“Fuck,” he whispered after breaking our kiss. His eyes pinned me as frenzied need gripped hold. My hands shot to his chest, dying to touch his hard, rippled flesh.
He used his knee and nudged my legs apart. I gasped as he brought both his hands to my ass and lifted me up into the air.
I wrapped my arms around his neck and tilted my head back as he planted kisses on my throat. A moan escaped my lips, and he laid me on the bed.
His eyes darted to mine as he kneeled on the floor, and I propped myself up on my elbows. I stared at his hardened features as he started with my zipper and tugged at my jeans. He worked them off, leaving me only in pink panties. I luxuriated under his gaze.
He lifted my leg and kissed my ankle before his hands slipped up my legs, massaging and kneading my flesh as he kissed my skin, making my body sizzle.
I wanted to touch him, too—his arousal was obvious—but he was teasing and taunting me with his hands and lips. And then his face came close to my inner thigh and my hips bucked. I shifted back, my head hitting the bed as he tore the thin fabric of my underwear and replaced it with his mouth.
I gripped the sheets. I’d completely forgotten what it felt like to have a man there.
And oh God, was Connor an expert—the memories of our past times together played through my mind, the music from the other room serving as my own personal soundtrack.
Just when I was on the brink of coming, Connor was off me and removing his jeans and boxers. My body was shaking with need as he mounted me. I reached for him, wanting to feel him the way he’d touched me. His body arched when my hand closed around him. He lowered his head to my ear, and his breath flowed over me, driving me crazy. I bit into his shoulder, trying to keep myself from yelping as he removed my hand from him, sheathed himself with a condom, and worked himself into me. Filling me.
The void had been there for over ten years—waiting for him, ever since he left. I writhed beneath him, savoring the sensation of him inside me. We’re going to do this forever. Every day. And every night. That’s what Connor said to me after our first time together, after claiming my virginity.
I shut my eyes, hating myself for remembering.
My body jerked up as he moved out and back into me again; it gripped me back to reality, to the pleasure of the moment.
My nipples grazed his chest, and my body lined in goosebumps as he moved faster and faster; my hands clawed at the sheets as he throbbed inside me.
But then he stopped. My eyes widened, panicked. I was so close . . . no . . .
He shifted off me and to his back before pulling me up and on top of him.
Oh. He remembered. I positioned over him and pressed my hands to his chest. I sunk down, sheathing his length and began to rock, swaying my hips back and forth. His eyes glinted, his jaw tightened, and I could tell he was trying hard to hang on as I grinded and moved against him, the friction pushing me to the edge.
I tried to swallow back my emotions, but they fed into my desire.
His hands moved up and down my outer thighs, blazing trails of fire on my skin with each movement.
“Oh . . .” My core tightened, my sex clenched, and I sank on top of him as my body exploded with orgasm. His eyes squeezed shut as he held my hips. His body tensed and he shuddered beneath me.
I nuzzled my face against his chest, inhaling his piney cologne, and then slipped off of him. But he pulled me against him. His arm banded around my hip, holding me tight. You’re mine, Liv. Forever mine. The memory of what we once had rushed back into my mind with a painful blow.
Despite the confusion, the lies, and the fear—I felt safe.
But when I woke up an hour later, he was gone.
Connor
I rested my head against my steering wheel and tried to make sense of what in the hell had happened. What should never have happened.
I remembered the first time we were together. I hadn’t known she was a virgin. She’d held that from me until I was buried deep inside her, and the realization of what I’d done, what I’d taken from her, hit me.
She didn’t want me to know, she had said. She hadn’t wanted me to take it easy on her. She told me she had wanted me: Sexy. Hungry. And wild. She was amazing then, and God, was she still incredible now.
My body stirred again at the thought.
I needed to go. She and I would never work. Our past was too messed up, and our present was just as complicated.
Perhaps we had satiated our need for each other. Perhaps now we could move on. But part of me wasn’t sure if that’d be possible.
I gripped my steering wheel harder, hoping to control myself, but before I knew it, I was back inside the elevator of her building.
A woman clad in black leather pants and a tight gold top shot me an “I want you” look as we rode in the elevator together. Did I give off some vibe, or was I still hard from thoughts of Olivia? I ignored the woman and hurried away the second the doors peeled open.
I balled my hands into fists at my sides and stood outside Olivia’s door. I had turned the lock on my way out, worried about her safety, and she was probably asleep inside. She may not have even realized I’d left.
I needed to leave. To go home.
But I couldn’t.
Instead, I rang the bell, knowing she wouldn’t hear a knock if she were asleep. Plus, I could still hear the faint sound of music from inside.
After a painfully long minute, the door opened. Olivia stood before me in a full-length, creamy silk robe. Her hair was draped over one shoulder, and her mascara was smudged beneath her eyes, which made her look even sexier.
“What are you—”
I moved into her apartment, shoved the door shut behind me and cupped her cheeks with both my hands as I cut her off with my mouth.
She broke the kiss and stepped back. “You left.” She steadied her eyes on mine. There was pain there. “Again.”
“I’m sorry. I thought I should leave. I’ve been sitting in my car for twenty minutes and couldn’t even turn on the engine.”
“I don’t want to sleep alone tonight,” she said softly. And my control was shattered as her hands slipped to the knot of her robe. My hand seized her waist, and I pulled her tight body against mine.
“What do you want?” I rasped, still beholding her eyes.
“You.” She pulled her bottom lip into her mouth as her robe fell to the floor.
My hand shot to her stomach and trailed down to her center, which was still soaking wet. “I’m going to lose my damn mind,” I whispered into her ear as I stroked her soft flesh.
She bucked against my hand, and I pinned her back to the wall in the hallway. She tilted her head back, a moan escaping from her mouth. “I love you like this. Wet. Ready for me.”
I felt her shudder against me as her fingertips gripped my shoulders. “Not yet. I don’t want to come yet. Please.”
I nipped her bottom lip before kissing her again, but kept my hand between her thighs, wanting nothing more than to feel her lose control.
My hand pinched her nipple as I continued to torment her. Soon, she was panting. Begging for release.
“Connor, please. Oh, yes . . .”
She clung to my body as she came, and I pressed my lips to her ear.
“I want you back in the bathroom where we started the other night.” My voice was rough, because I could barely contain my need to be back inside her again. I don’t know if I’d ever satisfy my need for her, but I knew how the story would end.
One of us would get hurt.
Shit, I couldn’t think about it. All I wanted to think about was how I was going to make her scream my name.
I followed her into her bedroom, watching her body move with grace. She had no shame in her nakedness, her narrow waist, her perfect hips, her ass, which I wanted to sink my teeth into . . .
She entered the bathroom, dimmed the lights, and turned on the shower. I hastily stripped out of my clothes and joined her beneath the spray. She tilted her head back,
allowing the water to pour over her. “My turn,” she said before lowering herself in front of me.
I braced myself against the walls and looked down at her as she took me into her mouth. My muscles went taut, and my stomach tightened as she pumped me with her fist while she sucked.
I wanted this, but I wanted to be inside of her more. “Stop.” I touched her shoulder, and she looked up at me. “Stand up,” I said, and my voice sounded like a command.
“I’m not done,” she said while continuing to caress me, making it hard for me to think.
“I need to feel you again.” I groaned. “Be inside you.”
Her lips parted, and she gifted me with her dimples before pushing up to her feet.
I lifted her up and buried myself deep inside her. With her legs wrapped tight around my hips, I braced one wall, holding on to her with the other. She shimmied up and down until the sensation had me reeling.
Shower sex is delicious, but also—realistically—a challenge. She slipped off me and released a deep, sobering laugh. “Are we getting older, or was it always this difficult?”
I was pretty sure at that moment, watching Olivia laugh and smile, I was about the happiest I’d been in a long time. I angled my head and just stared at her for a moment, fascinated that someone could be so beautiful.
The lies and the pain were gone in that moment. I refused to allow them to suffocate me, at least for tonight.
“Tonight, Liv . . . tonight, you’re mine.”
19
Olivia
Blake had already called my phone three times that morning. I was grateful it was in the drawer in my nightstand on vibrate, but every time I heard the buzzing sound coming from my purse, it served as a quiet reminder that I was in trouble.
I was lying in bed with Connor, a man who planned on making a deal with Declan despite the fact that he worried it was illegal. And I had no idea what to do. How had it come to this?
I stared at Connor snoozing next to me, and I studied his masculine features. The sexy hard planes of his body, and the tough exterior . . . which only covered a sensitive, funny, and amazing man beneath the surface.
What really happened ten years ago? My hand slipped to my stomach, and I shut my eyes.
Connor and I hadn’t meant to get pregnant. It was a mistake, but once we learned about it, we made the commitment to each other to raise the child together. We loved each other. It made sense. But I also knew that he’d eventually find out that I lied about my age and background. I was scared he’d hate me, that he’d run from me—leave me—like my mom had, so I kept putting it off. I promised myself I’d tell him the truth, though.
But I never got the chance. His father beat me to it.
A flash of anger shot through me at the memory of Edward, but the feel of Connor’s fingers brushing my arm pulled me back to the present.
“How are you?” he asked with his sexy morning voice.
“Sore,” I said before groaning.
“You’re pretty damn flexible. Still doing yoga?” There was a hint of playfulness in his voice.
“No. Just born gifted,” I teased back, and God, did it feel good to be carefree, even just for a blissful hour.
“That’s for damn sure.” He reached for my face and tucked the hair that had fallen in front of my eyes behind my ear.
“Do you ever work?”
He laughed. “I do my best to act like I’m working, but I haven’t exactly been in the office all that much. But what will they do, fire me?”
“Good point.”
“I probably should make an appearance at some point since I plan on calling it a day around noon.” He grinned. God, his schoolboy, sheepish grin—I missed it. Missed him.
“Wait.” I touched his chest, and he placed his large hand over mine. “Don’t leave yet.”
He brought my hand to his lips and kissed my knuckles. “As much as I want to stay in this bed forever and make up for lost time, you and I both know we can’t live in a bubble. The real world will catch up with us eventually.” He smirked. “Well, maybe we can steal one more hour.” He leaned forward and kissed me, but I pulled back after a moment. “I’m not that sore, and I don’t think it’s fair to you that you’re the only one suffering. I figure one more hour. One long and good hour—we can be evenly matched. Both barely able to walk.”
I slapped his chest with my free hand and fought back the laughter. My groin ached at the thought of feeling him inside me again. “Connor?” I heard the buzzing of my cell phone again, and it was like Blake was in my ear, pulling me back to reality.
And I hated it.
“Yeah?” He touched my shoulder and kissed it. “What’s up, Liv?” He tilted his head and studied me.
I leaned into him. “I’ve missed you.” I hadn’t meant to say that. The words just came out and dangled in the air between us.
His green eyes remained on mine, but he wasn’t talking. I had no idea what he was thinking, but the silence between us was making it hard to breathe.
“I’ve missed you, too,” he said while narrowing his eyes at me, his voice drowning in seriousness now.
I looked down at my hand, which was now tucked inside Connor’s large one. “You wanna play hooky a little longer and grab breakfast with me?” What was I saying? I couldn’t afford to play pretend.
“I’ll cut out of work under one condition.”
“Oh yeah. What’s that?”
“You come to the airport with me to pick up my friend.”
I thought about it for a moment, wondering why Connor really wanted me to go with him, but I answered, “Okay.”
He tightened his hold on my hand and for some reason I asked, “What was it like being in the military?” I was still having a hard time picturing my laid-back ex-boyfriend being a Marine.
His attention darted to the wall, his eyes honing in near the ceiling where the pale blue paint was beginning to fade and flake. “It was interesting.”
“Interesting?” I smirked. “Only you would describe it like that.” I pressed my head back into the pillow, but my hand remained in his.
He glanced at me out of the corner of his eye, and his lips pushed into a smile. “I met a lot of good people there. I feel like I have a lot of brothers now, not just Mason.”
“Oh yeah? Tell me about them.” I don’t know why I was probing, but for some reason, it made me feel at ease learning about the man Connor had become.
“Well, my friend Michael Maddox is the glue. He keeps us in check.” He laughed a little. “But he’s intense. Better now that he’s found someone—well, unless anything or anyone bothers his wife, and then he’s like the Hulk.”
I giggled. Like a real, girly-girl-giggle. I pressed my free hand to my mouth in surprise at the sound of the strange noise I’d made. Where had that come from?
“You met Ben in Vegas. And Aiden, well, he’s this crazy Irish guy that we keep around because he’s cool shit.”
“Who’s coming today? Is he military?” How could Connor be ex-military and friends with all these Marines—and still make a deal with Declan? There had to be more to the story. I wasn’t buying it. The more I thought about it, the more I realized something had to be up Connor’s sleeve. Of course that had to be the case, there was always more to Connor than meets the eye.
“You’ll be meeting Jake. Women love Jake. He’s got this whole Southern gentleman thing that they go nuts over. He’s like a thirty-four-year-old Clint Eastwood—or maybe Eastwood’s son.”
I fanned my face with my free hand. “Oh. Can’t wait to meet him.”
I gasped as Connor playfully yanked me on top of him in one quick movement. God, he was strong. “I’m not sharing you.” He sucked in a breath at the realization of his words, and I think we both wanted to pretend neither of us heard his comment because we both knew we were reliving the past—and there could never be a future for us.
Our current bubble was a breakable one. If I blinked, it’d shatter.
My pa
lms were on each side of him on the bed, supporting my weight above his body. He pushed the hair off my face and held my face in his hands. “Did I ever tell you what made me realize you were the one the night we met?”
I gulped and shook my head no.
“Well, I spotted you at the club earlier in the night, before our eyes locked at the bar. You were lounging in a VIP booth by yourself, and you were reading a book. I was in shock. A, I couldn’t believe you were reading a book at a club, and b, you were reading a book in pretty shitty lighting. I had this whole pick-up line ready. I was going to talk about offering you a light or something terribly lame.” I smiled down at him, wishing for a minute I could be nineteen again. To be innocent. To have my sister back.
“Just when I was about to approach you some other guy beat me to it. I stopped a few feet away and listened. I was prepared to rescue you from his horrible attempt at picking you up—I’m pretty sure his line was far worse than mine—but the way you handled yourself impressed the hell out of me. You were so quick and witty. I’m sure the guy forgot to speak by the time you were done with him. And after he walked away, I knew I was done for. I had to be with you.”
I couldn’t believe he never told me that before. “How come you didn’t approach me then? Why didn’t you try out your line?”
He guffawed as his hands slipped to my shoulders. “You think I wanted to suffer the same humiliation as that poor guy? No, I waited. I plotted. But when I caught you looking at me at the bar while I was with my friends, I scrapped the plan and—”
“Failed.”
A smile broke to his lips. “And failed. And failed . . .”
“Until I was so sick of you asking me out I gave in.” I rolled off him and to his side. “Do you wish you gave up?”
He was quiet for a moment. “Everything happens for a reason, Liv.”
“I guess.” I rose from the bed and stood up. He propped his hands behind his head and just stared at me. His hard naked body only covered by a small scrap of sheet draped just over his groin—his corded tanned thighs, hard abs—he was a delicious sight. “What are you looking at?” I glanced down at my naked body and back up at him.
The Hidden Truths Series Box Set Page 61
