by Sarina Bowen
Thank God he was standing behind her, because she couldn’t possibly keep the shock and lust off her face. He probably knew that, though. He was giving her a few minutes to get used to the idea.
You could never outmaneuver a world-class competitor—not when he really wanted to win.
As his nibbles became soft, open-mouthed kisses, Lauren’s nipples grew tight. And when he pulled her earlobe into his mouth and sucked, she felt slickness gather between her legs. But she stayed silent, a death-grip on her champagne glass, until his fingertips snaked around the front of her body and began to tease her breasts. Even then, the sound she made was just a needy, breathy gasp. Hardly audible.
His whole body stilled. “It’s been too long since I felt your skin on mine,” he said. He tugged her backward with his hands at his hips until her ass was tucked against his legs, and his hard cock could be felt through the fabric of his tuxedo pants.
The feel of it tightened her lungs and made her dizzy. Alarm bells went off in her heart. It was easy enough to just jump into bed with him. Lord knew she could use a night of naked fun.
But not with him. Anyone but him. The hangover would be too much to bear.
Sucking in a breath, she stumbled forward out of his grasp. “I can’t, Mike. I just . . . I can’t have a fling with you.”
“Who says I want just a fling?”
She spun around and checked his face. It was flushed with arousal, but his expression was dead serious. Her heart gave a quiver. “I can’t reevaluate my life choices just because you turned up in my hotel suite with a bottle of expensive bubbly. That’s not fair.”
“I’m not trying to rush you.” He shook his head and then ran a hand through his hair. “Okay, that’s a lie. I am trying to inspire you. But only because we’ve lost too much time already.”
“So all of a sudden you remember that I exist, and now you’re in a hurry?”
He walked over to the bed and perched on the edge. “Baby, I dream about you more often than it’s healthy to admit. You’re the one, Lo. There’s nobody else.”
Seriously? “You had a hell of a way of showing it.”
“You own me,” he said. “I never wanted to let you go.”
“It’s not easy for me to believe in you,” she said quietly.
He looked up at her. “I know. But I’m going to change that.”
FOURTEEN
Mike watched her expression from too many feet away. Her face was flushed with defiance. He didn’t know how to break through her anger, and there very, very few tools left in his arsenal. Charm hadn’t worked yet. And his apology had only gotten him so far.
Laying all of his cards on the table, he tried to make her understand. “What if I told you the last person I kissed was you?”
She rolled her eyes. “Since you ambushed me on the sidewalk just the other night, forgive me if I’m not impressed.”
Slowly, he shook his head. “Not then. Two years ago.”
Her disbelief was palpable. “What are you trying to say?”
Bracing a foot on the carpet, he leaned forward and snagged her hand, tugging her close to where he sat. As soon as she was in range, he put his cheek to her ribcage and wrapped his arms around her waist. “The last person I kissed was you. The last person I took to bed was you. Just you.”
Her body went still, but he could hear her heart pounding beneath his ear. “You can’t be serious,” she whispered.
Tilting his chin upward, he found her gaze. “I’ve never been more serious.”
“But . . .” she stammered. “You . . . Your wife . . .”
He shook his head. “It wasn’t like that with us. I was there to ease her pain. And Elsa’s.”
“That’s so incredibly sad,” she whispered.
Now she gets it. “Yeah, I noticed. I signed up for a whole lot of sad. But Shelly got one final year with her child, and she got a husband who came home whenever he could to tuck our kid into bed and try to convince the two of them that everything was going to be okay.”
Lauren’s arms closed around his head, her fingers gripping him distractedly. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be.” His throat was rough but he cleared it. “Not trying to depress you. I’m just telling you how it is with me, and that I’ve always wanted you. Even if it’s only for tonight. I’m not dumb enough to ask you to make promises.”
Her fingers brushed through his hair, caressing his scalp, and he closed his eyes and tried to memorize the feel of her touch. She smelled of expensive perfume and sunshine. She smelled so fucking whole and alive that his eyes stung with happiness.
“I’m sorry for your troubles,” she said. “I really mean that.”
He made a grunt of acknowledgement, though it sounded like he was about to get the brush-off. “I know I came on strong tonight. But I meant every word I said.”
“It’s not easy for me to give in to you.”
“I’ll bet it isn’t. Tell you what—let me fill up that kickass tub in the other room.”
“W-what?” she stammered.
“Let’s have a soak. I’m trying not to paw at you like a beast.”
She actually laughed, but he hadn’t been joking. He was hard as a goalie stick and having her body in his arms was making him crazy. Without waiting for a response, he gently disengaged from her and stood up. He nabbed the bottle of champagne and their glasses, and carried them into the giant spa bathroom, where he started the water flowing.
The lights were on a dimmer switch, so he lowered them to just a glow. Then he refilled both their glasses and stripped out of his clothes.
He was already in the tub, sipping champagne, when Lauren came to stand in the doorway, still fully dressed.
“Last one in is a total babe,” he said, taking a casual sip. But his heart was thudding inside his chest.
She gave him a tiny smile. “I can’t believe I’m actually considering getting in that tub with you.”
“You hold all the cards, sweetheart.” No truer words were ever spoken.
Lauren looked him over with gentle eyes. “You know I want to. I never stopped wanting you, you jerk.”
He grinned.
“If I do this, it’s just for tonight,” she said. “My life is complicated right now.”
His smile faded in a hurry. “Is there someone else?”
She shook her head. “Just a lot of changes I’m considering. Graduating in a few weeks, making plans. That sort of thing.”
“Oh.” He tried to imagine what that could mean. Maybe she was considering moving away from New York? Now there was a ghastly thought. “Hop in, Lo. If a night is all I can have, I’ll take it.” Not that he’d give up on her tomorrow. But a guy had to start somewhere.
When Lauren’s gaze perused his body, he knew victory was near. They’d always had the kind of sexual chemistry that other people only dreamt about. He closed his eyes and relaxed against the slanted tub, inviting her gaze to linger.
He heard the rustle of clothing, so he opened his eyes again. She’d turned her back on him. But he made an involuntary grunt when he realized she’d reached back to find the zipper of her dress.
“Want help with that?” he offered.
Wordlessly she took a couple of steps backward until he could reach her with his free hand. She held the fabric taut while he lowered the zipper slowly. The dress began to fall away, leaving her in a tiny strapless bra and a white lace thong.
“Jesus,” he muttered. “Way to kill a guy.”
“You don’t have to look,” she pointed out, stepping out of the dress.
He groaned, his cock jumping below the surface of the water. “Yeah, I really do. But it’s been two years since I saw anything that hot, so I might need one of those things you use to look at an eclipse of the sun without burning your retinas.”
“A pinhole camer
a?” she asked, hanging the dress on a hook on the back of the door.
“Yeah that.”
She turned around suddenly, giving him the front view of a beautiful, shapely woman in tiny lingerie. Her tits spilled over the tops of that inadequate bra, and his mouth began to water. “You know why I wore the dress?” she asked.
“Mmm?” he managed.
“Eyes up here,” she said, pointing at her own. “The dress. I wore it because it’s beautiful. And I wanted to feel beautiful again.”
“Well it worked.” His voice was like gravel. “Never seen anything so beautiful.”
Lauren crossed to the counter at the far end of the room and began removing her earrings. His gaze was affixed as tightly as a bumper sticker to her perfect ass and those long, shapely legs.
It was hard to believe he was enjoying this view again. He wouldn’t take it for granted, that was for damn sure.
When she bent over to zip the jewelry away in a case, he couldn’t hold in a sharp intake of breath. Lifting her chin, she spied him in the mirror. Her serious expression suggested she knew exactly what effect she was having on him.
Holding his gaze, she reached behind herself for the clasp of her bra. When it released, she dropped it onto the counter. Then she stared right at him in the mirror as she lifted two hands to cup her own breasts. Her thumbs circled her rosy nipples, and Mike heard himself grunt with longing. “Killing me,” he rasped.
“Like you don’t deserve it?” Her smile was at once sweet and wicked.
“What else do I deserve?”
Her eyes widened slightly, and pink stained her cheeks. They used to torture each other regularly, but tonight they were both out of practice.
“Show me,” he begged.
She tweaked her own nipples, and then her lips parted softly and she let out a little mewl. He wanted to lurch out of the tub, cross the room and force his tongue into her mouth. But he stayed put in the tub, even as his hand slid onto his dick. Patience was a virtue, and all that.
Lauren tipped her chin up toward the ceiling. Then she slid her hands down her soft skin until they reached the tiny strings holding her thong aloft. With a flick, she sent that scrap of clothing to the floor.
“Come here,” he growled as a tiny triangle of sandy-colored hair appeared between her legs. “Please,” he added, softening his tone, if not his cock. He was so hard it hurt.
Lauren raised her eyes to give him a hot look. Then—praise Jesus—she moved to the opposite end of the big tub and slipped a leg over the side, sinking into the water opposite him. Dainty feet nudged his aside, scouting for a place to rest. She slipped an elastic band off her wrist and wrapped her hair into a knot at the top of her head and then leaned back, exposing her neck as she made herself comfortable. Water droplets clung to the valley between her breasts, and he wanted to lick them off.
Soon, he promised himself. Don’t rush.
Right. Tell that to his dick.
“Here, sweetheart.” He passed her a wineglass. “I meant this to be relaxing.”
She took the champagne and had a sip. “Are you relaxed?”
“Fuck no,” he growled, and she smiled. Mike lifted a hand to the panel on the wall and pushed the button that started up the jets. There was a rumble, and then the water began to course faster over his body. A warm current circled his groin, adding to the torture.
He took her ankle in his hand and squeezed. “You’re my happy thought, Lo. Thank you for being with me right now.”
She sipped her wine in silence, but the way she studied him wasn’t quiet. He felt her gaze like a physical touch as it roamed his shoulders and dropped to his pecs. When she looked up again, he was waiting, and their eyes locked. Giving him a guilty little smile, she drained her glass and set it on the ledge beside them.
“Come here, sweetheart.” He set down his own glass. “I need to kiss you.”
Her eyes dipped, and he could almost taste her hesitation. But slowly she sat up until her perfect nipples emerged from the churning water. He quietly died five times over as she leaned forward, toward his end of the tub.
Reaching for her slippery body, he tugged her onto his chest with a splash. They were nose to nose, her expression registering shock. Maybe she was surprised that they were finally naked together, or maybe she was only wondering whether that was his cock or a tire iron jabbing her in the belly. But he leaned in and kissed the question away—whatever it was.
The first taste of her was like coming home. Their lips slipped sweetly together with the assistance of both steam and familiarity. A bolt of lust shot down his spine as he licked into her mouth. He slanted his head and tasted her as slowly as he could manage. He wanted to do this right.
The first time they’d ever touched was fast and frantic. He hadn’t known how fragile their happiness was. Wiser now, he kissed her slowly and deeply. He would savor her. She deserved it.
They both did.
Lauren whimpered softly into his mouth. He let his hands trail slowly down her back. When he had both hands on her perfect little ass, it became difficult not to rush things. Pressing her slick body against his cock stirred something primal inside him. Mine, his next kiss said.
He paused to take a calming breath. “See?”
“See what?”
He brushed a thumb across her lips. “This feels right. We feel right. Whether it’s two years that passed or twenty-two, if I hold you in my arms it will always feel exactly right.” Under the water, he gave her bottom a slow caress, and felt her shiver in response. Then he captured her mouth in another eager kiss.
She didn’t argue. In fact, she wrapped sleek arms around his neck and sucked on his tongue. They rocked against one another, and she rose up to tease him, grazing her clit over his cockhead. Jesus fuck. They’d left all the awkwardness behind with their empty wineglasses. Things were escalating fast.
Yet they had all night.
Mike turned her in his lap, so that she was lying on her side. But he could still reach her mouth. Their kisses were bottomless, and the warm water caressed their naked skin everywhere.
It gave him ideas.
He clasped one of her silky knees in his hand and lifted. When he angled her body toward the jet, she gasped into their kiss. He didn’t touch her himself. He let the water tease and tease, while he took long pulls of her mouth.
“Mike,” she sobbed.
“I know,” he whispered in her ear. “You need me and you’re going to get me.”
“We need a c-condom,” she gasped.
“Okay,” he agreed. They used to go bare but maybe she wasn’t on the pill anymore. “Hang on.” He pivoted, depositing her into the tub and freeing himself to step out of the water. He yanked a towel off the rack so that he wouldn’t flood the place in his haste, but he barely slapped it around himself before striding into the living room.
The mini bar area on a cabinet shelf was quickly identified and ransacked. He found what he was looking for and tore the package open.
God bless luxury hotels.
He rolled the condom on then tossed his towel on the floor. Five seconds later he was pulling Lauren out of the tub, tossing another towel on the counter ledge in the bathroom and seating her on it.
This was the fussiest bathroom he’d ever seen. There were tufted stools for sitting at the counter, so he kicked one over in front of Lauren and sat on it. She was looking down at him, flushed everywhere from hot water and desire, her chest heaving.
He pushed her knees apart, leaned forward and ran his tongue up the center of her.
“Oh, Mike,” she gasped, clenching his hair in her fists. He dropped kiss after wet kiss on her pussy as her speech became unintelligible. The only word he heard clearly was “please.” The sound of it made his balls draw up with longing.
He lifted his chin and kissed her belly. Then he presse
d his face between her breasts and took a steadying breath. He’d waited two years for this moment. It was hard to believe it had finally arrived. When he rose to his full height, their gazes locked. Kicking the stool away, he leaned his forehead against her smoother one as he took himself in hand.
Then, finally, he pushed himself inside.
She gasped as her body welcomed him home. Her arms pulled him close, her face tucked into the hollow of his neck. He rocked into her.
Go slow, he reminded himself. Go slow. Go slow. He repeated it like a mantra. The problem was that he knew the pitfalls of going slow. Life didn’t wait. Death didn’t either. If Lauren gave him another chance, he was going to grab it with both hands and wrestle it into submission.
And while Mike fought a losing battle with his patience, Lauren seemed to be fighting her own. Each of her breaths sounded shorter and more urgent. In the many mirrors he caught the motion of their coupling. The sight of her splayed knees, and her hands grasping his pumping ass—it was almost too much.
He broke their kiss on a gasp, and took a deep breath. Don’t rush, he coached himself. Make it last.
Lauren looked up into his eyes, her face flushed, her pupils blown. “What’s the matter?” she whispered.
“Nothing.” I love you so hard, it hurts. “Just thinking I want to lay you out on that big bed.”
“So what’s stopping you?” She wrapped her arms around his neck.
Well then.
He picked her up and staggered through the giant bathroom and into the bedroom. It was harder than it looked in porn. He set her down awkwardly, an inappropriate bark of laughter issuing from his chest.
“Careful. Don’t injure yourself during play-offs season,” she said, smiling against his bare chest.
“I’m out of practice,” he said, nudging her back onto the bed. “Let’s see if I can remember how this is done.”
With her big, soft eyes holding his, she scooted backward onto the bed and lay down.
He knelt between her legs. “Is this right?”
“Almost,” she said softly.