Chapter 4
Chapter Four
“Nice jet. Where are we going?” she asked as the jet took flight.
“Texas.”
“Oh, that doesn’t sound so bad. Hot and steamy like Florida, only…bigger.”
“Everything’s bigger in Texas,” he said, opening his briefcase.
“A girl can only hope.” She leaned back and watched the passing clouds.
Sam appeared to be a normal guy. Maybe too fixated on his work, but she guessed he had to be to run a successful company.
She nudged his elbow. Getting him to loosen up and ditch the boring paperwork was going to take a miracle.
“Sam, have you ever joined the mile-high club?”
“No. Are you offering?”
“Not yet.” She smiled. “Are you packing?”
“Excuse me?”
“Sausage casing.”
He looked perplexed. Was she speaking a foreign language?
“Condoms.”
He stuffed his paperwork back into his briefcase and shut it. “What is it with you referring to a penis as sausage?”
She shrugged. “Would you prefer wanker, knob head, snickerdoodle? I’m open to suggestions. I thought we should have a code name, you know…for when you’re giving me tips.”
Sam unbuckled his seatbelt, stood, and held out his hand.
“What are you doing?”
“It’s obvious you’re sexually frustrated and in dire need of an anatomy lesson.”
As if he could embarrass her. Hadn’t he yet figured out that it took a lot to embarrass her? She unhooked her belt and rose without taking his hand. She closed the distance between them. “May I touch you?”
“Be my guest.” His lips twitched as he held out his arms.
Grace grabbed his crotch. “This is a cock, shaft, dick. Whatever the guy likes to hear that turns him on. She gently squeezed the hardening shaft. “One of those works for you. I can tell.” She winked and moved her hand to his chest. “Pecs. Good for scratching and kissing. Unless the woman is like me. I like to bite and leave a mark.” She touched the tip of her tongue to her upper lip and moved her hands down his arms. “Muscles. Great for holding when pressed against the wall. Girls like that.” She stepped closer and grabbed his ass. “And this is an ass, nice and tight. Women like to dig their heels into a man’s ass to get them moving. Do I need to prove I know my own body? Because I can.”
“Sausage. We’ll stick with sausage.” He pulled her closer and leaned to whisper in her ear. “Next time you touch a man like that, be prepared to follow through.”
“Who said I wouldn’t?”
“I think I’ve misjudged you, Grace.”
“Am I hopeless? Are you ready to turn the jet around or make me jump without a parachute?”
“Just the opposite. I think you’re the perfect date to this wedding.”
She didn’t know if it was a compliment or a dis, and she didn’t care. She was on a pretty jet with a pretty man who was going to tell her exactly what she needed to do to snag a man. A little tit for tat so her bestie could compare tactics.
Sam kept his briefcase closed the rest of the flight, and she dropped the subject of sex. Hours later they’d landed and were in a rental SUV headed down some dusty, bumpy roads.
“Are the bride and groom one of your successful matches?”
“I guess you could say they met because of me.” He swallowed hard, and his fingers turned white around the steering wheel. There was a story in there somewhere, and she’d poke until it flowed out like an untapped keg.
“Clue me in. What am I walking into?”
“Sarah is my ex, and she’s marrying my brother.”
“Nooo. And you agreed to be in the wedding?”
“He’s my brother.”
“Don’t worry. I’ve got this.” Grace nodded and turned to see horses running alongside the SUV. Their well-groomed coats glistened in the sunlight as their tails flew out behind them, hooves thundering against the packed earth.
The SUV pulled through the iron gates. The sign above it read Wymore Plantation.
The hotel sat nestled on the greenest grass she’d seen since landing.
The place was stunning. The steps led up to a landing with a concrete waterfall.
Grecian columns surrounded the front of the plantation home with white wicker seats strategically placed.
Off in the distance, there was a barn with cows, and horses out in a pasture.
She squeezed his bicep. “You didn’t tell me there’d be animals. ”
“You didn’t ask?” he said more like a question than a statement.
“I’ve got this thing…” she said, making a circle motion with her hand, trying to stop her throat from closing at the site.
“I don’t like animals, but they seem to like me.
I swear I must put out an animal pheromone of some sort.
They gravitate to me wherever I go. It’s like they’re stalking me as their prey. ”
He took her hand and removed her nails from his arm. “They’re corralled. They can’t get to you.”
She gave a slow nod and took several deep breaths. “Promise?”
“I promise.” He gave her a reassuring smile. “Time to put on your game face. They’re waiting for us on the veranda.”
Grace slipped out of the SUV and waited for Sam to grab their bags. They started up the twenty steps. Why anyone would make you climb a mountain to get to a hotel, she’d never understand. With each step, Grace got a better look at the bride and groom.
“Honey, you didn’t tell me you are a twin.”
He glanced at her and smiled. “Are you going to be able to tell us apart? She couldn’t.”
Grace broke out in a fit of laughter and had to cling to his arm for the last five steps. She tried to suppress her giggles and ignore the couples’ annoyed looks. That wasn’t the last time she’d be seeing them.
“Is something funny?” The woman holding the hand of Sam’s look alike asked. Her brow rose and a look of disdain crossed her face. She was clearly not amused.
He dated you. The words were on the tip of Grace’s tongue, but she bit them back.
“I was just remembering the pilot coming on over the loud speaker and asking Sammy to quit making the plane shake. I tried to tell him that the staff would know, but you know Sammy. He’s insatiable and has the stamina of a two-year-old in a candy store. ”
“I can’t keep my hands off her,” Sam announced. “Grace, I’d like to introduce you to my brother, Richard, and his fiancée, Sarah Singletary.”
“Nice to meet you both.” Grace shook their hands and held Sarah’s a second longer and winked. “Thank you.”
“For what?” Sarah said, slipping her hand free.
“For Sammy, of course.” She smiled over at Richard. “No offense.”
“None taken. I’ve always wanted Sam to be happy.”
She bet he did. Was that before or after he played hide the salami? Oh, that was another one she should ask Sam if he preferred.
“If you’ll excuse us, we’d like to get checked in. It’s been a long day.” Sam gestured toward the doors and waited until they were alone in the lobby before he spoke. “Was that necessary?”
“No, but it was fun.” Grace cleared her throat, and she stretched her jaw from the fake smile. “Would you like me to tone it down?”
Sam walked to the counter and pulled out his wallet. He gave his name and slid his credit card to the man behind the desk.
“Absolutely not,” he said, pulling Grace into his arms. He buried his head into her shoulder. “Richard and Sarah are still watching us.”
Grace rested her palms on his cheeks and stared deeply into his eyes with their mouths only inches apart. She licked her lips. “I think they’re still in shock, or maybe Sarah’s regretting that I got the brother with all the stamina. That’s another thing girls like.”
She pressed her mouth to his in a slow, sensual kiss that would make her momma blush and her Aunt Betty hoot and holler for more.
Mint exploded in her mouth as his cologne cocooned her in his exquisite smell.
His tongue danced with hers as the heat between them grew.
If he was faking his need and desire, then he was better than she thought.
A kiss like that was for the record books.
He took what she so willingly gave and pulled her closer, holding her back as he bent her slightly over his arm.
“Hmm hmm.” The desk clerk cleared his throat. “Excuse me.”
Sam broke the kiss but stared deep into Grace’s eyes, as if just the sight mesmerized him. “Yeah.”
“Sir, your room.”
“Right.” He turned back to the desk and glanced at her once more before shaking his head. “Our room.”
“Our room.” Grace wiggled her brows and slowly licked her lips, savoring his taste.
It wasn’t until he had the room key and the luggage that she noticed the couple was gone.
One point for Grace and Sam, officially team Grasam.
Maybe she should get them some shirts made.
That might piss the bride off just a bit more. The thought had merit.