Another Day (The Firsts Book 12)

by C. L. Quinn

  The light in the living room extinguished, Xavier carried the glass with him into the dark and set it in its usual place beside the mattress. Once he’d closed the door, he blocked the light that, come morning, would slide beneath it into this safe area. Everything in place, Xavier started to throw himself onto the mattress in relief when suddenly her scent overwhelmed him.

  He stopped where he stood. In nearly total darkness, he shook his head and adjusted his eyes. On the sheet, white enough to reflect a fraction of light, he noticed a dark shape. Was that the other sheet, wrapped up in a bundle the way he often left it? Squatting, he put a hand out. It was not the sheet. His fingers curved along smooth warm skin. What the fuck?

  He stood back up, but he already knew who it was, who it had to be. Her scent bombarded him now that he was aware that she was there. His body honed in on her and it was all he could smell.

  Why was she here…in his bed?

  It took a few moments to get past the surreal discovery and accept that she really was here, asleep, in the bed where he must rest for the next 12 hours.

  In the corner of the room, several candles sat on the floor for times when he awakened and needed light. After lighting two of them, he carried them back near to the bed.

  Yes, there she was, still dressed, curled up, her head on his pillow stack, her boots parked properly upright beside the mattress. He needed to ask her why the hell she was here.

  Sitting carefully on the mattress beside her, Xavier gently shook her shoulder. She moaned and rolled towards him, her eyes still closed. He shook her again.

  “Margot?”

  This time her eyes opened just a slit, her lips parted, and, barely under control, she lifted a finger up to her lips.

  “Shhh,” she whispered. “Don’t tell the sexy Scotsman I fell asleep in his bed. He just smelled so…edible.”

  Because her sleep-induced throaty voice was outrageously sexy, her body warm beneath his fingers, the intimacy of the situation, Xavier slid a hand down to control his cock, now fully erect.

  “Oh, lass, we need to get ya out of here right now.”

  He spoke quietly, but when she didn’t respond, he leaned down and saw that she had fallen asleep again.

  He stood quickly and just watched her for another moment. Shaking his head, he murmured, “Ya have to go.” Or stay and let him inside of her.

  Margot opened her eyes, closed them, then opened them again to flickering light. It was his voice that brought her sharply awake. Where was she? It hit her abruptly…she’d fallen asleep in the big guy’s bed.

  Rolling towards the warmth on her side, she glanced up. Yes, he was home and he was sitting on the bed beside her. Oh, for the love of…what must he think?

  Quickly scooting upright, she turned toward the man whose bed she occupied. Running a hand through her wild hair, she laughed nervously. “Oops, Papa Bear is home.”

  Her eyes landed on his, watching her almost obsessively. They moved down to see that he wore no clothes.

  “Oh, shit, you’re naked!”

  He finally spoke again. “I usually am when I’m goin’ to bed.”

  “Yes, of course.” She should explain. She should get up and go. But all she could do was look at him. Even in the limited light of what she realized was candlelight, his body was magnificent. In fact, the low light emphasized the hard lines of cut muscles, and as her eyes dropped lower, and lingered on his cock, long and hard, she appreciated what she thought must be the perfect male body. When she tried to speak, her voice failed and came out in a breathy expulsion of air.

  “Why didn’t ya go home, lass?” he asked.

  Licking her lips to make her mouth to work, Margot pushed herself off the opposite side of the mattress and stood. “I fell asleep. I’m sorry, it wasn’t intentional. I shouldn’t have even been in here. Honestly? I guess I was curious about where you lived. When I saw your bed, I just sort of wandered in. My only excuse is that I haven’t slept much in several days.” She wouldn’t tell him that she wanted to breathe in his scent and lay where he had lain.

  She shook her head. “The sheets were so soft and looked so inviting, I laid down on them and must have gone out right away. I’ll get my stuff and call the taxi right now.”

  “Nay. It’s three-thirty in the mornin’. No taxi would come here at this time of day. Ye’re stuck here until full daylight.”

  With him. Naked. Alone in this tight space.

  Such a bad idea, she thought. “I’ll stay in the living room until then. I know you must be tired.”

  Her eyes didn’t move from his face now, afraid to allow them to, because she knew exactly where they would go.

  Xavier began to move around the mattress. He smiled when he noticed Margot move back nervously, like trapped prey. As her back struck the wall, she put her hands out to her sides, the fingers splayed against the stucco.

  “Ya can stay in here, with me, if ya want to.”

  “Um…” Overly articulate Margot couldn’t articulate a simple phrase. Just be honest with him, she told herself.

  When Xavier stopped just inches from her, she put a hand out to press against his chest. Hard, tight, smooth, she’d never touched anyone as sexy as this huge man.

  “Look, Scottie, it isn’t a good idea.” Her breath came quicker. “You, uh…you’re kind of, uh, magnificent, naked, you know? I don’t think it would be wise for me to stay in here with you. Uh, you being naked, and all.”

  “I don’t mind if ye don’t.”

  Shaking her head again, she swallowed. “I don’t mind. But if I stayed, we wouldn’t sleep.”

  He moved so fast, she didn’t see him do so, but he was on her, pressed her against the wall, his hand curled around the back of her head, the other slipped around her waist. He pulled her closer. “I’m not that tired.”

  His tongue started on her neck, hot, aggressive, sensual, and traveled to where her tank top stopped him. Regret struck her that he couldn’t reach her nipples and she almost pushed him back to pull her top over her head so he could continue. More than that, she knew she should stop him.

  She couldn’t.

  Xavier knew he shouldn’t touch her. It was her fault, to lie in his bed, to be there when he came home, what did she expect. A woman as beautiful as this should know what would happen if she’s lying in a man’s bed as he stands naked above it, ready to get in. He didn’t know if he could stop, the sexual need so powerful now, he didn’t think he had full control any more. He just wanted her so badly!

  Once his tongue moved to the other side of her neck and journeyed to her lips, he stopped just shy of kissing her.

  This was wrong, he had to stop.

  Slowly, as if someone physically restrained him, he moved his hands from her and stepped back.

  “I have no excuse for my behavior. I want ya, I think ya can see that. Feel that. I am a pig to maul ya this way without invitation.”

  Margot leaned against the wall, all her weight supported by it because she didn’t trust her legs anymore. He’d done no more than she’d wanted to do. Dropping her head, her loose hair falling over her face, she told him so.

  “I want to touch you too, Scotsman. Everywhere. I want to taste you, to feel you tasting me. But I have to tell you…”

  She stopped speaking, then continued after a deep breath. “I’m not like other women. My sexual needs are strange and limited. I won’t satisfy you, you need to know that up front.” Okay, she’d told him the hard part. As she started to lift her head back up to face him directly, to look him in the eye, she felt his hands on her cheeks, pushing her hair back.

  Amber eyes met blue.

  “Lass,” Xavier said, overly kind, almost breathless like she was. “Ye could never disappoint me. Just touchin’ ya gave me satisfaction beyond anythin’ I’ve felt in this life I’m livin’ now. With yer permission, I’d like to see what we can do together.”

  “Okay. But listen to me before you decide. I have ground rules and they’re non-negotiabl
e.”

  Chuckling, Xavier picked Margot up and laid her back on his mattress. Dropping in beside her, lying on his side, his cock pushing against her straight-legged suit pants, he stared into her eyes, a hand moving over her belly in circles, the fingers dragging behind to caress her through the silk.

  “Tell me yer rules, Margot,” he quietly requested. “But tell me why ya have them.”

  No, she’d never had that conversation with anyone. Her demons were her own and not to be shared with anyone, especially a man.

  “No,” she answered. “You take me as I am, or we’re finished before we start.”

  Please agree, her mind screamed, please don’t turn me away, I so fucking want you!

  “If yer rules are not negotiable, may I add a caveat?”

  “Caveat?”

  “Aye. I’ll play by yer rules, strictly. But if ya want more, if ya change yer mind, ya have to tell me. Ya have to let me explore what I can do for ya.”

  “I don’t know…”

  “Lassie, ya don’t know this about me, no one does, but I have no idea who I really am. All I know is my first name and that I have an enemy tryin’ to find me to kill me. So, if I can make the leap, if I can imagine that I know how to make proper love to ya, can ya consider the possibility of makin’ the leap with me?”

  Margot rolled to her side, slid off the mattress and walked towards the door. “I’m not sure I have it in me to accept your challenge.” She stopped, but did not turn around.

  If there was ever a time… This man had protected her, had helped her when he had no reason to. He was a good man. She’d never see him again after tonight, regardless of what they might do, so if there was ever a time to let someone know her story, this was it. If he displayed even a breath of pity or sympathy, she’d be gone. She could do this, she could actually tell someone why she was the way she was. Her heart beat so hard, she pressed her hand to her chest to calm herself.

  “Okay, then. I’m going to break my rule and tell you some of my background. Let me tell you who I am, and see if that appeals to you.”

  With her back to him, she spoke clearly. “I don’t have relationships. I don’t take lovers. I watched my mother try year after year, man after man, to find love. Mostly, I watched her heart break, and her body waste away from drugs to help her manage the pain.”

  Slowly, she turned to him and walked back to the mattress, knelt on it and captured his gaze. “I didn’t have sex until I was in college. That first year, I met a couple of nice guys, and I thought I’d see what I was missing. They wanted blow jobs, I did them, not well, and they didn’t have a good time. I certainly didn’t. Then I met a man I fell for. I thought he really liked me and I committed myself to him. A week after we began to date, he took me to his bedroom. He didn’t believe me when I told him I was a virgin. Or he didn’t care. It was the first time I had intercourse. He was rough, screamed sexual obscenities at me as he slammed into me. It was an assault. I promised myself no one would ever do that to me again.”

  “Ah, Margot…”

  “I gave up on romance. Now, when I feel horny, I find an attractive man and have him take care of my needs. I don’t allow penetration. I don’t do blow jobs. That’s it, Scottie. So, you see, I’m not what you’re used to. Women probably do everything you want them to do for you because you are so gorgeous. Even I feel inclined to. But I won’t. So, I live for my job, the money that lets me live the life I want, and occasional sexual hookups. It’s enough.”

  Xavier pulled her down beside him.

  “It’s not, but I’ll nay convince ya of that now. For now, I wish to take care of ya, exactly the way ya want. Ya like when a man pleasures ya?”

  Nodding, Margot answered. “I do.”

  “Yes, then, I agree to yer terms. Please remove yer clothes.”

  Moments passed before Margot began to undress, aware that he watched every move, watched as each garment peeled away, and left her feeling exposed and vulnerable. And very, very aroused.

  Now, on her side as he was, both naked, they just looked at each other. The fractional light from the candles created just enough glow to see each other as their eyes moved across each other’s body.

  “Spectacular breasts,” he whispered, and leaned his head forward to pull on each nipple with his lips, his tongue rolling back and forth across the tips. Margot moaned as he lingered, achingly slow, on each nipple.

  Xavier’s hand lifted to Margot’s side, the fingers walking a tour from her shoulder, down to the curve at her waist and over the swell of her hip. At that point, his fingers moved lower and traced the V between her legs as if searching for where they needed to be.

  If she thought she was wet before just thinking about lying beside this man, the flood of moisture and desire he created now washed any previous ideas away.

  She started to speak to break the awkward silence when one of Xavier’s fingers pressed against her lips, and he moved to the bottom of the mattress to pull her legs open. His body mostly on the floor, he slid up and between them, his tongue searching along her knees, licking, nipping, until he reached the place he wanted to be. He began a slow torturous path all around the slit, suddenly dipping into it, his tongue strong and quick, causing sharp tweaks up into Margot’s core that made her squirm. Firm hands both supported her buttocks and caressed them at the same time.

  It was the most intimate sexual connection she’d ever felt. Try as she could to enjoy the stimulation and remain detached as usual, even with her eyes closed, she saw Xavier’s face in her mind the entire time his tongue was inside her.

  Something about his touch…touched her.

  “Open yer eyes, lass.”

  The deepened voice, the brogue stronger, his voice penetrated her efforts to just feel what he was doing to her, and Margot did as commanded. He’d lifted his head, his hands still moving over her skin creating erotic ripples, and his eyes met hers. “Do ya like that?”

  Did she like that? More than anything ever.

  Her voice as deep, her eyes unfocused, she wanted to simply say yes, but she couldn’t. She had to touch him, so she raised up on her elbow and reached for him. Her fingers moved into his hair, tangling into the soft strands.

  “Umm…you’re reaching places no one’s ever touched before. I don’t mean…” What was she telling him? Unexpectedly, against her own rules, everything she felt. “You’re reaching into my soul, Scotsman. I don’t know how you’re doing that, but you are. And God, yes, I like that!”

  She watched the slow smile spread. “Aye,” he whispered, and his head disappeared as he returned to his attack. Her head dropped back down and she clutched the sheet as her body twisted, his tongue moving faster into her, his fingers sliding back and forth along the incredibly sensitive folds and her body lifted, froze, bucked. An orgasm like she’d never known rocked her.

  Moments later, spent, her body coming off the sexual plateau, her eyes followed Xavier as he came up from the bottom of the mattress to lie beside her.

  “I think we sent ya to the stars, little lady,” he said, his eyes twinkling in the darkness, the candle pushing its light unevenly over his face.

  She wanted to touch him. No, she wanted to taste him. Could she? It was a promise to herself from those awful experiences in college.

  Xavier noticed her intense gaze. “What is it, lass? Are ya okay? I didn’t hurt ya?”

  “No.”

  Margot closed her eyes. This man from a dive bar on the east side of the city was a game-changer for her. She’d known she was attracted to him from the beginning, but now, she wanted to explore her broken sexuality with him. He’d asked her before they started to let him know if she wanted more.

  “I want more,” she blurted out, surprising even herself.

  “What would ya like, lass? I wouldn’t hurt or frighten ya for anythin’ on this earth, so tell me what ya want.”

  “I want to taste you. If you’re willing to let me try, I want to taste you.”

  Willing t
o let her try…

  “Lass, I’m willin’ to let ya do anythin’ ya want. Just do what ye’re comfortable with.”

  “I’ve watched videos. I know how it’s done.”

  “Ya don’t need that. It’s natural, just do what feels right. I promise ya can’t do anythin’ wrong. Ya can’t hurt me.”

  Moving quickly, Margot slid to where Xavier had been at the bottom of the mattress and curved her fingers around his cock. “You’re large, Scotsman. Women like that.”

  “Aye, they do.”

  “Huh.” She hesitated, then leaned down to run her tongue over the smooth tip.

  Xavier stiffened as pleasure shivered through him.

  Margot smiled at his reaction. “This is interesting. I’m good at nearly everything I’ve ever tried. The first time I did this, I had no clue what to do. This is just so different from what I’m used to.”

  “Take yer time. Ye’ll be good at this too.”

  As he collapsed back onto the mattress, Margot settled in to explore how to bring this generous man the same kind of pleasure he’d given her. Remembering the aggressive way he’d used his tongue on her, she decided to copy the motions. She remembered her mother saying once that it was like attacking an ice cream cone with her tongue.

  Xavier nearly told her no, that he didn’t want her to do something she wasn’t comfortable with, but when her tongue licked across the head of his cock, he was locked in. After weeks of shower hand-jobs, the combination of the woman he’d been incredibly attracted to from the moment he met her in his bed and now her tongue on him was impossible to refuse. The wet heat, the motion of her tongue, which grew bolder by the lick, sent him into a sexual need so strong, every nerve in his body was tuned to his cock.

  He was bigger than her by a huge margin, so he wanted to be certain he wouldn’t hurt her, but as she gained confidence and responded to his groans of pure sexual stimulation, he lost his ability to think. It was all sensation now, all primal, the need too great to allow his mind any blood flow.

  Close to coming, he nearly lost it when Margot laughed and slipped him into her mouth, the orgasm came too quickly, like an explosion, shooting forth in ecstatic release.