Trusting Jay: (A Chicago Suits Romance) (Loving Jay Book 1) (5 page)

“
M
orning Abbie
,” Sam said as I slung my purse onto my chair for yet another week of working for Calvin.

“Hey.”

“So, how was it?”

As I filled her in, her facial expressions reflected the roller coaster I had ridden over the weekend and ended with hope.  Hope for Saturday.  Though she, like Jenny, thought I should pursue a real relationship with him.  Neither of them had been betrayed the way Matt had betrayed me.  Jenny always tried to insist that she’d been betrayed by an ex, and that somehow I should see that as the same.  Yeah, like a little infidelity can begin to compare.

“Abbie, can I see you in my office?” Calvin asked.

I snarled my lip at Sam, making her laugh as I stood to follow Calvin into his office.  Calvin sat as his desk and looked at me with disgust.  At that moment I decided Jenny was right, I did have to get out of this job.  Though more for my sanity at having to deal with Calvin than for any extra money.  

And I had to get out before Calvin fired me.  This was going to be a long week. After talking at me about some new report he was concocting in his pea sized brain, I left his office. That’s thirty minutes of my life I’ll never get back.

My phone beeped, and I pulled it out of my purse.

S
cored
two tickets to the game tonight, up for it? J

O
n a work night
?  Oh well, it was Monday so technically I haven’t seen him since last week.  And I’m not going to see him this coming weekend so I wouldn’t see him at all this week.  That’s not too intense.

W
ould love
to

I
hit
send and I swung my chair around kicking my legs.

“What’s up with you?” Sam asked.

“Jay is taking me to the game tonight.”

“What game?”

“Dunno.  Don’t care either.”  I struggled to contain the enormous smile on my face.

The second the clock hit five, I stood.  I’d already put my sneakers on ten minutes before, and watched the seconds tick until I could leave without incurring Calvin’s wrath.

* * *

O
nce home
, I ripped off my work clothes, had a short shower to rinse off my pits and bits and stood in front of my closet.  I overheard some co-workers about ‘the game’ tonight, I tuned into their conversation and gathered it was basketball.  A sport I knew zero about.  Not that it mattered, I’m always up for a new experience but it would be nice to know what sort of clothes I should wear.

In the end I opted for tight-fitting jeans.  Tight from my fatness, not style. And a navy long-sleeved blouse  The hem sat mid-way over my ass and the billowy front showed off some, but not too much, cleavage.  I reasoned it was both appropriate for a sports event and sufficient to say take me home and fuck me.

As arranged,  I waited for Jay at my condo.  He said he’d be here at six thirty, and that we’d grab a bite to eat before the game.  At six twenty my intercom buzzed, and I eagerly buzzed him up.  It buzzed again.

“Yes?” I said into the intercom.

“There’s no point in me coming up.  Come down here.”

“Okay,” I said.  I guess if that’s what he wants.

The elevator opened and I could see him standing on the other side of the glass doors.  In yet another expensive suit.  One that sat oh so perfectly on his shoulders.

He had his back to me, but turned to face me and smiled when I opened the door.  My heart leapt.  In the two days since I’d seen him, I’d almost forgotten how hot he is.  Or maybe I’d convinced myself that my memory was playing tricks on me, building him up to a level of gorgeousness that he simply didn’t have.  Yet here he was, standing right in front of me in all his undeniably beyond gorgeous state.

“
H
i Beautiful
,” he said.  He put his phone in his pocket and hugged me tight against him.  I closed my eyes and inhaled.  His earthy scent traveled through my lungs and down to my crotch, filling me with heat.

“Hey.”

“Are you okay to walk to the stadium?”

“That’s the beauty of central living.”

“Okay, let’s go.  I thought we’d eat in the stadium.”

“In the stadium?  That food is so overpriced!”  I guess he’s never been to any event at a stadium, everyone knows what stupid money the places there charge.

“They are?  That’s fine, we’ll stop somewhere on the way.”

Our belly’s full, we filed through the stadium doors with the rest of the fifty thousand spectators.  Jay held the tickets out for the woman, and we were through the doors.

“Beers?” I asked.

Jay looked at me with his dazzling smile, “Absolutely.”

When we each had a beer in hand, we entered the stadium.  I followed Jay.  He seemed to know where he was going.  The place was already buzzing and even though I knew nothing about basketball, the atmosphere was electric and I couldn’t help but be excited.

“Here we are, that’s your seat.”  Jay pointed to a seat and I furrowed my brow.

“Are you serious?”

He let out a burst of breath.  “Of course.”

“How the hell did you score court side seats?”

His eyes flared.  “Buddy of mine.”

“That’s a nice friend to have.”

“He took pity on me.  I told him I needed to woo a pretty girl and he offered them.”

I blushed.  “You didn’t need fancy tickets to impress me.”

“I’m not trying to impress you.”  I didn’t know what he meant by that comment.  Sometimes he’s too difficult to read.  Almost like he doesn’t care what anyone thinks of him.

“Oh,” I said.

He leaned over, his lips to my ear and said, “If I were trying to impress you, I’d have taken you to an old movie house.”

His words set a tingle down my spine. No. I must not approach this as a relationship. This is sex. At least at some point I assume we’re going to have it.

The lights dimmed and spotlights swooped around the stands, which set the crowd off.  As the teams emerged and began warming up, the cheering became so loud I scrunched my face up in an effort to plug my ears.  From my seat at the edge of the court I watched mesmerized and the fast moving giants did their stuff.

At halftime, a man and woman I recognized from a local television station appeared center court and began talking to the crowd.  A half dozen guys ran out around the court.  One stopped in front of me, startling me.  He shot some t-shirts out of a cannon, then moved down a few seats to shoot off some more.

Jay turned to me, “I want to apologize in advance.”

“What for?”

“Because I have to be somewhere at five tomorrow morning, so I have to take off right after the game finishes.”

“Oh.”  So much for sex.  This is just a date.  A date as in a relationship.  I don’t like that.

“I’m really sorry, I have a busy week,” he said.

“Doing what?  I thought you said you don’t have a job.”

“I don’t.  I just have some stuff to do.”

“I don’t get you.  You say you don’t work, you swan about downtown, sit court side at basketball games, and have an endless wardrobe of what appear to be very expensive suits.”  I tried to sound lighthearted.  The truth is I don’t really care, since this isn’t a relationship.

Jay pursed his lips but didn’t respond to my comment.  I smiled at him, leaned into him and kissed his cheek.  My hand had landed on his bicep, and I let it linger.  I thought, but couldn’t be sure through the suit jacket, that he flexed it a little.

* * *

B
y the time
we’d reached my building, we were laughing and chatting and I didn’t want him to go.

“Come up for a coffee?” I asked.  My left eyebrow raised in hope, hope blending into begging.

Jay pulled me close and squeezed me.  “Not tonight.”

“Tomorrow?”

“I’m coming for dinner, remember.”  He kissed the top of my head but didn’t relax his squeeze on me.

I looked up and tried not to pout.  “But that’s almost two whole weeks away.”

He released his grip on me, “I know.  There’s nothing I can do about it.”

I stretched up to find his lips, and kissed him lightly, hoping I could entice him.  His lips responded, and pushed my lips apart, allowing his tongue to explore my mouth.  His hand explored down my side, sliding over the curve of my hip until it made its way around to my ass.  My entire body stood on alert, yearning for more.

All too soon, he broke away from me, leaving me standing, untouched at my door.

“I’ll see you at dinner,” he said, then turned and walked away.

T
he rest
of the week dragged.  I spent the weekend blitzing my condo, in anticipation of Jay’s visit the following weekend.  I hated dusting, but made sure every surface was clean.  Then I tackled the chair in my bedroom.  It’s the spot I dump clothing, from stuff that had an hour or two of wear and didn’t warrant washing, to stuff I put on to wear and then decided I looked too fat in it.

I folded everything into two piles, put the clothes from one away, snd stuck the other pile on the top shelf in my closet.

The work week sucked, Calvin seemed to be getting more and more aggressive towards me. He even wrote up some report on me to HR. Something about my attitude and work ethic.  But I did get around to updating my resume, and sent off a copy to Marla as well as a few other agencies I’d found online. 

On Friday after work, Sam, Jenny, Marla and I sat in the bar, sipping margaritas.  The three of them chatted about the plans for Jenny’s thirtieth.  Even though Jenny was my best friend, I had trouble joining in.  Calvin had shit on me all week, and I needed more than a drink to lean on.  I needed a hug.  Pathetic, I know.  I also know Jenny would be more than happy for me to cry on her shoulder, but her big party was only three weeks away and I didn’t want to be a downer.

“So what are you cooking tomorrow?” Sam asked me.

“Huh?  Oh.  I’m going to do a simple lasagna.”

“The daydreamer awakes,” Jenny laughed.

“I knew the mention of her date with Jay would pull her out,” Sam laughed.

I forced a laugh, “I’m sorry girls, I just have a lot on my mind.”

“Yeah, a lot of cock,” Sam said.  They all burst out laughing.

“Look at her, she’s red,” Marla said.

“Enough, okay?”  But my plea fell on deaf ears.

“Abbie’s getting laid, Abbie’s getting laid.” Sam chanted.

“I sure hope so,” I said.

“Abbie and Jay sitting in a tree,” Jenny sang.

“No, not that.  Just getting laid,” I stated.

Jenny sighed, my continual resistance to a new relationship drove her nuts, but she was going to have to accept it.  I would live the rest of my life in a series of meaningless sexual entanglements.

“Fine.  Whatcha gonna wear?” Jenny asked.

“I haven’t decided yet.  Would it be too forward to open the door naked?”

“Maybe, if you tie a big red bow around your waist.” Sam said.

“Wear that strapless fuchsia number, he’ll be peeling if off you before you can blink,” Jenny said.

“Are you sure?  I don’t look like too much of a floozy in it?”

“Just wear it already,” Sam said.

“Here, we got you a present.”  Jenny tossed a small box wrapped in red heart paper onto the table.  I furrowed my brow, what on earth were they up to now?  I picked up the parcel and shook, it was light and didn’t make much sound.

“Just open it already,” Sam said.

I tore off the paper.  “Nice,” I said, my voice dripping with sarcasm as I held the three pack of condoms aloft.

“We figured it wouldn’t occur to you to buy some,” said Jenny.

“You’re right,” I said laughing, “when’s the last time I’ve even seen a condom?”  I had been on the pill since Matt moved in with me.  After he moved out, I stayed on it because it made my periods more bearable.  For whatever reason, disease prevention didn’t occur to me.

“Put them in your purse, and when you get home remember to put them beside your bed!” Jenny said, and the four of us burst out laughing.