by Stella Rhys
And just as quickly, I shoved Hayden away to excuse myself from mine.
Shit, shit, shit, holy shit.
Blood rushed in my ears, loud enough to muffle my heels clacking in a hurry toward the bathroom. My heart was pounding as I rushed down a dim hallway, my mind racing with a million thoughts that all had to do with Lukas.
Frickin’ asshole.
I was humiliated by the scene that just unfolded outside and while Hayden was mostly at fault, I blamed Lukas. He knew he would make me nervous. He probably knew he’d cause some kind of scene and he still came to crash my date.
I hated that.
On that topic, I also hated how I did everything right to avoid distractions like him but then one night, he just happened upon me. I hated that no matter what I did, thought, schemed or said, he always managed to have the upper hand.
But more than anything, I hated that I was unpredictable around Lukas Hendricks. I barely knew him yet he had some kind of hold over me. One look and he had me wanting things I never even thought about before the day we met, and that thought pissed me off more than anything as I finally shoved my way into the women’s bathroom. But it didn’t stop me from letting the footsteps behind follow me in.
“Lia.”
I groaned a culmination of my frustration. “Damn it, Lukas, what are you trying to – ”
I’d barely spun around before he caught the nape of my neck and reclaimed my mouth, his tongue sweeping against mine with unapologetic roughness. My fingers dug into his shoulders as he grabbed a handful of my dress. Fisting it, he pulled me against him, continuing his vicious onslaught against my lips. I could taste his aggression, his urgency and I kissed him back with the same hot desire. My pussy throbbed the instant he dropped his hands to my ass and squeezed. I felt his hot erection press against my belly but before I could lose all control, I pushed away.
“Not here,” I breathed out, my cheeks on fire as he hit me with that steely gaze.
“Tell me what that means.”
I clenched my jaw. “You know what it means.”
“What?”
“That I want you.”
“You’ve wanted me,” Lukas corrected. “What you mean now is that you need me.”
“Fine,” I bit out. “I need you to fuck me. Not him. I’m not going to deny that anymore because I can’t but I don’t want to do it here.” I backed up, overwhelmed as Lukas moved toward me. “I can’t have you touch me again either,” I blurted breathlessly, “because if you do I’ll get tempted and despite the fact that I need to come more than anything in the world right now, I don’t want to have sex in a bathroom at some bar. Not for the first time in this long.” I exhaled and caught my breath. “I have to do it my way. Exactly how I want it.”
“That’s fine,” Lukas said. His stare was heavy on my breasts spilling out of the dress he’d twisted askew on my body. I chewed my lip as I watched him watch me, curious if I could push my luck.
“Also.” My breath went jagged when he flicked those eyes back up at me. “I want you to leave after we leave this bathroom. Take your friends, go to another bar and when you get home tonight, don’t knock on my door. Just wait for me to text you and tell you what I want.”
“Tell me what you want, how you want it. And we’ll do it.” Lukas’s voice came back languid, so thick with lust that what he said next hardly surprised me. “You’ll just have to give me the next two minutes to do whatever else I want to you.” Off my silence, he cocked an eyebrow. “Deal?”
My lashes fluttered. My best bet was to resist and say no but I was way too hot and way too curious, which just about summed up my whole damned relationship with Lukas. So nodding, I murmured, “Okay.”
He wet his lips. “Good. Now turn around.”
Swallowing hard, I did what I was told. My heart thumped against my chest, my sense of touch and sound heightening the moment I stood with my back facing him.
“Walk over to that table.” His voice was soft, husky. “And pull your skirt up for me.”
The shameless demand froze me for a moment. But with one heel in front of the other, I made my way to the vanity, cursing it for having no mirror. I wanted so badly to just look at him. I wanted to see what he looked like watching me as I reached the table. My fingertips skimmed its edge before I worked up the courage to reach down and grab my skirt. Gripping its edge, I peeled it slowly up my thighs, the cold air prickling over my bare skin. I couldn’t see Lukas but with my senses on high alert, I heard him. Barely, but I did catch the breath he sucked between his teeth once I had my dress hiked up to my waist, my ass exposed for him in the white lace thong I’d bought for Hayden.
Come on.
My thighs twitched, my fingers digging into my handfuls of cotton as I waited for his next command. But instead I heard nothing. It was silent for what felt like an eternity as I stood there, once again half-naked for Lukas and aching for his touch.
I almost jumped when I heard a sharp metal click.
The door. He’d locked it. Just knowing that, heat rushed through my veins. “Lukas,” I pleaded. “Tell me what to do next.”
“Bend over. Take your panties off for me.”
I hooked my thumbs in the sides of my thong, biting my lip as I bent over and pulled the lace down to my knees, letting it fall the rest of the way down to the floor. I heard Lukas coming behind me but still gasped when I felt him graze my naked backside as he sank to a crouch.
“Let me have them.”
I stepped out of my thong, peeking down to watch his hands gather it off the floor. I didn’t have to see to know that he’d tucked it into his pocket, and I could hardly breathe as I felt him spread my legs wide, rumbling with approval when I bent over the table without him asking. My cheek pressed against the cold surface as I turned to watch him. But my eyes squeezed shut the second he grabbed my ass and spread it apart, giving no warning before he ran the flat of his cool tongue along my hot pussy.
“Oh my God.” The words barely squeaked out of my throat as my entire body clenched and relaxed, over and over as he buried his mouth against me and licked. He gave me no time to breathe or catch up to what was happening. All he did was pulse his tongue against me, all over me, lapping at me so furiously I could hear the sounds of my wetness slapping every wall of the room.
“Play with your clit.”
I was stroking myself before he even finished his sentence. I heard his sexy laugh behind me as he pulled back to watch for a moment. “God, you get my dick so fucking hard,” he growled, gripping the back of my thigh and squeezing as he slid his palm up to my ass. With a spank and a yelp from my lips he smirked and pushed me back down on the table, lifting my right leg up so that I was spread wider for him now. My knee up next to my shoulder, he went straight to sucking on my clit.
“Lukas!” I cried out and clasped a hand over my mouth. As his tongue bathed my pussy, his thumb gently rubbed against my ass, spoiling and teasing me at the same time. It was such an explosion of clashing sensations that my stomach clenched and before I knew it, I was shaking, relying on his strong hands to keep me in place as I lurched forward and came.
Oh my God.
Oh my God, oh my God.
I stared at the wall as he marveled at the unbelievable wetness of my pussy. My heart pounded against the table as I held onto every last spasm of pleasure shocking my body.
Holy fucking shit. Slowly, I returned both feet back to the ground. That was quite possibly the best two minutes of my life.
Still trembling, I finally breathed, relaxing my grip off the edge of the table and watching the color return to my knuckles. Behind me, Lukas returned to his feet, making a low mm sound as he cupped the back of my leg, ran his palm up my thigh and spanked my ass one more time. Then with a hand fondling my breast, he stood me straight again, holding me against his chest as his free hand pulled my skirt back down my ass. I let my head roll back against his shoulder for a second and closed my eyes, savoring the lasting sensation of what t
he hell he’d just done to me. I only opened them when he turned me gently around, perching me on the edge of the table.
“How do you feel?” His question was teasing but I answered it with complete truth.
“So good,” I breathed out. I stared at his mouth, convinced it possessed some kind of fucking magic. He grinned as he watched me for a moment, clearly relishing the dazed look he’d just put on my face.
“Good,” he finally said, giving his cock an adjustment before nodding out the door. “I’ll leave you alone now. Right?”
I could only nod, my body still buzzing as I watched Lukas head for the door, unlock it and leave.
8
LUKAS
In the morning, I awoke to a charmingly scatterbrained text.
LIA: Actually never mind. Let’s go to dinner first. Yes.
I grinned, having had a feeling that she’d change her mind about the original plan. She’d texted it to me last night while I was at a bar with Emmett, enduring a round of drinks to give her the head start home that she wanted. Hanging out with Emmett was usually torture for a variety of reasons, but last night it had all to do with Lia.
All I could think about was her. Within seconds of leaving her, I wanted more of her. I waited for the feeling to drift off as we moved from the first bar to one of Emmett’s, but it didn’t. I was experienced when it came to the pain of her sexy image haunting me, but last night it was also her scent. Her sounds. Her sweet fucking taste. It had me desperate to just go home, find her and fuck her senseless on her bed. But I’d agreed to let her decide on the plan and according to the text she sent, the plan was for me to show up at her apartment this evening for sex. No strings attached.
I had no problem with that. In fact, I got hard just reading the message but like a masochist, I suggested dinner first. I was skeptical of her ability to dive right in and I wound up right. She’d declined the offer last night but after sleeping on it, clearly she had changed her mind.
ME: Great. I like that plan better. Pick you up at 8?
LIA: 8 is perfect.
I watched the ellipsis disappear and reappear repeatedly as Lia clearly kept typing and deleting whatever was on her mind. But finally, her text came through and it spread the grin on my lip even wider.
LIA: Can’t wait : )
“Lukas. You didn’t. Why?” Tess sounded less than pleased when I confessed my plans for the night.
It was closing in on 2AM where she was but I was hardly surprised to hear her call. Like me, she’d always been a night owl. I blamed our parents. As kids, we refused to sleep till we knew they were home and of course, they were never in a rush. Once Tess and I realized the pattern, we started betting on who could stay awake longer at night. I lost years’ worth of allowance to that girl. Apparently, the kid didn’t need sleep. I grew up convinced of it because every night, without fail, she stayed up till Mom and Dad got home, whether it was one in the morning or eight.
“Lukas. Lukas James Hendricks. Do not ignore me.”
I laughed as I grabbed my phone off the counter and went to the couch. “Sorry. I was getting a drink.”
“Don’t be sorry about that, be sorry about the fact that you’re trying to sleep with my favorite neighbor.”
“You only have two.”
“Yeah, and you’re sleeping with the one I actually like,” she protested. “What happens when you break her heart, Luke? I’m going to come home and she’s going to hate me because I’m associated with the guy who chased her like it was his job and then dumped her once he got her in bed.”
“Christ. You make it sound like I do that often.”
“Dude,” Tess said dryly. “You do. You see a pretty girl, you decide you need to have her and then you get your taste and it’s on to the next. The only ones you sleep with repeatedly are the ones at the office and that’s only because it’s convenient for you.”
“If it makes you feel any better, I’ve spent an irritating amount of time thinking about this girl.”
“I mean you should because she’s awesome and nice and crazy hardworking but that’s historically never mattered for you. I mean I love you, Lukas, but you’re kind of shallow.”
“What? Alright. Take it easy, Tinker Bell.”
She groaned. “I just like her is all.”
“Trust me, I’m in the same boat.”
“Yeah? Name one thing you like about her besides the way she looks.”
“I might be addicted to her voice,” I said. “I can tell she’s fiercely protective of her independence and I find that intriguing.” I paused, taking a drink. “She’s also insanely sexy when she’s pissed at me so I can only imagine what she looks like pleased with me.”
“Well, if you want a shot at finding out you better go,” Tess muttered, annoyed. “It’s five past eight.”
“Shit.” I sprang to my feet. “Talk to you later.”
“Love you,” she grumbled, adding, “dickhead,” before hanging up.
I laughed as I grabbed my jacket and keys. My sister was clearly annoyed with me but I still counted that conversation as a good one. Anytime I could hear her voice sounding crisp and clear with some sort of audible emotion, it was a win. Especially now. It was getting close to the anniversary of the day that turned our lives upside down. We were both known to fall into dark places in the weeks leading up to it but lately, between Lia and the constant drama at work, I had my distractions. Tess, however, had nothing but countryside to stare out at all day and night. But on the bright side, she had Grandma Elodie. At eight-six, the woman still jogged every morning and was still sharp as a whip, so I could definitely take comfort in the fact that she was with Tess, keeping an eye on her at all times.
Though I hoped Grandma Elodie hadn’t overheard that particular conversation. Shallow my ass, I thought as I knocked on Lia’s door.
“Just a minute!” I heard her call from inside.
“Take your time,” I said, quickly replying to the apology text Tess sent me. I was laughing at her text back when Lia finally opened the door. “Sorry, I was just – ”
I shut up once I looked up, her smile snatching the words off my tongue. Shit. Tugging the knot of my tie, I gave her the onceover. God-fuckin’-damn. She looked incredible. The olive green dress stretched over her body was long, skimming her ankles, but it hugged her curves perfectly and gave me a generous hint of leg with the slit up the side.
Judging from the look on her face, she had at least a hunch she looked good.
“Hi,” Lia said, biting her lip as she stepped out into the hall.
“I take it back.”
“What?”
“Let’s go to bed and get dinner after.”
“Shut up,” she rolled her eyes, walking ahead of me down the hall. Christ, that ass. It was tight, round and perfect, and the way her hips twitched from side to side with every step was fucking hypnotizing.
“What if I said please?”
“I didn’t take an hour getting dressed for nothing, Lukas, now let’s go.”
“Hold up.” I grinned at the dry look she was already shooting me. “You took an hour to get ready for me?”
“Yes. I did. I haven’t dated in a long time so sue me for enjoying myself while getting ready.”
I nodded. “So this is a date.”
“No. It’s not a date,” she corrected hastily. “It’s just… foreplay.”
I could feel the dirtiness in my smirk. “I can work with that.”
“Ah, ah, ah,” Lia warned, narrowing those sexy eyes at me. “No funny business while we’re at dinner. I didn’t mean foreplay as in you trying to… touch me under the table.”
“Touch what? You’re not seriously going to be shy with me when I had my tongue in your pussy last night, are you?”
“Lukas!” Lia hissed, covering her face for a moment. “Please do not talk about what happened last night.”
“Why?”
“Because I want to sit through dinner before I ruin my panties,” she
snapped, grinning when I lifted my eyebrows. “They’re new,” she said, her voice softer. “And they’re pretty,” she added with a little smirk.
I gave her a look of warning. “Keep telling me. I’ll fuck you in this hall, Lia.”
“Stop.” Her giggle was half-groan as she stared up at the ceiling, red in the cheeks. “Don’t torture me, Lukas. We’re going to dinner first,” she finally said sternly. “You made a reservation and I bought a new dress. Now are you coming or not?”
“We could both be coming in about fifteen if you let me pin you up on this wall.”
“And for that, you don’t get to touch me at all during dinner.”
My face fell. “Whoa, hey. That’s fucked up,” I said and I meant it. But for the laugh it put on her face, I let it go and followed her with a grin down the hall.
9
LUKAS
I broke the rule fast. Apparently, all it took was some guy staring at her ass for too long.
“Hey. No touching,” Lia reminded me, gently removing my hand from her lower back.
“I feel like there should’ve been a grace period for that,” I muttered. There was a sexy dimple in her cheek as she smiled.
“We would’ve never gotten out the door if there was.”
“Can’t argue that,” I conceded as we followed the hostess to our table.
The restaurant was small, barely thirty seats, and I could count almost half of them having glanced up at Lia as she walked by, oblivious to her own sex appeal in that painted-on dress. Every step she took, every move she made gave me a new angle of her knockout curves and each one chipped steadily away at my self-control. I had to practically meditate the urges away as I held out her chair, watching her smooth her hands over her lap as she took a seat.
“It’s pretty in here,” she smiled, looking around as I sat across from her. “I’ve never been here before. I mean of course I haven’t. I haven’t been to most places yet,” she laughed at herself. “I’m definitely never in the West Village. Or anywhere on the West Side.”