Scorpio

by Lauren Landish

  Hayden is standing by the hot tub, looking like he just stepped out of a gym, in simple black board shorts and his rock-hard abs on display. I watch as his eyes nearly devour me as he looks me up and down, but I gotta admit that I’m looking him up and down the same way.

  In that moment, I feel sexy, wanted. Something I never feel because I’ve always been too busy with helping children to nurture my love life. And God, am I turned on by Hayden’s hot body.

  But I try not to let it show, even as a wide smile takes over my face like a giddy schoolgirl. Despite anything going on internally, I intend to flirt like no one’s business and give the viewers what they want. Sexy, flirty times.

  And is he who I want? Abso-fucking-lutely.

  I place my hands on my hips, swishing back and forth a little as I throw his earlier words back at him. “See anything you like?”

  Hayden swallows thickly, his eyes glued to my body, giving me a surge of confidence. “Fuck, yes, I do.”

  I place two fingers to my lips, looking mildly alarmed. “Can we swear like that on this show?”

  “Don’t know, don’t care. They can edit it out.” His voice is low, almost feral, and it sends sparks down to my nether regions. “C’mere, Emily, let me see you closer.”

  It’s not a request but an order, and I react without even thinking, moving toward him as if he’s put me under a spell. He starts walking toward me too, and we meet in the middle. He grasps my hands, holding them out wide, and turning me around to get a good look at my figure.

  A low whistle of appreciation escapes his lips. “Emily, you look stunning. Like an angel in white, so I guess that makes me the devil in black?”

  “Stop it.” I blush, trying not to stare at his hard abs and barely resisting the urge to run my fingers down them. I swear it’s gotten super-hot all of a sudden, and I’m damn-near naked.

  “You started it.” He lets go of one hand, bringing his palm up to gently cup my cheek as he looks me in the eye. I think he’s about to kiss me, but then he whispers, “We getting in this hot tub or am I going to have a situation I’d rather not share on camera?”

  My cheeks burn all the hotter as he bites his lower lip. “Let’s do it.”

  Grinning, he leads me into the tub. The water is warm as I sink down and it sends my temperature up a notch. We sit side by side and he offers me a glass of champagne that’s conveniently waiting on a small table next to the hot tub.

  “So, tell me more about yourself,” I say, fingering my glass and focusing my eyes on his handsome face. “I feel like you have a lot to tell.”

  Hayden takes a sip of his champagne and then sets it aside. “Hmm . . . where to start?” He scratches at his jaw, lost in thought, and I watch him over the rim of my champagne glass.

  Clearing his throat, he finally says, “Well, when I was younger, I thought I was the shit. I had everything going for me in high school—good grades, girls, and baseball talent scouts showing up at my door.” He lets out a mirthless chuckle, and I see a twinge of pain in his eye. “I even had a college scholarship to play at one of the big baseball universities. All things pointed to me making it to the big leagues.” He goes silent, a shadow passing over his face.

  I stare at him, on the edge of my seat. “And what happened?”

  Hayden sucks in a breath, and though he’s looking at me, his eyes are a little glassy, lost to the memory as he relives it. “It was the second round of the state playoffs, and we took the lead into the sixth inning. I was playing right field that game. Coach wanted me to rest for the state finals before pitching again. One of their batters tagged a low fastball, sending it long toward me. I went running for it and jumped to get the catch. Went over the wall and landed on my right shoulder.”

  I gasp, my stomach clenching. “You got hurt.”

  Hayden nods, looking vulnerable for the first time. “My rotator cuff, when I least expected it. I thought for sure, there was some way it would heal, even if most of them don’t fully, and I did everything I could to keep playing. I adjusted my throwing motion, rehabbed like a madman . . . anything I could do, I did. I knew how my parents were depending on me and how badly they wanted to see me achieve my dreams, but in the end, I had to give up the sport. It just wasn’t working.”

  Tears sting my eyes. “Oh . . . that’s so terrible. I’m sorry.”

  Hayden nods, clenching his jaw. “Shit happens. And I’m not going to lie, I was depressed for a while. But I’m over that now.” He shrugs nonchalantly. “Moved on to a new chapter of my life.”

  Though he’s trying to put up a bold front, I know Hayden is lying through his teeth. The injury still bothers him. Even now.

  Is that the reason he’s here? says a tiny voice of doubt at the back of my mind. Is he trying to regain some lost former glory?

  I push away the troublesome thoughts and ask, “So how’s that chapter been? What do you do now?”

  Hayden grabs his glass of champagne and takes another sip. “My next career move came completely out of the blue. I was visiting campus to apply for financial aid when a modeling scout approached me. At first, I was like, dude, are you coming on to me? Because he would not stop going on about how beautiful I was and kept trying to touch my hair and squeeze my biceps. Not exactly the approach I was used to getting.”

  He pauses, and I laugh as I picture him strutting onto campus, a little down but hopeful to get to financial aid, encountering a random guy wanting to run his fingers through his hair.

  He continues, “Once I realized he was offering me a modeling job, I figured it was a scam hook for porn and he just needed some fresh young meat. Eventually, he convinced me he was legit, and now he’s my agent.”

  “Wow, so a model, huh?” I ask as I look him up and down with a grin. I motion toward his arm and tease, “May I?” He smiles and I give his arm a little squeeze like his agent wanted to. “Yep, I can see it. I’d buy whatever you were selling.”

  I’m pleasantly surprised when Hayden blushes. Maybe he’s not as cocky as he’d have me believe. “Thanks. It’s been a change, that’s for sure. Dad used to come to every single one of my games, even cried when my shoulder quit on me.” He chuckles. “He’s all right with my modeling, but he does like to give me shit about how he can’t understand who would pay to see my ugly mug.”

  I giggle. “Dad knows what’s up, right?”

  Hayden huffs, his cheeks turning light red. He must be getting more than a little hot. Part of me wonders if it’s partly due to being close to me, or due to the hot tub? “Right,” he agrees sarcastically.

  We fall into silence for a moment, the sound of the hot tub motor and rushing water filling our ears.

  “I’ve always dreamed of being a teacher,” I say, breaking the quiet. “It’s been the one goal I’ve been working toward before coming here.”

  “That makes perfect sense with how much you love kids,” Hayden says.

  “Yeah, but it sucks when I can’t be the teacher I want to be because I can’t afford to go to school full-time. So I settled for being a nanny instead. Not that I don’t love my kids and my job, of course, but I looked into those scholarship programs, and I even applied for several. But they don’t cover luxuries like food and water, and coordinating a part-time job and an internship is impossible. So I take a class or two each semester, but at that rate, it’ll be years before I finish. So . . . I compromised.”

  Hayden tilts his head, looking at me in a way that makes my skin prick. “I don’t know. To me, it doesn’t sound like you settled at all. It just sounds like one path to your dream wasn’t a possibility right now, so you found another way to be happy and do what you love.” He moves in, running a hand down my shoulder and causing goosebumps to form all over my body. “That’s what I like about you. You’re resourceful.”

  Along with sending my temperature up another degree, that simple compliment makes me beam like a girl who got her first hula hoop. Not only is Hayden drop-dead gorgeous, but he just seems to get me. And he�
��s focused in on me in a way that none of the other guys, including Lee, have been when I’m alone with them. I just feel it.

  We continue our conversation, finding out little tidbits about each other. As we talk, it seems like we drift closer and closer to each other. It’s not long before my legs are resting across his as he absently strokes them in the midst of our conversation.

  It doesn’t feel sexual, but sensual . . . almost like a massage. The more we talk, the more comfortable we feel. And I just can’t seem to stop staring into his beautiful blue eyes, taken by how they seem to pull me in and devour me in their depths.

  “So yeah, Dad wasn’t . . .” Hayden stops what he’s saying, his eyes on my face.

  My heart jumps in my chest. I was engrossed in his tale about his dad coming home to find that Hayden had taken some of his baseball cards. “Did I turn into a frog or something?”

  Hayden doesn’t reply, simply reaching out and moving a strand of hair behind my ear in a gentle fashion.

  In that moment, I feel like I’m drawn to him like a moth to a flame. And not even Satan himself can keep me away.

  In slow motion, we move toward each other, and he pauses barely a breath away from me, teasing the moment, making me realize how much I want him to kiss me. And then he does and it’s magic.

  Pure. Fucking. Magic.

  He’s powerful but not overwhelming, licking gently across my lip, asking for entry. Our tongues tangle with each other and I hear a moan, realizing its me. He pulls me the rest of the way into his lap, and I feel his hard cock pressing against my hip.

  From what I can tell, he’s huge and absolutely turned on by our kissing. I groan softly as I feel his hand threading through the hair at the nape of my neck, gently fisting it. And his other hand comes up to my cheek, his thumb rubbing across my cheekbone as he breaks our kiss, bringing our foreheads together.

  I’m lost in him for a moment, wanting to be nowhere else but here. I could drown in him right now and I would curse the person who dared try to save me. I’m his.

  Just as I’m about to lean in to kiss him again, I hear the hated, “Cut!” Meredith is smiling from offset and I’m amazed that I forgot about the camera and the people lurking quietly in the dark around us. “Great job, guys.”

  Uh, Meredith, can you kindly shut the fuck up, please?

  Hayden seems to be thinking the same thing as we give each other a little smile, still a little breathless. Neither of us wants this to end, and it shows, but we manage to climb out of the hot tub and Hayden pulls me in for one more hug.

  Right before I pull away, he whispers in my ear, “Thanks for the great date. I’m gonna dream of you, that kiss, and your hard little nipples in this bikini all night. Look what you do to me . . .” and he releases me, stepping back.

  I look down and . . . oh my God. He might be covered by a layer of black nylon, but he’s so fucking hard for me right now. My eyes meet his. “Sweet dreams, Hayden. I know I’ll definitely have some myself.”

  Hayden

  Confessional

  “You ready?” Joe, the cameraman, asks as I finish buttoning up my dress shirt. It itches a little. They barely gave me time to rub down with a towel before herding me in here half dressed.

  “Hold your ball sack,” McKayla Quinn growls at Joe as she finishes combing my hair back. For my first confessional, she popped up and said she’d be fixing me up so I don’t end up on TV looking like ass crack. Her words, not mine. “I’m almost done.”

  “And I’m almost ready to tell Emily she can forget about this one,” Brad Cooper, the make-up artist, says as he steps back and peers at my face, practically salivating for me. “There’s a saying—too hot for TV—and this fine piece of man is definitely pushing that line.”

  I try not to laugh as the two artists finish and begin bickering with each other on the sidelines. After I check myself over once, I give Joe a nod and he begins the countdown to taping.

  “I don’t think I can find enough words in the English vocabulary to describe Emily,” I say, staring straight into the camera and giving my best smile. “She’s smart, sweet, funny . . . and undeniably sexy. I just don’t know what it is about her, but I find myself having the best of times whenever we’re together.

  “Learning about Emily on our first date really showed me what a great person she is. I love how much she lit up when she talked about helping kids and how much she wants to be a teacher.

  “But damn, when she put on that bikini.” I shake my head. “Listen, I know I’m supposed to be a gentleman and everything but . . . she’s fucking hot.”

  I give myself a look in the mirror before I hustle out of my room into the suitor’s hall to head down to breakfast.

  It’s mad early for breakfast, but since ending our date, I’ve felt like I can’t get my mind off Emily. As I’m rounding a corner, I see her, dressed in a tank top and shorts, her sexy legs on display, heading into a door ahead. A grin spreads across my face as I rush up the hallway and sneak in behind her.

  I try to be quiet as I come through the door, but Emily immediately senses my presence, and she turns around with a gasp, her eyes as wide as saucers. “Hayden, what are you doing in here?”

  I know I shouldn’t, but I can’t help myself. I move in closer, crowding her body with my own. Her breathing slows, becoming heavy and a little ragged. In that moment, I know she wants me. It’s only my enormous self-restraint that keeps me from seeing just how far I can push it.

  “I dreamed of you last night,” I tell her, my voice a soft growl. “And I wake up today, walk out of my room, and here you are, right in front of me like a figment of my imagination. I had to follow you to see if you were real.”

  Emily bites her lower lip and looks away for a moment, blushing. “I might’ve thought about you last night too,” she admits. She spreads her fingers inches apart to indicate just how much. “Just a little.”

  Desire courses through my veins as I move in even closer. “Oh, really?” I growl. “And what did you think about?”

  She’s practically shaking, and the corners of my lips curl up into a grin as she searches for words. “Nothing. Just . . . our date.”

  I arch an eyebrow, placing a hand on the small of her back and pulling her closer. “Are you sure that’s all?”

  “Y–yes.”

  She’s lying, but it doesn’t matter. I’ll let her off the hook.

  “I had a great time talking to you yesterday,” I say, “and you know . . . after.”

  “After?” Emily asks breathlessly. The smell of her desire is in the air, her warm, lush body making me hot as hell. “What do you mean—”

  I lose control of myself, giving in to what we both want. If we get caught, damn it all. At least I can go home a happy man. I close in, kissing her passionately, and with a growl, I pull her to me by her hips. The feeling of her ass under my hands is electric and my cock surges to full hardness, sandwiched between our bodies.

  She moans, her hands moving over my shoulders to tangle in my hair at the nape of my neck. Spreading her legs slightly, she grinds against me. She already wants it hard and deep, and I’m more than happy to oblige.

  Kissing down her neck, nibbling and licking, I move my hands to cup her breasts, teasing her already hard nipples. I slip the strap of her cami tank top off her shoulder and suck her nipple into my mouth, teasing it in tight circles with the tip of my tongue. “Oh, God, Hayden,” she whines in my ear, trying to be good but unable to help herself. “Hayden . . .”

  I move up, whispering in her ear. “As hot as it is to hear you say my name like that, we need to be quiet. Can you be quiet for me?”

  Emily nods, biting her lip to keep herself quiet, and I lower back down, sucking her right nipple into my mouth, rubbing and pinching the other. Pulling back, I catch her eye. “Emily, I need to touch you. God, can I touch you?” She dips her head once, and I slip a hand up the loose leg of her shorts, cupping her pussy through her cotton panties. “Mmm, you’re soaked.”
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  Emily nods wordlessly in reply as I slip a finger into her panties, pulling them to the side, and run my finger across her delicate folds. So hot and wet, her pussy almost feels like warm caramel. Emily can’t hold back her soft moan, her hips pressing forward, searching for more. I ease my finger into her, curling up toward her front wall. In and out, I press, adding another finger to fill her and using my thumb to rub across her clit. “Hayden, I’m so close. Don’t stop.”

  I feel her tight pussy squeeze as she gets ready to come, and just in time, I cover her mouth with mine, muffling her cries as I feel her coat my fingers with her orgasm. I keep swiping my thumb across her clit, prolonging her pleasure until she bucks at me, letting out a big, happy sigh. When it’s over, I pull back, looking into those wide, sexy eyes. “That was the sexiest fucking thing I’ve ever seen.”

  Emily smiles, shaken by the intensity of what just happened. “Wow . . . that was—”

  She stops mid-sentence as she realizes I’ve moved my fingers from inside her to my mouth, sucking at her juices. I meet her eyes and let her watch as I run my tongue around and around. “Sexiest fucking thing I’ve ever tasted too.”

  She smiles, moving forward to kiss me. After a moment, she seems to remember where we are. “Shit. McKayla and Brad are gonna be here any minute!”

  I help her adjust her clothes back, and just as I meet her lips with mine for a goodbye kiss, the door opens behind us.

  “Girrrrlll . . .” a high falsetto voice gives me half a second of warning, and I turn around and see McKayla and Brad, both of them grinning at us with matching raised eyebrows.

  She points to each of us as she speaks. “All right, we are supposed to be in here. She is supposed to be in here. But you are not supposed to fucking be in here.”

  Brad smirks, his eyes glued on my crotch a little too much for my comfort. “Or be fucking in here.”

  Emily is turning redder by the moment, stammering to cover up what just happened. “No, uh . . . we were just talking about our date last night.”