Page 49 of Soldier, Tailor, Spy

“I love it when you’re tipsy,” Jake teased, pissing her off more. “You’re more colorful and honest.”

“And you’re still an asshole,” she replied, taking another sip from the tumbler. “This is shit bourbon.”

He shrugged. “To each their own.”

Ginger flipped him off. “Why did you come find me?”

“Fawn said she was hungry and worried about you. Declan was napping, so I made Fawn a snack and came to find you.” He glanced at the open file. “Now I see what’s caught your interest.”

“How can you be so caviler about this shit?” She motioned to the evidence and incident reports. “I was dispondable. Eh, dispopoble.” She clenched her jaw, becoming frustrated with herself. “Disposable.”

Jake sighed and nodded. “You were. Oscar saw you as a means to an end. You were his in to spy on Mr. Yamamoto and his organization, then he also used his connection to R.O.O.T. to spy on them, too. That’s what abusers do, Gingersnap. They use and abuse people. He got what he wanted, in this case, intelligence that could hurt everyone around you, then he destroyed all of us. He was a sociopath. Worst, he was a narcissist.”

“Yes, that word. Slimy bastard.” She took another swallow of the hard liquor. “You know, you should never speak ill of the dead. I don’t give a fuck. I hope he rots, Jake. I hope he follows Daunte’s Inferno, stopping at each level of hell before hitting the bottom. I hope—”

“I think that’s enough bourbon for you.” Jake took the empty tumbler and bottle from her. “No, you don’t. Deep down, you don’t have that much hate in you. This... This is all the pain. The betrayal. This is your shame when you have nothing to be ashamed of, because you did nothing wrong.” He pressed his lips to her forehead, warming her chilled flesh. Jake always knew what to say to her and when.

He was also wrong.

She bore tons of responsibility when it came to what Oscar had done to all of them, including Mr. Yamamoto. Because without her, Oscar’s case against the kindly man would have been dead in the water. No, she didn’t want her boss to continue to traffic women. She also didn’t want to be used either. It was crazy. Her mental ramblings weren’t making a lick of sense to her, probably because she was edging on being drunk. Didn’t help she hadn’t hardly eaten anything since earlier that morning.

“I do, Jake.” She peered up at him. “Every bit.”

He crouched down in front of her. “Let’s leave this for now. How about I order us some pizza and we have a pleasant afternoon and night in with the kids?”

She enjoyed the idea of something greasy and comforting. “Why do you keep saying the kids, like they both belong to you? Fawn is yours, sure. Declan was a mistake.”

His eyes narrowed. His face turned a violent shade of red, one she’d never seen before. “Listen to my words, Ginger O’Malley.” His tone was a hissed whisper. “Declan is not a mistake. He is a beautiful little boy who needs his mother more than ever. That boy might have made his way into this world in a not so optimal situation, but he’s here, and he’s all yours.”

“He should have a good father! Not the piece of shit dead in the ground.” Ginger sobbed. The tears she refused to shed fell freely now. “A good father. Someone who wouldn’t use him as a pawn.” She swiped away her tears as they fell. “I should have aborted him when I found out. It would have served me and Oscar right.” The idea tore a hole in her chest. She loved her son more than anything in the world, yet hated half of the DNA that ran through his body.

“That’s the alcohol talking,” Jake murmured. “You would never harm a baby—your baby. I know you better than that.”

She also hated how well her ex-husband knew her and what to say to ease her mind. She should be suffering. Paying some kind of penance for what happened under her roof and at her job. When had she become so oblivious to the world around her? When had she stopped caring?The day Jake left you.The thought didn’t surprise her. Not in the least. “No, I wouldn’t.”

“Come on then,” he muttered, helping her out of the chair. “Let’s get you some food so you can sober up.”

Ginger inhaled the spice of Jake's favorite cologne and whimpered, burying her face in his neck. “Jake.” Memories of their afternoon together raced through her mind. Unlike Oscar, who’d used her for his satisfaction, Jake made Ginger orgasm several times, either by using his dick or his mouth or his hands. By the time he left her bed, she was a boneless heap of sated meat. She probably laid there for a good hour giggling at herself for being so thoroughly fucked. At least then, she realized she was broken, yet could still orgasm.

“Are you trying to seduce me, Gingersnap?”

“If I was?” She ran her hand over his groin. The hot flesh beneath the denim material twitched to life, hardening under her touch.

“Fuck,” he groaned. “I’d say get on your knees and suck my dick. Sadly, I won’t take advantage of you when you’re drunk.”

“Who says you’d be taking advantage of me?” She slid to her knees in front of Jake.

“Ginger,” he muttered. “The door is open. Fawn could find us at any second.”

“Then I guess we better hurry.” She pulled the zipper of his pants down while staring up at him.

“Ginger...” He shuddered when she took his hard length into her palm. “Suck me. Make me come down that pretty throat of yours.”

Her body hummed to life with arousal. Her nipples were hard, and her clit throbbed. Every inch of her ached for relief. She hadn’t felt so alive in years. As she wrapped her lips around his tip, the salt of his precum exploding on her taste buds. He fisted her hair, pushing her head down to take more of him into her mouth. She groaned, lapping and lashing the crest while swirling her tongue across his slit. The harsh sound he made spurred her on.

“Fuck,” he grunted. “You’re going to suck the cum straight from my balls, aren’t you?”

She gave a throaty chuckle. With the first suck of her mouth, he tried to bury his cock deep within her, only holding himself back marginally. His hiss of pleasure turned her on, urging her to keep going. The more she bobbed her head, the more he flexed his hips, thrusting counter to her. The thread of lust and yearning building within her left her panting and desperate. At least while she was tipsy—not drunk—she could let go of her inhibitions and give over to the wants swirling within her.

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