“I got the part.”
His jaw dropped slightly but then he pounced. Picking me up, he swung me around, his lips connecting with mine in a kiss that I felt all over my body. When he pulled back we were both breathless. “I knew you could do it,” he said against my ear, his lips pressing against my temple before he pulled me toward the car, leading me to the passenger door and opening it, helping me climb in.
“You didn’t tell him to give me the spot even if I sucked, did you?”
“Hell no. You got that all on your own. When I called Alan it was for the audition only. Everything else you did.”
The fact that he maintained eye contact told me he wasn’t lying. I lay my hand on his arm, feeling the muscles tense as he pulled away from the sidewalk. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have suggested that. Nothing like this has ever happened to me, that’s all. It’s an amazing opportunity. Something I’ve always dreamed about. Thank you for making the dream come true.”
“That was you. You need to realize you can stand on your own two feet.”
“I’m starting to see that. I haven’t signed anything yet, but they did speak briefly about figures. When it’s time for me to go home, I won’t have to rely on Dominic’s income anymore.” I tried to hide the disappointment, even though it killed me to say the words out loud.
Home.
Ashton showed no physical response to my statement, and I couldn’t deny the sting I felt. Each day, my feelings for Ashton grew. I wasn’t ready to describe them yet, but they were there.
During the rest of the car ride, Ashton asked question after question, wanting to hear every detail.
“I can’t wait to see you in it.” He squeezed my hand.
“You’ll have to wait a few weeks. I have to meet the rest of the cast and rehearse before opening night.”
“You have to rehearse?”
I couldn’t stop the laugh that escaped my lips. “Of course we do. How else do you expect everyone to learn their parts?”
He shrugged. “I guess I never really put much thought into it. But I’m glad I get to take you out to celebrate.”
My face hurt from smiling so much. It had been years since I felt this carefree.
And I loved it.
CHAPTER 11
Ashton
Elena was glowing, her radiance shining through her whole personality. The corners of her eyes crinkled as she explained all about the play and it was amazing to see her so animated. So content.
Alan had called me not long after her audition, asking all sorts of questions about her background, but I didn’t know she’d got the part until she told me in the driveway. She must have aced it. I hadn’t lied when she’d asked whether I told him to give her the part. The assumption that I might have had something to do with that was like a kick in the teeth, but I reminded myself she wasn’t used to good fortune falling in her lap.
It felt like I was seeing a whole new side of her—a side that was even more attractive than I’d seen so far. Her confidence turning me on so badly I was thinking about bending her over the hood of the car and fucking her until she screamed my name. The only thing that kept my dick firmly in my pants was the need to have her willingly. If she wanted to try some of the things I enjoyed, she needed to do it on her own terms.
The restaurant I chose happened to have a dance floor. I didn’t know if Elena danced but all day I’d been dreaming about her soft sweet body pressed to mine. When I made the reservation this morning, I made sure the table would be private, but close to the dance floor. Owning three restaurants in town had its perks. My restaurants were the place to see and be seen. The money I made far outweighed the money people paid me in interest on the loans, and every other restaurant owner in town was more than willing to accommodate my requests, knowing I’d do the same for them when they needed it.
After we were seated, Elena picked up her menu, studying it like she did every time we went out to eat. I waited, knowing the question was coming.
“I can’t decide,” she said.
I had a feeling that even before Dominic, she hadn’t spent much time in restaurants like the one we were currently in.
“What are your two choices?” I’d figured out pretty quickly that Elena always wanted two things off the menu but couldn’t choose between them. The first time I told her to order both, she’d balked at the idea so I’d changed tack and helped her narrow down her choice. If one of the options was what I happened to be ordering, it was easy because we’d order both and share. If not, well, then ordering took a little longer.
“I either want the lamb chops or the seared tuna.”
“I’m getting the lamb if you want to try some of mine and get the tuna.”
“Oh, that sounds perfect.” She closed the menu and sat it on the table, her arms drawing together, my eyes captivated by the tops of her breasts, so beautifully displayed above the red strapless dress. Her creamy flesh would taste divine under my tongue.
We placed our order, including a bottle of wine, and our waitress brought two glasses, allowing us to sample the flavor before she poured. She took a sip and set the glass down, watching me. I lifted a brow.
“I forgot to thank you for the phone when I saw you earlier. I’ve never had a smart phone. The one I left at the apartment was a prepaid cell. I had to limit the number of calls I made so I wouldn’t run out of minutes. It was nice to feel connected to the rest of the world—even if it took me ages to figure out how to use the damn thing.”
Asshole had a smartphone; I knew that for a fact. He’d texted me multiple times over the years to arrange drop offs and new loans, and the fact that he hadn’t allowed her the simple pleasure of contacting friends and family made my blood boil. I took a sip of my wine, using the time to tamp down my anger.
“You’re welcome. Now you can get a hold of me anytime. Speaking of the phone, why didn’t you text when you got the part?”
Her cheeks turned the same color as her dress.
“I wanted it to be a surprise.”
Reaching across the table, I slipped my hand across her upturned one, caressing the inside of her wrist lightly with my fingers. “I like surprises.”
She squirmed in her seat and her breathing faltered.
She likes this.
As I continued stroking the soft skin, the warm chocolate of her eyes flared to a bronze. Our eyes met and I dared her to say something—to admit to the effect my touch was having on her—but she said nothing. My eyes zoned in on her lips as she ran her tongue across them, rolling the skin between her teeth, her eyes darting left and right before landing on mine again. As much as it was thrilling to see her like this, I decided to throw her a bone and asked more about the audition, all the while continuing my slow, sensual torture.
We talked more about her opportunity to work in the theater and such was her excitement that sometimes her words became caught in her throat. I refused to stop touching her so she had to use her other hand to sip at her wine; something that pleased me greatly. Eventually the waitress arrived and I had to relinquish Elena’s hand so she could eat. I may not have been able to touch her, but that didn’t mean I was entirely well behaved. When she offered me a bite of her tuna I accepted, returning the favor with my own dish, only just managing to suppress my growl when her lips slid over the fork, my cock pushing against the zipper of my pants when she moaned her appreciation.
“That is delicious,” she said.
“You certainly are.” I’d intended for the comment to tease her and when she paused for a beat, I wondered whether she was going to respond. “It certainly is,” I clarified and a flush colored her cheeks.
Dinner continued in an erotic game. It crossed my mind that she might be doing it on purpose, until I realized that Elena had never been that brazen. It had to be my own need to take her in every way possible that was causing me to look for double entendre. With this in mind, I tried to keep the conversation light. At the end of the meal the waitress returned with the des
sert menu, but Elena refused; a gesture I silently thanked her for. If the woman thought the lamb was delicious, I’d hate to see what noises she’d make when tasting one of the chef’s crème brulees. I was generally a patient man, but I couldn’t take much more before I cleared the table and took her right here. One such benefit of the evening thus far was that I now no longer had to guess at what she looked like when she was enjoying something. The image of her wide eyes and parted lips returned and my cock throbbed.
Standing, I held out my hand to her. She hesitated a moment before placing her hand in mine. I helped her up and led her to the dance floor.
“I’m not a good dancer,” she whispered softly.
Bending down, I nipped her ear and feeling her jolt, a smile came to my lips. “I am.”
Carefully, I guided her across the dance floor and when I pulled her close to me the scent of lavender invaded my senses. Our bodies touched at every possible place. With her breasts pressed against my chest, the searing heat from her skin seeping through my shirt, my heart began to thunder. She lifted a hand from my waist to rest it gently on my shoulder, looking up at me, making sure it was okay. Fuck, this woman left me in a state of sexual frustration I hadn’t experienced since I was a teenager.
With very little coaxing, Elena fell in step with me and we moved gracefully across the floor. I kept my eyes on the dancers around us, thoughts of sliding the zipper of her dress down, revealing the surprise inside, invading all the space in my brain until the desire to see her face was overwhelming. Dropping my eyes, I noticed her flushed cheeks, the rapid beat of the pulse in her neck, her breath coming in shallow pants as her eyes locked on mine. The fire there threw me, and when she made her move, my footsteps faltered.
Her hand on my shoulder slid up, moving behind my neck, curling into my hair, and when she applied the slightest of pressure, I obeyed, bending down to devour her mouth, the taste of red wine lingering on her lips. Wanting more, I deepened the kiss, blatantly ignoring the fact that we were on a very crowded and very public dance floor.
Her fingers flexed then tightened in my hair, holding my mouth against hers. I could feel her heartbeat next to my chest. A soft whimper escaped her throat. By the time she pulled away my head was ready to explode with lust. Her lower body still pressed to mine, the hard length of my shaft pushing into her abdomen, I felt the slightest twitch of her hips and my eyes immediately found hers.
Eyes so dark they could be chestnut stared back at me, reflecting the same lust I felt coiled deep within my stomach. She swallowed hard and opened her mouth to speak. At first nothing came out and I chanted in my head.
Please, please, please.
Somehow, I fought off the urge to reach down and adjust myself. It felt like I’d waited an eternity for her, not simply a few weeks, and the few moments we stood in silence, waiting to hear what she wanted, felt twice as long.
“Take me home.”
Her words, though arousing, were not the, “Take me home and have sex with me,” I wanted and I wasn’t going to jump to conclusions, at least, not with such a vague statement.
“You don’t want to dance anymore?”
“No.” She took a deep breath. “I want to be your dessert.”
You don’t get any clearer than that.
Without another word, I tugged her from the floor, stopping by our table to toss more than enough money down to cover our bill and tip, and hurried out to the car.
CHAPTER 12
Elena
Desire like I’d never felt before heated my blood the moment his lips touched mine, and only grew when the taste of him sizzled over my tongue. Throughout dinner my need for him had overtaken every part of me; eclipsing any residual fear I might have had until I hadn’t been able to contain myself.
Having been with only one man my entire life, Dominic had pretty much set the bar when it came to sex. Listening to women heatedly discuss their latest conquest and how many times the men made them come made me feel like something might be wrong with me. Not once in my entire life had I enjoyed sex of any kind. To me it was uncomfortable and somewhat degrading. With Dominic, it felt like a duty to be carried out because we were married: no different to unloading the dishwasher, or folding the laundry.
Yet there was something about Ashton that made me disregard my prior experiences, wanting to drive him crazy, no matter whether or not I enjoyed it.
We pulled onto the main road and my nerves started to get the better of me. Hands shaking, my knee bounced up and down at the same speed until Ashton’s hand curled over my knee. I wanted to moan at the skin-on-skin contact. My body started to hum when his fingers slid up the inside of my thigh, his thumb lightly caressing the sensitive skin there. Shivers traveled through me. I wanted him to move farther up my leg. My core throbbed, pulsing with need. The feeling was unfamiliar but definitely not unwelcome. I clenched my thighs, knowing he’d feel the spasm against his hand. I’d never felt like this before. The whole situation made me feel so wanton. Like I didn’t have a care in the world.
Ashton pulled into the drive, jumping out of the car and running around the front to open my door. With a quick jerk, I was yanked from the vehicle and into his arms. His hair was out of place, having been combed through with his fingers, and the button at his neck was undone Seeing this man, usually so put together and controlled, in a state of disarray was rough and sexy and made me want to tear my clothes off. His hands plunged into my hair and pulled me up for a searing kiss. The feel of his mouth on mine had me vibrating with desire.
Without breaking the connection of our lips, he walked me backward until my back hit the hard wood of the front door and he used his hips to pin me there. In that moment, it didn’t matter to me that we were on the front porch. My hands fisted in the front of his shirt and a low growl tore up his throat. Ashton pulled back slightly and then dipped. His shoulder hit me at my waist and then my feet were no longer on the ground, and my hands clutched at his shoulders as he moved with great speed through the foyer.
Ashton took the stairs faster than I’d ever seen. Within seconds we were in a bedroom. I wished I could take in everything about my surroundings but as my body slowly trailed down his, the feel of his hard length against my stomach, I realized what we were about to do and my mind seized. I didn’t want to stop but I couldn’t help all of my insecurities coming back to haunt me in waves.
For a moment I thought about asking him what to do, but that seemed ridiculous. Instead, I took a deep breath and willed myself to relax, letting him take the lead. This was his dance and I planned to follow.
He stepped back, running the tips of his fingers over the top of my exposed breasts. “Do you know how fucking sexy this dress is on you, or how much I want to tear you out of it?” His voice was husky and I felt the sound all over my body.
Everywhere.
“No.”
“Then I’ll show you.” He took his hand away and dug in his pocket. “One, are you on birth control?”
Oh shit. I hadn’t even thought about that. Guess it was a good thing I continued taking the pills after I stopped staying with Dominic.
“Yes. Dominic didn’t want kids.”
“That man is fucking idiot.” He paused before saying, “We’ll use condoms until we can both get tested.”
That hurt to hear, but I understood the reason. Dominic had lied to me about many things; why would he have remained faithful?
“Second.” The commanding tone of his voice caught my attention, my focus back on him. “Is there anything you don’t like about sex?”
Oh God, does he have to be so blunt?
My face flamed, probably the same color as my dress. “Umm . . . I don’t really know what I like or don’t like.” I shrugged like it was no big deal. But it was.
“Elena,” he groaned, his eyes lifting to the ceiling. “You are going to be the death of me.” When he glanced back down, the lenses of his glasses seemed to make his eyes glow brighter than before. He took a step for
ward and bent to nip along my ear.
“Does that mean you give me permission to take control?” His whisper was so soft I barely heard it. The kind of low voice that made me quiver in anticipation. Nervous or not, I wanted it. I glanced down for a moment, then looked up. Excitement and nervous anticipation caused my hands to shake.
“I want to hear you say it.”
“Yes.”
Ashton pounced. Taking hold of my shoulders, he flipped me around and before I could blink, the zipper on my dress had been lowered and it pooled at my feet. The urge to lift my arms to cover my exposed body was overwhelming. My hands twitched, but I held still.
“That’s a good girl,” he said, lips against my neck and I shivered. Him calling me a good girl was quite possibly the hottest thing I’d ever heard. “I like when you stand up to me and everyone else outside of this room. But in here, I want you to submit every part of your body to me.”
“Mmm . . .”
His tongued traveled the path down my neck. “Can you do that?”
“I can,” I said, my voice sounding more confident than I felt.
Submitting to Ashton meant I didn’t have to worry. I could learn what I liked.
He could teach me.
His hands reached around me to cup my breasts through the black strapless bra, his thumbs brushing my nipples lightly over the fabric, and all I could think about was what it would feel like if he were to delve beneath the silk.
I didn’t have to wait long. One hand dipped into the cup of my bra, the other moving around my back to pop the simple clasp, letting the garment fall to the ground on top of my dress. Then his hands came back around and began again. Every pinch and flick of my nipple sent sensation straight to my core.
Unknown sensations.
Amazing sensations.
With a sigh, I dropped my head back onto Ashton’s shoulder.
“I take it you like that.”
I nodded.
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