“I can’t believe you aren’t going to press charges, even after the cops asked you about the cut on your head.”
Lauren shrugged. “I don’t see the point. She’s obviously unstable so I’d rather not instigate anything further.”
“Fair enough. You make your own choices.”
Landon couldn’t sit still in the passenger seat, legs twitching in the footwell like he’d had four cups of coffee. “You aren’t nervous, are you?” Lauren said with a chuckle. He groaned and stomped his feet flat on the floor.
“I can’t help it,” he almost whined. “I feel like they’re going to hate me from the start.”
“Why would they hate you?” she asked incredulously.
“Because I’m stealing you away. They don’t even know me and already I’m taking you to the opposite coast. From everything you’ve told me, your family is incredibly close and here I am—”
“Will you stop? They’re going to love you.”
Landon’s head tilted slightly. “Because you love me, right?”
“Maybe,” she said pointing a finger at him playfully. She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. “A turn of phrase. We’ve only just established a proper relationship status, albeit on a rather shaky foundation.”
He put a comforting hand on her thigh and nodded, looking out the windshield. She laced her fingers through his but kept her eyes on the road. “Fair enough. And don’t feel like you have to say it back...I just couldn’t stand the idea of you never hearing it from me. I know I haven’t exactly been the best boyfriend but in my defense, I haven’t really had much experience. That has to get me off the hook a little bit.”
Lauren stuck her tongue out at him and gave him a sideways smile.
“Your forgiveness is a testament to what a wonderful person you are,” he continued. He lifted her hand to his mouth, kissing her palm delicately, then returned it to her lap.
“Yeah, yeah. You really lay it on thick, don’t you DeWitt?”
“Hopefully a little of that charm will smooth things over with your parents. By the way, what are the sleeping arrangements going to be? I’m already freezing so a little extra body heat in bed would come in handy.”
She switched the heat on, a blast of warmth flowing from the vents. “Have you always been this cheesy and I just never noticed? I haven’t asked but you’ll probably stay with me in my bedroom. There’s no spare room and I doubt they’ll make you sleep on the sofa with the dogs. Besides, they never had a problem when Nick spent the night,” Lauren shrugged. Landon’s hand stiffened at the name. They might’ve gotten past the awkwardness of the premiere photos but the topic of her ex still hung heavy between them, especially as he continued to stalk them. “Sorry.”
“No, it’s alright. I should get used to it. You were with the guy for years I just—do your parents know what he’s been doing? Have you told them?”
“God, no. You’ve never lived in a small town. My mom’d be on the phone with his mom in seconds and then poof, everyone would know.” The sun emerged from behind a dark, October cloud and Lauren had to pull down the visor to shield her eyes. “And you aren’t allowed to either. They worry enough about me as it is. I can’t have them freaking out about this.”
“Not a word from me.”
“You’ll love them, they’ll love you. We’ll go apple picking and stare at the leaves like tourists. It’s gonna be a good weekend. I need this more than you know.”
Landon groaned and rubbed his stomach. “Mrs. Kemp, that meal was incredible.”
Lauren giggled at the pained expression on his face. “I told you you should’ve stopped after that first plate.” She took a sip of water and glanced at her parents over the glass. Just as she’d expected, Landon had charmed them from the start. It was a fantastic, complete feeling to have them all in the same room. Even David had warmed to him straight away. She’d discovered them upstairs in his room before dinner talking sports and video games.
Her mom stood and started gathering the plates, shooing Landon away as he clambered to his feet to help. “No, you sit. Sit. Relax. You want another beer?”
“That would be wonderful, thank you,” Landon smiled.
“So, Landon,” Lauren’s father said gruffly. “Why exactly does Wren have to go out to California to start her company? I don’t pretend to know anything about business but it seems to me that New York City is as good a place as any. Nothing against people from your side of the country, but I’ve always found them to be a lazy bunch.” Lauren knew this was his way of testing Landon, giving him a little playful ribbing. She decided to keep her mouth shut and let him field the question. He’s gotta learn sometime, she thought.
“It’s true. All that sunshine fries the brain.” He winked at Lauren and cleared his throat, leaning forward on the table. Her mom handed him another bottle of Labatt. “Thank you. So, to answer your question sir, it’s basically to protect her from litigation. When Lauren first started at StyleSpur, she signed a contract that contained a non-compete agreement. This basically means that she agreed to never start a similar business or go work for a competitor because she could use all of StyleSpur’s confidential information against them. Under most circumstances, this isn’t that big of an issue. The hassle of going after someone is usually too much but in this case...I’m sure Lauren’s told you all about her boss, Parker.”
“Horrible man,” her mother muttered from the counter. “Takes advantage of you, I’ve always said that!”
“Mom...”
“So, the reason we have to establish the company in California is because their state government doesn’t recognize out-of-state non-competes. Parker can try and sue Lauren all he wants, but he’ll just be spinning his tires. Lauren’s company will be completely protected and she can concentrate on building her business, not showing up for court dates.”
Lauren’s father nodded appreciatively. She noticed he was absentmindedly rubbing his knee under the table as he considered Landon’s comment. He looked tired but happy, the wrinkles a little deeper around his eyes. When did he get all that gray in his beard? she wondered.
“Well, I’m proud of you both,” her mother said as she toweled off her hands. “I’m looking forward to visiting, too.”
“Hell yeah! West side, baby,” David exclaimed while making a poor attempt at a gang sign. Lauren threw her napkin at him from across the table.
“That reminds me, ghetto bro, Landon has a family friend who can connect you with an admissions officer at Cornell if you’re interested. Of course, an Ivy League school might ruin your street cred.” Lauren grinned as her brother’s face lit up.
“Seriously? That’d be wicked, yeah.”
“Alright, enough business talk for one night. Why don’t we go watch a movie? Bubbles, it’s your turn to pick.” David jumped out of his seat and ran to the living room, probably already scrolling through the pay-per-view list when she shouted, “Nothing rated R, you know the rules.”
Landon laughed and wondered allowed, “Bubbles? There’s gotta be a story behind that one.”
“You don’t wanna know,” Lauren replied.
Her parents both excused themselves to finish a few more chores before settling down for the night, leaving Lauren and Landon alone in the kitchen.
“See? Not so bad,” she said rubbing his back with one hand. His brown eyes almost looked hazel in the light. It still felt so unreal that a man like Landon had come into her life at just the right moment. It felt even more unreal for him to be sitting in her childhood home.
“Not too bad at all.” He grabbed the front of her chair and pulled her close, the wooden legs clattering along the vinyl floor. Catching her completely off guard, he slipped his fingers through her hair to the back of her head and kissed her. “I haven’t gotten nearly enough chances to do that today,” he whispered against her ear.
“You know, we could skip the movie if you want. I think we’ve put in enough quality time with the family for one night,” sh
e replied in a hushed voice. She stared at their hands as their fingers twisted and played around one another.
“Oh yeah? What would we do? Seems like this is the sort of town that shuts down at sunset.”
“I don’t know,” Lauren shrugged shyly. “We could go parking...” Maybe it was being back in her childhood home combined with the near-schoolgirl level infatuation she had for Landon, but Lauren felt a giddy, high school thrill at the idea. She continued in a softer voice. “The walls in this house are like rice paper. We could say we’re going out to the bar, find a place to park, and you know...”
Landon snickered. “I’m getting a real feel for what you must’ve been like when you were younger. Your poor, poor parents.”
She dropped his hand and pushed her chair away. “Okay then. We’ll stay here, watch Catch Me If You Can, go to bed at a reasonable time, and hopefully we’ll have time to have sex before you fly out Sunday night.”
“Well, when you put it that way...”
Twenty minutes later, Lauren was steering the car down a bumpy dirt road. The high beams cast the interior of the car in a pale light and she couldn’t stop smiling. She felt downright excited, like she was a teenager again sneaking out of her parents house. It’d been far easier than when she was 16, which took a little of the thrill out of it. She was so long out of the house her parents barely batted an eyelid when they’d said they were leaving.
“So uh, did you use this road a lot back in the day?” he teased.
“No, I was a good girl in school,” she slapped his leg. “One of my old friends used to live down this way. There’s an old quarry where we can park and no one will see us. Plus, we’ll have a really good view of the stars. Just keep an eye out for deer.”
She pulled into the empty gravel pit and pulled to the far left, out of sight from the dirt road. She knew that even if someone glanced into the quarry as they drove by, they wouldn’t be able to see anything. Lauren threw the car into park, cut the engine, and held Landon’s eyes as she switched off the headlights. A thick, invasive darkness flooded in, a memory of his face burned into her mind’s eye.
“Whoa, where are you?” he half laughed, reaching out into the blackness. He connected with her elbow and felt his way up to her shoulder. “I can’t even see you.”
“Give it a minute,” she giggled. “Your eyes will adjust. Such a city boy.”
“Let’s go look at the stars.” Lauren heard his fumbling with the door and stopped him.
“Hold up a second.” She reached overhead and felt her way to the dome light, flicking the switch. “There, now we can get out. We would’ve been blinded again.”
She climbed out of the car, shutting the door softly and leaning back. The forest around them was silent, far too cold for any crickets or peepers. Landon’s feet crunched the gravel around the back of the car. She watched his shadowy figure approach and lean against the car beside her.
The cloudless night sky was spectacular. The very edge of the Milky Way was still visible above the high walls of the quarry. Landon slipped his arm around her waist and pulled her close. She was thankful for his body heat.
“You know what this reminds me of, don’t you?” he said with a nudge.
“No idea,” she said innocently.
“Really? Outside, you and me, a starry sky...doesn’t ring a bell?” He stepped in front of her, placing a foot on either side of hers. It was so dark she still couldn’t see his individual features, but she could hear the mischief in his voice.
“I honestly don’t know what you’re talking about.”
He placed his hands on either side of her head against the car and leaned forward. The delicious weight of his body pinning her, his lips moved to her ear. “That’s too bad. I guess I’ll have to jog your memory.”
Landon’s mouth traveled along the edge of her jaw, finding hers. He moved his tongue along her lips, gently parting and swirling between them. He kissed from one corner of her mouth to the other, teasing lightly before delving deep. Pressing her head against the body of the car, her hands tangling through his hair, it was like they’d never kissed before. We’re apart for so long, each time is almost like the first time, she thought. The rising bulge against her belly matched the ache between her legs.
His hand slid to her chest but she could barely feel him through all the bundled clothing. She giggled against his mouth. “I think maybe we should get inside the car and turn the heat on.”
“Plus one for California, eh? I didn’t have to fight layers last time.”
Lauren dipped into the driver’s side, turned on the car, and cranked the heat. She crawled into the back seat, tripping over Landon’s leg, and falling against him with a grunt. “You had to get a compact.”
She sat in the back seat as Landon leaned across the center. He carefully pulled her jacket and scarf off, tossing them in the front of the car. With his mouth hot and insistent against her neck, his hand slipped under her shirt.
“Holy shit,” she gasped. His fingers were like ice against her skin.
“Oops,” he mumbled. Instead of removing them, he edged down, expertly undoing her jeans. While growing warmer by the second, his fingers were still cold as they slipped across the delicate skin between her legs. She gasped again, this time with more pleasure than shock. The sensation against the heat of her pussy was intense but different. There wasn’t a lot of space to maneuver inside her tight jeans, yet his middle finger managed to slip between her wet lips.
Lauren threw her head back and moaned, reaching out to touch his body. She clawed under his shirt and found his muscular torso, drawing a gasp from his lips as her icy fingers made contact. “Gotcha,” she giggled. His muscles tensed as she glided around his side and up his back. He took his revenge by swirling a finger across her clit, so light it was like barely being touched at all. Lauren arched her hips to meet his hand, feeling how soaked her panties already were.
Landon ran his fingers through her hair, gripping the back of her head. As he kissed her, his tongue mimicked the movements of his fingers below. Every twist, plunge, flick happened at the same time. It’d been so long since she’d last been touched like this, within moments he’d turned her into a moaning puddle in his hands.
“Don’t stop. I’m close,” she whispered against his lips. He groaned in response, fingers picking up speed and pressure against her slippery clit. With a gush of wetness, she exploded against his hand, wave after wave of pleasure coursing through her. As the orgasm subsided, she found the ache between her legs throbbed even stronger. She would only feel satisfied once he was inside.
He pulled his hand from her jeans and slowly licked his fingers, kissing her once again. She could taste her own arousal on his tongue. “Mmmm, my turn,” she purred.
She pressed him against the back of the seat and climbed onto her knees, wincing slightly at the dull pain from her scrapes. Quickly unzipping his jeans, she reached in and found his hard cock. With a devious smile, she used both hands to pull him through the opening in his boxers. He was incredibly hard, her hands sliding up and down the length. With the flat of her tongue, Lauren licked from base to tip several times before hovering just over the head. Her hot breath enveloped his cock and soon he was the one arching his hips.
Not wanting to tease too long, she closed her wet lips around the head and took him in her mouth. Landon moaned as she slid down his length, tongue gliding across his skin. She felt him swell in her mouth, a few drops of salty precum her reward. As she hungrily bobbed up and down on his cock, he rocked his hips to meet her. After a few moments, just when she was sure he was going to unload in her mouth, he stopped her.
“I need to be inside of you,” he said in a low voice. Lauren looked around the interior of the car but couldn’t imagine any way of positioning themselves. He was simply too tall but before she voiced her concern, he opened the door. “Come on, out here.”
She followed him out, the cold air no match for the heat of her skin.
; “Take off your pants,” he commanded.
Lauren scuffed at the gravel with her toe. “We’re not going to...”
“Just trust me. You can just pull one leg out, if you want.” She followed his instructions, pulling her shoe off and shimmying out of her jeans, letting them fall around one ankle.
Landon found her mouth once again, slowly backing her against the car. “This is going to be a little cold, but I’ll make it worth it,” he whispered before pressing her bare ass against the door. Just as she gasped, he dropped to his knees and plunged his tongue deep into her pussy. She cried out his name, clutching at his head. She was so focused on the pleasure, she completely forgot about the cold metal against her skin. A moment later he stood and with a hand on his cock, he guided himself between her legs, rubbing his length along her slit. He nibbled at the skin on her neck and palmed her breast with his rough hand.
With a tight grip on her thighs, Landon lifted her up, wrapping her legs around his waist. Lauren squealed in surprise, grabbing at his shoulders and neck. Without a word, he guided himself inside, filling her completely with one thrust. Pinned against the car, she squeezed tightly with her legs and moaned. This is where he belongs, she thought.
Lauren felt like her senses were enhanced, the cold and dark stimulating her nerves in new ways. His breath was shallow and quick as he thrust deeply inside her. She was aware of his nails digging into her skin, holding her up and pulling her towards him. She felt every inch of him slipping inside. The spark he’d ignited with his fingers was burning hot again, threatening to engulf her once more.
She clawed at his neck, his scalp, her other hand moving to her clit. “Come with me,” she whispered harshly. A deep groan through clenched teeth was his only reply. He pounded her faster, harder. She imagined the steam that must’ve been rising from their bodies, swirling in the dark, cold air. Her fingers expertly pulled her orgasm to the edge.
“Not like this.” While remaining inside, he carried her to the hood of the car. Lauren tensed, expecting fresh, cold metal but the running car had kept it warm. Landon was a man with one thing on his mind. He yanked her hips down the slope of the car, pulling her towards him with every thrust.
Playing with Power - Book 5: New Adult Office Romance Page 7