Ivory White : A House of Misfits Standalone

by Cambria Hebert

  44

  Neo

  * * *

  “Neo!” That gasp could only come from one princess. “What in the world are you doing?”

  Still keeping hold of the bodyguard, I glanced up. “These are your bodyguards?” I reproached, disgust in my tone. “Where did you find them? Mary’s School of Dance?”

  Ivory rushed out into the hall, smacking my arm. “Let go of him! How dare you?”

  “Ma’am.” The bodyguard pinned to the floor glanced over his shoulder. “Go inside. We have this handled.”

  Glancing across the hall, she saw her other bodyguard slumped on the ground, rubbing his head.

  Her eyes widened, and my heart skipped a beat. How could I have missed blue eyes this much in only one day?

  “Did you do that?” she demanded, pointing to the downed man.

  “He’s not unconscious,” I refuted.

  A rude sound was released, and she smacked me again, then grabbed my arm, forcing me to let go of the guard. “Get off him!”

  I stepped back, releasing the man dressed in a penguin suit, watching as he stuffed the black earpiece back in his ear.

  “Requesting backup.” He spoke into his jacket.

  Planting her hands on her narrow hips, Ivory glared. “What in the world are you doing?”

  The tie on her robe came loose, and the sides fell open. All of her creamy white thigh was suddenly on display and so were her collarbones and pale chest.

  “What in the hell are you wearing?” I demanded, scowling.

  “My nightgown,” she said as if it were obvious.

  “Nightgown, my ass,” I muttered, stomping forward to take her hand, pulling her toward the wide-open door of her apartment. “I’ve seen Victoria’s Secret models wear more.”

  “I would never wear Victoria’s Secret.” She sniffed.

  A hard hand slapped down on my shoulder, yanking me back, and because I was gripping Ivory, she fell back too.

  Shaking off the inept guard, I caught her around the waist, using my body as a shield.

  “You’re fired.” I snarled at the men.

  “You can’t fire them!” Ivory announced, straightening.

  Reaching around, I pulled her robe closed. I mean, it might as well have been see-through, so I glared at the men. “Eyes up, mates.”

  “They are perfectly respectable gentlemen.” Ivory defended them.

  “They’re really good at taking an ass-whipping too!”

  Down the hall, the exclusive elevator dinged, and several more security guards looking exactly like the two already here burst forward.

  “Good heavens,” Ivory muttered wearily, pressing a hand to her forehead. I noticed her injured finger was newly bandaged in a discrete yet very effective style.

  “Let’s go.” A gruff man grabbed my arm, yanking me back.

  I didn’t fight because for the first time, I realized how tired she looked. How her eyes were ringed with red.

  “Wait!” Ivory gasped, reaching out a hand to stop them from hauling me from the building.

  “Ma’am, this man was trying to gain access to your home. He assaulted two of your bodyguards.”

  Ivory pinned me with a serious look. “Apologize.”

  “What?” My mouth fell open. “No way.”

  “Fine. I’m going to bed.” She turned, her tiny frame engulfed by the large casing of her front door.

  “Fine,” I bit out.

  Ivory turned, as did all of the security guards.

  When I said nothing, Ivory made a sound, and I sighed.

  “I’m sorry I beat you up and almost knocked you out,” I mumbled to the two men.

  “And?” Ivory pressed.

  “And what?” I whined.

  “Next time, you will use your words and not your fists.”

  “I’m not five.”

  Ivory pursed her lips, straightening, and that austere air wrapped around her.

  I repeated what she told me to say.

  “Let go,” Ivory told the guard holding me.

  “Ma’am?”

  “I know him. Let go.”

  “We advise against allowing anyone inside—”

  “The last time I checked, this was my penthouse and I was employing you,” she said coolly.

  All the men straightened and agreed.

  “I don’t want to be disturbed the rest of the night. I’m tired.”

  “Of course, Ms. White.”

  Ivory went inside, disappearing, and I stood there wondering what to do. A moment later, her head peeked around the door. “Are you coming?”

  I raced inside, not having to be told twice. After she closed and locked the door, she turned, leaning against the wood. Her robe was falling open again, a total distraction.

  “What are you doing here, Neo?” Her voice was whisper soft, eyes guarded.

  “I didn’t like the way we left things.”

  Pushing off the door, she started to walk away. “You seemed pretty glad to get rid of me.”

  She was utterly capable of being aloof and cold. I could see how this behavior worked in her favor probably all the time.

  Not tonight.

  Not with me.

  I’d experienced the warmth beneath the surface. I knew the innate kindness at her core.

  Her body spun when I grabbed her wrist and tugged, breath rushing out the second she collided into my chest. She smelled good. Expensive, unique. Mine.

  “I lied.”

  Fusing our lips, I denied any chance we could keep speaking and ruin it all. I didn’t trust my mind or words, but it seemed my heart knew exactly what to say.

  All day, I drowned in regret. All day, I kept myself from running after her. However, when the sun bid the day good night, the darkness somehow concealed all the reasons I’d let her go.

  The open-mouth kiss went on, Ivory’s lithe body pulled tightly against mine. Our lips were slick with arousal. Hunger dripped off the tip of my tongue. She must have tasted it because she opened even more, inviting me to search for what I craved.

  Stroking against her again and again, I nearly purred with deep pleasure whenever her tongue would slightly retreat, forcing mine to give chase and pull her back again.

  I devoured her until I couldn’t think straight, until nothing else mattered but the connection we’d forged in such a short time. The interval at which my heart beat made me feel like I might explode.

  Thump-thump-thump-thump. T-thump. Pause. T-thump. Thump-thump-thump-thump.

  The smacking of our separating lips echoed overhead when we finally parted, but my hands stayed clamped around her hips, keeping her plastered to my front.

  Gasping for air, her head falling back, she gazed up with a heavy stare. The usual bright blue was deeper and far less noticeable because of her blown-out pupils. The rose-red lips were still red as ever but swollen and quivering.

  Pressing a kiss to the corner of her mouth, I continued, peppering more kisses along her jaw. Ivory tilted her head back, revealing the column of her graceful neck.

  Burying my face into the smooth skin, I licked and sucked, enjoying every single little gasp and moan falling from her lips. Reaching her collarbone, I nudged the black silk with my nose, but it didn’t grant as much access as I wanted.

  With a rough sound, I wrenched back, leaving Ivory to sway unsteadily on her feet. It only took a moment to nearly rip the robe off her body, the unwanted silk pooling around her bare feet like she was standing in some sort of enchanted puddle.

  “Up,” I demanded, my voice foreign to my own ears, then lifted, her body wrapping around mine like it knew exactly where it belonged.

  With her in my arms, legs wrapped around my waist, I yanked away the thin strap of the nightgown and attacked all of her velvety fair skin.

  Like some sort of siren, she gasped and arched, her head falling back but every other part of her pushing close.

  As I gripped her shoulder and ass, my mouth went right to one of her offered globes. Ivory
’s breathy gasp tightened my cock the second my wet mouth surrounded her erect nipple, dampening the satin and sucking deep.

  The room buzzed around us as I altered between flicking my tongue over the hard pebble and nipping softly with my teeth.

  “Neo,” she half moaned, half whined.

  Lifting my head, I placed a gentle kiss at the center of her throat. “Where’s the bedroom, princess?”

  She pointed, and I swiveled around to follow the direction. She slumped forward, resting her cheek on my shoulder, her arms tucked between our bodies so her fingers could twist in my shirt.

  Tenderness welled up inside me, mixing with the hammering need to claim her and producing some kind of intoxicating cocktail.

  Her bedroom was huge and probably too fancy for my tastes, but it was also dark and I was too occupied to care what it looked like. The giant bed in the center of the room practically glowed with the pristine white bedding it was made with, beckoning me with its purity, challenging me to taint it.

  As I moved her to the bed, her arms and legs tightened around me, clinging as though she were afraid I might disappear.

  “I’m right here.” I soothed, tenderness overcoming my burning need because I couldn’t bear the thought of her being afraid.

  Reassured, she let me sit her on the foot of the bed. My heart tumbled over when I saw just how small she looked practically swallowed up by the voluminous, fluffy bed. Her legs were so short they didn’t even try to touch the floor, and her two bare feet curled in on each other, making her look like some kind of fairy.

  “You make me ache,” I confessed, the words actually stinging my throat.

  Her head bobbed, silently saying she understood, and when our eyes connected in the dim light, I knew it was true. The very ache I felt bruising my heart was mirrored in her gaze.

  The satin of her gown was cool and slippery when my fingertips grasped the hem, clinging to every curve and swell of her body.

  “Don’t show yourself to anyone else dressed like this ever again,” I demanded, jealousy making me seethe.

  The only reply I received was the lifting of her arms, a quiet invitation. The whispering of the fabric made the base of my skin tingle when I pulled it over her head, tossing it away.

  She wore nothing at all underneath that dark silk. Ivory’s skin was completely bare, glistening under the moonlight the way freshly fallen snow looked on an untouched field. I knew she was nervous by the way her fingers dug into the blanket at her sides, but she sat calmly and unashamed, allowing me to stare.

  Kicking off my shoes, I nudged closer, dropping to my knees. Our breathing was heavy, the tension in the room so thick I could likely scoop it out of the air and hold it in my hands.

  Her knees brushed my chest when I leaned even closer, the rapid rising and falling of her breasts hypnotic. I didn’t think. I couldn’t. Instead, relying on instinct, I did what seemed more natural to me than breathing.

  Leaning in, I pressed a kiss over her heart.

  Her skin was cool and smooth against my burning lips, but underneath, I discovered her heart beat as erratically as mine.

  My eyes slipped closed. I left my mouth upon her skin, lingering there, trying to catch my breath.

  Just moments ago, I’d been desperate to get inside her, desperate to fill this insatiable desire only she had ever made me feel.

  And now I had her naked on a bed made of clouds. Instead of pounding into her until bliss was all I knew, I bowed at her feet. I kissed her chest, trying to reach deep into her heart.

  It scared me. Scared me so deep that I began to pull away.

  Small hands caught me, and though her grip was delicate, it was as if I were chained in place. Her eyes sought mine, but I refused to share my stare, choosing instead to gaze at the floor.

  A gentle caress started at the top of my head and gently dragged down, brushing through my hair and making my scalp explode with thousands of tingles. My eyes slid closed when she grasped my ear, massaging it between two fingers and then giving the lobe a gentle tug.

  Everything beneath my skin was buzzing, creating a fog I couldn’t possibly think around.

  Hands slipped under the flannel I wore, pushing it down my shoulders and back. I watched the fabric fall to bunch around my waist.

  I glanced up.

  I surrendered.

  The flannel disappeared somewhere, as did my shirt, jeans, and boxers. My skin wasn’t flawless like hers. It didn’t inspire poetry or even a second look. But she stared as if it did. She studied me as if I were a painting and she wanted to take in every last brushstroke.

  Discovering I wasn’t as brave as her, I felt a flush rising up the back of my neck, creeping toward my ears, and leaving me to feel like I was on fire.

  My hands landed on either side of her, and we both moved back, sliding up the bed as one even though we didn’t touch. The bed enveloped her in a way that made me jealous, cradling her body in a way only I was meant to do.

  My possessive growl filled the space. I grabbed her and rolled until I was the bed she lay on.

  “Agh…” She gasped the second our bodies melted together. Skin to skin, chest to chest.

  She was soft and smooth, whereas I was coarse and scarred.

  With her enclosed in my hold, one of my thighs pushed between hers.

  This time it was me who gasped when I felt the evidence of her obvious desire right against my thigh. I breathed in even as I caught her lips again, cradling the back of her head and kissing until her entire body went limp against mine.

  Pulling back, I kissed over her shoulder, scraping my teeth along her skin, leaving a trail to prove I’d been there.

  Pushing my thigh harder into her core, I hear her loud gasp cut off by her biting at my chest. Moaning, I pushed her head closer, encouraging her to continue as I rocked my thigh against her already wet center.

  Need hammered through me, boiling my blood and overruling everything else. Soon, we were rocking together, bodies seeking more as our lips kissed everything they could reach.

  When it became too much, she whined, sticking out her swollen lip in a pout.

  Rolling, I pinned her into the mattress, looming over her so I was all she could see.

  Her legs parted automatically, and I settled between them. Gentle fingers whisked down my sides, playing over my back and reaching down to flirt with my bare ass.

  “Tell me you want this,” I said, holding on to what very little restraint I had.

  She nodded.

  Placing a finger beneath her chin, I forced her stare up. “Say it, princess.”

  “I want you.”

  The separation I held between our bodies withered, my throbbing, erect rod nestled against her crotch.

  We gasped, stilling at the contact and then moving to rub together. I shuddered, feeling her wet warmth coat my shaft, and nearly came right there.

  No. You won’t come until you are enveloped in her slick heat.

  Forcing myself up, I reached between us, dipping two fingers into her welcoming core. Her body arched up in pleasure before collapsing back down.

  I wanted to play longer. I wanted to taste her flavor, but I was also impatient, my cock slick with pre-cum and my hands shaking with need.

  Ivory reached for me when my fingers slipped free, and I came over her instantly, thrusting deep with no warning in one long push.

  Our moans mingled, floating up to the ceiling, and I took a moment to nuzzle her neck before pulling back to move.

  Pulling out until just the swollen tip was left inside her, I plunged deep again, watching her mouth fall open but no sound come out.

  Her hands groped for me, clutching and then patting, asking me for more.

  I obliged, setting a pace that maybe was too vigorous, but the way she moaned my name said otherwise.

  We fell into a rhythm, our bodies moving in mutual pleasure, a mix of sweaty skin, sloppy kisses, and satisfied moans.

  I wanted to stay in her forever, but
her tight heat held me just right and the familiar tingle in my lower belly told me my climax was drawing near.

  Grasping a pillow from nearby, I jammed it beneath her hips, tilting her up for more access. The second my tip hit against a bundle of rough nerves deep inside her, she nearly came undone.

  Smiling, I did it again. And again.

  “Neo…” Her voice quaked, unfocused eyes searching for mine.

  Cupping her cheek with one hand, I let her find me. “Let go, sweetheart. It’s okay.”

  Thrusting deep, I rocked against her sensitive spot, and beneath me, Ivory came unraveled.

  What a beautiful mess she was with her head thrown back, neck exposed, and chest flushed. Her eyes closed, mouth open soundlessly. Just the vision she made, the feel of her body clenching around me, shoved me over the edge.

  I came so hard that spots swam before my eyes, and a dry shout filled the quiet room. Even after I came back from wherever I’d spiraled off to, my cock still quivered inside her, twitching from shock, my entire body satiated and heavy.

  Rolling away, I drew in a lungful of air and sighed.

  Ivory shifted, and I turned my head, meeting her shuttered gaze. Rolling onto my side, we faced each other, long black strands of hair stuck to her damp cheek.

  When I pushed them away, she refused to meet my stare.

  “Are you shy?” I whispered, secretly reveling in how cute she was.

  “Of course not,” she insisted, looking everywhere but at me. Her cheeks were pink, her lips thoroughly kissed.

  “Then look at me.” I beckoned.

  She kept her eyes averted. “Well, maybe a little.”

  A warm chuckle bubbled from deep within as I pulled her close. Ivory burrowed into my chest to hide, and I allowed it because I really wanted to keep her in my arms.

  Doubt started to prickle at the absolute bliss coursing through my veins, making me pause. “I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

  The concern in my tone made her look up. Her eyes were still slightly blissed out, but she seemed more coherent than before. “Oh no! You didn’t. I—”

  Despite her refusal, more worry assailed me. “You what?”

  She ducked into my chest again, but this time, I pulled her back. “Tell me.”