Tempted By You

by Stephanie Nicole Norris

  “I just helped you cut the wood. You did everything else on your own,” Luke said. “Turns out you do follow instructions pretty well,” he joked.

  Jasmine swatted at him. “I probably would more often if I trusted the person giving me direction.”

  They held one another’s gaze.

  “Most of the time, I feel the individual behind whatever mission I’m on at the time doesn’t have the heart I do about what we’re conquering.”

  Luke chuckled at her word usage. “Conquering, huh?”

  “Yeah.”

  “You might be right, or perhaps you’d just rather do it yourself because you know without a doubt that the task would get done properly.”

  “Bingo,” she said.

  They chuckled.

  “Thank you, Luke.”

  “You’re welcome, Princess.”

  He winked, and she blushed, and his feet moved two steps, bringing him face to face with her.

  “I want to show you something else.”

  She dropped her eyes, giving him a naughty peer. Luke guffawed.

  “Not that,” he chuckled, “not this time anyway… unless of course, you’re down for another round of—”

  Jasmine giggled with glee when he wrapped his arms around her, lifting her in a slide up his chest. Nose to nose, they stared at each other.

  “Why is it that I feel like I can do anything with you?” she said.

  He rubbed the tip of his nose against hers, and his eyes faltered.

  “Because you can.”

  The timbre of his voice made her shudder, and she tilted her head back, her lips meeting his in a soft, simmering kiss.

  “Whatever you want to show me, I do want to see it, but as you said earlier, later…”

  Jasmine pulled out of his embrace and retracted her steps slow and sultry before turning her back to him and lifting the shirt over her head. Her nakedness made his dick hard instantly. So hard that it pained him as it prodded against his jeans.

  He rushed her, scooping her body up and exiting the wood room to get to the bedroom. Their lips smashed together and making it to his master suite was becoming a task neither of them wanted to wait for. They ended up in the kitchen on the edge of the counter, with Jasmine’s legs tossed over his shoulders and Luke pumping into her fountain with renewed vigor.

  “Aaaaah!” she screamed with her head tossed back and her eyes closed.

  “Look at me,” he said, pummeling her pussy with no remorse.

  “Aaah fuck, Luke!”

  “I can’t see you.” His baritone voice sent a tremor over her skin along with the vibrant springs he drove into her vagina.

  Her eyes opened on a soul-sucking kiss as his lips swallowed her up, only heightening the association of heated chills streaming from her entire body. Her moans and scuffled shouts were swallowed by the intense snatching of his tongue, and her legs quaked something awful with the fierce beat of his drum. Hips that were strong and dominant worked in circles while dipping and digging in a constant dynamic pound and fired an orgasm from her so fast that she wasn’t aware until it happened.

  “Oooooh my God!” she cried out, completely dizzy and unstable.

  His thrashing didn’t stop, never slowed, and wasn’t on the radar of release.

  “Luke!” she cried, gripping his shoulders in joyful ecstasy. “Luke!”

  He bit up her neck then sucked the arch in her throat as his hips continued to push her to the limit.

  “Luke!”

  “Come again, baby,” he murmured, his tongue sliding down to finger her breasts. “Come for Luke again,” he groveled, sucking a hard nipple into the hot cove of his mouth.

  Jasmine’s teeth crushed together, and her eyes crossed as she went stiff when an explosive rush of warmth bursts from her pelvis.

  “Shiiiiiiiiit!” Luke barked, coming off her areola as he experienced his own earth-shattering release. His mouth ate up her chin and sucked in her lips, as tears streamed down Jasmine’s face. Luke’s groove slowed but didn’t stop until the tingling energy that ran amuck through their system practically electrified them.

  “Oh!” Jasmine yelled one last time for good measure. Her body sizzled right down to the bone.

  Without pulling out of her, Luke scooped her off the counter and marched from the kitchen to the bedroom. Jasmine was completely limp and in dire need of rescue. The problem was the one that would come to save her was the very person who held her hostage. For the life of Jasmine, she couldn’t believe her good fortune. Was it truly possible to love someone who loves you just as passionately and who completely meets the need of everything your heart desires?

  It sounded like something right out of a fairy tale, but as Luke lied her down on his California king bed, kissing her body from her collarbone down past her belly, Jasmine knew fairy tales were meant to come true. With a floating euphoric hovering of her eyes, Jasmine could feel every bone in her body relax just as Luke’s mouth seized her throbbing pussy.

  Her eyes shot into saucers, and her mouth stretched wide on a gasp as Luke made love to her again and again throughout the long stretch of the night.

  The shrill of the alarm is what ultimately brought Jasmine back to life. Her head turned to and fro as she tried to figure out which direction to swat her arm in. A single string of light gave her direction, and she tossed to the side finding her phone hiding underneath a noted piece of paper. Drawing both the article and smart device in the palm of her hand, Jasmine tapped the screen to hush the alert. Her vision focused in on the time, 11 a.m. Her brows lurched in surprise. How long had this thing been going off, she wondered. Since her alarm was on a constant repeat from day to day, it wasn’t unordinary that it went off now, but the hour was strangely out of order, and that meant Jasmine had slept through three hours of off and on blaring.

  “Damn,” she said, fumbling with the note in her hand.

  Gone to get your clothes, will be back soon. I miss you already. –Luke

  Jasmine sighed, and a drift of honey floated across her nose, pulling her attention to a tray that sat idle on the nightstand. A smile cruised across her lips. How she missed the tray before baffled her, but none of that mattered now.

  Planting her hands in the soft mattress, Jasmine lifted herself to rest against the headboard. She reached for the tray, and it sat perfectly over her lap, giving her a stronger smell of what lied beneath.

  Removal of the cover disclosed warm buttery pancakes topped with sliced bananas, a side of scrambled eggs, bacon, strawberries, and whipped cream filled a small cup. Her mouth watered instantly. If the food was still hot, it meant Luke hadn’t been gone long unless Milo was somewhere around, and Jasmine wouldn’t put it past Luke to call Milo out to… her thoughts strayed. She’d never found out exactly where they were. Stumped, Jasmine frowned a bit and squinted her eyes as she searched for the memory of Luke telling her their destination. But it wasn’t there unless it had been lost in translation or perhaps lost in the multiple thrusts that knocked her brain into disarray. She smirked and giggled at the thought then shrugged.

  She would ask when he returned, but until then she would eat as much of this food that she could stuff down her throat. Luke had a way of making her feel as if she hadn’t eaten for years. Saying a quick prayer, Jasmine dug into her meal, moaning each time the dash of flavor hit her tongue. She never quite enjoyed food the way she had within these last twenty-four hours, and she had to wonder if she’d been neglecting the little things or if Luke made everything she indulged in that much more enjoyable.

  Whatever the case, Jasmine intended to pay more attention because this was absolutely living. Lowering her fork to the tray, Jasmine fumbled with the phone that she’d sat next to her. She dialed a number and lifted the phone to her ear. When she received a busy beeping signal from the other line, her lips pursed, and her forehead creased, showing her displeasure. She redialed only to receive a similar response. Her frown expanded, and she turned the phone to face to find that the s
ignal wasn’t there.

  “Hmm, that’s bizarre.”

  Maybe it was the cottage. She shrugged and polished off her plate but eating so much left minimal room for the orange juice to follow. Jasmine sighed and replaced the tray, then removed the covers, and shimmied out of bed. Her feet sank into plush carpet just as an ache crawled up her spine.

  “Sssss,” she hissed. “Jesus be my healer because I need you right now,” she murmured. A scatter of more aches dotted her derriere, thighs and sprung into her feet. “Okay, you know what, how about this.” She sat back down, but slowly, to keep any other twinges from coming forth. “Oooh, Jesus,” she said in a slow rock back and forth. “I promise if you help me, I won’t, um …” Jasmine couldn’t push the lie out of her mouth. She shut her lips and continued her slow rock then sank her hands into her lower back, hips, and thighs, determined to massage the speckled spasms from her loins.

  “Yeah, that feels better already,” she said to herself. “Come on, girl, you’re not even thirty yet. What do you look like rocking back and forth like your bones are weary, come on!” she coached herself. To reach a signal, Jasmine would need to go outside, but the nervousness of another spasm kept her rooted to her spot.

  What had Luke done to her, and why did she feel like she would need physical therapy after this? Her thoughts taunted her. You were the one who started all of this from the beginning. Talking about you want it hard, then taking your clothes off in front of the man, what did you think would happen?

  Jasmine whimpered and continued to dig into her back, hips, and thighs.

  “Well, I didn’t think I’d be paralyzed, Jesus!”

  She blew a stream of steam in a whistle and stopped rocking.

  “This is ridiculous.” Rising from her position, Jasmine strolled to the drapes carefully and pulled them back, allowing more light to fill the room.

  “There,” she said. “That wasn’t so bad.”

  Turning on her heels, her eyes searched the area for the socks and Luke’s shirt that she’d worn the day before. She took a step and felt the tingle of another spasm in her thigh.

  “When he gets back here, he’s giving me a full body massage, period,” she said.

  Slowly, Jasmine trudged around the room, but the shirt she searched for wasn’t in sight. She blew out a frustrated breath then decided to explore his closet for another. Inside the huge walking space, Jasmine’s fingers tipped alongside the clothes that hung on hangers as she perused. There was a shelf that was fixed along the base of the back wall. Going through his things when she was younger was just like when she snuck through her brothers’ things just to be nosy. But now, it felt different, as if she were meddling where she shouldn’t. What if she found something she didn’t like? Like a pair of women’s panties. Jasmine scrunched her face at the thought but proceeded. She needed clothes. If she were naked when Luke returned, he might turn her spasms into something a bit more serious. However, with the way he rocked her world, Jasmine wasn’t totally against it. Somehow, she mused that the aftermath was worth it.

  Girl, you are a glutton for pain, aren’t you?

  Pulling out the first drawer revealed a cluster of jewelry. Watches, rings, herringbone necklaces, different male fragrances. Jasmine’s gaze lingered over the items a second before closing the drawer and searching through the next one. Socks, a plethora of them some folded together while others were stretched out on top of one another as if he didn’t want them wrinkled were in three full drawers.

  “That’s a lot of socks,” she said, reaching in to grab a pair. Jasmine continued her rummaging, finding a jersey with Colin Kaepernick’s name on the back.

  “A man after my own heart,” she whispered, pulling the jersey from its hanger and turning to leave the closet. She was at the exit when she thought of grabbing one more thing, and it tickled her to imagine herself dressed in Luke’s oversized clothes. One hour and thirty minutes later, Jasmine had showered, buttered her legs with the only lotion she could find which was Luke’s infamous Brickell deep moisturizer, and finger combed her hair that she’d consider cutting down to that 1990s Toni Braxton cut. She’d always favored that style, but the fear of cutting her hair after she’d put so much time into growing it into the long Pocahontas look she had now kept her at bay. Now more than ever, she had a wanting for a fresh start. Lifting her tresses as she stared in the mirror, Jasmine turned her face from side to side like she’d done so many times before, her inner voice giving her reasons why the cut would bring out the smooth arcs in her jaw and accent the curvature of her neck.

  She dropped her hair and studied the large stone bathroom, with its distressed wood for doors, cabinetry, and heavy planks that connected the ceiling in old-school cottage style. The white porcelain tub, commode, and sink added a touch of modernity to the secluded space. It gave a fresh pop of old and new that Jasmine could appreciate. White towels sat on a wooden shelf behind her, and the sanctuary held a constant smell of new wood.

  Jasmine was literally at Luke’s mercy. She’d left everything on his yacht, even the purse that contained her vanilla scented body oils. After lingering a moment more, Jasmine headed to the bedroom and retrieved her cell.

  The spasms that had wrecked her earlier had seemed to dissipate during the soothing bath, and Jasmine was grateful for it. Heading for the front door, with socks up to the top of her calves, Jasmine stepped outside and took in a wisp of fresh air. It was quiet, calm, and peaceful. It was the perfect place for meditating. She held her phone up and strolled down the steps and down the stone sidewalk, going as far as the pier looking for a signal. To her dismay, Jasmine never found one.

  She frowned. Luke wasn’t kidding when he said the place was meant to get away from any connection to the real world. She thought about him coming out there to run away from the torment he’d felt to stay away from her. Jasmine’s heart melted, and she sighed then decided the best way to past the time until he returned was to bake something. Hopefully Luke had the ingredients she would need to at least make some muffins.

  Re-entering the cottage, the floorboards creaked under her weight as she sailed through to the kitchen. Another hour later, Jasmine was bent over with an eye peering through the oven when a baritone voice spoke out.

  “I knew I smelled something divine,” he said.

  Jasmine yelped, and her hand dropped from the handle, and the oven shut quickly upon her release. She turned to him on her heels, her hands now balled into tight fists at her side.

  “You scared the hell out of me!”

  Luke strolled into the room, his massive build bringing that Brickell’s moisturizer scent with him. Jasmine’s eyes slipped from the Nikes on his feet, up his honey brown toned oiled calves that were sprinkled with hair to the casual Old Navy shorts. Her eyes floated around his crotch, taking note of the slight bulk that rested there. She shivered without warning and coached her gaze to finish its voyage up his immaculately sculpted chest, taking heed of the rippling muscles that pushed through the white button-down shirt he wore. It opened at the collar, revealing his strong neck that carried the thick stalk of muscle into his molded jaw, irresistible succulent lips, strong nose, and dynamic hazel brown gaze.

  As Luke approached her, Jasmine’s feet backpedaled until her derriere bumped into the countertop.

  The bags in Luke’s hand dropped with his release of them, and he planted his palms on both sides of the wooden surface, trapping her within his tall impenetrable frame.

  “My apologies, I thought you would’ve heard me come through the door.”

  His gaze skipped up and down her mocha brown face, and he leaned in to nudge his nose against her cheek, planting a lingering kiss against her upturned chin. The smooch was so hot a population of chills sweltered down her neck, making Jasmine shiver.

  “I missed you,” he said, unmoving.

  Jasmine reached for his neck, her hands grazing against his skin in a gentle caress.

  “I missed you, too, and for a minute, I thought
you’d never come back.”

  He smirked. “And leave you here all alone?” He paused. “That is a good way to have you all to myself now that you mention it.”

  Jasmine’s mouth fell open on a gasp, her lips curving at the corners. Luke’s grizzly chuckle slinked across her skin, and he pressed another hot kiss up her chin to her mouth.

  “I’ve got the feeling you’re not kidding.”

  His eyes shifted from side to side then he shrugged.

  “Maybe not.”

  Jasmine shook her head. “You could still have me all to yourself without keeping me locked up on a deserted island. Where the hell are we anyway?”

  “I wondered when you would ask.”

  “Well at first I didn’t care, but after waking up alone, I had to know.” Before Luke could respond, Jasmine countered, “AND, why are there no TVs, Wi-Fi, or phone signals? I couldn’t watch the news or check up on the race.”

  “You already know the answer to that.”

  Flabbergasted, Jasmine pursed her lips. “I didn’t know you needing reprieve meant no smoke signals,” she joked.

  Luke chuckled. “It does, but in the event of an emergency, there is a satellite phone and radio.”

  He reached below her to the cabinet behind her legs, and Jasmine flinched.

  Glancing back at her with an arched brow, Luke questioned, “Are you okay?”

  “Oh, yeah, it’s just …”

  He waited then prodded when she didn’t proceed: “Just what?”

  Her voice lowered, and he barely made out the words she said: “I had some issues earlier, but it’s nothing now.”

  “Issues? What kind of issues?”

  Jasmine breathed in a deep sigh. “Oh, you know, just a few spasms in my butt and thighs that didn’t want to go away.”

  Luke abandoned his reach for the satellite radio and straightened his posture, looking over Jasmine with a keen peering eye.