Chapter 5
CHAPTER FIVE
“Leeee-deeee-yaaaa!” As angry as she was with Joey, he made her name sound like a melodic song.
“You ok, princess?” Reaching around the pumpkin, his fingertips brush against hers.
“Don’t call me that! I’m not some damsel in distress that needs a knight in shining armor.”
“I never doubted it, but that guy…”
“You’ve never given me a second thought. Why interfere now?”
“You haunt me. In my dreams, asleep and awake, you are always there. I wonder at the taste of your mouth and the softness of your skin.” He locked his fingers with hers, pulling her closer.
“But you act like I’m not there,” she whispered.
“I want to know every part of you, but when you’re near, my mind can only think of all the things I fantasize about doing with you.”
“Hmm?” Her body hummed at the memory of him pressed against her, his heat igniting her desire.
“I crave the sight of your full lips wrapped around my cock. I need to know the sounds you make when I go down on you. And I want to cause you to scream my name every time you come.” A tug on her hand encouraged her to move to him.
“What’s changed, Joey?” He pulled her across his lap, her legs straddling him.
“At first, I thought if it were only a crush, you’d move on.” He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
“I just wanted to spend time with you. But that doesn’t explain why now.” She leaned into his touch as he smoothed his hand down her neck.
“Someone was snooping around my place. I was afraid you were spying for a new job or a project. Not only did you tell me your true feelings, but also the actual culprit was caught.” Unzipping her jacket, his breath caught as he stared at each inch of skin being revealed around the small halter top she was still wearing.
“I didn’t tell anyone that I went back to school. I’ve been working at the diner to help pay for it.” His fingers combed through her hair, and he pulled her closer.
“I’m sure your aunt would be happy to help.” His face was so near, she could feel his breath on her cheek.
“Maybe,” she sighed, closing the space between them and brushing her lips against his.
He pressed her to him, intensifying the kiss.
Their mouths melded together, tongues exploring each other.
His large calloused hands traced her exposed midriff.
Rubbing the bare skin on her back, his touch was like fire everywhere it landed, but she needed more.
She began lowering the zipper on his overalls.
“Wait. Not yet, princess. I want this with you, but it has to be right.” He clasped his hands over hers. It felt like a slap in the face, reminding her of why she had run from him in the first place. She pulled away with a gasp, realizing that he was teasing her again.
“Why do you insist on calling me that?” It felt like he was intentionally provoking her. It was stupid to believe his pretty words. She moved to stand up, but his fingers gripped her hips, holding her in place.
“One day, you’ll see yourself the way I do.
Gorgeous. Smart. Witty. Strong.” He shifted her across his hardened bulge.
“When that time comes, you’ll be a queen.
And if I’m lucky enough to convince you to stop doubting my sincerity, you’ll be mine.
” He wiped at a tear she hadn’t realized had escaped.
“Please don’t make me want what I can’t have.” If he didn’t let her go soon, she might fall apart right there.
“Why can’t you accept that this is real and always has been?”
“You’re saying all the right things, but you also suspected me of sabotage until you caught someone else.”
“I distanced myself from everyone, not just you. It may seem paranoid, but some reasons seemed valid at the time.”
“I know who you really are, but I don’t know what danger you brought to my family. How could you do this to my aunt, after all she’s done for you?”
“Gladys knows everything. Even today, after that guy recognized me, she was the first person I called. I wouldn’t put her or your family at risk.”
“What is it then? How can you expect me to believe your lovely declarations but not trust me with the truth?”
“It’s difficult for me to confide in anyone. But I do trust you,” he stated, unzipping his overalls to his waist.
“I’m not sure you can give me more mixed signals.” She attempted to rise, finding his arms wrapping around her waist, stopping her again.
“Give me a minute to explain. This tattoo…” he pointed to a quaint scene near his left shoulder.
“Is that your race car?”
“Technically, it’s referred to as a kart, with a ‘k’. This is where I grew up and learned kart racing with my best friend, Pedro. Our mentor was from the same town near the coast.”
“It looks a lot like here with the meadows and trees.”
“There are some similarities, I think you would like. This other one,” he gestured to his other shoulder.
“That’s the Formula One car I saw on your profile.”
“I drove many cars for different sponsors. But this was ours. Pedro was the brains behind it. Any advances in the industry to make the car faster, he absorbed faster than water. Our mentor was the money.”
“And you were the driver?”
“Pedro was actually a better driver than I ever was, but he preferred to create the tech and materials. I learned a lot from him, but, yeah, I usually drove.”
“I get the feeling this doesn’t have a happy ending.”
“That man earlier, the one harassing you… if it had been anyone else, I know you could have handled it, but I believed your life was at risk. He’s immoral, ruthless, and used to be my mentor.”
“He was after me all day. How did you finally get rid of him?”
“Gladys and Remy called the police.”
“Was it a coincidence that he found you?”
“No. Which brings me to this,” he stated, laying his hand in the middle of his chest, across a dove in flight holding a scroll of paper with dates on it.
“What happened?” she whispered reverently.
“Emilio, that’s his name, my former mentor.
He insisted the car was ready to race. I knew it wasn’t and refused to drive it.
He bullied me in every way he could think of, but I wouldn’t back down.
I don’t know how he convinced Pedro to do the test drive…
” His voice cracked, and she grasped his hand in both of hers.
“The first date…is the day Pedro succumbed to his injuries after losing control and careening over the cliffside.”
“Oh! That had to be so difficult. I’m almost afraid to ask about the other dates?”
“My family.” He wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly to his chest.
“You were married?” She lifted her head to look at him.
“No, princess, you are the only one to hold that possibility.” His lips quirked in a small smile while stroking her back under her jacket as if she were the one needing soothing. “When the paparazzi couldn’t access me for interrogation, they came for my parents and sister.”