by L. B. Dunbar
“My sister wanted to be unconventional.” Letty lifts a glass of wine for her lips. “Just like how she obtained her new husband.”
She’s already told me she isn’t bitter about him and her. It’s more the principle of their meeting, and I understand. Cheating is unacceptable. Disloyalty, lies, half-hidden truths. I don’t care for any of the sort even though I’m guilty of a few on a minor level.
“When did you get here?” she asks, lowering her glass and looking up at me. So many questions in those eyes, and I want to answer everything.
“About an hour ago. Took a bit to get here from O’Hare.” I don’t travel much. My nephew Jaxson is in charge of sales and distribution, and he’s the one who visits places. I’ve already been halfway around the world and back, so I’m happy in my mountainous backyard now.
The bartender hands me a local beer, and I sip, letting my tongue roll to distinguish the ingredients. It’s not bad. My brother Billy is more a brewmaster than I am, though. He’s a closet chemist, and my father learned too late of Billy’s benefit to the company. Fortunate for me, I extort my kid brother’s skill.
“Did you get a room?” She hesitates as she asks.
“Changed in the bathroom and asked the front desk to hold my bag,” I clarify.
“I have a room.” Her eyes sheepishly leap to mine. “I didn’t want the hassle of driving home, plus I have the send-off breakfast tomorrow morning, which is suddenly optional, and then that’s it.” Her definitive tone tells me she’ll finally be finished with obligations and can let this fiasco go. Time to move on.
“Optional?” I raise a brow.
“I might be busy in the morning.”
This woman. Her teasing brings a grin to my lips, and I take another sip of my beer. The night isn’t passing fast enough.
She doesn’t mingle, but as people approach her, she introduces me. Family and more family. Business acquaintances.
Finally, she gives her toast and leads me from the ballroom.
“We didn’t dance,” I mock although I’m not a good dancer. She laughs as she drags me toward the elevator, holding my fingers like I held hers on our hike. God, I missed her laughter.
When the elevator closes, I waste no time before I rush up to her and flatten her against the back wall. Her heels raise her closer to my height, but I still dip my head.
“I want to be naked with you.” I don’t know where the words come from, but they’re every bit the truth. I want to be bare and raw and honest with her. I said things I shouldn’t have said, and I need to apologize. With my hands. With my tongue. With my dick.
“I want to be naked with you,” she whispers, her voice shy, but her hips buck forward, and my hand lowers for one. My mouth waters, but I don’t kiss her. Once I start, I won’t stop because I didn’t kiss her enough when I had her on the mountains.
She leads the way to her room and holds the scan card over the magnetic lock. The sharp click releasing the catch is like a pistol shot, and I’m ready to race. When she steps inside, she stops and spins to face me. The door closes with a soft thud, locking us.
“This is more my camping speed,” she teases, swiping out her hand. “Bathroom.” She gestures behind me. “Comfy bed.” She chuckles. “A fridge.”
I laugh with her, but I can’t take my eyes off her dress. It isn’t her. It’s pretty enough, but it’s not my Cricket.
“What are you wearing?” I ask a second time.
Letty tugs at the loose material over her breasts and lets the fabric fall back.
“It’s a dress. I think. Buttercup yellow,” she clarifies.
“It looks like margarine on a biscuit. And the 80s called, they want their prom dress back.”
Letty laughs, a bubbly chuckle, and I’m reminded of pebbles in rain puddles. My spine shivers with the sound. I like it too much.
“Take it off,” I demand, torn between wanting to talk and needing to skip the formal stuff. She turns her back to me and points at the zipper along her spine. Slowly, I unzip, and the dull yellow material spreads. The dress slips to the floor, pooling at her feet, and she turns back to me. Her hands come to her hips, and I swallow.
“You’re the prettiest thing…” I falter, roaming slowly over the nude-colored strapless bra and matching thong in lace. “Fuck that. You’re the most beautiful woman I’ve laid eyes on.” Her head tips, and her smile grows, but I can’t take my eyes off the bra where her nipples nearly pop over the edge and the G-string of material covering her lower region. And her heels. Fucking strappy and high. She’s a fantasy of epic proportions.
I tug the tie from my neck and shrug off the jacket, throwing them at the bed. As I slowly unbutton the cuffs of my shirt and then a few at the neck, I keep my eyes on her.
“So, this is your idea of roughing it, huh?” Once I’ve loosened enough of my shirt, I tug it and my undershirt over my head from the back of my neck. I kick off my fancy shoes.
She purrs at me, watching me strip. Her eyes are hungry looking, and I’m starving for her. I hold out a hand for her.
“Let’s check out the bathroom first.”
Her head tilts, but she follows me as I walk backward to the large bathroom. Once we enter, I spin her for the sink, and my hands roam. Up her spine and around her sides, cupping her breasts. I watch in the extra-large mirror.
“God, I’ve missed you,” I murmur, kissing up her neck.
“Me too.” Her arm reaches back, wrapping around my neck and holding me to her. My eager palms squeeze at the material over her breasts, forcing the nipples to protrude above the silky fabric. I tweak them collectively, tugging until she yelps. Her hips buck back, and her ass hits my front. I’m rock hard and have been since the moment I saw her.
Correction: every time I’ve thought of her for the past two weeks, I’ve been stiff, but seeing her makes me three times more solid.
Two fingers dip into the thin string between her backside cheeks. I stroke downward, and my knuckles brush against her firm ass. Curling my hand under her, I discover her core wet and wanting. My eyes meet hers in the mirror, and I watch her face as I slip into her.
Her mouth opens. Her lids flutter. She releases my neck and reaches back to grip my hip.
“So beautiful,” I say, turning into her neck and kissing her again. I work my fingers in and out, not removing the thong but sliding it to the side.
“With this bra exposing your nipples, and the scrap covering your pussy, plus the heels, you’re a fantasy. One I’d watch on repeat. I want to fuck you like this, Cricket.”
Her breath hitches as she brings her hands around her back to blindly work at my belt. Without releasing my fingers from her center, I push her hand away and single-handedly struggle with the catch, loosening it but not removing it. Then I unzip my pants.
“Push at the sides,” I say, talking to her reflection in the mirror, and Letty presses my pants below my hips. I don’t want to be naked. Not yet. It’s sexy as fuck looking in the glass with me half-dressed and her in this outfit. It’s wild, and I want her.
“Giant,” she hums in warning. She’s close, and I am too. She hasn’t even touched me, and I’m ready to lose it. With my fingers in her, I grip myself and position my head at her entrance. I remove my coated digits and press her shoulder blades to lean forward over the counter. Her legs spread, and I bend enough to align myself with her. Slowly, I disappear into her, watching her swallow me. Then I look up to see her eyes on me through the mirror. My hands wrap over her covered breasts and tug the material downward. Exposing each of them, I cup them as I draw my dick back and then thrust forward. Letty grunts.
As I pull back, she chases me, and I smile in the reflection. “Greedy?”
“You have no idea,” she mutters.
“Oh, I have an idea,” I say, slamming into her. Repeating the motion several times, I clutch at her breasts and delve into her. She meets me thrust for thrust, bent over the counter. “I’ve missed you every second we’ve been apart.”
“So much.”
She smiles back at me. “I like your smile,” she says, watching me as I set a pace of driving into her.
“I like you,” I say.
“Watch,” she whispers as her hand snakes down her belly and lowers into the lace barely covering her curls. Sweet Jesus, I don’t know if I can look, but I can’t tear my eyes away. She’s touching herself, and I know it without fully seeing it. My eyes stay focused on the movement of her hand. Her lids close as her hips buck.
“Finish,” I snap, knowing I can’t hold out much longer. My spine tingles. My balls tighten.
“Giant,” she squeaks, and then my name dissolves as she stills, clutching me within her depths. Her head lolls forward, and I slam into her, holding her to me by her breasts as I have the orgasm of all orgasms.
Stars dance before my eyes, and I lower my head to her shoulder.
“Dammit. I didn’t kiss you.”
She chuckles with me still inside her. “Well, we’ll just have to try again.”
18
Baby steps
[Letty]
He slips out of me, and I spin to face him. He finalizes the removal of his pants and socks, and I kick off my own shoes. I step out of my thong and unhitch my bra. Hooking a finger at him, I make him follow me into the double-size shower where he kisses me senseless until our mouths move to other places.
Wrung out, I wrap in a towel while he slips into the comfy white robe provided, and we head to the bed.
“This is a bed,” I tease, pulling back the top cover. “With linens and pillows. And oh, look, a mattress.” I press on the firmness to emphasize my point. Giant wraps his hands around my waist and tosses me on it, then follows after me. Half his body covers mine, and I love the weight of him over me. I’ve missed him so much.
He brushes back my wet hair and looks down into my face.
“Was it really that bad? The camping?”
“I survived,” I joke before reaching up to cup his scruff-covered jaw. “Actually, I really enjoyed myself. Surprisingly, I miss the place.” I might not be able to live in a tent eating food from a skillet the rest of my life, but I do miss being with him and enjoying the experience with him.
“I heard you’re no longer interested in the property.”
“Giant.” I sigh. “I lost interest the first night you made me a hot dog.”
“Who knew that’s all a girl needed to change her mind? I thought it might have been when I washed your hair.”
“That too.” I laugh, thinking of Marcus. “And when you taught me to throw an ax.”
He leans forward and kisses me, soft and delicate.
“How did the ax throwing go?” he smirks. “Heard a master ax thrower taught you?” He winks at me, and my skin heats as I recall the things I said to his brother.
“I didn’t win, but I hit the mark enough times to scare Hudson. I told him I’d learned to chop wood as well.” I mimic the motion of chopping by knocking the sides of my hands together. Giant shifts to his side, perching up on an elbow and looking down at me.
“As long as he knows his wood is off-limits.”
My lip crooks. “Not interested in anyone’s wood but yours. And I’m not talking about the trees on your property.”
Giant chuckles and draws a line along my collarbone with the tip of a thick finger. His expression darkens, and I know what’s coming. We need to talk.
“We never talked about your brother.”
Owen isn’t who I expect us to discuss first, and my lips twist as I bite the corner. “Do we need to talk about him now?”
“I think we have a few things to discuss that shouldn’t wait any longer.” Giant isn’t wrong, but we’re jumping into the deep stuff by tackling Owen first. I swallow the lump that always forms in my throat before I talk about him. I nod and explain again the circumstances of my younger brother and his gang affiliation.
“Owen was only four when our father died, and he hated Uncle Frank. Being six years younger than me, I was like a second mother to him. He was a little lost with our mother working, and Dayna acting as second parent but never doing a good job.” Some parent she turned out to be. “Gangs are prevalent everywhere in and around Chicago, but it’s not all colored bandanas and acid wash jeans hanging off a kid’s ass. Kids with means can just as easily get hooked up with the wrong people, and Owen did. We struggled with money for a bit, and he was a worrier. He’d lost his way around middle school and got in with a rougher crowd in seventh grade. He suggested he sell drugs to help us meet ends.” I chuckle with the memory of Owen telling our mom he wanted to help out. Be the man of the family. “He wanted Mom out from under Uncle Frank’s controlling nature. Mom couldn’t handle budding-teenage Owen.” I recall how babyish his face was while his body was growing into the makings of a young man. He was smarter than he gave himself credit. Smarter than our mother recognized. He just needed guidance, and I tried to be there for him, but it wasn’t enough. I was only eighteen. “I was his older sister, but I couldn’t protect him.” Liquid fills my eyes, and I blink back the pain as the memories fill my head. Giant reaches out with a thumb and swipes at the tear before it falls.
“I mentioned he was shot on the sidewalk outside his school. I was there to pick him up and give him a ride home. I didn’t see them coming.” Loud cars with trashy music are common around a school. It could have been any car with any group of kids, but this car was looking for Owen. I leave out the details of screams and blood and holding my brother in my arms.
“When I heard James’s gun, I freaked out. It’s also triggered by thunder.” My eyes close, embarrassed by admitting such a weakness. Giant cups my cheek, forcing my eyes to open.
“I totally understand. I’ve seen my share of surprise attacks, and the horrific results in the military.” His voice drops. “But on a sidewalk in a city with a kid, it seems so unthinkable.”
I brush aside the robe and point at the wound near his left shoulder. “Is that how this happened?”
He huffs with his own set of memories.
“We were on a mission, and one of our men was injured. I was shot lifting him into a helicopter. The soldier friend needed to be helivaced out, and suddenly, so did I.”
I lean forward to kiss the wound.
“You have a new appreciation for life once you almost lose it,” he states. However, I remember what he told me—how he didn’t know where he fit when he came home. How his wife had a routine. How he joined the brewery business. What’s been in his life for him?
The mountain. A gift from a beloved grandfather.
“I’m sorry about the land.” Should I tell him why I wanted it? Will he understand? It’s a lot to take in from someone he just met.
He stares into my eyes, twirling a piece of my hair between his thumb and forefinger “I’m sorry for what I said.”
My head shifts on the mattress, and I roll my body to my side. My hand rests on his chest, feeling his heart rhythmically pulsing under his warm skin. “Did you really believe I slept with you for your land?”
“What I said was a knee-jerk reaction. Why else would you be interested in sleeping with me?” His throat rolls as he swallows, and I open my mouth to speak, but a few fingers of his cover my lips. “You seemed too good to be true and wanting me didn’t seem like enough of a reason to give yourself to me.”
“Giant,” I softly whine, reaching up to cover the trimmed scruff on his jaw with my hand. “I’ll give myself to you a hundred times if you’ll take me. Of course, I want you.”
“You’re very different from what I’ve had in the past.”
I cringe at the thought. It sounds kind of bad when he says it like that.
“No, no, this is all good. My…” He pauses as his eyes shift to my shoulder. “My sex life hasn’t been as wild as it’s been with you. It’s been rather tame, in fact, and I’m enjoying the difference.”
I tip my head up to take
his mouth, and we kiss briefly. I’m not certain how to take what he’s said. Is he comparing me to his wife? To other women? Either way, I guess I’m glad I’m not the same as everyone else. He pulls back, looking over at me again.
“I don’t think I’m explaining myself very well,” he says, and I perch up on an elbow while he falls to his back, looking up at the ceiling. “I’m not good at communicating my feelings.” There’s mockery in his tone, and I imagine he’s been told this a time or two. He does have a standoffish demeanor, which I accused him of, but I want him to open up to me.
“Try,” I whisper.
“This seems like an awkward time to discuss it, but Clara was sensitive. We were two kids bumbling through the dark at first. Over time, I wanted a little more, but Clara couldn’t handle it. Certain positions. Certain locations. We really only had one position, and she would accept sex in only one place—the bedroom. It wasn’t awful, but it wasn’t spectacular.” He rolls his head to look at me and sheepishly smiles. “It was more functional. We weren’t adventurous.”
I fight the smile forming on my lips, not wanting to give away how pleased I am with what he’s said. Oh, so that kind of different. My hand scrubs over his firm pecs, exposed from the open robe. My fingers play with the hair on his chest while he seems lost to the memory. He exhales.
“Anyway, I heard what you did, or rather, I got your message. What made you think to contact Charlie and not me?”
“Honestly, I didn’t have your number.”
“Don’t you do any research before you go after a property? Why didn’t you call the brewery?”
“Would you have spoken to me if I called?” I pause, sheepishly chuckling. “I don’t really know what I was thinking with that ridiculous call to your brother.” I lower my face to the coverlet, hiding from the heat of Giant’s eyes. “I hoped Charlie could pass on the legal jargon, and you’d understand it wasn’t the land. It’s you that I want,” I mumble the muffled words into the duvet.
