Naked Love

by Jones, Lisa Renee

  I tipped her chin up with my finger, so she’d meet my gaze, and she swallowed hard. A quick flick of her tongue on her lips was all it took to destroy me. I grasped her by the nape, guided her to her feet, and met her lips in a kiss. Though I initiated it, Shannon led the way, straight into temptation. It was bathed in neon blue light and smelled like that old lady perfume. I wanted her to be in control of her own sexuality and to feel desired. Shannon loved to give people things, but I wasn’t sure what she got in return. I’d follow her to the ends of the earth if it meant she’d kiss me like this again.

  I ran my hand down her back and squeezed her ass. She tensed against me, but amped up the kiss. If I could pull myself away enough to speak, I’d ask if she liked it, but she mimicked my movement, grasping my biceps and digging her fingernails into my skin. Under the robe, I was met with nothing but smooth, bare skin. Fuck. She was naked under there.

  She ground her hips against me, concentrating on my tortured dick. The noise that came out of me sounded like a growl, and she pulled away. Laughter filled the space between us. I gasped for air before I forgot I needed it.

  “Let me tell you what I want.” She traced the collar of my T-shirt, trailing a finger up to my jaw, like I’d done to her in another lifetime. The one before that kiss. As she drew a soft line across my chin, it took everything I had to not beg her to slip the finger past my lips and fuck my mouth. Show me what she wanted.

  But there were more pressing issues, like my throbbing cock. Shannon should forget about the whole marketing and design thing. They were a waste of her talents. She’d be excellent in hostage negotiation. I’d tell her anything she wanted to hear to get her to give in to me, and I had yet to untie her robe.

  “What do you want, Shannon?” She had me with one foot in two dimensions—fantasy and reality.

  “I want you to take your clothes off,” she said.

  I put my hands on her shoulders and led her down to the mattress. She leaned back, and her robe gaped, showing the curve of her cleavage. My mouth watered, but I’d been given my instructions. I pulled my shirt over my head and let it drop into oblivion. She lowered her gaze to my bare chest and curled her lips up in approval.

  My hands trembled as I fumbled with my belt. I couldn’t remember the last time I felt like this. Like it meant something more than a paycheck.

  She bit her bottom lip when my erection came into view. I wanted her to take it in her mouth. Let me sink all the way down her throat. An hour ago, I wouldn’t have thought she could handle it, but now I knew Shannon was capable of anything. But this wasn’t about me, no matter how much my cock protested. I wrapped my hand around it, desperate for relief, but it was operating on a hair trigger, and there was no guarantee I wouldn’t come all over her.

  “Now what?” I asked.

  She sat straight and untied the knot of her robe. Inch by inch, she pushed the satin away from her skin and lifted her gaze back to me. As I suspected, she was completely naked under that robe.

  Damn.

  Her tits were small, slightly upturned, with tiny nipples. Shadows, the only evidence of a world outside this hotel room, accentuated her curves. There were still parts of her that were off limits. A dusting of freckles covered her belly, and she pulled her hair over her shoulder, covering one of her tits, like she only meant to give me a peek.

  She stood and wrapped her arms around my neck, puckered nipples scrapping against my chest as she captured my lips in another kiss. Some of the guys I worked with considered kissing their hard limit, and I never understood why. Until now. Drawn together in one single breath, Shannon and I had fallen into the danger zone. I wasn’t sure where I ended and she began.

  Heat radiated from between her thighs, but I didn’t dare touch her there. She still hadn’t told me what to do. I should’ve never let her leave this open. It stripped away every defense I had.

  “Give me a massage.” She walked away from me, bathed in the outside light, and put her knee on the bed. “There’s oil on the nightstand.”

  She gathered her hair over her shoulder and gave it a good tug before she lay on her stomach and hugged the pillow.

  I was reduced to a hungry animal, crawling across the bed. I had to do what she asked before need robbed me of my senses.

  The oil did nothing to absorb the electricity that rocked through my body when I made contact with her skin. Shannon knew what she was doing when she made this request. She’d filled out the skeleton of my website, and I made sure she mentioned that all the escorts on the roster were licensed masseurs.

  Shit. I had to send Brandon to class. I didn’t want to think about him right now. Or anything other than tracing circles on Shannon’s skin, following the lines of her freckles.

  Shannon melted more with each rotation. No surprise her shoulders were knotted as hell. A low moan vibrated in her throat when I ran my fingers along her spine.

  “How’s the pressure?” I asked.

  “Perfect.” She sighed, peeking at me over her shoulder. “I don’t ever want you to stop.”

  “I’ll have to, eventually, until you do some more work.” I smacked her ass cheek. She didn’t make a sound, but her mouth opened in a silent gasp. That was hot.

  Massage was about symmetry, so I couldn’t forget the other side. She wriggled her hips, parting her legs ever so slightly, but I wasn’t taking the bait. It would have been too easy to slip my slick fingers into her folds, get lost in her wet heat, and bring her to climax. She’d be trembling and spent before she flipped over.

  Even if it was what she wanted, it wasn’t what she asked for.

  I gave every inch of her the attention she deserved and had gone without for far too long. She tensed when I worked the muscles at the top of her thighs, relaxing once again when I moved toward her knees. And I couldn’t resist running my fingernail over the arch of her foot to see if she was ticklish.

  She was. I trapped her foot in my grasp, and she squirmed to get away from the sensation, shrieking with laughter. When I set her free, I slapped her ass again. “Time to turn over.”

  Shannon did as I asked, putting her head back on the pillow and closing her eyes. Fuck. She was gorgeous. Her hair was everywhere, and she reached for it, but it stuck to her oiled skin.

  “Let me.” I gathered it as neatly I could and handed it to her. She smiled, eyes closed. I wanted her to watch me touch her, but this was like a stolen moment. Her pleasure was mine, something I could hold in my hands. I couldn’t get to the top of the bed to properly work her head and shoulders, but I’d do the best I could sitting beside her.

  She jumped when I traced her eyebrows, and didn’t open her eyes when I drew small circles on her temples. Moving down the tip bridge of her nose, I made a rotation around her slightly parted lips. The gloss was gone. My finger may have slipped inside. By accident. On purpose.

  Shannon clamped down on my finger, trapping it in place while she swirled her tongue around. Sucking hard, she gave me enough room to thrust it back and forth, and fuck her mouth. If this was what she could do to my fingers, I couldn’t wait to see what she’d do to my dick. But so far, she hadn’t asked for that. She put out her hand and hit my stomach, and I jumped back. This was so fucking hot, and it took everything I had not to break character. Her legs were open, and she was ready. But she didn’t ask.

  Her breathing was becoming erratic, and neither of us had much more time. My fingers were wet from her mouth, and they moved easily along her skin. I didn’t have the patience to pump the oil into my hands anymore. I ripped the top off and poured the rest of it on her body.

  She curled her spine off the mattress on impact.

  “See why I said not to do this in your bed?” I asked.

  She nodded. I grasped her perfect little tits, one in each hand, pinching her nipples. That got her eyes open.

  “Why don’t you want to watch me?” I asked.

  “Because”—the word escaped through gritted teeth—“it’s more intense when I don�
�t know what’s coming next.”

  Fuck. I wished she asked for a blindfold. We were both too on edge to add anything else into the game. I concentrated on her tits and the rise and fall of her stomach. I wanted to kiss her so fucking bad.

  I wanted her.

  But she was only mine for a little while longer, and I had to make it count.

  Her stomach was slick and shiny with oil, and the little strip of hair on her mound was soaked. She bucked off the bed when I touched it, her head thrown back, hair everywhere. It was almost impossible to go slow, to trace the top of her thighs, back and forth, moving in to her outer lips and finally her clit.

  Shannon sucked in a harsh breath, gripped the comforter, and rolled her hips with every move I made. I’d never understand how any man could keep from giving this woman exactly what she wanted. I could watch her move like this for the rest of my life.

  The gasps turned to cries, and Shannon was close. I slipped two fingers into her wet heat, and she gave me the same welcome she had with her mouth. Her inner muscles trapped me in place, pulsing around my fingers. Her hips jerked, and Shannon was losing what was left of her control. Her body curled off the bed, as she strung together words that didn’t make sense. For this moment, she belonged to me.

  She pulled the blanket over her and opened her eyes. I collapsed on the mattress next to her. “That’s it?” she asked.

  “What the fuck are you talking about?” We just had crazy intense sex and she had the nerve to ask me if that was it.

  “You didn’t…” She nodded toward my aching erection. The tiny movement was enough to make my balls hitch. “We didn’t… You still have that.”

  “You didn’t ask me to.”

  “I thought it went without saying.” She let out an exasperated sigh. “I want you to fuck me, Zach.”

  She was breathy and spent, but I never heard sweeter words roll off a woman’s lips in my entire career. “Not tonight.” I couldn’t believe I said it. I had the restraint of a saint. Too bad there was no place for those in the place I was going. “Time’s up.”

  Shannon groaned. “You’re being ridiculous.” She sat up and shook her hair around her. “If that thing doesn’t get taken care of, I’ll have to drive you to the emergency room. Isn’t that what they say in the commercials? If you have one of those for more than four hours? And I’ll tell all the doctors and nurses why you have it.”

  “Why’s that?”

  “Because you wouldn’t fuck me.” Her expression darkened. I knew Shannon wasn’t cut out for this arrangement. She couldn’t separate sex from emotion.

  I shook my head. “I have it because you gave it to me.” It was nothing personal; I wanted to fuck her more than I wanted to breathe. And against my better judgement, I would. But she had to learn this lesson if she wanted to play in my world. “Next time.”

  “Why don’t we add it to my tab?” she asked as she sat up. “Three hours next session.”

  “I can’t do that.” For any other client, I would’ve padded the bill. But this woman was going to wear down my defenses, one request at a time.

  She frowned. “At least let me watch you take care of it.”

  “Deal.” That I could live with. “I’m gonna come in about a minute and a half, but don’t think that’s a regular thing.”

  “Oh yeah?” The smile was back, hotter than usual, with her hair wild and sticking to her damp cheeks. She rolled onto her stomach. “Then why this time?”

  “Because I was so fucking turned on, watching you. I love that you let go like that.”

  She nodded and darted out her pink tongue onto her bottom lip, but that was her only response. She settled in, her gaze squarely on my cock.

  I closed my eyes, wishing it was her hand doing the work. Imagining her lips and tongue moving down my shaft, or her pussy pulsing around it. She unraveled me, cracking my armor until it came crashing down into a pile of rubble.

  I came, hard and fast. I squeezed my eyes closed, wringing every bit of what Shannon had done to me out of my body. It landed in ribbons on my legs and on the sheets. Another reason not to do this at Shannon’s house, even if it was a place she didn’t consider her home.

  She ran her fingers along my thigh, wiping me clean, then brought them to her mouth. Then she fucking winked at me, as she sucked my cum off her fingers. “I needed a little motivation to complete the next part of the project.”

  I couldn’t breathe as she went back for seconds.

  I’d made the biggest mistake of my life.

  12

  Shannon

  I couldn’t believe Zach found a loophole around fucking me. I thought that was part of the deal. Like, no matter what we did, it included his cock inside me. I didn’t realize I ordered off the ala carte menu. He wanted to micromanage me? Oh, he was messing with the wrong woman.

  Episode Two: The Aftermath

  I had the most amazing sex of my life last night—

  No. That wasn’t true. We didn’t have actual intercourse. But I came harder than I ever had in three years with my ex. And the guys I’d been with before that were too inexperienced to know what they were doing. Zach was… Oh hell.

  I had the most amazing time last night. It was our first night together, and no, we didn’t have sex. You know, insert tab A into slot Me. Maybe that’s why was it so hot. It was the way he looked at me. Not like I was the only woman in the world—he’d never be able to sell that—but like I was the only one he wanted to be with. He made me want to wring pleasure from his fingertips. Taste decadence in his kiss. He made me want more.

  But when there’s no love lost in sex, it’s a game. One with very sophisticated rules, penalties, and sweet rewards. My escort is coy, and he’ll only do what I request of him.

  So next time, I’ll be ready for him. With a list.

  “You look like….” Leah grinned when I rambled into Claire’s house fifteen minutes late, coffee in hand, looking every bit the hot mess I felt like. Good thing she was amused, since she was using a box cutter. “Did you meet someone?”

  I attempted to smooth my hair. I’d gone to bed with it wet and tossed and turned all night, frustrated and refusing to fall asleep thinking about Zach. “No. What makes you think that?”

  She put down the box cutter and leaned against the couch. “Because you look like who did it and ran, and you can’t wipe the smile off your face. So, who did it and ran?”

  If she had any idea how painfully accurate her question was, she would be a little more careful with her wording. “Nobody.”

  “Bullshit.” The word came out singsong and ended in a laugh. She wrinkled her nose, like she was trying to figure out the riddle. “Please tell me it’s not Zach.”

  I would answer her, but I was too busy spitting out my coffee.

  “Oh my God. You’re sleeping with Zach.” Leah covered her face with her hand.

  I was so glad she was no longer holding a sharp object. “Not exactly. Don’t worry, it’s not like we’re dating or anything.”

  Every world out of my mouth sounded worse than the last.

  “I’m not judging you, but I will warn you that, if you think you can walk away from the arrangement at any time because he’s an escort, spoiler alert—it’s not that easy. Are you paying him?” Leah tipped her head, sizing me up.

  “No.” Which was a lie. “We’re trading services. I’m working on his website, and he’s working on my… Well, you know.” I was so not comfortable talking about this with my boss, even if it was Leah.

  She let out a sound somewhere between a laugh and a yelp. “First of all, good for you. And if you want to talk about it, I’ve lived that life before. But you need to talk to him, too. You need to make sure your expectations are in line with his.”

  Zach and his damned surveys and instructions and rules. Did he ever color outside the lines when he was a kid? I doubted it.

  “He’s very... specific. He won’t do anything I don’t tell him to, down to the detail.” Like fucki
ng me. I had to cross my legs. My traitorous muscles wanted what they couldn’t have. “Did Jagger do that when you hired him?”

  “Our arrangement was different. I hired him to pretend to be my boyfriend,” she said. It was the complete opposite of what I did. “It’s possible Zach’s trying to protect himself.”

  I needed another sip of coffee. Possibly a transfusion. I’d forgotten this feeling—the morning after. Zach had massaged away the ache of the anticipation, but it was replaced with something else. Hunger. Not for food. To have a hint of that gorgeous body, the way his muscles tensed and strained while he brought himself to climax, and be powerless to do anything but watch. I wouldn’t make the same mistake twice.

  “From what?” I asked.

  Leah kicked my foot. “You. Don’t you realize the way he looks at you?”

  I shrugged. “I’ve never seen him look at anyone else.”

  “That’s my point. When you’re around, his attention is squarely on you.”

  She only saw us together one night. “Not so sure about that. The night of the party, all he wanted to do was talk to his potential clients.”

  “That might be why he was there in the first place, but he didn’t suffer, hanging out with the hostess. I kept an eye on you, because if you haven’t noticed, he and I don’t exactly get along. He’s into you.”

  It occurred to me that he could be agreeing to the arrangement simply to piss off Leah. She’d taken Jagger and the agency away from him, and Zach wanted to lay claim to her employee. My grandma always said the best revenge was living well. Which was why I worked so hard. But I wasn’t sure why Zach did.

  “Neither of us wants a relationship.” All my claims that I didn’t have time for dating, and I couldn’t get him out of my head.

  “Hearts don’t care about plans.” Leah wasn’t old enough to be my mom; I considered her more like a badass older sister. One I thought was fearless but admired more when she showed her vulnerable side.