by Amy Brent
We stumbled into a room and I pushed her up against the nearest wall before pulling back enough to meet her eyes. They were like twin green fires, burning me up where I stood.
"We probably shouldn't," I mumbled the words and Quinn nodded in agreement, but her hands never stopped moving as they tugged furiously at the button of my jeans.
“You’re right, we probably shouldn’t.”
It didn’t stop either of us.
***
Quinn
What is it about this man that drives me so crazy? I can’t control myself when I’m around him. It was just a background thought, barely registering past the need that burned through me. That was all I could focus on. It threatened to overwhelm me.
It had only been a few days since we’d spent the night at his apartment but it felt like an eternity since I’d felt Leo’s hard body beneath mind. And on top of mine, and inside mine.
I shrugged off the thought. It didn't matter. I needed him. That was the only thing that I could pay attention to. The all-consuming need for him. It was like an ache deep inside me and I knew that there was only one thing that could satisfy it.
“Leo, help me. I can’t get these damn jeans off. Are they superglued or something?” I muttered the words through panting breaths, struggling with the closure and Leo chuckled warm and deep in his throat before reaching down and stilling my trembling hands.
“Slow down a minute, sunshine. I’m not going anywhere.” His whispered words hit me harder than I would have imagined. Because I knew he just meant right then, right there in that moment. But one day, probably sooner rather than later, he would be gone. I shook off the thought. I didn’t want to think about that now. Now, I had more pressing matters to attend to. Like the burning need growing into a wildfire inside me.
I shot him a wicked, hungry look and saw the answering desire in his dark eyes. “I don’t want to slow down. I want it fast and hard. Got it?”
"Yes, Ma'am." Leo said with a grin, "Your wish is my command."
He was kissing me then, hard and fast, just like I had asked and it was just as delicious as I’d known it would be. He pushed my struggling fingers away, quickly popping open the button and sliding down the zipper of his jeans before shrugging his pants and boxers down his hips.
My shorts were next and he made quick work of those too until we were both a tangle of arms and legs, panting breaths and needy moans.
“Now, Leo. I don’t want to wait.”
He didn't either. I could see the strain on his face, in the tightness of his jaw. But he still waited, taking the time to sweep one hand in between my shaking thighs, dipping into my wetness to make sure I was ready for him. We both groaned as one finger slipped easily inside me. He added a second, stretching me, teasing me.
"I swear to god, Leo. I can't wait. Take me right now, right this minute or I'll–." My words cut off with a cry of pleasure as he lifted my legs around his waist and sank deep inside me in one quick movement.
It stole my breath away. The feeling of being completely filled by him. Every inch of his hard cock was as deep as it could go and at that angle, he hit every hypersensitive nerve ending as he pulled back just enough to ram deep once more.
The wall was cool at my back and his hands were rough on my thighs where he held me in place. There was nowhere I could go. All I could do was cling to him and take everything he could give me. Hard and fast, his thick cock slammed inside me, spreading my thighs wide and brushing my clit every time our bodies met. It was everything I needed. It was perfect.
“That’s it, sunshine,” Leo growled harshly against the curve of my neck as his strong body worked in and out of mine. “Take it all. Take every inch of my cock. That’s it. Just like that.”
I could barely hear his words over the sound of my cries but I could feel every wicked syllable against my skin and it had chills racing down my spine straight to my pussy. The chills grew, bigger and bigger, each one rippling over the next as my orgasm tore through me like a summer storm.
It lasted forever, lightning and thunder flashing behind my eyelids as Leo continued to fill me with his cock, feeling the way my body tightened possessively around his, trying to hold him in place as pleasure wracked me.
A sound overhead tried to catch my attention but I was so lost in the sensations Leo had wrought in my body that I didn’t notice until it was too late. A moment later, a pile of loose plaster covered us both as a part of the ceiling above us disintegrated and a cloud of plaster dust filled the room.
We both froze, confusion filling me as my satisfied body warred with my questioning mind. Slowly, Leo pulled back, letting my legs drop to the floor but I had to lean against the wall for a long moment before I was confident I could stand on my own with melting into a pool of jelly on the floor.
I looked around in disbelief at the new hole above our heads and then back at Leo. He looked like a ghost, his hair and face was completely covered in plaster and bits of the stuff clung to his shoulders. I could only imagine how I looked. Probably just as ridiculous.
I could feel the grin breaking across my face at the same time laughter burst from Leo’s mouth. A moment later we were both laughing helplessly until I had to wipe tears from my eyes. It didn’t help that I could feel the dirt and plaster dust smearing across my face.
“You are a mess.” Leo finally said, pulling up his jeans and re-buttoning them before helping me do the same with my shorts. His hand skimmed the skin of my hips as he did, sending another wave of pleasure through my hypersensitive body and I shivered. He noticed. I could tell by the way eyes grew even darker.
"Speak for yourself," I managed to get out, even though my voice was more breathless than I would have liked. I ruffled his dark hair, now white with dust and it sent another cloud of it rustling lose.
“We can’t let Jonah know what’s going on between us,” I said suddenly and Leo let out a deep sigh.
“No, we can’t.”
“I’m serious. He’ll kill you.”
"I know," Leo said simply before leaning forward and giving me a soft kiss. It shook more dust free and we both ended up coughing and laughing again. But in the back of my mind, I was still worried. I knew just exactly how crazy Jonah had been about my previous boyfriends, and none of those had been serious.
What makes you think this is serious, a soft voice whispered in my thoughts by I ignored it as I tried to clean myself off as best as I could, examining the damage we’d just done to the plaster overhead.
It seemed pretty hopeless. Bits of plaster and duster were everywhere but it was fun to try and help clean off Leo. All of him. I was just considering giving it another go, maybe against a different wall when a deep, masculine voice sounded from downstairs. I shared a wide-eyed look with Leo. Oh, hell. So much for keeping us a secret.
Chapter 11
Quinn
Fear spiked through me thick and potent as my shocked gaze met Leo’s.
"Damn it." He whispered, echoing my own thoughts, "Jonah?" He mouthed that last as if the bare mention of his name would be enough to conjure my overbearing brother. I shrugged, unsure. But who else would it be?
“I don’t know, just…” My mind raced for a solution to our sticky situation. “You just stay up here and I’ll go down and see what’s going on. Maybe it’s nothing and I can send him on his way.”
“Alright. Just make it quick. Don’t leave me trapped up here all day.”
We shared one last look before I turned to rush down the stairs. I was braced for the worst. It was Jonah. He’d somehow caught us together and was seconds away from murdering his best friend and then I’d have to help hide the body, that was unless he decided to just kill me right along with Leo.
We both should know better, I got that, but…there was something different about Leo. Something that made him worth the risk. You better hope so, that small, rational part of my brain murmured snidely.
That is really not helping.
Neither is sleepin
g with your brother’s best friend, even when you know how he’ll react. Even when you know he’s just going to up and leave. He’s practically said as much.
You don’t know that, I shot back. This was ridiculous. Now I was arguing with myself! And what was worse, I was losing.
"Hey! I wasn't expecting you, Jo–." I cut the word off short as I stared in surprise at the ragtag group standing in the front room of the house.
“Quinn! There you are! We were too afraid to explore this death trap– I mean house any further than the main floor.” Lily’s voice reached her from behind the small group and she politely made her way forward before giving me a quick hug before glancing at the crew behind her dubiously.
"Quinn, I'm sure you remember the Brewers, Henry, Luke and that tall one over there is Danny," Lily made the introductions and I nodded to the boys in turn. Of course, I remembered them. They all had the same reddish brown hair and freckles. We all went to high school together. Luke used to have a crush on me but he'd been too terrified by my big brother to ask me to the school dance, even after I told him I wanted to go with him.
I waited a moment for any of those old feelings to come rushing back but none did. It seemed so long ago now as if it was a different lifetime. A tiny flicker compared to the bonfire that rage inside me whenever I thought about Leo.
“Of course. Hi guys. Thanks for offering to help out.”
“Well, we didn’t exactly offer,” Henry started, shrugging uncomfortably under Lily’s stern glare, “I mean, sure. No problem Quinn. Happy to do anything we can for a friend.”
Lily nodded before continuing. “The vampire clad in all black over there is Charlotte.”
“Call me Char. Everyone does.” The goth-like girl with the nose ring and jet black dyed hair to match her wardrobe shot me a surprisingly cheerful grin and I smiled back.
"And of course you know Finn." Lily's voice faltered nearly imperceptibly as she said his name and I had to fight not to give her a sympathetic look. She'd been friends with Finn Hunter since the eighth grade, but little did he know, to Lily it was much more than friendship. She'd just never found the courage to tell him how she truly felt.
Finn was tall and good looking with a face that screamed ‘nice guy’. I almost shook my head. I never saw the charm but Lily was different. She was nice guy bait. Just not this particular nice guy. The only one she’d ever wanted to give her a second moment’s notice.
“Again, thanks everybody for lending a hand. I’ve already started in this room. I’ve made pretty good progress already–.”
Charlotte interrupted with a dubious look around the great room, “This is progress?”
I grimaced. I knew it was going to take a lot of work. I just didn’t realize exactly how bad a shape this place was in until I started digging through all the debris.
“I know it looks bad. But it’s mostly cosmetic. Once we get the carpet and rotted wood out of here, you’ll see. It’ll shape up in no time.”
“If you say so.” She said under her breath, and the rest of the crew obviously shared her reservations. But it didn’t stop any of them from rolling up their sleeves and getting to work. But before anyone could get started a new voice joined in from behind me.
“Is the coast clear?”
I jumped, spinning to see Leo creeping down the stairs, looking particularly suspicious.
"Clear of what?" Lily asked, casting a curious look from me to Leo and back again. I couldn't stop the blush that spread across my cheeks at her knowing look but luckily, she didn't say anything out loud as Leo came down the rest of the way and joined them.
I made quick introductions, finishing with a stammered, “Leo’s helping out too. He’s Jonah’s friend.”
“Uh huh.” Lily said after a moment, and I was sure she was about to say something else but instead clapped her hands together sharply startling everybody, “Well, are we going to get to work or just stand around talking all day? This place won’t clean itself.”
I let out a sigh of relief, sharing a look with Leo before grabbing a pair of gloves and jumping back in. Lily was right about one thing. The house sure as hell wasn’t going to clean itself.
***
Leo
I took a grateful sip of the cold beer as I glanced around the room. We'd made better progress this afternoon than I expected, aided mostly by Quinn's crew of friends. At some point, as the heat grew more stifling as the day went on, one of the Brewer boys, I still wasn't sure which one, went and grabbed a case of beer from the liquor store down the street and it tasted damn good after the mouthful of plaster dust that still seemed to linger.
The sound of laughter drew my attention and I found myself staring as Quinn joked with her friend. What was her name? A flower of some type. Rose? No, that wasn’t right. Lily. That was it. Lily.
She was nice, in a quiet sort of way, chatting with Quinn mostly until she offered to read my chakra and set me up with some sort of crystal thing to, what did she call it? Deepen my spiritual connection to the natural world. Uh huh. I’d politely told her no thank you, but she’d gone on anyways, telling me which chakras were cloudy or some shit. The whole-time Quinn had been standing there, hiding her laughter behind a hand as she watched me squirm in discomfort.
The noise drew my attention again and I watched the smile curve Quinn’s perfectly kissable lips, charmed despite my best intentions. In any normal situation, I knew I’d already be long gone and on to the next girl that caught my eye by now, but something about Quinn was different.
It was like she was a new drug I’d never tasted before and now I was addicted. I couldn’t get enough of her. She was in my veins. In my bloodstream and I couldn’t get her out. Hell, I didn’t even fucking want to.
I was already drooling for another taste of her, dreaming of different ways to get her alone before I went insane with wanting her.
I shook my head at myself, trying to banish the thoughts but they remained, lodged in my head and no matter what I did I couldn’t extricate them. Worry shot through me and I took another sip of the beer, trying to wash it away. Damn if that didn’t help one bit either.
That worry ate at me though, as we continued to work. Quinn was getting under my skin in a way that no woman had in a hell of a long time. Maybe ever. It should have terrified me. It should have had me running for the hills, or at the very least packing my bag and running on to the next town, the next slew of willing women.
I’m getting in too deep. The thought echoed through my mind and for a moment I gave it credence. For the hundredth time thinking about how I should just cut things off between us.
It would be better for both of us. No more sneaking around. No more hiding whatever this was from her brother, from my best friend.
Quinn’s sweet laughter drew my attention once more and I found myself wanting to grin along with the sound of it.
I’m just having fun. That’s all. It’s just fun. Now, I just had to find a way to convince myself of that.
Chapter 12
Leo
“Come on, you son of a bitch. You don’t stand a chance against me.” I growled the words, my muscles straining as my grip tightened, “You might as well just give up now. You’re mine.”
Sweat was dripping down my brow and soaking the back of my shirt but I didn’t stop until I felt the rusty bolt start to give.
"Ah Hah! One down, twenty more to go!" I crowed victoriously as I dropped the rusty piece of metal into the bucket in front of me. The door hinges may be stubborn, but they were no match for me.
It seemed like every door in the whole damned place was rusted almost beyond use and I was starting the process of taking them all down. Half of the door jambs themselves would have to be replaced but this one seemed salvageable.
Over the past few weeks, the construction on the property had gone better than anyone had first anticipated, especially me. I’d been sure it was a lost cause from the beginning but something had begun to happen, working on me as time pa
ssed.
Quinn. It’s Quinn working on you.
That’s ridiculous, I scoffed to myself, clamping the top bolt in the mouth of the wrench I was using.
Is it?
I put all my weight into moving the rusted bolt but it didn't budge. It was stuck even worse than the last one and bent at an odd angle that would make it even more difficult to get out.
It’s just this project, that’s all. Seeing something that seemed so hopeless starting to take shape through hard work and sweat. That’s all. That’s what I told myself silently as my muscled strained once more.
Riiiight. You're just here to work on the project. Sure you're not here almost every free moment you have because of the pretty green-eyed, blond haired woman that means so much to you?
I shook off the thought. What the hell else have I got to do, anyway? Why not help out a friend.
Oh, friend? Is that what Quinn is, now? A friend?
I was saved from having to answer myself by a whistle sounding behind me. I tossed a glance back over my shoulder and saw the demon of my thoughts standing there, looking sexy as hell in her short denim shorts and a tank top that clung to her body like sin. I can’t believe it, I huffed to myself in frustration, I’m jealous of a god damned tank top.
“Hey Quinn,” I forced out the words as I turned back to the rusty rod of metal and the wrench that wasn’t doing any bit of good. “How’s it going in the kitchen?”
They’d made it through the front room, repairing the hallway and what they could of the bathroom and the back room that Quinn was going to convert into an office before finally moving on to the most intimidating of the damage.
“It’s looking pretty good.” Quinn finally answered, a sweet huskiness in her voice that had my body responding instantly. How the hell did she do that? “But not nearly as good as it looks up here.”
