by Sara Daniel
Don’t panic. Just because he’d left the room didn’t mean he’d abandoned her. He probably was more prudent than to engage in sex in other people’s kitchens when anyone could walk in on them. Such activity wasn’t exactly the norm for her either.
Maybe he was waiting in a more private location. Gina and Charlie’s guest bedroom would be ideal. She sauntered along the hardwood hallway, allowing the click of her high-heeled shoes to serve the notice she was joining him. But the bedroom was empty, along with every other room on this floor.
Her throat swelled as she returned to the kitchen.
Footsteps greeted her, easing the pressure. Thank goodness. He hadn’t abandoned her after all. She hadn’t thrown away her one chance with Seth.
“Are you still looking for the half-and-half? I was sure I had a full carton.” The female voice dashed her hopes, returning the lump to her throat. Gina had joined her, not Seth.
“Do you know where Seth went? He was here when I first came in, and now I can’t find him.” Haley willed herself not to cry. Gina knew about her crush, of course, but wouldn’t understand why his absence left her on the verge of tears. Haley didn’t want to explain.
“I thought I heard the front door open,” Gina said. “Maybe he went out for a smoke, or he left.”
Haley tried to swallow but couldn’t. Seth hadn’t smoked before. She’d given his mouth a thorough exam minutes ago and knew without a doubt he hadn’t picked up the habit. He’d also never been as sports crazy as the rest of the guys watching the basketball game.
He’d told her he had other plans. They were obviously more important than waiting for her. Why shouldn’t he put them first? She’d given him every indication that hers came before him. She groaned in frustration.
Gina opened the fridge and took out the half-and-half. “Bummer. I thought tonight would finally be your shot to get together. Come on. You need some chocolate martinis to forget him.”
Haley had yet to find a drink capable of accomplishing that goal, but she allowed Gina to lead her downstairs.
Chapter 3
Haley left Gina on a barstool while she continued around the counter, tears blurring her vision. She could easily get Seth’s cell number or send him a message through social media. Just because he’d left didn’t mean he’d walked out of her life forever.
But for tonight he was gone. He’d chosen his “plans” over her because she’d turned him off, first by throwing herself at him and then by running away to chase after someone else. She dug her nails into the half-and-half carton.
“Don’t even think about putting that in the mini-fridge,” Lola ordered, nodding at the half-and-half, as she hopped on the barstool next to Gina. “I’m dying to have something that’ll get the taste of Scotch out of my mouth.”
Haley busied herself with taking the martini glasses from the cabinet behind her. Then she returned to the counter and began pulling the rest of the ingredients out of her bag.
As she lined the chocolate liqueur and crème de cacao on the counter, a feather-light touch skimmed the ankle strap of her black high-heeled open-toed sandal. She jerked, barely stifling a scream as she glanced down. A light-skinned male hand covered her foot and then circled her ankle. She lifted her gaze quickly before she saw more of him.
The man she’d connected with online had arrived. She had no idea if he’d been waiting under the bar when she came down earlier. She hadn’t attempted to play hide-and-seek. The bar was only open under the counter on her side, wood paneling blocking the view from the outside.
She could look him straight in the eye and tell him the fantasy was off. That’s what she’d planned to say when she’d thought Seth would wait for her.
But if Seth had left because of her games or because he remembered what an obnoxious loud-mouth she could be, it hardly mattered if she tried to contact him later. He wouldn’t want to involve himself with her. She’d known for years he didn’t go for her type of woman.
The situation now was essentially no different than when she’d opened the online chat. This second-best fantasy was once again the only one she had a chance of turning into a reality.
The faceless man’s fingers shifted above her ankle strap. He planned to give her the no-strings-attached orgasm in front of her friends that she craved. How could the prospect of extreme sexual satisfaction fill her with disappointment?
Because she wanted Seth more. She hissed her frustration, remembering how he’d plundered her mouth, his fingertips digging into her ass cheek. He wouldn’t have needed to expend much effort to make her come. She’d been over halfway there when they stopped.
“Are you okay?” Gina asked in concern.
“Oh, yeah, just anticipating how great this is going to be.” She forced a smile, hoping her friends wouldn’t notice its false brightness. She’d spent a lot of time imagining how sexy and thrilling the encounter would be. The core of her fantasy was that she wouldn’t be faking it. So far, the only part she didn’t have to fake was tears.
“Did you hear Seth is back?” Lola asked.
Her body tensed, and the caressing fingers stuttered against her calf. Apparently, Haley’s Man could feel her reaction.
“I saw him briefly, but Gina said he left. He didn’t come down here, did he?” Haley tried to make her voice casual. If he was still around, she’d put an end to her mystery lover’s advances.
Lola shook her head. “Not since Charlie sent him upstairs for more Scotch. I don’t know why they didn’t stick to the beer in the mini-fridge.”
The long, smooth hands resumed caressing. As he grazed her knees, Haley resigned herself that Haley’s Man was her only option for tonight—an option she not only wanted but had sought out. Thankfully, he was allowing her to acclimate to his touch instead of diving straight under her skirt.
She twisted the lid on the Godiva liqueur and then reached behind her for the vodka bottle. Her skirt caught a breeze as the air circulation kicked on. She quickly smoothed the fabric over her bare ass.
Luckily, Lola and Gina had turned to watch their team attempt a free throw on the TV screen and didn’t notice. But the man at her feet would have no doubt she’d come dressed to live out her fantasy. He wouldn’t have a clue she was no longer one hundred percent committed to the online plans they’d made.
Maybe she could imagine the hands stroking the sensitive skin at the back of her knees belonged to Seth. Her real desire, after all, wasn’t a faceless guy. She wanted Seth. Her stomach dipped, and her body temperature soared.
Oh yes, this would work.
The sliding glass doors opened. Haley looked up immediately, holding her breath as she sought Seth’s gaze. Ashamed as she was to have another man touching her, she was even more ashamed of using Seth’s image for this man to bring her pleasure.
But Seth wasn’t among the group who’d taken advantage of the quick timeout for a breath of fresh air. A few more women joined Lola and Gina on the stools at the bar, while the men settled into the leather couches and chairs.
Haley continued making the martinis, her hands trembling slightly as her lover’s palms moved above her knees along the sensitive skin of her thighs. She precisely measured and filled the glasses until only the garnish was missing.
“Gina, you said you had chocolate shavings down here, right? Or was I supposed to get them from upstairs too?” Haley couldn’t remember. Heck, she could barely recall her own name. Hands squeezed gently around her upper thighs, so close to where she wanted them, yet so achingly far.
“I’m pretty sure they were down here in the mini-fridge. Let me check,” Gina said.
Haley’s clit pulsed, begging to be stroked. Her need to have this man touch her was so great she failed to process Gina’s words until the other woman stood and strolled to the end of the counter.
“No!” Haley shouted. If Gina saw the guy at her feet and realized what Haley was trying to pull off, the entire fantasy would be ruined. Not to mention the awkward explanation she’d hav
e to babble her way through. “I mean, tell me where, and I’ll get them. Behind the bar is my domain, remember?”
Gina laughed, returning to her stool. “How could I forget? You’re a bartending tyrant. I can’t believe you didn’t stick with it as a career.”
“Too many assholes and not enough career advancement,” Haley quipped. Making drinks for friends, on the other hand, she never got tired of.
“Top shelf. In the back,” Gina said.
Haley turned away from her mysterious lover so she wouldn’t catch a glimpse of his face, then squatted in front of the fridge.
His pleasure from this encounter came from her not seeing him, and she was determined to honor his fantasy. More than sheer honesty kept her from sneaking a peek, though. She was afraid if she glimpsed his face, the pleasure would leak out for her now that she’d become obsessed with Seth’s touch. Right or wrong, as long as she didn’t see this man, she could keep imagining each caress belonged to Seth.
His palms slid around her upper thigh, and the back of his hand pressed against her aching mound, still wet from making out with Seth, as she knelt down. She panted, pushing her dampness against the heat of his skin. He couldn’t have a single doubt of her readiness.
She leaned her head against the fridge door, her legs shaking so much she wasn’t sure she could keep her cool to go through with her vision of standing, laughing and talking her way through a public orgasm that her friends would attribute to the delicious martinis.
“Did you find it?” Gina asked.
His palm slid across her ass cheeks. Oh yes, he was so closing to finding it.
“Uh, yeah. Right here.” Haley grabbed the Tupperware and stood.
Haley’s Man’s thumb trailed down her crack and then down her thigh all the way to her knees. She turned and grasped blindly for the bar to keep from melting into a puddle on the floor. Bumping the martini glass nearest her, she dropped the container of chocolates onto the counter, sloshing sticky liqueur on her hand.
“Geez Haley, are you already drunk?” Lola laughed.
Drunk with lust. Crazed to the point of letting some stranger touch her intimately while imagining he was a guy who’d run out on her after a couple kisses. “I’m a little unsteady. I found the cutest shoes, but the heel is too high for bartending. I better take them off before I turn my ankle.”
She’d made the excuse to give her a reason to clutch her lover’s head and guide his face between her legs. But he took her at her word. He stopped touching her thighs and brought his hands to her left ankle, unlatching the buckle.
Taking off her shoes was probably a good idea, but his fingers sliding in and out of her pussy was an even better plan. She reached down, to touch herself or to guide him to her G-spot she wasn’t sure.
Warm lips circled her hand, sucking away the chocolate liqueur and vodka, and she melted against him. Lola was right. She hadn’t had a sip of alcohol yet but wouldn’t pass the simplest sobriety test. Desire, guilt, regret and fantasy all swam together in front of her.
“What shoes are you wearing?” Lola asked, rising from her chair to look over the edge of the bar.
Haley pressed her midsection against the counter, so Lola couldn’t peer down. “Uh, black stiletto sandals with an ankle strap.”
The shoe slid off her foot, and a moment later his lips left her palm and the toe of the shoe took his place. She curled her fingers around the sandal, wishing he was still making love to her hand. The public component of her fantasy lost its luster. She needed a situation where nothing distracted from his attention to her body.
She thrust the shoe across the bar at Lola.
“Oh my gosh, those are so cute.” The ladies gushed over her sandal, passing it around.
Her lover peeled off the other stiletto with the same careful attention. This time, he set it aside and pressed his lips to the arch of her foot. The tenderness and intimacy surprised her. She craved that emotional connection with Seth, but how could she have one with a stranger she’d neither seen nor spoken to, even if she’d been imagining him as Seth?
She longed to kiss him, to slide her tongue in his mouth and press her hands to his cheeks. Then she could discover if he awakened the same aches and desires in her that Seth’s lips had.
Since that wasn’t an option, she pried the Tupperware lid open. With trembling fingers, she sprinkled chocolate shavings on each drink. She didn’t have to go through with this if she didn’t want to. She could go home and get off with her vibrator and save herself the guilt and confusion of wanting one man while another touched her.
Under the counter, Haley’s Man rose to his knees between her legs, forcing her to widen her stance. She’d never felt so vulnerable and exposed before. Yet because of the tender kiss he’d bestowed on her foot, she had complete confidence she could trust him with her body.
She wanted him, whoever he was. She wouldn’t make the mistake of second-guessing herself as she had with Seth. She wouldn’t lose Haley’s Man too.
Chapter 4
“Everybody, take a drink,” Haley said, too shaky to trust herself to hand them out without spilling. She was so hot for the man pleasuring her she was going come the moment he entered her.
His fingers scraped very lightly up her thighs, and she moaned.
A groan went up from the men by the TV, drowning her out.
“We need a toast,” Gina said, rolling her eyes at the Neanderthal sounds of the beer and Scotch drinkers.
“To basketball,” Lola offered, raising her glass.
“To Godiva,” someone else chimed in.
“To Haley,” Gina said.
Her lover’s hands caressed her skin, his thumbs skimming the bottom of her ass, as if he seconded that toast.
Everyone raised their glasses and offered a salute. Each gaze fixed on Haley, who had yet to say anything. She picked up the remaining martini glass. “To the best orgasms we’ve ever had.”
“Here, here,” the women shouted, their exuberance topping that of their male counterparts.
She tapped her glass against the others, then tipped it to her mouth, drinking in the sweet, potent cream as her lover’s thumb slid against her clit, hovering over her opening. “Oh yes,” she gasped.
“Oh yes is right. Godiva is the best,” Lola agreed.
“More,” Haley whispered. She couldn’t stand this torture. She needed him so badly, but he kept his thumb barely brushing her opening, not moving in, not gliding forward to stroke her clit a second time.
Her legs shook. Couldn’t he feel how close to the edge she was? She clenched her body, but she had nothing to surround. The emptiness made her whimper.
Finally, his other hand wrapped around her upper thigh began stroking up and down her leg. Still, he didn’t enter her. The teasing made her forget her surroundings and the game she’d come here to play. Nothing mattered but overcoming the fractional distance separating her from completion.
Trembling, her entire body hot, throbbing and desperate, she tried to squat to draw him inside. Instead, he pulled his hand away from her core, leaving her with a need she was too desperate to articulate, stronger than the one for Seth she’d walked away from in the kitchen.
She couldn’t walk away this time. She couldn’t even demand that he take her. Her fantasy dictated she stand and pretend absolutely nothing out of the ordinary was occurring below the counter, while accepting his decision of where, when and how much to touch her. Even though she’d made the rules, she now chafed at being a passive receiver. She wanted to take and demand. How else could she make sure her burning need achieved fulfillment?
He stroked his palms over her thighs in simultaneous up and down motions. Her knees threatened to buckle again, and wet heat spread between her legs. But she didn’t try to take control this time. She couldn’t interfere with the intense pleasure, even if he didn’t completely satisfy her.
She gulped her martini. “More.”
“Definitely. I’ll have another one too.” Gina
plunked her empty glass on the bar.
Haley gaped. Her best friend was oblivious to the fact that she was on the verge of spontaneous combustion. Part of her wanted the whole room to know. She could no longer speak a coherent sentence or even draw a breath. Sure, they’d never seen her in the throes of passion before, but they shouldn’t have missed the critical signs.
On the other hand, she was grateful. Her lover’s touch was so intensely private she didn’t want to share. Except with one person. She longed to look into Seth’s hazel eyes, to kiss his delectable mouth. If she couldn’t have him touching her, she wanted him to fill her other senses.
Haley measured the vodka shot and dumped it into Gina’s glass, biting her lip so she wouldn’t whimper again as Haley’s Man caressed the juncture of her thighs. She reached for the Godiva bottle as his fingers parted her labia. Oh yes. Finally, he would give her aching sex what it throbbed for from the moment she’d opened the private chat with him this morning.
She poured the liqueur into the glass as his finger dipped into her wetness.
First knuckle. So wonderful. So sweet. Just like Seth and his lopsided smile.
Second knuckle. More. Deep and delicious. Like Seth’s serious side. She wanted it all.
He twisted his finger around, reminding her she didn’t really know Seth, not with this kind of intimacy.
Her vision blurred, and she couldn’t think at all.
“Holy Godiva, Haley, you’re generous tonight,” Gina said, her eyes wide as she stared at her martini glass.
Haley realized she was still pouring and quickly yanked the bottle upright. “Anything to keep the hostess happy.”
Happy wasn’t a word she’d use to describe herself. Desperate anticipation for the coming ecstasy licked through her veins. Despite doing everything she could to incorporate him into this fantasy, a small corner of her mind remained disillusioned that Seth wasn’t the one setting her body on fire.
Haley’s Man lowered his hand, drawing his finger out. No, he couldn’t leave yet. She took back that last thought. She didn’t care who haunted her dreams. She needed more of Haley’s Man, and she wanted him to drive her hard and deep.