Cockpit: A Second Chance Romance (30 page)

I didn't even have a chance to say a word to him. I watched fearfully as he put his helmet on and slid into the car. Then he drove to the starting line. The other cars lined up beside him. They looked dangerous.
 

They looked like death on wheels.

Suddenly a man was beside me. I turned and looked up at him. He was older, very handsome. There was something familiar about him. But I'd never seen him before.

"You Frannie?"

I nodded.

"I'm Brian. Jace's dad."

His eyes twinkled at me.

"It's very nice to meet you."

"It's nice to meet you too, Mr. Singleton."

"I told you, Brian! Now let's watch my kid squash these suckers."

We stood together as the flag dropped. The sound of the signal gun made me jump. Then the roar of the engines drowned everything out. I couldn't have heard Brian even if we'd been shouting.

My heart was in my throat as they took the first turn. Jace was jockeying with a few other cars to take the lead. By the next straightway he was out in front, with two cars just behind him. They started battering his car, making him fishtail all over the track.

 
I turned around as they hit the next turn, covering my eyes.

I couldn't bring myself to watch.

The crowd was screaming as they barreled towards the finish line. I almost didn't hear the screeching metal.

It sounded like the world was ending.

It sounded like death.

I started to slide down to the ground. I felt strong arms lifting me up and holding me.

Then darkness.

Chapter Seventeen

Jace

Bright lights stung my eyes, making me wince. The room slowly came into focus. It was all white. I realized I was in a hospital bed. I felt like I was floating.

Fuck, I must be on a shitload of painkillers.

I saw faces- recognizable ones.

My dad, Flannery, Clyde. My heart started beating in my chest. Where was she?

"Frannie?"

My voice sounded like a frog croaking. I tried to sit up and reach for the water I saw on the bedside table.

"Hey hey buddy- slow down!"

My dad was there, his hands keeping me from sitting up.

"What do you want? The water?"

I nodded and he held the cup to my lips.

It was slowly starting to dawn on me that I was fucked up.

How bad, I wasn't sure. All I knew was I wanted my woman. Now.

"Frannie."

"I'm here."

I turned my head and saw her. She'd been there all along, just on the other side of the room. Her arms were wrapped around her. She looked beautiful.

She was crying.

"How long?"

"You been out two days buddy. We thought we had lost you."

I wasn't looking at my dad. I was looking at Frannie.

She looked heartbroken and relieved at the same time.

"Did I win?"

She laughed through her tears and nodded. I grinned, leaning back. If I won, that meant I had a nice fat check waiting for me. And I wasn't dead.
 

And my woman was here. She hadn't jumped ship. That had to mean something.

My dad cleared his throat.

"Maybe we'll give these two a minute alone."

Clyde and Flannery walked over, kissing my head like I was a kid. I didn't mind though. I just clasped their hands and smiled.

I turned to Frannie, still standing by the window.

"Come here."

She walked towards me, staring down at me with those big blue eyes. I reached out and she took my hand, squeezing it.

"How bad am I?"

She laughed, wiping her tears away with one hand.

"Dislocated shoulder. Cracked collar bone. Bruised ribs. Concussion."

"So my dick is fine."

She stared at me, trying not to laugh.

"Is that really all you care about?"

"I'm just messing with you Frannie. It is pretty high on the list though."

"Nobody has mentioned your- ah-"

I laughed. It hurt like hell.

"You can't even say it can you?"

I yanked her onto the bed with me, bringing her close so I could kiss her.

"Jace! You'll hurt yourself!"

"Don't care."

She looked annoyed but she didn't stop me from kissing her. She kissed me back, her delicate little tongue tangling with mine. I groaned at the feel of her chest pressed against mine. If this was heaven, I wasn't going to complain.

And just like that, I was hard.

A hospital was an inconvenient place to get a boner, but I was glad to know it was working.

"How about a quickie?"

She shook her head, laughing. She carefully untangled herself from me and moved out of my reach so I couldn't grab her again. Smart girl.

"Not until you're better."

"And after that?"

She nodded shyly.

"We can talk about this later. I think your family wants to come back in now."

I nodded. She was right.

Besides, she wasn't going anywhere.

She was mine.

I could wait.

Frannie

"Jace! Go easy!"

Jace was trying to molest me again. I'd just gotten him settled in his bed at his father's house. I'd given him a horse sized pain pill. It should have made him sleep.
 

Instead it was making him loopy and horny. Very, very horny.

Not that he ever wasn't.

Not around me anyway.

"Stay with me Frannie."

"I am. I will be just down the hall in the spare room."

"That's not what I fucking meant and you know it."

I smiled serenely and sat in the chair across the room, pulling out a book.

"You rest. I'll be here when you wake up."

"Come here and kiss me. That's all."

I sighed.

"That won't be all and you know it."

 
"The doctor said I could have sex."

"The doctor said you should rest!"

"Sex is very restful."

I laughed. He was incorrageable.

"Frannie..."

"It won't work you know."

"What?"

"That tone you use on me. I'm immune."

He growled and tried to sit up, wincing in pain.

I was by his side in an instant, perching on the side of the bed.

"What are you trying to do Jace?"

He laid back, his hands sliding over my hips.

"Hmmmmm, that's nice."

I let him touch me. It seemed to calm him down. I liked the way he touched me. It was almost... reverent.

"Open your top."

I rolled my eyes and did as he asked. He watched me hungrily as I pulled open my top.

His eyes closed as his hands moved to my breasts. He had a beatific smile on his face that made me laugh. His eyes closed halfway as he played with my body like I was a shiny new toy. I leaned forward and kissed his cheek.

"We can do everything you said."

His eyes opened with a snap.

"We can?"

"Yes."

I sat up, rebuttoning my blouse.

"I need to go home though."

"What, why?"

"Nevada's wedding is next week."

He closed his eyes nodding.

"Okay, we can go. But no bachelorette parties for you!"

I rolled my eyes.

"Nev is not like that. But we are having a girls night. I'm sure Clay will invite you to his stag night."

His eyes were closed now. His breathing heavy. I wasn't sure he had heard me.

Then I heard him whisper something that made me know he had.

"Not a stag. I'm... a... bull..."

Chapter Eighteen

Jace

Holy shit.

I stared around the house we were staying at for the week, trying to get my bearings. It was even bigger than Frannie's house.

Much, much bigger.

Her place had looked like a country club. This place looked like a fucking hotel. A big ass five star one.

The floor in the entrance way was marble. The columns looked that way too.

I was definitely out of my element.

But I'd promised Frannie not to hate Clay on sight.

According to her, he was a good guy.
 

Growing up like this, I imagined someone spoiled rotten. But Frannie had changed by opinion of rich folk permanently. They could hurt just like the rest of us.

They just did it with better shit around them.

Like that pool. And the entertainment room.

And the fucking bowling alley in the basement.

I shook my head. That was definitely a first.

"Come on, you want to swim?"

I nodded. I didn't really want to swim.

But I did want to see Frannie in a bikini.

I was not amused when she pulled out a one piece tank suit.

"Don't you have anything skimpier?"

She rolled her eyes at me.

"You are supposed to be recovering- not getting hot and bothered!"

"I'm always hot and bothered around you. Give me something to look at. Besides you said maybe tonight you would take mercy on me."

She laughed and then nodded.

"I did say that didn't I? I'll ask Nev if she has anything."

I grinned and laid back in the plush armchair I was sitting in. I could wait if there was a skimpy bathing suit in my future. She'd found me swim trunks from somewhere. Unused.

Apparently they just kept extras hanging around.

Like I said. This place was a hotel.

Frannie was back in a few minutes. Her cheeks were red. She held up a red polka dot bikini that made my heart do a little flip flop.

"I'm not sure I can do this."

"Yes, you can."

I waited while she went into the attached bathroom to change. Every bedroom in this house had a bathroom. All twenty seven of them. Or was it twenty eight?

How crazy was that?

My mouth went dry as Frannie walked out of the bathroom. Her hair was covering her shoulders but the rest of her was proudly on display. Big, high tits. Tiny waist. Juicy as hell hips and curvy legs that didn't quit.

"Fuck."

She laughed.

"I need a cover up."

"No. You definitely don't."

She giggled and pulled a sheer scarf out of her bag, wrapping it around her hips. She still looked half naked. I liked it.

I liked it a lot.

"Let's go."

"What about the boner you just gave me?"

She gave me a look.

"I'm sure the cold water will take care of that."

I grumbled but followed her out of the house, my eyes on her gorgeous backside.

I highly doubted anything would take care of my boner.

Except her.

Frannie

I splashed Jace where he lay on the lounge chair by the side of the pool. He smiled and winked at me. He was just watching me, not saying anything. I couldn't tell if he was being protective or getting a thrill from doing it.

It didn't really matter though.

"Heads up Frantastic!"

A blur sailed through the air, landing in the deep end. It was Clay. Of course. He'd always known how to make an entrance.

Nevada was standing by the pool side laughing.

"You must be Jace."

I watched Jace stand and shake hands with Nevada. I half expected him to fall in love with her on sight.
 

Most guys seemed to.

But he just smiled at her in a friendly way and shook her hand.

"Clay, get out here and say hi to Jace."

"Hey man, heard a lot about you. Jump in!"

"Yeah, okay."

I cringed as Jace climbed down the ladder. He was supposed to be taking it easy.

"Be careful with him Clay. He's broken."

"Yeah, yeah."

Clay splashed Jace. Jace splashed him back. There was an immediate explosion of water spraying everywhere.

I had to laugh. They were such children.

I climbed out of the pool to lay out with Nevada. We started oiling each other's backs with sunblock.

That's when I noticed that there was zero sound coming from the pool all the sudden.

"Uh, Nev?"

We both turned to see the guys staring at us. Their mouths were open. They were hypnotized.

"Don't stop on our account ladies."

Nev laughed and tossed the sunblock at Clay's head. I shook my finger at Jace. He looked disappointed as we both lay back and started gossiping, ignoring them completely.

It was just a few minutes later that I felt a shadow looming above us. We looked up and I saw Jace and Clay standing there, blocking out the sun.

Clay had a pitcher of iced tea. Jace had a pitcher of lemonade.

"Iced tea ladies?"

We shrieked as they poured the drinks onto our chests. I was pretty sure that wasn't accidental. I stood up, sticky lemonade sliding down my body.

"You..."

Jace grinned at me, slowly setting the glass pitcher back down.

"You wouldn't hurt a wounded man would you?"

I narrowed my eyes. Nevada shoved Clay backwards into the pool. I couldn't do that to Jace though.

"I have other means of... wounding you."

His face fell.

"Or denying you anyway."

"Frannie..."

I tilted my head to the side.

"I think I'll wear sweatpants to bed tonight. Or maybe I'll kick Clay out and have a slumber party with Nev."

He looked crestfallen.

"You wouldn't."

"Wouldn't I?"

I sailed past him to the pool house. There was shower in there. I wanted this sticky mess off of me right away.

I turned on the shower, not hearing the door open behind me. I grabbed a clip and pinned my hair back and stepped into the shower.

I felt hands on me, spinning me around.

Jace was naked. Naked and hard. And he looked pissed off.

"You are going to pay for teasing me like that little girl."

I swallowed. He made me feel so funny when he talked like that. I watched as he untied my bikini straps on my shoulders. Then the ones on my hips. He picked up a bottle of body wash and squirted some on his hands. Then he slid his huge, callused hands over my chest, soaping my breasts.

I moaned at the feeling. It felt... really good. His hands slipped down over my backside and back up again. He washed my body for a long time, both of us silent.