Authors: Julie Farrell
“Yes, yes, anything. Please – I just want what’s best for my kids.”
“Alright. You go back to your wife now and I’ll see what I can come up with. I’ll be in touch.”
Pierre reached out and hugged Eleanor, making Joseph grip the wheel with possessive envy. He relaxed his fists and focused his mind. She wasn’t his. Yet.
Pierre ripped opened the door and fled in the pouring rain back to his own car like a terrified antelope. Eleanor climbed back in the front with Joseph and stared at her notepad.
“That went much better than I could’ve imagined,” she whispered.
Joseph gazed at her. “Feel good now?”
She sighed. “No. I feel terrible. Crappy.”
“That probing technique you used on him – did they teach you that at college?”
“Course not. It was my editor, Gerald Stinger. It’s called ‘blagging’.”
“Gerald Stinger… I know that name.”
“He writes the gossip column for
The New York Spin
. He’s won the award for Best Gossip Column three years in a row. He’s my new boss.”
“And he coached you how to extract information by giving a guy enough rope to hang himself? That’s terrible, Eleanor.”
“I know. And thank you for calling me ‘Eleanor’.”
Joseph shrugged. “I think it suits you after what I just witnessed. It’s more sinister than ‘Ellie’.”
Eleanor’s anger cracked. “Look, he’s the one cheating on his wife! Don’t you think the world has the right to know?
“Not really… his
wife
may have the right to know. But the
world
?”
She huffed and sank back in her seat. “I hate men who cheat – they’re the lowest of the low.”
Joseph’s heart melted as he saw through her steely act. “Ah, I see.”
She twisted to glare at him. “And what does
that
mean?”
“Matthew’s cheated on you, right? That’s what he was getting at earlier when he said he could–”
“It’s none of your business.”
“Oh
really
? Don’t you think the world has the right to know?”
She gazed down at her lap, silently fuming. Joseph reached out and squeezed her shoulder as the rain hammered down on the windshield outside.
“Eleanor… when did a man last take care of you?”
She swallowed, not answering. She was still soaking wet from the rain, and she seemed vulnerable. Defeated.
“Matthew treats you like you’re not important. I bet he’s like that in bed too. Dismissive of your needs.”
She looked up and stared into his eyes. “I won’t lie – when I found out about Matthew’s cheating last year I wanted to break it off with him. But I decided to stand by my man – not because I’m an idiot, but because I’m smart. I knew what I could get from him, so I decided to stick by him until I got what I wanted. Well, now I’ve got what I wanted.”
“A job with Blair Robertson?”
She nodded. “Yep.”
“I guess you wouldn’t be the first person to stick by someone because of what they could give you.” He chuckled cynically. “It seems like
your
dream-come-true is turning out kinda like mine.”
“How so?”
“It’s not what it’s cracked up to be, huh? You thought Blair Robertson could offer you the world, but all you got was Gerald Stinger.”
Her steely armour tightened around her. “Well, I certainly don’t need what
you’re
offering. I don’t need a man like you complicating things.”
“Oh, and what would a man like
me
be exactly?”
“You’re a… a scoundrel.”
He raised an eyebrow. “A scoundrel, huh? Well, Ellie, the way I see it, you could probably do with a scoundrel in your life right now. Some excitement. Some fun. Don’t you think? I know I could.”
“No, what I need is to –”
Unable to resist any longer, he leaned over and kissed her hard on the mouth. Her soft lips acquiesced, but she squeaked her disapproval and punched him on the shoulder. He pulled away and smirked into her eyes. She glared angrily at him. He waited. She was either going to slap him, or…
Her angry expression surged to lust, and she threw her arms around him and kissed him hard. Single-pointed desire washed through Joseph and he pulled her close, kissing her with pent-up passion – pressing himself against her; desperate to fuck her hard until she was laughing with glee and purging her pain.
She groaned as the kiss increased in urgency, making their lips vibrate together, and ramping up Joseph’s lust. He slipped his tongue in her mouth, relishing her sweet taste – suddenly desperate to kiss, lick, and pleasure every inch of her naked tight little body.
She pulled away abruptly, out of breath. “I can’t do this.”
“Ellie, I just want to give you one night of no-strings pleasure. I wanna hear you roaring my name and losing control. I want to be the best lover you’ve ever had, so you’ll never forget me.”
She buried her face in her hands. “Oh god…”
“And I know you want that too, don’t you?”
She closed her eyes and breathed hard. “No, I don’t… I don’t
know
.”
He cupped her chin and kissed her again – more tenderly this time. “Look, we can’t sit here in the parking lot all night. Let’s go back to mine and you can get dry.” He grinned. “And maybe we can see what happens.”
Her voice was a whisper. “I’m not agreeing to anything.”
He ran his fingers through her damp hair, relishing the chance to touch her after all those months of dreaming. “It’s okay. No pressure. Let’s just get out of here.”
Joseph turned on the engine and pulled the car back to the road. Eleanor called her editor to give him an update, then she turned off her phone and dropped it into her purse.
“He didn’t sound very happy,” she said.
“Why?”
“He never does.”
Joseph chuckled. “I’m not surprised. He makes a living from dragging other people down to his own special kind of hell.”
She smiled sadly. “You’re right…”
He reached out and rested his hand on her damp thigh. “Hey, babe, when we get near my apartment building, keep your head away from the window, okay? I know the glass is tinted, but until we get into the parking garage, you never know who might be lurking. Some of these tabloid journalists will do
anything
to get a front-page scoop.”
Eleanor’s raw emotions swirled around her body as she followed Joseph through the underground parking garage into his luxury apartment building. She was thrilled that it had been so easy to trick Pierre into confessing his affair. She even had the name of the other woman – and that Hollywood actor was an absolutely golden lead. But she didn’t need to be Mother Teresa to know it was totally immoral.
And on top of that, what the hell was she doing here with Joseph Quinlan? Those promises he’d made about giving her one night of no-strings pleasure had proved too much to resist. One-night-stands weren’t her thing at all. But Joseph had a reputation for being a good lover, and it’d been a long time since she’d had sex with anyone who cared about
her
pleasure. Didn’t she owe Matthew for cheating on her all those times?
And after the day she’d had… landing her dream job and realising she hated it. She felt as if her dreams had all come crashing down around her ears. And Joseph was offering her a night of comfort. Just one night.
She walked into his hallway and suddenly felt nervous. This apartment was amazing. It was open-plan, meaning that the front door led into the living room – which was surrounded by doors leading off to various other rooms; presumably the bedrooms, bathroom, and kitchen.
It was surprisingly clean for a young man living alone, and the cream shelving units, beige carpets, and angular furniture gave it a corporate feel. But Joseph had made his mark on it: above one of the huge couches was a tatty black-and-white poster of the Ramones, which had presumably once adorned his adolescent bedroom. There was a signed photo of Jimi Hendrix hanging pride of place above the expensive sound system, and a priceless Stratocaster guitar leaning against the wall. The coffee table was strewn with music magazines, as well as an empty Jack Daniels bottle and several notebooks, which Joseph probably used to jot down lyrics as they came to him. Somehow he’d managed to make this plush expensive pad seem like a student dorm, which Eleanor thought was charming and cool.
He closed the front door behind her and stepped over to massage her shoulders, which made her automatically tense up.
“Joseph, I–”
“Relax,” he said, dropping his mouth to her ear. “Just enjoy it. Why don’t you take a seat? You want some coffee?”
She composed her thrashing heart. “Tea?”
“Sure.” He stepped in front of her and cupped her chin in a strong hand. “Anything else? You’re still wet, huh?”
Eleanor swallowed the lust in the throat. “Er…?”
He laughed. “No, I mean from the rain. I’ll get you a towel.”
“Oh… thanks.”
He put on some music, then disappeared into the kitchen, so she sat down on one of the squashy couches and tried to relax. It was impossible because she knew what she was here for, so she pulled out her phone and sent Matthew a message saying she was staying with her friend Elizabeth tonight. She then sent Elizabeth a message asking her to cover for her if Matthew made contact. Elizabeth was the friend she always went to whenever she and Matthew argued – she hated Matthew and his cheating arrogance, so Eleanor knew she’d gladly cover for her – especially if it meant they might soon break up.
Joseph ambled back carrying two mugs and a soft white towel.
“Thanks,” she said, taking the towel. She ran it through her hair as he settled himself on the couch opposite. The huge glass coffee table between them created a vast cavern, which crackled with sexual energy. Eleanor was surprised he hadn’t pounced on her yet. But it seemed that now he’d lured her to his lair, he was happy to take his time over the seduction.
He sipped his coffee and threw her a sizzling grin, making her feel as if he was caressing her body all the way from over there. Oh my
god
! She was alone with Joseph Quinlan and he wanted to make her come hard!
“Better?” he asked.
“Yeah… So, um... Here we are.”
“We sure are.”
She sipped her tea. “So, I was wondering, was that
really
your sister and cousin on the front page this morning?”
“Yep. My sister came in from out of town. She’s a marine biologist and spends her time studying pond-life. She’d probably be interested in meeting Matthew.”
Eleanor laughed. Joseph was charming and handsome, and she wanted to go over and lie in his arms – to find out what that sculpted body tasted like… To find out whether his reputation as a lover was true…
He slung his arm over the back of the couch and grinned. He was so fit. She could see his toned arms under his T-shirt, and she wanted to squeeze his muscles like a goofy horny teenage girl.
He smiled sincerely. “I love our daily banter, Ellie – it’s the highlight of my day.”
“Really! I mean, oh… good.”
“But I’ve gotta know, why are you so uptight?”
She suppressed the grin that tried to burst out onto her lips. “What! I’m not. You just don’t know how to be serious.”
He shrugged. “You only live once.”
“I bet you don’t know the meaning of the word commitment. Everything’s a joke to you.”
“Nah, I know how to be serious. Especially now I feel like a prisoner in my own life.”
Compassion replaced her lust. “Oh… Well, if it’s any consolation, I feel like a prisoner in my life, too.”
His handsome brow furrowed. “You do?”
Eleanor didn’t know why she felt compelled to open up to him, but he seemed genuinely interested. “You asked why I’m so uptight?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, I don’t want to blame my parents exactly, but they’ve always had very high expectations of me. I went to all the best schools – I had a great education and they wanted me to be a lawyer or a doctor. And I thought I would. But then one day when I was twelve I saw this homeless guy uptown. We didn’t go to the city often, so it was all a bit overwhelming. But this guy… I looked into his eyes and I saw…” She shook her head and looked away.
“Saw what?”
“Well, I saw that he was just a guy. Just like me.”
Joseph chuckled. “You’re a
guy
? I had no idea. Is it too late to change my mind about this?”
She laughed. “No… I mean… it was when I realised life was unfair. That’s all.”
“So you decided to become a journalist?”
“I wanted to help. I guess things don’t always work out how you hope, huh?”
He held her eye contact, remaining serious. “We have a lot in common, you know.”
“Do we?”
He smirked. “Well… not really. But they say opposites attract.” He leaned forward and grinned. “Maybe you and I can
rub off
on each other.”
She laughed wearily. “Everything’s a joke for Joseph Quinlan, isn’t it?”
“Nah, sometimes I can be serious.”
“Like when?”
He sipped his coffee and raised a playful eyebrow. “Is this part of my official interview?”
She put down her tea and held up an imaginary pen and notepad. Laughing, she said, “Sure. I’ll ask you some questions.”
“Alright, what do you want to know?”
“What I really want to know is… it’s been something I’ve been wondering for some time now… since I met you.”
“Oh yeah?”
She gazed into his gorgeous eyes. “Is there anyone special in your life at the moment? Romantically speaking?”
Joseph smirked and leaned back in his seat. “Why, yes there is actually.”
Disappointment flashed through Eleanor’s body. She tried not to show it on her face. “Really?”
“Yep.”
Eleanor hardened her heart and prepared herself to make her excuses. She couldn’t do this one-night-stand thing with Joseph after all, because – she now realised – she liked him too much. “And who is she?” Eleanor asked, unable to resist finding out who the lucky lady was.
“Well… is this going to end up on the front pages of your newspaper tomorrow morning?”
“Of course not.”
“Good, because I don’t want this special woman to get dragged into any bullshit. I really care about her.”
“You do? Who is she?”
He inspected her for a moment. “Actually, it’s a tragic tale. She’s engaged to another guy – a total asshole. I see her every day and we always take the time to exchange insults. And I can’t seem to erode her steely exterior no matter how hard I try. I’m determined, though. Because she’s the most beautiful – most captivating – woman I’ve ever met and I can’t stop thinking about her.”
Eleanor’s heart pounded hard. She smiled mischievously. “I was under the impression you could woo your way into the bed of any woman you wanted.”
“Not this one. She thinks I’m a jerk – she said so herself. But she doesn’t know me. Not really.”
Eleanor stood up and strolled over to join him on his couch. “I’m sure she’d like to get to know the real you.”
He held her hand and gazed into her eyes. “The
real
me. Does anyone know him? I get tired of it, you know. Women treating me like a piece of meat. They just care about my body. I mean, is it really that amazing?”
He pulled his T-shirt over his head and dropped it to the carpet, then he reclined in the couch and posed for her as he had done for so many photographers in recent months. He smirked, knowing very well what the answer was: yes it was the most amazing body she’d ever seen.
She looked away. “Well, if you don’t want to be treated like a piece of meat…”
He reached out and guided her face to look into his eyes. “Let me take care of you, Ellie. That’s all I want. To show you how good it can be.”
She breathed heavily, trying to stay in control. He moved his face towards hers and closed his eyes, bringing his gorgeous lips nearer to hers. She thought about Matthew; she thought about how having sex with Joseph wasn’t going to help anything. In fact, it would probably just cause more problems. But he was irresistible. He took her hand and squeezed her fingers tenderly, and suddenly she couldn’t stop herself from kissing him hard. He came alive and wrapped her up in his arms, kissing her with such passion that Eleanor feared she might melt into a pool of lust. Her heart pounded hard and her thighs pounded harder as he kissed her neck and nibbled her earlobe, making her gasp with desire.
“I’m going to fuck you,” he whispered. “I’m going to fuck you so hard that you’ll be taken completely by pleasure. By me.”
Eleanor’s body shuddered with lust. She opened her mouth to reply, but Joseph kissed her on the lips and unbuttoned her shirt, which he pulled open forcefully. He unhooked her bra, pulling off both shirt and bra with a flourish and throwing them to the floor.
He inspected her bare breasts. “Jesus, you’re gorgeous. So fucking hot.”
Eleanor was proud of her body so she arched her back and thrust out her chest, giving him a good look. He reached up and gently ran his thumb over one of her breasts, making it tingle with delight. Then he lowered his head and swirled his tongue around her rock-hard nipple, sucking and teasing, and making her feel like she might climax from this alone.
He sat up and gazed into her eyes. “Stand up. Take off your skirt.”
Her lust caught in her throat at his dominating demands. She stood and unzipped her skirt at the back, enjoying the feel of his lustful gaze caressing her. Then she pushed her skirt down and kicked it away, revealing her silky panties and elastic-topped stockings. She was still wearing her heels, and she suddenly felt more desirable than she had in her entire life.
He held out his hand. “Come here.”
She took his hand and sat side-saddle on his knee, feeling naughty about being topless and wearing nothing but her panties and stockings. She draped her arm around his strong toned shoulders, relishing the smooth warmth of his skin. His chest and abs – this close up – were spectacular. He lowered his face and sucked her tits, while guiding her hand towards the huge bulge in his leather trousers. With shaking hands she unzipped him and delved her hand inside. He was still sucking her tits, which was making her body tremble with desire, but she focused on folding her fingers around his long hard erection. Lust fizzed over her body as he wrapped his fingers around hers and they started to move their hands together up and down his shaft.
He groaned, sending delightful vibrations from his lips to her nipple. “I need to fuck you – to feel my cock inside you. I’ve been thinking about thrusting deep into your tight little body for months.”
Eleanor’s breathing quickened at his dirty talk. He reached out and ran his long fingers up her stocking-clad thigh, then he circled his fingertip around the gusset of her silky panties. He was still sucking her nipple, causing sparks of passion to crackle up and down her body. She rocked her hips as he continued to tease her panties, desperate for him to fill her up.
“Want me inside you, huh? Tell me.”
“Yes,” she gasped. “Yes, I do.”
Joseph moved away from her breasts and nuzzled his face into her neck, biting her like a wild animal as he slid two fingers into her panties, delving them into her wet pussy.
He started to move his fingers deep inside her and she thrust her hips back and forth, desperate to rub herself on his strong hand. Her mind began to meld with her surroundings and her pussy contracted. He gently withdrew his fingers. “Not yet.”