Feverish (Bullet #3)

by Jade C. Jamison

  He chuckled, and it sounded a little gravelly and very sexy—throaty and full of desire. “It’s mine. I can abuse it if I want.”

  “Hmm.” She cocked an eyebrow at him. “Why don’t you take a seat?”

  “On the bed?”

  “Yeah.”

  “What about the wine?”

  She grabbed the bottle and handed to him. “Open it.” Then she sat on her haunches and started undoing his left boot. She had to loosen the laces fairly far down so she could get the boot to move. She heard him remove the wrapper off the wine.

  “Shit.”

  “What?”

  “Forgot the corkscrew.”

  She had the laces on his boot loose. “So screw it.” He grinned at her stupid pun. “We can have it later.” She took the bottle from him and set it on the floor, then pulled his other boot off. She sat up, still on her knees, and took his face in her hands. He really was a sight, and he took her breath away. She kissed him then and let herself get buried in desire, want, and need.

  Her fingers drifted down his chest, stopping at the waistband of his pants. She unbuttoned and unzipped them, freeing his cock. Once done, she kissed back down his chest and licked the head of his cock. She sucked part of his length into her mouth and he said, “Uh-unh. No way.” She looked at him, a question in her eyes, but she didn’t release him. “The rope, darlin’. If you suck me dry, I don’t know when that’ll happen.”

  She smiled and slid him back out of her mouth, grinning. “Fine.”

  “Oh, I’ll give you fine.”

  He urged her up with his hands on her face. She giggled. “I expect no less.”

  He smirked again and kissed her once more, a smoldering hot kiss, deeper, blistering, and more intense than any they’d shared thus far. Something tonight felt different, and Emily wasn’t sure what it was, but she didn’t want to question it. It was too sweet, too incredible, too amazing.

  He stood and took her hands so that she stood too. He tucked himself back in his pants and zipped up. She scowled. “Don’t worry. I’ll let him back out to play later.” He was still hard, so Emily wondered if it had hurt to shove himself back in those tight quarters. But he kissed her again, and she lost her concentration on anything but the burning desire she felt between her legs.

  His fingers were back on her blouse, undoing the buttons one by one, and it felt to Emily like he was moving extra slowly, just to torment her. While he worked the buttons, his lips worked on her neck, sending shivers throughout her body, getting her blood pumping like it felt it never had before. She let out a loud gust of air as he pulled the blouse back off her shoulders and onto the floor, then brought his fingers to the back of her skirt to unzip it just as quickly. It too dropped to the floor without ceremony.

  Even with the air conditioning on high keeping the house cool, the heat from his body radiated to hers, mingled with hers. She felt so feverish, she thought she was standing next to the entrance to hell. And maybe she was. She started to feel like one more night with Clay (or Jet, if that was the case) would mean she would never be able to turn back.

  Would that be so bad?

  She couldn’t assess it, not while he was heating her up to her boiling point. He was bending at the knees now, leaning over a bit, feeling for the rope, and when he had it in his left hand, he moved his arm back to around her, but she could feel the rope against her back.

  Her bed wasn’t like his. It had a headboard with plenty of posts for him to tie the rope around. He wouldn’t have to crawl around, tying it to the legs of the bed. “So, why don’t you sit down?” She let out a breath, feeling a little nervous, and nodded. She swallowed the saliva pooling in her mouth and looked at Clay with yearning. She might have felt a little anxious about being tied up, but she was having no doubts about him. “Cross your wrists on your lap.” She did and he coiled the rope around them. “I’m going to do yours a little different.” He wound the rope in between her hands too so there would be no slipping out. It was a little uncomfortable but not too tight. “Feel okay?” She nodded again. “I tried to leave it loose enough that it won’t hurt you, but let me know at any time if you don’t want to do this, okay?” She smiled then and nodded again, but all words were gone. “Hey.” He touched her chin with his index finger. “Do you just want to skip this?”

  That’s when her tongue decided to work and she shook her head. “No. I wanna do this.”

  “Mmm.” His lids lowered and one corner of his mouth turned up. “That’s my girl.” He kissed her neck. “Now, let’s get you up on that bed.” She turned a little and started to kick off her heels. “Oh, God, no. Leave those on.”

  She grinned. “You sure?”

  “Fuck me, yes. Sexy. If I could do to you what I wanted to do with that bra and panties still on you too, I would.” He pulled in a long breath of air through his nose and leaned over her. “Trust me. This’ll be easiest.” He knelt down and put one arm under the crook of her knees and lifted her so that her back fell onto his other arm and he stood, lifting her. She wanted to wrap her arms around his neck, but it would have been a feat and not worth the effort since he only had to take a step to lean over to position her on the bed.

  He straddled her on the bed then, leaning over to tie the loose rope to one of the posts behind her head. She felt it get snug so she couldn’t bend her arms much. “Not too uncomfortable, is it?” She shook her head. He examined her eyes. “Aw…honey, let’s not do this.”

  “No. I want to. I do. Please.” He furrowed his brows until she said, “Please.”

  She was convinced that was all he needed to hear from her, because then he kissed her hard, without mercy, relentless, and she felt one of his hands on the clasp at the front of her bra. His lips moved down as he undid the bra and pulled the cups off her breasts. He lowered his mouth to one of her nipples and drew it in with his tongue. In spite of the rope, she arched her back, feeling as though she were giving everything she was to him. His tongue trailed down the side and then he kissed up the side of her other breast. This time he flicked her nipple with his tongue until it hardened and she let out a heavy sigh. “Doing okay?”

  “Mmm…” was all she could manage.

  He kissed halfway down her belly, stopping at her navel, and then he sat up. He grabbed the sides of her panties and, while moving backwards, pulled them down her legs and over the heels. He smirked at her again and spread her legs at the feet. He lifted one of her feet and kissed her ankle. Then he moved farther up the bed and placed his hands on her knees, pressing against them gently to spread her legs. He kissed the side of one of her knees, drawing the flesh into his mouth until she gasped again. He licked down the inside of her thigh until he got close to her pussy, right where her leg met her crotch, and he kissed her there. With one hand, he spread her labia apart and ran his index finger down her slit. “Nice,” he said and she wanted to squirm. She wished she could grab him but instead she felt completely helpless, and when that realization washed over her, she felt adrenaline rush through her body and her desire amped up further than she ever thought it could. She’d been wet before but she could feel herself get wetter. He slid a finger inside her and touched her clit with his tongue and she could tell she was just seconds away from one of the most insane orgasms she knew she would ever have. She gasped again as his tongue took its sweet time, one small stroke followed by another, as though he had all day to make her feel good. She couldn’t help the moan forcing its way through her throat and her muscles tightened beyond belief, ready to let go, and she forced herself to not give in—not just yet. But it was there, teetering, and his tongue was sweet, maddening.

  And there it was. “Oh, God, Clay…” she said and then her words were reduced to nothing but noises spewing forth from her mouth that no longer felt like her own because she surely wasn’t inhabiting her body anymore. All she could feel was sweet pleasure, unlike one she’d ever known. And that climax continued to build to a slow, wicked crescendo, not unlike one of his burning,
bad ass guitar solos, and it made her realize that—no matter what happened in her life—she would never be loved by another man like Clay.

  Chapter Twenty-nine

  CLAY COULDN’T REMEMBER the last time he’d felt this good. It had been years, and he didn’t want to actually think about the time, because he didn’t know if he’d ever felt quite like this. He didn’t want to compare it, because what he felt right now was too perfect, too pure, and therefore—in his mind—unsustainable. But he was pretty sure the smile on his face was now permanently affixed.

  After they’d finished, he untied her, making sure she was okay, not just her wrists but mentally, and she’d said she “couldn’t be better.” Before he crashed, he made his way to the kitchen for a corkscrew and resisted the urge to try to fuck her again when she made a comment about his “cute ass.” They’d shared half a glass, but he’d since just set the glass on the nightstand to hold her close.

  Now, Emily’s sweet head was resting on his chest, her finger playing with the ring on his nipple. He thought she was almost asleep. He couldn’t help how his hand continued to smooth over the length of her hair. But then she muttered, “That was just like in one of those romance novels.”

  He started chuckling. “What? What are you talking about?”

  She turned her head and looked up at him. “Some of the books I read. The hero and heroine have sex and it’s perfect—nothing like real life, you know? Nothing awkward or weird. It’s like they were made for each other, built to fit each other. But tonight, you and me? I’m pretty sure I had a romance novel climax.”

  He laughed again and kissed her forehead. “That’s why I don’t get the big fuckin’ deal about books. From what you just told me, they make you expect perfection, and that can only lead to disappointment. What’s wrong with real life?”

  She shifted. “Clayton Smith. Seriously? This from the guy with enough porn to open a chain of adult bookstores?”

  Oh, that didn’t still bother her, did it? Her tone had been playful, so he was going to keep going with the theme. “You just made my case for me. When’s the last time I watched one of those DVDs?”

  “Maybe because you have them memorized. But you have plenty on your computer.”

  He shrugged. “Okay, fine. So I’m visually stimulated. It’s not the same as books.”

  “Before we move on, can we at least agree on one thing?” He just looked at her. “Porn can make you expect perfection and that can only lead to disappointment.”

  He grinned. “Using my words against me.” He grabbed the glass of wine. He was gonna need it. “I think I have found perfection. I am definitely not disappointed.” He held her gaze to make sure that sunk in with her and then he swallowed what was left in the glass. It would lay the ground for a good buzz if he needed to go there. When he put the glass down, though, he saw it in her eyes. She knew he wasn’t just saying shit to make her happy.

  She nodded. “Hold on a sec.” She climbed over him and off the bed. Christ…he hadn’t been kidding. She really was the closest thing he’d found to perfection, and it was gonna kill him if he’d have to let her go. Not just her body either. The conversation they were in the middle of? It could have easily turned into a huge scratch-and-claw fight. Instead, it was smoothed over. Even though there were a lot of things unknown between them, they seemed to understand a lot about each other. He didn’t know that any woman had ever quite understood him like Emily.

  She unplugged her phone from the charger on the dresser and climbed back in bed. He couldn’t help it and grabbed her about the waist, pulling her in close for a kiss. “So what’s up with this? Are we gonna call one-hundred people and conduct a survey?”

  She giggled. “No. I have a Kindle app on my phone.”

  “A what app?”

  “Kindle. It’s a reading device.”

  “Oh, yeah. I know what you’re talking about. Like an iPad, right? Only, for books?”

  “Yeah, the app.” She was moving her finger across the screen of her phone. “I have tons of books on here.” She lay next to him and held the phone up so they could both see it, and she scrolled. “See all these books?”

  Some of the covers were pretty suggestive. “Uh, yeah, and right now, I’m calling you.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Looks like your porn is in writing, sweetheart.”

  She started giggling again. “Fair enough.” He raised his eyebrows and kissed her on the forehead again. “But in writing it leaves a lot up to my imagination. I don’t have to worry if I’m attracted to the hero, because in my mind, he looks like someone I already am. If it’s a movie and I think the actor playing the lead is ugly, I can’t get all excited about him, you know?”

  Clay nodded. “Good point. Still…you’re not going to convert me anytime soon.”

  “Well, I don’t expect you to start reading romance novels, erotic or otherwise. But what about…?” She started typing in the search feature and then showed him the screen. It was The Heroin Diaries, Nikki Sixx’s story.

  “Maybe…”

  “Or how about this?” In a few seconds, she flipped up the screen to show him a book by Corey Taylor called Seven Deadly Sins. He started to grab her phone but she pulled it back to herself and started typing again. “What about this one?” Red by Sammy Hagar.

  “Okay, okay. So I might like those.”

  She kissed him on the nose. “You’ll only find out if you read it. So…fill up that glass, let me have a sip, and I’ll start reading to you.”

  “Do I get to pick?”

  “Nope…it’s a surprise.”

  Goddamn, yes. He could spend forever in this bed with her. Forever.

  * * *

  Emily felt a little nervous. She’d told Bryce she could meet for lunch wherever he wanted, but he insisted. He said he was already on the way.

  Shit.

  So she had to give Clay a heads up. God, she already felt like a complete jerk. She had no idea how Clay was going to take it, but she had to tell him. He was in the music room, perfecting a guitar solo, one she knew she’d heard several times. The first time she’d heard it was when he’d licked his guitar shaft in his bedroom.

  As always, she hated to interrupt him when he was working on music. It was his job and she didn’t want to disrupt him. But when he noticed her walking in, he stopped playing and said, “What’s up?” He had a warm smile for her, and that made the guilt all the heavier.

  She let out a breath of air and walked over to sit next to him on the loveseat. “Uh…”

  “What’s wrong?”

  He could tell. “Um, Bryce.”

  “What the fuck did that douchebag do now?”

  She sighed. “Nothing. Well, nothing yet. He’s, uh, he’s coming over here to talk.”

  Clay stood. “To my house?”

  Emily wasn’t going to let him tower over her like that. It took away any power she had. So she stood. “Well, you invited me to live here, Clay, so in a way, it’s mine too. He’s already on his way over. I tried to talk him out of it.” It was worse than she’d imagined. “I’ll get him out of here as soon as I can.”

  His face looked pained as he drew in a deep breath. “No. That’s okay. I don’t own you. That’s fine. I just…don’t want him in here or the office. Or my bedroom.”

  “No problem.” Mary was already gone, and she was relieved that she wouldn’t have to worry about her too. She knew Mary had figured out about her and Clay long ago, and she didn’t want the looks she would have been bound to receive from Mary with Bryce there. “Sorry.”

  He shook his head. “No need.”

  The doorbell rang then, relieving Emily of any further awkward conversation. “Uh…that’s probably him.” Clay nodded but didn’t say a word.

  She let out a breath she hadn’t even known she’d been holding in when she started walking down the hall. When she got to the door, she stood in front of it for several seconds. Part of her didn’t want to answer it, but she kne
w she needed to deal with Bryce once and for all. She noticed her hand was shaking as she grabbed the knob and twisted it. She had no clue what she was going to say to him.

  It was Bryce, all right, looking tanned and relaxed. “Em! How have you been?”

  Like it was any of his business. He walked inside and picked her up in his arms, twirling her around. She’d seen couples doing that in commercials, and she supposed it signified happiness and joy at being alive, but more than that, it represented love. She wasn’t sure how she felt about Bryce nowadays, but she sure as hell wasn’t in the mood to be flung around like a ragdoll. “Not bad.” She took a shallow breath when he placed her back on the floor. Good. Her icy stance was working. Dumb ass didn’t try to kiss her. “You look good.”

  “European continent was so good for me, Em. I need to take you there next summer.”

  She started to say something and then pursed her lips together. When she got hold of her thoughts, she asked, “Can I interest you in a cup of coffee or a glass of iced tea?”

  “You know, coffee actually sounds pretty good.” She knew he’d say that. She’d made a pot before she’d gone to break the news to Clay. She led him into the kitchen.

  “Have a seat,” she said. She poured coffee into two cups and then grabbed creamer out of the refrigerator for him. He’d drunk her creamer long enough that he didn’t mind it.

  He squinted as she sat down. “Where’s your ring?”

  It was the hard little piece of metal in her jeans pocket. She wasn’t going to tell him yet, though. “Don’t worry about the ring.”

  “Too damn bad, Em. I am worried about it. What did you do with it?”

  She felt as though an icy waterfall crashed over her body. She was beyond cool. “What did you do with my trust? Maybe that’s a better question.”

  “I explained that to you, Em. Damn it. Don’t you get it?”

  Emily didn’t laugh on the outside, but his reaction was comical. Bryce was usually quite reserved, but he was losing it. “I told you I needed time.”