Love and Lust (Small Town Secrets Book 2) Read online

  Love and Lust

  (Small Town Secrets #2)

  Jade C. Jamison

  Copyright 2020 by Jade C. Jamison

  Cover image © fxquadro/ Depositphotos

  Cover design by Mr. Jamison

  Portions of this novel were previously published in 2011 as the book Stating His Case and in 2016 as Crossing the Line.

  All rights reserved.

  The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious or are used fictitiously. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental and not intended by the author. Characters and names of real persons who appear in the book are used fictitiously.

  Chapter One

  Crossing my legs under my desk, I took a deep breath in through my nostrils, hoping it would allow me to concentrate.

  I was a professional, goddammit.

  And not just any professional: Samantha T. Paulson, Attorney at Law.

  But I was acting like a giddy schoolgirl with my new client.

  In all fairness, I knew why. This guy, Ryan Craig, was the epitome of my brand of poison. He was the bad boy personified, ticking every damn box I required for a fun romp in the hay.

  But he was my client, and I needed to focus.

  Scratching a couple of words on the lined yellow legal pad in front of me, I fought to keep my eyes on the paper just a little longer, because I’d been staring at this gorgeous guy sitting on the other side of the desk.

  In an unprofessional manner.

  This completely yummy specimen of a man, Ryan Craig, looked down at his hands without saying a word. When I finally lifted my face, ready with another question, I realized the sentence seemed to stick in my throat because, when he looked up again, his green eyes seemed to pull me into a trance—at least when my eyes weren’t fondling the rest of his body. That damn soul patch beneath his lip was going to kill me, making me imagine how my lips would feel pressed against his. I could imagine hanging out in a bar on a Saturday night, hunting this guy down, finding a way to flirt with him to hide my aggression so it wouldn’t be a turnoff, because this man was definitely my cup of tea—his short brown hair and mostly clean-shaven face belied the rest of his look: colorful tattoo sleeves, silver plugs glimmering from both ears, musculature so developed, there was no missing it underneath the plain black t-shirt he wore.

  His quiet, unassuming, almost shy manner didn’t fit, either—and that was probably the biggest attraction of all. He seemed like a sweet soul hiding in a hot body.

  Holy shit. If I was a ship, I’d be sunk.

  I cleared my throat, a move that was as much to buy me some time to get myself together as it was to make me focus. Only then did I speak. “Would you prefer I call you Mr. Craig or Ryan?”

  But his beautiful eyes locked with mine again. Surrounded by the longest lashes I’d ever seen, those damn things were going to be the death of me. “Ryan’s fine.” He gave me another small smile, making me melt, and all I could think about was him holding me up against the wall, pounding his rigid cock inside me.

  In almost six years of business, I had never—not once—acted like this or even felt this way about any other person seeking my services. In all fairness, though, I’d never had a client quite like Ryan. Sure, I’d defended an MC guy a couple of years ago, but the man had been pushing sixty, sporting a Santa-like beer gut. He might have been my type if he could have shaved thirty years off but, as it was, Ryan was the first of his kind. A thousand degrees Fahrenheit with the feel of a Hershey’s Kiss.

  But I couldn’t stop analyzing my insane desire in a place so fucking inappropriate, and I wondered if it was because there was some kind of electricity sparking off him or if his body was throwing off crazy amounts of pheromones, making me feel instantly drawn to him.

  Or maybe it was the two of us together. What if he felt it, too?

  That was ridiculous, merely an excuse for my undersexed imagination to go fucking wild.

  But that didn’t stop me from pushing the envelope.

  “Okay, Ryan, please call me Samantha.” Once more, I forced my eyes back to the legal pad, gripping my pen like it was a lifeline. “So, where is she now?”

  My mind wandered once more as I chided myself for something that couldn’t be helped now. I’d been up late the night before writing a brief and wound up oversleeping. I didn’t look like shit, but I wasn’t going to be a bad boy magnet, either. My makeup looked fine and my dark brown hair fell neatly into place as it always did in the pixie cut style I’d been sporting—but I was wearing a boring suit, not something that showed off my curves, and I had no jewelry on, hadn’t put on my favorite sexy perfume. Hell, if I’d even suspected a creature like this would have walked in the door today, I would have spent those extra ten minutes at home primping, not caring about being late.

  Now, though, all I had was my charming, enchanting personality.

  Or I could concentrate and act like an attorney. You know…the reason he was here in the first place.

  “I’m sure she’s still in Trinidad.”

  Not my business, but I couldn’t stop myself. “Trinidad’s over a hundred miles away. What made you move here to Winchester?”

  “Better job opportunities. Good friends.” My instinct was to ask another question, but I could tell he had more to say, so I just kept my pen poised on the paper in case anything he said was noteworthy. “That and I had to get away.” He looked down at his hands again, making me even more fascinated with his tattoos. “She wouldn’t leave me alone. If I hadn’t left, I might’ve done something I’d regret.” The way he looked up at me made me feel like a voyeur, how I’d been drinking in everything about him. Instead of recording his information like a good attorney would, I was pulling it in on a visceral level, like I would a man I was flirting with at a bar.

  And I couldn’t tell if he was interested, too, or just viewing me as a hired professional. The way his green eyes gazed into my blue ones made me wonder.

  Shit. This was not good.

  I nodded, once more stalling. Did I want the dirty details?

  Nope. Not now, anyway. I’d already crossed a line. “Okay, Mr. Craig.” Old habits. “I mean, Ryan…” See what problems I caused myself by breaking my own rules? I took a shallow breath and pressed on. “Why are you contesting paternity?”

  “Because I’m sure the baby’s not mine.”

  “Is there any possibility?”

  Ryan looked up from his hands again and straight into my eyes, causing another shiver to charge up my spine. “Well, yeah…”

  “Okay. Why don’t you tell me a little bit about your relationship?”

  My new client all but grimaced from the discomfort of talking about it. “I met Rachel a couple of years ago through a friend. I’d just gotten divorced six months earlier and really didn’t feel like dating. But she seemed nice, and she was attractive. Two years later, we’re living together, and she’s talking marriage. On top of that, Trinidad was nice, but it’s not home. And with Rachel…we’ve had a lot of problems—I mean a lot of problems—and I have valid reasons to suspect the baby’s not mine.”

  The way he said we made me think their relationship wasn’t over—which meant I needed to let go of the silly infatuation I felt. After all, he was fresh out of a relationship, a relationship that clearly had issues. He was bad news—so why did my mind keep going there?

  I knew why. This guy was perfect for a one-night stand.

  “Do you think Ms. Evans would voluntarily submit to genetic testing?”

  Ryan frowned. “I really don’t know.”

  I set the pen down on the legal pad, folding my hands in front of me on the desk,
assuming my usual professional persona.

  Hoping I could pull it off at this point. “Well, fortunately, the law is on your side in this case. If you’d been married, you would be the presumed father no matter the circumstances. That would make things a lot more complicated, time consuming, and costly. But in your case, we’ll want to do DNA testing to first determine if you’re the child’s father. If you are, then we can also file motions for visitation, custody, that sort of thing—and she’ll probably also demand child support. If, on the other hand, you’re not the father, then you’ll know for certain, and you can break off ties completely…if that’s what you’re wanting to do.”

  “I’ve seen this happen to other guys before—so I kept expecting her to do this herself and ask for child support. But she hasn’t, and now the baby’s already four months old. If the baby’s mine, I want to know before he gets any older. About how long will this all take?”

  “That depends. If Ms. Evans doesn’t voluntarily agree to testing, we’ll have to present your case to the court, and they’ll order the tests to be done. That will drag it out, but it does happen. If she agrees, this whole thing could be over in about a month.”

  Ryan again looked down at his hands, absorbing the information I’d thrown at him. In this new moment of silence, I once more found my mind wandering back to the magnetic sexual attraction I felt for him. What was it about this guy that made me feel like I could jump across the desk and just start ripping his clothes off? God, I could almost literally feel his masculinity from my spot behind the desk. In my mind, I could see him taking me into his arms, could all but taste his kiss, feel his warm breath on my neck.

  When Ryan looked into my eyes again, I almost felt guilty, like he’d caught me with my hand in the cookie jar. “Okay.”

  What the hell was that look in his eyes? Was he feeling the same thing? What the fuck was passing between us?

  “How do we start?”

  I had to collect my thoughts, because two parts of me were competing with each other. Fortunately, the lawyer side of me was almost second nature, and my mouth responded without much effort. “I’ll send a letter to Ms. Evans asking for her cooperation. She and her son will have to submit to the testing.” Ryan arched his eyebrows, and it felt like my insides were going to melt onto the floor because of how gorgeous he looked. “Don’t worry. The testing is pretty painless in this day and age. No blood draws. They gently scrape the inside of the cheek to obtain some cells. That’s all they need.”

  His expression softened. “Good. No sense in hurting the baby. It’s not his fault.”

  My heart ached. Could this man get any more perfect? His sensitive side was probably what was wrecking me the most. I needed to get my head in the game, so I turned to the side and began tapping on my keyboard. By the time the sheet of paper printed, I had the thudding in my chest back under control. Handing the paper to him, I noted that he still looked as scrumptious as he had moments earlier. “This is the lab where you’ll need to go for your test.” I pointed to a line on the page. “Call the number there. They’ll set an appointment with you to collect your DNA. If you’d rather, I can have my assistant set the appointment for you, but it might be easier for you so you can work it around your schedule.” He nodded his head. “In the meantime, I’ll draft a letter to send via certified mail to Ms. Evans. She’ll have thirty days to respond.”

  Taking a deep breath, he looked up from the paper. “Anything else?”

  I shook my head. I could make some shit up but that would be unethical. Even though I craved this man, I didn’t feel right keeping him longer than necessary—especially when I had plenty of work to do that would generate lots of billable time. “Not for now. I’ll be in touch when I’ve heard from Ms. Evans.” Standing, I extended my hand, managing to keep my cool when Ryan stood and shook it. But I felt something.

  That strong hand belonged on my body.

  I couldn’t help how my lips curled in a slight smile. “It was nice to meet you, Ryan. Please feel free to call if you have any questions or need anything. You have my card?”

  “Yeah. Thanks. I gave you Rachel’s address, right?”

  “I believe that’s in the preliminary paperwork you filled out when you first came in. Let me check, though.” I opened the thin file on my desk. Janae, our efficient office secretary, had already typed a label and organized a few sheets of paper inside. Flipping through the pages to see what information had been collected, I couldn’t find an address inside for his ex-girlfriend. “No, we don’t have it here.”

  “Okay. I’ll call you later with that.”

  “No problem. I can get started on the letter and add the address when you call.”

  I walked him out of my office into the small lobby area, careful to not sway my hips as I was so damn tempted to do. “Talk with you soon.” Ryan’s lips stretched into a faint smile as he nodded his head and walked out the front door. The “lobby” was really nothing more than a sofa, two chairs, two end tables, and a large, leafy plant in one corner. And our office was in the middle of a strip mall, so even though the lobby had two plate glass windows on either side of the glass door, our view wasn’t worth it. But that didn’t mean I didn’t love the place. It might have been small, but I was damn proud of it. Today, I was grateful that the sign “Solano and Paulson, Attorneys at Law” wasn’t painted on the windows. Instead, it was posted on the building well above the windows, because the view of the paved parking lot was free and clear.

  Un-fucking-impeded.

  So I watched the gorgeous Ryan Craig walk across the lot, his gait steady and confident. I’d gauged that he was well over six feet, but he looked taller from farther away. Suddenly, I could sense Janae’s eyes on me, but I didn’t say a word, because what I was doing wasn’t unusual for me. After our first year in business, I found it wasn’t a bad idea to peek at the vehicles our clients drove, because it gave me a good idea if they could actually afford our fees. Mr. Craig got into a new-looking black Dodge Ram, so I figured our fees wouldn’t be a problem.

  But his ability to pay was not the reason I was watching him.

  Soon, he drove off in his truck and I turned slowly, my eyes landing quickly on Janae who sat at the desk across the tiny lobby. This young woman in the space of a few years had evolved from simple receptionist to right-hand woman for both me and my partner Adam. She knew every client by name, the basics of every case she touched, and what needed to be done. Our office ran smoothly, thanks to her. She kept us organized, even when we couldn’t be trusted to do so.

  And she was a hell of a typist. I used to think fifty words a minute was decent, but Janae clocked over a hundred a minute on a regular basis—just as she was doing now, even though her chocolate eyes seemed to stare into my soul.

  “Careful, Janae. I’m pretty sure there’s smoke coming off your keyboard.”

  Janae raised an eyebrow, glancing at the screen for just a moment before looking at me again. “What was that all about?”

  Taking a deep breath, I hoped my acting skills were up to par. “What do you mean?”

  “Girl, I wasn’t born yesterday. I saw you checking him out.” A grin cracked my face, because denying it now would be stupid—but I shrugged. “He is cute, isn’t he?”

  “Oh, my God. You have no idea.”

  Janae laughed. “I might be on a diet, but I can read the menu.”

  “True. But, you know, it’s more than that. He’s…” Words escaped me—and, besides, how the fuck could I explain something so stupid? It was lust, plain and simple, and there was no putting a pretty bow on that ugly package—at least not in a way that someone like Janae, who knew me pretty well as a professional, could be fooled into believing.

  She lowered her voice, as if there were clients in our lobby who might overhear her. “Samantha, what are you thinking? You can’t get involved with a client.”

  “I know that. But I can…read the menu, can’t I?”

  Shaking her head, Janae cocked her
eyebrow again and resumed tapping the keys. “You definitely did your fair share of that.”

  I knew if I argued more, she’d know just how interested I really was—so it was better to keep my mouth shut. But that didn’t have to stop my mind from caressing Ryan Craig’s perfect image.

  Chapter Two

  Janae continued to question my sanity with her eyes, and I couldn’t simply ignore her arched eyebrow.

  Had I been in my right mind, I would have handed the case over to Adam right that moment, no ifs, ands, or buts.

  I didn’t, of course.

  Since I stubbornly wanted to keep the case to myself, I needed to keep the conversation playful to throw our assistant off the scent. I couldn’t let her know just how irrationally attracted I was to my new client…how dangerously close I was to crossing a line. In response to her statement that I had most definitely eyeballed my client as he’d sauntered to his truck, I made my voice sound as innocent as possible. “You say that like it’s a bad thing.”

  Janae’s brown cheeks rounded, her eyes sparkling as she prepared a rebuttal. But Adam managed to stop any further line of questioning without even trying. His raised voice carried through his door so that we could hear his words clearly.

  “Goddammit! That is unacceptable, and you know it!”

  I raised my eyebrows. “Anyone in there?”

  “No.” She looked down at her phone. “He’s on line one.”

  “Who’s he talking to?”

  “DA. Trying to get a plea bargain on the Newman case.”

  I nodded, almost cringing when Adam’s voice roared back into the lobby, relieved we didn’t have any clients there at the moment. “If that’s the best you can offer, I’ll see you in court next week.”

  Janae’s lips curled into a slight smile as the little red light on the phone extinguished. “Ha. He hung up on her.” We both giggled softly like co-conspirators.

  Storming out of his office door, Adam stopped at the front desk, his jaw clenched. While his voice was lower now, there was no denying the man was as tense as a new guitar string. “Prep the Newman file. We’ll be choosing a jury on Tuesday.” He turned to walk back to his office and hesitated as if it just registered with him that I, too, was standing there. “What’s going on?”