“Yes,” her devil cheered.
It might even be beneficial for her to have sex with Tyler. She could realize their connection wasn’t as explosive and life-changing as she thought. The energy between them would fizzle, she’d go on to successfully own her daycare business, get married, pop out some babies, and live happily ever after.
So, in a nutshell, in order for her to die happy, she needed to have sex with Tyler Cole.
Her devil plopped his ass down on her shoulder and lit a cigarette.
Crap, she’d completely lost her mind.
Grabbing a beer out of the fridge, she chugged half of it, giving herself permission to day drink due to her perilous circumstances. As she was taking another gulp, she heard the door and then footsteps on the stairs. Why did everything in Seeton have to be five minutes away? Five minutes was never enough time. Whoever really meant five more minutes when they asked for it? She quickly set the beer down on the island and swiped a hand over her sweaty hairline.
“Refreshments?” Tyler asked, smiling at her. The brown paper bag he was carrying jingled as he made his way over to the counter, and then clanked against the surface when he set it down. Grabbing the bottle of beer, he lifted it to his lips, threw his head back, and guzzled.
His Adam’s apple hypnotized Jena as it bobbed up and down with each swallow. Her body reacted to the sight, fire burning her from the inside out again. She went to the fridge and grabbed two more beers, making sure to hold them against her chest as she brought them back to the counter.
“I like the way you think,” he told her.
You have no idea.
“Yeah, well, it’s the least I can do for you since you’re fixing the sink. I’ll pay you too, of course.”
“I don’t want your money, Red.” His tone was deep and velvety, meant to hint at the kind of payment he truly wanted.
Their gazes held as she took a swig from one of the beers. “So, did you find the right size?” she asked after the liquid found a way over the lump in her throat.
“I think so. Oh, and I saw Dax on the way up. He saw the bag, so I told him we were working on bachelor/bachelorette party plans together when I noticed the sink leaking. Said it was no big deal and I’d just handle it.”
So, there it was. He’d saved her. Now, he was her hero. How in the hell was she supposed to tamp down her hormones when he’d gone and added that to the mix?
“Thank you.”
“No problem. Okay, let’s do this.” Grabbing the bag from the hardware store and the toolbox, he put them on the floor near the cabinet. Then, to her shock, he pulled his shirt over his head and threw it on the island counter.
Jena gaped wordlessly at his bare chest and abs, lack of oxygen nearly laying her out.
“What are you doing?” she blurted. Had there been that many muscles there before? Her thoughts raced back to when they’d been together, and in her mind she brushed a hand over each and every one, counting as she went along.
One…two…three…
“I don’t want to get my shirt dirty. Why? Is it a problem?”
She peeled her eyes away from Tyler’s chest and up to his face. A smirk peeked through his five o’clock shadow, which completed the whole package of sexy, hot, shirtless guy. If she could, she would take a picture and pin it to her “My Obsessions” board on Pinterest.
“Um…nope. All good. You do you.”
Her chest was rising and falling in rapid succession beneath her shirt, and Tyler’s gaze landed there to watch its movements. Bringing his bottom lip in with his tongue, he raised lust-glazed eyes to hers. “I’d rather do—”
Jena snapped a palm up. “Stop. Don’t say it. Please, just…fix the sink.”
Nodding, Tyler chuckled. His knowing eyes appeared entertained by her reaction. “All right, Red.” He crouched down, grabbed something out of the toolbox and disappeared underneath the sink.
With both hands on the island countertop, Jena leaned over and exhaled the breath she’d been holding. Christ, she’d never experienced such torture. It was taking every bit of willpower she had not to launch herself at him. She took several deep cleansing breaths, trying to calm her raging hormones before realizing her fingers were inches away from the shirt on the counter. Unable to help herself, she picked it up, raised it to her face, and inhaled. Eyes closed, she breathed in his scent, a combination of soap, fresh woods, spices, and perfect male. She resisted a ridiculous compulsion to rub it all over her body.
Grunts and heavy breathing drew her attention to his form sticking out from underneath the sink. Watching Tyler’s chest and ab muscles flexing as he worked did nothing to help alleviate the growing ache in her core. His jeans rode down below the waistband of boxer briefs underneath, which she personally knew he wore because she’d thoroughly admired them before he’d taken them off last year.
It was too much. He was too much. She had to get out of there before she internally combusted on the spot.
“Jena, can you grab the part from the bag and hand it to me?” he asked.
She jumped at the sound of his voice but quickly moved to do as he asked. It took her a few steps toward him to realize she was still holding his shirt, so she threw it back on the counter before crouching down next to him, where the bag was sitting on the floor.
Houston, we have a problem. The task of getting the part for him was more dangerous than she’d anticipated. The bag sat near his hips, close enough to reach over and pop the button of his jeans…accidentally, of course. With pure willpower, she reached for the sack, opened it up, and wrapped her fingers around the part inside—all the while her eyes remained glued to a certain denim distraction as imagination had her wrapping her hands around something completely different—and completely unacceptable.
She forced herself to avert her gaze while holding out the part to him. Her face heated when she realized he was watching her and had, no doubt, seen her checking out his package like a dog eyeing a bone.
“Here you go,” she said, desperately trying to keep her voice steady.
Tyler smiled as he grabbed the plumbing item from her, brushing her fingers with his. “Thank you.”
Surprisingly, he didn’t say another word. Jena had expected a snide comment, innuendo, or a flat out were you just looking at my penis. Instead, he went back to working on the water leak without a word.
Not one to poke a bear, she stood back up and grabbed a can of dusting powder she’d put up on the counter earlier from under the sink, pulled off some paper towels from the dispenser, and got to work polishing furniture in the living room. The room wasn’t particularly dusty, the act more a safety precaution on her part. It took her out of the danger zone while keeping hands and eyes away from where they didn’t belong was paramount.
“Okay,” Tyler said. “I think she’s all fixed.”
Jena turned and found him already standing next to the sink, setting his toolbox on the kitchen counter.
“That was fast,” she said.
“Yeah, well, I still need to turn the water back on and check it for sure, but it should be good.” He made his way to the door. “Be right back.”
Almost over. I can do this.
Jena breathed a sigh of relief while he was gone and went to the kitchen to check out what he’d done. Peeking under the sink, she realized she was kidding herself. For all she knew, he could have simply tightened a pipe, or built a whole new aqueduct system. It all looked the same to her.
She was standing near the sink when Tyler came back. Marching right up to her, he moved in close. She stepped back and gave him room.
“All right, let’s see how good I am.” He winked.
After turning the faucet on, he crouched down and stared inside the cabinet for a moment or two. Then he stood back up and turned the faucet off.
“Well, that problem is fixed,” he said, facing her. “Now, we have to work on the more important one.”
Her brows furrowed. “What other one?”
H
e shot her a crooked smile. “This.” His lips were on hers before she realized he’d swooped down and kissed the living crap out of her.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
The minute he’d walked into the apartment to fix the sink, Tyler knew he wasn’t leaving without, at the very least, getting a kiss from Jena. Sexual tension between them was at an all-time high, more so than he’d ever experienced with a woman, and he wasn’t going to let her push it away this time.
He’d been dying the entire time underneath the sink, especially after he saw her checking out his chest when he took the shirt off. Of course, he’d planned it. Tyler couldn’t care less about getting the t-shirt dirty. No, he’d wanted a reaction out of her, and he hadn’t been disappointed. But the attention she’d given the big guy while he was waiting for her to get the part from the bag…was not anticipated. He’d watched her eyeing up his groin, and it took everything in him not to pop the button and unzip so she could get to the real deal. The only thing that stopped him was the water problem. He didn’t want Dax to notice how long the line was off and come up to see if he needed help.
Now, there was nothing stopping him.
The kiss had surprised her, but it didn’t take long for her to open up for him, giving passage to the sweet taste of her mouth and the sensual entangling of their tongues. After feeling the vibration of her moan, he took full advantage and stepped in closer to her body, forcing her back against the kitchen counter, making sure she noticed how much he wanted her. Gripping her hips, he rubbed his hard length against her core and was rewarded with another groan, this time louder and more desperate.
Taking a chance, he released her mouth, and made his way down, devouring her jaw and neck. Yes, he was giving her an opportunity to voice any misguided protests she might foolishly be considering, but he was going to make damned sure those thoughts wouldn’t have a chance in hell before her body told them to take a fucking hike. He rode his hands up her form and molded his fingers to her breasts, stroking the hardened nipples through the thin material of her shirt and bra. He’d noticed them earlier, jutting out at him like a personal invitation for a playdate, and it took sheer willpower not to point out how her body told him everything she’d denied since she’d come back to town. But this? This was so much better than words. Feeling her against him, having his hands on her, was like coming home to a delicious home-cooked meal after a long day of work. He couldn’t wait to get to the main course and was going to savor every last morsel of the feast.
Keeping Jena pinned against the counter with his hips, he reached down, grabbed the hem of her shirt, and lifted. He hated that he had to pause tasting her but needed to get the obstructive piece of clothing out of the way. With the shirt halfway up, she said his name. She could have been attempting to stop him, or simply calling out his name in a fit of passion, but he didn’t wait to find out. Giving another hard grind of his hips, he crushed his mouth against hers while sliding his hands underneath the rest of the shirt and pulling down the bra cups, where his thumbs and forefingers found her hardened nipples. Whether or not she’d been going to object before, the long, low moan vibrating against his lips now told him she was right back in it.
While one hand played with a nipple, he dropped the other to her backside, squeezed an ass cheek, and then skimmed it down the back of her thigh. He pulled one of her knees over his hip and ground between her legs. “Can you feel how much I want you?” he asked, his mouth against her ear.
She whimpered when he took her lobe between his teeth, letting it slide through.
“You want it too, don’t you?” It wasn’t meant as a question, but he desperately needed to hear an answer. When she only mewled again, he urged her on. “Tell me, baby.” His cheek pressed against hers, breath heavy at her ear, he pinched her nipple and rocked against her once more. “Tell me you want me.”
“Yes,” she cried out, her head bobbing up and down. “Yes, I want you. Please.”
Tyler growled as he took her mouth again, releasing her leg in the process so he could use both hands to grab the waistband of her pants. Keeping their tongues busy, he pushed down until gravity took over, and the pants fell to the floor. He wasted no time getting her shirt to follow the same fate.
Leaning back, he took in the gorgeous sight standing before him. He’d honestly never seen anything more beautiful than Jena Morgan, naked with a desperate hunger in her eyes. For him. That was the best part, the piece that had his heart beating faster, his breath more ragged, and something awakening within him that went beyond the physical, wondering if he’d ever get enough of her.
Sliding his gaze—first down, then up the length of her body—he took in every delectable inch of her. “God, you’re fucking gorgeous,” he said on a breath, feasting on her incredible green eyes. She fidgeted under his stare, so he stepped nearer, setting his hands on her hips and leaning in until his lips feathered hers. “I want to taste every inch of you.”
Tyler’s heart soared when she exhaled as if she’d been waiting to hear those exact words in order to breathe.
Her head fell back while he trailed kisses down her neck, lapping at the sensitive skin with his tongue. His hands found her breasts again, the bra cups still holding the heavy globes up perfectly, staging them for his feasting pleasure. When he bent down and suckled one waiting bud into his mouth, Jena groaned long and low, the sound sending electrical pulses straight to his aching groin.
It wasn’t enough. He needed more.
Seizing her waist, he hoisted her up in his arms. She gasped at the sudden movement while he spun her around and set her down on the kitchen island, planting himself between her knees. As she stared back at him, he moved in and placed a soft kiss on her lips, their locked gaze never breaking.
“Lean back for me,” he told her.
She complied, reclining on her elbows, back arching, forcing her breasts into the air. Jena was like a delectable dessert sitting on that island, and he was going to make good on his promise to taste every last bite of her. But first, he wanted to bask in the sight of her primed and waiting for him to fulfill her every carnal wish.
When the craving to touch her overwhelmed him, he hovered over her body and set a thumb on her bottom lip. He watched the plump flesh open and bounce back as he dragged it toward her chin, making a mental note to nibble on that piece of delicacy as much as possible before they were done. Continuing the tactile journey down her neck, he spread his fingers out when he reached her chest, and then brought his other palm up to join in the blissful sensation of worshipping her breasts and teasing her nipples. She cried out, throwing her head back and arcing toward him. Swooping down, he devoured one of the tempting buds while fondling the other. She continued to writhe and moan as he made sure both sides received equal amounts of love.
Having her nipples in his mouth was something close to heaven, but the anticipation of feeling, no tasting, how wet she was for him was unbearable, and he needed to find out. He kissed his way down, inching slowly, tasting a path to her navel. As her body rolled, twisted, and arched, he moved with it, his goal only inches away.
Feeling the lace of panties brush against his chin, he slipped his hands down to her hips and latched on to the thin material. What he wanted to do was tear the undergarment clear off her body, but he set that fantasy aside for another time and dragged it down her smooth hips.
Jena pushed up from the counter and grabbed his forearms, halting him from pulling them all the way off. “Tyler, stop,” she said, panting, cheeks and chest flushed nearly matching the silky strands caressing her shoulders.
Tyler stared back, his vision clouded with the same lust mirrored in her eyes. “I think we both know this is inevitable, Red. The only question is, how many orgasms can you handle in one day?”
Eyes wide, a high-pitched squeak sounded from behind closed lips. After swallowing, she said, “I only meant to ask if you have a condom?”
He looked back at her for a moment, a grin slowly creeping up his lips as he
pulled the panties down her legs, her hands falling away in the process. “Don’t need one quite yet, babe.” He winked and lowered himself between her knees.
Placing small kisses along the insides of a thigh, he took one knee and set it on his shoulder. Jena inhaled deep, and he moved in until his mouth was only a hot breath away from her glistening center. “So ready for me,” he said, making sure she felt the air of each word as it came from his lips.
“Tyler, please.” The desperation in her voice made him smile.
“I’ve been fantasizing about this for months. And now”—he licked his lips—“I’m going to take my damned sweet time and savor every second of it.” He flicked his tongue over the fleshy lips at her center, relishing the sweet flavor of Jena. Her body bolted up as she cried out, and he put his hands at the junction of her thighs, widening them, holding her in place while one of his thumbs met at the bundle of nerves and slowly circled. She squirmed underneath his fingers while he devoured her with his mouth and tongue—licking, sucking, flicking, nibbling…feasting. He couldn’t get enough of her taste. The louder she became, the more he wanted to put her over the edge so he could lap up every last drop of ecstasy he’d induced.
When he slid a finger through her folds, her thrumming inner walls told him how close she was. He added another finger, reaching for the spot he knew would send her soaring, and when he hit it, she bucked up, back curving, sending those sweet lips even closer to him. He kept his fingers inside, letting her walls milk at the sensation of their presence, while he suckled the bud of her core. She screamed out his name as she orgasmed, and it was like a match igniting a fire inside him.
Tyler stood and peered down at Jena’s flushed face as she lay back on the island, an arm over her forehead, boneless and satiated. Her eyes connected with his, and he let the cocky smile he was experiencing deep inside light up his face.
Full Potential: (A Heart of Seeton Novel) Page 11