Accepting His Terms (12 page)

“Why did you start your own company instead of taking over his?” she asked.

“We discussed it. I knew what I wanted to do. Condo communities were the new thing. I could have done what I do with his company, but I wanted to make a name of my own. Dad wasn’t opposed to it. He sold his company, made a nice profit, and they’ve traveled the world in their retirement.”

“Wow,” she said in reply.

 “Don’t worry about keeping the place up. Mom’s housekeeper, Jenni, is willing to stay on and work for us. She and her husband, Jake, the gardener, live in the little house behind us. Dad built it for them a few years ago. They used to have their own rooms in this house, but he wanted to do something nice for them on the tenth anniversary of their working here, so he built them a house.”

“I can’t get used to all this,” Jill said in wonder. “Your dad built a house for his housekeeper and his gardener. I’m just not used to gifts like that.”

“Get used to it, baby, it’s all yours now. The house, the grounds, all of it,” he said as he leaned over and kissed her on top of the head.

“No, it’s all ours now,” she corrected him.

As the weeks flew by, it was growing close to the holiday season. He smiled as he realized Jill was in her glory decorating the house. She really was good at her chosen profession. They were throwing a party for the staff and the plans were shaping up. She wasn’t a bundle of nerves as Jarrod had expected her to be. And the morning of the party, when he’d planned to treat her to a little maintenance reminder to calm her down, there was really no need to do so. He was feeling disappointment in that fact, as he’d missed the intimacy their agreed upon reminders had brought them. As he helped her move some furniture around, he grabbed her to steal a kiss.

“Jarrod!” she exclaimed. “We don’t have time for that.”

“May I remind you, Mrs. Baine, sass like that might land you across my knee?”

She looked at him and grinned. “You’d like that, I’m sure, but we don’t have time for that, either.”

As he stole another kiss anyway, he said, “Don’t you miss it?”

“I really have been much too preoccupied to even think about it, hon,” she said as she went on with what she was doing.

“Jill, look at me,” he commanded softly.

By the tone of his voice, he was telling her to heed his warning. Jarrod went on as she turned to look at him, “I’m glad you’re in control of the party planning. I really am. And I’m glad you’re not stressed, but I miss you, baby. I can’t have you being too busy for me.”

“And you pick this morning, of all times, to bring this to my attention?” she asked in an exasperated tone. “You’re really being insensitive here. You know that, don’t you?”

He pulled her into his arms. “Go upstairs with me for one hour, that’s all I ask. I’ll forego the maintenance spanking I had planned for you if you’ll agree to that.”

“Jarrod, really, you’re impossible.”

“I won’t have you turning into my mother, Jill.”

“What’s that supposed to mean? I love your mother.”

“Don’t get me wrong. I love my mother, too, but she was always busy with her charities, and her parties. I agreed to your staying on at the office, I really don’t think I could find a better person for the job. And it wasn’t my decision, anyway. It’s your career. You’re an awesome decorator. But I don’t want the mother of my children becoming a social butterfly. It’s not happening, no way, no how.”

“For one thing, we have no children, yet. And I don’t consider throwing a staff Christmas party in our new home becoming a social butterfly. I suppose if I want to have a family party, you’ll balk at that.”

“No, of course not,” he said as he ran his hand through the shock of black hair. “Am I being selfish?”

“A little, yes, but I love you, anyway. And if you’ll let me get finished here and get this party over with, I promise to spend the rest of the weekend in bed if it will make you happy.”

“Kiss me properly and I’ll agree,” he teased as he playfully smacked her ass.

“And you can do that properly later, too,” she said with a grin. She raised her face to his.

Cupping her chin with his hand, he tilted it upward as he lowered his face. As his lips met hers, he sighed. He devoured her mouth in a molten hot kiss that sent shivers down her spine. As her hands went around her neck, she was ready to tell him to take her upstairs when he released her.

“Jarrod,” she said in a voice barely above a whisper.

“Yes, baby?”

“On second thought,” she began.

“No, a deal’s a deal. I made a deal with you and I’m a man of my word. Tell me what needs to be done and I’ll help you get ready for this damn party.”

She gave him a quick peck on the cheek. “I’ll make it up to you.”

“Oh, yes, you will,” he teased as he picked up a box of garland and carried it to the fireplace.

When the final preparations were finished, he saw her go upstairs to get ready for the party before their guests arrived. He followed her and as she was stepping into the shower, he was stripped and joined her before she had even turned on the water.

She looked at him with a startled expression and grinned. “This is a first in a long time. We haven’t done this since our honeymoon.”

“I figure it’s the only chance I’m going to have you all to myself until very late tonight.” He turned on the water, adjusting the heat, and leaned down to kiss her. As she melted into his arms, he grazed her chin and her neck with his lips before moving down to her protruding nipples.

As he took one of them into his mouth, she moaned. “Oh, my God, I’ve missed this more than I realized.”

“I tried to tell you,” he said as he bit gently.

She yelped. “Hey, be nice.”

He pushed her up against the shower wall and as the spray of steaming water cascaded over their slick, hot bodies, he lifted her legs and inserted his thick, hard cock into her already warm, wet pussy. She screamed in delight, as she thrust her hips forward, urging him to go deeper. He smacked her ass, laughed, and gave her a hard thrust. As her head rolled back, she moaned again,

“Jarrod, oh, yes, more… yes.”

He chuckled and drove deeper again and again, thrusting hard. As the water rolled over them, she felt as though she was riding a wave that didn’t stop, it enveloped her, cradling her body. She shuddered and called out his name again.

As he emptied himself inside her, he kissed her forehead. “Don’t make me go without that long again, baby.”

As he set her down and began soaping her body, she said, “It hasn’t been that long, you know.”

“Any day that I don’t lose myself inside you is a day too many,” he replied somberly.

They finished their shower quickly and got dressed for the party. With a sharp intake of breath as she watched him tie his tie, she said, “There’s just something about you and a tie that does tingly things to me, especially when you’re loosening it at night to take it off.”

He laughed. “Are you serious? That does it for you?”

“What does it for you?” she asked as she nodded.

“Watching that sweet ass of yours swinging down the hall at the office, knowing I can’t touch it until we get home. Since we agreed it wasn’t smart to carry on at work anymore, I get so wound up that I can’t wait to get you home every night.”

“I’ll have to remember that,” she teased as she walked over to him so he could zip her dress.

“I’d rather rip it off you than zip it up, but I’ll be the dutiful husband,” he said as he effortlessly zipped it up and pushed her away from him playfully.

“We need to get downstairs. Our guests will be arriving soon.”

“Yes, dear,” he teased as he followed her, continuing to act as the dutiful husband. He knew it was her night to shine and that was exactly what he intended to let her do.

Jarrod watched proudly as his wife entertained their guests like a pro. And when she caught his eye and winked once, he gave her a sexy grin. When the evening was over, he steered her to the mistletoe she’d hung on the door between the foyer and the sitting room and kissed her thoroughly.

“Thank you, baby, you did a great job,” he said as he turned out the lights later. “Let Jenni and Jake take care of the mess in the morning. You’ve got all the leftover food taken care of and the dishes in the dishwasher.”

“Thanks for helping. Now let’s go to bed. I’m bushed and can’t wait to sleep in tomorrow morning.”

“Who said anything about sleep?” he teased as he followed her up the stairs.

Chapter Fifteen

They made it through the holidays and all the family parties, and life seemed to be going smoothly for everyone. Work was steady, and Jill and Jarrod had settled into married life quite nicely, given the way they’d started out. Each had learned to read the signs, they almost always knew what the other needed and when. Their emotional bond grew stronger with each passing day.

Bryan had asked Jan out and she was preparing for her first date with him.

“What should I wear?” she asked one day at lunch.

“You act like it’s your first date,” Jill said with a smile.

“It is with Bryan. I’ll be graduating soon and I don’t know where I’ll be working after that, so if I want to keep seeing him, I need to make a good impression.”

“Well, by all means, let’s go shopping Saturday afternoon so you can make a good impression Saturday night,” Jill teased.

“Can you tear yourself away from the hubs long enough to go shopping with me?”

“He’ll probably be playing golf, and if he isn’t, I’ll suggest that he does,” Jill replied. “We’re not joined at the hip, you know.”

“You guys seem so close. I’d like to have that someday.”

“We are close, but that doesn’t mean we spend every hour together. We work together, so we both enjoy some ‘me’ time once in a while. I’d love to go shopping with you. And don’t rush it, sis. You’ll find your guy someday, and for all you know, it may be Bryan.”

And so on Saturday afternoon, the two sisters shopped all afternoon. Jan found the perfect outfit for her date and Jill purchased some goodies at Victoria’s Secret. Not that her sex life needed spicing up, but she enjoyed treating Jarrod to the sight of her in new lingerie. It was a perfect girls’ day out.

When she returned home, Jarrod was already there. He had dinner in the oven and a bottle of wine chilling. “Hey, baby, I didn’t know what time you’d get home so I put a casserole in the oven. Did you eat?”

“No, Jan’s having dinner with Bryan so I figured I’d throw something together here. Since you beat me to it, I think I’ll sit and enjoy a glass of wine. My sister ran me all over that mall.”

“I see you did some shopping of your own,” he said, pointing to her bags.

“I did, but you can’t see any of it until later,” she teased.

“Okay, whatever you say.”

“You’re awfully agreeable today. You must have beaten your dad at golf.”

“I did. I love when they’re in town and I can get him on the course.”

“Did you tell him about the new project?” she asked.

“Yes, I discussed it with him and he thought we should go for it.”

“What do you think? Have you made a decision yet?” she asked as she accepted the glass of wine he offered her.

“I’ve decided to call the developers back on Monday and set up a meeting,” he replied as he sat down and took a sip of his own wine.

“This could be big, babe.”

“I know, but it’s also going to be a lot of work. You do realize that, don’t you? It’s going to be a lot of work for all of us.”

“You can handle it. I have faith in you. And the rest of us will adjust. We always do,” she replied with a smile.

“You sound like my dad. Oh, there’s the timer. You sit. I’ll bring our plates out here and we can eat on the terrace.”

“You spoil me,” she said as he leaned over to kiss her.

“That’s my job,” he replied. “To spoil you, take care of you, and love you.”

“And you do it quite nicely, I might add,” she said as he went to get their dinner.

Life continued to move along, while the couple stayed busy with work. Suddenly it was summer and one evening, Jill sprang something shocking on her handsome husband.

“I’ve decided to go off the pill,” she announced, as they were relaxing after dinner.

“Baby, are you sure?” he asked with a huge grin on his face.

“I’ve been thinking about it for a while. I know you’re up to your eyeballs with work right now, but if we want a family, we should get started on it, don’t you think? We’ve never really discussed how many children we want. Do you want a big family?”

“I’ve always wanted a big family because I was an only child. We’ll only have as many as you want, though.”

“Somehow I knew that. I sensed that you felt you missed out by not having brothers and sisters. Would you like to get started on that first one?” she asked with a seductive smile.

“Baby, you don’t have to ask twice.” He scooped into his arms and carried her up the stairs, taking them two at a time.

Instead of his usual, hard, fast, and hot sex, he took his time with her, showing her the gentle love she knew he was capable of. She loved that he caressed, kissed, stroked, and savored her entire body. When they finally joined together, he totally rocked her world, whispering sweet words of love in her ear.

“Jarrod, that was so different tonight,” she said later as they lay in each other’s arms.

“I must be changing into a fatherly figure already. It just seemed appropriate to go slowly and to take our time. We don’t always need to have the wild stuff, you know.”

“Our lives will change when our babies start arriving,” she observed.

“Yes, but we’ll make time for each other, don’t worry about that,” he told her reassuringly.

“Other things might change too,” she said, not knowing how to broach the subject.

“Are you talking about this?” he asked as he smacked her ass.

“Well, yes, I guess so.”

“Do you want to change that part of our lifestyle?”

“Well, no, not exactly. I mean, we have changed it somewhat over time. But don’t you think it will have to be different?” she pondered.

“Yes, I do. But just like we curbed our office activities, like the mature adults we are, we’ll adjust. It may be different, but if you don’t want to give it up and live a more vanilla lifestyle, we’ll find a way. We’ll know when we need it and we’ll find a way, without upsetting our family life.”