He mumbled something, and she wasn’t sure but she thought he’d said, “I’m not sure I will.”
She tried not to smile. She really was not trying to make things difficult for him or her, but inside she was doing cartwheels.
He had stayed, she thought giddily. She couldn’t believe what a lovesick dork she was turning into. If all of the men she had previously dated could see her now, they wouldn’t recognize her.
She knew he would be so much more comfortable in a queen sized bed rather than on a short sofa. And if he was determined to stay...
“Come on, JBG. You won’t even know I’m here,” she said.
“Uh, huh,” he said dryly. “Lie down and go to sleep.”
She scooted all the way over to the other side of the bed. “I’ll make room for you, just in case you change your mind,” she said with a smile. Then she snuggled down and closed her eyes.
She remained silent even though she couldn’t fall asleep knowing he was right there. After about two minutes, she finally felt the bed dip then heard a sigh. She smiled then, completely content knowing he was next to her.
“I know you’re awake,” he said, still sounding disgruntled and a bit resigned.
“I can’t help it. I’ve never slept with a guy before, if you know what I mean.”
“Never?” She could tell he didn’t believe her.
She was glad she wasn’t facing him. “Nope. One of us always left after.”
He was silent.
“Have you? Ever slept the night with a girl, I mean.”
“Yeah.”
Oh. Why did that make her feel so sad? She had hoped.
“When I was 10, I had to sleep with Em at my grandmother’s house when we visited. For a tiny little thing, she sure did hog a lot of covers,” he muttered.
Ayanna giggled then turned to face him. “For real. You’ve never slept with a girlfriend, or anything?”
He looked up at the ceiling and remained silent for a minute, then said quietly, “One. And it was a major mistake.”
“Why?”
He turned his head to look at her. “Would you stop being so nosy and go to sleep already?”
“Why was it a major mistake?”
He sighed then looked back to the ceiling. “I didn’t realize at the time that she was so different than what she had led me to believe. And staying with her, you know, spending the nights with her, just added an intimacy I now wish I hadn’t shared with her.”
“What happened?”
“Do we really need to talk about this now?”
“No…I was just asking.”
She let the silence hang in the room, until finally he said, “You asked me why I left Wall Street and went into teaching. I told you half the truth.”
She waited.
“I’ll tell you the other half someday, just not now. Let’s get some sleep, okay?”
“What does your tattoo mean?”
He turned to look at her and she looked right back. He looked at the ceiling again.
“I would think you would know what it means.”
“I know what a phoenix rising from the ashes means. But why did you choose it?”
He hesitated then said quietly, “I got it when I was making a new beginning.”
She couldn’t seem to help herself and whispered, “I like you, Johnny Be Good.”
He turned and smirked, then whispered back, “I like you, too, little sex goddess. Now shut up and go to sleep.”
She smiled and closed her eyes, and just as she drifted off to sleep, she could feel fingers stroking her hair.
……
“Please, Jon. Please,” she begged. She was so close, but he kept teasing her, tormenting her.
“Please, what?” he whispered, as he continued kissing at the crease of her leg, just next to her drenched sex, but he wouldn’t put his mouth where she wanted it, where she needed it.
“I can’t wait much longer,” she gasped. She continued to struggle to get her hands free from his belt that secured her to the iron bed. She was straining her hips toward his mouth, but he kept pulling back.
“You’re not in control here, Ayanna,” he whispered against the lips of her sex. “Your pussy was made for me. Designed just for me. I can’t wait to taste it all,” he murmured, teasing her.
“Now. Taste it all now.”
He chuckled. “Patience,” he whispered as he licked the arousal near her sex. He suckled at the crease and held her knees back while he looked at her. “I love how smooth you are. You’re perfect for me,” he breathed. “I can’t wait to devour you whole. But we’re not at Day 41 yet.”
She pumped her hips up, but he backed away again.
“Ahh…” she growled. “Please, Jon. I need it. Oh, God,” she whimpered.
“I don’t have to taste you to make you come, you sweet little sex goddess.” He reached up and rolled her nipples between his fingers. “You can come now for me. Just like this.”
“Yes…yesss…please, Jon…” She gyrated her hips.
“Right now. Just a kiss…”
She didn’t understand what he was saying.
“No sex, just one kiss,” he whispered.
She opened her eyes from the erotic dream to see Jon over her, looking at her mouth.
“Just one kiss, baby. I promise. Don’t blame yourself for this. It’s all me. I’ll take the blame for this one.”
He leaned down and plucked slowly at her lips with his. Was she dreaming, or was Jon really kissing her? It felt real. Boy, did it feel real. It felt wonderful.
His tongue dipped into her mouth as he became more aggressive, devouring her, sucking her bottom lip into his mouth, and nipping at her.
They both groaned and he took full advantage, changing the angle of the kiss, deepening it, plundering her mouth with his tongue.
This was indeed real. This wasn’t a dream.
Jon was kissing her.
In her bed.
He had her hands raised above her head holding them down with one of his own, while the other skated up and down the side of her body, stoking the flames higher, hip to breast, hip to breast, over and over.
His full body was nestled between her legs as he lay on top of her, his chest hair tickling at her breasts and chest.
And, mmm, his mouth was so firm and soft. He knew what he wanted, and he ate at her, becoming more and more insistent, his tongue tasting her lips, her mouth, her cheek, back to her mouth, then her neck, back to her mouth. His magic hand moved up and down her side while he ground his erection into her. She was absolutely overwhelmed by all of the sensations.
She struggled against the hand that restrained her. She needed to touch him, but he wouldn’t loosen his grip. He was making her crazy.
She moaned and bucked, only moments from climaxing, and she sought release by pushing her sex up into his cock.
He immediately stopped kissing her, looking lost and disoriented.
“God,” he gasped. “I need to get out of here.” He looked down at her, both of them breathing so heavily it was as if they’d just run a race. “I need to go. I need to let you do this, this 40 days, and it’s wrong of me to put you in this position. I want you to succeed.”
“Don’t go. Please don’t go,” she begged in a rush.
He dropped his forehead to hers. “I think it’s safe to say that I can’t kiss you and not want to fuck you into tomorrow, Yan. I have to keep my hands off of you. This experiment of yours, it’s good for you. You need to see it through.”
She was breathing so heavily, it felt like her heart was going to jump out of her chest. God, she wanted him so much it hurt.
“And I want you to know,” he swallowed, “to believe, that when I do fuck you into tomorrow, it’s not because I want a quick lay, okay? I want you to believe that when I’m inside you, when I take you into oblivion, baby, it’s going to be because I want you, not just some warm body. I don’t think you’re there yet, Yan. But I’m gonna make damn sure y
ou’re there by Day 41.”
She loved this man. She absolutely fucking loved this man. The full realization caught her off guard. She had been falling in dribs and drabs, but right now at that moment, she knew beyond a shadow of a doubt she had fallen completely off the cliff for him.
He wanted her. He really wanted her. He respected her.
Ayanna felt euphoric.
She was licking her lips trying to remember the taste of him. His forehead was still on hers and he was so close to her.
He released her hands then crawled off the bed to stand up, his angry looking erection tenting his shorts. The bright morning light peeking through the sides of her window shade helped her to see him in full form. She leaned over and turned on the bedside lamp, wanting to see even more.
He stood by the bed scrubbing his face. “I’m sorry. Don’t blame yourself for this, okay?” He looked at her. “You were making these fuckin’ sexy as hell noises and I had to taste you.”
“I was dreaming about you,” she whispered. She needed to come so badly.
He stilled. Then he gritted his teeth and shook his hands out at his sides like a boxer before he got in the ring. Releasing his pent up energy, he cracked his neck on each side.
“Are you okay?” she asked.
“I will be.” His eyes drilled into her. “Especially on Day 41. That’s gonna become my new mantra.” He paused, his jaw clenched. He reached down to adjust his cock and she heard him hiss. “Are you? Okay, I mean?”
“I’m better than okay. Or I will be once B.O.B. and I have a moment,” she said, her eyes glittering with hunger and humor.
His eyes had a crazed lustful look in them and he smiled enigmatically. Then, “I shouldn’t be kissing you.”
She waited for him to finish. But he didn’t. He just kept looking at her.
“Do you regret it?” she asked, hoping he would say no.
His eyes softened and he shook his head no. “I just want to honor your decision about this and I think the more we put ourselves in these situations, the more difficult it’s going to be.”
She swallowed. “I didn’t realize—I mean, I didn’t know being with me was putting you in a difficult situation. I’d wondered. I’d hoped,” she whispered.
He looked at her for a moment and sighed, then ran his hand through his hair. “Yan…” He let go of a breath, then leaned against the wall. “You’re this woman I didn’t think you were.”
She wasn’t sure what he was saying. “That’s a good thing, right?”
He smirked. “Yeah, that’s a good thing.” He paused, then said, “The woman you were that first night we met isn’t the woman I’ve been getting to know all week.”
“I’m the same woman, but I just expressed myself differently the night I first met you. I’m discovering,” she said, and looked at him, “that I don’t think I like that woman very much anymore.”
He smiled tenderly at her. “And I’m really liking this new way you’re expressing yourself.”
“So,” she began, “given this new development, does this mean we can’t be friends? Is it too difficult to keep hanging out?” She interrupted herself and rushed on, “Because I’m really liking that part of whatever this thing is. Developing a friendship with a guy,” she paused, “is very new for me.”
He waited and it was killing her to think he might say he didn’t want to continue as friends.
He looked intently at her then finally spoke. “I absolutely want to continue being friends,” he said quietly. He cleared his throat. “We just need to be careful. You have 12 more days. Maybe we should only hang out with other people,” he said innocently, his eyebrow going up, obviously teasing her with the suggestion.
“I don’t like that idea,” she said, sounding grumpy.
His eyes twinkled.
“Let’s just set up some ground rules,” she said. “We’re not 12. It’s not like we need chaperones, for cryin’ out loud,” she grumbled. “We can control ourselves, can’t we?”
“I can control myself. In fact, I like control. I’m very good at it,” he said, his voice husky and his eyes gleaming with promise. “I’m looking forward to exerting a little of it with you on Day 41.”
Zing! She swallowed then laughed nervously. “Johnny Be Good, I should warn you that I’m not used to a guy taking control in the bedroom.”
“You’ll learn. Very quickly,” he said, his tongue touching the corner of his mouth. He looked like he was ready to have a go at her right then and there.
Her heart was racing, her arousal causing her sex to dampen and clench. She squeezed her legs together.
He knew what he was doing to her, and smirked.
“I dreamt that you said something like that,” she breathed.
“Like what?” His eyes were so intense.
“You said my domain was the kitchen, but yours was the bedroom,” she pointedly looked down at his hard on.
“You dreamt I said that?”
She nodded.
“Then you’re on the right track, Ayanna.” He pushed off the wall and came back to the bed. He put his hands on the edge and leaned in close to her face, staring at her lips.
She almost climaxed right there. He seriously looked like a lion about to eat its prey.
“It looks like your subconscious mind is exactly where I want it to be. You just keep dreaming things like that,” he whispered. His mouth was so close to hers. All she had to do was lean up and their lips would be touching.
“Now,” he said, shifting his gaze to her eyes, “we need to make some rules so we can successfully make it to Day 41. Do you have any suggestions?”
She cleared her throat. She was very much looking forward to him exerting that control. The thought revved her up beyond belief.
“Well,” she began, getting back to the conversation at hand. “Maybe no sleepovers. And kissing, even though I really want you to kiss me right now.” Even to her own ears she sounded desperate.
His mouth kicked up into a lazy smile. “If I kiss you right now, your 40 day experiment will be over on Day 28, I can promise you that.”
She groaned. “Umm. And that’s a problem because…?”
He smiled and caressed her cheek, then stood back. “This will be good for both of us. It’ll be 12 more days of foreplay.” He took a cleansing breath and continued, “So, no sleepovers, and no kissing. And that last one we may need to renegotiate at a later time.” His eyes burned into her.
A small smile touched her lips. She looked at his chest. His gloriously chiseled chest with his dusting of dark blonde hair. “We should probably try to keep as many clothes on in each other’s presence as possible.”
His eyes darkened as they zeroed in on her breasts encased in the lace bodice of her nightie. Her nipples stood at attention and he licked his lips again, then he looked at her. “Agreed.”
“What else?”
“That’s a good start.” He sighed and scrubbed at his face again. “Are you feeling okay this morning? Your neck, arms? You’ve got bruises.”
“They’re a little sore, but they’ll be fine.”
He shook his head and muttered angrily, “Fucking bastard.”
She hesitated before saying, “There’s a part of me that wishes Harry hadn’t called the cops. The restaurant’s definitely going to take a hit because of this. Which means the employees will take a hit, too.”
“You absolutely should’ve pressed charges, Yan. And from what Catherine said after they took him away, she’s going to see if she can buy him out anyway.”
“She told me that she’d been thinking about it for a while, and had even approached him about it. I had no idea, which goes to show how professional she is. None of us even knew about his mismanagement of the restaurant’s funds or anything, and when she found out about it she never told any of us. She’s a great woman, doesn’t gossip or anything. She would be a great owner, too.” She looked off to the side, thinking. “But boy, he must be furious.”
Jon walked back over and sat down. “Are you nervous he’s going to do something to you? I don’t want you to be scared. He won’t get to you, I promise.”
She melted at his words, but then snorted. “Nah. I can take him.”
He smiled, but said, “I’m serious. He is going to be pissed, so just be a little extra aware, okay? Let’s talk to Emily, too, just to make sure all of your bases are covered. I’m glad you’ll be doing the self-defense class with everyone on Monday.”
“Yeah, it’ll be nice to learn even more ways to kick some ass,” she said, wiggling her eyebrows.
“You did great last night. You were like some avenging angel.” His eyes glittered. “Even though I nearly swallowed my tongue when I got to the door and saw all the blood, you looked fucking hot as hell.”
They paused and looked at each other. Then Jonathan said, “Maybe another rule should be not to say things like that either,” he muttered.
“You started it. And you call me a sex goddess,” she teased.
He mouthed, That’s because you are.
“You just said not to say things like that!”
“I didn’t say it, I mouthed it. There’s a difference.”
“Well, in that case,” she said, then mouthed, I can’t wait for Day 41.
He played along, then mouthed, Oh, me either, baby.
They both smiled at each other like idiots. Then Jon got up and headed for the bedroom door.
“I gotta get outta here. You have to call Ryann and Janie, and I have a meeting in,” he peered around her to see her bedside clock, “shit, in an hour and a half.” He took a cleansing breath. “Have a great meeting with Janie and,” he paused, “I’ll talk to you later, okay?”
She nodded, her eyes twinkling. “Thanks, again.”
His mouth kicked up. “My pleasure. I just need to grab my stuff from the living room, then I’ll make sure the door’s locked behind me.”
She hugged her knees up and rested her cheek on them. “Okay.” She couldn’t stop smiling.
He seemed arrested to his spot, looking at her. “Stop looking at me like that. I gotta go.” He didn’t move.
“Then go. No one’s stopping you,” she teased with a coy smile.
“Pain in the ass,” he muttered with a smirk. “Later.”
Redemption (Iris Series) Page 10