Outside the Lines

by Lisa Desrochers

  Even in the cool night air, his skin is hot. My hands glide over every inch of his ripped chest and abs, needing to know this is real—that I’m not home in bed dreaming him. My fingertips trace the scar below his right pec, and another just to the left of his belly button. When my hands glide around his back, there are more. But I don’t mention them tonight. He’ll tell me when he’s ready.

  He pulls the clip out of my hair and starts to inch my sweatshirt up.

  “Does anyone come down here?” I ask.

  He shakes his head. “Not this late. It’s a private beach.”

  I draw away from him and yank it over my head. And then we’re kissing again.

  Between him and the chill of the air, my nipples are pebbles, and as they brush over his skin, little shock waves ripple through me. His fingertips dance gently over my back and waist, as if he’s handling some delicate, breakable thing. I don’t want him to think of me that way.

  I glide my fingers down the contours of his abs, then lower, over brushed cotton, to the substantial bulge in the front of his sweats. A low groan purrs up from his chest when I wrap my fingers around him and squeeze, but his mouth doesn’t leave mine. It grows hungrier, and his tongue plunges deeper, taking possession of me.

  I slip my hand under his waistband and find his erection. It’s huge and hard and hot, and the muscles in my groin contract painfully of the thought of it inside me. In the furthest recesses of my mind there’s the concern that this enormous shaft won’t fit without doing damage. But his hand inches under my skirt, and any thoughts of pain or logistics are lost when sure fingers glide over my thong to the core of me. I hook a leg around his thigh to give him easier access as his fingers slip under the elastic, the whole time stroking the pulsing shaft in my hand.

  He breaks our kiss and lifts me right off the sand, pulling my other leg up so my knees are spread over his hips, and his finger sinks deep inside me.

  “Oh, God,” I gasp, tipping my head back.

  “Look at me, Adri,” he growls in a voice that’s pure sex.

  When I look into his eyes, the fire I feel consuming me is reflected back in them.

  He glides his finger slowly out and a second joins it as he plunges even deeper, his thumb coming to rest on my clit and pressing. “I’m going to fuck you unless you tell me no.”

  I’m mesmerized by his intense gaze. The crackle of electricity under my skin, the pulsing heat between my legs, and the swell of my heart as it attempts to break free of my rib cage cause me to shake with the power of the whole thing.

  “You’re cold,” he says. He lays me back on the blankets and pulls one over us. “Better?”

  I push it off, because I’m not cold. I’m burning alive.

  His finger traces a path from my lips, along my jaw to the hollow of my neck, where he drops a soft kiss. “Before we get to the fucking, there is a whole lot of you I want to taste.”

  His teeth graze my collarbone, then his warm, wet tongue glides through the valley between my breasts before he takes my left nipple into his mouth. He swirls it with his tongue, sending bolts of lightning straight to my groin, where he rolls my clit with his thumb.

  My entire nervous system ignites like a roadside flare as I cry out at the moon, hanging in the sky above us like a voyeur.

  He finds my other nipple with his mouth as his fingers slick through my folds and tease my entrance.

  “You’re so wet,” he says, his eyes finding mine as he slides lower. He nips my belly button and shifts lower still, pulling my skirt and thong off in one deft motion.

  When I realize where he’s headed, I stiffen, but then that magical tongue is swirling over my clit, and an animal mewl is forcing its way up my throat.

  I bring my knees up, spreading wide and giving him the part of me that no one else has ever had before. His long fingers plunge inside me and he sucks the core of my being. His skilled mouth and tongue explore every inch of my most private spaces, and nothing has ever felt like this before. He removes his finger and slips his tongue inside me, lapping up the molten lava pouring out of my sex. His groan vibrates through my very core, intensifying everything I’m feeling, as he finds my clit again and sucks.

  I’m only vaguely aware that I’ve fisted my hands into his hair. He licks and sucks, and his fingers pump in and out to my rhythm. I pant, “Oh, God,” over and over, not exactly sure what I’m praying for, except that this should never end. He groans again when I punctuate the last “Oh, God!” by screaming his name. And then I’m in a dizzying free fall, crying out incoherently as I plummet through space. Just before I hit the ground, I disintegrate into pure energy and expand to fill the universe. The feeling of Rob’s mouth on my body as he licks and kisses his way up to my mouth brings me back from Nirvana.

  “You come like you do everything else, big and right out loud,” he says low in my ear.

  “Are you going to fuck me or not?” I mumble, expending every ounce of energy I have left. It’s like someone flipped a switch and all the nervous tension that was flooding my bloodstream with adrenaline is gone, leaving the tank totally empty.

  “Not quite yet,” he says, pulling me into his strong arms and rolling us so I’m on top.

  I squirm a little until my face settles into the groove between his firm pecs, and he pulls the blanket over us.

  The next thing I know, kisses are raining down on my face.

  I open my eyes and find I’m on my back, looking up into Rob’s face. “Morning, beautiful.”

  I’m totally disoriented, sure for a second Rob is a dream. “I’m ready,” I croak, my voice full of sleep.

  He chuckles and rolls off me, and that’s when I see the pink of the horizon over the bluff.

  “Oh my God,” I say, finally getting oriented to my surroundings. “What time is it?”

  “Five. I thought you might need to be home before your dad wakes up.”

  “Oh no!” I say, bolting out of the blankets. It’s freezing out in the open air, and I throw my arms around my nakedness.

  When I look up at him, he’s chuckling, the dimple in his right cheek popping and a wicked gleam in his eye. He’s more beautiful than he’s ever been. But I don’t have time to think about that.

  “This isn’t funny!”

  “If you say so.”

  He watches as I grab in the sand for my clothes and tug them back on. When I get tangled in my underwear and nearly fall over, he holds me steady and pulls them gently up my legs, fixing them back in place. Him putting on my clothes is almost as sexy as him taking them off.

  As we walk up the trail to the house, I take inventory of my body. What we did was amazing, but I’m also disappointed. I had no idea I’d like sex so much, but I wanted to actually have it.

  When we get to my car, I turn to face him. “You said you were going to fuck me. Why didn’t you wake me up?”

  He leans in and clamps his hands on the roof of the T-Bird, one on either side of my shoulders. “When I fuck you, I want you wide awake and looking into my eyes. Not drowsy. Not dozing off. Wide awake.”

  An electric jolt shoots through my belly at his words and the debauched look in his eyes. “And when will that be?”

  He pushes off the car and pulls open my door. “Soon.”

  I slip into the seat and he closes the door, then leans a hand on the roof and raps the window with his pinky ring. I roll it down and look at him. He cups the back of my head and kisses me, scrambling my brain, and I don’t remember anything about the drive home.

  Chapter 21

  Rob

  Adri’s policy of secrecy is working for me at the moment. She’s got her reasons and I’ve got mine, first and foremost the fact that I’ve told my siblings in no uncertain terms not to get involved with the locals. And then there’s Sherm. I can’t even begin to think of a way to explain this to him—the demon in his nightmares hooking up with his guardian angel.

  But, Christ, who would have guessed that my understated little schoolmarm was such
a fucking sex kitten. I’ve spent all week plotting how to get her into my bed.

  I’ve seen her at school, and the sultry looks she’s flashed me from across the classroom have pulled at me like a magnet. But, so far, we haven’t found a way to be alone together, leaving me with a serious case of blue balls. I wanted her to meet me on the beach again, but she’s afraid of getting caught by her dad. He’s a light sleeper and an early riser, apparently, and she made it back to her room with only a few minutes to spare on Sunday morning.

  So, it’s Saturday again and I’m pulling up to Spencer Security. It’s only when I park and cut the engine that I realize I’ve been so submerged in Adri that I haven’t thought about Chicago all week. There’s a cold prickle of panic under my skin when I think about what I left behind, so at odds with the satisfying burn I feel in my core when Adri’s on my mind. The business was my whole world, but it doesn’t feel that way anymore. Am I losing my edge? Is Adri making me soft? Or maybe I’m finally gaining perspective.

  I climb out of my car so absorbed in my thoughts, I don’t notice the white pickup next to me until PTSD Chuck steps out.

  “Davidson,” he says. “You got a job?”

  I nod. “Some singer coming into Miami. You?”

  “Flying with Steve to Daytona for a few days,” he says, slinging a garment bag identical to the one in my hand over his shoulder. “One of the Indy drivers and his wife want us for the weekend.”

  I scan my keycard and reach for the door, but he plants his hand on it.

  “Adri came by this week.”

  I feel my jaw grind tight as the fleeting image of them together flashes through my head. “And?”

  “She says you two started something.” There’s a warning in his tone, but he keeps his expression neutral.

  “Maybe we did. You have an issue?”

  “I told you that I’d come after you if you fucked with her. I mean it. Adri’s special, and I’m not going to let someone who’s just passing through take advantage of her.”

  I take a deep breath, blow it out. Am I just passing through? Even just a few weeks ago, I was sure of it. Now, not so much. “Listen, I get that you’ve been friends for a long time. I respect that you want to protect her, but she’s a big girl. I think she’s capable of making her own decisions.”

  “She is,” he says, leaning a shoulder into the building, “but we both know how to play the game, and she trusts too easily.”

  My whole body stiffens, my fist curling at my side. “What game are you playing, Chuck?”

  He holds my gaze. “I don’t play games. Not when it comes to Adri. So, if you’re going to break her heart, I want you to back away and do it now, before it goes any further.”

  I give him a slow shake of my head. “There are no guarantees, soldier. I can’t predict the future any better than you. But if you threaten every guy who comes near Adri, you really think that’s going to make her happy?”

  He barks a humorless laugh. His black eyes cloud as he shrugs off the building. “You want me to believe you care about Adri’s happiness, then show me. She’s the only thing that keeps it real for me. Being around her pulls me out of the pit I want to disappear into most of the time. I need her to be there to keep me together, so my motives aren’t all that pure either, but I’m not going to let anyone hurt her. End of story.”

  He slams through the door. Leaves me standing in the parking lot, staring after him.

  I head inside and change. Fifteen minutes later, I’m in a stretch Escalade on my way to Miami with David, trying not to think about what my motives with Adri are.

  “How’d you end up doing this for a living?” I ask David, just for the distraction.

  “I hit a rough patch and had to stop doing what you’re doing for a living,” he says, flicking me a glance.

  I look at him. “You were a bodyguard?”

  He pats his paunch. “Fifteen years and forty pounds ago. Wouldn’t know it to look at me now, would you?”

  “It wouldn’t have been my first guess, no.”

  He grips the wheel tighter. “When I started out over two decades ago, I was just like you, young and cocky. Thought I had the world all figured out.” He changes lanes, then glances my way. “You’ve got a good thing. Don’t fuck it up.”

  “I’m not planning to.”

  “Neither did I,” he says, pressing deeper into his seat.

  “So, what happened?”

  He twirls the tip of his handlebar mustache in his fingers. “You’re in the limelight every week, rubbing elbows with your sports idols and favorite rock stars. It’s easy to get caught up in it and think that’s your world.” He cuts me a look. “It’s not. It’s their world, so don’t get lost in it. You’ll never find your way out.”

  I crack open the bottle of water in the holder next to me, take a swig. There’s no way I’m going to tell him that, up until a few months ago, that was my world. “Thank you for that cryptic and therefore totally useless pearl of wisdom.”

  His eyes flick to me and back to the road. “I started indulging with some of the clients—drinking at first, but then blow.” He sighs. “And then I started indulging in some of the clients.”

  “What the hell does that mean?”

  “I was a good-looking guy in my day. Maybe not as buff as you, but I was pretty easy on the eyes. The first time a young movie starlet propositioned me, I felt like I’d hit the lottery.”

  “So you were fucking the clientele.”

  He nods.

  My expression hardens in my distaste. “Like a gigolo.”

  “Until Steven Senior finally caught on and fired my addicted ass. I hit bottom and was homeless for a while, but finally got myself straightened out. I came back five years ago, just before Steven Senior handed the business over to Steve Junior and Elaine. Or, really Elaine, since Steve Junior prefers to stay out of the business side. We’d been friends and he decided to cut me a break. Took me back as a driver.”

  “That’s some story.”

  He shoots me a glance. “Just think before you unzip. That’s all I’m saying. Elaine runs a tight ship. She doesn’t take any crap and she expects her staff to be totally professional. She finds out you’re dicking around, she’ll send your ass packing.”

  I give him a nod. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

  We get our singer picked up from the airport and to her event. She seems like a nice lady, but it only takes me a few minutes to get why the bodyguard. Even with me standing right next to her the entire night, everyone wants their piece of her. Every single person she passes tries to touch her—mostly her arms or back, but more than one guy goes for the boobs or ass.

  What the hell is wrong with people?

  When we get her back to her hotel, she thanks us and we’re on our way. David and I settle into the limo for the long ride home, and he starts toward the highway.

  My phone has been blowing up in my pocket all night, vibrating at every inopportune moment. When I pull it out, I see one text from Elaine, asking how things are going. I text her back. Tell her everything went according to plan and we’re on our way home.

  All the others, ten to be exact, are from Adri.

  They start out pretty innocent:

  Thinking about you.

  Wish you were here.

  But I wonder if she’s been drinking because they get progressively more bold, ending with the last three in quick succession:

  You’ve seen me naked. When is it my turn.

  I miss that magical tongue.

  And I’m still waiting to be properly fucked.

  I chuckle under my breath, wondering if PTSD Chuck knows his innocent little Adri is a sex kitten in disguise. David shoots me a glance. I ignore him and dial her number.

  “Hi,” she says a little shyly when she picks up.

  “Are you drunk?”

  There’s a laugh. “No. But I’m home, and bored, and I can’t stop thinking about where I was last Saturday, and what you were doing to m
e there.”

  At the image of her naked body laid out for me like a Thanksgiving feast, my dick twitches in my black suit pants. “So, horny, not drunk,” I say with a grin.

  “You don’t need me drunk to take advantage of me.” Her voice is breathy and makes me harder.

  “That’s true. You are going to be stone sober when I fuck you.”

  There’s a pause, then she breathes, “I can’t wait,” and there’s no stopping my hard-on.

  “My plan is not to keep you waiting too long,” I say, adjusting my slacks around the bulge.

  She blows out a breath that I swear I feel through the phone. “God, I hate sneaking around like a horny teenager.”

  “So tell your dad.”

  “Things have been a little tense lately,” she says. “He’s just so ridiculously overprotective. He’s never liked anyone I’ve gone out with.”

  It’s not like I’m some big prize that any father would be proud to have on his daughter’s arm. I’m the opposite of a prize. I’m every father’s nightmare. She’s probably right not to tell him.

  “Well, you know my place is out.” At the thought of Sherm seeing us together, a guilty knot forms in my gut.

  “So … ?”

  “So I guess we just play it by ear. The opportunity presents itself, we take it.”

  She breathes out a sigh. “Your tongue really is magical.”

  I can’t stop the chuckle. “It was inspired.”

  “Where are you?”

  “Coming back from a job in Miami. I should be home in a few hours.”

  “I wish I could see you,” her voice is small and a little mournful.

  “Me too.”

  “Dream of me.”

  I’m already sleep deprived because I can’t stop dreaming about her. “Being properly fucked?”

  She giggles. “What unspeakable things will you do to yourself?”

  I adjust my slacks again. “I’m sure you can imagine.”

  She sighs, but even though we’re not speaking, neither of us disconnects. After a minute, I hear her breathing, and a second later, there’s a soft gasp.