Chapter Two

JESSIE GRABBED HER SMALL WHITE purse and followed him, trying to keep up with his longer strides.

In the parking garage, he led her to a black Escalade.

“Nice car,” Jessie observed, opening the passenger door and climbing in next to him.

“It belongs to Drake,” Jack replied shortly, not looking at her.

“Oh. Well, I like it,” she said appreciatively, feeling the leather seats.

He pointed to a motorcycle parked across the garage. “That’s mine.”

“Really? I’ve never been on a motorcycle. Always been too scared.”

Jack didn’t respond. He pulled out of the parking garage and eased into traffic. He made his way expertly through the maze of city streets.

Jessie still used her navigation system for just about every destination, but she was working on learning the confusing layout of the city.

She pulled out her phone and texted Zoey to find out if she still wanted to get drinks after work.

Zoey texted back almost immediately.

Zoey: OMG yes… can’t wait. Kat’s?

Kat’s was their new favorite hang out in the city. They had discovered it two weeks ago and had been back four times already. The appetizers were delicious and the clientele seemed to include a decent number of good-looking professionals in their age group.

Zoey was an event planner. She was quite successful and her list of clients was impressive and growing.

They had been best friends since fifth grade, when Zoey had stuck up for Jessie on the playground at school when a mean girl had made fun of her.

“What kind of work have you done?” Jack asked, his deep, rugged voice breaking the silence.

“I’ve worked for the past four years at SM Investigations.” Jessie noticed a slight smirk on Jack’s face as she named her former employer.

She must be a little older than he had first thought.

“Decoy work?” he guessed correctly.

Jessie nodded, annoyed by his mocking tone.

“What else?” he asked.

Just as he had suspected. This girl hadn’t done any real investigative work. She’d only used that sexy ass body and long blonde hair to lure unsuspecting dudes to their downfall. He had never been a big fan of the whole decoy thing. Talk about entrapment. What guy with a functioning libido could resist this wet dream come to life?

Jessie hesitated. “That’s it,” she admitted as she glanced at him, his face expressionless again. “Before that I was in college. But I’ve had extensive self-defense training. Krav Maga.”

She resented that she felt the need to justify her qualifications to him. He probably thought she would be a liability and she wanted to make sure he understood clearly that she could take care of herself.

He nodded briefly, glancing back at her.

She noticed his eyes lower quickly to the bottom of her dress, which had risen further up her thighs as she sat down in the car, revealing even more of her silky skin than when she was standing.

Jessie was surprised when she caught him checking her out. She felt a warm flush spread over her body.

His eyes were back on the road almost instantly.

Jessie wondered why, when she should be irritated, she felt secretly pleased. A little thrill rushed through her, and to her shock and embarrassment, she felt a little tingle between her legs.

Jack drove into the parking lot of a Starbucks and parked near the front.

“Can I get you something?” he asked politely, that slight southern drawl making her breath hitch just a tad.

“Thanks, but I’ll just come in with you. I’d love an iced tea.” Jessie smiled at him sweetly.

She climbed down from the SUV and smoothed down her short dress. Jack walked directly behind her toward the store. When they got to the door, he reached around and opened it for her. She glanced up at him shyly and he looked down at her with no discernible expression.

“Thanks.” She spoke softly, feeling suddenly self-conscious.

Jack was noticing for the third time in an hour how pretty her eyes were. Brilliant blue with long, fluttering eyelashes.

She brushed slightly against him as he held the door open and she walked past him into the Starbucks. He took the opportunity to check her out from the back as she walked in front of him. He couldn’t help but notice again what a hot little body she had.

His dirty mind briefly envisioned bending her over and pulling that dress up over her ass and… fuck. He was starting to get hard. He shook his head to get his thoughts back on track. This wasn’t going to work if he couldn’t go longer than five minutes without thinking about sex around her.

He wasn’t good at resisting temptation. At least not the kind that came in a little dress and soft looking skin and what he was sure were great tits. This was work, not a night out at the bar with his buddies chasing pussy.

They waited in the line in silence. When it was their turn, Jack ordered black coffee and indicated for Jessie to order also. She did and he paid for both drinks.

“Oh no, that’s okay. I can get it,” Jessie protested.

He ignored her and moved out of line to wait for their order.

She thanked him as they walked back outside and climbed into the car. He nodded and pulled back into traffic.

They drove awhile longer, passing the baseball stadium to leave the congested city streets. They pulled onto the parkway that lead into the suburbs outside of the city.

Finally, Jack took an exit into a residential area. He pulled over to the side of the street and parked. He reached into the console between them and pulled out a small pair of binoculars.

Jack spoke briefly about the case. “Diana Powell. Three houses down on the right. Like it said in the case file, she was in a car accident last month and she’s suing, of course. Claiming the usual back and neck injuries. Not the most exciting case, but the client is loaded so he’s sparing no expense to prove that she’s lying.”

Jessie nodded. He handed her the binoculars after taking a quick look. Jessie peered through them until the house was in view, took a brief look around, and then placed them on top of the dashboard.

“I’m sorry about your friend, Gus,” Jessie said quietly. “Russell told me what happened.”

A lump formed in her throat. She was a soft-hearted girl, and just thinking of other people’s pain was enough to elicit an emotional response from her.

Jack gazed at her pensively for a long moment, before nodding slightly. “Thanks,” he said shortly, looking away.

Quickly, Jessie changed the subject. “Do you live in the city?”

Jack groaned inwardly. Jesus Christ. He hoped she wasn’t planning to make small talk all day. Typical female. When he and Gus had worked together they could comfortably go for hours on end with neither of them feeling the need to say a word.

“No.” He answered briefly, not wanting to encourage her chatter. It was probably better if they kept their interactions and conversations strictly professional.

She looked at him, waiting for him to go on. When he said nothing further, she looked away and stared out the window for a while. Jack wasn’t much of a conversationalist, it seemed.

For the next thirty minutes they sat in an awkward silence.

Jack tried not to keep looking at her like some kind of fucking creep. It was difficult, though, given that she was so attractive.

If he had met her in a bar he probably wouldn’t even be interested in hooking up with her. She wasn’t his type. He wasn’t usually that into blondes, especially cute ones that looked sweet as sugar. He preferred his women a little edgier, darker. But this one was particularly pretty.

Distractingly pretty, actually.

He tried to push the inappropriate thoughts of slipping his head underneath that dress and in between those pretty legs out of his mind. He couldn’t help but wonder if what she had down there tasted as sweet as she looked.

He watched the house, restlessly hoping for some movement soon. He didn’t relish the idea of sitting in the car all day with her, trying to keep himself from wondering what she would sound like coming all over his face.

Jessie glanced at her phone occasionally, checking Facebook, and reading or sending short text messages.

“Do you mind if I turn on the radio?” Jessie asked. The silence was driving her crazy.

“Suit yourself.” Jack reached over and turned the radio on. The satellite radio was set to a nineties grunge and alternative rock station.

“Is this the kind of music you like?” Jessie asked, not that familiar with the Alice in Chains song playing. The display showed Down in a Hole as the song’s title.

Jack nodded. “Yeah, but you can put on whatever you want. I don’t care.”

Jessie played with the radio until she found a station playing a song she liked. She loved all kinds of music, old and new, but mostly older stuff. Her parents had always had music playing when she was growing up, so she had developed an appreciation for the music that they liked.

She kept the volume at a medium level, so as not to call any attention to their vehicle. She sang softly along with the songs she knew and hummed along to the ones she didn’t.

Jack seemed to take no notice of her. She wondered if he resented her taking Gus’s place, or if he was irritated because she was a woman, and inexperienced.

Maybe all of the above.

Jack listened to her singing along with a cover of an old Rolling Stones song, Wild Horses. She had a nice voice. Real nice.

He’d rather listen to her sing than listen to her talk. Or worse, have her ask him a million questions.

“Who was that?” Jack asked when the song was over.

“Singing?” Jessie glanced at him, smiling.

He nodded.

“The Sundays.”

“Old song. Isn’t that a little before your time?”

“I’ve always liked older music. My Mom and Dad always had music playing in our house. Did you like that version?”

He nodded again.

“You like older music, too,” Jessie observed.

“Yeah, I guess so.”

Her Dad texted her a picture of her dog. He was working from home, which he did a lot. Libbie often stayed at her parents’ house when she wasn’t home. She smiled at the cute photo and held the phone up for Jack to see.

“This is my baby girl, Libbie. Isn’t she adorable?” Jack glanced at the phone and the picture of a small, fluffy-looking white dog and nodded. “Do you have any pets?” Jessie asked him.

Jack nodded. “Yeah, a black lab. Cody.”

“Oh I love labs!” Jessie responded enthusiastically. “Do you have a picture?”

“No.” Jack felt his phone buzz. He looked at it and saw he had a text message from Chris.

Chris: Welcome back dickhead. Let me know when you’re off. Drinks after work.

Jack typed a quick response.

Jack: Okay

Jessie picked up the binoculars and looked through them again. There was still no activity. It had been an hour already. She was starting to feel restless. Jack seemed perfectly comfortable and at ease sitting quietly, but it was driving her crazy.

“Do you think we’ll have to sit here a long time?” Jessie asked.

Jack shrugged. “Maybe. You should get used it. A lot of this job is spent doing surveillance. We could sit here all day, or it could be a few minutes. No way to know.”

Jessie changed the radio station back to the one that had been playing when Jack turned it on. She wasn’t that familiar with alternative music. It always seemed kind of angry and depressing.

She listened to a song called Ghost in the Window by a band she hadn’t heard of, The James Harson Project. She listened for a minute. It sounded good.

“So, do you live far from here?” She made an attempt at keeping the conversation flowing.

He paused and then answered her. “About an hour. Right on the bay, south of Annapolis.”

Jessie’s face lit up. “Really? I live near there too, on the river though.” She shifted a little in her seat so she was turned toward him. “My parents live nearby. I also have an older brother. He lives in the city, though.” Her voice was full of warmth and pride when she spoke of her family.

“Uh-huh.” He acknowledged her attempt at conversation, but offered no exchange of information.

“What about you?” Jessie asked.

He looked at her but didn’t answer. She was eager to get to know him. He had a reputation for being the best in the business and she respected him for that. She was hoping for a mentor, but she feared the task of getting to know Jack Turner was going to be harder than she anticipated.

She pressed on. “Is your family in the area?”

“No,” he answered her shortly.

“Where do they live?” she asked, determined to have some type of conversation.

He looked away and didn’t answer her. She sensed he didn’t want to discuss his family, so she changed her strategy.

“Are you always so chatty?” she joked with a touch of sarcasm.

He looked at her and almost smiled. “No, not usually,” he said wryly.

Jack grew serious again suddenly, distracted by movement from the house they were watching. He picked up the binoculars and looked through them, then handed them to Jessie again. She saw a fairly attractive woman in her late thirties walking from the house toward the street where she got into a gray Chevy Malibu.

Jack maneuvered quietly from their parking spot and trailed the Chevy from a discreet distance.

Jessie studied his hands wrapped around the black leather steering wheel. They looked strong and capable. The skin on his fingers looked rough and calloused, and she wondered what the contrast would feel like against her own soft skin if he touched her. She wondered what it would feel like to have those big, strong hands all over her body.

She shivered and shook off the inappropriate fantasy, but not before a warm blush rose to her cheeks. He glanced at her, frowning slightly, looking puzzled.

She thought briefly of Scott, the only man she had ever been intimate with. The skin on Scott’s hands had been almost as soft as her own. As if he had never done a day of hard work in his whole life. Which truth be told, he hadn’t. Jack’s hands looked like he used them regularly for numerous manly endeavors. No girly manicures for this virile, alpha male, she was sure.

“You okay?” Jack asked, pulling into the parking lot of the shopping center where the Malibu had led them.

She nodded and looked away.

Jack parked a few spaces away and they watched Diana Powell walk into a ladies’ clothing store in the rundown strip mall.

“Let’s go.” Jessie unbuckled her seat belt, regaining her composure quickly.

The chain store sold cheap knock-offs of trendy clothes at rock-bottom prices. Jessie had never actually shopped at this particular store, but she was familiar with it.

As she feigned interest in the racks and racks of low-quality items, Jack kept an observant but discreet eye on their target, who moved gracefully throughout the store, giving no indication of suffering from an injured back or neck. Still, catching her going shopping was hardly enough to refute her injury claims.

Jessie grabbed a few items in her size, including a bikini that she actually really liked. When their target made her way to the back of the store to the dressing rooms, Jessie was ready to follow.

The saleswoman who had opened a dressing room for Ms. Powell did the same for Jessie.

“I’ll put you closer to the front, dear,” she said, smiling knowingly. “I’m sure your boyfriend will want to take a peek at you in that little two-piece.” Obviously the saleswoman had assumed they were a couple.

Jack stood nearby, looking slightly ill-at-ease. He caught Jessie’s eye as she slipped into the dressing room. She winked at him and replied to the saleswoman, “Oh, I’m sure you’re right.”

The saleswoman smiled at him as she walked past to go assist a customer at the cash register. “Well, aren’t you lucky? She’s a pretty little thing.”

Jack nodded.

“Babe?” Jessie’s voice called from the dressing room. “I need your help.”

Jack took a few steps and stood in front of the dressing room door. Jessie opened it and turned away from him, sweeping her long blonde hair off her back and over her left shoulder.

“Can you unzip me?” she asked sweetly.

Jack smiled slightly, enjoying her game. Without a word, he placed a hand on her bare shoulder and caught the thin material of her dress between two experienced fingers. His other hand reached for the zipper and hesitated, letting his fingers brush briefly against the soft skin of her back.

Jessie sucked in her breath as she felt an unfamiliar rush of lust pound through her veins. Now she knew exactly what those rough fingers would feel like against her silky skin, and her body reacted with a force so strong and out of control that it scared her.

Slowly, he pulled the zipper down, standing very close behind her, so close she could feel the warmth of his body radiating to hers. She closed her eyes for a moment, and took a deep breath. She hoped he wasn’t noticing the goosebumps spreading across her skin where his fingers had touched her, making obvious the reaction her body was having to him.

Jack was too busy trying to control his own reaction to her. He finished unzipping her, taking in the sight of her thin white bra strap and nearly bare back and peering lower where he could clearly see white cotton panties over what looked to be an amazing ass.

He felt himself getting hard. What the hell is wrong with me? He wasn’t usually attracted to girls like her. He didn’t really care for the pretty princess types. Too high-maintenance, and definitely not dirty enough.

Give him a tough chick with Daddy issues any day. They were much more enthusiastic about opening their legs, or getting down on their knees where they fucking belonged.

The thought of Jessie on her knees made his dick pulse with interest, and he fought for control before he ended up with a full-fledged hard-on instead of the semi he was currently sporting. He swallowed hard as his hands let go of her dress and he took a step back, needing to distance himself from her before she could feel his arousal.

She turned slowly, holding the dress up to her chest and looked up at him, blushing. Their eyes locked, her blue eyes darkened and steamy, his distracted and curious.

He broke eye contact and took a few steps back out of the dressing room area. Jessie closed and locked the door. She let her dress fall to the floor and put her hands over her face while mouthing “oh my God”. She had been playing a fun game with him, but she was pretty sure that the reactions they had both had to the encounter were more than playful and teasing.

She slipped off her bra and tried on the red bikini. She glanced at herself in the mirror. She thought it looked pretty good actually. But she wasn’t here to shop or play flirty games with Jack Turner. She was supposed to be working.

Jessie heard a dressing room door open and then movement out in front of the large mirrors. She quickly removed one of her earrings before she came out of her own dressing room, closing her fist around it.

She approached the mirror, pretending to be closely inspecting herself, as if trying to decide if she liked the bikini. Next to her, her target was trying on a pair of jeans and a striped top. “Those look good on you,” Jessie complimented her.

“Thanks,” she replied. “And that bikini looks amazing on you. I’m so jealous. I could never pull that off.”

“Thanks,” Jessie smiled, “But don’t be silly. I’m sure it would look fantastic on you.” She swept her hair up in her hands and twisted and turned her body so she could peek back at the mirror to see herself from behind.

In the mirror, she saw Jack watching, or perhaps trying not to watch.

“What do you think, babe?” she called out to him. “You like?” while creating a small distraction as she dropped the earring. Jack hadn’t responded when Jessie suddenly dropped down to the floor “Oh no!” she called out with great concern. “My earring! It just fell out.”

On her knees, she pressed her hands all along the patterned carpet, searching for the missing earring. The other woman instinctively fell to her knees as well to help, surprisingly limber and graceful. She bent down and reached her hand under the opening of the dressing room nearest to them, feeling around.

“Thank you so much for helping me.” Jessie regarded her gratefully. “They were a gift from my father.”

“No problem. I think I feel something under here.” The woman was on her side, reaching all the way under the bench in front of them. She stretched her arm further and bent her neck all the way back, trying to see underneath. Jessie continued to search as well.

“Got it!” The woman exclaimed, holding the diamond stud victoriously out for Jessie to see.

The woman stood up from her position on the floor quickly and easily.

“Thank you so much,” Jessie said sincerely. “I can’t believe you were able to twist yourself under the door like that!”

“Thank God for yoga, right?” she joked.

“I’ve always wanted to try that,” Jessie remarked.

“You should. It’s awesome. I go on Thursday nights at US Fitness off Route 4. Jane is the best instructor there is. You should try it,” she said, going back into her dressing room.

“Yeah, maybe I will. Thanks,” Jessie answered her, turning and smiling at Jack who was still waiting right outside the dressing room area.

Jack’s eyes automatically scanned her body in the tiny red bikini, taking in every inch of smooth, toned skin, as she took the few steps back to her dressing room. He was impressed with how Jessie had just played the woman, but right now he was utterly distracted by the sight of her in that bikini.

Her body definitely had his attention. His eyes lingered on her full, perky breasts, then on the flat stomach, tiny waist and slight flare of her hips. The bikini bottoms were particularly sexy, making him wonder what magic waited underneath.

Finally, he admired her legs, not as long as he usually liked but perfectly sculpted nonetheless. He caught his breath as she slipped into the dressing room.

“Come zip me up?” she called to him and he again made his way to her door.

She held her hair up with one hand and the dress up in front with the other. This time, Jack did not allow his gaze to linger. Instead, he zipped her up briskly and immediately turned away.

He waited for her and she emerged from the dressing room a few short moments later, red bikini in hand.

“Give me a minute?” she asked, taking the bikini to the cash register and buying it.

On the way back to the office they discussed Diana Powell.

“So I know you could hardly snap pictures of her rolling around on the floor of a ladies’ dressing room,” Jessie laughed. “But I bet if we go by that gym Thursday night she’ll be there doing yoga. I’ll go to the class and get video.”

Jack thought Jessie had done great. Quick thinking and creative.

It was too soon to tell how it would work out, though. There was still the problem of his dick. It would be hard to focus on work if he had to spend half his day dealing with the hard-ons she kept giving him.

Jack nodded in agreement. “I’ve got a body camera you can wear, so small no one will see it. I just need to attach it to what you’re going to wear ahead of time.”

Jessie smiled and nodded. “Can’t wait.”

“Are you hungry?”

“Starving!” Jessie agreed enthusiastically.

She realized it was one o’clock in the afternoon and her stomach was growling a bit.

“Alright, then. Let’s eat.”