Ember (Constant Flame Duet Book 1)

by Christi Whitson

  In spite of his raging libido, some quieter part of his brain registered that Lena's touch brought him no anxiety at all. He’d learned to push through a lot of his phobia over the years, but he still felt sick and anxious when someone touched him. That feeling was completely absent with Lena, however, and he suspected that it had more to do with the fact that it was her rather than any breakthrough he’d made on his own. Still, he couldn’t stop himself from declaring his boundaries, pulling back slightly to look into her eyes.

  “Please don’t touch my lower back,” he whispered, his voice thick with desire.

  Lena looked confused for a brief moment but nodded in acceptance. Instead, her hands moved upward to test the feel of his dark hair, and Owen groaned appreciatively as he bent to taste the sweet flesh at her collarbone. She felt her knees tremble, and apparently, he did as well, because in the next instant she was lying on her bed, gazing up at him.

  “God, you’re incredible,” he breathed, drinking in the sight of her. He trailed kisses over her sternum and across to each rosy peak of her breasts. “Exquisite...” kiss, “stunning...” kiss, “breathtaking…” kiss. “There aren’t enough adjectives to do you justice, Eleanore.”

  Lena felt the wetness between her thighs increase, and her hips arched upward of their own accord. Owen moved steadily down her body until he could feel the heat of her core against his face. She whimpered as she watched him hover there, gazing at her with such intensity that she thought his green eyes might swallow her whole.

  The first touch of his tongue was light, but Lena reacted as though she’d been hit by lighting. She threw her head back with a gasp, letting the pleasure wash over her as he worshipped her with his mouth. When she recovered enough awareness to look at him again, the view had changed slightly, and she was momentarily surprised to see the black outline of a tattoo stretching across his back from one shoulder to the other. She didn’t have the presence of mind to even guess at what it might be, however. Owen was bringing her closer to the edge of her release with every stroke of his talented tongue. He licked her harder and faster with each pass, and when at last he sucked her clit into his mouth, she came almost violently, clutching fistfuls of her bedsheet and crying out as she shuddered against him.

  He gave her no more time to recover than it took for him to retrieve a condom from the pocket of his discarded jeans and roll it over his length. Lena had only a brief glimpse of his rather impressive size before he was burying himself within her, filling her so well that she ached with the pleasure of it. Owen stilled for a moment, allowing her to adjust to his size as he gazed into her blue eyes. They were slightly clouded in her post-orgasmic euphoria, and when he began to move, they almost rolled backward into her head entirely.

  “Owen,” she panted, moving along with him. His eyes never left her, and the tangible connection they’d felt since that first day seemed to intensify. The air was heavy with it.

  “Come for me again, baby,” he urged, savoring the delicious sensation of her heat surrounding him.

  “Come with me,” Lena begged.

  “Not yet. I’m not nearly finished with you.”

  Owen leaned back slightly and hooked his forearms beneath her knees, pushing them upward until they were pressed against her shoulders. It allowed him to push deeper into her, until he felt himself slamming against her cervix with each thrust. Lena had been moaning and whimpering up until that point, but now she was screaming, shouting his name as she shattered around him for a second time.

  He released her legs and flipped her onto her stomach, breathing heavily with the effort to suppress his own orgasm as he lifted her hips. In another instant, Owen had filled her again, and his movements grew with speed and intensity. Lena's face was pressed into the mattress, and she braced herself by holding onto anything within reach while he slammed into her forcefully.

  “Oh God,” she cried, practically sobbing with pleasure as she reached her zenith yet again.

  She wanted to beg him to come, but her mind was too far gone to form the words. When she rocketed over the edge this time, Owen flew with her, erupting inside of her with a sound that was almost feral.

  They lay silent in each other’s arms for a long time before either of them spoke, reeling as they came down from their highs. Owen was nearly stunned beyond words; sex with Lena had been nothing at all like his prior experience. He’d felt cold and empty the first time, not to mention sick with anxiety at the prospect of being shirtless and vulnerable around a girl, but there had been none of that with Lena. He’d never felt more connected to another person in his life, sexually or otherwise. Maybe I’m not so damaged after all, he mused.

  Lena was no less amazed by the experience. She hadn’t had all that many sexual encounters, but she’d at least been under the impression that she’d had good sex before. She’d been wrong. Sex with Owen made the other experiences look like a joke, and he made the other men look like clueless little boys by comparison. And yet, she could tell that Owen wasn’t quite as experienced as she would have expected. There was absolutely nothing lacking about his technique, but she had seen the flicker of uncertainty in his eyes more than once, as though he hadn’t been sure as to how his actions would be received. Lena wondered idly how many women he’d been with before her. Surely someone with his looks and his confidence learned his way around a woman’s body long ago, she speculated.

  “Are you alright?” Owen asked, interrupting her train of thought. “Do you need anything?”

  “I’m perfectly wonderful,” she grinned, stretching against him briefly before resting her cheek on his bicep. She gazed at him for a moment before she spoke again. “Why didn’t you want me to touch your back?”

  Owen’s green eyes seemed to withdraw slightly, and she was about to retract her question when he answered.

  “Let’s just say I didn’t have the best of childhoods. Having my lower back touched makes me very uncomfortable.”

  Lena considered his words for a long moment, wishing she knew how to reply to something like that. She settled for a soft -

  “I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t be,” Owen disagreed. “You didn’t do anything wrong. And I feel more at ease with you than I ever have with anyone else.”

  Lena was surprised at his candor and realized that the feeling went both ways. She’d let her guard down more with him than with anyone else in a very long time. The only person Lena felt equally comfortable with was Logan, and that was a completely different situation. She wasn’t attracted to Logan; she didn’t feel that raw sexual tension around him the way she did with Owen.

  “Me too,” Lena whispered, smiling at him in the relative darkness of her room. The light of the streetlamp filtered softly through her sheer curtains, bathing them in a soft glow not unlike moonlight. Owen kissed her forehead, then the tip of her nose, and finally her lips.

  “I should go,” he sighed. “I’d love to wake up next to you tomorrow morning, but I don’t typically sleep well. I would hate to risk keeping you up all night.”

  Lena felt simultaneously relieved and disappointed as she shrugged into her satin robe and watched him locate his clothing. It was an ambivalence she supposed she should be used to by now when it came to Owen. While she recognized the need for boundaries, she still wished that he would stay.

  “I have to work most of the day tomorrow, but I’ll text you when I’m done?” He phrased the words into a question, and Lena nodded in approval.

  “I’m working too. Be careful driving home.”

  “Always,” Owen smiled, gracing her lips with one last lingering kiss. “Goodnight, Eleanore.”

  Chapter 12

  October 2011

  “Holy hell,” Owen panted as he collapsed yet again onto Lena's bed, his body drenched with sweat. “I need another shower.”

  “No time for that,” she laughed, using her towel from earlier that morning to freshen up. “We’ve both got class in fifteen minutes. Get up!”

  He
groaned but hauled himself off the bed, catching the boxer briefs she tossed in his direction. They’d been dancing this particular ballet for more than a month, pirouetting lightly around the invisible line that separated friends and lovers. Since they were both incredibly busy people, it was often difficult to align their free time, but that hadn’t stopped them from enjoying a round of hair-pulling, earth-shattering sex at every available opportunity. Today wasn’t the first time they’d skipped lunch after their lecture for a quickie at her apartment, which was conveniently located right off campus.

  Lena was as determined as ever to maintain the boundaries they’d set the night of their first date. When they weren’t giving each other orgasms, they interacted merely as friends who shared common interests. They hadn’t so much as held hands in public since that first date, and they had yet to sleep next to one another, in spite of the fact that Lena's bed was where they’d been spending the majority of their time together. Neither of them had been introduced to the other’s friends, and neither had shared much detail about their pasts, though Owen had at least given her a watered-down explanation of his connection with the Langford family. When he’d asked about Lena's mother, she’d replied only that Celia had died when Lena was very young. It had been clear to Owen that the topic was a sensitive one, and he had avoided it from that point forward.

  While Lena seemed perfectly satisfied with the arrangement, Owen was finding it more and more difficult to keep himself detached. He wanted more time with her, in any capacity she would allow, and although the sex was phenomenal, he longed to share other experiences with her. He’d suggested studying for their midterm exams together, asked her on other dates, and even offered to include her in a Sunday brunch with the Langfords. But to his mounting frustration, Lena was intent on keeping him at arm’s length.

  “I’m assuming there won’t be a repeat performance on Thursday?” Owen asked, watching appreciatively as she shimmied into her skinny jeans.

  “No, I think my dad wants to go to lunch after his lecture.”

  “That’s fine. I’m looking forward to hearing him speak. Did you know he was one of the main reasons I signed up for the class in the first place?”

  “No, but that doesn’t surprise me,” Lena laughed. “You should tell him that.”

  “Really? Does that mean you’re going to get me an introduction?” His tone held a hint of disbelief that did not go unnoticed.

  “If you like,” she shrugged. “I doubt you’ll be the only person waiting in line to shake his hand.”

  But I’ll be the only one who also happens to be sleeping with his daughter, Owen smirked inwardly as he gathered his things and followed Lena out of her apartment.

  He didn’t see her again until that Thursday when she slipped into the seat next to his in the auditorium. They shared a brief smile that was full of secrets, and Owen allowed the familiar scent of her to calm him. He couldn’t deny that he was thoroughly excited to hear her father speak, and he was more than a little nervous about being introduced to him after class. Owen had long since mastered the appearance of confidence even when he didn’t truly feel it, but he’d never had the opportunity to meet one of his role models before. The fact that he was Lena's father only made him more anxious.

  Nate Gardner looked exactly as Owen had expected, having seen his image in newspapers and magazines many times over the last few years. What resonated most with Owen, however, was how normal the man seemed now that he saw him in real life. He didn’t look or sound anything like one might expect of a stereotypical billionaire. Instead he looked… well, like someone’s dad. Owen could easily picture Nate manning a barbecue in his backyard or teaching a young Lena how to ride a bicycle without training wheels.

  It wasn’t until he began to speak that Owen saw the true genius beneath Nate's paternal exterior. He had his audience enthralled from start to finish, encouraging their participation by utilizing a sort of town-hall style discussion. He took his listeners on a journey while he relayed the story of how GC came to be and how it had survived the recent recession intact. By the time Nate had finished, Owen was even more amazed by his success.

  As Owen applauded, his eyes shifted in Lena's direction, and he was surprised to find her smiling affectionately at him. His lips curved upward as well, and when she stood to descend the steep auditorium steps, he followed closely behind. There were indeed a large number of students hoping to speak to Nate privately, but the instructor was strongly encouraging them all to move along to their next class. Even so, Lena and Owen had to squeeze through a crowd of overzealous business majors in order to reach him.

  “Lena!” Nate called when he’d spotted her. He reached forward to pull her into a quick hug.

  “Hey, Dad!” Several nearby students watched them, visibly surprised to learn that one of their classmates was Nathaniel Gardner’s daughter. Lena ignored them and returned her father’s embrace before glancing back at Owen. “Dad, this is a friend of mine.”

  “Owen Langford, sir,” he said politely, giving Nate a firm handshake. “It’s an honor to meet you.”

  “Likewise,” Nate nodded in surprise. “I don’t think I’ve met any of Lena's friends since high school. Are you majoring in business as well?”

  “Yes, sir, as well as economics.”

  “Smart man.”

  “You’re actually part of the reason Owen chose this class, Dad,” Lena revealed, smiling at Owen with a mischievous gleam in her eye. He felt his face color slightly but took it in stride.

  “Is that so?”

  “Yes, sir. I very much enjoyed your presentation. I’ve been following your career for several years,” Owen admitted.

  “Well, that’s very flattering, son. Especially since you don’t look older than… what, twenty?”

  “Nineteen, sir, but I’m set to graduate next May.”

  “Remarkable. I assume you’ve got big ambitions for the future then?”

  “Yes, I plan to start my own company,” Owen explained. Nate nodded in approval.

  “Very good. Why don’t you join us for lunch then, Mr. Langford? I wouldn’t mind hearing about your business model, and Lena's friends are always welcome.”

  Owen’s eyes darted to Lena, who looked taken aback by her father’s suggestion. After a moment, however, she shrugged impassively and gave him a quick nod. Owen gratefully accepted the invitation, and a short while later, he was seated at a small round table with Nate and Lena in an upscale restaurant not far from campus. He gulped a little at the prices on the menu, but he kept his expression neutral. I’ll eat canned food for a month if I have to, he decided.

  Lena supposed she should have foreseen Nate's offer to include Owen in their lunch plans. She wasn’t sure she’d have done anything differently, but allowing the two contrasting parts of her life to overlap felt strange. She’d been careful to respect the boundaries she and Owen had agreed to, and this situation came perilously close to crossing them.

  Perhaps even more bizarre was the fact that she spent the majority of the lunch hour feeling like an interloper. Nate and Owen seemed to speak the same language, and the conversation took turns that even she couldn’t follow. It was obvious that the business talk came very naturally for Owen, whereas she’d become fluent only after having had it hammered into her repeatedly over the last nine years. It was also clearer to her than ever before that Owen was truly pursuing his dream, and Lena couldn’t help but feel slightly envious of him. Running GC had always been Nate's dream for her rather than her own, and although it was a sacrifice she was willing to make for her father, she wished she could be as excited for her future as Owen was for his.

  Owen, meanwhile, was all too aware of Lena's pointed silence, and he smiled at her apologetically more than once throughout the meal. Even so, he had difficulty suppressing his enthusiasm. He so rarely had the opportunity to converse with someone like Nate on the things he was passionate about. He’d had a few such discussions with Lena, but Nate was on a completely di
fferent level than either of them. Owen felt inspired as he listened to him speak, and he experienced a surge of energy and optimism that made him feel invincible.

  “Well, I know you two have to head back to campus for your next class,” Nate declared, paying the check before Owen had a chance to object. “I’d love to continue our discussion though, Owen. Why don’t you join us for dinner on Sunday evening? Lena can give you directions.”

  “Uh… Thank you, sir,” Owen said, glancing cautiously across the table at Lena's stunned expression while Nate rambled on.

  “You’re quite welcome, and I think we can dispense with the ‘sir’ stuff, if you don’t mind. I know it comes with the territory, but damn if it doesn’t make me feel old,” he chuckled. “Just ‘Nate' will do fine. We usually eat around six on Sundays. Maybe you two can even ride together.”

  “I’d be honored to join you, s-- Uh, Nate.”

  “Excellent. Well honey,” Nate said, turning to his daughter. “It was good to see you. We’ll all chat some more this weekend, alright?”

  Lena nodded mutely, feeling completely blindsided by the turn of events. She gave her father a quick hug, wondering if he’d even noticed that she’d barely uttered five words throughout the entire meal.

  What the fuck just happened?

  The question echoed in both Lena's and Owen’s mind as they watched Nate disappear behind the tinted backseat windows of a black SUV. His driver and bodyguard nodded to them politely before climbing into the vehicle as well.

  “I need to go,” Lena said aloud, though she didn’t seem to be speaking to anyone in particular. Owen frowned and opened his mouth to ask if she was alright, but she was already walking away from him toward her own vehicle.