“I wanted to say thanks for letting me sit next to you,” he said.
“Uh … what?”
“This seat. Thank you for letting me sit next to you.”
Aubrey did a quick glance around the small bar area and noticed that he had lots of other seating options. “Good pick-up line.”
“I admit, I wasn’t sure that was going to work. I’m rusty at this type of thing.”
She didn’t believe him for a second because a man as good-looking as him certainly had no shortage of dates. Did white lies bother her? Once upon a time maybe, but right now she was riding the high of being free, as well as a drink that had been a tad more rum than coke. If the hottest man in the whole airport decided to flirt with her, then she was going to enjoy it to the fullest. A balm to her wounded heart.
“Thank you for the drink,” she replied, bringing her gaze back to his. Their eyes met, held, and butterflies erupted in her belly.
He smiled, a very slow, sensual lift of his lips that made her panties damp. In an effort not to picture him naked, Aubrey grabbed her new drink and took a large gulp of the cool alcohol.
He held out his hand. “Gordon St. Roth.”
She slid her hand into his and the electric jolt of his touch caused wetness to flood her panties. God, when was the last time she was this turned on? What truly blew her mind was the fact that she’d just met him not ten seconds ago! That only seemed to solidify how pitiful her sex life had been.
“Aubrey,” she said.
He raised an eyebrow. “No last name?”
“Not sure what it’s going to become Monday.”
“Ah. A story.”
“One you wouldn’t believe.”
“I’ve got a few hours to kill.” He smiled, which made her heart thump a little faster. Damn, the man was lethal to her good intentions.
She cocked her head. “So do I. But it seems hardly fair if I tell you a good story and you have none to share. Tit for tat.”
“Since you insist, I can promise to share my every thought with you.”
“And just why would I be interested in knowing your thoughts?”
He leaned a little closer, close enough to whisper in her ear. His warm breath stirred the little hairs resting there, causing a little quiver to run through her body.
“Because they’re all about you.”
Oh my…
She took a deep breath and had to talk down her imminent orgasm. Seriously, she’d had no idea she could be turned on by such sheer magnetism. It had to be endorphins that must have surged when she’d talked to Mr. Parker. Somehow they must have mutated into a chemically induced high that caused her body to crave sex, because that was all she could think about when she looked at Gordon St. Roth.
Down, girl!
Aubrey cleared her throat.
“It seems I thought I was married,” she said, deciding to condense down her entire relationship with Morgan Lennox to a handful of words. How apropos. “But found out this evening I’m not. So here I am, celebrating.”
“In an airport in St. Louis?”
She shrugged and took a deep drink of her new rum and coke, which she realized was a little stronger than the last. “I’m just trying to get home.”
“Me too. But your story, I fear, is too succinct. My curiosity is burning through me. Why did you think you were married? And how did you find that you weren’t?”
“I thought I was married because I had a wedding, in a church with a minister. But tonight I found out the marriage license was never filed. So, ta-da! Free woman.”
“And that doesn’t make you sad?”
She looked down at her drink and stirred the little straw. “Yes and no. Yes, that the past ten years of my life has been flushed down the toilet, but no, when I consider the woman I used to be and all that I gave up. I sit here and I flirt with you, Mr. St. Roth, but the truth is … it’s fleeting courage. If you’d met me tomorrow I wouldn’t be in this green dress with my cleavage popping out, in these heels that make my legs look longer, and you wouldn’t have looked at me twice.”
A gentle finger curled under her chin and brought her face up, until she was forced to look into his eyes.
“I didn’t notice your cleavage at first, or your heels. I saw your beautiful cascade of red hair and the first thought I had was that I’d love to wrap it around my fist as I fucked you.”
She blinked at the revelation, her mouth forming a little “o” of surprise. He chuckled.
“I did promise to tell you what I was thinking.”
All the warnings her mother preached regarding being careful about bad boys and the devil’s temptation rose up because she saw immediately this man was either a crazy sex pervert or a heartbreaker. Even his crude words held so much charm they were dripping with it, but the funny part was that she was eating it up like candy. Maybe her battered self-esteem needed more help than she thought.
“Was that a little too explicit?” he asked, letting go of her chin.
“Yes. But I think I liked it.”
Satisfaction blazed in his eyes. “Liked it enough to find a hotel and kill an hour or two?”
A one-night stand. Wow, she wasn’t sure how to react to that. She’d never, ever, in her wildest dreams thought she would be in the situation of being propositioned, but here she was, with a man who could seriously model for GQ Magazine asking to sleep with her without any strings attached.
Of course she’d say no.
She wasn’t the type of woman who’d sleep with a man she didn’t know. She had to have love … wait. Her mental musings came to a screeching halt. Why wasn’t she the type of woman who’d sleep with a stranger? Fuck love. Fuck marriage. Fuck having a commitment!
“Okay,” she said and then downed the rest of her drink.
Chapter Three
A little voice in Aubrey’s head kept shouting at her that heading to the hotel next to the airport with a complete stranger was the stupidest idea she’d ever had. So many things could go wrong. Gordon St. Roth could be a serial killer. He could be a serial rapist. He could get his kicks by beating women up. Many a tragic news story started out just so, with the idiotic woman blindly following her murderer.
“You having second thoughts?” Gordon asked once he checked in and grabbed the key card.
Aubrey ignored the knowing smirk the desk clerk shot her.
“I wouldn’t be sane if I didn’t have second thoughts,” Aubrey replied, deciding to be honest.
“Fair enough,” he said. “I’ve never done this before, you know. So I’m slightly nervous around you as well.”
Startled, Aubrey raised a skeptical eyebrow. “I’m pretty sure you can take me down, no problem.”
“A femme fatale relies on her wit and charm, not body strength.”
Aubrey swept a hand over herself. “That so doesn’t describe me at all.”
Gordon eyed her up and down, and the heat she’d seen earlier returned to his dark eyes. Instead of getting an icky feeling as he checked her out, a thrilling rush filled her.
“I don’t know,” he murmured. “I think I’d happily succumb to any wiles you cast over me.”
He placed a hand against her lower back and his touch caused her heart to thump excitedly in her chest. His allure had to be some type of sorcery because this was madness. Gordon guided her to the bank of elevators and she knew in a few short minutes she’d be naked in front of this gorgeous man.
“Let me see if I can help soothe your nerves,” he said as they waited for a car to arrive. “I’m forty years old. I own my own company. No ex-wives and no children. I’ve pretty much devoted my life to my work, which I’m now realizing is a very lonely concept. I’ve never been arrested, although I did once accidentally steal a pack of gum when I unthinkingly put it in my pocket. In my defense, I was thirteen.”
Aubrey blinked at his honesty, then chuckled. “Wow. Okay, I’m not that interesting. I think the most scandalous thing I ever did was I used to cheat on my spelli
ng tests in fifth grade by writing the words on my hand. How the teacher never realized my mad cheating skills I’ll never know.”
A door dinged above one of the elevator cars and Gordon gestured for her to enter first. When he stepped inside, he pushed a button for the tenth floor.
“I think you got one thing wrong,” he said. “I find you very interesting. It takes courage to face what you found out tonight about your marriage.”
A sharp stab hit Aubrey in her heart. “My so-called marriage turned me into someone I don’t recognize. I had a lot dreams and I gave it all up to support a man who never supported me. You know, the typical sob story of a typical stupid wife.”
He cupped her face, lifting her chin. “Not stupid. Deceived. Sometimes the smartest women are the easiest to fall. My own mother had a husband who fleeced all her time, youth, and energy. Men like your husband … like my own father … they’re emotional vampires, taking all your feelings because they have none.”
His words were champagne to her battered self-esteem, making her slightly light-headed. She stood on tiptoe and kissed him on the mouth. He let her take the lead, at least at first, opening his mouth as she traced the seam of his lips with her tongue. Once the kiss deepened, he slid his arms around her waist to pull her closer, and she happily surrendered.
The elevator came to a halt and the door dinged open, but that didn’t break their kiss. Instead, Gordon simply picked her up, as if she weighed nothing, and exited the cubicle. Aubrey couldn’t care less if anyone saw them because she was too turned on.
There wasn’t one single moment of hesitation. He wanted her and she wanted him. Once they reached the room, he sat her down but only long enough to insert the key card and open the door. Then he swept her up in his arms again and this time she wrapped her legs around his waist, her dress riding up thighs to bunch around her hips. She began to undress him, loosening his tie and unbuttoning the first few holes on his shirt. Aubrey leaned in close, licking the warm skin and tasting the faint tang of salt. He smelled so good, a mixture of male and deodorant and cologne. He moaned as she kissed her way to his earlobe, taking the piece of skin in her mouth and sucking. The room had a living room section and the bedroom was through an open door. He carried her to bed, where she unlocked her legs, although her knees were a little wobbly from desire.
“Don’t think too badly of me but I do have a condom in my wallet,” he said, his voice husky with arousal.
She arched an eyebrow. “Thought you said you’d never done this before.”
“Let’s just say I never knew when I’d need one but I’m damn glad I have it now.”
“So am I. Undress me,” she said, turning around and sweeping her hair to the side. As he unzipped her dress, he trailed his fingertips down her back, and she arched at the sensual caresses. She never thought her back was an erogenous zone, but his touches had turned it into one.
Her dress fell, pooling at her feet, and he hooked his fingers in her panties to pull them down. Much to her surprise, he fell to his knees and his breath fanned across her ass cheeks. She stepped out of her clothes and his hands spanned her hips, turning her around. Gordon lifted her leg and draped it over his shoulder, giving him access to her pussy. Aubrey moaned as he found her clit with his mouth and sucked on the delicate piece of nerves.
Gordon St. Roth had magical fingers, a magical tongue, and he did magical things to her body that no one had ever done before. Certainly not her husband. Sex with Morgan had been more about her lying there waiting until he was done rather than two people making love. Toward the end it felt more like she’d been whoring herself to him to keep a roof over hear head, trading sex for shelter.
He rose, picking her up once more as if she weighed nothing, and he laid her down upon the duvet. Leaning over her, he took one nipple between his teeth, tugging gently, shooting pleasure-pain down through her belly and making her pussy clench with need. Then he stood and undressed, and she watched as every inch of his buff body was revealed to her admiring gaze. His cock was big and thick and it jutted proudly. From his wallet he pulled out a wrapped condom and laid it on the nightstand before joining her on the bed.
As their mouths met in a kiss, his fingers slid up her thighs to find her dripping pussy. One finger pushed through her slit, into her core, and her hips bucked against them, wanting more. Wanting that big cock of his. He used her natural lubricant to tease her, pumping in and out between her plump pussy lips and making sure to bump against her clit. Foreplay was awesome but it’d been a long time since she’d enjoyed sex, and if the lead-up was anything to go by the man certainly knew how to move.
For a moment, guilt flashed through her. She’d been faithful in her marriage, believed in the sanctity of the institution. When she’d said yes to Morgan during the wedding she’d meant it for the rest of her life. So to agree to this one-night stand was the true divorce and the reckoning that she was going to have to start her life over.
“Hey,” Gordon murmured. “You still with me?”
Aubrey blinked. The moonlight and city lights streamed in through the open window, letting her see the concern on his face.
“Yes.” She shook off the memories and looming mental breakdown and pushed against his shoulders until he lay on his back. “My turn to play.”
His blood-engorged cock beckoned like a lollipop. Aubrey ran a finger over the tip, catching the moisture leaking from the hole and used it to coat the head. She rubbed it over and over, back and forth as her mouth kissed the hot skin at the base of the shaft. She reached over to the nightstand to grab the condom. Through half-open eyes he watched her don the rubber.
Once it was on, he rolled until he was above her. His knee parted her thighs, allowing him to slide between and lined his cock up directly with her entrance.
“You ready, Aubrey?”
“Yes.”
As he stared into her eyes, he pushed forward and she gasped as he filled her up. The difference between him and Morgan was instantly apparent, and not just in size but girth too. For a spit second, it dawned on her that Gordon was the first man to enter her that wasn’t Morgan. She’d been a virgin when they’d begun to date, and to now have someone new be her lover … it brought her out of the moment. What was she doing? The sense of cheating hit her, although she had no reason to feel that way.
Then Gordon surged upward, bumping against a spot deep inside her that caused pleasure to tingle through every cell in her body and made mush out of her brain. And when he did it again, she couldn’t stop her fingernails from digging into his shoulders.
“Ah, yes, babe,” he gasped. “God, you feel so good.”
She might feel good to him, but he kept doing that hip thing that drove every single thought out of her head, except that he drove her closer to a climax. Perhaps her first one ever without her own stimulation. Morgan had certainly never given her this sort of gratification and didn’t she deserve this? Didn’t she deserve to feel wanted and desired?
Any lingering doubt that she was making a mistake vanished as she lost control and came, splintering in a bazillion atoms of bliss. Never had an orgasm shook her so hard and she stared, dazed, up at Gordon as he found his own release.
He collapsed onto her, and she felt his heart beating out of control to a rhythm that matched hers. After a few minutes, he kissed her tenderly on her cheek and moved to the side, allowing her to breathe deeply.
“Wow,” he said. “That was fucking amazing.”
“Yeah. Can I take you home as my sexual plaything?”
He chuckled and ran a finger down her cheek. “You’ll have to give me your last name and number so we can contact each other.”
Aubrey smiled but inside she froze. No, she absolutely couldn’t do that because in the next few days everything was going to change. What she had with him in this hotel room was nothing more than a stolen moment. A send-off to Aubrey Lennox, a confused divorcée who’d never been a real bride. Her wedding day had been like a grown-up version of a
young girl’s “pretend to get married” playtime.
Gordon rose, took off the condom, and tossed it into the trash before kissing her on the mouth. “I’m off to shower. Perhaps we can have a drink in the lobby before heading back to the airport.”
“All right,” she said, knowing she lied to him.
He winked and strode naked to the bathroom, closing the door. A second later the shower turned on and Aubrey sprang into action. She jumped up, ignoring her wobbly knees, and dressed, not bothering to put on her shoes. Spotting a pad of paper and a pen by the phone, she scribbled a hasty good-bye letter, deliberately leaving off her full name and contact info. Guilt sluiced through her, but she pushed it aside. Her one-night stand was over.
Whatever her future held, she’d have the memories of Gordon St. Roth and how he had rocked her world. Then she quietly left, racing to the elevators, hoping she had a big enough head start so she wouldn’t see him again. The mirrored interior of the elevator car showed how disheveled she looked, but she didn’t really care.
She had no one to answer to anymore.
Chapter Four
By the time Aubrey entered the house she shared with Morgan, a riot of emotions had crisscrossed their way through her mind and heart. She’d used the three hours flying back to Los Angeles as a time to mourn—for her broken marriage, her broken heart, and for a future that had only been in her fantasies. Looking back, she realized that she and Morgan had never been truly compatible, but for some reason she’d held onto this belief that she could change him. Mold him into the perfect man of her dreams. She hadn’t even realized that he must have had the same thoughts about her. That would explain the constant criticism on everything, from her wardrobe to her weight and even the way she brushed her teeth. Nothing was ever good enough.
Perhaps she had been too sensitive and had taken things the wrong way? Could she have misinterpreted things he had said over the years? Had this all been her fault for not communicating better?
And then she remembered the incident with the dress and it was the same old-same old. Nothing ever changed with Morgan, but she could change. She was free now, and she planned on fulfilling every dream she once had.
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