The Trouble With Love: New York Times Bestselling Author

by Contreras, Claire

  “Morgan.” He bites my lower lip with a little growl. It dawns on me that he’s only said my name a handful of times, and this is one of them, and I love the way he sounds raw and out of control as he says it. “Fuck. Keep moving like that, baby.”

  I moan loudly, breaking the kiss to toss my head back, and his mouth finds my neck, my chest. His hand loops behind my back and he unclasps my bra, dragging the straps down my arms and tossing it aside. He moves his leg and I gasp loudly.

  “I was so close.” I grip his arm, my eyes hazy as I look up at him.

  “I’ll get you there.” He kisses me again, deeply, thoroughly, before pulling back and dragging his mouth down my chest, to my breasts, taking my nipples into his mouth one at a time. Even the way he does that, circling his tongue around each one and nibbling just slightly, makes me feel out of control.

  I feel myself thrash against the mattress, panting. He’s not even touching me there yet and I’m ready to come. As if sensing this, he blows on my nipples, and sucks right beneath my breast, then my stomach, my belly button, until he reaches my hips. With one hand, he pulls my panties down slowly, his mouth trailing the slide of the fabric. I feel completely out of control, heartbeat pulsing in my neck, my temple, my core, as he continues to explore me. I squeeze my eyes shut, grabbing the top of his hair when I feel his mouth moving lower and lower on my pelvis, until he reaches my clit. At the first swipe of his tongue, I cry out, arching my back. He brings his other hand between my legs and begins to play with my folds as his tongue continues to lash over me. My legs start to tremble. I start making garbled noises as I try to speak—to tell him to stop, to keep going, to never fucking stop at all. I’m coming before I can even try to stop myself or slow down. I hear the rip of foil and open my eyes to see him covering himself with a condom, his hand stroking as if to make sure it’s not going to slide off. His hooded eyes are roaming my body as he does it and I swear it’s the sexiest thing I’ve ever witnessed in my life.

  “I’m on the pill.” I lick my lips. “And I’m clean.”

  “It’s already on.” He smiles softly, shrugging. “I’m clean too though.”

  I reach for him. “Come here.”

  “You’re so goddamn beautiful, Morgan.” He steps between my legs, pressing one hand to the mattress beside my head and the other between us, settling himself between my folds but not pushing in any further.

  I start to get impatient, opening my mouth to complain, but his tongue silences me with a swipe against mine. I gasp and begin to grind against the hand he’s placed between us, needing the friction to get me off again. Bennett chuckles against my mouth as he pulls away slightly, so I’m no longer grinding against him.

  “Ben,” I begin to argue, but he thrusts inside of me and all I can do is arch and gasp at the impact. My hands grip his forearms, my nails digging into him as he continues to drive into me, faster and faster, with a tempo destined to make me come undone quickly.

  “Look at me, Morgan.”

  My eyes snap to his and what I find in them sparks a fire inside me that I haven’t felt in a long time, if ever. I bring my arms up and wrap them around his neck, moaning every time he pounds into me. It’s not just his cock inside me that I feel, but the impact of his thrust against my clit.

  “You’re so fucking wet,” he groans, bringing his mouth to mine. “Your pussy is tighter than I remember it being.”

  I bite down on his lip, unable to form words to retort to that, and then his lips are crashing down against mine. His kiss becomes hungrier, his gaze gets darker when he pulls back to look down at me, his movements get harder, faster, his grip on my ass gets tighter. Soon, the fire burning inside me seems to burn through me, crawling down my spine and clenching my core so tightly I think I’ll explode, and when I do explode, it’s with a chant of his name on my lips. “Ben, Ben, Ben, Ben.” I swear it’s the sound of it that makes him still and groan out my own name as he comes.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  I’m finishing my makeup when Bennett walks into the bathroom wearing nothing but his boxers. The sight makes me swipe my mascara right onto the bridge of my nose. He’s unbelievably attractive in a way I’m not sure I’ll ever get used to. He comes up behind me and wraps his arms around me, kissing my cheek.

  “You’re distracting.” I wipe the dot of mascara off.

  “So are you.” He squeezes me tighter, looking at me in the mirror. “We look good together.”

  “We do.” I bite my lip to keep from laughing. “So glad you don’t have any hang-ups.”

  “Never have.” He kisses me on the cheek again. “You shouldn’t either. You’re beautiful.”

  With that, he walks away, past the partition that separates the sink from the rest of the bathroom. I finish up and head to the kitchen, making us coffee while I wait for him to finish getting ready. Today’s the last day of the conference and we have two meetings that I’m happy to get over with, but there’s also a sense of loss at the thought that once we go home tomorrow, this is over. It doesn’t feel like we’ve had nearly enough time together.

  I walk over to the window and look out at the Strip. It looks so innocent during the day, such a contrast to what this place was built on and continues to thrive on. I hear Bennett’s dress shoes tap against the marble floor as he walks over to me. He smells so good, I just want to turn my head and inhale, but I continue to look ahead instead.

  “It’s a lovely day,” he says.

  “It is.” I look up at the sky. “Nice day to jump out of an airplane.”

  I feel his gaze on me. “Have you ever done that?”

  “Hell, no.” I meet his gaze. “I value my life, thank you very much.”

  He laughs loudly, shaking his head. “You’re something else, Morgan Tucker.”

  “Thanks.” I bump him with my hip.

  “Thanks for the coffee.”

  “Welcome.”

  We stand there in silence, just looking at the city, as we drink our coffee. Normally, silence makes me uncomfortable. It strikes me as odd that I have absolutely no urge to fill the air with useless conversation. It just feels right. I take a deep breath and exhale.

  “Have you checked your app today?”

  “You told me to just be with you while we’re here,” I say, looking up at him. “I’ll check it when I get home and back to reality.”

  “Hm.” He takes a sip of coffee before taking my mug and placing it on the table beside his. When he walks over to me again, he wastes no time in bringing his mouth to mine. “This doesn’t feel real to you? My hands on your body like this.” He presses me to the glass behind me and brings his hands to my blouse, pressing me with kisses as he unbuttons it and removes it slowly, setting it down carefully over the back of the couch beside us.

  “We have to be downstairs in thirty minutes,” I murmur against his lips.

  “You should probably start undressing me, then.” He smiles against me, wrapping his arms around me to unzip my pencil skirt, letting it pool at my feet. I untuck his now-open dress shirt from his pants and help him out of it, his lips coming right back to mine as if holding a magnet. He reaches down and carries me with one arm, pressing me against the glass.

  “I wish we could skip the entire conference,” he says, reaching between us.

  I feel his length, long, hard, and ready between my legs and bite down on my lip, bracing myself for him. He doesn’t just thrust inside me though; instead, he teases me, rubbing his tip over my clit over and over, until I’m throwing my head back and moaning.

  “Bennett, please.”

  “Please what, Cupid?”

  “Please fuck me,” I pant.

  “Not until you answer my question.” He slips between my folds, once, twice, three times, hitting my clit each time.

  “I’ll come just from that,” I say, but there’s a shrill in my voice I can’t help because I feel like I’ll explode whether he stops or not.

  “Hm.” He bites my shoulder. “I’d rather y
ou come around my cock.” He licks my shoulder. I moan again, my legs starting to shake. “I want to feel you all over me.”

  “Fuck.” I dig my fingers into his shoulder blades. He’s not even fully undressed, but it doesn’t matter, I can still feel the way every ridge of muscle beneath his clothes flexes against my touch. “I can’t, Bennett. I can’t.”

  “Can’t what?” He brings his lips back to mine, kissing me hard once, his eyes on mine. “You can’t admit how real this is?”

  “Why? You were the one who said this can’t happen.”

  “Maybe I want it to happen.” He presses up against my clit again, I swear his girth gets bigger each time he does it. I groan again, shutting my eyes tightly.

  “Please, Bennett. Please fuck me,” I whisper.

  “Open your eyes, baby.”

  I do. He finally pushes inside of me, slowly, filling me inch by inch. I gasp loudly, nails digging deeper into his shoulders. I’ll leave a mark, but I don’t care. I wish it would be permanent—let every other woman he’s with after me know I was here. The thought is random and alarming. I’ve never felt the need to claim a man before, why this one? My eyes widen on his as the realization hits me.

  “It’s real,” I whisper. “It feels real.”

  He grins an alarmingly wolfish grin that has me biting down on my lip as my entire body rattles with an orgasm. His chases shortly after, and as we’re there, him holding me up against the glass of our suite, overlooking a city that’s brought my life and so much pain, I feel myself fully give into him. Consequences be damned.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Bennett

  For a while I was convinced I didn’t want or need a woman, that I could just go through life acting like a bachelor and be okay with that, taking my pick of women whenever I saw fit. I sure as hell wasn’t expecting Morgan. Sure, I thought of our one-night stand from time to time, but it had been riddled with too many outside factors for me to enjoy and accept it for what it had been—incredible sex with a beautiful woman. After this trip though? I can’t convince myself not to pursue this thing with Morgan. She’s everything I didn’t know I wanted. Everything I didn’t know I was searching for in a mate. She impressed me with every question she asked the panelist, with every meeting she sat beside me in, and with the strength she showed despite all of the things that had happened in her life that threatened to break her down. We’d agreed that we’d get each other out of our system while we were in Vegas, but I wasn’t sure I could make good on that promise. Not when it seemed like she’d gone into my system and coded it with bits of herself, ensuring I wouldn’t be able to just move on. I couldn’t.

  “So I guess this is our last breakfast together,” she says, walking into the room with a white robe on.

  I know from experience that she’s not wearing anything underneath it and that knowledge has my dick hard in a second. I watch her as she walks up to the table, where I’ve already splayed out our continental breakfast and a few other things I ordered that I know she likes. She’s a serious contradiction, with this coy way about her, her flushed cheeks and fluttering eyelids when she’s feeling shy, but bombshell seductress when she’s in the mood to play that role. And it hits me that maybe that’s what she’s been doing all her life—playing a role. I’d love to say I’ve managed to knock her guard down, but who really knows?

  “Penny for your thoughts.” She reaches for a croissant, raising an eyebrow at me.

  “Do you really want this to be over when we head back home?”

  “Wasn’t that what we agreed on? All the sex while we’re here, but back to being coworkers when we’re home?”

  “Yeah.” I nod, taking a gulp of orange juice. “Do you think this can turn into something more?”

  “Can it?” she asks. “I guess it can, but I think we should go home and sleep on it.”

  “Sleep on it.”

  “Yeah. Like, mull it over when we’re not together twenty-four seven and clouded by lust.”

  That makes me smile. We have been clouded by lust. Happily clouded, might I add. I decide she’s right about this. I’ll let her sleep on it and think it over, even though I know I don’t have to. I absolutely need more time with her, but I keep quiet and play the part that I know she wants me to play.

  For now.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Bennett

  Monday is an absolute waste. For starters, my dad transferred Morgan to the Marketing and Development Department. I knew he was going to. She’d been saying it, he’d been saying it, but it didn’t mean I was looking forward to it actually happening. Now, I’m left with an intern for an assistant who can’t even answer my questions because he’s too busy checking his Fantasy Football League. To top it all off, half of his players are on the bench, his quarterback plays for the Dolphins, and he just traded Todd Gurley. What a waste. I ring him again.

  “Edward, may I see you in my office?”

  “Sure,” he says quickly. I hear him ruffling papers on the speaker and close my eyes with a sigh. When he comes into my office, he has a serious look on his face. “You rang?”

  I bite my tongue to keep from hurling insults at him. He’s new, he’s young . . . he’s overly excited. Let it go, Bennett, I warn myself. It’s not his fault you’re pissed off at the world.

  “You haven’t fixed my schedule for the week. I told you I’m no longer meeting with Titanium on Wednesday. Also, I have a meeting with Nathaniel Bradley and Ryan Cooper this afternoon that I’d like you to sit in,” I say. “Actually, what is Miss Tucker up to?”

  “Morgan?” His brows pull together. “She’s . . . I don’t know. She’s been in Wesley’s office all morning.”

  My jaw grinds. Fucking Wesley. I wait until I’m sure my voice won’t have an edge to it before I speak. “Will you please fetch her for me?”

  “Sure.” He stands up, smile on his face. “I love going to that department. They always have something cool going on.”

  “Yeah, well, maybe if you can prove you’re capable of keeping my schedule on track, one day you’ll be in that department.”

  He walks out without another word. I sit back in my chair, closing my eyes. It’s only been two days since I last saw Morgan. She was exhausted when we got back on Saturday so I didn’t push to hang out longer, but damn, I wanted to. We’d said whatever we did would stay in Vegas, but I can’t help but wonder if she felt as lonely as I did yesterday. The urge to call her was indescribable. The thought of showing up at her apartment was overwhelming.

  I need to get a grip. I didn’t sign up to become this heavily involved with anyone right now. It is the last thing I need after the fiasco with Paola. Yes, it has been over a year now, but that doesn’t change the fact that I don’t believe in the things Morgan wishes for herself. She wants a secure relationship, someone who isn’t a liar, and I can’t give her either of those things. As it is, certain things have been weighing on me and I feel like I need to tell her. I hear my door open, but keep my eyes closed until it shuts.

  “Sleeping on the job?”

  Her voice makes my heart hammer faster. When I open my eyes and finally look at her, it stops pumping all together. She really is so fucking beautiful, with the kind of looks that belong on the Victoria’s Secret runway, not hiding behind a screen all day, but seeing her excitement when she talks about what she does makes it clear that she’s more at home behind a screen.

  “Somebody wore me out.” I smile at the sight of her blush. She takes a seat across from me.

  “We’re not supposed to talk about that,” she whispers.

  “Why not?” I whisper back. “And why are we whispering?”

  “I don’t know. It seems like something we shouldn’t be too vocal about at work.”

  “Got it.” I chuckle. “I want you to come to a meeting with me.”

  “I’m . . . “ Her eyes widen momentarily. “I’m in another department.”

  “I want you to come anyway.”

  “Why?
You have a new assistant. Have Eddy take notes.”

  “Eddy is a fucking moron,” I say. “He’s just . . . on another planet all the time.”

  “He started the job five seconds ago, Bennett.” Her voice is soft, placating, as if trying to soothe a child after the loss of a Little League game. “I’m sure once he gets the hang of it, he’ll be fine. Give him a chance. I’m in the middle of putting a website together for a major client.”