We were now fake married.
How had my life come to this?
No one would ever believe this part of our trip.
I was still in shock that it actually happened.
My friends’ voices were off to the side of us when I heard Madeline speak.
“I want a man to kiss me like that after I say I do. Damn, Avery. You’re one lucky woman.”
We weren’t technically married.
This wasn’t real.
It was all an act to give Lizzie a live experience.
“Do you ladies mind if I steal my wife from you for a while? I’ll return her safe and sound. Scouts Honor,” Gage asked as he winked over at them.
Steal?
His wife?
What the hell was happening?
They both giggled and turned against me when they agreed.
He could’ve been an axe murderer. A rapist. A psycho. And they were just going to leave me with him. Some friends they were.
We walked to the entrance of The Hard Rock, and I turned to him in confusion.
“I’m staying here too, beautiful.” He was also staying in the Paradise Tower at The Hard Rock. Coincidence?
“We’re going to go get a nightcap. See you later, Avery. Don’t do anything we wouldn’t do,” Lizzie giggled as the two of them set off in the direction opposite of us.
I couldn’t even respond as Gage gripped my hand and walked us in the direction of the elevator.
Where in the hell was he taking me?
His room? Could I do that?
Old insecurities started to creep from the recesses of my mind as we waited in front of the steel doors. My reflection stared back at me. In this moment, I wasn’t even sure I recognized my own reflection. I wasn’t this type of girl. But with Gage standing so close to me, the heat of his body seeping between us and over to me, I wanted to be.
The chime sounded, and the door behind us opened. Quickly, he turned the us in the direction of the empty elevator car. In seconds, I’d be trapped inside with a man who drove my libido crazy. This wasn’t a safe combination for the perfectly structured life I’d built.
When the doors closed, I released my grip from his hand and placed my hands in front of me with my head facing the floor.
“I’m not ready to let go of you just yet,” he whispered as he moved to stand before me.
The tip of his finger met the bottom of my chin. With barely any effort at all, he raised my gaze to meet his. Those crystal blue eyes stared back at me and for a moment I felt as beautiful as he claimed to see me. He looked at me with such desire I almost felt like I believed him. Almost.
“I’ve been waiting to get you alone since you shocked me with our first kiss,” he confessed before he left no room between our bodies.
The skin of my bare legs met the roughness of his jeans as he slid one of his legs between mine.
A tug of my hair brought me back to the here and now. Without warning, his tempting lips met mine.
To hell with my perfect structure.
I deserved this feeling.
The feeling of being wanted.
The feeling of being beautiful.
Any feeling at all.
Especially since I’d been void of any interaction that came as close as the two of us currently were sharing.
We’d share this one moment and in a couple of hours, he’d be a memory.
A delicious memory that I’d use in the hours when I was alone in the comfort of my apartment.
The dinging caused Gage to groan and me to feel a loss when the heat of his body left mine. His hand found mine as we excited the elevator and walked down the hall. We passed several doors, until we stopped in front of his. Using his keycard, he opened the door and pulled me inside behind him.
The door slammed, and I was back in his arms as he began kissing me yet again. His tongue traced my bottom lip and I gasped, allowing him to enter my mouth on a groan. He walked us backward until his legs met the bed.
Our mouths parted briefly.
His fingertips traced my arms up and down causing goose bumps to be left behind.
“You want a drink?”
I could only nod.
Liquid courage. Yes please.
He went to the mini fridge and poured a liquid into two glasses before returning.
The amber liquid was much needed. He handed me the glass and I tipped my head back, instantly downing its contents.
He took the glass from my hand and sat it behind him before he walked toward me again.
More like stalked toward me.
He was a man on a mission.
“Do you want this as much as I do?” he asked as he stood staring down at me. Lust apparent in his eyes.
I could only nod. My mouth had grown dry at the sight of him.
“I need to hear you say it.”
Demanding much.
I gulped before I choked out a yes.
No sooner than the words had left my mouth, his hands went behind my waist as he leaned further into me. My legs met the back of the bed, and we fell on top of the fluffiness of the comforter. It felt like silk against my skin. With no effort at all, he moved us to the top of the bed.
“You are too damn beautiful.”
Was there such a thing?
My legs moved on their own volition, and he settled himself between them. We were a perfect fit. I felt the bulge in his pants as he moved his hips against me. So, defined. So, thick.
He kissed my temple then slowly moved down the side of my neck. I moved to the side to give him better access. He was so gentle with his barely-there kisses. When he met the spot where my shoulder and neck met, I shivered. That spot sent so many sensations throughout my body that I didn’t know if I could keep up. I’d never felt that sensation before. In no time at all, he set my body on fire and I didn’t want to extinguish the flames. I wanted them to ignite and never burn out.
The straps on my dress moved down my arms as his lips followed his movements.
My breasts came free as he moved his body away to gain full access.
The coolness in the air caused my nipples to pebble even harder than they were before they were uncovered. What was it about this man that caused my body to react in a way it never had before?
His lips wrapped around my sensitive peak and sucked ever so slightly. A groan escaped my lips as my hands reached to meet the back of his head. He sucked again, only this time his tongue circled around my nipple and I felt it all the way to my core. My pussy grew wetter, and I felt myself tighten in anticipation of all the pleasure he’d bring me.
His mouth let go of my nipple, and he blew air on the tight bud making me become even more frenzied than I already was. I wanted to clench my legs together, anything to give me some friction that I so desperately needed, but his body laying between my legs made that an impossible task.
“I want to hear every possible sound you could make tonight. I wanted to take this slow, but I just can’t. The way you’re moving against me and the sounds you’re making are killing me. I need inside of you now,” he growled as he removed my dress with an expertise that I’d only read about.
He ripped apart the shirt that he was wearing, buttons now scattering on the floor around us.
I laid my head back on the pillows. My heart pounded in my chest. My skin became heated even more than before.
I heard the rip of the foil packet from the distance as I stared at the ceiling.
And then the voices began.
You’re the worst lay of my life.
You’re frigid. What’s wrong with you?
I can’t believe I waited so long to sleep with you and that’s what I was waiting for. Unbelievable.
Even popping your cherry wasn’t worth that horrible experience.
Those were the words that made me never put myself in this situation. And they were my nemesis now that I was here with a gorgeous man who had made me feel a way that no other man had.
“You ok
ay?” he asked as he laid above me, each of his hands on either side of my head. The muscles in his arms were well defined and bulging as he held his weight above me.
No, I wasn’t okay.
But I would be.
I had to take this time back.
I couldn’t allow those two men to ruin my life any further.
I nodded as he reached between my legs. His fingers moved up and down my center, and I groaned. Everything he did felt even better than the last.
He started to slowly enter me, and my hands flew up to his biceps to hang on for dear life.
“Fuck,” he said as he entered me. I felt full. Deliciously full. I wanted to move so bad I could taste it. Something I could never admit before. I was always too traumatized to do anything but lay there and take what they were giving me. But with Gage, he made me want so much more.
I cringed when he stopped and caressed the top of my head.
“You’re fucking perfection,” he whispered before he brought his lips down to mine. With one kiss, he caused every doubt to cease to exist.
With this man, I felt perfect.
With this man, I felt like a woman.
He was wrong. I wasn’t perfection. He was.
Chapter 5
I woke to the sun peeking through the curtains. My head pounded and I groaned, inwardly vowing to never drink like I did the night before.
I opened my eyes after I stretched and immediately sat up in the bed.
This wasn’t my room.
Looking around the vast space, my clothes and clutch were nowhere in sight.
Groaning, I flopped back down and prayed the memories of the night before would return.
I remembered the shots, kissing a stranger, and holy shit.
I got married.
Jumping out of the bed, I pulled the sheet right along with me to cover up my nakedness and paced the floor.
Gage was nowhere in sight, and part of me didn’t want to go in search of him.
Instead, I took the chicken shit way out and walked over to the window and pulled the curtains back to take in the view.
Wow.
The pool was down below and the mountains were off in the distance. Moving my fingers to the glass, I imagined I could reach out and touch the image before me. It felt calming and peaceful as the sun started to rise higher in the sky.
Lips touched that spot on my neck that Gage found last night. He played my body like a fiddle and when he gently sucked on my flesh, all rational thought disappeared.
“Good morning, beautiful,” he whispered behind me. His body now flush against mine. His arms wrapped around my waist, and I leaned further into him.
I needed to get answers about last night. I needed to figure out what time it was because our flight home was later this afternoon. But he made it too hard to resist him.
“I came in here to tell you breakfast had arrived, but I lost that train of thought when I came in and saw you in nothing but a sheet. We should go eat before it gets too cold.”
“I need my clothes,” I confessed as my cheeks flushed at my admission.
“I have a shirt and a pair of sweats you can wear. I’ve already placed them in the bathroom. It’s off to the left of us,” he said before he kissed the side of my head and backed away.
Scurrying away, I found the bathroom and quickly shut the door.
My clutch sat on top of the clothes he graciously provided.
Looking in the mirror, my reflection stunned me.
I looked hideous. Mascara caked under my eyes from the night before. My hair was every which way but the correct way. I’d probably scared him off with the bedhead alone.
I used a wet washcloth to get the gunk off my face and found a hair tie in my clutch. I threw my hair into a messy, unruly bun. I thought I’d look a mess, but I liked the way I looked when I stared back at myself. Somehow in a few short hours a man I’d never met caused my confidence to boost and me to see myself in a new light.
After I dressed in the cotton clothes, I brushed my teeth with my finger and left the room to find Gage.
My stomach grumbled the moment I found him removing the tops off the dishes on the table.
“Someone’s hungry.”
Embarrassed, I looked to the floor and walked the rest of the way around the table to sit across from him.
“Eat up. I didn’t know what you’d like, so there’s plenty here. For some reason, I built up an appetite myself.” I caught a glimpse of him winking at me when I peeked up at him.
I dished out some eggs, fresh strawberries, sausage links and a pancake on my plate before I dug in. Everything still had steam coming off the top. When I took a bite of eggs, they were the fluffiest, cheesiest eggs I’d ever tasted. This chef knew his shit.
“I’m sorry about last night.”
“What exactly are you sorry for?” he asked as he sat his fork on the side of his plate and linked his fingers together.
“My friends and their crazy antics. They shouldn’t have dragged you into any of that.”
“They didn’t drag me into anything. The moment your lips touched mine, I knew I’d do anything to keep spending time with you. I’m still trying to wrap my head around it.”
“I guess it’s a good thing you got that license back from the receptionist last night,” I said before I took another bite of eggs.
“About that,” he said, then paused.
How could he pause and not finish that statement?
My eyes widened as I waited for him to continue.
“They still have it. I never got it back from them.”
“You what?” I screamed.
That was the one thing he had to remember to do.
“We can fix this. Call them. We can go get it.”
“Not possible. I already called them before you woke up. The lady from last night sealed and dropped all the licenses that needed to be filed into the mail before she left last night.
“Meaning what?”
“Once that license is filed with the court, our marriage is official.”
No, no, no. This wasn’t happening.
It was supposed to be fake.
Never to have officially happened.
“We can fix this. Once it’s filed, we can get the marriage dissolved,” I said as I pushed back from the table, no longer hungry anymore.
“Can I ask you something?” The tone alone in his voice caused me to pause and look up at him.
“What’s that?”
“Hear me out, okay.”
I was sure I wouldn’t like this any more than I liked the idea of the fake marriage.
He moved his chair to the side of the table where I still sat and turned my chair so I was fully facing him.
The tips of his fingers traced my hand as he remained silent.
“Do you feel that?”
I didn’t want to admit how much I felt when he touched me. How I longed for him when he was no longer near. This didn’t happen within a few hours of meeting someone. Did it?
“Yes, I do.” I’d miss it when it was gone. Too much.
“How does my touch make you feel?”
Damn him.
I didn’t want to admit this to my friends or him, let alone myself.
I swallowed hard and waited a beat before I could gain the courage to admit my answer aloud.
“Cherished. Wanted. I feel drawn to you when you’re near. I feel this electric current pulling me toward you with the simplest of touches. That current magnifies the more intense we touch. I sound like a crazy person.”
He didn’t need to hear any of it.
I didn’t need to admit it.
We didn’t even know one thing about each other than our names.
Did he even live in the same state as me?
He could live in another country for all I knew.
Continuing this would be a mistake. A huge, catastrophic mistake.
He didn’t respond. He just sat there continuing to touch my hand in di
fferent lazy patterns.
“Why do you want to know any of that? Does it even matter? We know nothing about each other.”
“That’s where you’re wrong. I know you’re not as confident as you appear to be. I know that you hide behind your friends, and that you feared my touch based on some horrific thing from your past. I know how your green eyes lighten when you’re aroused and how alive you become when we kiss. I know things, Avery.”
“Not any of the important things. You don’t know where I live, where I work, my likes and dislikes. The things that make a relationship move forward.”
“You live in Seattle. You have two amazing friends. You’ll wear heels, but you prefer to dress down in jeans and a t-shirt. You prefer your hair up and not down. You fidget when you’re nervous.”
“How do you know any of that?”
“I pay attention. I saw your address on the applications. I met your friends last night and can tell you three are close. You couldn’t stop messing with your hair last night, but this morning you haven’t touched it once. Last night you pulled at the hem of the dress dozens of times, but this morning you’re cuddled into my clothes completely comfortable. I have eyes. I can learn everything else. Can you walk away from this connection?”
“How can you even question that? I don’t even know where you live to give that an honest answer.”
“I live in Seattle as well. I’m here on business.”
That resolved that issue.
But there were so many more.
Would this even last more than a couple of months? Then what? Where would we go from there?
“We’d work through it just like any other couple, that’s what.”
Did I say that out loud? Shit.
The fact that I even considered this crazy for a moment made me certifiable.
But I didn’t want to lose how he made me feel.
I was selfish. I’d always been too scared to step out there and try. With him, he made everything effortless. Even our first kiss.
“What time is it? I need to meet with Lizzie and Maddie. They’re probably worried sick, and our plane leaves this afternoon.”
“You’re avoiding my question. But to answer yours, it’s almost ten in the morning. Message your friends. Have them bring your bags to the suite. I think we should fly back on my plane together. That way we can spend the two-and-a-half-hour flight sorting everything out.”
The Right Mistake Page 3