Leverage (Part Three)(11)

At least for a moment.

He withdrew his cock and Ally dropped to her stomach, groaning and breathing just as hard as she rolled to her back with a deeply satisfied sigh, saying, “Holy shit…you delivered, baby. You definitely delivered.”

Boston accepted the compliment with grim satisfaction. At least he got the job done. Now, he was overwhelmed by the need for a shower and solitude. He rolled to his feet and went to the mini bar, pouring himself another drink. He downed the scotch and turned to regard Ally who was lounging on his bed like a cat who’d found the milk, and he forced a casual smile when she grinned at him, obviously hoping for an invitation for round two but it wasn’t going to happen.

“That was fun,” she started, tracing the lines on the bedding with her finger. “No. 5 will definitely remain in the memory banks.”

“Glad to hear it.” He replaced his glass and tugged on his cargo shorts. “So, I hate to fuck and run but I have some business to attend to.”

She sat up, disappointed. “Oh. I was hoping…”

“Sweet girl, remember, this was always going to be a one-time deal.”

“Yeah but we were so good together…”

Not really. He probably could’ve gotten off easier with his hand and dealt with less guilt. “Well, my life isn’t open to adding a Plus One. Besides, trust me when I say, I’m an asshole. You don’t want me.”

“You seem like a good guy to me,” Ally disagreed, her gaze lighting on his groin area. “And besides, a woman can put up with a lot when she’s getting a lot in return.”

He laughed. If only Julianna felt that way. He could give Julianna orgasm after orgasm but she’d still hold him accountable for his shit. Ah hell, what was he doing, aside from going bat-shit crazy over a woman? He pulled a wad of cash from his wallet and put it into Ally’s hand. “Here, take this. Have fun. Go shopping. Do whatever but it’s time to say our goodbyes.”

She pouted but her hand curled around the cash. “Well, St. John is expensive,” she agreed, pursing her lips in thought, then she brightened and said, “Okay, no hard feelings. I got what I came for and the extra cash is a bonus. Can you call me a cab?”

“I’d be happy to,” he said with a small smile, relieved she didn’t start wailing or sputtering about him treating her like a prostitute. But just as he was about to call the front desk, she rose and walked toward him with a coy expression that he didn’t like or trust. He eyed her warily as she looped her arms around his neck and pressed herself against him. He reluctantly clasped his arms around her, waiting.

“Are you sure you want to let me go?” she asked, lifting on her toes to brush a soft kiss against his lips and he fought against the urge to thrust her away from him as if she were poison. When he didn’t kiss her back, she sighed in disappointment and stepped away with a petulant, “Fine, I get the point,” muttered under her breath as she went to collect her clothes. Five minutes later she was dressed and waiting for the cab in the lobby and Boston was in a scalding hot shower, mindless that the humidity and steam made the air almost too thick to breathe. But no amount of scrubbing could remove what he felt was a stain on his soul for fucking another woman when all he wanted was Julianna. His attempt at removing her importance from his mind — and heart — had been an abysmal failure and Boston didn’t cotton well to failure. Now what? Julianna hadn’t wanted him before and now? He groaned and leaned against the shower wall, allowing the water to sluice over him until the heat stopped stinging. He was well and truly screwed.

And the worst part? He’d done it to himself.

What a royal mess.

Good job, Kincaid. Good fucking job.





-4-




Julianna was determined to have a good time — Boston be damned. She’d come to St. John to get away from Boston and to clear her head. And that's exactly what she was going to do. Miles was being incredibly sweet by showing her around St. John and she had to admit it felt good to have somebody treat her like a person and not like a possession. Right before she’d found out she was pregnant, things had been so good with Boston. They'd actually settled into a comfortable routine that’d felt real. Maybe she was deluding herself but it actually felt as if they were in a relationship and not a business transaction that involved sex. Was she completely crazy for thinking that Boston had feelings for her? No, something told her that as much as she might want to deny Boston's ability to act like a normal human being and not a self-righteous asshole, Boston had had feelings for her. And now that she was pregnant with his baby, everything had changed. She would've thought that things between them would’ve gotten better but no, they’d crumbled. Was that partially her fault? Had she run out of fear and completely destroyed any chance they’d had of being a true couple? Did she want that? She hated to admit it but she missed Boston. What'd that say about her? Where was her damn self esteem? Didn't she value herself more than that? Julianna sighed and moved away from the open window to grab her sarong. Miles was going to be there any minute and they were going to one of his favorite beaches. She just wanted to get out of her head at least for the day. She supposed at some point she needed to talk to Boston. Could they sit in a room and act like normal people? She wasn't sure. Thus far, that hadn’t been the case. Either they were screaming at each other or they were screwing their brains out. A flush crept up her cheeks as she remembered his touch and she cursed her hormones for encouraging such unhelpful images. The last thing she needed was to remember how much she adored the way he touched her.