Bedding The Bad Boy (Dalton Brothers Novels) (2 page)

It’s what he’d wanted from Nancy Morrison.

It’s what part of him still wanted.

But as always, he squashed that part of himself down.

He had a good life, with only the occasional blip, like the one Jeremy was causing by threatening not to renew their lease. Hopefully that was something he could rectify. As for wanting what Rhys had with Melina? Why mess things up by dreaming of things he couldn’t have? He simply wasn’t the kind of man women wanted to settle down and have kids with, but hey, that had its perks, too. If he sometimes forgot that, more women were always there to remind him.

So off to Lodi’s he went. Within minutes, Elise, a gorgeous brunette he’d dated a few times, clung to his side and made it clear she’d be down for more of what they’d shared. He chatted with her while he waited for Elizabeth, and the paparazzi that would inevitably be following her.

The more time that passed, however, the more he found himself thinking of a different woman altogether.

Melina’s friend, Grace.

What problems were stressing her out?

And why had Melina blushed when Max had offered to help?

***

Max Dalton was an orgasm waiting to happen.

According to rumors, the famous magician, who just happened to be Grace Sinclair’s best friend’s brother-in-law, delivered the goods every single time.

The question was could she convince him to work his magic on
her
.

Grace sneaked another peek at Max’s reflection in the mirror hanging behind the bar at Lodi’s. She’d been watching him for more than an hour, feeling green around the gills whenever she thought of approaching him.

She caught the bartender’s eye. “Can I get another lemon drop please?”

A minute later, the bartender set the drink down on the counter. “Here you go, sweetie.” She tucked her bleached blond hair behind her ear to reveal a tattooed chain of roses covering her neck. “Get you anything else?”

“This is good for now, thank you.” Closing her eyes, she tossed back her drink, then slapped the glass onto the bar with a loud
thunk.
She always counseled students at the university to aim high when it came to their career goals. Why shouldn’t that rule apply to her? And why shouldn’t they apply to an orgasm? She was almost thirty and, thanks to Logan Cooper, she was dealing with an ugly sexual misconduct charge at work. More importantly, while she was thrilled that Melina’s dreams of love and family were coming true, she also couldn’t deny she was jealous.

She didn’t like feeling jealous of anyone, particularly her friends but, as always, she was determined to deal with her issues in as practical a manner as possible. This entailed acknowledging her jealousy, dissecting it and making a plan.

Of course
she was jealous of Melina, who was now building a life with the man of her dreams, and that included the imminent arrival of their babies. But Melina hadn’t gotten where she was without taking risks, and Grace had to admit she’d gotten far too comfortable with her safe life in California. She’d put everything into her job and hadn’t dated in months, convinced if a man couldn’t satisfy her in bed and was just going to leave her eventually because of that, what was the point? Now her career had been hijacked and she had extended periods of time with nothing to do but contemplate her failures. If she didn’t want to spend the rest of her life alone, she needed to do something about it. Like Melina, she needed to take some risks.

The first thing to address was her inability to orgasm with a man. That particular problem had dominated her life and her actions for so long, however, that this was the final hurrah. She was willing to give it one more shot, but if it didn’t happen this time, she was moving on to more important things. That’s why she’d finally decided to recruit Max Dalton for the task.

She’d secretly crushed on him from the moment she’d first talked to him on the phone more than a year ago. More importantly, while he might be a tomcat, Melina trusted him completely. As such, so did Grace. She trusted him to be discreet. She trusted him to be kind. And she trusted him to give her what she needed in the end.

Turning slightly on her stool, she scoped him out. As usual, he wasn’t alone. The brunette he was talking to was the antithesis of Grace, who was slender and blond with pale skin. Grace dressed to flatter her body but still exuded magnolia blossom more than vamp. The brunette was beyond overt, with hair down to her waist and a voluptuous body she poured into a tight midnight blue dress. It showed off her ample breasts and mile-long legs to their best advantage. She looked confident in her sexuality, as did Max, who was grinning broadly—although his smile seemed to dim a little when the woman ran her finger down his arm.

When Grace imagined it was
her
touching him, a current of desire zipped through her chest and settled low in her tummy. Good Lord, he did it for her, but who
didn’t
he do it for?

He dressed formally when he was performing on stage. Now that the show was over, he’d lost the jacket and rolled up the sleeves of his button-down shirt, exposing the corded length of his forearms. Even with most of his body covered, it was apparent he was strong, with broad shoulders, hard thighs and a sexy ass. He moved with confidence and, despite his sandy brown hair and sparkling hazel eyes, he exuded a tall, dark and handsome vibe.

Experienced and more than capable of giving a woman exactly what she needed in bed—and then some.

Last year, Melina had even asked Max for sex lessons. Granted, he and Melina had been friends for years, and Max had only pretended to agree as a ploy to finally get Melina and Rhys together. While Max and Melina hadn’t had sex at the appointed time (the same couldn’t be said for Melina and Rhys), Grace would bet he’d had sex with
someone
that night. Sex for Max was like breathing was for most people. Natural. Comfortable. Bountiful.

She faced the bar again. As she did, the fabric of her blouse rubbed against her nipple piercings. The friction caused by the small gold hoops with small silver balls exacerbated the tight achiness she already felt staring at Max. The piercings, including the one between her legs, had been one of her more desperate attempts to feel sensual and maximize her sexual pleasure. They turned men on plenty. As for the pleasure they’d given her, the piercings actually lived up to their promise. Manipulating them brought her to orgasm much faster when she was masturbating. When she was with a man, however? Great for ratcheting up her arousal but just like everything else she’d ever tried, useless when it came time to bringing it all home.

She turned back to look at Max.

He was finally alone. Now was her chance. But still she hesitated.

That’s what came with being a little too self-aware.

What made her hesitate was fear of rejection, yes. But more than that, it was the knowledge that while she was here to ask Max for an orgasm, that was the least of what she really wanted from him. In her heart of hearts, she knew asking him to get her off was just an excuse to get closer to the man who had steadily begun to fascinate her more and more. And that man wasn’t the one with the playboy reputation or the electric charisma on stage. It was the man she’d gotten glimpses of over the past year. The one who was so affectionate with Melina. The one who pumped his fist in the air when Melina and Rhys walked down the aisle as man and wife, and danced with his mother at that same wedding, then boogied with the crowd to “YMCA.” The man whose gaze she sometimes felt on her and wondered if perhaps… just maybe… he was as attracted to her as she was to him.

He
was the man she wanted to get to know better, but she knew it was dangerous to think that way. No matter how many layers he seemed to have, Max was the quintessential playboy. He wasn’t going to magically transform into a monogamous family man who fell hopelessly in love with her simply because she had sex with him. If she was going to do this, she was going to have to do it knowing the most she would get out of the experience was release, not happily ever after.

She could do that, right?

Finally, when she was able to answer that question in the affirmative, she braced herself to stand. Just then, someone sat on the stool next to her and touched her arm. It was the brunette.

“So you decided to go for it?” The woman didn’t even try to flag down the bartender. She just looked at Grace, a definite challenge in her eyes.

“Excuse me?” Grace asked, even though she knew exactly what the woman was referring to.
Who
she was referring to. Good Lord, had she been that obvious? Stalking Max like he was some kind of prey?

The brunette smiled. “Don’t worry. He hasn’t noticed you.”

Right. Gloves off, Grace thought, as her spine stiffened.

“Chill out. I didn’t mean it that way. You’re gorgeous and Max does like variety. He’s obviously done with me. I just want to make sure you know what you’ll be getting into, that’s all.”

Hmm. Still on guard, Grace remained quiet. The brunette was going to have her say, so what was the point? Besides, Grace always did have too much curiosity for her own good.

“See, Max only has one speed. Fast and furious. He’s
really
good at showing a woman a good time. Multiple times. All night long, if you get what I mean.”

A rock would get her meaning and the woman’s words were making her regret coming. Which was undoubtedly what the other woman wanted. Max might be done with her, but
she
was obviously not done with him. Her next words confirmed it.

“You seem a little… delicate… for what Max dishes out. I’d think twice about taking him on. But even if you can handle him, don’t expect it to last long. It never does with Max. Just thought I’d do my duty for the sisterhood and let you know.”

Mentally, Grace told the woman what she thought of her advice in southern terms:
Opinions are like assholes, some are just louder and smellier than others
. What she actually said was, “Well, bless your heart,” while deliberately exaggerating her southern drawl. “You must think I don’t have the sense God gave a goose to be makin’ a play for Max. Good thang I’ve always relied on the kindness of strangers.” Her tone was sugary sweet, but as she held the woman’s gaze, it was apparent they understood each other. The brunette had warned Grace off. Grace wasn’t about to give the other woman the satisfaction of listening.

After the woman left, it took Grace a couple of minutes to gather her courage again. The fantasy of Max doing her—hard and fast and furious, all night long—was both a temptation and a deterrent. If things went as usual for her, he’d spend the whole night
not
getting what he normally did out of a woman. But…

She took a deep breath and spun her stool in Max’s direction yet again.

Instead of catching his eye, she caught him staring at the ceiling. The energy he’d had while talking with the brunette earlier had seeped out of him. Unsmiling, he tilted back his head and seemed to let out an audible sigh. His facial muscles relaxed and he appeared to be relieved. Grateful to finally have a moment alone.

It was yet another layer to add to the others she’d already witnessed.

Max Dalton might very well be a celebrity and a player, and a man who could give a woman multiple orgasms, but at that moment he was just a man craving some peace and quiet, something he obviously didn’t get enough of.

Who was she to intrude?

 He glanced over and met her eyes. Surprise flickered across his face—he knew she was in town visiting Melina but he was probably wondering why she was here alone—just before he lifted his chin, his facial muscles tightening. She saw the tension come over him and she heard his thoughts loud and clear.

What now? What the fuck does someone else want from me now?

Grace’s belly heaved to and fro.

Her cheeks heated and she shot him a small smile before spinning around. Her crush aside, she didn’t know the real Max Dalton. She’d only met him a few times. Melina asking him a favor was one thing, but her? She’d been viewing him as some kind of sexual object, expecting him to do her an insanely intimate favor just because he happened to like sex in general. The brunette’s words proved there were some who viewed Max as a means to an end, and she was no better.

“Hey.”

She glanced up at the bartender.

“Were you waiting to talk to Max? He’s alone now, but that’s not going to last. If you want a shot at him—”

She nearly winced. How much of her conversation with the brunette had the bartender overheard? Shaking her head, she smiled slightly. “He looks tired so I don’t want to disturb him. I’ll chat with him some other time.”

“You sure? Because he’s actually coming this way.”

“What?” She glanced over her shoulder and stiffened. Max Dalton was indeed headed straight for her.

Damn, damn, damn. What was she going to do now?

Her heart pounded, pushing her into panic mode. Jumping to her feet, she searched her bag for her wallet, then dropped a few bills on the counter.

Suddenly, a redhead with boobs spilling out of her strapless sequined top grabbed Max’s arm. He glanced at Grace, his jaw tightening and his eyes reflecting impatience as the woman blocked him.

Grace used that opportunity to escape. Holding her purse tightly against her, she wove through the crowded nightclub, feeling Max’s gaze on the back of her neck.

“Grace!”

She stumbled slightly when she thought she heard Max call her name but didn’t stop. Finally, she pushed out the door, her heels clicking along the crowded Vegas sidewalk. Her heart pounded wildly as tears burned behind her eyes but she blinked them back.

 Then strong fingers gently clasped her arm and she swung around. With a feeling of dread, Grace looked up and met Max’s gaze.

“What the hell, Grace? Why are you running from me?”

She gulped. The feel of his hands gripping her arms—gently, but firmly—made her shiver. She pasted a smile on her face. “Oh, hi Max. I’m not runnin’, Shugah. It was just time for me to leave.”