Page 11 of Ruthless

“Yes, but I have needs too.” She pouted prettily before licking her lips. “Needs a man my age can understand and appreciate. Maybe even address?”

He gulped quietly. Normally, Jett had an easy time with the ladies. It had been that way all his life. His mom claimed he’d been born early so he could get to the women faster, and he’d started charming them with the NICU nurses. He found it easy to get sex, and he had no doubt Stella was offering it.

Except, he didn’t want it. Of course he’d appreciated her form when she and Don came in with the project a few weeks ago. He’d even jerked off in the shower imagining her naked the next morning, but she was married… and married to a paying client with deep pockets, a love of old motorcycles, and enough clout as a Hollywood producer to send a lot of business Jett’s way. All those things made her off-limits.

He took a step back. “The clubhouse is open, Mrs. Wilson. Just tell them you’re a client of mine, and they’ll let you in with no hassle. I’m sure you’ll find a number of men eager to see to your needs.”

She frowned for a moment. “But not you?”

He hesitated before shaking his head. “Sorry, darlin’, but I got someone else on my mind tonight.”

For a second, he was worried she’d make a fuss, but instead, she gave a rueful smile. “I envy that lady then.”

Jett’s cheeks flushed, and damned if he didn’t feel like a schoolboy getting his first compliment. “Thanks, Mrs. Wilson. I hope you find what you’re looking for.”

She smiled. “And the same for you, Romeo.” She winked as she strolled on by, sashaying on her way to the clubhouse.

He hoped his brothers had better sense than to get caught if one or more indulged Stella’s needs, because he didn’t want anything affecting his prospects with Mr. Wilson, but he couldn’t care enough to bother to warn any of them to keep their hands off her.

He was too occupied with thoughts of Tessa as he headed home to the house he shared with Ronan. He’d moved in after Amy’s passing, and with Ronan’s blessing, to look after the place. When his buddy had gotten out of prison a few years later, Jett had been prepared to move on, but Ronan had told him to stay. The house wasn’t big, but it was big enough for two of them. They had separate bedrooms, and they could coexist peacefully.

He wondered how introducing Tessa might change things. Would it be a harmonious integration, or would there be bumps in the road? Was Ronan really as okay with sharing her as he claimed? Most of all, did Ms. Lee want to be shared? He sure hoped so, because his dick was hard and aching just thinking about her.

Chapter 3

When school ended,she returned to the classroom to find Jimmy waiting for her at her desk. He looked concerned, serious. That week, ever since their talk, he’d withdrawn, which was the exact opposite of what she wanted to happen. By offering to talk about the ideas that confused him, she’d hoped to learn more and gain his trust. Part of her felt that she needed to understand his home situation more clearly.

There was only his father, and he’d said the man got angry. But just how angry did he get, and how did it manifest itself? It made a difference. If she thought Jimmy was in danger, she’d need to act. She was legally obligated to call child protective services for abuse, but if his father was just paranoid and needed to let off steam, calling in the authorities would feed his fears and possibly make Jimmy think he’d been right all along that there were people trying to control him.

To determine whether it was one or the other, she needed a sense of what was going on, the dynamics. It would help if Mr. Taylor would come in and talk with her, and she considered sending a note inviting him to do so. Maybe meeting away from the school. If she talked with him, she’d have a chance to size him up, to see if there was a real threat. Sometimes a parent might get angry without it being a threat at all. Her own father had railed against government policies rather loudly and angrily, but hitting anyone, much less a child, was something he hated to even hear about. He despised violence—but there were times when, if you didn’t know him, you might think he was in a violent rage.

She hoped it was the same with Jimmy’s father, but the boy’s reluctance to talk worried her.

“What’s going on, Jimmy? All this week I’ve been expecting you to loan me a book to read so we could discuss it. I was looking forward to learning some new things.”

“That’s what I told my dad.”

“And?”

“He got mad. He said you had no right to know what books I read.”

“Did he?”

“I told him I needed to explain to you, and he said I was supposed to tell you that if you keep spying on our family, he’ll report you and that what we read is none of your business.”

“I see.”

Jimmy looked scared. “I didn’t mean to get you in trouble. I really didn’t, Ms. Lee. I just wanted to understand.”

She gave him a big smile. “You didn’t do anything wrong, Jimmy, and I don’t think you’ve gotten me into any trouble. It’s okay to ask about what you are reading. In fact, part of my job is to know what students read, not because they shouldn’t read anything they want, but because some books are inappropriate for school. There isn’t anything wrong with the ones you’ve been reading, though. And I didn’t tell you not to read them, did I?”

“No. He says you’ll collect the information, the titles, and put it in his file.”

“His file? I don’t have a file on your father.”

“Maybe you don’t, but when you collect information on me, that tells them about him, doesn’t it?”

“I suppose. But why would they care?”

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