Page 54 of Don't Lie to Me

I jumped when my cell phone went off and then felt defeated knowing it wasn’t Jack’s ringtone.

Reluctantly, I left Jack’s office with my phone in hand and headed to the kitchen.

Jack’s fine. Said he’d be home later. Surprised – happily – he told you about B. Martin

I wrinkled my nose but felt my shoulders relax. At least Martin knew where he was. It still didn’t explain why Jack hadn’t contacted me though.

I stared at the message when my phone starting ringing again and Macy’s name flashed on the screen.

“Yes?” I asked.

“I just wanted you to know Jack just got in, but he’s really pissed off and said he wasn’t staying long.” I cringed at Macy’s concerned voice that came out just above a whisper.

I exhaled heavily. “Thanks for letting me know. Talk to you later.”

By the time the afternoon hit, I was done worrying about Jack. Instead, I was just pissed off. He had to have known I was worried about him. He had to have also known that Macy and Martin told him I was looking for him, and I still hadn’t heard from him. Not even a single message saying when he’d be home from work, what he needed me to do, or if he even needed me for dinner.

I was packing up my bag for the day – early, because screw him – when he finally walked in the door. He looked perfectly polished in his tailored suit, but I could see tension in his face and dark circles under his eyes. Wherever he had been the night before, left him looking like crap.

“Enjoy your night?” I asked sarcastically and resisted the urge to shrink back from him when he scowled at me.

Jack was pissed. Tense all over, and clearly not in the mood for my sarcasm.

I crossed my arms in a defensive gesture. I was pissed and I wanted answers.

Seeing that I wasn’t going to get any, since Jack didn’t bother answering me, I turned and picked up my purse.

“I’ll see you tomorrow,” I said and held my breath as I walked past him.

His hand reached out and firmly grabbed my elbow. “Where are you going?”

I spun around and shot him a look. “Excuse me?”

“I need you.” I recoiled at his voice. Jack always sounded confident and borderline arrogant, but lately, with me at least, he had been softer. This tone was nothing like anything I had heard from him before. He sounded cold and distant from me.

I hated it. I also hated that my body responded regardless of what my brain was thinking. I felt a warmth pool between my legs when I saw his arousal through his suit pants.

“Where were you?” I asked, trying to fight my attraction to him. I had a feeling I would lose, but it was still worth a shot.

Jack shook his head and closed his eyes. When he opened them, he looked less angry, but still just as distant. He said nothing, which gave me my answer. He wasn’t going to tell me anything.

“I saw the bank receipt from yesterday.”

His eyes flashed to black. Apparently, that was the wrong thing to say. “Were you snooping in my office?”

I snorted. “I paid your bills and it was on the floor. Sue me for cleaning up after your lazy ass.”

I tried to rip my arm away from him but he just held me tighter, and pulled me flushed to his body. I fought the urge to rock into him.

“I can’t tell you.” His voice left me certain that I wouldn’t get any answers. I didn’t actually need them, but an apology would at least have been nice. Based on the firm line on his lips, I doubt I’d get that either.

I exhaled heavily. “Fine,” I said and tried to relax into him just enough for him to let me go. He didn’t. As soon as I relaxed, he pulled me closer to him with his other hand and held me tightly.

He lowered his head against the top of mine and the muscles in his back relaxed. It wasn’t a lot, but enough to let me know he wasn’t going to explode in anger.

“I need you,” he roughly said against my ear. My entire body trembled under his touch as his hands moved to my hips.

He sounded angry, but vulnerable. I wanted to let him do what he did best and make love to me. I also wanted to knee him in the balls for being suck a prick.

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