn Joanna altogether. She was his agent. And the slightest regret lingered in him that he had not taken her body as she had wanted him to. Joanna was Cody’s ticket to the bright lights and a better future. He couldn’t believe he had just turned down such a beautiful and attractive woman. Cody swore at himself and eventually fell asleep feeling Joanna’s warmth beside him.  The next morning Cody was more tired from the struggle with his desire, than if he had slept on the sofa.

But when he saw Ashley at The Great Stag that night Cody felt like celebrating that he had resisted Joanna’s sweet temptation. If anything, he felt terrible that he had let things with Joanna Laws get so far…

While Ashley looked for a hotel that night Cody went out to dinner with Joanna Laws as per his duty but he could barely think of anything other than Ashley. He laughed at Joanna’s jokes and she gently mocked him for his unrequited love. They were now friends and had almost been lovers. Cody felt the dynamic between them was already shifting in a positive way, making her friendship safe.  At the end of the evening, parting on good terms and both a little tipsy, Joanna paid the bill and they left. Out in the cool city air, with the Roman wall and gates just beyond them, Cody felt glad to have finished the meal and enjoyed Joanna’s company without any damage done to either relationship. He was happy and relieved. He guessed she was still married or recently divorced – it had been a near miss, so now he knew he would never go there, especially with Ashley back on the scene. But he still felt kinship and respect for Joanna. And a hint of attraction. She was on his team and she was the boss. Joanna smiled and turned to face Cody outside the restaurant, wrapping her arms around his shoulders.

“You know what, Cody? I’ve got a lot of respect for you.”

“Really? What for?”

“I know you wanted me as much as I wanted you last night.”

“Ummmmm… maybe...”

“Yeah, right. I thought you were going to burst out of those trousers of yours… But you were the professional one, not me,” in spite of her words, her eyes were still pulling him in like a siren.

“Really? I was
professional
last night?”