Bidding for Keeps

by Webster, K

  A ferocious glare hardens his features. “You’re not quitting college, if that’s what you’re thinking.”

  Rage explodes through me. “I don’t know what I was thinking.” Tears threaten as I try to climb off him. I should have realized this wasn’t a permanent thing. He’s feeding me sweet lines to fuck me and then send me back on my way. This is just an arrangement. Something he paid for. Not real.

  His strong hand catches me by the throat and he pulls me close. Hot breath tickles my lips and tears streak down my cheeks shamelessly. “I’m not letting you go,” he bites out. “But I’m also not disrupting your life. It’ll undo the last three and a half years, and Vivi, that time spent apart can’t be for nothing.”

  He slides his other hand into my hair and grips it tight, pulling me to him. Our mouths meet and we kiss violently. My kiss has heartache and anger and accusations fueling it. His kiss is made of apologies and determination and regret. The two kisses meld together, creating a storm of emotions. None of them good.

  The world around me spins as he flips us around and he pins me to the sofa, his hard body pressed against mine. His kisses grow sweet and reverent. Palms rove over me in a way that reminds me of someone touching and exploring something precious. Careful not to break it but eager to learn every detail about it. I find myself softening at his exploration, my own hands greedy to find their way on him. His kisses are interrupted with sweet words that may not reach my ears fully but certainly speak to my heart. Pain and heartache take a backseat as joy steps back in.

  He breaks our kiss and stares down at me, love shining in his eyes.

  “I’m going to send you back to school, but I don’t fucking want to. Understand, baby? I want to keep you locked away in my little farmhouse away from everyone. I want to spend years between your legs, my tongue in your mouth, and my arms wrapped tightly around you. I want to hear all your laughs and see all your smiles. I want to keep you.”

  His mouth presses against mine once more and he grinds on me. The sweatpants aren’t much of a barrier and I can feel the hard ridges of his cock as he rubs against me. My nipples have hardened in my shirt and rub against his chest as I moan.

  “I want you to keep me,” I admit, my voice a whisper against his lips.

  A feral, claiming growl escapes him as he kisses me harder than before. His lips make a promise to mine.

  I will keep you. You’re mine.

  I just hope his lips aren’t lying. My heart has been fooled once and something tells me when it comes to Dallas Monroe, it would keep getting fooled no matter the consequences.

  Chapter Six

  Dallas

  I broke her.

  She wears her pain so vividly. In her false smiles and dulled eyes. Not a shield to keep others out, but as a uniform. A representation of who she’s become. It both infuriates me and saddens me. I’m pissed at myself for thinking Vivi was no better than our moms. Of course she’s better. Stronger and smarter. We could have made it together and still had our dreams. But I screwed it all up and left her. She never moved on. I’m fucking sad that she’s become a sliver of the bright, shining person she once was. All I want to do is strip away this armor she wears and find the delicate, aching woman inside her. I want to kiss away all the hurt until she’s a smiling, shiny version of the girl I fell in love with long ago.

  Love doesn’t wane.

  Whoever tells you that is fucking stupid.

  Love bubbles and hisses and spills over like an angry volcano until it’s exploding and decimating everything else in its path. Love is chaos and unrest. Love is a motherfucking disaster.

  But so goddamn beautiful.

  So goddamn worth the destruction.

  “Please forgive me,” I beg, my voice aching with desperation. I’ve been a lot of things in my life and stupid isn’t usually one of them. My company makes a fuck-ton of money because of my usually working brain. But when it comes to Vivi, I do some stupid shit. “Please forgive me.”

  “I don’t want to but I do. I do.” Her words are tearfully delivered but they are heartfelt.

  Forgiveness is like the ocean. When lava slides out past the earth and hits the water, it hisses but cools. The ocean smooths it over and makes it beautiful. It transforms it from something destructive to something natural. Hardens and strengthens. Together, love and forgiveness go hand in hand.

  I kiss along her cheek to her ear. My teeth nip at her lobe, causing her to whimper, and then I kiss down the side of her throat, leaving love marks along the way. I sit up and then start peeling away her shirt. She raises her arms and allows me to pull it away. No bra. Just her creamy tits with the rosiest buds situated in the center of each. Tight, erect, and pink. They beg to be bitten and tasted. I don’t deny those sweet things another second of my time.

  Her breath hitches when I lower myself and press my lips to her nipple for a sweet kiss. Tastes like fucking heaven. Sweeter than any candy or pie and I’ve traveled this fucking earth and eaten at many restaurants so I should know. Her taste is one that could never be recreated. One that must come directly from the source. One that no one but me will ever know.

  Fierce male satisfaction and possessiveness burn through me, hot and furious. She’ll never have another man. I’ll see to it that she gets more than enough to satisfy her until the end of our lives. I’ve never looked or thought about a woman the way I do Vivienne Prescott. And I’m sure as hell going to make sure she feels the same about me.

  I bite her nipple hard enough that her fingers rip at my hair. I don’t let go of her sensitive skin from between my teeth, even as she pulls at me, aching for relief. Our eyes meet and hers are wild. The woman that she’d held captive by grief and loneliness escapes her confines and runs free. I want that woman. I want her out of there and into my arms.

  “Dallas,” she cries out, her pouty pink lips parted. “Please.”

  I release her and then tongue her sore flesh with the tip of my tongue. Her head tilts back and she moans, her jiggly tit jutting into my face. I smile as I suck the area near her nipple. I tease and torment her nearly-virgin skin until her tit is bright red and wet from my attack. When I’m satisfied that she can’t look any more beautiful, I make my way over to her other breast. By the time I make that one match the first, she’s writhing and begging.

  “Does your cunt like it when I bite you?” I growl. “Are you wet because you like getting bitten, naughty little Vivi?”

  “Yes,” she admits without shame. “It hurts but I like it.”

  I smile at her as I grab the waistband of her sweatpants. Pulling them down, I’m pleased to see she’s not wearing the red panties that were meant for someone else. No, my girl is bare to me. Her pussy glistens with her arousal, begging to be licked and sucked. I toss away the sweatpants and admire her naked body. It’s been so long since I’ve seen her like this.

  Vulnerable and sweet.

  Fucking mine for the taking.

  “You’re beautiful,” I tell her gruffly. “The thought of another man seeing all this and not appreciating how perfect you are drives me insane.”

  Her wide green eyes stare deeply into mine. “There was never another man. It was always you, Dallas.”

  Pride thumps inside me. “It will always only be me.”

  She nods but the soft look in her eyes hardens. “I don’t like thinking of you with other women.”

  I laugh and it comes out harsh. “Other women?”

  Her lips purse. Only Vivi could carry on such an intense conversation with her legs spread open and trembling with need. She’s stubborn and she feels so vibrantly. Her emotions are so tangible. I want to pluck the bad ones away and devour them like a fucking animal. Leave the good ones hanging from their branches for me to lick and suck on, but never pluck away.

  I grip her thighs and push them forward as I settle my face near her cunt. It smells like heaven. �
��There were never other women,” I growl and then run my tongue from her juicy opening to her clit. She jolts and cries out. My eyes meet hers. “Only ever you.”

  “Before me?” she challenges, her body squirming with need.

  “Only you.”

  “After me?” Heartbreak shines in her green eyes.

  “Only you.”

  Her brows scrunch in confusion. “I was your first?”

  I kiss her clit, loving the way she jolts wildly. “And my last.”

  Before she can talk anymore, I feast on her cunt. All words take a nosedive off a cliff as we give in to our carnal instincts. She thrashes and moans and cries out my name. I lick every drop of her sweetness. I bite her when she pulls my hair too hard. I lick away the pain and fuck her tight hole with my tongue. We carry on, wild to our desires, as I literally suck two back-to-back orgasms from her swollen clit. My girl likes to be sucked on.

  “Dallas,” she pleads. “I need you.”

  I kiss up her stomach, between her breasts, to her throat. My hand grips her jaw and I kiss her deeply so she’ll taste how sweet she is. She releases a low, pleased moan, digs her heels into my ass and pulls me closer. I’m hard as fuck in my sweatpants and grind against her so she’ll feel how much she drives me crazy.

  “I was going to wait,” I mutter against her lips.

  “Why?” she growls. “We’re doing this now.”

  I chuckle and pull away, shedding my T-shirt. She laughs when I toss it at her. But when I start sliding my sweatpants down my thighs, her lips part and she eyes my cock hungrily as it bounces out. My dick practically weeps at the prospect of finally being with her again. I’ve jacked off more times than I can count to this exact fantasy. It’s never been as good as the real thing. Having her spread open, her cunt just waiting to get fucked, as she nervously bites on her bottom lip, I realize this is much better than anything I could have imagined.

  “I’m clean,” I remind her. “Only ever you and we used the condom. I can go get one—”

  “I want you bare, Dallas,” she murmurs. “I’m on the pill. I want to feel you come inside me.”

  I pounce on her, unable to deny her plump lips a kiss for any longer. My eager dick throbs between us and I work my hips as I grind it against her pubic bone.

  “Once I take you, baby, there’s no turning back. I’m claiming you in a thousand different ways. Are you ready?” I ask and then bite on her lip.

  “I wanted you to claim me all those years ago. It’s all I ever wanted.”

  With those words, I grip my aching length and tease her drenched pussy with the tip. Her flesh is hot against mine and I’m desperate to consume her from the inside out. A low whimper resounds from her as I begin pushing into her tight body. I remember her feeling so good that night under the stars, but nothing compares to the way she feels now.

  She feels like mine.

  Our bodies are making a pact.

  A vow that no one can break.

  “Fuck,” I hiss as I push deep inside her. With a hard jerk of my hips, I thrust the rest of the way into her body. She cries out and clutches my shoulders, her fingers ripping at my skin.

  “Oh, God!”

  “Feel that, baby?” I rumble. My hips rock against her and I slide in and out of her slowly. “That’s me making you mine.”

  “I feel it,” she moans. “It feels so good.”

  I capture her lips with mine as I lose control to my love for this girl. I’ve loved her for as long as I can remember. Being together may have been on pause as I tried to give her time to spread her wings a little, but my love for her never waned. I begin a punishing rhythm as I grind against her hard. Our breaths become ragged. Two animals coming together to mate in the most carnal way. Her nails scratch along my flesh, scoring me, and I roar against her mouth. The mewls coming from her get devoured as I kiss her almost violently.

  I need her.

  I love her.

  She’s mine.

  Her cunt clenches around my cock as though it’s begging for my seed. I kiss and nip at her. I whisper dirty things—sweet things. She soaks them all up and begs for more.

  My fingers slip into her silky raven-colored locks and I clutch her hair at the roots. I tilt her head back to bare her throat to me. Kissing past her lips and along her jawline, I seek out her neck. I’m pleased when her pussy squeezes my cock and she lets out a loud moan. I nip the flesh and she cries out.

  “I’m never going to let you go,” I bark out, my tone harsh.

  “I know. I know this now.” Her words are wobbly and weak but I can feel the conviction in them.

  “Dallas!” she yells as her body convulses beneath me.

  My thrusts become smoother as the juices from her orgasm coat my cock. It’s enough to throw me into my own overdue orgasm. With a guttural groan, I thrust a couple more uneven times before I’m spurting my release deep inside her hot body. Her cunt continues to clench around me, desperate for my come. As soon as I’m completely spent, I fall against her, my sweaty body slick against hers. My lips seek out her ear and I nuzzle my nose in her sweet-smelling hair.

  “I love you, Vivienne Prescott. I think I always have. I know I always will.”

  Chapter Seven

  Vivi

  I watch Dallas from the open barn door. He’s thrown on a cowboy hat that looks utterly sinful on his handsome head. But it’s his jeans that have me biting my lip. Dark wash. Holey. Stylish. I suppress a giggle that my country boy has somehow found a sense of style. When I saw him in his suit on Friday, I couldn’t deny how hot he was. And now, in a white T-shirt and jeans with a dirty cowboy hat on, he looks good enough for a magazine cover. He bends over to unlatch one of the cages. We’ve spent the better part of our Saturday morning feeding the animals, walking them, and giving them cuddles.

  “Keep squeezing that one and he’ll get attached,” Dallas says with a crooked grin and a wink.

  “Kind of like you,” I sass back.

  He chuckles. “I’m attached and there’s no getting me to let go.”

  I kiss the cute puppy in my arms on top of his fuzzy head. “He’s so cute.”

  “We’re talking about the dog, huh?”

  I nod. “Yes, nerd. The dog. Not you.”

  His grin grows wider as he strides over to me, confidence dictating his gait. When he’s right in front of me, he regards the dog in my arms. “He’s ugly, baby.”

  I gasp. “He is not ugly. He is precious.”

  The dog in my arms looks up at me and I swear he grins goofily at me. His lips are thin so his teeth are always showing, giving him a fierce look. Too bad he’s only ten pounds or so.

  “He’s happy,” I huff. “Look at that sweet face.”

  “Smiles.”

  I cringe at the nickname. “You can call me Vivi.”

  He laughs. “Not you, gorgeous. The dog. That should be his name.”

  Stroking my fingers along the top of the dog’s head, I smile down at him. “It’s a more fitting nickname for this guy. At least his smiles are real.”

  Dallas slides his fingers into my hair and tugs until I’m looking up at him. Then, his lips press to mine. His thumb caresses the side of my head as he pulls away.

  “Felt pretty real to me,” he says, his blue eyes twinkling.

  My lips curl into a wide grin. “I love you.”

  His amused face softens into one of adoration. “I love you too.”

  The dog—now known as Smiles—happily tries to kiss us both. Apparently he loves us too.

  * * *

  “Wake up, sleepy monster.”

  I groan and try to hide under my pillow but then I feel a hot mouth on my breast. A pleased sigh escapes me as he tenderly kisses my sore nipple. Last night, he sucked on them both until they were raw and sensitive to the touch.

  “Five more
minutes,” I tease, my fingers finding his messy hair.

  “You’ll be late.”

  Reality is a bitch. I spent the entire weekend swept up in a storm named Dallas. He’s fucked me every chance he gets and spent more time licking between my legs than should be humanly possible. But now it’s Monday, early in the morning, and I have class at eight.

  “I can skip,” I whine.

  He bites my breast until I slap his head. Then, he jerks the pillow away from my head. His dark hair is messy and sticking up in every which direction. Intense blue eyes bore into me. He’s completely naked and his face has some scruff grown in from a weekend of not shaving. My thighs are still rubbed raw from his facial hair that’s growing in.

  “You can’t skip,” he grunts. He’s leaned up on one elbow as his fingers continue their exploration of my body. It’s like now that we’re back together, he can’t stop touching me. I don’t want him to. Not ever.

  “Just this one day.”

  “Nope.”

  I groan and he chuckles. We grow serious as he soaks up my features with his stare. His dark brows have furled together. Thoughts seem to be running rampant through his head as he regards me. All desire to fuck him senseless and skip school fly out the window as I acknowledge the elephant in the room.

  We’re about to split.

  He’ll go back to work and I’ll go back to school.

  All weekend, he assured me we’re an item now and he’s not going anywhere, but doubt begins to creep in. My lip starts wobbling around the same time as he blurs before me.

  “Oh, baby,” he mutters before pouncing on me.

  His lips are like Band-Aids as he applies them all over my face and neck and chest—as though his lips have the power to heal the bruises on my heart. A sob escapes me despite my attempt to keep it in.

  “I’m not going anywhere,” he assures me, his lips finding mine again. “Trust me, Vivi. You have to trust me.”

  Sniffling, I cradle his face in my palms. Tears stream down my temples. “I do trust you,” I choke out. “I’m just going to miss you.”