Wrong Man, Right Kiss

Two

“You’re jerking me around, toad, I just know it!”

Julian leaned back in his swivel chair and suppressed a smile as he watched his brother pace across the state-of-the-art conference room on the top floor of the San Antonio Daily, a thriving business the Gage family had run since the 1930s.

“Brother,” Julian tsked, “I realize I’m younger than you, but don’t forget I am stronger and I will take you down if you keep pissing me off.”

“So you’re basically admitting that you’re sleeping with our little Molls?”

“I never said that. I said we’re dating and she’s moving in with me.” This last was something Julian hadn’t discussed with Molly before, but it had suddenly seemed like a good idea. And when Garrett’s complexion turned the color of a ripe cherry tomato, Julian knew he’d struck the jackpot.

Garrett was livid.

Julian and Molly had discussed some basic rules yesterday—like no dating anyone else, a good dose of PDA for show when around family and strangers, and how neither would ever, ever disclose to anyone that their romantic liaison had been fake. This seemed especially important to Molly, who seemed to think it of utmost importance to be convincing in their new “relationship.”

Julian was right on board with that.

Hell, he was on board with anything that meant pushing Garrett’s buttons.

Not that he had anything against the guy, except the fact that he was maybe too honorable for his own damned good, and ever since Landon, the eldest brother, had embarked on a much deserved sixty-day honeymoon, Garrett seemed to think he carried the weight of the world on his shoulders. Or at least, of the family business.

There was plenty of love among the three, yeah, but Julian had been planning to exact a special brotherly revenge on Garrett for a long. Long. Time.

A revenge made all the sweeter by the fact that Molly suddenly had it in her pretty head to get Garrett’s personal attention.

Hell, Julian hadn’t had a wink of sleep last night just thinking about it.

Now he took a moment to enjoy the fact that his brother’s face was taut with displeasure, his knuckles jutting out as he gripped his coffee cup. He stopped his pacing and stood across from Julian at the conference table, where they’d just wrapped up a meeting with their top executives. “Since when are you two interested in each other?” Garrett demanded.

“Since we started sexting,” Julian returned, unflinching. Then, before Garrett could ask more, Julian lifted his cell phone and read a message. “Damn, this girl turns me on.” He pretended to text Molly back and took his sweet, sweet time about it. Though in reality he was just telling her:

He knows. Guy’s going bananas. Tell you about it @ dinner.

Garrett shot him a murderous glare. “Does Kate know about this sexting/moving-in...relationship?”

“Probably, unless she’s too busy catering for her next event. She is Molly’s sister, after all.”

Just then, Molly’s response popped up:

No wonder Kate and Garrett get along so well.

Julian quickly typed in:

I suppose Kate no longer worships the ground I tread on?

Molly replied:

Affirmative. Be careful, lover. She has a spatula and she’s not afraid to use it as a weapon.

Julian’s lips curled in amusement. Ahh, Molly. Light of his life.

“So which part was it?”

Julian gazed blankly up at Garrett, who almost had steam coming out of his ears. “Which part was what?” he asked.

“Which part of what Mother, Landon and I have been telling you for, oh...say, two decades, did you not get? The part that Molly Devaney was hands-off? The part that you could be disowned if you harmed her in any way?”

Julian nodded to placate him. “I heard you all. I heard you the first time, the tenth time, the hundredth time and I hear you now. Now hear this, bro.” He leaned forward across the conference table and scowled. “I don’t. Freaking. Care. Do you...get that?”

Garrett clenched his jaw and drew in a breath that inflated his chest. The guy was so rankled, he was probably about a step away from banging his chest like Tarzan. “I’m going to have words with Molly, as I am sure it is in her best interests to reconsider this stupidity. Just know this, Julian...if you hurt her, if you so much as harm a hair on her head...”

He didn’t know if it was the threat, or the possessive way Garrett was acting toward Molly or the simple fact that Molly fancied herself in love with the guy. Worse, he feared it might be due to the fact that Garrett wanted Molly for himself. But Julian’s cool began to fade, and it took an inhuman effort to keep the mask on his face.

Suddenly transported back to his teenage years, he too easily remembered all those damned times he and Molly tried to get close. The special bond you forged with someone, one that is rare and precious and you’d be lucky to find in your lifetime—Julian had always had that with her. But every time their friendship threatened to develop into something more romantic, his family would panic and they’d swoop down like vultures to emotionally blackmail, harass and coerce him to keep them apart. More than once, he’d even been sent abroad for months, the first time apparently because Julian had been “looking” at Molly in a way that neither Kate, Landon, nor their mother—and especially not Garrett—had liked.

Julian had told himself time and again that he didn’t care. And once he was an adult, they’d made him believe he was a playboy until he had no other choice but to play the part. He could have any woman—they always told him—except Kate or Molly. That was the rule.

And every year of his life, that single, simple rule had made him feel tied up, caged like a lion, and as unhappy as a penned-up bull.

Now the command from his brother to stay away from the only woman who truly knew him made a fresh surge of anger rise up from within him. No matter what Molly thought now, or what Garrett planned to do, this was Julian’s future on the line—and he had been planning it for years. No one was going to mess with that future. Or with his red-haired, paint-streaked little gypsy girl. Or with him.

Especially when he intended to use this fake relationship with Molly to explore his very real feelings for her.

Quietly and with deliberate slowness, Julian rose to his feet, came around the table and set a hand on his brother’s shoulder. Then he whispered, very mildly, but with an edge, “Stay out of this, Garrett. I don’t want to hurt you, man, and I definitely don’t want to hurt her. So just stay the hell out of this.”

Then he grabbed his jacket, reclaimed his cool and stalked out of his office.

* * *

“I can’t believe it. I really can’t. I just know you’re pulling my leg, Molly.”

Propped up on a stool by the granite island in the Devaneys’ kitchen while her sister decorated newly baked cookies, Molly focused on filing her nails, her stomach fluttering with excitement over this being her first night as Julian’s fake girlfriend. She could hardly wait to see the expression on Garrett’s dark, riveting face when he eventually saw them together. Hopefully, Julian would drape his arm around her shoulders in that aloof, sexy manner he had, in a way that said she’s my girl and aren’t I the hottest ticket around?

“I’m not pulling anything, I swear,” Molly assured her. “You can totally call Julian and ask him.”

Kate held up her spatula in the air, her auburn-red hair—the same shade as Molly’s—haphazardly knotted atop her beautiful face. She exuded such raw sexiness while wearing that frilly white apron that Molly could’ve hated her if she didn’t love her sister so utterly.

If there was one word to describe Kate Devaney, it would be alive. Kate thrived doing everything and anything, which explained the rocking success of her catering business; she was a killer cook with killer curves, tall and tanned and confident and fun.

The only thing Molly truly had that might surpass Kate in the looks department was her really nice bust, but then she went through so much effort to hide it, in the end it didn’t amount to much of an advantage.

“Julian and you? Together? I just can’t give credit to this. His girls are always so—”

“Don’t say it or I’ll hate you,” Molly grumbled, smacking her nail file down.

Kate sighed, scooped up cookies from the baking sheet and began packaging them in single decorative cellophane wraps. “Fine. I won’t say it. But you know what I mean, don’t you?”

Molly stood and went to look at herself in the mirror by the foyer, trying not to remember how Julian’s words had hurt her yesterday morning. “You’re right, I know they don’t look like me,” she said as she ambled back with an expression of total displeasure on her face. “They’re tall and sexy and sophisticated.” But I don’t care because I don’t want Julian, I want Garrett, she reminded herself.

Her lips still burned with the memory of his scorching kiss, the incredibly sexy rumble of him growling against her mouth, as if Molly’s lips were something to suckle on and bite on and feast on...

Everything inside her turned hot, and Molly shook the images aside.

Kate looked at Molly and burst out laughing. “You’ve really fallen for him, haven’t you? I love Julian, Molls, but even I admit that whoever marries him is a fool. And I don’t want you to be that fool, Moo.”

Molly was about to assure her she would never be so stupid as to fall for Julian John. She had never seen a man so determined to sleep with so many women in her life. It was as if he had an itch he needed to get scratched and none of them seemed to cut it for him. She was about to express all of this to Kate, but then she remembered she was supposed to be his girlfriend already—or yeah, his lover, since Julian was too worldly to have girlfriends—so she clamped her mouth shut and privately thanked her lucky stars that she truly had better sense than to become notch number 1,000,340 on the mysterious and uncatchable Julian John Gage’s bedpost.

Kate paused in her cookie wrapping and lifted two winged eyebrows in question. “So how did it happen? Did he just suddenly—?”

“Did I realize what a fool I’ve been not to finally admit little Molls is the one for me? Yeah. Exactly like that.” The deep baritone that interrupted them startled Molly so much that her arms broke out in goose bumps.

She spun around as Julian shut the front door after him, and her stomach sank in mortification when she realized that once again he would find her in paint-splattered work clothes. Then she remembered she didn’t care. This was Julian John and she didn’t need to impress him. He already thought she looked like a by-product of a blender. Why ruin it for him?

But it seemed wholly unfair that she would be wearing paint marks up to her hair and he would look so clean and male and good. Black jacket slung over his shoulder, his burgundy Gucci tie almost undone, he looked sexily tousled and delicious. Not that Molly wanted a bite of him or anything, but she supposed another woman would. Hell, they all did.

But Molly had common sense in regards to him.

She mentally patted herself on the back once more while Julian stalked forward as if he owned the place, wearing that playful grin he’d given her ever since they were kids.

“Whatever Kate has said about me, Mopey, don’t believe her. It’s all due to the fact that she wanted me first.” His strong arms coiled like a steel vise around her waist while that Beckham-blond head dipped toward hers.

Molly didn’t see it coming. He moved too fast and had incredible strength, and she was only five feet tall and easily handled. Before she could even realize what was happening, Julian had already reeled her in, crushing her breasts against his rock-hard pecs as his mouth settled firmly over hers, expertly, perfectly, oh so hotly.

And ooh. Oooh. A tiny working part of her mind frantically screamed at her to push him away. The only one she should be kissing now was Garrett! But the fact was, Julian kissed like his brother. Except Julian tasted clean and minty and not of wine, and he kissed her as if he had all the time in the world.

Those silken playboy’s lips pressed with painstaking gentleness against hers and moved so languorously that all her senses began to spin out of control. Molly became magnetized. Hypnotized. Almost transported to the night her entire world had flipped upside down, and she’d glanced down to find her heart had been stolen from her chest.

She wasn’t even sure she was standing anymore, but trusted that Julian would always catch her fall. The sudden desperate urge to press closer to him flitted through her, burned through her being as he lingered in his kiss for a thrilling, electrifying second, and then he was gone. Leaving her dazed and surprised and scatterbrained as he set her away—thankfully keeping a steady hand on her elbow until she found her ground.

He said something once it was over. She thought it was hello.

Molly pushed her hair back, feeling dazed. “Uh—hi.”

He asked her something, his voice huskier than usual, his eyes at half-mast, and she stared at his mouth. His soft yet strong lips became the center of her attention, for she wondered what exactly it was about those lips that had felt so incredibly good when he’d put them on hers.

Even her knees had taken a hit.

She fought to calm down, but remained so shaken she ended up snapping at him for catching her unaware. “What are you doing here, JJ?” she asked, glaring, using his old kiddie nickname just to punish him.

Julian remained aloof and calmly popped a cookie straight from the baking sheet into his mouth. “Nothing, pumpkin buns. Just wanted to check in on my girl.” He strode over and squeezed her butt, whispering only for her ears, “JJ? You’re going to pay for that, Molls.”

She fake giggled so Kate wouldn’t notice anything strange and pulled away, her buttocks aflame from his touch. How to get back at him? She said the first thing that came to mind when she caught Kate’s confused expression. “JJ loves for me to call him all sorts of pet names when we’re...you know,” she told her.

“JJ?” Kate turned to Julian, hands on hips, spatula held like a sword. “I thought you absolutely loathed that nickname.”

Julian shot Molly a warning look. “I do,” he said, jaw square as a cutting board. “But little Molls calls me JJ exclusively when she wants me to spank her.”

Molly’s satisfaction in getting back at him vanished.

Her cheeks burst into flames. She wanted to die of embarrassment, for now her sister would forever believe her to be into that kind of kinky stuff.

“Baby, its barely afternoon and I still need to make myself sexy and sophisticated for you,” she told him as she went around the kitchen and shot him a scowl from behind Kate’s shoulders. “Not all of us come by it naturally. Now you’ll have to wait for me a bit. I’m sure Kate and her spatula would love to keep you company, though.”

He moved fluidly, nonplussed. “I have a better idea, bun-buns. Why don’t I help you get dressed, hmm?” Before Molly could deny him, he’d followed her into her bedroom and locked them inside while Kate remained in the kitchen, no doubt still wide-eyed.

“Will you puleeze stop provoking me,” Molly hissed, pushing him against the door. “Stop calling me bun-buns.”

He leaned forward with gritted teeth. “Who’s provoking who? You know I freaking hate JJ!”

“And don’t you dare kiss me again without warning like you just did!”

“If you ever call me JJ again, I’m going to kiss you—with tongue. So don’t, otherwise I’ll think you want my tongue inside your mouth!”

He glared at her and she glared back, wishing that a stream of butterflies hadn’t just migrated to her stomach. She couldn’t help but wonder what Julian did with his loathed tongue that drove all women crazy, crazy, crazy....

“Are we clear about this, Molls?” he demanded, using his thumb and forefinger to tip her head back and force her to meet his gaze. She was appalled to realize she had apparently been staring dumbly at his mouth.

She nodded so that he would release her and swallowed, some rebel inside her wanting to test him and say: Yes, JJ.

Then she groaned and thrust him away. “Why, oh, why did you have to tell her you spanked me?” She shook her head and rubbed her temples in complete mortification.

“Because sometimes I swear to God you want me to.” He swatted her butt and strolled to the closet, leaving her to grapple with incredibly strange and powerful emotions and an uncomfortably stinging butt.

“So.” He yanked out a huge suitcase, turned back and cocked a devilish eyebrow at her. “I told the love of your life that you were moving in with me. What do you say about that, my little Picasso?”

“Was he jealous?”

That smile again. “About as close to banging his head on a wall as I’ve seen him.”

Molly yanked her panty drawer open. “Then I’d be delighted.”

Three

“So what else did the love of my life say?” Molly asked as they made a pit stop for food on their way back to Julian’s place. He was always hungry. It seemed that his muscles needed a lot of glucose, all the time. The man had a friends group for every sport he participated in: soccer, basketball, kayaks, zip-lining, even the more extreme hang-gliding gigs.

Those hard, taut muscles on his arms and legs and abs and the magnificent golden hue of his skin obviously didn’t come from being in an office all day.

He was so lean, he could probably tackle a decathlon as easily as he tackled women in bed.... Hmm, she wondered if Garrett would soon tackle her in bed.

“Wait here,” he said as he slid his silver Aston Martin into the only vacant parking slot in front of a frozen yogurt chain.

“Hey will you get me an Oreo milk shake with—”

“Three cherries on top—one for chewing, one for sucking and one to leave at the bottom?”

Molly grinned and nodded, and she could still hear his rumbling chuckle even after he’d closed the door.

Minutes later, he returned, and she found herself scowling down at her milk shake. “Why is there a phone number written on my milk shake cup?”

With an easy flick of his wrist, he turned the key and his car engine roared back to life.

“Julian!”

He flung his hands up in exasperation. “I didn’t ask for it, Molls.”

She shook her head in distaste. But then, could she blame the cashier or whoever had scrambled to write her hopes on Molly’s milk shake? Julian was graced with both a face and body that made women gape, stammer and stutter—then behave like twits. That was a fact. And there was nothing Molly—or even Julian—could do about it.

Still, it rankled, and Molly kept shaking her head. “Honestly. I have no idea who in their right mind would hook up with you.”

He shifted sideways and put the car in Reverse, then reached out and chucked her chin. “Apparently you.”

Molly laughed and started chewing her first cherry. “You haven’t told me what the love of my life has to say about me—his one true love—hanging out with the likes of you.”

Julian turned the wheel, shifted gears and sped onto the highway. “He mentioned guns. At dawn.”

Molly sucked on her second cherry. “Just please don’t make me a widow before I even marry him.”

“Marry. Whoa. Now there’s a big word.”

“There’s nothing wrong with the word marriage.”

“I said it was a big word.”

She stopped sucking on her cherry and stared at him in suspicion, pushing the cherry to one side of her mouth as she talked. “And please don’t tell me when you said guns you were talking about your biceps again?”

He just smiled that sexy smile. As if he knew a secret Molly didn’t. Or as if he’d seen her naked without her knowledge. Oops, where did that thought come from?

Her stomach jittered all of a sudden, and she figured she might be cold. It had started raining when they loaded up her suitcases, and now her clothes were soaked and clinging to her skin. Which was unfortunate, because she’d changed into something Julian might even consider sexy and sophisticated. Not because she cared what he thought, but just to prove to him that Molly Devaney had money of her own, had success on her own and only dressed comfortably because she believed inner beauty was more important than material stuff.

Now as she contemplated her soggy outfit, she didn’t know if her goose bumps were due to her wet tank or the cold milk shake or excitement.

Julian became pensive as he drove, but that was fine with her. Molly chattered on in her excitement about how she was going to get Garrett, how she could use one of Julian’s spare bedrooms if she felt suddenly inspired and had to paint... She did have an exhibition soon and needed to finish two more pieces within the next month.

When they arrived at his apartment building, he asked her if he could show her something and Molly nodded eagerly. Eduardo, one of the doormen, took charge of delivering her bags to the twelfth floor while Julian guided her to another elevator and pressed P. They were carried up to the penthouse.

What greeted them when the elevator doors opened was an enormous white space, with floor-to-ceiling windows in every corner and the smell of fresh paint lingering in the air.

“Wow. What is this?”

He met her gaze, and she was mesmerized by the proud gleam in his eyes, could even hear the pride in his gruff voice. “These just so happen to be my future offices.”

Molly’s eyes rounded in surprise. “You—what do you mean? Is the Daily moving from downtown?”

The Gage family owned the most thriving and successful newspaper conglomerate in all of Texas, which included several print publications, internet news sites and some cable-TV channels, all working under the umbrella of their first paper, the San Antonio Daily. It was a business of three generations and one that gave the family immense wealth and untold power. Their offices occupied an entire block downtown, so Molly couldn’t quite believe the move would be so easy.

A second passed before Julian answered, and it was as though he was selecting his words carefully. “No. I’m the only one moving out, Molls.”

Molly stared at his somber expression, loud warning bells chiming in her head. She immediately sensed this development was not a positive thing for the family. “Do your brothers know about this, Jules?” she asked, treading cautiously.

“They will.”

Molly took a couple of minutes to digest this shocking news. Her stomach did weird things at the thought of drama within the family, which had always seemed to revolve around Julian and his rebel ways. She still remembered each one of the times he’d been sent abroad for who knew what kinds of wrongdoing. Molly had missed her friend terribly, like she’d miss a thumb or an arm or a crucial and important part of her. All she remembered about those wretched months was that she’d cried. A lot.

Now she watched him move lithely across his new office area, easily stepping over plastic tarps while he surveyed the electrical wires that stuck out from the scattered pillars, and she wondered why he’d want to bail out on the family’s extremely successful newspaper and publishing business.

As the head of PR and chief of advertising for the company, Julian had the best part of the pie, in her humble opinion. He had the same whopping salary, just as many shares in the company as his brothers but the fewest responsibilities, which allowed him to have the most fun, the most women and the most time for hobbies like flying that Cessna plane he so loved and doing all the sports he enjoyed. Why would he leave the San Antonio Daily?

“I had no idea you were unhappy where you were,” she said as she caught up with him, searching his face.

He stared out the wide windows and the sunlight caught a dozen golden flecks in his green eyes. “I’m dissatisfied with my life, though not necessarily unhappy. A change was in order.”