Showing off the Goods

by Weston Parker

  I wrapped my arms around his neck and pushed my hands into his short black hair, tousling the longer top of it with my fingers. He shivered a little against me when I did it, and I smiled but didn’t break our kiss.

  With our past no longer standing between us like an executioner waiting to bring the hammer of unresolved emotions down over our heads at any moment, this kiss was unlike any other we’d shared in the last few weeks. It didn’t feel like a stolen moment or even an out-of-control one. It was intentional, certain, and so darn intoxicating that I felt like I’d taken another shot of tequila.

  We hadn’t given each other promises of a happily ever after, but it was better this way. It meant we could just let go and be without any added, unnecessary pressures.

  Paxton’s fingers tweaking my nipple over my clothes made me yelp, and he chuckled as he kept kissing me. “I can still hear you thinking, babe.”

  “I’m stopping,” I whispered, bringing my hands to his chest and running them along the hard ridges underneath his shirt. “I promise I’m stopping right now.”

  It surprised me as much as I was sure it surprised him that I managed to keep that promise. I shut my brain down and let my body lead the way.

  My fingertips danced along his abdomen until they reached the hard disks that were his buttons. I didn’t fumble with them, tugging his shirt the rest of the way out of his pants before I started undoing it. One by one, I slid each button through its hole and then pushed the shirt off his shoulders once I was done.

  While my hands were working on undressing him, his were doing the same to me. If I hadn’t seen firsthand how out of it Brett and Tierra had been, I’d never have let him pull my shirt off over my head right there on their kitchen floor, but I’d seen them. They weren’t going to be getting up anytime soon.

  So I raised my arms and even helped him tug it all the way free. My nipples were beaded beneath my bra, aching for him to touch them, but he left the cups in place for now.

  A part of me wanted to protest, but when I felt his hands caressing the soft skin of my thighs, I swallowed my objections. Having him touch me where he already was worked for me too.

  It worked for me so well that I soaked my panties as he teased his way up before retreating again. Our mouths never parted for more than the split second it took for them to come together again, our tongues alternating between lavishly stroking and playful, teasing kisses.

  My clit was so swollen and sensitive that even the lace of my panties against it was sending pleasurable tingles through me every time I rolled my hips, but when I tried arching them to see if I could get any proper friction there, Paxton growled into my mouth.

  “Don’t,” he said. “Let me. You trust me with this at least, right?”

  I didn’t skip a beat. “Do I trust you with my body? Yes, but don’t tease me, Pax. Not tonight.”

  “Yes, ma’am.” I felt rather than saw his fingers flying to his forehead for a coltish salute, but then his mouth reclaimed mine, and my retort died on my tongue.

  The backs of his fingers brushed against my slick folds as he moved my panties aside, his hand moving under the hem of my skirt. I moaned into the kiss when his thumb started rubbing slow circles around my clit, and a finger rested at my entrance.

  Going along with what I’d asked of him, only for now I was sure, he didn’t tease me. Paxton touched me with expert fingers. I was panting what had to be only a few minutes later.

  Pleasure pooled in my core, and when his free hand pinched my nipple with the perfect pressure, pressing down on me at the same time, I exploded into millions of pieces as I contracted around him. His mouth on mine muffled my cries, but as soon as my orgasm subsided, he was on his feet and tugging me up to mine, gathering our discarded clothes in the process.

  “Where are we going?” I whispered, my voice as shaky as my legs.

  “Bedroom,” he snapped, the expression on his face almost angry. “Dawn isn’t that far away, and if they wake up, I really don’t want either of them seeing you like this. This is all mine.”

  My brows arched, but I didn’t argue. Heat of passion and all. He knew I wasn’t really his. Besides, who cared?

  It was my turn to have some fun with him, and I couldn’t wait. The hall was still dark as he pulled me down it, but I saw what he meant about dawn. Through the windows, I could already see that the darkest part of the night was over. Telltale signs of daybreak were already visible. Treetops were silhouettes against the sky instead of invisible, and the stars weren’t quite so bright.

  None of that mattered when the guest room door slammed behind us and Paxton’s mouth found mine. He walked us back until we hit the bed, then rolled us over so I was on top of him once we toppled onto the mattress.

  It was too dark in the room to make out every detail, but I felt his heart hammering against my palm when I placed my hands on his chest. In the ambient light filtering in from the street outside, I saw that his jaw was set, and I could feel his body trembling slightly underneath mine.

  I didn’t even stop for long enough to savor that rush of feminine power seeing him like this always gave me. While he hadn’t asked me not to tease him, if he was so wound up that he was actually shaking, it kind of went without saying.

  Without saying a word or waiting for him to, I undid his pants, then lifted them and his underwear carefully over the rock-hard bulge underneath. When his erection had safely sprung free, I scooted back on his legs and brought the last of his clothes with me. Once it reached his ankles, I was at the end of the bed.

  I climbed off quickly, took off his shoes and socks, and then peeled the pants and underwear off him. With him naked on the bed in front of me, I stepped out of my skirt and panties and unhooked my bra before letting it fall to the ground.

  A beat passed where we only looked at each other, drinking each other in. Even though I could only see the outline of his long, thick cock curving up to his belly button, my mouth still watered for it.

  “Colette,” he groaned as if he could read my thoughts, but the need in his voice snapped me back into action. I crawled back over him, letting my nipples brush against the coarse hair on his legs before I settled between his legs.

  Before I could take him into my mouth, he lifted me up so I was straddling him. “Not that. Not now.”

  “You’re saying no to a blowjob?” I whispered, smirking and bringing my head down to his so he’d feel it against his lips.

  His hand swatted my butt, leaving behind a not-too-unpleasant sting that he immediately rubbed away. “I can’t believe I’m about to say this, but yes. Yes, I am. I just need to be inside you right now.”

  Mimicking his action from earlier, I snapped my fingers to my forehead in a salute and rose up over him. “Yes, sir.”

  “I think I like the sound of that,” he moaned but then seemed to lose the ability to form comprehensible words as I sank down on him.

  It wasn’t long before he unraveled beneath me, his hips jerking and his cock twitching deep inside. When I felt it, it sent me tumbling over the edge right along with him. My arms gave out as the pleasure overtook me, and I collapsed onto his wide chest.

  I didn’t know how long we lay there just like that, with him slowly softening inside me while we caught our breath. Eventually, he gently moved me to his side and rolled over to climb off the bed.

  It was lighter outside now, and I could see the smile on his face as well as the twinkling of his eyes when he looked back at me. “I’ll be right back. I’m just going to get us waters and something for you to clean up. Do you know where they keep their painkillers? I’ll take it to their room. Don’t get up.”

  “There’s some in my purse,” I said, lazily stretching out my limbs. “I had a feeling we might all be in need of them this morning, so I popped them in there for Brett just in case he needed them earlier.”

  “You’re a very good head groomswench, babe.” He grinned and rummaged around on the floor for his underwear before he pulled them on. “
I’ll be back.”

  “You sound like the Terminator,” I groaned, but I had to bite back a giggle. “Hasta la vista, then, baby. Let me know if you need any help.”

  The soft sound of his laughter followed him out of the room, and I climbed in underneath the covers before snuggling back into the bed. I must’ve dozed off because the next thing I knew, he was back and sliding onto the mattress behind me.

  With one strong arm around my waist, he pulled me back into his chest before he pressed a kiss between my shoulders. “Good night, Colette. I’m really glad we finally talked.”

  I yawned but managed a nod of agreement before I closed my eyes again and fell asleep almost right away. When I woke up a few hours later, I was still in his arms.

  In the harsh light of day, I didn’t even feel the faintest twinge of regret over what we’d said or done the night before. In fact, I grinned before sliding down under the covers to wake him up the best way I knew how. He’d said “not now” last night, but I had a feeling he’d be all for it this morning. And as it turned out, I wasn’t wrong.

  Chapter 35

  PAXTON

  The big day had finally arrived. Everything was going according to plan so far, and even Colette had managed to relax. She was with Brett while he got ready while I was with my sister, but since they were getting ready at the venue, I knew she’d been checking on things all morning.

  She texted me with regular updates, which I in turn relayed to my sister, who was just about ready to walk down the aisle. Her hands shook when she walked out from the behind the screen where she’d been changing into her dress.

  My mouth opened as I looked up from my phone when I noticed the movement from the corner of my eye, but the latest update never came out. Instead, my jaw dropped and my breath caught in my throat.

  “You look stunning, sis.” I’d never admit it to anyone—ever—but seeing her standing there in her sparkly, pure white wedding dress brought tears to my eyes.

  I blinked them away as I stood up slowly from the chair I’d taken up in the corner of the hotel room. Tierra’s black hair had all been swept up by a couple of extremely energetic hairstylists earlier. Her blue eyes were lined in coal, but the makeup people had taken care to leave her looking as natural as they could.

  Crossing the room toward her in a few long strides, I tucked one of a few loose tendrils of hair they’d left down off her face. She swatted at my hand with a smile on her lips when she took a step back.

  “If you ruin my hair, Barbie and Maddy will know. They’ll come back here and kick your ass for messing up their hard work.”

  “I’d never.” I placed my hand over my chest like I was deeply offended, but then I winked at her. “Those two would appear in a cloud of hair spray. I wouldn’t even have a chance to defend myself. I’m not that stupid, you know?”

  The laughter and teasing disappeared from her eyes, leaving only a bittersweet softness behind. “You’re not stupid at all, Pax. You know that, right?”

  “Hey, now,” I said in an attempt to counteract how serious she’d gotten all of a sudden. “Don’t go getting all teary-eyed on me. I wouldn’t want to mess with those makeup artists either. Trust me, I’ve tried having to explain ruined makeup to them before, and they can get really mean.”

  She laughed and rolled her eyes at me. “True. I’m not even going to ask why you’d have had to explain ruined makeup before, but I am interested in knowing all about how you ruined Colette’s last weekend.”

  “Nope. Today is all about you.” I smiled as I caught her hand and brought it up to my mouth to brush a kiss to her knuckles. “I’m over the moon for you, sis. Really. I hope today is everything you’ve ever wanted or dreamed about, and I hope Brett will always keep you just as happy as you are today.”

  “If you don’t want the waterworks to start, you’d better stop talking like that,” she said, but her voice was already wobbly. She darted a glare at the ceiling, keeping her eyes open and waving her hands in front of her face. “You dick. Quickly. Fix it or I’m going to cry. Tell me about you and Colette. It’ll distract me because I’ll be getting nauseous picturing it.”

  “What do you want me to tell you about her?” I laughed and moved over to the dresser. Part of my job was helping her with her jewelry, apparently. Not that I knew why she needed any help with it; she’d only been doing it herself for—

  “A little birdie told me the two of you got frisky in our kitchen last week,” she said, interrupting my thoughts about her jewelry and making me freeze on the spot.

  “I don’t know what this little birdie was talking about. Maybe it also drank too much that day.”

  She stared blankly at me, her brows climbing when I didn’t relent. “We heard you guys, Paxton. You must have some serious stamina too. Brett woke up just before sunrise to get us some water, but we ended up drinking from the faucet because we didn’t want to interrupt.”

  I winced. “Oops. Sorry. I can tell you all about my stamina if you’d like, though.”

  “Please don’t,” she pretended to wail, holding her hands in front of her face without touching it. Separating her fingers when she heard me laughing, she smiled before dropping her arms again.

  “We talked for a really long time before anything happened, I’ll tell you that much,” I said. “A lot of things that we should’ve talked about years ago finally came out.”

  “Seriously?” Her smile widened. “I’m happy for you guys and glad that you fucking finally got back together. I’ve been waiting forever for you to finally accept what happened, move on, and try again.”

  I rocked back on my heels and shook my head. “We’re not back together. It was just a one-night thing. A fun indulgence to end a fun night.”

  “Why?” Tierra had picked up an earring but paused with it halfway to her ear as she frowned at me. “You two are perfect for each other in every way.”

  “She doesn’t trust me,” I said. “It’s hard to be perfect for someone who doesn’t even want you near her little girl.”

  Tierra’s blue eyes were warm on mine. “She doesn’t trust the boy you used to be. To be honest, I didn’t trust that guy either. But the man you turned into, Pax? That man is trustworthy. You just have to show her that.”

  My heart constricted. “I don’t even know how to start showing her that, or how to get her to believe me.”

  “You don’t have to get her to believe you.” She made finger quotes around the last part of her sentence. “All you have to do is show up for her and April the way you’ve been showing up for me all these years.”

  “You’re the one who does my taxes, sis,” I teased, even though I knew I wasn’t going to stop her from pursuing this conversation no matter what I tried. “It’s you helping me, not the other way around. You showing up for me instead of the IRS.”

  She snorted back a laugh before she shook her head. “That’s not what I’m talking about, and you know it.”

  Her eyes grew misty, and she took a long, deep breath to keep them at bay. “You helped me finish my studies without having to apply for any student loans. You co-signed my first lease, and don’t think I don’t know you used that spare key you insisted on keeping to restock my groceries every week.”

  She took both my hands in hers, giving them a light but meaningful squeeze. “I also know that the corporate wear you showed up with before I started my job hadn’t been given to you by a wardrobe person clearing out after a shoot. That laptop you got me when I started my first internship? I know that one wasn’t just an old one you had lying around. It even had all the software I needed pre-installed.”

  Her voice cracked, but she pushed through the impending tears and kept her watery gaze on mine. “Before Mom and Dad died, you were a wild card. I know that. I was there.”

  “A wild card?” I scoffed, but she gave me a playful kick in the shin and shushed me.

  “A wild card. A rebel without a cause.” She shrugged. “Call it whatever you want to call it, but it�
��s true. That changed once they were gone, Pax. You stepped up, you grew up, you showed up, and you’ve been doing it ever since. Colette has seen that side of you this last month. If you keep showing her that, she will learn to trust the man you’ve become. Just like I have.”

  “What about April?” I asked, genuinely wanting to hear her opinion. “Even if I would’ve been able to show Colette that I was worth another shot, she’s too afraid that I’m going to hurt April.”

  Tierra tilted her head, studying me with pursed lips as she let go of my hands and moved back to the dresser. “Are you going to hurt her?”

  “I don’t want to,” I said, meaning it all the way down to the deepest parts of my soul.

  “Then don’t,” she said simply. “It’s been a little over a month where you’ve shown her who you’ve grown into. She already knows that even though she’s afraid of trusting you again, she wouldn’t be putting that trust in the same guy who had it before.”

  “I hadn’t thought about it that way, but I guess you’re right,” I said. “Who knows? Maybe she’s had some time to think about what I told her last weekend during this week. I never know with her.”

  “Just act smart about this, okay?” She slid one earring into her ear. “If you love Colette like I suspect you do, you’d better not let her slip through your fingers.”

  The other earring went in as her gaze fixed on mine. “This wedding was the only thing holding you together now. After tonight, there won’t be any excuse for you to see each other again. Do you really want to let her go?”

  “Fuck.” I hadn’t thought of that either. “You think she’d just disappear on me?”

  She let out an uncertain humming sound. “I don’t know, Pax. I guess that depends on whether you’re going to let her.”

  The thin golden necklace with the diamond pendant on the end that used to belong to our mother caught her eye, and she took a breath before looking back at me. “Enough about you. You’ve got a lot to think about and not a lot of time to do it, but do you think you could help me with that?”