The Playboy Read online

  “Because you might miss out on something amazing if you do. Now I might not be interested in women’s jewelry, that’s true. But when it comes to something that you’ve created, that’s a different story.”

  A unique-looking choker that resembled a lace collar lay wrapped around her neck. He lifted the piece and fingered some of the small and intricate beads in his hand. He studied the piece and craftsmanship with awe. Kendall had talent to say the least and Rick was certain Charlotte had seen it or she wouldn’t have agreed to take the pieces into her beloved shop.

  “This is beautiful,” Rick said. “And so are you.” He unhooked the necklace from behind and lay it on the counter beside him, then leaned forward and placed his lips on the soft skin where the choker had once been.

  He inhaled her fragrant scent and his groin pulsed with aching need. Not ready to assuage that particular desire, he worked on arousing Kendall first instead. He ran his tongue along the slightly red line left by the jewelry, soothing her flesh, and if her soft moan was any indication, accomplishing his goal.

  “Rick.”

  Her husky voice worked on his already sensitive nerve endings and the bedroom in the small apartment seemed too far away.

  “Rick, wait.”

  He groaned and stepped back. “What’s wrong?” “Tonight’s not about satisfying me and I can tell that’s where you’re headed. Not that I mind. I’d love it in fact, but I promised myself this would be your night.” She lifted her hands and cupped his face. “You earned it.” She placed a soft kiss on his mouth. “You deserve it.” She slid her tongue across his lips as her thumbs caressed his jaw. “And I want nothing more than to give back to you this time. That would satisfy me even more.”

  “Mmm. Okay.”

  “Good. Now you’ve had a long shift. Go relax in the bedroom while I clean up.” While she spoke, she massaged his shoulders, showing him exactly what she had in mind.

  She’d put a great deal of thought into this evening and he had no doubt there’d be much more to come than simply a massage of his aching muscles.

  “It’d be faster if I helped.”

  “I’d be happier if you didn’t. Now go,” she said, her tone lowering.

  No one had ever spoken to him in such a gentle, heated voice. No one had touched him with such special care. And no one had ever put his needs before their own. Kendall had. She obviously had her own agenda. She wanted to be in charge of this evening, wanted to give to him for a change.

  He couldn’t say he minded.

  “I’ll be in soon. I promise. I just don’t want to leave a mess in here.” She gestured toward the bedroom. “Go on.”

  “You never mentioned you were so bossy.” He grinned as he took a step back.

  “That’s because you never asked.” She shot him a wink and turned back to working on the cleanup.

  He watched her in his kitchen for a moment before he headed for the bedroom and stretched out on top of the bed. As soon as he relaxed into the mattress, his body remembered how exhausted he’d been earlier. He couldn’t be more grateful Kendall had surprised him, that she was here with him now.

  He wanted nothing more than to have her beside him in his bed. And his heart settled in his throat as he recalled how unlikely it was that she’d remain here for very long.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  Kendall tossed the beer bottle into Rick’s recycling bin and after towel-drying the wineglass, she replaced it in the cabinet from which she’d taken it earlier. Because this night was for him, she didn’t want to take any chances of leaving a mess he’d end up having to clean later. The kitchen spotless, she shut the lights and headed inside.

  A dim flickering light greeted her and she knew he’d had the bedroom TV on while he awaited her. Her heart pounded in her chest in anticipation of the night ahead. But when she stepped into the room, she discovered that in the brief time she’d finished in the kitchen, Rick had fallen asleep. He lay on top of the covers, his sneakers still on, testament to his exhaustion. She smiled and walked up beside him, sitting on the edge of the bed.

  In sleep his features relaxed. Stress- and exhaustion-free, he looked even more incredibly sexy. She ran a hand down his cheek and he turned into her palm. With the warm, intimate gesture of trust, her insides curled with need, want, and desire, but she admitted a hefty dose of emotion was involved too.

  Just the fact that she’d decided to come over here tonight and take care of Rick told her she felt more than just lust. But she refused to panic. After all she’d been through, she intended to adhere to a here and now mantra. Moments like this in her life had been too rare.

  She lay down and curled into Rick, letting his body heat seep through her skin and warm her inside and out. Security was something else sadly lacking in her life and with this man, she felt not only desired, but cared for in a meaningful way. No reason not to take it all in while it lasted.

  She yawned just as his arm came around her and pulled her into him, her backside pressing insistently against an erection she felt certain he wasn’t even aware he had. She smiled knowing that when he awoke, she’d take care of that problem for him as well as any other things that needed soothing.

  Warmth seeped through Kendall’s body as a strong hand slipped between her legs and found its way beneath her clothing to her private, feminine folds. She was slick with moisture, ready for him to thrust inside her and make love to her. But apparently he had other plans because his skillful hands and fingers alternated between a soft, teasing glide with one finger, and an insistent rotation of his palm against her feminine mound. Working magic, he brought her closer and closer to the brink of orgasm.

  Her breathing came in shallow gasps as the incredible sensations bombarded and pounded at her body. She

  jerked her hips forward in a futile attempt to take him deeper into her body. The waves built higher and higher until they took over and she cried out loud at the same moment she finally, blessedly toppled over the precipice in the most explosive orgasm she’d ever had.

  Kendall woke in damp heat, Rick’s arms around her waist and his hand—the source of that exquisite pleasure—resting against her body. She writhed against him, convulsions still wracking her with warm, explosive sensations until she collapsed in his embrace. He pulled her close, pressing a tender kiss against her neck that brought a lump to her throat.

  “You don’t play fair.” She snuggled even deeper into him.

  His deep chuckle reverberated through her. “You weren’t complaining.”

  “I was asleep.”

  “Then that must have been some dream you had because you screamed my name.”

  She rolled to her side so she could see his face. “You rat.” But she grinned. “I remember reading somewhere that orgasms that occur during a dream are stronger and more pleasurable than those that occur while you’re awake.”

  He propped himself up on his elbow and gazed down at her. “And is it true?” A self-satisfied smile tipped the edges of his mouth.

  It had been an incredible experience and he knew it, the arrogant man. Kendall decided it was time to turn the tables on him. “Absolutely true.” Sort of, she mentally amended. Every orgasm she’d had at his hands or with him inside her had been incredible. She stretched languorously, her body still sensitized from arousal and need.

  A frown replaced his earlier smile.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Stronger and more pleasurable while you’re asleep, huh? I think I’m just going to have to outdo myself while you’re awake.”

  She felt his wandering hand and stopped his movement by clamping down on his wrist. “First, you already outdid yourself, and second, this night is supposed to be about you. Why do you find it so difficult to give up that control?”

  Even as she asked the question, she realized she was getting deeper into his psyche and what made him tick. His need to protect obviously went way back and she wanted to know more.

  “Are you sure you want to know? The answe
r might take a while.”

  “I’m sure.”

  He shrugged and eased against the pillow, obviously accepting that they were going to talk awhile first. “You already know my father died when I was fifteen. I saw Chase take over. He made sure the paper kept running and gave Mom one less thing to worry about during that awful time.”

  “I’m sorry.” She squeezed his hand and snuggled back into him, more to give him comfort than for herself.

  “That’s life I guess. But don’t feel bad for Chase because he’s never regretted his decisions. And don’t feel bad for me. I’ve had a good time of it so far. A few bumps in the road but nothing I couldn’t handle.”

  She didn’t buy his cavalier assessment of his past but she wasn’t about to argue, not while he was opening up to her.

  “It was Mom who worried us all,” he continued. “And taking care of her became our jobs.”

  “Raina seems pretty independent to me.”

  “She is now.” He glanced up at the ceiling. “Maybe she always was, but as the three men of the house, we all thought it was our duty to look out for her.”

  Kendall nodded. All three Chandler brothers were amazing men. Any woman would be lucky to land one of them. She shivered and got back to business. “And then? How’d looking out for your mother translate into police work?”

  He glanced out of the corner of his eye. “You’re awfully curious tonight.”

  “Humor me.” She didn’t want to admit that she craved the closeness they’d begun to share. “Why law enforcement?”

  “Doesn’t every boy want to be a cop?”

  “Maybe but not all of them actually grow up and live the dream.”

  He smiled. “Good way of looking at it. Chase made sure Roman and I had the chance to live our dreams. Roman’s were simpler. He’d always wanted to follow in Dad’s footsteps, only he wanted to take his show on the road. I wasn’t so sure, but Chase made certain we both went to college before making any lifelong decisions.”

  She sighed. “You’re so lucky to have family that cares that much about you.”

  He squeezed her closer, as if sensing the sensitive and painful nature of the topic. “You’ve met my mother. There are obviously pros and cons to my kind of close family,” he said, wryly. “I wasn’t into reporting the news but we all worked the paper after school, regardless. I hated it and after I’d ditched one too many assignments, Chase stuck me with Chief Ellis. He figured if I had to report on him hauling the juvenile delinquents into jail, I’d straighten out. As usual, in his know-it-all way, big brother was right. I found my calling.”

  Kendall laughed. “He sounds more like big daddy than big brother.”

  “Only when we were watching. Chase had his own social life when he could squeeze it in. I can’t prove it, but I’m sure of it anyway. But he did make certain we all walked the straight and narrow, which except for Roman’s foray into women’s underwear wasn’t all that hard.”

  “What!?!”

  Rick grinned. “Roman played the ultimate prank. When he was sixteen he stole a girl’s underwear. I believe you met the victim. Terri Whitehall.”

  “That priss?” Remembering the starched collared, prim woman, Kendall laughed harder. “So that explains why he was blamed for the panty thefts this past spring.” The Chandler brother seemed to be the stuff of town lore and Kendall had heard many stories during her excursions to the General Store for food or housecleaning supplies.

  Rick nodded. “No way it could have been Roman. Mom made him pay for his crime way back when. He had to hand wash his boxers and hang them out to dry on a clothesline on the front lawn. The girls came to watch and laugh. Cured him forever.”

  She rolled her eyes. “You Chandlers were a handful, weren’t you?”

  “Spirited, Mom called it. Chase just said we were a pain in the ass.” Rick chuckled, knowing that despite all the ups and downs of being a Chandler, he was damn lucky as Kendall had said.

  She obviously hadn’t been as fortunate. “Tell me about your parents,” he said.

  “Tell me about your marriage,” she countered.

  He sucked in a deep breath. No way would he discuss his ex-wife with Kendall. Jillian was his past. He’d put her behind him long ago.

  But if that was true, then why didn’t he want to confide in Kendall now, a taunting voice asked. Because to bring up that pain might force him to raise more barriers against Kendall, to protect himself from being hurt worse than when Jillian had chosen another man and life over him. Kendall had already made the decision to leave and Rick had no intention of dredging up past feelings that would cause him to shut her out. Until she left, he wanted nothing keeping them apart.

  He flipped over and pinned her on her back, her arms against the mattress. “I’m skilled in the art of interrogation,” he said with a grin. “Do you really think you can deter me?” It wasn’t lost on him that his groin had settled between her legs, his desire obvious despite the barrier of clothes.

  She let out a forced sigh that came out sounding more like an aroused moan. “Well, if you’re going to use torture tactics, I suppose I have no choice but to talk,” she said in a breathless, husky voice.

  He was glad he affected her but it didn’t change what he needed and for now that was information. For all her independence, by her own admission Kendall never had a stable family life. As an adult, she was obviously still running from something. At least that was Rick’s take on things. Maybe if he understood the what he could work on changing her views. He didn’t hold out hope but he had to try.

  Rick Chandler never gave up without a fight. “I want to know how their absence affected you,” he said, speaking of her parents.

  “It didn’t.”

  But she shifted her gaze away from his, making her words the self-protective lie he’d already suspected. “Kendall?” He released his grasp on one of her hands and turned her chin so she had no choice but to face him. “I suspect it was a lonely childhood.”

  “I had family,” she said, sounding way too defensive. “What’s the longest you lived with any one of your relatives?”

  “Two years, maybe three. I had a lot of family to choose between,” she said too lightly.

  He opted not to ask her why none offered stability by asking to stay with them permanently. His goal was for them to grow closer, not to cause her pain.

  She let out a sigh. “I think isolationism must be the family motto. My mother has two sisters and a brother, my father has a brother. Each did their duty. None wanted a child that wasn’t theirs permanently underfoot.”

  She surprised him by digging into the topic he’d opted not to touch. Realizing how difficult it must be to reach inside herself and open up, he remained silent and let her reveal more on her own.

  “Except for Aunt Crystal.” Kendall’s eyes lit up at the memory of her most beloved relative. “That was the best time. I was ten and I don’t remember all that much but a lot of love. And cookies.” She smiled, a warm, tender glow on her cheeks. “Even after I left because the arthritis hit her hands first and she knew she wouldn’t be able to take care of a young child, she wrote every week . . . or I thought she wrote. I realized later she dictated the letters to a friend.”

  “The point is she cared.”

  Kendall nodded, then swallowed hard. A lone tear dripped down her cheek.

  He hadn’t wanted to dredge up painful memories, but he’d accomplished his goal. She’d let him in. He wiped the drop of moisture off her cheek with his thumb, then sealed his lips over hers. As usual the kiss ignited the burning desire to be inside her but more than physical need, Rick wanted to show her he cared. To make her feel special and let her know she was wanted in so many different ways. He undressed her slowly, appraising her with his eyes and worshiping her with his hands. He got rid of his own clothes in quick succession and grabbed for the foil packet in his drawer.

  “We’re working our way through the box,” she said, obviously pleased.

  �
��That’s the plan.”

  He’d no sooner ripped open the package than Kendall snatched it from his hand. “Let me.”

  And while he watched, she did as she’d promised earlier—she took care of him—sheathing his hard erection with trembling hands. Then she lay back on the bed and opened her legs, waiting for him. Knowing she wanted him as badly as he desired her was a huge turn-on, one that humbled him in many ways. The sight stole his breath.

  He moved on top of her, thrusting fast. She was moist and wet, contracting around him, taking him deeper and deeper inside. She wrapped her legs around his waist and suctioned him completely into her. Their skin was slick with sweat, their bodies rocking in unison, not fast and frenzied, but a slower coming together, a meaningful joining of two people who’d bared not just their bodies but their souls.

  Rick thought he’d long since understood the distinction between having sex and making love. But as he surged one last time, taking them both over the edge, he finally comprehended that distinction, in a way he’d never experienced before.

  Minutes later, the aftershocks still shaking him, his breathing still rough, he settled beneath the covers with Kendall in his arms. A sense of peace and rightness settled over him, along with one of imminent doom.

  “I was supposed to take care of you tonight,” she whispered as her eyelids drifted shut.

  He forced a laugh. “You did.”

  “I’m glad.” Her drowsy voice wrapped around his heart.

  He held her in silence and waited until her breaths came in slow, shallow succession before shutting his eyes. He could easily get used to this, but unlike the dream of becoming a cop, this one that involved Kendall was much more futile.

  A high-pitched ringing woke Kendall from a deep, luxurious sleep. She didn’t want to be bothered, not when she was cocooned in such delicious warmth, but a hand on her arm was shaking her, giving her no choice but to open her eyes.