Instead of telling him to stop, she tugged him closer and pressed her lips to his neck. Ethan boosted her hips up in his hands. Her eyes widened. “Ethan, don’t…” then her lids fluttered closed as he pushed inside her. Her legs, soft and strong, wrapped around his hips, pulling him deep, deep, deeper until his aching cock was buried hilt deep in her pussy.
“Fuck,” he muttered against her mouth. “I knew you’d be this sweet.”
“Ethan…” She arched into him and he rotated his hips against her, groaning as she clenched down tight around him. So tight, so sweet. He gritted his teeth as hot little chills raced up and down his spine, a warning that his climax was moving in on him hard and fast. He had known he wouldn’t last too long—not the first time with her—but he hadn’t thought it would hit like this.
One thing was certain—he wasn’t going alone. When he came, she was going to be right there with him.
He palmed her ass, easing his upper body away to watch her face. She shivered as he trailed his fingers between the cheeks of her ass, her pupils flaring. He touched her there again, his touch more deliberate. She whimpered. Following the little cues, he stroked and teased and caressed her until she seemed every bit as hot and needy as he was. Then he changed the angle of his thrusts until he was riding against the tight little nub of her clit.
She cried out his name, the sound echoing in the small confines of the elevator. Ethan, savagely pleased, rode her through her climax and waited until she was bucking and trembling in his arms before he let himself come.
His knees almost buckled with the force of his orgasm. He shouted her name and for one sweet, perfect moment, he closed his eyes and let himself pretend that she might care about him, even a little.
When Ethan could walk again, he pushed away from her soft, sweet body, adjusted his pants and then pulled her against him. He jabbed in the code that opened the elevator and then he lifted her into his arms. She argued and squirmed and he just tightened his arms and smothered her protests with his lips. As she fell silent, he carried her into his penthouse and down the dimly lit hall to his room.
He’d had dreams about seeing her and all those sweet, round curves in his bed. He was already probably damned to hell for what he’d done to get her here so he was going to make the most of it.
Chapter Five
She awoke to feel hot, hard hands on her hips and a firm, knowing mouth pressed between her thighs, doing the most sinful things. Pam’s eyes flew open and she flushed to the roots of her hair as she met Ethan’s eyes over the expanse of her body. Automatically, she tried to cover herself and he caught her wrists, pinning them to the bed by her hips.
“Didn’t anybody ever tell you not to interrupt a hungry man’s feast?” he whispered against her. His tongue rimmed the entrance of her pussy and she whimpered, rocking against him. She dug her nails into her palms, tugging against his gentle, restraining hold. Oddly enough, that simple act of holding her hands so that she couldn’t touch him was almost as exciting as the feel of him pushing his tongue inside her.
She whimpered his name when he let go of one wrist so he could push two fingers inside her sheath. Quick, shallow, then deep and slow, over and over until she was rocking upward, panting his name and pleading with him. She fisted her free hand in his hair, clutched him closer and moved against his mouth with an abandon unlike anything she’d ever felt before.
Ethan lifted his head and stared at her, his mouth wet from her and his eyes gone black with hunger. He stared at her, watched her, as he pulled his fingers out of her pussy then slid them between his lips. As he licked them clean, he stared at her and as he pushed them back inside, he stared. It was as though he was fascinated by the sight of her and had to keep staring at her just to believe she was real.
Her lashes fluttered down. She sagged back against the bed as he pushed his fingers back inside her and pressed against a spot buried deep within her pussy. Damn, the man had magic hands. He touched her like he’d been born knowing how to make her react, how to make her moan and whimper and come.
The orgasm slammed into her with brutal force, blinding her. She came hard and fast, screaming out his name and rocking her hips up to meet him. By the time her vision cleared, he had shifted up so that he knelt between her thighs and she watched from beneath heavy lids as he quickly rolled a rubber down the length of his cock.
“Watch,” he muttered and she did, staring downward as he slowly fed his length into her, one inch at a time. She cried out and before he had even half of his cock inside her, she was shivering and clenching down tight around him, just this close to coming. “Don’t close your eyes, Pam…watch…see how we fit together. Fuck, I knew it would be like this with you. Knew it.”
He fisted a hand in her hair and jerked her head back, exposing the length of her neck. His teeth scraped against her flesh and then he rasped into her ear, “I knew you’d be sweet, baby girl. But I had no idea you’d be this addictive. Come for me, Pam. Let me feel it again.”
Ethan seemed to have a control over her body that was unreal. Just a few sexy words rumbled into her ear as he slid his hands under her butt, canted her hips up and slid back and forth across her clit, were all it took and she came, moaning harshly, convulsing in his arms.
She felt him come, his cock jerking in a hard, pulsing rhythm as he erupted inside the latex glove of the condom. Then he collapsed against her, his head pillowed between her breasts. He cupped one in his hand and under his breath, he murmured her name.
Something sweet and tender moved through her and she wrapped her arms around his neck, hugging him close. Satisfied and still sleepy, she closed her eyes.
Pam was nearly asleep when a hard, cold voice cut across the room, jerking her into wakefulness. “Well, I guess I know why you haven’t been answering your damn phone,” Shawn snarled from the doorway.
She opened her eyes as Ethan rolled out of the bed to face Shawn, completely naked and completely unaffected by that fact. “Get the fuck out of here, Shawn,” Ethan said, his voice flat.
Shawn’s face twisted into an ugly sneer. “Not without my fiancée, buddy. I said one night and the night’s up.”
Up until that second, she’d been a little embarrassed, a little uncomfortable. Okay, very uncomfortable. Falling into bed with a guy after one date, even one as sexy as Ethan, just wasn’t her style. But as Shawn’s words penetrated the sleepy fog of lust, surprise, embarrassment and fury burned hot and low in her belly.
Oh, she hadn’t just heard him say that, had she? Pushing up onto her elbow, she gaped at him. “Your fiancée? I gave your ring back, sugar. Remember?”
He barely glanced at her, too busy glaring at Ethan as if he wanted to strangle him. Pam didn’t get it—now he looked possessive? Damn it, he’d all but told her she had to sleep with Ethan to wipe out the money issue. So what if he hadn’t said it outright? She knew the man, knew how his mind worked, knew how greedy he was.
Of course, maybe he hadn’t expected Pam to give the ring back. Maybe he’d thought she could go selflessly into Ethan’s bed and endure—endure—not enjoy. Now she wasn’t so certain that was possible. Ethan was the kind of man who seemed as though he had been born with the knowledge of how to please a woman.
“Come on, Pam. We’re leaving.”
Pam arched her brows. Sitting up in the bed, the sheet clutched to her breasts, she shook her head. “No. I’m not going any damn place with you.”
Finally he looked at her and the look in his eyes made her flinch. Disgust. It only took a second for her pain to change into rage. He had the nerve to look at her like that…after he’d practically sold her? Yeah, she’d let it happen. Shawn couldn’t have physically made her go out with Ethan but the financial burden of the club had seen to it that she wouldn’t have much choice. Still, she hadn’t even tried other options. She wouldn’t dump all of this on his head but she’d be damned if she let him look at her like that.
“You’ve got a lot of nerve,” she murmured, shakin
g her head. Sliding from the bed, she wrapped the sheet around her body before she turned to glare at him. “You don’t do a damn thing with the club. Nothing. But you had no problem signing the entire thing over to Ethan without consulting me, all to help out that no-good brother of yours.”
Shawn’s eyes narrowed. “You leave my brother out of this. You don’t know him.”
“I know enough to realize that he’s a crook, that he doesn’t care who he hurts,” Pam replied.
“He’s my kid brother, Pam,” Shawn said, his voice edgy. “I love him. I had to protect him.”
She smiled and it felt bitter on her face. “Yeah, I know that. Protect him to the point that you sell me out just to make it easier for you.” Her smile softened as she glanced at Ethan. “Fortunately for me, Ethan’s a better man than you are.”
Sneering, Shawn said, “I dunno about that. He thinks he can buy whatever he wants. He sure as hell bought your ass, didn’t he?”
Up until that point, Ethan had been quiet, his arms crossed over his chest, standing in the middle of the room, unabashedly naked. But now, his face went hard and cold, his body tensing like a snake ready to strike. “Watch what you say to her, Shawn. Now would actually be a good time for you to leave.”
“Not without Pam.”
Ethan slid Pam an unreadable glance. “Do you want to leave with him?”
She scowled at Shawn and sat down on the edge of the bed. Shawn stared at her as though he didn’t even recognize her. “Hell no.”
Ethan smiled. It was a mean, nasty smile and if it had been directed at Pam, she would have done whatever the hell he wanted. Instead, it was directed at Shawn and she couldn’t help smirking a little and wondering just what Ethan might do if Shawn didn’t listen. “You can leave,” Ethan said, his voice soft, but the subtle threat was undeniable. “Or I’ll kick your sorry ass out of here. You don’t want me to do that, do you?”
Shawn gave Pam an ugly look. “And there you went, acting all wounded over what happened. You little whore. You’ve probably been waiting for some excuse to fuck him.”
Pam’s jaw dropped. Oh, no. He didn’t just say that. She had no chance to demand he say it again because Ethan closed the distance between them and delivered a quick, powerful jab to Shawn’s jaw. Shawn went crashing backward onto his ass.
“If you’re still here in another minute, Shawn, there won’t be enough left of you to bury.”
Chapter Six
Late that night, Pam wandered around the small rental house that she’d been living in for the past three years. It was nice enough, in a quiet, clean neighborhood and she had a decent yard, decent neighbors and up until all of this had happened, she’d thought she had a decent life.
Most of her life, she’d tried to use common sense. Before making the choice about opening her own business, she’d taken college courses, she’d read every book she could find on starting up a business and she’d gone into it with her eyes wide open. Prepared for anything.
Though she’d been going out with Shawn for years, she’d moved slowly with him, taken her time, hadn’t committed until she thought they were both ready. The wise, practical approach to a relationship.
But look where her common sense and practical approaches had landed her—with a fiancé she really didn’t know and several thousands of dollars poorer since there were some wedding costs that required money up front—money she couldn’t get back.
That wasn’t the killer part though.
What was bothering her—again—was Ethan.
Hell. In the past it had seemed as though he was always there. Always. He had either dropped by the club for no obvious reason or shown up at her house to give Shawn papers that could have easily waited until the next day at work.
He’d brought her home shortly after Shawn—his mouth bleeding—had vacated the premises. Ethan, as attentive has he’d been the night before, had walked her to her door and kissed her gently but when she’d tried to invite him in, he’d refused.
Politely. Almost as if they hadn’t spent the past twelve hours on top of each other. She’d tried to hide it but that had hurt. He’d walked away but when he reached his car, he’d looked back at her. Was it her imagination or had she really seen that stark, almost naked hunger in his eyes? That kind of hunger—what did it mean?
She really wasn’t sure and eleven hours later, she was still trying to figure out what her next step should be. Damn it, she was so confused. A few days ago, it had seemed as though her life was set. She’d been content, satisfied.
Content. Satisfied.
Scowling, she came to a stop in front of the mirror hanging over the console table in the hallway. “Content?” she said to her reflection. “Satisfied?”
Was that how she was supposed to be when she was getting ready to get married? Was she supposed to be content? Shouldn’t she be more like, spinning around and laughing-like-a-loon happy?
Actually, she’d almost felt that happy—earlier. With Ethan. Last night…with Ethan. How many times had a goofy smile spread across her lips during dinner? How many times had he made her laugh until her sides hurt and how many times had he done something so simply sweet and romantic that her eyes had misted over?
“Gggggrrrr. Damn it, I fricking hate being confused.” And she was more confused at that moment than she’d been in a long, long while. Not about Shawn. She had no regrets about giving his ring back. None.
Although he was the man she had planned to marry in just a few weeks, she wasn’t even all that bent out of shape over the canceled wedding. She should have been. Five years together—she should have tears or something for him, right?
They’d been together a long time, yet she realized she hadn’t really known him at all. Or maybe she hadn’t really let herself see him.
But instead of brooding and pouting about her canceled wedding, she couldn’t quit thinking about Ethan. The way he’d smiled at her. The way he touched her, even when they weren’t trying to get so close they all but disappeared inside the each other. But the way he’d held her hand. The way he’d kept touching her throughout dinner and the Bash, as if he couldn’t not touch her. The way he’d made her smile. The way he’d grinned at her when she told him about some of the crazy things that had happened in the club and the way he’d held her hand when she told him about her mother dying the year before she met Shawn. The way he had brushed her hair back from her face and stared at her as though nobody else existed.
And other things, such as how nervous she’d always been around him, even from the beginning. The way he’d always seemed to be watching her. He’d always seemed to be around, even when he really didn’t have any reason to be. Calling to talk to Shawn when, logically, Ethan should have known he wouldn’t find Shawn at the club all that often.
She shouldn’t have been so torn up inside over one night but she couldn’t stop thinking about Ethan.
Have you ever seen something you wanted so bad it haunted your days and nights? Something you wanted but couldn’t have? That kind of thing turns into an obsession real fast, Pam, and I’ve had an obsession for you since the night I saw you dancing with Shawn.
Obsession. She closed her eyes and wished she could block out his voice that easily. Just cover her ears and pretend his words weren’t still echoing through her head. She couldn’t though.
Obsession.
What if… She swallowed, remembering the way he’d looked at her right before he drove off and left her alone. What if it wasn’t some kind of physical thing but something deeper?
It was unnerving and unsettling and she knew, even as the thought formed, that she was probably wrong but still—still—she found herself wandering into her bedroom and unearthing the dress bag that held the black velvet dress she’d been wearing that night she had met Ethan for the first time.
Clear as day, she could remember it. Getting dressed for what she’d thought would be a romantic evening of wining, dining and dancing. But Shawn had been there more to circulate
and shop for new client prospects than to romance his girlfriend. Instead of spending the evening on the dance floor, she’d spent half the night just walking around or sitting at a small table by the dance floor while Shawn made connections and talked shop.
Oh, she’d danced a few times with him. Had been asked to dance by a few other guys but she’d refused them all. Including the offer from Ethan. She had been standing at the edge of the dance floor, waiting for Shawn to come back from the bar when Ethan approached her. She’d noticed him from twenty feet away, but she hadn’t made eye contact.
Guys like Ethan didn’t go out of their way to find women like her—women a little on the plump side and more in the way of cute than sexy and gorgeous. But instead of seeking out some long, willowy brunette, he’d stopped in front of her and held out a hand.
“Dance with me?” It was all he’d said, yet it had been more tempting than any line she’d heard in her whole life. Her heart had leaped into her throat and she’d almost put her hand in his.
But common sense, damn it, had pervaded and she had smiled politely and refused.
What if she’d said yes? She couldn’t help but wonder about that now.
Over the years, she’d run into Ethan on a regular basis and she had thought she’d get used to that calm, confident arrogance but she never had. He was as unsettling to her now as he had been that first time. The watchful way he stared at her? She figured he watched all women like that and that sexy, faint grin was just his normal expression.
But now she started to wonder.
Wonder…yeah, she wondered all right. The answer to her unasked question lurked in the back of her head but she was too nervous to give voice to it. Too scared. Too uncertain. Slowly, she reached out a hand and trailed her fingers down the black velvet and remembered.
Remembered how Ethan had looked at her that night. How he always seemed to be there, always seemed to watch her.
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