29. Not Playing Fair
twenty-nine
Jack
“What’s wrong, old man?” Liz asks as she looks back at me. “Can’t keep up?”
Oh, she is going to pay for that one later.
“Old man?” I ask, keeping up a steady pace. “You realize I’m not that much older than you, right?”
“Yeah, yeah. Step it up, Gramps.”
Little does she know that I would rather hang back so that I can stare at that cute little ass of hers. I could probably pass her if I wanted to, but why would I want to give up this view?
She starts running a little faster, and I follow suit to keep up with her.
Catching onto my game, she glances at me over her shoulder. “And quit staring at my ass.”
“What are you going to do about it?” I tease.
She starts to push even faster, quickly pulling ahead of me. My legs burn as my feet hit the ground.
As much as I love all the sex that we’ve been having, I’ve missed this. And there’s something even more special about it now that we are together as a couple—or whatever the hell we are. Before, I tried to be coy when I’d stare at her ass. Now, I’m completely fine with her knowing that’s what I’m doing. I want her to know exactly how sexy she is to me.
And I plan on showing her every single chance I get—whether that’s while I worship her naked body or while we go running in the morning.
I’m so busy staring at her that I barely even register when she starts talking shit again. She says something about me being old or slow or something else of the sort.
Time to get a little bit of revenge.
Reaching forward, I grab her arm, causing her to slow down and come to a quick stop. I turn her around to face me, taking her into my arms and kissing her like it’s the last time I’ll ever do so. She practically melts against me.
Just when she’s completely relaxed and wanting more, I pull away and take off like a bat out of hell.
“Oh, that is so not fair,” she calls as she runs after me.
I manage to make it to the parking lot first but just barely. Without my head start, there’s no way that I would have won. Liz is much faster.
But I’m not about to admit that to her.
“You’re a cheater,” she says with a small giggle.
“I’m a cheater? Do you know how hard it is to focus when I’m distracted by your ass?”
She leans up on her toes to kiss me. “Well, I guess I’ll have to keep that in mind for whenever I need to distract you.”
I lift her into my arms, and she wraps her legs around my waist as we kiss while walking over to my truck. I open the door and set her on the seat while continuing to kiss her.
Pulling away, she says, “Clearly, you have some distracting qualities yourself.”
I wiggle my eyebrows at her. “Do you want to see just how distracting I can be?”
“As much as I would love that, I need to get back to the inn. Esther is coming in today to have a meeting about what she’s decided.”
“Will I see you tonight?” I ask.
“Do you want to see me tonight?” She asks with a teasing smile.
I take her hand and move it to the front of my shorts where I’m pitching a tent. “What do you think?”
She grins. “I think I’ll see you tonight.”
“So, I hear you’re boning my sister.”
My head shoots up from the paperwork that I’m doing to see Dylan standing in the doorway to my office.
“Uhhhhh,” is all I can manage to get out.
He starts laughing. “I’m just fucking with you, man. Just wanted to see the look on your face.”
He comes in and sits across from me. “I mean, I know you and Liz finally got your heads out of your asses and are seeing each other, but I don’t care.”
“It was that obvious, huh?”
“That you two would eventually end up together? Yeah. With that much sexual tension between two people, you’re either going to end up fucking or killing each other. And I don’t think either one of you would resort to murder.”
I smile. “You’re probably right.”
“Of course, I am. I’m a genius.”
“Then, why the hell are you working here?” I joke. “But really, you’re okay with me dating your sister?”
“Jack, I wouldn’t presume to tell Liz who she can or can’t date. I learned a long time ago not to meddle in my sisters’ love lives. There’s nothing good that can come from that. Do you have any sisters?”
“Nope. Only child.”
“Lucky you,” he says, almost under his breath as if he worries one of his sisters will hear him. He seems to get lost in his thoughts for a moment before talking again. “Look, the only thing I will say is that I know Liz seems like a tough, boss bitch. And I mean, she is. But she also has been through a hell of a lot. As her only brother, I would be remiss if I didn’t tell you to be careful with her heart.”
“I know, Dylan. I have no plans on hurting her.”
“And I know she can be a bit abrasive and hard to get close to, but she’s a softie underneath it all. Don’t let her bully you.”
“I don’t think that will be a problem.”
Any attitude that she gets, I’ll just fuck right out of her.
As if she can feel us talking about her, Liz comes strolling into my office.
She takes a second to stop and look at her brother. “Dylan, shouldn’t you be working?”
“Shouldn’t you be working?” He retorts. “Maybe Jack and I are discussing work matters.”
She rolls her eyes. “I doubt that. Esther pushed back our meeting, so I took my lunch to come grab my car.” She turns her attention toward me. “Is my brother bothering you? Do you want me to kick his ass?”
Dylan scoffs. “I’d like to see you try.”
“I used to kick your ass all the time.”
“Yeah, when we were kids. I’m like twice your size now.”
“But I’m wily. And I could just kick you in the nuts.”
“Fair enough,” he says before standing up. “With that, I’m going to get back to work.”
Once he’s gone, Liz walks over and takes a seat on the edge of my desk. It brings back images of when I kissed her in this same spot the other night.
“So, Mr. Mechanic,” she says. “I’ve come to fetch my car.”
”It”s out in the lot. Feel free to go grab it.”
“What do I owe you?”
“Don’t worry about it,” I tell her.
“Oh, come on. I have a job now and can pay for it. You don’t have to do it for free.”
I run my hands up and down her thighs. “That’s a perk to dating a mechanic. You get your car fixed for free.”
“I could always pay you in sexual favors,” she offers, leaning down to give me a kiss.
“Oh, yeah?”
“Mm-hmm. We could get started right now if you want.”
I glance at the open door. “As much as I would love that, there’s no way in hell that I’m taking a chance of someone coming in here and seeing what I get to see. Plus, I don’t think you could be quiet.”
“Probably not.” She smiles. “I guess I’ll let you get back to work. What time do you think you’ll be done?”
“I don’t know. I’ve got a shit ton of paperwork that I’ve been putting off, so I’m going to try to get as much done as I can. Just let me know when you’re done at the inn, and I’ll call it quits.”
“Sounds good.” She leans down to kiss me before heading back out the door.
Liz and I have only been dating, or whatever it is you want to call it, for less than a week, yet there’s something comfortable about what’s between us. I used to cringe every time I would see her, but now, I get excited knowing I’m going to get to spend time with her.
Oh, what a difference a week can make.