Under Pressure (Blue Collar Alphas)

by Aria Cole

  “I’m glad it wasn’t just me, then.” I pushed my fingers into his long hair, tugging softly when his eyes cast up my body and caught mine.

  They glimmered with something inexplicable, something almost a little haunted, before they warmed and his smile turned up in that cocky grin I’d come to love.

  “It's definitely not just you, Delaney.” His eyes flared when he stood in one swift movement and hooked his arms under my thighs, hosting me around his waist.

  I clung to him instantly, like I was meant to be there. And maybe I was. For the first time ever, I felt like maybe I was right where I belonged.

  “Just one look from you unchains something in my heart. Something painful, something I’ve used like a cage to protect myself.” He laid me down on the kitchen table, his hands searching my skin as if he might find answers to some riddle there. “But there’s no protecting myself from you.” He kissed at the hollow of my neck. “There’s no hiding myself from you.”

  I let out a sigh, my nipples hardening to tight little peaks when his hand whispered across the fabric of my shirt.

  “And you're so responsive to my every touch.” He purred at my neck, one hand dusting across the bare skin above the waistband of my pants again. “Just my breath on you makes you feel things you've never felt before.” He placed a kiss at the vein throbbing in my throat. “Makes you want things you’ve never wanted.”

  I sucked my bottom lip between my teeth, afraid of the words spilling past his lips, afraid they might be true. Afraid of what they might mean. Afraid of the honesty that was already laid bare between us.

  “Yes,” I hissed, unable to control the feelings raging inside me like an inferno.

  “That’s my girl. Always honest with me.” He hummed just as his hands slipped up my waist, pulling my shirt over my shoulders and letting it fall to the ground in a silky wisp. His hands were at the cups of my bra then, eyes locked with mine as his tongue darted out and licked at the creamy flesh pushing over the cup. His grin grew crooked, that damn dimple deepened, and then he hooked his thumb into my bra cup and pulled. Cool air burned my nipple, causing it to raise and pucker just as his warm lips covered it, his tongue working at the sensitive bud until I was mewling underneath him.

  His other hand gave equal attention to my other breast before he pulled down the cup and drew the other nipple into his hot mouth. Like silk and fire coming together. I thought I might lose my mind from the overload of sensation before he did the one thing my body had been begging for. And slowly…achingly slowly…his hand drifted down the soft contours of my belly, past my belly button, until finally, he reached the mound of my pussy.

  With measured slowness, he pushed my pants down my thighs, sliding them to the floor before I was nearly naked and a quivering mess under him.

  “You’re the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen, laid out for me like this.” His eyes ate me up like he was savoring every inch, hovering over my lace-covered pussy, my thick thighs that very definitely touched, the dip of my waist, and then back to my eyes again.

  “Do you have a condom?” His fingers threaded into my hair, his body covering mine as his tongue stroked past the seam of my lips.

  I shook my head, unable to form words, my hands latching around his waist and tugging at his shirt. “I haven't been with anyone.”

  He paused then, the rocking of his hips against mine slowing before he tipped my chin up and forced my gaze onto him. “Are you serious, Delaney?”

  Our gazes held for long breaths before I finally nodded. “I’m clean.”

  He let out a breath of air before pressing his forehead to mine. I felt his rock-hard erection pressed between us, and I briefly wondered if that was it, if I'd fucked up by telling him, and now I would never get a chance to know what following through with this feeling really felt like. All of it was new for me, and I wanted more. God, I wanted so much more.

  “I know you’re clean,” he finally whispered before his lips attached to mine in a long, slow kiss. “I want you to know that I want this. You and me. I want us.”

  His words stole the air straight from my lungs.

  “Don’t ever doubt that, okay?” He caught my gaze again, waiting for a reply.

  I nodded, struggling to find the words. “Okay.”

  He nodded, his hand working at my neck, my shoulders, unclasping my bra and discarding it on the floor, before he stretched above me and pulled his own shirt over his head.

  I nearly lost my breath again when the chiseled, washboard abs of his physique were revealed in the dim light. I wanted to run my tongue along every bump and ridge, count them…and then count them again until I knew the angles of his body just as well as my own.

  “Jean-Luc…” I murmured, only one thought running through my head on repeat.

  “Jesus, I can’t tell you how much I like the sound of my name on your lips.” He covered me then, pulling me into his arms, molding me to him as all the oxygen evaporated between us. “Tell me what you want.”

  “You,” I breathed, nearly ready to beg. “I want you.”

  His hand was tight at my hip as his other finger worked his pants down his legs and to the floor. In one swift move, he was covering me, the hard ridge of his cock pressed between my legs. One finger hooked in the elastic of my panties before Jean-Luc looked up at me with a reckless grin on his face, then tore with little effort.

  The pale pink panties fell on the floor, and then his silky cock was pressed against my hot flesh.

  I attached my lips to his earlobe, dragging my teeth and causing a shudder to erupt through his body before he inched inside me.

  Slowly, with aching precision, my muscles stretched to accommodate him. My mind grew hazy, my body flooded with his scent and the vindication of his touch.

  This was everything. He was everything. This feeling was like being high.

  A low groan tipped past his lips when he pushed inside me a little farther, fire burning deep inside when he reached the barrier that made me a virgin.

  “Once I have you…” His words came out nearly ravaged. “I don’t think I can go back, Delaney.”

  My heart almost shredded with his words. I knew in that instant that whatever pain this man had carried in his life, it had weighed him down, prevented him from living, maybe even from feeling.

  “There's no going back, Jean-Luc.” My words were a prayer against his stubbled neck. “There’s no turning back for us.”

  His eyes shuttered closed, his lips falling across mine as he wowed me completely with his kiss. His hands on my face, his hips pressing into mine, the hard steel of his cock breaking me, and then with one final thrust, he bottomed out inside of me.

  Another groan shuddered from his body as his hands worked my skin, his lips soothing away the ache, his thrusts slow and measured. “So sweet, so fucking intoxicating it breaks my heart.”

  His words shook me to my very core, my own lust multiplying as the pain gave way to pleasure. The muscles relaxing, the pinch easing, until all I felt was thick and full and completely taken by Jean-Luc.

  He’d stolen my heart right out from under me, before I’d even had a chance to decide if I wanted to give it to him. Wasn’t that the funny thing about love? All too often it chose you, not the other way around.

  “You completely fucking intoxicate me, Delaney.” The way he said my name was like a narcotic straight into my bloodstream.

  “I can’t believe we’re doing this,” I whispered in ragged pants, skin slick as I clawed at his back, desperate for more.

  “It’s been the only thing on my mind since we met.” He caught my lips in a kiss. “So I can one thousand percent believe it.”

  He caught my hair in his hand and arched my neck, sucking at the sweat-slicked flesh as his hips pressed against mine, fucking me into total submission.

  “Everything about you calls to me,” he said, slamming me against his body and pulling me from my perch on the table. He fucked me, hips thrusting frantically as he too
k steady steps across the living room, pulling me off his dick and spinning me to face away.

  With his hand in my hair, he pulled my chin to connect our lips, his dick probing at my entrance before he was slipping inside, filling me to the hilt again.

  “I can’t stop fucking you. I might lose my mind if I don’t get enough.” His words were gritty at my ear, a man starving for more than just sex, a man starving for love.

  His fingers slinked between my thighs, thumb working at the hard bud of my clit before stars seeped into my vision and my muscles tensed. My breaths grew shallower, his hands working more frantically against my skin before, with labored gasps, I came in a crash around him.

  Soft panting filled the room as both of his hands slid up my damp body, fisting at the flesh of my heavy tits before his teeth clamped down at the skin of my neck. I hummed, another orgasm pummeling through me as he fucked me at just the right angle, the pain-and-pleasure sensation too much to handle as waves of release flowed through every muscle.

  “You’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen, Delaney.” His words came out fast and firm, as if he had to get them out before he no longer had the courage to say them. “I’d die to protect you from pain if that’s what it took.”

  I slipped a hand into his long hair, curling my fingertips around the roots and tugging gently as his body tensed, one hand gripping tightly at my hip as the other turned my lips to meet his in a kiss that blew my mind. He fucked me long and slow as he emptied his release deep inside my body. With emotion brimming in my eyes, I sucked in a slow breath, trying to control my body’s reaction to him.

  I didn’t have to worry long because Jean-Luc seemed to sense what I needed and swept me into his arms, carrying me straight down the hall. “Which way to your bed?”

  I pointed, curling into his neck. I drew in a breath of his heady scent, savoring everything about this moment, tattooing it onto my memory in case he woke up tomorrow and decided to pretend this never happened.

  He pushed past the door of my room, dropping me onto my bed and then following me down, curling us both into the thick comforter, naked and sweaty and more content than I’d ever been.

  “That was…”

  “Beyond words.” He finished my thought exactly.

  “Yeah.”

  He tucked me into his body, pulling me under his arm and snuggling up close, our legs and arms and everything else entangled. Just how I liked it.

  “No going back, Delaney?” His question pierced the silence.

  I perched myself up on his chest, the pad of my thumb gliding along the bow of his lip. “Never any going back.”

  It was at that moment that I knew I’d already fallen for Jean-Luc Martel.

  Maybe against my better judgment.

  SIX

  Jean-Luc

  I woke the next morning curled up in Delaney’s scent.

  Every inch of her skin imprinted with mine.

  We’d switched between making love and sleeping all night long, and I’d never had an experience like it in my life.

  Delaney had forced her way straight into my heart, and suddenly, I was the dumbass stumbling along, wondering when the fuck it all happened.

  I wasn't a guy that fell in love. Things like hearts and flowers and feelings were not my fucking jam, but Delaney was. And this delectable, warmhearted woman next to me gave love so freely, so openly, it inspired me. It made me want to love her as hard and as fiercely as she loved everyone else.

  “The longer you stare at me, the better the chance you get downgraded to creeper status.”

  A laugh burst from my lungs, my hands reaching for her instantly. I tugged the white sheet down her body, revealing her gorgeous tits to the dawn of morning light.

  “Hungry.” I licked at the rosy bud of her dark nipple. “Been waitin’ for you to get up.”

  She shook her head, running her fingers through my hair and sending waves of calm through me like the best drug.

  I snaked a hand across her hips, dusting my fingers through the wet lips of her warm pussy. She sighed, arching her back, making me hungrier for her than ever.

  Everything about her drew me in.

  I sank a finger into her warm body, getting her so turned on her eyes did that little fluttering thing. She snagged her lip between her teeth, making that cute little noise I’d quickly learned meant she was close, and then I sucked between her thighs, burying my mouth against her pussy and lapping at her gorgeous folds until she was trembling and coming in rolling waves across my face.

  I sucked at the enticing juices, my dick harder than a goddamn rock. I was so desperate to bury myself inside her, but the only thing I wanted more was her taste on my tongue all day.

  “Your cream on my tongue tastes better than raspberry custard. Silky, soft, melts in your mouth.” I ran my hands up her torso, anxious to devour every inch, before pulling her in for a wild kiss. Pulling hair, moaning, and teeth-bitingly wild, until I knew I needed inside her before I had any chance of making it through the day.

  “Fucking love the taste of this sweet pussy on your lips.” I licked at the seam, hands cradling her face as I nudged my cock between her thighs.

  In one swift thrust, I was buried full tilt inside her, pumping and grinding my hips, fucking her mouth with my tongue as our moans echoed off the walls of her room.

  “I could stay in here with you all day.” I threaded the fingers of one of our hands together and planted it against the headboard. “I can’t get enough.”

  Her nails dug into the hard muscle of my back, sending a slice of pain screaming through my nerves before it settled into a slow, delicious burn. Her ankles locked around my waist, her lips sucking across the skin at my chest, and I lost my fucking mind.

  Completely lost my everything.

  I emptied it all inside her.

  All the pain.

  All the loneliness.

  All the desperation.

  I emptied myself, and somehow found the very thing that mattered most.

  Her.

  Me.

  Us.

  She made me feel this way; she brought this out in me when no one else had been able to reach the darkest corners of my heart.

  Grasping for a lifeline, I finished my orgasm with my lips pressed to hers, kissing her, loving her, letting her feel what this meant. Because if she looked too close, she might see too much.

  She might see what’s real. She might see the very heart of me, and that thought alone was terrifying.

  “That was amazing,” Delaney purred, hands spread across my back as she cradled me inside her.

  I licked a line across her collarbone, not quite ready for words. “Yeah.”

  We lay quietly for a few minutes, my dick softening inside her, my soul feeling more connected to anyone than I’d ever been.

  That thought alarmed me, but in the oddest way, brought a sense of comfort too.

  “We should get ready for work. I’ve got to hit Chelsea Market and grab a few ingredients for tonight’s menu.” I kissed her on the tip of the nose.

  She smiled, kissing me back softly. “That’s going to be hard to do with you still inside me.”

  I couldn't help the pride that swelled my chest—and my dick. “Maybe another round.”

  “No!” she shrieked and then slipped out from under me, dislodging me in the process. “You’re going to bruise me with that thing!”

  I laughed as she jumped out of bed, shooting me a sexy grin before darting into the bathroom.

  I heard the shower a minute later.

  My cock twitched to life.

  I launched out of bed, crossing the room and ducking into the bathroom, which was already steaming up. “Shower sex sounded too good to pass up.”

  Her giggle was like a siren’s song to my heart. The shower curtain slid aside, and her head popped out, hair dripping wet and in tight ringlets around her face.

  She was so beautiful it hurt to look at her.

  “Comin’, Chef
?”

  I arched an eyebrow, not passing up the chance to sneak another moment with my girl.

  I’d be a goddamn fool to pass up Delaney Thomas.

  * * *

  A warm spring breeze hit our backs as we walked past East River Park, a few bags of ingredients in hand after spending the morning walking Chelsea Market. I was shocked to find she’d never been there, and it’d been one of the best times of my life walking into that place and seeing it through her fresh eyes. She stopped for every sample, just like a kid, and I couldn't help but try the morsels with her. I had relationships with a lot of the vendors there, and introducing her to more of my people had only made this thing simmering between us feel more real.

  “I can’t wait to try that truffle risotto,” she said as I unlocked the back door of the restaurant.

  “I’ve featured it on the menu a few times, but only when the truffles come from a certain farm in Northern France. Not all truffles are created equal. I’m thinkin’ about adding a touch of grapefruit to it tonight, though. I think the citrus would pair well with the grouper.”

  “That sounds delicious. Maybe a hint of black sea salt to tie everything together.” We stepped into the kitchen, and I unloaded the bags from my arms before turning to take the few I’d let her carry.

  “I like your thought process, Ms. Thomas.” I grabbed a handful of her ass cheek and pulled her in for a kiss.

  “Thanks, Chef,” she purred, circling her arms around my neck.

  My body melded to hers instantly, her back arching, my body humming to life.

  Something I seemed to be doing a lot of with her.

  “I swear you’ve turned me into a brand-new man,” I whispered against her lips.

  “I didn’t want a brand-new man.” She kissed my lips tenderly. “I just wanted the real man hidden under all these tattoos.”

  I slid a palm down the back of her pants, thinking if it had been a little bit earlier I would have pulled her pants down and taken her right here.