I exited the stall and headed for the crowded sink. There were more ladies waiting in line to look at themselves in the mirror than to actually use the restroom. What else is new? Excusing myself through, I found the sink and lathered soap over my hands. I peeked up to look in the mirror and noticed that my mascara was smeared under my eyes. Now I understood why everyone was harassing the mirror. No makeup stood a chance against the humidity and heat of the place.
I reached up and cleaned the black gunk that had gathered underneath and in the corners of my eyes. When my fingertips touched the inside of my eyes, they instantly burned, and tears formed from the lemon juice and soap still on my fingers.
“Fuck,” I cursed as more tears began to form.
“He’s not worth it,” a smoky female voice called from behind me. I turned to correct her, to tell her the tears were a result of my stupidity and not a man. With my head down so that my mascara would stop running, her name tag was the first thing I saw.
Mackenzie.
Mackenzie Adams.
Halle-freaking-lujah.
She was about five-foot-five with straight chestnut-brown hair cut into an angled bob and dark brown eyes that seemed to dominate her face. She was stunning. Breathtaking, actually. Maybe if I played my cards differently than I had with Olivia, she would help me out.
“I’m sorry,” I apologized and kept my face sad, as if I were still crying, I sniffled. Peering at her through the mirror, I continued, “Really shitty week and he just made it so much worse.”
“Don’t be silly. No man is worth our tears.” She smiled as she reached around me and pumped a small squirt of soap into her hand.
“This one is a big fucking asshole,” I informed her.
The girl in front of Mackenzie moved, so she stepped right next to me. Rinsing her hands, she looked over at me through the mirror. “Aren’t they all? I’m Mackenzie”—she pointed to her name tag—“but everyone calls me Mack.”
“Yes, they are. I’m Katherine, but everyone calls me Kat.” I laughed.
She chewed the inside of her cheek before she spoke. “Hey, I’m bartending in the back room for a bunch of stuffy older men smoking cigars. It’s nothing fancy or fun, but the tips are much better back there. If you don’t mind joining, you can vent to me about the asshole.” She smiled again after she was finished.
“Really?” Goodbye, bad week!
“Yeah.” She nodded. “Trust me, it is super boring back there, and you would be doing me a favor by chatting with me.”
“Sure.” I nodded. “Just let me send my friend a text message so he doesn’t worry that I’m gone.” I pulled my cell out of my clutch.
Me: I found Mackenzie. BRB.
Benjamin Ortiz: :)
I followed Mackenzie out of the bathroom and through the crowd. She led me to the entrance and turned down a long hallway connecting the warehouse-like club to a cigar bar. Pushing the glass door open, the cloud of smoke hit me like a tidal wave. The room was small and hazy and filled with old men who sipped on Scotch and puffed on stogies. She walked behind the bar, and I took a seat in front of her.
“So, what’s your poison?” she asked, placing a white napkin in front of me.
“Jack and Coke,” I replied.
She made my drink and placed a full shot glass next to it. “Here, take this. You’re too pretty to cry.” I pulled out cash to pay her, but she stopped me. “It’s on me. I’ve been stuck with these old men all night, so trust me, you’re doing me a favor.”
“Thanks. He’s just some asshole at work who’s been pissing me off,” I said, taking the shot. “He’s such a pain and a liar. I got a nasty email from him when I was in line in the bathroom, and I guess the alcohol made me more emotional than usual.”
“Gosh, I’m sorry. Is there any way you can talk to your boss about him?” She seemed genuinely concerned about my fake problem.
“Eh, I don’t want to be that girl. I’m new there, so I don’t want to cause any trouble.” I tried covering my tracks.
“What’s his name? I can have his ass kicked,” she joked, taking my empty shot glass.
“Evan Seymour,” I said, watching her carefully. Like Olivia, her whole body transformed.
“Evan Seymour? With Allied Mortgage?” Even in the dark smoky room, I could tell she was pale.
“Oh, my God, you know him?” I fake panicked. “Oh, fuck. Please don’t tell him I called him an asshole.” I lowered my head, slamming it a couple times on my forearm and acting as best as I could.
“Listen to me, Katherine.” Placing her hands on the bar, she leaned in, her face deadly serious. “Stay away from him. You hear me? He’s trouble.”
“How so?” I questioned, hoping she would continue.
“Look, I can’t discuss that right now. It’s a long story but trust me. Stay away from him.”
“Thanks, Mack. I will,” I huffed. I needed her to be my friend. I needed her to tell me what she knew about him. I pouted and brought one hand under my chin. “I’d forgotten what it was like to talk to another woman. I just moved to the city, and my best friend is a guy.”
She took her phone out of her back pocket and handed it to me. “Enter your number. I’ll text you mine, and we can grab lunch sometime.”
“Oh, that would be great.” I took her phone and entered my cell number, then hit the send button to make sure I had hers. When I felt my clutch vibrating, I hit the end button. “Okay, I’ll save yours.”
“So, where are you from?”
“Well, I was born in Kansas City.” Her eyes shot up. Not wanting to lie to her again, I gave her the truth. “I know I’m a long way from home. My father left us when I was two years old, and my mom and I moved around a lot. She had a few husbands in between—she’s on her sixth one now. I went to Northwestern, and now I live here.” I sipped the last of my drink.
“Oh wow, your life is so much more interesting than mine,” she teased. Down the bar a gentleman flagged her down, requesting a new drink. “Let me go help him. I’ll be right back.”
“Actually, Mack, I’m going to head back.” I pointed to the exit. “My friend is probably looking for me. Thank you so much for the drink. I’ll talk to you soon?”
Mackenzie backed away from the bar and looked over to me. “Of course. I’ll call you later this week. We can meet for coffee or maybe a mani-pedi?”
I pulled a twenty out of my clutch and slid it under my empty cup. “Yes. Mani and pedi, please.” I walked out of the cigar bar and rushed back to Ben. Though I felt horrible for lying to Mackenzie, I was overjoyed with the possibility that she might have enough dirt on Evan to get a lead on the case. If it all went according to plan, I could convince her that the right thing to do was to come clean.
I took the metal stairs two at a time, not caring that I was bumping into people. When I reached Ben and Jon, the cocktail waitress had just planted two bottles of Bollinger and tequila in the ice bucket alongside some shot glasses.
“What are we celebrating?” I asked, breathless. Maybe I needed to dedicate a little more time to the gym if a few flights of stairs made me wheezy.
“You,” Jon said as he handed me the first shot glass.
“Me?” I brought my hand to my chest. “I was gone for, like, forty minutes. I didn’t do anything.”
Ben leaned over and attempted to whisper in my ear. “Thanks to you, I just got lucky in a coat closet. Now we need to find you a beau to do the same for you,” he joked, pumping his elbow into my arm.
Instantly, Cole’s proposal popped into my head. Although it scared the hell out of me, I couldn’t stop imagining myself in his bed . . . while he had his way with me . . . as his lips trailed down my body . . . unable to stop the orgasms he would give me with his fingers. His mouth. His hard—
“Cheers,” Jon said. I poured back the cold, clear liquid, swallowing and looking at Jon.
“One more.” I needed to drink away the images that kept reeling through my brain. I wanted Cole, but I c
ouldn’t have him. He was my fucking weakness. The thoughts that kept coming in spite of my decreasing sobriety weren’t helping.
Jon refilled our shot glasses. “This will give me a killer headache tomorrow,” I complained, then tossed it back. The more, the merrier.
A new song came on, and the club began to roar. “Let’s dance!” I shouted over the song. Jon and Ben nodded. I needed to press my body against random strangers, so I would stop thinking of the hazel-hued eyes that were popping in and out of my head.
The dance floor was crowded, and my body was hot from the heat of the club and all the alcohol I’d consumed. I raised my hands in the air, pumping my head to the music and pushing my body between Ben and Jon. The bass was loud enough that my legs shook from the vibration of it.
“Who’s getting fucked tonight?” the deejay roared over the microphone. I felt the ground shake as the massive crowd screamed back, roaring their response. Reaching into my clutch, I pulled out my cell to dial Hunter. Fuck it. I needed him to know that I needed to get fucked tonight, but not by just anyone. He needed to know that he was the only person I craved right then and there. I prayed he answered.
The deejay’s voice blared thorough the speakers once again, shouting at the crowd.” I can’t fucking hear you! I want to hear you scream if you want to get fucked tonight. Ready? One. Two. Three. Scream!”
I held my phone over my head after the beep for the voicemail, Jon, Ben, and I screamed at the top of our lungs into the air. Before the noise stopped, I hit the end button and dropped my phone back into my clutch. Wrapping the wristlet around my wrist, I swayed with the sweaty bodies that surrounded me. I let the beat take over my body, and I stepped side to side.
* * *
“Kat, are you sure you don’t want me to take the cab home with you?” Ben asked, holding the cab door open.
“Ben, I’m fine. Go home with Jon. Seriously, it makes no sense for you to come with me. We live on opposite sides of the park.” I leaned up and gave him a kiss on the cheek. “Go get him.”
Ben gave the cabbie my address and closed the door behind me. “’Night.”
I lifted my hand and waved as the car began to move. Leaning my woozy head on the leather seat, I watched the city that never slept pass by. The car ride was quiet except for a small vibration on the cool leather seat next to me. It stopped for a few seconds and then started again. It was a soft, quiet song that I couldn’t quite hear due to the ringing in my ears. The cab drove up Madison Avenue—I knew from the buildings we were passing that Central Park was only a block away. My heart began to race. We were near Cole’s house.
“Can you take me to Eighty-Sixth and Fifth?” I asked the cabbie. He mumbled something, but I tuned him out.
The cab stopped at a red light, and I was smacked with the sight of Cole’s building as I stared straight at his doorman. I was mere steps from the revolving door that kept me from the thing I wanted most. “You can pull over here,” I said, shoving my hand in my purse for some cash.
The cabbie pulled over, and I threw my twenty toward the front seat. If I stopped to think now, I would never do it. I walked into the bright lobby, my heels clicking against the marble floor.
Fuck. I needed him to send me the elevator. I pulled my clutch off my wrist and took out my cell. Squinting, I looked at my small screen.
Five Missed Calls?
Cole Rhodes.
I smiled at his name. He had received my message after all. Hitting the callback button, I brought my phone to my ear. It rang once before he answered.
“Hello? Katherine?” It was past two in the morning, but he sounded wide awake.
“Did I wake you?” I tried not to slur my words, but I couldn’t help my body swaying from side to side.
“No. Where are you?” His voice instantly made my body shiver with desire.
“Are you home?” I asked, avoiding his question. There was no point in telling him I was here if he was out.
“Yes. Are you okay?” His voice softened, and I bit my lower lip. It was now or never.
“Send the elevator down.”
13
Katherine
As I waited for the elevator, my heart pounded and the butterflies in my stomach made it impossible to breathe. I couldn’t walk away again. I wanted this. No, I needed this. My body was craving his. I had passed the point of no return. My mind was made up, and hell, if I felt guilt tomorrow as I did the walk of shame, then so be it.
One night.
One single night.
One night to get rid of this hunger I had for him.
The elevator dinged, and the door slid open. Bringing my hand to my chest, I attempted to hold on to my heart as it practically beat out of my chest.
Hazel eyes were the first things I saw. The sea of maple and honey held me captive. Cole leaned back against the elevator wall, one foot pressed against it, dressed in jeans, a white T-shirt, and loafers. This was the second time I’d seen him as the sexy boy next door, and I liked it. A lot.
Unable to stop myself, I sucked in my lower lip as my eyes trailed down his body. Catching me gawking without shame, a sly smirk appeared on his face as if he knew what I was thinking. I inhaled deeply before walking toward him, my heels clicking softly as I entered the elevator. Without removing the smile from his face, he moved to the adjacent wall so that we faced one another. His eyes burned through me, and I hoped mine matched his. He didn’t speak until the door closed.
“So, you want to get fucked tonight?” he asked, his conniving smile still present, his voice low and husky.
“One night,” I said, raising my index finger. “All I need is one night.”
“Just one?” he asked, crossing his arms over his chest, his biceps pushing against his cotton shirt. My nipples hardened under my bra.
“Yes,” I muttered, swallowing the knot that had formed in the back of my throat. “You can have me for one night and tomorrow we pretend it never happened.” My words slurred a little as I pointed at him to indicate my seriousness.
Cole squinted and cocked his head to the side. “Are you drunk?”
I lifted my left hand to my eyes and squinted through my index finger and thumb. “A little.”
“Are you going to run away when we get upstairs, or am I going to be able to have my way with you?” he inquired, walking toward me.
The elevator stopped. I sucked in a breath and exhaled slowly. “I’m all yours.”
The doors opened, and Cole grabbed my hand, leading me into his house. Before the elevators had a chance to close behind us, he had me pinned to the wall in the foyer. Instantly his mouth was crashing over mine.
“Is your pussy wet for me?” He asked, his voice laced with hunger.
“Soaked,” I said breathlessly.
Cole slid his hand down my body and hiked up my skirt. His fingers played at the seam of my lace panties. “You’re driving me mad, Katherine.” He gently ran his finger along the delicate material.
“Please, Cole.” I looked up at him. My core ached for his touch.
He lowered his nose to my neck and kissed my soft skin. “Do you see what you do to me?” He pressed his hard erection against my skin. “I want you so fucking bad,” he growled.
“Touch me,” I whispered against his cheeks.
“Where?” He pulled his gaze back to mine. “Here?” he said as his fingertips pressed against my soaked core. Unable to contain it, I whimpered. “Is this where you want me to touch you?” His fingers pushed aside my panties, and the second his finger touch my clit, I felt as if I would explode.
“Please.” I gripped his shirt, the anticipation killing me.
“Please what?” he demanded as he pressed his forehead to mine.
“Please make me come,” I whispered.
Cole slid his finger deep inside of me, and I moaned with desire. My eyes closed as he slowly pulled it out and rubbed my arousal along my clit. “Is this for me?” he asked, and I nodded. He added another finger and slid them b
ack inside of me. My hand coiled around his shirt as he began a sweet pace. His thumb gently rubbed my clit. “Is this how wet I make you?”
“Yes,” I moaned. “Yes.” I was moments from an earth-shattering orgasm. “Please, Cole. Oh, God. Please.”
With one quick movement, he tore my panties and pumped in and out of me, coaxing my orgasm.
“That’s it,” he muttered when I tightened around his hand. “Come for me, Kat.” He kissed me with fervor. And as his tongue twirled with mine, I released, moaning versions of his name.
When my body stopped trembling, and I returned from the abyss, Cole slowly pulled his hand from inside of me. He brought his fingers to his mouth and licked each one. His eyes were glued to mine, and I felt hungry, desperate to taste his orgasm.
Biting my lower lip, I slid down the wall until my knees hit the floor. I was intoxicated off of him and the liquor that still coursed through my body. My core ached with need for him. His rock-hard erection was pitched against his jeans.
My vision was fuzzy from the alcohol and the adrenaline coursing through my veins. I lowered his jeans along with his boxers. His balls were heavy, ready for my greedy mouth. I admired his perfect cock, long and thick. His hand came down and slowly stroked it back and forth. My mouth watered.
“Open that perfect mouth of yours,” he ordered, and I widened my jaw. He held himself at his base as he positioned the swollen head on my lips. Gently, I kissed the tip of his head before licking away the precum that had pooled at the top.
Parting my lips, he slid his cock into my mouth, the skin soft on my lips. My tongue massaged him as he slid in and out. I held his base and pulled him out, rotating my tongue around his head as I sucked my saliva off his silky skin. Deep-throating was not one of my strongest skills, but I gave him the best head I could. His grunts encouraged me to go farther, sucking him deeper into my mouth.
“That’s it. Take me deeper.”
I inhaled through the gagging as he continued to push deeper. I opened wider, allowing him to hit the back of my throat. He leaned forward and pressed his hands to the wall as he continued to fuck my mouth. I looked up at him, my core aroused from the way he looked at me. His eyes were filled with hunger as though me on my knees sucking his cock dry was everything.
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