The Moth and the Flame (When Rivals Play Book 2)

by B. B. Reid

  “Lou?” I called as I pushed open the guest room door. I stopped short when I saw her cuddled under the blankets. For a second, not wanting a repeat of her episode back at that motel, I considered turning around and eating alone. I’d thrown some steaks on the grill while she showered, figuring she’d be hungry. There was no telling when she’d last eaten. With that thought, I crept to her bedside and called her name again. She needed to eat. When she didn’t awaken, I pressed my hand on her arm and shook her. “Lou.”

  Her eyes cracked open a tiny bit, and seeing it was me, she immediately closed them again. “Go away,” she whined irritably before turning over and giving me her back.

  “Come eat.”

  “Sleeping,” she replied as if I couldn’t see that.

  “I made steaks,” I told her, thinking it would entice her. Lou loved steak, probably more than I did. She didn’t respond, however, and when I heard her breathing deepen, I knew she’d fallen asleep again. Feeling my patience thinning, I decided to take matters into my own hands and gripped the blanket covering her. Before I could even consider the consequences, I gave it a hard yank until it left the bed completely.

  Lou’s eyes popped open at the same time the quilt fell from my hand and into a heap on the floor.

  Shit.

  Shit. Fuck. No. Shit.

  I wasn’t prepared. I felt like I’d swallowed my tongue. I’d seen Lou in various stages of undress before, but never had she been bared to me so completely. The curve of her ass alone had my heart beating dangerously out of control.

  Before I could get the hell out of there, she sat up in the bed with her arms crossed over her ample chest. My mouth watered at the glimpse I got of her hard nipples.

  “Why did you do that?” she shrieked.

  “Where the fuck are your clothes?” I bellowed rather than answer her. Neither of us was right in this situation. I shouldn’t have taken liberties, and she shouldn’t have been naked.

  Not when the last thread of my control was this frayed.

  “Excuse me? I was covered and not to mention alone!” She then stood on her knees as if forgetting she was naked, and my gaze was drawn lower to her taut belly and bare pussy.

  Jesus, her pussy. I wanted to reach out and feel if she was as soft there as she was everywhere else but knew it was out of the question.

  “Why the hell did you come barging in here anyway?” she continued to scream. “Didn’t your dear ol’ nana teach you to knock?”

  I stepped forward, itching to get my hands on her and shut her up one way or another when my short-circuiting brain got an idea.

  Stomping out of the room without a word, I quickly found what I needed and returned less than a minute later. I was surprised to find even after all of her bitching that Lou hadn’t taken the opportunity while I was gone to cover up. Instead, she now sat on her calves with her arms still crossed over her breasts and nothing hiding the rest of her from me.

  My gaze narrowed wondering what game she was playing while hers widened with innocence. When I held out the pink cotton nightgown that would cover her from neck to ankles, she looked anything but innocent.

  “Please tell me that isn’t your grandmother’s.”

  “What does it matter?” I asked, barely containing my glee over her anger.

  “It doesn’t because I’m not wearing that.”

  “Oh, yes, you are.”

  I stalked across the room, and she must have seen the determination in my eyes because she quickly scrambled across the bed to get away. Whenever I went right, she went left, and it went on for five minutes until she somehow slipped by me and ran screaming from the room. I was hot on her heels and at an advantage because she had no idea where she was going and ended up cornered in the den. She was breathing hard while I blocked the entryway, calm as ever with the gown clutched in my fist.

  “Come here.” I pointed to the floor in front of me, and she lifted her chin.

  “Come and get me.”

  Her voice sounded husky and sensual, and I bared my teeth. She was starting to look like a tasty treat, and I was damned hungry.

  “You’ll be sorry,” I warned her.

  “I bet I won’t.”

  She grinned as I took a cautious step inside while she stood perfectly still with her hands clasped behind her back. I could see all of her, and more and more, it was becoming harder to tell who the predator was and who was the prey.

  “I know what you’re doing,” I said as I began to circle her, drawing closer each time.

  She never bothered to run even though her path to the exit was wide open. It didn’t matter since we both knew I’d catch her long before she made it to the door.

  “What am I doing?”

  “You’re trying to get me to fuck you,” I whispered in her ear. She shivered at my closeness while I pressed my finger gently under her chin and lifted her gaze to meet mine. “That’s never going to happen.”

  It was a lie that I’d told myself many times, but this time, with my cock hard enough to cut a diamond pressed against her naked hip, it was impossible to believe.

  Especially when she said, “Then maybe I’ll fuck you.”

  I froze, and it gave her the opening she needed.

  Lou bolted for the door, but even in my shock, she still wasn’t quick enough. Or maybe I was just that determined not to let her get away. The moment my arm locked around her waist, the fight left her body, and she relaxed against me. My cock pressed against her ass, and I knew then that there was no other place she belonged. Cursing her, I tossed her over my shoulder, and my long strides carried us from the room and down the hallway.

  To my room.

  Storming across the threshold, I angrily tossed Lou on my bed, and her bouncing tits caught my eye as she stared up at me in nervous excitement. My mouth watered at just the thought of sucking her nipples until they were tender and swollen and she was writhing, begging to be full of me, but I didn’t allow myself to stare too long. Grabbing her hip, I flipped her onto her stomach and admired the slender slope of her back.

  “Wait,” she said suddenly panicking. “What are you—”

  My palm striking her ass cut her off, and she cried out in shock. “Shut up.”

  I then stepped away before I could be tempted to do it again. Lou had been begging to have her pert little ass spanked. What was one more indulgence?

  Cursing again, I retreated until my back was pressed against the wall, and I closed my eyes. I wanted to fuck Lou more than I wanted to live, but Lou had become the very air I breathed. Without her, I was nothing. If I kept her innocence intact, I might stand a chance when she found out what I did five years ago.

  I didn’t hear Lou get up from the bed, didn’t hear her coming until I felt her warm body pressed against mine and her tiny hands resting on my shoulders, easing the tension from them. My eyes opened, and without a second thought, I grabbed her waist and was amazed at how well she fit in my hands. She was slim with subtle curves—much more than she’d had when I met her. Without a doubt, I wouldn’t mind feeling her with more, but sadly, it wouldn’t matter if she were built like a wall or a brick house. She had the power to humble me with the bat of an eyelash. Whenever I was with her, I was little more than a thirteen-year-old boy seconds away from ruining a good pair of jeans.

  “Why won’t you make love to me?”

  I licked my lips, and her own parted when it drew her gaze to them. “Because you think you can handle me, but you can’t. I won’t lay you down and stare lovingly into your eyes while I take you. I’ll bend you over, Lou. I’ll pop your fucking cherry and steal your every waking thought when I’m done.” Leaning down, I growled in her ear. “Is that what you’re asking me to do?”

  She didn’t respond. For the first time since meeting her two and a half years ago, she’d chosen silence. I knew better than to mistake it for compliance, though. Behind those baby blues, she wasn’t considering surrender. She was plotting mine.

  “I won’t be gent
le,” I pressed almost desperately. “You know I won’t.”

  She lifted her hand and palmed my cheek while her eyes lit with understanding. “Maybe that’s why I chose you.”

  “Louchana…I’ll ruin you.”

  “Good. I want to be bad.” She stood on her tiptoes and said, “I want to be yours.” I felt her teeth nip my ear, and the last thread of my control snapped.

  “Yeah?” I asked her, and she eagerly nodded, missing the danger in my tone. “Go to my bed.”

  She paused as if surprised by my surrender or afraid. Maybe it was both. Regardless of the reason, I lost it.

  “Goddamn it, Lou!”

  She cried out when I gripped her hair in one hand and dug my fingers in her hips with the other.

  “There’s no time to think long and hard, little Valentine. I’m long and hard for you right now.”

  I was sure she knew that by now. The evidence pressed against her belly, and I could tell by her trembling that she was intimated. Perhaps she was realizing for the first time that she was out of her depth. I wished like hell it wasn’t too late to turn back, but I was too far gone to care about right or wrong.

  The only person who could stop this now was her.

  And a moment later, she did.

  “Why are you doing this?” she tearfully demanded.

  Pushing her away, I took a deep breath. “Because I’m no good for you, and now you know it, too.”

  Her nostrils flared as she hugged herself, and I could only imagine how vulnerable she felt right now. “The only thing I know is that you’re afraid. Maybe even more than me.”

  Stalking over to my dresser, I found a clean white T-shirt, and she didn’t fight me this time when I slipped it over her head. The minute she was covered, I felt my control renew.

  “Get in the bed.”

  She hurried to do what I ordered, and I watched her crawl under the covers. The way she pulled them up to her chin, I knew she wouldn’t be changing her mind about sex. At least not tonight. Leaning over, I kissed her forehead, the only placed she allowed me access before heading for the door.

  Last night, after I left Lou alone in my bed, I’d gotten into my grandmother’s gin, and after finishing half the bottle, I passed out on the couch. This morning, as my head threatened to split in two, I realized I was doomed to suffer the consequences of last night.

  I’d been a dick and an idiot, but at least Lou was still a virgin. My conscience was clear even if my balls weren’t. I couldn’t even be bothered to beat my dick knowing it would never be enough. So I’d gone to sleep hard, drunk, and utterly pathetic. I had hoped for escape, but all I did was dream about taking what she so naïvely had offered.

  Groaning, I tried to sit up but quickly realized there was a weight on my chest keeping me down. It took some effort to get my eyes open. Sleep clouded my vision, and the room spun, but I still recognized Lou’s dark head of hair and her hand resting on my chest. Her leg was hooked around my thigh causing my T-shirt she wore to bunch around her waist. My hand found her bare ass, and the moment I felt her warm, soft skin, I was up and at ’em. My hangover forgotten as well as my honor, I allowed my fingers to slip over the curve of her ass and down to her thigh. I didn’t stop. Her heat became searing the closer my fingers got to her pussy, and I licked my dry lips anticipating finding her wet and ready for me.

  I’d only just grazed her swollen lips and felt the wetness pooling there when I heard, “Morning, bestie.”

  Those words were like a bucket of ice water, and I was grateful for them. I’d been so preoccupied with touching Lou that I hadn’t noticed she had awakened. I’d almost—

  My throat felt clogged when I tried to speak, so I cleared it and tried again. “What are you doing here?”

  She smiled and stretched lazily. “Getting groped by you in my sleep, apparently.”

  I shot to my feet, and she yelped as she tumbled to the floor. I immediately held out my hand to help her, and she glared at me before shoving it away and standing.

  We stared at each other, neither of us willing to say what we were thinking until I broke the silence. “I’ll make coffee.”

  She nodded and looked away, and when I found the courage to look over my shoulder, she was gone. I was pouring coffee into two of my grandmother’s mugs when she returned, clutching her rucksack. I almost lost my grip on the coffee pot when panic set in. Was she leaving? Had I gone too far?

  “You’re not leaving.”

  Her brows drew together, confusion marking her pretty face. “I’m not leaving,” she confirmed. “But I do need to do laundry.”

  It was my turn to frown. “You’ve only been gone four days.”

  “I packed light.” She then dropped her bag on the counter and grabbed one of the steaming mugs.

  I sat down and watched her sip at the coffee with a look of pleasure. I wanted more than anything to keep that expression on her face. I’d work tirelessly for hours, all night if I had to.

  “I’m glad to know you’re good for something,” she praised, chasing away my thoughts.

  You have no idea. “I didn’t think you were going back,” I said, referring to the Hendersons.

  “I wasn’t,” she admitted casually. “I was trying to find you so we could run away together.” She winked, and though her tone was playful, I knew she was completely serious.

  “I would have,” I blurted unwisely. It was the first honest thing I’d said in a while. “I would have run away with you.” I had no idea where we’d go or what we’d do, but I would have taken us far away from the city and the people that had stolen so much from us already. And consequently, I would have spent the rest of my life running from my past and hers.

  She had no idea how deeply they were entwined.

  Our gazes connected over her coffee mug, and I had the feeling she was as lost in mine as I was in hers. “I know.”

  Nodding, I took a quick sip of my coffee before stepping around the island and grabbing her bag. “Come on.”

  She followed me to the laundry room where I watched her dump a week’s worth of clothes inside the machine without bothering to separate them. When she reached for the bleach instead of detergent, I quickly stepped in.

  “Jesus, Lou! You’re going to ruin your clothes.” I removed the white T-shirt she’d shoved inside with a pair of red jeans. “Haven’t you ever done laundry?”

  “Of course, I have. I’m just a little distracted by your hovering.”

  Shaking my head, I nudged her aside and took over while she hopped on the dryer and began swinging her legs. I could feel her studying me, and after last night and this morning, I was wary of what she might be thinking. Knowing Lou, she was devising a plan to get what she wanted from me.

  “What?” I growled when the heat from her stare grew too intense.

  Her eyebrow lifted when I met her gaze. “You’re really grumpy this morning. You know that?”

  I didn’t respond as I started the machine and then fled. Of course, I was irritable. My balls were full.

  “Do you want to talk about last night?” she inquired shyly as she trailed me back to the kitchen.

  “No.”

  “I’m sorry I didn’t—”

  I turned on her before she could finish, and she stared back at me wide-eyed. “Don’t you dare apologize to me. I’m the one who knew better.”

  “But I—”

  “You weren’t ready.”

  Her gaze hardened before she closed the distance between us and pressed her breasts against my chest. I could feel her hard nipples poking through my T-shirt that she still wore—and nothing else.

  “I’m sure it seemed that way when you were scaring me on purpose.”

  “And if you were ready to be fucked, Lou, I wouldn’t have succeeded.”

  “You were a dick, and you hurt me. Are you telling me women like that?”

  I shrugged and turned away. “Some do.”

  She huffed and crossed her arms. “Well, I don’t.”
r />   I laughed and shoved aside the need to prove her wrong. “You don’t know what you like, Lou. You haven’t had a chance to find out.”

  “Gee,” she retorted sarcastically, “I wonder why.”

  “Because you’re not mine to take.”

  “I think that’s my decision.”

  “And mine,” I told her with a smug smile. “Since it takes two to tango.”

  She quickly wiped the smirk off my face, however, when she turned for the stairs and threw over her shoulder. “Not really.”

  AS EXPECTED, WREN WAS TOO smart to follow me upstairs after I dropped that bomb and walked away, but that didn’t mean he stayed away. An hour later, I was beginning to doze off from sheer boredom when he walked into the guest room with an arm full of my freshly washed clothes and snarled at me to get dressed. He’d taken a shower and put on black jeans and a matching black long-sleeve shirt that hugged his chest. If it were his mission to torture me, he had certainly succeeded. The clothes paired with his dangerous natural magnetism made him seem more unattainable than ever.

  Before he could escape, I stood and pulled his T-shirt over my head, not feeling as shy as I might have been before last night. To my surprise, he didn’t turn away. He leaned against the wall near the door and let his eyes roam every inch. He’d probably assumed I’d back down as I had last night, but the joke would be on him. I had too much riding on his surrender.

  I let my gaze drop and didn’t have to question if he liked what he saw. Seeing him this way pushed aside the urge to cover myself. “You still want me to get dressed?” I asked him with more confidence than I felt.

  “No…but I need you to.” He swallowed hard. “Please.”

  “And what about what I need?”

  I didn’t give him a chance to respond before I sank back onto the bed. I wasn’t sure how far I was willing to go in my seduction, but we were both about to find out. Together.

  I parted my legs. Slowly. So slow that he could have stopped me before it was too late, but he didn’t. He watched as I opened myself to him, and when I was done, he devoured me with his eyes. They were so blue that for a moment, I was startled, and left trembling in the wake of his emotions. Lifting my hand, I wanted to show him just how close to the edge he’d pushed me, but not quite having the courage, I placed my hand on my knee instead.