by Lara Norman
“So much work. We’ve picked up lately because Stu’s closed. They used to be our competition.” He flagged down a waitress and they ordered drinks.
“It’s been crazy at school. It always is at the beginning of the year. Now that everyone remembers what the routine is like and the first few awkward days are over, things are smoothing out.” She thanked the waitress when she came back with her beer.
“Is that what you would normally drink?” He gestured to her pilsner glass.
“I like a variety. I drink whiskey, wine, beer, mixed drinks. I like to order based on my mood.” She took a sip and smiled at him as he raised a brow.
“So there are layers to you. Interesting.”
Alex felt like he wanted to say more but he decided against it. It would be too much like dating, she supposed. Would she ever get the chance to tell him about her Italian mother or her exuberant and large extended family? Would she introduce him to Carmela and Aunt Francesca? Would he meet Hailey, ever pick her up from the school for a date, surprise her at work with flowers or lunch?
The answer was no. And for all the fun they had been having, and the fact that Alex was the one to get crazy to begin with, it hurt every time she thought about it. She wished she’d realized before that first rainy day that she was setting herself up for failure.
“What are you thinking so hard about over there?”
Startled out of her thoughts, Alex met Grant’s gaze from across the table and tried to smile. “I was thinking of the layers you mentioned.”
“Okay.” Grant frowned. He might not be the most astute person in the room at any given moment, but he understood that she wasn’t happy about something. Most likely something to do with him. “What did I do?”
Her smile fell. “It’s nothing. I agreed to this, so I’m not complaining. I just realized that I missed you and here we are talking about nothing in particular instead of having fun.”
“Oh, it’s fun you want?”
He stood and held out his hand. She took it and let him lead her to the pool tables near the back. There were several people playing, and they had to wait their turn. While they waited they each had another drink, ensuring that Alex at least was much more loose and less worried about things like the future. She was looking forward to playing with Grant, and she was surprised when the two men that finished asked if they wanted to play against them rather than just giving up the table.
“To make it interesting, we’ll even give you a handicap for the girl.”
Grant sneered at the blond-haired douche that insulted Alex. “Sounds great, but you’re going to regret saying that.”
Alex wondered why he was so confident when he’d never seen her play before. “Grant, are you sure you want to play for money?”
The blond one grinned. “We’ll up the ante if you think you’re so great.”
Alex looked into Grant’s eyes, wishing she could mentally project her thoughts to him. He nodded and agreed to up the pot. Alex swallowed thickly at the amount of money they were now playing for and looked nervously at the second guy. He smiled at her and showed her he was missing a front tooth. “Hey, sweet cheeks.”
Alex was careful to turn away before she rolled her eyes.
She would have preferred not to go first, but since they were insisting she needed the handicap, she figured she’d better play for keeps straight off the bat. She let Grant set up the table and never said a word to anyone while she chose her cue. She busied herself with chalking up the tip while the two men trashed talked every move Grant made. He ignored them, bless him, but she’d had about enough out of them and was more than ready to shut them up.
When she faced the table and took her stance, no one had anything to say. When she broke and sent the first ball sailing into a pocket, all three men stood up straighter. When she continued to hit ball after ball and sink them exactly where she aimed, she noted that toothless was staring open-mouthed. She sank the last available ball and straightened to eye the eight ball.
Alex pointed her cue and murmured about the corner pocket. Grant held his breath, but he should have known by then that she had that shit covered.
The blond guy counted out the money they’d just lost and slapped it on the far edge of the table. “Funny, guys. Real funny.”
“That’s what you get for assuming my girl can’t play pool,” Grant responded.
Alex couldn’t help the huge grin that nearly split her face. “You had no idea I could play. Why did you agree to wager?”
“I didn’t like the way he was talking about you. I wanted you to know I had confidence in you.” He kissed her hard. “And if you’d sucked, I’m a decent shot.”
“I was trying so hard to tell you I know what I’m doing without saying it out loud.” She looked over at the money fluttering in the draft from the air conditioning. “Better grab your winnings, sweet cheeks.”
He laughed at her and went to pick up the crumpled bills. “Here, you deserve it. I didn’t even get to play.”
“How about we keep score the next time and winner takes all,” she suggested. He didn’t seem like his manly ego was bruised, but she could at least offer.
“As long as you don’t hold back on me.”
“Deal.”
They played an entire game, and Alex found that the more time that passed, the more she was turned on by everything he did. He was sure in his movements, and his muscles rippled when he lined up and leaned into his shots. She stared at his ass in his jeans, the way his t-shirt stretched over his broad shoulders, and the glint he got in his eye as he winked at her. She was practically drooling by the time they were done.
“I can’t take the money,” she protested as he held it out to her.
“Yes, you can. You won it fairly, twice.” He shoved the wad of cash in her front pocket and she shivered at the contact that was so close to where she needed him.
“Grant,” she said desperately.
He seemed to understand exactly what she meant. “Come on.”
She didn’t say anything as he led her to the parking lot. They were heading straight to his bike, and Alex felt another thrill at the thought of riding on the powerful machine with her arms wrapped around Grant and the engine rumbling underneath her.
“You ever ridden?”
She blinked up at him and slowly nodded. “College boyfriend.”
He shrugged. “Remember the rules?”
“Keep my feet on the pegs, don’t let go of you, and lean when you lean.”
“Good girl.” He kissed her forehead and plopped a helmet on her head. She hurried to strap it on, already feeling high before they even got on the motorcycle.
He easily swung his leg over the seat and Alex bit back a moan. He was effortlessly sexy and graceful for such a large man. Bracing her hand on his shoulder, she swung her leg over and sat behind him. She was more than happy to slide up behind him and rest the front of her thighs against the backs of his. Once she had her arms securely around him, he started up the bike and she trembled at the power underneath her.
Grant had stopped at two drinks, and she was glad that he had. She was a little tipsy when they played the first round of pool an hour ago, but she felt so clear-headed as soon as they were in motion. The night air was still humid, but the breeze they created as they moved was fresh on her cheeks. Feeling amorous, she rested her head on his back and closed her eyes as she traced her fingers up under the edge of his shirt. His stomach muscles contracted as she stroked them softly, and she felt him groan when she couldn’t hear it for the noise of the machine under them. She found the button of his jeans and worked it free, teasing the flesh she uncovered with that move. His back rose and fell sharply under her cheek.
She wasn’t so much surprised as she was pleased when he pulled over and turned the bike off. She opened her eyes and looked around her at the darkness. They were under an overpass, and no cars came or went down the narrow road. In the sudden silence, Alex could hear her own heartbeat.
She sat still when he stood and looked up at him with innocence all over her face. “I needed to touch you.”
“Oh, believe me, Alex, I need to touch you, too.”
He had the helmet off her head and tossed to the ground before she could say another word. She stood with his help, climbing off the bike and standing in front of him. In her heels, she was only a few inches shorter than him, and she was thankful for that fact as she took his face in her hands and kissed him. His mouth opened under hers and she wasted no time snaking her tongue alongside his. He groaned and gripped her ass, lifting her slightly. Her breath caught as she felt her core pressed into his length.
“Good God, Grant. I’m going to combust.”
“Why did you wear jeans?” he complained as he set her down and tugged at her waistband.
“Beats the fuck outta me.”
Grant got her pants unfastened and tried to get his hand down them. “You fucking paint these on?”
She laughed at his disgruntlement. “Here.”
Alex yanked on the skinny jeans until she had them down past her thighs, but before she could pull them all the way off, he had his hands in her panties and his fingers in her pussy.
“Jesus.” She gripped his upper arms for support as he moved his digits relentlessly inside her.
“One of these goddamn days I’m going to taste you right here, Alex.”
That was the hottest thing he’d ever said to her, and she felt her climax rushing toward her. One pass of her clit with his thumb and she was right there. “Ohhh.”
“That’s right, baby, come on my fingers. Come for me, Alex.”
Her knees buckled under the force of the tremors that wracked through her entire body. She saw pinpoints of light behind her eyelids and he had to hold her up so she wouldn’t fall.
“God, I need to be inside you.” He said the words into the skin of her neck as he bit and sucked and she cried out. She was not even concerned about fucking him right there on the asphalt after he’d gotten her so worked up.
“I need you to fill me, Grant. Please.”
“You’re going to have to take those off,” he said with a gesture at her jeans.
She looked around them one more time to assure herself that nobody was around. Looking at the bits of gravel and other unidentifiable shit on the ground, she wondered what the hell they were going to do. Grant answered her unspoken question when he sat on his bike and pulled his cock free. That was much better. She left her shoes on, working her jeans and underwear off and holding them awkwardly in her hands.
“Here.” He opened the saddlebag, and she dropped her stuff down in it. Looking into his expectant face, Alex faced Grant and swung her leg over the seat.
The flash of her pussy that move showcased was enough to send him overboard. “Fuck, Alex, you’re so wet.”
They shifted and maneuvered, and she hoped to God his bike was steady enough to hold them. She found the footrests and lifted herself to sit in his lap.
“This is turning into our favorite position,” she joked as she took him in her hand to guide him inside her.
“My favorite position”—he grunted when she was fully lowered onto his cock—“would be you laid out on my bed spread eagle.” She moved over him and he struggled to speak. “I would feast on your pretty pink pussy until you came so hard on my tongue that the neighbors could hear you.”
Her entire body was lit by the heat of a thousand fires. His words and the way she rose and fell over him sent her floating on wave after wave of pleasure.
“After that, I would cover your body with mine and fuck you into the mattress.” He was holding the handlebars for balance, but he lowered his head to kiss along the column of her throat. “You would leave a dent in the damn thing by the time I was finished with you.”
She wanted the picture he was painting for her with his words. She wanted to be completely naked with him, in his home, in his bed, with him on top. She wanted his strength to dominate her until she felt soft and sexy. She was not exactly a skinny girl, and she’d never found a man to make her feel small beside him. She realized she’d been looking in the wrong direction all along. Academic types tended to not be interested in bodybuilding, or motorcycles, or bar pool. She’d found the perfect guy for her, and she was fucking him in the middle of nowhere on his Harley instead of in his bed.
“Babe?” Grant was perplexed. He was pretty sure he’d been turning her on with his words, but then she stopped moving.
Alex didn’t look into his eyes but she picked the pace back up and held him close to her. She held onto him as though her life depended on it.
Grant’s eyes rolled back in his head. This was only one of the many ways he wanted her on his bike, but it was the most logical. Alex was exactly what he needed, what he wanted, and he was so close to blowing his load.
“Alex.” That was all he said before he came.
She wanted to go back to the feeling of exquisite pleasure he gave her ten minutes ago. She wanted to rewind to the way she was right on the surface of a bursting bubble as he brought her to orgasm. She had turned something that should have been a fun, casual encounter into something big. Something huge.
More than he wanted.
She had promised herself she wouldn’t do this. She swore she was ready for what he wanted, that she would take it slow and not pressure him. They were only seeing each other, after all, and that was the same as what she was after.
Except that it wasn’t. She wanted to cuddle up with him on her couch and tell him about her day. She wanted to meet his sister and hear about the kind of person he was growing up. She was getting emotionally involved when he wasn’t.
And that could only lead to disaster.
Chapter 10
Alex threw herself into work. She tried to pretend she wasn’t breaking her own heart, but she was failing at it. She couldn’t tell Grant how she was feeling, or he might not want to see her again. She was walking a tightrope, and she was the only one that was going to get hurt when she fell off. The crash was inevitable, and it set her on edge. She was avoiding answering Carmela’s calls, and she hadn’t spent her lunch break with Hailey the way she normally would. She worked hard to be a good teacher, to see to her students’ needs and not fail them. It wasn’t just because she cared about her job and wanted to be there for them. It was the only logical excuse she could give everyone for why she was acting differently: she was trying to be a better teacher.
Carmela wasn’t buying it, and she tracked Alex down to tell her so. “What the hell did I tell you about twisting yourself up inside for a man?”
They were standing in the empty classroom on Alex’s planning period. Carmela had to get someone to cover the front desk so she could give her cousin a verbal beat down.
“To not to.” Alex didn’t look up from the papers she was grading.
“And did you listen? Hell no.” Carmela flung her arms in the air in exasperation. “What is the deal with him?”
“He doesn’t want a relationship.”
“Fuck that.” Carmela leaned on the desk, pissed that Alex was avoiding her. “Hey, I’m talking to you.” Alex looked up finally, and Carmela blanched at the expression on her face. “Ah, hell.”
Alex shook her head. “Don’t say it.”
“You’re in love with him.”
“I said don’t say it, dammit.” She blinked back the tears that threatened to spill.
“Well, someone has to! Look what it’s done to you!” Carmela paced and Alex went back to her papers. “Why aren’t you moving on from this hot mess?”
“Because having any part of him is better than having none of him,” Alex answered.
“Bull fucking shit. Because you think he’ll change his mind. Because you think you can change his mind, change him, into what you want.” She stopped in front of her desk again. “You’re smarter than that.”
Alex stood up finally, pissed at her cousin for hitting the mark. “I agreed to his terms, Carm. I said I was up for fun and no commitment. I was the idiot that started this with a blow job in public and then escalated it by fucking him in a freaking bathroom at a bar. What am I supposed to do, tell him I want to change things up now that he’s interested? Bait and switch?”
Carmela breathed in deeply, letting it out on a sigh. “I don’t know, but avoiding the world isn’t going to fix things, either.”
“I’m not avoiding the world. We’re going to the movies this weekend. I’m here every day, doing my job, when all I want is to curl up in bed and never get out of it.” She blinked back tears again. “I’m fine.”