by Fawkes, Sara
“What about him?”
“You interested in a fling with him?”
“I’m not sure that’s any of your business.”
The rumbling continues and I arch my back to look up at him. “What?”
“Good luck with that.”
“What does that mean?”
“In all the time I’ve known him, he’s never gotten close to a guest.” He leans down closer and
whispers, “So, let me know when things go south...or don’t go south,” he gives my body a sidelong
glance, “because I’ll be waiting.”
***
Wade and I don’t speak as we follow a few stragglers in the direction of the lodge and then turn down
a path toward my cabin. When we get to my door, I pause before fitting my key in the lock. “Would
you like to come in? There’s still wine...” My words trail off because I’m thinking about what Connor
said about Wade not getting close to guests.
Wade watches me with this stony expression and I have no idea what he’s thinking, whether he’s
going to say yes or no.
“Or not,” I say. “I know you have an early morning tomorrow.”
“No. I’d like to come in. But...” It’s his turn to not finish his sentence. He glances over his
shoulder. Like he’s looking for someone.
“But what?”
“I don’t want to seem presumptuous.”
“Presumptuous?”
He leans against the doorframe, watching me with that brooding stare. “I’m attracted to you Tessa.
I’m not going to lie.”
“Okay.”
“If I come inside...” his words trail off again as his eyes focus on my lips. They move lower to the
front of my dress.
“I’d like you to come in,” I whisper.
“Are you sure?”
I nod. Enthusiastically.
“Okay.”
When I turn to fit the key in the lock, I can feel his gaze on my bare back and it makes me shiver.
“You’re cold.” Once inside, he heads straight for the fireplace and in less time than it takes me to
rinse the wine glasses and pour the wine, he’s got a fire burning.
I set the wine glasses on the coffee table and join him on the leather sofa. The leather is buttery
soft, even more comfortable than it looks. We sit next to one another, not touching, simply staring into
the fire. Suddenly I remember the chocolates from Todd and I go get them because they’d go perfectly
with this wine. I open the box and hold it in front of Wade.
“Thanks.” Wade takes a truffle and bites into it absently, obviously lost in thought.
It’s my turn to study him. In the firelight, his face is more contoured, more shadowed. There are
hollows beneath his cheekbones and his eyes shine dark and mysterious. “Is everything okay?”
“Yes.” He shifts so that he’s facing me. “It is.”
“Good.” I smile and take a bite of truffle.
God! The chocolates are obviously expensive and I close my eyes because the truffle is so smooth,
so creamy, so, so good. I suck on the sweet deliciousness while sipping my wine, letting the two
distinct flavors mix like lovers in my mouth.
It’s absolute heaven.
I open my eyes to Wade’s unapologetic stare. His eyes are heavy lidded and his mouth is a severe
line.
“What is that look about?” I ask.
“What look?”
I point to his face. “That one. You’re studying me like I’m a tangle of Christmas lights and you’re
trying to figure out how to unravel me.” I shake my head. “Believe me, I’m not that complicated.”
He laughs. It’s the first time I’ve heard him laugh. It’s not a full belly laugh like Connor. It’s slow
and rumbling, like boulders bumping into one another in fast moving water.
“Ever since Todd told me about you, I’ve been curious.”
“Curious about what? What did he say?” Considering this is maybe the third or fourth time his
name has come up, I’m dying to know what Todd said to these guys about me.
“He said I wouldn’t be able to resist you.”
“He did not.”
“Yes, he did.” Wade reaches over and touches my cheek, like he has to check whether I’m real or
not. I cover his hand with mine.
“Why would he say that?” I whisper.
“Because it’s true.”
My eyes slide closed and I smile. Who doesn’t love being told their irresistible? Damn! “You’re
good for a girl’s ego. You know that?”
Wade’s thumb brushes my lips. “Am I?”
“Yes.” I part my lips and his thumb grazes the tender inner flesh of my lower lip.
“You are so goddamned beautiful.” He gently tugs on my lip.
Even though my eyes are closed, I can feel him leaning closer. I know what’s coming. His lips are
coming and I can hardly wait.
But the man is a tease. He kisses the side of my mouth. Gently. Barely. Then moves to my cheek
and just brushes his lips across my cheekbone. “I don’t think you even know how beautiful you are.”
“I—” What do you say to that? I don’t know and I don’t care? Just kiss me, dammit.
I tilt my head up in encouragement. But the man has his own agenda and unfortunately for me, it
doesn’t involve a kiss. His hand follows his lips, brushing my cheekbone and my jaw. He moves down
to my neck, caressing the back of it while his thumb runs along my jaw bone.
“Tessa?” My name is a sigh in my ear.
“Yes?”
“It’s been a while since I’ve been with a woman.” The tip of his tongue touches the tip of my
earlobe.
“Why’s that?” I ask, curious but more focused on what his tongue’s doing and where his hand is
going than on his answer.
“Long story.”
“Why now? Why...” I mean to ask, ‘why me’ but I’m too distracted by the way his tongue runs
along my lobe and dips sweetly into my ear and how his fingers play with the ties of the halter top of
my dress.
Untie me, please untie me!
“From the moment I saw you...”
I feel the pull of the tie at the back of my neck. Oh, God, yes!
“No,” he corrects himself. “From the moment I heard about you...”
There’s pressure at the back of my neck, the pressure of a knot unraveling.
“I didn’t think you could possibly live up to Todd’s description.” His fingers slip beneath the ties
and I feel them slacken around my neck. “But, you? I’ve never met anyone like you. You have this
way about you.”
“What way?”
“I don’t know.” He keeps playing with my straps. “Sensual. Genuine. Free.” He pulls back so he
can look at me while he continues to pull at the ties with one hand. “Tessa, I know we just met, but—”
“Yes,” I say, not letting him finish. “I want you Wade. So, yes.”
His eyes shut and he exhales just as the ties release at the back of my neck and the cords slither
around my collarbones. With heavy lids, Wade opens his eyes in time to catch the front of my dress
falling, baring my breasts.
“Pretty,” he murmurs before dipping his head to kiss my jaw. His hand moves to the bare skin of
my left breast, rolling my nipple between thumb and forefinger. “So pretty.”
I arch into his hand. Oh, yes. And I thought the chocolate was heaven. But, this? This is heaven.
Wade’s fingers, big and calloused, are the perfect mix of gentle and rough against my skin.
His lips
move expertly along my jaw and I run my hand up behind his head, threading my fingers through the
soft hair at the back, holding on.
“Do you know how long it’s been...?” Wade whispers hotly in my ear.
“No.” I’m panting because while one hand fondles my breasts the other starts sliding up between
my thighs.
“Fuck.” He says the word on an exhalation. “After seeing you in your panties and t-shirt, all I’ve
been able to think about...” his hand slides higher, pushing my skirt out of the way as he goes. “...is
your pussy.”
Oh, God!
At the word pussy, my clit throbs and I pry my legs apart to give him better access but my skirt
won’t let me. There’s barely enough room for his large hand between my thighs, and he only manages
to press a single finger against the damp material of my panties, rubbing hard, just the way I like it.
My hands find the front of his shirt and I hold tight while I press my hips forward, encouraging
him. However, my encouragement backfires. He withdraws and eases back, covering my hands where
they grip his shirt. I suddenly realize we haven’t kissed yet. I also realize that while I’m practically
naked, Wade is completely clothed.
Time to change that.
I wriggle my fingers from under his and start to work on the buttons of his shirt.
But I don’t get far before he removes my hands and kisses them. “No. Not yet.”
He gets up—the bastard—and for a second I think he’s going to walk out on me. I make as if to get
up too but he holds up his hand, and in a commanding voice, says, “Don’t move.”
Then, he goes to a chest that serves as a side table and lifts the lid. Taking out a big plush blanket,
he spreads the blanket out in front of the fire and then comes to stand beside the couch where I’m still
in a half-sitting, half-lying position, with my chest bare and my skirt pushed up. He holds out his hand
for me and helps me stand. As soon as I’m on my feet, I tug on the skirt, pulling it free of my hips
until the dress slithers down my legs to the floor. He takes a step back and looks at me standing in the
firelight in only my panties.
“Fucking gorgeous,” he says before leading me to the blanket. “Lie down.”
I have no idea what has happened to my self-will. I’m on auto-pilot and am willing to do whatever
this man—this man I just met—suggests. Cowboy, take me away!
“Spread your legs, Tessa. I’m dying to see your pussy.”
The height differential is completely unfair and adds exponentially to my arousal. What can I do?
I’ve wanted this man from the moment I saw him and now, here we are, with me practically naked and
a stoic cowboy towering over me, directing me.
It’s better than I imagined.
It’s better than my dream.
“Touch yourself, Tessa. Show me what you like.”
I close my eyes and do as he asks, my left hand cupping my left breast, bringing my nipple to a
peak while my right hand snakes down between my legs where I rub myself through my panties.
I arch into my touch, moaning softly as I spread my legs while I grind against my hand.
“Open your eyes.”
When I do, I find Wade kneeling beside me, touching the front of his jeans as he watches.
“You’re wearing too many clothes,” I say, reaching for him.
He bats my hand away. “Not tonight.” He lowers himself so he’s propped on one elbow beside me.
“Tonight is about you.”
“But—”
He silences me with a kiss. Considering the man said it’s been a while since he’s been with a
woman, he sure as hell isn’t exhibiting any of the desperation of a man jumping off the abstinence
train. He’s so in control, it’s killing me. His lips move languidly over mine; tasting, stroking, not
hurried in the least. His tongue makes a sure pass against the seam of my lips, asking for entrance. Of
course I allow it, sucking greedily. When I move my hand from between my legs to the side of his
face, he takes it away and whispers against my lips, “Don’t stop touching yourself until I tell you.”
Holy fuck. I thought I liked Wade the gentleman. But Wade all bossy and controlling? Hell, I like
this Wade so much more!
He kisses me softly then backs away, presumably to watch. I can’t tell. My eyes are closed again.
“Slip your hand inside your panties,” he instructs. “Yes, like that. Does that feel good, Tessa?”
“Yes.”
“Look at me.”
I open my eyes and am met by the most penetrating gaze. In the firelight his eyes are black and
piercing, sparkling with an unholy light.
“Take off your panties.”
I do as he asks, lifting my hips to slide them off. He makes no move to help. His gaze keeps
flicking from my eyes down to my parted thighs and back up.
“Use both hands to touch yourself.”
I cover one hand with the other and rub the moisture from my soaking slit to the tip of my erect
clit.
“Don’t close your eyes, Tessa. I need to see.”
He shifts his legs, hooking a foot around my knee and pulling on it, forcing my legs open wider.
I moan.
“Tell me what you want,” he says, his voice deep and even.
“I want you to fuck me.”
His smile is slow and wicked. “Not tonight. What else?”
“What do you mean—?”
“I want you to tell me what else you want.”
I lick my lips and groan. What game is he playing at?
My hands still but he notices and he commands me to keep touching myself. “Tell me,” he says.
“Tell me what you want.”
Frowning, I say, “I want you to kiss me.” But the words sound more like a question than a
statement.
“I’ve already kissed you.”
“I want you to kiss me again.”
“Where?”
“On my lips.”
“Where else?”
Pressing my hips forward, I pull back both sides of my labia, completely exposing myself. “I want
you to kiss me here.”
“You want me to kiss your pussy?”
“Yes,” the word sounds like a sob.
“You want me to lick you? Suck you?”
“Yes. Oh yes.”
“You want me to slide my fingers inside you? Fuck you with my hand?”
My hips drive up as my fingers act out his words. “Yes,” I say.
“Open your eyes, Tessa.”
They were closed? I had no idea.
“Is that all you want?”
“No.” I lick my suddenly dry lips. “I want your cock. I want to taste you. I want you inside of me.”
“What else?”
I roll my head back and forth across the blanket. I’m so aroused and confused. What does he want
me to say? What’s it going to take for him to act on his attraction? The man is driving me wild and
he’s barely touched me.
“Should I tell you what you want?”
“Yes.” The word is ragged and broken.
He lowers himself until his mouth is right beside my ear. Gently, he pulls my left hand from
between my legs and sucks on my fingers. “You want me to make you come.”
“Yes,” I moan.
“You think you want me to make you come with my cock...or my mouth. But I’m not going to.” He
sucks on my pinkie, then whispers, “I’m going to make you come with my words.”
Chapter Five
/> Hell.
The man is putting me through hell.
I hate it.
And I absolutely love it.
“But—” I protest. “At least let me touch you.”
“No.”
It’s no use. I may not know Wade well, but I can see from his uncompromising expression that I
will not break his resolve.
Fuck.
“Believe me, Tessa, I want to touch you.” He inhales and his jaw clenches on the exhalation. “I
want you to touch me too.” He casts a glance down my naked body. “I can imagine how good it would
feel to have your hand on my cock, feel your lips wrapped around me. Sucking.” He sucks in a sharp
breath. “I watch your hand on your pussy and I imagine it’s me, sliding in and out of you, your body
surrounding me, hot and wet.”
Goddamn, his words are the wildest aphrodisiac imaginable and I moan as my hips rock against
my hand. He keeps sucking on my fingers, whispering, “You’re so sweet.”
My other hand works furiously now, plunging two fingers in me, then three, now four. In and out,
in and out while he licks the last remnants off my other fingers.
“Open your eyes, Tess.”
He moves from my side to kneel between my parted legs. He uses his knees to push my thighs
apart and rubs the front of himself while he watches me.
“Show me your cock,” I beg, unable to tear my gaze away from the erotic sight of his enormous
bulge.
“No, Tess. Not tonight.”
How the fuck can he have so much control? It’s not human.
“Tonight we’re getting to know one another.”
I make a small mewing sound, wanting to complain that it’s not fair, how naked I am and how un-
naked he is, but I’m incapable of forming any words, let alone a complaint.
“Tonight, you show me what you like. Tomorrow, I show you what I like.”
I squeeze my eyes tight, riding a pre-orgasmic wave but a stern word from Wade forces me to
open my eyes again.
He’s watching my hand, his lids heavy, his face flushed. “You like it hard, don’t you?”
“Mmm.” It’s a groan and it’s all I can manage.
He’s rotating his hips against his hands. Slowly. Purposefully. It’s so fucking hot, I can’t stand it.
“You’ve got such a pretty pussy, did you know that?”
Only guttural sounds pass across my lips.
“Your ass is pretty too. I bet it’s tight.”