Big Bad Boys: A Romance Collection

by Wylder, Penny

  The word it hangs in the air between us, bright and full of life, like a firework shot into the sky.

  She hesitates too long and that’s all I need. I take her by the waist. She desperately clings to the towel covering her, but doesn’t object. I reach up, taking her by the chin, and lift so that our eyes meet. I see a hurricane growing behind them. She wants this, but she’s hesitant.

  “You can stop me at any time,” I tell her, but I know she won’t. The hungry way she looks at me overtakes whatever it is that caused her to hesitate.

  I bring my lips to hers, our skin barely grazing. She takes in a sharp breath and shudders. The kiss deepens. Her mouth parts just the tiniest bit when she lets out a soft moan. I run the tip of my tongue across her bottom lip, tasting the faint salty taste of the ocean that still lingers there.

  Her mouth opens wider and her tongue touches mine. They tentatively mingle, acquaintances at first, but she’s greedy and needs more. She grabs the back of my head and our mouths clash together in a furious kiss that causes the boss downstairs to stand up taller and take notice. I pull her closer to me, fingers tangling in terry cloth. It’s torture knowing there’s only a towel and my shorts separating her naked body from mine. It takes all my brittle self-control not to tear it off and consume her.

  I don’t know how much longer I can resist.

  6

  Cadie

  This wasn’t supposed to happen. I didn’t come to the beach to kiss Ram. I needed a distraction after seeing Evan in the mall, and surfing was supposed to be that. I’m certainly distracted, just not the way I had planned. The whole time I was surfing, I was always aware of Ram, of his proximity. I wanted him closer. I wanted his hands and lips and everything else on me. Maybe this is what I need, because when he’s around, Evan stays in the past. Where he should be.

  Ram pulls me closer to him until our bodies are crushed together. I feel his hardness digging into me. I want him so bad I can hardly think straight. We’re not alone out here. There are people getting into their cars around us, leaving the beach. And I don’t care. They can’t see us, of course, because we’re hidden by the open door of his truck. Getting caught is the least of my concerns right now. All that I care about is having him closer to me.

  The tips of his finger glide across my shoulders, giving me chills. They continue to roam, exploring the exposed skin on my arms and back. Eventually, they make their way to my chest, caressing my collarbone and the tops of my breasts. They stop moving when I drop my towel. His entire body goes still and he looks as though he’s been struck. “Oh my God,” he says, in a deep, gravelly voice. He takes a step back to have a look.

  His gaze burns. Those typically light blue eyes turn deep navy and he makes a low, almost feral sound of approval. No one has ever looked at me the way he is right now, like I’m the pot of gold at the end of an elusive rainbow. His gaze flickers over my breasts, stomach, legs, then back up to my eyes. The long column of his throat moves when he swallows.

  “You’re so beautiful,” he says, his fingers exploring the edges of me.

  It’s hard to breathe. Part of me wants him to grab me and have his way, but the other part of me enjoys his delightful little explorations.

  He smirks when my breathing becomes more labored. He’s teasing me, I realize. He’s waiting for me to beg him, but I won’t. I have amazing self-control.

  It becomes a game, and he knows it. I can tell by that frustratingly cocky smile of his. What he doesn’t realize, is that this isn’t a game he can win.

  He kisses my forehead gently, keeping his hand on my waist, but barely touching. I do the same, touching him, but not quite. My hands rest on his shoulders, his hard muscle flexing under my palm. It’s as if his muscles are made of driftwood, all smooth, rolling plains. There’s no give to him, no soft parts like I’m used to with my ex.

  His touch almost tickles, the way his skin skims over mine, causing my body to breakout in goosebumps. His lips trail feather-light kisses down my temple, to my cheek. I turn my head to kiss his lips, but he backs away.

  I smile. I see how it is. He smiles too when he realizes I’m catching onto the rules of this game. No overt kissing, I get it. He then moves to my ear, his tongue toying with my earlobe. I close my eyes and revel in this sensation.

  His fingertips move to my hips, caressing my curves. He touches my thighs, my belly button, brushes over my mound, but never that delicious spot between my legs that aches to be touched. I know I’m wet for him. I can feel it running down the inside of my thighs. He notices it too as his hands explore. His smile grows until his lips part to show off those splendid white teeth of his.

  “I’m not going to give into you,” I promise him. My voice is husky, wavering.

  He lets out a low, boyish laugh that’s the most adorable sound I’ve ever heard. He nods and I know he doesn’t believe a word of it. “We’ll see about that,” he says.

  His lips continue their maddening exploration, kissing the globe of my breast, but never nearing the nipple. He gets down on his knees, his tongue dipping into my bellybutton. The further down he goes, the more my resolve wears down. When his face hovers right over my pubic bone, I don’t know how much more I can take. He doesn’t kiss me there, just looks up at me. I can feel his hot breath on me. Just an inch closer and his lips will touch. A needful moan escapes my lips and I chastise myself for it.

  I will not cave. I will not give into him.

  He takes his finger and runs it along my inner thigh, getting it wet with the arousal that continues to drip down my leg. He then brings it to his mouth and licks it off, making a sound of approval.

  I cave. I give into him.

  Curling my fingers in his hair, I beg him, “I need you. Inside of me. Now.” The words come in bursts and stops.

  He doesn’t smile or throw his victory in my face. Instead, he stands up, his face a hard, lust-filled mask, and grabs me like a caveman. He pushes his hips against me, his hard-on presses up against my stomach. The pressure feels amazing. I hadn’t realized how tall he was until this very moment. I have to tilt my head up for him to kiss me.

  Only his board shorts stand between us now. I reach down and untie them.

  He takes my hand and wraps my fingers around his rock-hard bulge. Oh fuck, he’s huge. I guess if he weren’t, he wouldn’t have the nickname ‘bed shaker.’

  He kisses me roughly as I stroke him on the outside of his shorts. He breaks the kiss to look at my breasts. I’ve never seen anyone so focused in my life. I’m sure he’s seen better tits than mine, but the look on his face would suggest otherwise. He really does know how to make a girl feel special. Right now, that’s exactly what I need.

  He leans over and wraps his lips around one of my nipples, sucking and nibbling. He can fit my entire breast into his mouth. The sensation of being engulfed by him sends a jolt through my nerve endings, heating every inch of my body. He grabs me and lifts me onto the passenger seat of his truck.

  I lean back on my elbows as he lifts my legs and drapes them over his shoulders. I would normally be embarrassed in this position in full daylight. Exposed, vulnerable. But I’m not. I don’t know why, but I trust him. I want him to see all of me. I want to give it to him.

  My breath seizes in my throat as he leans down and starts to taste. First he kisses his way along my inner thigh, his tongue snaking out to lick and nibble. Eventually he makes his way to my center.

  I’m breathing hard in anticipation. His eyes glance up, meeting mine. He watches my expression as he licks his way to my clit. I moan loudly, not caring who hears. My eyes want to flutter closed, but there’s no way I’m missing this show, so I force them to stay open and watch.

  He goes slowly at first, his soft flat tongue gliding over all of my delicate spots. This must be what nirvana feels like. Every stress, every unhappy thought, every bit of anger and heartbreak leaves my body and I’m left in a state of pure bliss. The tiny mewling sounds I make are unavoidable, and I probably sound pa
thetic right now, but it seems to spur him on. Each time I let out a new sound, he stays in that particular place, driving me crazy.

  I’m half out of my mind and feel like I’ve been given some pleasure-inducing drug. But it’s just him. He’s the drug, and I’m too far into his clutches to worry about getting addicted. I’ll stress about that later. Right now, I just want to live in it.

  He starts to lick me like a starving man, sucking my clit into his mouth. He dips two fingers into me, and my whole body feels charged, electric. It’s everything I’ve been craving. I run my fingers through his thick, sun-bleached hair, moaning at this radiant new sensation.

  I hate to keep comparing him to Evan because there is no comparison—Ram is twice the man Evan could ever pretend to be—but Evan rarely went down on me, and when he did, it wasn’t anything to brag about. Whenever my friends sat around, talking about their hot experiences in the sack, I was the one in the corner thinking I’ve been turned on more from the romance novels I read than the man in my bed. But I didn’t let it get to me because I thought he was a good guy, and having a loving, loyal companion was far better than explosive sex. Now that I know his good-guy act was all a lie, I feel ripped off. All that time I wasted …

  Ram does something with his tongue and all my thoughts of Evan disappear. I almost cry out, forgetting where I am. I bite down on my lip to stay quiet.

  “Do you have condoms?” I ask, my breath coming out in bursts.

  He hits the glove box with the bottom of his fist and it pops open. Inside is spilling with Magnums. My first thought is, wow, Magnums, okay, I can work with that. The thought glows at first, but starts to dim as I remember who I’m dealing with. This isn’t someone I’m dating, whose company I’ve enjoyed and now we’re having some fun—even though I totally enjoyed his company and I’m having fun—this is the Bed Shaker. He has a reputation for a reason. He sleeps with a lot of women. This isn’t a one-girl kind of guy. The thought takes the wind from my sails a bit. I have to chastise myself. I knew who he was going into this. I can’t start judging him for that now. I just need to enjoy the ride and not sweat the details.

  “That’s quite a collection,” I say absently, then he shuts me up again with his magic tongue as it flicks against a spot that sends a jolt into my bellybutton. He licks until I’m on the edge. My ass comes off the seat as I push my hips forward. I’m almost there. So close. His fingers thrust into me like pistons, in and out. But then he does something with them, hooks them at the tip, and suddenly my body explodes. Grabbing a fistful of his hair, I hold his mouth against me, riding this wave of pleasure. He continues to pump his fingers in and out of me, prolonging my orgasm until I’m afraid I might go blind from the pressure.

  I open my eyes, not realizing they’d been closed, and see stars. As I start to come down, I release my grip on him. He comes up for air with a smile, and licks his glossy lips.

  “You taste so sweet,” he says.

  All I can do is wistfully smile. Right now, I need to get my strength back if we’re going to do this.

  He lies on top of me. I love the way his heavy body feels against mine. He stares down at me, brushing his fingers through my hair and looks me in the eyes. Even when he lays soft kisses on my lips, he continues to make eye contact.

  “You’re the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen,” he says.

  My lips part, but I don’t know what to say. Is that a line he feeds all the girls, or is he for real? If he’s lying, it’s impossible to tell. Great, another amazing liar. I guess it doesn’t really matter with Ram, though. It’s not like we’re in a relationship. This is just part of his game.

  This is getting too serious. I’m too vulnerable to listen to these kinds of things right now. He’s the Bed Shaker, and that’s exactly what I plan to use him for. I reach for the waistband of his shorts. I can’t wait to see the monster he has hiding in there. But he stops me before I can get a look.

  I look at him, confused. “We have plenty of time for that,” he says.

  He kisses me again with gentle lips, managing to make it feel like it’s something more than it is. It feels frighteningly like a promise of something more. The fact that I want that kind of promise shakes me so badly that I feel the pressure of tears behind my eyes.

  “I want it now,” I demand.

  I want it hard and ruthless, I want him to smash into me with the force of a jackhammer. I want to be fucked so hard that I forget everything, until I forget how magical it feels to be under his touch.

  He stops me when I reach for his shorts again. “What’s the rush?” he says.

  I look down at the raging bulge in his shorts. I know he wants me too. This must be part of his game, making women feel special until they fall for him, keep them coming back. This is a game I can’t play. Not now.

  I put my hand on his chest and feel his heart beating like a humming bird inside. Then I push him away. He looks confused, hurt even.

  “What’s wrong?” he says.

  “I can’t do this right now.”

  “Why not?”

  “I’m not in the mood anymore.”

  His eyebrows come together as he scrutinizes my face. “You’re lying.”

  My chest is flushed and my nipples are rock-hard. It’s pretty obvious I’m still incredibly turned on. “I have things I need to do,” I tell him.

  He doesn’t believe me, but he doesn’t try to stop me when I push myself out of his truck. My knees are still weak and almost buckle beneath me. He catches me before I fall. I want to be tangled up in those arms again, his lips on me, breathing each other’s air. I want him inside of me. But I can’t do that.

  “Next time?” he says. There’s hope in his voice.

  There won’t be a next time. Not if I’m to keep my heart in check.

  I nod and smile. “Next time.”

  7

  Ram

  I’ve never left a woman without getting mine too. Never had a woman stop before actually having sex. I did something to scare her. There was panic in her eyes when she looked at me, but I don’t know what I said or did wrong. I almost did something that scared me too, actually. I almost told her she’s the only girl I want to be with. The scariest part is that I meant it. I don’t know what it is about her that turns me inside out, but I can’t stop thinking about her. I need to. I need to get her out of my head.

  Maybe her reluctance had something to do with the way she hesitated before we even started fooling around. I believe her when she says she didn’t come to the beach for sex. Her mind was somewhere else, and I’m guessing it has something to do with whatever—or whoever—caused her to get drunk the other night.

  I’m glad she stopped me from going further. When I’m with her, I want to be the only one she’s thinking about.

  My phone chirps. I look down at the screen and see a text from Emily, one of my favorites. She’s cute and blond with a rockin’ little body. She’s always up for anything. No kink is off limits. She’s a good time and never expects anything more from me than I’m willing to give, unlike some of the other girls. She never asks questions or tries to get to know me. She’s just the distraction I need. Maybe if I’m with other women, I’ll forget about Cadie and I can finally be rid of this hold she has over me.

  Emily: You up for some fun?

  I glance down at my rock-hard cock stretching my shorts.

  Me: Definitely

  * * *

  Emily greets me at the door wearing a tight red dress. She’s a divorcée out living her life, sexy as hell. She reaches up to cup my face in her hands. I step back from her, a reflex. She looks at me with a curious frown, like ‘what the hell?’

  “Um, you might not want to kiss me right now … my tongue has recently been occupied,” I say sheepishly.

  She looks intrigued. “Now I really want to kiss you.”

  But she doesn’t try to kiss me again. Instead, she sits on her couch with a playful smile. “Tell me all about her,” Emily says.

&n
bsp; Sitting next to her, I close my eyes and the words just spill out of me. “She has the most amazing smile I’ve ever seen,” I say. I can hear the whimsy in my voice as I recall the way the waves lapped at us, the way she threw her had back and laughed with all of her body as I caught her before she could fall. “And stormy eyes full of wonder and thought. She’s not just a pretty face. There’s more to her, I can just tell. There’s just something about her that’s different. And the musical sound of her laughter—”

  I open my eyes to a slightly sardonic smile tugging at her lips and her eyebrows raised.

  “You like her,” she says teasingly.

  “What? No.”

  “Oh my God, you do!” She laughs. “Has someone finally gotten under the Bed Shaker’s skin?”

  I run my hands through my hair. Fuck, she’s right. I’m lying to myself if I try to pretend otherwise.

  Emily and I talk for a long time, no touching or kissing or contact of any kind. Just talking. She tries to help me sort through these uncharted feelings I’m having. Did I mention Emily is a therapist?

  “You are developing actual human emotions for this girl, Ram. I’m proud of you. Don’t try to bury them. It’s a good thing,” she says.

  I shake my head. “I don’t even know her.”

  “But the fact that you want to means you’re evolving. Maybe it’s time to put the Bed Shaker to rest.”

  “It’s the Bed Shaker Cadie wants. Not me,” I say. “I think she’s using me to get over someone.”

  Admitting that makes me feel nauseous. I want to be the only man she thinks about. I don’t even know her ex or why they broke up, but whoever he is, I want to pummel him. Landing a girl like Cadie, I’m sure he’s wealthy and looks like Thor. I’m probably a sad substitute and that’s why she didn’t want to have sex with me.

  I try to shake those thoughts out of my head. What the hell is wrong with me? That’s not the type of insecure shit that ever crosses my mind. I don’t care why women fuck as long as they’re fucking me. It’s about the sex. Nothing more.