Up All Night Long: From Lust to Love (Romance Anthology) (79 page)

Chapter 2

Elizabeth

A growl left me as I walked down the hall from the conference room. Damn Nate for stepping on my toes in front of everyone. Payback would be a bitch.

He was having marriage problems, or so everyone in the office had been whispering behind closed doors. He was by far the sexiest man I'd seen in years, so his marital demise was something to be celebrated by the attention-hungry women in the office.

I could give two shits about his relationship with his wife, or his innate need to stare at me like I was the next thing he planned to sink his teeth into. He was a thorn in my side and had been for the last five years.

Between his perfectly cut chestnut hair and deep blue eyes, I was trying not to drool. That would be if I were completely ignoring the thick swell of his chest or perfectly tanned skin. His goatee and the tat on his shoulder that pressed through his lighter color shirts left my blood heating.

Fucking hot as sin.

Frustration raced through me as I walked into my office and slammed the door. As much as I hated drama, I couldn't help myself from overreacting more often than not. It was the main reason I was happily single. Most men I'd met were dull, plain, stagnant. Drama was almost a necessity.

"No fucking thank you." I dropped down into my chair and leaned back as a soft knock resounded at the door. "Come in."

My secretary, Jen, poked her blond head in the room and smiled. "You doing okay?"

"Yeah, just hate dealing with those guys. Come on in." I motioned for her to close the door. Everyone around the office was intimidated by me to the point of muttering a shaky greeting and getting out of my way. It was better that way. The fewer feelings involved in my work life, the better. More shit got done.

"How was the meeting with the board?" She sat down and crossed her legs as she leaned back.

"It was good and bad, I suppose." I let out a soft sigh. "Nate and I have spent hours working on this project, perfecting every piece of it, and he has the balls to agree with Frank over one of the shots we used of Vanessa. The one he wanted!"

"No way. Without talking to you?" She lifted her eyebrow as she visibly paled.

I chuckled and shook my head. "He did it on purpose. He loves to push his power onto me from time to time."

"But you're his boss." She crossed her arms over her chest.

"Yes, and we were in a room full of men, and he had one thing in common with all of them that I didn’t." I stood up and picked up my phone.

"What's that? That he's a guy?"

"That he has a cock, but same difference I suppose."

She laughed. "You're not going to be able to compete there."

"Sure I am." I grabbed my purse and gave her a saucy smile. "I'll just take ownership of his."

"His job?" She stood as well.

"No, his cock."

*

The jazz bar I haunted from time to time was busier that night than I found comfortable, but sitting at home and thinking about Nate was likely to drive me past the point of insanity. How many nights had I worked myself into a frenzy with the sound of his name leaving between long moans and short pants?

"Too many," I grumbled and glanced up at Cliff, my favorite bartender, as he stood smiling at me like I had some great secret I might soon share. "What?"

"You want another martini, Liz?" He leaned forward and tugged the empty glass from my hand.

"Sure. One more, but that's it." I smiled and glanced around. "When is the music starting?"

"Soon. Maybe fifteen minutes." Cliff poured the drink and watched me. He could have been my father's age, but much more welcoming than my old man. "Can I ask you a question?"

"Shoot." I took the drink and lifted it to my lips.

"Why in the world is a beautiful woman like you sitting in a bar alone? It honestly puzzles me every time you come in here. I think about it half the night when you leave."

"You think about me all night?" I gave him a smirk as he chuckled.

"Who doesn’t? You know the power you have over men." He cleared his throat and stood back up. "Why not find you a good one, and make him treat you like a queen?"

"He doesn't exist." I glanced to my left as a blond frat-boy-grown-up type sat down and gave me a wide grin.

"Who doesn't exist?" the guy asked and extended his hand. "Ethan."

"A man who can fuck all night." I extended my hand, enjoying far too much the way his eyes widened.

Cliff chuckled and tapped the bar top in front of the guy, getting his attention. "She's way outta your league, buddy. What can I get you to drink?"

I rewarded Cliff with a chuckle before getting up from the bar and taking my drink to stand to the side of the room as the band moved up on stage.

A soft yelp left me as someone moved in behind me, the bastard having the nerve to run his hand over my hip and splay his fingers over my stomach.

"Were you serious, or just going for the shock effect?" The blond from the bar. Ethan?

"About what?" I glanced over my shoulder as I pulled his hand from me and turned to face him.

"About looking for a man who could fuck all night?" He took a quick drink of his beer and licked at his lips.

"I never said I was looking. I said he doesn't exist." I shrugged and turned back toward the stage. He was handsome, but not in a threatening way. The image of his face would fade the minute I walked out the door, but Nate... Nate's voice, his smell, his looks would ride me hard late into the night. I could almost feel the intensity of desire for him as I stood there with my nipples budding.

"I think you're wrong." Ethan moved up to my right and pressed his shoulder against mine.

"Am I?" I glanced over at him and let my voice soften. Seduction was fun, and I was single. If the stud beside me wanted to prove himself capable of an all-night fuck fest, who was I to deny him?

"Yes. Let me prove it to you." He licked at his lips and reached out to brush his hand over the small of my back. "I'm thinking you'll believe in lots of things when I'm done with you."

"That does sound quite blissful, but here's the rub... most men never want to be done with me." I finished my drink in a few gulps and stepped back. "I'm not interested in anything long-term. I want a hard fuck and then you get out."

"Fuck yes." He turned to face me and touched my cheek. "Where have you been all my life?"

I laughed and pulled his hand from my face before entwining my fingers into his. "Shut up with the lines. They're useless against my powers. You leave when we're done. No snuggling, cuddling or talking about anything. I don't care where you're from or where you're going." I lifted his hand to my mouth and licked at the pad of his middle finger. "I'm in charge."

"I'm good with every bit of that." He gripped my hand hard and turned, walking us out of the bar like his ass was on fire. "Where do you live? Close by?"

"Nope. Let's go to your place." I waved back at Cliff and walked out to be greeted by the bright lights of the city. People moved around us with purpose, and I tucked myself against his side as we moved toward what I assumed was his car.

"I'm right up here. I work and live down here." He opened the door to a large ornate building and ushered me in, not speaking another word until we were trapped in the elevator together. "God, you're so fucking hot."

He pressed his hands to my sides and leaned down, consuming my mouth. His tongue pressed against the crease of my lips, and I opened up, letting him in. The sloppy way he licked at me was neither sexy nor appetizing. Good thing it wasn't his tongue that I was interested in.

I reached out and cupped him, stroking his budding erection and finding it much smaller than I expected. Ice water ran through my veins as the elevator stopped.

He moved back and reached for me. "Come on, baby. Let me show you what a real man can do."

"Let me see your dick." I moved up and held the door to the elevator open.

"What?" He glanced around. "Right here?"

"Yes. Pull it out and show me what I'm playing with tonight." I tilted my head a little to the side and lifted my eyebrow, challenging him.

"Right, but it's not about the ship. It's the motion it creates in the ocean, right?" He unzipped his pants and pulled out his cock, leaving me with no desire to take another step forward.

"For some women, for sure. Not me. I want to be stretched to the point of fear." I pushed at his chest. "Nice to meet you, handsome. Good luck with life."

The door closed and I pressed my back to the wall, hating life. Hating myself.

Hating Nathaniel Jenkins with all of me.

Chapter 3

Nate

"Janice?" I walked into the house to the smell of something garlicy, though it was too late for dinner. After cleaning myself up at the office, I spent another three hours trying to get the presentation adjusted for Frank's suggestions. I could deal with Elizabeth and her angst the next morning, though I'd have preferred to see her again that night. She was long gone by the time I packed up and headed home.

"Mom's upstairs." My son, Patrick, walked out of the kitchen with a plate of pizza. He was entering high school that fall, and yet still looked like a four-year-old kid to me. "She's in a mood too."

"Right." I refused to talk negatively to the kids about Janice, though I didn't have to. They could see every bit of the shit for themselves. She'd started changing after having our little girl, Samantha, and never stopped. I almost didn't recognize her as the pretty brunette I'd fallen head over heels for in junior high.

"Pizza night, Daddy!" My little girl bounded out of the kitchen with a piece of pizza on her plate. Her shoe caught something and she started to fall toward me as a cry left her. I reached out and caught her and the plate, smiling at her innocence.

"You almost ate it, and I'm not talking about the pizza." I kissed the top of her little head and helped her up.

"You're my hero, Dad." She smiled up at me.

I reached down and wiped the tomato sauce from the side of her mouth. I couldn't help but wonder if any of her dinner made its way into her mouth. "Am I? And what if I'm really a villain?"

I leaned down and glanced from side to side, forcing my face into a grimace.

She giggled. "That's Mom."

I popped her rear playfully and walked into the kitchen. "Leave your mother alone. She has a hard life."

The pizza box was still open and mostly gone on the island in the middle of our modest-sized kitchen. I picked up a slice, knowing I would hate myself in the morning for eating such unhealthy shit, but I was too tired to cook, and Janice hadn't turned on the stove in three years.

The sound of her behind me caused my stomach to turn, and I put the pizza back down.

"There you are. I was wondering if you were coming home or what." She moved around me without touching me at all. How badly I longed for the days when she'd wrapped herself around me and kissed me until I toted her upstairs to pay her back for her show of affection.

Not anymore.

"Yeah, sorry. I had to wrap up a few things." I leaned against the counter and studied her. She was in a house robe and her hair looked like she'd slept with it wet and not bothered to try and fix the craziness of it. Not that I couldn't appreciate her with the first of the morning look, but not having seen her dressed up or trying to look good for me in years was wearing me down fast.

I wanted my cock to twitch when I saw her, to feel the increase in desire and adrenaline, but nothing. Not a damn thing but apathy toward whatever we were becoming.

"Well, thanks to your working late, the kids are eating pizza again this week." She glanced over her shoulder as she pulled a glass from the cabinet above her. "You need to tell that bitch boss of yours that you're the only one that cooks in the family. When you don't come home, we order out. We've been doing that a lot lately."

"That's a little hard to do. She'd ask why my wife, who has no job but to raise our family, isn't willing to cook dinner." I glanced around. "Or clean up anything."

"This again? Really?" She turned and put her hand on her hip. "Raising kids is a full-time job."

"I agree, that's why I'm good with it, but our kids are fourteen and seven, Janice. They're not babies. I'm thinking you could learn to cook dinner, right?" I picked up a piece of pizza and let out a huff. "I don't want to fight. I'm tired and I just want to spend some time with you guys."

"Good. Patrick has a science project that he needs help on." She poured her a glass of milk and walked toward the living room. "And I'm not sleeping with you tonight, so stop watching me like I'm going to strip or something."

I swallowed hard before turning to face her as she watched TV. I bit my tongue, not wanting to attack her, but needing to say something. Sleeping with her had become a thing of the past. The couch and I had become good friends, and no matter how much I tried to make things work... she wasn’t interested anymore.

"You're a retired science teacher, Janice. Why in the world wouldn't you be helping him?" I attacked in the only safe place to do it. Her unused abilities.

"Because I'm tired. Okay?" She spun on her heel and gave me a scathing look before stomping up the stairs.

Patrick came down a few minutes later with a box of supplies. "We're building a robot."

"All right. When is it due?" I moved to the table and finished my pizza in a few bites.

"Tomorrow." He gave me a sheepish look.

"Really? Damn, Pat." I glanced over at the clock. "It's an hour until your bedtime, dude. What were you thinking?"

"Mom wasn't willing to help me, okay?" He sat down at the table and nibbled on this thumb. "Dad..."

"What buddy?" I pulled up a chair and tried to tuck my angst deep inside of me. I'd die young of a heart attack no doubt, but now wasn't the time to lament. He needed me, and that's all that mattered. Fuck Janice and her mood swings.

"Why is Mom such a bitch all the time?" Patrick glanced up as tears lined his eyes.

"Dude, don't call your mother names." I reached out and rubbed his back before cupping his head and pulling it against my chest. "She's just going through some stuff, okay? We're working it out."

"She's cheating on you." He pulled back and let out a soft sob as he lifted his fingers to his eyes. His hands were shaking as he sniffled. "I know she is."

Sickness raced through me as I continued to rub his back. "Come on, Pat. We're talking about your mom here. She's not cheating on me. We've been together since we were kids. You're just upset."

"No, Dad. I came home early the other day. I couldn't get ahold of you, and she, of course, didn't answer her phone. Mimi came and got me, and... The sounds upstairs-"

"Hey. Look at me." I touched the side of his face as bile rose up inside of me. "I'll check into it, but let's not jump to conclusions, okay? Your mom is a good woman, and I love her. She loves me too."

"Does she?" He wiped his eyes angrily. "If she loves you, where is she? Hell, if she loves
me
, where is she?"

"Watch your language, young man." I pulled him into another hug as the world started to crumble around me.

Was Janice cheating on me? On me, who had kept myself in tip-top shape for her when she'd let herself go completely, not caring anything about what I thought or how I felt?

No fucking way. It just wasn't possible.