Worth the Wait

chapter 17


Jared handed Tasha a glass of wine before leaning on the bar and eyeing her over his own glass. Thankfully, Kenyatta left a few minutes after he and Tasha had finished in the entryway. She’d said Malcolm couldn’t get off work, and he hoped that was the truth. He didn’t need her running to tell Malcolm which virgin he’d deflowered.

It was unlike him to jump Tasha when she was only two feet in his home. But no other woman ever drove him crazy with just a look. He did have the common sense to take her to bed after Kenyatta left. The door had barely closed behind Kenyatta before he picked Tasha up and sprinted to his bedroom. But once there, he’d taken his time reacquainting himself with every inch of her body. He’d been rewarded with soft sighs and cries of pleasure that he couldn’t get enough of.

She’d snuggled against him afterwards. As if she was supposed to be there. Even scarier, he liked it. Needless to say he’d panicked. Jared Patterson didn’t snuggle. He’d jumped out of bed and offered her a glass of wine.

The disappointment in her eyes was quickly replaced with gratitude. He knew his withdrawal was callous, but surprisingly she didn’t ask what was wrong or pout like other women tended to do. She’d agreed to the wine and ignored the awkward moment. He could’ve kissed her for that while also wondering why she didn’t seem to care.

He looked at her now. She’d put on his bathrobe and he lost his train of thought ever time the soft swell of her breasts was revealed by the gaping fabric. And savored the smell of her clean scent mingled with the smell of their lovemaking. Why did this former virgin turn him on more than any other woman he knew?

“You’re looking at me like I’m a puzzle you can’t figure out,” she said with a smile.

He lowered his glass. “Because I can’t figure you out. It wasn’t an hour ago you said you wouldn’t sleep with me again, yet you show up and sex me at my front door.”

She laughed. “Don’t blame that on me. I was about to tell you I came over for the mentor reports and you cut me off mid-sentence.”

He grinned and leaned forward. “I don’t mentor on Mondays. So what gives? Why did you show up and let me cut you off mid-sentence?”

Tasha’s eyes lowered, but the smile remained on her face. “You made a good point. I’m not seeing anyone right now. It won’t hurt to sleep with you once or twice. Just to get it out of my system.”

He cocked an eyebrow. “Once or twice? If that’s the case, then it should be out of your system.”

She looked back at him. Her honey eyes and flushed cheeks were adorable. Adorable? Where had that come from?

“I want to do this. Just for a few weeks.”

He crossed his arms on the bar. “Do what?”

Her blush deepened, but she kept eye contact. “Let’s sleep together.”

Hell yeah, was his first thought. But when he looked into her eyes he could still see the good girl who’d asked him to treat her like a friend. Not the usual woman he dated who understood the boundaries of a sex only relationship.

He straightened and shook his head. “I’m not that type of guy.”

She cocked her head to the side. “Yes you are. You sleep with women all the time.”

“Yeah, with women like me. Only in it for sex. I’m not a relationship guy. I’m not going to fall in love with you, and I’m not going to marry you. If you ever ask me where this is going I’m gonna tell you nowhere.”

She pushed her wine away with a frown. “You were the one who insisted we do this. I know who you are, and I don’t expect anything from you. You’re the last man on earth I want to end up with.”

He came around the bar to stand before her. “I know you’ve said that, but let’s face it, Tasha, I’m your first.” He reached out to brush the hair from her face. “You’re going to get caught up if we do this.”

She tensed before slapping his hand away. She jumped from the chair and pushed his chest. He stepped back, not from the force but to give her space.

“I’m not going to get caught up. This is only for a few weeks until I start dating someone else. Maybe shorter than that. I met a very handsome doctor this afternoon and he called me beautiful.”

Jared clenched his jaw and took a step toward her. “What did I say about mentioning other men when you’re with me?”

She smirked. “It looks like you’re more caught up than I am.”

She had him on that one. He lectured against getting feelings involved, but was jealous at the mention of another guy. It had to be sexual frustration. He’d gone to bed frustrated and hard every night since they’d come back from Charleston, despite the continued calls from the ever persistent Monica. He was used to women coming back, but Monica was on another level. He would’ve changed his number if he hadn’t been waiting on Tasha to call.

He’d picked up the phone to call Tasha a dozen times, but never had the balls to do it until today. He was the one behaving like a novice.

He relaxed and stepped back. “You’ve got me on that one,” he said. “You don’t belong to me any more than I belong to you.”

She smiled softly. “And we never will. So we’ll do this for a few weeks, okay?”

Jared considered what she said. In the past other women had enticed him enough to want more than a one night stand — true, none had affected him as much as Tasha — but he’d be over this in a few weeks.

He bit his lip and looked at her from the corner of his eye before answering. “Okay.”

She sighed and reached for her wine. “Let’s change the subject.” She bounced back into her chair as if they’d just agreed on ordering take out. “What’s up with you planning a birthday party for your mom?” She took a sip from the glass.

Jared flinched and walked back around to the other side of the bar. “Nothing’s up. I promised Malcolm I’d help before we went to Charleston. I can’t back out without telling him why.”

Fortunately, his mom hadn’t called again. It was hard enough to stomach listening to Malcolm talk about it. Malcolm said he was fine with their mom remarrying, but he’d seen the sadness in his brother’s eyes when he first brought it up. Their dad was long gone, but their mom remarrying didn’t erase how much they missed him. Especially since Jared wanted to strangle Mr. Carter every time he thought about how his dad died.

“Why don’t you tell Malcolm?” Tasha asked.

He shrugged. “He lost one parent. No need for him to lose both of them like I have.” He downed the rest of his wine and poured another.

Tasha’s hand paused as she lifted her glass to her mouth. Sympathy filled her eyes before she looked away. “That’s fair, I guess,” she said. “Are you okay … with helping I mean?”

“I’m fine. It’s no different from any other time she’s needed something. She asks Malcolm, he arranges, and I throw money at the problem.”

Her brows furled. “Your mom asks for money often?”

“No.” He scoffed. “Never, actually. She lets Malcolm know when something is wrong with the house and we fix it.”

Her eyebrows lifted. “I’m surprised you do that.”

He sighed and gulped his wine. “She’s still my mom, even if she’s a bad one. Plus, it’s my dad’s house.”

She tilted her head to one side and studied him. “I think you still care. Maybe you should talk to her.”

Jared pushed away from the bar and downed the rest of the wine. “I think … I’m tired of this conversation. Are you spending the night?”

If she was surprised by his change of subject she didn’t show it. Instead she shook her head and stood. “No, that’s too much. I’m going to get dressed and go home.”

His shoulders slumped. He never kicked women out afterwards, but he also never stopped them from assuming he wanted them to leave. It surprised him how much he wanted her to stay.

“Come back tomorrow,” he said.

“Why come here?”

“Because my home is more secluded. Everyone would know what was going on if I come to you.”

“We’ll make up something. Say I’m helping you edit the manuscript for your fitness book or something. That’s what would be going on,” she said with a laugh. “Besides, you’d never stay the night.”

She was right. If he said she was helping with work, people would believe it because that’s the type of person Tasha was. But he wanted her here, in his home and bed. “Doesn’t matter. Come here tomorrow.”

She frowned. “You aren’t ruling this.”

Jared walked around the bar and slid his hands beneath the bathrobe to cup her bottom and pull her close. He leaned down and softly kissed her lips. “Come here, please.”

She looked into his eyes and he kissed her again. When he pulled away she was smiling. “Fine, I’ll come here tomorrow.”