by Marie Harte
“Or is this fantasy the one where we pretend we’re at the gym, and you take me in the hall closet? We go at it like dogs in heat, and everyone in the gym can hear us, but they don’t know it’s us.”
“You have one hell of a vivid imagination. But no.”
“How about—”
“How about you let me show you?”
“Wow. Already?” she teased, loving how his breathing sounded uneven. Why should Zoe be the only one desperately in lust? “And we didn’t even get to my proper hostessing skills. I have more root beer. I even bought cream soda just for you.”
He nodded, his gaze intense. She couldn’t forget he stood nude before her, while she wore a casual jersey skirt and an off-the-shoulder sweatshirt. Not too fancy, but in honor of the seductive evening, she’d worn lacy underclothes.
“What?”
“You talk too much.”
She frowned. “Hey.”
“Ms. York, zip it. Get up against the wall.”
Sensing he wanted to play, she gave a sniff, playing her part, and did as ordered.
Gavin stalked her. There was no other word for it.
Yet again, without even touching her, he’d made her wet and aroused just watching him.
He leaned into her, pinning her to the wall. “Hello. I’m Gavin. Your sexy new trainer.”
“Oh, I see. Hello, Gavin. My, what big muscles you have.” She stroked his chest, and he blew out a breath.
“Ms. York, how can I help you? What are your goals for tonight?” He brushed against her belly, his erection prodding.
God, he was sexy. “Hmm. My goals for tonight?” She wrapped her arms around his neck, plastering her body to his. “A few orgasms. Maybe lifting a ten-pounder. Doing some reps to get buff.”
“Hmm. You like ’em big, yeah?”
She raised a brow. “The bigger the better. I told you before, size matters.”
He chuckled. “So you did.”
“It’s just…I always wanted a boyfriend with a big cock. And now I apparently have one.” She hadn’t meant to bring that up so soon, but heck, why not?
“Knew that girlfriend mention would get in your loop,” he said with satisfaction. “You’re not sure you want to belong to me yet, are you?”
“Belong to you? Like a pet, you mean?” How wrong was it that when he put his hand around her throat, she grew very, very wet between her legs?
“Now hold on a minute, Ms. York.” He ran his other hand up her thigh, dragging up the mid-thigh skirt. “Let’s see if you’re wearing your equipment properly.” He found her bikinis and shook his head. “Sorry, Mistress. This is a no-panty zone.”
He tugged them off, leaving her bottom covered only by the skirt. “And what’s the deal with your top? It’s ugly.”
“Hey.”
“Women don’t work out in sweatshirts. You’ll get all sweaty. You need to go au naturel.” He smiled, a mean grin that had her groaning his name. “Put your arms up.”
“So I guess we really are going right into the sex,” she said, her voice muffled while he drew the sweatshirt over her head. With that gone, her bra soon followed. “Did you like the lace?”
“The what?” He leaned close and sucked a nipple into his mouth before she could argue with him.
“Oh.” Threading her fingers in his hair, she held him close while he played with her breasts. He cupped her, pinching her with excruciating gentleness, which only exacerbated the tiny sting of the tug he gave at the end. She went from hot to cold, not sure how to feel except aroused.
Last night had been about satiating themselves on each other. Tonight, apparently, would be about savoring the experience.
“That’s it. Keep your hands there. Hold me close, Mistress.”
Oddly enough, instead of laughing off the silly pet name, she felt turned on by it. An intimacy he’d given her. And the way he said it made her want to show him just how much of a “mistress” she wanted to be. But she was helpless against her body’s needs. Gavin played her like he owned her. And after so brief a time being sexual with each other, she found that astonishing.
He continued to suck her breasts, drawing forth carnal sparks that ramped her arousal. But those naughty hands of his drove her insane.
“Gavin,” she gasped. “What are you doing?” He kept running his hands up her legs, between her thighs, making her widen her stance. He’d get so close to her sex, then he’d slide his hands back down her legs. Each time he came closer to grazing her clit, sliding the edges of his hands through her wet arousal.
She unconsciously leaned toward him, thrusting her pelvis forward. And he heard her unspoken plea, let her guide his head lower. He dragged her skirt down until she stepped out of it. Then his mouth was there, between her legs, and his tongue found her.
She cried out, engulfed in desire. Those thick fingers of his continued to move up and down her legs, coming close but not close enough.
Until he drew her clit between his lips and teethed her with enough bite to cause painful pleasure to blanch everything white. Just as she reached the pinnacle of her release, he shoved a thick finger inside her.
Zoe clamped down on him as she came, the pleasure so intense she felt ripples of it up and down her spine. And the ecstasy continued, shocking her that it hadn’t ended. Gavin, bless him, continued to lick her up, moaning as he did. He whispered something against her, and she shook, now overwhelmed with sensation.
“Zoe,” he growled. “Turn around.”
“What?” Dazed and just flat-out impressed he had the skill to make her lose herself completely, she let him turn her and braced herself against the wall. He pulled her hips toward him, bending her, and then she felt him there, at the entrance to her slick flesh.
He slid forward, triggering more shocks in her sensitive channel. She moaned, wishing he’d been inside her before when she’d come, so she hadn’t felt so empty. His finger had been good, but not as good as the rest of him.
“Fuck me. You feel so wet. I’m not gonna last.” His breathing grew choppy, his thrusts frenzied as he moved faster, harder. He dug his fingers into her hips, sawing with a brutal pace until he seized and moaned her name, pumping inside her.
Zoe didn’t know why, but having him release in her was a huge turn-on. She had this part of him. Joined even when he’d no longer be there. It was a closeness she’d rarely had with the men in her life. By rights, she shouldn’t be having it with Gavin.
But she wanted it. Wanted this, with him.
He groaned and started to withdraw. “Zoe, baby, you destroy me.”
“I only gave back what you gave me.” She felt every inch where they were joined. Gavin had strength beyond the muscle, a fortitude that had gotten him through some hard times. And it was that concentrated power that sucked her in, made her feel that in his arms, she would be safe enough to really let go.
“Hey, you got me all hot and bothered first,” he complained, still breathing hard. “Demanding I strip. Being all bossy and mean. It was damn hot. And those fantasies of yours. We need to take care of those, stat.”
“Well, let’s at least give me time to clean up. I think you made another mess in me.”
He chuckled. All hot, male satisfaction. “Do you have any idea how much I love coming in you?”
“Do you have any idea how stupid I was to let you do it that first time?”
“Yep. Pretty dumb,” he agreed and slowly withdrew from her. Before she could dash for the bathroom, he lifted her in his arms, startling a gasp out of her. “Easy. I got you. You weigh surprisingly less than you look.”
“What the hell does that mean?” she snarled.
“So hot.” He sighed again and walked her back to her bedroom, going into the attached bath. Once there, he wouldn’t let her clean herself. So she stood embarrassed through it all as he wiped her clean wi
th a washcloth, then patted her dry, following the towel with kisses.
When he started revving her engines again, insatiable with that oral fixation, she forced him to stop.
He immediately ceased and scowled up at her. “Why?”
“Why?” Because I don’t want to come again so easily. I have no control around you. “I thought we could talk too. Or did you just come over to drain the weasel?”
He grimaced. “Bad euphemism. That’s more like taking a piss, and not something I want involved in my lovemaking.” He stood and made a face. “Go lay down in bed, and we’ll cuddle.”
She blinked. “Did you just say we’ll cuddle?”
“And talk. I know you chicks dig that.” He gave her a knowing smile, just waiting for her to blow up.
“Oh yes. All of us chicks on your fuck list. Let’s talk about that, shall we?”
He shrugged, seeming not at all bothered by the bite in her voice. “If you want to. You can tell me all about the men in your life too, if you want. I’m game.”
“Fine.”
“Fine.”
She left him to clean up and stalked to the bed. Refusing to dress, she waited, naked, and ignored the slight chill in the room.
Gavin joined her shortly, looking fresh, buff, and determined—which surprised her.
“I’ll start,” he said, still naked and lying down next to her. He leaned on his elbow so he could face her, on his side. She did the same, needing to see his expressions. Then he confused her—again—by tracing her facial features with a callused fingertip. When he stopped, he was smiling.
“Wh-what was that?” And why had it made her feel as if he was touching so much deeper than her skin?
“Just memorizing your features.”
“Through touch?”
“Yep.” His gentle smile annoyed her.
“Don’t try seducing me again. We’re going to talk like regular people.”
“Okay.”
“So start.” She flicked her fingers at him. “Your mistress demands it.”
He chuckled. “I was teasing with that you chicks comment. I won’t lie and say I’m all virginal. Truth is—Zoe, you want the truth, right?”
“Yes, I do.”
“The truth is…”
Gavin stared at the woman he couldn’t stop thinking about. They’d only been sexual for the past two days, but he wanted more. He’d never been so into a woman before. If it had just been sex, he thought he’d be able to walk away.
Each time he slid inside Zoe and looked into her eyes, he connected with her. He loved her snarky attitude. Her take-charge vibe that refused to let him get away with shit. And when she grieved for her sister, that realness, that honest love, hurt him. But in a good way. Zoe’s grief was as it should be. Untainted with guilt and revulsion.
He wanted that. To feel love without all the bad stuff that came with it. With Zoe, it felt right. The sex, the emotion, the laughter always bubbling inside at her peevishness. “Still waiting, Sir Sex-A-Lot.”
“The truth is…‘I like big butts and I cannot lie.’” He laughed at her gradual comprehension. “Sorry, sorry. But you said Sex-A-Lot. I heard Mix-A-Lot. And please, you have the finest ass in Seattle. Baby, you ain’t got much back, but what you have is tight.”
“Thanks. I think.”
He snorted. “Yeah. Anyway. The truth. That’s what you want.” And what he had to tell her. Gavin didn’t want to play around with Zoe. No lies, no kidding to cover shit up. If not all of his issues, he wanted at least the big ones out of the way, so he and Zoe could get past them and never discuss them again.
He cleared his throat. “So I was in the Marine Corps. Joined up at eighteen and got out last June. Fourteen years. They weren’t all pretty, but they mattered. I mattered.”
She put her hand on his and squeezed.
“So I joined up with a bunch of my friends. We moved apart, then came back together, so that some or all of us seemed to be in the same unit a lot. Until I had different duties. But that’s not important. What is important is that while I was injured, recuperating, the guys went out on a routine patrol and died in an explosion. It was bad. I lost a lot of friends.” Just say it fast and never mention it again. “Then I ended up coming home. I was fucked up. Not handling being back well. So I started drinking. I had a lot of sex. Things that felt good to make me not feel like such shit.”
“I get it.”
“I know you do.” Her wounds from losing her twin had yet to heal. “To make a long story short, my family intervened. Saw I was being a dumbass and helped me get some clarity. I’m no saint. But I never asked those women at the gym for anything they didn’t want to give. And before you ask, I used protection. Probably the only smart thing I did back then.
“I look back on it now and wish I hadn’t slept with some of them. Yeah, I admit it. I made some mistakes. But at the time, I needed what they had to offer. And so did they.” He paused, putting it out there. “I like you a lot, Zoe. I want to hang out more. You and me. Gardening or hiking, taking in a movie. You know, Netflix and chill,” he teased, seeing her flush. “I’m not out to use you. I’m not out to call you my girlfriend or get you to commit to something you don’t want. Yeah, I was yanking your chain before. We’re finally getting to know each other. Well, more than how to get you to orgasm, that is.”
“You know, I was with you right up until—”
“So I want to spend time with you. I like being with you. You make me laugh. And I’m damn sure attracted to you.” Zoe was different from the others. “But I’m not sure what you want from me. And I’m not sure I could give it to you if I did know. I’m not totally together yet. I’m a work in progress, you could say.”
She studied him, and he saw so much more than a naked woman who could have had her own spread as a centerfold. The caring in her bright-blue eyes, that zing he felt when looking at her smile. With her, he felt at peace, despite the fact his entire body flamed with desire.
“Okay. I get you.”
“Do you?”
“I think so. So here’s my truth.” She drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I’m the boring twin, the responsible one. The twin who has a burial plot, a 401(k), and my future planned out to the nth degree. But when Aubrey died, it made me think hard about what I was doing with my life. She was fun and carefree. Everyone loved her. I miss her so much sometimes,” Zoe admitted in a soft voice.
He saw her eyes well up, and his heart dropped. “Aw, baby, come here.”
He pulled her into his arms and felt her tremble. She cleared her throat and sniffed.
“Sorry. I hate when that happens. I’ll be fine, and then…bam. Waterworks.”
“Better tears than booze and Michelle,” he muttered, not thinking.
She stiffened in his arms, and he felt like a heel.
Until she laughed. She laughed so hard she cried.
“Those are good tears, right?”
“Yeah. Booze and Michelle. What a combination.” She huffed. “And maybe next time, consider it might be better not to mention specific names of the women you’ve had sex with while being naked in bed with me. I’d rather they were faceless. Because...Michelle? Ugh.”
“I have been known to talk without thinking.” He groaned and hugged her tighter, until she squeaked. “I’m sorry. I really do understand what you’re saying. That came out wrong.”
“I know.” She pulled back so she could look at him. “I know you don’t like to talk about your military time. We all have to deal with our stuff our own way. But I’m glad we’re finally hanging out.”
He frowned. “Ah, do you mean hanging out, as in having sex? Or as in us talking?”
“Both.” She rolled him onto his back and lay over him like a blanket. “I like being with you, Gavin. I don’t know what that means, but this is nice.”
He scowled. “Wait. Hold on. Nice? The mittens your aunt gave you for Christmas are nice. A halfway decent haircut is nice. My brother doing the dishes for my mom is nice. I’m not nice.”
“No, no. Not nice.”
He glared. “Why are you smiling?”
“Gavin, that was a compliment. You’re a real bastard and a prick, but your cock is huge and manly, and I’m totally impressed. Did I say nice? I meant exciting. Passionate. Being with you makes me horny all the time.”
He nodded and huffed. “Better.”
“And I have more fantasies that we need to get to. Maybe later this week though. Because if we keep going at it this hard, I’ll be bowlegged at work and people will be asking questions.”
“Good. Let them ask.” And that brought up a great point. “While we’re hanging out, it’s just you for me and me for you. No other dudes or chicks to get in the way. Right?”
She stared into his eyes, hers warm and smiling, the bright-blue gleam entrancing. “Right.” She leaned down to kiss him. “You’re cute when you’re possessive.”
Now he felt like an idiot. “Nah, just making sure we can still be condom-free with sex. I’m not planning on screwing that up.” Gruffly he added, “You either.”
“Sure thing, Smoky.”
“I prefer Guns of Steel.” He pumped his arm, showing off his biceps.
“Oh, nice. Want to see mine?”
He nodded, feeling warm because she kept moving with slow, sensual gyrations against his body. For someone who wanted to cuddle and talk, she was getting him fired up instead.
“Yeah.” He cleared his throat, trying not to fixate on her breasts as she sat up.
She straddled him, then took his now-hard cock in hand and eased over him.
“Zoe? Fuck. What are you doing?”
“See me flexing?” She made a muscle with her biceps while sliding down his shaft, seating him all the way inside.
He felt his eyes roll back into his head and moaned.
“Now, now, Smoky. Pay attention. When I say cuddle, I mean cuddle with every bone in that body.”
“Every boner in my body?” he rasped.
“Sad you had to go there.” She started riding him, up and down.