Just For You, Sir (Doms of Decadence) Read online

  Jacey cringed as the car crashed into a power pole. Shaking off her shock, she grabbed her backpack and slinging it onto her back, she ran toward the accident, throwing the old blanket she’d had wrapped around her to the ground.

  The car had rolled onto its roof. Jacey knelt on the pavement to peer into the driver’s side. A car door slammed shut and she glanced up, swallowing nervously as a large man approached quickly. Jacey fought the urge to turn tail and run.

  “What happened?” a deep voice asked. “Are you all right, miss? Miss?” he said in a firmer voice.

  “I’m fine,” she said. “I wasn’t in the crash.”

  A low moan drifted out from the car and Jacey sighed in relief. “The driver is alive. We have to help.” As she reached for the car door, the man grabbed her hand, pulling her back.

  She glanced up at him in surprise.

  “We need to get some help,” he told her as he pulled a cell phone out of his pocket. “We could make the injuries worse if we do something.”

  Of course, what had she been thinking? Jacey nodded. Kneeling carefully on the ground, she peered in the driver’s window. “It looks like a woman. She’s not moving.”

  “Here, let me have a look.”

  She glanced back to find him crouching beside her, a flashlight in his hand. Where had he gotten that?

  “I had it in the boot of my car.” He had a slight English accent. Sexy. Jacey shifted away and he aimed the flashlight into the car.

  “Looks like there is just the driver. A woman. Can’t really see how badly she’s hurt.”

  There was another moan from the driver.

  “At least she’s alive,” Jacey said. “What happens if the car catches on fire?”

  Derrick glanced around the car. “I can’t see any sparks. If you smell any burning, let me know. An ambulance should be here, soon. We’d better wait.”

  “It feels wrong to just stand here and do nothing for her,” Jacey said frantic with worry.

  “I know,” he said. “Tell you what, there’s a blanket in the boot of my car, why don’t you go get it while I try to open this door. We can try to keep her warm.”

  Jacey nodded and jumped up, grateful to have something to do. She rushed toward the high end, luxury car parked behind the accident scene. Moving around to the still open trunk, or boot as he kept calling it, she quickly grabbed the blanket.

  Hurrying back, she saw that he’d manage to get the door open. She was trying to cover the woman without jostling her, and securing it so it didn’t fall off when she heard sirens.

  ***

  Derrick slipped off his jacket and swung it over the shoulders of the shivering woman standing next to him. The temperature had dropped, but he suspected her tremors were due to adrenaline more than anything. One of the cops had asked them to stand on the sidewalk near Derrick’s car until he could take their statements.

  “Oh, I’m okay,” she said, trying to pull the jacket off to hand it back.

  Derrick laid his hands over hers, stopping her. “Keep it on, you’re shivering.”

  “But you’ll get cold,” she protested.

  He raised a brow. “Your comfort comes first.”

  Her forehead twisted into a frown. “Why?”

  Derrick had only just met her and already she stirred his protective instincts. There was something about having a woman lean on him that filled an empty placeinside him, that made him want to be stronger, a better person.

  Slightly built, she seemed delicate and yet he could see the strength in her. She hadn’t panicked when she’d come across the accident.

  He studied her with a frown. The street light they were standing under pierced the darkness, allowing him a better view. Large eyes stared up from a thin, pale face. Dark, curly hair surrounded her head, giving her an almost pixie-like appearance. She was so tiny, she barely reached the middle of his chest.

  How to answer her without sounding like a complete Neanderthal? Had she been Holly or one of the submissives from Decadence, he wouldn’t have had to explain himself; they’d have understood his need to look out for them.

  “Just part of the good manners my mum drummed into me, love. You wouldn’t have her ashamed of me by handing my jacket back, would you?” His explanation seemed to work as she snuggled deeper into his jacket. He liked the idea that his scent surrounded her, marking her.

  Bloody hell, what was he thinking? He didn’t even know her name.

  “I’m Jacey, by the way,” she said, holding out one hand while trying to keep the jacket on her with the other.

  He took her hand in his, holding it for a long moment. “Derrick. It’s nice to meet you, Jacey.”

  “You too.” She gave him a puzzled smile as she tugged her hand free.

  Derrick glanced around, trying to find something to distract himself from his growing attraction to Jacey. The EMTs were loading the driver into the ambulance.

  The same policeman who had asked them to wait broke away from his colleagues and walked toward them.

  “Sorry to keep you waiting,” he said, pulling out a pad and a pen. “I’m Officer Mast. If I could just get a statement from both of you, along with your names and addresses.”

  “Is the driver going to be okay?” Jacey asked in a quiet voice.

  “I believe so, ma’am,” the officer answered. “Looks like she banged her head, she’ll be bruised and sore for a while, but she should be fine.”

  “She’s bloody lucky, driving around in a sardine can like that,” Derrick muttered with a frown, thinking about how small it was to his sister-in-law’s car, and how he had never been happy with Holly driving it.

  “An expensive sardine can,” the officer commented, nodding in agreement. “They’re taken her to the hospital, so we just need to piece together what happened. Is that your vehicle?” He nodded over at Derrick’s car.

  “Yes, it’s mine. I’m afraid I didn’t see the accident, however. By the time I pulled up, the car was already on its roof.”

  “And you, miss? Were you in the car as well?”

  “No, I was walking past and saw the accident.”

  “Okay, I’m going to call a colleague over to take your statement, miss. Joe,” he called out. “Come over here, will you?”

  “Is that okay with you?” Derrick asked Jacey as the two policemen spoke to each other. “I can stay with you if you’d rather.” He wouldn’t leave her if she was feeling vulnerable or afraid.

  She stared up at him for a long moment. “You’re an interesting man, Derrick. I have a feeling your wife must be a lucky woman.”

  “I’m not married,” he replied. “Do you need to call anyone? They could come and get you.”

  Jacey shook her head. “No. There’s no one to call.” A look of sadness crossed her face before disappearing.

  How did someone as beautiful and sweet as Jacey not have anyone worrying over her? Derrick opened his mouth to question her when the officers returned and split them up.

  As he was answering Officer Mast’s questions, Derrick kept an eye on Jacey. She had her arms folded around her body defensively, and she couldn’t seem to meet the officer’s gaze. There was something odd going on, but he couldn’t figure out what it was.

  “Right. Thanks, Mr Ashdown. I think we have everything we need, but we’ll get back to you if we need anything else.” Derrick nodded to the officer who became distracted as a van pulled up.

  “Didn’t take them long,” the cop muttered, turning away to intercept the people jumping out of the van, one of them carrying a news camera. What the hell? He turned and strode toward Jacey.

  Jacey could scarcely believe that she’d just lied to the police, giving them a false name and contact details. But what other choice did she have? She couldn’t give them her real name. Nor did she want to tell them that she was homeless. That the reason she’d been first on the scene was because she’d been sleeping in a doorway across the street.

  She needed to get out of here. Now.

/>   “Are we finished now?” she asked.

  “Yes. Thank you. We’ll be in touch if we need more.”

  Jacey nodded, trying not to look guilty as she felt. Did he know she was lying? Did he notice that she couldn’t meet his gaze?

  “Jacey, are you okay?” She jumped, whirling to meet Derrick’s worried eyes.

  “Ahh, yes, I’m fine.” She glanced over to find a man pointing the news camera their way. “I’d really like to leave, though.”

  Derrick glanced around. “Where’s your car? I’ll walk you to it.”

  “Excuse me, Sir, Ma’am, did you see the crash? Did you speak to Cece? How badly hurt was she?”

  Derrick turned to frown at the man rushing toward them. A shorter man, carrying the camera, followed quickly behind him.

  “Cece? The singer?” Jacey said surprised. “Wow. I didn’t even recognize her.”

  “I’m with Channel 7. Can we interview you?”

  Jacey quickly turned her face away, toward Derrick. He placed his arm around her, pulling her tight against him. Immediately she felt safer.

  “Unfortunately, we have to get going.”

  As though sensing her discomfort, Derrick ran his hand up and down her back, soothing her.

  “Come on, love.”

  Jacey kept her face turned to his chest as he steered her away and toward his car. He had an arm around her, sheltering her.

  “Where is your car?”

  “Umm, I don’t have one.”

  “Then how did you get here?” he asked, stopping by his car and turning her to face him.

  “I was walking.”

  He stared down at her for a long moment and she had to force herself not to squirm.

  “Walking around alone at night isn’t safe, Jacey,” he scolded. Wow, he was good. She had to bite back an apology.

  “You’re not my father, you know.”

  “Sounds like you could use one.” He opened the passenger door. “Hop in, I’ll drive you home.”

  “Oh, that’s not necessary,” she said. “I can walk…” she trailed off at the stern look on his face. “Or maybe not.”

  She climbed in the car.

  Chapter Three

  What was she doing in a stranger’s car? She didn’t know the first thing about Derrick, he could be a rapist, a serial killer, hadn’t she learned not to trust people? Yet she couldn’t deny that he made her feel safe. It was bizarre. She knew nothing about him.

  Jacey frowned as Derrick pulled into the parking lot of an all-night diner.

  “What are you doing?” she asked. This wasn’t where she’d asked to be dropped off. She’d given him the address of some apartments close to the diner where she worked.

  “I don’t know about you but I could use some coffee and pie. Join me?”

  Her stomach clenched at the thought, when was the last time she’d eaten a slice of pie? Most of her meals were taken at the shelter, or were cheap slices of pizza and other fast food.

  “Yeah, okay.”

  Derrick got out of the car. She undid her seatbelt. Reaching down, she grabbed her backpack. It held everything she currently owned in the world. A scary thought if she let herself think about it for too long.

  Derrick opened her door. How long had it been since a man had held open a door for her?

  Stephan had opened doors for her when they’d been dating. And during their marriage he had acted chivalrous around others. But he’d never meant it.

  Stupid bitch, all you’re good for is sucking my dick.

  “Jacey? What’s wrong?”

  Snapped out of her memory by Derrick’s concerned voice, she glanced up at him in surprise. “What? Oh, nothing. Sorry, I was thinking about something else.”

  “Didn’t look like a pleasant thought,” he replied, opening the diner door and gesturing her to go in. It was slightly less rundown on the inside than on the outside, although that wasn’t saying much. But it was warm and while the vinyl seats were worn and the decor hadn’t been updated since the eighties it had a cozy feel to it.

  Jacey sat on one side of a booth as Derrick squeezed himself into the other side. Booths just weren’t made for someone of Derrick’s height. He sat down, resting an arm along the back of the seat.

  “This doesn’t seem to be your sort of place,” she commented.

  It was obvious that Derrick had money. His car, his clothing, just the way he acted, all pointed to someone who was wealthy. So why would he choose to eat here?

  Stephan would never step foot in a place like this, he’d be too worried about dirtying his Armani suit or getting food poisoning. Since she’d left him, Jacey had discovered that places like this one often had the best sort of people and food.

  “And what is my sort of place?” he asked, his lips tilting up in amusement. He was gorgeous. His body was lean but muscular; a few days growth covered his face, adding to his appeal as those dark brown eyes stared at her.

  Her whole body tingled.

  Calm down. He might be the sexiest man she’d ever seen. But he was also a stranger. A rich, self-assured stranger. She needed to be more cautious. She couldn’t trust him.

  She couldn’t trust anyone.

  “I don’t know, maybe a gentleman’s club with lots of dark leather sofas and men smoking cigars and sipping expensive whiskey.”

  He barked out a laugh. “Hate to tell you, love, but I don’t smoke cigars nor have I ever been to a gentleman’s club.”

  “Derrick!”

  Jacey glanced up in surprise as a waitress, a huge smile on her face, approached them. Derrick smiled up at the plump woman who looked to be in her late forties.

  “Alice, how are you?”

  “I’m good thanks. How’s Holly?”

  “She’s great. Settling in to her new house,” Derrick replied.

  Who was Holly? His wife?

  “Well, tell her I said hi next time you see her.” The waitress turned to look at Jacey.

  “Alice this is my friend, Jacey.”

  “Pleased to meet you, Jacey. Can I get you your usual, Derrick?”

  “That would be great. Jacey, what would you like?”

  “I’ll just have coffee, thanks,” she replied.

  She felt slightly ashamed of herself for judging Derrick based on his appearance.

  Derrick stared at her for a long moment. “Bring us two slices of pie, please, Alice.”

  Jacey glared at him. “I said I wanted coffee.”

  He shrugged. “If you can’t eat it, then you can take it home.”

  Jacey took a deep breath, searching for calm. She hated being controlled. Been there. Done that. Never going back.

  “So, who’s Holly?” Drat, she hadn’t meant to ask that.

  Derrick’s face lightened as he smiled. “Holly is my sister-in-law, although we’re closer than that. More like brother and sister. She also works for me. She just got married a few months ago. Good guy, even if he does live miles away, by Waco.”

  “You miss her.”

  He nodded. “She drives in three times a week then works from home the rest of the time.”

  Alice brought over the coffee and then quickly returned with two huge slices of apple pie. The scent of cinnamon and pastry made Jacey’s mouth water and almost before she knew what she was doing, she had scooped some up on a fork and into her mouth and was closing her eyes in pleasure as the pie hit her taste buds.

  “Good, right?” Derrick said.

  She opened her eyes, blushing slightly as she realized the sight she must have made.

  “It’s delicious, best I’ve ever had.” Not that she’d eaten a lot of pie in her life. Her mother, then Stephan had kept a close eye on her diet. But they weren’t here anymore; Jacey could eat what she liked. And this pie was worth every penny she would be spending on it, even though she was trying to save every spare bit of cash she made.

  She needed to see if Jimmy had any spare shifts at the diner she worked at. She couldn’t work anywhere that needed detai
ls like a social security number and address. Jimmy never asked her for any personal details, he paid in cash, and when she worked a shift she got a free meal.

  At the moment, it was the most she could hope for.

  “I hope Cece is going to be all right,” she said as she pushed the plate away, the slice of pie only half-eaten. She was full.

  “Who is Cece and why were those reporters there?”

  “You really don’t know who she is?” Jacey asked.

  He shook his head.

  “She’s a singer, really popular at the moment. You know, she sings that song, Raven’s Heart?”

  Again, he shook his head, so Jacey sung him a few lines. He watched her intently.

  “That was beautiful.”

  She nodded. “Cece is a great songwriter.”

  “No, not the song. Your voice. You have a fantastic voice.”

  Jacey shrugged, blushing slightly.

  “Officer Mast seemed to think she would be fine,” Derrick said, finishing off his slice of pie. “I’d like to know what caused her to crash.”

  “I guess we’ll find out tomorrow, it’s bound to be all over the news.”

  “I noticed you didn’t want to stick around once the reporters appeared,” Derrick said, leaning back. He sipped slowly on his coffee. “You camera shy?”

  “Something like that,” she said warily. “I’m kind of tired; do you think we can get going?”

  “Sure thing, love. My apologies. I shouldn’t be keeping you out so late. I’ll get Alice to box the rest of your pie up for you.”

  He rose and grabbed the plates, taking them to the counter. When he returned a minute or so later, he had a small brown box in his hand.

  He held out a hand to her and after a moment’s hesitation, she took it, allowing him to help her stand.

  “Everything okay?” he asked.

  “Umm, yeah. Oh, let me get some cash.”

  Derrick just placed his hand on her lower back, steering her away. “No need. All taken care of.”

  “Oh, well, let me pay you back.”

  “Don’t even think about reaching for your wallet. When you’re out with me, Jacey, I pay.”