Trust Me on This - Jennifer Crusie [57]
“Oh, Brian,” Dennie said.
“Oh, brother,” Alec said. “That’s it. She’s out of there.” He was out the door before Harry could stop him.
“Just the two of us,” Bond was saying into her neck. “To cement the deal.”
Dennie tried to figure out how to slide away from him without seeming to. One of his arms was wrapped around her, his hand clamped on her breast, the other was sliding down her waist to her hip, and his head was buried in her neck where he was doing something wet with his tongue that even Walter would have been ashamed of.
She had to distract him. “Well, I’ll certainly never forget that kiss you gave me,” she began as she tried to disentangle herself, “but—”
Immediately, Bond fastened his mouth on hers and did a repeat of the oyster kiss with extra saliva.
Dennie wrenched her mouth away, trying not to spit. “But I think Alec would just be real upset if we—”
Bond pulled her back to him. “Alec’s asleep.” He bent to her neck again, and Dennie looked past his head to the doorway.
Alec was there, glaring at her.
“Brian, stop it,” she said, trying to shove him away. “He’s here.”
“What?” Bond’s head came up groggily. “Who?”
“Alec!” Dennie shoved him harder. “He’s over there in the doorway. I don’t think he’s seen us yet, but—”
Bond let go of her so fast, she almost fell off the stool.
Chapter 8
“Dennie!” Alec came over wearing his best doofus grin. “Honey, I’ve been looking all over for you.”
“Well, I’ve been right here. And Alec …” Dennie leaned toward him as he took the stool on the other side of her. “Brian says he thinks he can guarantee us a house, after all.”
“Uh …” Bond frowned. “I said maybe …”
Alec put his arm around her and pulled her closer to him. “Brian, that’s terrific. If you can guarantee my little girl a house, you’ve got a deal.”
“Well—” Bond said.
“And we’d be so grateful,” Dennie said, smiling at him. “I’d be so grateful. On account of the pounding, you know? And the stroking.”
“Right,” Bond said, and Alec pinched her to let her know she was going too far. “Of course, I’ll have to make a few calls …”
“Great!” Alec slid off his stool and pulled Dennie with him. “Dennie and I’ll go up to my room and wait. You’ve got the number?”
“Uh, yeah, but—”
“Oh, Brian,” Dennie said, and pulled away from Alec to throw her arms around him. “I just can’t tell you how warm this makes me feel.”
Bond looked down at her, suddenly breathing a lot heavier, and Alec grabbed her arm. “She is a grateful little thing,” he told Bond as he pulled her away and stepped in front of her. He let his voice drop when she was behind him. “Why when I gave her that diamond, you know what she did?”
“What?” Bond said.
“Well.” Alec wiggled his eyebrows. “All I can tell you is that we used up an industrial-size can of hot fudge and four cans of whipped cream. The maid never did get that mattress clean.”
“Alec!” Dennie said, pretending to be scandalized. Then she winked at Bond.
“Whipped cream,” Bond said. “Damn.”
Alec stepped even closer and dropped his voice another notch. “Imagine what she’ll do for a house, huh?” He dug his elbow sharply into Bond’s ribs, laughing his snort laugh, and Bond laughed along after he got his breath back from the dig. “Now you call us when you’re done phoning your people.”
“You sure I won’t be interrupting anything?” Bond asked archly.
“Hey, what could be more important than this?” Alec said, and out of the corner of his eye he saw Dennie let her hand flop over limply at her wrist.
Bond slapped him on the back. “Can’t think of a thing.”
“Great,” Alec said, and towed Dennie toward the door. “What in the hell were you doing?” he asked her when the elevator doors were closed behind them.
“What do you mean?” Dennie said. “I did exactly what you told me to do. I convinced him to guarantee us the house.”
“You were supposed to cry on him,” Alec said. “Not have sex with him in the bar.”
Dennie rolled her eyes at him. “Alec, men don’t do things for women who cry on them. They do things for women they think they’re going to get into bed.” She crossed