Swagger

by Liz Lincoln

  Forcing herself not to be embarrassed by his blunt conversation, she turned to her nightstand and checked the drawer. Four condoms. If they somehow used all of those in the next twenty-four hours, she was certain she wouldn’t be alive, let alone able to have sex a fifth time.

  “We’re all good.” Bree tossed one condom onto the bed. Easier than having to dig for it in the moment.

  He yanked off the shirt. Colorful tattoos curved over his broad shoulders, but she was too interested in other things to take time to inspect them. Later, once the hunger stopped clawing at her so intensely.

  “Just one?” The right side of his mouth quirked up, bringing out his gorgeous dimple. At the same time, he raised his left eyebrow. Holy crap. How did he even do that in the first place? And why, when it should look comical and ridiculous, was it so damn sexy?

  “Seems like a good place to start. But there’s three more if we need them.” Bree tried to make her voice as light and flirtatious as his expression. Inside, she felt anything but light and flirtatious.

  Besides the panic trying to push its way into her mind, her body felt hot and heavy and so, so ready for this. She stepped back into his embrace, wrapping her arms around his chest. She pressed a kiss to the base of his throat.

  He let out a long, appreciative sound. “I love how your hands feel on me.” His own hands came around her back, smoothing over her skin, touching her everywhere. One came up to cup her cheek and tilt her head so she looked up at him. “I need to know you’re positive this is what you want.” Gone was his flirtation. His expression was serious.

  “So much.” She didn’t just want it. She needed it. He needed him.

  “I don’t want there to be any regrets.”

  “I promise. No regrets.” She couldn’t possibly explain to him how much this night meant to her. Not because she was hooking up with the football player she’d had a crush on since he joined the team. Marcus wasn’t that guy anymore. That guy had been a fantasy, not much different from a character on a TV show or in a book.

  But this man standing before her, looking at her like he was going to devour her, was very real. He had gone from a sports icon to a human being. More important, he was her friend.

  God did she want him.

  “I just have to be sure.” He smoothed her hair out of her face, his touch light, as if she were precious. “I know I already said it, but I can’t be the reason you get in trouble at work.”

  “No one has to know. Besides, I’m already on my advisor’s shit list.” She refused to think about Bryant right now. He didn’t deserve to be part of this.

  “We can definitely come back to that if you want. But not right now.” He slid his hand into her hair and pressed his lips gently over hers.

  The kiss was so soft, so tender and sweet, it nearly broke Bree. “Marcus,” she whispered.

  “I love the way you taste,” Marcus breathed over her cheek as his lips tickled her skin, making a path to her ear.

  She tilted her head to the side to give him better access. He took her earlobe between his teeth and bit down just hard enough to send a sting across her skin. The sensation made her arch into him and clutch his back. It felt amazing.

  “You like that?”

  “Yes,” she gasped.

  “Show me what else you like.”

  “You. Anything you do to me, I like.”

  Marcus groaned into her ear. His hands found the clasp on her bra and yanked and twisted until it popped open. “That’s good. But I want to know what you like the most.”

  Bree tried to think, but his hands moving up and down her now-bare back made her thoughts foggy. So she braced her hands on his waist and stepped back.

  She wiggled her shoulders until her bra straps slid down her arms and the garment dropped to the floor. Marcus’ attention dipped to her breasts, and watching his face turned her on even more.

  “Beautiful.” The heat in his gaze said he wanted to pounce.

  No man had ever looked at her like that before. Sure, they’d looked at her with lust, with desire; other men had wanted her. But no one’s expression had said he would die if he didn’t get a taste of her skin.

  Marcus dragged his attention back to Bree’s face. “Can I touch you?” he asked, voice strangled.

  “You can assume you have carte blanche to do whatever you want to me. I’ll tell you to stop if I don’t like something.”

  “Just want to be sure.” His hand came up and cupped her breast, lifting it. They both groaned.

  Because her knees were no longer steady, Bree again stepped away from him. She lowered herself to the bed, scooting back until her head was on the pillow. Bending one knee, she held her hand out to Marcus. He took it and let her pull him down on top of her.

  His mouth reached her first, taking hers in their hottest kiss yet. Next, his hips settled against hers, then his chest. Finally, his hand came back to her breast, gently massaging until his fingers found her tight nipple. He pinched and rolled, sending pleasure shooting through her whole body. And of course, everything centered between her legs, where he pressed intimately against her. He was wearing nylon athletic pants, which did little to hide his erection as he pressed into her.

  Overwhelmed by all the sensations rocketing through her, Bree tore her lips away, gasping for air. She pressed a kiss to his shoulder. “So good.”

  “Yes,” Marcus said into her throat.

  She felt ready to come, already, and she was still wearing her shoes. They were both fully clothed from the waist down. That needed to change.

  Trying to get her feet together, she wrapped them around one of Marcus’ legs, then went to work toeing off her slip-on sneakers.

  Marcus lifted his head and propped himself on one elbow. “What are you doing?”

  “We still have our shoes on.” She smiled, because, well, it was kind of absurd.

  Marcus chuckled and drew himself down her body, his tongue leaving a trail along the center of her chest. He pressed a hot, open kiss to her belly button, then twisted to the side to sit on the edge of her bed. She watched as he yanked off his socks and shoes, loving the way his dark skin seemed to ripple as he moved.

  She considered sitting up and running her tongue over each of those delicious-looking ridges of muscle or tracing the lines on his shoulder of what looked like a dragon, but then he turned back to her with that sexy, sexy smile, and moved until he was hovering over her on all fours.

  “I can’t decide if I should kiss your gorgeous tits or strip you naked.”

  Bree had never been a big fan of the word tits, but coming from Marcus, when he said it about hers, it turned her temperature up another ten degrees. This man could probably turn her on while plunging a toilet.

  “I mean, I’m in favor of either. Both eventually.”

  He grinned, and his gaze dropped to her breasts.

  “I gotta have that.” His head came down, his mouth found her nipple, and he pulled it inside. And sucked.

  Hard.

  Bree closed her eyes and arched into him, riding the wave of pleasure that rolled through her.

  “Gentle? Hard?” he murmured, her breast still in his mouth.

  “Yes,” she moaned. “All of that.”

  His chuckle sent a vibration through her chest that shot down to her clit, and she moaned again. And again. She couldn’t stop making sounds of pleasure, she felt so good.

  His hand came up to her other nipple and began to toy with it the way he had before. His multilevel assault of sucking and pinching and biting and squeezing sent Bree nearly out of her mind.

  Once he had her panting and begging, Marcus dragged his mouth across her chest to her other breast. “I want to make you come,” he said against her fevered skin.

  “That…” She couldn’t find the breath to speak. What were words? “Okay.”

  Marcus took her wrist and placed her hand on her free breast. “You take care of that.”

  Wait, what? Take care of, as in she
should play with her nipple? The idea made her impossibly wetter. But she’d never actually touched her own breasts in front of a man. She had plenty of experience touching herself, but always alone.

  Without realizing it, her fingers had already gone to work. They couldn’t match the sensation of Marcus’ teeth, but it still felt so good.

  Meanwhile, his hand had gone to her waistband. He undid the snap of her jeans, slid down the zipper, then pushed his hand inside, on top of her underwear. He cupped her, and she arched into him, hating the cotton barrier between. “No.”

  His hands stilled, then started to retreat. “Sorry.”

  Bree quickly grabbed his wrist. “That’s not what I meant.” Lifting her hips, she shoved her jeans and underwear down her thighs as far as she could reach, then she placed her hand over his and directed it back between her legs. “I meant no to underwear.” She used his hand to cup her once more.

  They groaned in unison as her hips reached up to meet him. “Yes,” she exhaled.

  “So good.” Marcus scraped his teeth along her breast, then sucked her nipple hard. At the same time, he ground the base of his palm into her, just above her clit.

  Bree’s hips shot off the bed and she cried out. He did it again, and she rocked up to meet him. Within seconds, they had established a rhythm, him grinding against her as she lifted to meet him; all the while, he teased one breast while she played with the other.

  Bree wanted to spread her thighs, wanted to open wide for him, but the constriction of her jeans prevented it. She let out a moan of both pleasure and frustration.

  Marcus seemed to understand she needed something more. His hand dipped lower and one thick finger slid inside her.

  “Sooo good.”

  “More?” He began moving in a circle as his finger thrust in and out of her.

  “More,” she agreed. She managed to wiggle her jeans down past her knees, then bent her legs so her feet were flat on the bed. She could spread wide for him, a kinky variation on the butterfly pose.

  Marcus slid in a second finger, which immediately hit the spot inside that drove Bree crazy.

  “Yes!” she screamed.

  Actually screamed. Had she ever screamed during sex before?

  Probably not, given she’d had a roommate ever since she lost her virginity. She was always conscious of being quiet. But tonight, there was no reason. She could scream as much and as loudly as she wanted.

  “That’s it, baby. Come for me.” Marcus again switched breasts, his hand never losing its rhythm between her legs.

  She was close. So close. She could taste the orgasm in the back of her throat, wild and sweet. Pleasure bloomed out from her center, making her limbs shake.

  “So good,” she gasped. “Marcus. So good.”

  All in the same instant, Marcus sucked hard on her nipple, scraped his teeth along the skin beside it, twisted his fingers deep inside her, and rolled his palm in a hard circle against her clit.

  And she broke.

  Chapter 12

  For one beautiful, free moment, Bree was completely outside her mind. She didn’t care about anything except the amazing sensations rolling through her.

  Pleasure. Completion. Total release.

  Somewhere in the distance, Marcus’ deep voice coaxed her along. Her hand stroked his head, linking herself to him. He was the only part of the physical world she wanted to exist. Because he had given her this gift.

  Slowly, as the aftershocks still surged through her, Marcus withdrew his hand and slid it up her belly. He nuzzled at her throat, his breath hot, his words unintelligible but comforting.

  “That was so good,” she managed to breathe out.

  “Good.” His voice was like a purr in her ear. “You’re so sexy.”

  She arched and stretched, languid like a kitten. Completely satiated.

  Yet when she ran her hand down his tense arm, then opened her eyes to look into his, the hunger was back. She’d had only a taste of what they could be together. She wanted everything. And the dark, tense look on his face said he wanted the exact same thing.

  “Where’s the condom?” she asked.

  “You ready now?” Marcus asked. “Take a minute if you need it.”

  Bree shifted her feet, trying to kick off her jeans. She didn’t want those restricting her movement once he was inside her.

  Marcus slid down the bed, his hand trailing enticingly along the side of her body. “I got you.”

  He sat on the edge of the mattress and worked off her jeans and panties. Her socks disappeared too.

  She was naked.

  She felt intensely vulnerable, somehow more so than when he’d had her breast in his mouth and his hand buried between her legs. The way he looked over the length of her, hungry, like he wanted to devour her, was exhilarating and terrifying. She already cared more for this man than any she’d been to bed with in years. With her career in flux, that couldn’t be a good thing. It was a bad idea to get attached.

  But at this point, she’d be damned if she was going to turn him away. She wanted it too much. She deserved just one night with him. Tomorrow she could deal with consequences and fallout.

  The one thing she was certain that she would not have to deal with was regret.

  He stood and shucked his pants and shorts so fast she didn’t even have time to figure out where he fell on the briefs/boxer briefs/boxers spectrum. But who cared, when his gaze devoured her like that?

  Naked and glorious, his cock curving up toward his belly, Marcus crawled up Bree’s body, again settling above her on all fours.

  She had to touch him. Her mouth watered, wanting to taste him. Maybe they could try that later. Right now, she had other things planned for his cock.

  She wrapped her hand around his girth—impressive, but not excessive—and squeezed.

  He let out a long, low groan, and gently thrust into her hand. He rocked back and forth, and she couldn’t help thinking maybe that wasn’t the most comfortable. So she took her hand away, thoroughly licked her palm, then resumed stroking him.

  “Jesus, baby, that’s so good.” He stared down at where her hand wrapped around him, watching with a mesmerized expression.

  He sucked in a sharp breath, almost a hiss, and jerked back. “No more.”

  He felt around near Bree’s head and came away with the condom. Raising an eyebrow, he held it up.

  “Yes,” she said, half begging.

  He tore open the wrapper and tossed it aside on the bed, then rolled the latex down his straining length. Kneeling between her legs, where she could see all his glorious muscles, his condom-covered cock standing at attention, Bree had never been more turned on than at that sight.

  But it was his face that did her in. His eyes. He was in shadow, the overhead light making his lashes look impossibly long over his dark, dark eyes. Intense eyes. Starving eyes.

  And lips she needed to taste again. She reached for him, unable to reach his shoulder from her prone position. She settled for his elbow and yanked him toward her.

  Within moments, their tongues and limbs and skin and sweat were mingled. One groan led into the next as the pleasure grew higher and higher. Neither seemed to need to touch the other in any particular spot, their hands simply roaming everywhere they could reach.

  Through it all, Marcus’ cock lined up perfectly against her clit, sliding through her wet heat, making her desperate to have him inside her. To fill her.

  “Please, Marcus. I need this.” To emphasize her words, she spread her thighs wider, wrapping her legs all the way around him and sliding her feet up the backs of his calves.

  “Jesus, you’re going to be the death of me. And I won’t even care.”

  He pulled back slightly, sliding once again through her folds, until he found her entrance. He rolled his hips in several circles, teasing her with the tip of his cock.

  She arched her back and whimpered, trying to draw him further inside. But every time she succeeded for a moment, he would
pull back farther.

  “Please, Marcus,” she begged. “I need you. Now.”

  “Well, who am I to deny you that?”

  With a long, slow slide, he began to enter her. Halfway, he paused, letting her stretch to accommodate him.

  He already felt so good. Bree was full in a way she hadn’t been in far too long. She clung to his hips and urged him to come in all the way. She tilted her hips up to give him better access, and he slid the rest of the way home.

  Once he was fully buried inside her, he laced his fingers through hers and bent to give her the gentlest of kisses. He nibbled at her lower lip, soothing each nip with his tongue.

  “You feel so fucking good,” he bit out.

  Bree spread her legs impossibly wider, accommodating his size. He wasn’t huge, but her pussy was tight from months of solo use.

  “So do you.” Her voice was so breathy it didn’t sound sincere. So she tried again. “I don’t know if I’ve ever felt this…full.”

  “I’m afraid to move.” Nevertheless, Marcus rolled his hips in a way that caught her clit, sending pleasure spiraling out to the very tips of her fingers and toes.

  “Please,” she said, her voice less forceful than she would’ve liked, but better than the airy quality it seemed to have taken on.

  “Fair warning, baby, when I start fucking you, it’s gonna be hard, it’s gonna be fast, and it’s not gonna last.” Marcus’ expression was deadly serious.

  “Then fuck me.” She stared at him. “You promised you would.”

  “I suppose I did.” He punctuated his words with a slow withdrawal, then a hard thrust back into her.

  “Yes,” Bree gasped.

  “Oh hell,” he moaned, tense and still once more.

  “Just like that. Please.” She couldn’t stand his stillness for another second. She squeezed his hands tightly, digging her nails into his skin.

  With a harsh groan, he started to move in earnest. His mouth sealed over hers, his hips advancing and retreating, his cock sliding in and out of her body in a perfect rhythm. It dragged along her G-spot on the way out and caught her clit on the return.