Page 33 of Sweet Temptation

She admitted nothing, but when she heard the front door open and close again, and she perked up like a puppy whose people had just arrived, she knew she’d blown her cover.

“Ladies.” John stopped in the entryway to the kitchen, propping a hip against the door frame. Beside her, Meg heard Jada let out a wistful sigh.

“Jada, it’s time to take your lunch break.” She barely registered the younger woman’s quiet laugh.

“On it.” Slinging her purse over her shoulder, Jada dug through the pouch, palming something that she tossed onto the island.

Meg looked at the small foil square. It was a condom. Jada had just given her a condom. She looked at the girl with exasperation, cheeks flaming. Jada just winked.

“No glove, no love.” Laughing at herself, she scurried past John, clicking her way down the hall. “Ha, I sound like my mom.”

Meg waited, eyes closed, for the sound of the door opening and closing again. When it came, she cracked open one eye.

“Hi.” John pushed off the door frame. He crossed the room in three large steps, like he couldn’t get to her fast enough.

“Hi, yourself.” She couldn’t hold back the breathy little sigh when he dipped his head and pressed his mouth to hers.

She’d just parted her lips, opening for him the way she knew he would demand, when he pulled back. She blinked up at him, startled.

“So it seems your young employee has deduced our real relationship?” His lips curved with amusement, and her pulse tripped at hearing the word relationship on his tongue.

“I admitted nothing.” She smiled at him wryly. “She figured it out when she was working through your puzzling obliviousness to her rather direct charms.”

“Right.” Was that a hint of a blush she saw on those smooth brown cheekbones? “She’s... Ah. She’s a handful.”

“But she has a very talented tongue.” She grinned up at him. Dammit, why did she have to like him? Couldn’t she just want him for his body?

“‘You didn’t call,’” she said, mimicking Jada, her heart beating wildly in her chest. There was no denying the jealousy that had reared its ugly green head yesterday when Jada had given him her number and asked if he’d call. While she didn’t think he would, they had an agreement they were both standing up to, that didn’t mean he couldn’t call her when they were over. She had, after all, given Aaron her number.

In a fast move that shocked the breath from her lungs, John spun her around, bending her over the counter. He flipped her skirt up and pulled her cotton bikini briefs down.

“What the hell are you doing?” She had a pretty good idea, and an answering surge of wetness pooled between her thighs at the thought.

“You know we have an agreement.” He smoothed a palm over her cheeks, and she shivered.

“Yes.” Oh God. How had she so quickly come to crave this?

“You know that there’s no one else.” She tilted her head, waiting for him to add while we’re together.

He did not, but she couldn’t dwell on it, because he was tracing the divide of her cheeks with his hand.

“Tell me you weren’t jealous of Jada draping herself all over me, and I’ll believe you.” His voice was rough. “I won’t punish you.”

She stilled. No way was she admitting that.

“Either that’s not much of an incentive,” he started, quickly sliding between her cheeks and pressing his thumb to the rosette of her rear entrance, “or you can’t tell me that. Either way, I think ten ought to do it.”

“Ten?” She tried not to press back against him, but dammit, she was dripping at the thought. “Well, you’re the boss.”

“That mouth.” And then he started. As with the first time, the initial sting quickly morphed into liquid heat, more intense this time because she knew the pleasure that was soon to follow. She counted in her head as he delivered the light blows, both relieved and crushed when she reached ten.

Breath caught in her throat, she waited for his hands to move to the expected places. For him to ease the ache.

He did not. She heard the hiss of his breath as he slid both hands down her back to cup her cheeks. “These are mine.”

She swallowed. Hard.

“Say it, Meg.”

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