Only

by HelenKay Dimon

  “I think you know.” He put a hand against the door, not pushing but making it clear he didn’t plan to stand out in the hallway forever. “Is there anything you want to ask me?”

  So many things but some would send him running. “How about, how do you look so good after a twenty-hour workday?”

  Like, she wanted to take his glasses off and run her fingers through his hair. Over all of him, actually.

  “Ask me to come in.”

  There was no need to say it twice. She stood back and ushered him in without saying a word. When she turned back around and watched him standing in the middle of her small place her mind went blank. The dark suit and wide shoulders looked out of place with her abandoned clothes and towel draped over the treadmill by the window. The same one she used as an expensive and heavy extra closet.

  The way he stood over the bed, trailing his gaze across the comforter, made her sorry she’d bothered with underwear after the shower.

  Since she was not the giggly schoolgirl type and he made it clear that wasn’t his thing anyway, she tried to stay calm and think her way through this. The heartbeat banging through her with the force of a gong was a lost cause. She didn’t attempt to bring it back down to the normal range.

  She inhaled as she forced her body to stay still. No shifting her weight or tugging on the bottom of her shirt, even though it barely cleared her underwear. “Where did you get my address?”

  “Hmm?” He turned around to face her with eyes that appeared cloudy.

  “God, you don’t own the building or something freaky like that, do you? That would be weird.”

  “No.” The heat in his eyes suggested he had things on his mind other than real estate. “I checked your registration when I put the bag in your car.”

  That didn’t sound all that much better. “I’m trying to figure out if that’s still creepy. I’m thinking maybe. What about you?”

  “I went back and forth on an answer.”

  “What did you decide?”

  He slipped his suit jacket off his shoulders and added it to her pile of forgotten clothes on the top of her chest of drawers. “To lecture you about keeping something with your home address in your car.”

  This time she held on to the bottom of the T-shirt to keep from making wild hand gestures. “Where else would I keep the registration?”

  “On you.” Next came his tie. Those sexy lean fingers went to work and the knot slipped. He pulled and the rustle of material against material streaked through the room.

  “I could forget it then get pulled over and get stuck with a ticket.”

  His gaze never left hers as he unbuttoned the top two buttons of his white dress shirt. “That’s better than leading a crazed lunatic back to your house.”

  “Speaking of lunatic, go back to the part where you checked my registration.”

  He unfastened the buttons on his sleeves and rolled up the material. “It seemed like the quickest way to get the address and not raise suspicion, but the point is that I shouldn’t have been able to find your home address so easily.”

  She had no idea how he managed to deliver a lecture and a striptease at the same time and be so damn hot doing both. “Now you sound grumpy.”

  “I wonder why.” In one step he was in front of her with his hands low on her hips. “Do you always open the door wearing that kind of outfit?”

  At this touch, the tee stretched across her breasts and moved up even higher. That left her bare thighs pressing against those dress pants.

  Her concentration took a nosedive along with her breathing. Keeping up the mundane conversation and trying to state her case grew more difficult with every piece of clothing he peeled off.

  “I checked the peephole first,” she said, hoping the sentence made sense.

  “Smart.”

  She rubbed her finger over the strip of skin peeking out from under his shirt. “I am, you know.”

  “Book smart and street smart.” He nuzzled his nose against her hair. “A deadly sexy combination.”

  This guy was about to get very lucky. “You figured that out?”

  “I read people for a living.” His palms slid down to her ass and tugged her in until his erection fit in the snug notch between her legs. “I have one more question.”

  Anything. “Yes?”

  “How long will it take to get that shirt off?” He trailed a line of kisses across her cheek to her mouth. He sucked her top lip between his own then whispered. “Technically, it is tomorrow.”

  Despite the warm night, goose bumps spread down her legs and a shiver ran through her. “You really are a lawyer. Working all the angles.”

  He licked her lips. “Do you want me to leave?”

  She would wrap her body around his to stop that if she had to. “No.”

  “Then the day of the week doesn’t really matter.” He walked backward, bringing them closer to the bed.

  “We might be more comfortable at your place.” Doubt nibbled at the edge of her mind. Between his privileged upbringing and all those expensive private schools, she doubted he’d ever been in a studio. “There’s not a lot of room here.”

  “There’s a bed.”

  Well, he couldn’t be clearer than that. “Then why aren’t we in it?”

  One of his hands slipped under the elastic band of her panties and slid over bare skin. “Kyra, first we need—”

  “Is this the ‘you’re young and this is just sex’ speech? Because you can save it. I understand the parameters.” He should focus on touching her, like the way he was kneading her ass and rubbing his lower half against hers.

  “I was actually checking to make sure you were on the pill and understood condoms were mandatory, which is what people having sex talk about before they get naked.”

  Another shot at her age. She’d assumed him being here meant he was over that. Apparently not. “Yes to both, or was that your way of asking me if I’m a virgin? Because I’m not. Sorry if that disappoints you.”

  For a few years when she was too young to handle it or even understand why she made the decisions she did, she used sex as a way of expressing her power. She couldn’t control her father or her life. She wanted college and he threatened to stop her from going. Running through a few faceless boys, none of them memorable and all of them long gone, qualified as acting out. The boys didn’t talk out of fear of her father. She hid her choices because her father wouldn’t spare her his wrath if he found out.

  Then he went to prison and that proved to be her ticket out. A few months in she realized letting some hyperventilating fast-talker in her pants didn’t work for her. Making the choice based on what she wanted and needed amounted to real empowerment. She deserved better and made sure anyone who touched her passed her mental test from then on.

  Bast cleared his throat as his hands tightened on her. “Not even a little. Maybe you couldn’t tell but I’m not into naïve ingénues.”

  “Really? That’s new. I assume all men want the virgin type. Something about being the first to go there seemed to make the guys in undergrad pretty damn thrilled.” It had been a constant topic of gossip, especially in the first two years, and she’d heard similar comments while working. Maybe graduate school would be better.

  “Then I’ll assume you’ve been with idiot boys who don’t appreciate how fucking great it is when a woman enjoys sex, knows what makes her feel good and goes after it.”

  “You do?”

  “I am not a boy, Kyra.” Before she could say anything, he leveled a dark look at her. “But let’s go back to your topic.”

  “Which was?”

  His other hand cupped her breast through the thin cotton shirt. “I don’t want there to be any confusion. This is about sex. Between us and only for us. Hot, sweaty, want-more sex. That’s it. That’s what I can give you.”

  The wor
ds sounded final and somewhere inside she flinched. “Are you worried I’ll lose my mind and propose?”

  “You’ll only do that if you want this to end.”

  Well, that was final. “I got it.”

  “I’m not sure what ‘this’ is yet, in terms of how long it will last, but it’s about sex. I like you and I definitely want you, but this is supposed to be private and for fun. When it stops working for one or both of us, it ends and we leave like grown-ups.”

  For a second his attitude chilled her. The this-is-not-arelationship warning rang in her ears. She waited for him to whip out a contract and make her sign it. But then she searched that gaze and remembered all the rumors floating around town thanks to his ex-wife. Maybe the guy had a reason to be cautious.

  “We agree, Bast.” Except that he kept forgetting her one mandate. “So long as you understand that while we’re together I’m not sharing you.”

  “Yes, I got that requirement loud and clear.” His fingers traveled over her breasts, lingering and learning. “Just the two of us.”

  The last hurdle fell. She could almost hear it crash and shatter.

  “I’m a big girl, Bast. I know what I want.” His hands all over her as he pushed deep inside, for a start. “You.”

  As if he heard her thoughts, he leaned in and kissed her as his thumb flicked over her nipple. Slowly, with few words and insistent touches, he primed her body for what was to come.

  Then he lifted his head and stared down at her. “Take off the shirt.”

  NINE

  As soon as the edge of Kyra’s T-shirt slipped over her breasts, Bast had them in his hands again. The smooth skin rubbed against his palms. He had no idea about her level of experience, but he didn’t intend to hold back. Not when he’d been aching to do this for longer than he should admit. She may have come to him with a proposition but that didn’t mean he hadn’t noticed her before that.

  He bent forward and took her stiff nipple in his mouth. Sucking and licking, he enjoyed one then the other. He pressed them together and watched them plump over his palms, the whole time thinking how good it was going to be to fuck them. Not now, but soon.

  There were so many things he wanted to do with her. So many positions. Last night he’d dreamed about her on her hands and knees, and now he could live it.

  First thing after lifting his head, he saw her flushed face. Whatever she’d been thinking and feeling must have been good. She had her arms around him and her hands gripping his shoulders. She probably hoped he’d go slow, give her time to ease in because . . .

  She jumped on him, almost knocking him backward. He held on to his balance as her arms tightened around his neck and those killer legs wrapped around his upper thighs. One minute she stood there looking stunned and the next she hugged him so close not a breath of air could pass between them.

  She pressed every part of her body against his and did not stay still for one second. No, she angled her hips and rubbed up and down. Forget all the fears about her wanting him as a novelty. This was the knowing touch of a woman who craved something.

  And the kiss. The force of it ricocheted through him. Hot and demanding, her lips crossed over his until his breath hammered in his ears. After searing him, practically marking him, she nibbled at the corner of his mouth then swept her tongue inside to tangle with his. Fingers speared through his hair and massaged his neck.

  It was a full-body assault and he loved every minute of it.

  This woman knew how to kiss and lure and seduce. She also knew what she wanted—happily, him—and went after it. That sexual awareness was so fucking hot his head almost blew off.

  He wasn’t lying when he said he didn’t have any interest in virgins or ingénues. Some other guy could take those on. He wanted a woman who refused to accept shame about what she wanted. He knew from experience if a woman felt comfortable with her body and needs the sex threw sparks.

  She tugged at the edges of his shirt and another button gave way under the pressure. “You have too much clothing on.”

  He’d been thinking the exact same thing. All he wanted to wear was a condom and her but getting there was the issue. “I have to let go of you to take things off and right now I don’t want to.”

  The smile she shot him could power a small city. “Let me help.”

  Before he could say anything her legs loosened and her body slid down his. She didn’t jump off or pull away. No, she glided down, letting the friction burn through them and every hard part of him press against her soft ones.

  When his sanity returned, she had his shirt unbuttoned and was sitting on the bed in front of him with her fingers on his belt. Those fingers moved in a blur as she got the zipper down and shoved the pants to the top of his legs.

  No subtle disrobing here. This was a taking.

  He knew right then, despite the years yawning between them, he should have made a move on her long ago. Still, tonight was supposed to be about getting to know her, exploring her body.

  “Wait, I . . .” He reached to pull her up but stopped when she freed his cock from his boxer briefs and slid her hand over him. “Okay, yeah, that works.”

  “Mmm.” She lowered her head and licked the tip.

  Then the head disappeared in her sweet mouth. She pumped him. Swallowed him. Those lips suckled him as her other hand massaged his balls. What little doubt he had over starting this eased away and a different type of tension settled in.

  His muscles grew heavy and his hips started driving toward her without any message from his brain. His body shifted into freefall. The feel of a mouth on his cock, all hot and tight, ranked as one of his favorite things, and hers wiped out the memory of others.

  Having her peek up at him as he ran his fingers through her hair to hold her head steady almost did him in. “I love looking down and seeing your face. Watching your hands over me and your tongue lick my—”

  “Yes.” She took him to the back of her throat, right down to the base.

  He almost lost it right there. “Sweet Jesus.”

  She let his cock fall almost away from her lips before licking the head again. “Get used to this feeling.”

  A groan rumbled in his chest but he fought to bury it. “This is going to be so fucking good.”

  “I’ve waited long enough.”

  He brushed the hair away from her face and watched his cock disappear in her sweet mouth again. “We’ve been on fast-forward since you made your move at the club.”

  “I’ve watched you for so much longer. Work and hang out with Jarrett. Listened to you laugh.” She slid her hand up his length. “But seeing you up close is new.”

  “That’s because I don’t take my cock out in public.”

  “You should.” Her tongue swirled over his head. “It’s impressive.”

  The mix of her hands and mouth had need slamming through his body. He had to get inside her before his control finally snapped. “You won’t think so when I come in your mouth before I even get my shirt off.”

  “Wrong.”

  Her laughter vibrated against him and the blood drained from his brain. “Next time, because the idea of you deep-throating me and sucking me dry is the fantasy that won’t leave my head until it’s done. And then we’ll practice it many more times after that.”

  She eased back and looked up at him but her hand kept working, sliding up and down, growing faster with each pass. “You’re talking about the future but what’s going to happen this time?”

  “Lie back.” He didn’t give her a choice. With a nudge he pushed her back until she eased down on the mattress. “When we’re having sex, I’m in charge.”

  “What if I want to take the lead?” She threw her arms over her head.

  The way her round breasts jiggled made him rip his shirt off and throw it on the floor. The pants and underwear followed with his opened belt jangling as t
hey dropped.

  “You can suck me off or climb on top of me any time but right now I want something else.” He held his firm cock in his hand as he put a knee on the bed between her legs. He barely remembered to slip the glasses off and drop them on the closest table.

  She frowned. “Hey, I like those.”

  “With what I plan to do to you, we’ll crush them.”

  “The condoms are in the top drawer.” She nodded in the direction of the chest behind him.

  Not wanting to waste time, he practically sprinted to the piece of furniture and yanked the drawer out. Shoving piles of soft lacy panties he vowed to investigate later to one side, he found the box. He didn’t know how many packets he grabbed but he threw them, letting them scatter across the bed.

  She balanced up on her elbows and stared at him. “Impatient?”

  “You have no idea.”

  She let her legs fall open. “I think I do.”

  All that stood between him and what he wanted was a thin strip of silk. It didn’t matter because with the adrenaline pumping through him he could rip steel.

  On his knees, he crawled back up her body and stopped between her legs. Pushing them wider, he opened her up to his touch. A fingertip traced the elastic of her panties. Slid over the material, right at the heart of her. Back and forth until her scent hit the air and a telltale dampness singed his fingers.

  When her hips rose off the bed, he knew she needed more. “Now who’s impatient?”

  “Sebastian, please.”

  Saying his full name . . . it was so hot his brain shut off and his body took over.

  Sliding down until his elbows rested by her inner thighs, he lowered his head and licked a trail where his finger just tested. Grabbing the material in his teeth, he tugged it to the side and slid his tongue inside her.

  His head ached from the pull of his hair through her fingers. The more he licked, the more she thrashed. And when he found her clit and sucked on it, her thighs tightened against his shoulders.

  “More.” Her body clamped down as if trying to drag him deeper inside.