by Diana Nixon
“Too late. I already know about you more than you could have ever agreed to tell me about yourself.”
“Which makes me believe you really missed me all those weeks we spent apart, if you wasted your precious time digging up the dirt on me.”
“You should thank your friend Michael for it. Somehow, he was sure I needed to know more about the owner of the house I was about to rent.”
“Michael?” Oh, the old smartass did know a lot about me. Maybe even more than I wanted him or anyone else to know about me. “I’ll fry his balls, I swear. What else did he tell you about me?”
“Not much, just the general information.”
“Why don’t I believe you?”
She smiled and pulled my face closer to hers. “How about you stop asking questions and get back to what your mouth has been busy doing before it?”
The woman surely knew what to say to make me shut up. “With pleasure, sweetie.”
She growled. “I told you to stop calling me that!”
“Sorry, I can’t. Annoying you seems to be one of my favorite things to do when around you.”
“That’s what I thought.”
“But I’m pretty sure I can add another thing to that list…” My fingers touched her clit and she raised her hips in response. “That’s right, baby, making your body comply with my every wish would be on top of the list.”
Who would have thought being all logical and careful when around beautiful women wouldn’t mean a thing when being with Harlee? I could see danger in her. But I wasn’t scared of it. On the contrary – the closer I got to the most dangerous part of our game, the more I wanted to continue playing it.
There was nothing more important than touching her now, kissing her everywhere my lips could kiss her and making her mine, over and over again.
Fuck, I was so close to losing control with her. But I didn’t give a damn.
I pulled her by the hand and made her sit on my lap, facing me, with her legs around me.
“What do you want me to do?” I asked her in a whisper. I knew she could feel how hard I was for her.
“What do you want to do?” She asked in response.
“Like you said – I’d better stop wasting my time on talks and show you what I want to do with you.” I stood up, still holding her. “Upstairs. And there’s no way in hell I’m gonna spend this night in a guest room.”
She wrapped her legs tighter around me, with her hands locked around my neck. “I don’t remember my rental agreement mentioned the owner of the house could spend nights in my bedroom.”
“I’ll compensate for breaking the damn agreement,” I said, walking through the glass door.
“How?”
“Just let me take you to the bed first.”
“You think you are so good in bed that I won’t be able to resist you?”
“I think you are so good in bed that I won’t be able to get out of it any time soon.”
She laughed and hid her face in the curve of my neck. “Watch your step, Mr. I don’t want my back to hit the stairs instead of the mattress.”
“Oh, trust me, baby, your back will hit many things tonight. And it’s not because we’ll be having jiu-jitsu classes. Though I wouldn’t mind you showing me a few moves.” I pushed the master bedroom door open and walked to the bed. “Damn, you can’t imagine how many times I wanted to pin you to this bed.”
“To do what?” She teased, with the devils dancing in her green eyes.
“To get so deep inside you, you can’t remember your own name.”
She feathered my lips with her. “I like the sound of that.”
“You will like the feel of it even more.” I put her down and took a moment to enjoy the view. Her porcelain skin contrasted with the dark-purple satin bed sheets. Her long silky hair tossed back on a pillow; her gorgeous body half naked; lips swollen from kisses; eyes – glowing with undeniable lust.
Perfect.
“Aren’t you tired of watching me?” She pushed the dress down her hips and then tossed it aside, leaving nothing but a thong to cover her.
“You have no idea.” I don’t think I had ever undressed faster than now. My clothes ended up on the floor, including my boxers that felt like the least needed thing that night.
“Come here,” she beckoned me.
“Come is the key word for tonight.”
She chuckled and pulled my mouth to hers, giving me a kiss that was about to blew not just my mind, but all the other parts of my body as well.
She was powering me up and I knew I was in a whole mess of trouble with her.
I wanted her like I never wanted any other woman before her. I wanted her beneath me, on top of me and any other way I could take her that night. I just felt like I couldn’t get enough of being with her, and something was telling me sleeping with her wouldn’t change it a bit.
The blinds were closed and there was nothing but a bedside table lamp to illuminate the room. It felt so intimate, like we were closed in a world that belonged to us only, like there was no past for us, but a whole future to enjoy each other.
I caught myself thinking about tomorrow and it had been the first time in forever that I really wanted it to be as perfect as here and now, with Harlee.
After Carol, no woman ever woke up in the same bed with me. No matter how late she stayed, we never woke up together.
Why? Because staying always felt like something pointless. I knew I wouldn’t be with anyone of them, as well as they knew they would never be with me. We made a deal, and we always followed the rules.
Until I met Harlee.
I never set any rules for her. I never thought about setting the rules in the first place. It was new to me, but also so good, I didn’t want to change anything. I just wanted to be with her, as long as she would let me….
I broke the kiss and let my lips move down her body, lower and lower, until I knew I was exactly where I wanted to be this whole time that we spent apart.
“Open up for me,” I said.
She obeyed.
God, I loved how complying she was when on fire. We were so close to jumping off the cliff and into something I knew would bring us so much pleasure. But I still couldn’t believe how fast she managed to get under my skin and win every small part of me, making my every thought be her, and my every wish involve her.
Tired of looking for explanations, I buried my face in her, with my mouth sucking on her clit.
She groaned aloud and the sound went right through me and hit me so hard, I wanted nothing more than to be inside her, right now.
But she deserved so much more than just a quick fuck.
“Are you still joining our all-girl night tomorrow?” She suddenly asked.
I stopped whatever I was doing. “Yes. Why?”
“Just wanted to make sure you will spend another night with me.”
I smiled. “Well, doesn’t it sound like the best thing you could have ever told me? I feel so honored you want to share another night with me.”
“I haven’t decided anything, yet. Will see how things go from here…”
“From what I can feel, they are going the right way, baby. You are dripping like ice-cream in the sun. I love it.” I got back to my mouth work, eager to lick every drop of her sweet juices.
I pushed two fingers inside her and my head started to spin. She was tight and warm and perfect, and I couldn’t hold back my desire any longer.
I sucked her one more time and then covered her body with mine, with my cock quickly finding its way inside her.
“You are bare,” she said, breathing heavily.
“I know. And this is exactly how I want to go tonight. Do you mind?”
She didn’t hesitate. “I don’t.”
There was nothing better than to be skin to skin with her, with nothing but her flesh to touch mine.
Next thing I knew, I was thrusting through the walls of her vagina, deep and hard and with all the need I felt for her at that moment.
/> And she was responding to my moves, as if mirroring them, moving in tune with my body, and making me lose my mind over her.
Fuck, she was heaven. Pure heaven to me, where I wanted to stay forever if not longer than that.
I couldn’t breathe her enough, couldn’t kiss her enough, couldn’t touch her enough.
Nothing seemed to be enough with her. Was there a cure for that kind of craziness? I don’t think so. And frankly, I didn’t want to cure from her. I was ready to lose it all for her…
Her palms slid up and down my back, lips hungrily searching mine. She met my thrusts with a welcome and then made me quicken my moves, as if she couldn’t wait to explode.
There was no turn back to this night. We both were on edge.
I gave her a few slow thrusts and then quickened my pace, watching a waterfall of emotions cross her gentle features. Sweet baby Jesus, was she stunning in ecstasy. Like the best of my dreams coming true, or even better. Even sweeter, even more intoxicating.
If she were wine, I would drink every drop of her, leaving nothing but an aftertaste to burn my mouth. I would let her fill me up from within, live in me, breathe me. We would ride the heights of our climax like it was the last ride we would ever take together.
And then…
Then she would be mine and mine only. Not just for one night, but forever. And I would no longer look for anything else because she would be everything to me.
“Cole…” My name broke through the silence of the room, making me focus on what she was about to feel. I wanted her to feel good. So good, she would never want to be with anyone but me.
“Give in, Harlee,” I whispered back.
And she did. And so did I.
Drop after drop, I plunged deeper inside her, as if I wanted to imprint my name inside her. So that no other man would ever touch her the way I did.
So that she never thinks of any other man but me…
CHAPTER 11
Harlee
I swallowed my third shot of Tequila and grimaced when the burning liquid landed at the bottom of my empty stomach.
“Are you sure you’re all right?” Willow sipped her apple juice, studying me carefully. It was the third time she asked that question tonight, and the answer was the same.
“Yep.” I motioned for the bartender to refill my glass.
“Okay, then may I make a few assumptions about the reasons for your drinking party?”
“No.”
“First,” she started, ignoring my protest. “It’s because Cole Griffin wouldn’t let you sleep last night.”
I chocked on my drink. I didn’t tell her a word about what happened last night or about the little sleep I got because Cole wouldn’t let me close my eyes.
Willow patted my back and waited for my breathing to restore.
“Second,” she said, with a deep frown. “I think you have a serious crush on that guy.”
I spilled a good part of my drink on the bar stand and she hurried to give me a napkin.
“Thanks,” I mumbled, afraid to hear her next assumption. Because it looked like she could see it all right through me, and knowing my friend, she would never let me go easily if I didn’t explain things first.
“And third…”
“Oh, please, Willow! Why don’t you give me a break?”
“Is that what you told Cole to do when he tried to get into your panties last night? Though I doubt he listened to you and did what he wanted to do with you anyway.”
Did someone notice the moment my opened in surprise mouth hit the bar stand?
“I have no idea what you are talking about.” I pushed away my empty shot and grimaced, like I was about to be sick. That last one was definitely too much.
“Oh, my God, Harlee… You slept with him!”
“Shush!” I looked around, hoping no one heard her words. It was one thing to go to the bar packed with good-looking guys with a heavily pregnant friend, and a completely different one – to discuss my sex life there.
“Was he good?” Ugh, you should have seen how crazy her look was when she was asking that question.
“And you are asking because…?”
“Because I, of all people, know how much your vagina missed a good fuck.”
Dear Lord, could that night get any worse?
“Can we talk about something else, please?”
She shook her head in a silent no.
“Okay, I did sleep with him.”
She squealed like she just got the most-wanted present ever.
“People are watching you!” I told her.
Not that my words reached her ears.
Instead of piping down, she stood up and said to everyone who could hear her at that moment, “I’m really sorry for being a little noisy tonight, but my best friend just confessed she broke her two-year abstention vow and got properly bumped, finally! And I couldn’t be happier about her!”
The crowd around me broke into applauds and various sounds of approval.
Mortification was not a good enough word to describe what I felt right now.
“Another shot, please,” I said to the bartender and he nodded, smiling at me. God, he probably thought I was a lost cause. But I was too drunk to give a shit.
“Tell me, tell me everything!” Willow sat back in her chair and clapped her hands.
“You just humiliated me in front of dozens of strangers and you still hope to hear the details of what I never wanted to tell anyone about?”
“Yes!”
Wasn’t she amazing?
“There’s nothing to tell, really.”
“Not true. Otherwise, Cole wouldn’t have followed you here.”
“What?”
She pointed to the table where Cole was sitting, all alone, with a glass of whiskey in his hands. His gaze, obviously, was on my drunk ass.
I rolled my eyes. “I knew he wouldn’t keep his word.”
“About what?”
“About giving me time and space to think.”
The thing is… The morning I woke up in Cole’s embrace, I knew I should have never let him in my bedroom, not to mention inside me. He looked like a cat who caught a mouse and was now enjoying playing with her, before he would eat her for breakfast. I didn’t mind being his breakfast, but the rational part of me - that was about the size of a crumb - was telling me to stop him before it would be too late.
Though it was too late, and I just now realized how wrong spending a night with him was.
All of Willow’s assumptions about Cole and me were correct. One of them in particular – I had a serious crush on him, and I had no fucking idea how to change it back.
“Just don’t say you didn’t like him on top of you,” my friend said.
“That’s the problem - I did like it. A lot.”
“Good. Then what is this vinegar face about?”
“He said he wants to repeat it.”
“Isn’t it what you want to?”
“I can’t afford distractions, Willow. I just got a promotion and I need to focus on my job. Besides, Cole Griffin is bad news. He and I see things from a different point of view.”
“Even if he wants just sex, why not go for it?”
It wasn’t just about sex anymore. That’s why.
“It will complicate my life significantly.”
“No. Unless you want him to propose. Which would be a little too soon, considering you know so little about him. Damn, just look at his cute dimples.” Willow waved at Cole and smiled at him. “He can’t take his eyes off you, dear.”
“Tell me something I don’t know. I can feel a hole on my back growing from every damn look he gives me.”
“Why is he here anyway?”
“Because at some point, he believed I didn’t have a right to sleep with anyone but him.”
“Exclusive is good. Don’t you think so?”
“Not in this particular case. Unlike me, Cole will never follow his stupid exclusive rule.”
“How do
you know that?”
“I just know it, okay?” The things I knew about him were more than enough to never believe he knew how to do exclusive.
“Why don’t you give him a little more credit?” Willow smiled again, and I knew her smile was for Cole. I still refused to turn around and look at him. I told him to stay at home, and he agreed. And then followed me to the bar. “He feels territorial about you, it’s natural.”
“Not for him.”
Willow rolled her eyes.
I smirked. “I can’t believe you are team Cole now.”
“I can’t believe you are not team Cole, yet. Though I’m sure he knows how to make you change your stubborn mind.”
I knew the moment Cole stood behind me. Every inch of me vibrated in response to his closeness and I cursed mentally at how fast the man managed to make me weak against him.
“Do you mind if I steal your friend for a dance?” He asked.
“I don’t.” I said, still with my back to him.
Willow shucked. “He’s referring to you, Harlee.”
It took me a few moments to realize what was going on.
“Sorry, I’m not in a dancing mood tonight.”
“Bullshit!” Willow said. “Take her to the dance floor. It’s her favorite song by the way.”
“I thought pregnant women try to watch their mouth,” I commented.
“It’s too loud here for the baby to hear what I’m saying. Besides, he’ll be glad to know I helped his future godmother find her happiness.”
“I don’t need anyone’s help. Neither with finding my happiness, nor with anything else.”
“Sure you do,” Cole said. He took me by the elbow and helped me off the bar stool. The surroundings swayed in front of my eyes. “Maybe we should skip dancing after all. Better take you home.”
“You are right, Cole. She has had enough for tonight.”
“Since when have you two become a team?”
Willow took my purse and hung it over my shoulder. “Since the day you let him stay overnight at your rented house. I swear it was the best idea to ever cross your mind.”
I made a face. “I knew it was a mistake from the very beginning,” I muttered more to myself than to my companions.
“I’ll give you two a lift,” Willow said.
