by Quinn, Taryn
I groaned, my skin oversensitive.
He seemed to understand without me telling him that it was too much. He rolled me over onto my belly and straddled me.
“Caleb…”
“Shh.” He dragged the cotton over my back and gently wiped me down before pressing a light kiss between my shoulder blades. “Let me cook you breakfast.”
“Breakfast?”
“It’s my specialty.”
I stacked my arms under my head. “I bet it is.”
“It’s the least I can do.”
“It’s not porridge, is it?”
He laughed. “No. That Goldilocks thing is going to be drilled into the ground, isn’t it?”
I grinned. “Yep.”
“Come to my place. You probably don’t have the stuff I need.”
I looked over my shoulder. “Planned this all along, teach?”
“Nah. I’m just really good at one thing, so I always have it on hand.”
“All right.” My stomach growled at the thought. “Obviously, that sounds good. Let me take a shower and I’ll be over.”
He hopped off my bed. “Great.” He swiped his clothes off the floor and headed out.
“Caleb,” I called after him.
He came back in. “Yeah?”
Goddess, he was adorable. His curls were back and shagged around his angular face. And he was unapologetically naked. To be truthful, he should have no qualms about it. He took care of himself and I enjoyed looking at him.
“Put your clothes on. I’m the only one who’s going to see you naked for however long we do this.”
I wasn’t sure what made me say that. Exclusivity wasn’t exactly my style. I didn’t exactly bed hop, but he didn’t owe me anything.
Instead, he gave me a wide smile. “I like the sound of that.”
Then he was gone.
I tugged my pillow under my head—the one that now smelled like a mixture of Caleb and I.
Goddess save me, I liked the sound of it too.
Seven
A recent move was a blessing in disguise. My place was still pristine since I’d cleaned everything before putting my stuff into it. It had been in good shape when I moved in—Forrester was no joke on the classy digs—but it was still a construction zone and a fine layer of dust had been on everything.
I rushed through my apartment, stripping off my cargos as I went. I hadn’t bothered dressing since I was right across from Luna’s place. At least I’d made sure the coast was clear first. I wasn’t sure how Luna felt about letting others know we were getting naked together.
She seemed cool about it, but post-orgasmic bliss was a precarious place. It could go very wrong, very fast.
I tossed my dirty laundry in my basket and rushed into the shower. Being the middle child had made me a pro at the seven-minute shower. Because there was hell to pay if I’d stolen all the hot water before my sister got her chance in the bathroom.
My antibiotics must have been kicking in because my toe barely hurt, but it was still nasty enough to require a Band-Aid. Evidently, the only Band-Aids I had were pink princess ones—thanks, Rhiannon—but it would have to do.
It was too fucking hot since my apartment was front facing, and the sun was blasting in my windows. I knew it would be awesome in the winter, but right now, I was sweating even before I hung up my towel. Lightweight shorts for the win. I brought a T-shirt out with me for after I finished cooking.
I wasn’t a complete animal.
My fridge was severely lacking since the grocery fairies hadn’t arrived overnight, but I did have the fixings for eggs Benedict. I hadn’t been lying about that. My sister had also gifted me with an air fryer as a housewarming gift which left me and my multi-tasking skills at an all-time high.
I was just adding ingredients to my blender for the sauce when there was a knock on my door.
I draped my towel over my shoulder and rushed over, opening without looking who it was. My first mistake.
“I smell bacon,” Lucky said as he came in and shut the door. He slammed a twelve-pack of beer on the counter. “I figured I could—”
“Nope. Out.” I turned down the heat on the eggs poaching. “You gotta go.”
“Why?” Lucky’s face fell. “I was just checking in on you. Figured we could watch some golf.”
“Luna’s coming over for a late breakfast and…well, she’s better than your smelly ass.”
Affronted, Lucky crossed his arms. “I took a shower.”
“Still, I’ll take the wildflower and water-scented Luna over you.”
“Wildflower? Dude. How do you even know what that smells like to name it?”
“Haven’t you ever gone on a picnic or something? Fields of flowers, you know.” God, I sounded crazy.
“No. The only picnic smells I know are grilling burgers and dogs. Maybe some veggies for the chicks.”
I rolled my eyes. “Nice.”
Lucky leaned a hip on the kitchen island. “What the hell is going on? Are you…oh.”
“What?” I hurried back to the stove to save the eggs from being overcooked.
“You moved pretty quick.”
“Moved?” I lifted the pan off the heat, then rushed back over to my hollandaise sauce.
“Not even a week and you’re cooking breakfast? Last night you looked like death warmed over rice.”
“Last night you were drinking enough for three people. How did you even know?”
“I notice stuff.” His voice was cool.
I pulsed the blender so everything mixed evenly. “Look, it was a weird thing, but Luna and I hit it off.” Minus clothes, but I wasn’t mentioning that part. “Now I want to keep impressing her, if you don’t mind.”
“I see how it is.” He grabbed his half case. “Catch ya later.”
“Dammit.” I had to add the melted butter to the sauce before it split. I’d apologize and bring Lucky his favorite beer tomorrow.
Another knock came just as I was pouring the melted butter in. “Come in.”
Hopefully, this time it was the woman I was cooking for and not my brother or dear God, my mother.
Luna peeked her head around the door. Her pale blond hair was pinned up in the puffy pigtails she wore most days. They gave me inappropriate thoughts immediately. There was something about the messy cuteness of them that always made my chest tight.
“Hey. Did I take too long?”
“Not at all. Right on time.”
“Smells amazing.”
I grinned. “I forgot to ask if you were okay with meat.”
“Carnivore to the core.” She slipped inside and closed the door gently and I got a full view of her from the back.
Fuck.
She had on short white denim shorts and the daisy tattoo I’d caught a glimpse of last night was in full view on the back of her thigh. Her shirt was short, showing off a solid two inches of her lightly tanned skin. Something glittered at the small of her back, but then fell down under her shorts as she turned.
The blender pulsed on high and I quickly fumbled for the button to turn it back down.
Luna grinned and came in with a carafe of some sort of juice. “Whatcha making?” She set it down on my kitchen island.
“Uh.” I quickly looked down at my sauce and stopped the blender. It was definitely done. “Eggs Benedict.”
“I’ve never had it.” She shoved her hands in her pockets and I got another flash of that glittery something. A chain around her middle?
Fuck. She was going to kill me.
“Where are your glasses?”
I cleared my throat. “Next to the microwave—left.”
She peered down at what I was making with a raised brow, then went to the microwave and opened a cupboard. She had to go up on her toes and the only reason I kept my damn hands to myself was because I had to get this just right or it would taste like crap.
But Jesus, her ass. I just wanted to crowd all up against her and touch her skin.
She
turned around with two heavy mason jars. “I took you for the cheap glasses from Target kind of guy.”
“First of all, Target is definitely not cheap.”
She giggled. “That’s true.”
“And secondly, that’s because of Ivy. She got me addicted to smoothies and those suckers screw right onto my blender.”
“Oh. Guess I’ll have to try one of those too. Can I help?”
“I’m good. You could grab us some plates though. Other side of the microwave.”
“Got it.” She looked over her shoulder. “Is that just so you can check out my ass again?”
“Definitely.”
She grinned. “I’m enjoying the half naked chef myself. Though aren’t you afraid of bacon splatter?”
“Air fryer.”
“Miracle invention.”
“That’s a fact.” I walked to her and reached around her to put the English muffins in the toaster. My arm coasted along her waist. The shirt she was wearing was as silky as her skin.
She stared up at me, nibbling on her lower lip.
“You’re stunning.”
Her smile spread. “A shower works wonders for the both of us.” She ticked her nail down my belly, making me tighten the abs I actively worked on thanks to a rowing machine at the gym.
Close up, she hadn’t bothered with makeup from what I could tell—women had lots of tricks of the trade there though. But there was something sparkly on her skin, and I swallowed at the large gap in her shirt.
She’d only fastened the bottom two buttons of the very brief top. A trio of gold necklaces hugged her at the neck, then hung a little lower and finally, a triangle of some sort of brown stone literally made an arrow down to her very unencumbered breasts.
I slid my hand across her waist and under the cropped shirt. Her skin was petal soft along her belly and warm where I feathered my thumb under the fullest part of her breast. She stared at my mouth, licking her lips. Her nipples tightened under the silky fabric, raising against the material with every stroke of my thumb.
The toaster popped behind her.
She jumped a little and laughed. “Breakfast is served, I guess.” She slid away from me and went around the island.
I gripped the counter and blew out a slow breath before grabbing the muffins. My cock was trying to break free of my damn shorts.
Slow your roll, son.
I turned to find her climbing on one of the stools that made my island a quickie eating nook. That shirt was going to kill me. Every time she moved, I got a peek of her stupendous breasts.
She trailed her fingertip along the lip of her glass, gold rings glittering from every finger. A few even adorned her fingers at the middle bend so I couldn’t help but stare at them, imagining them curled around my dick again.
I’d never had a woman take me in hand with such confidence. And she’d damn near killed me when she rolled the condom down my length without even a blip of hesitation. She’d known what she wanted, and fuck, I was glad it was me.
When I met her gaze, she gave me another one of those half smiles. Secretive, seductive, and a whole lot of playfulness. I leaned into the emotion. It was a rare post-sex situation where the woman wasn’t looking for something more or to dissect the act.
I forced my shoulders to relax and took this for what it was. Sexy fun with a woman who was endlessly fascinating. And I was not going to fuck it up.
“Hey Siri, play my Sunday playlist.”
She smiled wider as Siri actually followed my first directive, and INXS blasted out of the speakers I’d synced up in my apartment. I did a little shimmy back to the air fryer and was rewarded with one of her warm laughs. Perfectly crisp bacon was ready. And I couldn’t resist popping a piece in my mouth.
I turned with one for her. “Madame.”
She leaned forward and a hint of rosy nipple dragged my attention away, but I managed to resist the urge to hop the counter and have a taste. She opened her mouth for the half broken piece, and I placed it on her tongue like an offering at church.
Her lids lowered as she chewed. “Delicious.”
“Fuck.”
A bit of grease glossed her lip, and she swiped it away with her thumb. “Feed me first.”
“Right.” I plated the eggs over the bacon and buttery English muffin, then the sauce and a sprinkle of parsley on two plates. I fanned out a few strawberries I’d cut up that my sister-in-law had left the other day.
I definitely needed to go grocery shopping if I was going to cook to impress her again. Maybe hit up one of those MasterClass tutorials from the membership my mother had given me for Christmas.
I nodded to the actual table I had set for us.
“Fancy.” She slid off the stool, her bare feet sparkling with more adornments both on her toes and ankles. She was like a pocket of glittery sunshine in my apartment.
I set the plates down and held out a chair for her. Still holding her glass, she went on her tiptoes to give me a quick kiss. “Thanks.”
I swallowed at the quick jerk inside my chest. Not my dick—though that was still more than interested. No, this was a far more dangerous thump. “You’re welcome.”
I sat down next to her and laughed as she lowered her face so she could look at it from the side. “Feels too fancy to eat.”
I reached over and slid my knife through the pile of food to destroy the magazine-worthy display.
She pouted. “If I was the type to take a photo to share with the world, it would have been sharable.”
“And now it’s edible.”
I sliced through my own and popped a bite into my mouth.
She followed suit and made a low moan. “Oh, wow.” Then she dug in and requested another muffin to mop up the rest of the sauce.
We laughed through the meal as I filled her in on the rooftop party. “It definitely wasn’t as fun as I’d hoped.”
She tore off a piece of an English muffin. “You mean when you convinced poor Tabitha to invite you?”
I winced. “Caught that, did you?”
“Maybe.” She took a sip of her juice. “It was inspired to invite the fire department though.”
I rolled my eyes. “Yeah, that was not the plan.”
“Lucky?”
“Guessed it in one.” And because she had a good idea with the extra bread, I returned to the kitchen to make another English muffin and brought out the rest of the sauce.
She took the sauce bowl from me. “This is like crack.”
“I won’t tell you how many calories are in there.”
“Don’t worry, we’ll work it off.” She winked at me, and my dick went back to fully hard.
“You’re not like any woman I’ve ever been with.”
“I do like being an original.”
I leaned over to steal some of the sauce she’d filched.
She twisted until the bowl was out of reach. “Nope.”
“Greedy.”
“You have no idea.”
“Is that right?”
Her laugh slipped away as she flicked open the two buttons that kept her shirt together. “I like getting what I want.”
I gripped the edge of the table when she slid her shirt open to reveal one breast. “Isn’t that every woman?”
She dabbed her fingertip into the sauce and trailed it over her tight nipple. “Maybe. But I bet you haven’t tasted this sauce off all the women you’ve made this for.” She stood as she licked the creamy hollandaise off the pad of her finger. Then she tucked my hair over my ear. “Do you usually make it as a parting gift?”
My gaze fell to her breast. “Sometimes.”
“Is this a one and done, Caleb? It’s okay with me if it is.”
“No. There’s nothing about us that’s one and done, Luna.” I leaned in and flicked my tongue over the salty tip, watching as her bright blue eyes went dark with pleasure. I drew her closer, tucking my hands into the pocket of her shorts to anchor her between my legs.
I used my beard and lips
to caress every square inch of her beautiful breasts. She swayed as I took my time to learn her. To watch her eyes dilate when I nipped a little too hard and then go slumberous as I gentled. All the while she played with my hair until we were both practically purring.
I wanted to take my time with her.
Instead of sprinting for my own orgasm, I wanted to watch her go over again.
She shrugged off the shirt and it pooled at our feet. I slid my hands free from her shorts to unbutton them until they followed suit. She wore a pale pink scrap of panties, but instead of removing them too, I spun her around.
“Christ, you’re beautiful.” I raked my fingers lightly down her smooth back to the lush curve of her ass. The panties were almost not worth wearing. It hid nothing, but accented everything. She rocked lightly to the music, her hips keeping rhythm with the beat.
What I thought had been a single chain was actually a double layer of gold with little pink crystals dangling from the clasp at her hip. I traced the curving line along her lower back then skipped to the lace string of her panties.
I drew my thumb down the cleft of her ass and reached between her thighs. “Are you wet for me again?”
She looked over her shoulder. “Maybe I’m still wet from this morning.”
“Is that so?” I dumped her into my lap.
She yelped out a surprised laugh.
I buried my nose into the stray curls along her ear. “How bendy are you?”
“I do have a stripper pole in my apartment.” She rubbed her ass against my cock. “What do you think?”
I slid my hand around her middle, the chain teasing my forearm as I coasted my two middle fingers down the damp lace between her thighs. “Open wider.”
She draped her knee over each of my thighs. “Like that?”
“Wider.”
“I can’t reach the floor, Caleb.”
“I’ve got you.” I kissed my way over the skin of her shoulder before scraping my beard back along the way I came.
“Sure your chair can handle this? We could go to your bedroom,” she said on a groan as I tucked my fingers under the lace into her silky heat.
“We’ll get there.”
Maybe.
I wasn’t sure about that, especially since she kept grinding on my dick. She was flowing over my fingers and I strove to hear that soft whimper she made right before my name had tumbled out of her mouth. I could manage to hold out against just about anything to hear that again.