by Ava McKnight
“Yes,” she said on a long breath. “Jesus, yes.”
Nothing had ever felt so good, and although she wanted to hang on to the wild, scorching-hot flurry within her, she couldn’t fight back the pressure mounting along the edges. Seconds later, all the erotic sensations converged and erupted and she cried out his name as she came, even more intensely than the last two times. So intense, it rocked her. She clenched his cock as her release roared through her.
Chase thrust harder and then she felt his dick surge and his body convulse.
“Oh shit,” he ground out. “Cass.” He came inside her with a violent shudder that thrilled her.
She squeezed him tight and he shuddered again.
“That is so good,” he said in a rough tone. “So fucking good.”
Cassidy couldn’t disagree. Technically, she couldn’t really think straight. Blood rushed through her and her body vibrated with excitement.
He told her, “This is what it’s supposed to be like, babe. Hotter than hell.”
“I didn’t think it was possible with me.”
“I keep telling you. It’s not you. All you needed was me.” He gave her a flirty grin. Again…she wasn’t inclined to disagree with the man.
It took some doing for them to catch their breath. Then Chase disentangled himself from her and stood.
He chuckled and said, “Serious lack of blood in the head.”
“Little dizzy?”
“Little mind-blown. Which is funny, because I wanted you to feel that way.”
“Trust me, I do.”
His eyes skimmed over her. “That pose and those rosy cheeks would make one hell of a portrait to hang in my office.”
She blanched. He laughed a bit heartier.
“My home office,” he clarified.
“Not a whole lot better. I’d prefer to not be on public display.”
“Fine. My bedroom. Whatever.” He bent forward and kissed her. Then he snatched his briefs and sauntered off to the bathroom.
Cassidy watched him go, thinking there likely wasn’t a male specimen more deserving of the lustful sigh that swelled in her throat.
And holy hell had he taken her to places she’d never known existed! Sure, she’d had a feeling that Chase had more than a healthy dose of potential when it came to sufficiently ringing her bell. But she’d honestly believed that, despite his obvious sexual prowess, she’d be too frigid or reserved or whatever for it to be hot between them.
How wrong she’d been!
As she stretched and then wrapped the fur around her naked body, another wave of excitement moved through her. She crossed to the fireplace and took in the whole romantic ambience of the flames and the soft glow of light that filled the house. Snow continued to fall, glittery in the moonlight the way it had been at the country club when she’d admired the view. Only this time, it seemed more intimate. More sensual. Because of Chase.
She pressed two fingertips to her quivering lips. He’d kissed her with more passion than she knew one person could possess. Until he’d ignited hers, drawing it out of her effortlessly.
Now that she’d had a taste of Chase Logan, though, she was a little worried about how addicting he was. How much she already craved more of him. And Cassidy suspected he had more creative tactics up his sleeve. She wanted to experience every ounce of pleasure he was willing to dole out.
Stifling a giggle—from a woman who wasn’t the giggling type—she let the worry slip away. She refused to spoil the rest of the evening. She was uncharacteristically willing to pull a full-on Scarlett O’Hara and push the worry off until tomorrow.
Chase joined her and wrapped his arms around her from behind. His warm lips grazed her neck, finding a particularly sensitive spot behind her ear that made her ache for him again.
“You’re something to look at no matter what you wear. This is damn sexy.”
“I felt a little chilly after all that heat dissipated.”
“My bad. Let me get you all hot and bothered again.”
She sighed contentedly. “All I need to do is recall what you’ve done to me thus far and I’ll melt right here at your feet.”
He nibbled her neck, sending her nerve endings into a complete tizzy.
“Jesus, Chase,” she said when she found her voice. “You are the personification of sexual potency.”
“You bring out the animal in me. I was pretty tame earlier. Didn’t want to spook you.”
A tingle down her spine made her flirt back. “It’d be okay if you forgot that I’m just three sexual encounters past virginity.”
“I wouldn’t have guessed. You weren’t exactly holding back. Didn’t balk at anything I wanted to do to you, either.”
“I guess I never mentioned that when I set my mind to something, I totally go for it.”
“I know that’s true about your work.” His tongue teased her earlobe before he gently sucked on it. Shock waves reverberated throughout her. “I just wasn’t sure how far you’d let me go.”
With a slight shake of her head, she said, “I suppose I’ve always considered myself a bit of a prude. You know, not really capable of evoking a man’s desire. Not really capable of feeling it myself. And certainly much too inhibited for someone like you.”
“How do you feel now?”
Her stomach fluttered. “Like I could fly.”
He groaned. “You realize you’re making a case for me to pursue you even more relentlessly.”
She turned in his arms. “What more do you want from me?”
Chase stared down at her, that genuine expression on his face and in his eyes that had drawn her in from the beginning, even if she hadn’t fully realized it until now.
She swallowed hard. The intensity of his gaze both excited and unnerved her.
He said, “I wouldn’t have wasted two years hitting on you for just one night, Cass.”
Her breath caught. “But…this is just sex, right? I mean—”
“No,” he interjected. “It was never just about sex. You have to know that.” He pinned her with a hard look. “You really and truly have to know that.”
“Yeah, but… Well…” She shifted from one foot to the other. Then she bucked up and asked, “You honestly haven’t been waiting two years for me to come around, have you?”
Chase released her. He plowed a hand through his hair and paced alongside the coffee table.
“I didn’t think so.”
Drawing up short, he said, “No, you don’t get it. I did wait. The first year, I waited. You were all that I wanted. No one else would do. I didn’t even try to get you out of my system with someone else. I didn’t try to relieve the tension or frustration or anything…not with another person.”
Cassidy clutched the fur to her breast and asked, “And then?”
He crossed his arms over his bare chest. He wore his briefs, but was otherwise gloriously naked.
“Cass, this isn’t something I’m proud to admit. Yet…” He shook his head. “It’s not like I cheated on you,” he muttered under his breath. “Feels like it. But that’s not the case, right?”
“Of course not.” So why’d it already feel like a betrayal?
Her brow furrowed. Come on, they weren’t an item. Even now. They’d made no declarations of exclusivity before or after they’d had sex. So why was she suddenly so unreasonably upset he’d slept with another—or more than one—woman these past two years, when he’d been flirting with her?
It didn’t make sense. Nor would she voice her irrational thoughts, because it wouldn’t be fair to Chase. She’d been the one to fight the attraction. She refused to be a hypocrite. So she kept quiet.
He said, “I was in Tacoma meeting with clients. There was a woman at the hotel bar who looked a bit like you. More and more with every beer I had. I ended up buying her a drink. Going up to her room. I fucked her, Cass. Plain and simple. Well.”
He let out a humorless laugh. “There was nothing plain and simple about it. I told her I was hooked o
n someone else and that she resembled that person. She was okay with the scenario. She was hooked on someone too that she couldn’t have. Married guy. So I guess it was…a fantasy. Only with someone who looked a little like you getting me off, not just my own hand.”
“Chase.” She had no idea what to say. Except, “If you’re feeling guilty—” because he truly did look as though he was—”don’t sweat this. I’m the one who keeps the wall between us.”
He sank onto the sofa, his hands dangling between his parted knees. Not exactly a defeated stance, but a somewhat stoic one she’d not expected from him.
“I wish I would have been strong enough to hold out.”
She stared at him. His gaze didn’t waver. And in it, she saw his usual honesty.
“Chase.”
Shit. Tonight, there was no escaping how much he had always been a solid presence these past two years, and how he’d never made this attraction too hard on her. He’d flirted outrageously, yes. But in an enticing way that engaged her. And when he sensed her discomfort? He backed off.
Cassidy blew out a long breath. Then she joined him on the sofa, tucking her legs under her. “I have to apologize.”
His brows knitted. “For what?”
“Because…” She sighed. “I’m not sure I can explain this right. But, at first, I didn’t take your flirting seriously. You’re just so… Well, shit. Meg always pegs it—you’re freakin’ hot.”
He laughed.
“I’m not immune to you by any stretch of the imagination,” she confessed. “I’ve been attracted to you—like insanely so—since we met. Yet there’s so much about me and you that shouldn’t mesh, and I also know my very dismal sexual history and so I’ve just thought, what’s the point? While still fantasizing that there just might be one.”
His gaze locked with hers. A flicker of how could you? made her cringe. As in, how could you have kept this to yourself for so long?
She added, “You have to know. You pay way too much attention to not understand why I am the way I am. Aside from the sexual-disappointment part, that is.”‘
“I want to date you,” he said. “Really date. As in…we’re not seeing anyone else.”
Cassidy sucked in a breath.
He rushed on. “You can forgive me for the hotel incident, right?”
“What’s to forgive?” she was quick to ask. “We weren’t together, Chase. There was no indication of us being together. Just a lot of innuendos and teasing. You didn’t cheat on me.”
His jaw clenched briefly. “But I was thinking of you while I was screwing some other woman.”
Okay, this was getting complicated. As she’d known it would.
“Don’t think like that.”
“It doesn’t bother you?” he challenged.
“How about I let it flatter me?”
He reached over and twined his fingers with hers. “I hate that I couldn’t hold out long enough for you.”
“Chase.” Her insides coiled. “Why the hell is this your fault?”
“I’m an asshole for wanting you, wanting you, wanting you…then having sex with someone else.”
“How can I take offense to that? Seriously, Chase.” Cassidy realized the full extent of what she had going with this man—without having really known it before. She raised their entwined hands to her chest and said, “Tell me exactly what you want from me.”
He stared deep into her eyes and—without hesitation—said, “Everything.”
Chapter Four
Chase watched Cassidy closely, as though he could actually see the wheels churning in her head.
Yeah, he might have gone too far this time.
Conversely, he just might have pushed her to that make-or-break point.
“Say something,” he told her as he continued to study her. She had an indefinable look on her face and clearly struggled with the direction in which she might take.
Yet she surprised him. “I want you to make love to me. And I want you to ask me out on a real date. And I want you to just…give a gentle shove to move me along, but continue to understand that I have issues. A career I love.” She shook her head. “Issues.”
He could sense the panic welling within her. But she’d laid it on the line. He grinned.
“This is a lot for you. I recognize that. And I appreciate that you’re willing to talk about it, not just brush me off. Cass…” He leaned toward her and kissed her. “I’ll be cool with whatever pace you need to take.”
Her eyes clouded, telling him how unsure she was of the course they plotted.
“Cass.” He clasped her by the shoulders to steady her. He could practically feel her anxiety attack coming on, he knew her that well. “You can’t tell me that you don’t trust me.”
She nodded.
“And you can’t tell me that I’ve done anything to fuck things up between us these past two years, aside from the one thing that I deem inappropriate.”
“You didn’t cheat on me,” she repeated.
“I never will.”
She sucked in a breath, let it out slowly. “I finally spark with someone, Chase. I finally feel normal. I finally feel as though I’m not some freak anomaly out there that will forever float on her own, never connecting with anyone. Can you imagine how wonderful that feels?”
His lips swept over hers and he muttered, “We can do this, Cass. We can make this work.”
“Promise,” she insisted.
He sensed her uncertainty, but when he stared deep into her eyes, he saw her intense need to believe in something. To believe in them.
“I won’t let you down. I swear it, Cassidy.”
“I’m kind of panicking here.”
He grinned, despite the intensity of the situation. “I won’t be surprised if you experience a few more waves of apprehension. Big step we’re taking. It didn’t exactly happen quickly—been two years in the making. And yet, it is happening quickly. I swear, I saw you in the country club tonight and could not fathom how I was going to play it cool with you.”
She let out a soft laugh. “Come on. You always play it cool. You’re that cocky football player everyone loves and I’m the geeky math club girl.”
His lips brushed over hers. “You’re cool enough to hang with me.” He winked.
She stared intently at him. “After all the effort you’ve expended up to this point… I wouldn’t want it to be for naught.”
“You’re nervous to start something with me. I get that. Let’s give it a try, anyway.”
He grinned again. She closed the gap between them, stretched on tiptoes and kissed him. Sweetly.
“Now we’re getting somewhere.” He scooped her up in his arms. “Which room are you camped out in?”
“Master suite. End of the hall.”
He carried her in that direction. With her arms around his neck, she snuggled close to him.
Chase entered the large room and set her gently on the bed. Then he flipped the switch on the gas fireplace. Soft, flickering light from the flames dimly illuminated the room, and cast shadows in the corners.
“How romantic,” she said.
“If we’re going to do this, let’s do it right.”
He headed to the door.
“Leaving so soon?” she asked quizzically.
“Forgot the condom.”
“Ah. Of course.”
He retrieved it and when he returned, he found Cassidy lying on the bed on top of the down comforter. She’d unpinned her hair and the long strands fanned out on a pillow. She’d left the fur blanket in the chair in the corner and was fantastically naked, completely and unabashedly bared to him.
He groaned. “That is exactly the way I like to see you.”
With a teasing smile, she said, “I think I can do this. It’s kind of bizarre to feel this way. Foreign for me, actually. But you’ve got me all lit up, Chase. I like it.”
He slipped out of his briefs and joined her.
“You’re not cold, are you?”
&nb
sp; “Not with the fire going.”
He lay on his side, propping himself up on one elbow. His fingers grazed her delicate collarbone, then down to her breast. He palmed the full, enticing mound and gently caressed. Then his thumb swept back and forth over her hard nipple, pebbling it even tighter.
His head lowered to her chest and he flicked his tongue over her nipple. She squirmed a little and it spurred him on. He suckled the taut center as he continued to cup her breast in his hand.
Her fingers skimmed up his arm and then tangled in his hair.
“Chase,” she murmured, desire in her voice.
His mouth stayed on her breast and his hand moved down her body, over her quivering stomach to the apex of her legs. He stroked her labia and her breathing picked up.
“My neglected body parts appreciate everything you do to them,” she said.
“Trust me,” he muttered against her breast, “I’m more than willing to give them all the attention they need.”
He was already addicted to her sexy body and the way she responded to him. He’d sensed from the beginning they’d be good together. Too bad it’d taken so long to convince her, but Chase couldn’t quibble over that now. Especially since all the longing and anticipation and slow seduction seemed to create a more intimate bond between them.
Chase was not a man who shied away from romantic and emotional entanglements. Granted, he hadn’t been involved with a woman in a very long time, but it wasn’t because he didn’t want a serious relationship. He just hadn’t found the right woman for a lasting one. Until now, perhaps…
He knew better than to rush into thinking that what had transpired with Cassidy this evening was the ultimate in relationships, but he was certainly more than ready to travel the path with her.
She sighed contentedly as he slowly stroked her pussy lips and his tongue curled around her nipple. Then he targeted her clit with the pads of two fingers, and her breath hitched.
“That’s so good, Chase.” Her back arched and her hips rocked. “Your hands and mouth on my body… I love it.”
Music to his ears.
He picked up the pace a little, massaging that sensitive knot of nerves as he sucked harder on her nipple. Her body jolted.