“Ren, I want to meet your parents, and I don’t think I can just lay low. I couldn’t make it a few hours without wanting to run over to your house, break down your door, and take you up to your room. At least let me spend some time with you while they’re here.”
I turn back toward the ocean, considering the possibility of them meeting. I love my mom and dad dearly, but my mom is a loose cannon. You never know what might come out of her mouth. Am I willing to take that risk?
“She talks a lot,” I blurt out. “My mom, she has verbal diarrhea a lot of the time. I don’t want her to say anything that might embarrass you or me.”
“Ren.” He laughs and pulls me in close to his chest. “Are you forgetting who my family is? They’re the definition of embarrassing. She isn’t going to say anything that will change my mind about you. You’re special, and nothing can take that away.”
I turn in his arms and face him, my hands to his shoulders, his gripping my hips, fingers pressing into my skin. “Why do you always know the right thing to say?”
“I only speak the truth.” He brushes my hair behind my ear, his eyes searching mine.
With the ocean crashing behind us and the peaceful night air spurring on the mood, I straddle his lap before taking his head in my hands and bringing his mouth down to mine.
It’s slow at first, as I savor his gentle lips and the way he seductively kisses with just his mouth, no tongue, no hands, just his lips working mine back and forth.
It’s hypnotic.
And when his hands move up my back, slipping under my shirt and brushing my bra, an initial wave of arousal washes over me, encouraging me to do the same with my hands. I drag them down his chest, over his rigid body, to the hem of his shirt, where I pull it up and over his head in one swoop. His muscles flex under my touch, his pecs large and thick.
I run my fingers through his short chest hair, occasionally dragging my thumb over his erect nipples, and with each pass, I can feel him grow harder and harder beneath me, his breath coming in short spurts, his hands becoming greedier.
Hands moving to the front of my shirt, he lifts it up and over my head, the wind coming off the ocean cooling down the inferno raging through my body.
With a swipe of his tongue, he’s parting my mouth, and our tongues begin to dance, tangling and coiling together.
I wrap my arms around his neck and bring him in even closer, our bodies pressing together, the lace of my bra rubbing against his chest.
And when I press down on his erection, rocking my hips, creating a wonderful friction, he groans in my mouth and gently rolls me down onto the blanket.
He’s so sweet, so protective, even when there is a crazy amount of passion sparking between us. It’s hard not to fall for a guy who treats you like the most precious thing he’s ever laid eyes on.
Reaching under me, he unclasps my bra with two fingers in a quick flick, pulling it off me.
We are on a public beach, neighbors right up the embankment sleeping soundly. Someone could catch us, and yet it doesn’t even cross my mind to cover up or to shy away. I want this, I want him, and if that means taking him on the beach in the middle of the night, I will.
His hand runs up the side of my body, past my ribs and straight to my breast, where he grips it in his large palm, massaging, squeezing, moving his fingers over my nipple a few times, stroking it with his thumb before pinching it between his fingers.
I moan, the sound of the ocean drowning out the sound of pleasure shooting through me as a second wave of arousal eclipses me.
A low throb begins between my legs, my need for Griffin growing stronger.
“Take your pants off,” I mumble between kisses.
He pauses and meets my eyes. “Are you sure?”
I nod. “Very sure. I need you inside me, Griffin.”
“I don’t have a condom.”
I shake my head. “I’m on birth control; it’s okay.”
“Christ,” he mumbles as I start to rotate my hips against his. In one smooth motion, he pulls down his pants and boxer briefs, releasing his erection.
“Oh God,” I say as I take him in—long, thick, incredibly hard. Wanting to feel him in my palm, I reach out and circle my hand around his girth, eliciting a hiss from between his teeth. I move my hand up and down just a few inches before he stops me, his breathing very heavy, a pained look on his face.
“Listen, Ren, I’ll be honest. I’m not going to last long. I’m so goddamn hard up right now that any little touch is going to make me want to fall over the edge. So I don’t embarrass myself, I’m going to have to take charge. Can you do that? Give me control?”
I smile up at him. “I would like nothing more than to give you control.”
I lie back down and push down my yoga pants and panties, now completely naked next to him.
He takes a moment to appreciate my body, his eyes traveling over every curve and valley, his hand dragging over his mouth almost in disbelief. It’s such a turn-on that he finds me attractive, that I can have that kind of effect on such a beautiful man.
“Fuck, Ren. You’re so goddamn gorgeous.” He holds himself over me, stroking my lips with his before traveling down my body, passing over each breast with a flick of his tongue. He continues his pursuit farther down until he’s pressing his hands against my knees and spreading me wide.
“Griffin, what are you—”
His hot breath strokes my arousal just before his mouth presses against my center, his tongue parting me with one long stroke.
“Oh fuck,” I say as my eyes shoot open and both my hands fall to my sides, gripping the blanket. Never once has a man gone down on me. Feeling Griffin now has my orgasm building immediately. “Yes, God, yes, Griffin.”
He runs his tongue along my slit, taking his time, hitting every nerve, until I feel like I’m going to lose my mind, before he shortens his strokes into short flicks right against my clit.
Up and down.
Up and down.
Darts of pleasure shoot up my legs as my stomach bottoms out, and every last inch of me is focused in on this one singular feeling.
In seconds, my orgasm comes crashing down on me, my voice catching in my throat as I lift up on the blanket, a numbness floating through my body, hitting my legs, my arms, my stomach, my chest, with every last nerve ending shooting off as my clit spasms against his tongue.
“Griffin,” I mumble, my eyes fluttering closed.
Blissful, eyes closed, I barely register Griffin moving above me until I feel the head of his cock brush my thigh. I open my eyes to see the strain in his neck as he slowly moves his shaft up and along my soaked valley.
The unbridled passion is coming off him in waves. He needs release, badly, and there is nothing I want more than to be the woman who gives it to him.
Spreading my legs farther, I reach between us and bring his cock to my entrance, where, with a thrust of my hips, I encourage him to press forward.
“Fuck,” he blows out as he inches forward, his girth filling me up. “Deep breaths, Ren, let me in.”
I press back against the blanket and bring my hands above my head. He clasps them in his and takes deep breaths as he works himself inside of me inch by wonderful inch.
He peppers kisses along my jaw, my neck, and then back up to my mouth, where our tongues tangle, our mouths molding, and it isn’t until he stops moving that I realize he’s fully inside me.
I take a few deep breaths. “So full. I’m so full right now.”
Neck strained, he asks, “Do you think I could move a little?”
“I need you to move, Griffin. I want you to move. I want to feel you moving in and out of me.”
“Hell,” he grumbles and starts to move his hips in and out, lightly pumping.
His mouth separates from mine as he props himself up on his palms, his arms straddling my shoulders, his hips flexing in and out, his attention focused on our connection. It’s incredibly hot to me that he’s so transfixed by what’s happening
between us that he has to watch.
I hold on to him tightly, meeting his slow thrusts with some of my own, clenching around him with each pulse.
“Christ, Ren. I’m not going to last long. Please tell me you’re right there with me.”
I lock eyes with him and nod, as I can feel my body gearing up for round two.
“So tight. So beautiful.”
He thrusts into me.
Grips my leg.
Thrusts.
Holds down my hip.
Thrusts.
Grunts out his pleasure.
Thrusts twice, harder each time.
“Fuck, where are you, Ren?”
“Right there,” I gasp as my pussy contracts around his cock, pulsing and squeezing him tight.
His pace picks up, pumping harder and harder, hitting me in that perfect spot every time, making me cry out his name into the night as I wrap my arms around his neck, my mouth finding his shoulder, where I bite down, my orgasm overtaking me.
His hips still, and his grunt is guttural as I feel his orgasm take over, white-hot pleasure tearing through the both of us as we ride out the moment with tiny little thrusts until there is nothing left inside of us.
We lie there, Griffin on top of me, as we try to catch our breath, all the buildup of our relationship finally coming to a crescendo.
“Jesus, that was—shit, that was amazing, Ren.” He lifts his head and cups my cheek, gently placing a kiss on my lips.
“That was everything I imagined it would be.”
“You imagined us having sex?” He quirks a sexy brow at me.
“Many times.” I run my fingers over the back of his neck, suddenly shy. “That was the first time a guy has ever gone down on me.”
“Really?” He’s stunned.
“Yeah.”
“Well, it sure as hell won’t be the last.” He kisses me again, this time finding my tongue with his. “Going down on you was just as good for me as it was for you.”
“You liked it?”
“Loved it.” He rolls to the side and takes me with him, bringing me to his chest, where I rest my head. “There’s nothing I loved more than watching you fall apart on my tongue. I take great pride in being able to make you come, Ren, and if I can do it with my tongue, then I will. I would ask you if you liked it, but I think the orgasm speaks for itself.”
“It does,” I chuckle and run my hand between his pecs, lightly playing with his chest hair. “Is it sad we couldn’t wait until Wednesday to do this?”
“No,” he says with a serious note to his voice. “It just shows the powerful connection between us, and now that I’ve had you, I’m not letting go.”
And now that I’ve had Griffin, there is no way in hell I’m letting him go either.
CHAPTER TWENTY
GRIFFIN
“Did you seriously just walk Mrs. Davenport all the way back to her house, carrying her fudge?” Reid asks from the window he’s washing as I slide behind the counter, taking my place beside Jen.
“I did.” I busy myself with stacking more fudge boxes.
“Isn’t that the second old lady you helped get home today? What’s with you?”
I try to hold back the smile that’s been plastered to my face ever since last night, but I can’t seem to shake it. Fuck, I’m happy.
Ren makes me happy.
And for the first time in two years, I finally feel free. Like this solitary life spent hiding behind a curse is finally coming to an end. I think my brothers were right: I paid my penance, and now I get to live again.
Last night was the start of it all.
Ren is my new chapter.
“Nothing’s wrong. It’s not the first time I’ve walked them home.”
“Yeah, but you did it with this gleeful smile. That’s different. Normally you come back from walking customers home with a chip on your shoulder.”
True. Even though I do it, I usually at least have something to say about it when I get back.
“Does this have to do with Ren?” Reid asks. “I heard her parents came into town.”
What? How would he know that?
“Where the hell did you hear that from?”
“Mr. Hopkins from across the street told me this morning. I’d just gotten in from the camping trip and was walking over here when he intercepted me. Said he saw a moving truck and two older people outside of Ren’s house last night. He also said he saw you enter her house and leave out the back door.”
Christ. I really hope Mr. Hopkins was asleep when I walked past his house with a blanket last night, and when I walked back early in the morning—and when I say early, I mean two in the morning.
After Ren and I had sex, we curled into the blanket and held each other, talking about everything from our childhoods to the crazy people in town. We laughed, we teased each other, and we partook in two more rounds of sex before we decided to make our way back to our respective houses.
It’s one of the best nights I’ve ever had. So sue me for having a gigantic smile on my face.
“So do you have something to admit to me?” Reid stands close, staring me down, looking for answers, but I keep my mouth shut, knowing I’ll drive him crazy.
That’s until Ren walks through the doors of the Lobster Landing wearing a yellow dress that wraps around her waist, her hair loosely hanging over her shoulders in waves. Without a second thought, I’m walking toward her, past a few customers, and straight into her arms. I tip her chin up and gently press a kiss against her lips.
When I pull away, all I can see is the spark in her eyes and the flash of her smile. “Hey, you.”
“Hey,” she shyly replies, gripping my sides for support.
Someone behind her clears their throat, causing me to peel my eyes away and focus on the two people standing directly behind her. A man with a thick mustache and cowboy hat eyes me with suspicion as the woman beside him, who looks like an older version of Ren, gleefully sighs.
Shit, her parents.
I was so focused on Ren that I never even saw them.
Ren spins in my arms and backs up into my chest. I press my hand to her hip and smile at her parents.
“Mom, Dad, this is Griffin Knightly. Griffin, these are my parents, Gloria and Harry.”
I lean forward and shake both of their hands. “Mr. and Mrs. Winters, it’s a pleasure to meet you. Would you like to sit down? I can grab a sample plate to share and some drinks.”
“That would be lovely,” her mom says, and her dad’s eyes light up when he takes in all the fudge and goodies behind me.
The man seems to have a sweet tooth like his daughter. Thankfully, I can make one hell of a sample plate for him.
“Right this way.” I take Ren’s hand in mine and ignore the blatant staring from Jen, her mouth hanging open. The sneaky pictures Reid is taking don’t go unnoticed either. I know he’s seconds away from texting pictures to the whole family.
I get Ren and her parents settled at one of the café tables we have set up and head to the counter, where I start putting together a sample plate of fudge and bakery items, Reid hovering over my shoulder.
“Got yourself a girlfriend, do ya? Meeting the parents?”
“Back off, Reid.” I take a piece of each flavor of fudge we have and spread them across a plate.
“You kissed her in front of everyone.”
“Well aware of what I did.”
“But . . . but . . .”
I stand up straight and turn to face him. “But what?”
And in that moment, I see a change in Reid. Instead of being the annoying little brother constantly nagging at me, he actually looks pleased, happy. “Dude, you’re living your life. Finally.” He clasps my shoulder. “I’m proud of you.”
Thankfully we don’t have a lot of customers right now, or else this would be really awkward. I lower my voice. “I couldn’t stay away. I like her too damn much.”
“And there’s no reason for you to stay away.”
I b
ite my bottom lip and stare down at the fudge. “You think I’m good? That she’ll be okay?”
“Dude, are you seriously worried about that?”
“Yeah, sort of. It’s in the back of my mind.” I go to the baked goods and start cutting up small portions of scones and cookies for the second sample plate.
“Do you need help?” Ren asks, coming up behind me, ending all conversation with Reid.
“I think I’ve—”
“Ren, you finally got this guy to admit to his feelings,” Reid says, nudging me with his elbow. And here I thought Reid had suddenly matured. Guess that was short lived.
Being the good sport that she is, Ren smiles. “I had to wear him down at some point, right?”
“It was the camping trip, wasn’t it?”
She shakes her head. “No, it was the dancing in the street.” Her voice softens, and she leans up and presses a quick kiss against my cheek before taking the fudge plate and making her way back to her parents.
Fuck, I’m a goner where she’s concerned.
“Dancing in the street?” Reid asks just as Jen steps up next to us and begins bagging up scones for a customer.
“Yeah, dancing in the street? What’s that about?” Jen asks, taking her time.
I finish up my sample plate and set down a pair of tongs. “Nothing you two need to worry about.”
I’ve started to walk away when Reid asks, “Were you being romantic?”
I look over my shoulder. “I was being romantic as shit.”
“So you’ve lived here your whole life?” Mrs. Winters asks between bites of apricot scone.
“Yes, ma’am.” I’m sitting next to Ren on her couch, holding her hand, as I answer every single question her parents throw my way. There have been a lot, ranging from my profession and my volunteer work—all questions from her dad—to my intentions with Ren and what I like most about her—questions from Ren’s mom.
They’ve been easy questions to answer, not making me think much; I’ve just spoken from the heart.
The answer that earned me a hand squeeze from Ren, though—that was a good moment.
That Second Chance Page 24