Ruining Mr. Perfect (The McCauley Brothers) Read online

  “Turn around,” he whispered against her lips.

  Knowing she’d aroused him boosted her already healthy ego. Healthy—thanks to Cameron. How could any woman not find herself desirable when touched with such urgency, such care? She turned to face the wall.

  “You’re so sexy. So hot.” He ground his erection against her ass. “I need you again.”

  Need, not want. Semantics, but Vanessa liked to think he used the word as more than a coincidence. She loved the idea of being needed for herself, that she might have something to offer that was more than work-related. He’d made her come twice. In one night. And she hadn’t once had to touch herself to get off. She more than wanted to repay him.

  He pulled her hips back, and then he was there, thrusting into her wet heat.

  “Fuck. So good,” he crooned as he slammed the rest of himself inside her. The hard push rocked her forward, but his subsequent strokes, his breathless groans and muttered swears increased her ardor, leaving her less exhausted from her previous orgasm than she would have thought.

  “Fuck me harder,” she whispered. “Give it to me.” Normally men liked her to talk sexy, but these words were for her. “I need it.”

  He obeyed, rutting with a fervent desire neither could miss. “Yes, yes, Vanessa. Baby, so good.” He gripped her hips and ground into her. “I’m coming, so hard…” He shouted and shuddered inside her.

  As if she hadn’t been stupid once with unprotected sex, she’d gone for twice in one night.

  And she couldn’t have been happier.

  Vanessa took birth control, a daily pill she never forgot. She’d never had sex without a condom before, with the exception of her first time with a fellow virgin.

  But Cameron… A man who looked like a dream, who unselfishly saw to her pleasure first, had touched her in all the right places.

  He continued to move inside her, a slow pull and push, until he finally withdrew.

  “Left another mess,” he said in a guttural voice, then cleared his throat. “But you know, I’m thinking it’s probably safe now for me to come in your mouth.”

  “Always looking ahead.” She laughed.

  “Yep. Always looking for head.”

  She rolled her eyes. “There’s that immaturity again.”

  “I’m due. Come on. You came hard.” He turned her around and leaned against her, pushing her back against the cold wall tile. “All over my mouth. So sexy.” He grinned and kissed her.

  “Yeah.” She sighed and wrapped her arms around his neck, returning the affectionate embrace. “So I guess that wasn’t a lucky orgasm after all.” To her chagrin, she felt fluttery. Like those idiot women who looked gooey-eyed at their partners in all those rom-com movies—like Maddie and Abby stared at their men. She wondered if Cameron saw her softening.

  “No tensing up,” he warned, apparently sensing her anxiety. “You earned some feel-good time after dealing with Mr. Smallest Dick of the Year.”

  She snickered.

  “There. That’s the mean little laugh I love to hear.” He kissed her again, then nuzzled her cheek, and the affection went straight to her head. “Now before the water turns cold, let’s dry off, order up some food, and make the rules you know you’re dying to put in place.”

  Considering she’d been wondering how to go from tonight to tomorrow, his words made complete and utter sense. Yet she wasn’t sure if she liked him knowing her that well. “Not sure what you mean.” She cleaned herself once more, taking care to wash Cameron’s mess away and feeling weird that she missed him being a part of her.

  “Uh-huh.” He turned off the water and left to get them two towels. He returned to the large glass stall and tossed one to her, then dried himself off. “Dry off before I’m tempted to go down on you again.”

  She flushed and watched him work the towel over himself, fascinated with his body. Such corded strength in his compact frame. Those legs, that ass, that… Even flaccid he seemed large to her. When he caught her ogling him and raised a brow, she quickly finished drying herself off and stepped out with him.

  He handed her a plush hotel robe, and she gratefully put it on, suddenly feeling shy, which made little sense. Vanessa didn’t do shy. Or embarrassed, or sensitive. Yet right now with Cameron, she felt all three. As she turned away to towel-dry her hair, he grabbed a matching robe from the small closet and put it on. Then he hung up his towel.

  She nodded and hung hers next to his, her hair no longer sopping wet, but damp. He gestured for her to precede him into the living area. “Hungry?”

  “Famished.” Surprisingly. She noted the darkness outside. “But it’s…” She glanced at the bedside clock. “Four a.m.?”

  “So? They have twenty-four-seven room service.”

  “Oh.” How decadent, to dine in this late. “Sure.” She’d probably have to sell a kidney to afford a coffee, but the sumptuous idea of a late-night snack with Cameron after that incredible sex went straight to her head.

  She sat next to him on the couch, hip to hip, and pored over the menu. They decided on two fruit and cheese plates and a bottle of wine to go with it.

  “You have good taste,” she said as he idly toyed with a strand of her wet hair.

  “Yes, I do.” He smiled at her and wiggled his brows when his gaze moved down to her chest.

  She fought a huge grin and tried to look stern. “Cameron…”

  “You need all three names. Say it like this.” He infused his name with a deep bellow of authority. “Cameron Thomas McCauley.”

  “Nice.”

  “Yeah. Been hearing that my whole life.” He shrugged. “And I was the good McCauley. Not like the other slobs I used to live with.”

  She smiled.

  “How about you? Any brothers or sisters?”

  “Nope. Just me.”

  “Wow. I can’t imagine what that must have been like. I grew up waiting for the bathroom, wearing hand-me-downs, and fighting with my older brothers over just about everything. Even when I was trying to be good, one of them would suck me into a brawl. Usually Brody or Flynn.”

  “Very different from my childhood. It was mostly quiet. My parents always had their noses buried in a book, a thesis, or work. They’re college professors.”

  “Oh?”

  “Yeah. At a big university where they’re allowed to work on their theories and proofs. I grew up surrounded by math and physics. Fun, fun, fun.” She made a face.

  He shrugged. “Hey, they could have been lit professors. Be thankful for small favors.”

  She laughed. “True.” They fell into an easy silence. Cameron held her hair, studying it in the dim light, while she ran her fingers over his free hand, marveling at how much larger his palm was than hers, how graceful his fingers. For all that they stood close in height, he had much more muscle. And she’d never been more grateful for the differences between genders.

  “This is nice,” he said and looked into her eyes. “Being with you.”

  “Um, yes.” She felt her cheeks heat. Stupid. “It is.”

  His slow smile warmed her all over again. “So you want to tell me the rules now?”

  “Rules?”

  “Please. After you finished screaming my name—”

  “I don’t recall screaming your name.”

  “—and after I had my wicked way with you, reason returned. We’re a lot alike, you know. Rational, intelligent, concerned about tomorrow. Always looking ahead.”

  That flattering comparison she could live with. “And?”

  “And you’re no doubt wondering what tonight meant in terms of our relationship.”

  His cool detachment irked her. “Oh?”

  “See? I even know that frosty tone. I somehow offended you without intending to.” Far from looking abashed, Cameron grinned. It should be illegal to be so charming, handsome, and assured o
f his appeal. “Vanessa, I really like you. For more than the sex, though the sex is… The sex is something we need to do a lot. To get really, really good at it.”

  She smirked. “Uh-huh.”

  “I think we should try a few dates and see what happens.”

  “As in, we’re dating.”

  “Isn’t that what I just said?”

  “Just you and me.”

  “Well, I sure the hell don’t want to double with Flynn or Brody anytime soon.” He grimaced. “I love the guys, but they can be such jackasses.”

  “True.” She worried her lower lip, then immediately stopped when she realized Abby did the same thing all the time when nervous. God forbid she take on her roommate’s neuroses. “We enjoy each other’s company, like the same foods, love to exercise, and we’re far more intelligent than the people we live with.”

  “Exactly.”

  “Intelligence is important to me.” She sounded like a babbling idiot, and the captivated look on his face made her feel even more moronic.

  “Me too.”

  “So what if things don’t work out? Not that I’m leaning toward anything long-term, but when Brody and Abby hit the wall, we didn’t get along. You and I.”

  “Actually, we got along fine. You were the one with the bug up your ass. You were also in the wrong; you just refused to admit it.”

  “Excuse me—”

  “But I forgive you.”

  “Forgive this.” She shot him the finger.

  Instead of volleying back an insult, he laughed, dragged her into his lap, and kissed her. “God, you make me so hard when you get mad.”

  “Cam.”

  He groaned. “And that. You always call me Cameron. But when I was inside you, you called me Cam. Like it’s a pet name or something.”

  “You’d rather I called you something else?” She hadn’t realized she’d been doing that.

  “Knowing you, it would be dickhead or Mr. Tiny. I don’t need disparaging remarks about my cock, thank you very much.”

  She chuckled. “Why? Performance issues?”

  “No. I just don’t want you confusing me with your new client.”

  Her laughter deepened. “No worries there. You know, I still can’t believe he had the nerve to talk to me like that.”

  “See? Now you’re thinking about him again. Think about me.” He kissed her, and the kiss turned from teasing to carnal in seconds. He broke away, breathing hard. “Damn. You really get to me.”

  “Yeah.” She sighed, especially when his hand found its way into her robe and cupped her breast.

  “So? We dating now or what? I mean, exclusively dating.” He pinched her nipple.

  She sucked in a breath and let it out with a shaky moan. “Do I get more of this if I say yes?”

  He smiled. “Maybe. I’m thinking you get a gym partner, a running buddy, a sympathetic ear when your roommates get on your nerves, and more orgasms. Along with the golden opportunity to please me at my beck and call.” At her look, he amended, “Or whenever our schedules mesh.”

  “Better.” She leaned into his warmth, loving that he had no problem keeping eye contact while caressing her breast. Cameron always paid attention to her. Not just her body, but to Vanessa, the woman with a brain. “If I have another business function, can I take you?”

  “Yeah.” He shifted under her. “And when we have uncomfortable family gatherings at my parents’ house, you have to buffer me from the hordes.”

  “I can do that. I’m good at putting people in their places.”

  “You are.” He kissed her, but this time with a lingering softness. “You put me in my place right off. I respect that.”

  “Oh good. I’d hate for you to not respect me. Especially after tonight.”

  A knock sounded at the door.

  “Why don’t you get that while I try to hide my hard-on?”

  She laughed and left him on the couch.

  “Charge it to the room. I mean it,” he growled.

  “Like I’m going to argue that?” she said over her shoulder as she opened the door.

  The waiter wheeled in a cart carrying the tray, and after depositing it on the table, he handed her the bill. She signed it and added a nice gratuity, to which the waiter nodded and left with a smile.

  Vanessa turned and brought the tray to Cameron, setting it on the nearby table “So we eat this, then what?” She had to know.

  Cameron didn’t sigh, roll his eyes, or demand she relax. “Then we take another nap. You’ll have to go home to change, and then we’ll spend the day together. First, a workout at the gym. Then we’ll go sightseeing.”

  She just looked at him.

  “Or not. What would you like to do?”

  “Well, after we work out, there’s a string of foreign films playing downtown.”

  “Subtitles?”

  “Yes.”

  “Not arty flicks?”

  “No, a few new kung fu movies I’ve been dying to see.”

  “Oh. Count me in.”

  They smiled at each other.

  Cam continued. “So we eat, we nap, you fellate me, and then I take you home so you can change.”

  “Fellate?” She raised a brow at his hopeful grin. “I’ll blow you, Mr. Dictionary. On one condition.”

  “My first child? Done.”

  She snorted. “No. That you prove you aren’t all about two lucky orgasms. I’m thinking they might have been flukes.”

  “Now Vanessa. No need to get mean. All you had to do was ask. Or beg. I like when you beg.”

  She frowned. “I don’t beg. I might ask. Maybe.” She gave him a mulish frown. “But I won’t say please.”

  “Fine by me. Now pass the fruit. And the wine.”

  As they dined together, Vanessa knew she’d never had a better date—that wasn’t exactly a date—in her life.

  ***

  Vanessa spent what remained of her weekend playing. Playing. She hadn’t been so carefree and smiling in…well, in forever. After Vanessa’s time with Cameron ended, she spent Monday catching up and introducing herself to Henry, her new contact at Bellemy. Monday night, after working out alone since Cameron had work to do, she returned home to find Maddie and Abby gossiping at the kitchen table.

  “Well, well. Van-zilla’s back.” Maddie grinned at her. “The smiling scourge of Seattle has returned.”

  Vanessa glanced at Abby, who shrugged and apologized. “Sorry. We’ve been trying to come up with better names for you. Maddie prefers Van-zilla, but I liked Scourge of Seattle. I like the alliteration. Adds some zing.”

  “Whatever.” Vanessa headed for a bag of blue corn chips and sat down with her friends. “So what’s new with you two? Pregnant yet?”

  Abby choked on her water. “No.”

  “Not yet. We’re waiting until after the wedding to start,” Maddie said calmly. “How about you?”

  Vanessa ate some chips, then answered, “Nope. I’ve always used birth control. We Campbells are all about safe sex.”

  “So you’re having it then.”

  Abby and Maddie stared at her, as if mesmerized.

  “Do we really need to have a kiss-and-tell moment?”

  “Yes,” Abby and Maddie said together.

  “Fine. Cameron and I are dating.”

  Her roommates high-fived each other. “Hot damn.” Abby punched Vanessa on the arm. “You sly dog. When did this start?”

  “If you must know, this weekend,” she said, feeling smug. “Right after I dealt with John It’s-All-About-Me Willington.” She told them about their conversation, gratified when her friends immediately took to anger on her behalf.

  “What a dick,” Maddie fumed. “Such a loser.”

  Vanessa laughed. “Cam said I was lucky. He saw John in the steam room. Said it wasn�
��t a pretty sight.”

  “Good.” Abby grinned. “So you missed the small fry, but landed a…”

  “Great catch. A really, really big fish.” Vanessa ate more chips, suddenly super hungry.

  “Wow. It’s like the McCauleys don’t make duds. At least, not in bed. I wonder what Mike’s like?” Abby mused. They stared at her, and she blushed. “Oh stop it. Not for me, you goofballs. I love Brody. I just wondered what he must be like… Forget it. No matter how I try to explain this, it’s coming out all wrong.”

  Vanessa raised a brow. “Um, yeah it is.”

  “I’m just glad you can laugh when we talk about men. You were a little scary in your man-hater phase,” Maddie said.

  “Men are stupid.” Vanessa shrugged.

  “Is Cam stupid?” Maddie asked in that smarmy voice that always drove Vanessa nuts. Even as a kid, her cousin would get that smug tone in her voice and use it with unerring precision, landing on Vanessa’s last nerve.

  “He’s a man, therefore he’s flawed. However, he’s not as idiotic as Brody or Flynn, and that’s something to be proud of.” She gave Maddie an overly wide grin.

  “Witch.” Maddie stuck her tongue out.

  “Oh. That hurts. Not the tongue.” Vanessa laughed at her. “You know, I still think you should have majored in theater in college, not interior design.”

  “Thanks so much for your unasked-for opinion.”

  Abby sighed. “Ding ding. Okay. Back to your corners.” She ran a hand through her hair. “And to think I missed our girlie chats.”

  Vanessa smirked. “You missed me, you mean.”

  “The ego. It never quits.” But Maddie smiled as she said it.

  “So tell us about Cameron.” Abby drew out his name. “Come on. You have to give us something.”

  Vanessa thought about his smiling eyes, his deep laugh, the hands that sent her soaring. And the keen intelligence and dry wit. She glanced up to catch a look between her roommates. “What?”

  “Oh, nothing.” Abby cut off whatever Maddie had been about to say. “So the Four Seasons, huh? I bet the room was nice.”

  “Oh yeah. A suite overlooking the water. Really classy.”