Wow, that was pretty forward, even for Asher. Okay, maybe he was a little more drunk than she’d anticipated. But wasn’t this what she had intended? She wanted him to be completely into her, and she’d gotten her wish. “One kiss,” she agreed, removing his hand from her strap. “And then we’ll see where we go from there.”
“Now that sounds like a plan to me.” He leaned in and she automatically lifted her arms to go around his neck. Greer was barely five foot, and Asher was over six feet, so the height difference was noticeable, but she didn’t care. He could bend to kiss her, damn it.
A moment later, his mouth descended on hers, and his tongue pushed into her mouth. Oh, wow. Okay. It was a very . . . aggressive kiss. One with lots of tongue. She tried to participate, but having been Greer the Unnoticed for 99 percent of her life, she wasn’t an expert on kissing. Maybe she was the one who wasn’t good at it? Because his tongue seemed desperate to go down her throat and explore every molar. She staggered against him, and his hand grabbed her ass.
When she could no longer hold out, Greer pulled back from him, gasping for air. “There’s your kiss.”
He growled low in his throat and hauled her against him again, his hands cupping her backside and forcing her to cling to his front. “Let’s go someplace private, you and me.”
“That’s what I want,” she agreed. Private so they could talk and she could tell him about how she felt. How he needed to get over Donna and move on with his life. How she’d always been his friend and now she wanted to be more.
Asher pressed another mauling kiss on her, and Greer heard a few people snicker nearby. She didn’t care. It was Asher, and he was noticing her for the first time in her life as something other than a kid sister. Nothing else mattered. He was being a little wild tonight, but this was just one night. She’d known him forever and known that he’d suffered in the last two years. He was allowed to get a little drunk to take off the edge. He wasn’t like this normally.
“Come with me,” Asher murmured into her ear, and then nipped her earlobe.
That sent little shocks of pleasure through her body, so when he put a hand on her back and led her out of the party and onto the patio, she was all for it. Out here it was a lot quieter, and there were fewer people to try and talk over.
The night air was rather cool, and she shivered.
“Cold?” He pulled her closer against him.
“I’m fine.” She didn’t want to go back inside, not when they were here alone together. “I appreciate you coming with me.”
“The pleasure’s all mine,” he told her in a low, sexy voice. To her surprise, they didn’t sit on one of the stone benches artfully placed around the large porch. Instead, he guided her down the large set of steps and into the expansive, complex gardens surrounding the manor.
“Where are we going?”
“We’ll have more privacy out here,” he told her, and his voice was pure seduction.
Greer shivered again at that. That . . . did not sound like a bad thing at all, not when he used that sexy tone of voice. So she ignored that her expensive heels sank into the turf and tried to keep up with him. Asher had a plan. He always had a plan, didn’t he? That was why he was so successful at such a young age. He’d become a billionaire before he hit twenty-five, and while he’d almost lost that fortune two years ago, she knew he was doing better than ever now. She’d seen to that.
“Where are we going?” She trusted him, yet she couldn’t help but ask. With no glasses and the lights from the house shining behind them, everything just looked dark. Her hand gripped his tighter.
“There’s a hedge maze up here,” Asher said. “We’ll go in and have some privacy.”
“Oh. Okay.” Even more privacy. She didn’t suppose that was bad, because the things she wanted to talk to him about were pretty personal. Plus, time for more kissing. That’d be all right with her. Her lips still felt swollen from the last round of kisses, and she resisted the urge to press her fingers to them.
They walked in silence for a short while, and she knew they were in the maze when she started to see small, hung lanterns dotting the way. They didn’t provide a ton of light, just enough to guide anyone who was lost enough to wander into the maze late at night. Like her.
“Good enough,” Asher said after they turned a few corners. He led her to a bench.
She sat down, glad that she was no longer going to have to walk on her tiny, rhinestone-studded heels. They were fine for a party, but for walking in the grass? Miserable. “I’m glad we’re getting a chance to talk,” Greer began. “There’s so much I’ve wanted to say to you—”
“Shhh,” Asher told her, and sat down next to Greer. He put a finger to her lips. “Let’s just enjoy the night, shall we?”
“But—”
His arms went around her and then Asher was kissing her again. More deep, mauling kisses that seemed less like fun and more like a struggle not to drown against the tidal wave of tonguing she was receiving. She passively waited for him to be done, noting that he tasted like whiskey. Really strongly like whiskey. He was definitely more drunk than she’d thought. Well, she’d let him finish kissing her and then when that was all done, they could talk.
“Greer,” he groaned when he pulled his mouth from hers. His hand went to her hair and he grabbed a fistful of it, dragging her head back and exposing her neck. “You are so fucking sexy tonight. How is it that you’re so sexy?”
His words sent a shiver of pleasure through her body. “I dressed up just for you.”
“Did you, now? That’s . . . sexy.”
She wanted to giggle at his choice of words. Was everything sexy? The bush nearby, sexy? The bench they were sitting on? But his mouth moved to her neck and he began to press soft kisses there, kisses very different from the ones he’d been mauling her mouth with, and oh, it was all the difference in the world. Ripples of pleasure moved through her body, and as his mouth moved over her skin, she felt her pulse pounding between her legs in a need she’d never had the opportunity to experience with another person before.
Now they were getting somewhere.
She remained very still as his mouth kissed down her throat and then at her collarbone. His hand moved to one strap of her dress and he slid it down her arm, and it felt like half of her flimsy dress went with it. Greer gasped when one of her breasts was exposed to the night air, and she tensed. This was . . . further than Greer the Unnoticed had ever gone with any man.
But this was Asher. She’d always wanted to be his. Always.
“Damn,” Asher breathed, and his hand skimmed down to brush over the tip of her breast. “I never realized you had such pretty tits.”
Did she? They were small, the nipples dark circles against her bronzed skin. His ex, Donna, had been pale and red-haired, and Greer was brown all over. The fact that he liked the sight of them made her feel ridiculously pleased, like she’d accomplished something. So she arched her back a little. “There’s a lot about me you’ve never noticed.”
“I’ll say.” He pushed her back on the hard concrete bench, and his mouth went to her breast.
Another gasp escaped her because his mouth on her nipple felt incredible . . . for a hot second. Then he bit her. She jerked, pushing him away. “Ow!”
“Did that hurt?” He gave her a wicked grin. “They just look so juicy.”
She didn’t want to stop but . . . she didn’t want more of that, either. “I’m . . . not a fan of teeth.”
He moved in to kiss her on the mouth again. “I’ll do other things you’ll like more, then.”
She turned her head, and he went back to her neck. Greer relaxed. Neck kisses were ten times better than mouth kisses in her book. She lay compliant as his lips moved over her throat, and his hand played with her exposed breast. That was . . . better. It still made her feel strange, but sometimes, when he caressed it right, she felt the
intensity tingling in her body.
His hand slid under her skirt a moment later, and pressed against the crotch of her panties. “You’re not very wet, baby.”
“I’m not?” It might have been impolite to point out that he wasn’t a very good kisser. But this was her Asher. His inability to kiss didn’t change the fact that she loved him. They’d learn to get better at it together.
“Maybe you just need a bit more encouraging.” His thumb rubbed her up and down, working her folds through her silky panties.
And that sent all kinds of new sensations spiraling through Greer. Her hands clenched at his tuxedo jacket. Oh. That was way better than mouth kissing.
“You like that?” he whispered.
She nodded.
“Push your legs wider for me, Greer. I’m going to take these panties off you.”
Her thighs quivered at the thought. “Is someone going to come by?”
“Nope. We’re alone out here.” His thumb pushed harder against her, as if trying to penetrate her through her panties, and she felt the curious urge to bear down against him. A little breathy moan escaped her and she let her thighs go wide for him.
A moment later, his hands went under her skirt and then her panties were whisked off her legs. They tangled around one of her heels and he left them there, as if they were no longer a concern. Now she felt completely open and exposed.
And okay, she was kind of hoping he’d put his face down there and finish what he’d started with his fingers.
Instead, he cupped her sex. One finger dipped between her folds and he moved in to kiss her neck again, his fingers brushing back and forth through her folds. It was nice, but he kept missing the most important spot—her clit. It was just something else she’d have to learn to be brave about and show him.
A horrible thought crossed her mind—no wonder Donna left him. If this was how he handled sex and kissing, maybe she’d found someone better? Her poor Asher. She’d have to train him. She held him close. It was okay. She still loved him.
He kept rubbing her folds and pushed a finger inside her. “You ready for me?”
Ready? Ready for what? Surely not sex? Out here? At a party with everyone around? “Asher—”
“Shhh,” he murmured again, and she heard the sound of a zipper going down. “Trust me, Greer?”
Well, of course she trusted him. Even though her instincts were screaming out that this was a bad idea, she put her arms around his neck as he shifted his weight on top of her. “Of course I trust you,” she said softly. “I love you, Asher. I always have. I’ve just been waiting for you to notice me.”
“I noticed you tonight,” he told her as his weight settled between her legs.
Then, he pushed inside her. Surprised, she froze. He was going straight to penetration? No more foreplay? No more rubbing or kisses? She’d been expecting . . . I don’t know, a bit more than this? Greer bit her lip as he pushed into her again.
“Mmm. You’re so beautiful, Greer.” He pumped into her once more, then collapsed on top of her with a groan. His cock slid out of her and she felt wetness slide down her thighs.
Wait.
That was it?
That was all she got?
“Asher?”
He groaned against her again but didn’t move.
Seriously?
After years of lusting after the man? After being his friend through thick and thin? After being there for him when Donna left him? After spending hours dressing all slinky so he couldn’t resist her? She got two thrusts and no condom? She got the worst sex possible? On a bench? In a garden?
Two pumps and he was done?
Greer shoved at his chest. All her feelings of love and acceptance of Asher’s behavior evaporated in a flash. Hurt and outrage were now the only thing she felt. “Get off me.”
He groaned again and slowly sat up, tucking his dick into his pants. She shimmied away, nearly tripping on the panties still around her ankle. Dear lord, what had she just done? “What the fuck, Asher?”
“Don’t worry. I’m clean.” He rubbed a hand over his face and then patted his coat pocket and pulled out a flask.
“You’re drunk.” And she was an idiot.
“Yes, I am.” He took a swig.
“You came inside me! No condom!” She couldn’t stop the hurt from rising up in her throat, and the words came out squeaked around a knot of emotion. “Asher, how could you?”
He didn’t answer her, just stared down at the flask in his hands. Hot tears threatened to spill down her cheeks. Tonight she’d thought she was going to win Asher over. Tonight she was going to make him see that she’d been right under his nose all along, waiting for him.
God, she was a fucking idiot, wasn’t she?
She pinched the bridge of her nose and willed herself not to cry. She wouldn’t. She refused to. She was just a naïve idiot. Show Asher her love? She should show him a boot to the ass.
He was a selfish asshole. Why had she wasted so many years pining after him?
Greer pulled her panties up and winced when something trickled farther down her bare thigh. God. Tonight was just a train wreck. She looked over at him and considered asking if he had a handkerchief. Then, she realized . . . he hadn’t asked her a thing. Hadn’t asked her if she was enjoying herself, or if she wanted him to use a condom, anything. Why should she treat him better than he had her? Stewing, she peered at the front of his tuxedo jacket, saw a brighter patch of color, and snatched it.
“What was that for?”
“None of your business!” Like she was going to tell him that she needed to mop up. Like she wasn’t humiliated enough?
Asher just rolled his eyes and took another swig from his flask, turning to look up at the house. She used that time to clean up as best she could, but she was absolutely leaving this party as soon as she got out of this horrible situation.
“I can’t believe you,” she told him, shoving his handkerchief into a hedge to hide it. “I can’t believe you just did that.”
She’d wanted sex. That? That was not sex. That was a mockery of sex.
“Hey, you weren’t saying no,” he slurred at her.
She stared at him in disgust. This was her friend. This was the man she’d loved. “What happened to the Asher I used to know? The guy that was always laughing? The smart, loyal, trustworthy guy?” The guy I wanted to marry?
“He died,” Asher said in a cold voice. “He fucking died and there’s no resurrecting him.”
“That’s a shame.” And it was, because she hated the new Asher. Greer straightened her dress and then opened her discarded purse and took out her glasses. Because, well, she didn’t care if Asher thought she looked nerdy. Not now.
For the first time since she’d met Asher Sutton, she was pretty well done with him. It didn’t matter that he mumbled something that sounded like a drunken apology or that he put an arm around her shoulders, pulling her against him as they headed back to the house. Because not two minutes later, they ran into Magnus and Edie, both in the bridal party. And Asher slapped her ass in front of both of them. She was almost glad when Magnus and Asher got into an argument and Asher got punched in the face.
He was right about one thing; the old Asher was dead.
And Greer really hated the new guy.
New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Jessica Clare writes under three pen names. As Jessica Clare, she writes erotic contemporary romances, including the Billionaire Boys Club novels and the Hitman novels with Jen Frederick. As Jessica Sims, she writes fun, sexy shifter paranormals, and as Jill Myles, she writes a little bit of everything, from sexy, comedic urban fantasy to fairy tales gone wrong.
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