Hot & Heavy (Chubby Girl Chronicles Book 2)

by Tabatha Vargo

  My breath hitched.

  I’d seen naked women many times, but with just a bit of thigh and a panty shot from Shannon and I was rock hard.

  “I want it there,” she said, pointing at the top of her thigh.

  My mouth went dry.

  The tattoo artist laid the stencil against her skin and pulled it away, leaving the lines of a seashell on her skin.

  “Okay. Are you ready?” he asked.

  She nodded, nibbling on her bottom lip with excitement in her eyes.

  She hissed as the needle entered her skin, and her eyes shot to mine. She closed her eyes in pain, and her mouth opened, but instead of discomfort, the look resembled the pleasured ache of an impending orgasm. My cock grew harder. I couldn’t believe I was getting aroused by her pain, but the faces she made, the way she breathed and moaned in agony ... I was sure it was exactly how she would sound if I ever got the chance to make her come.

  No.

  Fuck that.

  When I made her come because it was happening. I was going to feel this woman if it was the last thing I ever did.

  Standing to the side, I watched for forty minutes as the tattoo artist drew the perfect seashell on her thigh. His glove-covered palm sliding over her skin, lifting her dress higher sometimes. I found myself jealous of him.

  He was touching her.

  Feeling her.

  Drawing a sexy reaction from her.

  Those were all things I wanted to do, and I would. Starting tonight, I was going to make my move. There would be more than kisses—more than whispered lips—there would be touching and pleasure.

  “All done?” I asked when the artist wiped her tattoo with cleaner and began to wrap it.

  “All done,” he answered. “You sat like a champ, baby,” he said to Shannon.

  I didn’t like him calling her baby. She wasn’t his fucking baby. And seeing her glow under his pet name only made my hackles rise higher.

  I paid for her tattoo while he was getting her set up, which she bitched about, and then we were off again, heading back toward my part of town.

  “So where to now?” she asked.

  “My place?”

  She grinned over at me, her green eyes sparkling in the lights outside my car.

  “Okay.”

  “Okay?” I asked to be sure.

  She nodded. “Take me to your place.”

  FOURTEEN

  SHANNON

  I WAS A WILD WOMAN.

  That was what Matthew turned me into. I got piercings and tattoos, and when I sat in the chair at the tattoo parlor, I became aroused watching Matthew watch me while another man poked my body.

  It was the way he was looking at me while the needle penetrated my skin. His breathing was heavier. His eyes glued to my flesh. And when I looked down, I could see the noticeable bulge in his jeans.

  He was hard.

  For me.

  He wanted me.

  “Do you want something to drink?” he asked as he went into the kitchen and pulled open his refrigerator.

  “Yes, please.”

  He bent over, and I let my eyes move over his body and across his ass. He really was amazing to look at.

  Tall.

  Dark.

  Gorgeous.

  When he looked at me as if he wanted to devour me, it did something to my body and mind. Something I was ready to investigate.

  I didn’t wait for him to come back over to me with a bottle of water. Instead, I went to him. When he turned around, I put my arms around his neck, pressed my body against his, and kissed him. The two bottles of water fell to the floor, the plastic meeting the wood before rolling under the kitchen island

  He growled against my lips, walking me backward until my butt pressed against the cold marble countertop. He pushed his long fingers into the hair at my temples and tilted my head to deepen the kiss. I matched him stroke for stroke, taking in his taste and breathing him in until I felt as if I was ready to shatter.

  I was hot, my entire body flaming for him, and when he reached down and ran his fingers across my thigh, careful not to touch the bandaged space where my new ink was, I released his lips and moaned in pleasure.

  Our heavy breaths filled the silence of the room around us, but when he pushed his thumb under my panty line and ran it across my freshly shaved center, I cried out.

  His eyes opened, and he looked me in the eye. I swallowed hard, unsure of what I was doing, but sure I couldn’t stop it. His thumb pressed into me, sliding across my wet clit and making my knees buckle.

  “Matthew?” I whispered, not exactly sure what I was asking him.

  “Yeah?”

  “I feel so …” I stopped.

  No words in the English language could describe what I was feeling. At least none in my mind since he had shattered all rational thought the second he began to move his thumb in a circular motion.

  “What? Tell me how you feel?” He leaned in, brushing his mouth across my cheek.

  “I feel hot all over.”

  His lips skimmed my neck before his tongue peeked out, and he tasted me.

  “You taste so good,” he muttered against my skin. “What you feel’s normal. Everything’s perfect.”

  His thumb moved down, pressing at my entrance and swirling in the liquid heat seeping from my body.

  “So wet for me,” he whispered.

  Then he shocked me when he pulled his thumb away from my body and stuck it in his mouth, sucking my juices from his skin.

  “Fuck, you’re sweet, Red.”

  He kissed me, and I could taste exactly how sweet I was. His hand went back between my thighs, pushing my panties to the side so he could thrust two thick fingers inside me.

  I gasped, and my eyes popped open, the sensation confusing me.

  It felt amazing—my body pouring for him—opening like it hadn’t opened in years, but at the same time, a deadlock flew over my emotions, caging me in and making me claustrophobic. My body and everything I was feeling melted away, leaving only space for the memories—reminding me of the last time I’d felt something pressed into my body.

  The pressure.

  The intrusion.

  It all floated through my mind like black and white clouds of disgust.

  “Stop!” I screamed as I pushed at his arm like a mad woman, dislodging his fingers from inside me.

  “What’s wrong? Did I hurt you?” he asked, his eyes full of worry.

  I pushed him away, and he moved back toward me out of concern. It was wrong, and I knew I would feel bad about it later, but I yelled, “Get away from me!”

  He backed away, his hands up in surrender.

  “I don’t know what I did, Shannon, but I’m sorry.”

  Tears slid over my cheeks, dripping from my chin and filling me with humiliation.

  “You didn’t …” I started, but then I realized there was no way to fix the situation. So instead, I asked, “Will you please take me home?”

  He nodded, reaching out and snatching his keys from the counter beside us.

  No words were exchanged on the way to his car, and we rode in thick silence as he drove me home. When we pulled up in front of my apartment building, I didn’t give him a chance to question me. I pushed the door open, hopped out, and shut the door on him calling out my name.

  MY PHONE WAS GOING TO EXPLODE.

  He blew up my messages with apologies. He had no reason to ask for forgiveness, but I was too embarrassed and upset to respond.

  Matthew: Whatever I did, I’m sorry.

  Matthew: Please talk to me.

  Matthew: I’m an asshole. I’m sorry if I pushed you.

  Matthew: I don’t care if we never have sex. Please, Shannon.

  He tried to call twice, but I sent him straight to voicemail. Finally, around midnight, he texted one last time.

  Matthew: I’m sorry. Good night.

  At some point during the night, I heard Lilly and Devin come home. They giggled down the hallway before there was the so
und of a door shutting and the sounds of sex coming from her room. Her bed squeaking mixed with his moans and growls and her high-pitched orgasms were too much.

  I stuck my earbuds in, put on some music, and fell asleep with tears on my pillow and memories smashing my happiness to nothing.

  THE FOLLOWING MORNING, I FELT EVEN WORSE.

  Poor Matthew was at his house worried he had done something when he hadn’t. If anything, he made things better. So much better. But I guess I really wasn’t ready, even if my body was telling me I was.

  I rolled over and grabbed my phone from the nightstand and texted him right away.

  Me: I’m sorry I freaked out on you last night. You did nothing wrong. Can we please forget it happened?

  He didn’t respond right away. It wasn’t until I was getting out of the shower that my phone beeped.

  Matthew: Forget what? I don’t know what you’re talking about.

  I smiled down at my phone.

  Me: Thank you.

  There was something I had to finally admit.

  I was falling for Matthew.

  I knew it, and it terrified me, but after I freaked out on him, I was sure he would never come back around me again.

  Getting dressed, I left the apartment before Devin and Lilly woke up and went to Twin Oaks to see Grammy.

  “Hey, Grammy, how are you feeling today?” I asked, setting a bag containing a new outfit on her bed.

  She was crocheting and watching her programs. Smiling, she looked up at me.

  “Hey, hon, you just missed my gentleman friend,” she said, swiping a length of yarn over her finger.

  We discussed this every time, whether she knew who I was or thought I was a nurse visiting. I had no idea why she was making up visits, but I had a conversation with her doctor about it, and he seemed to think it was normal, so I played along.

  “Oh, really. That’s nice. What did you guys do?”

  She filled me in on her pretend visit, saying they ate an early lunch together before he ran off literally minutes before I entered her room.

  I shook my head, listening and knowing she was doing everything she could to cure the loneliness, even if that meant making up a person to visit with her.

  It wasn’t long before she went away and began calling me nurse. I spent the rest of the visit pretending to be someone I wasn’t. I was sad, and my heart was breaking, but when I got up to leave, she came back in time to tell me she loved me and to hug me.

  It was a joyful moment in the mix of sadness, but I would take it nonetheless.

  By the time I got home, I was determined not to let my past keep me from a happy future. Not saying that Matthew was going to be a part of my future since I had no idea what he was thinking in terms of where I stood in his life, but I wanted normal.

  Normal relationships.

  Normal thoughts.

  And a normal sex life.

  Even though I no longer had my pop’s wedding band for good luck, it was time I received my precious moment in time. If we were just passing through, then I wanted to spend that time with someone who looked at me the way Pop used to look at Grammy.

  As soon as I stepped into our apartment, I knew Lilly was gone for the night, and a note on the kitchen counter confirmed that. I went into my room, stripped my clothes, and showered.

  With a towel wrapped around my body and one drying my hair, I swiped my phone and texted Matthew with renewed determination.

  Me: Hi.

  Matthew: Hey, gorgeous. Feeling better today?

  Me: I feel perfect. I want to see you.

  A few minutes passed, making me feel like maybe he wasn’t going to respond. And then finally …

  Matthew: I’m all yours. What did you have in mind?

  Me: Drinks. Lots and lots of drinks.

  Matthew: Lol ok. So a club? Dancing? Or a bar?

  I hated going to clubs full of half-naked women with beautiful bodies, but the bars had alcohol, and if I were going to go through with my plan to seduce Matthew, I needed all the alcohol in Charleston.

  Me: A bar sounds perfect. I’m not much for dancing. What time?

  Matthew: I’ll be there to pick you up at 9.

  I typed out my response, took a deep breath, and pressed send.

  Me: See you then.

  FIFTEEN

  MATTHEW

  DROPPING MY KEYS ON THE COUNTER, I pulled open the refrigerator for a bottle of water. Running always cleared my head, so after an early lunch with my new friend Iris, I came and ran the length of Battery Front Park.

  As soon as I walked in my door and was tugging my shirt over my head, my phone buzzed with a text message from Shannon. She wanted to see me. Wanted to go out drinking, which I wasn’t sure was a great idea for either of us. At least not until I figured her out.

  Her reaction the night before had confused me.

  I stared down at my phone, feeling unsure of her response.

  Red: See you then.

  Something was up. After the way she reacted to my touch, it was obvious Shannon was dealing with dark demons. I wanted her to talk to me about it—open up and let me in so I could fight whatever it was stalking her.

  I would do that for her.

  I would slay her demons.

  One thing was for sure. After watching her storm away from me and feeling the desperation of needing her to come back, I was prepared to admit I was falling for Shannon hard.

  It didn’t make any sense. After years of keeping my distance from emotions and women, I couldn’t get close enough to Shannon. I wanted to be with her all the time.

  Touching her.

  Laughing with her.

  It was all I wanted.

  All I needed.

  The rest could come when she was ready, and if by some chance she was never ready to move to the next level with me, then so be it. We could cross that bridge when we got to it.

  I was going to tell her that tonight after the bar. It was time I sat her down and told her what we were doing was no longer just about sex. It was so much more to me now. So. Much. More.

  I KNOCKED ON HER DOOR A LITTLE BEFORE NINE.

  She stepped out into the breezeway of her apartment building without inviting me to come inside.

  She was wearing yet another dress. This one the color of fall leaves with tiny bits of green. It had long sleeves with a low-cut neckline and fell just above her knee. She had a thing for wearing dresses that showed off her gorgeous legs. My eyes dipped down, following the curve of her knee and landing on the brown suede boots she was wearing.

  She looked amazing as usual, but instead of saying something and making her feel uncomfortable again, I looked away and ran my fingers through my hair to keep from touching her.

  “I take it Lilly and Devin are inside?” I asked since she was so quick to keep me from going inside her apartment.

  “Yep.” Her smile was different.

  As if she was trying extra hard to be happy.

  “Everything okay?”

  She nodded, and her smile slipped into something a little more genuine. “Everything’s fine. I promise.”

  Once we were in my car and our seat belts were buckled, she turned my way with an excited smile. “Which bar are we going to? I haven’t been to many.”

  I chuckled. “So another wild woman night then?”

  She had been pierced and tattooed. Now it was time to go bar hopping, apparently.

  She giggled. “Another wild woman night sounds fun. Let’s do that.”

  “Ever been to The Waterfront?” I asked.

  Her eyes went wide. “I’ve heard of it, but I’ve never been.”

  “Well, there’s a first time for everything.”

  I took a back way to The Waterfront on a road that ran alongside the coast. Shannon stared out at the moonlight reflecting on the water as I drove. Every now and again, I’d peek over at her and take in her profile. The tilt of her chin and slide of her cheek.

  She was beautiful, and tonight, I pla
nned to make her mine.

  Not sexually, since it was obvious she wasn’t ready for that, but completely mine.

  The Waterfront didn’t disappoint with its lavish setting and back deck on the water. Shannon was in awe of the beautiful view and so was I. While she was looking at the water and the view of the bridge in the background, I was looking at her.

  “Hey, Matt, what’s up, man?” Curtis asked as he passed me with a girl on his arm.

  She was cute. A tiny brunette with too much makeup and not enough clothes.

  “I’m good. Where’s your brother?” I hadn’t thought about the fact that Curtis and Jonathan would be there as well as everyone else I knew. But I didn’t care. I wasn’t hiding Shannon from them. I was more worried about hiding them from her.

  They were the embarrassing ones.

  She wasn’t.

  “He’s out and about. Probably on the yacht with his newest fling.” As he said this, he eyes trailed over Shannon in a way that made me uncomfortable. “Don’t I know you from somewhere?” he asked her.

  She smiled up at him and shook her head. “I don’t I think so. I’m sorry.”

  “You look awfully familiar.”

  “I hear that a lot.”

  He turned back to me. “Coming over to shut the night down with us?”

  We usually ended our nights out on the yacht, passing out in one of the rooms below deck. “Not tonight, but maybe next go ‘round.”

  Again, his eyes moved over Shannon. “Yeah. Maybe. Okay, man, have fun. See you later.”

  “You too.”

  Their interaction seemed strange, at least on Curtis’s end. Shannon was oblivious to him and his new fling, focusing more on the sights around her and the million-dollar view.

  “This is beautiful,” she said, taking it all in.

  “Agreed.” But I wasn’t looking at the view; I was looking at her.