One Long Embrace (Eternal Bachelors Club #5)

For a moment he thought back to Paul and the fact that he was getting married soon—to a woman he’d known for less than three months. Maybe it was true that once you met the right person, you didn’t need a lot of time to make a decision. Of course, it could also be that Paul was utterly crazy. Just about as crazy as Holly. And maybe two crazies equaled sanity?

Jay smiled and peeled himself out of Tara’s arms, trying not to wake her. But she stirred instantly, as if she was aware of him even in her sleep.

“Jay?”

“Morning, darlin’. Just sleep in. I’ve gotta go to work.” And today that wasn’t even a lie. He had to go into New York City for the interviews his assistant had set up for the day. And he couldn’t let Tara know.

Tara wrapped her arms around him, pulling him to her naked body. He glanced at the clock on the nightstand and knew he couldn’t delay, though it was tempting to make love to her. His cock certainly was ready for it.

“Don’t go.”

“I have to. We’ve got a bunch of materials arriving at the house. It’ll be a busy day. And I’ll probably get back later than usual.”

Driving from Montauk to Manhattan took close to three hours, depending on traffic, which was the reason he’d booked a helicopter to pick him up in East Hampton and take him into the city. That way he could be back at a reasonable time and maintain his cover.

Tara slid her hand onto his cock, sending a wave of lust through him. “But I know you want to stay.”

“Oh, I want a lot of things,” he murmured into her ear. “One is getting you on your hands and knees and fucking you until you scream my name.” He slid his hand to her ass and pressed her against his erection. “But I’m afraid that’ll have to wait until tonight. So be a good girl and behave.”

He lowered his hand and reached between her legs, touching her sex. She was wet and warm, just how he liked it.

Tara moaned and pressed against his hand. “You mean like you behave?”

“I’m just a man. I can’t help myself.” He laughed, removed his hand, and gave her a soft slap on her backside. “Gotta go.”

He jumped out of bed before he could change his mind, showered in record time, and got dressed—all while Tara was devouring him with her eyes. He could definitely get used to that.

“Tonight,” he promised when he left and headed for the truck.

He jumped into the rust bucket and drove to East Hampton.



~



The phone rang while Tara was in the shower, just rinsing her hair.

“Damn it,” Tara cursed.

For three days she’d waited for a call about the job interview. This could be it. She’d programmed in special ringtones for her parents’ numbers so that she wouldn’t make the same mistake again and pick up a call by her mother. And the ringtone she heard now wasn’t the one she’d assigned to her parents. It had to be from Hannon Boats.

Rushing, she snatched a towel and wrapped it haphazardly around her body, racing to where her phone lay on the nightstand.

“Hello?”

“Tara?”

“Yes, this is Tara.”

“Hey, it’s Paul. I’m so sorry.”

“Paul.” She hadn’t immediately recognized his voice. Now she sobered. “Hi.”

“Tara, I’m really sorry. I totally screwed up. About the interview…”

“Oh no,” she muttered. Her heart sank. “They’re not even giving me an interview?”

“No, no, it’s not that. They are.”

“They are?”

“Yes, but I’m really sorry. They sent me the email and it landed in my spam folder and I only just saw it now.”

“Yeah, but you saw it. So I got the interview! When is it?” She wanted to jump up and down.

“Today.”

“Today? Crap!”

“Sorry. It’s at three this afternoon. Are you still in the Hamptons?”

She nodded to herself. “All the way in Montauk.”

“Can you jump on the next Jitney? I think there’s one leaving in half an hour. It should get you into Midtown by two thirty, and if you get into a taxi right away, you could just make it.”

“I’ll be there. Can you forward me the email with the address?”

“Done. Sorry, again.”

“Thanks Paul, gotta run.”

The next ten minutes passed in a blur. She’d never gotten ready in such a hurry. Her heart was pounding as she ran to the shore and through the path to the street where a taxi was waiting for her. Luckily she’d been able to order one with an app on her cell phone. The cab took her to the Jitney stop in Montauk. The coach was already closing its doors, when she jumped out of the taxi and ran toward it, waving her arms to get the driver to re-open the doors.

She gave a sigh of relief when he saw her and waited until she’d gotten on and taken a seat in the nearly empty coach.