Hell (10 page)

Tuesday morning 11:00 a.m.

My girl was late.

In all the months I’d known her, this had never happened before.

I called her twice and after the third ring was sent directly to voicemail. “Pick up the goddamned phone,” I snapped into the receiver. I’d become restless in the last hour. Worried. Feared the worst, and as the seconds on my watch ticked on by, I became fucking pissed. They say bad news traveled fast, and nothing as of yet.

So where the fuck was she?

Concentration was a null-and-void subject, and I found myself more than once pacing the area where we were supposed to be working.

“Would you give it a fucking rest already?” Stephan grumbled. We were inside the new bathroom space on one of the upper level floors of these stadium. Our task this week was the much anticipated remodel of the restrooms that both the city and owners wanted to enlarge.

Four new stalls were to be added to both the women’s and men’s bathrooms. They wanted to make their customers comfortable, with all new fixtures, larger spaces, and top of the line commodes.

Today’s job should’ve been easy, all demo and restructuring.

“Yeah, Josh, calm down. She’ll…” Mario trailed off at the glare I sent his way.

“Get back to work; I want this side ready for drywall by lunch time.” My gruff response was met by silence. By now I was annoying myself, and they were angry. The silent treatment followed. Glares, growls, and harsh orders would do that to any crew.

No matter how much they respected their leader.

Usually, I was easy going. Arrived early and had everything set up before the last man had clocked in. Always double checked the equipment, orders for new material needed, and if need be, I got on my hands and knees and worked right alongside these fuckers.

I wasn’t trying to be a dick, but I couldn’t help it. Until Janelle made it here, I wouldn’t be able to relax.

Didn’t help that Kevin was a little anxious himself.

Fuck. I noticed this, as did everyone else.

He was caught more than once pacing the halls toward the arena’s restrooms, mumbling and cursing up a storm.

Mario and Stephan were both in the middle of demolishing the existing vanities on the bottom floor when the elevator just a few feet away pinged alerting us to someone’s arrival.

For the love of God, let it be her.
My palms became sweaty, knees weak, and my heart barely contained itself within my chest.

“Is there some reason as to why you weren’t picking up your phone?” Kevin fumed, and I let out the breath I had not realized I had been holding. This was why I hated the very idea of being with a woman. Because the worry ate you the fuck up inside.

I would never say that I cursed the day we met, just that I wished she wouldn’t be so difficult to deal with. One minute she wanted my cock, the next I was nothing more than an employee.

Yo-yoing back and forth between pushing and pulling me away.

Women in general had an issue with expecting men to know which role they wanted them to play at any given time. I don’t read fucking minds. Never have and never will.

“Phone died,” she answered as if it were nothing. Bullshit. She had chargers everywhere, her office alone having three plugged in all the time.

“Be back.” Walking out of the bathroom, I took a minute to compose myself. Try and get my anger ebbed enough to not explode on her. Demand a better answer than,
“It died.”

And then my eyes landed on her. There she stood; my reason for hours upon hours of brutal assaults on my cock when she wasn’t around to satiate my thirst. Without a care in this world. Fuck the fact that she’d caused me to lose my cool and treat our crew like shit.

Janelle was facing away from me wearing the tightest pair of jeans I had ever seen molded onto a woman. Her ass was tight and round, motherfucking perfection. My hands twitched, and the desire to smack those round globes almost bowled me over.

Chastise her for making me worry.

Above she wore a simple white tank—a man’s shirt—that showed off her supple breasts. Almost threadbare, the light filtered through, and I wasn’t the only man on this floor that noticed.

The few men working on some lighting at the end of this corridor howled at her, and she flipped them off while laughing.

My blood boiled.

“Get back to fucking work, assholes,” I yelled out at the bunch who immediately shut their disrespectful traps. My glare was murderous as I eyed them, turned around, and then resumed work. I was itching—waiting for one of them to step out of line again and challenge me.

There was just too much pent-up energy flowing through my body, and I needed a release. Knocking one out would help.

To my utter disappointment, no one said a word.

She may run the show, but I was a determined man set out on dominating her.

“Get ahold of yourself, Joshua,” Kevin spoke after a few tense minutes. Still, I stood there and eyed each one of them, body trembling as the feelings of jealousy and fury burned me. Enflamed me. He was more than aware of my feelings for her. Encouraged them. I would kill anyone that dared overstep his or her boundaries with my girl. “They are harmless. You know this, man. They wouldn’t dream of disrespecting her.”

My eyes snapped up to his with fire, and he held his hand up in surrender. “She can take care of herself, Joshua. You need to learn that, and remember why it’s important that you do.” His large hand clapped me on the back in a show of understanding.

And then he walked back over to her, just a few feet away, watching me. The moment our eyes met, she gave me a small smile before turning to look at her brother.

They argued, whispering in harsh tones and exaggerated hand movements. Kevin looked mad; his easygoing nature evaporating with each shrug Janelle gave of her shoulders.

I’ve never seen him so disagreeable with her.

S
omething had to be wrong?

Kevin’s phone rang a minute later, and he pulled it out of his pocket. Holding a finger up, he used his other hand to swipe across the screen and accept the call. After a second, it was easy to guess just who was on the phone. Pussy-whipped motherfucker adored his wife.

Without a second glance he turned around and walked back toward the elevator, pressing the down button while waiting.

Not much after, the doors opened and he stepped in, turned, and called out. “You coming, sis?”

Our eyes stayed on the other while she walked backward and into the elevator. The doors began to close, almost all the way, and then she did something that caused me to smile.

Janelle blew me a kiss.

New or not, it was welcomed after all the bullshit she’d put me through the last few hours.

If only I could get her to kiss the tip of my cock as her penance.
The thought made me hard as steel, and I had to adjust myself.

“Joshua,” Mario called out, the nervous tinge in his tone pulling me back to the present.

“What happened, kid?”

“We have a busted pipe. Fuck, man, Stephan broke down the wrong wall and with it, took out the main waterline for this floor.” He looked scared of my reaction, and after how much of a dick I’d been all morning, I didn’t blame him. “We are flooded.”

I felt bad. And then pissed all over the fuck again.

“Son of a bitch. Fixing that shit will take all night…lazy motherfucker will have my boot implanted in his ass before the night is through.” Mario laughed at my rant, and the tension lessened. “Come on, let’s go fix this. Shut the main water valve off downstairs and rush back up to help me.” He nodded and ran off.

I had taken three steps toward the new idiot-made disaster when a pair of small, delicate, and feminine hands grabbed my rear and squeezed harshly. The scent of sunshine and flowers hit me, and I smirked.

I’d know that smell anywhere.

“My boss is a jealous woman. She wouldn’t appreciate you taking advantage of someone who works
under
her,” I crooned while allowing her hands to wander over my body.

“Have I ever told you how wet it makes me to see you take charge like that? So dominating. Commanding. All man.” Her arms wrapped themselves around my waist and toyed with the edge of visible skin above my boxers.

Pleasurable pain exploded within me and I let out a low groan. My balls were heavy and my cock swollen, leaking for her.

“Weren’t you leaving?”

Her hands never stopped their exploration of me. “Not without coming to say hi first.”

“Fuck, sweetheart. Grab me.” She released a low moan of her own at the desperation in my tone. Lowering my boxers over the head of my dick, her tiny little finger swiped across the head, and my head fell back. Eyes closed, I enjoyed the feel of her hand, the pleasure from her simple touch.

Lips smacked, and the sound of her sucking on her finger filled my ears. Mother of fuck…was she tasting me?

“Janelle...” I trailed off on a whimper. Pure, red-hot fucking ardor had me grabbing ahold of her wrist and placing her hand on my cock. “Please.”

Fisting me in her hands, she pumped me twice. My world faded.

“You taste so good, Joshua. Like the finest wine; strong, sweet, and purely addictive.” Gathering the drop of liquid seeping from my swollen girth, she pulled her hand away and noisily sucked her digit again. I had my arms encircling her tiny waist before she could finish.

A deep rumble escaped my chest. “Mine.”

“Oh fuck!”

“Hey boss lady, Joshua, the water’s...” Mario trailed off as soon as he spotted us. I wanted to throat punch the fucker for interrupting.

“Is off?” she finished for him while disentangling herself from my arms. He nodded. “Thank you.”

I had yet to say a word.

“I’ll be in there.” Mario pointed toward the flooded bathroom and fled. Janelle blushed; it was pretty. Moments like these confused me—everyone here knew about us, yet she still held back.

“Ready to get dirty? Maybe a little…wet?” Each word left her lips in a low, throaty whisper.
Fuck.
Saucy eyes winked at me before turning to walk away. She was two steps away from the bathroom when she looked back at me from over her shoulder. “Cause I know I am.”

Evil woman.

I’ll break her.

Wednesday afternoon…

Everything was back to being as predictable as a solid teak door. Just like every Wednesday before, Janelle arrived after lunch. It was the day she and her mother had a standing lunch date. They weren’t as close as one would think they should be, but this was their one thing, and even Kevin, who rarely talked to Mrs. Walker, left it alone.

Why they were estranged? Because of the business.

Unsurprising, the woman was needy and detested the same company that afforded her the life of leisure she lived.

“Your girl’s here,” Mario bellowed across the parking lot. I was tempted to laugh at that statement. Lately, she didn’t feel as if she were mine. The constant pulling away and evading making me feel as if we were back to square fucking one.

We’d been in the storage room pulling out bags of plaster that were needed upstairs. After yesterday’s late hours, we got the plumbing under control and had been hard at it all morning in order to finish the structural changes. It was time for both the drywall and plaster to be done.

“Watch it, kid,” I warned, trying to avoid looking her way. Could feel her eyes boring into the back of my head, but after the last few days I wasn’t ready to deal with her.

My home had been empty without her there.

“She’s looking your way.”

Janelle was predictable most times and as such, her hump days were kept open solely for the benefit of doing inventory. To catch up on all the shit they had no time for during the week, I helped as did Kevin, but my girl was picky. Had a specific order to the madness that only she understood, and it was better to just leave her to it.

Being a people person, she was also the main one in charge of placing orders to the local home improvement or specialty stores. There was the occasional meeting, and at the end: payroll.

The last being something she hated with every fiber in her being—told me as much every week for the last few months after I’d served her a glass of wine.

“Quit meddling,” I grunted after tossing three bags on the dolly. “Plus, we’re too busy today to start this bullshit again.” My tone left no room for argument. For as much as Stephan angered me yesterday, the man was smart enough to not heckle me when it came to our
boss
. Something that young buck here needed to learn, and quick.

“Did you hear that the Thurstons will be back today?” Now this had my interest piqued. They had just been here a few days ago.

Grabbing the bottle of water on the small cart, I twisted the top off and took in a deep pull. “Why? We aren’t that behind schedule…we’re actually being held up because of a specialty order that was placed by someone from the county.”

While I was not surprised by the meeting to be held, I was a bit on edge about Glen’s presence here. The man had nothing to do with these contracts, yet used any opportunity he could to get closer to her.

That, and the fact that Janelle was too nice to tell him to fuck off worked to his advantage. A creature of habit, she was the epitome of professional when it came to meetings and accommodating the assholes she met with. Thurston was cool in my book, but he was friends and did business with men that tried to intimidate her.

Not that she let them, but the encounter was still uncomfortable.

“Bitching about materials and costs, it’s almost like the city expects them to pick up the tab.”

“Assholes,” I spat, tossing the bottle in the trash before walking out of the small room and locking it back up. “Will Kevin be in on this meeting?”

“Think both of you…” Didn’t hear anything he said after that. My eyes landed on her, by her car, phone in hand and looking my way.

“Jesus Christ,” I muttered low and reached down to adjust myself.

Today she arrived in something entirely too sweet looking—a sundress that barely reached her bare mid-thighs. Innocent, simple, yet made her look like a viper in disguise. It was both heaven and hell rolled into one simple little garment.

Made her look younger than she was and suddenly, I felt dirty for all the thoughts running through my head.

Light peach in color, soft, and all lace covered her petite form. Her breasts strained against the delicate material, accentuating the natural curves of her body. If I would’ve been a man that believed in Gods and legends, I could attest that she was Aphrodite in human form. Reborn to fuck with me.

Her long black hair was loose; it cascaded down her back in lustrous waves. Beautiful. Made my fingers twitch with the desire to wrap those strands around my fist and pull back while I rode her hard. Bent over, ass perked up while I took the madness she created out on her pussy.

Janelle twirled a curl around her finger and mouthed the words, “hi.”

Pushing the dolly toward Mario, I took a few measured steps toward her, body vibrating.

“JT, we need to head back—” You could hear the crack of my neck as I whipped around to face him. Annoyance marred my features.

“Head back up, Mario. Get this started and I’ll be up in a few.”

“You’ll need to head up with him and get the crew situated.” Fucking breathy tenor of her voice made me shiver. Some days I cursed my fate, the power she held over me. “Need you to be back down around five for a meeting with some city officials.”

Turning to face her, I noticed the dark shadows around her eyes. My girl was tired. This fucking unnatural urge—goddamned compulsion to take care of her almost made me sweep her up in my arms. Force her to relax.

“Janelle, I need—”

“Later. It’s going to be a busy day, and I need you. Don’t argue.” Not waiting for my reply, she turned on her heel and walked straight back to the office. For as much as I wanted to make whatever ailed her right, I also lusted after that small body walking away from me.

Wanted to crawl on all fours behind her.

“Come on, Joshua.” Mario interrupted my dueling thoughts. Good versus evil fought for control of my urges, but then she paused and looked back at me from over her shoulder.

Her sweet hazel eyes smoldered, and heaven lost. Fuck being pure.

A coquettish smile curled at her lips, and she waved before disappearing inside, more than likely walking straight to her desk and taking a seat. I wanted to hide beneath said piece of furniture and push that innocent little dress up. Expose her. Just for my enjoyment.

Worship her pussy while she entertained the fucking imbeciles set to arrive for a meeting. Drink from her, not letting a single drop of her wetness go to waste as Glen watched her breathing escalate.

Her nipples constrict. Come for me.

She was my mine. The one woman who I’d let in against my better judgement, I welcomed her advances and destruction. Blatant or not, she was all I wanted.

HELL

The hours dragged on while we covered and plastered both the women and men’s restrooms on the upper level floor. Fucking snail’s pace, and I was becoming irritable.

“Just go fucking change, will you?” Stephan sighed twenty minutes before I was due downstairs. “We got this, and to be honest, your pacing is driving me insane.”

A rough laugh escaped me while I tossed the spatula I’d been using in a bucket of water. “Makes us even for yesterday…don’t you think?”

“You’re never going to let that go, are you?” I raised a brow in answer. “It was a mistake! Could’ve happened to any of you.”

“True…” he smiled at my admittance, but he was counting his chickens too early “…problem is that it didn’t. It happened to you, and due to your fuck-up, we were stuck here past midnight fixing it. So suck it up, buttercup. Tough shit.”

“Buttercup?” Mario laughed at this, bent over with his hands on his knees. He lost it, and so did the three other guys helping us out. “Jesus,” he snorted and wiped his eyes. “Priceless, and his official new nickname…buttercup.”

“You’re all dicks,” Stephan spat while grabbing his now empty bucket and heading outside to mix a new batch.

“He needs to toughen up a bit.”

“He does, and you need to leave…ten minutes,” Mario pointed out while tossing me a wet rag to wipe my hands before I walked out. The last thing I needed now was to spend time cleaning up painted walls because I smeared them in my rush. “We’ll finish and clean up before clocking out. Don’t worry.”

“Thanks, kid.”

“Shut up.”

By the time I cleaned up and made it to the meeting, everyone was sitting down with a cup of coffee in their hands. There were two men I’d never seen before with Thurston. Older, calculating—they were wolves in sheep’s clothing.

Like most people who held a seat in the city’s political office, they wanted to give a dollar and receive a hundred in return. They were not going to take advantage of my girl or Kevin. Fuck, no.

“Look, Daniel,” Janelle spat from between clenched teeth, anger radiating off her every pore. “It is not mine—or the crew’s fault—that the people you insisted on contacting over the stones, tile, and fixtures fucked you over. Go harass them or demand a refund for shipping the shit late. You placed the order after I warned you…you deal with them.”

“But it’s your job to get it done, not mine,” he argued with a gloating grin. Taunting her with his superiority complex.
Wrong move, buddy.

“Really?” Kevin interrupted. My girl shot him a glare, but he dismissed it. “Because you signed a contract with a clause that stated that if you purchased material outside of our knowledge, we would not be held responsible.”

“You knew.”

Kevin nodded while taking a sip from his cup. “We did.” Daniel smirked at his answer. “But this was after your assistant made the order. After we had already ordered the same materials from our supplier.”

“Is there any way that either of you could reach out to them?” Thurston asked, his eyes narrowing toward the man sitting beside him.

“It’s their job!” Daniel thundered and slammed his hand atop Kevin’s desk. I saw red and made a move to stand; it would be because of my girl that the asshole walked out without a broken limb.

“Daniel, I suggest you calm down,” Thurston quipped, his own hands clenched.

“Hmm,” Janelle mused, head shaking while staring the pompous asshole down. His eyes narrowed, and my girl’s spat fire. “The way I see it, you fucked up. Plain and simple.” How she unleashed her fury upon him made me harder than steel. I twitched and had to bite the inside of my cheek from how good that small movement felt. “I warned you. Showed you all the complaints online regarding how they did business, their bad reputation for being slow and uncaring with the time constraints of their customers. Your mess, not mine!”

His mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water looking for air.

“Now you listen here, Janelle,” the man who up to this point had been silent interjected. He stood up and leaned over the desk, a move Kevin and I didn’t appreciate. “We gave you the opportunity to make a name for yourself with this project. I’d appreciate a bit more respect.”

“And I suggest you sit the fuck down and get out of her face.” My warning growl left no room for discussion, and he could see that. I’d made no move to stand because I didn’t need to. “Don’t push me. What you’re doing is threatening her and could be considered harassment. I will be more than able to kick your ass and claim it was in defense of her.”

“Listen, I—”

“Enough!” Janelle bellowed before sending me a smile. “I will fix the mess that you created and get the stadium turned over without any delay. This will conclude all our future business dealings. I don’t need you to make a name for this company
.
My father ensured that years ago. That’s why you contacted us…not the other way around. Now get out of here and quit pestering my crew.”

“Come now, Janelle. I apologize for their remarks, but—”

“Mr. Thurston, I wasn’t implying you or your company in my statement.”

“Thank you, dear. The company’s work has been exceptional, and I would hate for us to part ways on this project on a sour note. Especially with you thinking I’m intolerable.”

“Never.” She smiled at him. “But these two…never again.” He nodded in understanding. “Now let me do my job, and we will have no further problems.”

After a few handshakes, they exited the building with their tails between their legs, sulking and muttering while my girl beamed.

I, on the other hand, couldn’t be prouder or harder.

Wanting to throw her down and fuck her raw—congratulate her on a job well done. Spectators be fucking damned. Janelle had been glorious in her dominance and no-bullshit-taking attitude.

“Hey, we need to head out,” Kevin declared a few minutes later, and Janelle stood from behind the desk and smoothed her hand down her dress. For some reason, the moment he mentioned their departure, she fidgeted. Nervous.

“Janelle, what the hell is going on with you? You’ve been late. Moody. And now seem nervous…are you okay?”

“She’s fine,” her brother answered for her, and I bristled at the fact. If they wouldn’t have been related, I would be jealous.

“She,” I fumed, “can answer for herself.” Fuck that. The green-eyed monster rattled his cage at the sight of them sharing a knowing look. Of the silent conversation they had while I thought the worst.