Dirty, Dark, & Dangerous: A Contemporary Romance Boxset

by Luciani, Kristen

  My objective seems to have jumped onto the back burner.

  I feel my mouth drop open, so I quickly snap it shut. Jesus, it’s not like I’ve never seen a hot older guy before.

  “Do you want to come in or continue enjoying the view from there?” His tone teases me, and I should be embarrassed about being so blatant with my eye fucking, but I’m not. I love how he calls me out and reminds me that as much as I want to think I’m in control twenty-four by seven, I’m not. It’s something that would have scared the crap out of me a few months ago, but now, it just excites me. Little hairs stand at attention on the back of my neck.

  “I’d like to come in.”

  He takes my hand and leads me into the suite. I didn’t really have time to pay much attention to it last time, and my head is in kind of the same place right now. A king-sized bed. I think that’s probably the most important piece of furniture, anyway. It’s the one I’m most interested in, the couch a close second.

  “Tomorrow is a big day.” He grins at me, tracing a fingertip down the side of my face.

  “Yes. I still have the favors in my trunk and a few other things to handle in the morning.” Logistics. I really don’t want to cover them right now. It’s more important to let him know that things won’t go further than right here for us. All I need to do is say it.

  “And Eva didn’t give you a hard time about not being with her tonight?”

  “Her dress issues are resolved, so she’s happy. There’s plenty of champagne in the suite to relax her if she needs it.” A soft chuckle tumbles from my lips. “I told her I’d be here early tomorrow morning.”

  He steps closer, his spicy scent filling my nostrils. I inhale deeply, drinking him in, making myself dizzy with lust.

  I’ll tell him…later.

  “It means a lot that you came here, Ari,” he murmurs, his heated gaze still fixed on me. His lips are mere inches from mine, scorching hot and so damn bitable.

  I try to draw in a deep breath, but my chest is so tight. Little shivers dance down my bare arms, and I’m so close to swooning right here on the carpet. He pulls me close against his chest, his lips crashing against mine. The heat of his tongue electrifies me, and my frenzied hands are everywhere – his back, his hips, and his hair. I can’t stop touching him, knowing that this is the last time I’ll have the chance. I can feel his hard cock against me, and my knees buckle.

  He fists my hair and pulls my head back, exposing my neck to his greedy, hungry mouth. I let out a gasp as his lips nuzzle the area behind my ear, the one that drives me absolutely insane. I fumble with his jeans, yanking them open, and forcing them down with his boxers. I lick the palm of my hand and grasp his dick. The skin is so smooth and soft beneath my fingertips. With long strokes, I run my hand up and down his length. Oh, God, just the thought of his length makes my panties dampen.

  He growls and pulls away, pulling off my shirt and unhooking my bra. “I want that pussy, Ari. Give it to me now.” He peels my hand off of his cock and grins at me. “Don’t worry, you’ll get it back again. I just need you naked right now.” His nimble fingers work the zipper on my skirt, forcing it down to my ankles. I step out of it and kick it out of our way.

  He pulls off the rest of his own clothes, leaving them in a pile on the floor before backing me against a chair. His fingers hook into the scrap of lace covering my pussy, and he slides it down my thighs as he falls to his knees. “Sit,” he mumbles, his tongue searing the skin of my inner thighs. I sink into the chair and he puts my legs over his shoulders, angling my body so it’s tilted for my pleasure; apparently, for his as well.

  His tongue laps at my slit, flicking my clit before plundering me with its heat. My head falls back and I clutch the edge of the chair, my heart leaping into my throat, making breathing nothing less than impossible. Sweet Lord, what this man can do with that tongue.

  My hands move to his hair, to the back of his neck, to his broad shoulders. His grip on my thighs gets tighter and tighter and his mouth works me into a frenzy. He lightly sucks my nub through his teeth, his tongue teasing it at the same time. Thrusting my hips forward is impossible since I’m already literally on the edge of my seat. Waves of euphoria crash over me as I climb higher and higher, finally leaping over the edge. The orgasm tears through me, my body quaking uncontrollably as it sizzles every nerve ending. I dig my fingernails into his skin to keep myself from screaming. Good thing for him I’ve already gotten my nails done for the big day, and they’re much shorter than usual. Before yesterday, it would have been a definite Wolverine situation.

  “Fuck, Ariana,” he growls amid my cries, plunging three fingers into my soaked pussy. “I love the way you taste, but I need to be inside of you right now.”

  Panting, I nod my head. “Yes. Now!”

  He pulls out his fingers and lifts me onto the bed only a few feet away. As he leans over me, my breath hitches. He’s gorgeous, but that’s not what strikes me so hard in this moment. It’s the look in his eyes. Before, it’d been about staking a claim, making me his, taking what he wants. This is different. There’s no glimmer of possession in those dark eyes, no predatory gleam. It’s vulnerability. I guess maybe I can recognize it now that I’m feeling it myself. His body slides over mine, never breaking our spell, and he grabs a condom from the edge of the bed.

  I put my hand over his as he’s about to rip it open. “Wait, let me.” I tear open the package and pull out the condom, rolling it onto his stiff cock, slowly and deliberately. He pulls me up, wrapping his muscular arms around me, crushing his lips against mine. His hands weave through my hair as he strokes the back of my head and neck, sending tiny shivers slithering all over my bare skin. Fucked. I’m so fucked.

  How can I tell him this is the end when I’m desperate for it to be the beginning? And how can I make him believe that the way I feel isn’t complete bullshit when everything I’ve told him up to now has been just that?

  He puts a hand on the small of my back, drawing me closer until the head of his cock is lined up with my slit. When he pushes into me, stretching me open, I let out a sharp gasp. My body molds around him like a glove, and he fills me, inch by inch, with everything he has to give. Before this minute, I’d thought that had been literal, but now, it takes on a whole new meaning.

  Because it’s not just sex anymore. Not for him, not for me. I can feel it as he plunges into me with deep, hard strokes. I can see it when he looks at me.

  I lock my ankles around him, pulling him closer, craving the sensations that spring to life when our bodies are this connected. I clutch his hair as his lips devour mine then move to my breasts, which are heaving, begging for some attention. This man has turned me inside out. It’s as if he hears their desperate cries. He kneads them, one at a time, as he gently pulls my nipples through his teeth, suckling to the point that I have to bite down on my lip to keep from screaming. His cock plunges deeper, harder, and every time he pulls out, I clench to keep him buried inside of me.

  I yelp as the explosion gathers force within my core. “Jeff, oh my God!” I dig my fingers into his hips, forcing him to give me the release I crave. His movements increase in speed, and he lifts one of my legs, giving him leverage to launch my body into orbit. I clutch the bed sheets and grit my teeth to keep from shattering the windows with my squeals.

  “Open your eyes,” he murmurs. “Look at me. I want to see it.”

  They flutter open to see him staring down at me, and my heart clenches as the orgasm rips through me, electrifying every square inch of my body, lighting me up like a damn rocket. Hell, I think I might actually be glowing. He tightens his grip around me as I bodysurf over the waves of euphoria crashing over me. He collapses onto his elbows, his forehead against mine. “That was so fucking beautiful.” He crushes his lips against mine, his cock throbbing with every pulse, until his body convulses against mine. He kisses me hard, deep, greedily, as his own orgasm commands him. He literally takes my breath away. When he finally pulls away and I can breathe on my
own, I realize it’s not what I want. At all.

  I’m pretty positive that if I wanted to hide anything going on in my head right now, it’d be impossible. I have a great poker face, but Jeff Torres is the exception.

  He settles next to me, nuzzling my neck, his lips leaving a trail of promises for our remaining hours.

  But where can this possibly go?

  Liars. We’re both liars.

  What the hell kind of relationship could we have? One filled with deceit and mind-bending sex? How is that not completely and utterly dysfunctional?

  Although…maybe that would work for us…

  I try to silence the voices, try to lose myself in him, probably for the last time, since he’ll never want to speak to me again, anyway. Not when he finds out the truth, who I really am, what I know, and what I’m doing to stop him. A pang assaults my heart. He doesn’t deserve any of this. The people closest to him have deceived him in the past. Now I am one of them, and I can’t save him. I can’t do anything to blunt the pain, the knowledge that he’s been duped, sent to prison by the doings of his ex-wife, the woman who was supposed to love him and cherish him until death.

  Fucking whore. I’ll be visiting you in the slammer, Kate. And orange is a pretty shitty color for redheads, too.

  His teeth tickle my ear, making me giggle.

  “I didn’t know you were ticklish.” His fingers dance along my belly, teasing and threatening at the same time.

  I yelp and roll over to my side. “I am.”

  “Good to know. You’re always so intense. I like hearing you laugh.”

  Too bad you won’t react the same way to some of the other things you’re about to find out, Jeff.

  Chapter Thirty

  JEFF

  I don’t know when we fall asleep. I definitely don’t look at the clock in the room. Part of me wants to forget that this is temporary, that I have to be around her all day without touching her, kissing her, or fucking her.

  Because it will be torture.

  I also don’t want to think about the bullshit façade I need to put up for everyone at the wedding, so that I can fool them all into thinking I’m some kind of legitimate business person and a halfway decent father.

  I want to be those things. I’m going to try, but I just don’t know if I can.

  Time creeps past, and soon, the sunlight peeks through the cracks of the curtains. I don’t want this to end. I finally feel whole, after such a long stretch of being so empty. Right now, in this moment, I have everything I want. I just have to figure out how not to fuck it all up, and none of the guys are going to like my new plan.

  But I can’t live this life anymore. My son is too important. Ari is too important. I want a new life, and I need them in it. The need for revenge is eating away at my insides, and before it swallows me whole, I have to let it go. I can’t change the world, much as I’d like to. But I can change my own life.

  I peer at my phone. Three o’clock am. I scroll down the list of missed calls from Rand. Fuck it, I’ll deal with whatever the hell he wants in a few hours. There’s something much more pressing that I need to deal with…immediately, if not sooner.

  My hands roam over Ari’s curves and she snuggles back into my chest.

  I’d like to change Ari’s life, too. I don’t know if she’ll let me.

  I need her to give me that chance.

  The soft skin of her ass rubs against my cock, and it springs to life. Not that it’s ever too far from that when she’s around. I reach around her, my hands creeping below her abdomen and over her smooth pussy.

  She lets out a deep sigh, places a hand over mine, and pushes it against her. I dip three fingers inside of her, letting out a groan when I feel how wet she already is. All I can think about is how good that pussy felt wrapped around my cock last night, and how badly I need to feel it again. I nip at her ear, sliding my fingers in and out. She whimpers as my fingers work her clenched pussy, thrusting back into my hand, her tight ass rubbing against me until I can’t take any more teasing. Fuck, she’s so wet. I reach behind me, feeling around for a condom on the nightstand, pulling my neck muscle in the process. I ignore the burning pain that shoots down my spine. It’s nothing compared to the dull ache in my balls. I tear open the packet with my teeth and roll on the condom. My lips graze the back of her neck and she shivers, writhing against me. I grip her hips and plunge deep into her heat, thrusting with the power of all the angst ravaging my body – for the unknowns, what ifs, and threats to any shred of happiness in my future. Her pussy clamps around me, pulling me in, squeezing the head of my dick so tightly, I’m afraid I’ll lose my shit if I even suck in a breath.

  “Jeff,” she whimpers, her fingertips digging into my thighs.

  I can barely choke out a reply. My eyes are shut tight, teeth clenched, praying I can last long enough to make her come at least once before I let go. Christ, what this woman does to me. With Ariana, I feel like a fucking adolescent, like I can’t control my own body. I tighten my arms around her waist and pull her up as I raise myself to a seated position, my back against the headboard. I thread my fingers through her mussed hair and run my hands down the sides of her torso as she lifts one leg to straddle me. Her eyes are half-hooded, her lips swollen, and my cock is throbbing, begging to sink into her. She hovers over the head of my cock, rotating her hips until her soaked pussy swallows it, inch by inch.

  She leans forward, burying her head in my neck, her hot breath making my skin tingle. Squeezing, clenching, pulling – I’m gonna erupt like a fucking volcano at any second. Her thighs are tight against the sides of my legs, pressing them together. My head slams back against the headboard, and I thrust into her until her moans become full-fledged screams. I can feel her pussy quiver as her sweet juices explode out of her trembling body.

  Her eyes fly open and she claps a hand over her mouth mid-screech. “Oh, shit,” she whispers.

  I stop moving, my dick still throbbing inside of her. “What’s wrong?” I pant, wondering what the fuck could possibly interrupt this moment.

  “My dad. He’s staying in the room next door with his girlfriend.” She bites her lip. “And I was just screaming my damn head off.”

  I snicker, my movements picking up speed once again. “You know that’s only gonna make me fuck you harder, right?” My cock plunges deeper into her soaked pussy, forcing a loud moan from her lips. “I think you like knowing someone might hear us. I think it makes you even wetter. You’re such a bad girl.” My arms are wrapped tightly around her, my cock pulsating in her depths. I manage a couple more hard strokes before the explosion rumbles through me. I fist her hair, pulling her close, my mouth hungry for anything she has left to give. Our lips crush together, teeth smacking as our tongues fight for control that is seemingly lost for both of us.

  And that’s when I finally let go, giving her everything I have. For those excruciatingly intense seconds, I’m blind, deaf, and mute. My world has just been knocked off its axis, and I don’t know if I’ll ever remember how to get it back into position.

  Truthfully, I don’t give a fuck. I much prefer it like this.

  My breaths are ragged, chest heaving as I trail my fingertips down her spine. She shudders against me, letting out a tiny giggle. “Ticklish, remember?”

  Oh, I remember…

  “Maybe I just needed to hear that laugh again,” I murmur, tracing lines up and down her torso.

  “How about hearing that you’re a total sex god? Is that better?”

  I snicker. “Yeah, I like hearing that, too.”

  “Good.” She nestles against me. “Anything else you need to hear before we go for it again?”

  My fingers freeze. “Yes.”

  She pulls away, still breathless, a coy smile on her flushed face. “Really. Well, don’t keep me in suspense. Tell me.”

  I can’t believe I’m doing this, but the words tumble out before I can grab them and stuff them back inside my damn big mouth.

  “I’m pretty sure I�
��m falling in love with you, Ari.” I stroke the side of her face, tracing her cheekbone and then the outline of her lips. “I need to hear that you feel the same way.”

  She stares at me. Just stares. Doesn’t speak. Actually, she doesn’t make a single sound. I don’t even know if she’s breathing. Fuck, why the hell do I always do this shit? I can never leave well enough alone. I don’t want her to tell me something I want to hear because I asked. Jesus Christ, I’m fifty-fucking-two years old, and I feel like a pimply teenager who’s just professed his love to the prom queen. This is fucked up on so many levels. I’m a badass ex-con who can own any pussy he sees, and this is my big play? Leave myself wide open for rejection? Am I suddenly going for sensitive now?

  Her lips slowly stretch into a smirk. “Sex god usually does it for most guys.”

  “I’m not most guys.”

  “I know,” she whispers, her lips grazing mine. “And that’s one of the reasons why I’m falling in love with you.”

  “So, the sex god thing…?”

  “Obviously, it’s another one of the reasons.” She bites her lip and looks away. Her teasing tone doesn’t match the look of apprehension clouding her gaze.

  “You’re afraid of what your family will say?”

  “Aren’t you a little worried about that?”

  “Well, I think your mom may be a little annoyed, but…”

  She gives my arm a playful swat. “Oh my God, stop! I can’t!”

  “Hey, we don’t need to do anything you’re not comfortable with, okay? I’ll handle it however you want.” I cup her chin. “But Ari, I’m in this. I know it’s not perfect by everyone else’s standards, but you’re perfect for me.”

  She nods, and I can see the conflicting emotions shadowing her face. “Can this really work, Jeff? These feelings, can they overpower the odds against us?”

  I furrow my brow. “I’d hardly consider our families odds.”

  Is she just talking about family? Or is it something else? Her eyes float closed for a few seconds, and I feel a pang in my chest. Much as I hate to acknowledge it, maybe it’s intuition…some kind of suspicion that she’s holding something back, that maybe we’re not in the same place.