The Stick Handler

by Cathryn Fox

  “Really?” Becca asks.

  “Luke and I’ve been best friends since kindergarten,” I say, and she makes an aww sound.

  With two more couples eliminated, there are only five couples left. We play a little more, and we answer questions, such as what’s his most annoying habit, or her favorite body part. How he knew my favorite part on a guy was his ass is beyond me. Then again maybe it’s just Luke’s ass that always draws my attention and he had caught me staring at it a time or two. But dammit, the guy looks pretty damn good in his low-slung jeans.

  “Okay, last question,” Veronica says when it’s only Luke, me, Becca and Trey left. She picks the card up and her eyes go wide. “Oh, this is a good one. Okay, how does your guy like to fall asleep. Cuddling, or apart?”

  My mind goes back to all the times we fell asleep, most with me laying over him and listening to his strong heartbeat as he holds me close. I quickly write cuddling.

  “Okay guys, what’s the answer. Both men answer cuddling, and Becca and I laugh as we hold up our answers.

  “I think I’m going to have to find a hard one,” Veronica says. She grabs another card. “Okay, how about this. “What is your wife’s favorite saying, and what is your response?” Luke scribbles something on his paper, and takes a pull from his beer bottle. He seems to be quite pleased with himself.

  “Okay, ladies, what’s the answer?”

  Becca goes first and says, “I’m always saying, what goes around comes around, and Trey always responds with that’s karma.”

  Trey groans and holds up his card, which says, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, and I always say, it ain’t broke because you didn’t touch it.”

  Becca smacks her hand to her forehead, and laughs. “You’re right, I do say that a lot, and that’s how you respond.”

  As the two laugh and kiss, Veronica turns to us. “Okay, for the big prize package which consists of an upgrade to the presidential suite overlooking the ski hill, a helicopter ride, a couples massage at Serenity Spa and a romantic, candlelit rooftop dinner for two, what’s your answer.”

  “That’s why you love me, is something I say a lot, and Luke responds with, you think that’s why I love you,” I say. Luke, catching me by surprise, leans in and plants a kiss right on my mouth. Honest to God, all this public display of affection is so unlike him. He might be a superstar hockey player, but underneath it all he’s a private guy who likes to keep his private life…private. I’m sure it devastated him when Kari splashed his business all over social media.

  I’m a bit breathless when he pulls back and shows me his answer, which was exactly what I said. He lowers his voice to say, “And tonight in the presidential suite, right after you answer me, we’re going to do a whole lot of loving.”

  7

  Luke

  I tip the concierge and thank him for bringing our luggage up. As soon as he leaves and I lock the door behind him, Katee lets out a little squeal, and spins around the massive presidential suite.

  “This place is gorgeous.” She continues to spin, taking it all in. “I mean, the chalet was awesome too, but this place.” She rushes to the window and opens the curtain. “Look at the view, Luke.”

  I step up behind her, press my chest to her back and look out at the snowy peaks glistening beneath the near full moon. “It’s something.”

  “I knew we would win,” she says and claps her hand. “Although I’m not sure how you knew I was an ass girl.”

  I laugh. “You’re pretty transparent, Katee, and I have known you since you were five. A guy picks up on these things.”

  She plants one hand on her hips, and it’s all I can do not to stare at her curvy body. “Well, I know you’re a leg guy.”

  “Oh, yeah?” I say. “How exactly do you know that?”

  “A girl in a short dress and nice pair of heels, and you’re a goner, Luke.” She turns to me, and pokes my chest but I don’t budge.

  I step into her, press my legs to hers. “Maybe it’s only your legs I like.”

  “And maybe it’s only your ass I like.”

  “Is it?” I ask blatantly.

  “Wouldn’t you like to know.” She squirms out from my hold and her eyes go to the rose pedals sprinkled across the bed. “They went all out for us.”

  I’m about to tell her I would like to know, when she folds her arms and hugs herself. Something inside me softens. “Hey, still cold. Fuck, we never should have come here.”

  “The dampness gets right into the bones, doesn’t it?”

  “Maybe alcohol will help warm you up.” I pull the bottle of champagne from the ice bath it’s in, and start untwist the wire cage.

  “Alcohol makes me do lots of things,” she teases.

  “Oh, I know. But don’t worry, I won’t let you do anything you don’t want to do.” I pull the cork, and champagne spills over the edge.

  “Ohmigod,” Katee laughs and grabs us two glasses. I fill them, hand her one, and hold mine up in the air for a toast.

  “What are we toasting to know.”

  “Tonight I’m going to get you warm.” I say and step in to her, letting her know exactly where my thoughts are. “One way or another.”

  The air around us charges, sparks with the new, volatile electricity. I swallow against the suffocating sexual tension as my cock thickens, presses against my unforgiving zipper. I grip my glass tighter as my hands itch to strip her bare and touch her all over. How would she react if I tore her clothes from her body, ravished the hell out of her? I assume one of two things could happen: I’ll either lose a nut, or we’re going to have the best fucking night of our lives.

  Time to find out.

  “What…what did you have in mind?”

  I tip my champagne glass and point to the big Jacuzzi tub in the corner of the room, a skylight on the ceiling over it. “For starters, I’m going to draw you a bath.”

  I cross the room, and following a path of rose petals and bend to fill the tub. I don’t bother removing the petals from the bottom. Roses are her favorite, and they’ll give off a nice fragrance for her bath. I test the water with my hand, and crook my finger.

  She comes toward me, and her breathing is a little deeper than it was moments ago. I sit myself on the edge of the tub, and pull her to me, until she’s standing between my legs. My hands go to the hem of her sweater.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Undressing you,” I say, as I pull the sweater up and over her head, working hard to keep my cool when all I want to do is tear her clothes off, and have my way with her. Give her everything she’s been missing and then some.

  “I’m quite capable of undressing myself, Luke,” she says, but her protest is weak, so fucking weak my pulse jumps in my throat. I swallow and work to keep my cool.

  “I know.” I toss her sweater to the floor, and my gaze goes to her lacy bra. I’ve seen her in it numerous times. Fuck, when she lived with me, all she ever walked around in was her bra and underwear, completely oblivious as to what that did to me. But tonight, oh, tonight she seems just a little more self-aware…and maybe a bit self-conscious.

  She crosses her arms over her chest. “What are you doing?” I ask.

  “I…uh…” she stumbles.

  “I’ve seen you naked, Katee. You don’t have to hide yourself from me.”

  I take her arms and put them at her sides. As I do, I lean into her, and let my hot breath fall over her flesh. Little bumps break out on her skin and she visibly quivers.

  Next, I go to work on the button on her jeans, and by this time, she’s a little less stable on her legs. “Put your hands on my shoulders,” I say. Her cool fingers grip my shoulders, and my dick thickens in response. Fuck, I’m in bad shape here. I pop the button, and the hiss of her zipper cuts through the quiet.

  “I can do that,” she says, but makes no attempt to help me. In fact, her nails are dragging skin as she holds on to me.

  “It was just two days ago you asked me to help you take your pants
off. You didn’t seem to have a problem with me undressing you then.”

  “That’s because they were all wet and I couldn’t get out of them.”

  I shrug. “Doesn’t matter. It’s not like I haven’t undressed you a time or two before, right?”

  “I suppose,” she says, her voice low and aroused. I look her over, read her body language, the way her eyes are glazed with desire, her lids fluttering like mad. Fuck man, she wants this—wants me. I resist the urge to take the gondola to the top of the mountain and scream hallelujah.

  I help her from her pants, and take a moment to gaze at her near nakedness, and just like that my brain shuts down, unable to think of anything but the woman before me. With full breasts, curvy hips, long sexy, streamlined legs, her body is fucking beautiful.

  “You’re so damn perfect,” I murmur.

  She swallows and glances past my shoulders. “The tub is full,” she says, and I reach down and turn off the faucet. She breathes deep. “The rose petals are so aromatic. My skin is going to smell amazing after bathing in them.”

  I can’t wait to breathe her in, but I’m far more eager for a taste. My mouth waters, eager to get between her legs once and for all.

  She looks over her shoulder, takes in the huge suite. “Um, what are you going to do while I bathe?”

  I grin at her. “I’m going to wait for your answer.”

  “My answer?” she says, a stalling tactic because she knows damn well what I’m asking.

  I tug my shirt off. “Actually, I think I’ll get in with you.” I tap the edge of the tub. “It is made for two, and I know how you are about water wastage.”

  Her gaze drops to my chest. “You really want to get in with me?” she asks her voice a low, barely-there whisper.

  “Sure, why not?”

  “Because…” She pulls her bottom lip between her teeth, like she can’t bring herself to say what she really wants.

  I put my hand on her thigh, run my thumb along her soft flesh. “Tell me what you want, Katee,” I say, and her eyes fly to mine. A long pause and then, “If you can’t tell me, show me.” Her pupils expand, bleed into the brown as her pulse beats at the base of her neck. “I…” she begins but then stops and puts her hand on my body. I moan as she splays her fingers, touches me all over, but that moan turns into a growl of need when she slides her finger over my nipple, giving it a little squeeze. My heart jumps into my throat at her nonverbal response. She wants lessons between the sheets. Hot fucking damn!

  I take her hand, bring it to my mouth for a kiss. “You catch on quickly,” I say. “By the end of this week, the men in your bed are going to rock your world. Guaran—fucking—teed.” Except, I hope, if I play this game right, she’ll realize the only man she wants in her bed is me.

  I reach around her, and in one smooth motion, unhook her bra. A little gasp catches in her throat. “That was pretty easy for you,” she says as she folds one hand across her breasts, holding her bra to her body.

  “Like I said, I’m good with my hands.”

  “And your stick,” she says, then covers her mouth and laughs.

  I laugh with her, but it comes out husky and needy. I angle my head, my thoughts going in a different direction. “You want to see the way I handle my stick, Katee?” I ask. Our eyes lock, hold, and when she doesn’t answer, I tear open my pants. Her head dips and her mouth parts slightly. “Well, do you?”

  “I…yes,” she whispers.

  “I like when you’re honest like that.”

  “I’m always honest, that’s what you love about me.”

  I grin. “I’ll show you the way I handle my stick, but remember, it’s tit for tat. You watch the way I touch myself and later, I get to watch you.” Her eyes go impossibly wide as I kick my pants off and take my throbbing dick into my hand. A little whimpering sound catches in her throat as I fist myself and rub from base to tip.

  “You like that, huh,” I say, a statement not a question as she continues to make sexy sounds and shift her weight from one foot to the next. “You don’t have to answer, Katee. Everything in the way you’re acting tells me you like watching me fuck my hand.” Pre-cum drips from my crown and I dip into it, use it for lubricant. “When I touch your body, those are the noises I want you to make. Talk dirty if you want. I’m your best friend, and this is about making sure you get what you need.”

  “Okay,” she whispers, her lids fluttering as fast as the pulse at the base of her neck.

  “Now drop your arms. I want to see all of you.” She does as I say, and her bra falls to the floor.

  “Motherfucker,” I say and scrub my chin as I take in her perfect breasts, her nipples all puckered and ready for my mouth. I wet my bottom lip, prepare it.

  “Like what you see?” she asks, turning my words back on me and I fucking love the playful side of her.

  I slowly lift my gaze to hers, not wanting to tear my eyes from her body. “Yeah, I do.”

  A little bolder than she was moments ago, she grips her panties, and tugs them down her legs. She stands back up, giving me a perfect view of her bare body.

  “You’re perfect,” I say.

  “No, I’m not—”

  “Hey,” I say, and shake my head no to stop her. “You’re perfect. Got it.”

  “You are too. I want…” She lets her words fall off, but I’ll have none of that. Tonight is all about her, pushing her to ask for what she wants, one way or another.

  “What do you want, Katee?”

  She swings her arm out, and then brings it back to her side. “Can I touch you?”

  “You’ve touched me a million times.” I take my hand from my cock. “You never asked before. Why now?”

  “Because I’ve never touched you here.” She closes her fingers around my dick, and my hips automatically jerk forward.

  “Fuck, Katee. That feels good.”

  “So you think you can make me come, Luke?”

  My dick jumps at her boldness, the blatant way she put that out there. “I know I can.”

  Her lids lift. “Pretty confident. I like that.”

  “I’m going to show you exactly what sex should be like for you. I’m going to fucking worship every inch of you, and make you come so goddamn hard, you might just lose your mind.” Heat dances in her eyes, as her grip on my dick tightens. “I’m going to make you moan, Katee. Better yet, I’m going to make you scream, and you’re going to talk so fucking dirty we might just have to wash your mouth out with soap.”

  “Here I’d rather have something else in my mouth,” she says and I can’t help but laugh as she totally gets into this, ready to have some fun. With her hand still on my cock, she lifts one leg and puts it into the tub. “Mmm, it feels amazing.”

  “My cock or the water?” I ask.

  She chuckles. “Both.”

  Even though I’m ready to follow through with my promises, I need to warm her body, plus a little extra foreplay never hurt anyone. I hold her as she lifts her other leg and climbs in. Her hand falls from my dick, as she submerges to her shoulders. “Plenty of room for two,” she says.

  I slide in behind her and she leans against me. I adjust her a bit, so she’s not crushing my nuts. Her head lifts and she gazes at the stars through the skylight. “A girl could get used to this,” she says as I reach around her, take her breasts into my hands. I rub my thumbs over her nipples and she presses into me. I pinch slightly, and she gasps. I let go, and lightly stroke her pebbled nubs to ease the sting.

  “Katee, there are so many things I’m going to do to you.”

  “Like what?” she asks, her voice shaky as I slide my hand lower, until it’s between her legs.

  “First I want to show you there is nothing wrong with you by giving you a mind-blowing orgasm,” I say, and she takes a fast breath.

  “What if I can’t?”

  I hear real worry in her voice. “You can. I’m going to learn your body, and give you everything you need. I promise you that, and you know I’m a man of my
word.” That gives me pause. Am I betraying her trust by not telling her what I’m really up to? I’m not sure, but I can’t take a chance on losing her if she doesn’t feel the same.

  “I love that about you,” she whispers.

  “Oh, is that what you love about me?” I tease.

  I lightly stroke her folds, then pull them apart. When I touch her clit, her hips lift and she lets loose the sexiest bedroom noise. Nice. “I’m going to spend a lot of time right here,” I say, as her clit swells beneath my touch.

  “Yes,” she whispers. I play with her pussy, and her legs fall open against the side of the tub. Jesus fuck, I can’t wait to get my mouth on her, my cock inside her. But I’ve been wanting her like this for so many goddamn years, I’m sure I’m going to blow my load before we even get started—especially if she gives me one of her porn star blowjobs.

  She grows silky wet beneath my touch and before the water washes away all her lubricant, I ask, “Are you warm now?”

  “Yes,” she murmurs. “I’m hot, actually.”

  I laugh at that. “Good, now let me get you on that bed and heat you up a whole lot more.”

  I stand, and help her from the tub. Water drips down her neck and pools on her nipple. I’ve never seen a sexier sight. She grabs two towels off the fancy gold towel tree and hands one to me.

  She dries herself as she crosses the room, and I can’t help but feel a measure of nervousness now that I’ve set this plan into motions. This is Katee, not some random bunny who sleeps around, and this is a delicate situation. I want to do right by her. Want to give her what she needs while proving how good we can be. I can only hope that by the end of the week, she sees me as more than a best friend.

  Don’t fuck this up, dude.

  8

  Katee

  I reach the bed and turn to see if Luke has followed me. He’s slowly making his way toward me, the intensity of his gaze unlike anything I’ve ever seen before. It burns through me, takes the air from my lungs until I’m a little lightheaded, unsteady on my feet. I hold the towel to my needy body as my skin comes alive, everything in me wide awake and aware that my best friend is a real guy, and right now he has a major erection aimed my way.