by Nina Crespo
She walked past him, and the soft floral fragrance of her perfume mixed appealingly with the scent of the rain. As she stood in the entryway, drops of water puddled on the floor around her black high-heeled rubber boots. As she slipped the hood from her head, she smoothed tendrils of hair from her face. Her lush lips glistened.
He resisted kissing her and locked the door. No need to rush the night along. “Would you like to take off your jacket?”
“Yes.” She tightened the belt around her waist. “But not until we’ve had a little chat.”
Chat? From the way her pulse beat in the hollow of her throat, she wasn’t referring to a simple conversation. Rafe crossed his arms over his chest. “About?”
“What this is.”
So much for simple, uncomplicated sex. “I thought this was about you coming to get your earring.”
“Okay then.” She shrugged. “Hand it over.” She almost hid the disappointment that flickered in her expression before she looked away.
He could play games, but he hated doling out bullshit as much as he did dealing with it. “Hold on.” Rafe rubbed over the tension gathering at his nape. “I enjoyed the other night. I thought you did, too, but I’m not interested in starting anything serious.”
Alexa glanced down. “I’m moving to Seattle in a little over five weeks, so I’m not interested in anything serious, either, but…” She worried her bottom lip in the same way she had when she’d gotten that text from her mom the morning after they’d slept together.
He didn’t have the right to pry into her business then, but now that they were agreeing to sleep together again, he had a right to know what “but” meant. Rafe tipped up her chin. “But what?”
Her long lashes rose, and her gaze met his. “I don’t want to waste time with out of the blue booty calls. I’d rather we just agree to sleep with each other on a regular basis until I leave or for as long as it suits us. If you’re interested.”
Short-term sex with her without the discomfort of a messy ending? Hell yeah, he was interested. “I’m up for that, but during the time we’re together, we’re exclusive.”
“Says the man who takes off his clothes in front of a room full of women for a living. I’m sure I’m not the only one who’s followed you back here.”
“Actually, yes, you are the first.” Rafe held her by the waist. He wanted to kiss her so badly, he could taste the strawberry gloss gleaming on her lips. “And like I told you, I’m retired. I don’t dance anymore. My recent performances were because of a bet and an emergency.”
She rested her hands on his chest, keeping him at a distance. “Those sound like awfully convenient excuses for taking your clothes off.”
“My priority is managing Escapade.” He almost added “trust me,” but considering her ex had cheated on her, that could be asking for too much. “While you’re still in town for the next few weeks, the only things that will occupy my time are taking care of the club and enjoying you. Deal?”
She smiled. “I like the sound of that.”
“We should celebrate then.”
“We will, but could I have something to drink? I’m very thirsty.”
“Water? Or do you need something stronger?”
She tilted her head as she looked up at him and laughed. “Stronger is always better.”
He contemplated stealing a kiss, but once he got ahold of her, he wouldn’t stop. Rafe strode to the kitchen. “Isn’t it time you took off that coat?”
Clothing rustled behind him. What sounded like her boots hit the floor.
“I’ve got beer, rum, whiskey. Sorry. No wine.”
“On second thought, how about just you?”
He glanced back and almost gave himself whiplash doing a double take.
Sheer peach lace cupped her lush breasts. Ran along her hips. Shadowed her pussy.
He couldn’t take his eyes off her, couldn’t control the need that drove him back across the room. Moisture pooled in his mouth as he circled behind Alexa. His cock swelled against the zipper of his jeans at the sight of her beautiful, taut bare ass.
Rafe swept his palms over her silky-smooth curves. “Is all this for me?”
…
Alexa shivered as he caressed her. She glanced over her shoulder. The predatory look in his gaze stirred excitement. “All for you.”
“Hope you don’t have plans for the rest of the night.” He stroked up her hips, into the dips of her waist to her breasts. He cupped them and squeezed her nipples.
“No. Just this.” Warmth curled through Alexa as his hand trailed over her abdomen. Trapped between him skimming the scalloped lace of her thong and his erection pressed to her butt and lower back, she couldn’t stop herself from trembling.
Neediness. Weakness. He brought it out in her, along with a rampant desire. The intensity of it shocked and titillated her.
She pushed back against him, reveling in the feel of his hard cock covered by the stiff fabric of his jeans.
Rafe nipped the side of her neck and popped open the front clip of her bra. He slipped the straps from her shoulders.
Cool air washed over her but failed to alleviate the heat overtaking her as he caressed the swell of her breasts, feathered his thumbs over her nipples, and squeezed the tight, sensitive buds.
She reached back and gripped his thighs.
Rafe’s cheek brushed hers. “Feel good?” He moved one of his hands down, dipped into her thong, and traced down her slit.
“Too good.” Alexa caught her trembling lower lip in her teeth.
He plunged his finger inside of her.
She lolled her head back against him. “Oh yes. Don’t stop.”
He plucked and squeezed one nipple.
Delicious tingles spread over her breasts. Radiated between her thighs. She gripped his legs harder and widened hers. With every thrust and squeeze, intensity built. It erupted inside of her. Alexa’s hips automatically matched the sensual in-and-out rhythm. Her cries burned her throat.
Rafe wrapped his arm around Alexa and carried her to the bed, laying her down and then following.
His hard chest crushed her sensitive nipples. Still quivering from an orgasm, she rocked her sex against his leg, searching for more, needing so much more.
He swept kisses down her throat to the peak of her breast.
As he sucked her nipple into his mouth, all she could do was pant. Hard tweaks and gentle tugs, along with his firm thigh kneading her sex, pulled another orgasm out of her.
Rafe dragged off her thong as he got up and dropped it on the floor. His muscles bulged and rippled with the natural movement of stripping off his clothes. He snagged a condom from the drawer of the bedside table, rolled it on, then climbed between her legs.
His earth-shattering thrust inside of her renewed desire. Alexa threw back her head, arched against him, and lost herself in ecstasy.
Hours later, she stood in front of the mirror in the white-tiled bathroom wrapped in a navy towel. She detangled her wet hair with her fingers. Once she got home, she’d have to spend time getting her hair in order before she went to bed.
Rafe came up behind her, tightening a matching towel around his waist. He opened the top drawer on the left. “Combs are in there. Check around for anything else you need.”
“Thank you.”
He kissed her shoulder. “You’re welcome.”
His cell rang in the kitchen. He went to answer it.
Sex had heated things up in the shower, but they’d stayed so long, the hot water had cooled to near freezing, and the pads of her fingers had started to wrinkle. But she’d gladly relive him licking drops of water from her breasts and massaging between her thighs. She couldn’t contain a smile. Yeah. Like she told Cori, becoming addicted to him would be so easy. He was generous in bed. Transparent in his motives. Direct in what he wanted. But there was more to him. Parts of his life she wouldn’t get a chance to discover in the short time they had together. Disappointment sunk in with a heavy exhale.
Nosiness prompted her to poke around. Toothpaste, mouthwash, razors, shaving cream, sex lubricant. Did he use it on himself, or with someone in his past? And what’s in this tube? Bikini line hair remover? Interesting. She’d read an article once that had mentioned that male strippers waxed off their hair. Rafe’s chest was super smooth, and his legs had hair so fine, she’d hardly noticed. If he’d waxed for years, the hair probably hadn’t come back, but he wasn’t completely manscaped. A neatly groomed patch surrounded his sex.
He paced along the galley-style kitchen as he talked on his phone. “Uh-huh, yeah, I agree. Go ahead and get on that.”
Wind spattered rain on the skylight.
She found her bra and thong on the floor near the bed. He looked so damn sexy in a towel. What would he do if she slipped it off, dropped to her knees, and sucked him slowly into her mouth. The fresh, clean smell of soap and man would make her want him even more.
As if he’d read her thoughts, he looked her way. His gaze roaming over her was like a leisurely caress. The front of his towel rose.
She fumbled with the fastener on her bra. Her skin heated.
“What? Now?” He scowled and turned away. “No. Wait for me. I’ll be down in ten.”
Rafe disconnected from the call, then plunked his cell on the counter.
She pulled up her thong. “Problems in paradise?”
“You could say that.” He dressed in his jeans and T-shirt. “A big order that was supposed to arrive tomorrow night is here. We’re short on supplies, so we can’t turn the truck away.” He strode to the closet, where he opened and shut drawers. “Xan, my head of security, has pulled a couple of his guys to handle stocking the cases. I should head out there and supervise things.”
“I’ll get out of your way then.”
“Hold on a sec.” Rafe came out carrying tan, lace-up work boots and a black sweatshirt. He handed her the shirt. “Put this on. You need something warm under your coat.”
She slipped it over her head. The sleeves engulfed her arms and covered her hands, and the hem hit mid-thigh. It smelled like him. She resisted burying her nose in the fabric. “Thanks.”
The wind howled.
Rafe glanced up at the skylight. “Sounds bad out there. Sure you don’t want to wait?”
“It won’t matter. It’s supposed to rain all night. I’m fine.”
Attraction and the need to resist him heightened her awkwardness. She’d never indulged in a sex-only relationship. How would their hookups work? Should they schedule when they’d meet now? Agree to set something up in advance? “So. I’ll go.” Alexa backed up. She picked up her coat from the floor.
Rafe took it from her. He held the raincoat open so she could slip into it. “By the way, that’s my favorite shirt. I think I better hold your earring hostage until I get it back.”
She buttoned her jacket. “How much time do I have?”
Rafe turned her around by the waist. “Tomorrow night. Day after, at the latest.” He leaned in. “What do you think?”
Alexa rested her hands on his chest, welcoming a kiss. “Sounds good to me.”
Chapter Eleven
Rafe backed Alexa against the wall in his studio. As he kissed her, her heart beat so hard, he could feel it pounding through her blouse against his chest.
She moaned. “Lunchtime traffic was brutal. Twenty minutes. That’s all I can spare today.”
For the past eight days, they’d engaged in steamy trysts whenever their schedules allowed them to meet—fast, intense fuck sessions that sated and left him hungry for more of her at the same time. Trouble. That’s what Alexa was for him. She was too hard to resist. He couldn’t stop thinking about her. She was becoming an obsession he didn’t know if he’d be able to shake once their arrangement ended. He’d even thought of calling it off with her…but not until he’d gotten his fill.
He swept kisses down her neck as he slid his hands up her red skirt. “I’m sweaty from working the heavy bag.”
“I don’t care.” She kissed and nipped his bare shoulder and tugged at the knot in his workout shorts and pulled at the waistband. “Off…take it off.”
Alexa was sexy as hell when she was aggressive. His fingers brushed lace along her hip, and he followed the scalloped edges of the fabric to her inner thigh.
Soon he’d turn her demands into neediness. She’d beg for him to make her come.
“You first.” Rafe dropped to his knees. He dragged down her thong, and the sweetness of her perfume mixed with the scent of her arousal made his mouth water. He licked up the thin landing strip covering the seam of her sex.
“Oh…” Her knees started to buckle.
He brought her leg over his shoulder and cupped her ass.
Teasing shallow and deep strokes had her shouting his name like a mantra as her hips bucked and chased the glide of his tongue.
“Rafe…Rafe. Oh…it’s too much.” She tugged his hair, and his scalp stung.
It wasn’t close to enough. Rafe held her in place, circling and sucking her clit. He plunged his tongue inside of her, savoring her essence. Soon, her sex fluttered around his tongue, and her taste filled his mouth.
Her legs gave out.
Rafe picked her up and dropped her on the bed. He shoved down his shorts and jockstrap and released his hard cock.
Her gaze remained fixed on his erection as he found a condom in the bedside table and rolled it on. What he saw in her eyes mirrored the need pounding blood through his veins.
She widened her legs, exposing her glistening sex.
He had to have her. “You’re always taunting me with that beautiful ass of yours. Turn over and let me see it, princess.”
A hint of irritation sparked in her eyes. She didn’t like it when he called her princess, but when he did, she became even more fiery in bed.
Alexa went to her hands and knees. She looked over her shoulder and swayed her hips. “Is this where you want me, Raphael?”
On the other hand, if she was able to get pissed over him calling her princess in the midst of having sex, he wasn’t working hard enough. Rafe crawled up behind her. He caressed the curve of her butt and leisurely slid his finger inside of her sex. “Should we stop now and sort out what names to call each other?”
“Are you kidding me?” She arched up and pushed back on his hand. “No. Later.”
He worked two fingers in and out of her swollen sex. Each glide in became easier as she grew more aroused. “Are you sure we shouldn’t stop?”
Alexa fell forward and buried her moans in the pillow. “You’re not playing fair, and you know it.”
He leaned over and nipped her ear with his teeth. “Maybe I’ll give you a chance to pay me back.”
The sound of chimes tore through the sexual haze. Alexa glanced at her purse on the floor near the door. Her cell rang inside of it.
Who the hell was calling her now? The question was lost as she pushed back and squeezed around his fingers, trying to speed up her climax. She was rushing him? Not happening.
He stopped and moved away.
“No…” she wailed.
He came in from behind and fed his cock into her sex. Slowly. Her slick heat clamped around him as he pulled out even slower. He did it again and again. Sweat trickled down his spine. Each sensual, tortuous glide dragged over his aching cock. The self-imposed agony of his balls drawing up tight was worth it just to see Alexa writhing under him on the brink of an orgasm.
Not yet, princess. If she was only going to allow him twenty minutes to enjoy this, he was riding every minute of it out. No matter how much her sweet, satiny heat battered his control. Her body quivered with his next glide in. Yes. A few more thrusts like that and she’d be chanting his name.
Her phone buzzed again.
She stopped moving her hips, and her concentration shifted to her purse.
Was she actually thinking about answering the damn thing? This was hi
s time.
A growl of frustration tore out of him, and he bucked his hips. Fucked. Up. Timing. Whoever it was would have to wait. “Are you still with me, princess?”
“Yes…yes.” Alexa hastily dragged a pillow under her hips.
“Then show me.” He slammed in balls deep as she rocked back to meet him.
“Yes. Like that. More. I need more.” Her cries joined the rhythmic slap of skin.
His cell rattled on the nightstand with an incoming call. Alexa’s soft pussy squeezing around him obliterated the distraction. Tingles danced down his spine. His balls grew tighter. The pull of pleasure drew him into her over and over again, spurring him to thrust faster.
She screamed out her climax, and he came soon after. It took almost everything from him.
Alexa collapsed on the bed.
He pinned her to the mattress and ground his hips against her luscious ass, prolonging their pleasure. The rush of release faded, but his heart still pounded in his ears.
Their quick breathing synced into a steady in-and-out rhythm.
He lifted up onto his elbows, relieving her of most of his weight.
She snuggled into the pillow.
He kissed her nape. “You okay?”
“Mmm…yes.”
Both of their cells sounded off.
She squirmed underneath him. “I better go. That’s probably my assistant wondering where I am.”
He gathered the strength to roll off her.
She got up, snagged her purse from the floor, and hurried into the bathroom.
He blew out a slow breath. Every time she left him like this, it felt wrong. Probably because in the past, with other women, he was the one getting up to leave.
She came out of the bathroom talking on her cell. Except for a few faint wrinkles in her clothes, she looked just as proper as she’d been when she’d come in. No sign at all that he’d touched her or even made an impact. He breathed away irritation, walked into the bathroom, and disposed of the condom in the trash. After a quick clean up, he wrapped a towel around his waist and walked back out.
As Alexa slipped on her shoes, the emptiness that usually came after she left crept over him. He didn’t want this feeling. He’d never needed to keep someone close. What was different about her?
