The Devil In Me

by K. I. Lynn

Well, as close as I would get to peace with the fire that ripped through me every time Hope came back in the room. Serving more tables meant she swung by more, and the lust was compounded with each pass. All control was fast slipping from me—I wanted to tear her apart. My muscles flexed, begging to touch her, consume her and burn together. I wanted to take her on the floor right there in front of Monica.

  “How’s your wrap?” She tipped the water pitcher in her hand, refilling my glass.

  I finished up my bite and stared into her blue eyes, another shiver running through me, cock twitching. “I didn’t come here for the food, but the wrap is good.”

  Her hand tightened around the handle, lip caught between her teeth again as she shook her head. “Stop.”

  I grabbed hold of the pitcher, afraid of what I would do if I touched her skin. “I wouldn’t even if I could.”

  She gave me one last look before turning and walking away. Something inside me got angry every time she left, but at the same time, I loved to watch her body move. Each stride of her long legs begged me to follow.

  After she refilled my water and I paid the bill, I figured I’d worn out my welcome for the day, especially by the glares I got from the manager. There was always tomorrow. As I exited the bathroom, ready to jump into my car, her melodic voice filled my ears.

  “Mac, I’m going to take a break. Table two has their check.”

  She walked past the restroom alcove and out the back door. My cock twitched as I stood there, deciding what to do. Truth be told, there was no decision. I’d already started following her.

  I knew what I wanted to do, what I needed. The devil was winning again, because I was going to get it.

  She’d reached the edge of the building by the time I got out the door, my pace even, measured, letting the thirst for her fill me. When I rounded the corner, she was leaning against the brick wall, looking down at her phone and typing away.

  She shivered, her gaze lifting to me, lips parting. “What are you doing back here?”

  I stopped a few feet in front of her. “Are you saying I can’t be back here?”

  Her gaze flitted around, trying not to look at me as she squeezed her phone. “No, but you should leave.”

  The nervousness radiating from her only fueled the energy moving in waves between us.

  “I was walking to my car, but I felt you calling to me.” I step forward and caged her with my arms. The vibration, the desire-filled excitement, skyrocketed.

  So close.

  Inches apart.

  All sense was gone, replaced by a greedy hunger to touch her.

  “You need to get away from me.”

  “Why? Because you can’t control yourself?”

  She reached out and pressed against my chest. A shudder rocked us both at the contact. Tiny, dick-twitching whimpers and a hitched breath had me moaning. The skin beneath her hand burned.

  “Fuck you.”

  I smirked and leaned in closer to whisper in her ear. “I plan to.”

  “Oh, God.” She tilted her head, exposing her neck, fingers clenching against my chest as she fisted my shirt and pulled me closer. The heat from her body was hotter than the fires of hell where I was sure to end up.

  “He’s obviously not here. I’m Jared.” I couldn’t get her to look at my face, but her breath had become labored. “You look fucking tasty in these little scraps of cloth. Tempting me. Are you trying to get a cock shoved up your tight little cunt?”

  “It’s my uniform.”

  I removed one hand from the wall and set it on her waist, groaning at the electric shock that burst through my body, firing off every cell in me. My fingers caressed her exposed flesh as I moved down to her hip.

  “It’s a tiny uniform. Does it get you a lot of offers?”

  She nodded, and my hand flexed on her hip, all soft women curves, succulent beneath my touch.

  Her other hand fisted into the fabric of my shirt at my waist. “I like to feel their eyes on me.”

  A small step forward, aided by her tugging grip, and the gap between us disappeared. My mouth dropped open, hips rocking my painfully hard cock into her stomach. “That’s a dangerous game, little girl.”

  Her breath was hot against my neck. “I get so wet thinking about some guy hard for me. Fantasize about being taken against a wall, hard and fast.”

  The skin on her neck pinked—I loved to see the flush of her skin. I leaned in closer, my lips ghosting against hers. "Is that what you want me to do?”

  “Yes.”

  “Fuck,” I growled out. My hand slipped around to the front of her shorts and cupped her pussy. “You’re not a good girl, are you? Underneath your innocent façade, you’re fucking naughty, is that it?”

  She whimpered and pushed against my hand.

  “How do you like to be punished? By my hand as it strikes against your plump backside? Or maybe by my cock slamming into you so hard you see stars? How about keeping you on edge, unable to come, until I let you?”

  Her eyes were completely clouded over and heavy, her voice almost a whisper. “I don’t care.”

  “You don’t care?”

  “As long as it means you’re touching me.”

  “Only me?”

  She nodded and pulled me tighter to her. “Only you make me feel this way.”

  I popped the button on her shorts and pushed my hand into the small gap, groaning at the heat of her bare, wet pussy.

  “I told you I’d be back to take what’s mine.” My lips crashed to hers, taking what I’d dreamed of for days.

  The euphoric sound of her moans traveled between us, pushing me to kiss her harder as her arms wrapped around my neck, her nails digging in. My fingers slipped between her pussy lips and inside. She drew in a ragged breath, her hips flexing forward, pushing me deeper.

  I rocked them in and out, my palm pressed against her clit. High-pitched whimpers moved from her mouth to mine and shot through my cock, forcing me to move. Shallow thrusts against her relieved some need while her tongue sucked on mine and her nails dug into my skin. She almost had me coming in my shorts.

  I wanted to get her off, watch her come undone from my hand, before I shot off.

  “So fucking soft and tight. My cock can’t wait.”

  An unknown voice called out for her from around the corner, and I groaned.

  “Fuck!”

  She whimpered, pressing harder against my hand, rocking faster.

  “Back to work, little girl. You have customers that need servicing.”

  I pulled my fingers out and looked into her eyes as I stuck them in my mouth. Fuck, she tasted good, and I groaned, lapping up all of her. She let out a strangled cry, her head against the brick, lids heavy as her hips rolled, thighs clenching together. Neither of us was going to get off right then.

  So close. I had her on the edge.

  I stepped back and adjusted my near-bursting hard-on. She licked her lips, her gaze locked on my bulging tent. I grabbed hold of it, making sure she knew what waited for her.

  “We’re not done.”

  She licked her lips. “Fuck, it’s big.”

  I smirked at her. “It’s what you have to look forward to.”

  Her boss called out for her again, and without breaking eye contact with me, she called back. “Coming!”

  “Almost, but you will.” Instead, she’d have to suffer through work turned on and wanting my cock.

  I hated watching her walk away, but loved that she looked back before disappearing.

  A heavy breath left me, and I leaned against the brick exterior for a moment to calm myself. It didn’t help, so I pulled my keys out and headed to my truck. The second I got in and closed the door, I reached in my shorts and pulled my cock out.

  “Fuck!” My poor cock.

  The head was purple and stiff to the max, leaking a trail of pre-come. I moved my fingers along the underside, hissing when I hit the extremely sensitive edge. It would only take a few swipes like that for me to explode. It s
till amazed me that I hadn’t when I’d been pressed against her with her lips on mine.

  I stuck my fingers in my mouth, tasting any last bits of her that remained while I stroked my cock. Every muscle tensed, built up from hours of frustration in her presence. My mouth dropped open, hard breaths coming out before a hard shudder rocked my body and my cock began firing off.

  I looked down to watch each spurt land on my black shirt, wishing it was all over her skin or deep inside her pussy. That was where it needed to be.

  Chapter 7

  When I arrived home, I found Mom asleep on the couch, the TV on some home show, which reminded me I needed to mow the grass in the morning. As I entered my room, I threw my shirt into an overloaded laundry basket. I pursed my lips and sighed, walking over to it and picking it up, then headed down the hall to my mom’s room. With both her basket and mine in hand, I made my way down two flights of stairs to the basement.

  I’d neglected the house chores over the last few days, thanks to whatever had taken control of me. There was no denying it—I wasn’t myself. The emotions boiling inside me shook my mind from my depression, but the lusted-out beast who craved a woman beyond sanity? He freaked me out.

  After starting up a load, I headed back up the stairs. Cassie had cleaned up the kitchen before she left, reminding me my sister rocked. I walked into the den and sat down at the desk, sighing as I moved the mouse to wake up the computer. I picked up a stack of mail and flipped through it.

  I threw medical bills to the side as I pored through everything else. I loved the ones with big bold letters “Patricia Lynch, you’re a winner!” Very important mail. I made sure to tear it up and toss it into the trash.

  I stretched my neck out and logged on to the computer. The first thing I did was check my mom’s accounts, and I didn’t like the number I saw.

  “Shit.” Her insurance couldn’t keep up with the costs of her treatments, especially with her being on unpaid medical leave. Between my dad’s hospital stay and now her illness, there wasn’t much money left. I logged on to my own account and hit the transfer button. I’d built up a nice savings in preparation to buy a house with Monica, and now it was going to help ease my mom’s financial stress.

  “Jared?”

  Looking over my shoulder, I saw Mom standing in the doorway. “Nice nap?”

  She slumped down in the sofa chair and wrapped a blanket around her shoulders. “Cassie put me in a food coma.”

  My lip quirked up. She was eating—a good sign. “How’re you feeling?”

  “Tired.” She sighed and looked over at the desk. “What are you doing?”

  “Paying the bills.”

  She pursed her lips. “Thank you.” Her head tilted as she looked at me. “There’s something different about you this week."

  I nodded. “Yeah.”

  Silence stretched between us.

  “You going to tell me, or do I have to play twenty questions?”

  I rubbed my face and lifted my arms up in a stretch. “It’s…complicated.” I sighed. “I met someone.”

  She perked up, a smile forming on her face as she sat a little straighter. “And? Tell me about her.”

  My face heated up. There was no way I could tell my mother about what had been going through my mind.

  “Her name is Hope, and she’s pinup-girl gorgeous.”

  Her eyes widened. “Pinup? That’s different. What else?”

  I blew out a breath. “She works at Union Jack’s, and visits St. Joan of Arc.”

  “And? You’re killing me here, Jared.”

  I grimaced. “It’s because that’s all I’ve got. The truth is, I don’t know much about her, but we have this uncontrollable attraction.”

  She arched her drawn on eyebrow. “Condoms are your friend.”

  “Mom!” I stared at her in stunned disbelief.

  “What? Do you want to have a child with a woman you just met?”

  I held my hands up. “Who said I didn’t want to get to know her?”

  She leaned back. “Why haven’t you yet?”

  I sighed and shook my head. It wasn’t something I wanted to tell my mother, but now that she knew about Hope, she wasn’t going to let up. “Because every time I’m near her, all I can think about—all I can feel—is intense lust.” My jaw clenched, hands flexing into fists. “And it controls me.”

  She nodded, staring at me for a moment. “Have you asked her out?”

  “Not yet.”

  “Well, don’t be an asshole.”

  “Mom!”

  “You keep saying my name like that.” She chuckled. “I’m not stupid. Plus, you’re over thirty now, and you lived with a woman for five years. I know you are very familiar with sex and how it works.”

  I rubbed my face again and shook my head. “You’re not supposed to be so casual about it.”

  She shrugged. “You’re an adult.”

  “It’s just weird.”

  “You think that means I’m going to continue to sugar-coat things for you?”

  “No, it’ll just take some getting used to.”

  “Oh, I almost forgot to tell you. Cassie’s having a girl.”

  I beamed at her. “Yeah? That’s awesome.”

  For some reason, it was that bit of news that made it hit home—I was going to be an uncle. My little sister was going to be a mom. I was going to be uncle to a little girl and bound to spoil her rotten.

  She nodded. “Now, you’re the oldest—where’s your contribution?”

  My mouth dropped open. “Who just told me to make sure I use a condom?”

  She shrugged. “What can I say? I want grandbabies.”

  “Unbelievable. Why didn’t you ever say anything before?”

  “I liked Monica in the beginning, but she was very self-centered and turned out to be a lying, cheating whore. She wouldn’t have been a good mother.”

  I leaned back in shock. Amazing how the truth came out from those close to you on how they felt about your girlfriend once the relationship was over. “Tell me how you really feel.”

  “She used you.” She leaned back and settled into the chair, a mischievous smile spreading on her face. “Have I ever told you how your father and I met?”

  I nodded and sat back as well, wondering where she was headed. “At a party in college.”

  “That was where, but not the how.”

  My brow scrunched. “Okay.”

  “My sophomore year, my friend Beth took me to a party. From the moment I walked in, my skin crawled. Not in a bad way, but it tingled.”

  I knew exactly what she meant—I’d experienced it at a growing rate for days.

  “We made it into the kitchen, and my eyes locked on a gorgeous set of blue eyes, then bam!” Her eyes were bright before softening.

  “I remember Dad saying he got caught in that moment.” The memory was a fond one, my father describing the emotion that came over him. When I was a kid, it was like a fairy tale for boys as he explained to me that cooties weren’t such a bad thing.

  “There’s a lot he didn’t tell you. But I have to ask—did you ever feel anything like that, what you do with this girl, with Monica?”

  I shook my head. “There was attraction, just like with every girl I dated before her.”

  Mom was more animated during our conversation than I’d seen her in weeks or months. “That right there tells me there could be so much more with this girl.”

  “Why?”

  “Because half an hour after I entered the door to that house, I was in the bathroom having sex with your father, and I didn’t even know his name.”

  My jaw dropped open. “Wait, what?”

  “And his girlfriend of a year had come to the party with him.”

  “Holy shit! Seriously?”

  She chuckled. “No, but that’s the way I always thought it would’ve gone if he hadn’t been in a relationship.”

  I blew out a hard breath. She was trying to kill me. “What did happen then?”

/>   “He avoided me all night. At some point, I’d gone to use the restroom, and when I came out, he was walking down the hall. It was narrow, and being a gentleman, he gave me the right of way. Before I made it past him, his arm flew in front of me. The struggle was evident even as he caged me with his arms against the wall. I wanted him to kiss me, desperately wanted it. I thought I’d die if he didn’t.” She touched her lips with the tips of her fingers, almost like she could still feel it. “He was so close I felt the heat of his skin, the zinging spark between us.”

  “How did he stop?” I’d become enraptured by the story, because I knew the struggle she was talking about.

  She sighed. “Someone called his name, and he woke from his trance. He was so angry with me after that.”

  “Why was he angry with you?”

  “Well, he later admitted it wasn’t me, but himself. Two days after the hallway incident, he broke up with his girlfriend, and he blamed me for it. He had his whole future with that girl laid out—he planned to propose. When he saw me, everything changed.”

  “Wait, I missed something. He broke up with the girl he planned to marry two days later?”

  She nodded. “You know your father was a good man. It was love at first sight, though he didn’t want to believe it. Having those feelings for someone other than her, he knew then it wasn’t right with her. For weeks we bumped into each other on campus, and he became even more upset with each encounter. He said he couldn’t seem to get away from me.”

  “How did that make you feel? I mean, what was going through your head?”

  “It was an attraction on a level I only ever experienced with him. It was confusing, because I thought about him all the time—the worst crush ever. Three weeks after the party, in the middle of the night, he showed up at my sorority house. Three months later, you were conceived.”

  “That was fast.”

  She shrugged. “There’s a reason I wanted you to know all this. Times might not have always been easy, and though we knew we were soul mates, we were also human and fought. If any of what I’ve described is the feeling you get with this girl, don’t let anything stop you.”

  I shook my head. “It was not love at first sight in my case.”

  “How can you be so certain?”