“That’s it,” he says, swiping his calloused thumbs beneath my eyes. “There’s my girl. You’re so goddamned beautiful, Korie.” The gentleness in his touch, in his tone, have me burning with a new fervor. “Both inside and out.”
Consumed by the heat that’s pulsing in my veins, I yank the bow tie from around his neck, tossing it to the floor. A handful of buttons swiftly join it when I rip the front of his shirt open. “I need you.”
“I’m yours.” I can’t look him in the eye nor dare to think of all that those two words imply, because I know he’s referring to more than just sex. And I just can’t go there at the moment.
“Don’t be gentle with me, Hollywood,” I order as I guide him to the seat and get to work on his pants.
A flicker of something resembling pain flashes in his eyes before he reaches between our bodies, pushing my fumbling hands to the side to unfasten his slacks freeing his erection.
My already throbbing core clenches in anticipation for the relief I know he’s capable of delivering. Standing between his parted legs, I wait for him to make the next move. Rhett slips a hand through the slit in my dress and hooks his finger in the elastic band of my panties. With one firm tug, it snaps, falling to my feet. I kick it away to join the rest of our mounting pile of discarded clothes.
I waste no time in hiking my dress and mounting him. There’s nothing slow or delicate in what follows. No gentle touches. No whispered words of affection. I want none of it.
The sexiest moan escapes his lips as I impale myself on his cock.
His hands trail softly. Too softly, up my back. So, I grab them, pulling them around to cup my tits through the plunging neckline of this ridiculous dress.
“This was your idea,” I remind him, squeezing his hands around the sensitive mounds of flesh.
He nods and his expert fingers find my pert nipples, pinching to the point of pain. “Yes,” I moan, leaning in to his touch. It’s exactly what I need as I ride him hard and fast. The mingled sounds of our moans and panting breaths fill the cab, spurring me on.
I fuck him with wild abandon.
I fuck him like a woman possessed.
I fuck him like I hate him.
With every downward thrust, I let go of a little more of the heaviness that’s been sitting in my chest, until I’m weightless and soaring.
Until I’m free.
My mouth crashes against his, and our tongues join in the battle. I am nothing but sensation. But wanton and desperate. And so completely lost to this man.
Tears freely trail my cheeks as Rhett makes love to my mouth with a tenderness that steals my breath away. He holds me cradled against his chest, kissing me so thoroughly I lose all sense of time and place.
I lose what’s left of my heart.
Chapter 39
Rhett
We decide to skip out on the after party, neither of us in the mood any longer. I just fucked the woman I love like she meant less than nothing. The experience, while something she might have needed at the time, leaves me feeling dirty and hollow inside.
The only way I know to rectify the regret consuming me is to show her. To finally tell her exactly what she’s come to mean to my life.
All of the stolen dates between performances and skate competitions. The late-night phone calls and flirty texts. For me, they’ve become something real. They’ve become the best part of my days. The thing I look forward to most. I can only hope she feels the same.
Regardless, tonight is the night I come clean.
When we arrive back at the rented house, I run her a bath in the oversized Jacuzzi tub, adding lavender bubbles, bath salts, and lighting the candles scattered throughout the bathroom.
“This for me?” she asks, leaning against the doorframe in her disheveled dress, with my suit jacket layered on top. With makeup streaked across her face and her hair in complete disarray, she’s never looked more delicate—more alluring. More mine.
“Yeah.” I cross the room, slipping the coat from her shoulders and tossing it to the chair in the corner. “Figured you could use a warm bath to unwind.”
“You’re perfect.” Her hands frame my face as she stares into my eyes briefly before hooking her thumbs in the thin straps at her shoulders and slinking out of what remains of her dress. She stands before me, completely bare, without an ounce of shame.
Speechless, I slowly take in every delicate inch of her creamy white skin. The rosy buds hardening on her chest. The light mound of curls between her legs. My pulse escalates as I scan each subtle dip and curve of her body.
Korie closes the space between us, sneaking her hands through the opening in my shirt. She lightly skims her fingertips over my chest to my shoulders, where she shoves the sleeves down the length of my arms, dropping the offensive material to the floor. “Join me?” she rasps, reaching lower to unfasten the button on my dress pants. “Please.” Her long lashes flutter seductively.
“Okay.” I place a chaste kiss on her forehead before stepping out of my pants and boxer briefs and following her over to the tub.
I take her hand, helping her in behind me. She settles between my legs, her back resting against my chest, her long hair tickling where it brushes my nose. The water line reaches to just above her breasts, blanketing us in a cloud of thick bubbles, the soothing aroma wafting into the warm, humid air. While the jets massage our bodies, we lie limp in each other’s arms, content to just be with one another.
“I’m sorry about earlier,” she finally says, after a long period of silence. “I can’t believe I behaved like that.” Shame floods her cheeks.
“You don’t have to apologize.” I brush the hair back from her face with a wet, soapy hand. “You needed a release. I’m just glad I could provide it.”
She snorts. “Well, you sort of provided two.”
My chest clenches up at the mention of what went down in the limo this afternoon. “Yeah, well I’m sorry about that. I never meant to let it go that far. What happened between us was savage and…” I cringe. “It was cold.” I gulp hard, trying to swallow past the guilt lodged in my throat. “I don’t want sex between us to be a means to an end.”
“What are you talking about, crazy man?” She twists in my arms, looking up at me with her mossy bedroom eyes. “It was so fucking good.” She sighs her contentment.
“I will give you sex any way you want it—hard…soft…fast…slow…but never…” I shake my head. “Never while you’re emotionally detached from me like that again.”
Her eyes glisten in the candlelight as she begins to understand.
“Don’t close off your heart to me.”
“I won’t,” she whispers into the corner of my mouth before pressing her lips to mine. Slowly she turns in my arms, and what starts as a gentle and languid kiss becomes fueled with fiery passion, the chemistry between us burning with the heat of a thousand blazing suns.
“Take me to bed,” she growls, nipping at my lips while her hands comb frantically through my hair. “Now.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
I step out from behind her, quickly drying off before binding the towel around my waist and retrieving another from the shelf for Stick. She wraps it around her body, tucking the end between her breasts to keep it in place. Before she’s even lifted a leg over the side of the tub, I scoop her into my arms, carrying her bridal style to the massive king-sized four-poster bed.
Our lips fuse together, never parting as I gently place her in the center of the bed, my body hovering over hers. For a brief moment I just look at her, my heart speeding up at the range of emotion passing between us. There’s no way possible she doesn’t feel what I’m feeling…at least to some degree. This overwhelming urge to make her mine. To be connected to her not just sexually, but on a spiritual level.
Her fingers begin exploring the lines of my chest, stirring up a frenzy of electricity in my groin.
Resting all of my weight on one arm, I use the hand of the other to unwrap the terrycloth that’s con
cealing her body from view. She follows my lead, reaching between us to tug my towel away and toss it across the room. I sink down on top of her, relishing the feel of her warm skin on my skin, of her heartbeat drumming against my own.
I cup her right breast in my hand, rolling my thumb over the nipple, teasing it into a hard bud, eliciting a sexy little whimper. Then, I rub harder, tweaking the sensitive flesh between my fingers. She hisses into my mouth, her back arching off of the mattress. I bite down gently on her lower lip before pulling away and lowering my mouth to cover the soft globe, flicking my tongue rapidly while she writhes beneath me, moaning her pleasure.
I move to her other breast, lavishing it with the same attention, my cock thickening as she begins to lose control, her nails scoring my back while her head whips side to side.
Liquid heat fills my shaft, the pressure building more with every erotic noise she makes.
“Rhett,” she hisses, gripping my hair and pulling my mouth back to hers. “I want you, please.”
“Look at me.” I nudge her nose with the tip of my own, encouraging her eyes to connect with mine. They’re hooded—dilated, and wild with desire. “Do you feel this, Stick?”
She nods, lifting her hips seeking relief. “Please…”
“I’ve had plenty of meaningless sex, but not with you.” I say, prodding the tip of my erection into her slick opening. “Never again with you.”
“Never a—ohhh,” she moans, her head flung back in pleasure as I slide all the way in, burying my cock to the hilt. With deliberate slowness, I rock in and out of her warm, wet, heat, giving her every hard inch before slowly withdrawing and then doing it all over again. As her mounting climax builds, I feel her body trembling beneath me—an occasional spasm rocking her core. Her hungry pussy squeezes my shaft, bringing me to the brink. When I know that I can’t hold back any longer, I pick up the pace. Gripping the back of her head in my hand, I bring her mouth to mine, thrusting my tongue inside. I devour her like a man starved while plunging in and out—my groin tensing as the pressure mounts with each stroke.
“Now,” she begs, her walls clenching tight around my cock. “I’m—I’m coming…”
My entire body locks up as wave after wave of intense pleasure rockets between us. My release shoots out in warm spurts, each one eliciting a full body spasm from her. Korie’s orgasm intensifies with each burst, continuing long after mine finishes.
Not until her body goes limp do I fall to my back beside her, completely exhausted and in a state of total bliss. She curls onto her side, resting her head on my chest, her leg flung over my thigh. I run my fingers lightly along her spine while we lay wrapped around each other, reveling in the afterglow.
When the numbness wears off, my mind starts to race with this overwhelming need to tell her how I feel. I tuck a finger beneath her chin, turning her face to mine, my heart beating so fast.
Her eyes are heavy, her body in a state of full contentment. Her kiss-swollen lips spread into a lazy smile. “You were right,” she whispers into the darkness. “That was much better.”
I kiss the tip of her nose, tracing the side of her face with my knuckle. “That was love.”
Her body lightly tenses in my hold. I cup the side of her face, gently stroking her cheek with the pad of my thumb. I feel her throat constrict with a hard swallow, her fears creeping in.
“I love you, Korie. You don’t have to say it back or even say anything at all. I just needed you to know—I’m all in.”
Wordlessly her lips meet mine. She kisses me slowly, tenderly, lovingly. She may not be ready to say the words, but her body tells me everything I need to know. So, while she battles with her demons, figuring it all out, I’ll be here loving her, anxiously waiting for the day her mind catches up to her heart.
Chapter 40
Korie
“You no-good, lying bastard!” I storm into Rhett’s room with fire rushing through my veins and throw the paper I just found lying next to the coffee pot at his chest. I have no doubt the bitch left it there for me to find.
The surprise on his face when he looks at the article is unmistakable. So is his guilt.
“How could you?” I swipe my hand along the top of the dresser in a rage, sending all of its contents crashing to the floor.
“Stop.” He lets the newspaper drop and charges across the room. “Would you stop throwing things and just give me a second to explain?” After a brief struggle, he grips me by the wrists, pulling me inches from his face. His guilt-ridden eyes are wild and wet with mounting tears. It’s almost enough for me to believe whatever bullshit excuse he has for this picture...this picture that’s just shattered my fucking soul. Because I want more than anything for there to be a logical explanation. For him to give me any reason that would make it acceptable to stay. But I’m also not so naive that I don’t trust what I can see clearly with my own eyes.
“Explain?” I scoff. “You actually think there’s something to explain?”
“I know…Look, I know this looks bad, but it’s not what you think.” There’s a desperation in his voice I’ve never heard. Maybe he meant what he said last night, but even if he did, it’s not enough. If what he felt for me wasn’t enough to keep him faithful, then he can rot with his feelings.
I shrug out of his hold, my hands clutching my chest, trying to squeeze away the throbbing ache where my heart once beat. “Not what I think?” I snatch the paper up off of the floor. “So, you’re going to tell me this isn’t you lying naked in your bed?” I screech, my mind drifting to the many times we made love, tangled up in those same sheets. Nausea pools in my stomach when my eyes roam to the disheveled bed where he professed his love for me just last night.
Oh God, I’m going to be sick.
“Yes, but...”
“And this,” I say, jabbing my finger at the naked brunette draped across his chest. “This isn’t Anika?”
“Fuck.” His hands knot in his hair and he pulls, releasing a feral growl, as he paces back and forth in front of me. His fist crashes through the drywall, and I flinch, stumbling back toward the door.
“I trusted you, Rhett.”
“It was before we ever met.” That’s his excuse?
I don’t bring up the night I asked him if they’d ever slept together on the boat, because it won’t change a thing.
He’ll still be a fraud, and I’m still a fool.
I nod, as a torrent of tears stream down my cheeks. “Maybe, but this one—” I point to the photo beside it. The photo where she’s in his arms, her lips not an inch from his on the dance floor of some club. The date stamped in the lower left corner. “This was taken two months ago, while we were together.”
“We were dancing. That’s all. I swear to you that nothing else happened. We had just finished the album and gone out to celebrate. Ask Nick if you don’t believe me. We were all there.” His hands are on my shoulders. His face crumbling. “Baby, please believe me.”
“There is no possible explanation,” I say, standing my ground. “No excuse for you to have a woman you’ve been intimate with in your arms, with her lips a breath away from yours, dancing or otherwise.”
He starts to speak, and the anger blistering inside of me takes control. My hand flies straight for his face. Immediately I hate myself for striking him, but not as much as I hate what I’ve allowed this man to do to me. Because now I know without a doubt that I’ve fallen head over heels in love with a liar. A cheat.
He’s no better than my father, and I’m as reckless as my mother.
Rhett stares at me with his hands balled at his sides. He sucks his lips to his teeth, and I watch his tongue glide across the inside of the cheek where I’ve just hit him. “Feel better?” he asks.
I swallow hard, locking eyes with the man who I know will haunt my heart until my dying day, and I give him honesty he doesn’t deserve. “No.” With the same hand that just struck him, I reach for his face, tenderly gliding my thumb back and forth over the heated flesh, every par
t of me fighting the urge to fall into his arms. To seek comfort in the man who’s just destroyed me.
A tear slips out from the corner of his eye, landing on my palm. I pull back, staring at the warm droplet. I swirl my thumb in it, until it’s no more, gone like whatever this was between us.
Without another word, I turn on my heels and walk away.
I’m at the gate, waiting for a flight home when a familiar face—angry, hurt, and filled with concern—appears crouched in front of me. Raven lowers my hands from my eyes, sees my tears, and instantly throws her arms around me.
“Oh, Kore…I was ready to kick your ass for leaving without me, but I can see someone else has gotten to you first.” She smooths the hair that’s sticking to my wet face. “What the hell happened? Why aren’t you answering your phone?”
“I turned it off,” I say, retrieving the folded-up article where it’s tucked beneath my thigh on the seat beside me. I don’t know why I took it with me. I guess maybe I need the visual reminder for why I’m running against the tide—running from the only place my heart wants to be. “He wouldn’t stop calling.”
Leaving feels wrong, but staying…well, that would be worse.
“What the fuck?” Raven’s face contorts with anger. It was my initial reaction too, but now…now, I’m just filled with the overwhelming feelings of betrayal and heartbreak. Consumed by a sadness I could never have imagined possible.
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