“No, I guess not. You just sounded a little dangerous for a minute.”
“I won’t lie to you, Kiley. If you’re ever in jeopardy again, I will be dangerous. I could never stand by and let you be hurt. I know how to fight and I will if I have to just like I would have then. But Kiley, I do know there’s a time and place for everything. I’m not the kind of man who would resort to violence unless there’s no other option.”
“Jordan, I wasn’t saying I think you’d go around beating people up for the heck of it because I know you wouldn’t. It’s just that you know all these guys.”
“Yes, I know them but I don’t socialize with them. I don’t transact business with them. I don’t invest for Bo and I don’t bet with him either. We exchange information now and then. That’s it. You already know Samuels tried to hire me at the beginning and I refused him. The same with various other less than legal businessmen. They’re part of the neighborhood. I still think it’s better to know everyone slightly than it is to be unaware.”
“I don’t know which is worse, you knowing real criminals or Alyssa hanging out with gang members.”
“She’s a good example. She let those guys get to know her enough to trust that she wasn’t there to turn them in. I’m not looking to turn anyone in either although if I’d caught Winslow in the act I certainly would have. Honestly, Kiley, I believe it takes all kinds. Who am I to judge how someone makes a living? As long as they don’t intentionally hurt others then I don’t really care what they do with their lives. Frankly, I’m much more worried about your cousin than I ever have been about me. She’s right up there with Shane.”
“I guess you do know what it’s like to worry about someone who takes risks, don’t you?”
“Yes, I do. You need to trust me, sweet. I don’t take unnecessary risks, in spite of who I may know. I need to be involved because I want Samuels to understand that you weren’t there by choice. And, even though I’m not really sure he deserves it, I’m doing what I can to get Winslow through this in one piece.”
“Wait.” Kiley sat up and switched on the light. “You’re doing this partly because you want him to know I wasn’t there willingly? What would happen if he thought I was?”
“Honestly, I don’t know. I don’t want to find out either.”
“Oh my God, Jordan! If he thinks I agreed to be there…” She was too horrified to continue.
“See? That’s precisely why I’m doing all I can to protect you. I will protect you, Kiley.” He held her gaze. “I promise.”
“I’m so stupid. You sounded so sure they knew Winslow tricked me that I never even considered they might think I agreed to be there.” She shivered.
“You are not stupid,” Jordan stretched out next to her again. “You’re beautifully innocent, as you should be. You know there are plenty of bad things in the world but why should you have to think of them in terms of you specifically? No one should be shoved into that position.”
“I guess.” Kiley wanted to accept what he was saying.
“Why don’t you turn off the light and let me hold you? I came over here so we could both sleep better and I’ve managed to make you tense instead.”
“Jordan, I did that to myself, not you. I’m the one who didn’t think of all this before even though I should have. You simply told me what you did today as I asked you to do. I like talking to you about everything, not just fun stuff. I don’t want you to hide things from me because you want to protect me from my own ignorance. I’m a big girl. So what if I worry? I’m going to do that anyway, even when there’s nothing specific to worry about, okay? I’d much rather know what’s going on.”
“Fine, Kiley. I won’t keep things from you, even if I think it would be for your own good.”
“Thank you.” She flipped the light back off and snuggled against him. “And thank you for rubbing my feet. They feel so much better.”
“Glad to be of service.”
Kiley was quiet for a long time. “Jordan?”
“Hmm?”
“It feels nice, knowing you’d protect me.”
“Good because it feels nice, knowing I have you to protect.”
Kiley was wrapped in his arms, pondering all he’d said, since he got there and over the weekend. In that moment, she decided she didn’t want to give him up. She had to find a way to keep him interested somehow. They’d just had a conversation and she’d held up her end of it, even though parts of it upset her. When he was talking about his test, he’d listened to what she said in a way that didn’t seem like he was humoring her so maybe she wasn’t actually as much of a ninny as she considered herself to be.
While Kiley was lost in thought, Jordan had been gently rubbing her back as if to relax her. Suddenly, she was very aware of his hand. It never strayed but she started to want it to. Kiley began to trace lazy circles on his chest. Her head was on his shoulder and it wasn’t much of a shift for her tongue to be able to flick his nipple. She proceeded to nibble her way to his neck while her hands continued to caress him.
“Whatcha doing, sweet?” Jordan couldn’t stay silent any longer.
“Indulging myself,” she whispered, brushing his lips with a fleeting kiss. “Unless you prefer that I didn’t.”
“Go ahead. I don’t mind.”
“Good.” She kissed him more thoroughly. “Earlier, when you showed what you were hiding behind your coat it was all I could do not to drag you to the back. I still can’t believe that I do that to you.”
“I’ve had that reaction since the day we met. Why do you think I’m always carrying my coat?”
“Hmm, how do I know you don’t react that way to all females?”
“You know I don’t. I talked to other women several times over the weekend. When my attention wasn’t entirely on you, did you see even a hint of a hard-on?”
“No, not even in the bakery when that very pretty girl waited on you.”
“You’re much prettier even though pretty isn’t enough for me. There’s something about you, a feeling I’ve gotten since the moment we met. You’re different from other women. Special. Like you were meant to be mine all along even if we had to wait until now to meet.”
“I’m not sure I’ll ever understand what you mean by that but I guess I’ll take your word on it.” She kissed him deeply as she stroked him through the cotton of his briefs. “Take these off, Jordan. They’re in my way and I really want to touch you.” He did as she asked. “I absolutely adore your body, did I tell you that?”
“Yeah, you may have mentioned it over the weekend once or twice.”
“Will you let me return the pleasure you gave me yesterday? It will make me very happy if you do.”
“I certainly want you to be happy but don’t you want me to touch you too?”
“Thanks but not just now. I happen to agree with what you said last night. Giving you pleasure gives me pleasure. Please, Jordan?”
“All right. Whatever you want. I’m all yours.”
“Ooh, I do like the sound of that.” Kiley kissed him again, trying to put her emotions into it. Without a doubt, she knew she loved him. Now all she had to do was conquer her certainty that she was too inept and unsophisticated for him. Kiley forced that thought from her mind as she kissed her way down his chest. “You’re an incredible man, Jordan McKade.”
“Thanks, Kiley but I’m still just me.”
“Well in my opinion, just you,” she was fondling him again, “is truly incredible. I never met anyone like you before. You’re strong and handsome. You’re so confident that you make me believe you’re capable of anything. You’re funny and charming. You’re powerful and yet gentle and tender. You’re decent and kind. You’re extremely lovable and loving. You have the sexiest voice I ever heard, not to mention the sexiest body.”
Jordan groaned. “God, Kiley, what are you doing to me?”
She’d been stroking him as she talked, altering the tempo and pressure, testing his reactions. “I’m touching you, Jordan. Just like I wanted to at lunch. You’re so hard. I’m guessing that means you like this.”
“Hell, yes!” He couldn’t keep himself from moving his hips.
“No, no, hold still. I’m not ready for that yet.” She moved to kiss him again, cupping his testicles to lessen his excitement. “I want to enjoy you a little longer.”
“Whatever makes you happy.”
“You make me happy, Jordan.” She returned to nibbling on his chest. This time, she continued downward until she was at his hip. When Kiley took Jordan’s erection in her mouth, he groaned, fighting to stay still. She switched between licking the shaft and sucking his cock deep into her mouth. Each time he felt close to coming, Kiley sensed it and eased off. “I love doing this to you,” she muttered around him. “Talk about hot! Do you have any idea how sexy you make me feel, knowing I can turn you on like this? I love the way it feels when you explode in my mouth.” She sucked him in, pumping her head over his groin. “That first night, when you were talking and we were both touching ourselves, I was too preoccupied to watch you closely.” She licked a drop from the tip. “Can I turn on the light? I want to make you come with my hands so I can watch you. Will you let me?”
“Anything you want.” He could barely speak.
Once Kiley could see, she spent some time feasting on his mouth, keeping her hand around him but not moving. When she raised her head, she stared intensely into his eyes. Still holding his gaze, she slowly began to caress him. “Watch with me.” She waited for him to nod before settling her head on his shoulder. “Look at you, Jordan. My fingers aren’t long enough to touch when you’re this excited. No wonder I can feel you everywhere when you’re inside me.” Jordan groaned so she peeked at him. “Keep watching, please. See that? When you start to throb like that I can feel it. It’s so amazing. That little pulse has pushed me over the edge more than once. We may still be getting to know each other in lots of ways but I think our bodies already do.”
“Kiley,” he gasped her name as he exploded.
“That’s it. Did you see that? When you let go like that inside me, it’s simply incredible.” Kiley held him gently even after his climax ended. “Thank you.” She kissed him tenderly, not letting him respond. “Please don’t say anything. And don’t move. I’ll be right back.”
Jordan lay still, letting her clean him. When she finished and snuggled against him, he said, “You’re the incredible one. You sure you don’t want some attention?”
“Not tonight, thanks. I’m very content at the moment,” she sighed happily. “Night, Jordan.”
“Night, sweet Kiley. I love you.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
“Jordan, why don’t you just propose and get it over with? I knew you wouldn’t be able to stay home last night,” Brett teased.
“Hey, I fully intended to spend to night alone. It’s just when Kiley said she wished I was with her, how could I resist?” Jordan shrugged. “And you already know I can’t propose until this is settled with Winslow.”
“So you’ll be doing that tomorrow then?”
“Brett—” Jordan’s phone vibrated, cutting off his reply. “McKade…be right there.”
“Winslow?” Brett asked.
“He’s on his way into the bank.”
“Want me to come with you?”
“Thanks but no. I don’t know how long I’ll be. If I get tied up longer than expected, you’ll have to handle the meeting.” When he saw Brett’s concern, Jordan added, “Jesse will be nearby.”
“Don’t be a hero, okay? He’s not worth it.”
“I know, Brett.”
As soon as Kiley finished seating two new arrivals, she hurried to the door where Jordan was waiting. “Who called? What happened?”
“That was Jesse. Winslow’s in the bank. I have to go.”
“Jordan.” Kiley stopped him with a hand on his arm.
Quickly, he pulled her to him and held her for a moment. “It’s okay, Kiley. I’ll be careful and everything will be fine. I promise. Trust me.” Jordan kissed her before releasing her. “If I can, I’ll call you before the meeting. If not, I’ll see you as soon as it’s over. Don’t worry, sweet. It’s all going to work out for us.” He waited for her to nod before leaving.
Kiley watched until he rounded the corner. Then she went and sat with Brett. “I hate this.”
“Me too but you have to have faith in him. Jordan knows what he’s doing.”
“Yes but I don’t understand why he has to confront Malcolm. If Jordan knows this Samuels guy, why doesn’t he just go talk to him?”
“I don’t think it works that way although I suspect he’ll end up doing that at some point.”
“Oh my God. I really wish I’d told Henry how uncomfortable Malcolm made all of us. If I had, Jordan wouldn’t be doing any of this.”
“But then you two may not have gotten together.”
“Or maybe we would have after we’d met at the hockey game like he planned. Come on, Brett. We both know Jordan would have gotten us together eventually. Although, if it had taken longer, you might be more comfortable with me.”
“It’s not you, Kiley. My best friend has his heart out there, exposed to whatever comes next and honestly, I haven’t seen yours yet. I really do want to believe you. You’re good for him and I like the two of you together. Even a cynic like me is starting to believe it’s possible to find that one perfect someone. You should get back to work.” He nodded toward the door. Kiley rushed off to seat the new group.
As she returned, his phone chirped. “Hudson…oh son of a bitch…damn! No, you’re right…I’m on the way.”