by Mika Lane
While I had time to kill, Tom’s words drifted back to me—that if my only ambition was to stay at the Drive By ‘til the end of my days, then I was selling myself short. I’d always been fascinated by wine and wanted to learn more. I flipped open my laptop and Googled sommelier courses. The amount of information was insane.
There were several levels to advance through, starting with introductory courses. But damn, it was all so expensive. The beginner courses started around six hundred dollars and the advanced ones were upward of two thousand. On top of that steep price tag, to progress, there were what looked like very hard tests. You could get certified, pass to the advanced level, and if you were really ambitious, become a master. And I found that fewer than twenty-five percent of sommeliers are women. What was up with that?
I clicked my laptop closed. What was the point? With the student loans I was already trying to pay off, the cost of the sommelier courses, and the tests that looked next to impossible to pass, who was I fooling? I was no sooner going to become a master sommelier than I was a millionaire living in a mansion overlooking San Francisco Bay.
Chapter 10
Nathaniel “Nat”
I swung by Garnet’s place in the Mission to pick her up for our date. I had to admit, I’d really been looking forward to seeing her again, something that rarely happened for me.
I was still puzzled about our meeting. I mean, wasn’t it odd that she had wanted to talk about accounting matters when, from what I could see, the girl didn’t have a pot to piss in? And why had Jonesy sent me to her? But she was hot as hell, and her crooked smile slayed me. So all was not lost.
I double-parked in the street like everyone else in San Francisco did and rang her bell. Holy Christ, she took my breath away when she came to the door. She had this long, wavy-curly hair that almost didn’t look real, and her bright blue eyes glowed. Yeah, there was something about her that was magical. I couldn’t put my finger on it, it felt good.
“You look amazing,” I said, opening the passenger side door for her. Damn if I wasn’t already getting hard in my jeans. I helped myself to her hand as we drove across town. If she wiggled out of my grip, I’d know her level of interest. But good news, she took my fingers just as tightly as I held hers.
“So, where we goin’?” she asked.
“You’ll see very soon,” I teased. I stole a look and found her smiling. For the longest time I’d been avoiding getting into any sort of relationship in order to concentrate on my career, but I could surely see myself spending time with this woman.
We pulled into a parking spot in the Fisherman’s Wharf neighborhood, and I grabbed her hand again to lead her through the throngs of tourists.
“Hmmm. I don’t know if I should just be following you,” she joked. “You know, with no idea of where we’re going.”
“Maybe you shouldn’t,” I shot back.
I led her down a dock toward a small sailboat. A captain walked out of the hull as we approached.
“No way!” she said, turning to me with wide-open eyes. “We’re going sailing? I’ve never been on a sailboat.”
I held her hand as she stepped aboard. Before I knew it, the captain had untied us from the dock and we were underway.
We settled onto the bench seat in the stern. I reached into a bucket to pull out a bottle of champagne.
“Thirsty?” I asked.
“Yes, please.” Her eyes were wide, and she stared up at the sky. “Wow, look at the full moon. It’s incredible. And so quiet.”
“I thought you might like it.”
She looked directly at me. “Thank you. This is amazing.”
It wasn’t a particularly windy night, so we sailed across the Bay at a mellow clip. It was perfect for someone who’d never been sailing before. Heck, I’d been only a few times myself.
“So how long have you worked for the accounting firm?”
“Six years. It’s a good place. I have great clients, but I work long hours. I’d like to pull back a bit, but I’m at the stage where I could make partner in the next year.”
“Really? Is it worth it? Or will you just have to work even harder?” she asked.
“The irony is that, while I’d take on more responsibility, my hours would not be longer. And, I’d get paid a lot more.” I could just make out her features in the moonlight, with her hair whipping in the breeze. Damn if she didn’t smell great, all simple soap and shampoo.
“What drives you so hard?” she asked.
“Well, I didn’t have much growing up, so I’m working for some security. But sometimes, I wonder how much is enough. You know what I mean?”
“I do. I do know what you mean,” she said, nodding.
Shit, she was beautiful.
“Garnet?” I asked.
“Yes?”
I leaned toward her. “I’m going to kiss you now.” I wrapped my fingers in a fistful of her hair and drew her toward me, touching lips that were as delicious as I knew they’d be. I let my fingers trail down the front of her blouse, where they landed on a magnificent breast topped with a very hard nipple. Shit, if I wasn’t careful, I’d explode right there in my pants.
I looked up to see that the captain had gotten us back to the dock. How the hell had two hours passed so quickly?
“Thanks for the sail, it was great,” I said to him.
“You’re very welcome.” He tied us to the dock and left.
“Wait,” she said, standing. “Where’s he going? Don’t we have to get off the boat too?”
“Sit back down.” I pulled her to the seat. “I’ve got the boat for the night. We can hang out as long as we want, right here in the slip.”
“No way. This is fantastic.” She leaned back on the bench and stared up at the sky. “What’s that tinkling sound? It’s so pretty”
“Those are the buckles that connect to the sails. It’s like boat music.” The sound always made me happy. “I hope to have a sailboat of my own some day. But for now, I’ll just have to hire them when I want to go out.”
I stood and pulled her to me. “Let’s go check out the stateroom.”
“What’s that?” She stood and shyly took my hand.
“It’s a fancy name for a bedroom on a boat. Watch your head,” I told her. We ducked beneath a low door, taking a few steps down from the deck.
“Oh my god, look at this.” She did a complete three-sixty to take in the room with its polished wood and king-size bed. It wasn’t a big stateroom since it wasn’t a big boat, but it was comfortable and cozy.
“Garnet,” I said slowly, running my hand along the soft skin of her arm. I grasped her fingers, bringing them to my cheek. Her response to my touch was just what I’d hoped for—she invited me for more. Everything about her was new to me. I’d known few women who were beautiful and smart, confident and ambitious. And at the same time, vulnerable. Which made me mad with passion. Fuck, I wanted her.
I ran my fingers up the back of her neck and drew her to me. Unable to wait a second longer, I embraced her with everything I had. Those damn pillow-soft lips seared into mine, and when my tongue sought entrance into her mouth, she whimpered like she’d not been properly kissed in a long, long time. Strangely, time both stood still and sped up as we got lost in a kiss before we pulled apart, both gasping for air as the boat rocked lightly in its slip.
Holy shit.
Her face was flushed with need that I was only too happy to fill, and she drew her fingers up to her lips as if she expected them to be bruised from our encounter.
“Garnet, I’ve been wanting to do that since the first time I saw you, the day I came to the bar,” I whispered.
She fell into a smile so beautiful, it almost broke my heart. At the same time, my cock bounced to full attention, straining against my blue jeans and causing me more than a little pain.
“I didn’t know…” she mumbled.
I looked at every inch of her face. “How did you not know? Are you unaware of how fucking amazing you are?”
“May I?” I asked, my fingers poised on the fly of her jeans.
She lay back on the bed, her eyes partially closed, her hair splayed over the comforter like a goddess. My goddess.
“Mmmm,” she murmured, rolling her head back and forth. “Yes,” she breathed.
I got her jeans open and down to her hips where I laid my eyes on a tiny lace thong that I knew I’d like a whole lot more when it was in my teeth, being dragged off her lovely bottom.
As soon as she was naked from the waist down, her hand flew to her clit, where she began to make small circles. Goddamn if I didn’t love a woman who didn’t hesitate to beat off right in front of me. If you asked me, nothing was hotter.
I ran my palms up the inside of her thighs, drawing out the inevitable moment when I would no longer be able to restrain myself. I groaned as I drank in the scent of her excitement—a fresh pussy dying for attention, dripping onto the bed below. I pushed her hand aside to press my own thumb to her clit. When I made the lightest of circles, she moaned and lifted her hips to give me more access. Just like the good girl that she was.
And when I finally tasted her, I went into a free fall, my world rocked from right under my feet. Fortunately, she was on the edge of the bed so I could kneel—I no longer trusted my legs to keep me upright. She was salty, sweet, and fresh, her pussy quivering as it begged for more. Slipping a finger into my mouth, I wet it and slowly worked it into her tight core, which gripped me with a hunger I’d underestimated. My girl from the Drive By Saloon needed me and my touch. I was going to give her everything she ever wanted.
And then some.
Chapter 11
Garnet
Good god, had it been a long time since I’d been with a guy, much less a man like Nat. Sure, I felt the rush of reservations about messing around with a guy I hardly knew, but it was happening, and it was intense and magical and there was no way in hell I’d stop it. Don’t ask me how I knew, but it was more than sex. Our connection was strong and unlike anything I’d ever felt with a guy.
I wasn’t usually drawn to the super-straight preppy sort of dude, but Nat’s kiss had me all twisted up inside. Each one took me further away from any assumptions I had that an accountant couldn’t be anything more than a bore. How wrong that was, I was very happy to find.
“Oh, god,” I cried as he felt inside me with his thick fingers, reaching my g-spot and bringing me to the edge of what would be the first of many orgasms.
“You’re so fucking wet, baby,” he growled as his lips found my hard clit again. The suction he formed nearly drove me wild, leaving me thrashing on the edge of the stateroom’s bed. I could have sworn I was literally causing the boat to rock. Maybe I was.
“Do you like it better when I finger bang you? Or suck you?” he asked.
“Both!” I managed to choke out, gasping as he fucked me harder with his hand. I planted my feet on the end of the bed for leverage and lifted my hips to drive myself further into him. But before I could come, he shifted, and in an instant was over my body, hands under my blouse, lips running down my temple to my neck and back up again. He slipped a finger into my mouth and watched me enjoy my own tang.
“God, I’ve wanted to get my hands on your delicious tits,” he said when he’d pushed up my shirt and moved my bra out of the way. His fingers were like flames on my sensitive skin, leaving me writhing with a touch I couldn’t decide whether to call pain or pleasure. Maybe because it was a combination of the two. His mouth found my nipples, licking and biting them as he ground his hard erection through his abrasive jeans against my bare, soaked pussy. I cried out from the rough fabric, but I had to admit, I pressed harder into him for more. All I could think of was how I wanted more.
He dropped back to his crouch, his face positioned right between my legs. His tongue wandered up my thigh, alternating with small nibbles, until he reached my wet and puffy lips. He pushed my legs even wider apart and ran his face up and down, from my ass to my clit, with long, deep strokes of his tongue. The orgasm that had been building hit me like a truck, but he didn’t slow. His relentless mouth brought me to another, leaving me gulping for air, every nerve in my body screaming in response. As I struggled to raise my head to see him, I found him yanking at his belt buckle and slipping his jeans and boxers down his thighs. I was so woozy, I could barely think about was next.
He took a step back, finally giving me a full view of his hard pecs, tight abs, and the perfect line of hair that ran from his belly button to a very hard and delicious-looking cock. I nearly passed out watching him run his hand up and down his long erection, stroking slowly and deliberately, his gaze locked on mine. As I came back to my senses, I pushed myself up to sitting and removed what was left of the clothes hanging off my body. With a good look at Nat, my energy came rushing back. I stood from the bed and moved toward him with an extended hand, his gaze wandering over my naked body. I positioned him on the edge of the bed where I’d just been and lowered myself to between his knees.
I took his cock out of his hand and ran my fingers over the shaft’s velvety skin. His head was too wide to get my grip around, so I loosened my fingers and gathered the first drop of precum to my mouth. It was salty and sweet.
“Fuck baby, I like how you stroke me,” he growled. “Give me some more.”
I smiled at him, slowly moving my mouth toward his erection. I ran my tongue over the glistening head of his cock, enclosing my lips over it and creating a light suction while I tasted him. He dropped his head back, muttering something incomprehensible. But I think I knew what he was getting at.
I lowered my head over his cock until it banged the back of my throat. My eyes watered, but I couldn’t stop. He tasted so good, and I wanted to make him feel as great as he’d made me. I pistoned my lips up and down his length from root to tip, keeping my eyes locked with his.
Reaching my free hand between my legs, I found myself creamy and dripping and ran my fingers up and down the slickness between my puffy lips. My hand and mouth worked in perfect rhythm together and another orgasm was building for me, just as one was for Nat.
He bucked his hips against my greedy mouth, and when he saw me pounding my pussy, I could swear he got even stiffer. With my free hand, I grabbed his balls and gave a gentle tug, which sent him into a frenzy. Just as I’d hoped.
“Uh…I’m coming…god I’m coming baby,” he cried.
And as he did, my own orgasm ruptured, shaking me so hard I had to release him so he could finish coming on my tits. The room filled with my cries as the white heat of my climax shot over and through me. My head bucked while my pussy contracted, and Nat’s delectable cum on my tits was warm and made me feel so sexy.
Soon as I had the strength, I scooted up on the bed next to him, my breasts dripping with his semen, my pussy dripping with my own. He drew a comforter over us, and with my head buried in his shoulder, we dozed.
* * *
The morning sun splashed across the room, waking me from a sound sleep, alone and at first, unsure of where I was. When the gentle rock of the boat made itself known, I remembered where I’d fallen asleep, and why I had a smile on my face. I turned to see Nat coming down the steps from the deck shirtless, in his jeans.
“Hey, baby. Went outside for some fresh air. Gorgeous day.”
I sat up in the bed, the comforter falling down to my waist. Nat looked at my breasts with hunger.
“Do you need to use the bathroom? The head’s over there,” he said, pointing at a small closed door. “There are towels and anything else you might need.”
I scooted over to the bathroom—or head, as I guessed they called it on a boat—feeling Nat’s eyes burning on my backside until I pulled the door closed behind me. I didn’t mind. My backside was a good-sized one with plenty of
curve, and I was happy with it. Spending all day on my feet, squatting and bending behind the bar to get glasses and bottles was one of the best workouts a girl could have.
The boat’s bathroom was tiny, with just enough room for a shower stall, a toilet, and a sink. But it was paneled with beautiful dark wood and the floor was covered in shiny white tiles. There was a shelf loaded with fluffy towels, so I grabbed one and splashed my face with water. My complexion was nice and pink from the events of the night before, and I noticed my mouth was a little puffy from Nat’s enthusiastic kissing. I finger-combed my hair to remove some of the knots but had to say that, in spite having spent the night in a strange bed, I felt freaking great.
“Hey, baby,” I said to Nat as I opened the bathroom door. He’d crawled back into bed, leaving his pants on the floor in a puddle with my clothes. The place was a delicious mess with champagne flutes, shoes, underwear, and other articles of dress scattered about. Signs of a good time.
He pulled back the edge of the comforter, gesturing for me to get back in. Before I knew it, he’d positioned me so I was on top of him in a straddle, with him tweaking my nipples while he pulled me down to kiss him. I felt his hard cock pressing against my leg and decided I wasn’t done with him, not by a long shot.
“Nat,” I breathed, “do you have a condom?”
“I do, baby. Want me to get it?”
“Yeah.”
He reached for his pants on the floor and dug into one of his pockets.
“Guess you were feeling optimistic?” I teased.
“Hey, you can’t blame a guy for hoping,” he said with a laugh.