Virgin's Passion Read online

  “Who?”

  “I can’t remember exactly who said it. Just that it was said.”

  I saw what was happening here. This was a game that girls played in junior high. Ruth wanted me to believe people were talking about me so that I would tell her something new. Little did she know that I didn’t play those kinds of games.

  “Ruth, since you’re the one saying it, I can’t help but think you are the one spreading that story.”

  “What?” She scowled. “Of course not. I didn’t believe it when I heard it anyway,” she insisted.

  “Good. So you’ll set anyone straight who wants to keep spreading this around, right?”

  I didn’t care about the death glare she gave me. At least she let me get to my cubicle, where I dove into work, even though I kept getting interrupted.

  Several guys including David and Luke stopped by to ask if I’d had a good time. Then Cassie came over to know if I made it home okay. Nice of her, definitely, but I was sitting in my cubicle in one piece, right?

  “I would have left early if James had offered to give me a lift,” she confided. “He’s dreamy. You guys make a cute couple.”

  “We aren’t a couple,” I replied. “It was just a ride.”

  She looked utterly unconvinced. “Well, maybe the two of you would like to come out with David and Sue and me some night for cocktails instead of a frat party in the lobby bar.”

  “That sounds like fun. But I can’t speak for James.”

  “Sure, you can.” James appeared from behind Sue, all 6’3 lean, muscled inches of him and bone-melting smile. “What are we not speaking for me about?”

  Cassie grinned giddily. “I told her that you both should come out with David and Cassie and myself for a more grown-up gathering.”

  “Just tell me when and where.” James winked, leaving me hot and flustered at nine in the morning.

  “I will. See you guys later.” Cassie bopped away, leaving me with James. He pulled a rag from his pocket and began to scrub ink from his hands. Seemed awfully early to already be having toner issues, and it seemed to me that ink was set pretty permanently. Hmm.

  “Did you have a nice weekend?”

  I couldn’t help it. I was still stung. “I don’t think you should stand here talking to me.”

  “Because I screwed up on Friday,” he said bluntly.

  “Shhh,” I hissed, glancing around. “There was nothing to screw up. I just meant that Ruth might see you.”

  “Ruth? The one with the brassy hair?”

  I nodded, really not fantasizing about opening that shirt of his and running my hands down his incredible chest. Nope. Not fantasizing one bit.

  “She just went down to Larry’s office,” James informed me.

  “Look.” I got up and moved closer to him, still keeping a safe distance because he apparently made me do things I’d never before considered doing, like throwing myself at a guy. “I’ve only been here a couple of weeks. I can’t afford to get mixed up with all kinds of rumors and hearsay. I need this job. What I don’t need is a lot of drama.”

  “I’m not looking for drama,” James said so sincerely that I almost kissed him again. “I didn’t exactly pull off the gentlemanly act on Friday, but I tried.

  “Gentlemanly?”

  He sighed and took a step closer, lowering his voice. “It wasn’t a rejection. I wanted you. Bad. You were just a hair too drunk for me to think it was a good idea.”

  Just like that, he washed away all the sting I’d been feeling and replaced it with a whole lot of a different kind of ache. “Uh.” That’s eloquent …

  James smiled. “So. We’re good now?”

  I was struck dumb. As much as I was trying to act professionally distant, James was pulling the smile from the very bottom of my feet out through my lips.

  “Yeah,” I finally said, smiling every bit as giddily as Cassie. Probably worse. “We’re good.”

  James grinned. “Awesome. Because now I’ve got to go change some light bulbs.” He pointed past me. Then, before I could duck out of the way James leaned down and brushed his lips very softly over mine, and my body went up in flames. Hell, my whole world did.

  Had I thought I could get away with it I would have pulled him into my cubicle and completely mauled him. He strolled away after giving me a wink. I sank into my chair and stared blankly at my screen, a goofy grin on my face until I heard a voice that wiped away my good mood entirely.

  “So you let James take you home?”

  I whirled around to find Potter hovering at the entrance to my cubicle.

  “What?”

  “That was really nice of you. I’m sure you made it worth his while,” he said coldly.

  “Stop,” I warned. I was more than practiced at turning guys down, in a totally different setting. “I’m not interested, Larry. And I’ll take it up to HR if I have to.” This guy had everything. I just couldn’t understand why he would risk it for a glimpse of tit or an accidental ass brushing.

  “HR?” His eyes narrowed. “Right. Because the word of an ex-stripper is so reliable.”

  I rolled my eyes. “You need to go back to your office, Larry.”

  “I will,” he assured me, latent menace in his voice. “I knew I had seen you before. It’s pretty hard to forget a body like that.”

  I swore I could feel his eyes groping me. He licked his lips and walked away. I held my composure until he was gone, then sagged into my seat once more, so mad my eyes filled with tears. What the hell was I supposed to do now? I shouldn’t have said anything. But I wasn’t about to let him walk all over me, damn it.

  I turned around and faced my computer but my mind wouldn’t focus. Some fresh air was what I needed. Etta hadn’t even gotten in yet. No one was paying any attention to me. They were all busy with their own Monday morning issues and tasks. With trembling knees, I got up and went to the elevator.

  Unfortunately, James saw me.

  “Need a break already? I know that feeling,” he said, extending a long, tubular light bulb.

  “Yeah.” I swallowed hard to keep from crying.

  “Candace? Are you all right?” When I looked at him, I tried to smile but I the tears just raced to my eyes and spilled down my cheeks. As much as I tried to wipe them away, they just kept falling.

  “I’m fine,” I squeaked pathetically.

  The elevator doors slid open and I felt James’ hand gently touch the small of my back as he urged me inside. Before I could say anything, he pulled out a key, inserted it into the panel of floor buttons, and turned it. The doors instantly shut.

  “I’ll take you to the basement.” He put the key back in his pocket. “You can pull yourself together there.”

  “Thanks.”

  “Did Potter give you shut because I drove you home? I saw him head into your cubicle.”

  My chest was too tight to say anything so I just stood there dumbly as James reached out and drew me into a gentle hug.

  “Was it Potter?” he murmured, smoothing his big hands down my back. “Or did you screw something up? You’re still really new. You’ve got plenty of time to screw up more stuff in the future. Don’t worry. I know some of the mistakes people have made that cost a couple hundred thousand dollars and they’re still employed. So, whatever you messed up…”

  “I didn’t mess anything up,” I whispered into his chest. “Well, not in the traditional sense.”

  “What is it, then?” He leaned back and looked me in the eyes, his gaze utterly open and sincere, to where I knew I couldn’t hide it from him any longer.

  “If I tell you, will you promise not to tell anyone else?”

  “You can trust me, Candace. One hundred percent.”

  The doors slid open in an ugly hallway. It smelled wet. The hint of chemicals and cleansers was prevalent.

  James guided me out, his hand lightly at the small of my back as he found me a chair and brought me a soda. God. How perfect could one man be? And then I had to ruin it, because I had
to tell him. So I did.

  Chapter Eight

  James

  It wasn’t what I expected. The story that came pouring out of the most beautiful woman I’d ever seen wasn’t illegal or about some past heartbreak. Frankly, it played into my initial stereotyping of her as Pin-Up Girl. It turned out Pin-Up had graced the stage for many, many nights, and though she’d never made it onto a poster, she undoubtedly had run—and still ran—through many men’s fantasies.

  When she finally finished, her face was a mess of tears that I dabbed at with a piece of paper towel. “Are you repulsed?” she whispered.

  “No,” I said firmly. “No, honey. Not even a little bit.”

  Her eyes lifted and there was so much hope that I leaned in and kissed her quickly and softly before drawing back again, because now was definitely not the time.

  “I’m not going to apologize for what I did,” Candace said quietly. “I made a lot of money because I danced on a stage. I swung around a pole. That was it. I made myself enough money that I if lose this job, I won’t have to panic for at least two years.”

  “You don’t have to apologize at all,” I told her. “My only worry is that Larry Potter has decided to blackmail you. That’s problematic. But we’ve all got skeletons in our closets. Yours are no better or worse than mine.”

  She wiped at her eyes with the coarse paper towel. “Yeah, well, I don’t think Potter is itching to expose your skeletons.” She huffed, finally getting some spirit back. “What’s with that guy? Where does he get the gall?”

  I couldn’t tell her that I was being paid to dig up the dirt on this guy as well as half the other people employed by ABF, so all I said was, “What a pig.”

  “What do you think I should do?” she asked.

  “Truthfully?”

  “Give it to me straight.”

  I touched her shoulder. “Go along with it.”

  “What?” Her face went blank and I hastily corrected her misunderstanding.

  “I don’t mean go through with being with him.” I nearly gagged at the thought myself. “No way. What I mean is, just let him do his disgusting thing. Put up with it a little while—without letting him touch you, obviously—long enough that I can catch him at it.”

  Candace looked at me uncertainly. “And what will you do?”

  “I’ll kick his ass, of course. He won’t know what hit him,” I replied, reaching for her hands and squeezing them in lieu of the kiss I wanted to steal.

  “Why?” She looked down at our interlaced hands and then back at me again.

  “Because you’re you. And I’m really into you,” I told her. Not eloquently. But who gave a crap?

  I felt her eyes studying me looking for a crack in my sincerity. Who could blame her, after all the guys she’d had to fend off while at her previous job? Guys with no other intent with their compliments beyond getting inside her pants.

  Finally, wanting to give her an out in case she was feeling awkward now that she’d told me everything, I said, “I better get you back upstairs.” She still didn’t say anything, so I stumbled along, filling the heavy silence between us.

  “Sean is out sick. Bob is with Sam painting a couple of conference rooms on the thirty-second floor.”

  Her hands squeezed mine tightly suddenly. “So we’re alone down here.”

  My chest tightened and so did my pants. “Yes …”

  She leaned in closer to me and dammit, there was no way I couldn’t watch her beautiful breasts rise and fall as she softly murmured, “You won’t believe this, but it’s the truth. I’m a virgin.”

  My mind went blank for a long, hot moment before I came somewhat back to earth and studied her, watching the nerves skitter across her face. “You know, you sort of look like one. I shouldn’t be surprised.”

  It was her turn to look stunned. “I do?”

  “Yeah.” I smiled. “Shy. Innocent. Your eyes, the way they dart when you flirt. Your smile. You’re new at this game. I should’ve seen it.”

  “You say all the right things.” Candace shook her head, then got up and stood shyly a foot away from me.

  Then I reached out and she came into my arms, every soft, warm, luscious inch sinking into my lap. She wrapped her arms shyly around my neck and when I kissed her this time, I tasted the innocence and reveled in being able to show her a few things, after she’d shared so much with me.

  “Is this the world’s worst place to ask you to make love to me?” Candace whispered when we were both panting from the hottest kiss I’d ever felt, virgin or no virgin.

  “Yes. Absolutely the worst. And it also couldn’t be more perfect.” As soon as my lips touched hers once more, my mind shut off. I was on autopilot. I kissed her lips, down her neck and to the place where her cleavage began. Slowly, I began to unbutton her shirt, kissing each place as soft skin was revealed until she was fully exposed to me, wearing just her bra.

  My jaw probably dropped. Her breasts were even more perfect than they’d been in my dream.

  I was about to speak when she hiked up her skirt and pulled down a lacy pair of white panties.

  “What do we do now?” she panted. Her skin shined with perspiration.

  I stood up, unzipped my pants, and took her hands in mine. “I’m a little embarrassed.”

  “Why?” She looked at me.

  “I have a condom in my wallet. It’s been there for a while. Just in case.”

  “Show me what to do.”

  I placed her delicate fingers against my aching member. Slowly she stroked it sending shivers up and down my entire body as she helped me slip into the sheath.

  Without thinking, I reached up and unsnapped her bra. When I touched her breasts, she responded perfectly. Arching her back, she pushed herself closer to me. I sat back down on the folding chair and slowly pulled Candace toward me. Gently, carefully, I guided her as she straddled my lap and eased down over my hardness.

  She was so tight, we both let out a groan of pleasure. I was afraid that this might be too overwhelming for her. Too fast. We’d barely done anything; was she really ready? But as I watched her I saw she was not uncomfortable or scared. Her eyes rolled back as her hips slowly began to rock back and forth.

  “Candace, you are so beautiful,” I whispered as I kissed her neck. I placed my hands on her hips and slowly guided her back and forth. With every grind, she sighed with pleasure. I couldn’t stop watching her.

  “Please don’t stop.” She gasped. “I love it.”

  There was no way I was going to stop. I started to guide her a little faster. With my right hand, I reached down between her legs.

  Please don’t let an alarm clock wake me up this time, I thought. There it was. I found her bud and slowly began to work it in tiny, gentle circles.

  “Oh, God,” she moaned, gazing into my eyes.

  I felt every muscle in her body tighten around me. I couldn’t pull away from her if I wanted to. I wanted this to last as long as possible and to keep fucking her all day long. I’d forgotten about the surveillance, my undercover work, the crimes being committed upstairs at ABF, my coworkers who could walk in at any minute. Nothing else mattered.

  I teased her pussy and watched her body as she writhed against me. Her hair bounced around her face. Her tits were there for me to suck and lick. As I did, she began to grind even harder. She was getting close. So was I.

  Her hips bucked as I feverishly worked her clit sending her into uncontrollable orgasmic spasms.

  “James, oh God, James.” The way she said my name drove me out of my mind, and I was already far gone as it was.

  Every curve of her body called to me. I rubbed my hands over every inch of her body as I began to come and she followed right along with me. We both came together again. I held her close to me as she started to come down, rocking slower until she was still and trying to catch her breath.

  “Are you all right?” I asked finally.

  “Yes.” She swept her hair away from her face and kissed me. “Are
you?”

  “No. I’m ruined. You’ve ruined me.” I kissed her lips and cheeks and neck. “Candace, I can’t believe we just did that.”

  “Me neither.”

  “Are you … glad you did it?”

  “I’m very glad we did it.” I kissed her passionately, just as my walkie-talkie squawked.

  “Backed up toilet on the fifth.”

  I groaned and drew away once more, shaking my head. “Such a romantic way to end your first time.”

  Candace smiled from ear to ear. “I don’t mind.”

  Then we were kissing again, and I swore I could’ve gone another round almost immediately if I hadn’t known Bob would come looking if I didn’t show up soon.

  Slowly, we unwound from each other and I slipped out and tossed the condom away, burying it under scrap paper. In between kissed, I helped Candace make sure her clothes were back in order and smoothed out. She slipped back into her panties and straightened her skirt, the act of her dressing every bit as hot as her undressing.

  “Do I look all right?”

  “You look beautiful,” I answered. “Why don’t you let me drive you home tonight?”

  “Maybe,” she replied, smiling slightly.

  I was a little surprised by that, but I was starting to realize that Candace Lowell was never what she appeared to be. If I were to try and figure her out, I’d be chasing my tail. And I’d much rather be chasing hers.

  “Okay. You let me know. But, I hope you don’t mind if I stop by your desk once or twice a day.”

  “You better.” She walked her fingers down my chest.

  “Can I take you to lunch?”

  “I brought a lunch.” Her smile made the space between my legs stir again.

  “Are you playing hard to get?”

  “Nope. You’ve got me. I’m playing hard to keep.”

  Chapter Nine

  Candace

  When I got back to the ABF office, I felt deliciously relaxed. What had I just done? What had happened? I had held on to my virginity for so long. But James had made me feel like it was all right. The right time. Crazy as it might seem, the right place. He was certainly the right man. I didn’t feel like I’d thrown something valuable away like some girls might after they’ve lost it. I felt like I’d given a gift to a man who was more than he appeared to be. I couldn’t place it. I had no idea why I felt there was something different about James. Maybe it was just the endorphins currently drowning my brain.