Without Regret (Broken Roads Book 1)

by Cat Mason

  He smiles against my skin. “Definitely not.” Shifting his hips, he pops the button on his jeans, shoving them down enough to free his erection. His gaze stops on my black lace underwear. His tongue skims over his bottom lip again, making me crazy.

  “Rip them off already,” I moan, my hands running up his arms to grip his shoulders.

  Groaning, Ray rocks his hips into me again before ripping the lace from my body. Brushing the tip of his cock over my clit, he meets my eyes. “You want me to make you come, baby?” Swallowing hard, I nod. Chuckling, he shakes his head. “Tell me, Rachel. Are you ready for me?” he asks, continuing to circle my clit.

  “Please,” I pant, rocking my hips, desperate for more friction. “I’m always ready for you.”

  A growl tears from his chest as he tightens his grip on me and thrusts deep. Throwing my head back, I cry out his name. The pleasure coursing through my veins almost too much to bear. “That’s it, Baby. I can’t enough of you,” he murmurs, brushing his lips over my shoulder.

  “Mmm, Ray,” I moan, digging my nails into his shoulder blades. “Don’t stop.”

  “Beautiful,” he pants, grazing my shoulder with his teeth. “I love hearing you say my name.” Sliding his hand down to my ass, his fingers dig into my skin as he shifts his hips, deepening his thrusts. The small bite of pain, mixed with the intense pleasure building, has my hips bucking against him. His other hand firmly grips the back of my neck as his mouth finds mine again.

  Hooking my ankles together, I wrap my arms around Ray’s neck and kiss him back with everything I have. I get lost in his taste, in the sensation, in the moment building between us. My orgasm hits me head on, my emotions spilling over as I lose myself in the blissful euphoria.

  Fisting my hair, Ray attacks my mouth, swallowing every one of my cries of pleasure as if they were more precious than air. Groaning low in his throat, his body stills against mine. Shifting our bodies, Ray presses his back to the wall and slides to his ass on the floor. His kisses slow, becoming soft and tender while his hands roam my body, caressing my curves.

  “Need you in my bed,” he pants, trailing kisses along my jaw. “I may not be sleeping with my arms wrapped around you tonight, but I’ll have you there again before you leave.”

  “Mmm,” I breathe, tugging at the hem of his shirt. “I can’t say no to that.”

  “Good,” he replies, the warmth of his breath rushing over my skin. “I was fully prepared to plead my case.” Grabbing my hips, he helps me stand before pushing to his feet. Yanking his shirt over his head, he tosses it away quickly and tucks himself back into his jeans. Taking my hand, he leads me to his room.

  Ray switches on the lamp beside the bed as I make my way into the bathroom to clean up a little. Looking in the mirror as I wash my hands, I laugh to myself as I take my reflection. My hair is sticking up everywhere and my face is flushed. Using my fingers, I try to deal with the rat’s nest I see already beginning to form, though it does little good.

  The second I open the door, Ray pounces. Having stripped off the rest of his clothes, he yanks me to him with a possessive growl. Wrapping his arms around me, he lies back on the bed, taking me with him as I kick out of my shoes. Palming my ass with both hands, he rocks his hips. I moan, unable to hide how he affects me.

  Flipping me to my back, Ray pins my arms above my head, lacing our fingers. “Okay?” he asks, searching my eyes.

  “Mhm,” I moan, arching up into his body.

  Nodding, he leans in, his mouth finding my neck, kissing, licking, biting, sucking. As if on their own, my legs wrap around him, my fingers tightening their grip on his. His hips grind into me, sending delicious jolts of pleasure throughout my entire body.

  “I love how your body reacts to my touch,” he whispers nipping at my earlobe with his teeth.

  “Ah!”

  “Yes,” he says, rocking his hips into me again. “You want me, Baby?” Ray asks, teasing my lips with his tongue. “Say the words,” he adds, thrusting his hips, his thickening erection pressing against my clit. “I’ll give you all of me.”

  “Please, Ray,” I pant, clasping his fingers so tightly it hurts.

  “Fuck,” he hisses through his teeth. “Just those two words and I’m rock-fucking-hard.” Rolling us again, Ray stares up at me, his tongue tracing his bottom lip. Keeping his eyes locked on mine, he slowly slides his hands up my body, stopping to palm my breasts. Rolling his hips, drags his teeth over his bottom lip. “You want my cock? Take it.”

  Flipping the clasp on my bra, I let it fall into Ray’s hands. Pulling it free of my body, he tosses it to the end of the bed. Leaning up, he wraps his lips around one of my nipples, flicking the hardening peak with his tongue. My hands fly into his hair, holding his mouth to me. He moans, the vibrations going straight to my clit. Reaching between us, Ray slowly pushes inside me. My fingers tighten in his hair as I gasp. Moving his hand to my ass, he flexes his fingers, silently encouraging me to move.

  Sliding my hands down to grip his biceps, I swivel my hips. Ray’s entire body jolts, sending him balls deep inside me. Sparks of pleasure race through my veins, only making me want more. Pushing up a little on my knees, I tilt my ass and grind down on him again, the head of his dick hitting just where I need it most.

  Releasing my nipple with a ‘pop’, Ray falls back to the mattress, his hooded eyes raking over my body as I continue to move. “So sexy,” he murmurs, his fingers running up my thighs, forcing me to spread them wider. He thrusts upward, his grin growing bigger with each moan that leaves my lips. Taking my hand, he brushes our fingers over my clit. “Get there, Baby,” he says, pumping his hips again. “Need you with me.”

  “Ray,” I breathe, my thighs starting to tremble.

  “That’s my girl,” he pants, gripping my hip and flipping me to my back. Pinning my hands to the mattress with one of his, Ray drives into me like a man crazed. Crying out his name, I arch my back, desperate to soothe the ache he has built inside me. The need that only he can take away.

  Crashing his mouth to mine, Ray’s kiss steals my orgasm. His other hand glides over my hip, sliding between our bodies. “More,” he growls into my mouth as his fingertips find my clit. Ripping my mouth from his, a scream tears from my chest as I shatter. My body bucks wildly into his as my fingernails dig into his hand.

  Releasing my hands, Ray cups my face, kissing me with slow deep flicks of his tongue. His body stills as he finds his release. Wrapping my arms around him, I sigh into his mouth as he rolls us to our sides and slips from my body. “Rach?” he asks, kissing his way along my jaw.

  “Yeah?”

  “Ten minutes,” he replies, brushing the hair from my face to meet my eyes. Something flashes quickly in those deep blues before he shakes his head and it is gone just as quickly. Wrapping his arms around me, he pulls me close. Burying his nose in my hair, he breathes deeply. “Ten minutes of this and I’ll get dressed and follow you home.”

  “Follow me home?” I ask, not moving from his embrace. “Why would you do that? It’s late.”

  “Yes,” he replies, pressing a kiss to my temple. “Because if I can’t keep you here tonight, I’ll make damn sure you get back to where you need to be safely.”

  “You make it really hard to leave this bed,” I reply, pressing my lips to his neck.

  “Good,” he breathes, sounding satisfied. “I’m ready for another sleep over anytime you are.”

  “Ray?” I murmur, sleepily, my body relaxing into his.

  “Hmm?”

  “Fifteen minutes.”

  He chuckles, “Not a second less.”

  Chapter 15

  After lying in his bed for the better part of an hour, Ray and I finally got up and went in search of our clothes. True to his word, he climbed into his car and followed me home, where he then proceeded to pin me against the side of my car and kiss me goodnight for another twenty minutes.

  The next morning, when I walk into the kitchen, I find Kate and Zack sitting at the tab
le. “Good morning,” I mutter, heading straight for the coffee pot.

  “Hey,” Kate replies, grabbing a donut from the box in the middle of the table. “Have a seat and a grab a donut. You’re just in time to hear the story that requires me to get out of bed because it’s ‘too good to tell over the phone’,” she deadpans, using her fingers to make air quotes.

  “It’s great,” Zack adds, flashing her a huge smile. “Besides, I brought breakfast to go with it. Story time should always come with snacks.” Grabbing a donut, he places it on a napkin and slides it across the table to the empty chair beside my sister. Leaning back in his chair, he sighs. “Once upon a time, there was a drop dead sexy, incredibly awesome—”

  “Zack!” Kate and I yell in unison.

  “Okay, okay.” Holding up his hands, he sighs. “Anyway, last night, this guy, let’s call him Jack.” His smirk widens. “Well, Zack—” Shaking head, he clears his throat. “I mean, Jack,” he corrects himself. “Jack got halfway across town and realized he left the notes he needed to study for the most important exam in his life in his room,” he says, his eyes moving to me as I lift my mug to my lips. “At his cousin’s condo.”

  I choke on my coffee, making him laugh. “W-w-what?” I sputter. Sitting the cup down on the table, I wheeze and cough as Kate pounds on my back.

  “There are no interruptions during story time, Rachel,” he scolds, wagging his finger at me. “Anyway, Jack. He pulls up outside his cousin, Jay’s, house, just as a car flies into the parking lot. After a minute, the doors fly open and Jay and his girl are bolting up the sidewalk like a serial killer is chasing them. Well, being the great guy that Jack is, he started to get out and make sure everything was okay. Before Jack could say a word, Jay slams her into the door and starts attacking her face like in the porn I watch when I’m in my Business Strategies class and my professor starts rambling on and on in that monotone voice that makes my brain bleed. You know the really good kind of dirty porn you actually have to pay for?”

  Kate’s eyes snap to mine. “Oh, Rach! You dirty girl!” she squeals, clapping her hands. “Tell me you did it right there on the steps. God, that animalistic fucking is so hot!”

  “Sadly, no,” Zack replies as I seriously debate banging my head against the kitchen table. “He got them inside before they got indecent exposure tickets from the local law enforcement or ended up with an amateur sex tape on YouTube.” Kate frowns and I roll my eyes. “However, the story doesn’t end here,” he continues, holding up his hand. “I thought, hey, maybe I could sneak to my room to get my shit once they were tucked away in his and be on my way.” He laughs. “I was wrong. Very wrong.”

  Knowing what comes next, I cover my burning face with both hands as Zack brings it home. “I step up on the porch, ready to do a quick run and grab, only to stop dead at the sight of her legs wrapped around his naked ass. Not much of a view, unless you’re into clenching man ass. The noises though.”

  “I hate you,” I mutter into my fingers only making him chuckle.

  “Don’t hate me yet. This is my favorite part.” Peeking through my fingers, I catch him just as he grips the table with both hands and closes his eyes. Tossing his head back, he mocks me with a high-pitched cry. “Ah! Yes, Ray! Rip them already and fuck me like a dirty girl!”

  Kate roars with laughter. Grabbing a napkin, she fans herself dramatically. “That’s hot.”

  “I didn’t say that,” I argue, dropping my hands to glare at him.

  “Love that shade of red on you, Rachel,” Zack says with a smirk, ignoring my comment. “Almost the same shade of pissed off lobster Ray will be when I have story time with him later.”

  “Oh God,” I groan, burying my face again as they both laugh.

  “You should feel special,” he adds, tapping the box. “Ray won’t get donuts,”

  My phone rings from its spot on the bar. Grateful for the interruption, I stand and unhook it from the charger. Seeing Ray’s name light up the screen, I smile. “Hi.”

  “Good morning, Beautiful,” his smooth voice washes over me like a wave.

  “Hi, Ray,” Zack purrs, clasping his hands together and batting his lashes. “Touch my butt and tell me I’m pretty.”

  “You’re such an idiot,” I mutter, rolling my eyes.

  “Huh?” Ray asks, sounding shocked.

  “Shit!” My eyes widening the moment I realize the words left my lips. “Sorry. Zack’s the idiot. Not you, Ray.”

  “Ha!” Zack shouts, slapping the table. “Her face has just graduated to a level of blush I never imagined possible. This is entertaining as hell.”

  “You,” I bite out, pointing at Zack. “Eat your donuts and shut your face.”

  “Want me to call you back so you can beat him with a skillet?” Ray asks with a chuckle. “Sounds like he deserves it.”

  Looking at Zack, I contemplate slapping him upside the head. “As tempting as it may be to scramble his brains before I scramble some eggs, I’ll find a way to ignore his ridiculous shenanigans at my expense.”

  “Don’t worry, baby. I’ll take care of Zack.” I may not be able to see him, but I know he is smiling. I hear the creaking of a chair in the background as he exhales into the phone. “I have a surprise. Can you girls meet me at my house around four?”

  “I don’t see why not,” I reply. “What’s going on, Ray?”

  “You’ll find out soon enough,” he assures me. “I’ve got paperwork to sort through, and some safety checks to sign off on before freight is released for the day. I’ll see you soon, baby.”

  “Okay. I’ll see you then, Ray,” I say, ending the call.

  “Well, it’s been real,” Zack says, pushing to his feet. “But all this sweetness is starting to make my teeth rot.”

  “Mitchell,” Dad deadpans, walking into the room with Alyssa in his arms. “I’m starting to wonder why I don’t charge you rent.”

  “Because I enrich your lives by simply being here,” Zack replies, flashing a huge smile Dad’s way.

  Looking at me, Dad shakes his head. “We’re heading to see Grandma,” he informs me, shifting the baby in his arms to tuck her against his chest. His color has not improved much since last night and there is a sort of exhaustion in his eyes that I have not seen before. “Then, the three of us will probably head out back to check on our fish.”

  “Feeling any better?” I ask, studying his face.

  “I’m fine, Rach.” Not wanting to argue, I nod and press a kiss his cheek before dropping my lips to Alyssa’s temple. “No one make plans for dinner. I’m taking everyone downtown tonight,” he adds, changing the subject. “Rachel, I’ll let you tell Ray.”

  “Okay,” I reply, pulling back to meet his eyes. “Alyssa and I are supposed to meet him this afternoon.”

  “Sounds good.” Giving me a reassuring smile, that lacks its usual oomph, he heads out of the kitchen.

  Looking at Kate and Zack, as they eye-fuck each other from across the table, I grab my coffee and head for my bedroom. Taking advantage of the moment to myself, I take a few seconds to breathe and then get to sorting the massive pile of laundry Alyssa and I have managed to accumulate in the last few days.

  Piling it into the hamper, I tote it down to the laundry room. Once I have a load started, I look out the backdoor, noticing Dad sitting out on the porch swing alone. He appears to be deep in thought, his eyes locked on the fountain and the fish swimming in the bottom.

  Opening the door, I step out, but don’t say a word. Making my way over, I sit down next to him. “Your mother went to change the baby,” he says, his eyes still trained on the water. “Tonight, after dinner, I’m sitting your mom and sister down and telling them everything.” Blowing out a breath, Dad wraps his arm around me, pulling me close. “Thought a lot about what you said last night. Even more about Ray.”

  “Ray?” I ask, shifting to look at him.

  “He loves you. That’s very clear,” he replies, swallowing hard. “It’s a bittersweet pill to swallow. No
father wants to admit there’s anyone able to give his daughter even a fraction of the love he knows she deserves. With Ray, I see it. Feel it in my gut every time he looks at you. If his actions could speak, they’d be lighting up the sky in flashing neon.”

  My breath catches in my chest. “We haven’t been dating long enough for that,” I argue, my voice shaky. “I’m not ready.”

  “Honey, that’s fear talking,” he replies, giving my hand a squeeze. “Not your heart.” Taking in a breath, he swallows hard again before turning to face me. Tears fill his eyes, his smile sad. “With love, there are only risks we take, or the regrets we burden ourselves with. Take a piece of advice from your old man, Rachel. When you look back on your life, you’ll want to do that without regret. That’s why I’ve decided to tell them. I can’t live with the regret of leaving anything unsaid. Or unfelt. Happiness, sadness, pain, love, and every emotion in-between, demand to be felt. They will rattle us to our very foundations and command our attention, whether we’re ready for them or not.”

  Tears burn my eyes at his words. Shifting my body, I sit back against the swing. Dad’s arm wraps around me again, tucking me into his side. Lying my head on his shoulder, I close my eyes and blow out a breath.

  “There’s Momma,” my mother’s voice echoes out, causing me to open my eyes. Stepping outside, she makes her way over with my baby girl in her arms.

  “Hi, pretty baby,” I coo to Alyssa. Her face lights up, the moment she spots me. Her feet kicking in excitement as I reach for her. Settling in my lap, she stares up at my dad, her brows knitting together as babbles at him while chewing on her fist.

  Knitting his brows together to mirror hers, he leans closer to her. “Can I have a bite?” he asks, grabbing her other hand. Chuckling, he kisses her fist. “Nom, nom, nom.”

  Her brown eyes widen, her fist falling from her mouth as she laughs out loud. The sound of her hysterical giggle, mixed with the look on my dad’s face, grips my heart like a vise. Pressing his lips to her cheek, Dad blows raspberry kisses. Her hands fly up, grabbing his face as she laughs again.