Selfish

by Shantel Tessier

  “It’s very thoughtful.” He nods. “You shouldn’t have but thank you.”

  I take a step back toward the door. “Thank you for everything. And again, I’m sorry to have bothered you.”

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  RYDER

  I stand at the front of the conference table. I have a man from China on speakerphone for the other five people sitting in the room to hear when I see my driver Milton walk by through the glass wall.

  “Mr. Townsen, I think that timing is very doable,” I say, wondering why he is up here.

  “Thanks, Ryder. I would like to have the building permit by the end of the week.”

  That won’t be a problem. “Once you get it, let me know, and I will contact the builder and make sure that the site is ready for you to break ground.” My father has partnered with Townsen, and they are building condos in the Alps.

  We hang up, and I look at my men. “That’s all, gentlemen.” I pick up my file, open the glass door as they holler at me, and walk quickly down the hallway. I drop the closed file onto Kelly’s desk. “Milton?” I call out as he stands, waiting for the elevator to open, dressed in black slacks and a crisp black button-down. He turns to face me. He smiles, his dimples showing. His soft brown eyes land on mine. Milton and I go way back. He has been a part of my life for over twelve years now. He’s like my second dad.

  “Sorry. My meeting ran a little later than I expected.” I apologize for making him wait.

  He waves it off. “No worries. I had to bring Ashlyn up here. I’m going—”

  “Ashlyn?” I interrupt him. I only know one Ashlyn, and she has been on my mind all morning.

  He nods. “Yes, sir. She wanted to meet with your father.”

  The elevator dings, and I smile. “I’ll be down in a moment, Milton.” I turn around and walk back down the hallway to my father’s office. I open the door without knocking to find my dad behind his desk and Ashlyn walking to the door. I pause as I look at her. I’ve never seen her dressed in business attire. She has a tight black skirt on that hugs her thin waist and curvy hips. It stops just above her knees. It’s high waisted, and she has a white blouse tucked in with a thin black belt. Her black high heels top off her look and make my mouth water. Her blond hair is down and in big curls. She’s wearing red lipstick, and my first thought is the red print her lips would leave around my cock. “Hey,” I say a little too breathless

  “Ryder? How did the meeting go with Mr. Townsen?” my father asks all business.

  “Great.” I wave it off. “What are you doing you here?” I ask never taking my eyes off her.

  “I came to see your father. But I’m leaving now.” She walks past me and out the door.

  “See you tomorrow, Dad,” I say as I follow her. He calls my name, but I ignore him as I continue to follow the woman who gets better and better every time I see her.

  Her heels clap on the floor, her hips sway back and forth, and her big curls bounce against her back. A purse hangs over her right shoulder and the slit up the back of her black skirt allows me to see a little more of her legs. My cock hardens as I imagine taking the thin fabric in my hands and ripping it off her.

  I walk right past my office and follow her to the elevator doors. “Were you going to say hi to me?” I ask, coming up beside her. I take a quick look over my shoulder and see Kelly sitting behind her desk; she’s got her head down and is busy working.

  “I wasn’t planning on it,” she replies, not bothering to turn and look at me.

  I chuckle as if that was funny. “And why not?”

  She lets out a huff as if the elevator is taking too long to arrive at our floor. She turns her face to look at me, and I place my hands in my pockets to keep from reaching out, grabbing her face, and kissing her in front of everyone. “Because I had nothing to say,” she replies simply.

  I open my mouth to speak, but the elevator dings and the doors slide open. I open my hand and say, “After you.”

  She walks in, and I make my way past her. I lean my back against the far wall and let my eyes roam all over her once again. She is paying more attention to her phone than she is me as the doors close. We’re in it alone, and I can’t help but lean in and smell her. It brings back memories of the first elevator we were in at our hotel in Panama City. “Bring back memories?” I ask her.

  “Memories of what?” she asks, not bothering to look away from her phone.

  “Us in an elevator back in Panama City.”

  “Not really,” she answers with a careless shrug. “That was hardly the first time I ever rode on an elevator, Ryder.” She says my name like the thought of it alone is annoying her.

  I smile at her answer. She’s gonna try and play hard to get after that kiss we had last night? She can try all she wants, but I know the truth. She liked it. Loved it even. “Is this gonna be another test? Want me to remind you how much you liked it?” She ignores me, and I bite my lips. Hard to get, it is then.

  I push away from the wall and grab her upper arm, shove her back into the wall, and pin her arms above her head. “What are you doing?” she snaps as she looks up at me. Her phone makes a thud sound as it hits the floor, along with her purse.

  “Reminding you.”

  “Ryder, what the—”

  I slam my lips to hers and let go of her hands. I expect her to push me away; it was a long shot to begin with, but she doesn’t. Instead, she pulls her head back and looks up at me, breathing heavy. I don’t move. She doesn’t move. I stand looking down at her with heated eyes and my chest pounding. It’s her move. If she pushes me away, I’ll move. If she pulls me to her, I’ll take advantage of it.

  “You have to stop doing this,” she breathes.

  “You don’t mean that.”

  She licks her lips. “I do.”

  I lift my hands to her face. “Tell me to stop then,” I whisper. She draws in a long breath and lets it out slowly. “Tell me to stop, and I will never touch you again, sweetheart.” There’s no way in hell I’ll be able to do what I just said. I’m calling her bluff; hopefully, she’s unable to see that.

  “I want …” She stops herself mid-sentence as her wide eyes search mine.

  I run my thumbs across her cheeks as I cup her face in my hands. “I want you,” I say honestly. “And I know you want me.” I lower my lips down to hers, so close they almost touch. “I can see it in your eyes. It was there on the beach in Florida, and it’s still there now.” My eyes search hers. “That night, you told me you wanted me. Now, I’m telling you that I want you.”

  “The rule—”

  “We’ve already broken that rule,” I state, and she swallows. “Now, tell me to stop.” I lower my voice to a whisper and lick my lips. She stays silent as she stares up at me, and I take that as a sign I’m gonna get what I want.

  Keeping my eyes open, I gently press my lips to hers. Her eyes close as she kisses me back. It’s a soft and delicate kiss, but she moans as she presses her body into mine. My eyes close, slidding a free hand around her waist while the other holds her head. I deepen the kiss.

  My cock instantly hardens, and I press my hips into hers. She tilts her head and moans again into my mouth. My hands reach down and grab the hem of her skirt. I go to lift it, but the elevator comes to a quick stop and dings. She shoves me so hard that my back hits the far wall. Two men from thirty-one enter and give us both head nods. One calls me by name and starts up a conversation with me, but I don’t hear one word of it. All of my attention is on Ashlyn. She picks up her phone and purse off the floor quickly and stands against the wall. Her blond hair messy and her chest heaving. I can see her hands shake as she holds them down at her sides. Her head tilts back, and her eyes looking deeply into mine. They’re on fire, and I wish I could continue kissing her. I’ve been craving that taste of hers for the last week. Ever since my first taste in Panama City. The sexiest thing about her is her eyes. They make me lose control of myself, and I like that.

  I don’t notice that we have stoppe
d and the doors have opened until she walks right past me quickly and out the elevator doors. “Ashlyn?” I call as she storms through the front lobby. “Ashlyn. Wait!” I call out, but she continues out the front doors.

  “Will you stop?” I shout as I see her trying to hail a cab, standing on the curb. “What are you doing?”

  “Getting a cab,” she snaps.

  Now, she’s mad at me? “Here. I can give you a ride home.”

  “No, thanks.” She waves her hands in the air as she jumps up and down in her heels.

  I roll my eyes at her. So stubborn. “Ashlyn. This is ridiculous. Why are you so mad at me?”

  “Why am I mad at you?” She spins around. Her eyes are wild, and her hair looks even blonder out in the sunlight. I love the way it makes her blue eyes stand out. She opens her mouth as if she wants to speak but closes it. She sighs heavily. “I’ve had one of those days that has my head spinning. I don’t have the strength to deal with you right now, Ryder.”

  She turns back around, giving me her back. I reach out and touch her shoulder. “Hey, what did I do?”

  “What you did in there was uncalled for,” she snaps.

  “What? Kissing you?”

  “Yes.”

  “You kissed me back.” I can’t help but smirk as I say it. “You didn’t tell me to stop.”

  “I know,” she says as if she’s mad at herself for not doing so.

  “You didn’t mind it in Florida.”

  She turns to face me. “Florida was supposed to be one night.”

  “But it was more than that, wasn’t it?” I ask, and her eyes narrow on me. “It’s okay to admit that I was a sex God,” I remind her.

  She throws her head back, laughing hysterically, and I like the way it sounds. A little crazy mixed with beautiful. She’s like the hurricane that you’re warned is coming; every fiber in you tells you to leave, but you end up staying just to see if you can survive it. “God, give a man a bone, and he’ll dig it up every chance he gets.”

  I’m not sure what that means, so I don’t respond to it. “What about those pictures you sent me?”

  Her hands drop to her sides, and she pops her right hip out. “Just what did you expect, Ryder? Did you think I would come to New York and be your little sex toy?”

  “Well, yeah,” I say honestly.

  She bares her white and perfectly straight teeth as she growls at me. “Unbelievable.” She turns back around and starts waving for a cab again.

  I roll my eyes and look over to see Milton leaning up against the Escalade with a smile on his face as he watches on. People walk by, ignoring our banter. “Will you please just get in my car?” I ask her.

  She ignores me a few more seconds as she tries to get a cab to notice her. Finally, one comes to a stop, tires squealing, and she jumps back as the damn thing almost pulls up onto the sidewalk. She kicks the back door and shouts, “Learn how to drive before you kill someone.” Then she turns and shoots me a go to hell look. I smile, knowing I just won this small war. Milton gives her a smile as she storms away from the cab, and he opens the back door for her.

  “I swear I’m gonna end up as roadkill with how these taxis drive around here,” she mumbles as she pushes her skirt down, readjusting herself on the leather seat. As if that thin piece of black fabric will keep me from getting what I want. She’s cute. I still plan on ripping it off her.

  “You’ll get used to it,” I tell her, climbing in beside her.

  She snorts. “You’re the third person to say that to me in the last hour, and I still don’t believe it.”

  ASHLYN

  Why didn’t I tell him no? It’s one simple word.

  NO! NO! NO!

  Yet I said nothing. I kissed him back. I was going to allow him to pull up my skirt. If the elevator hadn’t stopped, we would have what …? Had sex right there? In an elevator? Now, normally, I’m down for some public sex but at his work? For fuck’s sake, his father works there.

  I take a deep, calming breath, and it’s a mistake. It doesn’t calm me at all. It just makes me very aware of his cologne; clean linen and citrus. My pussy starts to throb. And if I can smell him that easily, then it means he’s already on my clothes. Why does that make me smile?

  This is a very bad idea. Him. Me. I don’t want a relationship and neither does he, but still, he’s my best friend’s brother. And I’d be lying if I said I haven’t thought about being his sex toy more than once. But he doesn’t need to know that. He would take that little bit of information and run with it.

  If I was honest with myself at this very moment, sex is the one thing I would like right now. The way he kissed me in the elevator was just like the way he did in Panama City. Dominating. It felt good to have someone touch me like that. To know that with him, my body will physically let go and relax. But I can’t do that with him.

  Can I? I laugh at myself. That’s crazy talk. Go after a man. That’s exactly what I did when I met him on the beach. He was right; I threw myself at him like a bitch in heat. But that’s what I was. All it took was one look, and I was salivating at the mouth. Now, he’s even hotter.

  I lower my head, letting my hair cover the side of my face to shield my eyes as I peek over at him. As if he knows I’m watching, he removes his black suit jacket and drapes it over the seat in front of us. Then he starts unbuttoning the cuffs on his crisp white button up before rolling them up to his elbows.

  I cross my legs as I shift in my seat. I need a drink. I need something to take the edge off. I need his cock inside me.

  I straighten my back and close my eyes and take a deep, calming breath. “I’m sorry,” I state as I open my eyes and look over at him.

  He stops rolling up his left sleeve and looks over at me. “For what?” he asks as his dark green eyes look down at me. I hate the way they look at me. Like he can see right through me. Like he knows it won’t take much to win the battle.

  “For being a bitch,” I admit. Swallow your pride, Ash. You’re a better person than that.

  He gives me a smile. One of those half smiles that if I were wearing panties, they would be wet right now. Now, I’m cursing myself for not wearing any. He reaches up and places his hand on my face. It’s like he can’t keep from touching me. I like the thought of that. “I like that about you.”

  “Well, I hate to break it to you, but every woman has that quality.” I try and lighten the tension as I squirm in my seat.

  He chuckles. “Not like you.”

  “I’m flattered,” I say a little too breathlessly.

  “Good.” He lowers his face down to mine and stops just inches before our lips can touch. “You should be,” he whispers, sending goose bumps down my body.

  I lick my lips, and he watches my tongue with desire but makes no move to kiss me. “Is this you making me pay?” I can’t help but ask.

  “No,” he says, but I can hear the satisfaction in his voice.

  “Because I won’t beg.” That’s a pointless statement. He knows I will.

  He laughs as if that’s the funniest thing I’ve ever said. “I don’t want you to. I want you to answer a question.”

  My brows pull together. “A question?” He nods. “What is it?” I ask reluctantly.

  “Thongs or boyshorts?”

  I smile at his question. “Don’t you wanna know?” I decide to play with him just like he’s playing with me.

  He groans as if in pain. “I do,” he says. “Because I’m pretty sure you’re wearing neither.” I suck in a ragged breath. “I want you so bad right now,” he admits with no shame.

  I swallow. “I thought we said it was only gonna be one night?” I ask, trying not to press my lips to his. Be strong. My thighs clench, reminding me just how strong his hands were on my body. How he kissed me so hard, I thought my lips would bruise. Then his body on top of mine … My pussy throbs as my breath comes faster and faster.

  “We already broke that rule,” he reminds me once again. “So quit bringing it up.”

&
nbsp; My skin breaks out in goose bumps as his hand moves from my cheek into my hair. He arches my neck back, and I find myself staring up at the black carpeted ceiling of the Escalade SUV. I close my eyes and bite my bottom lip to keep from moaning as his lips touch my neck. He places soft kisses up to my ear lobe where he pulls it into his lips and gently bites it.

  “Ryder.” I can’t hold back the moan any longer. I fist my hands down by my sides to keep from touching him. I may rip his clothes off if I make contact.

  “I’ve been waiting a week to hear you say my name like that again,” he muses as he presses my back into the seat. “What have you been waiting for, sweetheart?”

  The way he calls me sweetheart makes me feel like a fly in his trap. It’s as if he knows he has me right where he wants me. And I hate to admit that he does. “You. Touching. Me.” I can’t even form a sentence.

  I jump when his free hand grazes my knee. Soft at first as it makes its way under my skirt. I pull my legs as far apart as my tight skirt will allow, which isn’t much, but he doesn’t need the room anyway. His fingers crawl their way up my leg. With every inch, he grips my skin tighter. “Touching you where?” he asks. His lips trail back down my neck, and I’m panting with need.

  “Everywhere,” I breathe as I rock my hips back and forth in the leather seat, needing the friction.

  His hand makes it to my pussy, and he smiles against my skin. “You’re already wet, baby,” he growls. “Just like I knew you would be.” I whimper. “I wanna kiss your lips.”

  “Then kiss me.” I lower my head so my lips are in his reach.

  He smiles against them. “Your other lips, sweetheart.”

  I groan, wishing we were alone and not in the backseat of his Escalade while Milton drives us home.

  “When we get home, you’re coming up to my apartment. For the night.” It’s not a question, but I answer.

  “Yes,” I breathe.

  “I want you screaming that word all night long.”

  I am so fucked!

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  RYDER