“Oh, he’s well past that. We’re into koala bear territory.”
I waved her away. “Go. Run.”
And with that, she headed back to the group, leaving me and Bodie alone.
“Having fun?” I asked.
“I am. I like your friends.”
“I like yours too.”
“Too bad about Veronica and Jude though.”
I pouted. “I know. We were just talking about that. Honestly, I’ve met your brother, and I can’t believe I thought it was a good idea. Pretty much the only thing they have in common is that they’re single.”
“Not true. They’re both artists, and they have smart-ass mouths.”
I laughed and stepped into him, resting my hand on his chest. “So, I was thinking about you surfing the other day.”
“Oh, were you?” He pulled me closer.
“Mmhmm. And I was thinking about what a badass you are.”
He laughed. “Said the badass.”
“When you guys go, can I come with?”
One of his brows rose. “Any chance I might get you on a board? Because that would fulfill so many fantasies.”
I drew a little circle on his chest with the pad of my finger. “Only if you promise to surf shirtless. I think it might be worth getting eaten by a shark to see that once before I die.”
When he chuckled and kissed me, I thought I might melt right there in his arms.
“Have we waited long enough?” I asked when he broke the kiss like a tyrant.
“That was the question I came over here to ask. Are you ready to go?”
My heart thumped, and my lips smiled. “Only since you got here.”
We said our goodbyes and headed out, hand in hand, then with our arms around each other as we walked to his apartment.
I thought about what Ramona had said, thought about Bodie and how easy it was to be with him. Even having been with him all night, he was never needy, always independent. In fact, I had been the needy one, seeking him out to touch him, kiss him.
I had no idea what had gotten into me, but when I actually thought about it, it freaked me out.
Were we dating? Was I his girlfriend? I couldn’t even say the word in my head without my insides shriveling up.
But when I thought about how I felt about Bodie, those shriveled up insides bloomed and filled up again. He’d told me it could be easy, and now … well, now I was on a date with him, one I’d set up without even realizing I was doing it.
If that wasn’t going with the flow, I couldn’t imagine what was.
He hadn’t put any demands on me, hadn’t pushed the boundaries of what I was comfortable with. He hadn’t done anything but let me breathe, let me be, and somehow that was exactly what I needed. And he knew it.
We’d been on a date, and I hadn’t felt trapped or uncomfortable or cagey at all. I felt good. I felt happy.
So I took that as a sign that I was on the right track. And if we could keep on being easy, then I could stay put — for a little while at least. Ride the wave. Enjoy the scenery. Get high off of Bodie.
I did my best not to think about what would happen when I came down.
Steak at Stake
The next afternoon, I took a sip of my champagne, facing the mirrors in the bridal shop, but I turned as Ramona came out from the dressing room, cheeks pink and eyes shining.
She looked stunning and stunned and absolutely gorgeous.
She was a rustling of lace and silk chiffon as she spanned the room and stepped up onto the platform, pressing her palm to her stomach.
The dress itself was simple and beautiful with beadwork that looked Edwardian — structured and flowing all at once in draping designs. Her waist was waspish from the corset underneath the soft fabric, and the sweeping neckline cut the slightest V between her breasts, framing her chest and neck tattoos like they had been made for each other.
“It’s happening. This is it,” she whispered with a shaky breath. “I … for a long time, I didn’t think it would. He never asked, you know? He couldn’t leave Joel, but Joel finding Annika changed everything. I should buy that woman an island.”
Veronica and I laughed and moved to her side, turning to look at our trio in the wide-angled mirrors. But Ramona was looking down at us, smiling and crying.
“Thank you. Both of you. I couldn’t do this without you, and I wouldn’t want anyone else to share this with me the way you two have.”
Tears filled my eyes too, and Veronica and I stepped up onto the platform to hug. The three of us hung onto each other for a long moment.
When we turned back to the mirror, I looked us over. “Damn, we look good.”
We laughed. It was our final fitting, and everything was perfect. Our bridesmaid dresses were dove-gray chiffon, soft and flowing and long, each a little different. Mine tied around the waist with a deep V and flowing skirt that made me feel like a goddess. Veronica’s was strapless, the top corseted and the skirt the same as mine.
I reached for the small table next to the platform where Ramona’s champagne stood, bubbling and waiting for her, raising my glass as I placed hers in her hand.
“To your next beginning,” I said simply.
And we touched our champagne flutes together with the sweetest of tings before taking a sip.
I’d barely noticed the camera crew until they began to pack up. One of the cameramen nodded to me with a smile as they disappeared.
Another thing to thank Annika for — she’d made sure we were bothered as little as possible. In fact, I bet she’d cut the emotional stuff altogether. After having her own personal life thrown all over network television last season, she’d made it her mission to preserve the privacy of our lives as much as she could.
The shop girls materialized to inspect Ramona’s dress, and Veronica and I moved out of the way so they could work, still sipping our champagne. I felt a little bubbly in the head — I was on my third glass.
Ramona eyed me. “So, I hate to ask this.”
“Uh-oh.” My mood was instantly not so bubbly.
“Well, I put you down for a plus-one for the wedding, so I need to know if you’re bringing someone.”
I squirmed.
“I paid for an extra steak, Pen.”
Veronica rolled her eyes lovingly, if that’s a thing. “Just ask Bodie. You’re seeing him. And I bet he looks good in a suit. I mean, unless he’s a vegetarian because then what will Ramona do with his steak?”
I snorted. “Ugh, I don’t know, guys.”
Ramona and Veronica shared a look.
“She doesn’t think last night was a date,” Ramona said like I wasn’t in the room.
“Ah,” Veronica said back, equally traitorous.
“Listen, I realize it was a date.”
Ramona perked up and cupped her ear. “What’s that? You said I was right?”
I rolled my eyes. “Yes, you were right. He’s just … I don’t know. Easy. He’s like a heart ninja.” I made a karate chop with my hand.
“So why don’t you ask him to the wedding?” Veronica asked.
“Hey, you don’t have a date either.”
Veronica’s lips flattened. “We’re not talking about me.”
“You could always ask Jude,” I offered.
She balked at that. “I wouldn’t want to slit any throats at my best friend’s wedding. There will be steak knives there.”
I laughed. “Oh, come on. He’s not that bad.”
“He’s the douchiest douche to ever douche, Pen. He is so into himself, and his jokes are fucking terrible. It doesn’t even matter that he’s hot and muscly.”
“What? That’s basically all that matters,” I said. “Just tell him not to talk when he goes down on you, and you guys will be fine.”
Ramona cackled and took a sip of champagne.
“I don’t want to sleep with somebody I don’t like,” Veronica stated plainly as if I couldn’t get her drift.
I shrugged. “Beggars can’t be choosers, Ronnie.”
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She wrinkled her nose at me. “Anyway, we’re not talking about me. We’re talking about you. Just ask Bodie.”
I wrinkled my nose back at her. “That’s so much pressure. I mean, I can barely admit that we went on one pseudodate and you want me to ask him to a wedding? I don’t even know if we could have dinner alone without me climbing out the bathroom window.”
Ramona considered that. “I mean, a wedding is almost safer. You don’t even have to be alone. He already knows Joel, Shep, and Annika. And us. It’ll be fun, just like last night.”
My face was still all pinched up.
Veronica smiled and cocked an eyebrow. “Just think of the after-wedding sex. You’ll both be all dressed up. So many clothes to take off.”
I bobbed my head in consideration. “Okay, now you’re speaking my language.”
“There will be dancing and drinking and eating,” she added. “Bodie in a suit — just think about that. Those broad shoulders, his thick neck in that tie. Maybe he’ll tie you up with it after.”
I bit my bottom lip, imagining it. “Mmm,” I hummed.
“It won’t be a big deal,” Veronica said.
And like the dumbass I was, I believed her.
“Okay, I’ll do it.”
They cheered, and we giggled and jumped up and down, careful of our champagne, which was what I blamed the giggle-bouncing on.
“Text him!” Ramona begged.
I rolled my eyes. “I’m not texting him to ask him to a wedding. I’ll ask him tonight.”
“What’s tonight?” Veronica asked before taking a sip of her drink.
“Nothing, yet.” I turned to the velvet chair where we’d set our purses and dug through mine for my phone.
“Did you see that lingerie shop across the street?” Ramona dropped the question like she was sneaky or something.
“Of course I did. Why? Think I should get a little something?”
She shrugged. “Couldn’t hurt.”
I champagne-giggled some more and texted Bodie.
Busy tonight? I’ve got a little surprise for you.
He started typing before I even set my phone down, and I tried to pretend like that didn’t make my heart skydive in my chest.
I’m free, and I’ve got news about the video game. Want to celebrate?
I shot off an answer as quick as I could. Yes, please. My apartment okay? We’ll have the place to ourselves.
I’ll be there. Text me when you’re home.
I will. <3
I grinned. “He’s in. Or he’s not in yet, but he’s about to be so in. All the way in.”
Veronica laughed. “Yeah, yeah. We get it.”
And just like that, I’d talked myself into asking Bodie to a wedding.
Heart ninja. I was helpless to fight him. He was just too sneaky.
I bolted out the door the second I got the text that Penny was home, barely waving goodbye to my brother and Phil. Her name cycled through my brain with every footfall.
I had news — big news — and there was only one person in the world I found myself wanting to tell.
Penny.
I should have been scared out of my mind at the fact that she’d already become the person I told everything, especially since we’d been dancing around what we meant to each other for two weeks. But I wasn’t. I was too happy to be afraid, which was so beyond stupid that I thought I might have made it back around to smart again.
My heart banged from taking her stairs two at a time. Seconds after knocking, the door swung open, and there she was.
Just when I thought my heart couldn’t beat any harder, it proved me wrong.
She stood there in the doorway in nothing but lingerie.
No, I couldn’t even call it lingerie. It was like an elaborate necklace; from the collar hung dozens of silver chains that flowed around her naked breasts and torso, swaying with every breath, connected to a ring a few inches below her belly button. More chains hung down from there, draping over the perfect curve of her hips and upper thighs, and from the center of the ring was a chain tassel that brushed against her piercing.
Something about the swing and shine of it, the peekaboo of the tattoos covering her milky-white skin, the way the chains moved on either side of her breasts, her nipples pink and taut, framed by barbells — all of it overloaded my senses, and I found myself standing stupidly in the hallway, staring in wonder.
She laughed and reached out just enough to grab my shirt to pull me into the apartment, closing the door behind me.
I palmed her breast as she stepped into me, and I finally got a good look at the rest of her. Her hair was a brighter purple than it had been yesterday, and her lips were blood red and smiling at me. She wore a headband of some sort, but it ran across her forehead with hundreds of tiny chains hanging down, shielding her eyes just enough to drive me crazy.
“You like it?” she asked as she wrapped her arms around my neck.
All I could do was nod and kiss her.
God, she felt so good pressed up against me, her bare ass in my hands, her tongue against mine as I tasted her like it was the first time.
She broke away and smiled, taking my hand before turning for her bedroom.
The back of the contraption she had on was almost bare with another ring just over her ass where another little tassel swung with the sway of her hips, and more draping chains followed the curve of her backside.
“Where the fuck did you get this thing?” I breathed in appreciation.
She shot me a smile over her shoulder. “The store.”
I shook my head as we stepped into her room. “I need to check out the stores where you shop.”
She laughed at that and closed the door. The lights were low, just a few small lamps to bathe the room in a golden light, and her portable speaker played a slow, sexy sort of electronic music. Her hips moved to the beat just a little, sending the chains swinging and my cock straining.
I pulled off my shirt and dropped it by the door, kicking off my shoes as she closed her eyes, her body moving in a wave to the music like I wasn’t in the room. I took the hint, dropping my pants and stepping out of them before moving in her direction.
She didn’t want me to stop her — she would have looked at me if she had — so I climbed onto her bed and sat propped up against the pillows, watching her.
With every roll of her hips, my pulse ticked faster, and my eyes drank her in — her hair, her shrouded eyes, the light catching the metal hanging on her. Her lily-white hands moved down her body and across her breasts, her fingers grazing her nipples.
I gripped my cock — it was so hard it hurt — stroking myself to ease the ache, wishing it were her around me, but I wouldn’t have stopped her if you’d paid me.
She spun around, sending the chains arching around her, her hips still shifting, her torso rolling, just like it did when she rode me. Her lips parted as she looked down, her neck and shoulders rocking opposite her hips, and when her hands moved down her body and between her legs, when her long white finger disappeared into herself, my cock throbbed in my fist.
I moaned a curse, and she looked up at me, slivers of her eyes burning hot through the curtain of chains, and I couldn’t take it anymore. I moved to the end of the bed, rising up onto my knees to tower over her, slipping my hand into her silvery-purple hair so I could kiss her. Her mouth opened up, and her tongue slid past my lips as mine did the same, teasing each other. My hands were in her hair, our mouths open wide, our breath coming heavy, our bodies determined to find release, so determined that we were barely in control.
But I was never really in control. Not when it came to Penny.
She took my cock with both hands and pumped, and I groaned into her mouth, which did nothing but spur her on.
My control slipped even further away. I flexed into her fists, fucking her hands with my cock, fucking her mouth with my tongue. But it wasn’t enough. I wanted more, and I always would. Anytime I said different, I was a fucking liar.
When I broke away, I sat on the end of the bed, setting my feet on the ground. I looked up at her, mesmerized by the shadows across her face as she looked down at me, her hands cupping my jaw.
She started dancing again.
Penny let me go and turned around — her ass was just under eye-level with that tassel swinging over places where I wanted my face. But before I could grab her and do just that, she rolled her hips in a figure eight and lowered her body until her ass was cradling my cock.
Up and down she went, stroking me with her body. My hands were on her hips, squeezing, but she didn’t need me to guide her. She looked back over her shoulder and raised her hips, stopping when the tip of me rested against the center of her. And I wouldn’t wait any longer, wouldn’t be teased for another second — with a flex of my hips and a shift of my hands, I pulled her down onto me until I was so deep inside her, I never wanted to leave.
She sighed my name as I gently pushed her away by the hips to lift her, then pulled her down again, grinding against her every time I hit the end.
“Lie back,” she breathed.
And I did with an aching chest and a racing pulse and the length of me buried in her.
Without separating us, she rolled her hips a few times, her hands on my knees, and I watched my cock disappear and reappear in the heat of her from the best possible angle, every part of her exposed and open and full of me.
She climbed backward onto the bed in a feat of skill, first one knee coming to rest outside of my matching thigh and then the other, leaving her straddling me with her feet tucked into my ribs and her ass in my hands.
Her body moved, needing no help from me as she rose and fell, and I was so focused on every inch of her that a nuclear bomb could have detonated and I’d never know — I’d have died a happy man. I cupped her ass low, so low that my thumbs grazed my cock with every up and down of her body until they were slick from her. And then I spread her open and ran my thumb around the rim of her tight ass. It clenched under my touch as I circled, and she sucked in a breath.
“Do it,” she said, voice rough as she dropped down.
I smiled and pressed.
The warmth of her, the tightness of her around me in more than one place was almost too much. It was too much for her, her body working faster. Every moan and sigh out of her said she was close. And she wasn’t alone.
A Kiss For You Page 32