“Takes one to know one,” Kathleen mumbled and scanned the room.
“You’re looking hot,” Jonathan said. “Wanna get a drink after this?”
“No.” She noticed a blonde, curvy woman a bit further away, and she recognized her as Melanie Baxter, Eliza’s mom. “Don’t go anywhere,” she said to the others, and she left Jonathan and Blair without waiting for a reply, but halfway to Melanie she almost halted when she noticed Mace.
He hadn’t been in her line of sight when she’d noticed Melanie, and he was looking straight at Kathleen, so turning around wasn’t an option. Kathleen didn’t dodge bullets, but this was starting to feel more like diving into one.
The second time she’d seen him, or thought she’d seen him, had been a few days earlier at the supermarket. She’d hidden behind a shelf to avoid him seeing her, and she’d felt absolutely ridiculous while she had been waiting for him to pass by.
Mace hadn’t dressed up for the premier. He was dressed in his usual worn jeans, a black hoodie, and the vest—or ‘cut’ as he’d told her to call it. He’d explained that those were only worn when it was considered a club business, so apparently going to the president’s daughter’s premier was considered a club function.
“Mrs. Baxter,” Kathleen said when she was close enough, and when Melanie turned towards her, she extended her hand. “I’m Kathleen Keegan, from The Greenville Observer.”
“Miss Keegan, of course,” she smiled with a side glance in Mace’s direction. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, and I wanted to thank you for sending Eliza the pictures.”
Well, that saved her the trouble of bringing the pictures up. She pointed in the direction of Jonathan.
“I asked our photographer to come here today. Thought they’d get some pictures taken by a professional.”
“Ah, perfect,” Melanie smiled. “Thank you. I’ll make sure he gets full access.”
She watched Melanie picking up Jonathan and disappearing backstage. Then Kathleen braced herself, and she turned towards Mace.
He was grinning, looking right at her. As if he hadn’t even noticed Melanie leaving. “Clever.”
“What?”
“I know Wrench stopped Jonathan from getting backstage.”
“I had no idea,” Kathleen said, but when she met his eyes, she couldn’t help herself and laughed. “Does this mean you’ll yell at me again?”
“No,” he answered and shook his head. “You look great.”
Kathleen wasn’t sure how to answer, and settled on, “Thank you.”
They stared at each other for a few moments too long before he leaned closer. “Tell Harold that byline is still too fucking small.”
“How big would you need it?” she asked, and she knew she was smiling like a moron.
“Huge. Full page, and I want you to wear that dress.”
It was a black dress with deep décolletage lined with studs. Below the cleavage, following the lower line of her breasts, were silver threads sown into simple patterns. It was one of her favorites, but she’d hardly ever used it, since it wasn’t exactly politician-compatible, and it was too nice for anything she’d used privately. She looked up from her dress and met Mace’s eyes again.
“It’s good to see you.”
“You, too,” he said, and he leaned down and briefly touched her cheek with his lips. “I’m sorry.”
“For what?”
“I’m sorry that I fucked up ‘cause I would’ve liked to—” He stopped with a deep inhale and smiled.
“Liked to?” she asked with a laugh.
“I miss you,” he said instead of answering the question, and then he left.
She watched him leave, and she would’ve wanted to tell him that she missed him, too. But the other guys in the club met up with him, and she received some nasty glares from them.
o0o
Mace’s ‘I miss you’ had kept ringing in her ears all through the play—which she’d enjoyed—and she kept hearing it when she came home, too. For some reason she hoped it meant that he’d come knocking on her door again, but she didn’t think he would.
She was the one who’d sent him away, and now he’d told her he still missed her. The ball was in her court.
She knew that was the case, but she still hoped she was wrong. So, she went home after the play, took a shower, put on her PJs, and had a cup of coffee while she waited for him. Obviously, she didn’t call it waiting even in her own head. She was in front of her laptop and she was working, but she still hoped she’d hear his bike.
Around twelve, she gave up, and she decided to just do it. She wanted him, and apparently he still wanted her, so why the fuck should she hesitate? The option wasn’t even about him or the story anymore, since she’d dropped it once and for all.
She got dressed again and went to his place. She knew where he lived, but she’d never been there. Whenever they met, it had always been at her place. In fact, their entire ‘relationship’ had taken place within the walls of her home. There hadn’t been any dates or movies, something that hadn’t even struck her until it all ended. She didn’t know if that had been by design from his side, or just a coincidence, and she didn’t care. Whatever they’d had, she’d liked it, and she’d never felt any need to have any of her relationships in the public. It was no one else’s business.
Mace wasn’t at home, of course he wasn’t, but it still took her five minutes to accept that he wasn’t at home, and she sat down on the stairs outside with a sigh. He was most likely at the clubhouse, and no matter what he’d said, she wouldn’t go looking for him there. She highly doubted they’d even let her in.
Kathleen sat there for a good ten minutes; not because she thought he’d come home, but because she was trying to decide if she should just try another day or if she should call him.
She called him.
If she didn’t act on it immediately, she never would—it would take her at least until next time she saw him. And she needed something. Her life contained work, workout, a night at home, and sleeping. She needed something else to get her into gear again, and she missed him a lot. Mace had been the one good thing she’d had in Greenville, and she wanted him back. What exactly she meant by that she could figure out later, so she called him.
“Where are you?” he asked when he picked up.
She looked around with a chuckle. “Outside your house.”
Mace laughed, and she smiled even wider when she heard it. “I gave up on you.”
“What?”
“I was waiting for you, but you didn’t show up.”
“No… I…”
“Had to gather your balls?”
“Something like that.”
“I gathered my balls faster than you.”
“What does that mean?”
“Means I’m outside your house, looking through your kitchen window, and you left your coffee machine on.”
“Guess I better come back home and turn it off.”
“Think you should.”
He hung up, but she knew he’d wait for her.
CHAPTER EIGHT
I Needed That
o0o
MACE HAD HOPED SHE still wore the dress she’d worn at Eliza’s play, because the only thing he’d been able to think about while he was looking at her was pulling the fabric over her breasts to the side and licking her nipples. The dress had followed her curves perfectly, and the shoes made her legs even sexier than they usually were.
But she hadn’t shown up at all. He’d told her that he missed her, but he’d left before she could answer. He wanted her to think about it instead of blowing him off on gut feeling. Kathleen was definitely a stubborn woman who followed her gut, and she was quick to tell people to fuck off. He’d wanted her to think on it a little, and he hoped she’d land on wanting him back. She hadn’t shown up, though, and finally he decided to throw caution to the wind and just fucking go for her. Give her a shot at telling him to fuck off to his face.
She wasn’t at home
, and while he was standing outside her house wondering where the fuck she was at one in the morning—or who she was with—she called him.
When her tiny pussy car pulled up into her driveway, he went to meet her. As hot as she was in her fancy clothes, he still liked her best in her combat boots, combat pants, and a tank top. That was Kathleen to him. She got out of the car, and he extended a hand towards her. When she grabbed it, he pulled her flush against him, and she smiled.
“I missed you, too,” she said in her usual calm, and on the verge of too low, voice.
She’d never raised her voice, and she had the same ice calm demeanor at all times. Even when she’d told him to get the fuck out of her house, she’d done it calmly. The only time she appeared anything but in control was when he fucked her. She could really lose it in bed, and he’d fucking loved that. Most of all he’d loved being the one who did that to her.
“Yeah?”
“Yes,” she answered with her lopsided smile. “I did.”
He leaned down to catch her mouth with his, and groaned when he felt her tongue almost immediately prodding his lips to get in. He opened his mouth to taste her, and he was already hard. Fucking hell, he’d missed her and her taste; it was sweet and always had a hint of coffee. He didn’t want to wait any longer.
“Get your keys, babe,” he said before starting to kiss her again.
He started backing up, bringing her with him, to get her inside the house and naked. He was dying to see Kathleen naked and on top of him.
“Fuck,” she muttered when she let go of his lips to search her bag.
She moved him to the side to unlock the door once she’d found the keys, and he took that chance to get behind her and run his hands along her sides and up to her breasts. Instead of holding them, he teased her by nibbling the side of her neck while slowly pulling up her tank top.
“Mace,” she said, and there was a hint of warning in her voice.
“You warning me to stop or to keep going?”
“I want you to keep going.”
“Sure you can get that door open if I do?”
A click answered his question, and instead of going for her breasts, he opened the door and pushed her inside in front of him. He toed off his shoes and pulled of his t-shirt at the same time, and Kathleen was making quick work of her clothes, too. When he could se her taut nipples, he went for her—he couldn’t wait anymore.
“Oh fuck.” And that was her only reaction to him pushing her against one of her empty white walls. “I’ve missed you.”
“Good,” he groaned. “What did you miss?”
“Your mouth, your hands, your beard, your dick—”
He kissed her to get her quiet and got his dick out of his pants. She was still wearing her panties, but he could fix that without losing time.
“Lose the panties, then turn around and lean against the wall.”
While she did, he rolled a condom over his disturbingly hard dick. By the time it was on, Kathleen had lost her panties and was leaning against the wall in front of him.
“I’ll fuck you really romantically next round,” he mumbled and moved up to stand behind her. He leaned closer and kissed her shoulder.
“When the fuck have I ever wanted you to fuck me romantically?” she asked and turned her head. He gave her a kiss instead of answering, but she kept talking. “I’m not even sure what that is.”
“Me neither, thought I’d give it a try.” He lined up behind her, and as soon as he felt his tip inside of her, he rammed it in. She shrieked, and he rested his forehead on her shoulder. “Fuck, you feel so good.”
“Don’t stop.” Kathleen pushed to meet his thrust. “Don’t fucking stop.”
He grabbed her hair and pulled her head back. Her eyes were closed and her mouth open in a slight smile. All of her felt so good: her naked back against his chest, her slick pussy squeezing his dick, the scent of her that got stronger the hotter and sweatier she got, and her breast resting in his hand. He circled his thumb around her nipple and for a second he’d wished he’d held out until the bed so he could get her on her back and suck her breast into his mouth, but he was way too close to be able to stop. His hips were already moving by themselves and her moaning got louder as his dick got harder inside of her.
“Wait,” she yelled. “Not yet.”
“Fuck!” he howled as he tore his dick out of her. “What the fuck?!”
She turned around and put her arms around his neck. “I want to see you come.”
Any annoyance disappeared when he smiled and made her back up against the wall.
“Put your legs around me.”
She did, and with one hand on her ass, he used the other to steer back inside of her, and when she closed her eyes with a groan, he was glad she’d stopped him. He wanted to see her, too.
“Please,” Kathleen begged. “More.”
Mace picked up the pace, and the slapping sound of his hips against hers was accompanied by the thumps each time her back hit the wall. He felt her clenching down around him and kissed her, trying to get all of her at once—her taste, her smell, and her silky insides. When he felt his balls tense, he groaned into her mouth.
“I’m close. So fucking close.”
“Harder,” she pleaded again. “Fuck me through the wall.”
She shouldn’t have said that because his orgasm hit his gut like a freight train and he pounded into her, making her back slam into the wall repeatedly, and he made sounds he’d never made before while at the same time trying to form words.
“Fuck… babe… so good…”
Kathleen’s response was to tip back her head and squeeze him between his thighs as she came, too.
“Fucking hell, I love your cock!”
His legs couldn’t carry him, and definitely not the two of them together, and he slowly sank down to his knees, bringing her with him as he slowly thrust inside her for a few more times. When it was over, he sat on the floor with her on his lap, holding her waist with her arms round his neck.
“I needed that,” she whispered. “I’ve been needing that for a while.”
“Me, too.” He gave the side of her neck a kiss. “Think you’ll need more?”
“Yes.”
“Think we’ll make it to the bed this time?”
“We could try,” she chuckled. “I wouldn’t bet on it. Kind of been fantasizing about you giving me head on the kitchen island.”
“Oh, that is hot! Really? What else have you been thinking about but not told me?”
“A lot,” she laughed. “I have to admit, you’ve been my main source of orgasms while using my vibrators lately.”
“Plural? You said vibrators.”
“We’ll use them, promise, but not today.”
He felt himself slip out of her when he lost his hard-on, and she stood up. His legs were still shaky, but he managed to stand up as well, and he pulled off the condom. He had a feeling that tossing her around and fucking her against the wall would completely fuck up his back, but it was worth it. And if he knew her right, she’d be up for riding him later, so that would mean one round where he wouldn’t have to do much work. Right then and there, he wished he’d met Kathleen at least ten years earlier when he could fuck a full night and still feel like a million bucks when he woke up in the morning.
“I’m glad you gave in. I was starting to consider tequila to get you into bed,” he said when they walked towards her bedroom.
“Getting me drunk to get me into bed was your plan?” she asked.
By then they had reached the bedroom, and Mace’s mind had already left the conversation to plan the next position because he could feel his dick coming alive. If nothing else told him Kathleen was amazing, his dick was sure as shit making its opinion clear.
“I was both drunk and stoned in that plan, so technically you were taking advantage of me—not the other way around.”
She turned around in front of the bed, and he halted a few steps away from her to take a good look
. It had been a while since he’d seen her like this, and he wanted to take advantage of it. He needed his fill.
“So, just so I know what’s going on, we’re at it again?”
“Yes,” he said, still looking at her.
“We’re not done after this?”
“Nowhere fucking close to done.” With a hand over her throat, just like she often did to him, he pushed her back until she was lying on the bed. “I’m gonna eat you out.”
“Good. No vibrators in the world can give good head.”
He chuckled and got down on his knees next to the bed. “Shouldn’t have kicked me out.”
“We’ll get to that discussion later.”
“I know,” he agreed. “You okay if I do this first?”
“Definitely.”
o0o
Mace was on his back with his eyes closed, completely sated, and Kathleen was leaning her chin on his chest. Her fingers were playing with his beard and hair. It was strangely relaxing.
“Some guys dye their hair to hide the gray,” she said and moved further up.
“And the rest of us have balls.”
“You saying you’re a real man, so you’re not gonna hide the gray?”
“That’s exactly what I’m saying.” He opened his eyes, and she was close, so he cupped her face in his hands and gave her a kiss. “Are you questioning that?”
“No,” she mumbled. “Not at all.”
“Good.” He gave her another kiss before letting her go, and was pleased when she stayed half on top of him. “Wanna tell me what’s happened to the G.O.?”
“We’re modernizing.”
“How much of that is because of you?”
“Quite a lot was actually Blair’s ideas. I suspect she’s spent a lot of time thinking about it, and when I got there she took the chance to voice some of the ideas.”
“She knew you’d back her.”
“Probably.”
“Is it still boring?”
“God, yes,” she sighed.
He’d never asked, not fucking once, but he needed to know now. He probably should’ve asked her before he’d fucked her again, though.
Speed of Light (Marauders #3.5) Page 10