Free Sweet Deal by Kelly Jamieson

into him, his arms coming loosely around her, as if he could barely move them.
    Their bodies both slick with sweat, they lay together, hearts thudding, his cock softening beneath her. Wow. She’d loved that. Her body soft and her mind softer, she drifted back to sleep in his arms.
     
     
    A thudding knock on Shelby’s apartment door had them both jumping and blinking heavy eyes. At first Shelby didn’t even know what the noise was. She searched her mind for who it could be, and then she remembered—it was Sunday and she’d offered to help her twelve-year-old next-door neighbor bake cookies for school. She shot a glance at her alarm clock—holy crap, it was eleven o’clock!
    “Oh, dear lord,” she muttered, sliding out of Jake’s warm embrace and then naked out of bed.
    “Who is it?” Jake sat up, the covers falling to his waist, his impressive chest and ripped abs on display. He’d said he was a triathlete and his body was clearly in fabulous shape.
    “I think it’s my neighbor.”
    “Can’t you just ignore her? Him? Whoever?”
    She paused. Actually thought about that. For about half a second. Tempting, but she couldn’t do that to Taylor. She looked over her shoulder as she reached into her closet for a robe. “I can’t. She’s only twelve and I promised her. Her mother’s not around much, so I…well, it’s a long story. I’m so sorry.”
    “That’s okay.” He shoved a hand through his hair, still looking lethargic and satisfied though he wore a faint frown. She took a breath as she yanked on the robe then scurried out to let Taylor in.
    “Hey,” Taylor said. Then she frowned as she took in Shelby’s robe and mussed hair. “Whoa. You’re not even dressed. Did you sleep in?”
    “Um…sort of.” Shelby forced a smile. “Come on in, hon. Want something to eat? Juice?”
    “I had some toast at home,” Taylor said. “But I’ll have some juice.”
    Shelby poured her a glass of orange juice while Taylor perched on a stool at the counter. “Here you go. Hang on while I go get dressed.”
    She needed a shower, probably smelled like Jake’s citrusy-spicy aftershave, not to mention sex.
    She turned and saw Jake leaning against the door into her small foyer, dressed in his jeans and loose shirt half buttoned, stubble darkening his square jaw, his hair attractively tousled, eyes gleaming. Lord, he was gorgeous.
    Shelby glanced at Taylor, whose eyes had widened. “Hi,” she said.
    “Hi,” he said, ambling into the kitchen. “I’m Jake. A friend of Shelby’s.”
    “I’m Taylor.”
    “Nice to meet you.” He lifted a brow at Shelby. “How about I make coffee while you get dressed?”
    “Um, sure. Great. Thanks.”
    She needed a shower, but she’d have to forego that for now, making do with a quick wash, then dressing in a pair of jeans and a T-shirt. She gazed at her reflection in the bathroom mirror—pink beard burns on her cheeks and chin, and a satisfied gleam in her eyes. She swiped on a couple of strokes of mascara because she looked like an Albino rabbit without it, then returned to the kitchen where Jake and Taylor were chatting about school.
    “So it’s my turn to bring the treats next week,” Taylor said. “But Mom always just buys something at a bakery, and everyone else brings homemade stuff, so Shelby said she’d help me make cookies.”
    “That’s nice of her.” Jake met her eyes and her cheeks warmed.
    “She does lots of stuff like that,” Taylor continued. “’Cause my mom’s really busy.”
    “I see.” He turned and poured the coffee into two mugs he’d apparently found in her kitchen. Both he and Taylor seemed very comfortable there, which was kind of freaky, but whatever. Shelby accepted a cup from him and added some milk from the fridge. She held the milk carton up to him, but he shook his head. “Black,” he said, lifting the cup.
    She nodded. She knew that. She gave him her back to replace the milk in the fridge, feeling a little flustered,