Chapter Six #2
Ready for me, Beck stands behind his desk. “Linc.” A smug smirk settles on his face, visible despite the heavy scruff of beard.
“Beck.”
“I was sorry to hear about your father,” Beck says.
Considering the man stands to gain in Kenneth’s absence, I’m not so sure, but since he sounds sincere, I nod. “Thank you.”
“Since you’re here, I assume you know about our deal.” Beck gestures for me to sit.
I prefer to stand. “If by our, you mean you and my father, yes. I figured it out despite your attempt to string me along, wondering.”
Beck doesn’t deny it.
“What will it take to make this go away?” I ask.
Beck, dressed in dark jeans and a burgundy long-sleeve shirt, another stark contrast to me, wearing a suit, tips his head. “I can’t. The contract for the property we agreed to buy is signed. We close in one month. I need your father’s share of the money to complete the transaction with the seller.”
I set my jaw. I have no doubt Beck has the money, or a bank or private lender he could turn to.
My money, however, is tied up. I don’t have the kind of liquid cash I need to fund my upcoming project and cover my father’s stake in Beck’s deal.
The accountants made it clear my father had been busy, leaving us cash poor, and right now I’m stretched thin with my lenders.
My only option would be to sell property to pay Beck back, but there’s no way I could close a deal in time to meet the one-month deadline.
Fuck.
But I refuse to let Beck see me sweat. If Beck were someone I trusted with the information about my father’s condition, I’d tell him, and maybe we could work together to find a solution.
I don’t trust Beck. Not with information and not with my company. “I’ll have the money for the closing.”
I’ll find a way to pay. And then I’ll get my hands on the contract and hope like hell I can sell my stake in whatever this deal is so I don’t have to work with Beck on anything.
“Tell me something,” I say.
Beck folds his arms across his chest. “Yes?”
I study the man who was once my close friend. “How did you end up doing a deal with my father?”
Beck walks to his chair, sits down, and kicks his feet up on the desk. I get the point. He doesn’t respect me. Fine. I wait for the explanation I want. One I can never get from my father.
“Your old man came to me. He’d heard about this property for sale. Said he wanted a partner who’d go in on it with him. I laid out my terms and he agreed.”
I stiffen but remind myself Kenneth didn’t know my history with Beck. The man happens to be someone in the business who my father could turn to in a real estate deal.
“Got all the information you need?” Beck glances at his watch. “I have a meeting to attend.”
Holding on to my temper by a thread, I turn and walk out. Not slamming the door behind me takes all the self-control I can muster.
* * *
Jordan
I return from lunch, full from good food but without any information to help Linc. I knock on his door to let him know I’m back, but he doesn’t answer.
After getting settled at my desk, I pull out my cell to check my messages. There’s one from Linc telling me he’s gone to see Beck. The notion makes me nervous, and I wait for him to come back and fill me in.
But Linc doesn’t return to the office, and by the end of the day, I’m worried. He hasn’t returned my calls or texts, which is unlike him. Chloe has left for the day, so I can’t ask his sister, so I decide to stop by his apartment and check on him.
Because I’m on his permanent list, his doorman lets me up to his floor on the penthouse level and I knock.
When he doesn’t answer, I wait and knock again.
Thinking I hear something inside, I bang harder.
I wait, impatiently tapping my foot until I finally hear the sound of the lock and the door opens.
Linc stands in the doorway, a towel wrapped around his waist, muscled chest bare, and droplets of water clinging to his skin. My eyes settle on one particular drop, watching its descent down his pec and over his nipple.
A strangled moan catches in my throat.
“Jordan? What are you doing here?” he asks, obviously surprised by my visit.
Dazed by the sight, I raise my gaze only to find a sexy, knowing smirk on his lips. He absolutely knows how he affects me.
Attempting to remain composed, I clear my throat. “You haven’t answered your phone! I was worried after I realized you went to see Beck and then disappeared.”
An apologetic expression crosses his face. “I’ve been at the gym pounding a bag.”
Taking out his frustration, which makes me assume his meeting didn’t go well. “I see.”
He steps backward for me to come in.
I walk past him, the woodsy scent of his cologne surrounding me and heightening my awareness of his nearly naked body. Warmth curls in my belly and my nipples tighten. If not for my light jacket, he’d have visual proof.
Not that he needs it. My gaze falls to his chest again, then lower to the towel secured by a mere tuck of material with a definite bulge.
“Don’t you think you should get dressed?” My strangled tone betrays my arousal.
I can’t help it. I can’t look at a nearly naked Linc without wanting to wrap myself around him and hold on tight.
His stupid smirk returns. “Am I bothering you?” he asks.
“Lincoln Kingston, go get dressed!” Using the full name he hates because his father gave it to him due to its stature, or so Kenneth Kingston claimed, I point in the direction of his bedroom.
Laughing, he walks off, leaving me to make my way to the kitchen and get some water. I take long sips to cool myself down, then rinse, dry, and put away the glass before heading to the living room.
Linc’s apartment is basic in its décor, the way he likes it.
Chloe, who specializes in interior design, helped him turn the penthouse into his masculine haven.
A sleek black leather sofa with reclining seats on the ends, a glass table with brass frame in front of it, a matching cocktail table, and what I know to be a painting bought at auction hanging on the wall behind the couch.
Every piece in this room cost more than most people could fathom spending on any one item, yet I don’t love it.
I prefer a softer, warmer feeling to a place I live.
“Better?” he asks.
I turn at the sound of Linc’s voice. He’s dressed, all right, but he’s put on a pair of gray sweats, his bulge still noticeable, and I swallow hard.
A mouthwatering happy trail and the V-line leading to where the pants tie low on his hips taunt me.
Make me think about running my tongue over his warm skin.
Damn him. It is, I think, the equivalent of me slipping into a sexy piece of lingerie and parading in front of him.
A hint of challenge lights his eyes, and I refuse to back down.
“Yes, much better,” I say through clenched teeth. “What happened with Beck?”
Linc stalks into the kitchen and I follow.
“He was an arrogant, gloating son of a bitch. But he didn’t go looking for a deal with my father. Kenneth brought one to him.”
Linc pauses by the fridge while I stare in shock.
“Why?”
He lifts his broad shoulders. “I have no fucking clue what made him turn against us.” He opens the refrigerator and pulls out a can of Diet Coke. “Want one?”
“Sure.”
He hands me a can, then pops the top of his own.
“So what next?” I ask.
He takes a drink, the long column of his throat moving up and down. Everything he does becomes sexual and heightens the awareness he inspires.
“I have to come up with Dad’s share of the money for closing or Beck can come after a piece of my company.” He finishes what’s left of the can and slams it on the granite countertop.
Or, she thinks, he could try and reason with Beck by revealing his father’s diminished capacity and get the man to back down. But I know better than to suggest it again. He’s vetoed the idea and he has his reasons. He wants to protect his company and so do I.
“So what can I do to help?” I ask.
“You can do what you always do. Be there for me.” His dark gaze meets mine and my hands begin to shake, and I place the can next to his.
Good thing, because he steps closer, backing me against the counter until I’m surrounded by him. His physical strength, his heat, and his scent all wreak havoc with my mind, common sense, and all rational thought.
He dips his head and his mouth hovers close to mine. Seconds pass in which I have a choice. An angel on one side begs me to back away. The devil on the other urges me to give in and take what he offers. What my body wants.
Our breaths mingle and I forget why I’m resisting.
In this moment, I can’t bring myself to care, and I kiss him, my lips meeting his.
Nothing about our joining is soft. We come together in a clash of mouths, teeth, and tongue, desire rushing through me as I slide my hands over his bare chest, scoring my nails over his skin.
He groans, and while devouring me with his mouth, he lifts my skirt, finding my tiny scrap of underwear beneath. He slides a hand over my sex, and a shock of awareness ripples through me.
“Fuck, you’re wet,” he says, breaking the kiss.
I can’t deny the truth, and when he rubs a finger over the material, finding my clit and pressing in, I shatter immediately. Picking up rhythm, he rubs back and forth as I come, guiding me through and prolonging my unexpected climax.
“Holy shit,” I mutter, my legs like jelly when the spasms pass. Only then do I realize Linc is holding me up, hands now braced on my waist.
Before I can think, I slip my fingers beneath the waistband of his pants, my hand grasping his cock. He’s wearing no underwear, so my palm wraps around his bare erection, and I close my eyes, focusing on the steel of him and the contradicting softness of his skin.
A shudder ripples through him, and a low rumble sounds from his chest. I grip tighter and pump my hand up and down, pausing only to swipe my hand over the creamy fluid on the tip.
“Fuck,” he says on a low groan, and at the guttural sound, my sex spasms and I want him. Now.
“Tell me you have a condom.” I hook my thumbs into the waist of his pants and attempt to pull them down.
Instead of answering, he clasps my wrist, halting my movement. “No,” he says, sounding tortured.
I open my eyes in surprise.
“What? Why not?” My head is spinning from my climax, arousal and his sudden change of mind.
He braces my face in his hands. “Because I want all of you. Not just your body and I won’t settle for anything less. And you’re not there. Yet.”
How does he read me so well? And why am I more pissed with his knowledge of me internally than I am with him denying me sex?
“Fine.” I wriggle down my skirt, ignoring the dampness between my legs and the throbbing desire that needs to be filled.
“Hey.” Reaching out, he tips my chin up so I have no choice but to look at him. “Can you tell me you thought about how you’d feel after we had sex?”
“No,” I snap, sexually frustrated.
He chuckles and I grow more annoyed. More with myself than with him, but I won’t admit it out loud.
Cell phones ring from the other room. Two contrasting sounds, which mean someone is trying to reach us both.
I shoot him a concerned glance, and we race into the living room.
I’m still searching my handbag when Linc speaks. “Aurora’s in the hospital. She might be in labor.”
Panic seizes me, stomach twisting. “It’s too soon.”
He nods. “I know. The hospital’s near my mother’s. It’s about an hour from here. Are you ready now?”
“Yes.” I don’t care that I’m wearing my work clothes.
Within seconds, Linc calls Max, who he keeps on standby during the week. They speak and he turns to me. “He’ll be downstairs in fifteen minutes.”
Excusing myself, I enclose myself in the bathroom to wash and clean up. Not caring about my makeup, I splash cold water on my face and pat off the water with a towel I take from the linen closet in the bathroom.
Looking at myself in the mirror, I see a woman with flushed cheeks from a surprise orgasm and lingering frustration, but I also see eyes filled with worry for Aurora. Inside, my stomach is churning and not only with concern for Linc’s sister.
I’m worried about myself. What am I doing with Linc? Why am I suddenly so attracted to him that I can’t bring myself to listen to my mind and instead respond with my body? I refuse to think about whether or not my heart has become involved because that would be a disaster.
As for Linc, he has an agenda. He tempted me, teased me, brought me to climax, and then pulled back because he wants me more invested than is smart. We’re both treading on thin ice with these new dynamics in our relationship, and it scares me to death.
And now I have to go to the hospital and pray Aurora has a healthy early baby and be surrounded by memories of losing my own. No matter how early in the pregnancy my miscarriage was, the loss was huge and impacts me to this day. I’m grateful I’ll have Linc by my side.