“Oh my God, you’re so hard, Tommy!” I cry out, shivering under the throes of another gorgeous wave. “I’m cumming again! I’m cumming so hard! Keep going. Don’t stop!”
He smirks, his tongue coming out a little. “You like that? You like that more than you like it with Brendan?”
My eyes flicker at the reminder, a stab of loyalty piercing the fun. Tommy realizes his mistake, and changes speed to compensate and bring me back. He undulates his hips in this slow and steady Salsa dance move, pushing in one hip and then the other, over and over again. It’s makes me go ballistic with one of the hardest, most mind-bending orgasms I’ve ever had. I scream, my hips lifting up and down, jerking, like they have a mind of their own. My raging climax throws him over the edge, and he groans low and long, yelling out at the end like a beast, not giving a fuck who hears him. He’s holding his cock deep inside me while we pant, recovering, glancing at each other through half-closed eyes, smiles on both of our faces.
“We showed him,” I say on a sexy, low laugh, before I can stop myself.
Tommy’s eyes light up and he laughs, pulling out of me and releasing my legs to hang off the side of the bed. “Yeah, we fuckin’ did.”
He ambles to the bathroom, his shirt hugging the muscles of his back as he walks, his ass round and high. I want to bite it. He leaves me to myself for a minute as he closes the door to tend to things. I look down. The lace dress is still on me, only now it’s a long-sleeved, see-through midriff top. I stand to adjust it and cover myself, but decide, fuck it, and pull it all the way off, my breasts and hair falling with gravity as I toss it on the floor. It served its purpose well.
Glancing to the dying fire, I go to it, wearing nothing but sweat, to bend and throw another log on, just as the door to the bathroom opens and Tommy comes out. “Wow.”
Glancing over my shoulder, I lock eyes with him, so grateful for the look in his. It makes me feel beautiful. “What?”
“You’re stunning.”
On a small smile, I toss the log in and rise, turning to face him. “Thank you.”
“No, really. You’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen, Rebecca.”
I can see he means it. It’s not just flattery. I walk to him and stand close, glancing to the shirt. “You want to take this off?” I say, reaching to touch it, a sultry smile on my lips.
His eyes flicker. “I can’t. I have to go.”
“What?”
He looks unhappy as he says, “Yeah. I’m sorry.”
I step away. “Then go.” I walk to the closet and pull out the complimentary white terry-cloth robe. He’s silent as I put it on, but I don’t meet his eyes again until I’m completely covered, my head held high, my emotions cloaked.
His eyes are troubled as he puts on his pants. “I want to stay.”
I shrug, hurt, but refusing to show it. He saw it for a heartbeat. I know he did. But I’ll be damned if I let him see it again. “No. You can leave.”
He walks to me and stops just short of touching me. “I want to stay. I really do. But I can’t.”
I laugh a jaded, pained laugh. “Great. First Brendan leaves me for a girl he just met, and now you.”
Tommy’s eyes register Brendan’s name with a flash of anger, the same look I’ve seen on Brendan’s face about Tommy, many, many times. “Okay. Whatever.” He walks away from me and says over his shoulder, “But he didn’t just meet her. He’s known her since college.”
Confused, I blink, taking this in this odd piece of information. “She said they just met on the night of the robbery. He said it, too.”
Tommy shakes his head, pouring a glass of wine and taking a sip without offering me any. “Well, then they’re lying to you. She went to State with us. She was a fucking freak, one of those Goth weirdos. But she was at a bunch of parties with us. Believe me, he knows her. Just now, he knows her a little better.”
I step away, my mind working fast. Pulling the belt tighter on the robe, I whisper, “Do you think she remembers him?”
Tommy laughs. “Are you kidding me? The way she stared at him whenever he was around, I’d say she’s been in love with him since all the way back then. There was this one time, we were at a party with Sara – his girlfriend – and she and Sara ended up talking by accident, waiting in line for the bathroom. I looked over and there was such a look of envy on her face, I laughed out loud. It was pathetic.”
I turn around and hold out my hand. He steps forward and gives me his glass. “So, it’s him who doesn’t remember.”
Tommy watches my face and thinks about it, not sure what I’m gaming at. “Probably doesn’t. A lot of girls have come and gone. And she looks nothing like she used to. I just have a thing with faces. And her eyes. She’s got…”
He stops talking at my look. “Well, I wish them well,” I smile, holding up my glass and covering up the elation whipping through my veins. “I’m sorry you have to go. But it was fun.”
He blinks. “I don’t want to go.”
I step forward and give him my best act, appealing to his ego that I wish he didn’t have to go, and I’ll miss him, etc. We kiss for the first time, the taste of toothpaste on his tongue – thankfully – and he pulls me in close with only his right arm, angling to keep his left shoulder away from me. I want to say something about how Brendan’s hurt on his right side, and with the two of them, they’d make one whole man – the perfect man for me – but I keep these thoughts to myself.
“I want to see you again,” he whispers against my lips.
“I’d love that,” I say, not sure if it’s a lie.
“Yeah?” He searches my eyes, wanting to believe me.
I nod and press my lips to his. “You know what I’d love? I’d love to come back here for a weekend with just you and me. When you don’t have to rush off. Let’s plan it.”
Hook line and sinker, he believes me. “Done. And maybe I can come visit you in Arizona.”
My smile spreads into a sexy, happy grin. “Really? You’d like to?”
“Fuck yes.” He kisses me, our tongues dance around, but I feel nothing because my mind is on telling Brendan the truth about little miss bright-eyes.
He puts on his shoes and gathers his things. “I’ll call you over the next couple of days and we’ll set it up.”
“Thank you so much for coming over, Tommy.”
“It was the only place I wanted to be. Talk soon.”
“Bye.” I close the door and lock it, resting against it as I smile.
She’s been lying to Brendan. And we all know how much he loves that. She’s toast. Finally, I have the answer.
Heart racing with excitement, I make a beeline for my luggage to get dressed.
23
Annie
Every Door: opened for me. Except for my car, but he’s wounded, come on.
________
“Oh man, it’s so good to be home,” Brendan says on a long exhale as he locks the door behind us. We walk from the hallway into the main room of the penthouse, with me in front.
I stop walking. Stunned. “Wow. When’s Donald coming home?”
Brendan eyes me, confused. “Donald?”
“Trump.”
He laughs and lays his hand on my lower back to give me a little push in. There’s a winding staircase going up to an unexpected second floor, in front of us. Right behind it, on the first floor, is a dining room table and before that, a curved, L-shaped couch on a gorgeous rug that must have cost a thousand dollars. I close my hanging mouth and walk to the couch, lowering myself, as my head swings left to right, taking in the masculine opulence. Hardwood Floors. Taupe walls. Simplicity in décor. Art-deco style lamps. The art is minimal and there’s a mirror on the floor, propped against a wall in front of the couch, beside a huge flat-screen television.
He plops the bag of take-out on the coffee table next to a Wired Magazine and calls back to Mark. “Yeah! It’s me. Annie’s here, too.”
Mark pokes his head over the upstairs railing.
“Hey Annie.”
“Hi.” I wave, pretty much speechless.
Mark looks to his roommate. “They let you out early… I take it that’s a good sign.”
Brendan stands, looking up at his best friend. “Yeah. They gave me an M.R.I. and we had to wait for the results. Looks good. The doc said I’d heal better at home.” He walks to the kitchen as Mark’s head disappears. I’m guessing he went back to his room, but it’s interesting to me; that was all the conversation they needed to exchange. Men… I love ‘em.
Bouncing on the couch to enjoy the firmness and quality of the material, I look over my shoulder to see Brendan, but he’s out of eyeline. So I wait, having a hard time believing I’m here, and when he comes back into the room two minutes later, he’s carrying two bottles of Guinness in his left hand, I still don’t believe it.
We smile at each other and I open the bag. “I thought you were getting us plates. I’m glad you didn’t.”
He lays the stouts on the table and sits down beside me, watching as I spread out the food. “I figured since you like burgers over steak, you probably wanted to eat them in the box they came in. But I got the Irish girl her home brew. That was a must.”
“Indeed.” I lean over and kiss him before we chow down, each of us closing our eyes on the first bite of yummy. “Mmmm.”
“So good, right?" He picks a fallen sautéed mushroom off the table and tosses it into his mouth. “This is so much better than the hospital food!”
“Night and day,” I say, with my mouth full of bacon cheeseburger as I reach for a French fry. “This is a beautiful home.”
He glances to me, his mouth stuffed, too. He looks around. “You like it?”
Chewing, I nod and hold my index finger and thumb up with a small space between them, indicating, a little bit.
He swallows, his eyes dancing as he says, “I made such a show of why you should come home with me, wouldn’t it have been hilarious if it was a dump?”
Covering my mouth with my free hand, the other holding a dripping burger, I laugh, nodding. He moves a long lock of hair away from my eyes, putting it behind my ear. I stay still, watching him as he concentrates on getting it right. He meets my eyes and we look at each other, quiet. I look away first and pick up my beer, swallowing before I look over to him again. I know he didn’t move, that he’s still staring at me, but when I meet his dark, blue eyes again, my heart swims in my chest anyway. There’s a depth to his look that is far-reaching. A stillness to his body that is locked in, like he’s really present. I wish I could ask him what I think is happening: are you falling in love with me, too? But I can’t ask, so I reach up to his cheek… and just as I’m about to touch it, the phone beeps in his jacket. I pull my hand back to pick up another fry, trying not to worry if it’s Rebecca.
He pulls out the phone and looks at it. He calls upstairs, “Idiot!”
“What?”
“Mark sent me a text message. It’s nothing.”
“Ah.” Blinking away the awkwardness of being left out of a joke, I take another sip of Guinness.
Brendan hits his knee against mine. “He seems to think you’re something else.”
My heart flips over and it takes me a second to cut my eyes back to him. For once with these guys, I’m on the inside. It’s like the reframed memory, like life has mimicked my imagination and made it real. “Really?” I smile and shrug. “He’s right, you know.”
Brendan laughs. “He also said you’re modest.”
I shrug again. “He’s wrong, you know.”
Brendan grins and shakes his head, a burst of laughter taking him over. We eat until there is only salt flakes and drips of ketchup and BBQ sauce left. “Come on.” He stands up and, watching his body move and his light-hearted face glance back at me, I follow him to the other end of the penthouse. He opens a door and I gasp, stopping centered in the doorframe of his room with him just inside it.
He’s watching my face and he stands back as I walk into the room, astounded by the view, my eyes wide. Floor-to-ceiling windows on three long walls surround his king-sized bed, the skyline of San Francisco lit up in front of us. I turn around and stare at him, breathless. And because I can’t help myself, I joke, “It’s a good thing the nearest building is that far away,” I point my finger to the tallest one. “…because they’re about to get a show.”
His grin switches gears and he walks to grab my hips and pull me in for a kiss. With my hands cupping his face to keep a cool distance between me and his bandage, our lips move together as goosebumps roll down my body, lighting up my arms before my legs. I shiver and pull away slightly, my eyes still closed.
“You okay, Freckles?”
I nod. “Yeah. I’m good.”
“You’re sleeping here… right?”
I open my eyes. “Mmhmm.”
Kissing my cheeks, my nose, and my lips, he says, “I know you’ve got the contractor coming tomorrow.”
I’m breathing him in, and nodding. “Mmhmm.” My fingers slide into the thick waves of his hair and our tongues find each other, teasing and touching slowly… then faster.
“I want to pick you up and carry you to the bed,” he says, huskily.
“Another time.” I lean up to kiss him again and we pull apart and hold hands to walk together to his insanely huge bed.
“Shit!”
I look up at him, surprised by his tone and the ferocious look on his face. He lets go of my hand and takes several angry strides to the nightstand to grab up a woman’s black hair-tie, walking past me to the bathroom where he disappears to throw it away. I watch him, realizing what’s happening and gulping down jealousy. He reappears in the doorway and leans on it, looking from me to the hardwood floor. “Annie…”
“She did that on purpose.”
He nods, his mind on her and not happy about it. His jaw is tight, his teeth clenched. “Look…”
My hands go up and I walk to him. “Wait! No. It’s okay. I know you’re seeing her and probably a lot of other people, too. I get it. You said, no girlfriends. I’m just happy and I really don’t want to think about any of that right now, if that’s okay. Not tonight. Please. Let’s just have one uninterrupted night before reality stops us again!”
He’s staring at me, like he can’t hear me, or doesn’t believe it. “She hit a new low. I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay. She’s probably hurting.”
The cloud in his eyes flickers and he smiles and looks away to the view. “Yeah.”
“Are you?” I can’t believe I just asked that! No, no no… I don’t want to know!
His eyes flick back to me and narrows them, thinking. “No. I think I’ve stopped hurting now.” He walks to me and picks up my chin to kiss me. He pulls back and looks at me. “No more interruptions.”
24
Rebecca
My hands: viciously grabbing up purse.
My eyes: scanning for room key.
Annie: history.
________
I walk to grab it off the table and take a quick swig of the wine. Swinging open the door, I stroll out and head for the stairs, running right into a very surprised Tommy on his way up.
Confused, he asks, “Going somewhere, Bec?”
Stuttering, I throw my hand up to my head. “Tommy! Oh my God. There you are! You’re here.” My heart flutters like hummingbird wings. “I… was just about to go and look for you!”
He turns his head away, side-eyeballing me, suspicious. “Oh yeah?”
I nod, smoothing down my dress and smiling.
“You changed,” he says, looking down at my outfit.
“Did you expect me to wear what I was wearing, outside?” I laugh, blinking away my nerves, and add, remembering, “You said not to call you, so I knew I couldn’t. I had to go get you myself!”
His eyes light up again, and he relaxes. “Oh, yeah. Right. Thank you. So…” He closes the gap between us. “You were going to chase me down, huh?”
I nod, trying to calm m
y heart. “Uh-huh.”
“Well, looks like great minds think alike. Let’s go back inside.”
He kisses me and grabs my hip and turns me around. I walk to the door, reaching into my purse for the room key, my eyes on the door and my mind on Brendan. A slap on my ass wakes me up and I laugh nervously. “Are you staying over then?” I throw a smile over my shoulder as I open up the door.
He nods, his eyes enflamed. “And I want to enjoy a little more of that wine.”
“Great.” I smile and walk in.
25
Annie
If anyone has binoculars, I hope they’re taking notes.
________
We make love in front of the incredible view with me on top of him, the blanket around my waist. Our eyes stay on each other even when the climax takes us over, rushing through us at the exact same, intoxicating time. “We have to start using condoms,” he says, incredulous when we realize that once again, we forgot.
“Oh my God!” I climb off him and land a kiss on his lips before jumping off his bed. “I’ll remember next time, I promise!” I walk into the bathroom, clean up, and come back with a warmed, damp washcloth to clean him off with. “Your bathroom is as big as my living room.”
Lying on his back, naked except for the gauze square on his ribs, he chuckles and watches me climb onto the bed to slowly and sensually clean him off, taking extra care. “That feels so good.” He closes his eyes, his whole body spent, relaxed and gorgeous.
I get up to put the washcloth away again, and from behind me, I hear him say, “Your ass is shaped like a cello. I wanted to tell you earlier. It’s so beautiful.”
Hearts Series Bundle: Books 1-6 Page 31