by Amelia James
“Fuck me, darlin’.” He yanked his shirt over his head and dropped it on the floor, then he unhooked her bra and flung it aside.
She slid to her knees, dragging her nipples then her lips down his heaving chest. His cock sought her mouth, and she welcomed it with a circling tongue.
He groaned and sank his hands into her hair. “I missed this.”
She took her time, licking, stroking, savoring every rigid inch of him and knowing it could be the last. Too many obstacles stood in the way: the past, the present. She didn’t dare think about the future. Now. Enjoy him now.
His hands fisted in her hair, pulling it tight. She liked the sting, liked the battle between immediate pleasure and impending pain playing out in her body. They’d never had the time to get good at sex, but she’d gotten a lot of practice sucking a man’s cock—with him and after him. He’d never returned the favor, and if she ever wanted him to, it had to be now.
Simone stood. “We need to block this door.” Anyone could walk in and catch them with his dick in her mouth. Another firefighter, Flynn. Cassie.
Dash grabbed the nearest straight-back wooden chair, and spun it against the door, bracing the top slat under the doorknob.
“Does that work?”
“I have no idea.”
The rickety barrier hardly looked strong enough to hold back a curious assistant, let alone a jealous ex, but it would have to do.
He hooked his finger behind the button on her pants and pulled her toward the beds. She leaned back against one set of bunks while he turned a lamp on, throwing more light on their bodies. He sat on a lower bed opposite her and put his hands on her hips, pulling her close as she undid the button and slipped the zipper open. Her pants dropped and he kissed her belly, using his tongue to nudge her panties down.
Dash inhaled. “I gotta taste you.”
“Please.” She gasped and yanked the damn underwear off herself, unable to tolerate his meticulous prodding any longer. Flickering licks teased her thighs and she slid her feet across the floor, opening for him while she held on to the top bunk. His tongue slipped between her lower lips, touching and retreating, then reappearing in another untouched place. She groaned and trembled, waiting for him to find that neglected spot, the one that had begged for him for so long.
“This?” He opened his mouth and extended his tongue, sweeping it over her clit in enveloping circles.
“This!” Her grip faltered and she collapsed. “I can’t stand up when you’re doing that.”
He nodded once at the bed behind her. The rough wool blanket scratched her tingling skin as she stretched across it and spread her legs. Dash caught his breath, staring at her while she waited.
Her thighs quivered. Her flesh dripped. “I need your tongue.”
“I know.” His voice rasped, teasing her ears. “But I can’t stop looking. I don’t ever want to forget this.”
She leaned up on her elbows. The raw hunger in his eyes devoured her as thoroughly as his mouth had, and she clapped her hands over her burning face. The heat spread over her naked body, consuming her. She heard him slide off the bed, and when she looked again, he was crawling across the floor on his hands and knees to bury his face in her pussy. “Oh God, yes!”
He held her thighs apart with both hands, licking and nipping at her exposed flesh. His muffled growls made her nipples stand stiff, and she pinched them, gasping while he explored with a relentless tongue.
Her hair spilled off the edge of the narrow bed as she turned to glance at the door. Still closed. Stop worrying! No one will ever know.
Had Dash told Cassie about last night? He slipped one finger inside Simone, then two, fucking her with his hand while he sucked on her clit.
Will he tell her about this?
Pleasure slipped from her grasp and she tangled her hands in her hair. Relax. Let him take you over the edge. “Please.”
He lifted his head and breathed hot on her inner thigh. “Oh God, I’ve waited forever to do this to you.” Then he plunged his stiffened tongue deep into her pussy.
But she couldn’t let go. Couldn’t drop into the swirling pleasure waiting for her. He made me come when I didn’t want to. Why can’t I do it now?
She grabbed a handful of his hair and pulled him up. “Fuck me.”
“Hell yes.” He rose to his knees and drove deep inside her.
CHAPTER 7
Fortunately for Dash, his brain had burned out the moment his tongue touched Simone’s pussy. He couldn’t think about the fact that his mouth had been latched onto his boss’s clit. His dick was destroying any hope of a professional relationship. He couldn’t think and he didn’t want to. Not now. Maybe not ever.
Her hot, tight cunt seared his flesh, branding his body with her unique flame, and leaving a mark that would never fade no matter how long he tried to stay away from her. Not trying very hard tonight, are ya?
“Shut up.” He pounded into her, beating the opposing side into the bedframe.
Simone gasped and twisted under him, apparently unaware of the argument that’d escaped him. She bent backward over the bed, reaching for something solid to hold onto while her legs failed to wrap around his. She can’t be comfortable.
He withdrew and stood too fast, banging his head on the metal frame above them. “Ow, damn it.” She giggled, and he held his hand out to her. “Come on.”
Her gaze swept the length of his body, upright cock and all, then she grabbed his hand and got up. He pulled her into his arms and kissed her, full-body skin on skin for the first time ever. His hands roamed over her soft, hot skin, memorizing the feel of her. The horny teenage boy in him jumped up and cheered. I’m naked with Simone!
She leaned back against the upper bunk, and a faint smile touched her lips. “It’s like the first time you’ve ever seen a naked girl.”
“A naked you. That makes all the difference.” He stepped close, brushing his nose along the column of her neck and inhaling her warm brown sugar scent.
She shifted against him, parting her thighs and letting his cock impale her. “I’ve had dreams about this, but I never imagined the reality would feel so…” Her words trailed off, seemingly lost in the same bliss he’d wandered into.
He slid his hand under her thigh and wrapped her leg around his waist, driving in at an awkward angle. That’s not right. He stepped back. “Turn around.”
She held on to the top bed while he set one of her feet on the lower bed. Then he adjusted his stance and grabbed her hips, thrusting up and in while she rocked back against him.
“Please, please, please.” She pressed her forehead against the mattress.
Dash fucked in time with her chant. Her ass bounced against his groin with a pleasing slap, sending shock waves rippling through his body. He rode the heated tide, floating from one swell to another, each crest higher and hotter than the last. “Oh darlin’, I’ll never get enough of fucking you.” What am I saying? Memories of their turbulent history mixed with present complications and sent him crashing down. She’ll break your heart again. But her repeated claims of innocence lifted him on a surge of hope. What if she’s telling the truth?
He grabbed her hair and wound it around his fist, holding her tight against him as their bodies slipped and slid together, apart, then together again.
“Please, please! Damn it!” She slammed back and sent him stumbling into the opposite bunk.
Hazy moments whizzed by as Dash realized she’d broken their connection. “What the hell? Want to play rough again?” He lunged for her, but she stepped aside.
Simone’s body stiffened as she turned to face him, her hands clenched into fists. “I can’t come.”
“Does that mean I can’t either?”
Her eyes narrowed and she raised one of those tight fists.
He backed up a step and held his hands up. “Sorry, my brain is stuck in my crotch.” His damn dick remained upright, straining for her and begging for release. “Did I do something wrong? I know we’ve never
done…that before. But I’ve gotten pretty good at it with other women.” Jesus! He slapped his palm over his face.
“I loved the pussy licking, but none of this is going to solve anything.” She clapped her hands over her forehead and fell back against the bunk, showing him her entire naked body, every inch of sweat-sheened dark skin. Her breasts rose, and he spotted her birthmark. It seemed to have gotten lighter with age, standing out even more.
His unsatisfied cock swelled, stretching toward her bare thighs. “I know, but…we gotta start somewhere.”
“Start what? You think I’m a liar, and I know I’m not. Sounds like an end to me.” She jammed her hands on her hips, leaving her body exposed. “And you have a new girlfriend.”
“She’s not my girlfriend!
A harsh laugh escaped her. “Have you told her that?”
“Yes, weeks ago. It’s not my fault she won’t let go.” Simone’s bouncing breasts captivated him, and he licked his lips as he imagined sucking on those sweet nipples again. He spotted the bra he’d tossed onto a chair and flung it at her. “Get dressed. I can’t argue when you’re naked.”
She hooked the shield behind her back, then picked up her pants while he found his. “I never cheated on you, and I won’t be the other woman.”
“You’re not. You’re…” Shit. He swiped his t-shirt off the floor. “I’m…Damn it.” Stitches popped as his head got stuck in an arm-hole. “I don’t know what to do about Cassie’s crazy ideas right now, and I sure as hell don’t know what to do with you.” He righted his shirt and jerked it down over his chest.
She pulled her pants on and yanked the zipper up. “Leave the weather girl out of this.” She threw her blouse over her shoulders.
“You’re the one who brought her up!”
“The whole reason we broke up—me supposedly cheating on you—is stupid. Mal lied, pure and simple.”
“Mal was never pure, and we were never simple.”
Dash sat on the open tailgate, swinging his legs and staring down the dark road. Simone should’ve been there by now. His mom and dad were driving him to college first thing in the morning, before sunrise. He wanted to spend the night with her, but they’d already lost an hour. “Where is she?”
Headlights beamed in his direction.
“It’s about time.” He walked toward the car as it slowed to a stop. “Where the hell have you been?” The door opened and Mal got out. “This isn’t Simone’s car.”
“She’s not coming.” Dash’s brother crossed his arms and leaned back against his sedan, cool as the Cheshire cat that ate Tweety Bird. “She wanted me to give you this.” He opened his hand and the dual-heart necklace Dash had given Simone on her sixteenth birthday dangled from his fingers.
“How did you get that?”
“She took it off when I unbuttoned her shirt.”
“She never takes it off.” Not even when they fooled around. “When you what?”
“I fucked her. Or she fucked me. It was pretty much mutual.”
“She would never…!”
“Oh, but she did. She said you think her birthmark looks like a heart. I think it looks like a potato.”
Her birthmark. A patch of lighter skin about the size of a nickel on the underside of her left breast. She’d told him—and no one else—that it was the mark her heart made when he’d first kissed her. Her clothes, even her bra and her swim suit, kept it covered. If Mal had seen it…His heart pounded and his brain swirled. “She cheated on me?”
“With me. Maybe with other guys too. Girls like that don’t screw around just once. But definitely with me.” He glanced at his watch. “Almost an hour ago.”
Another set of headlights blinded him as Simone’s car skidded to a halt alongside Mal’s. She jumped out and threw her arms around Dash’s neck. “I’m sorry I’m late.” She kissed his flat lips then shoved Mal. “This asshole told me you wanted me to go to the football stadium instead.”
“So you went there and fucked him?”
Dash’s face heated and his fingers curled. “We broke up because you fucked him.”
“We broke up because you wouldn’t listen to me!”
“I heard everything I needed to!”
She buttoned her shirt up crooked, but didn’t bother to fix it. “You gave up! You went to college halfway across the country and never called, never once tried to find out how I was doing. When you came home for Christmas, I stopped by your house, but Mal told me you weren’t home.”
He’d hidden in his room and moped, only coming out to have Christmas dinner with his family. He hadn’t gone anywhere. “I never knew about that.” Holy shit, Mal lied to her.
“I wanted you to fight for me or even with me, but you just left, and I couldn’t do a damn thing to get your attention.” She blinked and wiped her eyes.
God, that must’ve killed her. All the stunts she’d pulled had never failed to draw an audience, even when he was the only one applauding her. “I…” This isn’t about you. “Needed time.”
“Does it even matter now? We broke up thirteen years ago. We were foolish kids and we did foolish things. But we loved each other. I know we did because we can’t let this go. Do you want this to be over?”
His heart raced and the room spun into blackness at the thought of losing her again. “Do you?”
“I thought I knew, but now…?” She wiped her face again and turned to the door. The knob twisted in her hand, but the chair kept the door closed. “That does work.” She moved the chair aside and opened the door. “I’ll be back in the morning. And we will keep this professional.” Her heels clattered down the hall, fading into the distance as the door closed behind her.
Do you want this to be over? The night before he left for college, hell yeah, he wanted nothing more than for all the pain and anguish to end. But it hadn’t. Seeing her again brought it all back. Does it even matter now?
“Yes, because it still hurts. Both of us.”
***
Silence as still as death filled the command center. Darkness covered Dash like a warm, hand-stitched quilt, old and familiar. He should’ve been able to sleep, but Simone’s parting questions refused to lie down. He’d gathered his gear and dumped it on the bunk next to him, the one he’d draped Simone across while he’d licked her. That image could’ve kept him up all by itself. His cock stiffened a bit just thinking about slapping her sweet pussy with his tongue. Damn it, why am I thinking about her? Again.
Bright light appeared in the gap under the door, and heels rang across the hard tile floor outside the bunk room. Is Simone back? He jumped out of bed and pure instinct drove him to grab his axe. He opened the door without making a sound, then waited for his eyes to adjust. Someone’s in the command center. He crept down the hall, raised the axe to his shoulder, and peeked around the corner.
Cassie stood in front of the radar screen, watching with a practiced eye. As if sensing his presence, she looked up at him and smiled. “Hi.”
Dash lowered his axe. “Hey.” His racing heart kept charging, making his head spin. She’d been a major part of his life once, but as soon as Simone came back, he knew she never would be again. “What are you doing here?” Had he closed the bunk room door? Do I look like I just got laid? He ran his hand through his hair and tried to make it lay down flat.
She smoothed a wild lock with her fingers. “You weren’t answering your phone, and you weren’t at home. I just wanted to make sure you made it back safe. I’ve been watching the news. The fire is pretty bad.”
My phone rang? He hadn’t heard it. He’d left it in the shower room with the rest of his gear, and had forgotten to check for messages when he retrieved his equipment. “Another crew showed up and relieved us. I’m going back out in the morning.”
“You should get some sleep then.” But instead of leaving, she settled in a chair and pulled him closer.
“No.” He dropped in a chair next to her and leaned an elbow on the desk. “I wasn’t doing much sleeping anyway.
” He refused to look at her, focusing instead on the satellite image spinning across the screen in front of them.
She slid her hand across the desk and stroked his stiff arm. “What’s wrong?”
Shit. He shouldn’t have mentioned his inability to sleep. Now she’s going to stay and make me talk. “Too much on my mind.”
Cassie stared at the screen, her gaze following the hurricane’s track. “Simone?”
“Is it that obvious?”
“I can see a storm coming.” A note of bitter humor colored her voice.
This one’s already here. He forced a smile and dangled a subject change in front of her like a fisherman’s lure. “Is that why you chose your last name, Ms. Storm?”
She nibbled at the bait. “You still think that’s not my real name?”
“Can’t be.” He rolled his chair closer and laced his fingers with hers. “Coincidences like that don’t happen.” They’d had this discussion before—calm, rational—a controlled debate. He’d wanted to whip it out of control and see if this woman possessed the same fiery passion as—What am I doing? He shoved the chair back and released her hand.
But she stood and hovered over him, the bait in her hands now. “Maybe it’s fate.”
Fate. Coincidence. Pure dumb luck. He didn’t believe in any of that shit, but something beyond his control had thrown Simone back into his life. “Fate is BS.”
Cassie perched on the edge of the desk and leaned close to him, letting her blouse slip open. “Do you want to know the truth?”
We’re still talking about her name, right? “No, I like the mystery.” He liked being kept on his toes, not knowing what to expect, the rush of anticipation. Keeping Cassie’s name a secret had injected a little excitement into their otherwise stable relationship. But Simone kept him off-balance constantly, plunging him into the unknown and spinning him through crazy loops like a roller coaster. And as soon as he got off her thrill ride, he got right back in that unending line again, waiting for the next whirling trip.
“Okay, don’t say I didn’t offer.” She sat back and her blouse fell into place.