False Match Read online

  He was circumcised, she noted. More than fifty percent of American men were, she recalled. She visually measured Chase’s shaft length and circumference and calculated him to be at a size slightly greater than the average human penis length.

  “Would you like a ruler and microscope?” Chase asked dryly.

  She looked to meet his amused stare. “What? Oh.” Her gaze dropped to the floor then back to Chase. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to stare.”

  “Yeah you did or you wouldn’t have asked me to lose the underwear. It’s cool. But the way you’re looking at me has me wondering what’s going through your brain right now. Sex or science?”

  But he didn’t wait for her to answer, and she thanked an invisible deity, because for a minute she hadn’t been sure. It was definitely sex hiding behind the propriety of science.

  “Tell you what, Jonesie, since the cat has your tongue, let’s combine the two. It’s now about sex and science.”

  Chase took a deep breath and forced his tone to stay light and matter-of-fact. If he grabbed his sexy doctor and pressed her to the mattress like he was dying to do, he’d lose her. She’d freeze and utter something cutting that would just make him want her more. And oh God, he wanted her. When she’d stared at his crotch as if he were the first naked man she’d ever seen he’d practically come in his shorts.

  He had to do everything in his power to keep her here and in the moment. “You mentioned back at the lab you’d need a semen sample to test my genetics. Let’s get that ready.”

  “B-but I don’t have any of my equipment here.” Her brow furrowed.

  “I brought mine.” Chase grinned and fisted himself. Shit, that may have been too much. Samara looked rather desperately at the mostly shut door to her bedroom. But then she surprised him.

  “What do you have in mind?” she asked.

  “Well, if we were in the lab I’d jerk off into a sample cup, right?”

  She nodded. “But it would have a lid and be sterile.”

  “I’m pretty sure I saw some plastic-wrapped Styrofoam coffee cups in the bathroom near the coffeemaker.”

  “But it’s ridiculous. It’s not as if we’re going to hold on to that cup for days until we’re back at the lab. The sample would be useless.”

  “Yes, but it’s important for me to practice, right? I wouldn’t want to waste your time later.” He had her now. He could see the smile lurking behind her pursed lips. “Go get me a cup.”

  He lounged in the center of the bed and leaned back against the fluffy white pillows. Held his aching dick in his hand and counted the seconds, praying and hoping she’d follow orders. He couldn’t stop the ear-to-ear grin when she spun and stepped to the bathroom. His gaze locked on her lush rear every step until it disappeared.

  “Unwrap it and hand me the cup,” he said when she again stood by the edge of the bed. He was pleased to see her hands shook slightly as she tore off the plastic. He made sure to lightly caress her fingers when he accepted the cup from her. Small touches were all he’d get for now. Any real touching would have to be done by himself.

  He knelt in place and held the cup at the tip of his shaft and started stroking. Knowing her eyes were locked on his movements made this the third best hand job in the world. The first best was when he was thirteen and discovered the ability to jerk off, and the second best would be if Samara crawled up on the bed and added her hands to his. But since she looked frozen in place with wide eyes, he’d have to settle for third. His own hands. He stroked from base to tip a few more times then allowed his hand to drop off.

  “This isn’t working,” he said.

  “Huh? Why not?” Samara couldn’t meet his gaze. Hers was still locked on his cock.

  “I like to play with my balls while I jerk off,” he said, knowing his explanation was going to embarrass the shit out of her. “I can’t hold the cup, my cock and my balls at the same time.”

  “I—I could hold the cup.” She kneeled on the bed and reached for the cup.

  For a second he’d thought she was going to say she could hold his balls, but that was only his prayer, not reality. Maybe someday. When she had the cup in place, he slid a hand around his balls and tightened his grip around his shaft with his other one. Having Samara close enough to touch and smell heightened everything, and he knew he’d come in about two seconds. Maybe four if he got lucky and remembered he didn’t want to end this too soon.

  Doctor Samara Jones was in his bed. And they were doing something sexual. If someone had told him about this two weeks ago he would’ve laughed and then he would’ve punched the crap out of the jokester. Now she was here in his bed, and it was no laughing matter.

  “Are you close?” she asked in a whisper, sounding almost as if she was panting. She probably sounded like that when she was close to orgasm. Shit, he wanted to find out. The thought of Samara naked and beneath him did the trick. He stroked a final time and grunted as he came into the foam cup in her small hands.

  They both looked down at the cup, now not sure how to end the moment. She had a cup full of his spunk. Not so sexy. He should have thought of that before. He grabbed it out of her hands and pushed off the bed to standing. “I’ll take care of this, and then I’m going to shower.” He grinned down at her. “Want to join me? This hotel promotes green practices. What could be more environmentally friendly than conserving water by showering together?”

  And icy Doctor Jones was back. “Nice try, Stanton. Enjoy the shower.” She strolled out of the room, cool as a cucumber as if he hadn’t just literally bared himself for her. He felt naked, and not just because he had no clothes on. Samara Jones was no easy chick, willing to spend a few hours of fun in a hotel room bed. She was a scientist, a mother, and he’d talked to her like any chick he’d pick up at a bar.

  Had he scared her off? Or angered her? No way to know until tomorrow. Grimly, he stalked into the bathroom, shoved a handful of tissues in the foam cup, tossed it in the trash then turned on the shower. Everything had seemed great five minutes ago. Now, not so much.

  Samara bounced into her bed, stifling a shocked giggle. Oh my God, Chase had just…and she had… She clapped a hand over her mouth to keep from waking Luca. The last seven minutes had been the absolutely most glorious and sexiest experience of her limited sexual history.

  She couldn’t believe she’d had the guts to tell Chase to get naked. And thank goodness she had. He was a beautiful male. His muscles were perfectly toned and proportionate to his height. And, oh wow, his penis was perfect. Or maybe his hands were better. No, his hands on his penis had been the best. He’d called it a cock, she remembered.

  No man had ever said the word cock in front of her before. Her previous lovers were polite and respectful, and now that she thought back, she realized they’d treated her like a doctor. Like sex was something requiring a nice bedside manner.

  Not Chase. He’d treated her like a woman. A sexy woman. Lord help her, she loved it. Sleeping tonight was obviously going to be impossible, especially after Chase’s shower invitation.

  She’d had to run because if she’d gone in the shower with him, they would’ve had sex. It was a step she wasn’t sure she was ready for. Her body was more than ready, and was insisting rather vehemently that she should strip and sprint back to Chase’s bathroom and hop into the shower with him.

  But her rational, scientific brain, which never turned off all the way, remembered they’d only known each other a little while. A few weeks weren’t enough time to sleep with someone. Was it? She stopped giggling, remembering that for lots of other people in America, that was plenty of time. Sometimes an hour in a bar was enough. But that wasn’t her. One glance at the sleeping boy in the next bed reminded her she was a nearly forty-year-old mother. Responsible women didn’t hop in men’s beds simply to scratch an itch.

  But it was darn hard to believe that when her body was one big itch.

  *

  “Tired?” Chase asked as he plunked his breakfast tray onto the table in
front of her.

  “I’m fine. Why do you ask?”

  “Because I could see you yawning across the room. I nearly tossed a muffin in.”

  “Good morning, Chase,” Luca said brightly. “Are you eating breakfast with us?”

  Being that they were on east coast time, they were practically alone in the small nook the hotel used for their free breakfast buffet.

  Luca had been beside himself with excitement to see an array of his favorite sugary cereals. Nice mother that she was, she was allowing two small bowls as long as he swallowed down some of the scrambled eggs. It was tempting to play mother to Chase who’d also opted for sugary cereal, only he’d tossed at least three kinds in a single bowl.

  “Mommy, look at Chase’s bowl. He mixed it all up!” Luca laughed as if it was the funniest thing he’d ever seen.

  “That’s disgusting,” she said, eyeing it over her mug of tea.

  “It’s delicious. Try it.” He pushed the tray an inch toward her.

  “No thank you.” Tea was about all she could handle this morning after dozing on and off all night. Every time she’d closed her eyes to try to sleep, the image of Chase’s large hand stroking his equally large penis planted firmly in her brain and refused to let her relax enough for a deep sleep.

  “I want to try it. Can I, Chase?” Luca asked.

  “Go for it, buddy.” Luca gleefully dug his own spoon into Chase’s bowl and slurped up the rainbow-colored cereal bits along with the milk, stained pink.

  “Aren’t you going to have any eggs? Mommy says I have to eat protein in the morning.”

  “Your mother’s right and after I finish this bowl, I’m going back for a second round.” Chase met her gaze. “What about you? No protein?” His right hand held his cereal spoon halfway to his mouth, while his other hand caressed her thigh under the table.

  Her tea mug slammed to the table with a bang, sloshing hot water on her hand. “Ouch.” Tears came to her eyes.

  Chase’s deft hands had a napkin on her wet, scalded hand in a split second, and when she was dry, he held his icy cup of OJ onto the hurt skin for a minute.

  “Better?” he asked gently.

  She nodded and pulled her hand out of his grasp to pick up the mini banana muffin and nibble on it. She’d never been less hungry, but it gave her mouth and hands something to do. Otherwise she might do something stupid like keep holding Chase’s hand or lean in for a good-morning kiss.

  The three of them ate in silence. All of Luca’s attention was on the children’s cartoon playing on the hotel lobby television. After Chase finished his cereal, he pushed his chair back, rose, stretched then strolled to the buffet for more food.

  He returned with two identical plates full of eggs and potatoes. One of the plates he put in front of her. “Eat a real breakfast. You have a rough day ahead.” Once again, Chase proved himself different from other men by taking care of her. Maybe she gave off a too-capable vibe, but no man had ever made sure she had enough breakfast. She knew Chase didn’t feed her because he thought she was incapable of getting up to get herself food. He did it because he cared that she ate.

  After four years of taking care of Luca and herself solo, it felt more than good to have a third person along for the ride. But she couldn’t let Chase see how much his gesture meant. If she gave an inch, he’d take a mile and soon he’d take control of this trip, not consulting her on any detail. It was how soldiers of his ilk rolled. Not that she’d ever met a soldier like Chase before, but still, she’d seen Rambo.

  It would be dangerous, especially to Luca, to allow Chase that kind of leverage. It was a temporary relationship. She understood it, but wouldn’t know how to explain it to Luca, so it was better not to even start it.

  “What’s on tap for today?” Chase asked, leaning back in his chair, pushing his empty plate aside.

  She swallowed the eggs. “Breakfast is served to my mother at nine. I’d like to be there immediately following.”

  “What about the little man?” Chase gestured at Luca with his chin.

  She wrapped her fingers around the hot mug of tea. “I need to ask a favor of you.”

  He didn’t respond, but his expression said he was listening intently.

  “Luca’s only met his grandmother once. He was an infant, so of course he doesn’t remember her. And my mother was already showing signs of dementia, so I don’t think she’ll know him.”

  “Do you want me to take him for a fun adventure? I can ask the front desk for some fun kids’ things to do.” Something pressed in on her heart at his generous offer.

  She shook her head. “No, I want to bring him to meet his grandmother. I think it’s important for both of them. But just in case she’s not in a good place today, or Luca gets upset, can you be on standby to whisk him out and bring him on that grand kids’ adventure?”

  “Absolutely.” He leaned forward and wrapped her wrist in his large hand. “I think you’re making a good choice. Family matters, and maybe Luca won’t ever know the woman your mother was, but at least he’ll know he has a grandmother.”

  She slid her hand back in his grasp to squeeze their palms together. “Thank you. Sometimes it’s hard being a single mother, weighing every decision alone, without someone else to provide a counterargument or shoulder the blame when things go wrong.”

  “I think you do a hell of a job. In fact, I think you’re a hell of a woman.”

  They stared at each other, the rest of the room lost, save for their connection, until Luca broke in. “Mommy, Chase said a bad word.” The TV channel had changed to morning news and Luca’s focus was back at the table.

  They pulled apart laughing.

  “I did, kiddo, but I’m a grown-up. I get to say bad words, but you don’t,” Chase told Luca.

  “That’s right. No cursing,” she said, though Luca only had eyes for Chase at the moment. Maybe this wasn’t such a great idea. Luca already was looking at Chase as if he were Superman and SpongeBob rolled into one hero. A day spent bonding would only solidify the nascent link. She was possibly setting her son up for a grieving period if they managed to escape the Program to move back here. The reality of leaving the Program and leaving Chase made her brain stumble for a moment. Then she shut that thought out. Chase was nothing to her, a diversion.

  He seemed to hear her silent doubts and rose from the table before she could utter any protests. He scooped Luca out of his chair, held him in his arms, tickling him, and strode toward the elevators back to their rooms.

  “He’ll vomit if you hang him upside down,” she called, hurrying after them, but the males didn’t listen. Oh well, it was on Chase’s shoulder, or rather his shoes, if Luca lost his breakfast.

  They made a quick pit stop in the hotel room to grab her purse and file she kept on her mother’s health, then they headed out to the rental car.

  “How come Chase is driving, Mommy?” Luca asked from the backseat of the SUV Chase had insisted on renting. She’d fought for the midsize compact. “Does he know the way to Grandma’s?”

  “Oh, um.” She looked over at the driver’s seat where Chase had seemed to naturally belong. Why was he there? It wasn’t as if he knew the way.

  “I don’t know the way, but I’m counting on your mom to guide me. Plus, the rental car is in my name. Means I drive,” Chase said, looking in the rearview mirror at Luca.

  “Oh.” The explanation satisfied her son and it soothed her as well. How easily she’d allowed him to assume the traditional male roles, but he’d been right to rent the car in his name. If Paulson were truly looking for her, it would be dumb to give her name away to all and sundry.

  “The highway entrance is up ahead on the right,” she said, pointing. They drove in silence, enjoying the amazing mountain views. She missed Colorado. Granted, she wasn’t much of a skier or hiker, but she could appreciate the scenery.

  “Do you ski?” she asked Chase.

  “A few times, but the slopes near Maryland are nothing like out here. I’d lo
ve to learn to snowboard.”

  She bet. Snowboarding seemed like it would be right up his alley.

  “What about you? Do you ski?”

  “Me? Not really. Growing up here, it was kind of obligatory to try it at least once, but I didn’t have a natural aptitude for it.” She glanced to the backseat. “I should find time to take Luca out and get him in ski school. I’ve heard it’s easier to learn when you’re young.”

  “Probably. Everything’s easier when you’re young. Too bad it’s the end of summer, or we could try to hit the slopes.”

  “Too bad.” She stared out the window again. “Then again, I want to spend every second possible with my mother.” Other than quietly giving turning directions, there was no further conversation in the car until they pulled up at the assisted living facility. She exited the car and started for the back to unlatch Luca from the car seat, but Chase got there first. It took him a minute to figure the harness system, but he got it and lifted Luca out.

  Luca held on to Chase’s hand and reached for hers with his other. They walked, connected, into the building. With the sun reflecting off the glass turning it into a mirror, Samara got a good look at them. God, they looked like a real family. Luca must have thought so too, because he started hopping and skipping and tugging on their hands. All they needed to do now was…yup…Chase tugged him on the next hop and Luca sailed air-bound.

  “Again.” He giggled.

  She smiled down at her son while her heart was pounding. How had he known the get-your-parents-to-swing-you routine? Was it something they taught in-utero? But she didn’t have the heart to take away this opportunity. It wasn’t as if she had other men waiting in the wings for a turn to hold hands with her son and swing him.

  They stepped-swung the remaining distance to the door of the facility. When Chase released Luca’s hand to open the door, Luca turned to her. “Will Grandma like me?”