After picking up both of their plates and salad bowls, Cole walked over to the sink and turned the water on cold. It wasn’t a shower, but he hoped it would cool him off.
“So you said that you grew up with your aunt. Do you still see her?” All evening Cole had been careful not to let the conversation veer too far into the personal lane. But, whether he wanted to or not, he would be leaving after he did the dishes, so he knew that this was his shot to find out more about her.
“No,” she replied quietly.
Since he thought she wasn’t going to elaborate on that, he was contemplating whether or not to push it and ask a follow-up question, when she walked over and stood beside him at the sink. She was still holding her wine when she leaned back against the tile countertop. He had the feeling she had more to say, so he remained quiet as he rinsed off their dinner dishes and the pots and pans he’d used to cook.
With her gaze on the checkered flooring beneath her feet, Julianna sighed. “I’ve thought about calling her, but every time I do, I hear her calling me an ungrateful slut and telling me to stay away from her family. Part of me can understand; my cousins were little and they looked up to me. She didn’t want them to come home pregnant at sixteen. But I was seven months pregnant, sixteen years old, I had nowhere to go and she kicked me out on the street at ten o’clock at night.”
Cole fisted his hands in the water. Thinking of Julianna so young, scared, and helpless made him so angry that he could barely see straight. What kind of a person, a family member at that, could do such an unthinkable thing?
“What did you do then?” He tried to modulate his tone. “Where did you go?”
She shrugged, still looking down at the floor as if lost in thought. “I went to Anthony’s dad, Jared. He let me stay at his parents’ houseboat. They didn’t know I was there.” Then she let out a forced laugh. “They didn’t know about me at all. I stayed there until I had Anthony. When I went into labor, one of the marina staff called an ambulance and someone contacted his parents about it. Jared told them everything. I was in labor for thirty-six hours. After I had Anthony, they came into my hospital room and handed me papers that Jared had signed to waive his parental rights. They told me that they wanted nothing to do with me or my illegitimate child and warned me to stay away from their son.”
“Holy shit.” Cole thought he was going to be sick. These people were evil. He was scared what the answer was going to be, but he had to know, “Then what happened?”
A small smile lifted on her face. “I was lucky. One of the nurses told me about a shelter for homeless moms. She called and got me a spot; she even drove me there when Anthony and I were discharged from the hospital. I stayed there for a year and a half and got my G.E.D. Once I had that, I was able to get a job and saved up for a studio apartment.”
Fuck. Every protective instinct in Cole’s body was roaring with primal intensity. All he could hear was his heart pounding in his chest as fury raced through his veins at Julianna’s aunt, Jared, and Jared’s asshole parents.
Cole wiped his hands off and tried to calm down before he spoke, taking in steady breaths, inhaling through his nose and exhaling out of his mouth. Stepping in front of Julianna, he placed his hands on either side of her, gripping the counter. He didn’t trust himself to not touch her if he wasn’t holding on to something, and if he did touch her, he definitely didn’t trust himself. Not with the raw emotions flooding him.
“Julianna,” he rasped.
Being this close to her, even though no part of his body was touching any part of hers, was torture. He wanted to pull her into his arms and tell her that, from this day forward, he would never let anyone hurt her or her son. That he would take care of her and Anthony, and that she was his and he protected what was his. That she owned him—because she did.
When her golden eyes lifted to his, she peeked up at him from beneath a dark bed of thick lashes. His body ached with carnal need as he watched her chest rise and fall; a tempting tease of cleavage pushing against the V of her pink scrubs. Cole wanted so badly to touch her. His palms tingled with the need to cup her full breasts, to feel the weight of them as he tenderly caressed and kneaded her.
“Cole?”
Her voice snapped him out of the lust spell she’d managed to cast on him without even trying.
Her gaze looked equal parts innocent and wary. Now he better understood what made this incredible woman who she was today. It broke his heart and, at the same time, filled him with pride and admiration. He wasn’t sure how to explain all of the things he was feeling or if she was even ready to hear them, so he didn’t try.
“I’m so sorry you went through that.” That sentiment barely scratched the surface of the depth of what he felt.
Her button nose scrunched as she brushed off his apology. “It wasn’t that bad, and it all worked out. I have Anthony. That’s all that matters.”
Cole couldn’t believe that this girl was for real. Like he’d told his mom, she really was an angel in a centerfold’s body. And she was his—whether she knew it or not.
“You have no idea how fucking amazing you are, do you?” he breathed.
She shook her head and tried to move out of his arms, which were caging her in. “I’m not that—”
Her sentence came to a halt when Cole didn’t move his arm and her escape attempt brought their bodies in full contact. She froze, and Cole didn’t move a muscle. Well, except for his swelling erection, which was painfully pressing against its denim constraint.
The only sound in the small kitchen was their labored breathing. He waited; not having a clue what her next move was going to be. If she tried to push past him again, he would drop his arms and give her the freedom he knew she didn’t want. Not really. He might not have had a clue what was going on in that beautiful mind of hers, but he knew how her body was responding to him. Through the thin cotton barriers of his T-shirt and her scrubs, he could feel her nipples hardening.
Lifting her head, she swallowed audibly before licking her plump lips and asking in a whisper, “Do friends kiss?”
Fuck. She was going to kill him.
“Yes.” He barely got the word out before he lowered his head and captured her mouth with his.
Their soft, sweet kiss defied the urgency boiling inside him. The instant their lips touched, he stilled, wanting to commit to memory every feeling, every breath, every movement of this moment.
When a needy moan fell from Julianna’s lips, Cole’s dick jumped. He wished she were making that sound while he was buried deep inside her. Her lips were soft and yielding, and he took his time kissing them with every ounce of pent-up passion he felt.
Needing to touch her, he cupped her face, his thumbs brushing her jawline as his fingers wrapped behind her slender neck. The silky strands of her hair grazed his hands, and he tightened his grip, tilting her head to give him better access.
When he pulled her bottom lip between his and ran his tongue back and forth, a primal groan ripped from his chest as he fed on the sweetness of her mouth. The next thing he knew, her hands were wrapped around his shoulders, her nails were digging into his firm back, and her body was practically climbing him, begging for his touch.
Desire shot through him with so much force that his knees buckled. Wanting—needing—to feel more of her, he wrapped his hands around her hips, picked her up and set her on the kitchen counter. He was only vaguely aware of the dishes that fell into the sink beside them and the water that splashed up as he stepped between her legs and tugged her so that his straining hard-on was nuzzled against her heated core.
What started as an innocent kiss quickly turned into the hottest encounter Cole had ever experienced as Julianna parted her lips in invitation and he plunged his tongue inside her. With lazy exploration, he took his time licking and tasting every crevice of her warm, wet mouth. Their tongues met in a sensual dance as his hands roamed her body, up and down her back, stopping just before the rounded flesh of her ass. Up her sides, his palms
brushed the swells of her breasts as he rocked his hips against hers, his steel-hard shaft rubbing along the heat radiating from the apex of her thighs.
Cole knew that if he slipped his hand beneath her waistband, he’d find her body wet and ready for him. He could strip her and be inside of her within ten seconds, giving them both what their bodies desperately craved. As tempted as he was, he also knew that the gratification he could bring them would be temporary and what he wanted from Julianna was the opposite of temporary. He wanted forever.
With his body screaming in protest, he broke their passionate kiss and rested his forehead against hers. His hands slowly rubbed her lower back as he pushed down and ignored every instinct to pick her up, take her to bed, and keep her there until neither of them could walk. He had to put some distance between them.
“I’ll pick you up after you get off work at six tomorrow. Wear a bathing suit,” he said, as he stepped away from her.
“What?” she asked, her brow furrowed in confusion, looking dazed. It was an expression that he was getting familiar with.
Damn, she was so fucking adorable sitting on the counter, her lips swollen, marked from his kisses, her eyes glazed with lust, her shirt wrinkled from his exploration. Clenching his fists at his sides, he resisted the urge to move back between her still-open legs and capture her mouth with his again.
He needed to get out of there while he still could.
“Tomorrow night. Six o’clock. Bathing suit.” With that instruction, he turned and headed to the door, not looking back. As he opened it and stepped outside, he said, “Don’t forget to lock this behind me,” before shutting the door firmly behind him.
He waited on the porch while his heart raced. If she opened the door, said one word to him, he knew that it would break the last piece of self-control he had. He’d be back in that house and inside her before they could blink. When he heard the soft sound of the lock clicking into place, he let out the breath he’d been holding.
Tonight could have gotten much more out of hand. Discipline and control had always been attributes Cole had prided himself in having. Julianna obliterated both of those things. She was too potent, their chemistry too explosive.
Going slow might not be an option. Especially since, if tomorrow night went as planned, they would be half naked and soaking wet…
Chapter Seven
Bikini or one piece? Julianna’s eyes bounced between the two swimsuits that were laid out on her bed like a ping-pong ball being hit by paddles. The bikini still had the tags on it because she’d gone out on her lunch hour and picked it up. Her justification was that it had been on sale and she hadn’t gotten herself a new bathing suit in four years.
She knew the truth, though. She could justify her behavior until she was blue in the face, but the real reason she’d made the purchase was the thought of having Cole see her in it. Last night, she’d spent another night tossing and turning in her bed, which had been happening a lot lately. Ever since Cole had inserted himself into her life.
Hmmm…inserted… A visual of Cole inserting himself into her popped into her mind. No. Stop it, she quickly reprimanded herself.
Lately, her mind had been writing Letters to Penthouse with all of her entries starring her and Cole. It was getting out of hand.
Not that she had even the slightest glimmer of hope that she’d be able to stop her erotic fantasies after that panty-melting, world-rocking, mind-blowing, “friendly” kiss they’d shared last night. The one Cole had ended so abruptly that it had taken her several minutes after she’d locked the door—per his orders—before she’d been able to string together a coherent thought in her lust-addled brain.
Cole Carson knew how to kiss. Really kiss. Sure, Julianna was not the most experienced when it came to sex, but she’d kissed her fair share of guys. Of course, that had all been during her preteen and teen years. Cole was the first man she’d ever kissed.
He took his time and applied just the right amount of pressure with his tongue and lips. She’d gone mindless, boneless, inhibition-less from the first swipe of his wet tongue along her lips. But that hadn’t even been the best part. Nope. The best part had been when he’d picked her up, set her on the counter, and then pulled her hips so that their bodies were intimately aligned. The way he’d handled her had been the perfect balance of rough and gentle. It’d made her feel a dangerous combination of completely safe and totally out of control.
Last night and all day, she’d tried to convince herself that her body’s reaction to him could be easily explained by the fact that she’d been on a self-imposed dry spell for the last…hmmm…decade. That any man who would have touched her and kissed her would have made her respond the same way. But deep down, she knew the truth.
Cole Carson held the keys to unlocking a side of herself she hadn’t even known existed. Or if she had known on some subconscious level, then she’d ignored it—the erotic, pleasure-seeking woman inside her that wanted Cole’s mouth all over her body last night felt like a stranger to her, but someone that Julianna wanted to get to know better.
A shiver ran down Julianna’s spine at the thought of what it would feel like if Cole used his talented mouth to kiss her between her legs. Just the notion made her sex swell and pulse with need.
Looking at the clock on her bedside table, she saw that she still had fifteen minutes before Cole had said he would be there. Maybe she should take the edge off before he arrived. That way, she would be able to control her urges tonight. It had worked for Ben Stiller in There’s Something About Mary. Well, except for the whole accidental come-as-gel thing. Still, it might help. And if there was one thing her ten-year sex drought had taught her, it was how to take care of herself.
Lying back on her bed, she closed her eyes and ran her hand up her thigh, lifting her dress to her waist. Then, opening her legs, she slipped her hand in her panties and was not surprised to feel her fingers slide over her damp lips, which were slick with arousal. After spreading the moisture over her clit, she began moving her finger in circles—slowly at first, then faster.
Images of Cole’s mouth, where her hand was, filled her mind. His tongue licking where she was touching. His lips sucking her and his long, thick fingers sensually massaging her opening, before sliding into her.
Before she knew it, her release was cresting like a wave, crashing over her as a rush of liquid coated her fingers. Her body shook with its power.
As she floated back into her consciousness, there was a loud knock at the door.
Shoot. Did that take fifteen minutes?
Nope. A quick check of the time told her that it was only ten till six. So either Cole was early or someone else was at the door.
After grabbing her two-piece, she ran into the bathroom and, with speed that put Wonder Woman to shame, stripped out of her dress, washed her hands and her lady parts, threw on her swimsuit, and pulled her dress back on. Then she snatched up her brush and ran it through her hair before she slipped on her sandals and hurried to the door.
She was still a little out of breath as she opened it mid-knock. Cole was standing, flowers in hand, on the other side of it.
“Hi.” Julianna tried her best to sound and look like a woman who had not just pleasured herself to the image of the person standing in front her. Unfortunately, her voice was shaky, her legs were still a little wobbly, and she could feel that there was a fairly obvious flush covering her cheeks.
Cole’s vivid, green eyes locked with hers before his gaze hungrily made its way down her body. His intense scrutiny was not helping her mission to appear unaffected. In fact, even though she’d just experienced an orgasm a few minutes ago, her sex was throbbing with need under his sultry stare.
“Damn, you look good enough to eat,” he rasped in a low tone that spread through her like melted butter.
Funny you should mention that…
Keeping her inside joke to herself, she tried to lighten the sexual tension that was thick enough to choke on. “It’s amazing wh
at a dress can do,” she laughed nervously. She wasn’t trying to be self-deprecating. That’s just how it had come out.
His eyes shot to hers with an intensity that caused her knees to go weak. “It’s not the dress.”
She had no idea how to respond to that. Not that she could have, even if she did have something clever to say. With Cole looking at her like he was staring straight into her soul, she was unable to do anything except for try to remain upright on her legs that had turned to Jell-O.
His eyes narrowed and his head tilted forward. “What were you doing when I knocked on the door?”
What?! Was it that obvious? There was no way he could know. Right?
“Huh?” It wasn’t the most eloquent comeback, but honestly, Julianna was proud of herself for not melting into a puddle under his sensual scrutiny.
“Why did it take you so long to come to the door?” he asked as if he already knew—or thought he knew—the answer.
“I was getting dressed.” She stood taller, feeling pretty dang happy that she’d not only been able to explain her delay, she hadn’t had to lie to do it.
Score one for Julianna. No Pinocchio nose here. Nope.
It looked like Cole was going to say more, but before he got the chance, Megan’s door opened and she stepped onto the porch. When she saw Julianna, she let out a wolf whistle. Julianna felt her cheeks grow hotter.
“You look like a pinup girl, mama! H-O-T!”
“Yes, she does,” Cole immediately agreed.
Julianna appreciated her friend’s compliment, but she felt a little on display. “Thanks. We’d better get going.”
“Where are you two kids off to?” Megan asked, as she bounced Chloe on her hip.
Julianna realized that she had no idea. All Cole had told her was to wear a swimsuit. She’d decided to throw on a dress because all he had ever seen her in were cut-off shorts, scrubs, and cut-off sweats. But she actually had no idea where they were headed. Which was really out of character for her. Normally, she needed every detail imaginable before agreeing to go anywhere or do anything.
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