by Gina Watson
She leaned in and sensually took his bottom lip into her mouth, nibbling it between her teeth and lapping against it with her tongue. She was easier to please than any woman Clay’d ever met. She’d lost everything, yet she always seemed so content, even when folding laundry or washing the dishes. She’d click away on his laptop at night, working on her blog. It was an ingenious idea and all hers, his little proprietor. She was super successful and brilliant.
That afternoon he sat on the couch with her in his arms. For a woman, she was low maintenance. She hadn’t even gone to get clothes or make-up or whatever the hell it was women needed. She just made do with what he had around the house. She had means of her own but seemed to be content hanging around the house and station with him and working from his home. He loved having her around, but wondered if it would always be like this.
He pulled back so he could search her eyes. “Hey, tell me why you’re always so happy, why you like staying here, sweeping my floors and cooking my dinner.”
She leaned in and kissed his nose. “It’s because I love you, you fool.”
His head went back to accommodate his laughter, and it wasn’t long before she was laughing with him. “You haven’t gone to shop for clothes or anything else, except eggs, which you actually pilfered.”
“I didn’t pilfer them. The chickens offered them in exchange for a safe and cozy habitat.”
He nuzzled her ear. “Oh, is that it? So will it always be this way? Where did you see yourself at twenty-three? With your success you could go anywhere. Some big city—New York or L.A.”
She turned in his arms, placing her knees on either side of him. “Up until recently, I hadn’t made any plans other than to escape from Montreal.” Her lips formed a pout. “I don’t like big cities; I’m a country girl. Are you already trying to get rid of me?”
He shook his head and kissed her lips. “Never.”
She smiled. “I guess I don’t really know what the future holds, but I know I want you to be there.”
That was all he needed to hear. She leaned in, and her lips grazed along his jaw.
“Tomorrow morning I’ll wake you early and we’ll make our way to Florida. We can stop on the way and do a little shopping.”
She cooed against him. “Sounds wonderful lover.”
*
It didn’t take them long to pack since Eve didn’t have much of anything and Clay always had to have a bag at the ready for emergencies. They left Cookie with Keith at the station and jumped into his truck to head east. When Eve found the entire Beatles Anthology on his iPod, she squealed and turned it up. She knew the words to every song and they sang along. How long had it been since he’d done that? Had to be when he was in his teens.
They were driving through Slidell, just north of New Orleans. Since he’d started at the fire department, he’d seen entire cities fall apart as infrastructures broke down due to storms, power outages, lack of communication, and inability to access emergency services. As a first responder he got to a scene before any cleanup took place. Accidents were one thing, but it was the shit that was done deliberately that scared him. During hurricane Katrina he’d seen what people could do when they were desperate and irrational—as he’d stood on the Danziger Bridge, he hadn’t recognized the human race. He’d taken the job as a firefighter just out of college and thirteen years later, it had taken a toll on him. He’d thought about maybe hanging up his hose and just focusing on his fire safety business. As he thought about Eve and their future together, retirement made a lot of sense.
When they hit Alabama, he saw signs for an outlet mall and followed them. He pulled in to the parking lot. “Do you want to get some clothes?”
She cocked her head at him. “You know I don’t actually have any money on me, right? My credit card still hasn’t come yet, and I’m having trouble with the bank too.”
He cut the engine. “Let me take care of you.” He placed his palm on her cheek, leaned over and kissed her, then grinned at her before they went inside. They quickly bought a dress and some shorts and tees and were on their way to find shoes. Clay was delighted that she was decisive and quick when making selections. He stopped in front of a shop and gestured with his bag-laden fist toward the window. “Hey, don’t you need some of this stuff?” He needed her to need it.
Her eyes popped from her sockets when she saw the lingerie in the window.
“Um, that stuff’s not functional for everyday use.” Her face was redder than he’d ever seen it.
He held the door open. “We’re going in.”
A saleswoman approached, but Clay dismissed her since he could see his baby girl was going to combust with embarrassment. He just started pulling out things he liked.
Eve whispered, “Clay, my ass will never fit in these things.”
He lifted his sunglasses to the top of his head. “These garments are not fine enough to grace your ass, but they’re a start. Come.” He took them to a dressing room and had her try on several cheeky panties and thongs, asking her to turn and pivot and even bend over. Smiling, he assured her that she looked great, and she started to uncoil and get into her role as his seductress.
“God, you fill them out perfectly.”
The last thing she tried on floored him. Since they were purchasing the garments—all of them—he made her try on a skimpy thong and bra that barely contained her, his, assets. The bra didn’t cover her nipples and the thong was hardly anything and what was there was sheer. He pulled her up next to him so he could whisper in her ear.
“We aren’t going to make it to Florida without stopping at the next hotel we see. You’ve made me painfully hard, and I’m leaking into my shorts.” He pulled the tags from the matched set she was wearing and gathered up the other items. “Get dressed; meet me at the door.”
He went to pay for the lingerie, and the clerk who had approached Eve earlier wrapped up the purchases. When she got to the tags with no clothes attached, she said, “So I take it you liked what you saw.” Her brow arched as her eyes slid down his neck and across his chest and arms and then traveled further south.
He thanked God for the counter that hid the aching hard-on that Eve had put there. “In thirty-five years, I’ve never seen anything as beautiful as my girl in lingerie.”
He heard the rustle of bags next to him and turned to see his beauty with her face aflame. He relieved her of the bags that weighed her down and unfolded his arm to her. She sidled up to him like she’d been his for ten years, and he loved that, liked that she knew she belonged with him. Loved knowing that she was his. His girl didn’t play games, she was honest and open.
He kissed the top of her head, and she yawned. “Hey, sleepyhead, don’t get tired on me. We’ve still got to get shoes and sunglasses, maybe a funny straw hat.”
She smiled up at him and playfully swatted at his chest.
They left the store, and he carried the bags in front of his boner. They shared an orange smoothie and while they were seated next to each other, he started when he felt Eve’s hand grip him. He’d been hard since her fashion show, and the thought of what she wore under her tank and shorts prevented him from softening any at all. He turned in her direction, stunned at the touch she was giving him in such a public place. No one could see, but he had no idea his girl was an exhibitionist. She closed the gap between them and leaned in to whisper in his ear.
“I want to take care of you.”
She angled her head to give him access to her ear for his reply. “Here in the smoothie shop?”
“No. I was thinking your truck.”
“Done.” Clay stood and once again collected their purchases. There was a state park where he fished not far from their current position—fifteen minutes, he suspected. He’d drive them there.
Eve sat so close to him that he could feel her warmth through his clothes. He had his hand on her thigh and started to rub the sheer material of her underwear. His heart was pounding in his chest.
“The cashier was flirtin
g with you. I heard what you said to her.”
Was this the part where she turned into a crazy jealous female? He took his eyes from the road and searched her face, her eyes. She was smiling sweetly, no sinister, scheming, jealous female there.
“You… liked it?”
“Who wouldn’t love that! It made me feel pretty and wanted and totally yours.”
“You are all of those things.”
She rubbed his thigh. “When you park us, I’m going to show you how much you mean to me.”
Clay pushed the accelerator to the floor and prayed he wouldn’t get pulled over.
He drove into the park up to the water’s edge and did a quick check around. They were alone. He slid them over to the passenger’s side of the large truck and pushed the seat as far back as possible. Eve knelt between his legs, and he stripped off her shirt as she slid out of her shorts. Her tits spilled over the top of the sheer bra. The flimsy string holding together her thong was killing him, and so he grabbed it, snapped it, and slid the pieces through the fleshy lips of her cunt.
She gasped and looked down. “Hey, those were brand new.”
Clay held them in his white-knuckled grip. “Fuck, I’m sorry. I’ll buy you a case of them if you like.”
She bit her lower lip as her hands pulled his belt free of his pants and started in on his zipper.
“It’s okay. I like it when you don’t hold back.”
She didn’t know what she was saying; if he didn’t keep in check, he’d break her.
No, he refused to think like that and pushed the thoughts deep back into his mind. It was easy when her hand snaked into his shorts and beneath his hot flesh to cup his balls.
He watched as she pulled him forward so that his butt hung off the seat, and then she mounted him and spread her legs right before his eyes, giving him a shot of her gorgeous pink flesh. Her legs rested on each side of his hips, & she placed her hands, with most of her weight, behind her on his thighs. He could see all of her, including the tightly coiled ring of muscle that he’d love to fuck but knew would require more time and trust. She watched him watching her and slid her index and middle fingers down to her lips to spread them to reveal her cotton-candy pink center. He growled, surprising himself with the sound of a feral animal. He was dying for a taste, but he was determined to let her lead. Yet, when she started to masturbate right before his eyes, he was gone—his cock started weeping and his fingers were sucked in to her channel, first one, then two. He maintained a rhythm that was slow and steady as she massaged herself to orgasm.
After she climaxed, she placed her hands behind her again and used her leverage on his thighs to thrust her hips forward so that her heat rested on his balls. “Feed me your cock.”
At her words, his cock twitched. Her eyes had gone liquid pewter again. He lifted his warm shaft and placed the tip at her entrance while she opened herself with her fingers. When she was satisfied, she removed her fingers and took him in slowly. He watched as her juicy cunt swallowed him up and was astonished at how her little body took all of him, as if she’d been made to fit him. She used her hips to ride him and pulled back all the way to the tip before sliding forward to swallow him again. She moaned and grunted with her efforts. When he thought she’d taken him to the root, she pivoted her hips forward and he sank in at least a half inch deeper. In this position, he could see how full he stuffed her—she was completely impaled and at his mercy. She moved like she was bewitched and her eyes never left his; back and forth, the hypnotic movement of her hips and her mewling had him ready to blow.
“I’m going to come, baby, but I’ll wait for you.”
He massaged her clit, and they exploded together in his truck that smelled of sex and sweat and rain. Clay no longer needed air to breathe because he was swimming in a sea of her scent. Nothing else existed, no sights or sounds. There was only the rubbing of her flesh against his cock and him pouring himself out into her heat.
Time disappeared. Only pleasure remained. Exquisite pounding, pulsing pleasure.
Moments later, eons later, when he regained a sense of self, of time and place, he realized he held Eve by the waist and was using her as his very own rag doll, roughly driving her up and down his cock and bellowing expletives into her face. He abruptly released her, then grabbed her again when she swayed. He squeezed his eyes shut. Rain pelted the metal roof of the truck and glass of the windshield, competing with their gasping breaths. He opened his eyes, needing to see what he’d done to her in his lust.
He wiped at his sweaty face before reaching to pull her close.
“God, Eve, are you okay?”
“Mm-hmm.”
“Did I hurt you? I’m sorry, I guess I blacked out for a second.”
When he saw the marks that marred her perfect alabaster skin, his own flesh begin to burn.
“Look what I’ve done.”
His fingers lightly traced the marks left by his brutal grasp. He sat up with her still straddling him and drew her close while his hands delicately rubbed her back. When they were cheek to cheek he whispered, “Why didn’t you stop me?” He stroked her hair & kissed her forehead.
“I didn’t want to stop you. I want to give you what you need.”
“No, goddammit, Eve.” He looked into her eyes as her brows furrowed. “I can’t ever lose control with you. Not ever.”
She cupped his cheeks and kissed his lips. “I sense you needing something more whenever we make love. I want to be what you need.”
“You’re that and so much more.”
A tap on the window had them scrambling.
“Fuck.” Thank God the windows were fogged over. Clay reached for a blanket he kept in the back seat and covered her with it. He leaned back to buckle his pants and threw his T-shirt over his head. “Stay here and dress while I speak with the park ranger.” He kissed her chastely on the lips.
*
She closed her eyes, remembering, reliving, the moment Clay lost control. She’d never been so overwhelmed, so satisfied. She wished he’d allow himself to let go more often. It not only fulfilled a need of his, it pleased her beyond measure. She wasn’t about to let him hold back now that she knew what pleasure he was capable of.
She understood his fears. That he would hurt her, but she wasn’t a tulip and he needed to understand that. Sometimes she felt he held back because of the abuse she’d endured in her past. The thing he failed to realize was that she trusted him completely. She hadn’t even known trust was possible after what she’d been through but it was and she did. And now when she thought of her past it seemed as if she were viewing someone else’s life instead of her own. The memories were strange because before, when she’d remember, she’d also feel. She’d feel the burn on her skin, the stings on her face, the kicks to her side, but all that had diminished and now she remembered as an onlooker instead of an active participant.
She could hear him talking and laughing with the park ranger.
Clay had given her a precious gift. She’d pinpointed when her painful memories had become weakened. It was after they’d made love that first time, during the storm.
His smoky baritone voice lulled her in to a state of perfect calm.
*
The ranger was a buddy of his and to Clay’s relief, knew better than to make any suggestive comments. He wasn’t sure he’d be able to hold it together after what just happened. After what Eve had said.
She’d sensed his need. She wanted to meet that need.
He didn’t know what to do with her admission.
When he hopped back into the truck, she was innocently staring at him, her gray eyes wide. “Are we in trouble?”
Her question elicited a laugh from him. He cupped her cheek in his hand. “No, babe, he’s an old buddy of mine. Just told him we were taking a break before hitting the road.”
“Taking a break?”
She folded her arms across her chest and pushed back deep into the passenger seat.
“You want me to tell
him you were fucking me blind?”
“Of course not.”
“All right then, why are you pouting?”
“I’m not pouting.”
“You are if it’s my perception you are.” He put the truck in reverse.
“Oh?” Her brow rose. “I guess you’re an ass then.”
He put the truck in park and pulled her to his lap despite her struggling protests. He leaned in and kissed her swollen lips. “Is this our first argument?” He pushed the hair away from her face so he could look at her. So he could see into her soul.
“What I wanted to tell him but couldn’t is that you satisfy me completely. The things you do with your little body bring me as close to heaven as I’ll ever be. It’s never been anyone but you, Eve.”
She purred, snuggling into his arms. “I forgot what we were talking about. Mmm, you smell good.”
Her eyes were glassy, and he appreciated the immediacy of her need for him. He laughed again. “We better go before he comes back.” She slid next to him and buckled her belt. After about thirty minutes she fell asleep on his shoulder, her soft sighs comforting him.
Comfort from a sleeping woman? He would’ve called them a liar if anyone had told him he’d ever feel that way. But now that he’d found her—the woman perfect for him—he never wanted to live without her.
Clay pulled into another shopping complex and gently maneuvered his shoulder out from under her. He left her sleeping as he went inside. He hadn’t been joking about the straw hat. Her skin was fair and she was blond, so he’d get a strong sunblock for her too and some other provisions. When he returned to the truck, she was just waking from her nap and she greeted him with a sleepy smile. He reached into one of the bags and removed an oversized floppy straw hat and placed it on her head.
“Hey!” She positioned the hat to her liking and smiled wide, giving him an impish wink from under the brim. “Thanks.”
“I got you a pair of sunglasses too.” He handed those over and she tried them on. With the accessories covering half her face, she looked like a movie star. Except she was way too fresh with her innocent smile. She was so young and she’d said she’d never been anywhere. He wanted to give her everything she should have been given or expected in life and love. He just needed to be sure he didn’t fall short.