Spilling into her apartment, they stumbled toward the bedroom, barely getting the door shut and locked. She collapsed onto her bed, relieved to be a little freer now to receive his delightful affections. His hands yanked her panties down and off her, hiking up the dress again, diving with his fingers back into her as he whispered, “Oh God, Penny, you’re so wet.” Indeed she was a huge sloppy mess at this point. “You’re so ready. I’m not yet.” He looked pissed at this fact.
“It’s not even been five minutes.” She laughed, shaking her head at him. She glanced at her end table, wondering… was this the time? A memory of his loss of control back there sent a shiver of anticipation through her, and she twisted, reaching for it.
“I don’t think I can—” he started, probably thinking she was reaching for the condoms. He stilled when she pulled the vibrator out of the drawer, eyes wide, but his fingers slid into her again, starting to pump her harder in excitement.
She smiled. “Want to try this?”
He took it from her and stared at it like she’d handed him Excalibur. She stifled another laugh. He was still quite drunk, wasn’t he? Yes, they were definitely doing this again. Now she knew why Anka had kept pushing the subject of alcoholic lubrication. Not that she’d have wanted it the first time, but this was fun.
When his eyes turned back to her, they had a hard glint to them that sent another thrill through her. She had a sense that a door had opened when she’d licked his cock, a door to a secret passageway, and it still stood open. Some amount of control he usually employed wasn’t in place. The energy pouring off him was electrifying.
“Lie on your stomach,” he ordered.
She stared, mesmerized by the change in him. She had always thought him dreamily handsome, adorably geeky, his long frame sexy, and his cute eyes especially hot when they were warm and laughing. But this man was different while also the same—still Nick, but vibrating with power, with life, with a dominion over her that she could trust. That she could lose herself in. It made her weak, helpless at the sight of him.
“Now,” he said, his voice dark and quiet.
She enthusiastically complied. His hands gripped her hips and pulled her off the edge of the bed, and she caught herself with her bare feet flat against the soft carpet. He hiked her skirt up farther, and his hands explored her exposed body, running over every curve and crevice, until she was shaking with need.
His left foot nudged hers outward. “Spread out farther for me, Pen.”
Her knees trembled at those words, but she did as he asked, her body crying out for more than just a simple caress. He placed his feet just inside hers, effectively holding her spread open for him.
The vibrator buzzed on without warning and slipped inside of her while his fingers slid down to her clit and rubbed in soft circles. She arched her back in delight, her hair whipping against her back.
“I wanna hear if you like it, Penny,” he said, his voice rough. “Loudly.”
The vibrator slid out and plunged in again, and she grunted.
“I think you can do better than that.”
It exited her again, then came back harder, his fingers intensifying, rubbing her harder, and she let her herself moan.
“Do you want to come, Penny?” he whispered. In and out, then again. Again.
“Yes,” she moaned between panting breaths.
“I can’t hear you.”
“Y-yes,” she stammered, reaching for the opposite edge of the bed and missing, the sheets twisting in her fists.
“I think you can shout louder than that.”
“Oh God, Nick.” It sounded like the whole building could hear her, she’d never moaned so loud. Her hands clawed wildly at nothing.
“Keep going. Do you want to come for me, Penny?”
For him. Yes. God, yes, so much so. “Yes!”
“Beg for it,” he whispered.
Her eyes widened, and she buried her face in the bed. At that moment, every inch of her wanted to please him. This was clearly something that got him off, this exchange, and it set her alight as well. But what could she possibly say?
“How?” she whispered, face still buried in the sheets.
He was gloriously unfazed by the question. “Say please.”
She hesitated. God, was that a bulge in his jeans against her ass cheek?
“And loudly. I’m not letting you come until you do.” His hands slowed, the pressure decreasing.
“Please,” she whispered, lifting her face above centimeters above the bed.
He rubbed faster, and she gasped. “Louder. Now. You can do this, Penny. I want to know how much you want this. I want to hear how much you want this.”
She raised her head again, emboldened a little by his words. “Please, Nick?” She forced her voice louder. “I want this.”
His feet nudged her legs farther apart, and she moaned without even trying this time. She could feel her body approaching the edge—would he stop if she hadn’t satisfied him? Back off and make her wait?
“Please,” she said louder now, smacking at the bed with a flat palm.
“Getting there.”
“Please!” It was a shout, a plea, an opening of her soul to admit her truth in the darkness, to acknowledge the depth of the desire she usually hid behind quiet gasps. “Please! God, Nick, make me come.”
His fingers quickened, intense and persistent in their pressure, and her knuckles turned white around the sheets, pulling them underneath her, arching her back again as ecstasy loomed. Her legs tried to close, but he held her steady, his knees, too, now holding her open for him, and just the thought of it finally sent her over the edge.
Her cry was nearly a scream as she writhed against the bed, and his body was warm and close behind her, his cock digging into her hip. When the waves of pleasure had abated, the vibrator dropped beside her on the bed. He unzipped his pants and ripped open a condom.
She bit her lip in anticipation, even in her exhaustion pushing her body back toward him, eager to meet him. Without word or warning, he slammed into her to the hilt, the force of him making her catch her breath.
“You okay?” he whispered.
“Much more than okay,” she replied.
“You sure?”
She twisted so he could see her face, her smile. Then she lay back on the bed and whispered, “Please fuck me, Nick.”
His hands gripped her hips harder than she remembered him ever doing, as he groaned louder than she had. And if she’d thought he’d lost it before, that had been nothing compared to the wild abandon with which he took her now, his body pounding rhythmic and forceful against hers. His feet shifted, freeing hers, moving closer for better leverage. His balls smacked at her clit, and she arched her back now, out of the sheer pleasure of it.
His hands released her hips, and one seized her hair, pulling her back with delightful force. The other cupped her breast as his body lowered over hers, covering her with warmth for a moment. His fingers found her nipple and squeezed, and she cried out, not sure if that was pleasure or pain or something between the two.
He drew back, renewing the force against her core, but one hand stayed in her hair, holding her in place, bringing new wetness to her body. He slowed for a moment, and his belt briefly jingled and then swished off. Why was he—
She caught her breath as the leather circled her throat in the darkness. He held it at her nape, collaring her, firm but not yet painful, and then he was fucking her again, thrusting her in sharp jerks against the leather.
Oh, hell yes. This was everything.
And then, with the other hand, he smacked her ass. Oh, heavens to Betsy, that felt good. They were definitely doing this again.
He smacked her again, the sharp sting more pleasure than any kind of pain, and then he grabbed both of her shoulders, thrusting even harder now. God, that felt good too. Solid. Connected. Marked. Owned… And he did own her, he always had, as surely as the day they’d first had sex and she’d written him down in her history bo
oks, as sure as she fawned after him all those months without him knowing she existed. She was his, through and through.
And he was hers too. She’d driven him to this point, to this oblivion, and she reveled in his shout, his growl as he exploded in her, his hands clenching her hard.
He hesitated for a long time before he withdrew. “Be right back.” The bathroom light clicked on, and the water ran. She scooted onto the bed, ripped off her dress, and crawled under the covers. It was barely a minute before he was back by her side, his arms tight around her, kissing her as though they hadn’t yet had the best sex of her life—or any that night—and he still needed her desperately.
Maybe he did.
Chapter 9
When Nick awoke in Penny’s bed, she was curled against his shoulder and breathing softly and sweetly beside him. He rolled and slid his hand around her waist, and she sighed against his skin. He smiled, blinking the fog of sleep away. He was getting used to waking up next to her. It was heaven.
Or had last night been? A vague memory of intense satisfaction, of complete and utter fulfillment flitted through him, and then flashes of memory. His body instantly responded, even more ready than usual that morning. But in the light of day, his smile faded. Hell.
He stiffened. Oh, God, what had he done?
A memory of pinning Penny down on someone’s bathroom floor and coming in her mouth filled him with a shock of both longing and horror. Damn. How had that happened? Had he forced it on her? Had he lost control? And then another flash, the darkest fantasy of Penny spread before him, shouting, begging him to make her come, and him ordering her to—
Fuck.
What had he done? He glanced down at her sleeping form, then around the room. His eyes caught on his belt on the floor, and he swallowed hard.
Too late. It was too late. He’d had one shot at something special and sweet and pure—and just like that, he’d fucked it up. He’d never get the darkness out, would he? He couldn’t escape it, now matter how hard he pretended he could.
And now he’d dragged her into it too.
He almost rose to get in the shower. He wanted space, some time to think of a way to apologize. But… no. He’d slipped from her bed a few too many times. She probably wasn’t used to waking up to his face yet because of it. And in spite of whatever deviant sex he’d talked her into last night, he was going to put on a brave face and make sure she knew how much he loved her.
Because he did. It was time he said it. He wouldn’t, not today, not to associate it with that past night, but soon.
Whatever she’d dealt with last night, he’d make it up to her by being the best damn boyfriend-partner-whatever she could possibly need. He had to be. He couldn’t lose her now. He just hoped he hadn’t fucked it up already.
He shifted, something hard pressing into his leg. He reached down and discovered a purple vibrator in the bed. Where the hell had that come from? He set it on the end table.
He rolled back onto his side to watch her sleep, her innocent pink lips parted as she breathed. God. He should have known he couldn’t keep his darkness away. Ashley had tainted him, and there was no going back. He’d just have to figure out damage control and hope the same wasn’t true of her.
Watching her, he remembered now, sliding the vibrator in and out of her wet body. And damn, she’d been wet. Excited. Hot as hell. Was that true, or just the confused hopes of his drunken horny self?
Her eyes fluttered open. “Hey,” she whispered.
“Hey,” he forced himself to say back, drawing her into his arms so he wouldn’t have to meet her gaze with his guilty one. No, no, he should meet this head on. “Last night—”
She pulled away from him, propping herself up on one elbow and grinning. “Was amazing! I can’t believe we had sex in Anka’s bathroom.”
He snorted. Of everything, that was what was most notable? “How drunk were we?” He forced a smile to match hers.
“Oh, I wasn’t hardly at all. You were quite out of it, though.” She grinned wider now, eying him.
“What? Why are you looking at me like that?” Was he blushing now? What was she thinking now that she knew his secret, his dark tastes he’d never intended to share?
“ ’Cause I guess what they say about sex sucking while you’re drunk isn’t true for everyone.”
He snorted. “Guess not?”
“We are definitely doing that again.”
“We are?” Did she really remember what had happened? It couldn’t be.
“But I have class in… thirty minutes. Wanna shower and give me a ride?”
He smiled, relieved to dodge any more discussion of last night. Maybe she’d been drunker than she remembered. Maybe if she’d blacked out, he wouldn’t have to confess what a weirdo he was. He could only hope.
He hopped out of the bed. “Let’s go then!”
Penny was bustling between her first class and her second, going over the upcoming exam topics in her head, when a voice hit her like a sledgehammer from behind.
“Oh, hey, Penny!”
Penny froze, stumbling she stopped so quickly. She’d know that voice anywhere. “Ashley…” She tried to force herself to sound happy to see her old friend, but failed. “Oh! Uh, hey. I’m just headed to class…”
“This is so lucky!” Was that enthusiasm in Ashley’s voice sincere or sarcastic? “C’mon. This is fate. We are finally going to have that drink. You have time, right?” Ashley grabbed her arm and dragged her through the door of the nearest establishment—a crunchy sort of place. They were headed toward the bar counter before Penny could even blink. “What’ll it be?”
“Ash, it’s eleven a.m. I do have some time before my next class, but—”
“So mimosas? Or Bloody Marys?”
“I don’t need to go to class tipsy. I haven’t eaten anything.”
She waved down the bartender and ordered two mimosas and a quiche, Penny shaking her head all the while. The man took the order, asked a few questions, convinced Ash to add on a second quiche, and then drifted to leave them in dreaded privacy.
“So. You and Nick, huh?” Ashley grinned.
Penny tried to keep her smile small, but it rebelled and broke out like the sun coming from behind a cloud. “Yeah.”
“So tell me everything. How did you two finally hook up? I didn’t know you two ever talked back when we lived together.”
“We didn’t,” Penny assured her. “You used to post about him, but we never met.”
“Really? Bizarre.”
“Uh, yeah. But he started running D&D sessions at the retirement community where I work on Wednesday nights. So we started chatting.”
“Oh, yeah, that’s like his community service or whatever.”
“He has a good heart.”
“He’s a fucking teddy bear.” The mimosas landed before them in tall flutes, and Ash took a quick drink.
“And his uncle is living there.”
“Oh, you mean Bob?”
“Yeah.”
“You know Bob isn’t really his uncle, right?”
Penny pursed her lips. “Yes. But isn’t that none of your business to tell me?”
Ash sighed, looking down at the bar. “I suppose you’re right.” She held up her glass as a toast instead. “To really adorable people fucking each other!”
“Ashley!” Penny’s cheeks flushed.
“To getting your cherry popped, then?”
Penny slapped a hand over her face, which was on fire now.
“Well, what are we toasting to then?”
“To me and Nick?” Penny raised her glass, eying Ash warily.
She hesitated for only a second before saying, “To you and Nick.” She even sort of sounded like she meant it.
Their glasses clinked, and they each took a sip.
“Well, I’m happy for you, Penny.” Ashley set down her glass. “But—”
“Sure you are.”
“—I mean, you two are doing it, right?” Ash leaned forwar
d.
“Why do you care?”
“Good man like that shouldn’t go to waste.” Ashley smiled and took another drink.
Penny pursed her lips and fidgeted, looking out the window.
“Well, if you’re not yet, you chose well when the time comes. He’s very talented.”
Ugh. “Do we have to talk about your former sex life? Can we just talk about each other? What about you? How have you been?”
Ashley blinked, turning away and hovering over the champagne glass. “I… I’ve been good. Working on my side hustle and all that.”
“Oh yeah? Are you going to try for funding?”
She sighed. “Honestly, my deadlines at work are killing me. It’s always crunch time, every damn week. I barely have any time for my own stuff, and I just don’t know if I have it in me to do all that slide-deck money-dance bullshit. Especially if my vagina is going to handicap me anyway.”
“Dang. That’s rough.” Penny frowned and held onto her glass a little tighter.
“Yeah.” Ash took another sip, shoulders slumping a little.
“Meet anyone new? Anyone exclusive?”
Her friend’s lips pursed. “Why does it need to be exclusive?”
“It doesn’t! I was just wondering if anyone had gotten serious.”
She shook her head, not meeting Penny’s gaze. “Nah. I don’t think I’m ever going to find someone.” She sat her glass down on the bar. “Some guys are really into their careers, and I don’t want to get in too deep if it’s just not going to work out with us both being career-driven. Then there’s more flexible guys, guys who aren’t so driven, but that alone can be a turnoff. And then even when I dig them, it doesn’t mean we always share the same… you know, tastes and proclivities.”
“Tastes and proclivities?” Penny asked slowly.
Ash side-eyed her. Suddenly Penny felt like she had walked into a trap. “I have some very particular tastes when it comes to sex. If you hadn’t figured that out yet.”
Penny shrugged, looking back into the drink and mostly not wanting to know.
“As does Nick,” Ash said, an edge to her voice.
This was what she’d wanted to get at all along, wasn’t it? In spite of herself, a smile broke out on Penny’s face. It grew into a giddy grin as she thought of last night’s encounter. If those were his tastes and proclivities, Penny was all for it, and perhaps they were an even luckier match than she’d realized.
Bad Game: A Geeky New Adult Romance (Leveling Up In Love Book 2) Page 11