Someone Like Her by Sandra Owens Page B

if it was Saint panting after Maria.
    “And I’d never ask you to, but the boss seems to forget Maria’s an adult, free to make her own decisions. I’m not forcing her to do anything she doesn’t want, and I’m not out to hurt her.”
    Saint turned a chair around and straddled it. “That may be, but in the end you will. Unless . . .”
    Unless Maria was the one woman he’d give up his lifestyle for. Jake remained silent, refusing to take the bait. He never promised something he couldn’t deliver. A contemplative light Jake didn’t care for appeared in Saint’s eyes.
    “You know, I’ve seen the way you look at her. It’s different from how you look at other women. Maybe it’s time you grew up, Jake. Stopped chasing skirts and settle down with a good woman.” He glanced at the doorway through which Maria had disappeared. “Someone like her.”
    Who the hell did Saint think he was, Jake’s confessor? “I’m tired of this conversation. There’s an empty bedroom, last door on the right.”
    “First, I need you to bring me up to date on where everything stands.”
    “Tomorrow.” Jake headed to his room, stopping at Maria’s closed door. He considered knocking and asking if she was all right, but what was there to say? She was once again off-limits, and it was probably for the best. Saint was right. Eventually, he would hurt her.
    He showered, something he’d planned for them to do together. Cleaning the sticky chocolate off her body was a chore he’d looked forward to. As the water streamed over him, he closed his eyes and imagined Maria standing in front of him and what he’d do. He’d yet to see her naked, but from what he had seen of her, a picture formed clearly in his mind.
    As the fantasy developed, Jake slipped his hand around his erection and pretended it was her soft fingers holding him tightly and milking him. “Maria,” he rasped as he came. His body jerked with a violence he’d never before experienced. Christ. If she could do this to him without even being next to him, what would it be like to have the real her?
    He leaned his forehead on the wall, his breath harsh to his ears. Unbelievable. He’d climaxed twice tonight, and neither time had it been how he’d wanted. To be wrapped in her slick heat, to hold her close and watch her come, that was what he wanted more than he’d ever wanted anything.
    Still, he didn’t know what to do about it. Saint’s words rang in his ears.
    Someone like her.

CHAPTER NINE

    T he smell of coffee floated down the hall, and Maria eyed her bedroom door. All she had to do was open it and walk out—just pretend nothing embarrassing had happened the night before.
    She’d tried several times to contact Logan to give him a piece of her mind, but he wasn’t answering his phone. He had to know why she was calling, and he was a coward for refusing to talk to her. It was past time he stopped trying to control her life. Her brother was just too used to protecting her and didn’t know how to let go. She got it, she did. He’d spent most of his life taking care of her. But enough was enough.
    A knock sounded on her door. “Maria, you up?” Jamie said.
    “Be right there.” As the sound of his footsteps faded, she inhaled a deep breath and left the sanctuary of her room. As she walked down the hall, her heartbeat picked up speed at seeing Jake. She’d tossed and turned all night thinking about him. God, the things he’d made her feel. He’d certainly proven she wasn’t immune to sex, at least when it was with him.
    She wanted Jamie gone so she and Jake could pick up where they’d left off. There was so much more he had to teach her, and she couldn’t wait to start. To think she’d gone twenty-four years believing there was no pleasure in sex. But sex was what Lovey Dovey had, and Maria had seen no pleasure on her mother’s face when she brought her men home or after they left.
    It wasn’t just sex with Jake, and she finally understood what making