by K. M. Scott
"Why would she think that? I'm just as dressed up as you are and we're sitting here together."
"I think she might be used to something different here. Maybe the women are more obvious with how they feel about the men they're with."
To be honest, I was more than thankful Chase's girl had made that little gesture that I knew she did with every male in the club. At least it had gotten Nina to show something of how she felt. Her jealousy was flattering, but I didn't want just that.
Nina turned her body to face me. "Are you saying that I should be more obvious?"
"When in Rome..." I teased.
I saw a tiny pout form on her lips and then she looked away and sighed. She was silent for a long moment and then stood from the couch and smiled down at me. "Well, then I guess I better act more like the locals."
Nina hiked up her dress and straddled me as I sat looking up at her stunned. My hands instantly found their way to cup her pretty ass, pulling her closer.
"Is this better? I've never been to a club like this, so I'm not sure. Maybe I need to be wearing what she had on. Would you prefer that?" she said in a teasing voice.
My cock was rock hard in five seconds, and I had to rein in my urge to fuck her right there. Struggling to keep my voice calm, I smiled and said, "You look beautiful just as you are, Nina."
"Am I being obvious enough for you, Tristan?"
Her tone was almost biting, as if she was angry. My guess was that she was nervous, but I liked a challenge.
"Just enough."
Nina's mouth covered mine, and she snaked her tongue past my lips to tease the tip of my tongue. Running my hands over her hips, I slid my thumbs along the crease of her legs, dying to know if she was as ready as I was.
She relaxed just a little and lowered herself until she was fully seated on my lap. In her tender way, she looked down at me shyly and whispered, "I didn't think this out completely. Now that I'm sitting here like this, I'm not sure I want to do this here."
I couldn't help but smile. God, she was the same honest Nina I'd fallen head over heels for months before.
Shaking my head, I leaned in and kissed the tip of her nose. "I don't want to do this here either, so don't worry. It's okay. What do you say we go somewhere nicer and get back in this exact same position there?"
Nina bit her lip in that cute way she always did when she was nervous and nodded. Finally, tonight we'd begin making those memories.
Chapter Six
Tristan
Jensen followed my orders and got us to the penthouse in record time. Even though Nina and I had begun to get comfortable at Top, we kept it together in the car. I don't know what she was feeling, but it took every ounce of self control I possessed not to try for a repeat of that night in the back seat of the Rolls. By the time we got to the hotel, I wanted her so bad I wasn't sure I'd be able to control myself once we hit the elevator.
We rode up to the penthouse with both of us staring at our reflections in the mirrored walls of the elevator as I slid my arm around her waist to pull her close to me. She melted into my body, and I watched as she closed her eyes and her face relaxed. She was happy, and I planned to make her much happier in just minutes.
The elevator door opened and she stepped out into the penthouse, her head swiveling back and forth as she admired the designer's work that I never cared much for. She turned in my hold and looked up at me with a surprised expression. "This is stunning, Tristan!"
As she ran to look at the view of the city in the living room, I followed, happy that she was impressed. I wanted her to like everything in my world, even the parts of it I didn't give a damn about.
"I've never seen anything like this! How do you live here and not just stare out the window all day?" she asked as she pointed toward the twinkling lights of the city below.
"I don't really pay much attention to it," I said, remembering how she'd asked me that the first time. "Do you want something to drink?"
"Any chance you know how to make that chocolate drink?"
"No, but I could have the concierge bring one up for you," I offered as I made my way to the bar to find my bottle of scotch.
She walked over and stood next to me, smiling. "Looks like I'm going to have to drink the hard stuff. Well, I'm a tough chick. Hit me with that scotch."
I poured her a glass neat and handed it to her. "You sure?"
Raising her glass to clank against mine, she shrugged. "I guess we'll see, right?"
I tapped mine to hers. "To new memories."
"To new memories." She lifted the scotch to her lips and took a sip. Instantly, her face screwed into a grimace. "Oh, I don't know how you drink this. It's so strong. I can feel it racing through my body already, and I only had one taste. A few more and I'll be no good to anyone."
I took the glass out of her hand and placed it on the bar. "Then no more for you. I want you sober."
"Sober for what, Mr. Stone?" she said with a giggle, the scotch already taking effect.
Snaking my arm around her waist, I pulled her close and buried my face in her neck and whispered, "For when I make love to you, Ms. Edwards."
I didn't want to hold back anymore. I wanted her to be mine again, body and soul. Cradling the back of her head, I drew her mouth toward mine and kissed her with all the desire I'd kept bottled up for all those weeks. Her lips were soft but as eager and passionate as I slid my tongue into her mouth to find hers. When she sighed into my mouth, I couldn't wait anymore.
My hands clawed at the zipper down the back of her dress, but it got stuck an inch from the top. Aching to be inside her, I tore the two halves of the dress apart, ruining the zipper and the dress.
"Tristan, my dress!" she cried as I pulled it from her body.
"I don't care. I'll buy you ten dresses just like it," I panted as I unhooked her bra and slid the first strap over her shoulder. "Same thing with the bra. And if these panties don't come off easy, I'm going to rip through them too."
Nina's fingers tore through my shirt buttons until it hung open, and I quickly shrugged out of it. She was as desperate as I was to be out of those damn clothes. In seconds, she had my belt off and my pants and boxer briefs off my legs, and I had her pushed up against the wall.
As I lifted her off the ground to wrap her legs around my waist, I pressed my forehead to hers and rasped, "I hope you weren't expecting something slow and gentle. I can give you that, but tonight I don't want to wait. I need to be inside you, Nina."
Moaning, she pulled me close, but just then I remembered her sore ribs. Pulling back, I said, "I forgot about what the doctor said. Maybe we should go easy this time."
She dug her heels into my lower back and pulled my mouth to hers in a deep kiss. Her voice husky, she groaned, "Please, Tristan. I'm not a china doll. I'll tell you if something hurts."
I gently slid just the head of my cock into her, still worried I might hurt her if I didn't take it slow. My body was in agony wanting to bury myself inside her, but I didn't want to risk bruising those already sore ribs. I could give her gentle, even if every part of me wanted much more.
Nina pushed her palms against my chest and held me away from her. Worried I'd already screwed this up, I opened my mouth to apologize but she touched her finger to my lips to stop me. "Don't make me wait. I don't want gentle now. I want you...all of you."
Her fingers pressed into the back of my neck as I plunged balls deep into her wet and willing cunt. Nothing in the entire world ever felt better than that moment when our bodies joined together as one again. Her body was hot and enveloped me, taking my body to places I thought only existed in my imagination.
She consumed me, but I would have given my last breath for another moment with her. My mouth plundered hers as my cock pounded into her, each searching for that bliss that only she could provide.
I planted my palms against the wall for more leverage and heard her cry out as I began to thrust my hips faster. She clung to me, hanging off my neck and waist, but I felt nothing
except the pure ecstasy that came from being inside her.
Time seemed to stand still, but our bodies were drenched with sweat as we edged one another toward that sweetest moment two people could share. Nina's mouth delivered sensations to every part of me it touched, and I was on fire from her need. I wanted to be the only one to fulfill that need—the only soul who could quench the desire that raged inside her.
"Tristan, faster. Don't stop! Give me what I need. I'm almost there."
Her moans spurred my own excitement on, and I slid my hands down to her waist to hold her fast to me as I inched closer to my own release. "Let yourself go, baby. I want to feel you come all over my cock."
"Oh, God! Don't stop...don't..."
Nina's voice trailed off as I felt the first tender squeeze of her cunt around my cock. She buried her head in the crook of my neck and whimpered as her orgasm roared through her, raking her nails across my back and shoulders while she bucked against me.
Her body milking my cock sent my body into overdrive, and I came with a rush inside her. My legs shook under me, nearly buckling from my release. I clung to her as she did me, panting in her ear as I struggled to form coherent thoughts.
I was sure of only one thing. Nina was mine—truly mine—once again, and I was never going let her go.
"Tell me it wasn't always like that, Tristan," Nina whispered as she rested her head on my chest. "Tell me we weren't always so incredible together."
I trailed my fingers over her hair, twirling a strand around my forefinger as we lay in each other's arms on the floor. "Why?"
She wrapped her arm around me and squeezed gently. "Because if that's the case, I'm even sadder that I can't remember our time together."
"I could lie, if it would make you happy."
Nina looked up at me and twisted her face into a scowl. "No, that wouldn't make me happy."
"Then tell me what would and I'll do it," I whispered as I pulled her on top of me.
"Tell me about who I was. Tell me more than just that I was beautiful when you met me."
When she looked at me with those big blue eyes, I wanted to tell her everything. The truth of what my father had done. The truth of how long I'd known and how long it had been eating away at me. The whole horrible story and how something so beautiful had grown out of something so ugly.
I cradled her face in my hands and kissed her tenderly on the lips. "You were just as you are now. Gentle and kind and more honest than anyone I've ever met. You took my breath away the first time I touched you, and it's no different now."
"I bet it was love at first sight for me, Tristan. Tell me the truth. Was it?"
"I doubt it. I was with the actresses that night, so you probably thought I was some Hugh Hefner wannabe."
She giggled and sat up straight on me. Her light brown hair fell in gentle waves around her face and shoulders, making her look like a mermaid or some kind of angel. "I bet you looked incredible dressed in a suit and looking the way you always do."
I ran my hands over her stomach and caressed the tops of her thighs. She let out a tiny moan as my thumbs slid over the insides of her legs.
"I'm sure I was wearing a suit. I do all the time."
Nina wriggled her ass against my thighs and smiled. "Except now. I like the way you look now too. I don't think I've ever met a man more perfect than you. Successful, wealthy, gorgeous, and a body that looks like a Greek god's."
"I guess all those hours at the gym have paid off. The other stuff really isn't in my control, though."
Her fingers slid over my abdomen and up over my chest to my shoulders. "It isn't a good idea that I adore you so much already, Tristan Stone. No one should be this crazy about another person."
"Maybe it's okay since I'm even crazier about you."
She leaned down and kissed me softly on the lips. "I better find something about you I don't like before I become totally lost in you. Hurry up and tell me one of your bad traits."
There were too many to even get into. I knew that. My past. My family. The club I'd taken her to just that night. But I couldn't tell her about those, and even if I could, I didn't want to. I had my Nina back and I wasn't going to let her go.
"Well, I don't talk much. Some women may think that's a bad trait."
"Yeah, but then you do that strong, silent type sexy guy thing and make even the lack of talking a good thing."
I crossed my hands behind my head and smiled. "I guess I could work on being a bad man. Any suggestions?"
The smile she gave me was so sweet I almost pulled her to me and kissed away anything she could have said.
"I think maybe an eye patch could work."
"An eye patch? That would look great with a suit."
"Mmmm... now that's a man I wouldn't be able to say no to. Sort of a pirate meets a tycoon."
"I'm not sure I can pull off pirate. Something about having to say arrrgh all the time might not work in meetings."
Nina ran her fingertips across my hipbones and grazed the head of my cock. Gliding her tongue over her lips, she looked down at me and smiled. "It's too bad. I could definitely be into a pirate."
"Arrrgh."
"I do love a man who can be persuaded."
Both of us stopped our joking, and her eyes grew wide at what she'd just said, as if she'd let something bad slip. I didn't want her saying she loved me if she didn't mean it. I'd wait as long as it took to have her say those words if it meant they came from her heart.
She rolled off me onto the floor and looked up at the ceiling. "I don't know if I'm in love with you, but I've never felt like this in my life. Well, I don't know. Since I was in love with you, maybe I did feel like this." Turning her head, she smiled at me. "I guess I'm not making much sense, am I?"
I propped myself up on my elbow and nodded. I understood what she was trying to say. "I get it. As long as you're happy, that's enough for me. It's only been a few days since you came home from the hospital, so maybe this is good."
"I hear that thing in your voice, though. I know you wish for more."
I knew the thing she was talking about. I wouldn't have been able to hide it even if I wanted to. A mixture of loss, sadness, and regret, it was in everything I said to her.
Twisting a long wave of her hair around my finger, I forced a smile. "I'm happy, Nina. You do that for me. No one else has ever made me happy like you do. So it's not the same as it was. Maybe this time will be even better."
"It breaks my heart to hear you say things like that. You have everything a person could want. I can't imagine not being happy with money, success, power—all the things everyone thinks ensure happiness."
"All they ensure is that you'll have people wanting you for everything but you."
"Like Chase tonight?"
I gave a snort at the sound of my Top partner's name. "Chase is one of the best examples of the people money brings to you. If I didn't have the money to help him get that business going, I'd be invisible to him. Not that being invisible to the likes of Chase Mitchell is a bad thing."
Nina rolled over and propped her head up on her hand. "How did you get involved with him and that club? You two don't seem a thing alike."
"Chase is a remnant of my time before I took over Stone Worldwide. Remember I told you that I wasn't always the man you see?" For a second, I couldn't remember if I told her in the last few days or before the accident.
She gently touched my shoulder with her fingertips. "No, no. I remember. You said when you were twenty that you would have been just like any other guy I've ever met. And I can tell you that I think you're full of it. There's no way you would ever be like anyone else I've ever met."
"Yeah, well, Chase is from those days. He comes from money. Not as much as I came from, but his family's got some. Not that they would have been interested in giving him a dime so he could set up his club in a sleepy town outside New York City. That's where I came in."
"If you're not into that, why did you agree to be his partner?"
/> "Silent partner."
"Okay. Why did you agree to be his silent partner?"
"Because I know a good investment when I see one. When he came to me with his idea, I knew it would make money. So I agreed to go in on the club with him as long as he agreed that I'd have nothing to do with the day-to-day operations."
"So you just sit back and collect the money?" she asked with a sly grin on her face.
"Exactly. I prefer to stay in the hotel business and keep my involvement with Top silent."
"Why stay silent about it?"
"I don't care what people like, but there are certain segments of society that wouldn't approve of the owner of the Richmont Hotel chain as co-owner of that kind of place, even if he's a silent partner."
"Doesn't the board of your company have a problem with it?"
Shaking my head, I explained, "They don't know. I financed Top with my own money, not Stone Worldwide's money or credit."
Her eyes grew wide as saucers. "Holy shit! You are loaded!" Instantly, she covered her mouth with her hand and mumbled from behind it, "I'm sorry. That's not the way the girlfriend of someone like you should act."
I pulled her hand away from her face. "It's not a problem. I am. I always have been. Money is something I've been blessed with. I'm not one of those people who thinks it isn't important. It is. But it's not the most important thing in life."
"I always hate when you see wealthy people or movie stars talking about their success in interviews and saying things like the money isn't something they think about or it doesn't mean anything to them. That kind of thing just bugs me. For those of us without money, it's a big thing and we always think about it."
Her honesty washed over me like a refreshing summer rain. This was Nina, and I loved her. "And then you find out they give little to nothing to charity and you wonder what they do with that money they say they care nothing about."
"Exactly!" she said as she sat up. "I hate that kind of hypocrisy."
I suspected she hadn't checked her bank account since she'd gotten home from the hospital and didn't know how much money she really had now. Not that it would matter. I had the feeling that she could have millions and still be the same down-to-earth soul she'd always been.