Lucky Stars (Ghosts and Reincarnation #5)(111)

Oh yes, definitely getting somewhere.

“No,” he replied and touched her mouth in a brief kiss, “I haven’t.”

He didn’t have to ask if she liked it, he knew from her response she did.

“Jack –” she whispered, the hand at his neck moved, her fingers gliding in his hair, her actions belying her next words. “I’m not ready for this.”

He touched her lips in another brief kiss before he said, “All right, my love, I’ll be sure to spend a lot of time getting you ready.”

“Holy heck,” she breathed but her fingers put pressure against his head, her head lifted and she touched her mouth against his.

When she did, he growled his triumph into her already opened mouth, slanted his head and slid his tongue inside.

She immediately emitted one of her sexy, little noises and his already hard c**k jerked at the sound.

Then Baron and Gretl moved, their tags jangling and they both barked.

This was right before they heard a banging at the door.

Jack’s head came up and twisted as the banging continued, loud and unabated.

“What the f**k?” he muttered.

Belle’s body had grown tense underneath him and feeling it, Jack decided he was going to wring the neck of whoever was at the door.

“Would a reporter bang on the door like that?” Belle whispered, her voice filled with anxiety.

“No,” Jack answered as the banging stopped then, within seconds, continued and he stifled a frustrated growl.

“Mom and Gram wouldn’t bang like that,” Belle told him as, with regret, he moved away from her warm body and their warm bed.

“No, they wouldn’t,” Jack replied though he figured they would but not on Sunday.

He exited the bed and Baron and Gretl started circling to the bedroom door and back to Jack.

He heard Belle’s movement, looked back and saw her sitting up and throwing the covers back.

Jack stopped in his progress to the door and ordered, “Don’t move.”

Belle halted her legs in mid-swing and asked, “What?”

“Don’t leave that bed.”

“But –”

“Belle.”

She stared at him a moment then her legs settled and she whispered, “Okay.”

“I won’t be a minute,” Jack told her and watched her nod.

Then Jack, barefoot, bare-chested and wearing only pyjama bottoms, stalked through the house, down the steps to the front door and threw it open.

A tall, sandy blond-haired man with intensely blue eyes stood outside wearing a beat up leather bomber jacket, a pair of faded jeans and a t-shirt stating his fondness for The Rolling Stones.

He had an even more beat up leather satchel over his shoulder and, alarmingly, a large, even more beat up leather bag sitting on the stoop by his foot.

His eyes bugged out when they fell on Jack’s face.

“Jesus, you’re the famous, rich dude,” he declared.

Jack scowled at him. “I am indeed. And you are?”

The man’s face split into an easy, wide, white smile and his hand shot forward toward Jack before he said, “Jenson Abbot, Belle’s Daddy.”

Jack stared at his hand, vaguely disappointed that he couldn’t commit homicide against Belle’s father and then he took his hand and shook it, introducing himself by saying, “Jack Bennett.”

“Dude, I know,” Jensen Abbot replied. “Christ, photos of you and Belle are everywhere.” He dropped Jack’s hand and went on, “You two look sweet together. Sah… weet. Never thought my precious girl would find someone to complement her, because, hey man, I don’t have to tell you, she’s beautiful but, seriously, dude, you… are… it.”

Jack had no reply to that however he did get the impression that perhaps Belle hadn’t been entirely forthcoming with how wild her father was and she had painted a verbal picture of Jensen Abbot that was rather wild.

“I came to surprise my baby girl and see how she’s gettin’ on with all this shit so, um, you think you could let me in because I kinda wanna see my daughter and I seriously need a caffeine fix. You know what I’m saying?”

“Of course,” Jack murmured, stepped back and motioned to Baron and Gretl to go up the stairs which they did.

Jensen didn’t delay. He picked up his bag and barrelled up the steps after the dogs.

While he did so, he shouted, “Bellerina, get your ass out here and give your ol’ Dad a hug!”

Jack had made it to the landing in time to see Belle come running out of the bedroom wearing her nightgown. Then he watched as she threw herself in her father’s arms.

“Dad!” she shouted happily as Jensen swung her around. Jack thought there was one thing good about Jensen interrupting Jack’s determination to break through during his Sunday and that was hearing Belle sounding happy for the first time in weeks.

Jack watched as Jensen hugged his daughter while the dogs danced around them and Gretl gave an excited woof.

Jensen pushed Belle a bit away and his gaze went immediately to the significantly faded bruise and stitched cut at her temple.

Then he exploded.

“Holy shit! What the f**k!”

Then, for some strange reason, his eyes slashed to Jack and, Jack noted, they did this accusingly.