Stronger With Us (The Strength Series Book 3)

by JA Hensley

  Jude gathers my hair in one hand and gently tugs my head to the side, opening my neck to him. His tongue skates over my skin up to my earlobe, which he pulls into his mouth and sucks. My knees grow weak, but he holds me in place with his hips.

  “Bedroom, now,” he whispers, and I am helpless to do anything but nod. The loss of his heat gets me moving toward the back of the apartment, which has the same floor plan as Becca’s. Neither of us says a word as we walk into the room. My arousal is growing by the second. I don’t think I’ve ever been this turned on by a man in my life, which scares me a little.

  “Jude, I don’t think this is a good idea,” I say as I turn around to face him and have to tilt my head back to see his face. He’s got to be at least six-and-a-half-feet tall.

  “It’s a great idea. I need to forget today, and you need to relax. From where I’m standing it’s a win-win for both of us.” His eyes travel down my body, and I can’t help the shiver that follows his gaze.

  “But won’t it be weird with your brother dating my best friend?” Even I know that sounds ridiculous, but I’m trying to do the right thing here.

  “You don’t strike me as the kind of woman who gets attached to someone after one night in bed. I know I’m not looking for anything long-term. It’s just sex, CJ. Why are you fighting your attraction?”

  He’s a cocky fucker, that’s for sure, but I let him kiss me. His lips are soft, his tongue is strong, and he tastes like heaven. Great, now I’m thinking like a fucking romance novel.

  I pull away from the kiss and bring my top over my head. Jude stands there and watches me, his pupils dilating more and more as I take off my bra. His good hand reaches up and pinches my nipple, causing me to gasp and my panties are suddenly soaked. Any caution I felt is gone now, and all I can think about is riding what appears to be a very large cock trying to escape his pants.

  “Do you need some help with that,” I ask reaching for his waistband. He growls in response but doesn’t move away. His arm is still in a sling, so I know it’ll be difficult for him to undress.

  Instead of going for his pants like he expects me to, I walk around him trailing my hand on his waist. The first thing I take off is the sling. His shoulder has to hurt, despite the pain meds he’s taken. Thankfully he didn’t put a shirt on at the hospital so I don’t have to try and raise his arm to remove one. His right bicep and side are covered with tattoos that wouldn’t be visible if he were dressed. It’s like a collage of different things, soldiers in battle, a helicopter, and a few symbols I don’t recognize. Even though they aren’t similar, it all goes together like a beautiful painting.

  “Come here and let me worship that body,” he says seductively. I move around him and find him pulling the front of his pants down, revealing his thick, veined, long cock. Normally I find them ugly, but this one is impressive. The piercing is also something I’ve never experienced, but I can’t wait to try. I lick my lips and start to drop to my knees when I’m caught under one arm.

  “I said I’m going to worship your body. Lie down and let me do my job.” I’m powerless to resist. Most of the time the men I sleep with are in it for themselves, and I have to make sure I get off. No one has ever told me they want to give me pleasure first. This man is going to be very dangerous to my heart.

  Jude slowly peels my pants down my legs, taking my underwear with them. When he gets to my feet, he slowly removes my shoes before my pants join them on the floor.

  “You are beautiful,” he says as he runs one hand up my leg, to my core. He doesn’t stop where I want him most. He flattens his hand against my stomach and continues his ascent to my face.

  “Please don’t hurt yourself,” I whisper. The last thing I want is for him to pop his stitches.

  “I’m tougher than you think, princess,” he says as he lowers himself to lay on me and kisses my neck.

  Did he call me princess? I’ve never liked pet names. They usually piss me off, but this time is different. Jude’s lips moving down my chest interrupt my thoughts and I’m happy to let them go. I reach my hands around his back and feel the raw power in his muscles as he moves. There’s not an ounce of fat on him.

  He finds my breasts again and takes one nipple into his mouth. The sensation travels to my toes, arching my back and causing a whimper to escape my lips. I feel his lips curl into a smile briefly before he does it again. Just when I think I’m going to explode from only his mouth on me, he moves to the other side and starts over. His length is pressed against my thigh, but I want it inside me.

  “Please, Jude, I need you to fuck me.”

  “Oh, CJ, we’ll get there, but first I need to be sure you’re ready for me. I want you right on the edge when I push inside that sweet pussy. The first orgasm you have will be from my cock,” he says as he moves lower on my body. My skin is on fire, every touch of his fingers or tongue searing through me. I glance down to see him staring at my hairless mound. I’ve never let a man go down on me; it brings back bad memories. I start to push his head away, but the look in his eyes stops me.

  “Perfection,” he whispers right before he plunges his tongue between my lips and latches on to my clit, sucking it hard. My back bows off the bed, and I cry out.

  He moves away from that bundle of nerves quickly, which brings me back to the bed again, panting and frustrated. As I start to protest, he reaches for the nightstand with his injured arm. I see the wince as he tries to hide it, and I know he’s hurting. I roll to the side to open the drawer, knowing he’s going for a condom. I locate the Trojan Magnum and tear it open.

  “Let me,” I say as I put the condom over the apadravya piercing and slowly roll it down his length. Damn, he’s fucking huge.

  “Now, lay back and enjoy the ride, princess. I know I will,” he says in my ear while I finish sheathing him. I don’t argue and do as he asks.

  Jude guides himself to my core and puts the tip in. The round balls of the piercing rub against my walls as he slowly presses all the way into my vagina. Thankfully he goes slowly because I don’t think I could adjust to his girth any faster. Once he’s balls deep, he stops and looks at me like he’s worried.

  “Are you okay?” he asks quietly.

  “I’ll be better when you move,” I say with attitude. I’m not some fragile China doll that needs to be treated with kid gloves. I start to say that when he pulls back and then pushes back in. The words die on the moan that is ripped from my lips. The piercing hits my G-spot first, and I see stars. I wrap my legs around his waist and try to pull him closer, but he doesn’t budge. He puts his hands on my hips and lifts me off the bed a little, changing the angle and making it that much better. I spiral into an orgasm before his third thrust.

  “That’s one,” he says gruffly. “You’ll give me at least one more before I’m done with you.”

  I’m shocked by his words and his tone, but I don’t argue. This is the best sex I’ve ever had in my life, and if he wants to give me more orgasms, I’m going to let him.

  Jude pounds into me faster, and I love every second. I’m building up to a bigger orgasm when he pinches my clit and sends me flying. I scream out my release, and he follows me with a groan of his own. I can feel him coming in powerful spurts. My orgasm continues with his and once he’s done we fall down to the bed in a sweaty heap of limbs.

  I stare at the ceiling trying to catch my breath and find rational thought. I just had sex with my best friend’s fiancé’s brother. He touched parts of me that I’ve never let anyone near, and I even let him call me princess. This has got to be a one-night thing or I could more than lose myself in this man, which would only end in disaster for both of us.

  I made myself walk away from him the next morning. Nothing good could have come from any sort of relationship with a guy like Jude. He’s a player, he likes to fuck, he’s fantastic at it, but he’s not the type who stays. I’m not the kind of woman who stays either, so I have no business even thinking like this.

  My phone brings me out of my head an
d back to the present. I click on the Bluetooth speaker in my car to answer.

  “Hey, Becca! Are you packed and ready to leave for Vegas on Friday?”

  “Almost. Can you come by and help me? I need some fashion advice and you know how much I suck at putting together outfits that don’t look like my grandmother’s.”

  “Of course I can. Do you need a coffee? I’m right by Espresso.”

  “That’s okay. I’ve already had two this morning. Anymore and you’ll have to peel me off the ceiling.”

  “I’ll be there soon. Stop stressing,” I say as I end the call and turn toward Becca’s house.

  When I walk in, there are clothes everywhere. Literally, scattered from the front door back to her bedroom. I find my friend standing in the middle of her room with her hands in her hair staring at the ceiling.

  “What the fuck is going on here?” I ask. “I didn’t think you even owned this many clothes.”

  “I just can’t figure out what to wear. Las Vegas is so far out of my comfort zone. I’ve only been to a few clubs, and I’ve never been to the desert. You’ve got to help me.”

  “Don’t worry; we’ll get it figured out. I’m glad to see that you’ve improved most of your wardrobe,” I say with a smile. “I saw a couple things in the hallway that should work. Let me go get what’s out there and you organize what’s in here. This’ll be fun,” I say as I return to the front of the house to retrieve her garments.

  Fifteen minutes later we have her organized and a few outfits put together. I’m standing in the closet looking to see what else can be done when I hear Becca on her phone. I can’t make out the words, but she sounds excited.

  “Who was that?” I ask as I emerge from the closet.

  “It was Colin. He said that Jude is in town, and I told him that he should ask Jude over for dinner tonight.”

  “So, why do you sound so happy about it? I thought they didn’t really get along.” I’m hoping he’s just here because of the wedding and not something else.

  “They don’t, but they’re going to have to fix that. I’m not marrying into that drama. If I had a sibling, I would do whatever I could to make that relationship work. I know Steph would do anything to have her sister back.” Stephanie’s sister was mentally ill and killed herself in front of the family.

  “I get it. If I my brother was still here, I’d want him in my life, too,” I say quietly. I don’t talk about him much, it’s just too painful.

  “I’m sorry, Christin. I wasn’t even thinking about Bobby,” Becca says as she squeezes my hand. I feign a smile and walk away.

  “It’s in the past. Let’s focus on the happy stuff, like what you’re going to wear for your wedding. I assume you’re not going with a traditional white dress with fifty-foot train,” I say, hoping we can move away from the subject of why Jude is here.

  “Oh, well, you know how it is,” she responds sarcastically. “It’s difficult to pack that much material in one suitcase. Let me show you what I have in mind,” she says as she pulls me into the closet.

  F

  I’m still surprised that Colin wants me over for dinner. He has resented me since we were kids. I make no apologies for how I treated him, because sheltering him from our father’s angry outbursts was more important than Colin liking me. I’ll bear the scars and his resentment knowing that he was never beaten by the asshole sperm donor we lived with.

  “Who left this fucking mess in the kitchen? I am so sick and tired of you little shits making more work for your mother. Get your asses in here and clean this shit up!” I hear him yell from out in the backyard. I know what’s going to happen next and Colin is too little to handle it.

  “Why don’t you go next door and play with Brandon,” I suggest to my little brother. He’s only six years old and doesn’t know what kind of man our father is.

  “I don’t want to, Jude. I want to play with you,” he pouts.

  “I know you do, but I have to go in the house. Dad needs me to clean up our mess in the kitchen. Go to Brandon’s, and I’ll come and get you when I’m done, okay?” I turn and push him toward the neighbor’s house.

  “Please hurry. I want to finish building our fort,” he says as he walks away slowly. I watch until he’s inside the neighbor’s house before returning to deal with my father’s wrath.

  “Jude, you little shit, are you just trying to make my life harder?” My father backhands me across the face, sending me to the floor. I don’t cry, yell, or move. I know the drill. He likes it when I fight back so I make sure not to give him what he wants.

  “Answer me when I ask you a question,” he spits out, lifting me from the floor. I can smell the alcohol on his breath and it makes my stomach roll.

  “No, sir, I’m not.” I say quietly. He drops me back to the floor and kicks me in the butt.

  “Get this cleaned up before your mother gets home,” he says as he gets a beer out of the refrigerator and stumbles into the living room. I breathe a sigh of relief that he doesn’t do more to me as I start scrubbing the counter.

  I did everything I could to protect Colin from the abuse and I think I succeeded. After our mother died unexpectedly, Dad seemed to collapse into himself. He doesn’t really care about anything or anyone now. Thankfully, he still lives in Minnesota so we don’t have to see him on a regular basis.

  I pull my truck into Colin’s driveway. The house he and Becca bought is really nice. It’s an older home with leaded glass windows, wraparound porch, and a gabled roof. It looks like something you’d see in chick flick where the cute single woman lives alone in her grandmother’s house. What the fuck is wrong with me?

  I take a deep breath as I walk to the front door. I don’t want this night to end up in an argument with my little brother. I want to have a real relationship with him. He’s all I have now that I lost my job and can’t seem to find a woman worth keeping. That’s not really true, my inner voice pipes up. I shake my head to clear that thought as I ring the doorbell.

  “Jude, it’s so good to see you again,” Becca says after opening the door and pulling me into a hug. I practically have to bend at the waist to return the embrace.

  “It’s good to be here, Bec. How’ve you been?”

  “Oh, you know, busy with school and the house. Come on in and make yourself comfortable.”

  I walk past her into a large living room. There are two couches in the middle with a fireplace surrounded by a stone hearth. My brother is sitting on one sofa, glaring at me.

  “Hello, Colin,” I say with a smile that I hope is friendly. I can feel his hostility from across the room.

  “Colin, get your ass up and say hello to your brother,” Becca scolds. He has the decency to look guilty as he gets up and comes over, holding his hand out in greeting. I take it and shake it quickly.

  “Jude, it’s good to see you. I wish you would have given me more notice you were coming up and we could have made plans.”

  “Sorry about that,” I reply. “I wasn’t sure that you’d want to see me. I came up for an interview with Belator Security Systems, and they hired me today.”

  “That’s great,” Colin says sincerely. “I’m glad you and Davidson were able to work something out. I think you’ll like working for him. He’s fair and as long as you do the job, he mostly doesn’t give a shit about your personal life.”

  “Why don’t you boys sit down and catch up while I check on dinner. Jude, would you like something to drink?” Becca asks.

  “I’d love a beer if you have one, Bec. Thank you,” I say as I follow my brother to the couches, taking the one across from him.

  Becca leaves the room, and Colin stares at me. I can’t tell what he’s thinking, and that’s unnerving. After Becca brings the beer to me and leaves the room again, Colin finally speaks.

  “So, what the fuck happened with the DEA? You always close your cases.”

  “I guess I stuck my dick in the wrong woman. Somebody Vaughn’s daughter. I don’t have a fucking clue who he is, but I
guess he’s a big deal.” I lean back on the couch and take a long pull from the beer.

  “Oh, shit. I didn’t know Vaughn was involved. Yeah, he’s a powerful man. No wonder it all happened so fast. I’m guessing that you had no idea who she was when you went home with her.”

  “No, I didn’t even get her last name. I didn’t care. So, now I’m going to start over and do something different. At least with this job I don’t have to catch the bad guys, I just have to take them to different facilities and to court. Should be a piece of cake.”

  “Nothing you do is ever that easy. You have got to keep it in your pants and do your job,” he says shaking his head.

  “I never said I was a saint, and we both know you’ve got a past, too. No need to be a judgmental prick.”

  “I’m not, asshole. I don’t want to see you do anything stupid to fuck up this opportunity you’ve got now. Davidson is cool, but he has a limit on the bullshit he’ll take from his employees.”

  “All right, I hear you. I do need some help finding a place to live that’s not near the University. Any ideas?”

  “Let’s talk about that while we eat,” Becca says as she walks into the room. Colin looks over and his face lights up in a smile. It seems like just being in the same room with his woman has a calming effect on him.

  “Sure, sounds good,” I answer as I get off the couch. “Then you can tell me about school and everything else going on with you, my dear,” I say as I follow her to the dining room.

  Dinner was very pleasant. Becca kept Colin calm and didn’t judge me when she heard what happened with my job. She kept giving my brother a look, like she wanted him to say something, and he rolled his eyes every time. As we finished the dishes, I finally had to know what was going on.