Penalty Clause Read online

  She sighed. Now that she was free of the constraints of her marriage, she really needed to do some traveling. Jill wanted to capture something bigger than the tiny birds in her front yard. Birds were great for the kind of novelty items that would be sold on her website, but Jill longed to get back to true art. For that she needed bigger landscapes than her own yard.

  When she thought of traveling, she automatically pictured Andrew with her and needed to push the idea aside. This was not a relationship. If she allowed herself to lose sight of that, she’d be in trouble.

  “Jillie Walsh, is that you, dear?” Jill winced a bit when she heard her childhood nickname, but recognized the voice immediately. She turned to see Lydia’s welcoming face.

  “Hi Lydia! Yes, it’s me. Just catching some shots of the finches at the feeders. How is Nora doing? Andrew told me about her hip,” Jill said. She had lowered her camera and walked to the break in the fence between Nora’s property and her grandparents’ yard.

  “She’s doing much better. On the mend and ready to get back to her normal routine.” Lydia lowered her voice and tilted her head toward Jill. “In fact, she’s getting a bit cranky now that she’s feeling so much better. The confinement’s difficult for her.”

  Jill nodded. “I imagine that must be hard.”

  “Will you join us for a cup of tea? Nora saw you out the window over here and wanted to see if you’d like to come for a visit,” Lydia said and wrapped her jacket more tightly around her body.

  “I’d love to. Let me just put my cameras away and let my dog out for a quick break. Ten minutes?”

  “Wonderful. We’ll see you then,” Lydia said and turned back to Nora’s house.

  Jill was surprised to feel nervous as she crossed to her front door and went in her house. She walked inside and then out to the backyard to give Rev a potty break. She’d known Lydia and Nora for years and had been by the house for tea in the past, but when she visited before she hadn’t been sleeping with Nora’s grandson. Just thinking about the things Andrew had done to her, with her, for her, brought a flush of heat to Jill’s cheeks. She burned with embarrassment at the thought that Nora or Lydia might find out about her and Andrew. She and Andrew may not be teenagers anymore, but she suddenly felt like one.

  She called Rev back inside and gave him a cookie, then pulled on her boots again before heading to Nora’s house. Lydia answered Jill’s knock and Nora called out to Jill from the sitting room off the front entrance.

  “Jillie, honey, we’re having tea in here.” Jill turned into the sitting room with Lydia following behind her.

  “Nora, I was so sorry to hear about your hip.” Jill meant every word of her greeting. She had always liked Nora. Nora didn’t act anything like a grandmother and had always been fun. Nora and Lydia had been genuinely interested in Jill when she visited over the years.

  “Oh, pish!” Nora waved a hand through the air dismissively. “It’s fine. I’m almost back to normal now. I’ll be out and about in no time, thanks to that brute of a physical therapist who comes to torture me four times a week. Andrew hired him to torment me.”

  Jill felt herself blush at the mention of Andrew. Trying to calm her nerves, she sat in a wingback chair while Lydia poured tea and offered Jill a cookie.

  “Now then,” Nora said, “tell me what’s going on with you and my grandson.”

  Jill barely managed to choke down the sip of tea that was in her mouth without spitting it out from pure shock. Why she would be shocked that Nora would be so blunt, escaped Jill at the moment. The woman never was one to beat around the bush.

  “Uh, well…” Jill struggled for words to respond to Nora. Lydia settled herself in next to Nora, looking like she was getting ready for a good tale.

  “Please, dear. I know he’s graduated from watching you through the windows to crossing the backyard and driving his car up and down your driveway several times this week. I assume Andrew’s grown up enough that he hasn’t begun peeping in your windows or anything like that. So, fill me in. What are your intentions with my grandson?”

  “My intentions? I, uh, well.” Jill paused, racking her brain for a response. “We’re just spending time together. Yes, spending time together,” she explained as firmly as she could.

  “Oh, bother. I had rather hoped it was more serious than that. He needs someone to help him forget what that witch of a fiancée did to him. I thought maybe you’d finally be the one to help him get past that. He’s always loved you, after all.” So much of what Nora said left Jill stunned. She didn’t know which part of that statement was more confusing.

  Fiancée? Always loved Jill?

  “Oh, um, it’s not really like that. I’m not really ready for any kind of serious relationship after my husband, well, after that whole debacle.” Jill felt the blood rush to her face yet again and wondered if Nora realized Jill was sleeping with Andrew.

  “Well, don’t worry. My grandson’s got a reputation for being good in the sack, so he’ll help you forget that damn fool you married,” Nora said matter-of-factly. Lydia looked on and nodded in agreement over the rim of her cup of tea while Jill’s face flamed hot and red.

  “Oh!” Well, so much for wondering. Jill sat in stunned silence for a few moments, not at all sure what to say to that, but Nora and Lydia had apparently moved on to other topics.

  They began to pepper Jill with questions about her photography, whether her grandparents might return for the summer, her dog – and when Rev could come by for a visit. By the time Jill left an hour later, they had covered every topic imaginable. Unfortunately, all Jill could think about was the fact that Andrew had once had a fiancée he hadn’t mentioned, that he’d supposedly loved Jill for years and that his grandmother knew Jill and Andrew were shacking up.

  ***

  Andrew wasn’t sure what had come over him where Jill was concerned. He’d told Jill he would pick her up for dinner, but for some unknown reason, Andrew decided to cook for Jill. That afternoon, he found himself at the grocery store, picking up fixings for the only meal he knew how to make: chicken and pasta with French bread. He grabbed a couple bottles of wine and a pie for dessert.

  As Andrew drove to Jill’s, he tried to figure out just what the hell was going on. How had this woman gotten under his skin so damn far and so damn fast? Why the hell didn’t he have any desire to try to shake her?

  At first Andrew had thought things were different with her because Jill was the only woman he had ever hooked up with that was also a part of his circle of friends. Normally, Andrew didn’t play in his own backyard and he didn’t even bother to bring the women he was sleeping with around to spend time with his friends. Maybe it was the fact he and Jill had known each other for so many years. Or that they spent time together as friends before being intimate.

  Andrew exited the highway and began the series of turns that would bring him to the side-by-side estates where he and Jill lived. All day, Andrew had thought about last night. Yes. There’d been thoughts of holding her, touching her, tasting her that grabbed him. But, Andrew also wanted to talk to Jill, laugh with her, see her damn dog. He wanted to tell her that he had some ideas for places they could travel to for her photography.

  Oh, shit. Was he really making plans for them to travel together?

  Andrew needed to figure out how to stop this. He knew the only way to stop the escalation of this relationship was to stay away from Jill altogether, because Andrew knew as long as he was around her, he couldn’t stop the feelings, no matter how hard he tried.

  Who the hell was he kidding? He couldn’t stay away from her at this point. There was no fighting the pull he felt toward Jill, no trying to ward off what was happening. Andrew knew at that moment, he needed to be around Jill like he needed air to breathe.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Jill sipped the glass of wine Andrew had poured her and watched as he simmered sauce and stirred pasta into boiling water. If you had asked Jill an hour ago if there was any way an apron could make And
rew Weston look sexy, she’d have thought you were nuts. But damn, what that apron did for that man. Everything Andrew did was sexy though. It shouldn’t have come as a shock that cooking would look so good on him.

  Jill had just finished telling him that Nora and Lydia had invited her to tea that morning.

  “Uh, oh. Did Nora have anything to say about us?” Andrew asked as he slathered garlic butter on the French bread and popped it into the oven to toast.

  “Oh, you bet she did. What I don’t get is how she knows about us? I was hoping she didn’t have a clue!” Jill said.

  “Oh, that woman knows more than a voodoo priestess gifted with the sight. Nothing gets past Nora and if it does, Lydia is there to pick up the slack,” Andrew answered over his shoulder.

  Stirring the pasta sent the muscles on his broad shoulders and taut back into motion, mesmerizing Jill. She remembered grabbing those muscles as Andrew drove into her over and over and suddenly Jill was more than just distracted. She was hot and flustered. Thankfully, the thought of her conversation with Nora and Lydia quickly brought her back down to earth.

  “Well, she knows about us. Nora was rather blunt about us. Wanted to know if I was helping you get over your fiancée.”

  Jill saw the sliver of a moment when Andrew froze at the mention of his former fiancée. His hesitation was so brief, it was barely noticeable but she had been watching for a reaction, wondering if it would be there. Jill wouldn’t ask Andrew to explain about his fiancée or ask him what happened, but she wanted him to know that she knew. She waited quietly, to see if Andrew would say anything. She was beginning to think Andrew was going to pretend that she had never said the ‘f’ word when he finally spoke up.

  “She told you about that, huh?” Andrew asked. He plated up their dinners and joined Jill on a stool at the center island to eat.

  She decided to gloss over the fiancée, redirecting the conversation to give Andrew an out if he wanted it.

  “Nora asked me what my intentions toward you were. When I told her we were just spending time together, she told me you have a reputation for being – and I swear to you, I’m quoting here: ‘good in the sack.’ It was by far the most uncomfortable conversation I’ve ever had,” Jill said.

  Andrew’s fork hung in midair as he stared, open mouthed at Jill, a horrified expression on his face. “She did not. Please tell me she did not say that to you. Of course she did. Who am I kidding? This is Nora we’re talking about.”

  Jill just laughed as she watched Andrew try to process her conversation with Nora. “At least you didn’t have to sit there and figure out how to explain our relationship to her,” Jill said.

  Andrew grinned at that. “‘Spending time together,’ huh?”

  “I couldn’t think of any other way to tell her I was banging her grandson.” Jill blushed furiously as the frank colloquialism left her mouth. She picked up her wine glass and sipped to try to cover her embarrassment, but Andrew leaned in, moved the wineglass out of his way and kissed Jill soundly on the cheek.

  “I like banging you, Jillie Walsh.”

  ***

  As they finished their dinner, Andrew felt his body go from relaxed with laughter to intense with heat. And that heat was directed at Jill. It amazed Andrew that Jill could affect him so strongly. With a look, she could twist his body into a tight, tense coil ready to explode. Needing release.

  Andrew put down his wine glass and put his hand out across the table toward Jill. Jill placed hers in his and let Andrew draw her up and around the table. Andrew drew Jill down onto his lap and buried his head in her neck, breathing in her scent as arousal filled every cell of his body.

  “Watching you in these boots at Jack’s house was pure torture,” Andrew whispered to Jill. His voice was throaty and hoarse with desire. When Andrew’s mouth met Jill’s she kissed him back with her whole body. She pressed herself close to him, willing Andrew to take her upstairs.

  Andrew responded quickly to Jill’s silent demands. To her quiet plea with her body. In one smooth movement, he lifted Jill and carried her up to her bedroom. He lay Jill on the bed and took off his clothes. As Andrew pulled off his shirt and unbuttoned his pants, Jill watched him. She made no move to remove her own clothes.

  “Sweater. Off.” Andrew ordered Jill to remove her clothes with the patience and sophistication of a caveman, bringing a smile to Jill’s lips. He couldn’t muster any more control right now. The way Jill had responded to him, the way she pressed her body into him sent Andrew to the edge of control so quickly, he couldn’t breathe.

  Jill pulled the sweater dress up over her head and exposed her incredible body. She wore matching white lace bra and panties and the sight of her in pristine white – virginal white – almost sent Andrew over the top. He groaned as Jill reached behind her back and unhooked her bra, slipping it off her shoulders and letting it drop to the bed beside her.

  She reached for her cowboy boots but Andrew had other ideas.

  “Those stay on. Get rid of the panties, Jill.”

  Andrew saw her swallow and hesitate, but she never moved her eyes from his.

  “Now, Jill,” Andrew said quietly. He was hanging onto his control by a thread.

  Andrew froze as he watched her slip the small scrap of white lace down her hips, over those heavenly thighs. She pulled her panties down over the sexiest fucking cowboy boots Andrew had ever seen. Jill lay back down on the bed and Andrew swallowed a curse as he crawled up the bed to her.

  He couldn’t taste enough of Jill. His hands could never hold enough of her and his erection all but screamed her name as it strained toward her body.

  “I can’t wait, sweetheart. I’ll make it up to you, I promise, but I can’t wait.”

  Jill’s laughter answered him as he slipped on a condom but she quickly lost her laughter and her breath when he buried himself in her in one swift, powerful stroke. Jill’s arms and legs, complete with cowboy boots, came around Andrew’s hips. He heard her breathe his name in his ear and any scrap of control that was left was torn away.

  Andrew brought them both to release faster than he’d ever imagined possible. In tandem.

  He lay on top of Jill, desperate to catch his breath and regain the balance that she’d taken from him. Taking Jill with him, Andrew rolled to the side and they lay tangled together as they both fought to recover.

  “I’m sorry.” Andrew grinned at Jill. “From the moment I saw those boots on you, all I could think about was having my hands on you again, tasting you, feeling your muscles around me, your nails clawing at my back. I thought I’d go mad waiting. Give me ten minutes and I’ll make this up to you.” Andrew closed his eyes as he finished his rushed apology.

  “I’m not complaining. That was perfect. You sure have a way of bringing back a woman’s confidence.” Jill’s breath was still coming faster than usual and she ran her hands over his chest. She felt his arms in a greedy gesture that showed Andrew she’d be ready for more just as soon as he was.

  Andrew grinned in response. “I aim to please. After all, confidence is what this is all about, right? Well, that and showing you things Jackass never did.” Andrew had given up using her ex-husband’s name and now referred to him solely as ‘Jackass’ or ‘the Ass.’

  “I think I’m a little in love with those boots,” Andrew said as he caught his breath.

  Jill laughed. “I have a little bit of an addiction to boots and handbags. There are probably nine or ten pairs of boots for us to work our way through and I’m always willing to buy more when we run out.”

  Andrew’s answer was a low groan as he began to kiss her neck again, exploring the soft curves and eliciting tiny moans of pleasure from Jill.

  “I’ll give you my credit card. Buy as many as you want.” Andrew talked as his mouth roamed Jill’s body.

  Jill’s heated hands soon had Andrew’s body springing back to life and they made love again, with Andrew worshiping her body slowly, but no less hungrily this time. He took his time bringing her to o
rgasm, first with his hands, then his mouth, before finally entering her. He brought her to a final lazy, long orgasm that he joined her in before they collapsed in a tangled mess in the middle of Jill’s large bed.

  Chapter Eighteen

  As Andrew and Jill lay wrapped in one another’s arms with nothing between them but the occasional tangle of sheets from the bed, Andrew found himself wanting to explain about Blair. He had never told another woman about Blair and never thought he could bring himself to tell the story, to repeat what Blair and his parents had done. As with everything with Jill, things he thought he could never do simply happened.

  “Her name was Blair.” Andrew felt Jill’s breath catch and he knew that Jill understood immediately who he was talking about. Andrew felt Jill’s hand run up and down his back in slow, steady strokes but she made no move to pressure him for the story or try to lure details out of him.

  “We met when I was at Yale Business School. She worked on campus at one of the coffee stands. She was so beautiful and she had me convinced that I was in love, that we were in love before I knew what hit me. Somehow, I never saw her for what she really was. She was conniving and manipulative, but I didn’t see any of that until it was too late. Later I learned Blair had me targeted from the beginning, knew my family had money.” Andrew let out a rough burst of laughter but there was no humor in it.

  “I thought we were attracted to each other from day one. I liked the joking and flirting every morning when I picked up my coffee, but it was all setup. She told me she was on the pill, but I found out later that was a lie. In the beginning we used condoms anyway but as soon as I told her I loved her, she told me we shouldn’t use them anymore because we were in love and would only be with each other. I can’t believe what an idiot I was. I was in business school for God’s sake. It’s not like I was in high school or even college.

  I was an adult. I should have been able to read her better. To see the lies for what they truly were.” Andrew was surprised at how dead and flat his voice sounded as he talked about Blair.