Night Owl (The Complete Serial)

I swallow the lump in my throat. “Sure, it is,” I say, sarcastically. “Philadelphia and our neighboring stations got a clip of you eating me out on syndicated radio and there won’t possibly be any repercussions whatsoever. Come on, James. I studied broadcasting. I know there are ramifications for what happened. The FCC has rules about this. My contract has rules about this.” Crossing my arms over my heaving chest, I roll my tear-filled eyes and try to walk away.

“Hey, hey come on.” James grabs me by my arm and holds me still until I look up, my lip trembling and my eyes burning with tears. “Hey, do I look worried?” No. James looks sexy as hell while I’m falling apart.

“You sure as hell should be worried.” I don’t know why he is sweeping this under the rug. How can I go back to work? Will I even have a job to go back to? All the worries overwhelm me and he’s just standing there, doing nothing.

“I’ll worry when it’s time to worry.” James leans over the counter, trapping me against it.

“What the hell does that mean?” I’m snippy, bitchy, and afraid. “This isn’t some fucking game. I don’t get a free pass here, James.”

“I know it’s not a game. I’m going to take care of it. Can you trust me to do that?” I feel his body tensing and his pulse thumping through the vein in his neck.

“We barely know each other. You could walk away from this with a slap on your wrist and forget we ever met. I can go back to dog walking and serving coffee.” I push him back but James is unmoving.

“Tell me you’re not fucking serious?” He closes whatever distance is left between us and panic rises in my chest.

“Maybe that would be better.” The dark cloud of dejection hovers low and deep thinking we should end this while we still can, while James still has his company and I still have something of my pride left. Maybe my old bedroom hasn’t been converted into a craft room or a room for my mother’s parakeets. I could grovel and enroll in dental school making everyone happy.

“Better for who?” He shakes his hanging head against me before speaking again. “I’m not leaving you behind and you’re not taking the fall for something that was no one’s business but ours. This wasn’t your fault.”

“What do you mean?” Uncertainty cements me in place unable to move or think beyond the last few hours of time.

“It means we have a meeting at one this afternoon, and it’s barely past ten right now.” James bites my ear with a sharp sting, his mouth leaving another sultry kiss on my neck below my earlobe. I feel every pass of his nose against the column of my neck and close my eyes tightly at the sensations in my core. He knows exactly what he’s doing.

A di

straction.

James is good at distracting me from the reality of our situation. I feel a tug on the belt of my robe, warm hands curling around my ample hips and pulling me closer, sliding around, cupping my ass in a grip that’s likely to leave a colorful impression of his fingertips. His hands move up, tracing my spine. One stops on my lower back, one between my shoulder blades, pulling me in. Once his hands settle, a tug pulls the silk robe off my body.

Both of us watch it pool to the floor. Expensive silk and cheap linoleum flooring mirror what I think about myself. I may look all right on the outside, but I feel unworthy in this man’s presence. “I know what you’re doing, James.”

He lifts me off my feet easily, setting me on my kitchen counter. Cold granite rubs against my thighs, the temperature tickling my clit. The shiver takes my mind off how clean my counter may or may not be right now. I do my damnedest to not use my kitchen a whole lot, except for coffee. After this, I’m pretty sure I’ll be better about not neglecting them. James’ hands on my exposed breasts, fingers rubbing over my nipples, bring me back to the moment. He has my full attention now the kitchen be damned.

“So let me do it, Casey. Stop being such a stick in the mud.” James determined to get his way pulls me deeper under his spell with his voice low and sexy.

“Are you calling me boring?” I lift my head to look at him. He’s biting his lip to stop smiling. Idiot.

“You? I’d never say that.” I know James would like to make an inappropriate joke right now. Instead he kisses my collarbone, sucking the skin until pleasure mixes with just a hint of pain. I squeeze his arms, letting my nails dot his skin with small crescents. I can only imagine how colorful my neck is right now. I’m going to need my turtleneck dress for the meeting if he keeps this up…

22

James

Getting Casey to relax is like asking the wind to stop blowing. Independence is a quality I both love and hate about her, but it is the temperamental part that drives me crazy. I pity anyone on the receiving end. I want to forget the bulk of the last twenty-four hours, except the ones between her thighs and holding her in my arms. I am pissed she doesn’t have more faith in me, as if I will let something like our very public interlude come between us or jeopardize her job. It makes me wonder who let her down so badly before.

I don’t know much about her personal life outside of work and she never mentions her family. I gather she’s not close with them and the urge to protect her grows exponentially. I have money and power, and I plan to use it in spades to protect my girl. Casey is going to learn to trust me. This isn’t just about sex for me. After eighteen long months, I finally have my hands all over her body, but I want to worm myself into her heart, infiltrating her soul. I want her to wonder where she ends and I begin when it comes to the two of us against the world. She is fucking mine and I will blast it across the airwaves if I have to.

Apparently the last part was taken care of by some asshole.

“James…” On a groan, our heads sway back and forth. Mine because I’m trying to kiss her lips and hers because she’s evading my hungry mouth.

“I feel like you give me and inch and hold back the rest.”

“I may have said this before, but you’re pretty damn bossy,” she smiles hesitating.

I’ve got her where I want her, sitting on top of the counter, legs spread, hair wild. Damn it if she doesn’t make me question everything. She’s tugging me closer, yet pushing me away.

“So tell me what you want. Better yet, tell me what you need.” I let my fingers play down her back. Her shiver makes her shimmy closer to my cock, which is now hard and craving her just as much as before. I feel her legs pull me closer, but I hold her back, earning me another groan.