by Jackson Kane
I showed them all a fun, hot time and never had any regrets. It was just sex.
So why did I feel so sleazy now?
I didn't like it. I was known to be ruthless, cold and maybe a bit of a jerk, but never dishonest. I had to get the truth out of the way now.
“I never wanted to come back to Caldwell Hope.” I said a few minutes later, finishing my coffee. The blues song faded into something by Buddy Holly.
She finished hers and poured herself a two-finger refill of just the whiskey. “And yet here you are.” Then without asking, she poured me a refill too.
“Are you trying to get me drunk?”
“It's bad form to let a lady drink by herself. Besides you're a big guy, you can handle it.” Gloria shrugged and smiled. Her demeanor had softened so much since I met her.
Had I broken through her prickly armor? I doubted it, but she had at least lowered her sword from my throat.
“So why did you come back?” She asked, looking me over again. I noticed her inspection was a lot slower this time. Her eyes took their time over my muscles, and down to the bunched fabric that protected the world from my cock.
“I'm only here because of my father.”
“I heard.” Her face tensed into a genuine concern. She sipped at her drink with tentative discomfort. She didn't need to know me to understand having a parent slowly dying was terrible. “I'm sorry.”
“It's not just that.” I knocked back the rest of my whiskey and poured more. “I'm here because in order to win my inheritance, I need to get a woman pregnant before my brother does.”
“Jesus.” Gloria leaned back away from the bar, her face screwed up. “Is that why you drove me back? Are you hoping to impregnate me to win your contest?”
“No.” I laughed. “Of course not. Not even I’m that callous. If I was and that was the goal I wouldn't have been honest with you.”
“Why the hell should I believe you?”
“I'm a lot of things,” I looked up at her with nothing but naked sincerity on my face. “But I'm no liar.”
Gloria darted her gaze away and I felt a pit form in my stomach. I wanted her to believe me.
Why was that suddenly so important?
I barely knew this girl and there was no way she'd be the woman to have my kid. I was just wasting my valuable time with her when I should've taken some other girl home. Some rich, dull blonde that would be receptive to the idea of faking a relationship long enough to give me an heir.
I knew all of that analytically, yet...here I was.
Gloria absently swished the last sip of whiskey around the bottom of the mug, finally swallowing it. After a refill and several more minutes of thoughtful introspection she asked, “Why not just buy a hooker or something?”
“That’s against the rules.” I shrugged. I'd never had to before and the thought hadn't even crossed my mind. I could just disregard the rules and pay someone to have my kid and lie about it, but that wasn't me. I wanted to win. Really win. “It also feels...wrong. I’ve never had to buy one before. I wasn’t about to start now.”
“Oh there are rules?” She raised an eyebrow skeptically.
“I guess so. My father was very thorough when he wrote up all this insanity.”
“I have no intention of getting pregnant,” Gloria blurted unexpectedly. “Not for a long while.”
Was she actually thinking about it?
I dismissed the thought. All the alcohol she packed into that tiny frame must have started to catch up with her; I hoped she wasn't driving anywhere soon.
“Besides you already have a baby.” I gestured in a wide arc about the store. In some respects, having your own small business was like having a child. You constantly have to feed it and help it grow or else bad things happen.
“Alright, Mr. Bigshot.” Gloria's eyes narrowed, but she leaned back in from across the counter. Her black, tussled hair fell in front of one of her eyes. Instinctively I moved to brush it back, but fortunately I was still sober enough to stop myself. “It's my turn to ask you. What are you doing here?”
That was a good question. I was still trying to work that out for myself.
Gloria was unique in many ways. She was forward, abrasive, filter-less and she generally didn't seem to care how people saw her. There was bravery to that; a boldness I couldn't ignore.
“I brought you back because you're more interesting to me than anyone else at that party.” I brushed my thumb across her knuckles. “I know there's no future for us. You're not going to have my kid, nor would I even ask you to. But I'd much rather spend the night drinking with you than people with 'their heads up their asses.'”
It was a weird truth, but truth none the less. Maybe I just needed a break from my life for a while. Maybe that's all Gloria was—a beautiful punk rock pause button; a commercial break; a lungful of fresh air in a smoky hall.
Whatever she was, I knew I wanted it.
And from the way her lips cracked apart in a hesitant smile, I could tell she wanted the same. Her dark eyes were heavy, but it wasn't from alcohol or tiredness. I'd seen lusty eyes enough to know them right away.
Then her damn phone went off.
We both glanced at the time. One in the morning already? When someone calls this late it's usually important. Gloria exhaled; letting her head dip out of exasperation, then roughly snatched her purse from beside the register. She fished her phone out and sighed again when she saw it was her partner Judy.
I couldn't make out what Judy was saying over the music, but from her excited tone I could tell that it was at least good news. What followed next was fifteen minutes of Gloria getting out half sentences before being cut off. She said uh-huh during that time more than I’d heard all week.
It struck me as odd that a woman like Gloria would tolerate this kind of partnership.
I'd learned in business that it was crucial to surround yourself with different and occasionally contrasting points of view. It helps you look at problems from more than one way.
These two though... They were fundamental opposites.
“Tell me,” I said when Gloria slapped the phone down and shoved it away from her like it was a napkin she'd just used to kill a spider. “How does someone like her become partners with someone like you?”
“She came with the money.” Realizing how bad that sounded, Gloria clarified. “I didn't mean it like that. Judy is... Well, her heart is in the right place. We went to high school together. I had the passion and the degree just not the credit for a bank loan.”
“But she could fund you.” Things started falling into place in my head.
“No, but her father could. The caveat was that Judy be co-owner so she could get some real world experience. She's great at being social, but still has a long way to go on a lot of other things.” Gloria propped herself up on the counter so she could sit a little more comfortably. In doing so her hand slipped and knocked her mug directly into my lap. “Dammit!”
I snatched the mug up before it could smash against the floor, but my pants weren't saved from a good splashing. Gloria shot up; looking horrified, then sprang off to grab a fistful of napkins from the dispenser.
“It's fine. It's only pants.” Granted they were expensive pants, but nothing I couldn't live without. “When you say a long way to go, how do you mean?”
“She tied up all of our liquid assets in booking The Deconstructed to play here when their album drops.”
“I've heard of them,” I said slyly, playing it cool. I'd actually been a big fan back in the day. There was a time in middle school when Lucas and I learned a few songs, but couldn't keep it together long enough to make the talent show.
It was a very short lived idea.
“Yeah, they're a big deal. For what we're paying them, you'd think we're booking The Beatles!” Gloria's face brightened with repressed irritation as she continued to speak. The flush on her creamy skin could've lit up a small closet. “In theory it'll be the biggest draw we've ever had which should
translate into a lot of sales, but if literally anything goes wrong...”
“I can see why you're worried. Rock stars aren't known for being reliable.” Especially not that band. The Deconstructed practically had their own wing at a rehab resort in Florida.
“I probably shouldn't be telling you any of this.” She paused, looking a little flustered. How long had she been holding this in for? She didn't seem to be the kind of girl that made friends easily.
For as different as we were, we did have a few things in common. I often compartmentalized my emotions so I wouldn't have to deal with them. It was great for efficiency and level headed decision making, which was paramount when running a multi-million dollar corporation or a small coffee shop.
It wasn’t so good for… anything else really.
“Your secret's safe with me,” I said.
“Safe? I don't even know you.” Gloria padded her forehead with the back of her hand. “Shit, am I blushing? I think I drank too much.”
I rose off my little stool so I could easily reach her, then touched her face. Her cheeks were scalding like spilled coffee. She didn't pull away, so neither did I.
“You wear pink really well.” I smiled. “You're like my own personal Lite-Brite.”
“How old are you?” She teased playfully.
“Funny,” I said, brushing the insult off. Thirty-one wasn't that old.
Her deep crimson lips curled up at the edges. At that moment I wasn't thinking about my countless responsibilities at work or my father's illness or even beating Lucas for the inheritance.
All I wanted in life was to taste Gloria's sweet, pomegranate smile.
My hand shifted to under her chin, raising it slightly so her face was all I could see.
Over the store's speakers, the driving drums and crashing guitars of The Cure's song “Burn” thundered its dark melody just for us.
The paleness of Gloria's skin warmed in the subtle glow of the low hanging yellow lights above us.
And her eyes...
Her eyes glistened like a storming sea, wild and dangerous with sharp rocks lying just beneath the surface. I leaned into her feeling like the captain of a doomed ship being lulled closer by a siren's irresistible song. Every bone in my body hummed, warning me that nothing good was going to come of this.
For the first time in my life I ignored my instincts.
I kissed her.
Chapter 10
Richard
My tongue searched hers; discovering notes of coffee, black cherry and hot whiskey.
It was better than I could've imagined.
Gloria was just over five feet tall, I had almost a foot and a half on her. She had to kneel on her stool and practically lay over the counter just to reach me. Had we been thinking straight, we'd have walked a few feet in either direction and not had a counter between us.
But the alcohol and lustful stares had pushed us far past the point of rational thought. Instead, I placed my hands at her waist and lifted her over counter like she was a stuffed bear I'd just won at a carnival.
She was so light that I might decide to never put her down.
She wrapped her legs around my waist when we were clear of the register and there was nothing between us but air and longing. I pulled her into me. Her heels slipped off one, then the other.
“Your ruby slippers, Dorothy...” I murmured distractedly between kisses. “You'll never get home now.”
Gloria shrugged off the black suit jacket she was still wearing and said nothing.
I sat her on the counter and tore off my neatly tailored button-down. She tugged the bottom hem of my undershirt out from my pants and dipped her cool fingertips beneath the fabric.
“I've never met a desk jockey with abs before.” Her hands gingerly slid up my washboard stomach and broad, sculpted chest as she finally rolled my undershirt over my head.
“It must be all that polo you think I play.” I wasn't as gentle. In a flash I had her tank top on the floor and her deep purple bra draped across the register. She sat before me, naked save for her pants and a devious smile that asked, what am I waiting for?
I paused to take in her soft alabaster beauty.
Hot ripples coursed down my body, pulsing directly into my hardening cock. Of all the women I'd been with, none of them looked like her. Gloria was sexy and exciting in a way that was so new.
Her skin was spun silk, and although there was faint definition in her ribs she looked healthy and vibrant. Staring at her—drinking her in with my eyes made her face flush a deeper shade than her dusted rose-breath areolas.
“You aren't like most people I know.” She looked at me curiously, probably wondering why I was taking my time.
Why would I rush?
We had all night. Besides, any decadent dessert that you weren't likely to ever have again was worth savoring, wasn't it?
“Know many billionaires?” I dragged my fingers down her neck and palmed her modest chest. Closing my eyes, I felt her heartbeat pound softly against my hand. When I opened them again I found her peeling back two of my fingers and tracing them with her tongue.
The ripple down my core became a scorching flood when she wrapped her mouth around my fingers and began to suck. Every swish of her tongue made tiny promises of what she could do when she was on her knees in front of me. My rod-hard cock threatened to bust through my fly. Her teeth clamped against me and began to tremble.
It made my breath spike.
“That's not what I mean,” she said, licking the tips one final time. There was vulnerability in her voice that genuinely surprised me. “Most guys I'd been with barely even noticed me.”
Here I was thinking this girl was all cactus and barbwire, but that really wasn't the case at all. I guess those sorts of things were easy to overlook if you weren't searching for them. After all, most people thought I was just some spoiled heartless corporate exec looking to fuck everyone over for the sake of a few more bucks.
When I met Gloria she didn't even try to hide her judgmental disdain. Now though...she wasn't looking at me that way.
It was a really nice feeling.
With my hand still firmly planted on her chest, I gently pushed her down on the glass-topped counter. Her lithe, half-naked form squeaked when I dragged her hips closer to me. It wasn’t that wide a counter; I didn’t want her head hanging off the other side. Gloria blanketed most of the Alice in Wonderland collage and I had to wonder—
Had we both fallen down a rabbit hole of our own?
“You're all I see, Gloria.” I lowered my mouth to her stomach as I said the words so she could feel the vibration through her skin.
Gloria breathed deep, the tenseness in her muscles evaporated. Soon she'd go back to stressing about work and I'd start interviewing the women I'd met at the party. But that was tomorrow.
Tonight was all ours.
She shivered as my fingers flicked over her nipples; they were as hard as setting clay. When I pinched them she let out a little chirp and her smile widened wickedly. That was exactly how I liked it. Slow, mounting pressure. It made the release that much more.
I kissed down her stomach as I unclasped her pants. Her body tasted delicious, like lightly salted shea butter with hints of flowers. Lipstick, make up, perfume... She might not have wanted to be at the party earlier, but her body did.
I smiled, kissing over hip, taking in her intoxicating natural scent. Her panties were plain cotton, but were a bikini style. I bet while she was working she was more of a boyshorts girl.
Who was she hoping to see tonight?
I couldn't help, but fantasize that she did all this for me. It was vain, but thinking that she was dolled up for someone else filled me with a strange jealously.
Gloria moaned softly as I hooked the elastic band and jerked the thin fabric past her knees. Her pants hung lazily off one foot until she kicked everything off. My head was swimming, a carnal urge washed over me as I grabbed her thighs roughly.
The back of her kne
es bent over my shoulder and I dived in like a treasure hunter. I didn't hesitate; I couldn't if I wanted to. I was magnetically drawn to her smoothly shaved pussy.
I parted her pink lips and drank deeply, my tongue exploring every sensitive nook and fold. Her whole body jerked forward when I grazed her clit with my teeth. I watched as Gloria propped herself up onto her elbows, her eyes widened in fear and thrill.
“Fuck,” Gloria moaned and writhed, causing more chirp-like squeals from her skin sliding on the glass.
I had her now. She was fully mine.
My tongue was buried inside her, curling as far as I could go. There was nothing she could do except riffle her fingers through my hair, hang on, and pray. Sucking and stroking her clit, I realized that I was moaning too.
My cock throbbed.
Shit, I hadn't been this horny since I was sixteen. The more I tasted her the more I wanted. I wanted to ruin this girl; make it so that every time she sat down she remembered my hard cock impossibly deep inside of her.
Gloria's body tensed so much that she was sitting fully up on the counter and was leaning over me. Her shock of black hair blotted out the overhead light. Suddenly she cried out and came.
I didn't stop.
Her pussy fought back, desperately trying to crush my tongue. I wasn't having any of it. I pried her thighs apart and pressed my face in harder. I could feel another orgasm on the wings screaming for me to release it.
Seconds later she came again, more violently this time. I had to catch her or else she'd have fallen off the counter.
“Fuck me already!” She squirmed, her body quivering from aftershocks.
Just as I was about to tear my mouth off her to reply, there was a sharp rapping on the Rocket’s glass door.
“Shit!” Gloria's face went from beet red to ashen white in a heart beat. She swung backward over the counter like a drunken gymnast, knocking over a rack of gift cards in the process.
“What—” I shot up to catch her, but I was too late. After I peered over the side to see that she was alright I turned toward the door.
Two uniformed police officers stood outside, plain as day. They both looked down embarrassed and amused. One of the men cautioned a glance up and knocked again.
