by Piper Reagan
He finally comes to me and straddles the bench so that our knees are touching, then he pulls my legs on top of his. He stares at my center and licks his lips.
“Juice,” I beg.
“We’re doing this at my speed.” His tongue darts across his lips again before he rubs his thumbs up and down my opening. They glide easily against my wet skin.
“Fuck.” I’m trying to stay calm, but he’s torturing me right now. I don’t know where he finds the restraint to go so slow, but this is becoming unbearable.
Thankfully, his resistance finally breaks and he urges me onto my back, then he pulls my ass into the air so fast that my legs wrap around his head to have something to ground me. As soon as he latches onto my clit, I feel the orgasm I’ve been fighting tingle to life. He laps and sucks while his beard scratches all the right places.
“Fuck, I can’t hold back.”
He sucks even harder and my orgasm rockets through me at an alarming speed. I shamelessly scream and arch onto my shoulders at the sensation. Incoherent words continue to fall when he moves his tongue to my center and dives in, pushing my orgasm on and on. Before I can catch my breath, my ass is back on the bench and he has pulled his boxers down just enough to free his painfully engorged cock. He all but picks me up and slams into me as my arms and legs wrap around his sitting form.
His groan vibrates against my chest, and he pounds into me while I hang on for dear life. His long, hard body is all sinewy muscle and tone, and his hips piston as though he was trained in the sport. With every wordless upsweep, my clit rubs at his base, and in no time at all, I’m about to fall apart again.
“Juice…” I grip his hair in desperation.
“Come all over my cock, baby. Fuck, I can’t slow down. You feel so good, Gin.”
My name on his lips is all it takes, and as I feel him pulse deep inside me, I lose myself to the rush. The tides sweeping through my body pull me under. The pulse of blood hits every nerve ending I have and settles in my soul.
My heart, filled to the brim.
I don’t dare let go of this man as our breathing slows and our sweat-covered bodies rise and fall together. Still connected as one. We stay like that, him inside me, and stare at one another in understanding.
For the first time, we’re both laid out bare to the other with nothing to hide. No secrets being kept, no fear of rejection. We find one another in the glow of the hotel room and lock into our forever. And just as we did all those years ago, when we would say the same thing at the same time, anticipating the other's words…
“I love you.”
“I love you.”
I don’t know who says it first, and I honestly don’t care. It was a simultaneous combustion of the soul. And as he said earlier, everything may feel as though it’s moving in fast forward, but one thing has obviously not changed over the last nine years.
I love him, and he loves me. We’ll figure the rest of this shit out as we go.
Fourteen
Jarrett
The loud ring of Gin’s phone has me jolting out of bed. Some pop song about glitter in the air filters over the speaker and the word “Glitter” fans across her screen.
“Go away, Sway,” she mumbles into her pillow and rolls over. The motion moves the sheet down to expose her little round tits, and my morning wood is immediately at full attention.
I grab her phone and answer it, knowing after only meeting the man a couple times that he’ll keep calling until she answers. “She’s still asleep, man.” I glance at the clock and see it’s past eight.
A shriek comes down the line so loudly, I have to pull the phone away from my ear.
“Sweet baby Jesus in a manger! Dani! Stella! Gin got her bottle open finally!” He must have pulled the phone from his mouth, because even though I can hear him as clear as day, it’s not quite the same shrill level it was a second ago.
“What the fuck did you just say?” I don’t like him talking about my girl like that.
He ignores my question. “Oh, my word. You keep her as long as you like, you yummy lumbersexual, you. But let Sway ask… do you screw as fast as you drive? Does that beard feel as yummy as it looks?”
Again. “What the fuck did you just say?”
“Oh, never mind. I’ll get the details when she gets to work. Tell her to take her time—the more she has to tell me, the better.” Before he hangs up, he yells in the background, “I’m so making Davey grow a beard.”
“Gross, Pops!”
The line goes dead.
I contemplate showering before I wake Gin, but at the same time, I don’t want to leave her side. I’m not willing to waste a single second I have left in town without her body connected to mine.
She rolls to her stomach and groans. “What did he want? And why is he calling in the middle of the night?” She still hasn’t opened her eyes and must not realize it’s already morning.
I pull the room-darkening curtain back a little and let the sunshine illuminate the vision of Gineva’s back exposed in the morning light with just a sheet covering her smooth golden ass. Her Italian heritage didn’t just affect her spitfire personality; it blessed her with golden skin and thick dark hair that fans across the white sheets. I tug the sheet down to expose her backside and can’t help myself—I bite down very softly on her perfectly round ass cheek.
“Juice!” She bucks her hips up and into my open mouth and laughs. “I’m sleeping, you jerk.” I bite her other cheek lightly and she moans. “I’m not waking up, you sex addict.”
I lick a trail up her smooth spine and stop at her ear. “You just lay there and sleep, baby. Pretend I’m not here.”
I nudge her legs apart and nestle my straining cock between her spread thighs. Christ, she’s warm. The heat pulls my balls tight when my dick makes contact. I blanket her body with mine and pepper her neck with kisses, burying my face in her soft hair and grinding my hips down to get a little friction.
Her hips push back, seeking my shaft. “I can’t sleep like this.”
I take my cock and circle her opening with just the tip, massaging the slickness that has leaked from my body onto her hot center. “Do you want me to stop?”
“Mmmmm.” She rocks her hips into me again. Her eyes never open, but a huge smile spreads across her face.
I take that as my green light. I’m clear to head down the track.
I gently lift her hips and she automatically goes to her knees, presenting me with her ass in the air. I run my thumb past her firm butt cheeks, moving lower until I find her soft warm opening and dip in, getting it wet. I massage her clit while I openly stare at her from this angle. I hate that I have to leave for the track and won’t see her until Saturday when everyone comes to watch me race. It’s only two days from now, but the idea of being apart from her for even a short time makes my need to connect with her over and over the only thing I can think of. The thought of being unable to touch her at any given moment has anxiety filling my veins.
“Juice…” She moans and pushes against my thumb on her clit. “Stop teasing me.”
“This is no tease, baby.”
Her eyes are open now, her face still pressed on its side into the pillow, but the need is obvious in her heavy lids. I wrap my other hand around her so I can work her clit from another angle, then I guide myself slowly into her from behind.
She’s panting when I won’t go in all the way, just enough to take a mental shot of this image. My straining cock is breaching her slick channel, her ass on full display, and the sexy slope of her back leads to the only woman I’ve ever loved. She’s giving herself to me so freely, surrendering to the love that has never faded between us, despite how stupid we both were in the past.
I strum her clit with speed but still don’t move any deeper. I’m too caught up in the visual.
“Juice. Shit. I’m gonna—” She whacks the side of my leg, her small hand stinging my thigh.
“Fuck!” The small bite of pain sends my hips rocking forward, compl
etely impaling her. My hips take on a rhythm of their own as I feel every quaking muscle in her lock down around me, gripping like a vise.
Her screams fill the room, and she swats my leg again. “Harder.”
I release her clit and grip her thighs so tight I know I’ll leave bruises. I ram into her with every ounce of strength I have, and when she locks down around me again, I can’t hold back the orgasm that takes over.
With every thrust I give, a declaration follows in its path. “I. Fucking. Love. You.” I keep pounding, even after I’m wrung dry. “Fucking. Love. You.” Her knees give out and I come down right behind her, not ready to break the connection. “Did you hear me?”
We’ve said it over and over since last night. But the need to drive this fact home before we spend time apart has me manic for her to understand. I suck like a caveman on the back of her neck, so deep and hard that a huge purple bruise comes up almost immediately. I go to her shoulder and do the same, moving like a possessed man marking his property.
“Answer me, Gin,” I growl in her ear. “Did you hear me?” I slip from her body and feel the warmth of our shared release between my thighs, which are still nestled between hers.
She lets out a sigh. “I heard you.”
She rolls over, and I give her enough space until I reblanket her body with mine. She grabs my short beard and pulls me down for the sweetest kiss. It’s not frantic or hurried. It’s soft and warm and filled with promise.
“I love you too.”
My chest tightens when I see the conviction in her hazel eyes, her flushed cheeks, and her swollen lips. “I hate that I have to leave you today.”
She gives me a sad smile. “It’s different this time.” She rubs her thumbs over my creased brows. “We’re different this time.”
She’s right. We are different this time. Because this time, I vow not to let anything come between us.
Fifteen
Gineva
I use my key to sneak into the back door of Sway’s so I can get this reform plan done before anyone realizes I’m here. I can tell from the loud chatter filtering in off the salon floor that everyone is busy. I hit Print on the computer and prepare for Sway to have a grown man meltdown when I show him the new shop rules. Rules that he too will need to follow in order to get things turned around.
I’ve been in contact with Maddox a couple of times, but only managed to get a grunted, “It’s under control” and “don’t worry about a thing” from him. But if we can’t figure out who’s been skimming money from the shop, then we’ll be relying solely on this reform in order to turn things around.
“There’s my glowing girl!”
Shit, Sway found me.
“Give it up girl! How was he? Hmm? Are those scratchy beards all they’re cracked up to be?” He fans himself, the bangles on his wrist clinking wildly together. “Spill it, child.”
“I’m not spilling shit.” I try to feign innocence, but the heat creeping up my cheeks is not helping my case. I raise an eyebrow. “We need to talk business.”
“Uh uh uh. Sway is not talking business until you give me something. I need to know if those pistons in his hips move as fast as the ones in his car.” He humps the air.
I shake my head. Crazy old man.
“What about the beard? I told Davey he just had to grow one. Ever since I cut that man’s hair and trimmed his beard… mmm mmm mmm. I’ve been having lumbersexual fantasies like you would not believe.” Now he has both hands fanning himself.
“I’ll give you one thing and then it’s work, so pick your poison.”
“Beard!” He jazzhands.
My blush turns to fire on my skin. “Oh, Sway… I hope Davey can grow some hair fast, because that beard?” The memory of the way it felt on my thighs, brushing my clit, tickling my nipples… “It’s a game changer.”
“Oh, girl, Sway may need a long lunch break.” He slouches back in the chair.
***
We hold a mandatory meeting that night at the salon, and everyone is in attendance: Lyn, Maddi, Stella, Dani, Tammy Jo, and Amy. I know I’m going to get a little resistance, but if I’m going to get Sway back on track, this has to be done.
“Okay, ladies, I don’t know if you all fully understand why I’ve been here the last few days, so that’s what this meeting is about. Sway has been beyond generous with you over the years, and I can tell, just through observation, that not all of you are carrying your weight.”
The room erupts at my accusation.
“Ladies!” I use two fingers to silence the room with an ear numbing whistle. “You need to wait until I’m done talking before you jump me. This is not your shop, it’s Sway’s, and right now Sway has put me in charge. So everyone sit down and listen for once.”
The room settles, and Tammy Jo twists her hair around her finger and murmurs something under her breath. I level her with a stare and she finally shuts her mouth.
“Number one of the new shop rules.” I pause, making sure I have everyone’s attention. “Get to work on time.” I check the girls expressions, seeing if they realize how ridiculous it is that I even need to point this out. Not all the girls are guilty of this, but it’s important to make sure everyone is presented with the same information.
With every new rule I tick off—from prohibiting calling off at the last minute for unacceptable reasons, all the way to not helping clean when they have down time—bristles the girls’ feathers even more. By the end though, most of them agree that they can all do better to help Sway. I don’t think they realize that everything extra he did for them came at a price for him.
“And from here on out, no one asks Sway for money unless they’ve earned it.” The room is dead silent, and I fight not to make eye contact with Tammy Jo. “Now if you girls have any questions, feel free to stay after and we can discuss them. Otherwise, you’re free to go.”
Dani Cage pulls me aside at the end of the meeting. She’s the floor manager, and I know for a fact that she’s more aware of what goes on around here than the others. “Hey, I just wanted you to know that I’m glad you’re taking some initiative with this. Sway needed to do this a long time ago, but that would include him taking on some of the rules himself.” She raises a knowing eyebrow.
“Thanks for your support. I’m going to need you to be the eyes and ears on the shop floor for me. I don’t think Sway sees everything that happens right under his nose. He’s so busy spreading joy, I think he forgets that not everyone is cut from the same cloth.”
“I agree.” She cuts her eyes toward Tammy Jo, and we watch her walk outside to where her thug of a boyfriend is waiting on the sidewalk. “He’s bad news. Watch him if he comes into the shop.”
I nod. I sure as hell hope Maddox can find something soon.
I find Amy emptying the trash cans and wish everyone would take notice. “Hey, you don’t have to do that. I’ve kept you over long enough. Head on home for the night.”
“Oh, I don’t mind.” She looks at her watch. “Though I suppose I should go check on my grandma. She’s not been feeling well.”
“Have a good night.”
I lock the front door behind her and go find Sway in the back room. “Now we need to talk.” I sit down across from him at his desk.
He’s slouched back in his chair, sporting a glitter eye mask. Why he keeps one in his office is beyond me. “I don’t like that tone, child. I just let you boss my girls around. Sway can’t take anymore.” He slings an arm across his forehead, clearly overwhelmed.
“Well if you want to save this salon, you’re going to have to.” I hate being firm with my sweet friend, but we need to get through this so he can get back on track. “I’ve rewritten your budget… and for the time being, I’ve seized your Hobby Mart credit card.”
He gasps in shock, pulling the mask from his eyes. Leveling me with his shocked expression. “You didn’t!”
“I did. You have to slow down. You’re going to bankrupt this place on glitter alone.” That’s not en
tirely true, but I know Sway will only do half of what I say, so overkill is key here.
“But—”
“And no free handouts.”
“But—”
“Just for the time being. Once I get everything on track and get your books aligned, I’ll give you back your glitter privileges.”
He sags in relief.
“With a cap,” I add.
He grumbles a little, but deep down, I’m sure he knows I’m only looking out for his best interests. “Fine.”
***
“Hey, Amy, wait up for a second.” I catch her right before she leaves the shop on Friday night. “Most of us are heading to the race to watch Jarrett tomorrow, so that’s only going to leave you and Tammy Jo at the shop at closing time.” I check my surroundings to make sure no one will overhear. “Do you mind being the last one to leave? Just keep an extra eye on everything for me?”
“Absolutely,” she says without hesitation.
“Thanks, I really appreciate it. I just wanted to make sure everything would be closed up properly.” I feel better now about being away for the entire day tomorrow.
***
The next day, I head off early to Caleb and Honor’s house, since they offered to let me a ride with them to Atlanta Dragway. Sway and all the other women and children are coming as well, since Juice reserved a suite, but I wanted to spend a little time with Honor since we haven’t had much over the last couple days. She’s become an instant friend, and since she’s Jarrett’s family now, I feel the need to get to know her a little better.
Horns blare as a parade of minivans, trucks, and SUVs pull up in front of their house. Familiar faces are visible through the windows. Every member of the Corps Security crew, along with their kids and grandkids, fill the caravan of vehicles.