What was the fucking point? I didn’t want Rachael back anymore, but I didn’t want anyone else either. I didn’t ever want to expose myself to that kind of hurt again. The first time I’d been a naïve fool walking a tight wire, ignorant of how far there was to fall. No woman had ever broken me, so I’d assumed I couldn’t be broken. I’d thought I was invincible and then Rachael had proven I wasn’t.
Not even close.
Now, two years later, I still haven’t had the guts to get anything but my dick involved in an intimate relationship, and Rachael was just a woman with a weakness for assholes. She wasn’t cruel or manipulative and she sure as hell never would have alluded to our sexual history in front of a woman I was presently dating.
Penny has every right to be having a come apart. And though I might not be the person she’s angriest with, she wasn’t talking pure nonsense, either.
“I’m sorry.” I work the words in between kisses as I release her wrists, moving my hands to cup her breasts through her dress, squeezing each phenomenal handful. “You’re right, I was a jackass. You made me take a hard look at myself last night and I didn’t like it, so I took it out on you this morning.”
“I don’t want to talk.” Her breath comes fast as she fumbles with the buttons of my shirt. “I want you naked and inside me. Right now.”
“We still don’t have condoms,” I remind her even as I help her finish the buttons and shrug my shirt off my shoulders.
“I’m on the pill. I didn’t want to risk it before, but as long as you swear you’re clean.” She works frantically at my belt, fingers brushing against where I’m marble hard, diamond hard, titanium hard. The sexual tension we stoked into a roaring fire in the train car combines with the wild, unsettled feeling swirling through my chest to make it absolutely imperative that I get inside of Penny.
But something about this doesn’t feel right.
“I was tested last month,” I assure her. “And I haven’t had sex without a condom in years, but—”
“No buts.” She grabs the hem of her dress, squirming on the floor until she’s able to pull it over her head and toss it aside. “Just fuck me, Bash. Fuck me right now.”
And then she’s lying beneath me in nothing but that black lace bra and her barely there silk panties, reaching for me, and I forget everything but how much I want her. Need her. Need to remind her that the world is as full of pleasure as it is pain.
My lips slam back onto hers. I kiss her with all the hunger roaring inside of me as I slip my hand down the front of her panties, groaning when I feel how ready she is. She’s hot and lifting into the fingers I stroke inside her with an abandon that makes my cock throb with its own painful heartbeat.
“Now,” she pants against my mouth as she hooks her toes in the top of my boxer briefs and pushes them down over my ass, freeing my swollen length. “Now, Bash. Now!”
“Wait.” I pull my hand from between her legs, not wanting our first time together to be on the floor with her bra and panties still on and my jeans around my knees.
But then her hand is between our bodies, wrapping around my dick, and rational thought becomes a slippery thing to hold onto. She yanks the crotch of her panties to one side and fits the head of my cock to where she’s so wet. Suddenly I’m skin to skin with a woman for the first time in years and it’s Penny, this woman who drives me absolutely out of my mind with lust, and control is a thing of the past.
With a groan of surrender, I thrust forward, sinking into her inch by inch and God she feels so good. So perfect. She’s insanely tight, her body pressing in on my cock from all sides, gripping me so fiercely I know I’m going to have to pull it together and slow the hell down or I’m going to go in ten seconds like a fucking teenager.
“Yes,” she hisses, her nails digging into my shoulders. “More. I want more. Give me all of you.” Her heels dig into my ass, pulling me closer, deeper until I’m buried to the hilt in her pussy and it feels like she’s about to squeeze me in half.
I know I must be hurting her, at least a little, but she clearly doesn’t want this slow and easy. She’s already grinding against me, silently urging me with each shift of her hips to take her, fuck her, ride her until I make her forget all the things she wants to forget.
And suddenly—just like that—I realize what’s wrong.
“Wait.” Pinning her hips to the floor with one hand I pull away to look down at her, but her eyes are closed. “Look at me, Penny.”
“Please, don’t stop,” she begs, her eyes squeezing tighter together. “Please don’t. Please.”
“I’m not going to stop, but I need you to look at me,” I say, sweat breaking out between my shoulder blades and the heavy, aching feeling in my balls edging closer to pain than pleasure. It’s taking all my will power not to move, not to thrust into her again and again until we both explode, but I’m not going to fuck her like this. “Please, buttercup, look at me. Open those pretty eyes.”
Her lips press into a thin line and the furrow between her brows deepens, but finally, after another long, silent, aching moment her lashes sweep open. Her gaze meets mine, pulling me into the center of her storm, into the middle of the hurt and the regret and the fear that nothing is ever going to make it all go away. It’s a sad, scary place, but I know we don’t have to stay there, not if she’ll let me take her somewhere better.
“From now on, I don’t want you to think of anything but me.” My free hand skims from her waist to mold to her ribs, silently letting her know that I’ve got her. “This isn’t about forgetting something or someone else. This is about learning how it’s going to be with us.”
Her breath rushes out. “I-I don’t know if I can,” she whispers, swallowing hard.
“Yes, you can, just keep your eyes on me.” I slide her bra strap down her shoulder, baring one of her breasts, holding her gaze as I find her tight nipple and roll it gently between my fingers. “Do you know how much I love your breasts?”
Tongue slipping out to dampen her lips, she shakes her head slightly from side to side.
“I am obsessed with them. They’re the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen.” I bring my thumb to my mouth and sweep my tongue across it, loving the hunger that flickers in her eyes as I return my newly slick fingers to her nipple, upping my pressure. “From the moment I laid eyes on you, I wanted to touch you like this. I took one look at you and knew you were the kind of woman who was going to bring me to my knees.”
“Liar,” she says, but the furrow between her brows has vanished and I can tell her attention is shifting.
“I’m not a liar.” Slowly, deliberately, I bare her other breast and begin to give her other nipple the same attention. “I would beg, borrow, or steal to get these in my mouth again and as soon as I make you come the first time, it’s going to be your turn on top. I want to feel you grinding on my cock while I lick and suck and bite you, right here.” I pinch her nipple, making her breath catch, before resuming my slow, firm circles. “I want you to ride me while I worship your breasts until you come so hard you can’t hold yourself up and then I’ll have my turn on top again. Because I want you so much, I know I won’t ever want to stop.”
“You’re still good at that,” she breathes, hips rolling against mine.
“You like dirty talk?” I force myself to remain motionless, even though my spine is buzzing with an overload of sensation and my cock is pulsing angrily inside her, desperate to move.
“When you do it.” Her hands smooth around my waist to cup my ass as her movements grow increasingly urgent. “You give really good dirty talk.”
“It’s just the truth.” I match the circles of her hips, keeping my cock buried deep as I nudge my pubic bone against her clit, knowing I could become addicted to the way her eyes melt as she begins to unravel. “I’m crazy for your body and your mind and I can’t wait to watch you come. Are you going to come for me again, Penny? Are you going to come on my cock?”
“Yes,” she gasps, lashes fluttering. “Yes!”
Her lips part and a sexy as hell gasp-cry-whimper escapes from her pretty mouth as she comes, but her eyes stay wide open. And this time, as I hold her gaze, fighting not to lose control as her pussy grips me with an exquisite tightness that is by far the best thing that has ever happened to my cock, there is no sadness in her eyes. There is only wonder and something I don’t have a name for, but that knocks me off my feet, making me helpless to look away.
And as I begin to thrust inside her, taking her hard and fast while she wraps her arms around my neck and pulls me down for a kiss that destroys me, there is nothing but her.
“Oh God,” she mumbles against my lips, kissing me with the words. “It’s so good, so perfect. Don’t ever stop, don’t ever, ever stop.”
I groan against her mouth as I slide my hands beneath her ass, cupping her in my palms, tilting her hips until we click into that perfect-for-us-position and, holy shit, it’s heaven. It’s paradise. It’s the best place I’ve ever been. She’s right, this is perfect, and I don’t ever want to stop.
But when she arches in my arms, her breasts pressing tight to my chest as she comes again, I can’t hold on another second. I come like a rocket shooting into orbit, a low, pained sound rumbling through my chest as pleasure floods through me. I’m drowning in bliss, drowning in her, in Penny who—when it’s over and we’re lying fused together, our breath still coming fast—wraps her arms and legs around me and holds on tight, silently letting me know that she’s got me.
As soon as I regain motor function, I roll over, pulling her on top of me, my softening cock still inside her pussy, and stroke her from neck to ass with my still-trembling hand as our heartbeats begin to slow.
Neither of us speaks, but she presses a sweet kiss to the center of my chest and I mold my hands to her spectacular ass with a reverence usually reserved for holy objects and it becomes clear that whatever we’re doing together it’s going to be a lot more intense than I expected it to be.
I’m still digesting that and trying to figure out whether to be disturbed by it when she props herself up on her arms and says in a blissed out voice, “And now we should go buy wine and a picnic basket from the winery, then come back here, get tipsy, and do that four or five more times. Maybe six.”
“Hell, yes, we should.” Screw getting disturbed. That sounds like the best night I’ve had in years. “I think we can manage six. It’s still early and, not to brag, but the Incredible Bulk has the recovery skills of an eighteen-year-old.”
“Yeah, about him…” She smiles, her eyes darkening as she shifts her hips, reminding me that I’m still balls deep in her pussy. As if I could forget. “Please tell him I’m sorry I mocked him. He absolutely deserves his title. He’s incredible.”
“You can tell him yourself,” I say, squeezing her ass. “Maybe in the shower after we eat?”
“Sounds perfect,” she says, smile fading as she adds, “I’m sorry about the other, too. I’ve never shoved someone before. Not in my entire life.”
“I’ll survive.” I brush her hair away from her face. “You’re half my size, buttercup. You couldn’t hurt me if you were really trying. And you weren’t.”
“I know, but I still feel terrible about it.”
“Don’t.” I cradle her jaw in my hands and run my thumb over her kiss-swollen lips. “I don’t want you to feel terrible. In fact, I’m willing to do just about anything it takes to keep you looking just like this.”
“Freshly bedded?” she asks, lips quirking up on one side.
“Happy.” I slide my fingers into her hair and make a light fist. “And freshly bedded. Orgasms look good on you.”
She laughs, her lashes sweeping down. “Well, thank you. They feel pretty good, too.”
“I can’t wait to give you more. To feel you go on my cock, my hand, to taste you in my mouth again…”
Her gaze lifts from my chest to my face, a shocked, but delighted look in her big brown eyes. “You can’t be. Not already.”
“I told you I wanted you on top.” I flex my ass, thrusting my rapidly thickening cock between her legs. “Here’s what going to happen: you’re going to roll away just long enough for me to get my jeans off and for you to toss those panties on the floor and then you’re going to get back on my cock, and your tits are going to be mine.”
Breath already coming faster, she arches one brow. “Are you always this bossy?”
I reach back, popping the close of her bra. “No,” I find myself confessing. “Not always. Sometimes it’s better if no one’s in control. If it’s just a wild, sweaty, wonderful free for all. Don’t you think?”
“I think I…” She swallows, blinking as she braces her hands on my chest. “Yes, I do. And I think I’m glad you’re here.” Her tongue slips out to dampen her lips. “Thank you for being my friend.”
“My pleasure,” I say, as I slide her bra down her arms. “Truly. Every minute.”
And then I guide her down until her breasts are even with my mouth and set about proving it, one kiss at a time.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
The next fifteen hours pass in the best possible way. I have Penny on the bed, in the shower—where she bestows upon the Incredible Bulk a blow job he won’t soon forget—on the couch, and then again on the bed before we both pass out from orgasm-induced exhaustion.
It’s been a long time since I’ve shared a bed with a woman and I don’t expect to sleep well, but I’m out like a light the second my head hits the pillow and don’t wake until the sun is shining through the curtains. By then, Penny’s hand is already wrapped around my cock, coaxing a case of morning wood into something more serious.
This time I spread her out on her belly and ease into her from behind, sliding my hand beneath her hips, finding her clit and teasing it with my fingers until she comes so many times she’s begging me to stop, to never stop, to keep fucking her until her bones melt through her skin.
“That sounds painful,” I breathe, pressing a kiss to her neck.
She groans. “Less teasing, more biting.”
“I live to serve,” I say, trapping the flesh at her shoulder between my teeth and biting down.
“Oh God, yes. Now. Right now! My bones are melting right now!” she cries out, making me laugh.
But soon I’m too busy coming to laugh, my cock milked dry by the sweet, tight heat of her body locking down around mine, taking me back to that flawless place I find every time we come together.
When it’s over, we roll onto our sides and I spoon her close while we catch our breath, pretty sure I could stay in this bed with her all day and be completely happy.
“I think I achieved enlightenment,” she says, making me smile against her neck.
“I told you I’d make you see Jesus.”
She hums. “No, no Jesus. Just light and goodness. Pure goodness, with no thoughts or stress or worries in the way. For a few minutes, I seriously wasn’t thinking anything at all.”
“Are you saying I fucked you stupid?”
“Yes,” she says with a happy sigh before shaking her head. “No, I think simple is a better word. Simple is pretty amazing when you think about it. Something that’s so right it doesn’t inspire any questions. It just is. And it’s good.”
I do think about it and decide I like her snuggly and philosophical. “You may be right, but I would prefer a different adjective.”
“Is that right?” She rolls over, resting her cheek on the pillow next to mine, a grin curving her lips. “Good isn’t good enough for you, Mr. Prince?”
“Not nearly good enough. Not from where I’m sitting.” I brush a wavy lock of hair from her flushed face. “You’re much better than good, Miss Pickett.”
“You too,” she says, leaning in to press a kiss to my cheek. “I’m starving. What about you?”
“Famished. I’ll go se
e if they’ve delivered breakfast and start coffee.”
“Perfect. I’ll grab a quick shower and be right out.” She rolls out of bed with another happy sigh and floats into the bathroom. I watch her go, admiring the heart-shaped curve of her ass before slipping from between the sheets and into a pair of track pants and a tee shirt.
I head out to the front porch to fetch the basket of breakfast foods included with our stay, and by the time Penny emerges in a fluffy white robe, I have coffee made and poured. We take our mugs and plates filled with fresh fruit and homemade blueberry muffins to the sunny back porch where the spring morning is warm enough to hint at the summer around the corner and watch the squirrels go crazy while we eat.
It’s a simple thing—shared food in the sun with rodent entertainment—but I can’t remember the last time I felt so content.
The contentment lasts until Penny reminds me that the simplicity isn’t going to last forever. “I’ve been thinking about round two with Phillip.” She props her bare feet on the top of the railing enclosing the back deck, pops a raspberry between her lips, and chews thoughtfully. “I definitely have to up my game.”
“You do,” I agree, “but I’m going to up my game, too. As soon as we’re finished eating, I’m going to run a background check on the ass goblin. If we get lucky, the basic search will turn up something, if not I should have time to—”
“No, no background check.” Penny shakes her head, her attention trained on the squirrels bouncing back and forth between the trees. “I appreciate the thought, but I don’t want to take it there. I don’t want to ruin Phillip. And if I did, I wouldn’t need the background check. I could just leak the details of our past relationship to the press and let the gossip machine run wild.”
My eyebrows arch. “You mean they don’t know that you and Phillip were together before he and your mother were together? What about the tabloids? I thought you said they covered the story when you nearly drowned.”
She nods. “They did, but it was just a star’s kid goes wild piece. Nothing about Phillip and me. Back when we dated the first time, we spent most of our time hanging out at my house. Not many people at school knew about it and the second time we dated it was only for a few weeks. As long as Phillip and I both keep our mouths shut, chances are the truth will never come out.”
1001 Dark Nights: Bundle Nine Page 80
