by Cari Quinn
Nerves threatened to overwhelm her as she waited for Jeff to arrive, so she made herself focus on her painting. She’d run out of both blue and green paint but she still had a lot of orange and yellow. The colors mixed and swirled, exploding upward from a thin green reed. She’d intended to paint flowers, something to chase away the early winter gloom. But she’d created a single flower instead, its narrow stem barely strong enough to hold the enormous bulb blossoming across the canvas.
“Metaphor? No.” She drew the word out, smiling.
She certainly felt ready to blossom tonight. If she got undressed, she knew she’d find her nipples already full and dark and hard. She could feel them straining against the nubby cloth. They anticipated Jeff’s arrival as much as the rest of her.
Would she sleep with him, on her anniversary of all days? Although technically it was nearly 12:30 and therefore not her anniversary anymore. Good thing it was Sunday. She wouldn’t have to get up early for work. They could laze around in bed for a while, maybe make breakfast together. If he stayed that long. She wasn’t up on current booty call protocol.
She supposed she’d be learning soon enough. Strangely, she couldn’t wait.
When actual painting rather than daydreaming became a futile aspiration, she started putting away her brushes and cloths. Her phone went off again in her pocket and she pried it out, smiling at Jeff’s text.
Naked yet?
Her smile widened.
Eager much?
Vry. I’m harder than the frame of ur cottage. U left the prch lite on for me.
She turned it on every night, but he didn’t know that. He was hard for her and he liked her leaving on a porch light. Those two things alone made Jeff Maddox more interesting than any man she’d known in a long time.
Didn’t want u to get lost. Not when I’m—she bit her lip, willing her fingers to move—as wet as the snow outside.
She felt stupid. So stupid. It had been so long since she’d flirted, though what she’d just said went way beyond that. But he replied so fast she blinked.
So how come u arn’t naked?
How do u know I’m not?
I can see u thru ur window. U hve paint in ur hair.
Letting out a laugh, she spun to the window at her side and pressed her palms against the glass as she looked down. Sure enough, there was an older car idling in the drive, lights on low beam. Imagining him sitting inside and looking up at her made her want to get naked for him. Anything to make their teasing go on longer.
U can’t see me.
No. But made u look.
She grinned. U did.
Getting out of car. Don’t suppose u’d be willing to slip ur fingers in ur panties?
When she saw Jeff climb out of his car and glance up, the urge to please him—and herself—took over. Tonight she wouldn’t deny herself anything. She’d already had a banner day, jumping from the two lattes she’d had earlier to unplanned sex. Who knew what else might be in store before dawn came?
Karyn texted him again, buying herself a moment. Her courage in this direction hadn’t been tested much.
Watch me.
He looked from her to the phone in his hand then back to her. His answer was virtually instantaneous.
Already am.
Instead of doing as he’d asked, she eased the side of her smock aside and slipped her hand underneath, moving it enough that he could get the idea. Her nipple budded, tightening under her unskilled touch. Excitement coursed through her veins. She wanted, more than anything, to be taken. And to take.
After giving them both a rather modest show, she sent another message.
Get up here.
Up won’t be a problm. Promise.
Laughing, she turned back to her easel. She hadn’t yet stowed away all her paints when heavy, hurried footsteps sounded on the stairs. He wanted to get to her fast.
“Hey you,” he said, stopping in the doorway.
The smile she had ready for him turned into a frown when she noticed the state of his hair and shirt. He looked as if someone had dumped a bucketful of snow over his head. “Oh God.” How ridiculous was it that she’d been so taken with him that she’d barely noticed the snow? “Is it that bad out?”
“It’s not good,” he said as she started brushing him off.
“You must’ve been really determined to get here,” she said as she noticed his gaze sharpening on her attire. Or lack thereof.
“Already I see the trip was worth the hassle.” He set down the bags he carried on the table next to the door. One was standard-issue paper from the liquor store. The other bore the name Cedar Hollow Drugstore.
So he’d come prepared to…come.
“Jesus, you’re naked under there.” As if he almost couldn’t believe it, he fingered the wide strap of her smock, his cold, calloused fingertip sliding beneath to abrade her skin.
“Jeez, you’re freezing.” She let out a laugh as a shiver overtook her.
“And you’re still naked.”
“This is how I paint.” She shrugged, not wanting him to think she’d dressed to seduce. “You’ll warm up quickly in here. I keep the heat pretty high.”
“To account for the nakedness?”
“Among other reasons, yes,” she agreed with a smile.
She intended to be as honest as possible with him tonight, and for however many tomorrows they would have. No nasty surprises. If she slept with him, he’d see that she was just as she said—capable of giving and receiving pleasure but not a woman who would rock a man’s world.
She’d be happy enough to tip it off its axis a little.
“Yeah?” He glanced around her studio but he didn’t stop caressing her shoulder. She caught herself raising it, trying to feel just that much more of his skin on hers. “This is nice. Bet it gets a lot of light.”
She followed his gaze, trying to see the room as he would. The unpainted beams crisscrossing the ceiling, the low-hanging ceiling fan decorated with dangling crystals. Sunny yellow walls and bright blue trim made the space cheerful and the thickly padded window seat encouraged dawdling.
This was her favorite room in the house. Her sanctuary. She hated the idea of losing her studio. Probably hated it more than losing her marriage, and didn’t that sink to a whole new level of low?
“Yes, especially on summer mornings. I set up my easel by that window,” she indicated the wide window seat, “or sometimes I take my sketchpad and sit on the cushions, dreaming.”
“Some dreams,” he said, his attention landing on the pictures she’d tacked to the big strips of corkboards on the walls. “I don’t know what most of those are supposed to be,” he said, making her laugh.
“I know. I just like throwing colors together and seeing what patterns I come up with.”
“So you weren’t a kid who liked to color within the lines.”
“Oh, but I did. I hated to screw up. So the first time I painted, I decided no rules would apply. I’d just do whatever gave me pleasure.”
Jeff brought his focus back front and center. He edged his fingertip down to where her arm touched the uppermost part of her breast. “According to you, pleasure’s not something you worry about a whole lot.”
Her pulse accelerated while his beautiful eyes assessed her openly. “I believe in truth in advertising,” she said in a husky voice that didn’t sound altogether like her. She liked it. “I may not rock your world, Jeff.”
“You think not?” He tugged on the strap of her smock, eliciting a gasp as the material stimulated her hypersensitive breasts. “And where’s that coming from? That fucking lout who’s probably balling my baby sister right now?”
At her wince, he blew out a breath. “Sorry. Awkward.”
“I was wincing for her, not me.” She stepped closer and lifted her hand to his hair, threading her fingers through the honey oak-colored strands. “I’m here with you.”
He resumed stroking her shoulder, this time nudging the strap down. The pad of his thumb darted ov
er her skin, as if he were playing connect the dots with her freckles. “You’re sure this is okay?”
“I’ve always had inconsistent periods. I’m on birth control.”
He let out a baffled laugh. “That’s not what I meant. I picked up condoms. Hell, I’m not used to discussing this so bloodlessly.”
“Better that way, don’t you think? Less room for misunderstandings.”
“I suppose. I meant…emotionally. You won’t cry or something after, will you?”
“Depends.” She smiled as she reached up to unbind her hair. “Don’t give me a reason to cry and we should be fine.”
“Not on the agenda.”
She looped her hairband on one corner of her easel. “Good. Never been a fan of crying.”
“How about screaming?”
“Never had anything to scream about.”
He watched her pull apart her braid, seemingly fascinated by each loosened hank of wavy, dark hair. “Open to changing that?”
Chapter Three
It took Karyn a minute to formulate an answer. Acting sexy didn’t come easily to her. Or it hadn’t in the past. Right now she felt more natural than she ever had before.
“Maybe I could be persuaded.” Oh, could she ever. She gave him her best saucy smile, though she had no clue if the attempt worked or fell flat. “With enough incentive.”
Jeff gave her a grin that lit up his truly magnificent eyes. He angled his head, lowering his mouth while she rose up on her toes to meet him.
“And we’re off,” she murmured.
She expected an easy kiss. Good, perhaps, but not intense. He seemed like a low-key, moderately passionate person. As she’d been, without the right stimulation.
Without this.
What she got was a glancing blow of lips that soon turned to a furious meshing of mouths and teeth. It wasn’t elegant. It was messy and rough and God help her, bordered on dirty.
“Open up for me,” he grated.
She parted her lips, her head tipping back as he drove inside. His tongue was hot and insistent, almost as much as the body he pressed to hers. The length between his thighs dug into her stomach, solidifying the reality of the situation.
He was as hard as a steel beam. For her.
If they hadn’t been kissing already, she would’ve thrown herself in his arms. Here was what she’d been missing so desperately—a reminder she wasn’t just a discarded wife, a teacher, a woman with an empty home to tend. Even if she’d forgotten, he’d seen the truth inside her just begging to be set free.
“Mmm, latte. Peppermint, espresso.” He pressed his lips together as if sealing her flavor between them. “On you, bitter tastes good.”
She would’ve blushed normally. But his avid perusal made her bold and she found herself straining toward him for more.
He reached behind her to untie her smock, drawing the fabric away from her body before she fully noticed what he was doing. When the material crumpled at her feet and he roamed his hands up her rib cage to cup her breasts, she had no trouble following his moves. Her nipples hardened more, drawn toward his fingers as if by magnets. She gasped when he tugged them both simultaneously, arousing a flush of heat that encompassed her from head to toe.
“Perfect size.” Then he showed her just what they were perfect for.
He closed his lips around one taut tip, his teeth providing a welcome hint of pain. He repeated the action on her other breast. Never before had her flesh been so thoroughly examined, so completely consumed. Adrift, she rocked against his muscular thigh, seeking something to quell the growing ache.
“Feels good?”
“Incredible.” She knew she was panting and didn’t care. “So hot.”
“You definitely fucking are,” he said with his mouth full of her breast.
His words scorched her skin, adding to her inner inferno. She dampened further, the fabric between her legs soaking through embarrassingly fast. As if on cue, he reached between their bodies and rubbed a finger against her, groaning as he discovered what she already knew.
Her leggings were toast.
“Not a screamer, huh? Gonna prove you wrong.”
She startled as he jerked his mouth back to hers. He didn’t bother with niceties, just thrust his tongue deep while he yanked down her pants.
Even prepared—well, she thought she was prepared—she moaned at his first seeking touch. It was winter. She shouldn’t be burning up like this. But already she craved what he intended to do next. Whatever that happened to be.
Jeff kneeled before her and skated his lips down her torso to her navel. He swirled his tongue in and out, bathing her in streaks of wet sensation. But he didn’t head straight for the goal. Instead he eased back and blew lightly, stirring her thatch of wet curls. She shivered, bracing her hands on his shoulders. He drew her pussy lips apart, spreading them while he traced the tip of his tongue around her swollen clit.
Another glancing blow. The man excelled at them. Any more and she’d be coming more quickly than…ever.
“Wish you could see this,” he muttered.
She looked down in alarm. “What?”
“All this.” He blotted up the moisture along her slit, lifting his glistening fingers for her inspection. She stared, unsure what she should do. Her being wet was a good thing, right? But he seemed to be waiting. For what, she had no clue.
He swore under his breath and clasped her painfully distended nipple, working the sensitive flesh until it gleamed like a wet black cherry. The sight aroused her, especially when he rose up and sucked it between his teeth before resuming his original task.
She pressed the indents around her nipple, shocked by the zings of heat that arrowed through her. They streaked straight to her clit, the place currently occupying her lover’s attention.
Her lover. God. How long had it been since she’d known the simple joy of having one of those?
Too long. Even if that reminded her she shouldn’t have lovers because she happened to be married—in name only—it didn’t diminish the fluttering in her chest. This wasn’t hurting anyone who hadn’t already hurt her and then walked away.
Jeff gripped her thigh and anchored her leg on his shoulder while he licked from her mound all the way down to near her ass. She held on tight and wiggled at the continuing bursts of warmth, her hips flexing uselessly with the need to be filled.
“That’s it. Fuck my mouth.”
She tentatively stroked the curling hair at his nape, her explorations turning more daring as he latched on to her clit and drew hard enough to make her vision spark. The flower on the canvas beside her seemed to pop with color, the oranges and yellows bleeding together and pulsing with life. But no, she was pulsing, inside and out, her ass cheeks clenching from her instinctive attempts to hold his tongue inside her pussy.
“Not like this,” she whispered, pulling on his hair more roughly than she’d intended.
He lifted his chin, setting it on her belly. When she saw all the moisture smeared around his lips, she inhaled a shuddery breath. “Sorry. Didn’t hear you. Head’s about to explode,” he said, his tone reverent.
She smiled, shocked she could while she was so embarrassed and overwhelmed. And aroused. Especially aroused. “I’d like to feel your,” say it, dammit, “cock inside me when I…when we…”
Luckily he rescued her from the most pathetic command ever. “Works for me.”
“My bedroom’s just down the hall,” she began.
He stood and crossed the room to retrieve his plastic bag. It was only then she noticed he’d yet to remove a stitch of clothing.
Some lover she was. She’d thought Lon was selfish?
“Fuck the bedroom.” He arched a brow as if he expected her to argue. “We’re doing this right here.”
“Is fuck your favorite verb?” Karyn asked breathlessly as he came back to her, condom in hand.
Make that condoms. He had a whole handful.
“Verb, adjective, adverb.”
; She licked her lips as he shucked his sweatshirt, tossing it aside without a care for where it landed. The thermal was next, then his jeans, which he dispatched in about ten seconds flat. Down to just his boxers, he hooked a finger in the waistband, grinning at her inability to look away. He pulled them down slowly, baring his firm cock. His firm, long, thick cock.
Even when she’d fantasized, what she’d come up with hadn’t ever matched this reality. She’d never envisioned a sexy, borderline grouchy guy with a glint in his eye and an erection this tempting. Surely a guy couldn’t get that hard if he saw her as just a run-of-the-mill schoolteacher.
“Adverb? How can you use fuck as an adverb?”
“Easy.” Jeff wrapped his arm around her and rubbed his foil packets against her back in wordless promise. He nibbled her lower lip, biting down. She cried out at the sensations that rolled through her, gathering between her legs in a molten rush. “Hear that? Well, that’s just the start. I’m going to make you come so fuckingly hard your neighbors are going to hear you scream.”
She reached up to trace the smile lines around his mouth. “I’m really not a screamer.”
“Uh-huh.”
“Jeff,” she started, surprised by the way his nose flared and his jaw tensed as if she’d jabbed him with a sharp stick. Maybe she had. His pride anyway.
“Karyn,” he countered, his expression turning intense. “God, I love a challenge.”
He guided her toward the window seat and pressed her face first against the cold glass, making her throw her hands out to hold herself back from the icy pane. She always kept the curtains tied back to let in natural light. Nothing would hide her nudity from view if anyone happened to walk by outside.
She was naked with a stranger. Naked with a stranger in front of a window. What the hell was she thinking?
But that was the whole point. She wasn’t thinking. Much. And God, it felt great.
Her nipples stiffened in the sudden draft as he pushed her closer to the window. Freezing air wafted over her blazing-hot torso and she cried out again at the difference in temperature.