The Mighty Quinns: Jack (9 page)

And then, on Sundays, they’d fall back into bed for another session of mind-blowing sex. Mia wondered what it would take to make that happen right now. Perhaps if she just reached out and touched him. Her fingers twitched as she imagined her hands smoothing over wide shoulders, down his flat belly and then lower.

He rinsed his mouth and then tossed the toothbrush on the counter. “Much better,” he said. Jack cupped her face in his hands and gave her a sweet and lingering kiss. And when it was over, he pressed his forehead to hers. “Good morning,” he murmured.

“Morning,” she said. Mia wrapped her arms around his neck. He tasted all minty and sweet and irresistible.

It was the perfect way to start the day, Mia mused. He grabbed her waist and then stepped between her legs. A shiver skittered over her body as he slipped his fingers through her hair.

His hands seemed to be everywhere at once and yet she felt as if every caress was drawn out to its absolute end. First her face and then her shoulders. When he tugged off her T-shirt and tossed it aside, his mouth found the base of her throat.

She didn’t realize how much she craved these feelings, the excitement that raced through her body, the need and the longing. The only thing she wanted to think about was how they were going to get from the bathroom to his bed as quickly as possible.

The fabric of his boxer briefs outlined his growing erection and Mia knew her next move would tempt him even further. She reached out and skimmed her fingers over the front of his shorts.

His reaction was immediate and he groaned softly, pressing his mouth against her throat. Then, he drew back and looked down into her eyes. “I can’t seem to get enough of you,” he whispered.

Mia smiled. “I know exactly how you feel.”

Everything about him was perfect for her. He was sweet and strong and funny and kind. And from the moment she’d met him, she knew he was the kind of guy she could trust. It didn’t matter what warnings her father gave her or what challenges she saw in the future. They were together now and she wanted to experience him completely, without any reservations.

“Maybe we could try it in the closet again,” she teased. “Only, this time, with the lights on.”

5

“Y
OU
LOOK
GOOD
IN
A
HAT
.”

Jack reached over and adjusted the brim of the baseball cap, as the evening breeze buffeted the inside of the Mini Cooper, causing strands of her pale hair to blow around her pretty face.

They’d spent the afternoon at the ballpark, watching the Giants deal a loss to the Mets. The game was a badly needed distraction for Mia and Jack was glad of it. They cheered, they drank beer, they argued over calls and for Jack, it was a perfect afternoon. There hadn’t been any talk about their parents.

In truth, it was the closest thing they’d had to a regular date. And the easy friendship that they shared was yet another piece in what was becoming a real relationship.

Jack knew he shouldn’t project his own feelings onto an arrangement that Mia was controlling. She made the rules, she decided what they were now and what they might become in the future. But he could already see that it could work between them. They were wild about each other in the bedroom and he was just as wild about her outside of it.

“I had a good time today,” Mia said. She glanced over at him and smiled. “Thanks for talking me into going.”

“I told you, a ball game will always fix whatever ails you.”

“You were right. I feel much better now.”

Jack reached over and grabbed her hand, then kissed her fingertips, one by one. “I’m glad. I like to see you happy. You have a very pretty smile.”

“You don’t have to flatter me,” she murmured.

“I’m not flattering you,” he said. “I’m stating a fact.”

Mia sighed softly. “Saying things like that only makes things harder.”

“Maybe they should be hard,” he said. “Maybe there’s a reason for that.”

“We decided that this was just going to be a temporary thing, remember? You can’t change the rules halfway through the game. You should know that.”

“Are we playing a game, Mia? Because, to me, it sure doesn’t feel like one. It feels real.”

As they sped along the Embarcadero, a wide thoroughfare lined with palm trees, silence descended between them. Jack stared out at the waterfront. He knew he shouldn’t have pushed things. It was way too early. But their relationship had been one big runaway train from the very start and if he didn’t slow it down now, Jack was afraid they’d crash and burn.

He’d found something with Mia that he hadn’t had in the past, a deeper connection that he wanted to explore a little further. But how could he convince her to give them a chance?

Mia turned the car away from the water and headed up a long, steep hill. Though Jack had visited San Francisco many times while covering the Cubs, he hadn’t spent a lot of time getting to know the city. Mia was perfectly comfortable here, he mused. This was her home in the same way Chicago was his.

She steered into the tiniest of parking spots on the street, then turned off the ignition. “This is it,” she said. She hopped out of the car, then grabbed her bag from the backseat. Jack stepped out and looked up at the row house, wedged between two others of the exact same size and design. He climbed the front steps and waited as she unlocked the door to the stairs.

“I’m on the third floor.”

They climbed the flights and when they got to the top, Mia opened the door and stepped inside. Jack followed her, taking in the details of the interior. It was a bright and sunny apartment with a huge bay window that overlooked the street. The interior was beautifully decorated, so unlike the ordinary interior of his flat.

“It’s nice,” he murmured as he walked over to the window. He could imagine her here, living her life, coming home from work and relaxing with a glass of wine, making dinner for herself.

“Thanks,” she said. “We’re supposed to meet my dad and your mom at eight, so we have about an hour. I could make us something to eat.”

“I wouldn’t mind a shower,” he said.

She stared at him for a long moment, then nodded her head. “Sure. It’s this way.”

“Wait,” he said, slipping his hands around her waist. “Just wait for a second.” Jack turned her to face him and Mia looked up into his gaze,
her expression wary. When he bent closer, he felt her soften in his arms and Jack kissed her. Though his feelings for her grew more confused with every moment they spent together, he needed to know there was still an attraction between them.

“Maybe we should take a shower together,” he suggested.

Mia smiled coyly. “Do you really want to start something when we’re supposed to be somewhere in an hour?”

“I can be very efficient,” he murmured.

“I think we can test that another time,” she said. “The bathroom is down the hall on the left. There are fresh towels in the closet next to the sink. It takes about two minutes for the hot water to make it from the ground floor to my flat, so be patient.”

Jack grabbed his bag and walked down the hall. He’d brought along a clean shirt and freshly-pressed khakis, more appropriate wardrobe for a dance than cargo shorts and a T-shirt. He closed the bathroom door behind him and stripped out of his clothes, then turned on the shower and waited for the water to warm.

He found a bottle of shampoo and sniffed at it, recognizing the citrusy scent from Mia’s hair. Her body wash smelled like her, too, but he didn’t have any choice in the matter. “I’m going to smell like a girl,” he murmured.

When he was finished, Jack shut off the water, then pushed the curtain back, only to find Mia, sitting perched on the closed toilet seat, her legs pulled up to her chest. “Did you change your mind?” he asked.

Mia shook her head. “No, I’ll jump in after we have something to eat.”

“Did you need to use the bathroom?”

She frowned, then watched as he grabbed a towel and dried himself. He’d known Mia for three days, seventy-two hours, and yet it seemed as if it had been so much longer.

“I—I just wanted to tell you that it doesn’t have to be temporary,” she said in a quiet voice. “Not that it can’t be if that’s what we choose. But I’m not— I just don’t—” She drew a deep breath. “Whatever happens, happens. That’s what I wanted to say.”

Jack wrapped the towel around his waist and stepped out of the tub. He crossed the bathroom and stood in front of her, then reached out to cup her cheek in his hand. “I think that’s a good decision, Mia,” he said. “I don’t like to operate with a lot of rules.”

“Just promise me that it’s not going to hurt,” she said, leaning into his body. Mia pressed her lips against his damp chest and he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close.

“It already hurts,” he said. “You’re an ache deep inside of me, Mia. I can’t stop thinking about you, or wanting to touch you. And I’m not sure that feeling is going to go away anytime soon, no matter how far apart we are.”

“I don’t want to want you,” she said. “I’m trying so hard not to, but I don’t think it’s working.”

He brushed a kiss across her lips. “It’s a mystery,” Jack said. “No one can predict who they’ll fall in love with. Or how long it will take. Or when it will happen. I think the best you can hope for is that you’ll recognize it when it does come along.”

She looked up at him and smiled. “I really don’t know what I’m doing. You know, that whole friends-with-benefits thing could be a complete load of crap.”

Jack nodded. “Yeah, I’ve been kind of thinking the same thing. A colossal load of crap.” He hugged her, then pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “I’m glad we got that settled.”

Mia slowly drew back. “Did you use my shampoo?”

“And your body wash.”

“You smell like a girl,” she said with a giggle. “I can lend you a pair of my underwear if you like.”

“Now that would be sexy.” He reached down and twisted his fingers in the hem of her dress, then slowly slid it over her head. Jack buried his face in the curve of her neck. “I kind of like the way you smell. At least I can find you in a dark closet.”

Mia reached over and flipped off the light switch. “Is that better?”

Jack finished removing her underwear in the darkness. He never tired of touching her, of running his palms over her silken skin and soft flesh. If he walked away tomorrow, how long would it take for him to forget this wonderful sense of intimacy? He felt as if he’d known her forever and yet they were still strangers.

Was this what it took to make a relationship work? he wondered. This crazy state of limbo where he couldn’t tell up from down, right from left, love from lust? With Mia, he lived in the moment and yet, he was certain that all their moments together would never be enough.

“Do we really need to go to this dance?” he murmured. “Couldn’t we stay here and do our dancing in private?”

“You said you didn’t know how to dance,” Mia countered.

“My mom, my sisters and I used to dance around the living room on Saturday nights. She’d put on some Tony Bennett and get all misty-eyed.” He slipped his arm around her waist and drew her close. “Let’s give it a try. See if I remember.”

Mia giggled. “We don’t have any music,” she said. “And we’re naked in my bathroom.”

“Hey, I’m not even sure I can dance. Adding music and clothing would just confuse the situation.” He held up his right hand.

“I think you’re supposed to lead, not me,” she said.

“I knew that didn’t feel right.” He switched his hands around and then nodded. “All right. Now what? I can’t remember how to start.”

“We just start moving,” she said. “Come on, Fred Astaire, show me some moves.”

He took a step to the left and they began to clumsily move around the bathroom. Every now and then, he’d shift unexpectedly and she’d step on his toes. But after a few minutes, he seemed to get the hang of it and there weren’t any further injuries.

“See, that’s not so bad. You could probably get through a dance at the Bellingham if we stick to the slow songs.”

“Let’s try a twirl,” he said.

Mia stepped under his arm and he smoothly pulled her back into his embrace without losing a step. “It’s all coming back to me now,” he said. “Like riding a bike. Another?”

Mia nodded and a few seconds later, he twirled her twice. When he drew her back against his body, he pulled her closer, until their hips were touching.

“Let’s try a dip,” he whispered. Jack drew her leg up against his hip. His shaft was hard already and when it slipped between her legs, he heard her breath catch in her throat.

“And this is why they don’t hold dances in bathrooms with naked people,” she said, her hand drifting down his belly. “There’s not even enough room for the band.” When her fingers wrapped around his erection, Jack groaned.

“Maybe we should try it with music,” Jack whispered, bending closer.

He could feel her breath on his lips, could sense that she was teetering on the edge of surrender. Mia ran her hand along his shoulder until her fingers tangled in the wet hair at his nape.

She sank against his body and drew him even closer. When their lips were nearly touching again, she smiled. “Maybe we can go to the bedroom. There’s much more room for dancing there.”

His gaze searched her face for a long moment and then he nodded before accepting her invitation. When their lips met, it was as if a switch had been thrown. A powerful current raced through his body and Jack moaned softly as he gathered her in his embrace.

They were still moving, almost dancing, as they stumbled down the hall to her bedroom. And when they fell onto the bed, Jack pulled Mia back into a long and desperate kiss. There was no going back for him. This woman had become the most important thing in his life and he had no intention of giving her up any time soon.

* * *

T
HE
B
ELLINGHAM
WAS
a beautiful old hotel, built in the late thirties and once home to celebrities and movie stars visiting the city. The hotel had hosted Sunday–night big band dances for almost fifty years in their Crystal Ballroom, a glass-enclosed hall on the roof of the hotel. The dances had become a popular after-dinner destination for those who knew the difference between a foxtrot and a quick step.

Mia and Jack arrived an hour later than they planned, but Ben and Elyse were on the dance floor and didn’t seem to notice. Elyse kissed Jack on the cheek and gave Mia a hug, then pointed to the table they’d reserved next to the dance floor. Jack took Mia’s hand and led her off the floor, then pulled out her chair for her as she sat down.

Mia stared out at the dance floor, watching her father’s graceful movements with Jack’s mother in his arms. She remembered the parties in the gazebo, watching her parents and wondering if she’d ever be so in love with a man that she’d want to spend her life with him.

How did one ever recover from the loss of such perfect happiness? She drew a ragged breath and looked away, unable to watch as her father turned his attention to another woman.

“It’s easier if you don’t watch,” Jack murmured, reaching out to take her hand.

“I’m being childish. I know it, but I can’t help how I feel. I don’t care if your mother is a wonderful person. It still hurts to see him moving on.”

Jack stood up and held out his hand. “Come on, let’s at least attempt to dance. Maybe it will take your mind off your misery.”

Reluctantly, she took his hand and he led her out to the floor. He drew her into his arms and they moved along to the rhythm of the band. He was right. Being in his arms on the dance floor was a distraction. But how long would they be required to stay? Hell, she wasn’t even sure why they’d been invited.

Mia rested her head on Jack’s shoulder as she stared out at the dance floor, watching the graceful couples gliding along to the music, and the swirling lights creating patterns on the wood floor.

“How am I doing?” Jack asked.

She drew back and smiled. “Good,” she said. “You’re a pretty good dancer.”

“I had a good teacher,” he said.

“I think you probably learned more from your mother and Tony Bennett than you did from me in my bathroom.”

He smoothed his hand gently over the small of her back, bending close until his forehead was pressed against hers. “Maybe you could just focus on all the good that came from our parents meeting.”