by Judy Teel
CK reached out her hand and brushed her thumb across the smooth, round tip. He sucked in a hiss of air and the object of her fascination gave a sharp upward bob, lengthening and thickening even more. Fascinated, she wrapped her hand around the shaft and stroked him.
Ryan grabbed her wrist. "Later," he said in a choked voice.
She released him and he knelt beside the couch, kissing the top of one breast. Moving up to nibble the column of her throat, he laid his hand gently on her stomach and stroked downward. Slipping his fingers under the edge of her panties, he slid them into her and caressed the sensitive nub hidden there.
CK threw her head back, moaning softly. Sensations she couldn't name rolled through her; warm, liquid pleasures that she never wanted to end. Then just as a delicious coil of tension started tightening in her belly, Ryan withdrew his hand to push her panties off, impatiently.
Moments later, she lay naked beneath his hot gaze, uncaring as she feasted on the sight of his beautiful body. Her heart pounded and the core of her grew slick and swollen.
His nostrils flared as he pulled in a sharp breath and he bent to take her right nipple into his mouth. The electric jolt from his touch shot through her, hotter and more intense than before and she squirmed as he flicked his tongue across the hard peak.
She felt his palm graze over her hip and cup the inside of her thigh. Carefully, he lifted her leg and lowered her foot to the floor next to his knee. Air brushed across her tender secrets and she instinctively moved to clamp her thighs together.
His fingers flexed against her muscles as his teeth grazed her nipple. "I have to taste you," he breathed against her wet, aching breast. "All of you."
Gently, he spread her legs wider as he trailed kisses down her stomach just as he had before and her thighs quivered. She felt exposed to him, vulnerable and yet....
His mouth touched the inside of her thigh just above his hand and she jumped. Before she could protest, he laid gentle fingers against her most intimate area and delicately spread her open.
And then his hot tongue stroked across the swollen nub revealed there.
CK bucked her hips as everything contracted and scorching heat vibrated through her belly. He licked her again and then covered her with his mouth in the most intimate of kisses.
His tongue and lips explored her, suckling the hard nub, sending a hungry ache of pleasure flowing into her belly and up through her body. Tighter and tighter the sensations spun, spiraling deep within her until she writhed under his mouth, nearly crazed to see an end to it.
He flicked his tongue over her once more and the tight, ball of ecstasy shattered sending waves of euphoria rolling through her, clenching her muscles, rocking her hips, illuminating her very being. Wave after wave rose and fell and she cried out his name.
Then his mouth was gone and he stood over her, his face a fierce mask of restraint. He anchored one knee beside her hips. Angling himself toward her, he touched the tip of himself to her core.
With a small movement, he dipped into her, sending eager new waves of pleasure rippling through her body. She gave a hard, upward thrust against him and he plunged fully inside her, stretching and filling her with a sudden, bursting pressure. A sharp sting of pain surprised gasp from her.
Stunned, Ryan went completely still.
* * *
CK had been a virgin.
Horror gripped the center of his chest. He'd hurt her.
He'd hurt CK.
"Why are you stopping?" she asked. She wiggled her hips and his softening erection stiffened with renewed enthusiasm, swelling inside her and begging him to move. He was such a bastard.
"Ryan? Aren't you supposed to keep going?"
He let out a bitter bark of laughter. God, she was amazing. Fresh, innocent...
Not anymore.
His throat tightened. He never should have let it go this far. He should have stopped them—stopped himself. He was the one with the experience. He should have known better.
He grit his teeth. "CK, I..."
Understanding spread over her face and she gave him a shy smile. "It only hurt for a second. It's gone now."
She moved her hips, again, and he slid part way out of her. With a thrust of her luscious bottom, she brought him home, burying him to the hilt. Her gaze drifted out of focus and she repeated the movement, a low purr thrumming in her throat as she moved against him.
Ryan groaned and buried his face in the lush valley between her breasts. Her sweet scent spread over his awareness, sharpening the bliss of her tight heat. Mindlessly, he found himself moving with her, matching her tentative, exploratory rhythm.
An earnest throbbing rippled up into his groin and he increased the pace. She closed her eyes and arched her back and his pleasure deepened, making his throat sting with the power of it.
He rode the crest of the delirium building inside him, her dark moans urging him on. Without a condom, he shouldn't be taking such a risk, but his heartbeat with an energy he'd never felt before and he couldn't stop.
Nothing had ever felt so perfect as being inside CK.
She tightened and cried out, sending a flood of moisture over him and a rush of sweet agony spread through his groin. With the last shreds of his rational mind, Ryan pulled out of her and spilled himself across her taunt belly.
Sucking in deep gulps of air, he collapsed on the sofa at her feet. Pink blood streaked the length of him in thin, telling ribbons. His chest spasmed with a hard stab of guilt.
He'd never regretted his choices and actions when it came to women. Never.
Until now.
He dropped his head against the back of the couch. "Oh, my God, what have I done," he whispered.
CHAPTER EIGHT
The deep blue afternoon sky arching over the mansion reminded her of Ryan's eyes and the way he'd looked at her as he'd straddled her hips. CK smiled.
A bird sang its heart out in one of the trees lining the drive making the most beautiful sound she'd ever heard. The Captain's ornate, gaudy door knocker even pleased her.
Nothing could spoil her happiness. Not even the curt summons to the mansion that they'd received right after lunch.
CK glanced surreptitiously at him brooding behind the dark sunglasses he favored. Delight swirled through her stomach, warming it like a hot cup of tea. She finally knew what all the fuss was about. Muscles she didn't even know existed ached and delicate, private areas were sore and tender. She felt glorious.
He hitched his shoulders and his mouth tugged down. "Stop staring at me."
"I can't help it."
"It wasn't that special, CK."
"I want to do it, again."
Ryan choked. She reached out and pounded him on the back, concern dampening her high spirits for a moment.
"No," he finally managed to spit out.
"I'll get condoms."
"Damn it, CK. No."
"We'll be friends with benefits. You enjoyed, yourself. I enjoyed myself." Memories of how much she'd enjoyed herself lifted the corner of her mouth with the beginning of a dreamy smile.
"It can't happen. Drop it."
"You're not seeing anyone. I'm not seeing anyone. There's no good reason not to."
Ryan whipped off his sunglasses and rounded on her. The sexy blue eyes she'd been daydreaming about glittered with anger. "No."
Her forehead creased with bewilderment. This was not the face of a guy who'd just had great sex. Had she done something wrong? What a hilarious thought. The man had barely been able to control himself.
Her consternation evaporated. "You're just being stubborn," she said, cheerfully.
A muscle jumped along his jaw. "I won't take your innocence from you, again."
"That's ridiculous and not even pertinent. Besides, you can't take a girl's virginity twice. It's physically impossible."
His mouth flattened into a thin line and he shoved his glasses back into place. "You know what I mean." He turned and faced the door. "What I did was wrong. I won't rep
eat it."
CK's temper simmered to the surface. Ryan had been a perfect first lover for her. Now he was just being a dick about it. "You knew I was inexperienced. You said so, yourself. Quite publicly."
"But I didn't know it went that far."
"This isn't the eighteen hundreds. My 'innocence' as you so obnoxiously put it is none of your concern. Get over it."
"I seduced you."
"I remember being the one who displayed herself."
"You didn't know what you were doing. How could you?" He scowled at her. "You'd never done it before."
She blew out a huff of frustration. "You beat all, you know that? Fine, be the big, strong man who took the poor little woman's virginity. Dope."
"School girl."
They both glared at the door, angry silence charging the air around them.
"You plan to get married in the next couple weeks, anyway," he said tightly. "Were you going to keep me around as your lover?"
She stiffened as if he'd slapped her. A marriage contract, even one based solely on business, was sacred to her. She would not under any circumstances defile a promise as important as that.
"I don't do cheating," she said, glaring at his profile. "But you make a very good point. Now that I know how much I like sex," she ignored his flinch, "I'll be sure to find someone who's willing to strike a bargain and have a little fun in the bedroom. Apparently you don't have to have any kind of friendly feelings for the person you sleep with to have a good time."
The muscle started ticking along his jaw, again. "No, you don't."
Pain pinched her heart and an unexpected wash of tears tightened her throat. "You're a real bastard, you know that?"
"That's the first sensible thing you've said."
The door opened suddenly and Winston appeared, his weathered face set in infinitely patient lines.
CK's gaze swept over him and apprehension temporarily pushed her hurt and anger aside. "Uh, oh."
"Why are you dressed in a World War one outfit?" Ryan asked.
"World War one naval second lieutenant, begging your pardon."
"I think you're the one who needs a pardon, Winston," Ryan answered, dryly.
Winston sighed. "When I feel particularly low, I fantasize about retirement, sir."
Ryan darted a glance at CK. "I know what you mean."
She narrowed her eyes at him and then shifted her attention back to Winston. "Why is the Captain in a better mood?"
"How do you know that?"
"The farther back in history, the worse his mood," she answered Ryan, never taking her eyes off the butler. It was a good thing, too, or she would have missed the tiny twitch at the corner of his eye.
The Captain was up to something that Winston didn't entirely approve of. That was very bad news. Probably for her.
"How close are we to World War two?" she asked the butler.
"I fear it is just around the corner."
"This doesn't happen to have anything to do with the embossed invitation, does it?"
"I am not at liberty to say."
A cold chill ran down her back. "Let us in, Winston."
"I also have strict orders to admit no one. Your grandfather has gone out."
"The Captain never goes out. He's in there, I can feel it."
Ryan shifted toward the older man. "Now is the time for all good men to come to the aid of their mistress, Winston. Let us pass."
The butler gamely braced himself. "No exceptions, sir."
"You can't forcibly remove an eighty year-old man," she said, crossly.
"Seventy-eight, miss. Begging your pardon."
"You really think I'm some kind of a monster, don't you?" Ryan stated.
"You're the one who's convinced me."
"One kind of ass does not necessarily equate another."
Winston looked back and forth between them with interest and CK felt her cheeks warming. Straightening her back, she turned away from Ryan and focused her attention back on the butler.
"Why the change of plans regarding the company's charity ball? The Captain's never had it here before. He hates events like that."
"I can't say, miss."
"Can't or won't?"
"I have only been cleared to convey one message."
Ryan crossed his arms over his chest. "This ought to be good."
"Don't get your hopes up," CK remarked.
Winston observed her intensely as if he wanted to send her mental telepathy, or something. She had no idea what he was trying to tell her, so she waited, wondering what horrible plans the Captain had for her, now.
After a moment, Winston gave it up. He took a deep breath, coughed into his fist, and then threw his shoulders back.
In a booming rendition of the Captain, he said, "Tell my ungrateful, miscreant of an heir that if she crosses me in this matter she will not see a dime of her fortune. Not a dime, by thunder!"
Ryan took off his sunglasses and stared at the butler. "Winston! That's brilliant. You could take that on the road."
The older man relaxed and a half smile touched his mouth. "Oh, I think not, sir. You see I'm dreadfully allergic to tomatoes and rotten eggs are so hard on one's wardrobe. However, I have considered—"
"The message, Winston? Can we please get on with it?"
"My apologies, miss."
Drawing himself up once more, he resumed his impression, though his face remained completely neutral. "I will see her settled before it's too late and expect her to make a choice, do you hear? She will announce her engagement by midnight at the party, or by thunder, I will sell Kazners to the highest bidder that very night!"
She gaped at him as anger poured through her like lava. "Before it's too late for what?" she finally sputtered. "I'm not even thirty. Does he think my eggs are about to dry up and he won't get his legacy? What does he mean 'make my choice at the party?' The blasted thing's next Saturday! I can't find a husband in a week. And what about the merger with Wayland and Son? Has he considered that in his Machiavellian mind?"
Disappointed, furious tears flooded her eyes and spilled over, making hot tracks down her face and she couldn't do a thing to stop them. "I'm sick of everybody I care about trying to force me in directions they think are best for me. The Captain with his unfair expectations." She rounded on Ryan and jabbed his chest with her forefinger. "You with no expectations at all."
Backing up, she clenched her hands into hard, tight fists. "I want to live life on my terms. To discover what makes me happy. To choose what has meaning to me. That is not too much to ask for."
"I'm so sorry, my dear," Winston said, gently.
"Everyone's sorry," she snapped, biting her lip to hold back the tears, "but it doesn't change anything."
With a choking sob, CK turned her back on the Captain's mansion, stumbled down the steps and ran.
* * *
A fitful breeze cooled her wet cheeks as CK stomped along the parameter of the Captain's mansion. Embarrassment churned through her gut. She'd lost her temper in front of Winston and Ryan. She hated doing that. It was weak and foolish and once done, there was no taking it back.
In business, where she had no personal attachments, she was never ruffled, never out of control. Calm, straightforward discourse was second nature to her. Family was different.
Family entangled themselves so deeply it was nearly impossible to sort through one's thoughts and feelings and arrive at your truth. She'd been raised to fulfill expectations and she had done so without question, diligently and loyally.
She didn't want to do that anymore. She wanted to be free. Not of Kazners, not of her grandfather, just...free. She didn't even know what that meant, exactly, but she was very certain she wanted to find out.
Her life was hers to live. She had as much right to get messy and make mistakes as the next person.
Relationships with friends could be just as complicated, she realized. Close friends, anyway.
Her throat tightened, but she swallowed down the tears. She w
ouldn't cry over him anymore, she vowed. He'd rejected her and she knew he had his reasons. She couldn't change them, or him and that hurt. A lot. But it was also okay.
She couldn't regret what they'd done. Being with someone like that, a man she really cared about, had been the experience of a lifetime. It had also shown her that marrying without love was something she could never do.
CK shaded her eyes with one hand and gazed up at the East wing of the mansion. The cut stone of the walls rose unyielding above her, broken at regular intervals by gracefully arching twelve-foot high windows. Far above them, the glass doors of the third story balcony squinted down at her coldly.
If she wanted her chance at happiness, she had to confront the Captain head-on and put a stop to this insanity. Provocation seemed as good a place to start as any.
"I know you're in there, you coward!" she shouted at the balcony. "Come out and fight like a man."
"Lame, CK. Tremendously lame," she muttered.
She dropped her gaze to the bushes lining the base of the wall. The estate grounds were so immaculate there wasn't much to work with, but after a moment of hunting, she found what she wanted.
The smooth piece of quartz rested with a cool weight against her palm. Hefting the pebble, CK studied the ornate windows above her.
"That'll bounce right off the double-pane glass," Ryan said behind her.
CK tensed. Gathering her courage, she slowly turned around. He stood a few feet away, watching her like she was a skittish wildcat. He'd tucked his sunglasses into the open collar of his crisp white shirt and stood with his hands shoved into the pockets of his slacks. His hair looked tousled and windblown; his eyes shadowed with regret.
A soft warmth bloomed in the middle of her chest and spread through her slowly, delicately seeping into her soul.
She loved him and there wasn't a damn thing she could do about it. Worse, he could never know.
"If you want to get his attention, try this." He pulled his right hand from his pocket and held out a rock as big as an avocado.