Bad Dragon

by Jada Cox

  “Have you lived in the area long?” I asked, trying to start a conversation.

  “We had just moved in about the time we hired Jeremy,” he said. “We had been traveling around for a while.”

  “Where did you go?”

  “All over the country,” he said. “We had this hairbrained idea to take a trip across the States on the back of our bikes, kind of like Easy Rider—have you ever seen that film?”

  I shook my head. I hadn’t even heard of it.

  “It’s great. A true American classic. The guys and I thought we would give it a try. Turned out we liked it so much that we kept riding for fifteen years.”

  “Fifteen years?” I exclaimed. “You must have only been that old when you started!”

  He chuckled. “Let’s just say that I’m older than I look.”

  “Whatever you’re doing, keep it up. You look great,” I blurted out, then sucked in my breath as soon as the words were out of my mouth. I couldn’t believe I had just said that.

  Julian laughed and put his hand on the small of my back, directing me around a corner. I liked the feel of it there. It was familiar and endearing and made me feel like a lady. Not that I wasn’t a lady, but it was one thing for me to try to portray it and another for a guy to act as though I were. It felt respectful.

  “We live life the way it’s meant to be lived,” he said. “I think that has a lot to do with it.”

  “And how’s it meant to be lived?”

  “For the enjoyment of it,” he said. “Life can go by in the blink of an eye if you let it. But when you take it day by day, and you don’t know what’s going to come next, then it seems to slow down. You get to savor every moment of it. When was the last time you did that?”

  I giggled. “I don’t think I know. I’ve always been in work mode, as far as I can remember.”

  Julian stopped and turned toward the doors to the building we were in front of. “Well, how about trying to savor it now.” He put out his arm in a gesture for me to walk ahead of him through those tinted doors with long, golden handles.

  I realized that he was asking me to go into the Hotel Belle lobby.

  I looked at him, my eyes widened and questioning. My look was only met with that smile of his, knowing, comfortable, and suggestive.

  Go, Cora, my mind demanded of me. Take this opportunity. Go with it.

  Could I? Was he actually suggesting that we get a hotel room? Or was he just going to take us to have coffee inside? I hadn’t a clue what to expect, but in a wash of realization, I knew that I wanted both options.

  “The coffee place is on the top floor,” Julian said. “It has the most spectacular view of the mountains.”

  “Oh!” I said, that familiar feeling of mortification washing over me again. At least this time, I hadn’t really done anything worth being mortified over but instead mentally jumped to conclusions. “Right. I’d heard something about this place having a restaurant upstairs. I didn’t know it was a coffee shop, though.”

  I walked into the lobby and let Julian lead the way to the elevator.

  “It’s more of a lounge bar,” he explained. “It’s a coffee shop during the day then it morphs into a cocktail bar in the evening. They have tapas and the usual finger-foods you’d find at a cocktail bar.”

  We lapsed into silence during the elevator ride. We were the only ones in what seemed to be the most impossibly long transportation to the top floor one could take. This was actually one of the tallest buildings in town, though that wasn’t saying much. The glowing button next to the sliding doors told me it was thirty-four floors. Thirty-four silent floors to pass by, all through which I felt a mixture of disappointment that we weren’t going to a room and an increasing charge of electricity at his nearness to me.

  All I needed to do was lean to the side, just a little, and I would be leaning against him. I could feel the radiance coming from him, the sheer charisma pulsing from him. I wanted to mingle with it, entwine myself with his limbs and see where he would take me.

  Then the elevator slowed to a stop. The doors opened, and Julian remained still. I glanced at the number above the door. We were nowhere near the top. In fact, we were only on the sixteenth floor, and people were getting in. I stood to the side to make room for them, increasing the distance between Julian and me, to my disappointment.

  Chapter 8 – Cora

  Julian was right. The view from this height was spectacular. We found a little corner in the window and were able to watch the sun begin its descent on the horizon.

  “I can’t believe I never knew this place was here,” I said.

  “It’s a fun hidden gem,” he said. His cookie and coffee were already finished, and he had his napkin crumpled in his empty cup that was stacked along with his saucer on his plate.

  “How did you find it?” I asked.

  “I really like coffee,” he said. “So I was looking for the best place to have coffee that was a little out of the way, and I found this spot. Now, I’m a regular here.”

  I blushed, wondering if he meant the coffee shop or the hotel.

  The coffee shop, silly, I told myself. He has his own mansion. He doesn’t need a hotel.

  “I suppose it’s better than hiding out in a dive bar,” I said.

  I was really enjoying my time with him. He was so interesting and had done so many things. He wasn’t joking when he said that he had really lived life. Some of the things I had to put the brakes on. There was no way that he had built his business and traveled as much as he said he had, not in the amount of time that he said he’d done it in. He didn’t look anywhere near old enough. But he told his stories so vividly that I couldn’t discern which were tall tales and which were real.

  In the end, I gave up and just enjoyed the stories he had. I could sit and listen to him talk all day. But I didn’t have all day.

  “I suppose I’d better get going,” I said, gathering my purse and standing up from my chair. “Thank you for the coffee. I really enjoyed this.”

  “I did, too,” he said, giving me that smile.

  Being with him was like telling my ten-year-old self that Jonathan Taylor Thomas was wanting to hang out with me. He was too cute and far too unbelievable to be real. I still wasn’t certain that I wasn’t dreaming with my head leaning against the window in my car or something.

  We were the only ones in the elevator. After such a wonderful time over coffee with him, I felt the tension of our solitude even more. My fingertips tingled, longing to be entwined with his, to just touch his skin, and know what it was like to be skin to skin with him, even if it was only just our hands.

  “Cora,” he said softly, turning to me.

  “Yes?”

  I turned to face him, our eyes meeting. I felt my breath escape me as I gravitated toward him, as predestined as the planets were to the sun. Julian’s hand went around my waist and pulled me to him, pressing my body against his as his lips met mine, hot and needing.

  I wrapped my arms around his neck, letting his tongue explore mine, letting his hands roam down my back and to my ass. He moved me against the wall of the elevator, lowering himself so he was level with me and pressing against me.

  I ran my fingers through his hair, felt the back of his head, the muscles of his neck, while his hand slid down the back of my leg and pulled it up to his side. I wanted him. With every part of me I wanted him, right here in this elevator.

  It pinged, and the world came back to me. That’s right. We were in an elevator. What was I thinking? What kind of girl was I?

  Julian kissed me delicately one last time before he straightened himself out, taking a small step back so I could do the same. He smiled, watching me as I tried to make myself look like I hadn’t been just about to let this man have his way with me.

  In an elevator, Cora, I scolded myself.

  The doors opened, and I knew without a doubt that my face was the same shade of red as the carpet lining the hallway of the hotel.

  “Just give
me a sec,” I said, still breathless. “I just want to pop into the bathroom.”

  “Take your time,” he said.

  I immediately saw the restroom signs pointing me to the right of the lobby and went straight for them. I needed to cool down, to make sure I didn’t look like a hussy that had just been felt up and that I could face any coworkers back at the office building and look them in the eye.

  Well, I knew that much was out the window. If I couldn’t have done it after some mostly G-rated kissing at Julian’s house, there was no way I could do it after this.

  I looked in the mirror and turned the taps on. I was certainly flushed in the face, and my hair looked like I had just walked through a humidity storm. I splashed some water on my face, trying to be careful not to smear any of the so-far unsmeared makeup. My lipstick was long gone as a consequence of the day’s events.

  I took a few deep breaths, the heartbeat pounding in my ears slowly beginning to wane.

  That guy out there, that very attractive man with the boy-band smile and the dangerous abs was not only pursuing me but had kissed me—twice. How could that be? I still couldn’t believe this was real.

  I found Julian at the lobby desk, talking to the woman there, leaning on the counter. My heart sank.

  Oh. He really is just a womanizer, I realized. And I had been stupid enough to get caught up in it.

  “There you are,” he said as I approached.

  “Here I am,” I said.

  He turned away from the desk entirely while the woman clicked away at her computer. “So, I went out on a limb,” he said slowly, “and thought that maybe I could treat you to dinner.”

  “To dinner?” I asked.

  “Well, more specifically, I thought room service.”

  I blinked at him, not sure if I’d heard him right. “I—uh—um—”

  “I got us a room if you’re interested.”

  Before I could answer, he kissed me. Right there. In front of that woman. I guess I hadn’t gotten it wrong. His kiss was soft at first and lingering. As he pulled away, he gave a gentle nibble of my bottom lip, and my knees nearly gave out.

  I didn’t want him to move away from me. I was nowhere near having my fill of him. With a swell of heat, I knew that I wanted him to take me to a room, to kiss me, to pull my clothes off me, and to do whatever he wanted with me.

  What he was offering I more than wanted. I needed.

  The room was on the fifth floor, and despite the heat pooling within me, I was almost reluctant to get back in the elevator with him. The enclosed area was so inviting, and I had come so close to letting him have his way with me in the last one. And now, I was actually on the way to a hotel room with a man. With Julian. I was so rushed with excitement that I didn’t know I would be able to wait for the entirety of the elevator ride.

  As the doors opened, we stepped in, and a couple followed us, taking away any risk of anything at all happening in that little compartment. We stood behind the two, who chattered on about where they were going to have dinner. Julian put his arm around my waist, holding me close to him, angling himself against me. He leaned down behind me and nibbled lightly on the top of my ear.

  I bit the inside of my lip to stop myself from moaning at the feel of his breath, of his teeth on my cartilage.

  Our stop was the first one, and it was everything I could do to stop myself from shoving the couple aside so we could get out and find wherever the hell our room was. I was burning with my desire for him. I had no idea that I could want someone so much.

  The room was at the end of the hall, the one that seemed to stretch for miles. As we approached the door, Julian handed the key card to me and, to my surprise, scooped me up in his arms, holding me completely off the ground, cradling me.

  “Are you alright?” he asked, looking into my eyes.

  I nodded, opening my mouth to tell him that yes, I was more alright than I had ever remembered being, when he kissed me. This time, I did moan.

  He stopped at the door, and I fumbled with the card, shoving it in the door and pushing it open. He caught it with his foot and nudged it the rest of the way. I had no idea what the room looked like because all I could account for was his lips on mine as he lowered me onto the bed. I moved back, and he lay down on top of me, kissing me frantically.

  I had never been kissed like this before. I had never come so close to this passion, and it was burning up inside of me. I pulled my blouse over my head and relished the feeling of his mouth on my breasts. My breathing was heavy as I pulled at his shirt. I needed to see that body of his, that piece of art that he kept hidden under clothing.

  Julian took it off, tossing it to the side. I kicked off my shoes and undid my pants, and he pulled them down.

  Then he stopped.

  Panting, I looked at him as a soft smile came over his face, his eyes looking into mine. He kneeled over me, scanning over my body, his finger tips gliding along the outside of my thigh, over my purple silk panties, along my side.

  He leaned over me and kissed me gently. “You are so beautiful, Cora.” He kissed me again.

  I blushed. I didn’t know what to say. I had wanted so desperately to be in this position with him, and suddenly, I was so aware of my nakedness in front of him. But I was beautiful. Me. He thought I was beautiful.

  His kiss turned into hot need, his tongue testing my lips as I ran my fingers into his hair. His hand ran along the side of my body, feeling every curve and ripple and humming in pleasure at my shape. Julian’s hand found my knee and moved to the inside of my thigh.

  I let out a high-pitched whimper.

  “Let me know if I’m going too fast,” he breathed into my ear, sending goosebumps all over me. “I don’t want to make you uncomfortable.”

  “I don’t think you could,” I said.

  His fingers inched their way up my thigh until they were to the center of my want, feeling along my inner needs through the fabric of my underwear.

  “Have you ever done this?” he asked.

  I shook my head.

  “I’ll be gentle.”

  His finger dipped behind the curtain that was my panties, and I gasped at his touch. He moved among the folds of my flower, exploring it gently before he circled around my opening. I was already whining for more under my breath, wanting whatever it was he had to offer.

  Julian kissed my neck, his lips tickling me deliciously as his finger moved inward, and a moan escaped me. He retracted the finger before pushing it in again.

  “Oh god,” I whispered.

  “Are you okay?”

  “Please don’t stop,” I begged. I pushed my panties down and spread my legs for him. I wanted all of him. I didn’t know the moves, what was meant to happen next, or the order of things. But I knew that his finger was moving into me again, and I could feel his knuckle against my lips, and I wanted more.

  The gathering sensation of his movement intensified, and my breathing quickened. I knew that feeling. I had been the deliverer of this feeling for years. But someone else doing it was something else entirely. It excited me more, felt like it was raising the stakes of the stimulation, promising something different.

  Julian began to kiss me as my moans increased. His scent was intoxicating, and between my breathing and the motion of his hand between my legs, I was losing myself. I began to writhe against him, pushing against his finger that massaged me inside until finally I completely let go. Someone was crying out into the room as pleasure exploded within me.

  It was me! I was the one making the noise, reacting to the pulsing sensation against his finger. I pressed myself against him, trying to catch my breath, falling back into my body as I realized what had just happened.

  I had had my first sexual experience with another person.

  “Oh my god, Julian,” I said. “I’ve never—you—oh my god …”

  He was moving his hand again, this time using the slick of my wet on my clit, tickling it lightly and skillfully with one hand as he undid his pants an
d pulled them down with his other.

  “Are you ready for …?” he asked, seeming almost shy.

  I looked into his eyes, just as dark brown as my own, and I wanted nothing more in the world than to bring our bodies together at this moment. I nodded my head.

  He pulled down his boxers, and I saw him, in his entirety, and gasped. I actually gasped when I saw it. It was massive. I had no idea if it was due to my inexperience or if it actually was big. It stood, proudly raised to his belly button, red and rigid, and I could see its hunger before I even felt it.

  Julian reached into his pocket for his wallet and pulled out a condom. I knew he was being careful, he was being safe, but I wanted to feel it without it. I didn’t want my first touch to be through rubber. I wanted to know what it was like, skin to skin, tissue to tissue, want to want.

  I stopped his hand that held the condom and moved it out of the way. I ran the tips of my fingers over the phallus, watching with awe as it reacted to my touch. I felt its heat, watched the head seem to turn a darker red as I traced along its shelf and up to the top, where a bead of moisture developed.

  Everything in me wanted it. I didn’t even know how I wanted it, only that I wanted to welcome it into my body in some way. I leaned forward and kissed the head of it, tasting the saltiness of the moisture, feeling my own moisture gathering between my legs.

  I lay back down, knowing that I needed Julian there and then. I didn’t think I could handle any more foreplay.

  He rolled the condom down the shaft of his penis before resuming his position on top of me, kissing me deeply. I arched my back to him, pressing my breasts against his chest and breathing him in.

  “Are you sure?” he asked again.

  “I’m sure.”

  He angled himself to my opening, and I gasped. This was really happening. He pushed in slowly, his moan matching mine. My breath caught in my throat as he continued to move deeper and deeper into me, filling me.