Looks like Trouble to Me (Bad Boys Need Love, Too #1) Page 6

  Billy reached for the wall, scrambling back as quickly as he could.

  “Get out of here, you piece of shit.”

  “This isn’t over. I guarantee that,” Billy said, still backing away. “My lawyers are going to have a field day with you.”

  “Sic them on me, I don’t care,” Jace said.

  “Jace. It’s okay. You don’t want to piss him off. Let’s leave.” Zoé tugged at his arm.

  “Not until I see him get in the fancy car his daddy purchased, and drive away. Asshole doesn’t know the first thing about the value of hard work.”

  Billy slithered around the corner.

  “And stay away from Zoé,” he yelled.

  “Make me,” Billy called. “Better yet, take her. I never eat leftovers. They’re no longer fresh and they stink.”

  Zoé winced. “Asshole,” she yelled. “Prick. Cocksucker.”

  Billy’s laugh drifted into the alley.

  “Someone’s got a dirty mouth,” Jace said, a slightly amused smile on his face. Then he frowned. “Shit,” he said, as they watched the pretentious bad boy car race away. “I can’t stand that guy.”

  “Me, neither. I can’t believe I had a thing with him. Why were you hanging out with him the other night?” Zoé asked.

  “Long story,” he said. “Are you all right?”

  “I think so. Shocked is all.” She picked up Jace’s hand. “Are you injured? Let me see.”

  “I’ll be all right,” he said, tugging his hand.

  She kept a tight grip on it, peering at it in the dim light. “Looks swollen. Let’s head to my house and let me put ice on it.”

  “I’d rather continue what we started.” He moved closer to her, making her tremble.

  “Wouldn’t you rather be comfortable?” she asked, pressing her palms against the cool, rough brick.

  “Comfort is a state of mind.” He placed the injured hand on the wall, next to her ear, wincing slightly.

  “Don’t hurt yourself,” she said.

  “I said, I’ll be fine.”

  She let her head fall back against the dusty, unforgiving wall, her mouth upturned.

  He lowered his mouth to hers, consuming, sucking, nibbling her lips. His free hand pushed her skirt up, fumbling with the waistband of her tights. He tugged them down and slid his hand between her legs. “Mmm, wet,” he said against her mouth. “Definitely wet.” He took her hand and guided it to the front of his jeans. “This is what you do to me.” He moved his fingers back under her panties and explored the slick heat craving his attention.

  Her eager fingers sought his zipper, yanking it down. When she got it open she felt his phone vibrate inside his shirt sleeve pocket.

  “Shit,” he said. “Goddamn it.” He yanked the phone out of his pocket, looked at it, tapped the connect button and said, “Yeah?”

  Zoé heard a female voice. She quickly pulled her tights into place and pushed down her skirt.

  “Okay. Yeah. Sorry, Lila, I lost track of the time. Okay. You know the deal. I’ll catch the next ferry and be home as soon as I can.” He slid the phone back inside his pocket, and dropped his forehead against hers, panting.

  “Everything all right?” she said, smoothing his hair with her palm. Who’s Lila? A stab of jealousy lanced her stomach. Her rational mind attempted to talk her out of the sensation. You don’t even know this guy. The stabbing sensation persisted.

  “No. I have to go. Believe me I don’t want to.”

  She wanted to ask him what he had to get home to - more like who - but she knew zero sum about him and it wasn’t exactly her place to grill him. “Okay.”

  “You’ve got to believe me. When can I see you again?” He lifted her chin with his fingers, searching her eyes with his dark emerald pools of desire.

  “Sounds like you live over there, across the pond.” She pointed toward the peninsula far across the Puget Sound.

  “All the way up in Port Townsend.”

  “I’ve never been. I…I could maybe come with you.”

  He slowly shook his head. “Not yet. I have a…it’s complicated, let’s leave it at that.”

  “Okay.” Her heart felt heavy, wooden. What was the start of an all-consuming bonfire had been reduced to simmering ash, courtesy of Verizon.

  “Hey,” he said, tipping her chin up again. “Look at me.”

  She tried to avert her eyes but he made it difficult, keeping a gentle grip on her face. She sighed and met his gaze. “What?” she whispered.

  “This is not how I wanted it to go down tonight. I want to see you again, yeah?”

  She remained quiet.

  “Yeah?” he said again. “I. Want. To see. You.” He tapped the end of her nose.

  Yeah, right. To fuck. “My dad’s having a barbeque tomorrow,” she blurted. “He wants me to get along with his new girlfriend.” Why did I say that? That’s like a date. This is, well…this is sex.

  “What time?”

  “I have to work the lunch shift here so I planned on heading over there about four.”

  “I’ll see what I can do. I’ll have to move some things around but I think I can make it. Ever rode on the back of a Grievous Angel?” His eyes danced with mischief.

  “Is that like a bad boy love god?”

  “Even better. It’s my bike.” He indicated his motorcycle parked across the street.

  “No, I can’t say I’ve ever wrapped my legs around an angel. I look forward to it.” She bit her lip, looking up at him through her lashes.

  “Good,” he said, leaning down for one more sumptuous kiss. “It’s a date, then.” He pulled his phone free. “Digits?”

  She gave him her number.

  He slid it into his inside jacket pocket, right next to his heart. “I want this right here,” he said, patting the coat. He grabbed her hand and placed it between his legs. “And you can guess where I want this. I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?”

  “Okay,” she said. She floated all the way to her car, endorphins flooding her. What happened to the need for love? It just got flattened by a bulldozer. Put the brakes on, Dubois, before your heart gets crushed to smithereens.

  Chapter 8

  “Here we go, baby girl,” Jace said, hefting Marni out of her car seat. He pulled her pink dress down over her chubby thighs and brushed crumbs off her chest. An orange sweater completed her outfit, the top two buttons unbuttoned. “You made a mess in my truck.”

  She sucked vigorously on her pacifier, staring at her uncle.

  “Uncle Jace is a busy guy, isn’t he? But we had fun yesterday, didn’t we? You wore me out with your All Terrain Stroller. We must have walked miles until you insisted on the backpack.” He tucked her onto his hip, reaching for her bag of supplies. “Don’t forget your purse.” He pulled the yellow and orange canvas strap over his shoulder.

  She patted his cheek with a sticky hand.

  “I’m going to see this girl I like. You’d like her, too. Maybe I’ll introduce you to her. Down the road of course.” He slammed the door shut to his pickup truck and turned to stride up Aunt Molly’s walkway.

  When Aunt Molly opened the door, Marni reached for her.

  “She really likes you,” Jace said, eager to hand her off.

  “We’ve got a good thing going, don’t we, Marni?” His aunt smiled, her lined face crinkling into deep creases. “We got to see each other a lot when your mom was gallivanting around, didn’t we?” She nuzzled Marni’s cheek. “You’re going to help me feed the goats, aren’t you?”

  “Gote,” Marni said. “Gote.” She waved her hand in the direction of the goat pen.

  “She’s not so sure about me. Want to keep her?”

  “Jace,” Aunt Molly said. “Give her time. Her world’s been kicked on its heels.”

  What about mine? “I’d rather my sister took over her responsibilities. This isn’t particularly fun.” He stood on the front stoop, looking sullenly beyond the willow tree in the side yard to the waters of the Puget Sound. “You’ve got
a great view. I never get tired of it. Been a source of comfort ever since I was a teen.” He turned back to his aunt. “Thanks for doing this.”

  “Well, I know you didn’t sign up for this task willingly. And Marni’s a good girl. Your uncle and I don’t mind at all.” She bounced Marni on her generous hip. “She likes to help with chores.” She pushed her graying brown waves away from her pleasant looking face.

  “I heard from Jayna.”

  “Did you?” Aunt Molly said eagerly, her hazel eyes bright. “What a relief! Is she coming home soon?”

  “She didn’t say. Said something about needing to take care of things and then I heard a man arguing with her and she hung up on me. The number’s unlisted. It’s not like I can call her back. She could be in Egypt for all we know.”

  “Oh, dear. At least she’s alive,” Aunt Molly said, clearly heartened. “Have you thought about what you’re going to do if she never comes back?”

  “Not much. I’m still holding out hope she’ll come around.”

  “Your sister is one screwed up girl. I can’t help but think that your strict upbringing made her snap. My sister and her husband can be quite the hellfire and brimstone kind of disciplinarians.”

  “Tell me about it. When I left I swore I’d always have welts on my backside.” He rubbed the back of his jeans before setting the big bag inside the doorway. “There are bottles, diapers, toys, the usual. Cookies and baby food, too.”

  “Okay, good. Honey, you know we tried our best when you came to live with us but she was already set on the downward spiraling path. We thought we’d lose you, too, but you came around.”

  “It was that or end up in a morgue somewhere.”

  “And that would have been a big tragedy. You’re a good guy, Jace. My favorite nephew.”

  He scoffed. “Your only nephew.”

  She winked. “Makes you all the more special.”

  “Thanks, Aunt Molly.”

  Marni waved her pudgy hand at him.

  He reached out and let her wrap her moist, gooey palm around his finger. “Her hands need to be washed.”

  “We can handle it.”

  “I’ll do my best to get back before midnight.”

  “Don’t you worry, honey. If you think you’ll be out too late, we can keep her overnight.”

  Jace’s face brightened. “Seriously?”

  “Why not? She’s no trouble at all. And you need to have some fun, sweetie. You’ve been looking a little ragged lately.” Her aunt flicked her gaze at his hand. “What did you do? Get in a fight with someone?”

  Jace looked at the scrapes and bruises. He’d wrapped it in gauze and antibiotic cream when he got home last night. He took the dressing off before he left so he didn’t look a wreck. On the other hand, I’ll even take a sympathy fuck right about now. Maybe I should reconsider the bandage. “Yeah, actually, I did. I punched Billy O’Reilly.”

  “Oh, no. That kid’s trouble with a capital T. I hope you came out on top.”

  “We’ll see. He threatened me with a lawsuit.” He pushed his hand through his hair. “I’m sick of his fucking bullshit.” He glanced at his aunt. “He waves all his unearned cash around, dicking around with everyone. He’s part of the reason Kate and I broke up. Did I ever tell you that?”

  “You didn’t. I always wondered but figured it was none of my business. Frankly, I thought she was using you.”

  Jace’s eyebrows lifted, thinking, you have no idea. “Anyway, I’ve gotta run back to the house, pick up the Deus and head over to Seattle.” He kissed Marni’s chubby cheek, sniffing her sweet, baby scented skin, gave his aunt a quick hug.

  “Wave bye-bye to Uncle Jace,” Aunt Molly said. She grasped Marni’s wrist and pumped it up and down.

  He rode to Zoé’s house, flooded with thoughts of her. Hence, by the time he arrived at her house he was hard as a rock.

  When she opened the door to her modest home in West Seattle, he thrust a bouquet of mixed flowers at her. “I didn’t know what you liked.” His eyes scanned her restlessly. Fucking gorgeous. Her hair hung loosely around her face, skimming her shoulders. She wore an oversized top printed with the words, Love when you want to, not when you’re lonely, over tight jeans but she could have been dressed in a potato sack as far as he was concerned.

  “Oh, these are beautiful, Jace! Chrysanthemums, daisies, lilies - even sunflowers! I love this! Much better than Billy’s stuffy roses. Those got thrown in the dumpster behind the bar. Good riddance. Come in, come in. I’ll put these in water and we’ll be off.”

  Jace politely stepped in the front door, looking around at her comfortable surroundings. The colors of her home consisted of blues, yellows, and occasional splashes of green and orange. Colorful plumped pillows were arranged neatly on the sofa. An old stereo stood in the corner. He noted the absence of a T.V. Sturdy metal stands were placed near every window with plants of various sizes and species placed in tidy rows. “You into gardening or something?” he called to her back as she entered the kitchen.

  “Yep, I’m studying permaculture.”

  “Huh,” he said, wandering behind her and leaning against the door jamb. “What can you do with a degree like that?”

  She pulled a crystal vase from the cupboard, setting it on the blue tiled counter after filling it half full of water. As she arranged the flowers, she said, “Actually, I’d like to help third world countries in food production. There’s a lot we can do. I’m hoping to get an internship in Costa Rica - or a job. After that, who knows? Africa maybe?”

  “Sounds noble. You’re going for the money, right?”

  Her head whipped around to look at him. “Not really.”

  “I’m kidding. Unless you can get a grant or something there’s usually no money in noble causes.”

  “True enough. I’ve never been motivated by money.” She turned back to her flower arranging.

  “Same here but I do like to pay the bills.”

  “Me, too.” She turned away from the counter and placed the vase on her kitchen table, positioning it in the center. She knocked on the wood with her knuckles. “So far, so good. I’m not in too much debt with school loans. I inherited enough money from my grandma to pay for most of my education. And, I work my butt off when I’m not studying or in classes. If it doesn’t work out I can always get a job as someone’s fucking landscape bitch.”

  Jace smiled. “There’s that dirty mouth again.”

  “Does it bother you?” Zoé looked at him, gazing with deep brown pools of warmth.

  “Fuck, no.” He smiled. “Unless you meant you were going to fuck him. That’s going to be my job.”

  Her eyes widened and she licked her lush lips. “What do you think?” She gestured to the yellow and gold bouquet.

  “Fucking beautiful,” he said, staring at her.

  Her eyebrows rose. “Talk about a dirty mouth. That’s three fucks in less than a minute.”

  “Oh, I guarantee it will be longer than a minute.”

  Her fingers began working in circles, rubbing thumbs to fingertips. She stared at him like a doe in the middle of a field, alert, watchful.

  Jace liked the effect he had on her - a lot. “And that will only be the first fuck - the exploratory phase. You know, where you break ground.”

  “You have to have a good tool.”

  “Only the best,” he said. He stroked his jaw with his hand, contemplating her.

  “What’s phase two?” She stepped back against the countertop, placing her hands on the tiled surface. The window behind her framed her face, sunlight shining on her glossy hair.

  “You tell me. You’re the expert here.”

  “Plow. Plant seeds. Tend to them. Nurture them like crazy.” Her attention dropped to his hard cock for a second. “Are you going to kiss me before we go, or what?”

  “Someone’s bold. I’ll start with a kiss - then I might get to ‘or what.’” He stalked across the room, placed both hands along the sides of her head and studied her face. “
You’re beautiful.”

  She placed her hands on his chest. “So are you.”

  He caressed her soft lips with his thumbs. “You’re trembling. Do I scare you?”

  “No. You affect me, is all.”

  “And you like the way I affect you, yeah?”

  “Yes,” she said on a breath.

  “Are you wet?”

  “Yes.”

  “Are you wet for me?”

  Her eyebrows lifted slightly. “I don’t see anyone else in the room, do you?”

  “If there were would you be wet for him?”

  “No.”

  He leaned down, bringing his mouth close to hers.

  Her eyes closed and her rosy lips parted.

  “Who are you wet for, Zoé?” he asked.

  Her eyelids popped open. “You, Jace.”

  “Only me?”

  She frowned a little. “Yes, only you.”

  He pushed his erection into her, rocking his hips to let her feel how she affected him. “This is all for you, baby. You and you alone.”

  Her eyes closed again and her nostrils flared.

  Jace’s cock twitched. So fucking beautiful.

  “You don’t know me. You talk as if you’re making some kind of commitment.”

  “Ground rules. Exploration can’t begin unless we have a few rules in place. One of mine is exclusive rights.” He rocked his cock into her soft belly.

  “How can you ask that of me if we don’t know one another?” she said, her eyes half lidded.

  “I’m not playing unless I like the answer,” he said.

  She opened her eyes. “What about last night? You didn’t ask for rights then.”

  “I didn’t know I’d want them until I tasted you. Now I know. Will you grant me exclusive rights or won’t you?”

  “I said, there’s no one else in the room.”

  “That’s a hedge betting answer.” He nuzzled his nose against her cheek. “Will you grant me exclusive rights?” he asked again. He placed his hands on the counter, one on each side, his thigh pushing between her legs, spreading her knees apart. He studied the pulse throbbing in her neck, pumping strong, fast, and steady, before letting his gaze lazily roam along her face.