Taming the VIP Playboy / Promoted To Wife?

“Not too much. If I had to guess I’d say you were a dancer.”

“You’d be right on the money. Dancing has been my life for as long as I can remember. And I made a mistake a few years ago and haven’t been able to compete since then,” she said.

“What kind of mistake?”

“One that involved a man,” she said. Her eyes were wide and weary as she watched him and he kept his face neutral.

“It’s funny, Jen, but a woman ultimately led to my change of profession.” “Really?”

“Yes. When I was injured I had been engaged and while I was recovering, she decided to move on to a different player.”

“I’m sorry.”

“I’m not. Obviously, we weren’t going to be happy together. I learned a very important lesson from her, one I haven’t forgotten,” he said.

“What was that?” she asked.

“That I’m not cut out for marriage,” he said.

“To her,” Jen said. “Why did you tell me?”

“So you wouldn’t feel like you were the only one to make a mistake because of love. What happened with your ‘mistake’?”

“I was forbidden from competing in the Latin dance competitions. I filed an appeal,” she said. “After a lengthy review, the verdict stands and I’m still not welcome to compete.” Her shoulders fell. “I’m never going to compete again.”

“That’s okay. You are going to do other things,” he said. “At the club every night you share your love for Latin music and dances with someone new. That has to count for something.”

She shook her head. “It’s not the same.”

“No, it’s not. But that is life, isn’t it?”

“Yes, it is. I am still struggling to figure out where I’m going to fit in without competition.”

“How long has it been since you competed?” he asked. He thought she’d been working at Luna Azul for at least a year.

“Three years. I filed a protest as soon as it happened. And I don’t want to sound like I’m full of myself but things usually work out for me. I just expected this to do the same.”

“My dad used to say that everything happens for a reason,” Nate said, hearing his father’s voice in his head. “We might not understand the reason but it’s there.”

She tipped her head to the side and studied him. “Do you believe that?”

“Yes, I do. I’m going to tell you something I don’t let most people know,” he said, leaning across the counter so that their faces were close.

“What is that?”

“I couldn’t have been as content playing baseball as I am with the life I’m living now.”

“Really?” she asked, sounding a bit skeptical.

“Truly. I get to see my brothers every day. I’m paid to entertain my friends and make sure that people have a good time. Is there a better job in the world?”

She nodded. “I see what you mean. I do love dancing and I’m able to do that every night.”

She got a far-off look in her eyes and he knew there was more to the story than she was letting on. “I guess I had gone as far as I could in that career. It was time for something new.”

“And you get to spend the morning with me,” he said.

“Wow, Nate, don’t sell yourself short,” she said with a laugh.

“I never do,” he said, kissing her.

Nate’s advice made sense and she liked the way he gave it out effortlessly and didn’t try to pretend that he had all the answers. He was more than she’d expected him to be, but then he’d been surprising her all night. She should be used to it.

“I’m not really hungry,” she said at last. She hadn’t come back to his place to eat and they both knew it.

“I’m not, either.”

He came around the counter and drew her to her feet. “Want to see the rest of this place?” “Yes, I do.”

He led the way down the hall to his bedroom. On the walls were exquisite pictures in bright colors that reminded her of Mexico City. His home was very modern and now. But it wasn’t a cold, modern decor, it was very warm and inviting and Jen was amazed that she felt so at home here.

She drew him to a stop under a portrait of him wearing a Yankees cap. “When did you take this?”

“Season opener. My dad wanted it … he was so proud of me for going pro. He came to every game if it didn’t interfere with his playing schedule. This hung in his bedroom at our home on Fisher Island.”

“When did he die?” she asked.

“Two weeks after I got injured. He didn’t know I’d never play again,” Nate said. “I’m glad.”

“I think he’d still be proud of you,” she said. She knew that her parents would have been proud of her no matter what she did. Marcia always said that parents just wanted their kids to be happy. Usually she was referring to her own seven-year-old son Riley.

“I’m not sure. Why am I telling you all this stuff?” he asked.

“People tell me things,” she said. “I think I look like the girl next door and people just feel comfortable with me. You probably do, too.”

“Girl next door? What do you mean by that?”

“Just someone comfortable. You know, the kind of girl you can tell your secrets to.”

“You called yourself a girl.”

She mock-punched his shoulder. “I do it all the time, but that doesn’t mean I like hearing a man call me a girl.”

He smiled. “Just when I think I have you figured out you do something else to surprise me.”

“I hope I’m not so easy to figure out,” she said. No matter that she told him about her dancing suspension. She usually played her cards closer to her chest. But to be honest, she had no idea how to deal with this life now that she had no direction. And opening up to Nate felt right somehow.

“You’re not. You are very complex,” he said, pulling her into his arms. “And very beautiful.”

He leaned in close and whispered in her ear, telling her how sexy he found her body and how much he wanted to touch her all night. His breath was warm and she liked hearing what he said.

He made her feel like she wasn’t incomplete. And that was it, she thought. Since she’d had her appeal denied, she realized that she’d felt broken, but here in Nate’s arms none of that mattered.

She twined her arms around his neck and lifted herself up to kiss him. His mouth moved hungrily over hers and she lost herself. His hands skimmed down her back and settled on her hips. He pulled her closer to him.

The feel of his strong, muscled arms around her made her feel very delicate and feminine. She had never been with a man who felt like Nate did. He was strong, muscled, his body still in shape from years of being an athlete. There was no way for her to pretend he was anyone other than Nate Stern.

Her blood flowed heavier in her veins as he moved his hands over her. She knew that Nate was in control of this embrace. She was letting him set the tempo and as much as she wanted him, she wasn’t ready to take the lead in anything between them. He lifted her off her feet.

“Wrap your arms and legs around me,” he said.

She held tight to him as he walked them into the bedroom. He sat down on the edge of the king-size bed. His hands roamed up and down her back as she looked down at him.

He tipped his head up and kissed her. There was passion in the kiss but also a note of tenderness and it was the tenderness that won her over. She held his face in both of her hands and plunged her tongue deep into his mouth. He reciprocated, tangling one of his hands deep in her thick hair.

He held her tight as passion overwhelmed her.

He leaned back and she straddled him on the bed. He palmed her breasts, cupping and fondling them gently. She undid the buttons of his shirt and he slowly drew her blouse up her torso. She liked the sensation of the cloth against her skin. She stopped what she was doing and tipped her head back, enjoying the moment.

His hands were warm against her flesh and he draped the fabric over the top of her breasts so that it hung there. His big hands encircled her waist and drew her down toward him.

She felt the warmth of his breath against her nipple a moment before his lips closed around it. She held his head again as he suckled her through the lace of her bra. Everything in her tightened as he caressed her.

She tried to reach behind her to unfasten the bra but he held her wrists. “Not yet. I want to do it this way.”

“You do?”

He nodded.

She reached between their bodies and found the hard ridge of his erection. She stroked her hand up and down over him through the fabric of his pants.

“Do you like that?” she asked as he arched his back and moved his hips against her stroking hand.

“Very much. Want to get naked?” he asked, with a grin.

“More than you can imagine, but I thought you wanted to wait.”

“Touché,” he said, snaking his hands around her back and undoing the clasp of her bra. He pushed the fabric up out of his way and then lifted her off his lap. “I can’t see you in this light.”

He rolled over and turned the bedside light on. “Take your blouse off.”

She removed it and her bra as he took off his shirt. The muscles she’d noted when he’d carried her were visible now. His pecs well-developed, his arms all sinew and strength.

He had a light dusting of hair on his chest and it tapered down to a thin line, which disappeared under his belt into his pants.

She stood up next to him. She caressed him from his neck down his chest. Swirled her fingers over his pecs and thumbed his flat nipples before letting her touch go lower.

He stood there and let her explore him. She liked the way the hair on his chest abraded her palm. She liked the warmth of his body and the strength in him.

She leaned down and let her lips follow the path that her hands had. She nibbled on his neck and felt his hands on her back, sliding up and down. Rubbing over her spine and then moving slowly back up.

She felt him lower the zipper at the side of her skirt and the fabric pooled around her feet. She stood there in her flesh-colored bikini panties. He took her hands in his and held her arms away from her body.

“Someday, I’m going to ask you to dance for me when we are alone,” he said.

“I might,” she said. “But only if you do something for me.”

He nodded and brought his hands to his belt. Slowly he undid it and drew it through the loops on his pants. He tossed it on the floor and then pushed his pants down. “Come here.”

“No, you come here,” she said.

He arched one eyebrow at her and came over to her. She pushed him down on the bed and gave him a minute to get situated before she came down on top of him. She put her hands on his shoulders as she straddled his hips. She rubbed her feminine center over his erection and felt his flesh flex under her.

“Like that?” she asked.

“Hell, yes.”

He gripped her hips and rubbed her over his penis. She tipped her head back as she enjoyed the sensation, which spread out all over her body. Gooseflesh spread down her arms and her nipples tightened.

Nate leaned up and ran his tongue over her nipple and her flesh tightened even more. She shifted her shoulders so that her nipple brushed over his lips before he closed them around it and suckled her deeply. “I want you,” Nate said.

“I know,” she whispered. She leaned down over him, rubbing her self against him.

“Why aren’t we completely naked?” he asked.

“I … I don’t know. I thought you’d like to do the honors.”

“Indeed, I would,” he said.

He pulled her flush against his body and rolled them to their sides. Then his hands swept down over the curve of her hips. He tugged on the waistband of her panties lowering them slowly. She lifted up to help him and he pulled them down her legs and tossed them on the floor.

“Lay on your back,” he said. “I want to remember how you look on my bed.”

She liked that idea, so she rolled over. “How do I look?”

“Like a siren beautiful enough to tempt a man from the sea. To tempt me into dangerous waters.”

She lifted her knee up and parted her legs. “Surely I’m not dangerous, Nate.”

He shook his head. “You are the kind of danger I love—highly addictive.”

He stripped his own underwear off and stood next to the bed completely naked. His erection was long and wide and she bit her lip at the thought of having him inside her.

She reached out and touched the tip of his shaft and it became even more engorged with blood. She ran her finger around the edge of it and then wrapped her hand around him.

His hips canted toward her. He had one knee on the bed and his hands on her thighs before he pulled back.

“Damn. Are you on the pill?”

“Yes,” she said. “I’m a dancer … I can’t afford to get pregnant unless I am ready to retire.”

“Good. Then we don’t have to worry about a condom,” he said.

“Actually …” she said. “I want you to wear one. You are a bit of a player.”

She hated to say that especially since they were so intimate right now but she wasn’t going to be stupid about her own health.

“I guess you have a point. Give me a second,” he said. He left the bed and was back in less than a minute.

“Come to me.”

He nodded and came down on top of her. But he supported his weight with his elbows and his knees at first, hovering over her. He kissed a path from her neck down to her sternum and then nibbled at her belly button.

Everything inside of her clenched as moisture pooled between her thighs. She wanted him inside of her. She didn’t want to wait another minute but she also enjoyed what he was doing too much to ask him to stop.

He slid lower between her open thighs and she watched him as he looked down at her body. He parted her nether lips and leaned in to stroke his tongue over the bud at her center.

The touch of his tongue was electric and she jerked on the bed. No man had done this before. She wasn’t sure she liked it at first but Nate took his time lapping at her most sensitive flesh until she put her hands in his hair and held him to her. She was so close to an orgasm and she didn’t want him to move … not yet.

He slipped one finger into her and she moaned. Her legs moved on the bed, and around his head. It was too much as he added a second finger and continued to stroke inside of her.

“I’m going to come,” she said.

He lifted his head and looked up the expanse of her body at her. “Do it.”

He lowered his head once again and she felt the careful scrape of his teeth against her intimate flesh. Her muscles tightened and her climax roared through her. She clutched his head to her body as her hips jerked off the bed.

She kept spasming and he kept his hand between her legs as he slid up her body. He positioned himself between her thighs and waited poised at the portal of her body for a minute. The feel of the tip of his manhood there made her crave more of him.

She put her heels on the bed and lifted her hips trying to take him deeper but he shook his head. “I want this to go slowly.”

“I want you inside me, Nate. Now.”

Taking his time, he slid inside her body inch by inch and once he was fully seated he waited until she moved her hips and then he started thrusting slowly inside. He felt so damned good inside of her.

He thrust more quickly and his hands tightened on her hips. He brought his mouth to her neck and kissed her there whispering dark words of passion in her ear until she felt like she was going to come again. She reached down and clutched his buttocks, drawing him closer to her with each thrust. He moaned her name as she came again.

This time was so much more intense. She couldn’t stop her body from thrusting up against him. His hips began to pump frantically into her and then he called her name as he came.

He held her in his arms, rolling to his side when he was able to. The sweat dried on their bodies and Jen looked up at him in the light cast by the bedside lamp. That was the most intense experience in her life. And Nate Stern was not only essentially a stranger but he was also effectively her boss.

What had she done?

Six

The morning sunlight was muted through the roman shades on the windows. Nate normally didn’t like for a woman to stay too late in the morning but he was in no hurry for Jen to leave. She lay cuddled next to his side with her head resting on his shoulder and her arm wrapped around his waist.

The soft exhalation of her breathing stirred his chest hairs and he felt something close to contentment with her in his arms. She looked peaceful and ethereal in her sleep.

The sheets pooled low on her waist revealing the curves of her breasts and the slope of her hip. He reached out to trace the line of her body. She was a dancer, long and lithe yet still had a feminine curve to her.

What was he going to do with her?

He should be hustling her out of his bed and instead he wanted to draw her closer and lay here until she woke.

Then he wanted to make love to her and spend the day with her.

He stared down at her trying to figure out what it was about Jen that was different. Part of it was the obvious fact that she wasn’t in his crowd and seemed to have no desire to use his connections to get anywhere.

She was the first woman he met that needed nothing from him. To be fair, she worked for him at the club, but that had nothing to do with him personally.

“Why are you staring at me?” she asked, shifting on to her back.

“You are incredibly pretty,” he said.

She seemed to get more beautiful as he spent more time with her. He loved the fuller curve at the bottom of her lip and how she pursed her lips when she thought he was joking with her.

“I’m a real Mona Lisa,” she said.

“You are a very interesting woman, Jen,” he said, leaning down to kiss her. “I could look at you all day.”

“I’m not sure—”

“Don’t think about it,” he said, putting his finger over her lips. “Let’s spend the day together and enjoy the time we have.”

“What will we do?” she asked. “I have to be at work at five.”

“Me, too,” he said. He rolled over on his back and reached for his iPhone, which was on the nightstand. He pulled her into the curve of his body. She cuddled close to him the way she had when they’d been sleeping and he liked that.

He opened the weather application on his iPhone and saw that it was going to be a perfect day for sailing. “Want to go out on my yacht?”

She laughed. “Do you say that to all the women you date?”

“Yes. I don’t have etchings to show them so instead I invite them to go boating.”

“I’d love to go out on your yacht. But I don’t have a change of clothes to wear,” she said.

“There’s a boutique in the lobby of this building,” he said. “What size do you wear?”

“Um … six,” she said.

“I’ll order some clothing for you.”

“No, that’s okay. I think I’ll go home and shower and change. I can meet you at the marina later,” she said.

He shook his head. “That won’t do. I want to spend the entire day with you.”

“And you’re used to getting what you want?” she asked.

“I am,” he said. He didn’t always get what he wanted but she didn’t need to know that right now.

“Why should I stay?” she asked.

“I asked you to. I want to get to know you better,” he said.

“I guess I can’t argue with that,” she said. “I’m very glad to hear that. My housekeeper should be here now. What would you like for breakfast?” “I’m a light breakfast eater,” she said. “How about a croissant and fruit?” he suggested.

“That’s fine.”

“Good. You go shower and I’ll take care of every detail for our day. You can use my robe until your clothes arrive.”

“Thank you,” she said. He kissed her before she got up and watched her walk across his bedroom.

As soon as she was gone, he focused on organizing the day for the two of them. He kept himself busy so he wouldn’t think about making love to her again. He felt a bond growing between them. And that was dangerous for him. He should have hustled her out the door when he had the chance but he wasn’t really good with should-haves.

He dressed in a pair of casual pants and a T-shirt and walked out into the main living area of his apartment. The sun shone over Biscayne Bay and glistened on the lap pool on the terrace.

“Good morning, sir,” Mrs. Cushing said as he entered the room.

“Morning, Mrs. Cushing. I have a guest for breakfast and we’d like something light—fruit, croissants, coffee and juice. I think we’ll be ready to dine in about thirty minutes on the patio.”

“Certainly, sir.”

“I’m expecting some packages from the boutique downstairs. Will you check and make sure they are here before breakfast?”

“I will. Anything else, sir?”

“I won’t need you for the rest of the day once you serve breakfast. I hope you will enjoy a free Saturday.”

“I enjoy all the free days you give me,” she said.

“I’m glad. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome, sir,” she said.

Nate went back into the bedroom and heard the shower running. He was tempted to join her in there but wanted her to have some time to herself. And if he joined her, it would be more than sleeping together. More than a one-night stand. Besides he wasn’t building a relationship with Jen no matter how much it might seem like he wanted to do just that.

While Nate showered, Jen sat on the rooftop patio of his home next to the lap pool looking out at the glittering Biscayne Bay. The view afforded by this condo was breathtaking but to be honest, it wasn’t the stunning vistas that were on her mind. It was Nate Stern.

She knew that yesterday had been tough—the International Ballroom Dancing Federation had denied her appeal. She’d never dance again. But to come home and spend the night with him … why had she done that?

She didn’t regret it. She tried not to have regret in her life because as Marcia said, regret was useless unless a lesson was learned from it.

Her BlackBerry pinged and she glanced down at the screen to see it was a text message from Marcia.

Are you okay?

She took a deep breath and thought about what she was going to say to her sister before she texted her back.

Fine. I’m at Nate’s. Sorry I didn’t call sooner.

There was no reply for what seemed like forever and then her phone rang.

“Hello, Marcia.”

“Jen, what are you thinking?”

Jen had asked herself the same thing more than once and she still had no idea. “I don’t know. I do know that my old life is completely gone and it’s time to try something new.”

Marcia sighed. “Sweetie, just be careful. Deciding to have a different attitude isn’t as painless as you might think.”

“Was it like that for you?” “When Riley was born?” “Yes,” Jen said.

“Sort of. I knew before he was born that I was going to be raising him alone and that wasn’t what you and I were taught was a good family for a child.”

“I know. But Riley has turned out great,” Jen reminded her sister.

“He has, but it was hard. And I had no choice with him. From the moment I learned I was pregnant I wanted him. This change for you is your doing.”

Jen didn’t point out that so was her sister’s pregnancy. Marcia was eighteen months older than her and thought she was always right.

“I am taking control of my life,” Jen said. “Yesterday when I got that letter continuing my suspension and realized that the old life I had was completely closed to me, I thought it’s time to figure out who I am.”

“And being with Nate is going to help?” Marcia asked.

“I have no idea, but I was impulsive for the first time in my life. You know I’ve never done anything that wasn’t to forward my dance career from the time I started dancing. Literally, Marcia, I can’t remember a time when dance wasn’t the focus of my life.”

“I know. I remember how dancing took up every second of our lives.”

“I’m sorry,” Jen said. “I know that wasn’t fair to you.”

“You’re talented, kiddo. I forgave you a long time ago for being so good at it.” Jen laughed. “Thank you.” “For forgiving you?”