by Erika Kelly
She wanted him, too. She wanted him more than she didn’t want to be hurt. “Make me feel the way I did in Vegas. Nobody makes me feel the way you do.”
“Get in here.” Reaching for her ass, he lifted her, and she wrapped her legs around him.
God, her body thrilled at his touch. He held her so tightly, she could feel the tremble in his arms.
He kicked the door shut, and then tipped his head toward the house. “Posie?”
She waved the baby monitor at him. “I work in here a lot, so I know the signal reaches.”
“Good. Now give me that mouth.” He kissed her, his tongue licking inside her mouth.
Electric heat sizzled along her nerves, and she sighed. So happy, so…complete.
There was nowhere else she’d rather be than right here, in his arms, kissing kissing kissing him, slow and deep. She’d never known a softer, warmer, more velvety mouth.
The next thing she knew, she was sailing…landing on a soft mattress with a bounce. She’d barely set the monitor on the nightstand before he was on her. His big hand came around the back of her head, fingers threading through her hair, and she loved the possession, the hunger in his grip.
Too soon, he pulled away. But it was only to get on his knees and drag her up the bed, until her head hit the pillow. And then he pushed her knees apart and settled between her legs. His hand slid under her T-shirt, skimmed up her stomach, and cupped her breast.
He dipped his nose into her neck. “You smell good. You taste good. You are good. So, so good, my Vegas girl.”
Palms flat on his back, she glided up his warm, smooth skin until she reached his shoulders. He pulled away long enough to fist the T-shirt behind his neck and yank it off.
A grumble came from the baby monitor, and they both stilled, listening to Ollie snuffling in his sleep. They broke into grins.
The dog had taken to following Posie everywhere and sleeping in her bed.
“He’s not going to wake her?” Beckett asked in that deep, sexy voice.
“She goes so hard all day, nothing wakes her.” As he hovered over her, his hair spilled forward, and the concern in his eyes warmed her. She scraped it back so she could see his strong jaw and high cheekbones, those startlingly beautiful crystal eyes. Affection for him swelled to bursting. “I’ve been so frustrated with myself for falling for a guy who’s never going to settle down. Like, what’s wrong with me? But tonight I realized I’m not falling for a wanderer. I’m falling for Beckett O’Neill. I’m falling for your kindness and intelligence, your honesty and humor. I’m falling for the way you’re handling the most life-altering news a man could ever get. I’m falling for you.”
He kissed her, one hand sliding under her ass and pressing their bodies tightly together. Their tongues tangled and danced, as her fingers mapped every hard ridge of bone and flex of muscle on his powerful chest.
When he pulled his mouth off hers, she cried out at the loss. But his lips skimmed down her jaw to her neck, and he licked a path to her collarbone. “Get this shirt off.” As she lifted up, he sat back on his heels. “Slowly. I wanna watch.”
She pulled it over her head and dropped it off the side of the bed. Reaching behind her, he unclasped the bra, lowered the straps, and tossed it aside. She loved the way his nostrils flared as he took in her breasts. He immediately filled his hands with them, pressing the mounds together, his thumbs brushing across her nipples.
Desire burst in a shower of fiery sparks. She sucked in a breath, and his gaze flicked up to hers. “We’re a good match. I love your tits, and your tits love to be touched.” He leaned in. “Do they like to be sucked, too?”
She lay back down and gave a little jiggle just to tease him. “You know they do.”
He growled, lunging for her. “Fuck, yeah, I do.” As he lowered his head, his silky hair brushed over her skin. Watching her, he licked the tip of one, the side of his mouth curling when she arched off the mattress.
Lazily, his tongue circled and flicked, working her into a frenzy. “Beckett.”
He sucked in her nipple, licking it with the flat of his tongue. Then, lavished the other with equal attention, driving her right out of her mind.
Awash in sensuality, she closed her eyes and let herself sink into everything Beckett, his scent, the way he clutched her, the hungry sounds he made. She felt free, sexy…purely feminine, and she loved it. Loved it so damn much.
Unexpectedly, he released her with a pop. “In Vegas, it was like this little cocoon, you and me in that bed. I wasn’t thinking about my retirement, my friends, my family…it didn’t even register that I was in a hotel room.” Shifting back, he reached for the waistband of her shorts. “You remember that?”
“Yes, but what I remember most was how comfortable I felt with you.” She hiked up her bottom, and he pulled them down. “You didn’t feel like a stranger.”
He took in her body. “Look at you. I don’t even know where to begin. I want it all.”
She knew he didn’t see himself as romantic, as a relationship kind of guy. He seemed to view it as some foreign thing, something he’d irretrievably missed out on because of his family, but he was so wrong. It came naturally to him. She wished he could see that he gave her everything she could ever need. His hunger for her…the way he saw right into the very heart of her and still likes me…pure romance. Sitting up, she reached for the button on his shorts. “Let’s start here.”
He shot off the bed, yanked them down, and started to climb back on when she stopped him with a hand to his thigh.
“Whoa. Not so fast.” His hard cock stood straight up, bouncing against his flat, tight stomach. Wrapping her hand around him, she licked the crown. “Mm, you’re gorgeous everywhere.”
Fingers sifting into her hair, he slid his hand around to the back of her neck. As her tongue swirled around his length, gliding up, then down, she took her own pleasure in learning his sounds and reactions. Grabbing his muscular ass, she sucked him into her mouth, loving the way his hips flexed and his breathing turned harsh.
“Jesus.” Both hands cupping the back of her head, he pumped into her mouth.
She loved the way his fingers gripped her scalp, the desperation in his thrusts. Watching, she withdrew him almost all the way out of her mouth, before sucking him back in. His eyelids fluttered closed, and his lips parted in pure sensual pleasure.
She loved the strain in his muscles, the bulge in his biceps. She pulled his glistening length out of her mouth. “Want to see a party trick?” Laying down on her back, the top of her head brushing his thighs, she let her neck dangle off the edge of the mattress. “Fuck my mouth.”
“Are you serious right now?”
She grinned, reaching for him and angling him toward her.
“I’ve been going to the wrong parties.” He tried for joviality, but his voice came out strained. Hands on her shoulders, he guided his erection into her open mouth, watching with avid interest as she swallowed his whole length. “Fuck.” One syllable came out on a long, drawn-out hiss. When he hit the back of her throat, he rocked in careful, tight thrusts. He looked like he was on the edge of his restraint, trying hard not to hurt her but needing to unleash.
She pulled him out and sat up. “This is a private party, between you and me. So, we can do whatever we want.” She lay back down. “I won’t be shy in letting you know if I don’t like something.”
He stuttered out a breath, gripping his cock and easing it back into her mouth. And then he pumped—easily at first, testing her—but she just tipped her head back even more and let him in deeper.
“Fuck, Coco. You feel so good.”
She couldn’t flick her tongue with her mouth stuffed like that, but she pressed it against him and sucked hard, making him gasp. “Jesus.”
He watched her swallow his cock, and his eyes went wild, desperate. And it just made her so crazy she had to reach between her legs to get some relief.
But before she could touch herself, he pulled out. “Oh, no, yo
u don’t. I want to feel you come around me.” He climbed onto the bed. “Get over here.”
She scrambled back onto the mattress, until her head hit the pillow. With her laid out before him, he kissed a path down her stomach to her throbbing center. When he licked inside, she arched off the bed. “Oh.” Her body ignited, desire flashing across her skin.
“You’re so fucking wet.” He licked her into a fever, until her hips twisted back and forth, and the tension grew unbearable. And then he slid his fingers inside her, stroking her into a climax that sent her soaring.
Clutching his head so he wouldn’t stop, she rode one luscious wave after another, the pleasure so intense it made her blood sing.
When she lowered her hips, he reached for the nightstand, grabbed a foil packet from the drawer, and pulled out the condom.
“I can’t feel my fingers right now.” She watched him unrolling it on his cock. “But next time I want to put it on.”
He didn’t even smile. “You can do whatever you want. I’ll all yours” Once sheathed, he leaned over her, pressing at her entrance. “You ready for me?”
“Mm.” She smoothed his hair behind his ear. “So ready.”
With a punch of his hips, he thrust inside, and every single cell went white hot. Lifting up on his arms, he took in her body, his gaze fixed on her bouncing breasts. “Jesus, what you do to me.”
His ridged abs tightened, and his biceps bunched and bulged. The tendons in his neck strained, and he pounded into her so hard she had to band her legs and arms around him to keep from banging into the headboard.
“Not gonna last. I’m…fuck.” He lowered his body so it scraped over hers, his pelvis striking her clit with every thrust. His back grew slick with perspiration, the muscles going rock hard.
Slamming home, he held himself tightly against her, as he threw his head back and came with a roar. One hand under her ass, his hips snapped in short, tight punches.
Collapsing to her side, he wrapped his arm around her, snugging her to him. “Swear to God, the more I know you, the better it is.” He sounded like he couldn’t believe it was true.
But it was true. It just kept getting better with him.
And that filled her with an incandescent joy—matched only in strength by a fear so palpable she wanted to roll out of bed and race out the door. Hide in the safety of her bedroom.
In the heat of the moment, she’d told herself she could handle falling for a man who would leave her. But now she knew she’d told herself lies just to get another hit of his attention, of the way he made her feel about herself.
Because, right then, wrapped in his strong arms, she couldn’t help but think ahead to August, when he’d leave, and she knew it would be worse than anything she’d imagined.
She knew herself. She would scour his social media for signs of other women. She’d check her phone, looking for a call or text.
Tonight had been so good—no regrets. But did she really want have a summer fling? Or should she just end it now?
It was time to get her sisters in on it.
She needed their perspective.
With their drinks in hand, Coco and her older sister found a table in the corner of Calamity Joe’s. Tourists coming back from a day of hiking and rafting, as well as locals on coffee breaks, made up the late afternoon crowd.
She pushed her chair closer to Gigi’s before dropping into it. On impulse, she leaned over and gave her sister a big hug. “I’m so glad you’re here. I’ve missed you so much.” Her sister used to live in Los Angeles, making it a quick hour and forty-five-minute flight to Calamity. But since she’d found love with a quarterback from Boston, she came home far less often.
“I’ve missed you, too.” Gigi sat back, tucking her legs under her and setting an elbow on the armrest. “But you can’t drop news like that in a group text message. I had to come and see if you’re okay. This is big.”
“You’re getting ready for a tour.” Normally, Gigi would be in Calamity for the summer, since her fiancé ran a football camp for kids here. But her band was opening for Blue Fire, one of the biggest Alt/rock bands in the world, and they were doing choreography in New York.
“Forget about the tour.” Gigi whispered aggressively. “Posie has a dad. This is huge. It’s—”
“Shh. I know exactly what it is.”
“Why are we whispering? I thought you said he told her.”
“I said he’s ready to tell her. We haven’t done it yet.” She reached for her sister’s hand and squeezed it. “But, you’re right, it is a big deal. You didn’t have to come home for this, but I’m so glad you did.”
“So, talk to me.” Gigi nudged her. “What was it like to see your hookup after six years?”
“Honestly? It’s all still there, the attraction, the chemistry.” The other night came roaring back, his urgency, his need…God, the passion. It was so good between them. “And the more I get to know him, the better I like him.” The visceral sensation of their bodies grinding together, straining to bust through physical boundaries, had her skin on fire. She glanced away, not wanting her sister to see her reaction to him.
“Oh, my God. You didn’t.”
She shot her sister a look. “I did.” And broke into a grin.
Gigi fanned herself. “It was that good?”
She rolled her eyes. “Unbelievable.”
“Oh, my God, you can’t sleep with him. Are you out of your mind?”
“When he puts that wicked tongue into action, yep. He drives me right out of mind.”
Gigi burst out laughing. “My quiet little sister’s a wildcat in the sheets. Who knew?”
“Quiet?” This is how my family sees me. Coco had never been quiet. She just hadn’t been passionate about anything. Get all four sisters together in a room, and everyone would notice Gigi’s voice, Lulu’s cooking, and whatever hobby Stella happened to be focused on at that moment.
Coco didn’t stand out in any way.
Beckett was right. Her family placed importance on a person’s talents, their accomplishments. Not on their personalities, their character.
Gigi leaned forward and grabbed her hand. “What’s this? You never wear jewelry.”
“I know. It’s from him. Beckett.”
“Are you serious? He bought you a ring?”
“No, it’s not like that. He was just… he saw it at an arts and crafts festival, knew aquamarine was my birthstone…”
“You’re making light of it, and I don’t know why. He’s walking around, sees a ring, and associates it immediately with your birthstone? Sweetie, this man’s into you big-time.”
“Yeah, I mean, it’s really good between us. But I just know I’m setting myself up for a big fall.”
“Why do you say that?” Gigi tucked a lock of her dark hair behind her ear. Her sister had an edgy, rocker look, and everywhere she went people did a double take because she looked like someone famous.
“I think I fall for guys who ghost me.” What does that say about me?
Her sister looked thoughtful. “Well…” Her fingers strummed the ribbed coffee sleeve. “Thinking back on Keith and Ethan, I’d say you choose safe guys.”
“There was nothing safe about Keith. He was wild and fun, and Ethan was—”
“Never going to stay in Calamity. By safe, I don’t mean boring. I mean the kind you’d never fall in love with, so the lack of an emotional attachment makes it easier for them to cut and run.”
Ouch. Is that what I do? She supposed she could see that. “Well, there’s nothing safe about Beckett, that’s for sure.” Because I have big feelings. Huge.
“Is this a good idea, though? I mean, he’s trying to build a relationship with Posie.”
“Believe me, I know.” She thought of the way he’d held her that night. She’d known she had to get back to her own bed, but that possessive hold…like he never wanted to let her go? I want that every night. “It’s not like we can stop it. It’s big, Gigi. We really like each other, and the
chemistry is so, so powerful. I feel like he’s my person, you know?” It felt like a ridiculous thing to say. They hardly knew each other.
One night in Vegas, a week in Calamity…and yet hours, minutes, seconds didn’t forge the bond between them. It came from something deeper…a recognition…the missing piece of her soul finally clicking into place.
“I hear you. It’s just…your person is a guy who travels most of the year. I can’t imagine you being happy with that. And it sounds like it would be awful for Posie.”
“No, he knows that’s not sustainable, not with a daughter. I mean, it’s only been a week, and he’s already hired someone to take his trips this summer. He’s honestly doing the best he can.”
“Well, that’s good. Then, why do you think he’s going to ghost you?”
“I don’t mean ghost, necessarily. But he doesn’t want a family. He doesn’t want ties or commitments, so I know he’s not going to stick around.”
“He didn’t, but it sounds like that’s all changing. You just told me he’s really into you, and I know he’s got to be falling for Posie.”
“Don’t repeat this okay? But I really need to talk to someone.”
“Everything you say goes in the vault.”
She believed her. Gigi was awesome that way. “He comes from a really broken family. His mom walked out on him after his sister died. I mean, he grew up in boarding school. To be honest, I think he shut down his emotions when he lost his sister, and I can’t see him suddenly getting over that to become a family man with a wife, kids, and a dog.”
“Does he have to fit into that mold, though? Can you make up your own kind of relationship, something that works for both of your quirks?”
She sat back in her chair, making a face like she was shocked. “What quirks?” But she really did want to know.
“Well, you’re pretty closed off yourself.”
“I’m not closed off.”
“You literally waited an entire week to tell us about Posie’s dad.”
“That’s because I’ve been trying to get a handle on it. It’s a pretty big deal.”
