Ruby's Fantasy (15 page)

He moved both hands down, holding her bottom and pressing her against his erection.

She broke the kiss, sucking in a huge breath, fighting for control. ‘Jake. We have to stop.'

‘It's nearly closing time. I want to take you up hard against the wall. Now! No one can see us from the street.'

He was panting and she could feel his erection pulsing against her. The door buzzer sounded.

‘I have to get that.'

‘Ignore it. I need you. I've been watching you put women into sexy outfits all day and all I could think of was what you'd look like in them.'

‘Now I know why you enjoyed helping me out today. I wondered why you seemed so content.' The thought amused her. It didn't matter how wealthy Jake was, men were still men.

‘My fantasy is to strip you out of your princess costume and tie you naked to my bed. You're telling me no but I start licking your clit until you're begging me to take you. Would you like to play that fantasy?' He moved his thumb slowly over the tip of her nipple.

‘Oh yes.' The sensation ripped from her nipple to between her legs on a pulse of electricity and Ruby nearly came apart.

The door buzzed again. ‘Stop!' she said.

‘I don't want to.'

Ruby wriggled out from his grip. ‘I'll make this the last customer.' Her words came out on hot, breathy pants.

‘Get rid of them fast. I want you.'

Her gaze moved down his body. ‘You can't walk into my shop like that. You look like you're about to impale me even wearing jeans. I think you'd better go upstairs and wait for me.'

He followed her gaze downward and adjusted his jeans. ‘No. I don't want to leave you. I'll pull the roller shutter down here in the back of the shop and secure all the locks. Check the screen before you let anyone in.' Jake's phone rang softly. He pulled it out of his pocket, frowning when he saw who it was.

Ruby left him to it. She skipped to her counter, thinking if business kept up this pace, she'd be banking money instead of being in the red. She didn't have a huge mortgage on the shop but it still had to be paid each month. For the first time, she could see that the business was going to be a viable decision. Before pressing the release button, she checked on her monitor to see who was at the door. A woman with long, blonde hair caught up in a ponytail, stood there.

She pressed the door release button and the door clicked open.

The young woman who entered pinioned her with piercing green eyes. Ruby recognised her, but with her mind in a fog, she struggled to remember who she was.

‘Tell your boyfriend to back off and stay out of my life. What I do is strictly my business. I told you last night, I'm not stupid enough to cross the line like you.' The woman's voice was so quiet and deadly that Ruby realised Jake wouldn't be able to hear it in the other room at the back of the shop.

Who was she? The woman's name came to her. Nessa, the stripper.

Fury lit up Nessa's eyes. ‘I mean it. Back off.' She turned and marched towards the door.

‘No! Wait! Nessa, I don't understand.' What had Jake done? He was with her last night, not the stripper. What was Nessa talking about?

Nessa reached the door, turned on Ruby and jabbed her in the chest with her index finger. ‘If you're stupid enough to stay here then you'll get what's coming to you.' She pulled open the front door to leave.

Ruby lunged for the woman grabbing hold of her arm. ‘No. Wait. I have to talk to you. Let me explain. I'm not Emerald.'

Nessa rolled her eyes. ‘As if. Pah! Changing your name isn't going to save you.'

‘I'm not. I mean it. I'm Ruby, Emerald's twin. Emerald's fled and I don't know why. Please, help me. I don't know what's going on with my sister.'

A sneer painted Nessa's lips. ‘What went on is your sister had sex with Peter Smithers. Talk about a dumb move.'

Ruby's whole body tensed and her fingers fanned her lips. ‘Who is that? I don't know him.'

Nessa's eyes narrowed and she shook her head. ‘If your boyfriend thinks I'm going to be stupid enough to give out information on Peter he's got another thing coming. I strip. I lap dance. That's it. I don't want that freak after me.' Nessa ripped her arm from Ruby's grasp and stormed out of the shop, slamming the door with a bang.

‘Everything okay, Ruby?' Jake called out.

Ruby locked the shop door, pulled down the roller shutter and stormed over to the back of the shop. ‘Just what did you do last night?'

Jake's eyebrows raised. He'd unbuttoned his shirt showing his washboard stomach, the top button of his jeans was already undone. ‘You don't recall? Want me to refresh your memory?'

Ruby resisted the urge to grab him by the hand and pull him upstairs to her bedroom. ‘Jake, I'm serious. That stripper, Nessa, from Abe's club was just here. She had a message for you.'

‘Why didn't you call me?'

‘I wasn't afraid and I wanted to talk to her. She knows something. I'm confused because she said she was with you last night. I know she's lying because you were with me.'

Jake averted his gaze just for an instant.

‘Jake?'

‘I went to Abe's club to talk to Nessa after you were asleep. Called up Ghost to mind you while I was out.'

‘Whoa. Wait a minute. Ghost watched me while I slept? That's creepy. You're not still in the army.' A wave of anger rose up and she gritted her teeth.

Jake moved towards her, backed her up against the wall, put one arm around her waist and the other above her head. His gaze wore a possessive, predatory look. ‘Let me get one thing straight. No one looks at you while you sleep except me. Ghost, I trust with my life. He stayed downstairs to make sure no one tried to enter the premises while I was gone. I gave you my word. I mind you twenty-four seven until I've resolved this situation. If I can't be there, Ghost replaces me, no one else.'

Ruby felt a pulse beat in her throat. She took in a long, slow breath. ‘Sorry, this whole situation is getting to me. I don't do well under tension. I need peace and quiet in my life like I get at home.'

‘And you'll get your life back. I promise, I'll do anything in my power to make you happy.' His hand moved from the wall above her head and stroked her cheek. He moved his face forward, closed his eyes and nuzzled her until little shivers rippled down her neck.

Jake smelled of clean sweat and spice. Just the scent of him eased the tension. She reached up and grabbed his hand from above her head and gave it a squeeze. ‘Nessa had a message for you. She won't give out information on a man called Peter Smithers.'

‘It was enough that she confirmed the name last night. That was all I needed. I emailed his photo through to my copper mate.' Jake's eyes glittered.

‘You're on it like you promised.'

‘And the nest is getting too hot for the rats. Peter Smithers is a client who pays a fortune for Nessa to lap dance for him.'

Disgust made her whole body go rigid. ‘Nessa said Emerald had sex with him, but that doesn't make sense. My twin doesn't like sleazy men. She's impulsive but she doesn't jump into bed with just anyone. Something frightened her and she left.'

‘Come upstairs. You're pale. You need a drink and some food.' Jake straightened and rolled his shoulders back as if easing tension. He took her by the hand and pulled her towards the stairs.

Holding on with relief, Ruby did as he asked. ‘I have to find out what's going on. I can't stand the not knowing. I think that's what is getting to me.' She trudged up the stairs in front of Jake. Despite him organising things before telling her, which irritated her, she was glad of his help. Jake had a way of stirring the pot, unsettling people so they talked. It wasn't her way, but it worked and for that she was relieved.

Even though it was her kitchen, Jake pulled out a chair, motioned for her to sit before walking to the refrigerator.

‘Wait a minute. I should be looking after you. You must be tired if you went out late last night to talk to Nessa.' Unable to contain herself, Ruby let out a huge yawn even though she'd slept well, which she covered with her hand.

‘I'm trained to withstand long hours without sleep. Believe me, when I know you're safe, I'll chill out and take you on a holiday.'

‘Do I get a say in where I'm going?'

‘No.' He waggled his eyebrows. ‘It'll be a naked holiday.'

‘Idiot!' Taking the weight off her feet, she sat feeling the tension ease from her bones. No man had ever looked after her. She'd learnt to have no expectations of men, her last relationship no more than a mutual friendship born out of convenience. Yet Jake was different. Intense. Demanding. Vehement. Always the same, a rocket load of high, octane energy. For the first time, she realised she liked the consistency, the depth and passion of him.

He cut up some cheese and put it on some biscuits, brought the plate over and put it in front of her. ‘You're staring. Care to share your thoughts?'

‘I wasn't thinking much.' She wasn't ready to share her feelings for him. They were too new, hatching like a newborn chick.

His gaze swept over her, observing, assessing and his lips softened. He took out a cool bottle of white wine, poured some into two glasses and gave her one before taking a seat. ‘Last night, after you went to sleep I watched the surveillance tapes of Abe's club. It took some time but I saw Tattoo Face enter with Peter Smithers. I think he works for Smithers as his bodyguard. I mentioned downstairs that I sent both men's photos to my mate who works for Kings Cross police up the road. My copper mate rang me back when you were in the front of the shop. Smithers wasn't charged, but a woman was threatened and he was a suspect.'

‘What happened?' Ruby's hand moved to her throat.

‘The police report said a man threatened a young woman but no charges were laid and the girl left town. Last night, John, the bouncer, mentioned something similar happened in Abe's club to one of the lap dancers some time ago. He saw Tattoo Face talking to her. The girl looked frightened and left her job at the club soon after.'

‘So there's a pattern going on here,' Ruby said.

‘Seems to be.'

‘Why didn't you tell me earlier?' She picked up a cracker and cheese, bit into it.

‘Because you had that panic attack last night.' He topped up her wine. ‘You don't need the stress.'

Ruby put her glass down on the kitchen table with a harsh clink. ‘Just wait a moment. Since when don't I get a say in this? This isn't even your issue. You don't even know my sister.'

Jake reached across the table and patted her on the hand. ‘Your worries are mine because until I get your twin back you're only half with me. I want all of you.'

She narrowed her eyes and removed her hand. ‘If that's what you want then you have to treat me like an equal, not like some precious little thing who needs protecting. When you learn something, when you make a decision, I expect you to tell me before you act.'

‘And you have to learn to trust me,' he countered, ‘because I want your heart.'

Jake moved too fast, too soon. She was just starting to confide in him. ‘What if I can't give you that?' she asked with a tremor in her voice. She'd only known him three days and though his intensity thrilled her, it was unnerving, too.

‘I can't do with anything less. You know that.'

‘I told you when Emerald comes back I have to go home. My business is there, my clients, my home.'

‘Don't cling to that as an excuse.' Jake stood, walked to her side of the table, pulled up a chair and sat. He put his arm around her shoulder and gave it a reassuring squeeze. ‘I intend to find a way to make sure that we can be together. It's a two hour drive to Blackheath, not an impossible distance. It's not like you're on the other side of the country.'

Ruby took a long breath in to steady herself. How could Jake be so certain about everything? She wanted to believe that her life could change, that it could include a relationship which was safe and happy. That it was possible to find a partner who she could trust and rely upon.

‘You okay?' His gaze darted protectively over her, assessing, measuring.

‘I don't believe in the happy-ever-after ending. It's for other people.'

‘Your happy ending is going to be with me.' He put his hand over her heart and she was sure it was pattering in response.

Caught by the intensity of his gaze, she felt herself melting. No one had ever tried as hard to do so much for her. She wasn't used to it. ‘You really care about me?'

‘What makes it so difficult for you to believe that you're worth caring for?'

Because no one except Emerald ever had.
She was about to answer when Jake's phone buzzed. He picked it up from the table and looked at it. ‘Good news.'

‘What?' she asked.

‘The police have picked up Tattoo Face. They need you to come down to the police station and confirm he is the man who smashed in your window.'

Ruby sucked in a large breath. The image of Tattoo Face standing with a knife flashed before her eyes. Spots appeared around her vision as her heart raced into overtime.

‘Ruby, don't panic,' Jake ordered her, putting his hands on her shoulders and turning her to face him. ‘Look at me.'

Her throat seemed to be closing over, like it had last night.

‘Take deep breaths, exhale longer breaths,' he ordered.

She did as he asked, her chest rising and falling as she tried not to fall into the black hole of panic. She followed his example sucking in another deep breath, and exhaling slowly. Staring up into his face, she saw the depth of his feelings for her and for the first time, she breathed it in letting his essence inside her.

‘I need to warn you. It's not like on those cop shows. There won't be a screen. You'll have to walk past men holding a number, but I'll be with you.'