How to Rebuild (Hearts & Horsepower #4)

by A. K. Evans

  “Oh, Kieran.”

  That throaty groan coming from her mouth while she said my name was everything. She was everything. If I’d ever needed to paint the picture of the perfect girl for me, it would have been Elise.

  She was smart, gorgeous, had a great body, was fantastic in bed, and, evidently, very successful.

  While I guessed she could have inherited the wealth, I didn’t think that was the case. That was another thing I liked about Elise. She was, just as Ryker had said, a very determined woman who knew what she wanted and went after it.

  Lucky for me, it seemed it was me she wanted last night.

  And now I was here on Saturday morning with my cock inside her for the third time in hours.

  For the first time in that time, I was letting her think she was in charge. It was cute.

  When I woke and found her warm, soft body curled into mine for the second time, I took a few minutes to just look at her. The light was filtering through the windows allowed me to take her in without her knowing it.

  After our second round last night, Elise had taken off to the bathroom. When she came back into the room a few minutes later, she quickly flipped off the lights, so I never got to see her face again until this morning. Seeing her without anything on, I was stunned by her natural beauty. I wondered why she thought she needed any makeup on because she was just as gorgeous without it.

  Watching her while she slept did something else to me. There was something I liked about seeing her there so peaceful, without any dark clouds hanging over her. But it was the way she curled into me that did me in. Something about it was so much the opposite of who she’d shown me she was, who others believed her to be.

  It made her seem a little less rigid and a lot more vulnerable. I liked it a lot. And that wasn’t because I thought she needed to be weak. I just liked the idea of her needing me at all.

  Wanting to be with her again, I pushed the cover down her body to about her waist. I was then able to look at the fancy, satin nightie she slipped on last night. The woman was class. Pure class all the way around. A lady.

  I brought my hand to her shoulder and stroked my fingers along the silky skin there. All of it was like that. Elise had the softest, warmest skin I’d ever touched. It begged to be touched, teased, and caressed.

  So, I did that.

  I slowly trailed my fingers over her shoulder and along her collarbone before I dipped down toward her cleavage.

  Elise’s body was beautiful. She had incredible curves in all the right places. Her breasts were round and full but not too large. And so fucking soft.

  My hand slid down over the satin material of her nightie. It felt nice beneath my fingers, but it didn’t compare to touching her skin. I made it to her abdomen, drifted over to her hip, and slid back up her side until I reached the outer part of her breast. Then I cupped it and stroked gently over her nipple.

  Within seconds, it began to harden, and Elise moaned. When she was turned on, Elise was the most beautiful sight and sound to behold.

  When I heard her begging me to touch her for the first time last night or when I had my face between her legs, I thought I’d come before I even got inside her. The best part about all of it was that I didn’t think she even realized just how sexy she was.

  A minute or so later, Elise’s eyes fluttered open. She took one look at me, gave herself a few seconds to stare into my eyes, and ultimately pressed a hand to my shoulder. Pushing me to my back, she climbed on top and started kissing me all over my neck and my chest.

  And now we were here.

  Both of us naked, my cock inside her, and Elise riding me like she thought she had taken charge of the situation.

  I didn’t mind letting her believe that for a little while. She was doing a hell of a job riding me, so I’d have been a fool to stop her. But now she was reaching the point of no return. I could hear it in the way she whimpered, I could see it in the look on her face, and I could feel it in the movements of her body.

  I needed more.

  Like a flash, I sat up and wrapped an arm around her waist. The moment I lifted her off my body, she cried out, “No. Kieran, no.”

  I came to my knees, curled my fingers around the sides of her face, and claimed her mouth. Elise kissed me back and moaned.

  When I pulled back, I squeezed her ass and demanded, “Stay on your knees, forearms to the bed, and keep this ass nice and high.”

  She shuddered.

  Fuck, I loved that.

  Elise did exactly as I asked, and for a moment, I was frozen. For a man who prided himself on his ability to remain composed in nearly any situation, this was unfamiliar territory. Seeing Elise like that, her cheek pressed to the mattress with her eyes on me and ass in the air, I couldn’t move.

  Not once had I asked her to do something where she denied me. She was willing. Always willing to do what I asked of her.

  When too much time had passed, she begged, “Kieran, please.”

  “You’re so beautiful, Elise,” I replied, my voice strained.

  “I need you,” she rasped.

  She was going to get me. There was no question about that.

  Not wanting her to know just how much of an effect she was having on me, I said, “Patience, lady.”

  She groaned in frustration. It took everything in me not to burst out laughing.

  Shifting my body a bit closer to her, I reached my palm out and placed it on the cheek of her ass. I squeezed and rubbed her there before trailing my fingers over to her pussy. The moment I touched her there, Elise pushed back into me. I quickly used my other hand to stop her and demanded, “Stay still.”

  Elise instantly stopped moving.

  Since I wanted to test her limits a bit, I waited a few seconds before putting my hands back on her. I could see the tension and anticipation in her body. Her knuckles had turned white as she grasped the blanket firmly in her hands. She’d sucked her bottom lip in and was biting down hard on it. And she was wet.

  So damn wet.

  Rewarding her for doing as I’d asked, I didn’t just bring fingers back to her; I plunged them inside. She kept her hips firmly in place, but she didn’t stop herself from moaning at the sensation. That’s what I wanted. I wanted her to let me do all the work. I wanted to give this to her. I just needed her to trust that I would.

  “You like that?” I asked her.

  “Yes.”

  “Do you want my cock back?” I questioned her.

  “Yes, baby. Please.”

  Hearing her call me that, there was no way I wasn’t going to give in. I positioned myself behind her, gripped her hips in my hands, and slid inside. I started slow, knowing it would drive her wild.

  “Harder,” she begged.

  “Patience,” I reminded her, wanting nothing more than to give it to her harder.

  Growing frustrated, Elise used the strength in her body and her determination to get what she wanted. I allowed her one quick and hard jerk back on my cock before I tightened my grip on her hips and pulled out.

  She whimpered.

  “Do you trust me?” I asked her.

  She was silent.

  “Elise?” I called again.

  “What?” she whispered.

  “Are you going to answer me?” I pressed. “Do you trust that I will see you through and make you come?”

  There was no hesitation when she answered, “Yes.”

  “Then prove it and stay still,” I instructed.

  “Okay.”

  I came back to her and slowly slid back inside. My strokes remained slow and gentle until I knew that she was succumbing and giving in. I wanted her to trust that I’d make sure she was taken care of when we were like this. When I’d given it enough time, and she hadn’t tried to accomplish the task on her own, I finally did what I’d been dying to do and what I knew she was desperate for.

  I drove in hard.

  I drove in fast.

  And she took every rough stroke like she was made to do it. It
took almost no time at all for both of us to reach that point of no return.

  “Kieran,” she yelled her warning.

  “Are you going to come, Elise?” I asked.

  “Yes, please don’t stop,” she panted.

  I didn’t stop. There was no way I could right now. I kept giving and giving. And when I knew she was right there, when we were both right there, I demanded, “Come for me, gorgeous.”

  She did.

  And I wasn’t far behind her.

  After, I leaned forward, pressing the front of my body to the back of hers. I kissed the back of Elise’s shoulder up to her neck and landed at her ear. Once I was there, I whispered, “Was it worth it?”

  “What?” she asked.

  “To have some patience,” I clarified, shifting my mouth back to her shoulder. “In the end, was it worth it?”

  Following a beat of silence, she responded, “Yeah.”

  I smiled against her skin, kissed her again, and said, “I’ll be right back.”

  By the time I went into the bathroom, dealt with the condom, and took care of business in there, I walked out to find Elise had slipped her nightie back over her head. She walked toward the bathroom, stopped in front of me, and said, “I just need a few minutes. If you want to meet me downstairs, I’ll be right down.”

  I brought a hand up and cupped her jaw. My thumb slid over her bottom lip before I kissed her. When I pulled back, I said, “I’ll meet you downstairs.”

  Ten minutes later, Elise joined me in the kitchen. We were both fully dressed again.

  “Coffee is on a timer,” I noted, holding a mug in my hands.

  “Yeah, it’s nice to have it ready when I need it,” she replied, moving to pour herself one.

  Instant gratification. I wasn’t surprised by that and had to stop myself from chuckling.

  While she fixed her coffee, I stood there and watched her. I had a million things I wanted to talk to her about, but I wanted to see what she’d do first.

  For a few minutes, it was simply silent in the kitchen. Other than the sound of a spoon hitting the mug, one of us taking a sip or setting the cup down on the countertop, there was no other noise.

  I didn’t know if she was waiting for me to speak, but if she was, she’d be waiting for me forever. I could stand here all day watching her.

  Finally, she must have realized she’d never win the battle, so she said, “Last night was nice, Kieran.”

  I grinned. “Yeah. This morning wasn’t so bad either.”

  She nibbled on the corner of her lip. My eyes dropped to it. I still hadn’t had that gorgeous mouth wrapped around me. But I was more than prepared to wait. I knew when it happened, it would be amazing. Hell, I was worried I’d come prematurely last night when she moved to the edge of the bed and inspected my piercing.

  The innocence of it all messed with my head.

  A conversation starter.

  Even though I thought it was a ridiculous conclusion she could have drawn, the truth was that I would have stood there and talked to her all night long about it as long as she continued to touch me and look up at me like she had been doing.

  “I didn’t expect you to stay all night,” she shared.

  I shot her a questioning look and returned, “Is that your way of telling me I need to leave?”

  She looked a bit horrified. “No. Um, no. I wasn’t saying that. But if you’ve got to get home, it’s okay,” she insisted.

  “Relax,” I urged her. “I was just teasing you.”

  “You do that a lot,” she noted.

  There was no use denying it. I did, and I believed I did it when it mattered the most. “Does that bother you?” I asked.

  She gave me an assessing look before she shook her head.

  “So, what’s on the agenda for today?” I asked, trying to keep my tone light.

  Elise shrugged. “I haven’t quite figured that out yet.”

  “No plans?” I pressed.

  “No.”

  I grinned.

  She looked ready to bolt. I didn’t understand why, and I didn’t like it. Nevertheless, I ignored it and declared, “Then it sounds like tonight is the perfect night for me to collect on that promise.”

  “Promise?” she rasped.

  If it hadn’t been for the look I’d seen on her face moments ago and the strained edge to her voice when she replied, I might have thought she didn’t know what I was talking about. But Elise knew what I was talking about. She knew the promise she made to me.

  Even still, since she was playing it this way, I decided I’d let her. So, I clarified, “Yes, the promise you made to me the day we met. The one you made on the plane.”

  “I never thought I’d see you again,” she admitted.

  Ouch.

  That hurt.

  Hoping she missed the reaction I had to that, I pointed out, “And yet here we are. If that doesn’t tell you something, I don’t know what will.”

  Her eyes darted around the kitchen. There was no missing just how uncomfortable she’d grown.

  It made no sense.

  “Elise?” I called.

  She returned her attention to me. “Yeah?”

  “Talk to me,” I urged gently.

  She licked her lips before she swallowed hard and said, “I don’t think it’s a good idea that we go out on a date.”

  “What?”

  That came out sounding a bit more wounded than I had expected.

  Elise picked up her mug, took another sip, and started, “Listen, Kieran, what we had last night was—”

  “And this morning,” I cut her off to remind her.

  She nodded. “Right. What we had last night and this morning was wonderful,” she began again. “But I don’t think it’s a good idea to pretend there can be anything more than that between us.”

  “Who said anything about pretending, Elise?” I countered.

  Was she serious? Could she really mean what she was saying? I didn’t want to hear that she didn’t feel the connection we had. We got along great, communicated well enough not to have any awkward silence on that return flight, and had a fantastic time in bed. There was something else going on.

  When she made no move to speak, I shared, “I like you. And I’d like to get to know you better.”

  She huffed. “Kieran, no. I’ll admit what we’ve got in the bedroom is good, no, it’s great, but that’s all this is going to be. If you’re good with it, I’d love to do the no-strings-attached thing, but I don’t think it’s a smart idea to date and get any feelings involved.”

  She didn’t think it was smart to get feelings involved? She made it sound as though they hadn’t already gotten involved. For me, they had. Just one look at her caused my heart to start pounding in my chest. And the idea that she didn’t feel anything in return, that she was willing to let me walk out of here without leaving more than just a number to call when she needed me to answer her booty call, made something in my chest constrict.

  Was that really all this had been for her?

  “Are you serious?” I asked.

  Elise nodded.

  “I don’t understand,” I declared.

  Her eyes roamed over my face before she said, “We can maintain a physical relationship if you’d like, Kieran, but—”

  “Let me rephrase that,” I cut her off. “I understand what you said. I don’t understand why you said it.”

  “That’s not what this is,” she insisted.

  I set the coffee mug down hard on the counter. I was surprised it didn’t break. Taking a few steps toward her, I stopped when we were only inches apart and said, “It absolutely can be. I want it to be.”

  “I don’t.”

  I leaned back and stared down at her. Part of me was hoping I’d find something in her expression that would tell me she was joking, but there was nothing there. She was dead serious.

  And that pissed me off.

  “So, you’ll spread your legs for me, but you won’t let me take you out
on a date?” I scowled. She gasped. I wasn’t finished. I was angry, and for the first time I could ever remember, I lost control. “I never thought you were that kind of woman.”

  “How dare you?” she shot back.

  “You made a promise to me, and now you’re breaking it,” I reminded her. “So much for you being the fierce, determined woman I believed you were.”

  “Get out,” she ordered.

  I stared at her in such disbelief. This woman was not the same woman I talked to for hours on a plane. She wasn’t the woman I spoke to last night at Lou’s. And she certainly wasn’t the same woman those who knew her claimed she was.

  What a disappointment.

  Since I hadn’t moved, Elise repeated, “Get out of my house. You don’t get to call me a whore and stay here.”

  I jerked back. “I never called you a whore,” I argued.

  “You implied it when you said you never thought I was that kind of woman.”

  I shook my head. “Yeah, Elise, I said I never thought you were that kind of woman,” I confirmed. “Meaning I thought you were the kind of woman who stayed true to her word. I just wish I would have known that wasn’t the case before I took you to bed last night.”

  Tears filled her eyes. I didn’t like seeing them there. I hated it. But I couldn’t understand what had her on the verge of breaking down. She’s the one who wanted this. It wasn’t like I came in, fucked her, and walked out without another word.

  “I’m sorry,” she apologized.

  “For what?”

  “This isn’t me, Kieran,” she insisted. “I just… I’m going through a lot of stuff right now, and I don’t think it’s a good idea for me to get seriously involved with someone. I’ve got a lot on my plate, and it wouldn’t be fair to pull you into any of it.”

  “How about you allow me to decide what I want to be involved in?” I suggested. “I’m not asking you to marry me, Elise. I’m asking for a date. That’s all. If you don’t want anything beyond that because you don’t feel like there’s anything worth exploring, then fine.”

  She searched my face before she quietly agreed, “Okay.”

  “Okay? Okay, what?”

  “Okay, we can go out on a date tonight,” she clarified.