“If you tell me he diddled you on It’s a Small World I will never speak to either of you again.” I winced.
Her laughter filled the room. “You sound like Zach.” I froze, waiting for her to say more. “He hates hearing all that lovey-dovey stuff.”
I fumbled with my hands. “Zach’s never been into commitment.”
“The right girl will change that,” Grace said with confidence. “Marla wanted to set him up with her sister.”
A prickle of jealousy scraped its way through me. “Oh?”
“Zach needs someone strong, someone who can put him in his place. I’m sure Ally would be great at it.” Grace stood. “I want dinner. How does Chinese sound?”
“Um…good.” Grace moved to the kitchen and fumbled in a drawer for a takeout menu. “So, what’s this Ally like?” I drew the conversation back to the subject, even though it wasn’t my intention. “Do you think Zach would like her?”
“Yeah, he’d like her all right.”
I frowned, not wanting to acknowledge the jealousy that shouldn’t exist. Zach and I would only stay friends. “She’s pretty?”
“Gorgeous. She’s tall. You’re tall, too, but I’m talking like, Nicole Kidman tall. And she has long, pink hair.”
My eyebrows lifted. “Pink hair?”
Grace nodded, found the menu and set it on the counter. “Yeah, she’s really into fashion, very eclectic. She started attending a makeup school in San Francisco, though, so it’s highly unlikely they’d make it work.”
“Zach needs someone different,” I disputed.
“Well, Evan told me he seemed into that chef, but since they’re working together, he doesn’t want to run the risk of losing her.”
“I don’t like her for him.” Shit. I hadn’t meant for that to pop out, but my big mouth wouldn’t stop.
Grace looked up from the menu. “You met her?”
“Yeah, she dropped off his computer the other day. She seemed…not his type.”
“I don’t think he has a type.” Grace chuckled as I inwardly cringed.
The door opened, and Evan sauntered in carrying two bags. “Thought my best girls might be hungry. I brought burgers and fries.”
“My hero,” Grace said as he closed the distance and kissed her. He set down the bags and wrapped his arms around her, squeezed her tightly, then moved his mouth to her neck. He nuzzled into it and tickled her sides. She squealed and laughed, pushing him away.
My heart clutched, aching for that type of love. Every time they were together, they lit up each other’s worlds. My brother was good to her, and she was good to him. They were equals, and they valued one another.
“What up, sis? Have a productive day?”
I nodded and grabbed one of the bags, digging for my food. “Yeah, I’m starving. Thank God for burgers and fries.”
“It’s Grace’s favorite food,” he said, approaching to help me unpack the goods. He stopped and stared at me. “What the fuck is that?” He pointed to my neck.
I squinted my nose and touched the love bite. “Uh...birth mark?” He glared at me. “Spider bite? Perfume reaction. Injury from a sport? I got my head stuck in a door. A friend put a vacuum on my neck. Curling iron burn. No?” I popped a fry into my mouth. “Okay, I give up. It must be a hickey.”
Grace laughed, but my brother wasn’t happy. “Did Ben do that? You guys had one date,” Evan shouted, a vein popping out on his forehead.
“Evan, cool it.” Grace attempted to pacify my brother.
I rolled my eyes, holding in my laugh. My poor brother, so worried about me as if I were a child. “Get a grip, Evan.”
“Everyone’s telling me he’s a good guy, and he leaves a fucking hickey on my sister.” He pointed at me, his voice sanctimonious. “A good guy doesn’t do that. Not on the first date. You’re not seeing him again!”
Grace put her hands on his chest. “You need to stop, babe. Hilary is old enough to make her own decisions.”
“Exactly,” I conceded. “Thank you, Grace. What I do is not your business. Your job is to be there for me when I ask.”
Evan grumbled as he helped Grace take out the rest of the food from the bags. We sat to eat, but it took time before my brother stopped his sulking. I inhaled the burger within minutes. Whataburger was a Texas staple everyone raved about. I finally understood why. It was damn good.
“Zach was right.” Evan chuckled as I sat back, my stomach happy and full.
“About?”
“He told me to get you the double meat, double cheese and said you’d finish it before I could.”
I shrugged, while Grace gaped. “Can I please have your metabolism?”
“So, why didn’t he come over?” Crap. I made an internal note to stop asking about Zach. I wanted to make sure I didn’t give anything away by being too interested in his constant whereabouts.
Evan and Grace cleaned up. “He had some things to take care of at the restaurant. I finally convinced him to let me spend more money so he can open in July.”
“Whoa. That’s…really fast,” I said. “Like, really fast, Evan. What’s the rush? Is he going to Atlanta with you?”
He threw the trash away as Grace wiped the table. He turned toward me and leaned on the counter. “I don’t see why he couldn’t.”
“So, you’re making him open the restaurant early so he can go to Atlanta with you?” I tried to understand his reasoning as I crossed my arms. He wanted Zach at his beck and call. “What if he wants to stay in Austin? Run the joint himself?”
Evan shook his head. “He could hire someone.”
“Did you even ask him what he wants to do?”
“He hasn’t said anything.” Evan narrowed his gaze on me. “Has he said anything to you lately? He’s been distracted a hell of a lot. I thought it was issues with this Isabella chick.”
“He’s not with her,” I said, irritated. “God, what the hell is the deal with this woman?”
“Jesus, you’re hanging out with him too much. You are both having mood swings or something.”
“You haven’t experienced a full mood swing from me, but you’d better be careful,” I warned him.
“You know who’d better be careful? That damn boyfriend of yours.” My heart jumped in my throat. “Ben better watch himself.”
“Evan…” Grace warned.
I exhaled in relief. Zach had jumped to mind, even though he wasn’t my boyfriend. The automatic assumption plagued me. “Ben and I will be hanging out again, Evan. We made plans.”
“No hanging out crap. He’d better ask you out on real dates. I didn’t mess around with Grace. I let her know my intentions.”
Grace laughed. “Yeah, after tricking me into taking a bet playing poker and losing his hand on purpose,” she directed at me. “Very upfront and honest.”
The teasing continued for the evening, and I eventually walked back to the house. The lights were off, and part of my heart sank at the knowledge that Zach wasn’t home. One of us leaving soon would be best. I wasn’t sure how living in the same house for a long period of time would work. We needed to stay unattached.
I set down the keys and turned on the lights. A box on the kitchen counter caught my eye. I did a double take and gasped. A new Nikon camera sat on the bar. My breath caught as I ambled over. A note sat beside the box.
Chapter Sixteen
· zach ·
I pulled into the driveway, got out, and glanced at her window. The light was still on, even though it was past midnight. The hours I’d spent researching and buying a camera took away from my time at the restaurant, but it was worth it when it was for her. My stomach turned, and I took a long breath as I approached the door. I needed to calm down. Hilary’s reaction would go one of two ways: either she’d hate the gesture, or love it. Trying to figure her out was like trying to achieve world peace, a nice hope but highly unlikely.
I looked around as I entered the house and locked the door behind me. I flipped the light switch and got startled
as clicks of a camera sounded. Hilary’s body flung toward me, and she leapt.
“Oof, what the—” I grunted as I caught her. I regained my balance as she wrapped her body around me and crushed her lips to mine.
Whatever train of thought I had vanished as I kissed her in return and let my tongue taste her. I went from semi-hard to full-on in a second. My hand tangled in her hair as the other stroked her back. She pulled away from my mouth, a grin playing on her lips. “Hi.”
“Hey.” My heart skipped a beat as I traced a fingertip over her jaw. Her smile was bright, her skin soft, and she was so damn beautiful it hurt. “Guessing you liked the camera?”
She stuck out her arm, twisting it to turn the lens toward us. Her finger pressed down, and the clicks echoed in the room. Her mouth claimed mine again, our laughs breaking the kiss. She trailed her mouth over my jaw and cheeks, peppering kisses all over my face.
“I’ll take that as a yes,” I said. “I’m setting you down now. You’re fucking heavy.”
Her feet touched the ground, and a frown played on her face as she backed away. “What the hell are those muscles for then, Zachary?”
“They’re fake. I shaded them on with your makeup.”
“They didn’t feel fake last night.” She cupped her hand over my dick and stroked. “And I want to thank you for the gift.”
I growled as she backed away, lifted the camera, focused the lens on me, and clicked. I laughed, shielding my face. “Stop taking pictures of my ugly mug.”
“Ugly? Please,” she scoffed.
She continued to click away as I advanced, covering the lens with my hand. “All right, enough, Annie Leibovitz.”
She tugged the camera away from me and persisted in her picture taking. “Nope. You can’t give me this tool and expect me to stop.”
“Wanna bet?” I snatched the camera away and placed it on the side table. Before she could protest, I kneeled down and hefted her over my shoulder. She yelped as I climbed the stairs, holding her around the thighs as she hung down my back.
“Zach, what the hell are you doing? Put me down.”
I responded by slapping her ass, wanting it bare the next time my palm smacked it. The way her yelp echoed off the walls made my dick twitch, and I anticipated sinking inside her.
“You’re so fucking stubborn, kid.” I threw her onto the bed, her body bouncing. “You have anything on under that large nightshirt?”
Her leg reached toward me as I loomed over her. I wrapped my hand around her ankle and grabbed at her other one, spreading her legs wide. “I’ve been waiting and wet for you, fucker,” she growled.
I groaned as I gazed down at her. She was bare. My hands slid up her legs from her calves to her knees, and I yanked her closer to the edge of the bed. Her shirt hiked up to her waist, leaving her exposed. Her breathing accelerating.
“I’ve been hard for you all day, imagining all the things I wanted to do to you. With you.” My thirst was never satiated with this woman. Other girls got boring. They never captivated me or made me want more. I had no idea what the more was, but I wanted it with her.
“You don’t have to imagine.” I wanted to get a move on; however, she sat up, her face directly at crotch level. Her hands were steady, certain as she undid the button and zipper of my jeans and tugged them down. I was game for anything. I sprang free. She smirked up at me, a wicked gleam in her dark eyes. “We’ve had some amazing sex, Zach, but I’ve been waiting for this.”
My fingers grazed under her chin, tipping up her face. “Tell me exactly what you’ve been waiting for. Say it.”
A sliver of her pink tongue peeked out from her lips, moistening them. “To stroke you, suck you, taste you…”
I grumbled with impatience, grabbed at my base and angled my cock toward her. “Have at it, then.”
My tip rested over her plump mouth. She parted slowly, teasingly, until her lips placed an open-mouth kiss along my shaft. With each peck, she opened up more, taking me in little by little. My free hand cupped the back of her head, my fingers buried in her hair. She owned every response I gave to the pleasure she provided.
The next move came unexpectedly when she opened wide and pushed herself forward. My cock hit the back of her throat, her hand replaced mine, and she stroked steadily with both in time. The pace, the pressure, the feel of her hands on me had me committing each stroke to memory.
“So fucking sexy.” I breathed hard, opening my eyes to see the way she moved. My hands pulled her hair, and I fought the urge to control my own pace. She changed her tempo. Fast, then slow, she was sucking me into a state of desperate need.
Her free hand moved between her legs, small whimpers escaping as she twirled her tongue around me. My discipline was hanging on by a thread as I watched her greedy fingers play. I would come down her throat in two seconds, so I withdrew, listening to the pop from her mouth.
“Enough,” I growled. Our eyes connected, and without being told, she stood. Hands fumbled as we undressed the rest of the way.
“Couldn’t handle this stubborn mouth, Collins?” Her sultry lips were swollen as she smiled.
Her breath hitched as I let my knuckles run down her breasts. I cupped them, bent my head to take a sweet, rosy nipple between my teeth. Her hands clasped my shoulders, and her throaty moans turned me on more as she easily surrendered to me. “Delayed gratification,” I said.
She swore under her breath as her hands tangled in my hair. “We’ve delayed too long already,” she finished breathlessly.
I let her go and turned her around by the shoulders. Her back pressed against my chest, I dipped my hand between her legs. I rubbed her slick folds, finding her swollen clit. She shuddered my name, making it sound right as she wriggled against me.
“You need to come?”
“I want you inside me when I do,” she groaned.
“Kneel on the bed.”
I loved her compliance. Her willingness to obey. She seemed to thrive on doing what I told her as much as I enjoyed giving the demands. My hands guided her, and she bent forward. I fought the urge to plunge in. I was on edge, and her ass in the air came close to taking me down for the count, but I wanted to last. I wanted to make every time good for her.
She squirmed, and I mumbled a curse under my breath. She peered back at me, and her long, blond hair swept over her bare back, draping over her shoulder. “Do it, Collins.”
Her taunting made me crazy. I slapped her ass, and she bit back a moan. “It?”
“Get inside me, you tease.”
“I’m the boss in here, not you.” Another slap for good measure, and then I rubbed my cock against her entrance. She tried to hold back her groans as I let myself graze her clit. “I know you like it.”
She huffed, her body trembling, her skin pink where my palm had connected with her flesh. I waited for a response. I massaged her skin before smacking again, and a moan loosed from her throat, loud and raspy. “Please…”
“What?” I continued to tease her entrance. “What do you want, Hilary?”
“I told you,” she growled. “Inside me…”
“What else?” I grabbed her waist with one hand, held my dick in the other, and pushed myself in—just the tip. I nudged and pulled out, teasing by entering and exiting. “Talk.” I tugged her hair just enough to give her incentive.
“All the way. I want you to come inside me…” she said with bated breath. “Fuck me, hard. Rough. Fast. Fuck me, already!” she yelled.
I drove in. My hands gripped her waist as I basked in the feeling of my dick encased by her. Lust made me unsteady as I slammed into her, my speed building with each cry she released. Sweat beaded on my forehead as I watched her body find rhythm with mine. She begged for more, and again, I was on the brink. My hand curled around her to find the swollen spot between her legs, the other hand holding onto her shoulder, pulling her to me.
Her cries rang out, and her insides clamped down on me, her climax pulsating in time with my heartbeat. I watch
ed as she rode the wave, and I let myself fall. My groans surged out as I thrusted and shattered, filling her up, experiencing an incredibly powerful orgasm.
The capability to think again took a while as I dropped beside her on the bed. She smiled as I kissed her, pulling her against me. “That was amazing,” she sighed. I kissed her again, emotions flooding me. I liked how passionate and willing she was. Arguing and teasing all in a span of minutes had my head reeling. A future with her wasn’t possible, so emotional garbage wasn’t allowed, but I’d take what I could get and treasure it.
“I had no idea you liked it rough.” She giggled. “Seems you have a very dominant side while in the bedroom.”
“Nah.” I shrugged.
“You made me beg.” She positioned herself on top of my body. “I don’t beg, Zach, and I don’t obey…ever.”
“No shit.” I gazed up at her flushed face, her hair tumbling down. My hands stroked her back, fingertips trailing her spine. “You loved it.”
“I did.”
“Be right back,” I said. I went to the bathroom to clean myself up and grabbed a wet cloth for Hilary. After I cleaned her, I tossed the rag into the bathroom, not wanting to leave her for long. Then I laid beside her.
She and I were still, staring at one another until she spoke. “I’ve never been that way with anyone.”
“What way?” I asked. I hated the thought of her with other men, but I wanted to know her better, in a different way than I had before. I wanted to know it all.
“With you it’s…”
“Orgasmic,” I finished, lightening the intensity of the moment.
She laughed as she rested her chin on my chest. “Wild, erotic, and without embarrassments.” Her fingertips played across my chest. If I weren’t so spent, I’d take her again. “I’m just comfortable with you.”
“Uh…thanks, I think?”
“It’s a compliment,” she assured. “I feel I can be myself and not have you judge me.”
“I’ve known you your whole life, Hilary.” I chuckled. “I’d be the last one to judge you, kid.” She was a vivacious little thing. It seemed natural for her to be that way in the bedroom, but when she submitted to me, I was intoxicated. The thought made my dick stir all over again.
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