She smiled. “I’m not complaining.”
“I didn’t mean for any of that to happen. You shouldn’t want me.”
“But I do.” She stood up and ran her finger down his cheek, scraping against his stubble. “In bed, in the forest—”
“Like every other guy,” he muttered.
That cooled the lust in her body.
“What the hell?” She put her hands on her hips and took a step back.
“This is what you do with every guy, isn’t it?” More composed now, he zipped up his pants and stepped back onto the trail. “I didn’t mean to be just another man who couldn’t control himself around you. Who took advantage of your need for attention.”
Wow.
Her head spun as hurt swirled through her. Her simple desire to get a man off in the woods didn’t seem like such a good idea anymore.
“So you heard about my reputation.” Her hurt turned to anger. “I’m not some pathetic woman with deep psychological issues. I’m just fine, thank you very much. I like sex. That’s all it is. But you’re so goddamn judgmental.”
“Rachel, no,” he said. “I just… I like you. I do. As much as I can like anyone.”
“Which clearly isn’t very much.” She crossed her arms over her chest.
“That’s true.” He smiled—barely—at that.
“And you think I could be better than this?” She waved a hand to indicate what they’d just done.
“Yes.”
“You think you know what’s best for me?” she said. “I know what’s best for me. Not you, not anyone else. I thought you were hot, and I could tell you were attracted to me. So I wanted to suck your cock and fuck you because it would bring me pleasure. Pleasure. Not attention, you asshole.”
In fact, it had been a little more complicated than that. She’d thought he would be different from the other guys in town.
How foolish of her. He was just like them.
Her anger swelled with indignation. “ Why does everyone think I have issues? If I were a man, nobody would care.”
“I just—”
“You know what? I’m done with you.”
There was no point in continuing this stupid argument. She hurried home before darkness completely enveloped the town.
When she got back to her apartment, she made herself a glass of spiked lemonade and collapsed onto her couch. She felt dirty, the way she felt after screwing around with a man who looked down on her for what she did with him.
It made her blood boil.
Why had she thought Cole would be different? Because he wasn’t from Georgeville?
And yet, despite how he’d made her feel, she couldn’t quite bring herself to regret it. The pleasure she’d experienced as his cum flooded her mouth and trickled down her throat, as she’d watched the ecstasy spread across his usually gruff face, knowing she’d put it there… God, why had it been so good with him, when she hadn’t even gotten off?
She worried she’d call out his name the next time she touched herself. The name of the man next door, who was just like everyone else.
If only he’d shown her otherwise.
Chapter Eight
Cole lifted the casserole dish out of the drying rack. He wasn’t sure whether he should leave it on Rachel’s porch or knock on the door and tell her he was sorry.
He did not want to have that conversation. Apologies in particular were not his thing. But he felt like he should say something, since he’d been such an ass. Who was he to tell her what she ought to be doing or not doing?
And why had he been so fucking stupid? He shouldn’t have gotten involved with his neighbor, should never have kissed her and gotten so swept away in her touch that he let her blow him in the woods. His dick hardened at the memory, and he shook his head. They shouldn’t have done that, and he definitely shouldn’t have been such an idiot afterward.
Well, too late for that now.
He walked the short distance to Rachel’s. He knocked on the door and waited.
No answer.
He looked around and noticed her car was gone. To his surprise, he felt a touch of disappointment that he couldn’t apologize right now. And that he didn’t get to see her in tight jean shorts and a pink T-shirt.
That was all it was. He couldn’t actually be disappointed that he wasn’t having a painful conversation, could he?
He returned to his apartment with the casserole dish and spent a couple of hours reading a novel about a psychotic serial killer. When he heard a car turn into the driveway, he picked up the dish and headed outside.
Rachel waved at him when she got out of her car. She no longer looked like she wanted to hack up his body and mail the parts to random people in town, like the serial killer in his book. Still, she didn’t exactly look happy to see him, but he couldn’t blame her.
She did look hot, though she wasn’t wearing the tiny pair of shorts she’d been wearing the day he met her. No, she had on a white blouse with a small logo on it, and he realized she’d been at work.
“You finished it?” she said, nodding at the dish. She headed to her door, not waiting for a reply, and he followed her.
“Yes. Thank you. It was very good.”
She unlocked the door, then she turned around and stuck out her hand. “Here. I’ll spare you the pain of any further social interaction. You should have just left it on my porch.”
He handed her the dish. “I’m sorry for what I said last night.”
He turned to leave. He’d done what he needed to do; he could go back to the peace of his apartment. Fantasize about undoing those buttons on her shirt with his teeth.
Could you undo buttons with your teeth? He’d never actually tried.
But before he could make his getaway, Rachel wrapped her hand around his. He felt an electric shock where she touched him, and he told himself that was just because she was pissed at him. It had nothing to do with his attraction to her, or her previous attraction to him.
“What exactly are you sorry for?”
Oh, she was cruel.
“For assuming you wanted to have sex for any reason other than liking sex,” he said. “For looking down on you for being willing to suck my cock in the woods.”
Maybe he should have toned down the language a bit.
To his surprise, she burst out laughing. “Great apology.”
He couldn’t figure out whether she was being sarcastic.
“It’s the best I can do,” he muttered.
“No, really,” she said. “Nice apology.”
“I think I better—”
“No one ever apologizes for talking shit about me.”
“I still talked shit. I’m hardly a gentleman.”
“I agree. You’re not.” She released his hand and stepped inside her apartment. She put the dish on a small bench beside the door. “But I’ll give you another chance.”
His dick started to get excited at those words, but he told it to calm down. This was not happening.
“Wait.” She put her hands on her hips and narrowed her eyes. “Is that the only reason you said you were sorry? Because you wanted to get me into bed? Dammit, I thought—”
“No, no. That wasn’t the reason, at all.” He hated that she thought he might have an ulterior motive. That was not the kind of man he was, not the kind of man he ever wanted to be.
She seemed skeptical. “Is that so?”
“I’m a straightforward guy. I apologized because I thought I should. End of story. I am never manipulative, and I am never insincere. Which is why I rarely apologize. It’s not often I’m truly sorry about something.”
“My God. You appear to have some morals.”
“I know. It’s shocking. But I do.” He paused. “I still think it’s a bad idea for us to sleep together. I just…kind of forgot about that last night.” She’d looked so sexy, like a goddamn forest spirit. “I don’t want things to get awkward, since we’re neighbors.”
“Because it’s not at all awkward
right now.” She tilted her head to the side. “That’s what I assumed you meant when you said it would be a bad idea—being neighbors. But I can’t imagine many guys using that as an excuse. Especially not a guy who’s quite clearly attracted to me and knows I don’t want a relationship.”
Goddammit. He would tell her the reason to shut her up.
“I still think you deserve better, okay? You deserve someone who’s more…experienced.”
He’d never come in a woman’s mouth before, and he hadn’t been able to hold back yesterday. Not when she’d taken him deep, not when she’d looked at him as her head bobbed up and down, her mouth forming a perfect circle around his dick. And seeing her lick his cum off her lips… God, that had been hot. Until he’d started thinking about all the other men she’d probably sucked off. Which had been stupid. Who the fuck cared?
“You’re adorable,” she said.
He scowled. “I don’t think anyone has called me adorable since I was a baby.”
Her eyes danced. “Most men have too much confidence in their bedroom skills.” She reached over and touched his wrist, stroking up and down with her thumb. “Now I’m curious.” It felt like her words were caressing his skin, too. “In fact, I want to sleep with you even more.”
“That makes no sense.” He thought his voice sounded normal even though he felt anything but normal inside. His willpower was fading.
He couldn’t keep resisting her. It was impossible.
Being neighbors wasn’t a completely bogus reason for not sleeping together, but he shouldn’t let it get in the way. It wouldn’t be hard to avoid her if he needed to. He was a pretty good hermit when he wanted to be.
His gaze dropped to her breasts, which were well covered by her uniform. He wanted to have her tits in his hands once more, wanted to get his mouth on them and scrape his teeth over the peaks.
And amazingly, she seemed to want that, too, despite everything.
“Are you a virgin?” she asked.
“No.”
“How many women have there been?”
“Two. Neither lasted very long.”
“Do you have trouble lasting very long? Stick it in, then five seconds later—”
“Rachel.” Dammit. She seemed to enjoy shocking him and pissing him off.
He kind of liked how she got under his skin, actually. Few people got close enough to Cole to needle him like this. But Rachel, in her friendly and persistent way, had gotten past his defenses.
He looked at her lips. They were parted, a hint of a smile. He’d kissed her here once before, in front of her door, and he couldn’t help wanting to feel her sassy mouth against his again.
“Don’t you worry. I can last more than five measly seconds.” He paused. “But those other girls…when they came, I knew they were faking it.”
She met his gaze. “I promise I’ll never fake it with you. I’m sure that would offend those morals of yours.”
He’d really hated when Kara and Karla did it. A woman didn’t have to worry about bruising his precious ego. He wasn’t fragile. If she was tired and wanted it to be over already, better if she just told him the truth. Or if he was doing something wrong, he wanted to know.
But as it was, he had no idea what the problem had been. All he knew was that they’d faked it. That had been damn obvious, even to him.
He didn’t think he was bad in bed, but he was a little lacking in confidence when it came to his skills in that department.
“So tell me,” Rachel said. “Why so little experience?”
“I’m an antisocial dick. Hard to get a woman to sleep with you if you don’t talk to her.”
“True.”
“I also don’t like cuddling.” He cringed at the word. “Women always want to do that afterward.”
“The look of revulsion on your face is priceless.” She chuckled. “But you like kissing?”
“It’s a great way to get a woman to shut up.” Though that wasn’t the real reason he wanted to kiss her. He just…wanted.
“Okay, Casanova, I think we’re done with the let’s-share-our-feelings part of this.”
She grabbed his shirt, pulled him inside her apartment, and walked backward. Once they were in the kitchen, she pushed him onto a chair and straddled him. He spread his hands over her ass and brought her closer.
“So, how about me? Do I give great blowjobs?” She tilted her head to one side, then placed a finger on his temple and slowly dragged it down.
“The best I’ve had.” Though that wasn’t saying a lot. Still, he couldn’t imagine anyone being better than her.
“Don’t worry,” she said. “I’m happy to tell you exactly how to get me off.”
“Please do.” He might avoid social contact whenever possible, but he always wanted the woman he was sleeping with to enjoy herself.
Her finger reached the corner of his mouth. She slid it over his lips, and he took it in his mouth, swirling his tongue around her finger, then slowly sucking on it. As soon as she pulled her hand back, he leaned forward and captured her mouth for a slow kiss.
She tasted sweet. The girl next door.
“You’re beautiful.” Okay, so he wasn’t particularly creative.
“Thanks.”
“Would it be better if I said I wanted to stick my fingers in your pussy?”
“Either works,” she said with a smile.
He set his hands to her shirt and started undoing the buttons, revealing a lacy cream-colored bra and smooth skin. He slid the shirt off and reached to the back of her bra. But he couldn’t figure out how to take the damn thing off.
She moved her hands to her chest. “It closes at the front.” She undid the clasp and slid the bra off her shoulders so the rosy peaks of her breasts were on display.
God, she was gorgeous.
“Can I suck on your nipple?” he asked.
“You don’t have to ask.”
He lifted one hand to her breast and massaged it as he took the other nipple in his mouth. He felt the peak harden as he ran his tongue over it.
Cole had never done it like this before, in the daylight where he could see every nuance of a woman’s reaction. He’d wanted to, but his exes had both preferred to have sex in the semi-darkness, not comfortable being seen naked.
Rachel arched her back and squeezed her breast as he lavished attention on her nipple. He loved her response to him, loved how she touched herself. Did she touch her breasts when she masturbated? He had no doubt she masturbated. He couldn’t help but imagine her stretched out in bed, one hand squeezing her breast, the other drifting between her legs, her head tipped back in pleasure.
Perhaps he could ask her to do that for him. The idea of seeing her fingers swallowed up by her body, moving in and out of her damp heat—that turned him on even more.
He rolled her nipple between his fingers, twisting just a little, then set his mouth to it once more.
“You’re making me so wet,” she murmured, her eyes fluttering closed.
He needed to know exactly how wet she was for him. He kept sucking on her nipple as he unbuttoned her pants and slid his hand inside, over the top of her panties. Even through the fabric, he could feel her moisture. His cock throbbed. Hurriedly, he pushed the crotch of her panties to the side and dipped a finger into her.
He raised his head. “Rachel, you…” He didn’t know what to say. “You need to be fucked.”
Her eyes opened. “Yes,” she said. “Yes.”
She bucked her hips and rode his finger. He watched her grind against him, awed by the sensuality pouring out of her, by how unself-conscious she was with him.
“You know how I imagined you fucking me?” she whispered. “Against the wall, from behind. You’re just the right height for that.”
He groaned, slid his finger in and out of her, imagined his cock being surrounded by her sheath. She would make him feel so good… She would make herself feel so good. And he wanted to help get her there.
Fuck. The idea of g
etting her off made him even harder, though that should have been impossible.
She pulled off his shirt in one smooth motion, then unzipped his shorts and wrapped her hand around his cock. He would last more than five seconds, but he wouldn’t last long. Not today, not with Rachel. So he made quick work of the rest of her clothes and stood up. She pressed herself against the wall, her back toward him, sticking her ass out on display.
Shit. Condom.
“In my purse,” she said, as if reading his mind.
He grabbed her purse off the table, found a strip of condoms in the front pouch. He rolled one on then rubbed himself against her backside, squeezing her ass before he sank into her pussy.
“Oh, fuck,” he muttered. He had his dick inside her now, something he’d imagined doing many times since he’d met her. But his imagination couldn’t compete with reality. Not even close.
He gripped her hips and thrust in and out. Not too fast—he didn’t want to lose control and come right away. She felt too damn good, and he wanted to draw it out.
He’d never taken a woman against the wall. Never taken a woman in her kitchen as she clenched the doorframe with one hand and rolled her hips back against him. It felt dirty and rough, and it suited him just right. Suited her just right.
She moved one hand between her legs and touched herself.
“Let me do it.” He pushed aside her hand and ran his fingers over the place where their bodies were joined. Wetness leaked out of her body, coating his fingertips.
“I can’t come unless…”
Oh. He rubbed her clit with his wet thumb.
“Not so much. That’s… Oh, God.” Her body tensed. “Just like that.”
Pleasure shot through him at her response.
He kept stroking her with his finger, fucking her with his cock. When he sped up, she cried out and tightened around him. Good God.
She shook against the wall, and he eased up as he took in the sight and feel of her climax.
“Keep moving,” she said breathlessly. “I want you to come inside me.”
He slammed into her a few more times, until his own orgasm crashed over him. He grunted and pressed her hips against him as his pleasure reached its peak, a peak higher than he’d ever experienced before.
Tempting Her Neighbor (a Georgeville novella) Page 5