First and Ten Read online

Her head snapped up so fast, her forehead met his dimpled chin with a painful crack. “Ouch!” she gasped, wincing in pain, then instantly forgetting the pain as her mouth fell open and her eyes widened in horror. “Damn, Gerrard, but you have a hard head!” she snapped to cover the rush of heat that zipped from her belly to her suddenly wet core.

  Oh. My. God! What the hell was Jack Gerrard doing here? He couldn’t be…her ride?

  Without a word, he levered her back to an upright position, then rubbed his chin gingerly with his free hand. “You still try to destroy all men who try to pick you up?”

  Fran realized numbly that he hadn’t relinquished his death grip on her waist, and their hips seemed to be fused from navel to knee. Dear God! How many times had she dreamed about being in this exact position with him? His minty breath warmed her forehead despite her lanky height, and for the first time in years, she felt small and weak as he easily shifted her and maintained his firm grip while she struggled to regain control of her shoulder bag, finally shifting it to his waiting hand.

  “I…I didn’t mean to…I mean…” Her forehead throbbed from the contact with his rock hard chin.

  Blue eyes pinned her as his lips curved into that sexy, patented Jack Gerrard smile, and memories flooded back over her from so many years ago. She blinked furiously to stop the ridiculous flow of tears, as that smile changed to a frown of worry.

  “You okay, Franny? Hell, did I hurt you, honey?”

  Had he just called her “honey”?

  Her knees almost gave out. She should be feeling outrage at the term of affection, but she couldn’t quite muster that particular feeling. Instead, she started blubbering like a total fool. She shook her head and slapped her hand over her quivering mouth, too humiliated by this absurd rush of overwhelming emotion to say a word. Her wide eyes took in every plane and curve of his handsome face. He hadn’t changed one damn bit in ten years. In fact, he was even more gorgeous than she remembered him.

  More handsome than his pictures in the magazines.

  Oh, God! And he was gathering her closer, patting her back and pressing her face gently into his shoulder in the most delicious, protective way, she couldn’t possibly stop the flood of tears.

  How humiliating! She sobbed helplessly, wetting his leather jacket and pressing her forehead into the hollow between his strong throat and his shoulder, too embarrassed to look him in the eye. People instantly crowded around, and she felt like burrowing into his chest for protection.

  “She okay, Jack?” a voice she recognized as belonging to Bill Waverly, one of the worst of her tormentors in high school, asked. She bit her lip and fought to control herself, unwilling to look the jerk in the eye.

  “I think I almost knocked her out…” Jack muttered in frustration. “You guys take the van. Just drop your stuff off at the Spot and leave it parked out front with the keys in the ignition. I’ll pick it up as soon as I can get her over to Karen’s.”

  “Shit! Is that who I think…?” Bill’s voice raised, and she heard a thump and a whoosh of air, then a yelp as Waverly said, “Hey! What the hell was that for?”

  “One more word and you’ll be walking to the Spot. Get the hell out of here.” She heard a few muttered words, then the sound of many feet shuffling to give them a bit of space.

  Fran felt him shift, and she gave a startled squeal as she was swept into his arms as easily as if she’d weighed ounces instead of her solid 160 pounds. She clutched his neck and refused to look up as people murmured and whispered, and someone said, “Take my car, Jack. I can catch a ride home after work with Andy. Just leave my car in front of the Spot when you pick up your van.”

  That sounded amazingly like Gregg Farnsworth, another of the nasty little nuisances she’d avoided like the plague in college. Oh, good heavens! She was surrounded!

  Keeping her head buried in that delicious smelling, warm throat, Fran decided she didn‘t mind one little bit being carried by Jack Gerrard.

  Jack didn’t know what to do with Fran, now that he’d finally gotten ahold of her. He’d dreamed of this moment so damn many times over the long years…but the feel of her in his arms was nothing like his imaginings. He felt her curl into his arms like a kitten as he caught Gregg’s tossed keys with a nod, and he glanced back at Waverly and said, “You guys load her luggage up. It probably matches that rollaway case. Check tags to make sure. Take it on over to Karen’s place before you go to the Spot.” He glanced down at her half hidden face and asked softly, “How many pieces?”

  “Three…an overnight case and two Pullman cases.” Her voice was so muffled he barely caught her words, passing them on to the guys. The feel of her warm breath brushing his throat was about to ignite some extremely hot fires he had almost forgotten existed. He shifted her weight and got a better grip on her as she wound her arms even tighter around his neck. Holy hell! Those firm generous breasts pushed against his chest as if they belonged there, and he wanted her right where she was.

  “You feel light-headed?” he asked with his warm lips pressed into the tumbled hair now escaping her tight bun. She nodded her head slightly, and he adjusted her against his chest, hefted her laptop bag over his shoulder and strode past the baggage pickups to the escalators that led to the parking ramps.

  He wasn‘t about to put her down, not after waiting twelve long years to get her in his arms—where she belonged.

  Chapter Four

  Once she felt the cool air of the parking ramp, Fran lifted her head and glanced around to make sure they were alone, and she squirmed a bit. “Um…Jack…you can put me down. I can walk.”

  “I know.” His deep voice murmured, but he made no move to set her on her feet. He simply readjusted her in his grip and kept walking.

  “Um…Jack? I’m pretty heavy. What about your shoulder?” she chewed the corner of her lower lip as she readjusted her arms around his wide shoulders and that strong neck.

  He kept his eyes forward, but she saw a wicked smile tug at the corner of that firm mouth. Her pussy contracted, her belly fluttered and she almost whimpered. “How far is Gregg’s car?” Her whispered question brought his blue gaze down to touch her flushed face, and the look in his eyes almost made her swallow her tongue.

  “Not far. Relax. Enjoy the ride.”

  “I really can walk…” she squeaked as she felt his cock grow larger where her hip pressed against his groin. She squirmed to get her legs down.

  “Oh, baby…if you don’t stop that wiggling, you’ll be in deeper trouble than you are now.” His rasped warning made her stop; she held her breath.

  “I’m truly not hurt, Jack. Please put me down.” Her voice quivered.

  “No chance of you getting away this time, Franny. I let you go once, and that is NOT going to happen again.” Jack laughed softly at her gasp. He aimed the key chain alarm switch at Gregg’s car. She waited, expecting him to lower her feet to the pavement, but instead he slid her ass onto the fender of the gleaming black vehicle, and wedged himself between her thighs, wrapping his arms around her so that she couldn’t move. The feel of that hard body pressed against her throbbing center, and those heavily muscled arms fencing her in almost made her lose her mind. He stared at her mouth. And she was about to faint dead away for the first time in her life…

  God, but she felt like she was made to be in his arms. He didn’t want to let go long for enough to put her onto the lush leather seat of the Mercedes. The cradle of her long, delicious thighs felt like home, and she wasn’t trying to shove him away. He watched her lush chocolate eyes widen and zero in on his lips, and his body almost shifted to autopilot. Her long slim fingers burrowed into the hair at the back of his neck, and he could feel her heart pounding erratically against his chest. “I have wanted to ask you one question for the past twelve years, Franny.” His throat was so damn tight he didn’t think he would be able to ask.

  Her lips actually quivered as she sighed, and his cock almost tore through his slacks. “What question?” Her voice was a low whisper. He
r eyes moved over his face as if she was trying to memorize him.

  He swallowed hard, and wet his lips automatically, wondering if she would taste as delicious as she looked. “That day in the parking lot back in high school…” his voice almost broke with the tension.

  Her cheeks became bright red, and she looked away from his face, stiffening. He had no intention of letting her off the hook now. “Those things you said…about never wanting to see my face again? About hating the sight of me?”

  Her eyes darted back to his face, and a look of utter agony filled them. He forced himself to continue. “Did you mean all that? Is that what you really wanted to say to me?”

  “That’s all water under the bridge, Jack. I had a mad crush on you. Nothing more. You chose to allow the opinions of your buddies to scare you away from being my friend. I thought you at least liked me. You didn’t need to be my boyfriend…just my friend, like we were in high school.”

  “So I was a total asshole when I was 18. I know that. But I tried to apologize that day, and the things you said cut pretty deep. I just want to know if you meant them.”

  Fran wanted to melt away and hide from the memory of that awful day. But the intense look in those blue eyes held her, and his arms tightened when she tried to move away. “Why do you want to know?” she wet her lips nervously.

  He ran one lean hand down the center of her back to toy with the curve of her ass on the hood of the car. “Did you mean what you said?” He asked again, his hand slipping up under the tailored Armani suit jacket, slipping up the front of her brushed satin shirt to cup the fullness of her breast. She saw the flare of heat in his eyes as she inhaled sharply and leaned into his palm.

  “Yes. And no.” She could barely get the words past her quivering lips. Her body grew hot and eager.

  He flicked his thumb over the puffy, aching tip of her nipple, and a rush of wetness dampened her lace panties. “Kiss me,” he whispered huskily as his lips brushed hers with electrifying effect.

  She started to ask why he wanted her to kiss him, but he jerked her into his open-mouthed caress, a deep, husky groan emanating from deep in that marvelous chest as his tongue drove into her mouth, claiming what she was terrified of giving. Her nails dug into his shoulders as she melted into a puddle of heat in his arms, her insides quivering with every gentle squeeze and caress of that talented hand. He pressed his cock against the warm moisture of her weeping pussy, and a growl of satisfaction rose from his chest as she wrapped her legs around his hips and crossed her ankles to get as close to him as possible.

  She wasn’t sure how long she kissed him, or how her blouse buttons had come undone, and the front hook of her lace bra as well. His calloused, gently searching hand cupped her bare breast, that artful thumb stroking the aching tip as his tongue lazily toured her mouth and she whimpered and bumped her pussy against that amazingly stiff ridge in his slacks. And then she felt the cool metal of the hood pressing against her back, and his mouth moving from her lips to the pebbled nipple that begged for his attention.

  Lucid thought returned as she realized that he was slowly undressing her in the very public lower level of the parking ramp…and she was letting him!

  “Jack…” she gasped, closing her eyes with the wonderful sensation of his mouth on her breast. “What if someone comes…?”

  “Don’t worry…it’ll just be me…” he rasped, as he gave her nipple one last hard tug, then slowly moved back, dragging her blouse closed, and pulling her back up into his arms, his lips pressed hotly to her damp throat.

  He seemed to be calming himself with every ounce of willpower he possessed, and then he looked into her glazed eyes, that wicked smile crooking his mouth. “I’m glad you didn’t mean it.”

  She stared as he drew away slightly, and then watched numbly as he gently re-hooked her bra, and re-buttoned her blouse. She wasn’t sure whether she should be thrilled that he had obeyed her unspoken request to stop what he was doing, or be dismayed that he had so willingly stopped the delicious play.

  Was she totally nuts?

  She slowly untangled her ankles and scooted further back onto the hood, smoothing her flyaway hair as she blushed furiously. “Um…Jack…”

  His blue gaze slipped up to hers. “No need to be embarrassed, baby…that’s something I have wanted to do for twelve long years. And I was sort of hoping you wanted it, too.”

  His quiet smile and the way he kissed the tip of her nose left her wondering what the hell had just happened. He had waited for twelve years to cop a feel? He was calm and cool, and not the least bit shaken up by what he had just done…or at least, he didn’t seem to be! And she was quivering like a leaf in the wind. Oh, lord! Get a damn grip, Fran! He was simply letting you know what you missed when you told him to go fly a kite! Red flushed her cheeks as she realized that if he had not stopped, she would have probably let him know exactly what HE had missed all those years.

  Forcing a wry smile to her stiff lips, she smoothed her jacket and said, “Thanks, Jack! I always wondered what kissing you would feel like.”

  “Were you disappointed?” his eyes seemed to be hiding something just beneath the surface.

  Was she disappointed? Dear God, no! Not in the kiss. Only in the ending. But what could she expect? He didn’t seem to be backing off. Did he expect her to fall over and beg him to make love to her? That thought definitely was mulling around in her mind. Oddly, she felt daring. Not like the old Fran. Not like the frightened woman who worried about what others thought. And when she opened her mouth to speak, the oddest damn words came out.

  “I think I’ll need another sample before I can make a decision…”

  Her butt slid across the gleaming hood before she realized he was dragging her back against him. Her pussy slammed hard against that swollen cock. His mouth came down on hers before she could figure out what had possessed her to say such a shocking thing. And her hands were shoving at his leather jacket as his tugged her zipper down.

  The sound of footsteps echoing at the other end of the parking ramp made her gasp, but he simply lifted her off the hood and wrapped her thighs around his hips, and a moment later, he pressed her back firmly against the cool concrete of the ramp support post that obscured the view of their twined bodies. His mouth was like a narcotic, making her forget her good sense and her sanity. He tugged her jacket off and tossed it onto the trunk of the car, then tugged her blouse open so hard, buttons scattered everywhere. His hands and lips were everywhere on her throat and breasts, and she whimpered as he rocked against her pussy with his steel-hard shaft putting delicious pressure exactly where she needed it.

  “You on the pill?” he rasped against her throat.

  “No! Don’t you have a condom?”

  She chewed her lower lip as he slowed and gazed into her glazed eyes. “No. It’s been a long time since I’ve needed one.” His wry expression startled her. He was actually stopping? He wasn’t angry?

  But then his eyes gleamed wickedly, and he started rocking his hips against hers once again, his cock rolling seductively over her crotch…pushing deliciously against her clit as she arched. “Well, there’s no need for both of us to go without…” he breathed as he opened his lips over her nipple, and then sucked it deep into his mouth with a growl of enjoyment.

  Fran gave a strangled gasp of shock as he moved to give her pleasure. She heard his breathing grow ragged as he paced his thrusts, and she knew he was listening to her, as well. His heart thumped hard in his chest as he shifted her and slipped one arm out from behind her, and eased the tips of his lean fingers down into the open fly of her slacks, finding the throbbing nub of nerves and gently pressing it between two fingers as he caught her lips and devoured her mouth.

  Her cry of shocked pleasure was swallowed by his mouth as she exploded in a shimmering, unbelievably hot orgasm that rocked every part of her with its intensity. And then she heard him groan and he stiffened against her, his rough laughter telling her that he had not been able to prevent his
own orgasm.

  “Damn…just like some horny teen aged kid…” he growled as he wrapped both arms around her and they subsided together, her face buried in his throat as he calmed his breathing, his lips buried in her damp hair. The discomfort of being held by their combined weight to a concrete support post was negligible compared to the throbbing pleasure that still coiled itself around her clit with the continued pressure.

  “Um…Jack…” she managed to whisper raggedly against his corded throat.

  “Yeah?” his reply was just as breathless, and it made her want to shout in triumph, but she managed to unhook her ankles again and slide her feet to the pavement slowly.

  “”My buttons…are gone…” she said weakly, trying to figure out how to close her satin shirt. It amazed her how trivialities took such high precedence whenever her mind froze.

  His eyes slipped down over her bare breasts, and he seemed to be searching for an answer. It was amazing to realize that Jack Gerrard seemed to find her body as mesmerizing as she found his. She reached between them and tugged her bra cups back over her breasts, hooking the front clasp with trembling fingers. Jack moved slightly away to give her room to work, and then he was pushing her hands away and cupping her breasts through the lacy cups, his thumbs tweaking her nipples as his sapphire gaze slipped over her face, hair and mouth.

  “Come to my place tonight, Fran…” his words were rough.

  She closed her eyes reflexively, and then opened them to stare at him. “I can’t…”

  Jack drew back, his eyes searching her face. “You aren’t married, are you? Shit! I didn’t even think to ask…”

  His eyes seemed to darken, and his hands slid off her flesh, leaving her feeling oddly cold without their warmth. She shook her head jerkily, and tore her gaze from his, looking down as she tugged the tails of her shirt up to tie a large knot under her breasts, doing the best she could to cover her torso.

  “Never?” his tone was husky.