Strangers with Benefits (Siren Publishing Classic) (37 page)

Sidonie placed her hands on the arms of her chair. “I, uh, need to go to the bathroom.”

“Okay. But seeing as you just went, maybe you need to go to the doctor or something.” He winked.

She sighed and remained in her seat.

“So?” Den asked as he pulled off two slices of pizza and offered her a plate.

“Yes.”

“You can do better than that.” His gaze trapped hers squarely and she was a moth to the flames hidden in the orbs.

“I want you, happy now?”

“I’d like it with a bit more feeling, but that will do for now.” He winked and took a bite of his pie.

By the time she polished off two slices, Den ate three in quick succession and moved on to a fourth. The last one, he ate slowly with deliberate nibbles as he watched her face. She tried not to take something so simple so sexually, but his expression of delight was hard to ignore.

Especially when he moaned around a mouthful of the greasy cheese. That made her only think about the last time she was privy to that particular groan of satisfaction, not to mention how satisfied she was to be the recipient of that sound.

“You want more?” he asked, but she felt as if he meant
more
more, and she didn’t mean pizza.

“No, I’m full, thanks.” She sipped her soda and looked at her gregarious children interact with their teammates in the center of the room.

“You sure? There’s plenty more where that came from.” He grinned and she had to make herself look away.

The man was an invitation to sin. To sin so badly that no prayer would suffice. The only way to save her soul would be to go to a nunnery and feed starving children and fosterlings for the rest of her life after he finished with her.

Maybe even nurse a war victim or two.

He was so dirty in the very best way imaginable, so sexually intense that she was halfway ashamed when she reminisced on it, even as she wanted to rub herself like a cat in heat at the delicious wash of arousal at the memories every single time.

Damn, that was more than she was ready to admit to him.

“So what are you thinking about?” He rubbed his fingers in a napkin and took a drink.

“Uh, nothing.”

“I know what nothing looks like and that’s not it.”

“Whatever.” She turned away and wondered when the kids would be ready to leave. She had to get out of there, ASAP.

“I know that look,” Den muttered. “It’s time to run, huh?” He knew her absolutely too well.

She barely held her seat, because for a moment she almost bolted. To where, she had no idea as the children would need a ride back. But she could have at least gotten a breath of fresh air and let her hot thoughts cool down to a simmer before they had to sit in a confined place together.

A few minutes later, she watched as a couple of children broke away from the table. She took the chance their departure presented and stood up. Katie and Mark looked at her and gave theatrical sighs of disappointment.

But they stood up and grabbed their bags.

“We have to go right now?” Katie complained.

“Yep. Let’s go.”

The ride back was made in silence, until she parked a few spaces away from Den’s truck.

“Have a good night,” Sidonie offered.

His eyes lit up. “Oh, I plan on it.” Den winked and turned around. “I’m proud of you guys. Both of you did great tonight. I have something for you in the truck. Go get it.” He lifted his keys and clicked the fob twice. The headlights blinked and remained on to signal that the vehicle was unlocked.

Her kids bounced out and over to the truck.

“Yes!”

He leaned over. “Kiss me, woman.”

“No, they can see…”

Den shook his head. “They can’t see a damn thing from over there.” He leaned over and she leaned in. “Kiss me.”

She did, he was just too close to
not
kiss him. He was the equivalent of a brownie smothered in chocolate ice cream smuggled into a fat camp.

“Just one… quick kiss. Promise.”

“Promise.” His lips met hers and time went still.

Not still enough, as once he pulled away she leaned in need to get closer. Be… closer.

“That’s why I’m not letting you go,” he muttered but opened the door as her excited children bounced at his side.

“Oh, my god I can’t believe you got us ice skates!” Katie giggled and jumped up and down. Mark grinned with a thumbs-up.

“I’m so posting these on my Instagram!”

“Why am I not surprised?” Sidonie chuckled, even as her loins were on fire.

By the time the twins bebopped back into the backseat, Sidonie put the car in gear and waited for Den to close his door.

But he didn’t, so she asked him to. “Can you close the door?”

“You guys want to have dinner with me on Friday?” He didn’t respond to her original question at all, instead, posed one of his own.

“Yeah! Mom, can we please?” Mark asked as his sister called out, “pleaa-ssseee!”

“Okay.” She grumbled a little, just to make her opinion known about the railroading from all parties and shook her head. “Now can you shut my door?”

“Sure can.” Den winked and closed the door.

Sidonie watched him walk all the way back to the truck before she shifted into gear and made the ride home.

Thursday was a blur of activity and she was excited about how productive the time had been. The bracelet had been revamped with a more streamlined design. But she had some other ideas that she thought might make the device more user friendly and worked on the idea of making the Braille reader on the back of the device instead of the front. Then the user could feel both a picture and read the words simultaneously. Her boss, Devin told her the idea was genius and she thought so, too.

That Friday, she got a call from Sadie just after lunch. The phone rang unexpectedly. Usually, she didn’t get too many calls during business hours.

“Hello?” Sidonie asked.

“Hey Sidonie! It’s Sadie.”

“Oh, okay, Sadie, what can I do for you?”
Please don’t ask me to volunteer. Please don’t ask me to volunteer.

Sadie sighed. “I wanted to know if you could help me out with a small favor.”

“Um, what?” Damn it. They were associates at best, so the only thing Sadie would likely want was for Sidonie to volunteer.

“I can’t be at the match until six and I need you to help with the concessions until then.”

“Well, I—”

Sadie was a slick one and cut her off at the pass before she could cry off in advance.

“I know it’s a lot to ask, but I have to go to the obstetrician.”
Damn.
It was a part of the girl code. She couldn’t say no for a woman thing. Not without sounding childish as heck.

“Oh, okay… I hope congratulations are in order.”

“I think so. Ed and I have been trying for a while have one more. But if it doesn’t work, it’s not like we don’t have three already, right?” Sadie was a sweet person, even if she was a little too happy to be alive, and if she wanted another kid, who was she to look down on her?

“Uh, yeah.”

“So can you? Please? I don’t have anyone else to ask.” Sadie practically begged with her tone and Sidonie caved in quicker than an avalanche.

“Well, I… uh, yeah. Sure.” She hated volunteering and she did the barest minimum. Sidonie knew it made her a somewhat flawed parent, but she wanted what little time she had free to be filled with things she liked to do.

She hung up the phone, frustrated that she felt like a pushover.

A few hours later, she had forgotten about everything else, until her alarm went off at four and she had to leave work altogether. She had skipped lunch so she could leave early enough to catch the match, so it wasn’t like she was going to be somewhere else anyway.

Sidonie grabbed a bag that held what she would change into at the game, but would also serve as something to wear while she served popcorn.

The only bonus was a free bucket of the stuff and unlimited drinks, but who was she to complain? Although, after serving it for an hour, she hated the smell of it, let alone try to eat a whole bucket with a nose full of butter.

When she walked into the concession stand at four-thirty, she greeted the other volunteers at the game. Jessie and Parker picked up money at the booth, but the stand was empty and she hoped she wasn’t going to have to work alone as pre match was hectic and enough to make her certain she would never work in food service.

It only took her five minutes to change into her maxi dress and hoodie with a pair of flip flops on, before she took her place at the stand. She dug out the apron that the concessions volunteers wore and took the hoodie off. When she turned her back to the opening to slide the apron overhead, she heard the shuffle of shoes.

Sidonie didn’t turn around but spoke to the other volunteer. “Hey. I’m taking Sadie’s place today, but she should be back about six. Feel free to grab your apron.”

“I might need a little help with mine.”

She turned around so quickly, the table shook and she stopped it with a quickly planted hand.

“What are you doing here?”

“Same as you, I’d expect.”

Dammit!

She handed him an apron. “Here you go.”

He looked at her and raised his arm. “A little help might be nice.”

“I’m too short.”

He stooped low and bent his head. She had no choice as to whether she would help him or not. She took the neck strap and slid it over the finger combed curls, and then when he stood back up again, she wrapped her arms around him and tied the bow in back. The embrace wasn’t technically necessary, but she wanted to touch him and the tie was a good enough reason to feel him up without alerting him to it.

Den grabbed her arm and she couldn’t step back.

That was a lie. She didn’t want to step back.

His lips met hers and she nipped at him before he released her altogether. “Good afternoon.”

She merely nodded as she was too hot to bother with speech, especially with her panties on fire from the mere taste of Den on her tongue after so many days and nights without it.

“Don’t forget, we have dinner tonight.” They were, but he made it sound much more intimate than it could possibly be.

“With the kids,” she added as a reminder to them both.

“Yep,” he agreed, yet his wink led her to believe otherwise.

Even that would matter little as long as they were in the same room together, he would suck her under like a struggling surfer in the riptide.

The stand was hopping and they had little time for Den to pester her with ribald statements and innuendo. Although, he found a way to make it happen with a sinuous slide of hip on hip when he had to get around her. The space was large enough for him maneuver, but he still managed to pelvic check her every so often.

By the time six came, Sidonie was so riled up that it took everything she had not to jump him where he stood.

But then Sadie popped her head into the concession stand window and saved her from going X-rated in a PG zone.

“Hey!”

“So did you get the news you wanted?”

“No. But it’ll be fun trying some more.” The other woman winked and came inside. “You guys can take off. It’s always slow toward the last hour.”

Sidonie gratefully relinquished the apron and handed off the tally for the sales.

Den arched a brow and turned around. “Help me out, will ya?”

“Sure.” She untied him and then he bent his head for her to take the apron overhead.

“Thanks.”

He stepped out into the sunshine, but before she walked out Sadie chuckled. “Damn, he’s a hot one.”

“I know, right?” Sidonie giggled. Even if she wanted to be angry with the man, she wasn’t blind. Not by a long shot.

Sadie whistled, and then fanned her face with the paper and winked at Sidonie when she walked out.

Love’s Battlefield

It might have been an hour or so after he arrived, but he heard Sadie’s voice through the concession stand window. It was an unwelcome intrusion into the little time he had with Sidonie. “Hey!”

“So did you get the news you wanted?” Sidonie asked curiously.

“No. But it’ll be fun trying some more. You guys can take off. It’s always slow toward the last hour.” He wondered what that meant, but only the last part was important to him so he reined in his natural curiosity.

Sidonie took off her apron as if she had been released from the worst torture known to man and handed Sadie the slip they had used to tally the sales of individual items.

Den turned to Sidonie. “Help me out, will ya?”

“Sure.” Once she had untied him, this time from the back, he turned to face her and bent his head for her to take the apron off completely.

“Thanks.” He took the spare second to bolt before Sadie tried to find something else for him to do.