Free Man Candy by Jessica Ingro Page A

room.”
    “No.”
    “No?” she said with defiance in her voice. She pulled her head from my hold on her and cocked a hip. “If I want to go to bed mister, I’m going to bed.”
    Deciding to placate her changing drunken moods, I calmly explained, “I don’t want you to go alone. There are some seriously crazy people out there. I’ll feel better if you let me take you up to your room.”
    “Oh all right!” She stomped her foot like a petulant child. “I guess I can hang out with Cassandra until you’re done being God’s gift to all the women.”
    I pressed a kiss to her forehead even as she protested. “You’re the only one I care about.”
    Sitting on my throne through dozens of pictures was daunting. In between different authors and assistants coming up to get their pictures taken, I discreetly kept an eye on Rissa—who appeared to have another drink in her hand as she talked animatedly to Cassandra and another woman.
    Just as I thought the last woman had been serviced and no more pictures were going to be taken, three more came rushing over to me. One wrapped her arms around my neck from the side while the other two jumped on my lap.
    “We’re so excited to be here with you,” one babbled from my lap.
    “I would love to memorize every inch of those yummy abs you displayed on Cowboy Showdown ,” another chimed in.
    The third one didn’t bother talking because her mouth was too busy planting wet kisses along my neck, cheek and jaw.
    Not again , I thought.
    Trying to pull my head away from her lips, my hands worked to extricate myself from the two on my lap. I had to look ridiculous squirming on the chair while being covered by three women.
    Only adding to the awkwardness of the situation was the fact that there was laughter ringing out at my expense. This wasn’t funny. It was downright crazy to accost someone like this.
    “Benny,” a high pitched whiny voice had me pausing in my movements. My eyes shot up and locked with the twinkling blues of Clarissa.
    She turned her attention to the other women, leaned forward and said in a downright bitchy tone, “I’m carrying his baby! How dare you! Get off my man!”
    Taken aback by Rissa’s outburst the women sat stunned for a moment before scrambling off my lap and pulling their claws out of my skin. I took a huge sigh in relief and gave her a grateful smile.
    “You defended my honor,” I said when she stepped in front of where I sat depleted of energy on my throne.
    “Honor? What honor?” she said flippantly.
    “Saved me,” I added.
    “Yeah, yeah. Someone had to. At first I thought you’d enjoy it. I was surprised when you started acting like someone threw ants in your pants,” she teased right before bursting in uncontrollable laughter.
    Grasping her around her waist, I took her by surprise and pulled her down on my lap. Locking my arms around her, I held her warm, soft body against mine. I breathed in her lilac scent, burying my head in her neck.
    “You’re carrying my child?” I chuckled at the way she handled those girls.
    “Don’t start,” she warned and for a split second I worried that I had maybe gone too far. It was too soon to be joking about children. Then again, it was far too soon for a lot of things between us, but that didn’t mean they weren’t happening or that they weren’t inevitable.
    I stopped thinking, almost losing all reason and taking her right then and there, when she eventually relaxed, wrapped her own arms around me and I felt her small hands on my neck. For the better part of a year I had been dying to feel her hands on me. It far surpassed all my expectations.
    The air was charged between us. Each breath she took pushed her breasts into my chest. The energy flowing between our still clothed bodies was unreal and like nothing I had ever experienced before.
    For as much as my body screamed for her, now that we weren’t discussing her orgasms, I knew there was no way I could follow through with anything sexual