by Lacey Legend
Another step toward her and he could tell she wasn’t backing away. He moved toward her more confidently, closing the gap between the two of them. Gently he ran his fingertips up her arms and he could feel goosebumps rise from her skin.
Her dark eyes stayed trained on his and she bit her lower lip. He was sure that was meant to be a gesture of nerves or uncertainty, but she looked so sexy when she did it that he couldn’t help but lean in to kiss her. The moment he got the first taste of her lips, he lost all control of his senses, and any trepidation he had felt melted from his body. She tasted sweet and luxurious, a rare delicacy to be savored.
He removed his hands from her arms and wrapped them in her silky hair, pulling her mouth in harder. He wanted more, needed more. For a fleeting moment he wondered if she would pull away but instead she opened her mouth and entwined her tongue with his. That was all the sign he needed.
He hoisted her up and she wrapped her legs around his waist as he moved her to the dresser and placed her on top. Her hands were roaming the planes of his body and he felt like every piece of his was on fire. Her nails were raking into his hot skin and the sensation sent shivers through his body.
His hands moved from her hair to cup her breasts where he could feel her arousal. She stripped away his shirt and pushed down his loose shorts until they slid to the floor. Pulling away from the kiss, she took in his body with eager eyes.
Her eyes widened when she saw how aroused he was for her and he couldn’t remember a time when he’d been more turned on by any woman in his life. She took control and slid her fingers along him, teasingly at first then guiding him inside of her. Their motions became animalistic with each other filled by nothing but carnal lust.
They pushed together, screaming, grunting, shaking, until both of their bodies came completely undone with each other. She began to quake around him, her body tensing as she threw her head back in pleasure. Barely hanging on from the fierceness of her, he held out just long enough until she was spent and then he let himself go completely.
When they finished, they clung to each other with exhaustion and confusion. Mason pulled away first, wondering if he would see regret in her eyes. Instead when he looked down he saw a sly smile spread across her lips and he couldn’t help but laugh.
“We can’t tell anybody we just did that.” Her smile grew into something mischievous.
He kissed her again, lighter this time, and pulled his pants back on.
“Don‘t worry, it’s our secret.”
He grabbed his shirt and walked toward the door of the pool house.
“What is this usual for you? Bang them and leave them within minutes?”
He could tell she was upset, but he had no way to stop himself. He’d never in his life gotten attached to a woman, and though she may be the best he’d ever felt, she was still the princess and there was no point in breaking his own rules for her. Still, part of him winced at the emotion in her voice.
“Were you not left satisfied? Because I never like to leave a customer unhappy.”
Immediately Kelsey covered herself, trying to save the last bit of dignity that he hadn’t taken from her.
“You’re a disgusting pig and I never should have let you touch me,” she spat out at him.
She was right, she shouldn’t have let her touch him because now that he had, he didn’t know how he’d ever stop thinking about it. Still he had his rules for a reason and once would have to be enough.
“You’re right,” he said giving her a dirty smile. Little did she realize that it was the words he meant and it was the smile he was hiding behind.
***
It was a week before he saw Kelsey again. He knew that she was avoiding him and he couldn’t blame her. It stung even him at what he’d said before he’d left. If he had seen her again, he was planning to apologize to her, but she was very successfully avoiding him. Throughout the week it drove him crazy but he couldn’t get her off of his mind.
He searched for her every day hoping that it would finally be the day that she’d come out and talk to him. Even if it was to yell at him, he just was looking for something from her. But he got nothing and he knew he deserved it.
He berated himself every day for ever being with her. You can’t drink sweet champagne and then go back to wine out of a box and expect that it will taste just as good. Every girl he met at the bars that week was that boxed wine. They’d hit on him and he’d flirt back, attempting to build some type of fire like the one that had burned between him and Kelsey, but nothing ever sparked. He needed to see her again, he didn’t know why, but he needed it. There had only been the couple of exchanges between the two of them and two of them and infuriated him, but there was something addicting about the girl. He couldn’t just have her once, he needed her again.
The day she finally emerged from the house, it was as if he’d let out a breath he’d been holding in tightly. He was vacuuming the pool and she came strutting out toward him, high-heeled sandals that made her legs looks as if they went on for days, her body only covered by a hot pink two piece that was so small he wondered who could even consider it a bathing suit.
“When will you be done, Pool Boy? I’m ready for a swim.”
There she was with the pool boy comment again and he was ready to tell her off, but he figured he could give her one pass. Just one. Her eyes were hidden behind dark sunglasses and he wondered what she was really thinking. Was she mad? Upset? Offended? Or was she just done with him?
Maybe she didn‘t feel the heat between them like he did, maybe she really did consider him just a pool boy. A little toy she could play with. That though made him mad, didn’t she have enough toys to play with?
“I’ll be done in a minute,” he growled.
“Good. And don’t forget that spot over there.” She pointed her perfectly-manicured finger at a spot in the corner. She turned away going to the bar to get herself a drink.
Mason continued cleaning, but he could feel his anger brewing in him. “If you’re not satisfied with my work, then please speak up,” he answered, trying to keep himself under control.
“That’s right,” she answered him sweetly. “You never like to leave a customer unsatisfied.”
Mason looked up at her and watched her take a cooling sip of whatever cocktail she’d made. Dropping the pole, he stalked around the pool to where she stood. He had to stay calm, he needed his job and every other job in The Vines. It was a mistake to ever have gotten mixed up with her, to have even gotten a taste.
“Clearly what happened in the pool house was a mistake. I should never have expected a princess like you to be able to have some fun without you turning into a complete brat.”
Kelsey kept her face impassive as she took a sip of her cocktail. “I don‘t know what you’re talking about. If there’s something wrong in the pool house, then you should fill out the proper form and I’ll see that my father gets it.” Her voice was like ice.
Mason knew she was looking to get a rise out of him, and it almost worked. Too bad he’d spent more time working for people like her than he cared to think about. He knew she had an inbred need to feel superior to him and getting a rise out of him would prove her point. So instead he broke into a wide grin.
“There‘s just a few little bumps in the pool house, nothing a few more poundings couldn‘t fix.” He gave her a wink and started to walk back around the pool to get back to work. But just as he figured, he heard quick clicking on the cement patio as she came racing up behind him.
“What exactly is that supposed to mean?”
Mason had to stifle a grin of satisfaction before he turned to face her.
“Nothing at all, Princess. Now if you don‘t mind, the pool boy must return to his work.” He turned from her and continued back toward his work. It was hard not to laugh when he heard her high pitch shriek of frustration and he heard her heels clip away from the pool.
Chapter3
Kelsey didn‘t know who exactly Mason thought he was,
but she did know he was completely rude and obnoxious. She could absolutely kick herself a million times a day for letting him even touch her in the pool house, let alone the fact that she’d actually slept with him. He hadn’t even been that good!
Okay, that part she knew he was lie. He had, in fact, been incredibly good. And he was even sexier than she had anticipated. His body seemed to be made of marble, he felt so hard and smooth under her hands. He had known exactly how to touch her, exactly how to move within her to give her body every bit of pleasure he could. She really didn’t want to think about how many women he’d been with to perfect his skill the way he had. To be honest, just thinking about that made her skin crawl with jealousy.
But his moves with her body were exactly the beginning and end of any charm that Mason may have. . In every other aspect he was a person she couldn’t stand. Even their first encounter a week after their little tryst had proven how obnoxious he was.
She didn’t know exactly what she’d been expecting when she saw him again. God, knew she had thought about him enough, hadn’t been able to stop thinking about him actually, but what exactly had she been hoping? That after avoiding him for a week he would suddenly see how rude he’d been and fall all over her with an apology?
Actually, she realized that’s exactly what she’d been hoping for. Of course she probably shouldn’t have started by insulting him but she couldn’t help it. In her mind he deserved it and she was still waiting for her apology.
After their horrific non-apology encounter, they both tried their hardest to stay completely away from each other. They were doing pretty well at it and had gotten into a pretty good pattern for when to avoid which parts of the yard.
Of course, just because she was avoiding him didn’t meant that she wasn’t still putting on her best little outfits and walking with a little extra sway in her step. It was almost becoming routine in their act and she even thought she could get through the summer that way. Until the night he forgot his jacket.
Kelsey had decided to beg off a dinner party choosing instead to stay at home with a bottle of wine and a movie. Lately the parties didn’t give her much for excitement and she was finding it harder and harder to get through them.
So she chose her most comfortable robe and got cozy on the couch. Between her comfort and the wine, she started to drift to sleep fairly early, but a light shining through her back window jolted her awake. Her heart was racing as she thought about the possibility of a burglar and the fact that she was home alone. She took comfort in the fact that the alarm was set but her heart was racing anyway. Was it fear or was it excitement?
Kelsey decided it didn’t much matter what was causing her heart to pound, she needed to check out the source of the light anyway. Slowly she crept toward the window where she could still see the light bouncing in her backyard close to the house.
Peering out the window, she tried to make out who it was, but couldn’t. So with her finger on the speed dial for The Vines security guard, she slid open the back door. Her robe flapped in the slight summer breeze and she fleetingly wondered if she should have not only not stepped outside but should have had some clothes on. She could just picture the snapshot in the paper the next morning of her lying in her backyard in nothing but her robe.
She was so lost in thought that she didn’t realize as she’d been walking that she’d gotten so close to the source of the light. The light flew up from the ground and shone right in her eyes. She shrieked and her a familiar voice yell.
“What are you doing out here?”
She recognized who it was immediately and her first thought was that she really wished she’d have put something else on.
“Why are you asking what I’m doing out here? I saw a light roaming my backyard and I came to see what it was! What are you doing roaming my backyard?”
Her eyes had adjusted to the darkness and she could see him clearly. It was the closest the two had been since their last argument, and she hated that her heart was beating faster for a whole new reason.
“I’m looking for my jacket,” he answered gruffly. “Real smart by the way. A strange light is coming from your backyard so you come to check it out, weaponless, in the dark, in nothing but a flimsy robe.”
Kelsey cinched her robe tighter and became irritated by the sarcasm on his voice.
“You could have just waited until tomorrow you know.” Her irritation was obviously present in her voice.
“Well I’m going out tonight so I need my jacket. Besides, tomorrow is Saturday and I don’t work on Saturdays.”
He was going out? She didn’t know why she didn’t think about the fact that he had a life outside of her house, maybe it was because other than him she didn’t have much of a life. But it still bothered her.
“Well, I haven’t seen your jacket. If I find it then I’ll make sure you have it Monday. Now can you please get out of my yard? Enjoy your date.”
Kelsey turned on her heel and marched back toward the house. Before she got far, she heard his voice coming up fast behind her.
“You’re not jealous are you?"
“Jealous? Why in the world would I be jealous?”
She could feel his breath hot on the back of her neck and it created goosebumps to raise all over her body.
“Could be for two reasons. One could be because you’re sitting here dateless on a Friday night.”
Kelsey whirled around to face him, but he didn’t let her interrupt.
“Or reason two would be because I’m going out with someone that isn’t you.”
It was amazing that he could be so cocky about himself. She wanted to argue, tell him he was wrong, but the words got caught in her throat. Why was she jealous? Was he right? Was it because she was lonely on a Friday night—or worse—did she wish she was going out with him? She pushed away the thoughts, she was letting him get to her and she had to stop it.
“It is amazing how arrogant you are. You think you know me and you couldn’t be farther from the truth. For your information, not that it’s any of your business, but I was supposed to be out at a dinner party tonight and decided to skip it.. And I couldn’t care less who you date or anything else for that matter.”
She felt better after her rant, more in control of the situation. But Mason didn’t argue back, he didn’t say a word, he simply stared at her, studying her. His green eyes were intense and she needed to look away.
“When is the last time you went on a date?”
Embarrassment crept into her. It had been months, but she certainly wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of knowing that.
“It’s none of your business.”
Kelsey turned again and headed toward the house. But once again, Mason caught up behind her. He grabbed her by the arm and spun her back toward him.
“Before me it was probably even longer since you’ve had a good bang.”
Indignant, she tried to rip her arm away, but he held it tightly.
“You’re so crude,” she said to him.
The heat from his skin was scorching on her arm and she thought he may be burning her with his touch. His eyes were filled with the same lust that she’d seen their first time in the pool house, and she wondered if her face was revealing the same longing as his.
Yanking her toward him, he kissed her, hard and passionate, on the lips. The ferocity of his kiss drove her mad. Immediately she could feel her body aching for the feel of him again. She wanted to resist, she wanted to break away because she knew if she didn’t, she’d never be able to break the intoxicating addiction.
But neither one of them broke away. With his tongue he parted her lips and she could feel her body sigh with relief. She hadn’t realized how much she’d been craving his taste and the feel of his lips.
It could have been a minute that their lips moved together, it could have been an hour, she didn’t know. Her world was spinning and she felt completely off balance. He pulled away far too quickly in her mind and she was left still wanting mor
e.
When she opened her eyes, he was still lingering close to her face. She could feel his breath coming out ragged against her skin. She knew her heart was beating wildly and she wondered if his was doing the same thing.
“You are the most frustrating girl I’ve ever met.”
Immediately her mouth flew open to defend herself, but he cut her off with a kiss.
“But I can‘t get enough of you.” His voice was coming out husky with desire and his words turned her on more than she knew she could be.
He kissed her again, more tenderly that time, and she could feel him gently pushing her backwards toward the door. Her feet stumbled, but he held her tightly, never letting her slip from his lips. He was leading her inside and she had every desire to want to go inside with him. But her mind wrestled with her decision, she couldn‘t decide if she couldn’t stand him or if she couldn’t get enough of him.
Sensing her sudden unease, Mason pulled away from kissing her but still held her tightly. Her knees nearly went weak when he looked in her eyes and smiled. It didn’t matter that most of the time he drove her crazy, he did something else to her that she needed. He gave her a spark, he gave her excitement in her life. Even if most of it did come because he drove her insane with his cocky attitude and calling her “princess.”
Kelsey could tell that he was waiting for her to make the next move and she knew the next move would be life changing. She’d either walk away from him right in that moment and close the door behind her, or she‘d let him in and never have the same life again. If she let him in the door, he would seep into her in many ways and she knew she’d never be able to go back to her old life again.
Kelsey took a deep breath and took a step backwards, pulling him along with her. He waited until they crossed the threshold to kiss her again, and when she did, she felt her whole life change. She kissed him as they backed into the kitchen and his hands began to roam her body. She gasped when his hands seared her skin as they slipped underneath her robe. Her hands started to pull at his shirt and they continued to move their mouths together. She pulled him to the stairs, their lips and hands never leaving each other as she led him up the stairs and to her bedroom.