by Kylie Scott
“I don’t mind.”
“Sure you don’t want some privacy?”
“Nuh, I’m good. Keep me company.”
“All right.” He smiled.
I watched the streetlights cast shadows on the angle of his cheekbone, the furrow of his brow. Strange how his manly beauty had grown on me, redefining or rather stretching my usual boundaries. Perhaps some people’s allure came from the inside out. A good thing. Their ways and their words did the wooing instead of their physical appeal. Not to diss Joe’s impressive physique. As nice as a pretty face was, though, the personality, the person beneath the skin, should matter more. Anything else was pretty shallow and unlikely to last. Guess that was the difference between my scratching an itch with a stranger and the way this man had me tied up in knots. And not even neat, sea-worthy knots. I’m talking, haven’t washed or brushed your hair in forever and there’s a big old mess back there.
Shit.
At the bar, he’d flirted with me. Full-on flirted with me, his supposed platonic friend who was not his type. No way did I know what to do. Normally Valerie would be first on my hit list of people to call. But she’d just tell me to jump him, regardless of what else was going on, or any possible consequences. Plus, with him beside me it would be kind of uncool. But a couple of whisky sours or no, I was pretty certain I hadn’t imagined his interest.
As Mom had always said, however, best to be sure.
“What are the renovating plans for tomorrow?” I asked.
“Rip out the old fittings and prepare the space for new.”
I nodded. “So we’ll be doing some pounding and screwing?”
“Ah, yeah.” The man cast me a look out of the corner of his eye. “Sound okay?”
“Absolutely. Can’t wait to get my hands back on that big hard hammer.”
“Great,” he said, throwing me another questioning look.
I gave a nice bland smile.
Yeah, pal. Two could play at the what-the-fuck-is-going-on flirting game. I turned in my seat, all the better to face him. “Did you want to bang, Joe?”
“What did you say?” Wide eyes flashed my way.
“Like I did on that wall today. That was fun,” I said with all due sincerity. “Will we be doing more of that?”
A pause. “Sure.”
“Awesome.”
Another quizzical look.
“Something wrong?” I inquired politely.
“No.” His Adam’s apple dipped as he swallowed hard, shifting in his seat, gaze decidedly unsure. The poor fool couldn’t begin to understand the crazy he’d unleashed with his little taunt. Get rough with the man? My starved libido was well beyond the rough-and-tumble stage. No more hiding or denying, sticking to the sidelines of life. It was my time to step forward and be brave. When it came to Joe Collins, I was more than ready to say yes.
“I just…” he started. “Never mind.”
Neither of us spoke as he pulled into a parking space a short walk down from the hotel. I leaned over, placing my hand on his denim-covered thigh. The muscle tensed beneath my fingers. Shame on me for straying a little close to his loins.
“Thanks so much for tonight, Joe. I’m so glad we decided to be friends. Because you, sir, make a great friend.”
“Right. Good.” A frown. “How much did you have to drink again?”
“Not nearly enough. Quick, let’s get to my hotel room so I can have more!” I threw open my door.
“Okay.” Hands stuffed in his pockets, he followed me inside, lingering a step or two behind. Guess he didn’t like it when people’s moods got all mixed up and mercurial either. Funny, that.
I nodded to the dude at the front desk and pressed the button on the elevator. It opened immediately. Mirrors and old-timey-looking wooden framing decorated the small space. We both leaned against the back wall as it slowly ascended.
“Yeah, sure can’t wait to do some banging, and pounding, and screwing around with you, Joe.” I smiled. “Sound good?”
He just gave me a dry look from his superior height. All confusion gone from his handsome face. Confined spaces only made him seem bigger, even more imposing than usual. No way, no day, however, was I crawling back into my shell or turning into a shadow. We’d agreed to work on our issues, so fine, I was putting it out there.
Still, my bravado was fading, I could barely meet his eyes. The man affected me in all the ways.
“It’s hard, no pun intended this time, because sometimes it feels like you want to be just friends,” I said. “But then other times you flirt with me and I honestly don’t know what’s going on. No huge surprise there, I know. Social awkwardness is my jam. But I thought I mostly understood where you were coming from.”
A ding from the elevator and the doors opened at our stop. I walked out, his bearded hotness following slowly behind, stalking me almost. For certain his usual cool, easy-going-guy persona was missing in action. The man radiated tension, intensity, even.
And if he didn’t, I definitely did.
Inside the hotel room I went for mood lighting, only turning on the table and bedside lamps. I rubbed sweaty hands against the sides of my pants. “What you said back at the bar about me getting rough with you, however. Now, that almost sounded like a dare.”
“Did it?”
“It did.”
Arms hanging loose at his sides, he just watched me, saying nothing. Jerk.
“So tell me.” I stood at the foot of the bed, facing him. Every part of me was wired, wide awake. “What’s going on, Joe?”
His shoulders rose and fell on a deep breath. “I realized something tonight.”
“What?”
“That I was falling into old habits. Doing what was easy instead of doing what I wanted.”
“Huh?”
“It was just before you spilled ice on that guy’s pants.”
“Sure. I can see how you’d be seduced by my smooth moves,” I said, voice filled with much doubt. My insides were ready to spontaneously combust. I swear I could feel sweat breaking out all over me, the man was just that hot. Also, my nerves were on high alert.
One corner of his lips tipped up. “You know how you said you weren’t jealous?”
“Yes?”
“Well, I was.”
Wow. I had nothing.
“This is the part where you’re supposed to admit you were jealous too,” he supplied.
“I didn’t think it needed to be said. I’m not that good a liar.”
“True,” he said. “Anyway, I made the pass at you and then I was leaving it up to you to figure out what you want. To be brave and make the next move.”
Softly, I laughed and shook my head. Men were such idiots. “Make the first move? This isn’t a game. As I said last time the subject of sex came up, previous hurt feelings, etc. It’s going to get complicated.”
“Yeah, probably,” he said, voice deeper than I’d ever heard it. Like subterranean or something.
“What if it all goes wrong?”
“Then you go back to your old life in Seattle and forget all about me.”
“I highly doubt that will work.” Given my slightly addled mind, the math might be off, but the chances of me forgetting about Joe Collins anytime soon were not good. Two, three percent maximum. You’d have to allow for an episode of amnesia, alien abduction, or something similar. Sexual encounters with men whose names I didn’t remember, however, wouldn’t replace him. They couldn’t.
“Do you want me to leave?” he asked.
“No.”
My stomach flip-flopped while everything down low got achy and wanting. We’d made it this far, there could be no turning back. He wanted me to make the next move. Fine. Without further ado, I whipped my sweater off over my head, dropping it on the floor. Thank goodness, I’d packed some nice underwear. My heart beat double time inside my chest.
He’d seen me half naked before, but now the atmosphere was decidedly different. His gaze flickered over me, nostrils flaring at the si
ght of my black lace bra.
Okay, that was a good reaction.
Problem was, he did nothing else. He just stood there, studying me. He hadn’t even taken his damn coat off. Some of his golden hair had escaped its ponytail and hung around his face, lying against his muscular neck. His big solid body seemed locked in place, everything frozen, except for his hands. Strong fingers flexed open and closed, open and closed.
“Joe?”
I moved a solid inch or two toward him. Brave of me, I know. It was impossible to see the look in his eyes. I should have turned on more lights, except something else had me wanting to hide in low lighting. Something involving feelings and other things I’d rather not be thinking about. Ever. Normally, I wasn’t shy in the bedroom. My body had its flaws—the same as anyone else’s. But no way would I allow dimply thighs or a wobbly butt get in the way of enjoying life. Hell no. I had other neuroses for that.
And he still didn’t move.
Maybe this whole risk-taking thing wasn’t such a great idea after all. I’d happily been a hermit for many years. Saying no to things that might take me out of my comfort zone had served me well. Shit. What to do? Run and hide or make one last attempt?
“Joe? Hello?”
He licked his lips but didn’t speak. Maybe he’d changed his mind.
Meanwhile, I seemed to have suddenly developed asthma. It was getting harder and harder to breathe with all of the emotions building up inside my chest. Lust, fear, and my old friend confusion. My ribs could barely hold it all in. Any second now my heart and lungs would burst, give up.
And still he stood there doing nothing.
“I made my move,” I said, nervous as all hell. “It’s your turn.”
He didn’t speak a word, he just grabbed me.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Message received four weeks ago:
Hey Alex,
How did your date go? I hope it was horrible and he had bad breath, sweaty hands, and only talked about boring ass botanical facts all night. No. Wait. I mean, hope you had a nice time. Right. That’s what I meant to say. So?
Message sent:
Thank you for your well wishes. Not sure I should talk about this stuff with you, it feels weird for some reason … But okay, the botanist smelled fine and his hands were dry, appreciate your concern. But you’ll be pleased to know that he went into far more detail regarding the sex lives of rare orchids than I ever needed to know. Honestly, it was a bit wrong, how into it he was. I wound up feeling he was some sort of orchid pervert or something. It was all stamens and kink. A very odd night. Food was good though.
A xx
Fingers dug into my hair and his mouth covered mine, hot and hungry. There was no going slow. We were a car crash, a catastrophe. His tongue in my mouth and my hands pushing at his coat, tearing at his T-shirt. One large hand slid down over my spine, grabbing my ass and kneading, while the other cradled the back of my head.
Whiskers from his beard tickled the end of my nose and I pulled back, sneezing.
“Sorry,” I mumbled.
“You all right?” he asked, eyes darker than I’d ever seen them.
I nodded. “Mmhmm.”
And we went right back to it, lips mashed together, my tongue sliding over his teeth. For a moment his hands left me then his coat hit the floor. What a brilliant idea.
“Get it off,” I demanded, pushing up his shirt. He ripped it off over his head while I went to work on his belt buckle. What a team effort. The bulge beneath his jeans looked so damn tempting, it made my mouth water. I slid my hand over it, pressing against the hard length of him, stroking him with my palm.
“Fuck,” he said, covering my hand with his own, making me work him harder.
His other hand covered the front of my neck as if he were gently collaring me, thumb grazing my skin. Again and again, he pressed his lips to my mouth. Such sweet kisses, I couldn’t get enough of them. I chased his mouth, trying to keep contact for longer. The asshole just smiled.
Butterflies didn’t cover it. There were pterodactyls inside my stomach, swooping and screeching and flying around. Not even they, however, could compete with the throbbing ache in my pussy.
“We need less clothes,” I said, voice shaking. Damn it.
“Yeah.”
With one final kiss he let me go and the race was on. He tore open the button on my pants, wrenched down the zip. All the while my blood beat hard, pushing us to go faster, to get him into me quicker. It required more balance than I possessed to toe off my shoes. I clung to his thick shoulders before I hit the floor. Once he had my pants undone and down to my knees, he threw me onto the bed.
I shit you not.
Those big hands gripped my hips and I went flying through the air, landing on my ass with the happily soft mattress bouncing me around. My eyes must have been like twin moons. I’d never been a small, fragile creature; however, people didn’t normally just throw me around. Apparently he was in an even greater rush than I.
Off came my pants; he sent them sailing before starting in on his own. Then from his back pocket he produced a condom and threw it onto the bed beside me. We were ready.
“You still with me?” he asked, standing at the end of the bed in forest-green boxer briefs with one hell of a hard-on pointing right at me. “Alex?”
“Y-yes.”
A nod.
“Come here,” I urged him on, beckoning him closer with my greedy hands.
He climbed onto the bed, situating himself between my spread legs. Much, much better. Our mouths got back together, and it was like they’d never been apart. Wet, feverish kisses. Hot hands slid over my skin, undoing the clasp on the back of my bra. And all the while he rocked against me, rubbing his length along the lips of my sex, making my eyes roll back into my head. God, it felt so good.
Just to be safe, I wrapped my legs around him good and tight. It wouldn’t do to let him get away now.
If it weren’t for the underwear we were still wearing, everything would be close to perfect. I was so swollen and wet, and we’d barely even gotten started. My bra disappeared, care of his clever hands, and his warm mouth trailed over my chest. The beard was weird. It was sort of soft, not scratchy, yet still made for a bizarre contrast to his smooth lips.
Foil crinkled and he drew back onto his knees, pushing down his boxers and taking his cock in hand. Now, this I needed to see. Thick, long, hard, perfect. He rolled on the condom, not taking his eyes off me for a moment.
“Pretty,” he said, trailing his fingers down the middle of my chest, between my breasts, stopping at my panties. “But these need to go.”
And so they did.
The heat of his big body covered me, his eyes staring deep into mine. Then the broad head of his cock eased between my labia, pushing slowly but insistently into me, stretching me. All the while, he kept staring at my face like he was trying to memorize it or something.
This was not casual. Nothing about this felt casual.
The thought, no, the knowledge, sent panic rising up inside me. Except Joe’s hips were pressing into mine, his body angled just right to put the loveliest pressure on my clit. The thrill of it eclipsed all else. Immediately he started pulling back, drawing the thick length of his cock out of me. Every nerve ending inside of me sung, pleasure racing through my veins. When he pushed back in again, it was a little faster, a bit rougher. And he kept that up until the bed’s headboard started shaking.
It felt fucking awesome.
I wrapped my legs around him once more and tilted my hips, taking him deeper. Again and again he thrust into me, and every time it only got better. Sweat covered our skin and the sound of our heavy breathing filled the room. More hair escaped his ponytail, sticking to his face. This man was so beautiful. Also, what he could do with his dick was fucking magical.
Fingers buried in my hair, keeping me right where he wanted me. The man had me mesmerized. I couldn’t have looked away from him if I’d tried.
My legs shook, ever
y muscle drawing tighter and tighter as the fire inside me grew. Apparently my heart had been replaced, because my pussy and clit were throbbing like they were the new center of my world. The feel of him burying himself deep, time and again, was the most perfect sensation. From the top of my head to my toes curled tight, nothing else mattered except him and me and this exquisite heat growing between us.
When he reached down between us, sliding his thumb around and over my clit, I exploded. Boom. Total whiteout. My breath caught in my throat and my body drew tight. Wave after wave of aftershocks rushed through me. Joe’s hand curled tight in my hair and he ground himself against me, hips bucking. His hot breath warmed my neck as he buried his face.
Done. We were both totally done. Dead even.
I was a quivering wet mess barely able to breathe. Yet still those wonderful little ripples spread through me, the muscles in my pussy still weakly trying to seize him, keep him inside. Who could blame them? Joe, the man formerly known as just my friend, was some kind of fucking sex god. It was all too much. Suddenly I needed some space.
“Excuse me.” I pushed at his hot, sweaty, oversize body. “Joe?”
Immediately, he got off me, lying at my side. Even his softening cock sliding out of my sex felt right.
“Hey, you all right?” he asked, hand drifting over my hip.
“Yeah, I just, I need a minute.” I climbed off the mattress and headed straight for the bathroom, locking the door.
Bright lights blinded me, making dots dance across my field of vision. The cold tile floor and cool air-conditioning made my skin goose-pimple, my nipples harden even more. Hell, the girl in the mirror looked like shit. I mean, well fucked, but still. Swollen lips and messy hair, red marks from his fingers everywhere. It was the look in her eyes, though, that tipped me too far and I burst into tears.
* * *
Polite knocking came not too long after.
“Alex, you okay?” he asked, voice subdued.
“Yes,” I lied, turning on the cold tap and splashing my blotchy hot face. Ugh, my eyes were a mess, all red and puffy. Charming. I’d totally do me again if I were Joe.