by J. S. Scott
“It’s me, sweetheart. Only me,” he reminded her, his voice harsh and aroused against her ear. Her channel clamped down on his cock, and milked him as he pumped through the spasms with a tormented groan. “Fuck, yeah. Come with me, Hope,” he demanded as he grasped her ass with both hands and buried himself to the balls. His own release pulsed as she quivered around him.
Hope’s racing heart hammered against his chest as they stayed entwined. Jason’s hand stroked up over her back and neck as he held her against him and his chest heaved. “Jesus Christ,” he rasped. His body shuddered as he slumped back on the pillow and took her with him.
Stunned, Hope didn’t move, didn’t speak. She stayed sprawled over his massive, sweat-slicked body, trying to catch her breath.
Finally, Jason rumbled, “Are you okay?”
She was free. Honestly, she felt as if she could fly. “Yes. I’m better than okay,” she answered breathlessly. “That was incredible. Is it always like that?” she wondered aloud.
“Never,” Jason answered emphatically. “It can be good, but it’s never that good. We have an incredible chemistry.”
Hope smiled against his damp skin. “Thank you.”
“For what?” he asked, confused.
“For helping me.” Maybe Jason couldn’t understand what being able to actually be with a man and finding such ecstasy in an act that previously been abhorrent to her meant. “I finally feel…liberated.”
“I’d prefer it if you only explored your sexual independence with me,” Jason grumbled.
She laughed delightedly. “Right now, I think you’re the only man I can explore.”
“Feel free to use me for any research you’d like to do,” Jason replied hastily. “Please.”
Hope finally moved her lethargic body from his and disengaged herself from him to slip next to him with a chuckle. “I’m honored that you’ll make yourself available.”
He turned his head. His eyes speared her with an anxious look. “Are you really okay?”
Her heart stuttered. The look of concern in his expression touched her. She put a palm to his cheek and stroked his whiskered jaw. “I’m fine. I guess I finally found a man I could trust with my body. I never left you, Jason. Not once. I knew exactly who I was with and who was making my body come apart. I’m not sure I could do this with anyone else but you.”
“I don’t want you doing it with anyone else but me,” he replied roughly, possessively. He wrapped a strong arm around her back as he rolled to his side and brought them face to face.
Their heads both rested on the same pillow and their eyes meshed as they gazed at each other. Hope sighed; her loose hand stroked down his strong shoulder and came to rest lazily on his hip. He might feel that way right now, but he’d get his fill of her eventually, and in return, she’d finally be free of every ghost of her past. “You’ll wear out eventually,” she teased.
A low, reverberating sound tore from his throat. “Don’t count on it, sweetheart.”
The sensual threat and the heated look in his eyes made her heart skitter. Jason’s expression was intense, almost feral, as his gaze bored into her. “It might take me a while to get used to it,” she agreed. Her body already quickened to have him inside her again. “And I probably have a lot to learn.”
“A whole lot,” he conceded. “Could take a very long time,” he said in a low, fuck-me-again voice. A wicked sensual grin formed on his lips.
“We have two weeks,” she reminded him.
Jason was silent as his molten gaze swept over her face. “Not long enough.”
“That’s the deal,” she reminded him lightly. Her fingers unconsciously stroked covetously over the hard muscles of his hip and up to his chest.
“Don’t push, woman.” He slapped her firmly on the ass. “If you do, you won’t see the light of day today,” he warned her dangerously.
Hope wanted to tell him she wouldn’t mind, but he cut off her sinful thoughts.
“You’d be so sore you wouldn’t be able to move,” he cautioned unhappily.
He was probably right, but Hope didn’t want to admit it. “I need to take a shower.” She looked back at him after she sat up. “Are you planning on staying in bed all day?”
“Not if you’re not here,” he answered cantankerously. “It wouldn’t be nearly as much fun. I’d rather follow you into the shower.”
“I thought you said we had to take this slow,” she answered him cheekily as she rose and shot a mischievous look over her shoulder.
“I can still look,” Jason answered coarsely. His eyes roamed over her figure with blatant naked desire.
God, he makes me feel like a goddess.
She couldn’t ever remember feeling this desirable, and her hips swayed a little bit more as she sashayed into the bathroom.
With a low growl, Jason followed right behind her.
Hope dug into her purse, ignored the credit card Jason had handed her before she left on her shopping expedition to the town of Rocky Springs, and pulled out her own card instead. She handed it over to the friendly, older man behind the counter, happy she’d found almost everything she wanted, and more.
The sporting goods shop had a wide variety of hiking gear, clothing, and other items that she’d wanted to purchase. Jason had handed her the keys to his rental car hesitantly, as though he thought she was going to run away.
Like I’m really going to leave the man who gives me the most incredible orgasms I’ve ever experienced.
She wanted more, much more, and she’d shared that little secret with him as she’d snatched the keys, being rewarded with a heart-melting grin and breathtaking kiss before she left the guesthouse.
After she signed for her purchases, she took them to the car, opened the back hatch with a click of a button, and stored them safely in the roomy back of the black SUV. As the door started to close, she smirked as she realized that even though the Escalade was a more expensive vehicle than the one she owned, it was probably the cheapest automobile Jason had ever driven. There was very little need for expensive sports cars in this area, and it was probably the only thing that was available in the small town.
Jason had always liked high-performance vehicles, and one of his hobbies as a teenager had been restoring old classic sports cars. She wondered whether he still did that, or whether he’d dropped the hobby because he could afford any car he wanted already fully restored.
Hope stopped, looked up and down the street, and smirked as she spotted a gourmet chocolate factory. That would have to be her last stop or the chocolate would melt before she got it back to Jason.
Rocky Springs was a lovely mountain town that reminded her of several other quaint, small mountain towns and villages in Colorado. The downtown area, the main street, was a collection of useful and eclectic shops, mostly small businesses and specialty shops.
Not seeing what she wanted, she squinted into the sunlight, trying to see what was across the street.
“You look lost,” a friendly female voice said beside her genially.
Hope turned her head to glance at the woman, a beautiful brunette with hair as dark as coal that fell in a long, straight curtain down her shoulders and back. The woman’s crimson lips were turned up in a smile, her eyes covered by a pair of black sunglasses that had plenty of rhinestone bling. Whoever she was, she was exotically beautiful, even dressed in a simple red cotton shirt and a pair of jeans, similar to the attire Hope had put on hastily before she left the guesthouse.
Hope smiled back at her. “I’m visiting. I’m staying at the resort, and my—” She hesitated before she continued. “My husband wants to take me out for dinner. I don’t have a dress. I was looking for a women’s clothing store.”
“You’re staying with us?” The woman’s smile grew wider. “I’m Chloe Colter. I live at the resort.” She put her hand out readily.
Hope clasped and shook it. “Hope Sinclair,” she answered back automatically. As she withdrew her hand, she surveyed the woman quizzicall
y. “You’re Tate’s sister.” The gorgeous, petite woman looked nothing like Tate Colter.
The woman removed her sunglasses. “The only thing we share is the Colter eyes,” Chloe answered with a chuckle as she revealed a pair of the same long-lashed smoky gray eyes as Tate’s. “And you’re Hope Sutherland now, I understand. Congratulations on your marriage. Tate stopped by yesterday, and he told me and Mom that Jason Sutherland had married and was staying here. We were both dying to meet you.”
I actually am Hope Sutherland. At least for a little while. She was still stunned to hear herself called by her married name, and it had never even occurred to her to introduce herself with Jason’s surname.
As she recovered from her admission, she realized that looking Chloe in the eyes was like looking into Tate’s. “Your eyes are exactly the same,” Hope replied, surprised.
“All five of us share the same eyes,” Chloe replied. “Tate’s actually the odd blond sibling, in more ways than one. The rest of my brothers are all dark-haired, like me. He favors my late father. The rest of us all look like Mom.” Chloe put her sunglasses back on and pointed across the street. “There’s a very nice shop across the street and to the left, a few blocks down. I’ll walk with you.” As she turned, her head snapped back. “Holy crap! Your ring is stunning.”
Hope held up her left hand. “It is,” she admitted. “Jason has amazing taste.” She squirmed a little as she reminded herself she wouldn’t be wearing it for long, but she let Chloe take her hand. The woman turned her hand to different angles to admire the diamond.
Chloe snorted. “Obviously. And we know he has endless funds. But he made a great choice. It’s stunning without being gaudy. I’m engaged, so I looked at a lot of rings.”
Her eyes automatically glanced at Chloe’s left hand. Hope noticed it was bare. “You haven’t decided yet?”
Chloe sighed. She dropped Hope’s hand and gestured for her to walk with her. “James wants to wait to get a ring.”
A startled laugh escaped from Hope’s lips. “Your fiancé’s name is James?”
“Yes.”
“I had a fiancé named James once.” Hope couldn’t help but laugh as the two women crossed the street. The full force of the Colorado sunshine beamed down on them as they scurried across the street during a break in traffic. She stopped as they arrived under the shade of the awning over the shops on the other side of the road.
“Why are you laughing? You obviously broke up,” Chloe asked curiously.
Hope shook her head as they walked sedately down the paved sidewalk. “It’s a long story,” she told Chloe, her voice laced with humor.
“Tell,” Chloe insisted.
As she gazed at the woman next to her, Hope’s heart lightened. It felt good to be in the company of another woman who really knew her identity. Other than David, she’d really never had any friends, out of necessity. It was difficult to get close to people when you couldn’t really tell them much about your life. She stayed quiet, kept to herself in Aspen. Even her neighbors didn’t know who she really was, and it had been a very lonely, very solitary existence.
With a deep breath, she told Chloe the story of her fake fiancé, but only revealed the part about wanting to keep her older brothers from interfering in her life. The other woman stopped occasionally, almost bending over with laughter, and commiserated about being from a wealthy family and having overprotective brothers.
By the time the shopping trip was over, Hope felt as if she’d made a new friend, and it felt incredibly good.
Later that evening, Hope watched Jason from the kitchen—ogling him had rapidly become her favorite activity—as he worked from his laptop on one of the recliners in the living room. He looked deep in thought, his eyes narrowed as he studied what was probably data. She’d cooked dinner and hustled him out of the kitchen to finish whatever he was working on as soon as they’d finished eating. He’d told her he was in the middle of a project, and she’d balked when he’d been ready to go with her shopping earlier in the day. She told him to finish whatever he needed to do while she went to town. He’d given her a look that said he didn’t want her to go anywhere without him, and she’d reminded him that it was just a shopping trip. It wasn’t as if she was going out to chase a storm. Jason had relented, but he hadn’t looked happy about it. In fact, he’d greeted her at the door with a look of relief when she’d returned, and gave her a fiery kiss that had made her body sizzle down to her toes, and every part of her anatomy in between, too.
Hope bit her lip to keep from laughing when Daisy hopped onto the chair and walked over Jason’s laptop as though the computer and Jason belonged to her. Her heart skittered as she watched him move Daisy gently, placed the feline next to his thighs, and gave her the attention she obviously wanted by stroking her head and then her silky body repeatedly. Hope grew teary eyed as she noticed Jason murmured to a deaf cat who couldn’t hear a word he said. Daisy ate up the attention as though she could hear his comforting words, and bumped him in the belly so he could keep on petting her.
The Jason she adored was back, the caring boy who’d grown into a protective, alpha, kindhearted man. Seeing him, seeing the man he really was, made it even harder to resist him. She hadn’t detected any sign of the ruthless bastard who’d tried to blackmail her. Instead, a tear rolled down her cheek as Jason continued to talk to Daisy, moved his laptop and let her cuddle on his lap while he used both hands to stroke her delighted kitty body.
She swiped away the tear, opened the fridge and snatched one of the chocolates she’d stashed away as a surprise.
“I thought most men didn’t like cats,” she said casually as she sauntered into the living room.
“She seems to like me,” Jason said defensively. He continued to pet Daisy as he watched her walk toward him.
She stopped beside the chair. “Open your mouth. I got you something today.”
He looked at her cautiously. “If it’s a Rocky Mountain oyster, I get to paddle your ass,” he warned in a low, ominous voice.
“Hmm…no…it’s not. But I almost wish it was now,” she pondered aloud before she could censor her words. Something about Jason’s preference to be dominating both humbled her and excited her. To let her take the lead had to kill him, yet he did it for her. “Open,” she requested sweetly. “Please,” she added.
He still gave her a startled but smoldering look from her comment about the spanking. Finally, he closed his eyes and opened his mouth, a gesture of trust that made Hope’s heart accelerate. She dropped the milk chocolate pecan turtle into his mouth and watched as he chewed and groaned as the chocolate hit his taste buds. “Good?” She already knew the answer. She had recognized the name of the chocolatier when shopping earlier. It was a small company that had several stores in Colorado, and the chocolates were out of this world.
Jason swallowed, a rapturous look on his face. “Tell me you have more.” His voice was both demanding and pleading.
“I have more,” she agreed compliantly and smiled. “I know you and chocolate.”
“I’ve had chocolate everywhere in the world, and that’s incredible.” He lowered Daisy gently to the floor and moved his laptop to the floor beside the recliner.
Hope squealed as Jason wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her onto his lap. Recovering quickly, she straddled him and let her legs dangle off both sides of the chair. “It’s about time I got my turn,” she told him with false indignation. “I was getting jealous of my own cat.”
He palmed her ass and pulled her closer against him. “I like your cat, baby. But you feel a hell of a lot better.” His hand moved up underneath her t-shirt and stroked over the bare skin of her back.
Hope almost purred just like Daisy as Jason’s touch shot fire through her blood. She wrapped her arms around his neck. “I can’t wait until tomorrow, Jason. I need you.” She could feel his hard erection push against the denim of his jeans, and she moved her hips to get her heated, saturated core closer.
I
need to be closer. I need him inside me.
“Hope.” He sounded tortured as he moved one of his hands behind her head and brought her mouth down on his.
She responded immediately, thrust her hips forward again and tangled her fingers into his disheveled hair to mess it up even more.
Hope surrendered completely and moaned desperately into his mouth as he gripped her ass, trying to mold their bodies together to mimic the actions of their seeking, needy tongues. She actually wanted Jason’s dominance, craved having him show her that he wanted her beyond reason. Fear wasn’t an issue. Desire reigned supreme, and she was crazed to experience Jason’s complete loss of control, to let him show her everything she’d been missing for so long. Hope felt bold and Jason had helped her regain her power. Now, all she wanted was…him.
She pulled away from him, panting. “Fuck me, Jason. I need you.”
He let out a strangled groan and stood, her legs still wrapped around his powerful body, his hands still squeezing her ass. “Christ knows I want to, baby. I’m just afraid of doing something wrong. What if it hurts because we’re doing it again far too soon?”
Her heart melted as his husky voice, so low and full of passion, also vibrated with concern…for her. “It won’t,” she assured him. Hope knew in her gut she was right. She knew exactly who she was with, and why she was with him.
“I don’t have the control I need with you,” Jason protested as he walked them toward the bedroom. “But I’ll make you come,” he growled. Her feet landed on the floor as he stopped in the bedroom. “Strip,” he commanded, his voice harsh with controlled desire.
Hope wasn’t having it. She needed Jason inside her. “You do it,” she countered and stood back with her hands by her side. “When we made our deal, I told you I’d do anything you wanted. Make me do it,” she challenged, without a flinch as she watched his nostrils flare and the muscle in his jaw twitch.
“Why?”
“Because I want you to,” she answered in a sultry voice, enthralled as she watched him struggle with himself. They needed to get beyond his fear of hurting her. Her need to feel him raw and untamed pounded at her, her desire to surrender a powerful aphrodisiac. “I know who I’m with. Now do it, Jason,” she cajoled, deliberately using his name.