A Real Man: Limited Edition

by Jenika Snow

  I swallowed the lump in my throat and stared at his hands again.

  I bet he would use those strong hands to hold me down, to touch me, to make me feel owned.

  Closing my eyes, I prayed I could act like an adult and not like some hormonal teenager.

  And then I thought about his cock.

  A groan almost slipped from me.

  I knew he was huge from when I first met him. But I couldn’t help but imagine what he’d feel like. I bet it would hurt as he pushed into me. I wasn’t a virgin, but I had no doubt he’d certainly make me feel like one.

  I didn’t even know this man, yet I was so insanely attracted to him I couldn’t control my body’s reaction.

  “You want me to turn down the heat?” he asked, and I glanced at him.

  “What?”

  “Are you hot?”

  “No.” I breathed out slowly, trying to appear like I had my shit under control. Gabe sure as hell looked like he was in control. He was cool, collected.

  “You’re sweating.”

  I lifted my hand and touched my brow. A few beads of sweat dotted my skin. “No, I’m not hot,” I said, my throat tight, my voice sounding thick. I sure as hell wasn’t about to admit I was sweating because I had gotten myself all worked up thinking about him.

  I realized we were already parked in front of a little café. My thoughts had been so consumed by Gabe that I hadn’t even realized we’d arrived. I felt my face heat at that realization.

  At least appear like you’re calm.

  I stared at the little diner but felt Gabe’s gaze on me.

  “You good?”

  I glanced at him and nodded. “Yeah, of course.” He didn’t respond, just stared at me in a way that told me he knew I was full of shit.

  He narrowed his eyes, and I thought maybe he’d push this or call me out. Instead he said, “Okay, then let’s get some grub.” And then he was out of the car, walking around the front of it, and opening up my side.

  I can keep this friendly. I totally can … right?

  3

  Gabe

  I didn’t want to be one of those fucking creeps that can’t keep their eyes off a pretty girl, but Josephine was a knockout, and every possessive instinct in me reared up. I knew I wouldn’t let this go.

  I wanted her as mine, and I could already see how this would play out. She’d probably think I was a caveman, and so be it, because once I set my mind to something, I didn’t back down.

  “Anything else?” the waitress asked.

  I watched as she shook her head, her focus on the waitress. “I’m good,” I said, never deviating my focus from Josephine. Once we were alone again, I leaned back and stared her. She was getting nervous. I could see by the way she shifted on the chair and glanced anywhere but at me.

  “Tell me about yourself.” I wanted, no, needed to know everything about her.

  “Me?” The surprise was clear in her voice.

  “Yeah.”

  She started messing with her napkin, and I didn’t stop myself from reaching across the table and placing my hand over hers. Her skin was warm and soft, and I imagined her entire body would feel like satin beneath me. Her eyes widened.

  “Why would you want to know about me?”

  I was pleased she hadn’t pulled her hand out from under mine. “Why wouldn’t I want to know about you?”

  Then she licked her lips. I stared at them, imagining them parted and wrapped around my dick. My cock came alive, the fucker throbbing.

  “I got this job at an interior design store just inside Rustin.”

  I nodded, finally removing my hand from hers because I didn’t want to make her feel off-kilter. Although truth was I fucking loved having her on edge. It turned me on.

  “You know the place?” Her face turned red after she asked that.

  “Yeah.” I smiled. “Rustin’s pretty small.”

  Her face got even redder, and I became so damn hot, so fucking aroused seeing her nervous and embarrassed.

  “That was a stupid question.” She glanced down.

  “No, it wasn’t.” She didn’t glance up at me yet. “Hey, look at me.” I didn’t mean to sound so demanding, at least not right now, but I didn’t want her feeling like shit needed to be awkward. She finally lifted her head. “You and I may not know each other that well, but that’s going to change, yeah?” She nodded slowly but instantly. That pleased me. “Where are you from?” I struck up the conversation again and saw the redness in her face lessening.

  “Groveport.”

  She had only been a few hours from Rustin.

  “You an interior designer, or are you doing something else there?”

  She nodded. “Yeah, I actually do the interior design stuff but also minored in business management.” The waitress refilled our water glasses. Guess it was clear we weren’t going anywhere. “But the store is so small, and the town tiny in comparison to the other business owned by the company, that I’m surprised it’s doing as well as it is in Rustin.”

  “People have a way of surprising you.” I didn’t know anything about interior design. I didn’t give care about much aside from my garage and fixing cars. But I was very interested and most definitely gave a shit about what Josephine had to say.

  “So I graduated, and here I am. Twenty-two years old and already got my dream job.” She flushed, and I knew it was from pride.

  Well, damn. I knew she was young, but didn’t realize I was thirteen years older than her.

  “You own the garage, I assume?”

  I smirked. It was cute the way she asked that. “Yeah. Used to be my old man’s, but when he passed away, I took over.”

  Genuine sympathy covered her face. “Oh, I’m sorry.”

  “It was years ago, and he died of his own accord. Drank himself to death.” I ran a hand over my jean-clad thigh. I didn’t like talking about him. “He wasn’t the best of fathers anyway, so things are better off now.” Maybe that was harsh to say, but it was the truth. And I was finding myself wanting to be totally honest with Josephine. I felt like stripping myself bare so she could see every little crack in my armor. And I had plenty.

  “Well, I’m still sorry.” She offered me this sweet smile. I could tell she wanted to ask me more, but she didn’t. There wasn’t much more to say anyway. My mother died years before my father. I’d only heard about her passing because my aunt called. I guess that’s what happens when your mother runs out on her family because she couldn’t handle an alcoholic husband.

  “It’s only my mom and me,” she finally said after long seconds. She had her focus on the table, her hand running over the cracked Formica top. “But she’s a newlywed, and they ended up moving to North Carolina, so I don’t really see her anymore.”

  I saw the forlorn look on her face. We needed to get off this depressing shit.

  “Tell me what you like,” I asked. Tell me what you want in bed. Tell me what you want me to do to you, how you want me to touch you. Tell me how to make you see you’re already mine.

  “I like a lot of things.”

  My cock throbbed, my balls drew up tight, and I clenched my hand into a fist on top of my thigh.

  “I’m pretty simple though, to be honest.” She looked around after speaking. “I’m going to run to the restroom.”

  I nodded, acting cool, collected.

  Acting like I didn’t have a raging hard-on right now for her.

  I could wish the bastard to go down before I had to stand, but I didn’t give a shit who saw what I was sporting. In fact, I kind of hoped Josephine saw what she did to me. Her reaction would be the gasoline on the already out-of-control fire I had for her.

  4

  Josephine

  I inhaled and blew it out slowly while looking at my reflection. The mirror in front of me was cracked in the corner, and the girl who looked back had flushed cheeks and dilated pupils. I thought my act back at the table had been Oscar-worthy. I didn’t think Gabe noticed that I kept shifting on my seat
, or that the blush I had didn’t have anything to do with being nervous.

  I was aroused.

  I was wet.

  All I wanted was him.

  My reaction to him was intense, insane. I didn’t even really know him, yet my body was so heightened when I was near him. All I could think about was what I wanted to do with him … what I wanted him to do to me.

  I looked up and stared at that crack in the glass. It spread out, like a spiderweb, like it was alive.

  I wanted to feel alive, and that’s exactly what moved through me while I was in Gabe’s presence. It was totally crazy, didn’t make any sense, and I knew that.

  But I didn’t care.

  I had a pretty good feeling Gabe was into me, too. He was composed at all times, but I didn’t miss the way he looked at my lips after I licked them, or the way he shifted on the seat, maybe trying to adjust an erection?

  I could wish, at least.

  I didn’t know what my fascination with him was. I doubted it had anything to do with having had sex only a couple of times in my life, and neither of those guys half the man Gabe seemed to be. Gabe was so masculine, and he made me feel wholly feminine.

  What would he be like in bed? Would he be the dominating kind of lover, the kind who liked to take charge, who liked to hold me down as he used me?

  God, am I so desperate for him I wouldn’t even care if he used me?

  I pushed away from the sink, thankful I was the only one in the bathroom, and decided to push past this crazy arousal I had. I’m not the type of girl that would be okay with a one-night stand, and even as helpful and nice as Gabe had been to me, he didn’t seem like the type of man that would want something more permanent. Besides, I’d just gotten into town, and the last thing I needed was guy complications if things did happen between us. Because if he wasn’t into me after a little roll between the sheets, I knew I’d see him around, and how uncomfortable would that be?

  I left the bathroom, my focus on the ground, my thoughts on the crazy things I was feeling. I slammed right into someone and assumed it was Gabe from the way he cupped my arms and the low, masculine grunt that left him. But when I looked up, it was some random guy. He was young, maybe fresh out of high school. He smelled like middle school though, like that eighth grade Cool Water aroma that wasn’t bad but also brought back those awkward adolescent memories.

  “Sorry,” he said, a grin already in place. “You new here? Just passing through?”

  I didn’t want to be rude, but I also didn’t want to small talk with some random guy about whether or not I was new in town. It might have been some cheesy pickup line, or he could have been trying to genuinely be nice. Either way, I wasn’t in the right headspace for it.

  He still had his hands on my arms, but before I could move away or even respond to his question, I saw Gabe step up behind him. Gabe was a whole head taller than this guy.

  “You got somewhere else to be,” Gabe said, not phrasing it like a question.

  The guy turned around, and the expression on his face told me he was annoyed. “Excuse me—” But that last word kind of hung in the air between them when he saw Gabe.

  “I’m sure you got something else to do than speaking with Josephine,” Gabe said. He crossed his big arms, this easy but also serious expression hanging over him.

  “Hey, Gabe,” the guy said.

  Okay, they clearly knew each other.

  “I didn’t know she was yours,” the guy said, holding up his hands. There was no weirdness between them. But there was this dominance coming from Gabe.

  The guy ended up leaving, and I stood there wondering what in the hell had just happened.

  “Ready?” Gabe said as if that little exchange wasn’t weird as hell. He went to leave, but I felt myself rooted to the spot.

  “What was that?”

  He stopped and looked over his shoulder. “What?” He turned fully around then.

  “That…that…” I was at a loss for words right now. He’d been marking his territory. That’s what it had certainly seemed like. But that couldn’t be. I hardly knew him. And would a man be possessive of a woman he just met? He hadn’t even hit on me, and aside from a few looks I’d seen him throw my way, he’d seemed indifferent toward me.

  He lifted a dark eyebrow. “That was what?”

  I didn’t know, so instead of saying anything, I just opened and closed my mouth.

  “Come on,” he said, his voice deep.

  I found myself following him out of the diner, across the parking lot, and when I had my hand on the door handle, I finally found my voice.

  “That was fucking ridiculous.” I surprised even myself with the words that spilled out of my mouth. Gabe had my door already opened, but he was on the driver’s side, waiting. When I spoke, he shut his door and walked around the truck to where I stood.

  “You think so?”

  I nodded, crossing my arms over my chest. “Yeah, I do. You don’t even know me.” he had the passenger side door closed a second later, and placed his hands on either side of me. He moved close, his big body pressed almost to mine. I had my hands hanging at my sides, my throat tight, my breath stalling. “What are you doing?” I asked, my voice barely a whisper.

  “What does it look like I’m doing?” He glanced down at my mouth.

  I swallowed the lump in my throat. “It looks like you’re invading my personal space.” And he was, really invading it, but the thing was I wanted more of it. I felt hot, a flush stealing over me, making my heart beat faster and my palms sweaty. He smelled so good too. Gabe smelled like a real man. All man.

  “You don’t want me this close?” he asked, his voice low, the hint of a question hanging between us. “Or maybe you do like it.” He pressed his body flush with mine, hard to soft. He was all lines, masculine dips, sinew, and precise muscle.

  “I don’t even know you,” I managed to say again, but it was clear, even to me, that not knowing him intimately didn’t mean a thing. I didn’t care that there were probably people staring at us, that we looked like a couple about to get it on.

  God, I’d like to get it on.

  “What do you want to know about me?” he asked, his focus on my eyes now. “I’ll tell you anything you want.”

  I believed he would.

  “For starters, I don’t know your last name.”

  “Dressin,” he said without missing a beat.

  “Or your age—”

  “Thirty-five.” He fired that answer back at me, his gaze on my lips again. I couldn’t help but lick them. A guttural groan spilled from him, and I felt myself get wetter, felt my panties become soaked for this man.

  When he slowly lifted his eyes to mine, he was heavy-lidded, his arousal clear. It was like our lust for one another bounced between us. I absorbed his, he absorbed mine, and together it was so intense we were saturated with it.

  “What are you doing?” I asked again, but this time in a barely there whisper. He didn’t speak for a second, but the look he gave me screamed one word.

  Mine.

  5

  Gabe

  I played that question in my head over and over again. Maybe I should have backed off. Maybe I shouldn’t have been so aggressive, and talked to her about how I felt, about what I wanted.

  But that wasn’t who I was.

  It would never be who I was.

  “What am I doing?” I repeated her question, mainly to hear myself saying it out loud. I wouldn’t make this sweet. I couldn’t. As much as she deserved gentle, I wanted her like a starving beast. I’d tell Josephine exactly what I wanted, and I didn’t care how raw or unfiltered it was.

  I cupped her cheek, adding a bit of pressure. I loved the little sound she made. “We don’t have to know each other for years for this to be happening.”

  “For what to be happening?” she asked almost absently, her voice so soft it was almost inaudible.

  “You know what I’m talking about,” I said, just as low. “You feel it. You know
that we belong together, that you’re mine.” I pressed myself even closer to her. I wanted Josephine more than I’d ever thought I could desire someone. But it wasn’t just me getting between her thighs to that sweet, pink spot, but the fact that I wanted her by my side. “I want you as mine, to admit you want that too.”

  “This is fucking insane.”

  “Yeah it is, but that’s the best kind of way to live.” I ground my stiff dick against her belly, and she gasped. I was pleased she didn’t act like she cared if anyone was watching—which a few people were gawking. Let them look. Let them see that she was mine and I could do whatever the fuck I wanted to her.

  And then I did just that.

  I slammed my mouth down on hers, swallowing her gasp and the little sound she made after that. With her mouth open I didn’t stop myself from plunging my tongue inside. I fucked her between her lips, the same way I wanted to do between her thighs. I wanted to claim her, make her see that I wasn’t letting her go, not now, and not fucking ever.

  I didn’t give a shit that this was sudden, or that it might not make any sense.

  It made perfect sense.

  This made perfect fucking sense to me.

  I cupped the back of her head, bringing her as close as physically possible. She was kissing me back, and I started grinding myself against her, needing that friction. Hell, I needed a lot more than this high-school petting bullshit. What I needed was to be buried balls-deep in her pussy, marking her, making her stretch and burn because she couldn’t take all of me. The groan that ripped out of me was guttural.

  “I want you so fucking badly right now,” I murmured against her mouth, tugging on her hair, and making her gasp. “I want to push down your pants, pull your panties aside, and slide my dick into your tight little cunt.” She moaned for me. “And you’d like that, wouldn’t you? You’d let me do that and so much more.” She started panting. “You’d let me be a filthy fucker to you, wouldn’t you?”

  “God, this is so insane,” she said, her eyes closed, her voice this breathy moan of pleasure.