his hands traversed the toned expanse of skin toward her heated center. When he reached the line of her thong, he muttered a curse against her lips. “God, I’ve been thinking about you since I met you in the club. I haven't been able to get you out of my head.”
“Damn it, Samson. Hurry. I need—”
Every nerve and cell in Eli’s body shriveled as if they’d been doused in liquid nitrogen. She’d called him Samson. That’s right, dumbass. She thinks she’s with your brother.
Jessica rotated her hips against his previously questing fingertips, but he withdrew.
“Shit, you’ve got to be kidding me. You can’t just wind me all up then leave me like this.” Unfocused, wide, blue eyes stared at him. “What did I do wrong?
“I—” What the hell was he going to say? You called me by my brother’s name, who you think I am, even though I’m only pretending to be him? Yeah right. “I’m sorry. I just have a rule about when I’m working. I should never have—”
Her back stiffened. “You’re serious?”
His cock wanted to throttle him, but he nodded. “Yeah. I’m sorry. We can’t.”
She swiped a lock of blue hair out of her eyes. “Fanfuckingtastic.” She drew in one long breath. “Since I’m here, I might as well see the work. Lucky for you, I’m genuinely interested in your talent, or you realize I’d be out the door already.”
Eli bit the inside of his cheek. “Yeah, I got you.”
Chapter 10
An hour later, his brother came home to find Eli on the stairs. Jessica was long gone. Before she’d left, she kept things crisp and cool. Nice and professional between them. Hell, she even shook his hand. The physical contact hadn’t helped matters. His body had just gone into another cardiac arrest. Damn.
Eli ground his teeth. Why did he have to feel this way about her? Why now, when Samson was just getting back into the swing of things. Why now? He didn’t have time for these kinds of complications.
“You know, big brother, this is the part where you’re supposed to wear a shit-eating grin for a few hours then take your little brother out and tell him all the good parts.” Sam joined him on the bottom step. “Instead, you look like I shot your favorite puppy. Not the mangy one that used to follow you around all the time, but the chubby, adorable one Mom gave away because she said we had one too many dogs.”
Eli huffed a mirthless chuckle. “Nothing happened. I sent her home untouched—mostly.”
Sam rolled his eyes. “Dude, what is your damage? You’ve slept with her before. Clearly you’ve got a thing for her. Judging by the, erm, unreleased tension in your face, I’d say she has a thing for you too, but you’re deliberately denying yourself? What the fuck for? Because I’ve seen her—you don’t do that little packet of dynamite, someone else will. Shit, maybe even me.”
Rage unfurled in Eli’s gut like wisps of smoky embers. Would Samson do that to him now? Could Samson do that to him now? When he’d been using, sure. Shit, when Sam was using, there was no limit on his depths of depravity.
“Stay the fuck away from her, Samson.”
Samson frowned, then shifted one imperceptible inch away from his brother. “E, man. I wouldn’t do that. I was kidding. You know. Running off at the mouth.”
Exhausted, Eli let out a long breath. This wasn’t Sam’s fault. At least not directly. He’d been the one who’d chosen to keep lying to Jessica. He’d made that clear decision. And now he was paying for it. “She called me Samson.”
Sam frowned and narrowed his eyes at his brother. “I don’t get it. So what? We do happen to look alike; you are wearing my impeccable clothes.” He eyed the jeans. “Where did you find those? I’ve been looking for them for months.”
“In the closet.”
“Guess I never thought to look there. Anyway, my point is, she thinks you’re me. It makes sense for her to call you Samson.”
“Yeah, I know who she thinks I am.”
Sam closed his eyes and nodded in understanding. “You’d rather she called out Elijah.”
“Eli would do.”
Sam snorted then scrubbed his face with his hands. “Look man, just tell her the truth. It’s fine; we’ll find me another manager. It doesn’t have to be her. End this shit right now. I don’t need to see you like this anymore.”
The guilt stung Eli. Would he really sell out his brother for a woman he barely knew? “A, I’m