Fight With Me (9 page)

By noon I have six bouquets of flowers spread all over my office, with wonderful, sweetly written cards from my family.

None from Nate.

Maybe he’ll bring me something tonight.
  I shrug.  We’ve really only been seeing each other for four days.  He’s not required to get me anything.

At twelve thirty, Nate comes walking through my door, looking every inch the successful business man in his black suit and red tie.  I hold my smile in when I glance up at him, and I can tell he’s doing the same.

“Do you have a moment, Miss Montgomery?”

“Of course.”  He closes the door behind him, and I’ve never been so thankful that I don’t have any windows out to the main part of the building.

“Hi,” he murmurs and looks around my office.

“Hi,” I respond, rising from my desk and coming around to him.  He gathers me in his arms and kisses me deeply, then pulls back and runs his fingers down my cheek.

“How is the birthday girl?” he asks.

“I’m good.  Feeling a little spoiled.”  I step back and gesture at all the flowers and he smirks.

“All of your admirers?” he quirks up an eyebrow.

“Yes, my brothers, parents and Nat are my biggest fans.”  I smile up at him and his eyes get serious as he sweeps the pad of his thumb along my lower lip.

“I think I rate up there too,” he whispers.

“Oh,” I respond, mesmerized by the serious look in his eyes.

“I have something for you.”  He steps back and pulls an envelope out of his breast pocket.  My eyebrows climb to my hairline in surprise.

“Why?”

“Because it’s your birthday, Julianne.” He looks at me like I’m stupid and I flush in pleasure.

“Thank you.”

“You haven’t opened it yet.”  He passes me the envelope and I rip it open.  There is a handwritten note inside, in his hand writing and I grin up at him.

Julianne,

I am delighted to have the honor of sharing your birthday with you.  I’m giving you the rest of the day off, and have set up an account at Neiman Marcus that has no limit.  Go shopping.  Replace the clothes I ruined over the weekend, and be sure to find a leather jacket, along with anything else you want.

Happy Birthday, beautiful.

Yours,

Nate

Wow.

I smile and look up into his amused gray eyes.

“This is where I do the obligatory ‘you shouldn’t have’.” I kiss him softly and rub my nose against his.

“And I’ll do the obligatory ‘but I wanted to’.” He grins, delighted with me, and I hug him close.  He’s come to be so precious to me in such a short time.  Or has he always meant this much to me and I just couldn’t admit it to myself?

“Thank you, so much.” I whisper.

“You’re welcome.  I wanted to send you flowers, but it wouldn’t be appropriate here.”

Oh, that’s right!  No wonder.

“I understand.  This is a very generous gift.”  I nuzzle his chest and hug him tighter.

“You’ll get your other gifts tonight,” he murmurs and kisses my hair.

“What?” I pull back and look up at him.  “This is too much as it is, honey.”

“Don’t be ungrateful.  If memory serves, you hate that quality in Natalie.”

Oh.  Damn him.

“I’m not ungrateful.  I’m… overwhelmed.”

He smiles warmly and kisses me again.  “I have a meeting.  Go have fun.  I’m serious, get whatever you want.”

I grin and jump up and down in excitement.  “Okay, you asked for it.”

He laughs, a full out belly laugh, kisses me again, and leaves to go back to work. 
Holy shit, so this is how Natalie felt when Luke treated us to a day of shopping for her birthday.
  No, Natalie hated it.

I’m going to love the shit out of it.

***

I nudge the front door closed behind me with my foot, my arms and hands loaded down with bags from Neimans and climb the stairs to my bedroom, throwing the bags onto the bed.

I did good.

Nate was very generous today.

I didn’t go crazy.  I replaced the underwear he ripped, and bought some extra because they are sexy and will most likely meet the same fate the lacy panties of mine met this past weekend. I splurged on a couple of pretty nightgowns, and the rest is a hot, black leather jacket, shoes and handbags.

Oh, the shoes and handbags.

Two pairs of Blaniks and one pair of Jimmy Choos that are, frankly, to die for.  Nate also got me a Gucci handbag and matching wallet.

He really shouldn’t have.

I laugh as I pull everything out of the bags and put them away in my closet.  The smallest bag has a tiny wrapped box in it, tied with a red bow and I hug myself, excited to give Nate his gift.

This gift was paid for by me, of course.

I hear my doorbell and I race down the stairs to greet my man.

“Hi,” I smile up at his beautiful face.  He’s let his hair down –
yum –
and he’s holding a large bouquet of red roses in one hand and a white plastic bag full of food in the other.

“Hi, gorgeous.  These are for you.”

“Thank you.” I bury my nose in the soft blooms, inhaling their sweet scent and grin.  “Come inside, make yourself at home.”

I step back and lead him through the house to the kitchen so I can fuss over my lovely roses and put them in water.

“Plates?” he asks and I point to the cupboard that houses the dinnerware.  I love this house, and I’m thankful to Natalie every day that she lets me live here, rent free.  It’s beautiful, with a fantastic view of the Puget Sound.  The kitchen is state-of-the-art, though not quite as sexy as Nate’s.

I arrange my flowers and put them on the breakfast bar where I can admire them.

“These are fantastic, thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”  Nate leans down and kisses my cheek, then loads both our plates full of Italian food.  We settle at the dining room table with our dinner and I pour us each a glass of red wine.

“So, did you have fun today?” Nate digs into his lasagna.

“I had a blast today, thank you again.”

He grins, looking exceedingly proud of himself.  “You’re welcome.  What did you get?”

“Oh, you know… lingerie, shoes, handbags… the things girls love the most.” I smirk and take a sip of my wine.

“I’m glad.”  He takes my hand in his and kisses my knuckles.  “I’d love to go with you next time.  You can try the lingerie on for me and I can attack you in the dressing room.”  His eyes are shining with humor and lust and my belly clenches.

“It’s a date.”  I finish my food and push my plate away.  “How was your day?”

“Uneventful, but profitable,” he winks at me and smiles.  I’m sure it was.  He’s very good at his job.

“That sounds like a good day.”

“It’s much better, now that I’m here.”

“Such the charmer,” I wink at him and nudge his leg under the table, making him laugh.  I have something for you.”  I clear our plates and take them to the kitchen, then snag the small box off the kitchen island.

“Oh?”

“Yes, here.”  I set the box on the table and smile.  “This was not charged to your account today.”

He frowns at me and looks down at the box.  “You didn’t have to get me anything. It’s your birthday.”

“You don’t always have to have an occasion to buy a gift.” I roll my eyes at him. “I wanted to get you something.”

His eyes soften for a moment, and then they burn with excitement.  I can tell he’s dying to see what’s in the box.

“Open it.”

“Okay.”  He pulls the ribbon off and unwraps the white paper.  Inside is a small black jewelry box.  He flips the lid, and nestled in cream colored satin are two platinum cuff links with his initials engraved in them.

His face is completely blank.  I can’t tell what he’s thinking.  He hates them?  I just don’t know.

Then his face transforms into his big, panty-melting grin and he pulls me into his lap, nuzzling my neck.  “Thank you, baby.  I love them.”

“You had me worried there for a second.”  I run my fingers through his hair and enjoy being in his arms.

“I’m not used to getting gifts.”

“Get used to it.” I kiss his nose, and then sweep my lips over his mouth, sweetly kissing him.

“Well, since we’re giving gifts…” He shifts, pushing me back on his lap and pulls a small red Cartier box out of his pocket.

Holy Fuck.

“Nate, you’ve spent too much money on me today already.”

“Stop.” He rests his fingers over my mouth.  “I’ve been waiting a long time to give you things, Julianne.  Don’t rain on my parade.”

Oh, he’s just so sweet.

I open the lid on the box and nestled inside are princess cut diamond earrings.  They sparkle brilliantly, reflecting the light from the chandelier, and simply take my breath away.  They are easily a carat each.

And way too expensive.

I shouldn’t accept them.

But when I look up into his gray eyes, I see apprehension and maybe a little fear, and I know I can’t tell him no.

“Thank you,” I whisper, overcome.  Tears begin to run unchecked down my cheeks and I don’t bother to try to stop them.

“Hey, what’s wrong, baby?”  He brushes my tears away with his thumbs.

“I’m just…”  I swallow and turn my tear-filled eyes to his, and I know I have fallen in love with him.  Not because of his expensive gifts, but because of how gentle and generous and kind he is, not to mention sexy as sin and smarter than any man has a right to be.

But it’s too soon to tell him.

“I’m just thankful, and maybe a little overwhelmed by your generosity.”

He kisses my cheek, tucks me under his chin and I curl up on his lap, enjoying the feel of his strong arms around me, holding me to him.

“Get used to it, baby.”

Chapter Ten

“Oh!”  I sit up and kiss Nate quickly on the mouth and jump off his lap.  “I have something else to show you.  Wait here.”

I can hear Nate’s chuckle as I run up the stairs back to my bedroom, pulling off my clothes along the way.  I strip out of my black skirt, thankful that I wore my black thigh-high stockings today, my bra and shirt and grab my shiny new black leather jacket.  I push my feet into my new black Jimmy Choo stilettos and take a look in the mirror.  Hmm… hair’s not right.

In the bathroom I brush my hair vigorously, giving it a wild look, and touch up my makeup, adding red lipstick.

I look like a hot rocker biker chick.  It’s a new look for me, and I am totally
working it.

I walk downstairs, in my heels, black stockings and unzipped black jacket, and find Nate just finishing with the dishes.  His back is to me; he’s taken off his suit jacket, rolled the sleeves of his white shirt –
yum, that tattoo –
and his ass just looks so fantastic in those black slacks.

“Need any help?” I ask, getting his attention and am not disappointed by the drop of his jaw when he turns around and looks at me.  His eyes go wide and dilate, and I smile smugly, my hands on my hips.

“I see you got a leather jacket,” he murmurs as he slowly saunters toward me.

“I had orders.”  I shrug.  “I’m good at taking direction.”

“So you are.”  He stops about three feet away from me and rakes those hot gray eyes over my body, from my Choo-clad feet to the top of my blonde head, then looks me in the eyes and takes a deep, deep breath.  “Fuck, you’re beautiful.”

I can’t speak.  I can’t move.  I can just gaze back into those lust-filled eyes, and the blood rushes south, pooling between my thighs.  I bite my lower lip and reach out, bunching his shirt in my fist, my eyes still on his and jerk him forward so his chest is just an inch from mine.  His hands are still hanging at his sides, balled into fists, our lips are inches apart, and I can’t stop gazing into his eyes.

“Nate,” I whisper.

“Yes, baby,” he whispers back.

“If you don’t touch me, like thirty seconds ago, I’m not responsible for my actions.”

His lips curve up into a half smile and he exhales, his eyes moving down to my lips, then back to my own.  His fingers lightly brush down my cheek, the pad of his thumb across my lower lip, and I bite that pad, gripping his wrist in my hand, and then gently suck it, rolling my tongue around it.  His eyes close and teeth clench, and the next thing I know he’s kissing me like crazy and pushing me back into the living room. 

“Jesus, you’re so fucking hot.” His face is against my neck, licking and biting, just under my ear and it sends the most delicious tingles down my back.  He parts the front of my jacket, exposing my breasts and kneads one, brushing his thumb back and forth over my nipple, making it pucker and my back bow.

Nate lays me down on the couch and covers my body with his, hitches my right leg around his hip and grinds his still-covered erection against my center.

“Oh God.”  My hands dive into his hair and I hold him against me, grinding against him, feeling his lips and teeth on my neck and it’s pure bliss.  “Nate.”

“Yes, baby.”  He rocks a little harder against me and kisses me tenderly, and I fucking come apart beneath him, writhing and pushing against him.

Holy shit.

Before I can recover, Nate has unzipped his pants and I feel the tip of his glorious cock, and those magnificent metal balls, at my opening, and he slams into me, burying himself inside me.

“Argh!” I cry out, lifting my hips against him.

He stills and lifts his head, his molten gray eyes boring into mine.  “Did I hurt you?”

“No, God no, don’t stop.”

He growls and pulls out, almost all the way, then slams in again, over and over.  I feel my body tightening, and I try to hold it back, wanting this to last.

“You’re so goddamn tight,” he growls, his jaw clenched shut.

It feels so fucking good.

“Let go, baby.”

“Not yet,” I whisper back.

He bites my earlobe and starts to slam into me even harder, gripping my ass in one hand and pulling me tighter against him.

“Yes, now.  Do it, babe.”

And I can’t stop.  The orgasm pushes through me with such intensity I can’t even feel my teeth.  I grip his ass in my hands, and he cries out as he slams into me one last time and I feel him erupt inside me.