Worth the Wait

chapter 10


While Tasha showered, Jared looked around her house. It could be considered snooping, but he didn’t care. He wanted to know more about the personal side of Tasha. He’d always dealt with her professionally, and had intentionally never hit on her, so he knew little about what she liked outside of work. It was surprising that his professional treatment of her factored into her decision to sleep with him.

The moment he’d decided to sleep with her he’d begun treating her like any other woman he slept with. How was he to know she would view it as him not respecting her? It was true he had little respect for the women he slept with — they were always throwing themselves at him, going after his money, or were so easy to catch he treated them like the gold diggers they were. The only woman to ever go from lover to friend was Cassandra, and that was because she’d insisted on helping his career once their affair was over. Once she moved to the professional category, he no longer treated her like a conquest. But the sex also stopped, so there was no way to confuse the lines. Tasha asked him to blur his lines. He didn’t respect his lovers, and he didn’t sleep with friends or colleagues. He wasn’t sure if he’d be able to respect Tasha’s wishes, but he wanted her enough to try.

Her home was nicely decorated with a lived-in feel. The things there showed pieces of Tasha. The stack of books on her coffee table told him that she liked reading in front of the TV. A sweatshirt was tossed over the end of her sofa with a pair of reading glasses on them. Pictures of her family were all over the house — one shelf of her bookcase was dedicated to her sister’s wedding and another shelf was filled with pictures of her nieces. Another sign she wanted a family.

He took his perusal into her kitchen. There was a teacup and saucer in the sink, and mail littered her kitchen table. He smiled when he saw the recycling bin next to the trashcan. Malcolm and Kenyatta would like her just because she recycled and grew her own vegetables.

Where did that come from? It didn’t matter if his brother and his fiancée liked Tasha. Things wouldn’t go so far she would be introduced to his family.

Shaking off that thought Jared turned to leave the kitchen and ran right into Tasha. He reached out to steady her but quickly pulled his hands away. Touching her did strange things to his body. If he was going to remember her request, he would have to limit touching her until they got to Charleston.

“That was a quick shower.” His eyes assessed her. He’d only seen her dressed in Rec Commission uniforms or jeans. But today she wore a white and gold sundress. The thin material hung from her body, clinging to her curves in just the right places and stopped just above her feet. Her hair wasn’t in the usual ponytail. Instead, the curls hung loosely around her shoulders. His groin tightened and he had to fight to breath. She looked beautiful.

“I didn’t want to linger and give you a reason to come looking for me.”

He cleared his throat. “Is there anything you needed to do before we leave?”

She shook her head. “No, I’m packed and ready to go.”

They stood there looking at each other. Jared felt like a teenager on his first date. He still wanted her, but now that he was respecting her wish to not lump her in the category of the other women he slept with, he wasn’t sure how to proceed.

Tasha smiled and pushed her hair behind her ears. “I’ll get my bag.” She turned and disappeared down the hall.

Feeling foolish, Jared ran his hand over his face. This wasn’t a big deal. They were just going to go down to Charleston, sleep together, and come back. He’d taken plenty of women to his condo; this was no different. Except none of those women were virgins and none of those women drove him mad with desire.

He went into the living room just as Tasha came back down the hall rolling a small duffle bag behind her. It was a good thing she hadn’t packed a lot of clothes because he planned on keeping her naked for most of the weekend. The thought sent his dick from half swollen to rock hard.

Tasha froze at the end of the hall. He continued to stare as he willed himself not to drag her back down the hall to her bedroom. She looked unsure for a second before dropping the bag and coming over to him. He held his breath as she reached up to pull his head down. Her eyes closed as she pressed her lips against his. Without a second thought, he squeezed her body and took over the kiss. He didn’t know how long they were wrapped in each other, but she was the one to finally break the kiss.

“You looked as if you didn’t know whether to devour me or run out the door,” she said against his chest. “I thought I’d ease the tension a bit.”

Jared smiled and kissed the top of her head. “You only created another type of tension.” He pushed her away and walked over to pick up her duffle bag. “Lock up and I’ll meet you at the car.” He walked outside without touching her again.

Two minutes later Tasha came out. He’d already put her bag in the back of his car and was sitting in the driver’s seat. When she got in, the fresh scent of whatever she’d used in the shower filled his car. Again, he appreciated it more than the fruit- or flower-scented perfumes most women wore. When she fastened her seatbelt, he pulled away from the curb and drove toward the interstate.

He didn’t start a conversation, and she remained silent. The tension was so thick he was surprised it didn’t smother them. Maybe this was a bad idea. He didn’t know how to treat Tasha like a friend and lover. As much as he wanted to slide himself deep inside of her, he was beginning to doubt if he could do this.

He gripped the steering wheel and opened his mouth to tell her that when she reached over and punched his arm. “Red Volkswagen,” she said with a smile.

He’d barely felt her punch, but he rubbed the spot. “You can’t be serious.”

Tasha laughed and the sound washed over him. He wanted to hear her laugh more. “You bet I am. And if I see another one, I’m gonna hit you again.”

“Don’t start a game you can’t win. And don’t think that I’ll take it easy on you because you’re a girl.”

She cut her eyes at him. “Excuse me? I don’t think you understand I hold the championship title in my family. By Sunday you’ll be begging me to quit. I can spot a Volkswagen from a mile away.”

“You may have held the title, but that was before you challenged me, sweetheart. You see, my brother had to get a sling for his arm after I tore him up on a trip to D.C. when we were kids.”

Unfazed by his claim Tasha rolled her eyes. “We’ll see who needs the sling.” As if fated, a yellow Beetle glided into traffic. “Yellow!” Tasha reached over and hit his arm again before he could open his mouth.

Laughing, Jared shook his head. This weekend was going to be more interesting than he thought.