Up All Night Long: From Lust to Love (Romance Anthology)

by Ali Parker

  I glanced back as the burn of rejection raced through me. "Yeah, it's whatever."

  The small silver studs that sat in his nipples weren't something I would have been drawn to before, but they looked so good against his dark skin. I tried to ignore how badly I wanted to taste him, to touch him... to anything him.

  I rarely got rejected by anyone for anything, but it was a good reminder. Standing, I turned and walked toward the hall, tears burning my gaze. I wasn't sure what I had expected, but it was defunct, as most things in my world were.

  "Where you going?" he called after me, but I ignored him.

  I'd slipped a little in front of him, but it wouldn't happen again. Too many beers and an innumerable gaggle of fake friends left me reaching for something that was real and whole. It just happened to be him there when I wanted something tangible to cling to.

  I locked the door to the bathroom and started the shower before slipping in. The water was cool, the sun having left my skin angry and slightly red. I tugged my bottoms off and tossed the top to the bathing suit out onto the floor.

  A deep throb continued in the center of my stomach until I pressed my back to the wall and ran my fingers over my sex, the skin slick and hairless. I groaned softly, the water of the shower beating against the front of my body, making me feel sexier than I was.

  I needed him to want me like I wanted him, which was an out of control burn that raged in the midst of denial. Sinking my fingers into myself, I jerked my hips and groaned again, making my hand his and my need Ian's completely.

  "Fuck," I whispered and began to take care of myself. It had been too long since I spent any time letting anyone, including myself, bring pleasure from my body. I arched my back and picked up my pace as my eyes closed. I could feel the pressure building inside of me, the thought of Ian walking in and stripping down pushing me closer to explosion.

  "Take me," I whimpered and buckled as my mind moved us around the room, his slow thrusts so deep and hard that I shook from the force of his desire.

  A soft scream lifted from me as I rocked against my hand. My panting increased as my pleasure turned to pain, the loneliness of being in the shower fucking myself leaving me more broken than I wanted to admit.

  A sob left me and I pulled my fingers from my body, curling my arms around myself and sinking down onto my knees as I let go. The shower was loud enough to cover the muffled sounds of my pain and the water would wash away my tears.

  I hated this life of pretending to be a rich girl with no care for anyone. I hated the guy in the next room who had done nothing wrong, but tore me apart with nothing more than a simple stare.

  I hated me.

  Chapter 12

  The scene in the kitchen left me dizzy, the rest of the afternoon I spent on the couch, ignoring her while I fucked her ten ways to Sunday in my sick head. I groaned as the image of her perfect tits moved across my vision, the soft skin of them beneath my fingers as I squeezed them carefully around my cock and rubbed myself against her pretty chest. The desire in her eyes as she looked up at me from her knees, her tongue licking at the head of my dick was...

  "Fuck," I growled and pulled a small blanket off the back of the couch, covering my crotch, but leaving the rest of me on display.

  She liked tats and wanted to play the tease. Two people could play that game. I ran a hand over my chest as she moved from the kitchen and stopped, studying me.

  The girl that walked over and sunk down in front of me wasn't at all the bitch from earlier, but she most likely played games like the rest of us. Her fingers brushed by the skin on my chest and it was all I could do not to reach out and grab her, turning us both and pinning her under me until I had my way with her over and over again.

  The sadness in her gaze when I asked her not to touch me wasn't lost on me. She was battling a few of her own demons it would seem. Maybe I had completely misjudged her. People weren't one dimensional, but so much more. There were layers to pull back and I'd just seen her first one.

  When she got up and walked away, I thought about going after her, but she had slipped her mask back on, and I didn't need any more shit for the day. After hearing the shower start, I slipped my hand under the blanket into my swim shorts and stroked myself a few times. My heart raced at the thought of her coming back out, catching me, and forcing me to let her take my place.

  I growled and yanked my hand back, pissed at myself for acting like a horny teenager. I sat up and chucked the blanket toward the TV. Storming to my room, I couldn't help but stop and press my ear to the bathroom door. The image in my head of her naked and wet under the spray of the shower left my whole body throbbing.

  The sound of the water was accompanied by a soft pant... lust.

  "Oh shit." I knew it was wrong, but I needed to hear her come if that's what she was up to. Chill bumps broke out over my skin and I pressed myself closer as she murmured a few things. She was definitely fucking herself. Was she torn up over me or just one of those rare women who knew the pleasure of masturbating often?

  Her breathing got harder and I felt my own heart race with the idea of bringing her to the edge of pleasure and violently throwing her off the cliff. I needed to be on my knees in the shower, licking and sucking at her tangy sex. I groaned softly, my balls tightening to the point of me almost coming myself. The muted scream started off low and soft, but grew as she came.

  I brushed my hand over myself and realized I was going to come as well. How old was I? I was the fucking creeper. I should turn in my key and go home. Someone was going to have to protect this poor girl… from me.

  Turning, I started toward the bedroom to jack off when I heard the moan break into a sob. Was she hurt? Did she cut herself or slip?

  I lifted my hand to knock on the door before realizing how bad my timing was. She would know I was listening to her masturbate.

  No fucking way.

  Her sobs intensified and I knew that sound all too well. She was heartbroken, her emotions scattered as they bled out through her tears. My desire to fuck myself senseless drained out as I realized how complex she was. She put on a front, but deep down inside was this pretty girl... crying in the shower for some reason.

  I turned and walked to my new room, closing the door and changing into a pair of cargo shorts and a tight white T-shirt. I sat on the edge of the bed and put my tennis shoes on before grabbing a baseball hat. Checking myself in the mirror, I walked out and passed her in the hall.

  She smelled like vanilla and looked like wet sin wrapped in a towel. She ignored me and I simply called behind me.

  "Get dressed. We're going to eat. It's not a request." I slipped into the kitchen and popped open a beer. I drained the damn thing and tossed it in the trashcan as I tried to still my beating heart. I wasn't going to be able to be sensitive with her until she opened that door.

  If she did... we could be friends.

  It was being anything more that suddenly scared the shit out of me.

  The fight over who was driving was almost comical, but I finally relented and got into her preppy-ass BMW. I looked like a chump riding shotgun in the girlie-ass car, but she wasn't looking too well, so best to give in on something simple. I figured her for the type of girl who would love to spread her thighs for my bike, but maybe she was running from the same intense level of attraction that I was. Any additional stimuli might throw her off the cliff and have her climbing my body for a long two months of fucking.

  Damn, what I would give.

  I glanced over at her as my cock stirred to life. Her white shorts were tight and rode up just under her ass, her beautiful legs on full display. My fingers itched to brush down the tight skin as I would whisper a few promises in her ear of the night to come.

  There is no night to come. Fucking lay off.

  Not too many girls could pull off a tank top and not look slutty, but she looked feminine, cute and hot all at the same time. Her sandals left her pretty pink toenails on display and I had to stop myself from asking her what
color it was just so I could respond with, 'it's beautiful’.

  This wasn't a date and we weren't going to be anything other than what we were.

  "You look good," I grunted, unable to hold the comment back anymore.

  She glanced at me and nodded. "Sorry about earlier. I'm not used to this shit and I'll warn you now, my emotions jump all over the place. I'm childish and spoiled and it is what it is."

  "Product of your environment?" I asked, trying to keep my tone neutral.

  "We all are." She glanced over at me and pulled into the parking lot at the mall. I hated crowded places, but my favorite restaurant was at Fashion Valley and having a few dollars to my name, we were going whether she wanted to or not.

  I had been a product of my raising until I decided not to, but I would save that conversation for another time. She didn't need it and I wasn't in the mood to lecture her. She parked and we got out.

  “Where are you wanting to eat?”

  "Fung Chau. It's a great Chinese restaurant here. Not many people know about their secret dish. It's killer. You're going to love it." I smiled and walked around the car as her pretty face lit up.

  "The Peking duck that used to be on the menu?"

  I laughed. "No fucking way. You know about it?"

  "Yeah. It's my favorite." She tugged her purse onto her shoulder and moved closer to me.

  I had to remind myself why I wasn't wrapping an arm around her exposed shoulders and rubbing softly. She wasn't mine and she wouldn't be.

  "Well, looks like you've met your match then. I've been loving this place since I was old enough to hot-wire a car and get myself here."

  She laughed as I held the door for her. "You're going to have to share some of those stories with me. I have a rather dull past. Something tells me you don't."

  "No judging the book by its cover." I smirked and walked behind her, my eyes moving down to that perfect ass of hers. How I wish she had dropped her bottoms in the kitchen. I scolded myself as she glanced back.

  "I like the cover. A lot." She licked at her lips and sat down, tugging her napkin into her lap.

  I took a long breath and followed suit, the room seeming so fucking hot all of a sudden.

  It was going to be a long-ass summer. Pauly wasn't kidding.

  Chapter 13

  I let him order the special and a few other things on the menu that he said I just had to try. It was nice to see a different side of him, though it scared me a little. I was too needy to be comfortable in the presence of a full-package deal. The body, the heart, and the personality of my dreams. It wasn't until dessert that I decided to move past our shallow conversation on movies and surf spots to learn more about him.

  "Tell me a little bit about how you got the job with my dad? He's pretty weird about tat-wearing, bike-riding hoodlums." I glanced up at the waiter as he approached and set something chocolaty between us. "Thanks."

  "I'll let you have the first bite. I want to see you enjoy it." A sexy smirk lifted Ian's mouth and I swallowed hard, shoving my facade into place and picking up my spoon. The need to cry kept assaulting me, but I knew damn good and well what it was. I wanted him to like me - a lot.

  "Let's see if this is all you say it is." I lifted my spoon to my lips, the chocolate thick and rich. "Answer my question."

  I licked at the spoon and groaned, unable to help myself. His eyes narrowed a little as his warm brown eyes shifted down toward my mouth.

  "Good, isn't it?" He winked and picked up his spoon. "Yeah, so my brother is about five years older than me. He owns a private security company. I work at the hospital in the ER in security, but a few weeks back, he needed some help, so I stepped in."

  I watched him suck on his spoon for a minute, my eyes wider than they should have been. Never in my life had I imagined eating dessert to be so incredibly sensual. I blinked a few times, turning my gaze back to the dessert as heat rolled over me in vicious waves.

  "Yeah, but how did my dad get into the picture? Does he know your brother?" I licked at the spoon before sucking it deep into my mouth and rolling my tongue along the silky chocolate.

  "God, that's hot," he muttered and sat back, picking up his water and shocking me with his confession if he meant what I think he did.

  "The dessert?" I leaned over, pulling it to me to inspect it. "Is it like Mexican chocolate, where they put chili flakes in it? Did you get one of them?"

  He laughed and pulled the dessert back. "Anyway... your father does know my brother and uses his services a lot. The event that I filled in for Jake, my brother, was the open-aired concert where your father was threatened."

  I jerked my gaze back up to Ian. "Did you save his life that night?"

  "I did." He took another large spoonful, much less impressed with himself than I was.

  "You would have given up your life for his?"

  He looked up at me, the softness in his expression not fitting the hard-ass guy that had been jacking with my world over the last few days.

  "Yes, Chloe. I'd do it for you too. It's part of the job." He sat back and tilted his head to the side. "Why UCLA? That doesn't seem like the right school for a hottie-tottie rich girl like yourself."

  "Rich bitch?" I stiffened at the insinuation.

  "If the shoe fits." He winked and dug into the dessert.

  "I guess because Duke, Harvard and MIT were too far from the beach. The only place I truly feel peace is close to the waves."

  "Newsflash, toots... L.A. isn't next to the water."

  I smiled, unable to help myself. "I realize that, smart ass. I can drive back down any time I want and the sun still shines most days of the week."

  "I get it. I've lived here most of my life too."

  "Yeah? Do you have any other siblings besides Jake?"

  "No. You?" He set his spoon down and rubbed his stomach.

  "No. Just me." I pulled the plate closer. "You done with this?"

  "Fuck yes. I feel like I'm about to explode."

  Wouldn't I love to see that?

  "Me too, but you can't pass up a guilty pleasure." I finished the dessert, the feel of his eyes on me almost too much. "I have a friend that's going to come stay at the house with us off and on all summer."

  His expression shifted slightly, but it was enough to see that he didn't approve. "As long as I meet him first and your father approves. I still think you should lay off guys until you find the right one."

  I laughed, his big brother appeal turning me off completely. "I am twenty-one years old, Ian. I don't need anyone telling me when I can't, and when I can, bring a man home. Fucking is part of life."

  "Don't I know it?" He ran his fingers through his long hair and leaned back.

  The idea of him fucking raced down my spine and shot a long spike of heat down my nerve endings. He chuckled and I realized my cheeks had turned pink.

  "I'm not clearing dates with you or my father." I pinned him with a stare.

  "Then you're not getting laid." He shrugged, the asshole from earlier returning quickly.

  "Seeing that me not getting laid isn't going to fly, I guess you'll just have to do." I shrugged and reached for my water, ready to get the hell out of there.

  "I'm not for sale, pretty girl." He leaned forward and put his arms on the table, the movement making the muscles in his thick shoulders flex. "You can tease all you want, Chloe, but it isn't happening between us. We can be friends, but nothing else."

  "I was kidding," I barked. I picked up the napkin from my lap and moved to the edge of the booth. Rejection stung me with violent intent. "The friend is a girl and you'll love her. She's a hood-rat with a hard past, much like you, I'd assume."

  "You don't know shit about me." He reached for the bill when it landed on the table. I wanted to stop him as I'd intended on paying, but after the sharp turn in the conversation, I was done.

  "True. Thanks for dinner." I got up and walked to the bathroom as my stomach soured and tears burned my gaze again.

  Stop crying. Dumb ass
. He's not interested and you aren't either. Stupid needy bitch.

  I sat down on the toilet for a minute and cried over what I hoped might happen versus what did. After a few minutes, I got up, wiped my eyes and checked myself in the mirror. I looked like hell. There was no way I was going back out there.

  I checked my pockets and realized that my keys were still on the table. Good. Moving out of the bathroom, I slipped through the kitchen and found a back door to the place.

  Grabbing a cab outside of one of the large department stores, I pulled my phone from my purse and texted him.

  Me: My keys are with you. Just bring the car back to the house when you want. I'll see you there later.

  Ian: Not funny. Get out here or I'm coming in there.

  Me: Suit yourself.

  I dropped my phone back in my purse and leaned back. There was no joy in dicking with him. I just couldn't force myself to walk back out and let him see that his rejection hurt me. I wasn't actually hitting on him or asking anything of him, but he wanted to make sure I knew he wasn't interested.

  "Bi-polar ass," I grumbled and closed my eyes.

  The cabbie dropped me off at the house a few minutes later and I went into my room and changed into a string bikini and grabbed my surfboard. I would ride the waves as the sun went down. It would make me feel better, remind me that there was still pleasure to have in the world, even if the closest thing to it wasn't anywhere near enough.

  It would have to do for now.

  Chapter 14

  "Un-fucking-believable." I slid out of the booth in the restaurant and grabbed her keys from across the seat before storming toward the restroom. I stopped outside the women's door and pushed it open, leaning in a little. "Chloe. You in there, girl?"

  Someone touched my shoulder. "Um, Sir... that's the women's room."

  "I know." I turned and snapped at the small waitress that stood behind me. "Can you please go in there and see if my sister is in there? She has a temper and ran off. Her name is Chloe."