The Matchup

by Alice Ward

  Why would a photojournalist to be a proficient liar? Sloane was hiding something, but I wouldn’t push her any more at that moment. We were getting along too well to fuck it all up with a bunch of accusing questions.

  “So, after we get what your friend needs, then what happens?” I kissed her shoulder then ran my lips up to her neck.

  She moaned, her nails raking across my back. “After that, I have no idea what will happen.”

  Moving my lips to her ear, I blew into the curved shell, and delighted in how it made her shiver. “You must have an idea of where you were going once you had the information you needed. Where would that be?”

  “Home, I guess. My line of work has me kind of on-call all the time.” She rolled to face me, wrapping one leg over my hip. I groaned as the movement pressed our sexes together through our clothes.

  I pulled my head back to look at her. “How is a photographer on-call?”

  “I stay pretty busy. Between assignments, I usually get contacted by someone needing a rush job. If I have time, I’ll agree to the job. I try to stay flexible.” The way she moved her foot up and down my leg felt amazing. “So, my plan was to go home to Queens and go wherever I’m needed next. What was your plan?”

  Grazing my teeth down her neck then leaving a trail of kisses along her collarbone, I contemplated what I should say. The truth was that I never had a plan, but that just sounded flighty. I didn’t want to sound like a loser with no ambition, which I had been up until I met her. Now I had lots of ambition. Of course, Sloane was at the center of all that ambition. “Whatever my plan was, doesn’t matter. You’re my plan now.”

  Her voice was raspy, and her words warmed me. “I like the sound of that. And what kind of plan do you have for me right now.”

  Moving my hand over her breast and all the way down to her hip, I grabbed a handful of sweet ass and pulled her tight against me. “My current plan includes kissing every inch of the body I’ve craved since you walked into my life.”

  Her nails curled into my shoulder as I felt her body grow warmer. “Yes. Please. I want to feel your lips move all over me, then I want to kiss every inch of you in return.” Her lips pressed against my neck, sending goose bumps to pepper my skin.

  I’d never wanted to move slow and fast at the same damn time, but with her, that was exactly what I wanted. I wanted to go slow and let this thing we had smolder for a while before we let it burst into flames. Our heat would be insane. The sex would be off the charts.

  As bad as I wanted to be inside her, I wanted to build what we had even more than that. I wanted a solid foundation, one that a great relationship could be built on. Nothing quick, nothing temporary. I wanted slow, steady, and lasting.

  Cupping her chin, I ran the pad of my thumb over her plump pink lips. Her blue eyes shimmered as she looked at me. I envisioned looking into those eyes for years to come. I saw a future with Sloane I didn’t ever think I’d be looking at. But there I was, looking into the eyes of a person I couldn’t think about not seeing again.

  “Your eyes mesmerize me, Sloane. When I look hard enough, I can see the future.”

  Her hand caressed mine as she smiled. “Zane, the prophet. I have to say I didn’t see that coming.” The smile fell away and her eyes grew more serious. “The thing is, the future is a fickle bitch. One never knows how it will play out. But yet you claim to see it in my eyes. I wish I had the power you seem to have. I live life one day at a time, never thinking too much about the next day or the day after that. Are you sure you can see more in my eyes than even I can?”

  Was she taking me seriously? Did she not understand I meant to keep her forever? Never let her go?

  “I can see the future in your eyes. Eyes that I will look into even when wrinkles surround them and they lose some of their color as you age. But I will always find love when I look into these eyes of yours. Because I will be the only man who gets to do such a thing for the rest of our lives.”

  Though she was smiling again, I felt her body go cold. Had I surprised her with my intensity? Did she really not have any idea how serious I was?

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  Sloane

  Words of unending love shouldn’t make one go cold as ice. And if I wasn’t making up one lie after another, perhaps my reaction would’ve been one of a different nature. But I knew how things would end for us. Unfortunately, Zane did not.

  I was so screwed.

  While I didn’t want him to catch on that I was any less involved than him, the truth was, I had it bad for Zane. After he left my bungalow earlier, I should have let him go. I could have finished this assignment on my own, maybe clinging to Grace and Charles, gaining their sympathy by telling them that Zane had broken my heart. But what did I do instead? I’d gone to him. I’d been about to knock on his door when he’d surprised me by jerking it open.

  And now here we were, and I didn’t know how to make things better.

  His hand moved up and down my arm. “You have goose bumps.”

  “Do I?” I pretended not to notice.

  “Did I scare you?” The sea green pools of his eyes grew stormy as his expression went to one of concern.

  I had to ease his mind. We’d just made up after our first fight, I didn’t want to go back to being angry with each other. Not when he was making me feel so damn good as we laid in his bed. “Who wouldn’t like to hear those words, Zane? Maybe I’m just a little overwhelmed by all this. I’ve never felt this much for someone so fast.”

  That was true. I’d never fallen so quickly before. It was a little unsettling.

  The concern left his handsome face as he gave me a sexy smile. “Good. I’d like to make you feel more… if you’re up for it.”

  My heart sped up. “What do you have in mind?”

  “How about a full body massage? That way you’ll be all relaxed when we go to dinner tonight. And when we get done there, we’ll come back here and spend the night together.” His finger trailed over my lips. “What do you think about that?”

  My head was already growing light, my body pulsing. “I think that sounds wonderful.”

  Leaning in close, he kissed the spot right behind my ear. “Good.” He rolled off the bed and stood, looking down at me. “I'll get some lotion and be right back. I want you naked and on your stomach.”

  Naked?

  “Um, I think that’s—”

  He shook his head as he walked away. “Naked, Sloane.”

  As if his words alone controlled me, my hands went to work, ridding myself of my clothes. When I was fully naked, I laid back down on the bed, face down, just as he’d directed. My body was prickling all over, the anticipation pulsing through my system.

  I didn’t hear him reenter the room and jumped when he said, “Close those pretty blue eyes. I want to give you a taste of what life will be like with me.”

  My eyes closed as a sigh escaped me. Life with Zane seemed like it would be pretty damn great. Too bad it couldn’t be that way.

  His hands were warm as he started at my ankles, spreading the lotion as he kneaded the muscles of my calves and hamstrings. He stopped at my ass, and I nearly groaned when he started over with the next leg.

  But this time, as he worked those magic fingers up my hamstring, his fingers grazed my sex, and I nearly jumped out of my skin. How badly I wanted to feel him inside me. How easy it would be to just turn over and spread myself open for him. Surely, he wouldn’t be able to resist the temptation.

  But I stayed right where I was and let him do what he wanted. The massage would be good too. Ripples of pleasure went through me as he moved his firm hands up my back then over my shoulders, working the tight muscles there.

  When he straddled me, I felt his hard cock through his clothes. It grazed my ass as he moved, rubbing my shoulders and back with long, flowing motions. My clit pulsed, moist heat pooled between my legs. The massage wasn’t doing what he intended. I was far from relaxed. I was in sexually frustrated hell.

  Just as I was t
rying to resolve myself to that fact, he moved back and began massaging my ass cheeks. I couldn’t stifle the moan that came low from my throat. He chuckled. “Does this feel good?”

  I made some whimpering noise that was supposed have been, “It does.”

  I was so turned on I wasn’t even embarrassed as he spread my ass cheeks wide and stroked a finger over the tight pucker of muscle. I groaned, trying to push back into the touch. He chuckled, the sound vibrating through my every nerve.

  With no warning, he rolled me until I was on my back. I reached for him but he held my wrists at my side.

  “Be still and keep your eyes closed.”

  I wanted to argue. I wanted to fight him. But the promise in his eyes urged me to obey.

  When I relaxed beneath him, he grinned and squirted more lotion in his hands. His magic hands kneaded the muscles in my arms and shoulders before skimming over my breasts and abs to resume massaging my thighs.

  I licked my lips as he massaged my feet, then my eyes popped as his teeth grazed over my toes. When he sucked one into his mouth, I wailed, unable to stop the sound from exploding out of me.

  “Be good,” he murmured as he began massaging my legs again, concentrating on the muscles of my hips, my abs, then finally my breasts. I moaned as he touched me, pinching my nipples between his fingers, squeezing my breasts together. “I’ve dreamed of doing this.”

  He lowered his head, licking across first one nipple, and then the other. I arched my back, wanting more, and he gave it. The cool air made my wet nipples tighten even further, and when he flicked them with his fingers, my body jerked at the new sensation. Having men play with my breasts had never been a turn on for me. It was a turn on now.

  He moved lower, his tongue dipping into my naval.

  Lower, his teeth skimming over my hip.

  Lower.

  His tongue pressed against me, and I cried out, twisting my hands in the sheets.

  “Shh. Be good. Be perfectly still. No moving, or I’ll tie you to the bedpost.”

  Still? Quiet? I’d fail that mission for sure. Maybe on purpose.

  “Will you be still for me?”

  Holy hell. How was he always so sexy? His low, gravelly tone should have been considered foreplay. Unable to find words, I nodded, summoning all my willpower and biting my lip as his tongue moved through my folds, searching and exploring my body for the first time. He found and circled my clitoris, pulling it deep into his mouth. He sucked hard on that little bundle of nerves, causing me to push my hips closer, eager for more. And he complied, increasing suction until it was almost painful.

  I reached for his hair, holding on while he drove me crazy. He chuckled and kissed my clit before looking up my body, his mouth glistening with my arousal. “Uh, oh. You moved.”

  My eyes widened, and I watched as he pushed off the bed and walked to his closet. He wasn’t gone long, a couple ties and the belts of both robes in his hand.

  He was serious.

  I’d never allowed a man to make me this vulnerable, but I wanted to be vulnerable with him. I wanted everything.

  My chest was heaving as he tied my hands to the bed, then did the same with my ankles, spreading me wide. I didn’t recall ever being more excited about anything in my life. I was at his mercy. And if I were honest, I sure hoped he wouldn’t show any.

  “Now, you’ll be still.” He moved up to stand next to me. “I have you right where I want you.” Getting on the bed, he straddled my chest, his shorts the only thing between me and his cock. “If you’re a good girl, I’ll let you suck my cock when I’m done. Would you like that?”

  “Yes.” The answer came out of me on a burst of air, and his lips quirked up to one side as he ran his fingers through my hair.

  “We’ll see.”

  With that sexy smirk still on his lips, he moved down my body until he was between my legs again. His eyes were locked on mine as he slid two fingers inside me. I let out a strange hissing sound when he began pounding into me with short, almost brutal thrusts that didn’t quite hurt but came close enough that I rode the line between pain and pleasure. Then pleasure won out and I came, crying out his name as I pulled on my restraints.

  “You’re so very beautiful,” he said, lifting his fingers to his mouth and sucking, “and your taste is addicting. I’ll never get enough.”

  Then his mouth was on me again, his fingers and tongue pushing me to and through another powerful orgasm.

  I was still panting when he wiped his hand over his mouth, then pulled off his shirt before dropping his shorts to the floor. My mouth watered as he revealed his flesh to me, one article of clothing at a time.

  When his cock popped free, I pulled on my restraints, needing to touch him, wanting to stroke the soft steel of him. But that smirk was back, and I knew he wasn’t going to set me free.

  He had other plans.

  Crawling up my body until he was straddling my chest, he stroked his cock, then lowered the tip to my lips. Sticking out my tongue, I took a first lick, tasting the drop of salty fluid that formed at the tip before taking the head in my mouth to swirl my tongue around the edges.

  Zane groaned, and I knew that, although I was powerless to move, I held this power over him. “Feed me, Zane,” I begged and those green eyes grew darker as he looked down at me. I opened my mouth and felt the weight of him on my tongue as he did as I asked.

  “Suck me.”

  His eyes gleamed as he pulsed in and out of my mouth. He didn’t go in all the way, didn’t make me gag, but he did push me to the point of needing to breathe. When he pulled out, he stroked himself while I sucked in a lungful of precious oxygen.

  “You like giving me head, Sloane?” he asked and I opened my mouth in answer. He chuckled, but his nostrils flared as I took more of him in my throat. “You’re driving me crazy,” he murmured, his voice raw with tension.

  When he pulled out again, I gasped for breath. “More.”

  “You sure, baby? I’m getting close.”

  I wanted all of him. I didn’t want him to stop. “Please, Zane. I want you to come for me.”

  He cursed and feed me his cock again, holding the headboard to support himself as he fucked my mouth. I’d never done it like that before. It was a first, and I loved the way he made me feel powerful and helpless simultaneously. I loved how my jaw hurt, how my arms ached, how my fingers itched to touch him.

  He kept moving, watching his cock slide in and out, then his eyes closed as he moved faster, giving me another warning. “I’m going to come.”

  I was ready, swallowing, feeling the power of accepting every part of him, not backing away from this challenge.

  Just as I watched him come, I watched him recover from what I’d done for him. He opened his eyes and pulled away from me, letting the ties of my hands and ankles loose.

  “Thank you,” he murmured, pulling me against him, his lips in my hair as he fought to control his breathing. “Thank you so much.”

  I smiled, curling into him, sated and secure, even though all we’d done was officially foreplay. “Will you make love to me tonight?” I asked, tracing a finger down his arm.

  He lifted my chin and kissed the tip of my nose. “I’ve never made love to anyone before.”

  My insides curled, warmed by the admission, knowing it was true. “Don’t worry, I’ll show you how.”

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  Zane

  Adorable.

  I still hadn’t officially had sex with the woman beside me, but I’d never felt closer to anyone in my life. The way she had trusted me only minutes before changed something deep inside me.

  “What time is it?” she asked. “As much as I don’t want to move right now, I also don’t want to miss dinner with Charles and Grace.”

  I lifted my head just enough to see the bedside clock. Shit. We’d been laying here for over an hour. I groaned and rolled onto my back.

  “Is that man-talk for ‘time to go?’” she asked, her voice teasing.


  I grunted. “Me no want to go.”

  She laughed. “Okay, Tarzan. Then you don’t get my making love lessons later.”

  I practically leapt from the bed, earning another laugh from her, then dragged her to the bathroom where I turned on the shower.

  “I don’t have any of my things here,” she reminded me as I pulled her under the warm water.

  “Can you make do with the girly spa soaps the resort left for now?”

  She poked me in the chest. “You really don’t understand females very well, do you?”

  I snorted. “I know enough to make you explode, if I remember correctly.”

  That earned me another poke in the chest, but also a cute little blush on her cheeks.

  We showered, and I enjoyed washing her hair, listening to her moan in pleasure as I massaged her scalp. “How lucky I am that I’m your neighbor,” she said. “If I’d chosen the bungalow on the other side of Smith, we might never have met.”

  “Fate is a funny thing. If I hadn’t been out on my deck, I might have never seen you.” Pushing her head back, I rinsed the shampoo out of her blonde hair, loving the feel and smell of it. When I brought her head back up, I couldn’t resist a little kiss.

  I stopped when my cock twitched. We didn’t have time to do any more. There was dinner to get to, mafia shit to unravel. She smiled as she took the shampoo and washed my hair in return. I looked at her as she moved her hands through my hair.

  I loved the way her eyes lifted at both sides just a bit, the tiny freckles covering the bridge of her nose. Her lips had the most perfect cupid’s bow right in the middle. Her teeth were white, straight, with a tiny gap between the middle ones. “Did you wear braces when you were a kid?”

  She laughed and gave me a little you’re weird look. “I did. I was a member of the gap-toothed freckle-faced club as a kid.”

  “I bet you were adorable.” She rinsed my hair, then poured body wash in her hand, washing my shoulders and chest, my arms. When my cock took notice, I grabbed the soap from her hands. “Better let me do that. If you raise the beast, we’ll never get to dinner.”